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
The research aims to identify the impact of managing performance's employees in building intellectual capital, Because employing the practice of managing the performance of employees may acquire familiar skills to improve their performance and reflect on the construction of intellectual capital in the surveyed area, Especially that the independent dimension represented by the management of the performance of employees is one of the important topics that has received attention in the world of management in general and human resource management in particular. While the adopted dimension was represented by Intellectual capital in the important practice of human resource management in the increasing of their knowledge, to
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The research aims to identify the role of the dimensions of financial inclusion in achieving the competitive advantage by An exploratory research of the views of a sample of customers of the 20 Algerian commercial banks, And the relationship between its dimensions (Access dimension, Usage dimension, Quality) And competitive advantage. This research is based on the analytical descriptive approach. The questionnaire was adopted as a main tool in collecting data and information on the sample of 377.
The The research showed several results, the most important of which is a strong correlation between the dimensions of the three financial inclusion combined and the competitive advantage of the Algerian commercial banks, and explained t
... Show MoreThis study seeks to identify the role that the leadership trend plays in the management of health institutions in Iraq and its impact on improving the quality of the health service provided by analyzing some opinions of affiliates working in the Iraqi health sector where a survey list was used as a main tool for collecting primary data, as it was subjected to this analysis ( 60) of the medical staff, of whom (40) are doctors and (20) are affiliated with the rank of assistant physician, and (60) members of the administrative cadre have undergone their various job ranks and administrative specializations (department manager, auditor, observer, accountant, statistician, secretary). Reliance on statistical software (spss) in data ana
... Show MoreThis study aimed to know the impact of the capital structure measured by the ratio of financing to short-term capital and the ratio of financing to long-term capital on the profitability of companies, as measured by the rate of return on assets and the rate of return on equity. The study was applied to industrial sector companies listed in the Iraq Stock Exchange. The financial number of (14) companies, and (4) companies were selected that met the conditions for selecting the study sample. The study methodology relies on the analytical method as it is more appropriate to the nature, scope and objectives of the study, and the ready-made statistical program "SPSS" will be used to analyze the relationships and influence between the
... Show MoreThe study aimed at identifying the mental capacity of the research sample and classifying them for the purposes of the study, preparing the scale of cognitive control of the subject of teaching methods of sports education, preparing educational units by establishing the question network for the subject of the teaching methods of sports education, and adopting the experimental method by experimental design workers (2×2) for the two groups The limits of the research community are represented by third-stage students of the Department of Physical Education and Sports Science in the morning study of the College of Knowledge, the Community University, which continues in the regular working hours of the year (2019-2020) adult Their number
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Objective: Develop a deliberate thinking scale for the setting skill in volleyball for second-year female students in the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences for Woman. Research methodology: The researchers used the experimental approach, employing a two-group approach (pre-test and post-test), to suit the nature of the research. The research community comprised (65) second-year female students from the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences for Woman at the University of Baghdad for the academic year 2024-2025. The research sample was randomly selected, with (15) students in Section A, the experimental group, and (15) students in Section B, the control group. This group represented (46%) of the students. Th
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The study aimed to identify the effect of Total Quality Management on enhancing competitiveness through the opinions of employees of the front- rows of customer service in local Palestinian banks, the researcher adopted an analytical descriptive method through developing a special questionnaire to accomplish the study’s objectives and answer its questions. The study involved all the Palestinian local banks, with their scattered branches in West Bank. The study sample consisted of 3470 executive employees for banking services out of 4753 employees, in the rate of 73%, and the study sample reached (485) employees who were randomly selected working in the front -rows to provide services in the local Palestinian banks during the ye
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The research aimed to prepare a measure of the importance of enlightenment, academic education, and applied skills for third-stage female students, including teaching methods from their point of view/College of Education and Sports Sciences/University of Baghdad/Al-Jadriyah. The researchers used descriptive description in the comprehensive research procedures, an appropriate methodology in achieving the research objectives, sufficient for interpretations, how important is the academic teacher’s knowledge of teaching methods for student learning, what are the roles that the learners have acquired from the academic teacher. The scale of importance and horror consists of 15 items. The research population includes female students of t
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The research aimed to prepare a measure of the importance of enlightenment, academic education, and applied skills for third-stage female students, including teaching methods from their point of view/College of Education and Sports Sciences/University of Baghdad/Al-Jadriyah. The researchers used descriptive description in the comprehensive research procedures, an appropriate methodology in achieving the research objectives, sufficient for interpretations, how important is the academic teacher’s knowledge of teaching methods for student learning, what are the roles that the learners have acquired from the academic teacher. The scale of importance and horror consists of 15 items. The research population includes female students of t
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Objective: Develop a deliberate thinking scale for the setting skill in volleyball for second-year female students in the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences for Woman. Research methodology: The researchers used the experimental approach, employing a two-group approach (pre-test and post-test), to suit the nature of the research. The research community comprised (65) second-year female students from the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences for Woman at the University of Baghdad for the academic year 2024-2025. The research sample was randomly selected, with (15) students in Section A, the experimental group, and (15) students in Section B, the control group. This group represented (46%) of the students. Th
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