Biodegradation of used lubricating and diesel oils by a new yeast strain Candida viswanathii KA-2011

Disposal of the automotive lubricating oil after usage can cause environmental hazards. This study aimed to isolate a microbial isolate is that able to biodegrade lubricating oil effectively. A new yeast strain, identified by 18S-rRNA gene sequencing as Candida viswanathii KA-201l, was isolated from used lubricating oil, showed high biodegradation efficiency for different used lubricating oils. Capability of this isolate to degrade different high and low molecular weight hydrocarbons, castor oil, diesel oil and grease was tested. It showed high degradation efficiency for most of the tested compounds. The biodegradation products were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) in most cases. The biodegradation efficiency under high osmotic pressure was studied. It effectively biodegrade lubricating and diesel oils (58.6 and 93.9%, respectively) at 6% salt concentration after four days only. C. viswanathii KA-2011 can be effectively used for removal of lubricants, diesel or vegetative oils pollution from soil, wastewater and sea water. Use of C. viswanathii KA-2011 in the bioremediation of lubricant or gasoline contaminated sea-water save the aquaculture from these pollutants, as well as it open new horizons in using of contaminated soil and wastewater in agriculture.Keywords: Lubricating oils, diesel oil, biodegradation, Candida viswanathi

Clinical significance of vascular endothelial growth factor in hepatitis C related hepatocellular carcinoma in Egyptian patients

Mohamed Magdi El-Sadek Ali Atta,1,2 Hazem Mahmoud Atta,3,4 Magdy Abdel-Mawgoud Gad,2 Laila Ahmad Rashed,4 Ebada M Said,2 Sharaf El-Sayed Ali Hassanien,2 Ahmed O Kaseb5 1Department of Medicine, Rabigh Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; 2Department of Hepatology, Gastroenterology and Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, Benha University, Benha, Egypt; 3Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Rabigh Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; 4Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt; 5Department of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA Background and aims: Several angiogenic factors are involved in the development and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), a hypervascular tumor. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a primary driving force for angiogenesis, and its overexpression has been reported in HCC. However, the significance of plasma and tissue VEGF levels in HCC in Egyptian patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) infection is understudied. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of VEGF (measured in plasma and liver tissue) in patients with hepatitis C virus-related HCC and to assess its significance in the diagnosis and prognosis of HCC. Materials and methods: A total of 90 subjects were studied. Among 90 subjects, 60 with CHC were examined and were subdivided into two groups: 30 patients with CHC-related HCC (HCC group) and 30 patients with CHC without HCC (non-HCC group). Thirty apparently healthy subjects served as the control group. VEGF was estimated in plasma by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and its expression in liver tissue was evaluated by real-time polymerase chain reaction. VEGF expression level and its relationship to tumor parameters, patients' liver function profile, and patients' clinical parameters were also investigated. Results: Plasma VEGF levels in the HCC group were significantly higher than those of the non-HCC group, and both groups had significantly higher plasma VEGF levels than did the control group. Liver tissue VEGF expression was significantly higher in the HCC group than in the non-HCC group and positively correlated with plasma VEGF in the HCC group. The plasma VEGF levels were positively correlated with patients' age, aspartate aminotransferase levels, serum alpha-fetoprotein levels, the presence of portal vein thrombosis, and the number of hepatic focal lesions in the HCC group. However, plasma VEGF levels were not significantly correlated with the Child-Pugh score, alanine aminotransferase levels, the size of focal lesions, and Okuda stage. Using both the VEGF and alpha-fetoprotein levels to detect HCC maximizes the sensitivity and specificity. Conclusion: Plasma levels of VEGF may be a useful diagnostic and prognostic marker for HCC in patients who have been diagnosed with CHC. Keywords: VEGF, hepatocellular carcinoma, hepatitis C virus&nbsp

Conducting Polymer Nanomaterials and Their Applications

A paradigm shift takes place in the fabrication of conducting polymers from bulky features with microsize to ultrafine features with nanometer range. Novel conducting polymer nanomaterials require the potential to control synthetic approaches of conducting polymer on molecular and atomic levels. In this article, the synthetic methodology of conducting polymer has been briefly considered with chemical oxidation polymerization and electrochemical polymerization. The recent achievements in the fabrication of conducting polymer nanomaterials have been extensively reviewed with respect to soft template method, hard template method and template-free method. It also details the morphological spectrum of conducting polymer nanomaterials such as nanoparticle, core-shell nanomaterial, hollow nanosphere, nanofiber/nanorod, nanotube, thin film and nanopattern and nanocomposite. In addition, their applications are discussed under nanometer-sized dimension.This work has been financially supported by the Brain Korea 21 program of the Korean Ministry of Education and the Hyperstructured Organic Materials Research Center supported by Korea Science and Engineering Foundation