Inhalation of Staphylococcal Enterotoxin B (SEB) is known to induce acute lung injury (ALI) and studies from our laboratory have shown that THC, a psychoactive ingredient found in Cannabis sativa, can attenuate the ALI. In the current study, we investigated the role played by lung microbiota in ALI with or without THC treatment. A dual-dose of SEB was given to C3H/HeJ mice, which were then treated either with vehicle or THC. SEB-administration caused ALI and 100% mortality while all THC-treated mice survived and suppressed the inflammation in the lungs. Furthermore, lung microbiota was collected and 16S rRNA sequencing was performed. The data were analyzed to determine the alpha and beta diversity. The major phylum was Proteobacteria, class Alphaproteobacteria and orders were Caulobacterles and Rhodobacteralesin in the lungs of vehicle-treated SEB group. Moreover, THC treatment led to elevated Firmicutes phylum due to significant increase in the beneficial genus, Lactobacillus. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), gram negative bacterial endotoxin was found at significantly higher concentration in the BALF of vehicle-treated group in comparison with THC-treated mice. Beneficial metabolome levels were significantly higher in the colonic flush of THC-treated mice when compared to vehicle-treated SEB group, specifically butyric, propionic and acetic acids. Together, our data suggest that THC attenuates SEB-induced mortality and ALI by altering the microbiota in the lungs (Supported by NIH grants P01AT003961, R01AT006888, R01ES019313, R01MH094755, P20GM103641, R01AI129788 to PN and MN and MoHESR fellowship for AKM).
This study was undertaken to provide more insight on the optimum injection temperature used for the production of PE crates, thereby saving time and money, and improving part quality. The work included processing trails of HDPE crates in an injection
molding machine at five temperatures ranged from 220 to 300°C. Both Rheological and mechanical characterization was conducted in order to understand the effect of injection temperature on the properties of crates. Oven aging was also applied for (4 weeks) to evaluate the long-term thermal stability. The results revealed that producing the crates at a temperature range of (260-280 °C) gives the best rheological and mechanical result. The lowest drop in thermal stability has been observed
The Ethanolic extracts of different Iraqi indigenous plants which belong to different families showed algicidal activity against Anabaena, Nostoc and Myxosarcina species. Peganum harmala extract was the most potent in controlling the growth of tested Cyanobacterial species
Ab – initio density function theory (DFT) calculations coupled with Large Unit Cell (LUC) method were carried out to evaluate the electronic structure properties of III-V zinc blend (GaAs). The nano – scale that have dimension (1.56-2.04)nm. The Gaussian 03 computational packages has been employed through out this study to compute the electronic properties include lattice constant, energy gap, valence and conduction band width, total energy, cohesive energy and density of state etc. Results show that the total energy and energy gap are decreasing with increase the size of nano crystal . Results revealed that electronic properties converge to some limit as the size of LUC increase .
The present study included the physico-chemical parameters of Lesser-Zab river and its effects on Tigris river. Monthly water samples were taken from the two rivers during January to October 1999.There were no signifcant difference in water temperatures. Both rivers were fresh to oligohalin, alkaline and very hard. Close values were determined in total suspended solids in both rivers with little increasing during rainfall period and high discharge. Water was well areated and over saturation was recorded in several occasions. Dissolved oxygen values of Tigris river were influenced by Lesser-Zab. Cations were more dominant than anions in both rivers. In Lesser-Zab, the anions were increased during spring season and declined in summer which t
... Show MoreBackground: Manuka honey (MH) is a mono-floral honey derived from the Manuka tree (Leptospermum scoparium). MH is a highly recognized for its non-peroxide antibacterial activities, which are mostly related to its unique methylglyoxal content (MGO) in MH. The beneficial phytochemicals in MH is directly related to their favorable health effects, which include wound healing, anticancer, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. Aims: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of MH on pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-8 and TNF-α) in patients with gingivitis and compare it with chlorhexidine (CHX) and distilled water (DW). Materials and Methods: This study was a randomized, double blinded, and parallel clinical trial. Forty-fiv
... Show MoreKaolin ceramic compacts sintered at various temperatures are investigated to correlate their microstructure with their acoustic parameters. Pulse velocity , attenuation coefficient, and quality factor values are ducts from ultrasonic attenuation measurements, moreover, the dynamical mechanics parameters( Young and shear modules) exhibited an explicit relationship with the acoustic quality factor.inturn are related to the microstructure which is heavily affected by the sintering mechanism.
This experimental study focuses on scouring in box culvert inlets under steady-state conditions and at different percentages of blockage ranging from 0% to 65%, and also looks at the hydraulics of water in the culvert. The investigation shows that the blockage of the culverts has influenced the scouring pattern at the blocked culverts' entrances. Ten experiments were carried out at the laboratory to see how blockage impacts the scouring pattern upstream of a box culvert during steady flow. Both partially blocked and unblocked cases were implemented in this study. The experimental tests were done until the equilibrium scour occurred, which took about 3.5 hours of water flow to reach equilibrium conditions. The results r
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