The heavy metal cadmium is extremely harmful to both humans and animals. Zinc supplementation protects the biological system and reduces cadmium-induced toxicity. This study aimed to determine whether zinc chloride (ZnCl2) could protect male mice with the damaged liver induced by cadmium chloride (CdCl2). The protective role of zinc chloride and expression of the metallothionein (MT), Ki-67, and Bcl-2 apoptotic proteins in hepatocytes were studied after subchronic exposure of mice to cadmium chloride for 21 days. Thirty male mice were randomly categorized into 6 groups (5 mice/group) as follows: a control group that did not receive any treatment, a group given ZnCl2 at 10 mg/kg alone, and two groups received ZnCl2 (10 mg/kg) in combination with CdCl2 at two concentrations (1.5 and 3 mg/kg), while the last two groups received CdCl2 alone at 1.5 and 3 mg/kg, respectively. Immunohistochemical examination revealed a decrease in Ki-67 expression in Kupffer and endothelial cells, which reflected cell proliferation downregulation accompanied by MT increased expression. However, the Bcl-2 was ameliorated and reduced to demonstrate an enhanced rate of necrosis rather than apoptosis. Furthermore, histopathological results showed significant alteration such as hepatocytes with a pyknotic nucleus, infiltration of inflammatory cells around the central vein, and the presence of many binucleated hepatocytes. Zinc chloride treatment resulted in histological and morphological improvements that were average in the expression of apoptosis proteins modifications induced by cadmium. Our findings revealed that the positive effects of zinc might be linked to the high metallothionein expression and enhanced cell proliferation. Furthermore, at low-dose exposure, cadmium-induced damage to cells could be more closely related to necrosis rather than apoptosis.
Graphite Coated Electrodes (GCE) based on molecularly imprinted polymers were fabricated for the selective potentiometric determination of Risperidone (Ris). The molecularly imprinted (MIP) and nonimprinted (NIP) polymers were synthesized by bulk polymerization using (Ris.) as a template, acrylic acid (AA) and acrylamide (AAm) as monomers, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) as a cross-linker and benzoyl peroxide (BPO) as an initiator. The imprinted membranes and the non-imprinted membranes were prepared using dioctyl phthalate (DOP) and Dibutylphthalate (DBP) as plasticizers in PVC matrix. The membranes were coated on graphite electrodes. The MIP electrodes using
... Show MoreA spectrophotometric determination of azithromycin was optimized using the simplex model. The approach has been proven to be accurate and sensitive. The analyte has been reacted with bromothymol blue (BTB) to form a colored ion pair which has been extracted in chloroform in a buffer medium of pH=4 of potassium phthalate. The extracted colored product was assayed at 415 nm and exhibited a linear quantification range over (1 - 20) g/ml. The excipients did not exhibit any interferences with the proposed approach for assaying azithromycin in pharmaceutical formulations.
In this study, the physical, and mechanical properties of low-cost and biocomposites were evaluated. The walnut shell and date palm frond fibers were thermally treated in an oven at a temperature of 70°C and then chemically treated with NaOH and distilled water solution, after these treatments, the biocomposite materials will be thermally treated again at 50°C. This procedure was performed for three types of biocomposite; Walnut shell Fiber Reinforced Polymer (WFRP), Date palm Fiber Reinforced Polymer (DFRP), and Hybrid Fiber Reinforced Polymer (HFRP), whereas the biocomposite sheets consisting of 30% biofibers and 70% unsaturated polyester, the mechanical test specimens were cut by a CNC machine according to ASTM standards. The e
... Show MoreThe optimum design is characterized by structural concrete components that can sustain loads well beyond the yielding stage. This is often accomplished by a fulfilled ductility index, which is greatly influenced by the arrangement of the shear reinforcement. The current study investigates the impact of the shear reinforcement arrangement on the structural response of the deep beams using a variety of parameters, including the type of shear reinforcement, the number of lacing bars, and the lacing arrangement pattern. It was found that lacing reinforcement, as opposed to vertical stirrups, enhanced the overall structural response of deep beams, as evidenced by test results showing increases in ultimate loads, yielding, and cracking of
... Show MoreUnsaturated soil can raise many geotechnical problems upon wetting and drying resulting in swelling upon wetting and collapsing (shrinkage) in drying and changing in the soil shear strength. The classical principles of saturated soil are often not suitable in explaining these phenomena. In this study, expansive soil (bentonite and sand) were tested in different water contents and dry unit weight chosen from the compaction curve to examine the effect of water content change on soil properties (swelling pressure, expansion index, shear strength (soil cohesion) and soil suction by the filter paper method). The physical properties of these soils were studied by conducting series of tests in laboratory. Fitting methods
... Show MoreThe thermal and electrical performance of different designs of air based hybrid photovoltaic/thermal collectors is investigated experimentally and theoretically. The circulating air is used to cool PV panels and to collect the absorbed energy to improve their performance. Four different collectors have been designed, manufactured and instrumented namely; double PV panels without cooling (model I), single duct double pass collector (model II), double duct single pass (model III), and single duct single pass (model IV) . Each collector consists of: channel duct, glass cover, axial fan to circulate air and two PV panel in parallel connection. The temperature of the upper and
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