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
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The research aims to Estimate the Strength of Strategic Innovation application in terms of application strength , and on the overall level in number of Iraqi Industrial business organizations . After wards determine whether their is differerences among those organizations in application process for the dimensions , and for the overall process .
The Research revealed number of conclusions including that the process of strategic innovation is applied in a good Level , and demonstrates the desier of the industrial companies Leaders to Launch beyond the familiar products , and to provide new products that
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The objective of this research is to develop a method for applying financial derivatives in the local environment to reduce the risk of foreign exchange rate fluctuations to enhance quality of accounting profits through Financial reporting to local units In accordance with international financial reporting standards, To accomplish this objective was selected a sample of Iraqi units exposed to the risk of fluctuations in foreign currency rates, As the research found:
- many companies and banks in the local environment a lot of losses due to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates.
- that financial derivatives in the Iraqi environment represent
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The goal of this research is to find the effects of both the studying students groupwhich has various educational levels and the integration of the fragmented information through or during the study of history subjects for the female students of the fifth secondary literary section.
To achieve this study or case the researcher has chosen an experimental design or test by studying three groups: two are as mentioned above and the third is just ordinary team. In addition to that, there is a test after the experiment. The researcher chose on purpose female students of the literal section from two different secondary school Al Asil and Wahran both are secondary school for girls, and both are from directorate of education- Al Karkh 2nd dist
This study aims to identify the impact of using the infrastructure of the Information Technology (IT) on the performance of human resources in the public universities. This process is done by doing research in the size, quality, and efficiency of the performance, also speed of achievement and simplification of procedures. Diyala University was chosen for the diagnosis through the opinions and attitudes of its employees. Consequently, suggestions that contribute to improve the performance of the employees and thus its overall performance are obtained. Another objective of this study is identifying the human resources which are currently used in academic institutions and educational services systems because the significant role of th
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It was found that there was a significant correlation between all tests of the mechanical and electrical activity of the heart (systolic force FC, stroke volume SV, end-diastolic volume, EF volume, and left ventricular volume during diastole LVDD) with the test of the oxygen-phosphating energy system (Markaria). - As safe (Margaria-Kalamen( It was found that there is a significant correlation between all tests of the mechanical and electrical activity of the heart (myocardial systolic force FC, stroke volume SV, end-diastolic volume EDV, and the percentage of heart pumpingEF blood, and left ventricular volume during diastole (LVDD) with the Lactational Oxygen Energy System Test (Wingate Test 30 Second(
Electronic banking plays a prominent role in providing the best banking services and upgrading the banking sector for the better, so this study aimed to shed light on the most prominent obstacles that prevent the application of electronic banking in banks operating in the city of Nasiriyah, and in order to achieve this goal the researcher used the descriptive analytical approach And through a questionnaire form that was distributed to a group of employees, numbering (60) employees in the upper, middle and operational departments in a number of branches of private banks operating in the city of Nasiriyah, namely (the Iraqi Trade Bank, the Gulf Commercial Bank, the Bank of Baghdad, the Union Bank of Iraq), which represented The stu
... Show MoreThe capital in the bank is the important element in establishing it, because it maintains the banking sector in the event of exposure to losses or risks In addition to contributing to the provision of liquidity And protection of depositors' money from potential and unexpected losses. There is also a relationship between the prices of shares and the indicators of the durability of the capital owned, considering that the shares are the components of the bank capital The study limited the indicators of capital to assets and capital to deposits, capital to loans and financial investments Where the most important conclusions are the damage to the detriment of shareholders in contrast to the depositors in the case of increasing the propo
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Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) represents the most prevalent type of acute leukemia in adults and is responsible for approximately 80% of all cases. The tumor suppressor gene (TP53) is a gene that has been frequently studied in cancer, and mutations in this gene account for about 50% of human cancers. This study aims to evaluate the correlation between two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the gene: rs1042522 and rs1642785, and a group of Iraqi patients suffering from pre-diagnostic acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Blood samples were collected from sixty patients (26 males and 34 females) and sixty controls (26 males and 34 females); these subjects were matched in gender, age, and ethnicity. Genomic DNA has been extracted fro
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Imposed on foreign oil companies from important sources in the financing of the general budget in most countries of the world income tax is considered as well as be used to achieve political, economic and social goals, and has developed the concept of the tax until it became play an important role in influencing the economic conditions of a country, and the aim of this research is to statement imposed on foreign oil companies operating in Iraq in the financing of the state budget income tax contribution, as well as clarify the contracts type contracts with these companies, which is in favor of Iraq, together with the Income Tax Law No. (19) for the year / 2010, and instructed No. (5) for the year / 2011, which organized the tax process s
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Sports management is a fundamental pillar that supports sports institutions and plays a pivotal role in achieving advanced levels of success in talent development. The Talent Development Project is one of the key strategic initiatives of the Ministry of Youth and Sports. This study compares department heads with effective managerial competence to those with ineffective competence to highlight differences in performance quality. Through this comparison, the urgent need to assess the administrative performance skills of the heads of sports talent departments becomes evident, particularly their ability to lead and manage the Sports Talent Development Project. The objective is to identify strengths and weaknesses, establish a clear framework fo
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