Resveratrol, (RES), a phytoalexin, is well-known for its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties. SEB, a superantigen, is known to trigger ALI and cause mortality. In the current study, we tested the effect of RES in a dual-dose model of SEB exposure that triggers ALI and causes 100% mortality in C3H/HeJ-mice. The data revealed RES attenuated SEB-induced ALI and prevented mortality. Forty eight hours post-SEB exposure, lung-infiltrating mononuclear cells were tested for microRNA expression profile to determine the epigenetic regulation by resveratrol. SEB-activated splenocytes were pre-treated with 50 μM of RES or vehicle for metabolic profile analysis by measuring oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and extracellular acidification rate (ECAR). We also noted significant decline in miR-193a in the lungs of RES-treated SEB group, which targeted and caused an increase in TGFβ2 and TGFβR3, potent inhibitors of T-cell proliferation, by using RT-PCR and validation by transfection studies. RES-induced downregulation of miR-193a also influenced the activity of mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) as well as pyruvate kinase muscle isozyme2 (PKM2) genes, and caused RES-treated SEB-activated T cells to be quiescent metabolically in comparison to the energetic vehicle-treated SEB-activated T cells. Together, RES caused inhibition in the proliferation of SEB-activated T-cells by alterations in miR expression and metabolic profiles. (Supported by NIH grants P01AT003961, R01AT006888, R01ES019313, R01MH094755, P20GM103641 and R01AI129788).
In Iraq, there is a limited research work exploring the clinical pharmacists' role from the point of view of other healthcare professionals.
To investigate physicians' assessment of clinical pharmacy services at Baghdad hospitals, and compare junior physicians with senior physicians' point of view.
The study was conducted in twelve governmental hospitals in Baghdad, Iraq. Data was collected from a sample of two hundred physicians, and through a validated, self-administered questionnaire, which comprised twenty statements in addition to a non-personal information form that precedes the questionnaire
The study findings reveal a somewhat positive point of view towards clinical pharmacists' performance in
... Show MoreA variety of oxides were examined as additives to a V2O5/Al2O3 catalyst in order to enhance the catalytic performance for the vapor phase oxidation of toluene to benzoic acid. It was found that the modification with MoO3 greatly promoted the little reaction leading to improve catalyst performance in terms of toluene conversion and benzoic acid selectivity. The effect of catalyst surface area, catalyst promoters, reaction temperature, O2/toluene, steam/toluene, space velocity, and catalyst composition to catalyst performance were examined in order to increase the benzoic acid selectivity and yield.
This study involves adding nano materials and interaction with cement mortar behavior for several mortar samples under variable curing time with constant water to cement ratio (W/C = 0.5). The effects of adding nano materials on the microstructure of cement mortar were studied by (Scanning Electronic Microscopy (SEM) and X-Ray (for samples at different curing time 28 and 91 days. Small ratio replacements of nano particles (SiO2 or Al2O3) were added to Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) type (I). The percentage of nano materials additives replacement by weight of ordinary Portland cement includes (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5%) for both types of nano materials with constant (W/C) ratio, also the amount of the fin
... Show MoreWater Quality Index (WQI) as a tool to assess the water quality status provides advice related to the use of water quality monitoring data and it is a way for combining the complex water quality data into a single value or single statement.The present study was conducted on Al- Hilla river in the middle of Iraq from August 2012 to July 2013 at five selected stations in the river, from Al- Musaib city to Al- Hashimya at the south of Hilla to determine its suitability for aquatic environment (GWQI), drinking water (PWSI) and irrigation (IWQI).This index offers a useful representation of the overall quality of water for public or any intended use as well as indicating pollution, water quality management, and decision making. According to th
... Show MoreElectrophoretic Deposition (EPD) process offers various advantages like the fabrication of the ceramic coatings and bodies with dense packing, good sinterability and homogenous microstructure. The variables namely (applied potential, deposition time and sintering temperature) affected the development of hydroxyapatite (HAP) coatings. The coating weight and thickness were found to increase with the increase in applied potential or coating time. Sintering temperature was found to affect in change phases of the metal, furthermore the firing shrinkage of the HAP coating on a constraining metal substrate leads to serve cracking. XRD Characterization indicates the formation of a contamination free phase pure, and the optical micrographs show th
... Show MoreStructural buildings consist of concrete and steel, and these buildings have confronted many challenges from various aggressive environments against the materials manufactured from them. It contains high water levels and buildings whose concrete cover may be damaged and thus lead to the deterioration and corrosion of steel. It was important to have an alternative to steel, such as the glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP), which is distinguished by its great effectiveness in resisting corrosion, as well as its strong tensile resistance. Still, one of its drawbacks is that it has a low modulus of elasticity. This research article aims to conduct a numerical study using the nonlinear fi
The removal of COD from wastewater generated by petroleum refinery has been investigated by adopting electrocoagulation (EC) combined with adsorption using activated carbon (AC) derived from avocado seeds. The process variables influencing COD removal were studied: current density (2–10 mA/cm2), pH (4–9), and AC dosage (0.2–1 g/L). Response surface methodology (RSM) based on Box–Behnken design (BBD) was used to construct a mathematical model of the EC/AC process. Results showed that current density has the major effect on the COD removal with a percent of contribution 32.78% followed by pH while AC dosage has not a remarkable effect due to the good characteristics of AC derived from avocado seeds. Increasing current density gives be
... Show MoreThe current study investigated the stability and the extraction efficiency of emulsion liquid membrane (ELM) for Abamectin pesticide removal from aqueous solution. The stability was investigated in terms of droplet emulsion size distribution and emulsion breakage percent. The proposed ELM included a mixture of corn oil and kerosene (1:1) as a diluent, Span 80 (sorbitan monooleate) as a surfactant and hydrochloric acid (HCl) as a stripping agent without utilizing a carrier agent. Parameters such as homogenizer speed, surfactant concentration, emulsification time and internal to organic volume ratio (I/O) were evaluated. Results show that the lower droplet size of 0.9 µm and higher stable emulsion in terms of breakage percent of 1.12 % were
... Show More