Al Jouf University

A series of new pyrazole/quinoline hybrids 11a-n was constructed and synthesized as prospective antiproliferative agents. The antiproliferative activities of the newly synthesized hybrids were assessed against a panel of four human cancer cells: HT-29, A-549, Panc-1, and MCF-7. Hybrids 11c, 11d, 11h, 11i, and 11k demonstrated remarkable antiproliferative activity, with IC50 ranging from 36 to 61 nM, compared to erlotinib, which had IC50 ranging from 30 to 40 nM. Hybrid 11i was the most potent EGFR inhibitor with an IC50 of 87 nM and exhibited comparable EGFR inhibition to that of erlotinib (IC50 = 80 nM). Molecular docking study results in the EGFR active site agreed with the EGFR inhibitory activity results.

Background and Objectives: Malaria, a mosquito-borne parasitic disease caused by Plasmodium species, remains a public health concern in many tropical and subtropical regions. In Saudi Arabia, sustained control efforts have substantially reduced malaria transmission; however, regional heterogeneity and the growing contribution of imported infections continue to shape national malaria epidemiology. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive national assessment of malaria patterns in Saudi Arabia within a prevention-of-reintroduction framework. Materials and Methods: National malaria surveillance data reported by the Ministry of Health from 2010 to 2024 were analyzed to describe temporal trends in malaria burden and incidence, parasite species distribution, age structure, and seasonality across 20 health regions. Spatial heterogeneity was assessed using regional heatmaps and endemicity mapping. Transmission classification, parasite species, and age distribution were examined nationally and in greater detail for the Aseer and Jazan regions during 2021-2024. Future malaria trends through 2030 were projected using autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) models. Results: Between 2010 and 2024, a total of 52,627 malaria cases were reported nationally, with marked interannual variability and an increase in incidence observed after 2020. Malaria burden was historically concentrated in seven endemic regions and subsequently became largely restricted to Aseer and Jazan. Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax/Plasmodium ovale accounted for the majority of infections, with cases predominantly occurring among individuals aged ≥10 years. From 2021 onward, no indigenous malaria transmission was recorded; introduced cases were uncommon, and most infections were classified as imported. Forecasting analyses indicated stable national and regional malaria trends through 2030. Conclusions: Malaria in Saudi Arabia during 2010-2024 was characterized by pronounced regional heterogeneity and predominantly importation-driven dynamics. These findings underscore the importance of sustained surveillance, targeted interventions in high-burden regions, and continued vigilance to prevent the re-establishment of local transmission.

ABSTRACTCurcuminoids are bioactive polyphenols, mainly extracted from Curcuma longa (turmeric), and have received much attention due to their pleiotropic anticancer properties. Recent evidence suggests that curcumin and analogs prevent the activation of a variety of signaling pathways, including the MAPK, PI3K/Akt, and NF‐kB pathways, resulting in the induction of apoptosis, prevention of proliferation, and suppression. In addition to these processes, curcumin has been shown to enhance the efficacy of the conventional anti‐cancer modalities such as radiation and chemotherapy. By suppressing the expression of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which are enzymes that break down the extracellular matrix and promote cancer cell invasion and metastasis, curcumin also demonstrates anti‐metastatic qualities. Inflammation and the advancement of cancer are linked to the NF‐κB signaling pathways, which are also suppressed by curcuminoids. Along with these processes, curcumin has demonstrated the ability to improve the effectiveness of traditional cancer treatments, including radiation and chemotherapy. It increases the sensitivity of cancer cells to various therapies, which enhances the therapeutic results. However, curcumin's low bioavailability limits its therapeutic use. Its anticancer potency may be increased, and this restriction may be overcome due to recent developments in drug delivery technologies, such as curcumin‐loaded nanoparticles. Since they can target several different molecular pathways and improve the effectiveness of current treatments, curcuminoids are a promising family of chemicals for the prevention and treatment of cancer.

Background: Dental disorders, such as cavities, periodontal disease, and periapical infections, remain major global health issues, often resulting in pain, tooth loss, and systemic complications if not identified early. Traditional diagnostic methods rely heavily on visual inspection and manual interpretation of panoramic X-ray images by dental professionals, making them time-consuming, subjective, and less accessible in resource-limited settings. Objectives: Accurate and timely diagnosis is vital for effective treatment and prevention of disease progression, reducing healthcare costs and patient discomfort. Recent advances in deep learning (DL) have demonstrated remarkable potential to automate and improve the precision of dental diagnostics by objectively analyzing panoramic, periapical, and bitewing X-rays. Methods: In this research, a hybrid feature-fusion framework is proposed. It integrates handcrafted Histogram of Oriented Gradients (HOG) features with deep representations from DenseNet-201 and the Shifted Window (Swin) Transformer models. Sequential dependencies among the fused features were learned utilizing the Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) classifier. The framework was evaluated on the Dental Radiography Analysis and Diagnosis (DRAD) dataset following preprocessing steps, including resizing, normalization, Contrast Limited Adaptive Histogram Equalization (CLAHE) enhancement, and image cropping. Results: The proposed LSTM-based hybrid model achieved 96.47% accuracy, 91.76% specificity, 94.92% precision, 91.76% recall, and 93.14% F1-score. Conclusions: The proposed framework offers flexibility, interpretability, and strong empirical performance, making it suitable for various image-based recognition applications and serving as a reproducible framework for future research on hybrid feature fusion and sequence-based classification.

This study reports the sustainable synthesis and thermal, morphological, and structural characterization of multifunctional silver/hydroxyapatite nanocomposite prepared from recycled caprine bone. The organic extract from caprine bone was characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and Ultraviolet–Visible Spectroscopy (UV-Vis). The biogenic hydroxyapatite (CHAP) and its silver composite (Ag@CHAP) were characterized using thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), Raman spectra, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX), and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The photocatalytic activity of Ag@CHAP was quantitatively confirmed through the degradation of Crystal Violet (5 ppm) under sunlight, achieving a high removal efficiency of 99.8% under optimum conditions, demonstrating significant potential for wastewater remediation. Ag@CHAP also demonstrated enhanced antimicrobial activity compared with CHAP and showed broad-spectrum efficacy against clinical human isolates P. aeruginosa ATCC 10145, E. coli ATCC 35218, S. aureus ATCC 25923, and C. albicans (human isolate). The in vitro hemolytic-activity assays revealed that both CHAP and Ag@CHAP had no hemolytic activity after 24 h of red blood cells incubation and effectively reduced lead-induced hemolysis from 86.73% to 39.35% and 49.13%, respectively. These findings confirm CHAP and Ag@CHAP as stable, biocompatible, and high-performance materials with promising applications in the sustainable water-treatment and biomedical fields.

This paper presents an analytical mode-matching framework to examine acoustic wave propagation in a cylindrical waveguide structure featuring a central porous cavity bounded by flexible membrane discs. Unlike conventional models that consider rigid or purely absorptive boundaries, the proposed approach accounts for the dynamic response of membranes and the coupled behavior of air and porous media, enabling accurate representation of fluid-structure interactions. The acoustic field is decomposed into symmetric and anti-symmetric modal components to capture key physical phenomena such as mode conversion, energy dissipation, and complex reflection-transmission mechanisms. Continuity conditions at the interfaces are applied to determine the interaction of wave modes between subdomains, allowing the calculation of reflected, transmitted, and absorbed acoustic powers. Numerical results demonstrate strong reflection and efficient low-frequency absorption, with negligible transmission. Parametric analysis reveals that increasing the length of the porous cavity enhances sound attenuation by intensifying dissipative effects. These findings highlight the effectiveness of the multilayered configuration as a frequency-selective acoustic filter, offering a tunable and practical solution for silencers and noise control in engineering structures.

Coastal settlements worldwide face increasing threats from erosion, and the Monrovia coastline in Liberia is no exception. This study investigates shoreline dynamics along a 20.5 km stretch of Monrovia’s coast, which is characterized by low-lying elevations, gentle slopes, and sandy beaches. Using Landsat satellite imagery (1986–2025), supported by Sentinel-2 MSI and qualitative validation drone data, we analyzed historical shoreline change with remote sensing and GIS techniques. Shorelines were extracted using a band-ratio thresholding method and quantified with the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS 5.0), applying end-point rate (EPR), linear regression rate (LRR), and net shoreline movement (NSM). Exploratory projections for 2036 and 2046 were generated using a Kalman Filter model integrated into DSAS. Results show maximum historical erosion rates of up to 3.8 m/yr and accretion rates of up to 5.9 m/yr, with shoreline retreat reaching 150 m and advance up to 194 m. Erosion hotspots are projected for Hotel Africa, Westpoint, New Kru Town, and the JFK–ELWA corridor, while areas near the St. Paul and Mesurado estuaries are expected to accrete. These findings confirm historical trends and suggest that Monrovia will continue to face significant shoreline change, with implications for natural habitats, infrastructure, land loss, and population displacement.

Background and Objectives: Quality of life (QoL) among healthcare professionals (HCPs) is a critical determinant of workforce performance and patient care. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess QoL and its determinants among HCPs in the Hail region, Saudi Arabia. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, data were collected from 388 HCPs from multiple healthcare facilities using the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. The survey was conducted from August 2025 to October 2025. Convenience sampling was used, and QoL domain scores were calculated according to WHO guidelines. We applied Spearman’s correlation test to assess correlations across domains and logistic regression to identify factors associated with individual and overall QoL. Results: Among the HCPs studied, overall QoL had a median score of 80, while the physical, psychological, social, and environmental domains showed moderate scores with considerable variability. We found a significant positive correlation between the various QoL domains (p = 0.001). Non-Saudi nationals (p = 0.010) and participants with chronic diseases (p = 0.032) reported significantly lower overall QoL. Furthermore, age group, work experience, HCPs category, work setting, nationality, and the presence of chronic disease were significant predictors across multiple QoL domains. Conclusions: The findings highlight the need for targeted workplace and health support interventions to manage the mental and physical health of HCPs, particularly for non-Saudi HCPs and those with chronic conditions, through tailored training, education, and lifestyle-based support programs.