• The Plant Pathology Journal
• /
• v.22 no.1
• /
• pp.51-62
• /
• 2006

Three strains of Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) have been found to cause a lethal disease, referred to as fern leaf syndromes and mild mosaic symptoms in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) crops grown in Kuwait. CMV strains were detected and identified based on host range, symptomatology, serology, electron microscopy, and ribonucleic acid (RNA) electrophoresis in polyacrylamide gels. A high degree of viral genomic heterogeneity was detected among CMV strains isolated in Kuwait, with no apparent correlation to symptomatology in tomato host plants. Two different virus satellites of 'CMV associated RNA 5', designated CARNA 5, were detected in two virus strains that caused both lethal disease and mild symptoms, designated CMV-D1 and CMV-S1 respectively. CARNA5 was not detected in the third CMV strain that caused fern leaf syndromes designated CMV-F. All the three isolated strains were serologically indistinguishable from each other and may belong to one serotype according to Ouchterlony gel diffusion tests. These strains transmitted via aphids (Myzus persicae Sulz) in a non-persistent manner. Physical properties of the virus strains were very similar where thermal inactivation test showed that virus withstood heating for 10 min at $70^{/circ}$, dilution end point was $10^{-4}$, and the longevity in vitro at room temperature was less than 5 days for all virus strains. CMV-D1 and CMV-F were the most devastating diseases spreading in both greenhouse and field-grown tomato where aborted flower buds failed on fruit setting due to the viral infection. This is the first report to isolate three different strains of CMV in Kuwait.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
• /
• v.17 no.6
• /
• pp.329-335
• /
• 2001

Yellowing disease of palms caused by phytoplasma is spreading in the Arabian Gulf region. Surveys were conducted to determine the occurrence of the disease. Electron and fluorescence microscopy, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques were used to detect the phytoplasma associated with the yellowing disease of ornamental palm Washingtonia sp. grown in Kuwait. An accumulation of phytoplasmal DNA was observed by fluorescence microscopy in phloem tissues of diseased palms. Electron microscopy showed that phytoplasma cells were primarily confined to the phloemsieve elements of tissue samples collected from infected mature palms in the field. The pathogen was identified on the basis of molecular analysis using universal and specific nested primers in PCR amplifications. Prokaryotic 16S rDNA gene was detected in amplified PCR products. Nested PCR resulted in DNA amplification of 1.2 kbp fragment. This is the first report of a phytoplasmal rDNA gene identified from the putative causal pathogen of yellows in ornamental palms in the Arabian Gulf region.

• Proceedings of the KSRS Conference
• /
• 2005.10a
• /
• pp.153-164
• /
• 2005

The paper presents time and cost effective remote sensing technology to estimate recharge potential of fresh water shallow aquifers for their sustainable management in arid ecosystem. Precipitation measurement of Raudatain Basin in Kuwait from TRMM data has been made and integrated with geological, geomorphological and hyrological data, to estimate the recharge potential of the basin. The total potential recharge to the area is estimated as 333.964 MCM annually. The initial losses are estimated at $60\%$ of the net precipitation .The net available quantity for recharge is 133.58 MCM. For sustainable management of the ground water resources, recharge wells have been proposed in the higher order streams to augment the Raudatain aquifer in Kuwait. If the available quantity of precipitation can be successfully utilized, it will reduce considerable pressure on desalination, which is leading to increased salinity off the coast in Arabian Gulf.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.53 no.3
• /
• pp.960-966
• /
• 2021

A technical approach to design and carry out an experiment to determine the uptake of selected radionuclides in site-specific conditions in Kuwait was developed and successfully executed for developing a radioecological decision support system. The radionuclides from soil-to-plant transfer factors have been obtained for leafy and non-leafy vegetables, and root crops cultivated in Kuwait. Two types of vegetated soils were selected and spiked with high concentrations of three relatively short-lived selected radionuclides (⁸⁵Sr, ¹³⁴Cs, and ¹³³Ba). The highest strontium and barium transfer factors were found in the order: leafy vegetables > root crops > non-leafy vegetables. The approximate range of radiocesium transfer factor was found to be low in all plant groups and was comparable to those reported elsewhere in different soil types of temperate and tropical environments. A strong negative correlation between the obtained transfer factors and the distribution coefficient of the radionuclide in soil was found. It is recommended to adopt the newly derived parameters for the sensitive areas in Kuwait and other Gulf countries instead of using the generic parameters, whenever dose calculation codes are used. This will help to more accurately assess and predict the end results of the committed effective dose equivalent through ingestion pathway.

• Smart Structures and Systems
• /
• v.17 no.6
• /
• pp.981-994
• /
• 2016

Two field research stations based upon atmospheric corrosivity monitoring combined with reinforced concrete corrosion rate sensors have been established in Kuwait. This was established for the purpose of remote monitoring of building materials performance for concrete under Kuwait atmospheric environment. The two field research sites for concrete have been based upon an outcome from a research investigation intended for monitoring the atmospheric corrosivity from weathering station distributed in eight areas, and in different regions in Kuwait. Data on corrosivity measurements are essential for the development of specification of an optimized corrosion resistance system for reinforced concrete manufactured products. This study aims to optimize, characterize, and utilize long-term concrete structural health monitoring through on line corrosion measurement and to determine the feasibility and viability of the integrated anode ladder corrosion sensors embedded in concrete. The atmospheric corrosivity categories supported with GSM remote data acquisition system from eight corrosion monitoring stations at different regions in Kuwait are being classified according to standard ISO 9223. The two nominated field sites where based upon time of wetness and bimetallic corrosion rate from atmospheric data where metals and rebar's concrete are likely to be used. Eight concrete blocks with embeddable anodic ladder corrosion sensors were placed in the atmospheric zone adjacent to the sea shore at KISR site. The anodic ladder corrosion rate sensors for concrete were installed to provide an early warning system on prediction of the corrosion propagation and on developing new insights on the long-term durability performance and repair of concrete structures to lower labor cost. The results show the atmospheric corrosivity data of the environment and the feasibility of data retrieval of the corrosion potential of concrete from the embeddable sets of anodic ladder corrosion sensors.

• ALGAE
• /
• v.38 no.2
• /
• pp.127-139
• /
• 2023

Cryptic stages of diverse macroalgae present in natural substrata, "the bank of microscopic forms", were isolated into clonal cultures and identified based on both morphological characteristics and DNA barcoding. Approximately 120 clonal isolates from 308 natural substratum samples were collected from the entire coastline of Kuwait. Amongst these isolates, 77 (64%) were identified through DNA barcoding using the nuclear ribosomal small subunit, RuBisCO spacer (ITS2, tufa, rbcL, psaA, and psbA) and sequencing. Twenty-six isolates (34%) were identified in the division Chlorophyta, 18 (23%) as Phaeophyceae, and 33 (43%) as Rhodophyta. For all DNA sequences in this study, species-level cut off applied was ≥98% homology which depend entirely on the markers used. Three putative new records of Chlorophyta new for the Arabian Gulf were made: Cladophora laetevirens (Dillwyn) Kützing, Ulva torta (Mertens) Trevisan and Ulvella leptochaete (Huber) R. Nielsen, C. J. O'Kelly & B. Wysor in Nielsen, while Cladophora gracilis Kützing and Ulva ohnoi M. Hiraoka & S. Shimada are new records for Kuwait. For Phaeophyceae, Ectocarpus subulatus Kützing and Elachista stellaris Areschoug were new records for the Gulf and Kuwait. In the Rhodophyta, Acrochaetium secundatum (Lyngbye) Nägeli in Nägeli & Cramer, Ceramium affine Setchell & N. L. Gardner, Gelidium pusillum var. pakistanicum Afaq-Husain & Shameel and Dasya caraibica Børgesen are new records for the Gulf and Kuwait, while the red alga Stylonema alsidii (Zanardini) K. Drew is a new record for Kuwait. Several isolates identified corresponded to genera not previously reported in Kuwait and / or the Arabian Gulf, such as Porphyrostromium Trevisan, a new genus from the Bangiales, and two unidentified species for the Planophilaceae Škaloud & Leliaert. The isolates cultivated from substrata enhance understanding of the marine macroalgal diversity in the region and confirmed that the Germling Emergence Method is suitable for determining the actual diversity of a given study area through isolation from cryptic life-history phases.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
• /
• v.33 no.3
• /
• pp.147-154
• /
• 1995

A new haplosplanchnid cercaria, Cercaria kuwaitae VI sp. n., was found in the prosobranch snail Cerithidea cincingulata in the Kuwait Bay Details are presented on the morphology and behavior of the cercaria and the encystment process. The new cercaria is a biocellate, distome, with a prominent single sac-like intestinal cecum extending well posterior to the ventral sucker and develops in simple sporocysts. It differs from known haplosplanchnid cercariae in the absence of finger-like processes on the tail, and the presence of V-shaped excretory vesicle extending beyond ventral sucker and the presence of cervical glands. The surface topography of the cercaria and its sporocyst is examined by scanning electron microscopy. This is the first haplosplanchnid cercaria to be described from a Cerithidea species.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
• /
• v.9 no.3
• /
• pp.327-335
• /
• 2022

The purpose of this study is to examine the Kuwaiti Stock Exchange's (KDE) response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the precautions taken by Kuwaiti authorities to protect their citizens and other residents. To achieve this objective, daily data from four different indexes published by the Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) for the period between 24 February and 30 June 2020, as well as daily data on the number of people infected with COVID-19, the daily number of recovered people, the daily number of deaths, lockdown days, and days the country was under curfew. The findings show a significant positive association between the daily recovery of persons infected by COVID-19 and all indexes published by the KSE except for the Boursa Kuwait Main Market 50, where the association was positive but insignificant. A negative and significant association was also found between the closure of the country and each of the four indexes. Although the curfew imposed by the Kuwaiti authorities at an early stage of the pandemic appeared to have a negative effect on the four indexes, the level of association was statistically significant only in the cases of the Main Market index and Boursa Kuwait Main Market 50 index.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
• /
• v.53 no.3
• /
• pp.279-287
• /
• 2015

Stray cats are a common feature roaming the streets and alleys of Kuwait; they could be a source of parasites, including trematodes, that affect humans. A survey was conducted to identify feline trematodes and throw the light on their public health significance in Kuwait. Out of 240 stray cats trapped from different localities of Kuwait from June 2011 to May 2012, 59 (24.6%) were found to be infected with 14 species of trematodes. The most common were trematodes of the genus Heterophyes, particularly H. heterophyes and H. dispar that were found in respectively 15.8% and 10.8% of the cats examined. Other trematodes recorded, with lower prevalences, were Heterophyes nocens (2.9%), Haplorchis taichui (3.8%), Stictodora sawakinensis (2.1%), Stellantchasmus falcatus (1.6%), Echinochasmus japonicus (1.6%), and Mesostephanus dottrensi (1.3%). Centrocestus cuspidatus, Galactosomum fregatae, Ascocotyle sp., Mesostephanus appendiculatus, Haplorchis yokogawai, and Pygidiopsis genata showed the lowest prevalence (0.4%) and intensity. The majority of the trematodes are recorded for the first time in Kuwait and even in the Gulf region. The study reveals that stray cats are good indicators of fish-borne trematodes in the environment. As all trematodes recovered are zoonotic, their significance to public health should be considred.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.72 no.3
• /
• pp.383-393
• /
• 2019

Horizontal openings in reinforced concrete (RC) beams are quite often used to accommodate service pipelines. Several research papers are available in the literature describing their effect. RC beams with vertical openings are commonly used to accommodate service lines in residential buildings in Kuwait. However, there are lack of design guidelines and best practices reported in the literature for RC beams with vertical openings, whereas the detailed guidelines are available for beams with horizontal openings. In the present paper, laboratory experiments are conducted on nine RC beams with and without vertical openings. Parametric study has been carried out using nonlinear finite element analysis (FEA) with changes in the diameter of the opening, various positions of the opening along the length and width of the beam, edge distance, etc. 50 finite element simulations were conducted. The FEA results are verified using the results from the laboratory experiments. The study showed that the load carrying capacity of the beam is reduced by 20% for the RC beam with vertical openings placed near the center of the beam compared to a solid beam without an opening. Significant reduction in load carrying capacity is observed for beams with an opening near the support (${\approx}15%$). The overall stiffness of the beam, crack pattern and failure modes were not affected due to the presence of the vertical opening. Furthermore, an artificial neural network (ANN) analysis is carried out using the FEA generated data. The results and observations from the ANN and FEA are in good agreement with experimental results.