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
Ceruloplasmin (Cp) is one of the acute phase protein, in this review ,we studied the level of ceruloplasmin with copper (Cu) and iron in 90 patients with coronary heart diseas ( those patients are divided into three groups, whom are stable angina , unstable angina and myocardial infarction compared with 30 healthy volunteers) and the roles of them as diagnostic and prognostic tools.The diagnosis was attend by a clinical examination carried out by the consult medical staff in Ibn AL-Nafis hospital. The result: ceruloplasmin recorded a significantly(p<0.05)higher level in all patient groups compared with the control, so this result supports the hypothesis that a high serum ceruloplasmin level is a risk factor for coronary heart di
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Mesoporous silica (MPS) nanoparticle was prepared as carriers for drug delivery systems by sol–gel method from sodium silicate as inexpensive precursor of silica and Cocamidopropyl betaine (CABP) as template. The silica particles were characterized by SEM, TEM, AFM, XRD, and N2adsorption–desorption isotherms. The results show that the MPS particle in the nanorange (40-80 nm ) with average diameter equal to 62.15 nm has rods particle morphology, specific surface area is 1096.122 m2/g, pore volume 0.900 cm3/g, with average pore diameter 2.902 nm, which can serve as efficient carriers for drugs. The adsorption kinetic of Ciprofloxacin (CIP) drug was studied and the data were analyzed and found to match well with
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Acquisition provisions in Islamic jurisprudence
The optical absorption data of Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon was analyzed using a Dunstan model of optical absorption in amorphous semiconductors. This model introduces disorder into the band-band absorption through a linear exponential distribution of local energy gaps, and it accounts for both the Urbach and Tauc regions of the optical absorption edge.Compared to other models of similar bases, such as the O’Leary and Guerra models, it is simpler to understand mathematically and has a physical meaning. The optical absorption data of Jackson et al and Maurer et al were successfully interpreted using Dunstan’s model. Useful physical parameters are extracted especially the band to the band energy gap , which is the energy gap in the a
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The trading banks in Iraq invest their funds according to regulations imposed by the Central Bank in Iraq in different financial fields like stock exchanges, acquire stocks as assets that could be sold at any time as well as make loans and contributing in corporations establishment also magnitude foreign capital through direct contacts with foreign exchange markets.
We can summarize the problem of this paper as shortage in mathematical models that used in studying and analyzing these investments and according to this problem we used (a constructed mathematical model ) consists of three major indicators: profitability of total investment assets which is divided into three sub-indicators: owners equity risk indicator, debits risk i
... Show MoreIn this paper, the speed control of the real DC motor is experimentally investigated using nonlinear PID neural network controller. As a simple and fast tuning algorithm, two optimization techniques are used; trial and error method and particle swarm optimization PSO algorithm in order to tune the nonlinear PID neural controller's parameters and to find best speed response of the DC motor. To save time in the real system, a Matlab simulation package is used to carry out these algorithms to tune and find the best values of the nonlinear PID parameters. Then these parameters are used in the designed real time nonlinear PID controller system based on LabVIEW package. Simulation and experimental results are compared with each other and showe
... Show MoreThis paper presents a comparative study of two learning algorithms for the nonlinear PID neural trajectory tracking controller for mobile robot in order to follow a pre-defined path. As simple and fast tuning technique, genetic and particle swarm optimization algorithms are used to tune the nonlinear PID neural controller's parameters to find the best velocities control actions of the right wheel and left wheel for the real mobile robot. Polywog wavelet activation function is used in the structure of the nonlinear PID neural controller. Simulation results (Matlab) and experimental work (LabVIEW) show that the proposed nonlinear PID controller with PSO
learning algorithm is more effective and robust than genetic learning algorithm; thi
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Abstract
The aim of this research is to formulate a proposed strategy for developing graduate studies at King Khalid University to support the achievement of the Kingdom's vision (2030). The research used the descriptive survey approach. The research community consisted of all graduate students at King Khalid University. The research was conducted on a random sample included (623) Male and female students, this research relied on the questionnaire as the main tool for collecting its data. The results revealed that the research sample believes that all the proposals included in this research are very important for the development of postgraduate studies at King Khalid University to support the achievement of the K
... Show MoreComputer analysis of simple eye model is performed in the present work by using the Zemax optical design software 2000E . The most important optical parameters of the eye were calculated such as the effective focal length (EFL) , the image spot size at the retina and found to be in a reasonable agreement with the values needed for the laser retinal treatment .The present eye model leads to an effective wavelength and we found the image spot diagram at the surface of the retina and the wavefront error which are provided at zero field angle. This gives a good evidence of the validity of the model in one hand, and can be used to determine the compatibility of any optical design intended for visual applications. By using the pulse fre
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