Abstract Candida albicans is a commensal fungal pathogen that grows in yeast and hyphal forms in the human gut. C. albicans causes mucosal and cutaneous diseases that can result in significant mortality following systematic infections and it also exhibits drug resistance. Zebrafish have been an excellent model to investigate C. albicans infections because of their transparency and the availability of many transgenic lines. However, there is a limitation in using zebrafish as a model because the fish embryos cannot survive at 37°C therefore it is not suitable for studying Candida infections at physiological relevant human body temperature. In this thesis, the normal embryonic development of Arabian killifish (A. dispar) is investigated, revealing that embryogenesis was divided into 32 stages based on diagnostic patterns of development. A. dispar can also found to tolerate a wide range of temperatures and salinities. This suggests that A. dispar could be developed as a novel model to investigate host-pathogen interactions. The tolerance of A. dispar to high temperatures may in part be attributable to brown pigment cells with a highly fluorescent character that may have developed to allow the fish to adapt to live within extreme environmental conditions with strong sunlight and a wide range of temperatures (Chapter 3). In terms of Candida infections, this study examined A. dispar as a model to test C. albicans pathogenicity. The survival of A. dispar embryos following Candida infection showed a dose dependent relationship. We also found that A. dispar can survive longer than zebrafish after infection. Furthermore, C. albicans cells were observed to undergo a transition from yeast to hyphae at 37°C. An investigation of the ability of mutant strains of C. albicans with defects in cell wall mannosylation revealed a significant impact on virulence, host mortality, and the fishes’ immune response. The present study found that although the deletion of O- and N-mannan from the cell wall of C. albicans, affected fungal burden (attenuation), and the survival of the infected embryos per se was significantly decreased in the infections of the mutant strains compared to the WT. This data confirms the importance of the mannosylation state of the cell wall in triggering an immune recognition event (Chapter 4). A. dispar is also shown to be suitable for studying the effectiveness of 3 | P a g e antifungals. Fluconazole treatment of infected embryos and eggs promoted greater rates of survival at high doses, alongside a significant reduction of C. albicans CFUs (Chapter 4). When looking at the Candida-host interaction, we directly observed phagocytosed yeast cells within macrophages. Various detection methods were used to follow macrophages and neutrophils including Western blotting, immunostaining and histological staining (Sudan black and FITC-tyramide) allowing the monitoring of the time course of the immune cells. A biphasic response of macrophages was detected by L-plastin Western blotting, suggesting activation of two different type of macrophage: activated macrophage (M1) and alternative macrophage (M2). We also assayed reactive oxygen species (ROS) within infected embryos using a fluorescent probe (H2DCFDA), revealing the accumulation of the fluorescent probe at the sites of infection. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of the oxidative and immune response using the H2DCFDA and qPCR were also accomplished within A. dispar embryos after infection with both the WT and mutant strains of Candida albicans (WT, pmr1∆, mnt1-mnt2∆, and och1∆). The results confirmed that the mutant strains did not activate a host oxidative stress response nor immune cell accumulation when compared to WT, suggesting that the immune response is less activated against these mutants. Finally, a new transgenic line of A. dispar fish was developed using Betaactin-DsR-LoxP-GFP. The new transgenic A. dispar is suggested to be an ideal model for real time observation of host-pathogen interactions and for investigation of molecular functions of the immune response. Overall these results improve our understanding of the use of a new transparent fish model to study fungal pathogenesis and demonstrates the potential advantages of using this species in future studies of bacterial, fungal and viral pathogens at a physiologically relevant temperature for human infection. Such a model could lead us to investigate in more depth the key interactions between pathogens and their host and permit the screening and development of new antifungal therapies (that might target the pathogens directly or target the host immune system). View full metadata
Background: Malignant lymphomas represent about 5% of all malignancy of the head and neck region which can involve lymph nodes as well as soft tissue and bone of the maxillofacial region. Apoptosis is considered a vital component of various processes including normal cell turnover, proper development and functioning of the immune system. Inappropriate apoptosis is a factor in many human conditions including neurodegenerative diseases, ischemic damage, autoimmune disorders and many types of cancer. Expression of p53 Proteins in Hodgkin׳s and Non Hodgkin׳s lymphomas suggested that it can help in monitoring of patients and the markers may aid in controlling the progression of lymphoma and detect the degree of aggressiveness of the diseas
... Show MoreThe current research aims to identify the time-management skills based on the post-test of the experimental group as well as to examine the effect of a training program on developing the skills of managing time among the study sample. To achieve the research objectives, the researcher designed a scale of time management skill included (30) paragraphs. The research reached that the training program is significantly effective in managing and organizing time. There are statistically significant differences in pre-posttest between the experimental and control groups.
Abstract
This research aims to develop a unit as part of a sixth-grade Arabic language textbook and measure its effectiveness in the development of twenty-first-century skills of female students. The author adopted the experimental approach with a quasi-experimental design of the pre-post single-group. A list of the major skills was derived from the framework for the 21st-century skills of the mother tongue that was developed by the Partnership for 21st-Century Skills and reviewed and adjusted by some specialists. According to their views, the unit was developed. The study targeted 15 sub-skills falling under three main skills. The results of the study showed the effectiveness of the developed unit in the develo
... Show MoreA QR code is a type of barcode that can hold more information than the familiar kind scanned at checkouts around the world. The “QR” stands for “Quick Response”, a reference to the speed at which the large amounts of information they contain can be decoded by scanners. They are being widely used for advertising campaigns, linking to company websites, contest sign-up pages and online menus. In this paper, we propose an efficient module to extract QR code from background and solve problem of rotation in case of inaccurate image taken from mobile camera.
Economic organizations operate in a dynamic environment, which necessitates the use of quantitative techniques to make their decisions. Here, the role of forecasting production plans emerges. So, this study aims to the analysis of the results of applying forecasting methods to production plans for the past years, in the Diyala State Company for Electrical Industries.
The Diyala State Company for Electrical Industries was chosen as a field of research for its role in providing distinguished products as well as the development and growth of its products and quality, and because it produces many products, and the study period was limited to ten years, from 2010 to 2019. This study used the descriptive approa
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The aim of this research is to measure the effect of Adey- Shire model in the achievement and critical thinking of first intermediate female students in mathematics. The researcher adopted the experimental method with a post-test, the research of sample consists of (60) female students, divided into two groups with (30) students in the experimental group, that studied with Adey- Shire model, and (30) students in the control group who studied in the usual way. The two groups are equivalent in many variables. The researcher makes two tests of multiple choices, the first one is an achievement test consists (30) items and another test was for a critical thinking test with (25) items. The statistical analysis make to both tests is made with s
... Show MoreTraumatic spinal cord injury is a serious neurological disorder. Patients experience a plethora of symptoms that can be attributed to the nerve fiber tracts that are compromised. This includes limb weakness, sensory impairment, and truncal instability, as well as a variety of autonomic abnormalities. This article will discuss how machine learning classification can be used to characterize the initial impairment and subsequent recovery of electromyography signals in an non-human primate model of traumatic spinal cord injury. The ultimate objective is to identify potential treatments for traumatic spinal cord injury. This work focuses specifically on finding a suitable classifier that differentiates between two distinct experimental
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n this paper, we formulate three mathematical models using spline functions, such as linear, quadratic and cubic functions to approximate the mathematical model for incoming water to some dams. We will implement this model on dams of both rivers; dams on the Tigris are Mosul and Amara while dams on the Euphrates are Hadetha and Al-Hindya.
A theoretical calculation of the binding and excitation energies have been used at low – lying energies based on shell model and quantum theory. In this model, we evaluated the energies under assume Ni 28 56 30 as inert core with two nucleon extra, nucleons in the 2P3/2 , 1f 5/2 and 2P1/2 configuration. Modified Surface Delta Interaction (MSDI) and Reid's Potential (RP) theory for two body matrix elements are evaluated by using a Matlab program to calculate the energies of experimental and Reid single particle energies. Our results of the theoretical calculation have been compared with the experimental results, which show no good agreement with the experiment but have a good agreement wit
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