An-Najah National University

Adham Abu Taha

 

 
  • Thursday, December 8, 2011
  • Antibiotic Resistance of Bacterial Strains Isolated from Patients with Community-Acquired Urinary Tract Infections: an Exploratory Study in Palestine.
  • Published at:Curr Clin Pharmacol
  • Background and Objectives: No studies about resistance of bacteria isolated from patients with community-acquired urinary tract infections (CA-UTI) or local guidelines for antibiotic use in these infections have been published or established in the West Bank, Palestine. The objectives of this study were to determine the (1) type and frequency of isolated bacteria and (2) their resistance to commonly used antibiotics. Methods: A cross sectional study on community urinary isolates was carried out in Nablus, Palestine between November 2009 and April 2010. A convenience sampling method was used for collection of specimens. Results: A total of 375 specimens were collected from 306 (81.6%) females and 69 (18.4%) males. Three hundred and thirty nine (90.4%) of isolated uropathogens were Gram-negative bacteria, of which 243 (71.7%) were Escherichia coli. Thirty six (9.6 %) of the total isolates were Gram-positive bacteria, of which 21 (58.3%) were Staphylococcus saprophyticus. High resistance rates were recorded for
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  • Friday, July 15, 2011
  • Sleep habits and sleep problems among Palestinian students.
  • Published at:Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health
  • Abstract ABSTRACT: Aim: The aim of this study was to describe sleep habits and sleep problems in a population of undergraduates in Palestine. Association between self-reported sleep quality and self-reported academic achievement was also investigated.
    METHODS: Sleep habits and problems were investigated using a convenience sample of students from An-Najah National University, Palestine. The study was carried out during spring semester, 2009. A self-administered questionnaire developed based on The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV criteria and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index was used.
    RESULTS: 400 students with a mean age of 20.2 +/- 1.3 were studied. Reported mean duration of night sleep in the study sample was 6.4 +/- 1.1 hours. The majority (58.3%) of students went to bed before midnight and 18% of the total sample woke up before 6 am. Sleep latency of more than one hour was present in 19.3% of the students. Two thirds (64.8%) of the students reported having at least
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  • Thursday, March 17, 2011
  • DIABETES MELLITUS TYPE 2 IS NOT A RISK FACTOR FOR AMINOGLYCOSIDE INDUCED RENAL INJURY
  • Published at:Diabetologia Croatica
  • The aim of the study was to investigate the extent and time course of aminoglycoside (AG)-induced serum creatinine elevation in patients with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2). This prospective study included patients with and without DM2 who were administered AG parenterally. The outcome of interest was the extent and time course of serum creatinine elevation suggestive of renal injury during AG therapy. Data were entered and analyzed using a statistical package for social sciences (SPSS 16). Of 94 patients included in the study, there were 42 DM2 and 52 non-DM2 patients. There was no significant between-group difference in initial (P=0.18) and final serum creatinine (P=0.15). Furthermore, no significant difference in serum creatinine elevation was observed between patients with and without DM2 during the course of AG therapy. Eleven (26.2%) of 42 DM2 patients and 13 (25%) of 52 non-DM2 patients had an increase of ?44.2 μmol/L in serum creatinine level during therapy (P=0.89). In DM2 group, a s
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  • Thursday, March 17, 2011
  • Vulnerability of cough syrups marketed in Palestine to microbial
  • Published at:J. Chem. Pharm. Res
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    ABSTRACT
    Microbial contamination of cough syrups can bring clinical hazards as well as physical changes in the product. The objective of the current investigation was to assess and compare the ability of imported and locally manufactured cough syrups to maintain minimum or no microbial growth after being challenged with different types of microbes. The growth of five microorganisms of known quanta of S. aureus, E. coli, P. aeruginosa and C. albicans was compared among five different cough products designated A through E. Two of the products (A and E) were locally manufactured while three (B, C and D) were imported products which contained different preservatives. Both A and E did not indicate the type of preservative used. Normal saline was used as a positive growth control. Growth of microorganisms into syrups was compared by counting the colony forming units (CFUs) from a subculture of inoculated syrups at zero, 3, 6, 24 and 48 hr intervals. 1) at time ze
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  • Sunday, November 1, 2009
  • GENE REGULATION OF α4β2 NICOTINIC RECEPTORS: MICROARRAY ANALYSIS OF NICOTINE-INDUCED α4β2 UP-REGULATION AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY EFFECTS
  • Published at:Journal of Neurochemistry,2009 Nov;111(3):848-58.
  • alpha4beta2 Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors play an important role in the reward pathways for nicotine. We investigated whether receptor up-regulation of alpha4beta2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors involves expression changes for non-receptor genes. In a microarray analysis, 10 muM nicotine altered expression of 41 genes at 0.25, 1, 8 and 24 h in halpha4beta2 SH-EP1 cells. The maximum number of gene changes occurred at 8 h, around the initial increase in (3)[H]-cytisine binding. Quantitative RT-PCR corroborated gene induction of endoplasmic reticulum proteins CRELD2, PDIA6, and HERPUD1, and suppression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1beta and IL-6. Nicotine suppresses IL-1beta and IL-6 expression at least in part by inhibiting NFkappaB activation. Antagonists dihydro-beta-erythroidine and mecamylamine blocked these nicotine-induced changes showing that receptor activation is required. Antagonists alone or in combination with nicotine suppressed CRELD2 message while increasing alpha4beta2 binding. Ad
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PROFILE

Adham Sa\'d Eddin Abu Taha
Pharmacology
 
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