Objective: The present work was undertaken to investigate the impact of sub inhibitory concentration of gentamicin on hla gene expression in methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolates. Methods: The bacterial isolates used in this study represent 33 MRSA strains, previously isolated form patients visiting several hospitals in Baghdad. Gentamicin, vancomycin, and oxacillin MIC were determined using broth dilution method. Microtiter plate method was adopted to investigate the biofilm forming capacity. Alpha hemolysin was detected by culturing MRSA isolates on rabbit blood agar. Furthermore, hla gene was detected in MRSA isolates using conventional PCR technique; while, qRT-PCR method was performed to assay the hla expression in planktonic and biofilm cells in presence and absence of gentamicin. Results: the present results demonstrated that 12 (36.36%) isolates were gentamicin-resistant; whereas, all isolates were resistant to oxacillin and sensitive to vancomycin. Out of 33 MRSA, 3, 23, and 7 isolates formed a weak, moderate, and strong biofilm, respectively. Phenotypically, 30 isolates produced alpha hemolysin on rabbit blood agar plates; nevertheless, hla gene was located in 29 isolates. Of considerable interest, the addition of gentamicin significantly (P < 0.05) reduced the hemolysis activity; while, insignificant fold change (less than two) of hla gene was observed in all tested isolates in the presence of sub MIC of gentamicin (16 µg/ml). Conclusion: gentamicin upregulated the hla gene expression in biofilm cells; hitherto, this increment was isolate specific.
Titanium oxide nanoparticles-modified smectite (SMC-nTiO2) as a low-cost adsorbent was investigated for the removal of Rhodamine B (RhB) from aqueous solutions. The adsorbents (SMC and SMC-nTiO2) were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The effects of various parameters like contact time, adsorbent weight, pH, and temperatures were examined. Three kinetic equations (pseudo-first-order (PFO), pseudo-second-order (PSO), and intra-particle diffusion) were used to evaluate the experimental kinetic of the data and the results showed that the adsorption process is in line with the PSO kinetic model. Adsorption equilibrium isotherms were modeled using La
... Show MoreSome azo compounds were prepared by coupling the diazonium salts of amines with 2,4-dimethylphenol The structure of azo compounds were determined on the basis of elemental analyses, 1HNMR, FT-IR and UV-Vis spectroscopic techniques. Complexes of nickel(II) and copper(II) have been synthesized and characterized. The composition of complexes has been established by using flame atomic absorption, (C.H.N) Analysis, FT-IR and UV-Vis spectroscopic methods as well as conductivity magnetic susceptibility measurements. The nature of the complexes formed were studied following the mole ratio and continuous variation methods, Beer's law obeyed over a concentration range (1×10-4 - 3×10-4 M). High molar absorbtivity of the complex solutions were observ
... Show MoreA new simple and sensitive spectrophotometric method for the determination of trace amount of Co(II) in the ethanol absolute solution have been developed. The method is based on the reaction of Co(II) with ethyl cyano(2-methyl carboxylate phenyl azo acetate) (ECA) in acid medium of hydrochloric acid (0.1 M) givining maximum absorbance at ((λmax = 656 nm). Beer's law is obeyed over the concentration range (5-60) (μg / ml) with molar absorptivity of (1.5263 × 103 L mol-1 cm-1) and correlation coefficient (0.9995). The precision (RSD% ˂ 1%). The stoichiometry of complex was confirmed by Job's method which indicated the ratio of metal to reagent is (2:1). The studied effect of interference elements Zn(II), Cu(II), Na(I), K(I), Ca(II) and Mg
... Show MoreThe current research reports the preparation and fabrication of the silver paste conductor which is employed as a soldering material for electro – optical components ohmic interconnections. The prepared paste possesses electrical characteristics identical to the ohmic connectors as its observable from resistance – temperature variation. Moreover, the I – V characteristics obeys Ohm’s law and this dependency was further confirmed by the nearly constant capacitance measurements with voltage and frequency. A noticeable improvement in electrical conductivity, compared to the pure silver paste sample, was noted for samples prepared by mixing predetermined weight ratios of brass and copper. Furthermore, stability of electrical resistan
... Show MoreThis article reviews the technical applicability of nanofiltration membrane process for the removal of nickel, lead, and copper ions from industrial wastewater.
Synthetic industrial wastewater samples containing Ni(II), Pb(II), and Cu(II) ions at various concentrations (50, 100, 150 and 200 ppm), under different pressures (1, 2, 3 and 4 bar), temperatures (10, 20, 30 and 40 oC), pH (2, 3, 4, 5 and 5.5), and flow rates (1, 2, 3 and 4 L/hr), were prepared and subjected treated by NF systems in the laboratory. Suitable NF membrane was chosen after testing a number of NF membranes (University of Technology-Baghdad), in terms of production and removal. NF system was capable of removing more than (85%, 78%, and 66% for Ni(II
... Show MoreIn present work an investigation for precise hole drilling via continuous wave (CW) CO2 laser at 150 W maximum output power and wavelength 10.6 μm was achieved with the assistance of computerized numerical controlled (CNC) machine and assist gases. The drilling process was done for thin sheets (0.1 – 0.3 mm) of two types of metals; stainless steel (sst) 321H, steel 33 (st). Changing light and process parameters such as laser power, exposure time and gas pressure was important for getting the optimum results. The obtained results were supported with computational results using the COMSOL 3.5a software code.