Hematological alterations in diabetic rats

Dysfunction in adipocytes is associated with insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. Diabetes-associated anemia has been reported due to the increased non-enzymatic glycosylation of RBC membrane proteins, which correlates with hyperglycemia. The present study was hypothesized to assess the effect of citrus flavonoids on hematological parameters and adipose tissue interleukin-6 and adiponectin in type 2 diabetic rats. Diabetes was induced by feeding rats with a high fat diet for 2 weeks followed by an intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin. An oral dose of 50 mg/kg hesperidin or naringin was daily given for 4 weeks after diabetes induction. By the end of the experiment, blood samples were collected and were immediately used for determination of haematological parameters. Expression levels of adiponectin and interleukin-6 were assayed in adipose tissue samples. Both hesperidin and naringin significantly improved the levels of erythrocytes, leukocytes and their functional indices. Similarly, supplementation with either compound significantly ameliorated the declined adipose tissue adiponectin expression in conjunction with down-regulated interleukin-6. The findings of the present study indicated that hesperidin and naringin exert protection to diabetes-associated anemia in type 2 diabetic rats. This could be due to attenuation of proinflammatory cytokine production and stimulation of adiponectin expression

Improving natural ventilation design for spaces with windows on one side (single-sided ventilation) in Egypt using wing-wall

The results of performance of the airflow in the spaces with windows on one side (single- sided ventilation) measured by Anemometer and tested by CFD show that the air velocity indoor these spaces is about 0.0-0.01 m/s while the outside air velocity is 1-1.3 m/s, which means that there is poor ventilation for those spaces. In this study, the passive technique (Wing-wall) was upgraded and designed to induce the air indoor the spaces which exist in western elevation in Egypt in order to improve natural ventilation. In the CFD simulation, the windows area was installed at 12% of the total western wall area of the room with dimension of 4x4x3 m. The outside air velocity was 1.0 m/s and the temperature is 25ºC. The study shows that, after upgrading, the Wing- wall is capable of inducing the air inside the spaces

Co-Application of Corticosterone and Growth Hormone Upregulates NR2B Protein and Increases the NR2B:NR2A Ratio and Synaptic Transmission in the Hippocampus

Objectives: This in vitro study aimed to investigate the possible mechanism underlying the protective effect of growth hormone (GH) on hippocampal function during periods of heightened glucocorticoid exposure. Methods: This study was conducted between January and June 2005 at the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, Marshall University, in Huntington, West Virginia, USA. The effects of the co-application of GH and corticosterone (CORT) were tested at different concentrations on the field excitatory postsynaptic potentials (fEPSPs) of the hippocampal slices of rats in two different age groups. Changes in the protein expression of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) subunits NR1, NR2B and NR2A were measured in hippocampal brain slices treated with either artificial cerebrospinal fluid (ACSF), low doses of CORT alone or both CORT and GH for three hours. Results: The co-application of CORT and GH was found to have an additive effect on hippocampal synaptic transmission compared to either drug alone. Furthermore, the combined use of low concentrations of GH and CORT was found to have significantly higher effects on the enhancement of fEPSPs in older rats compared to young ones. Both GH and CORT enhanced the protein expression of the NR2A subunit. Simultaneous exposure to low concentrations of GH and CORT significantly enhanced NR2B expression and increased the NR2B:NR2A ratio. In contrast, perfusion with CORT alone caused significant suppression in the NR1 and NR2B protein expression and a decrease in the NR2B:NR2A ratio. Conclusion: These results suggest that NMDARs provide a potential target for mediating the GH potential protective effect against stress and age-related memory and cognitive impairment

Linear and Nonlinear Dynamic Analysis of Masonry Infill RC Framed Buildings

This paper aimed to investigate the seismic response of reinforced concrete (RC) frame buildings under linear and non-linear dynamic analysis. Different building models as bare frame and fully masonry infill frame have been developed for performing the analysis. In order to investigate the effect of irregular distributions of masonry infill walls in elevation on the seismic response behavior, an infill frame model with soft story has also been developed. The linear response spectrum (RS) dynamic analysis and the nonlinear time-history (TH) analysis methods are employed. Moreover, the induced energies in terms of input, potential and kinetic are also obtained from the TH analysis. Moreover, the interaction between infill walls and frames leads to considerable change in the induced responses comparable with the bare model.

Study of Lateral Load Influence on Behaviour of Negative Skin Friction on Circular and Square Piles

Negative skin friction developed on the pile surface causes many problems when piles are built in fully saturated clay. In this work, a study of NSF on a square cross-section pile corresponding to the circular pile circumference was developed. The pile was modeled as a concrete element, embedded and fully contacted with fully saturated soft clay. The clay layer is supported on a sand layer as a sub-base using ABAQUS software, and the NSF was developed on piles due to the consolidation of the clay over a 5-year period. A square pile has been found to provide lower NSF values than a round pile. Then, for the first investigation, both piles were loaded with lateral loads at the top to investigate the effect of the horizontal load on the NSF values, as there is no literature or study done on this point. The results emphasized that lateral loads reduce the NSF developed on piles. A parametric study was performed to investigate the parameters affecting the NSF values induced on piles, such as soil permeability, ballast, and lateral load values. It was concluded that square piles provide better NSF values than round piles for both single piles and pile groups. Doi: 10.28991/CEJ-2022-08-10-08 Full Text: PD

Effect of Balcony’s Design Parameters on Energy Performance of Residential Buildings

Residential buildings have a critical role in energy consumption, contributing to produce greenhouse gases and creating urban heat island. For this reason, optimizing the building energy usage is avital issue. Balconies can be considered one of the building façade elements that have considerable thermal performance. The main aim of the paper is to assess the contribution of various balcony design parameters on indoor thermal performance and energy consumption of residential buildings.A simulation study was conducted for a residential villa located in hot climate country, Cairo Egypt. Different design parameters were investigated and 6 case studies were compared in order to study the effect of each one on building’s thermal performance. Results show that southwest oriented balcony with wall insulation material and using double clear glazing for window are the most effective parameters on cooling loads of the studied bedroom space in residential villa located in hot climate of Cairo, therefore affecting building energy consumption.Finally, the research highlights the effect of various balcony design parameters on building thermal performance in order to reduce energy consumption in residential buildings

Experimental and Numerical Parametric Studies on Inclined Skirted Foundation Resting on Sand

Skirted foundation behavior is enhanced due to the increase in skirt angle. The bearing capacity of the inclined skirted foundations resting on sandy soil is influenced by the soil parameters and skirting systems. Finite element analyses were carried out using Plaxis-3D software to find out the influence of the relative density, the internal friction angle of the supported soil, and the additional skirts on the bearing capacity of the inclined skirted foundations. The experimental work on a small physical scale was also carried out to support the numerical findings, which give an acceptable agreement. The findings revealed that the increase in relative density resulted in a significant increase in the bearing capacity of the inclined skirted foundation. In the same way, as the internal friction angle increases, the bearing capacity is affected by this increase, which improves the bearing capacity value. The effect of the additional skirts on the bearing capacity is observed to be neglected, and, in some cases, it causes a negative effect. The findings of this study contribute to a greater comprehension of the behavior of inclined skirted foundations and can assist in the future design of more efficient and effective foundation systems. Doi: 10.28991/CEJ-2023-09-07-017 Full Text: PD

CUSTOMERS LOYALTY: DOES VALUE CO-CREATION BECOME INDISPENSABLE FOR UNIVERSITIES?

This paper investigates the direct and indirect relationships between customers` participation in value co-creation activities (CPVCA) and their loyalty. Quantitative research approach is adopted, while the population consists of all the Lebanese private universities` students. A questionnaire was used to collect data from 403 students, nominated according to convenience sampling technique. The study proposed scale validity and the relationships between variables were examined depending on PLS-SEM. The findings reveal a direct significant relationship between CPVCA and customers` loyalty; in addition, to indirect relationship, through the partial mediating role for customers` satisfaction and relationship strength. Research implications and limitations are presented

Thymoquinone and curcumin attenuate gentamicin-induced renal oxidative stress, inflammation and apoptosis in rats

The present study was aimed to investigate the possible protective effects of thymoquinone (TQ) and curcumin (Cur) on gentamicin (GM)-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Rats were divided into four groups as follows: group 1 received normal saline and served as normal controls, group 2 received GM only, group 3 concurrently received GM and TQ and group 4 concurrently received GM and Cur. At day 21, rats were sacrificed and samples were collected for assaying serum tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), urea and creatinine levels, and renal lipid peroxidation, glutathione (GSH) content as well as glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities. In addition, kidneys were collected for histopathological examination and immunohistochemical determination of the antiapoptotic protein, B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2). The biochemical results showed that GM-induced nephrotoxicity was associated with a significant increase in serum TNF-α, urea and creatinine as well as renal lipid peroxidation. On the other hand, renal GSH content and GPx and SOD activities were significantly declined. Concomitant administration of either TQ or Cur efficiently alleviated the altered biochemical and histopathological features. In conclusion, both TQ and Cur showed more or less similar marked renoprotective effect against GM-induced nephrotoxicity through their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic efficacies