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The Arabian killifish (Aphanius dispar) as a novel model for mycophysiological studies.
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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

Publication Date
Wed Aug 01 2018
Journal Name
Association Of Arab Universities Journal Of Engineering Sciences
Slow sand filtration as a tertiary treatment for the secondary effluent from sewage treatment plant
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A field-pilot scale slow sand filter (SSF) was constructed at Al-Rustamiya Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) in Baghdad city to investigate the removal efficiency in terms of Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5), Chemical oxygen demand (COD), Total Suspended Solids (TSS) and Chloride concentrations for achieving better secondary effluent quality from this treatment plant. The SSF was designed at a 0.2 m/h filtration rate with filter area 1 m2 and total filter depth of 2.3 m. A filter sand media 0.35 mm in size and 1 m depth was supported by 0.2 m layer of gravel of size 5 mm. The secondary effluent from Al-Rustamiya STP was used as the influent to the slow sand filter. The results showed that the removal of BOD5, COD, TSS, and Chloride were

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Publication Date
Sat Jun 01 2024
Journal Name
Heliyon
In silico analysis of the use of solanine derivatives as a treatment for Alzheimer's disease
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Publication Date
Fri Jun 30 2017
Journal Name
Iraqi Journal Of Chemical And Petroleum Engineering
Adsorption Kinetic and Isotherms Studies of Thiophene Removal from Model Fuel on Activated Carbon Supported Copper Oxide
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In the present study, activated carbon supported metal oxides was prepared for thiophene removal from model fuel (Thiophene in n-hexane) using adsorptive desulfurization technique. Commercial activated carbon was loaded individually with copper oxide in the form of Cu2O/AC. A comparison of the kinetic and isotherm models of the sorption of thiophene from model fuel was made at different operating conditions including adsorbent dose, initial thiophene concentration and contact time. Various adsorption rate constants and isotherm parameters were calculated. Results indicated that the desulfurization was enhanced when copper was loaded onto activated carbon surface. The highest desulfurization percent for Cu2O/AC and o

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Publication Date
Fri Oct 28 2022
Journal Name
Political Sciences Journal
A future view for the political systems of the Arab Gulf states After normalization ... the United Arab Emirates as a case study
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The dangers of (Israel's) integration with Arab countries in the middle east region will threaten the Arab security structure dimension, which the latter makes the Arab regional system vulnerable for distortion due to its nominal and symbolic value which is far from the Arab self and questioning with its effectiveness in comparing with the real capabilities to Arab countries in achieving the common targets. So, how to assess the different problems that began to hit the structure of the Arab regional system? and how to pledge an allegiance after putting forward what is known as the American Deal of the Century for the administration of former US President Donald Trump for making another step toward normalization with (Israel)?. The reveal

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Publication Date
Wed Nov 20 2024
Journal Name
Naunyn-schmiedeberg's Archives Of Pharmacology
The potential role of targeting the leptin receptor as a treatment for breast cancer in the context of hyperleptinemia: a literature review
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Since cancer is becoming a leading cause of death worldwide, efforts should be concentrated on understanding its underlying biological alterations that would be utilized in disease management, especially prevention strategies. Within this context, multiple bodies of evidence have highlighted leptin’s practical and promising role, a peptide hormone extracted from adipose and fatty tissues with other adipokines, in promoting the proliferation, migration, and metastatic invasion of breast carcinoma cells. Excessive blood leptin levels and hyperleptinemia increase body fat content and stimulate appetite. Also, high leptin level is believed to be associated with several conditions, including overeating, emotional stress, inflammation, obesity,

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Publication Date
Sun Aug 01 2021
Journal Name
Ibn Al-haitham Journal For Pure And Applied Sciences
Novel Heuristic Approach for Solving Multi-objective Scheduling Problems
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    In this paper, we studied the scheduling of  jobs on a single machine.  Each of n jobs is to be processed without interruption and becomes available for processing at time zero. The objective is to find a processing order of the jobs, minimizing the sum of maximum earliness and maximum tardiness. This problem is to minimize the earliness and tardiness values, so this model is equivalent to the just-in-time production system. Our lower bound depended on the decomposition of the problem into two subprograms. We presented a novel heuristic approach to find a near-optimal solution for the problem. This approach depends on finding efficient solutions for two problems. The first problem is minimizing total completi

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Publication Date
Fri May 12 2023
Journal Name
Bulletin Of The Chemical Society Of Ethiopia
SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION, ANTIMICROBIAL STUDIES, AND MOLECULAR DOCKING STUDIES OF TRANSITION METAL COMPLEXES FORMED FROM A BENZOTHIAZOLE-BASED AZO LIGAND
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The azo ligand obtained from the diazotization reaction of 2-aminobenzothiazole and 4- nitroaniline yielded a novel series of complexes with Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II), and Zn(II) ions. The complexes were investigated using spectral techniques such as UV-Vis, FT-IR, 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopic analyses, LC-MS and atomic absorption spectrometry, electrical conductivity, and magnetic susceptibility. The molar ratio of the synthesized compounds was determined using the ligand exchange ratio, which revealed the metal-ligand ratios in the isolated complexes were 1:2. The synthesized complexes were tested for antimicrobial activity against S. aureus, E. coli, C. albicans, and C. tropicalis bacterial species. Additionally, their binding affinities we

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Publication Date
Wed Jul 01 2015
Journal Name
Al–bahith Al–a'alami
Iraqi Press and its Role in Shaping Electoral Awareness (Iraqi Parliamentary Elections on 30 April, 2014 as a Model)
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The parliamentary election is one of the features of democratic systems that give individuals the right to participate in government and political election-making. Typically, the process of parliamentary elections received wide attention from media, as well as attention from large segments of the public because they understand the vast importance to assume political positions and associated fates of people and their destinies. Its importance comes from the fact that it allows citizens the right to participate in managing the public affairs by granting their confidence and voices to the elected president or his representatives in the parliamentary.
Media task is to emerge democratic societies, in particular, in the mission of urging p

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Publication Date
Wed Apr 01 2015
Journal Name
Al–bahith Al–a'alami
University Youth Attitudes towards Electronic Advertisements and their Relationship to the Behavior of the Consumer A Field Study of a Sample of Students of the College of Mass-Communication / University of Baghdad as a Model
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This research aims at identifying the communicative habits and content reflections on the communication process, especially the young audience which is one of the main group for whom the announcements are made. Because young people face life with passion and aspiration making them respond to each effect used by the media in the design of the advertising using all the effective techniques, attractive methods for young children like depending on drama, technical tricks, music and logos easily to be remembered and responded to the desires of the young in their entertainment. This research also aims at identifying the impact of the internet as a channel of commercial advertising on the purchasing behavior of young people at the universities

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Publication Date
Thu Jan 25 2024
Journal Name
Biomedical Materials
Enhancing the therapeutic potential of curcumin: a novel nanoformulation for targeted anticancer therapy to colorectal cancer with reduced miR20a and miR21 expression
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Abstract<p>Curcumin (Cur) possesses remarkable pharmacological properties, including cardioprotective, neuroprotective, antimicrobial, and anticancer activities. However, the utilization of Cur in pharmaceuticals faces constraints owing to its inadequate water solubility and limited bioavailability. To overcome these hurdles, there has been notable focus on exploring innovative formulations, with nanobiotechnology emerging as a promising avenue to enhance the therapeutic effectiveness of these complex compounds. We report a novel safe, effective method for improving the incorporation of anticancer curcumin to induce apoptosis by reducing the expression levels of miR20a and miR21. The established</p> ... Show More
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