ABSTRACT

Background: Childhood overweight and obesity are rising public health concerns worldwide, including in urban areas of Libya. Data on prevalence in school-aged children in Gharyan are scarce.

Objectives: To assess the prevalence of overweight and obesity among schoolchildren aged 7–12 years in Gharyan City, Libya, and explore variations by age, gender, and school grade.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 632 children from public and private schools. Anthropometric measurements were performed, and BMI was classified using WHO BMI-for-age reference charts. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and stratified prevalence assessments.

Results: Overall, 22.0% of children were overweight and 9.7% were obese, with no significant gender differences. Obesity peaked in 7-year-old boys (23.1%) and 12-year-old girls (14.3%). Overweight prevalence increased with age, peaking at 32.6% in boys aged 8 years. Combined overweight and obesity affected 31.7% of participants, highlighting a substantial urban burden.

Conclusion: Childhood overweight and obesity are highly prevalent among schoolchildren in Gharyan, Libya, across all ages and genders. These findings underscore the need for targeted school-based interventions and community health strategies, with collaboration between clinical pharmacists and community medicine physicians to prevent and manage obesity from an early age.

Keywords: Childhood obesity, overweight, BMI, school-aged children, Libya, urban health, WHO growth standards

-This qualitative case study investigates the effectiveness of AI-driven translation technologies in mediating cultural understanding within English Language Teaching (ELT) contexts in Libyan higher education. Drawing on data from semi-structured interviews with 55 ELT instructors, 24 classroom observations across six universities, and document analysis of student translation outputs and institutional curricula, the study reveals a dualistic role of artificial intelligence in language pedagogy. While AI-powered tools such as Google Translate and Microsoft Translator significantly enhance lexical accessibility and reduce language anxiety among learners, their capacity to convey cultural nuance remains critically limited. Findings indicate that algorithmic biases, rooted in Anglo-American linguistic corpora, result in the systematic flattening of cultural meaning and misrepresentation of idioms, humor, politeness strategies, and socio-pragmatic cues, thereby reinforcing a form of digital linguistic imperialism. Students’ uncritical reliance on AI outputs has fostered a “copy-paste culture,” undermining opportunities for intercultural reflection and eroding pragmatic awareness. However, the study also identifies transformative potential when AI tools are pedagogically repurposed through “teaching against the machine” strategies. A subset of instructors successfully used AI-generated mistranslations as pedagogical moments to foster critical cultural awareness, metacognitive reflection, and intercultural dialogue. Despite this potential, widespread implementation is hindered by systemic barriers, including the absence of institutional policies, lack of professional development, curricular gaps, and infrastructural challenges. The research concludes that AI technologies are not inherently facilitative or obstructive to cultural understanding; rather, their effectiveness is contingent upon intentional pedagogical mediation, critical digital literacy, and context-sensitive integration. The study calls for curriculum reforms, ethical AI integration frameworks, and teacher training programs that

position AI as a scaffold, not a substitute for intercultural communicative competence in ELT contexts

KEYWORDS: AI-driven translation, cultural understanding,, English language teaching, higher education, Libya, intercultural competence, technology integration

driven translation technologies in mediating his qualitative case study investigates the effectiveness of AI

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Euphorbia glyptosperma Engelm is recorded for the first time as part of the flora of Libya. This widespread wild weed was collected during 2023–2024 from various locations, including regions in Sabha and Ariggiba (approximately 110 km southwest of Sabha city). To aid in its identification and facilitate future studies, a comprehensive description of the species, habitat information, a distribution map, and distribution data are provided. Additionally, a brief discussion highlights the most significant threats associated with this species. Keywords: Identification key, Ariggiba Region, Field work, Sabha taxonomy, Alena 

Spiders are widespread, abundant predators, making them familiar and readily accessible to people everywhere. Despite having venom glands, most spiders bite humans in some situations, only when they are annoyed, trapped or injured. Studies on spider bites in Libya are limited, neglected, and affected by misdiagnosis and underreporting. The study aimed to interpret, analyze, and characterize the clinical characteristics of spider bite patients and their variations at Tripoli Medical Center (TMC), Tripoli, Libya, between 2004 and 2012. A retrospective study of 102 reported patients with spider bites at Tripoli Medical Center during the period from 2004 to 2012. A total of 102 patients were reported, mostly in May and June (16 cases in each month). The cases were mostly reported in 2007 and 2009 (17 each). The majority of cases were in age group of 19-29 years (41 cases), and female cases (68 cases, 66.6%) were higher than males (34 cases, 33.3%). The most bitten sites were proximal extremities (71.5%). Overall, most patients suffered from erythema (90%) and swelling (36%), followed by itching (33%), necrosis (29%) and fever (17%). Spider bites are common in Libya, but most bites cause minimal or no clinical effects and do not require medical attention. Diagnosing a spider bite is extremely challenging, but a comprehensive history and careful evaluation of symptoms, with correct verification of spider bites are helpful in diagnosing and treating spider bites.

الملخص العربي الملف الوبائي والنسيجي المرضي ألورام الفم والرأس والرقبة في المعهد الوطني للسرطان: تحليل استعادي لمدة خمس سنوات )2020-2024) المقدمة ًرا في العالم، وتتمتع بمعدالت بقاء منخفضة تُعّد سرطانات الشفة وتجويف الفم من أكثر األورام الخبيثة انتشا على قيد الحياة رغم التقدم العالجي. في ليبيا، ال تزال البيانات الوبائية حول أورام الفم والرأس والرقبة محدودة. هدفت هذه الدراسة إلى توصيف الوضع الوبائي والنسيجي المرضي لهذه األورام على مدى خمس سنوات في المعهد الوطني للسرطان في صبراتة، من عام 2020 إلى عام 2024. ا جريت مراجعة بأثر رجعي لجميع حاالت السرطان والساركوما ال ُمثبتة نسيجيًا في تجويف الفم ُ لطريقة: أ والرأس والرقبة، والمسجلة في أرشيفات المعهد الوطني للسرطان. استُخلصت البيانات الديموغرافية للمرضى )اإلصدار 2.0.4 )Rالعمر والجنس(، وموقع الورم، والتشخيص النسيجي المرضي. ُحللت البيانات باستخدام لحساب متوسط العمر، وتوزيع الجنس، والتكرارات الخاصة بالموقع، والنسب السنوية ألورام الفم مقارنةً بإجمالي حاالت السرطان حالة سرطان ُمبل 48 حالة )59.0 )%منها ّ النتائج: من بين 152,8 غ عنها على مدار خمس سنوات، كانت أورا ًما فموية. تراوحت نسب األورام الفموية السنوية بين 34.0 %عام 2020 و83.0 %عام 2023 .تألفت ذكًر 58 )%و20 أنثى )42 ،)%بنسبة ذكور إلى إناث بلغت 1:4.1 .كان متوسط عمر المجموعة من 28 ا ) عا ًما(. كان اللسان أكثر المناطق تأث ًر )5.42 ،)%يليه الفك العلوي المرضى 2.54 عا ًما )النطاق: 12-89 ا )15 )%والبلعوم األنفي )5.12 .)%شكّل سرطان الخاليا الحرشفية )%69) SCC من الحاالت، وسرطان الغدد 19 ،%والساركوما 12 .%ومن بين حاالت سرطان الخاليا الحرشفية، بلغت نسبة الذكور 55 .% االستنتاج: شكلت أورام الفم والرأس والرقبة أقل من 1 %من جميع حاالت السرطان في المعهد الوطني للسرطان خالل الفترة 2020-2024 ،حيث أصابت بشكل رئيسي كبار السن من الذكور، وغالبًا ما شملت سرطان الخاليا الحرشفية اللسان. تؤكد هذه النتائج على ضرورة إجراء فحص ُمستهدف في المواقع التشريحية والفئات الديموغرافية عالية الخطورة. ينبغي أن تُدمج الدراسات المستقبلية عوامل الخطر السلوكية والبيئية لتوجيه استراتيجيات الوقاية والكشف المبكر. الكلمات المفتاحية: أورام الفم - سرطان الرأس والرقبة - سرطان الخاليا الحرشفية - التحليل بأثر رجعي - علم الاوبئة

Abstract Background: Cancers of the lip and oral cavity rank among the world’s most prevalent malignancies and carry poor survival rates despite therapeutic advances. In Libya, epidemiological data on oral and head‐and‐neck tumors remain limited. This study aimed to characterize the five‐year epidemiological and histopathological profile of these tumors at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Sabratha, from 2020 to 2024. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted of all histologically confirmed carcinomas and sarcomas of the oral cavity, head, and neck recorded in the NCI archives. Patient demographics (age, sex), tumor site, and histopathologic diagnosis were extracted. Data were analyzed using R (v4.0.2) to calculate mean age, gender distribution, site‐specific frequencies, and annual proportions of oral tumors relative to total cancer cases. Results: Among 8,152 cancer cases reported over five years, 48 (0.59%) were oral tumors. Annual oral tumor proportions ranged from 0.34% in 2020 to 0.83% in 2023. The cohort comprised 28 males (58%) and 20 females (42%), with a male-to-female ratio of 1.4:1. The mean patient age was 54.2 years (range: 12–89). The tongue was the most affected site (42.5%), followed by maxilla (15%) and nasopharynx (12.5%). Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) constituted 69% of cases, adenocarcinoma 19%, and sarcoma 12%. Among SCCs, 55% occurred in males. Conclusion: Oral and head‐and‐neck tumors comprised less than 1% of all cancers at NCI during 2020–2024, predominantly affecting older males and most frequently involving the tongue as SCC. These findings underscore the need for targeted screening in high‐risk anatomical sites and demographic groups. Future studies should integrate behavioral and environmental risk factors to inform prevention and early‐detection strategies. Keywords:)Oral Tumors-Head-and-neck cancer-Squamous cell carcinomaRetrospective analysis-Epidemiology(

The collection of comprehensive data is crucial for monitoring antimicrobial resistance (AMR) patterns and implementing targeted interventions. However, there is a lack of data regarding the AMR status of pathogens in Libya, hinders the efforts to address the problem effectively. This retrospective study evaluates the prevalence of Escherichia coli AMR isolates to gentamycin, chloramphenicol, cefoxitin (or) ceftriaxone, meropenem, moxifloxacin (Mox), amoxicillin/clavulanate (AUG) or ampicillin-sulbactam (UNZ) among the visitors to the main pathology laboratories in Gharyan city. Reports from 107 AMR tests demonstrate that E. coli was mostly isolated from Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs, 85%) followed by vaginal infections (8.4%) and wound infections (6.5%). More than half of the isolates were multi-drug resistant which is a clear indicator of the need for continuous monitoring. The overall pattern demonstrates a high resistance rate to cephalosporins, and combinations of penicillins with beta-lactamase inhibitors (UNZ or AUG), followed by high resistance rates to Mox. In contrast, E. coli isolates showed high sensitivity to meropenem followed by gentamicin and chloramphenicol. However, the isolation site seems to affect the resistance patterns, most of the wound isolates were resistant to gentamycin. In contrast, all vaginal isolates were resistant to UNZ or AUG, yet both types showed high susceptibility to meropenem. 

Background/Objectives: Clostridioides difficile is a “One Health” pathogen and a cause of antibiotics-associated diarrhea and pseudomembranous colitis. Mobile genetic elements (MGEs) have been documented in the genomes of clinical C. difficile strains; however, the presence of MGEs in environmental strains remains poorly characterized. Thus, the present study was conducted with the objective of identifying the prevalence of MGEs, including mobilizable transposons (MTns), conjugative transposons (CTns), plasmids, and insertion sequences, in whole genome sequences (WGSs) of environmental C. difficile isolates. Methods: The analysis of MGEs was conducted using 166 WGSs obtained from C. difficile strains isolated from various environmental sources contaminated with feces. The MGEs were identified using bioinformatic tools. Results: A total of 48.2% (80/166) of the studied genomes were identified to harbor nine transposons, including Tn916, Tn6194-like, Tn5397, Tn6215, Tn4001, Tn6073, Tn6110, Tn6107, or Tn5801-like. The majority of MTns and CTns could be found within C. difficile sequence types ST11, ST3, and ST35. The results demonstrated close genetic relatedness among the studied genomes, the array of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes, such as tetM, ermB, and aac(6′)-aph(2″), and the presence of CTns. Furthermore, the analysis revealed that 24.7% (41/166) of the genome sequences of isolates were associated with various predominant plasmid groups, including pCD6, pCD-ECE4-6, pCD-WTSI1-4, pCDBI1, and pCd1_3, which belonged to 16 different sequence types. Furthermore, several plasmids were identified as harboring the prophage phiCDHM19. Conclusions: The results of the current study suggest that the identified plasmids are abundant and may encode functions that are relevant to C. difficile physiology. The genomes of C. difficile strains examined contain closely related CTns, suggesting that horizontal transfer of AMR is important in this species or other bacterial species. Further research is required to ascertain the effect of these genetic elements and their transferability on the biology of C. difficile.