Profil gena za virulenciju izolata bakterije Pasteurella multocida izdvojenih iz goveda i bivola

Pasteurella multocida is responsible for numerous economically relevant diseases in domestic animals worldwide. In cattle and buffaloes the organism is associated with hemorrhagic septicemia (HS) and bovine respiratory disease (BRD). The aim of this study was to investigate twelve virulence associated genes in 22 strains of P. multocida isolated from slaughtered cattle and buffaloes. The most frequently detected genes among bovine isolates were ptfA, nanH, exbBD-tonB and oma87; whereas hgbB and toxA genes occurred less frequently. Some of the adhesions, sialidases, iron acquisition and protectin proteins occurred at considerably (P<0.05) higher frequencies in bovine isolates. The prevalence of oma87, exbBD-tonB and hgbA genes from buffaloes was significant (P<0.05), whereas the prevalence of hgbB, ompH, pfhA and toxA genes was much lower. All tested strains of P. multocida contained the sodC gene and only 22.7% of them had sodA. By using the virulence gene profiles, 12 and 21 different gene combinations were identified among the strains isolated from cattle and buffaloes, respectively, of which Profile C1 was the most common, with all strains possessing toxA. Our results indicate the presence of virulence factors (VFs) in P. multocida strains isolated from the tested cattle and buffaloes. The occurrence of these factors in apparently healthy animals could possibly indicate early infection or a contained infection which did not lead to disease. Moreover, differences in the frequency of these factors may indicate variations in the pathogenicity of the organism.Pasteurella multocida odgovorna je za mnoge gospodarski važne bolesti domaćih životinja diljem svijeta. U goveda i bivola ta je bakterija povezana s pojavom hemoragijske septikemije (HS) i respiratorne bolesti. Cilj je ovog rada bio istražiti prisutnost 12 gena odgovornih za virulenciju u 22 izolata bakterije P. multocida izdvojena iz zaklanih goveda i bivola. Najčešće dokazani geni iz goveđih izolata bili su ptfA, nanH, exbBD-tonB i oma87, dok su geni hgbB i toxA bili rjeđe dokazani. Neki od adhezina, sijalidaza, proteina koji na sebe vežu slobodno željezo i zaštitnih proteina dokazani su sa znatno većom učestalošću (P<0,05) u goveđih izolata. Prevalencija gena oma87, exbBD-tonB i hgbA bila je značajno viša (P<0,05) dok je prevalencija gena hgbB, ompH, pfhA i toxA bila niža u bivoljih izolata. Svi pretraženi izolati bakterije P. multocida sadržavali su gen sodC, a samo 22,7% njih i gen sodA. S obzirom na profil gena za virulenciju, 12 različitih kombinacija ustanovljeno je među izolatima iz goveda, a 21 kombinacija među izolatima iz bivola od kojih je profil C1 bio najčešći u izolata koji su posjedovali toxA. Rezultati naznačuju prisutnost čimbenika virulencije u izolata bakterije P. multocida izdvojenih iz pretraženih goveda i bivola. Pojava tih čimbenika virulencije u klinički zdravih životinja mogla bi značiti ranu infekciju ili infekciju koja se neće klinički očitovati. Razlika u učestalosti spomenutih čimbenika također upućuje na različitost u patogenosti izolata

Herbal-based drugs for dry eye; treatment and adverse reaction

33-40Dry eye syndrome is one of the most common types of eye diseases. Due to the significant prevalence of the disease, there is an important need for treatment of dry eye in a simple but efficient way. Artificial tears are the most common agents used for treating dry eye but are not very useful. In recent years, the use of herbal remedies has attracted much attention, because the process of producing most herbal remedies is simple, inexpensive and has fewer side effects. In many clinical studies, the potential interactions between medicines and herbs have been demonstrated. According to reports, some herbal products have the potential to be used for the treatment of dry eye while the use of certain products can lead to this syndrome. In this review, we have listed some of the herbal drugs and components which can prevent or treat the dry eye or cause it

Asymmetric supercapacitor based on activated expanded graphite and pinecone tree activated carbon with excellent stability

This work presents results obtained from the production of low-cost carbons from expanded graphite (EG) and pinecone (PC) biomass, activated in potassium hydroxide (KOH) and finally carbonized in argon and hydrogen atmosphere. A specific surface area of 808 m2 g−1 and 457 m2 g−1 were measured for activated pinecone carbon (APC) and activated expanded graphite (AEG), respectively. The electrochemical characterization of the novel materials in a 2-electrode configuration as supercapacitor electrode shows a specific capacitance of 69 F g−1 at 0.5 A g−1, high energy density of 24.6 W h kg−1 at a power density of 400 W kg−1. This asymmetric supercapacitor also exhibits outstanding stability after voltage holding at the maximum voltage for 110 h, suggesting that the asymmetric device based on different carbon materials has a huge capacity for a high-performance electrode in electrochemical applications.The National Research Foundation of South Africa (Grant Number: 61056).http://www.elsevier.com/locate/apenergy2018-12-01hj2018Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineerin

The modalities of Iranian soft power: from cultural diplomacy to soft war

Through exploring Iran's public diplomacy at the international level, this article demonstrates how the Islamic Republic's motives should not only be contextualised within the oft-sensationalised, material or ‘hard’ aspects of its foreign policy, but also within the desire to project its cultural reach through ‘softer’ means. Iran's utilisation of culturally defined foreign policy objectives and actions demonstrates its understanding of soft power's potentialities. This article explores the ways in which Iran's public diplomacy is used to promote its soft power and craft its, at times, shifting image on the world stage

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) upregulation and dietary fat levels in laying hens

The present study was conducted to investigate the effect of feeding the different levels of the dietary fat on the expression of genes encoding proteins involving energy metabolism, oxidative phosphorylation, and lipid synthesis including peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) of laying hens in the intestine. Birds fed diets with 3 levels of fat, that is, low (LF), medium (MF), and high fat (HF) were reared from 22 to 42 wk of age. Jejunum tissue was collected at week 42 for gene expression analysis. Dietary fat content as ether extract, net energy to AME ratio, and CP content of 3 treatment groups were as follows: LF: 25, 0.735, 187 (g/kg, DM); MF: 61, 0.739, 185 (g/kg, DM); HF: 73, 0.752, 181 (g/kg, DM). The BW, fat pad weight (g), fat pad–to–BW ratio (%) was the same for all the treatments (P &gt; 0·05). Birds fed a diet containing HF increased the AME daily intake per metabolic BW (BW0.75) ( 0·05). Birds fed a diet containing HF increased the AME daily intake per metabolic BW (BW0.75) (P P P &gt; 0·05). The mitochondrial count per cell showed no difference among the 3 groups with different dietary treatments ( 0·05). The mitochondrial count per cell showed no difference among the 3 groups with different dietary treatments (P &gt; 0·05). The results suggest that PPARγ may be important to the energy expenditure during nutrient absorption, digestion, and metabolism, and respiratory chain complexes, and other genes involving mitochondrial energy metabolism and lipogenesis may be less responsive to dietary treatment. 0·05). The results suggest that PPARγ may be important to the energy expenditure during nutrient absorption, digestion, and metabolism, and respiratory chain complexes, and other genes involving mitochondrial energy metabolism and lipogenesis may be less responsive to dietary treatment

P3HT:PCBM/nickel-aluminum layered double hydroxide-graphene foam composites for supercapacitor electrodes

In this paper, a simple dip-coating technique is used to deposit a P3HT:PCBM/Nickel Aluminum layered double hydroxide-graphene foam (NiAl-LDH-GF) composite onto a nickel foam (NF) serving as a current collector. A self-organization of the polymer chains is assumed on the Ni-foam grid network during the slow “dark” drying process in normal air. Electrochemical cyclic voltammetry (CV) and constant charge-discharge (CD) measurements show an improvement in the supercapacitive behavior of the pristine P3HT:PCBM by an order of magnitude from 0.29 F cm-2 (P3HT:PCBM nanostructures) to 1.22 F cm-2 (P3HT:PCBM/NiAl-LDH-GF composite structure) resulting from the addition of NiAl-LDH-GF material at a current density of 2 mA cm-2. This capacitance retention after cycling at 10 mA cm-2 also demonstrates the electrode material’s potential for supercapacitor applications.South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI) of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the National Research Foundation (NRF).http://link.springer.com/journal/100082015-08-30hb201

Symmetric supercapacitors based on porous 3D interconnected carbon framework

The construction and design of novel porous carbons for electric double-layer capacitors (EDLCs) application to meet the increasing demand and supply of energy is eminent. This is important because the pore volume (PV)/micropore volume (MV) in the porous network architecture of the carbon is mostly responsible for the ion traps in energy storage. Three dimensional carbon materials based on graphene materials with relatively high specific surface area (SSA) represents a promising material candidate for EDLCs applications. In this work, we synthesized highly porous carbon from graphene foam (GF) and polyvinyl alcohol PVA as a sacrificial template, and investigate their performance as electrodes for EDLCs applications. The as-produced carbons present a fairly large surface area (502 m2 g−1), and a highly porous interconnected framework with mesopore walls and micropore texture which are suitable as electrode for energy storage. As electrode material in a symmetric configuration the activated graphene foam (AGF) showed a specific capacitance of 65 F g−1, energy density of 12 Wh kg−1, power density of 0.4 kW kg−1, good rate performance and excellent long term stability in 1 M Na2SO4 aqueous with no capacitance loss after 3000 cycles.A. Bello acknowledges University of Pretoria and NRF financial support for his Postdoc fellowship, while D. Y. Momodu and F. Barzegar acknowledge financial support from University of Pretoria and the NRF for PhD bursaries.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/electactahj201

Preparation and characterization of porous carbon from expanded graphite for high energy density supercapacitor in aqueous electrolyte

In this work, we present the synthesis of low cost carbon nanosheets derived from expanded graphite dispersed in Polyvinylpyrrolidone, subsequently activated in KOH and finally carbonized in Ar atmosphere. Interconnected sheet-like structure with low concentration of oxygen (9.0 at.%) and a specific surface area of 457 m2 g-1 was obtained. The electrochemical characterization of the carbon material as supercapacitor electrode in a 2-electrode configuration shows high specific capacitance of 337 F g-1 at a current density of 0.5 A g-1 as well as high energy density of 37.9 Wh kg-1 at a power density of 450 W kg-1.This electrical double layer capacitor electrode also exhibits excellent stability after floating test for 120 h in 6 M KOH aqueous electrolyte. These results suggest that this activated expanded graphite (AEG) material has great potential for high performance electrode in energy storage applications.South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChi) in Carbon Technology and Materials of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the National Research Foundation (NRF).http://www.elsevier.com/locate/cose2017-03-31hb2016Institute of Applied MaterialsInsurance and Actuarial ScienceInvestment and Trade Policy Centre (ITPC)JournalismJurisprudenceLaboratory for Microscopy and MicroanalysisLaw ClinicLaw Student AffairsLife Cycle EngineeringMammal Research InstituteMapungubwe museumMarketing and Communication ManagementMarketing ManagementMaterials Science and Metallurgical EngineeringMathematics and Applied MathematicsMaxillo-Facial and Oral SurgeryMechanical and Aeronautical EngineeringMedical MicrobiologyMedical OncologyMedical VirologyMercantile LawMicrobiology and Plant PathologyMining EngineeringModern European LanguagesMusicNeurologyNeuroscience ResearchNew Testament StudiesNuclear MedicineNursing ScienceObstetrics and GynaecologyOccupational TherapyOdontologyOld Testament StudiesOral Pathology and Oral BiologyOrthodonticsOrthopaedic SurgeryOtorhinolaryngologyPaediatrics and Child HealthParaclinical SciencesPeriodontics and Oral MedicinePharmacologyPhilosophyPhilosophy and Ethics of Mental HealthPhysic

Coniferous pine biomass : a novel insight into sustainable carbon materials for supercapacitors electrode

Low-cost biomass-derived activated porous carbon from natural pine cones is synthesized using hydrothermal approach followed by KOH activation and carbonization. The produced carbon materials have a high surface area of 1515 m2 g1 with a well-developed meso/micropores structure which is advantageous and favorable for mass transfer and ion accommodation for fast rate performance by providing pathways for electrolyte permeation and contact probability. Symmetric device fabricated using the obtained carbon material as electrode, exhibited good electrochemical performance with no degradation of capacitance after voltage holding at 1 V for about 60 h demonstrating good rate capability of the fabricated device. The results demonstrate the exciting potential of the pine cone derived carbons as a promising candidate for high-performance electrode materials for supercapacitors if fully explored.The South African Research Chairs Initiative of the Department of Science and Technology and National Research Foundation of South Africa (Grant No. 97994).http://www.elsevier.com/locate/matchemphys2017-10-31hb2016Physic