Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a ubiquitous environmental organism, is a difficult-to-treat opportunistic pathogen due to its broad-spectrum antibiotic resistance and its ability to form biofilms. In this study, we investigate the link between resistance to a clinically important antibiotic, imipenem, and biofilm formation. First, we observed that the laboratory strain P. aeruginosa PAO1 carrying a mutation in the oprD gene, which confers resistance to imipenem, showed a modest reduction in biofilm formation.We also observed an inverse relationship between imipenem resistance and biofilm formation for imipenem-resistant strains selected in vitro, as well as for clinical isolates.We identified two clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa from the sputum of cystic fibrosis patients that formed robust biofilms, but were sensitive to imipenem (MIC≤2 μg/ml). To test the hypothesis that there is a general link between imipenem resistance and biofilm formation, we performed transposon mutagenesis of these two clinical strains to identify mutants defective in biofilm formation, and then tested these mutants for imipenem resistance. Analysis of the transposon mutants revealed a role for previously described biofilm factors in these clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa, including mutations in the pilY1, pilX, pilW, algC, and pslI genes, but none of the biofilmdeficient mutants became imipenem resistant (MIC≥8 μg/ml), arguing against a general link between biofilm formation and resistance to imipenem. Thus, assessing biofilm formation capabilities of environmental isolates is unlikely to serve as a good predictor of imipenem resistance. We also discuss our findings in light of the limited literature addressing planktonic antibiotic resistance factors that impact biofilm formation.
A simple and novel membraneless paper-based microfluidic fuel cell was presented in this study. The occurrence of laminar flow was employed to ensure no mixing of the fuel and oxidant fluids along the bath of reaction. The acidic wastewater was used as a fuel. It was an air-breathing cell, so air and tab water were used as oxidants. Both the fuel and tab water flowed continuously under gravity. Whatman filter paper was used for preparation of the fuel cell channel and two carbon fibre electrodes were used and firmed on the edges of the cell. The performance of the cell was examined over three consecutive days. The results indicated that the present cell has the potential to generate electric power, but an extensive study is required to harv
... Show MoreLeaching process applied for the extraction of bio active compounds from dried roots of (Elecampane) Inula helenium. Ethanol, hexane and distillated water were used as solvents. Roots were soaked with ethanol (5% w/v) with various concentration of ethanol (30 to 98%) at one day to know effect concentration of the solvent with concentration of bio active compound in Inula helenium. The same procedure was done using hexane as solvent. Also distilled water was used as solvent for extraction 5%(w/v) where plant material was soaked in water at different temperatures (25, 40, 65, 80, and 90) C. In all solvents undertaken, the effect of time duration on active ingredient (Thymol, Isoalatolactone, Alatolactone, 10-isobutyryl-oxy 8-9-epoxy thymol is
... Show MoreIn this work, the effect of the addition of bright nickel plating and silver carried out by the electroplating method has been studied, on the coating of copper nanoparticles on the copper base metal via the process of thermal evaporation. The improvement of the solar absorber using CuNP in combination with the bright nickel and silver was obtained to be better than copper nanoparticles individually. A bright nickel enhanced the absorbed thermal stability. Also, other optical properties, absorptions, and emissivity slightly decreased from (93% to 87%), while the existence of silver had a slight impact on absorption of about (86.50%). On the other hand, thermal conductivity was evaluated using hot disk analyzer. The results showed a good
... Show MoreNew evidence on nanotechnology has shown interest in the creation and assessment of nanoparticles for cancer treatment. Worldwide, a wide range of tumor-targeted approaches are being developed to reduce side effects and boost the efficacy of cancer therapy. One strategy that shows promise is the use of metallic nanoparticles to increase the radio sensitization of the cancer cells while reducing or maintaining the normal tissue complication probability during radiation therapy. In this study, atmospheric plasma was created using argon gas to create Au NPs using the plasma jet scheme, and their ability to induce apoptosis as an anticancer mechanism was tested. Aqueous gold tetrachloride salts (HAuCl4·3H2O) ere used to produce gold nanopartic
... Show MoreThis research presents the possibility of using banana peel (arising from agricultural production waste) as biosorbent for removal of copper from simulated aqueous solution. Batch sorption experiments were performed as a function of pH, sorbent dose, and contact time. The optimal pH value of Copper (II) removal by banana peel was 6. The amount of sorbed metal ions was calculated as 52.632 mg/g. Sorption kinetic data were tested using pseudo-first order, and pseudo-second order models. Kinetic studies showed that the sorption followed a pseudo second order reaction due to the high correlation coefficient and the agreement between the experimental and calculated values of qe. Thermodynamic parameters such as enthalpy change (ΔH
... Show MoreThe hydraulic conditions of a flow previously proved to be changed when placing large-scale geometric roughness elements on the bed of an open channel. These elements impose more resistance to the flow. The geometry of the roughness elements, the numbers used, and the configuration are parameters that can affect the hydraulic flow characteristics. The target is to use inclined block elements to control the salt wedge propagation pointed in most estuaries to prevent its negative effects. The Computational Fluid Dynamics CFD Software was used to simulate the two-phase flow in an estuary model. In this model, the used block elements are 2 cm by 3 cm cross-sections with an inclined face in the flow direction, with a length
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