The protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica is a causative agent of amoebiasis, where it causes millions of cases of dysentery and liver abscess each year. Metronidazole is a drug of choice against amoebiasis. The drug is a choice because of its efficacy and low cost, but at the same time it causes several adverse side effects; therefore, it is important to find effective medications to treat amoebiasis without any complications or any side effects. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of different concentrations (50, 75 and 100 µg/ml) of silver nanoparticle (AgNPs) against trophozoites stages of E. histolytica in vitro. The results showed a significant decrease (p ? 0.05) in numbers of trophozoites stages after treated with AgNPs and metronidazole when it was compared with the control. Likewise, a significant difference (p ? 0.05) was also observed between AgNPs groups and metronidazole drug, while it did not significantly differ between different concentrations of AgNPs. The mortality rate values of the E. histolytica trophozoites after 48h incubation with AgNPs at a concentration of 50, 75 and 100 ?g/ml, and metronidazole were 37.2%, 42.4%, 46.7% and 100%, respectively. The microscopic studies confirmed that AgNPs were effective enough to induce apoptosis. Based on our results, the anti-parasitic activity of AgNPs at different concentrations will reduce the mean number of E. histolytica trophozoites.
Copper oxide (CuO) nanoparticles were synthesized through the thermal decomposition of a copper(II) Schiff-base complex. The complex was formed by reacting cupric acetate with a Schiff base in a 2:1 metal-to-ligand ratio. The Schiff base itself was synthesized via the condensation of benzidine and 2-hydroxybenzaldehyde in the presence of glacial acetic acid. This newly synthesized symmetric Schiff base served as the ligand for the Cu(II) metal ion complex. The ligand and its complex were characterized using several spectroscopic methods, including FTIR, UV-vis, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, CHNS, and AAS, along with TGA, molar conductivity and magnetic susceptibility measurements. The CuO nanoparticles were produced by thermally decomposing the
... Show MoreBlastocystis is a ubiquitous human and animal protozoa that inhabit the gastrointestinal tract. Metronidazole is considered the standard drug for the treatment of Blastocystis infection; however, there is growing evidence of treatment failure, hazardous side effects, and appearance of strains resistant to metronidazole. In the last era, many studies have been implicated in the quest for new treatments for Blastocystis infection, especially natural products. Attention has been focused on the effect of Amygdalin (B17) and pumpkin seed on eradicating parasitic infections. The current work was built up to explore the in vitro efficacy of two natural compounds, Amygdalin (B17) and pumpkin seeds against
... Show MoreBackground: Green Tea is made from the leaf of the plant “Camellia sinensisâ€. Green tea is reported to contain thousands of bioactive ingredients including catechins which have shown great promise for having antimicrobial effects. Periodontal diseases represent one of the most prevalent diseases around the world and the main etiologic factor behind it, is plaque accumulation, in addition certain kinds of bacteria have been detected frequently in subjects suffering from periodontitis, Several studies suggested that the outcome of periodontal treatment is better if particular pathogens including Aggregatibacteractinomycetemcomitans can no longer be detected after therapy. Materials and Methods: plaque samples were collected from 2
... Show MoreBackground: Pit and fissure sealant have been considered an outstanding adjunct to oral health care in the decrease of occlusal caries onset and low progression. The aims of this in vitro study were to evaluate the marginal microleakage of three different types of fissure sealants (SDI, Tg and tetric N-flow) by time interval, one day and 45 days, in the presence or absence of bonding agent among maxillary and mandibular teeth. Materials and methods: Seventy two sound human maxillary and mandibular first premolar teeth were collected which were free from obvious carious lesions. The teeth were randomly divided into two main equal groups, group (1) and group (2), each group consists of (36) teeth involving equal numbers of maxillary and mandi
... Show MoreThe cyanobacterial neurotoxin
Background: Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) is the most ‎commonly used mâ€aterial in denture construction. This material is ‎far from ideal in fulfilling the‎ mechanical requirements, like low impact and transverse strength and poor thermal conductivity are present in this material. The purpose of this study was to study the effect of addition a composite which include 1%wt silanized silicone dioxide nano fillers (SiO2) and 1wt% oxygen plasma treated polypropylene fiber (PP) on some properties of heat cured acrylic resin denture base material (PMMA). Materials and methods: One hundâ€red (100) prepared specimens were divided into five groups according to the tests, each group consisted of 20 specimens and t
Mosquitoes like Culex quinquefasciatus are the primary vector that transmits many causes of diseases such as filariasis, Japanese encephalitis, and West Nile virus, in many countries around the world. The development in the scientific fields, such as nanotechnology, leads to use this technique in control programs of insects including mosquitoes through the use of green synthesis of nanoemulsions based on plant products such as castor oil. Castor oil nanoemulsion was formulated in various ratios comprising of castor oil, ethanol, tween 80, and deionized water by ultrasonication. Thermodynamic assay improved that the formula of (10 ml) of castor oil, ethanol (5ml), tween 80 (14 ml) and deionized water (71ml) was mor
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