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Background β-Thalassemias represent a group of genetic disorders caused by human hemoglobin beta (HBB) gene mutations. The radical curative approach is to correct the mutations causing the disease. CRISPR-CAS9 is a novel gene-editing technology that can be used auspiciously for the treatment of these disorders. The study aimed to investigate the utility of CRISPR-CAS9 for gene modification of hematopoietic stem cells in β-thalassemia with IVS-1-110 mutation. Methods and results We successfully isolated CD34+ cells from peripheral blood of β-thalassemia patients with IVS-1-110 mutation. The cells were transfected with Cas9 endonuclease together with guide RNA to create double-strand breaks and knock out the mutation. The mutation-corrected CD34+ cells were subjected to erythroid differentiation by culturing in complete media containing erythropoietin. Conclusion CRISPR/Cas-9 is an effective tool for gene therapy that will broaden the spectrum of therapy and potentially improve the outcomes of β-thalassemia.

The image classification is a classical problem of image processing, computer vision and machine learning fields. Image classification is a complex procedure which relies on different components. In this paper we study the image classification using deep learning. computer vision science, image classification implementation, and deep neural networks are presented. This article discusses The development of a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) and its various architectures, which have shown great efficiency and evaluation in image classification. A literature review is conducted to illustrate the significance and the details of Convolutional Neural Networks in various applications.

Organic soils are known for their low shear strength and high compressibility, making them unstable and unsuitable for supporting foundations with instability problems such as local sinking, development of slip failure, excessive settlement, and bearing capacity failure. Thus, such soils need improvement prior to construction to suit the infrastructure projects. Several improvement techniques are available depending on the thickness of the organic deposit, type, and characteristics. The stabilization technique is one method that is considered economical, functional, and environmentally friendly; it is the process of changing the chemical properties of soil by adding stabilizers in wet or dry conditions such as lime, fly ash, cement, sawdust, or sawdust ash to increase the shear strength, decrease the compressibility and permeability of the soil. In the current study, an experimental effort investigates the effect of mixing sawdust with highly organic clays. In the presence of moisture, sawdust, widely available and economical, reacts chemically, forming cementations compounds that improve soils' strength and compressibility properties. Highly organic clay samples from Kafr El Sheikh Governorate, Egypt, were mixed with 5 % cement and varying percentages of sawdust by weight. Samples are cured for seven days before conducting shear strength and compressibility tests. The tests include laboratory shear vane, direct shear, and one-dimensional oedometer tests. The results provide insight into the use of sawdust in improving the strength and deformation properties of the tested organic clay.

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