Heliopolis University is a non-profit university in Egypt with the mission of sustainable development. In Fall 2018, Heliopolis University had around 1,700 students in five faculties.
Background/Aims Patient education plays an important role in healthcare. The aim of this study was to compare the self-reported patient education practices and perceptions of experienced and novice Egyptian physiotherapists and their perceived barriers to the effective use of patient education. Methods A previously designed and published patient education questionnaire was emailed to approximately 500 prospective participants through direct email contact to personal email addresses or via the Egyptian Physical Therapy Association member's database. Results Egyptian physiotherapists use a range of patient education activities with high levels of perceived importance. Giving information about the patient's condition or diagnosis was the patient education activity that both experienced and novice participants were using. The most frequent rated items by both groups were `one-to-one discussion' (90.3% for experienced and 86.8% for novice therapists) and `physical demonstration'. (86.1% for experienced and 82.1% for novice therapists). The novice group had a significantly higher rating of agreement than the experienced group relating to seven of the ten barriers to effective patient education use including the cognitive status (P=0.026), Patient assuming a passive role (P=0.003), attitude (P=0.003) and knowledge or literacy of the patient (P=0.010). Conclusions The results indicate that Egyptian physiotherapists use a wide range of patient education activities, delivery methods and evaluation approaches, with experienced therapists self-reporting a higher use of patient-centred education activities. Implications for practice Physiotherapy training should emphasise patient education as a critical physiotherapy skill, and focus on how to individualise patient education within different settings. Training should also focus on how students and novice therapists can identify and manage barriers to effective patient education, especially where patient factors may influence practice and thus patient outcomes.
Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) are susceptible to deterioration and loss of quality during storage. In this study, the effects of cold plasma (CP) treatment on oyster mushrooms were investigated and the volatile flavor substances were analyzed by GC-MS. The results showed that CP treatment could delay browning and texture changes during storage of oyster mushrooms, enhance the characteristic flavor, and thus improve the quality. CP treatment can inhibit respiration while maintaining the basic physiological metabolic activity of oyster mushrooms, thus reducing nutritional loss and quality deterioration. In addition, CP treatment reduced the total colony count of oyster mushrooms by approximately 0.7 lg CFU/mL and delayed the increase in total colony count and total fungal count during storage. High throughput sequencing results showed that CP treatment reduced the abundance of pathogenic fungi. Therefore, cold plasma could serve as a potential preservation technology extending the post-harvest shelf life of edible mushrooms.
BackgroundSocial isolation (SI) is a long-standing experimental paradigm that models schizophrenia-like behavioural and neurobiological changes caused by the action of oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, apoptosis, and neurotransmitter imbalance. The scope of this paper was to comparatively assess the effectiveness of rutin, sodium selenite (Na2SeO3), and rutin-conjugated selenium nanoparticles (RUT-SeNPs) to determine their neuroprotective activity using a rat model of neurobehavioral impairment following SI.MethodsIn silico analysis of Rutin activity including in silico ADMET and toxicity, and molecular docking. Forty-two healthy male albino rats were allocated equally in to six groups; Control group, Social isolation group (SI), SI treated with Olanzapine (SI&OLA), SI treated with Rutin group (SI&RUT), SI treated with the sodium selenite group (SI&Na2SeO3), and SI treated with Se nanoparticles biosynthesized using the Rutin group (SI&RUT-SeNPs). All groups undergone biochemical analysis including behavioral tests, assessment of neural function, oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis, histopathological analysis, immunohistochemistry, and gene expression.ResultsSI induction produced significant behavioral, biochemical, neurochemical, and structural impairments compared with controls (P < 0.05). SI rats showed marked reductions in locomotion, sucrose preference, social interaction, antioxidant capacity (Nrf2, SOD, CAT, GSH), neurotransmitters (serotonin, dopamine, GABA, glycine), and BDNF, alongside significant increases in oxidative stress markers (8-OHdG, MDA, NO), inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, NF-κB), apoptotic mediators (Bax and Caspase-3), GFAP, and histological degeneration (P < 0.05). Across all assessments, RUT-SeNPs produced the strongest and statistically significant recovery, yielding values comparable to control and significantly superior to SI, SI&OLA, and SI&RUT groups (P < 0.05). RUT-SeNPs normalized behavioral outcomes, antioxidant status, cytokine levels, apoptotic markers, neurotransmitters, BDNF/GFAP balance, and cortical histoarchitecture.ConclusionRutin and sodium selenite provided significantly protective effects across behavioral, biochemical, and neurochemical parameters. Among all treatments, RUT-SeNPs produced markedly attenuated, restoring nearly all measured markers including redox balance, cytokines, apoptosis regulators, neurotransmitters, BDNF/GFAP levels, and cortical histology to values comparable to controls.
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and nanomedicine has initiated a revolutionary phase in pharmaceutical research, facilitating progress in targeted drug delivery, controlled release, and personalized therapeutics. This review explores how AI-driven methods are integrated with nanocarrier systems such as liposomes, polymeric nanoparticles, and dendrimers. By harnessing high-dimensional datasets and predictive modeling, advanced techniques like deep learning, reinforcement learning, and graph neural networks have greatly enhanced pharmacokinetic predictions. As a result, dose-response forecasts have become more accurate, development timelines have shortened, and the experimental workload has been reduced. These technologies confront challenges in data standardization, algorithmic transparency, and regulatory adherence. While agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration and European Medicines Agency continue to update their guidelines, there remains an urgent need for a unified, flexible framework that can keep pace with rapid technological progress. This article calls for stronger cross-disciplinary cooperation among computer scientists, pharmaceutical researchers, and regulatory experts to address these challenges and fully harness AI-Enabled Nanomedicine for transforming personalized drug development.
BackgroundHuntington’s disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder caused by CAG repeat expansion in the huntingtin gene, leading to progressive neuronal dysfunction and neurodegeneration. Although classically defined as a brain-restricted disorder marked by striatal and cortical degeneration, increasing evidence suggests HD as a multisystem disease involving both central and peripheral pathological alterations.ObjectiveThis review aims to provide an integrated overview of neuronal and non-neuronal mechanisms underlying HD, focusing on systemic alterations that influence disease onset, progression, and clinical variability. This review also aims to connect neuropharmacology with pharmaceutical formulation strategies, particularly emphasizing the therapeutic and drug-delivery challenges and nanotechnology-based solutions.MethodsA structured literature review was conducted using databases including PubMed, EMBASE, and Scopus. Using the appropriate keywords, original articles, clinical studies, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and high-quality reviews were selected based on their relevance to HD pathophysiology and therapeutic strategies.ResultsHD manifests with motor, cognitive, and psychiatric disturbances; however, this review highlights that peripheral immune activation, gut microbiota dysbiosis, and multiorgan pathology are not merely secondary features but interact with neural circuits, contributing to disease heterogeneity and progression. Current therapeutic approaches are largely symptomatic, achieving minimal effectiveness in disease modification due to challenges such as poor blood–brain barrier penetration, limited target selectivity, and inter-individual variability. New strategies, such as nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems, biologics, and gene editing tools, offer advantages and support a deeper understanding of therapeutic limitations and disease mechanisms, yet their translational applicability remains constrained by limited clinical validation, safety concerns, and scalability problems.ConclusionReconceptualizing HD as a multisystem disorder provides a more comprehensive framework for therapeutic development. Integrating central and peripheral disease mechanisms with advances in targeted drug delivery and patient stratification approaches, such as sex differences, hormonal influences, and environmental factors, is essential for translational progress toward personalized therapeutic approaches. Future research should prioritize interdisciplinary approaches to bridge the gap between mechanistic discoveries and effective disease-modifying interventions.
