BACKGROUND Few human studies have evaluated the impact of childhood exposure to organochlorine pesticides (OCP) on pubertal development. OBJECTIVE We evaluated associations of serum OCP concentrations [hexachlorobenzene (HCB), β-hexachlorocyclohexane (βHCH), and p,p-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (p,p´-DDE)] with age at attainment of sexual maturity among boys. METHODS From 2003 through 2...

Age determination plays a great role in forensic medicine, pediatric endocrinology and is of particular interest in orthodontic and pedodontic treatment planning. The classical and most widely used method for skeletal-age evaluation is the highly reliable hand-wrist bone analysis performed by radiographs. However, this analysis entails exposure to ionizing radiation in addition to the routine r...

This research was conducted to investigate in situ degradation characteristics of maize, sorghum and sorghum-Sudan grass hybrids. whole plant of maize (TTM-815, DK-711), sorghum (SS-506, FS-5) and sorghum × Sudan grass hybrids (P-988, Grazer N2) were grown under semi-arid conditions and harvested at different maturity stages (mid-flowering (MF), milk-line (ML) and hard-dough (HD)) and ensiled. ...

Some reproduction characteristics of keeled mullet, Liza klunzingeri, were studied during Apr. 2003 to Feb. 2004 in Khuzestan waters of the Persian Gulf. A total of 836 samples were monthly collected from two fish landings of Bahrekan and Hendijan; 727 specimens were studied from point of sex determination, and 60 specimens were studied from the fecundity point of view. This species was found t...

The objective of this experiment was to determine the relationship between corn kernel vitreousness and ruminal in situ starch degradation. Fourteen U.S. and five Brazilian corn hybrids cultivated in their respective countries were evaluated. The U.S. dent hybrids were harvested at one-half milk line, black layer, and 21 d after black layer stages of maturity. Brazilian flint hybrids were harve...

This study was carried out to investigate the yield response of 2 soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) cultivars to different planting dates and plant populations and to examine the relationships of seed yield with leaf area index (LAI) and total dry matter (TDM) during the vegetative and reproductive periods for planting dates, plant populations, and cultivars. Two soybean cultivars, A3127 (earl...

AIM This study, part of the Methods of Assessing Response to Quality Improvement Strategies (MARQuIS) research project focusing on cross-border patients in Europe, investigated quality policies and improvement in healthcare systems across the European Union (EU). The aim was to develop a classification scheme for the level of quality improvement (maturity) in EU hospitals, in order to evaluate ...

This chapter examines the development of e-Government in selected Egyptian local governments. A content analysis of 25 local government website portals was conducted examining categories of eManagement, e-Services, e-Democracy, and e-Decision making. The study first sets out to examine the overall level of maturity of local government websites in these four areas in Egypt. Second, this study ex...

Despite the fact that Saudi Arabia is a leading producer of oil and natural gas, a member of G-20, has the largest and fastest growth of ICT marketplaces in the Arab region, and is very wealthy, online retailing activities are not progressing at the same speed as its growing ICT marketplace. For this reason, the attitudes of retailers in companies at different stages of e-commerce maturity were...