Significant Correlation Relationship Research Articles

THE ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS LEVEL AMONG SAUDI WOMEN AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO SUSTAINABLE THINKING

Recognizing environmental concerns is crucial for fostering a mindset and implementing behaviors that contribute to sustainability. Individuals with good environmental awareness engage well in environmentally supportive behaviors and think in ways that contribute to a sustainable future. The current research aims to assess the level of environmental awareness among Saudi women and unveil the relationship between the level of environmental awareness and sustainable thinking. Additionally, the research seeks to explore the possibility of predicting sustainable thinking based on the level of environmental awareness. A questionnaire on environmental awareness and a questionnaire on sustainable thinking were applied to 176 female teachers working in the Wadi Dawasir governorate educational administration. The study utilised a descriptive-analytical methodology, namely the correlational predictive approach, to examine the relationship between the research variables and make predictions about their associations. The research results indicated a high level of environmental awareness among the research sample and a high level of sustainable thinking. Furthermore, the findings revealed a statistically significant positive correlational relationship between the level of environmental awareness and sustainable thinking. The results also demonstrated the possibility of predicting sustainable thinking based on the level of environmental awareness in the research sample.

THE ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS LEVEL AMONG SAUDI WOMEN AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO SUSTAINABLE THINKING

Recognizing environmental concerns is crucial for fostering a mindset and implementing behaviors that contribute to sustainability. Individuals with good environmental awareness engage well in environmentally supportive behaviors and think in ways that contribute to a sustainable future. The current research aims to assess the level of environmental awareness among Saudi women and unveil the relationship between the level of environmental awareness and sustainable thinking. Additionally, the research seeks to explore the possibility of predicting sustainable thinking based on the level of environmental awareness. A questionnaire on environmental awareness and a questionnaire on sustainable thinking were applied to 176 female teachers working in the Wadi Dawasir governorate educational administration. The study utilised a descriptive-analytical methodology, namely the correlational predictive approach, to examine the relationship between the research variables and make predictions about their associations. The research results indicated a high level of environmental awareness among the research sample and a high level of sustainable thinking. Furthermore, the findings revealed a statistically significant positive correlational relationship between the level of environmental awareness and sustainable thinking. The results also demonstrated the possibility of predicting sustainable thinking based on the level of environmental awareness in the research sample.

The Degree to Which Educational Counselors in Karak Governorate Possess Skills for Dealing with Crises and its Relationship to their Self-Efficacy

This study aimed to identify the degree to which educational counselors in Karak governorate possess skills to deal with crises and its relationship to their self-efficacy. The number of study subjects consisted of (149) counselors. It used the descriptive correlation methodology. To achieve the objectives of the study, two scales were developed: the scale of possession of Crises dealing skills, and the scale of self-efficacy, their psychometric properties were verified. The results showed that the level of counselors’ possession of Crisis dealing skills was high, and that their level of self-efficacy was medium. The study results showed that there was a significant correlation relationship between possessing the skills of dealing with crises and self-effecacy. Finally, the study included a number of recommendations among them developing counseling interventional skills to deal with crises for educational counselors.

Friendship Quality and Its Relationship to School Engagement and Academic Achievement among High School Students in Jordan

This study aimed to explore the relationship between friendship quality and school engagement, and academic achievement and their levels among high school students for academic year 2020- 2021 in Amman. The sample of the study consisted of (300) male and female students, whose schools were chosen randomly. The results showed: highest level of friendship qualities was for help dimension (mean 3.98), followed by closeness (mean 3.94), highest level of school engagement was for behavioral (mean 3.93), cognitive engagement was second (3.46), and lowest level was for emotional (mean 3.40), level of academic achievement was very good (mean 81.57). Moreover, a positive significant correlation between companionship, security, closeness with behavioral engagement, while a significant negative correlation between conflict and behavioral engagement. A positive significant correlational relationship was found between all dimensions of friendship qualities except for conflict dimension. And all friendship dimensions correlated positively with cognitive engagement. As for academic achievement, it correlated with three dimensions of friendship (closeness, help, security).

The Predictive Ability of the Big Five Personality Factors and Cognitive Flexibility in Metamemory among High School Students

The study aimed to identify the predictive ability of the big five personality factors and cognitive flexibility in metamemory among high school students in Nazareth district. The correlational descriptive mmethodology was used. The scales of metamemory, big five personality factors, and cognitive flexibility were used for data collection, as they were applied to a random sample of (332) students at the Galilee school in the Nazareth district. The results showed a positive, statistically significant correlational relationship between the big five personality factors to satisfaction with memory, and a negative with memory errors, and a positive statistically significant relationship of negative emotion factor to memory errors and memory strategies, and a positive, statistically significant relationship between cognitive flexibility and satisfaction with memory.

The thiol/disulfide balance is shifted towards oxidation in psoriatic arthritis compared to controls and is associated with higher disease activity.

This study was designed to compare thiol/disulfide and ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) levels between psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and healthy controls and evaluate the correlation between these molecules and the disease activity scores used in PsA. A total of 63 PsA patients and 49 healthy volunteers were included in the study. Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), modified disease activity score 28 (DAS28), and Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI) scores were used as disease activity indices for PsA patients. Calculations of native thiol (-SH), disulfide (-SS), and total thiol (-SH+-SS) molecules were made by the automatic spectrophotometric method, and the albumin cobalt binding test was used to measure IMA levels. In the PsA group, -SS/-SH and -SS/(-SH+-SS) levels were higher and -SH/(-SH+-SS) levels were lower than in controls. In the linear regression analysis, a significant correlation relationship was detected between DAS28-erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and -SS/(-SH+-SS) (β = 0.795, CI 95%, 0.196-1.395; P = .010), -SH/(-SH+-SS) (β = -0.475, CI 95%, 0.114-0.836; P = .010) and IMA (β = 3.932, CI 95%, 0.859-7.005; P = .013). Additionally, a significant correlation was detected between IMA and BASDAI and BASFI. In PsA, thiol/disulfide homeostasis has shifted in favor of disulfide as an oxidative indicator. Serum thiol/disulfide levels are correlated with PsA disease activity indices.

Variability in the relationship between light scattering and chlorophyll a concentration in oligotrophic tropical regions of the Western Pacific Ocean.

It is important to determine the relationship between the concentration of chlorophyll a (Chla) and the inherent optical properties (IOPs) of ocean water to develop optical models and algorithms that characterize the biogeochemical properties and estimate biological pumping and carbon flux in this environment. However, previous studies reported relatively large variations in the particulate backscattering coefficient (bbp(λ)) and Chla from more eutrophic high-latitude waters to clear oligotrophic waters, especially in oligotrophic oceanic areas where these two variables have little covariation. In this study, we examined the variability of bbp(λ) and Chla in the euphotic layer in oligotrophic areas of the tropical Western Pacific Ocean and determined the sources of these variations by reassessment of in-situ measurements and the biogeochemical-argo (BGC-Argo) database. Our findings identified covariation of bbp(λ) and Chla in the water column below the deep Chla maximum (DCM) layer, and indicated that there was no significant correlation relationship between bbp(λ) and Chla in the upper layer of the DCM. Particles smaller than 3.2 µm that were in the water column above the DCM layer had a large effect on the bbp(λ) in the vertical profile, but particles larger than 3.2 µm and smaller than 10 µm had the largest effect on the bbp(λ) in the water column below the DCM layer. The contribution of non-algal particles (NAPs) to backscattering is up to 50%, which occurs in the water depth of 50 m and not consistent with the distribution of Chla. Phytoplankton and NAPs were modeled as coated spheres and homogeneous spherical particles to simulate the bbp(λ) of the vertical profile by Aden-Kerker method and Mie theory, and the results also indicated that the backscattering caused by particles less than 20 µm were closer to the measured data when they were below and above the DCM layer, respectively. This relationship also reflects the bbp(λ) of particles in the upper water was significantly affected particle size, but bbp(λ) in the lower water was significantly affected by Chla concentration. This effect may have relationship with phytoplankton photoacclimation and the relationship of a phytoplankton biomass maximum with particle size distribution in the water column according to the previous relevant studies. These characteristics also had spatial and seasonal variations due to changes of Chla concentration at the surface and at different depths. There was mostly a linear relationship between Chla and bbp(700) during winter. During other seasons, the relationship between these two variables was better characterized by a power function (or a logarithmic function) in the lower layer of the DCM. The spatial and vertical relationships between the bbp(λ) and Chla and the corresponding variations in the types of particles described in this study provide parameters that can be used for accurate estimation of regional geochemical processes.

The Level of Prevailing Organizational Culture among Elementary School Principals within the Green Line and its Relationsiph to the Development of Creative Behavior among teachers from Principals and Teachers`

The study aimed at finding out the level of prevailing organizational culture among elementary school principals within the Green Line and its relationship to the development of creative behavior among teachers from principals and teachers` point of view. The descriptive-survey correlational methodology was used. The study population consisted of all elementary school principals and teachers within the green line, which numbered (1600) principals and teachers. The study sample consisted of (387) principals and teachers. The results showed that the level of prevailing organizational culture among elementary school principals in the Northern Triangle region came in a high degree in the total score and in all domains. The results also showed that the development of creative behavior came in a high degree too. The results-indicated that there was a positive significant correlational relationship between the level of prevailing organizational culture and the development of creative behavior.

Tree Species Composition and Diversity in a Secondary Forest along the Sierra Madre Mountain Range in Central Luzon, Philippines: Implications for the Conservation of Endemic, Native, and Threatened Plants

The Sierra Madre Mountain Range (SMMR) is the backbone of the Luzon Islands that contains a high concentration of highly important ecological resources distributed among the 68 protected areas therewith. The present study aimed to assess the composition and diversity of tree species in a secondary forest within the SMMR. A 2.25 km transect with 10 900-m2 plots were established to record tree species with a diameter at breast height of at least 10 cm. The findings revealed 148 individuals of trees from 38 morphospecies, 28 genera, and 20 families. Importance values unveiled the Aurora endemic Macaranga stonei Whitmore as the most important species in terms of the relative values of its abundance, frequency, and dominance. The area was also found to be home to 33 natives, 12 endemics, five IUCN threatened species, and nine Philippine threatened trees. Furthermore, the study site was also found to have considerably high diversity, with a Shannon–Weiner Index value of 3.269 and a relatively even distribution of individuals among species, as supported by the Simpson’s Evenness index value of 0.9453. Significant correlational relationships were also found among species richness, Shannon–Weiner index, and Simpson’s Evenness index, with correlation coefficients ranging from 0.881 to 0.934, with all significant at p < 0.001. Lastly, the study was able to produce a distribution map, which is necessary for implementing targeted conservation strategies. These findings provided valuable implications for future research and implementation of targeted and participatory biodiversity conservation and protection strategies.

Cytochrome P450 genes expression in human prostate cancer

CYP-dependent metabolites play a critical role in regulating the cell cycle, as well as the proliferative, invasive, and migratory activity of cancer cells. We conducted a study to analyze the relative gene expression of various CYPs (CYP7B1, CYP27A1, CYP39A1, CYP51, CYP1B1, CYP3A5, CYP4F8, CYP5A1, CYP4F2, CYP2J2, CYP2E1, CYP2R1, CYP27B1, CYP24A1) in 41 pairs of prostate samples (tumor and conventional normal tissues) using qPCR. Our analysis determined significant individual variability in the expression levels of all studied CYPs, both in the tumor and in conventionally normal groups. However, when we performed a paired test between the tumor and normal groups, we found no significant difference in the expression of the studied genes. We did observe a tendency to increase the level of CYP1B1 expression in the tumor group. We also did not find any significant difference between the levels of the studied CYPs in the tumor and conventional normal groups at different stages of prostate cancer and pathomorphological indicators. Correlation analysis revealed the presence of a positive relationship between the expressions of some cholesterol-metabolizing CYP genes, as well as between genes responsible for vitamin D biosynthesis and cholesterol biosynthesis. We observed significant correlative relationships between the expression of CYPs and some prostate cancer-related genes (CDH2, MMP9, SCHLAP1, GCR, CYP17A1, ACTA2, CXCL14, FAP, CCL17, MSMB, IRF1, VDR). Therefore, the expression of CYPs is not directly associated with prostate cancer but is largely determined by genetic, epigenetic factors, as well as endogenous substrates and xenobiotics. The significant correlative relationship between CYPs and genes associated with cancer may indicate common regulatory pathways that may have a synergistic effect on the tumor, ensuring the survival of cancer cells.

Pengaruh Puja Bakti Terhadap Kecerdasan Spiritual Siswa Agama Buddha

This article covers aspects of prayer in the development of spiritual intelligence. The study aims to investigate the impact of the practice of puja bakti on the spiritual intelligence of Buddhist students at Bhakti Karya Kaloran High School. The study involved research subjects such as Buddhist religious students at Bakti Karya Kaloran High School in 2023 who were selected as samples of research. The research method used is a quantitative method with a correlational approach. The correlation value between the variable puja bakti to spiritual intelligence is 0.712. This value can be predicted that the relationship of the two variables tested is in the strong category. The results of the study showed a significant correlational relationship between the performance of bakti puja and the spiritual intelligence of students with evidence of a significance value of 0.003 < 0.05 and a t-count value of 6.251 > t-table 2,021, also contributing 49.6%. The recommendation from this study is to implement morning prayer routine and targeted in the school environment to enhance the spiritual intelligence of students.

القيادة المستدامة لدى مديري المدارس الثانوية الأهلية بمحافظة جدة وعلاقتها بسلوك العمل الابتكاري للمعلمين

The aim of this study is to identify the scope of practicing sustainable leadership by managers of private secondary schools in Jeddah Governorate, to determine to what extent the availability of innovative work behavior among teachers, to classify the correlation between the practice of principals of private secondary schools in Jeddah Governorate for sustainable leadership and innovative work behavior of teachers, also to detect the differences Statistically significant between the averages of teachers' responses about their estimates of practicing sustainable leadership by principals of their schools, which is attributed to the variables (gender, years of experience), and revealing statistically significant differences between the arithmetic mean of teachers' responses about their estimates of their innovative work behaviors; Which is attributed to the difference (gender, years of experience). A quantitative approach (survey and correlation) is used to achieve the objectives of the study and to collect data. Researchers used the sustainable leadership scale prepared by Hargreaves & Fink (Hargreaves & Fink 2012), translated it, and based on its codification and arbitration by Al-Khamisa (2022) which he translated and based on codifying Al-Qarni (2020). The study community consisted of private school teachers at the secondary stage, whose number was (1589), the research sample was chosen using the appropriate random sample method (opportunity sample), whose number was (336) with a percentage of (21, 1) from the study population. According to findings of the study school principals contribute to practice sustainable leadership with a (high) level and all dimensions of sustainable leadership came with a high degree of practicing among school principals. The study also found that innovative work behavior is available to teachers with a (high) degree from their perspectives. In addition, it was found that there is a high-value and statistically significant direct correlation relationship at the level of significance (0.01) between the practice of sustainable leadership by school principals and the innovative work behavior of teachers. Moreover, the results show that there were no statistically significant differences in their appreciation of the practice of sustainable leadership by their school principals according to the different years of experience, while the study illustrated that there were statistically significant differences in their appreciation of the practice of sustainable leadership by their school principals according to gender. In contrast, the study demonstrates that there were no significant differences statistics between the averages of teachers' responses about their appreciation for their innovative work behavior according to the variables (gender and years of experience). The research recommends the necessity of consolidating the concept of sustainable leadership among school principals through programs and training packages, holding seminars and conferences that promote this concept and entrenching it among educators, building specific initiatives aiming at promoting innovative work behavior of teachers, and establishing activities and events that ensure the sustainability of these practices in work environments scholastic. The current study suggests some future studies related to the study variables.

위험감수놀이에 대한 어머니의 태도가 유아의 신체활동태도에 미치는 영향

Objectives This study was conducted to examine the mediating effect of mothers’ behaviors promoting their young children’s physical activities on the effects of their attitude toward risk taking play on the children’s attitude toward physical activity.
 Methods For this study, mothers and teachers of 214 four and five-year-old young children enrolled in kinder-gartens located at G city were participated. The mothers evaluated their own behaviors promoting their young children’s physical activities and the attitude toward the children’s risk taking play. Also the teachers evaluated young children’s attitude toward physical activities. The Pearson correlation analysis and Baron and Kenny’s three-step mediated regression analysis on the data collected were conducted by using SPSS WIN 18.0 and then, the Sobel test of them was implemented.
 Results First, measured values of the variables showed normal distributions and there were significant correlation relationships among mothers’ attitude toward risk taking play, mothers’ behaviors promoting their young chil-dren’s physical activities, and young children’s attitude toward physical activities. Second, the effect of mothers’ attitude toward their children’s risk taking play on young children’s attitudes toward physical activity was mediated by mothers’ behaviors promoting their young children’s physical activities.
 Conclusions The mothers’ behaviors promoting their young children’s physical activities wars a mediating factor in the relationship between their attitude toward risk taking play and young children’s attitudes toward physical activity. The results of this study suggests that it is possible to enhance young children’s attitude toward physical activity through encouraging mothers’ behaviors promoting their young children’s physical activities and their atti-tude toward risk taking play.

The effect of smoking on respiratory functions in athletes

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of smoking on respiratory functions in athletes. A total of 12 American football players with an age, height and body mass means of 22.50±1.62 years, 182.83±5.85 cm., 88.91±18.99 kg. voluntarily participated in the study. The participants were competitive players with at least five years of continuous training and competition experience. Respiratory functions of the athletes were measured with a Minispir hand-held spirometer. Forced Vital Capacity (FVC), Peak Expiratory Flow (PEF), Maximal Voluntary Ventilation (MVV) values were measured. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS 26 package program. Because the distribution of the data was not normal, the Mann Whitney-U test and Spearman correlation test, a nonparametric test, were used to compare the data between the smoker and non-smoker groups. The significance level was accepted as p<0.05. Although numerically positive effects were found on the respiratory function of non-smokers compared to smokers, there was no statistically significant difference or correlation relationship between the data constituting these effects. As a result, it was found that the respiratory function of American football players who smoked cigarettes was lower than that of non-smokers. In line with these results, it can be stated that smoking has a negative effect on respiratory functions.

Regulatory effects of silicon nanoparticles on the growth and photosynthesis of cotton seedlings under salt and low-temperature dual stress

BackgroundSilicon nanoparticles (SiO2-NPs) play a crucial role in plants mitigating abiotic stress. However, the regulatory mechanism of SiO2-NPs in response to multiple stress remains unclear. The objectives of this study were to reveal the regulatory mechanism of SiO2-NPs on the growth and photosynthesis in cotton seedlings under salt and low-temperature dual stress. It will provide a theoretical basis for perfecting the mechanism of crop resistance and developing the technology of cotton seedling preservation and stable yield in arid and high salt areas.ResultsThe results showed that the salt and low-temperature dual stress markedly decreased the plant height, leaf area, and aboveground biomass of cotton seedlings by 9.58%, 15.76%, and 39.80%, respectively. While SiO2-NPs alleviated the damage of the dual stress to cotton seedling growth. In addition to reduced intercellular CO2 concentration, SiO2-NPs significantly improved the photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, and transpiration rate of cotton seedling leaves. Additionally, stomatal length, stomatal width, and stomatal density increased with the increase in SiO2-NPs concentration. Notably, SiO2-NPs not only enhanced chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and total chlorophyll content, but also slowed the decrease of maximum photochemical efficiency, actual photochemical efficiency, photochemical quenching of variable chlorophyll, and the increase in non-photochemical quenching. Moreover, SiO2-NPs enhanced the activities of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, improved leaf water potential, and decreased abscisic acid and malondialdehyde content. All the parameters obtained the optimal effects at a SiO2-NPs concentration of 100 mg L− 1, and significantly increased the plant height, leaf area, and aboveground biomass by 7.68%, 5.37%, and 43.00%, respectively. Furthermore, significant correlation relationships were observed between photosynthetic rate and stomatal conductance, stomatal length, stomatal width, stomatal density, chlorophyll content, maximum photochemical efficiency, actual photochemical efficiency, photochemical quenching of variable chlorophyll, and Rubisco activity.ConclusionThe results suggested that the SiO2-NPs improved the growth and photosynthesis of cotton seedlings might mainly result from regulating the stomatal state, improving the light energy utilization efficiency and electron transport activity of PSII reaction center, and inducing the increase of Rubisco activity to enhance carbon assimilation under the salt and low-temperature dual stress.

Inpatient pediatric nursing staff experiences treating psychiatric patients: A mixed methods study.

A gap in the literature exists attempting to understand the impact that the influx of pediatric psychiatric patients has had on inpatient general medicine pediatric nursing staff. A mixed-method research study was conducted among full- and part-time pediatric nurses and nursing assistants working on general pediatric units. Quantitative data was collected via an anonymous survey using the Professional Quality of Life Scale version 5 and Support Appraisal for Work Stressors scale. Surveys were followed by semistructured interviews. Of the 158 staff eligible, 47 (29.7%) participated in the quantitative portion. [Correction added on 29 September 2023, after the first online publication: In the preceding sentence, the participation rate was revised from 23.5% to 29.7% in this version.] Significant differences were found between roles, with nurses experiencing lower levels of compassion satisfaction and higher levels of burnout. Role differences were seen in supervisor support and nonwork support, with nurses reporting less support from both. Supervisor support showed a significant correlational relationship with compassion satisfaction and burnout. Nonwork support showed similar correlations with compassion satisfaction and burnout. Themes that emerged from the interviews were Barriers to Care, Emotional Impact, and "Help Me Help You." Nurses may be at greater risk for compassion fatigue due to perceived inadequate support from leadership, unclear role expectations, and lack of resources.

Impacting Digital Competence on Entrepreneurial Alertness: An Analytical Research at the Central Bank of Iraq

In the era of the digital economy, public organizations need to consolidation the capabilities of entrepreneurial alertness to reduce the risks of sudden transformations and changes, and to find effective mechanisms to discover and invest in environmental opportunities proactively, as this concern has become a knowledge gap in public sector institutions, the current research aims to identify the role of digital competence in influencing on entrepreneurial alertness in the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI), the descriptive analytical approach was used as a research method to describe and analyze the main research variables. digital competence as an explanatory variable includes three dimensions: digital infrastructure, digital integration, and digital management, while entrepreneurial alertness as a responsive variable comprises three dimensions: scanning and search, association and connection, and evaluation as well as judgment. The research sample included the middle and senior administrative leaders of the CBI through using proportionate stratified random sampling to get a good representation of each class of society (n=125). The statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) by AMOS were used to analyze the research data. The results indicated that there is a statistically significant positive correlation and influence relationship between the two main research variables and their sub-dimensions. The most important dimensions of digital competence in influence and interest were digital infrastructure and digital management. However, the influence of digital integration on entrepreneurial alertness was insignificant in the CBI.
 
 Paper type: Research paper.

Linking Religious Awareness of Madrasah Teachers with Critical Thinking

This study aimed to obtain an overview of the critical thinking skills and religious awareness of madrasah teachers through three aspects: (1) the transcendental relationship of teachers, (2) teacher religious participation, and (3) the intensity of the teacher’s religious intellect. In addition, the study also attempted to analyze the relationship of critical thinking skills with transcendental relationships, religious participation, and the intensity of teachers’ religious intellectuality. Quantitative research with correlational study was conducted. This study used a stratified random sampling technique. It took 20 to 27 teachers randomly from each madrasah based on the proportion of the number of teachers in each madrasa so that the number of samples reached 154 teachers in Bandung Regency who teach at the Madrasah Ibtidaiyah, Madrasah Tsanawiyah, and Madrasah Aliyah. The data collection techniques of the study were test and questionnaire. The results revealed that there was a significant correlational relationship between aspects of critical thinking and three aspects of religious awareness: transcendental relationships, religious participation, and religious intellectuality. The quality of the relationship varies with the highest significance being the relationship between critical thinking and religious intellectuality, followed by transcendental relationships and religious participation.

SARS-CoV-2 infection and thyroid dysfunction in children

The problem of thyroid dysfunction related to SARS-CoV-2 infection remains unclear in children. Therefore, the study aimed to reveal the interrelationship between thyroid dysfunction and COVID-19 severity­ as well as to determine optimal cut-off values for screening for thyroid disorders in children. A total number of 90 children aged from 1 month to 17 years were involved in the study. Patients with known thyroid disease were not recruited for the research. A thyroid panel was assessed for all participants that included: free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and anti-thyroid peroxidase (ATPO) antibodies. Statistical analysis was done using the computer software Statistica 13.0. Research has revealed euthyroid sick syndrome (ESS) in 14.10% of SARS-CoV-2 infected children more often among patients with severe COVID-19 and multisystem inflammatory syndrome (33.33%) compared to mild COVID-19 course (6.67%) and moderate disease severity (8.89%) (P < 0.05). Significant correlation relationships were revealed for next values – FT3 and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) (rs = -0.22; P < 0.05); FT3 and C-reactive protein (CRP) (rs = -0.33; P < 0.05); FT3 and procalcitonin (rs = -0.43; P < 0.05). The next cut-off values for ESS determination were revealed: ESR 18.5 mm/h (AUC 0.803); CRP 11.5 mg/l (AUC 0.763); ferritin 84.8 ng/ml (AUC 0.733). Results suggest that pediatricians should pay attention to the endocrine disruptions by COVID-19 in children. Keywords: COVID-19, euthyroid sick syndrome in children, inflammatory markers

Use of a real-time PCR method to quantify the primary infection of Plasmopara viticola in commercial vineyards

Grapevine downy mildew (GDM) caused by Plasmopara viticola is a recurrent disease of wine grapes in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (Ningxia) of northwestern China. However, the primary infectious pathogen in this region has not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, a multiplex real-time PCR assay was utilized to quantify P. viticola in soil, leaf residues, and asymptomatic leaf samples from ten commercial vineyards in two consecutive years to better understand the epidemiological significance of overwintering primary inoculum and its inoculum potential before the appearance of the first visual GDM symptoms. The DNA primers and multiplex real-time PCR assays that had been established exhibited specificity towards P. viticola within the test samples. The majority of the asymptomatic leaves (60%), leaf residues (80%), and soil samples (100%) tested positive for P. viticola. In addition, the amount of primary inoculum of P. viticola was found to be lower in soil than in leaf residues. The area under the disease progress curve in terms of the molecular disease index (AUDPC-MDI) was used to evaluate the overall latent P. viticola infection in asymptomatic leaves. Asymptomatic leaves were found to have different levels of P. viticola infection, and high AUDPC-MDIs correlated with a high AUDPC in terms of disease index (AUDPC-DI), with a significant correlation relationship between them (P < 0.01). Additionally, a well-correlated relationship was observed between the disease progress in the previous year and the MDIs of leaf residues and asymptomatic leaves in the following year, as well as the AUDPC-DI (Spearman’s correlation coefficient ρ = 0.643, 0.498, and 0.595, respectively) (P < 0.01). These findings provide valuable information for quantifying the primary infection of P. viticola in commercial vineyards.