Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are of potential interest because of their effective antibacterial and antiviral activities. Capping agents are used for exhibiting a better antibacterial activity than uncapped Ag NPs. There are very few reports that have shown the usage of AgNPs for in-vivo antibacterial therapy. Citrate-capped silver nanoparticles were synthesized chemically by citrate reduction method; the size of Cit-AgNPs was determined by an atomic force microscope (AFM) and was between 15-90 nm. Acinetobacter baumannii (A. baumannii) isolates were the only sensitive species to Cit-AgNPs. MICs and MBC of Cit-AgNPs were determined by using A. baumannii. The results showed an additive effect of Cit-AgNPs. Four mice groups were infected with a sub-lethal dose of A. baumannii intraperitoneally, IP. The single daily dose of Cit-AgNPs and imipenem plus Cit-AgNPs combination were administered IP. Imipenem and phosphate buffer saline (PBS) was used as positive control and negative control, respectively. Interestingly, only the PBS-treated group showed growth of A. baumannii in the liver and spleen of sacrificed mice. Histopathologically, Cit-AgNPs showed antibacterial activity and had an additive effect when combined with imipenem in vivo and in vitro. Moreover, the Cit-AgNPs showed dose-dependent activity and the organs differed in the illumination of the toxicity effect of Cit-AgNPs even after high dose administration. In conclusion, Cit-capped AgNPs had antibacterial activity against multiple drug resistant (MDR) A. baumannii but not against K. pneumoniae and E. coli. Cit-capped AgNPs increased the inhibition zone of imipenem in …
Dicephalus parapagus twinning (DPT) is the rarest conjoined twinning entity of all conjoined twins. The presence of DPT is always associated with mortality before or after delivery. Antenatal diagnosis is crucial for planning labor, assembling a team, and providing counseling. Case presentation: A 23-year-old patient (G2P1A0) at 21 weeks of pregnancy attended the ultrasound clinic for routine care. A monoamniotic-monochorionic pregnancy was observed; the twin fetuses had two heads but one body, which corresponded to dicephalus parapagus twinning. A detailed ultrasound and fetal echocardiography reveal one heart without congenital anomalies. The liver, kidneys, and bladder appeared to be normally developed. Fetal MRI and karyotyping wer
... Show MoreRapid worldwide urbanization and drastic population growth have increased the demand for new road construction, which will cause a substantial amount of natural resources such as aggregates to be consumed. The use of recycled concrete aggregate could be one of the possible ways to offset the aggregate shortage problem and reduce environmental pollution. This paper reports an experimental study of unbound granular material using recycled concrete aggregate for pavement subbase construction. Five percentages of recycled concrete aggregate obtained from two different sources with an originally designed compressive strength of 20–30 MPa as well as 31–40 MPa at three particle size levels, i.e., coarse, fine, and extra fine, were test
... Show MoreThis paper proposes a new approach, of Clustering Ultrasound images using the Hybrid Filter (CUHF) to determine the gender of the fetus in the early stages. The possible advantage of CUHF, a better result can be achieved when fuzzy c-mean FCM returns incorrect clusters. The proposed approach is conducted in two steps. Firstly, a preprocessing step to decrease the noise presented in ultrasound images by applying the filters: Local Binary Pattern (LBP), median, median and discrete wavelet (DWT),(median, DWT & LBP) and (median & Laplacian) ML. Secondly, implementing Fuzzy C-Mean (FCM) for clustering the resulted images from the first step. Amongst those filters, Median & Laplace has recorded a better accuracy. Our experimental evaluation on re
... Show MoreThe mechanism of the electronic flow rate at Al-TiO2 interfaces system has been studied using the postulate of electronic quantum theory. The different structural of two materials lead to suggestion the continuum energy level for Al metal and TiO2 semiconductor. The electronic flow rate at the Al-TiO2 complex has affected by transition energy, coupling strength and contact at the interface of two materials. The flow charge rate at Al-TiO2 is increased by increasing coupling strength and decreasing transition energy.
The dynamic behavior of laced reinforced concrete (LRC) T‐beams could give high‐energy absorption capabilities without significantly affecting the cost, which was offered through a combination of high strength and ductile response. In this paper, LRC T‐beams, composed of inclined continuous reinforcement on each side of the beam, were investigated to maintain high deformations as predicted in blast resistance. The beams were tested under four‐point loading to create pure bending zones and obtain the ultimate flexural capacities. Transverse reinforcement using lacing reinforcement and conventional vertical stirrups were compared in terms of deformation, strain, and toughness changes of the tes
Decolorization of red azo dye (Cibacron Red FN-R) from synthetic wastewater has been investigated as a function of solar advanced oxidation process. The photocatalytic activity using ZnO as a photocatalysis has been estimated. Different parameters affected the removal efficiency, including pH of the solution, initial dye concentration and H2O2 concentration were evaluated to find out the optimum value of these parameters. The results proved that the optimal pH value was 8 and the most efficient H2O2 concentration was 100mg/L. Toxicity reduction percent for effluent solution was also monitored to assess the degradation process. This treatment method was able to strongly reduce the color and toxicity of reactive red dye-238 to about (99 an
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