Antibiotic resistance is the major growing threat facing the pharmacological treatment of bacterial infections. Therefore, bioprospecting the medicinal plants could provide potential sources for antimicrobial agents. Mimusops, the biggest and widely distributed plant genus of family Sapotaceae, is used in traditional medicines due to its promising pharmacological activities. This study was conducted to elucidate the antimicrobial effect of three unexplored Mimusops spp. (M. kummel, M. laurifolia and M. zeyheri). Furthermore, the mechanisms underlying such antibacterial activity were studied. The Mimusops leaf extracts revealed significant antibacterial activities against the five tested bacterial strains with a maximum inhibition zone diameter of 22.0 mm against B. subtilis compared with standard antibiotic ciprofloxacin. The minimal inhibitory and bactericidal concentration values against tested Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains ranged from 3.15-12.5 µg/ml. However, weak antifungal effect was recorded against Candida albicans with MIC value ˃25 µg/ml. The 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay showed that M. caffra was the best antioxidant (IC50=14.75±0.028 µg/ml), while M. laurifolia was the least one (IC50=34.22±0.014 µg/ml). The phenolics in plant leaves extracts were identified and quantified by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) which revealed the presence of seven phenolic acids and four flavonoids. The abundant phenolic compounds were rutin (5.216±0.067 mg/g dried wt.) and gallic acid (0.296±0.068 mg/g) followed by myricetin (0.317±0.091 mg/g) then kaempferol (0.113±0.049 mg/g) as flavonoids. The antibacterial mechanism of M. laurifolia extract, as a representative species, induces ultrastructural changes in the model bacterium Staphylococcus aureus with cell wall and plasma membrane lysis as revealed by transmission electron microscopy. Overall, Mimusops species (M. laurifolia, M. kummel and M. zeyheri) are promising natural alternative sources for antimicrobial agents.
The current study aimed to determine the morphometric and meristic characteristics of the North African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822). Six specimens of C. gariepinus were collected from the Tigris River, in central Iraq. This study is considered the confirmation first record of this species in Iraq, and the second documentation of this exotic fish. The present species is characterized by a very long dorsal fin, a rounded caudal fin and four pairs of barbels.
Background: Corn Syrup is food syrup higher of carbohydrate, depending on grade. The study aimed to assess efficiency of Corn syrup as cytological fixative.
Subjects and methods: This was laboratory based study, it has been conducted at Elrazi University included apparently 30 healthy students have been involved in this study.
Results: Out of 30 smears fixed with 95% alcohol, 76.7% (n=23) shows excellent nuclear stain, 23.3% (n= 7) shows good nuclear stain. 70% (n=21) show excellent cytoplasmic stain, 26.7% (n=8) shows good cytoplasmic stain, 3.3% (n=1) shows poor cytoplasmuc stain.
Out of 30 smears fixed with corn solution, 60
... Show MoreAntibiotics present the greatest threat to soil and aquatic ecosystems among the different therapeutic groups of medicines (which include prescription drugs and treatments for cancer). The strongest drugs, antibiotics, have been utilized to stop the growth of microorganisms or eradicate them. Using high-performance liquid chromatography technology with fluorescence detection, the amounts of levofloxacin and tetracycline in the wastewater from three hospitals (Medical City, AlKindi, and Al-Yarmouk) were determined. Levofloxacin and tetracycline were chosen in this study because they are the most important water pollutants. These antibiotic residues were separated and measured using a gradient elution technique on a reverse-phase C18 co
... Show Moret-Self-Compacting Concrete (SCC) reduces environmental noise and has more workability. This research presents an investigation of the behavior of SCC under mechanical loading (impact loading). Two types of cement have been used to produce SCC mixtures, Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) and Portland Limestone Cement (PLC), which reduces the emission of carbon dioxide during the manufacturing process. The mixes were reinforced with Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) which is usually used to improve the seismic performance of masonry walls, to replace lost steel reinforcements, or to increase column strength and ductility. Workability tests were carried out for fresh SCC. Prepared concrete slabs of 500×500×50mm were tested for lo
... Show MoreThe study examines the religious references of the art of miniatures in the Iranian school "Bahzad model" completed in Iran during the twelfth century AH, according to the controls and characteristics of the authoritative references. The researcher presented the problem of research, its importance, the need for it and its purpose, defined the terms in the research. The theoretical framework came with three investigations. The first topic of the concept of the reference in the field of knowledge, which concluded the most important features of the reference, is that each symbolic existence corresponds to a real existence and symbolic presence is an input to the realization of the reference. The reference then becomes a sign that acts as a
... Show MoreRationale, aims and objectives: A review of studies published over the last six years gives update about this hot topic. In the middle of COVID-19 pandemic, this study findings can help understand how population may perceive vaccinations. The objectives of this study were to review the literature covering the perceptions about influenza vaccines and to determine factors influencing the acceptance of vaccination using Health Belief Model (HBM). Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed utilizing PubMed and Google Scholar databases. Three keywords were used: Influenza vaccine, perceptions, and Middle East. Empirical studies that dealt with people/ HCW perceptions of influenza vaccine in the Middle East and writt
... Show MoreBackground/purpose: Dental implantology involves different treatments that have been used in conjunction with dental implant surgery to increase implant stability and bone regeneration process. Photobiomodulation( PBM) can be one of these techniques. The objective of this study was to evaluate the bone density around implants. Materials and methods: in this study, 10 individuals had 20 implants inserted in the posterior of their mandibles. each patient received two implants the left side served as the control whereas the right side served as the study group with a diode laser (same patients). measurements were made for each implant. Measurements were obtained using cone-
... Show More