Given the paucity and toxicity of available drugs for leishmaniasis, coupled with the advent of drug resistance, the discovery of new therapies for this neglected tropical disease is recognised as being of the utmost urgency. As such antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been proposed as promising compounds against the causative Leishmania species, insect vector-borne protozoan parasites. Here the AMP temporins A, B and 1Sa have been synthesised and screened for activity against Leishmania mexicana insect stage promastigotes and mammalian stage amastigotes, a significant cause of human cutaneous disease. In contrast to previous studies with other species the activity of these AMPs against L. mexicana amastigotes was low. This suggests that amastigotes from different Leishmania species display varying susceptibility to peptides from the temporin family, perhaps indicating differences in their surface structure, the proposed target of these AMPs. In contrast, insect stage L. mexicana promastigotes were sensitive to two of the screened temporins which clearly demonstrates the importance of screening AMPs against both forms of the parasite. Copyright © 2011 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The purpose of this work is to clarify the effect of the Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN) on the properties of the galaxy. A photometric study of two galaxies by surface optical measurements techniques and by using'griz filters' was performed. The scientific material that used in this work was obtained from ''SLOAN DIGITAL SKY SURVEY'' (DR7), a fuzzy color, contour maps, photometric parameters, and color indices were studied by using surface photometric technique. The work was done by Ellipse task in IRAF (Image Reduction and Analysis Facility) software from the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO).
(Cu1-x,Agx)2ZnSnSe4 alloys have been fabricated with different Ag content(x=0, 0.1, and 0.2) successfully from their elements. Thin films of these alloys have been deposited on coring glass substrate at room temperature by thermal evaporation technique under vacuum of 10-5Torr with thickness of 800nm and deposition rate of 0.53 nm/sec. Later, films have been annealed in vacuum at (373, and 473)K, for one hour. The crystal structure of fabricated alloys and as deposited thin films had been examined by XRD analysis, which confirms the formation of tetragonal phase in [112] direction, and no secondary phases are founded. The shifting of main polycrystalline peak (112) to lower Bragg’s angle as compared to Cu2ZnSnSe4 angle refers to incorpora
... Show MoreThe chemical additives used to enhance the properties of drilling mud cause damage to humans and the environment. Therefore, it is necessary to search for alternative additives to add them to the drilling mud. Thus, this study investigates the effects of pomegranate peel and grape seed powders as natural waste when added to un-weighted water-based mud. The test includes measurements of the rheological properties and filtration, as well as the alkanity and density of the drilling mud. The results showed a decrease in PH values with an increase in the concentrations of pomegranate peel or grapeseed, and a decrease in mud density with an increase in powders of pomegranate peel and grape seed concentrations that resulted f
... Show MoreRecent research has examined the improvement of physical and dielectric properties of BaTiO3 ceramic material by small addition of excess TiO2 or BaCO3. The prepared samples sintered at different temperatures and varying soaking time. The results show that increasing the sintering temperature within 1350°C and soaking time of 10 hrs give better electrical and physical properties, which indicate the reaction is complete at higher temperature and period.
HBV and HCV are the major causes of chronic liver diseases throughout the world, and constitute a major global health risk. There is accumulated evidence that the imbalance of proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokine production may play an important role in the pathogenesis of viral hepatic infections and may influence the clinical outcome and disease progression. This study was undertaken to analyze the circulating levels of Tumor Necrotic Factor (TNF-α) and Th2 cytokine IL-10 in patients infected with Hepatitis B and C virus. The study population consisted of 30 patients with chronic HBV, in addition to other 30 patients with chronic HCV infection were recruited on their first examination at the Al-Kindy General Hospital in Baghdad
... Show MoreIn this study, vegetable tanned leather waste of cow (VTLW-C) is used as adsorbent for removing methyl violet 10B dye from aqueous solution. The VTLW-C adsorbent was characterized by FTIR and SEM in order to evaluate its surface properties before using in adsorption experiments. Batch adsorption method was applied to study the effect of different factors such as weight of leather waste, time of shaking, and starting concentration of methyl violet 10B dye. Different isothermal models such as Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D–R) were used to analyze the experimental data. Kinetic study proceeds using (PFO) kinetic model and (PSO) kinetic model. The results showed better agreement with the Freundlich model; this means
... Show MoreBackground: Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) is the most commonly used material in denture fabrication. The material is far from ideal in fulfilling the mechanical requirement. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of addition of 3% wt of treated (silanized) Titanium oxide Nano filler on some physical and mechanical properties of heat cured acrylic denture base material. Materials and methods: 100 specimens were constructed, 50 specimens were prepared from heat cure PMMA without additives (control) and 50 specimens were prepared from heat cure PMMA with the addition of TiO2 Nano fillers. Each group was divided into 5 sub groups according to the test performed which was mixed by probe ultra-sonication machine. Results: A highly
... Show MoreDental implants can be made of various materials, and amongst them, titanium and titanium alloy were the materials of choice for dental implants for many years because of their biocompatibility. The two alloys have a high level of biocompatibility, a lower modulus of elasticity, and better corrosion resistance than other alloys. Thus, they are frequently utilized in biomedical applications and mostly replace stiff fabrics. The latest advances in a new strontium oxide–cp titanium composite alloy are the main topic of this research. With regard to biomedical applications, additions of strontium oxide were synthesized at three distinct weight percentages (2%, 4%, and 6% by wt%). Powder metallurgy was used to create the alloys, which
... Show MoreThe present study aims to detection optimal conditions of production of amylase enzyme from isolate of B. subtillis A4. Nine carbonic sources were represented by starch, maltose, fructose, sucrose, glucose, arabinose, xylose, sorbitol and mannitol) at concentration of 1% for each source. It was found that the best was represented by starch carbonic, which showed higher activity and qualitative activity of 7.647 Unit/ ml and 461.56 Unit/ mg. Ten nitrogen sources were selected, including yeast extract, peptone, trypton, gelatin, urea and meat extract as organic sources Ammonium sulphate, Sodium nitrate, Potassium nitrate and Ammonium chloride as inorganic sources. These sources were added at aconcentration of 0.5% to the production medium. Th
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