1,294 research outputs found
Micellar Nanocarriers of Hydroxytyrosol Are Protective against Parkinson’s Related Oxidative Stress in an In Vitro hCMEC/D3-SH-SY5Y Co-Culture System
Hydroxytyrosol (HT) is a natural phenolic antioxidant which has neuroprotective effects in models of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Due to issues such as rapid metabolism, HT is unlikely to reach the brain at therapeutic concentrations required for a clinical effect. We have previously developed micellar nanocarriers from Pluronic F68® (P68) and dequalinium (DQA) which have suitable characteristics for brain delivery of antioxidants and iron chelators. The aim of this study was to utilise the P68 + DQA nanocarriers for HT alone, or in combination with the iron chelator deferoxamine (DFO), and assess their physical characteristics and ability to pass the blood–brain barrier and protect against rotenone in a cellular hCMEC/D3-SH-SY5Y co-culture system. Both HT and HT + DFO formulations were less than 170 nm in size and demonstrated high encapsulation efficiencies (up to 97%). P68 + DQA nanoformulation enhanced the mean blood–brain barrier (BBB) passage of HT by 50% (p 0.0001, n = 6). This resulted in increased protection against rotenone induced cytotoxicity and oxidative stress by up to 12% and 9%, respectively, compared to the corresponding free drug treatments (p 0.01, n = 6). This study demonstrates for the first time the incorporation of HT and HT + DFO into P68 + DQA nanocarriers and successful delivery of these nanocarriers across a BBB model to protect against PD-related oxidative stress. These nanocarriers warrant further investigation to evaluate whether this enhanced neuroprotection is exhibited in in vivo PD models
On Interval-Valued Intuitionistic Fuzzy Hyper BCK-Ideals of Hyper BCK Algebras
In this paper, we apply the concept of an interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy set to hyper BCK-ideals in hyper BCK-algebras. The notion of an interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzification of (strong, weak, s-weak) hyper BCK-ideals is introduced, and related properties are investigated. Characterizations of an interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzification of hyper BCK-ideals are established
P7 and P8 proteins of High Plains wheat mosaic virus, a negative-strand RNA virus, employ distinct mechanisms of RNA silencing suppression
High Plains wheat mosaic virus (genus Emaravirus), an octapartite negative-sense RNA virus, encodes two RNA silencing suppressors, P7 and P8. In this study, we found that P7 and P8 efficiently delayed the onset of dsRNA-induced transitive pathway of RNA silencing. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSA) revealed that only P7 protected long dsRNAs from dicing in vitro and bound weakly to 21- and 24-nt PTGS-like ds-siRNAs. In contrast, P8 bound strongly and relatively weakly to 21- and 24-nt ds-siRNAs, respectively, suggesting size-specific binding. In EMSA, neither protein bound to 180-nt and 21-nt ssRNAs at detectable levels. Sequence analysis revealed that P7 contains a conserved GW motif. Mutational disruption of this motif resulted in loss of suppression of RNA silencing and pathogenicity enhancement, and failure to complement the silencing suppression-deficient wheat streak mosaic virus. Collectively, these data suggest that P7 and P8 proteins utilize distinct mechanisms to overcome host RNA silencing for successful establishment of systemic infection in planta
Identification and Analysis of Novel Amino-Acid Sequence Repeats in Bacillus anthracis str. Ames Proteome Using Computational Tools
We have identified four repeats and ten domains that are novel
in proteins encoded by the Bacillus
anthracis str. Ames proteome using automated
in silico methods. A “repeat” corresponds to a region
comprising less than 55-amino-acid residues that occur
more than once in the protein sequence and sometimes present
in tandem. A “domain” corresponds to a conserved region with
greater than 55-amino-acid residues and may be present as
single or multiple copies in the protein sequence.
These correspond to (1) 57-amino-acid-residue PxV domain,
(2) 122-amino-acid-residue FxF domain, (3) 111-amino-acid-residue
YEFF domain, (4) 109-amino-acid-residue IMxxH domain,
(5) 103-amino-acid-residue VxxT domain, (6) 84-amino-acid-residue
ExW domain, (7) 104-amino-acid-residue NTGFIG domain,
(8) 36-amino-acid-residue NxGK repeat, (9) 95-amino-acid-residue
VYV domain, (10) 75-amino-acid-residue KEWE domain,
(11) 59-amino-acid-residue AFL domain, (12) 53-amino-acid-residue
RIDVK repeat, (13) (a) 41-amino-acid-residue AGQF repeat and
(b) 42-amino-acid-residue GSAL repeat. A repeat or domain type is
characterized by specific conserved sequence motifs. We discuss
the presence of these repeats and domains in proteins from other
genomes and their probable secondary structure
An Interprofessional Approach to Teaching Evidence-based Practice
Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods study was to identify students’ engagement and implementation of EBP competencies after exposure to EBP content in an interprofessional online research course. In this research, a diverse, convenience sample of nursing, respiratory care, and social work students were selected. The results aim to assist educators in preparing the next generation for their first professional role in providing care using the best evidence. The research questions that guided the study were: (1) What are the levels of practice, attitude, knowledge and skill regarding EBP among the sample? (2) What are the barriers and facilitators to acquiring EBP competency? (3) What are the differences in EBP attitudes, knowledge, and skills between the diverse disciplines in the sample? Methods: This descriptive mixed methods study employed a cross sectional design that allowed comparisons of programs and the different levels within the program. Quantitative data was collected using the S-EBPQ survey, allowing participants’ the opportunity to self-report on the practice, attitude, and knowledge/skills. Qualitative data was collected through two focus groups of approximately six to ten students from the three programs. Results: Data showed that students within the three selected disciplines had a positive attitude towards EBP. Theme analysis supported this view as participants noted EBP impacts patient safety and quality care. Barriers identified included, “lack of resources, use of research language interchangeably with EBP, quick exposure to EBP and confusion among EBP practices in the clinical setting.” Participants had an awareness of EBP and recognized the value of EBP. However, there may be ways to improve the implementation of EBP throughout the learning process while students are in undergraduate studies. Conclusion: Using an interprofessional online research course to introduce students to EBP was successful. Providing an interprofessional approach to teaching EBP will provide support the implementation of EBP competencies. Further development of additional interprofessional EBP courses or activities should be considered. This study found that if interprofessional care teams’ work together and use the EBP process in their courses it will improve student perceived value of EBP
MPIGA – Multipath Selection Using Improved Genetic Algorithm
The Wireless Multimedia Networks (WMNs) have developed due to the extensive applications of wireless devices and increasing availability of lower cost hardware. The WMNs are used to transmit the multimedia content like audio and video streaming and they can be deployed within a lower budget. These networks can also be used in real-time data applications that demand energy-efficient management and awareness of Quality of Service (QoS). The energy resources are limited in the wireless devices that lead to the significant threats on the QoS for WMNs. An energy-efficient routing technique is needed to handle the dynamic topology of WMN that includes a vital resource as energy. The energy-efficient routing method was proposed in this work for the purpose of data communication based on a cluster head selection from each cluster in addition to the multipath route selection to reduce the network overhead and energy consumption. The cluster heads for each cluster are selected based on Node Coverage & average residual energy parameters.In this work, the proposed energy efficient routing algorithm uses improved genetic algorithm (IGA)based on a cost function for dynamic selection of the best path. The proposed cost function uses link lifetime &average link delay parameters to estimate the link cost. The proposed algorithm’s performance compared with other previous routing methods based on extensive simulation analysis. The results showed that the proposed method achieves better performance over three other routing techniques
A Suggestive Diagnostic Technique For Early Identification Of Acyanotic Heart Disorders From Infant’s Cry
Congenital Heart Defects (CHD) are the critical heart disorders that can be observed at the birth stage of the infants. These are classified mainly into two, Cyanotic and Acyanotic. The present paper concentrates on the Acyanotic heart disorders. Acyanotic heart disorder cannot be observed on external checkup, whereas bluish skin is the indication for the infant affected with Cyanotic disorder. Acyanotic heart disorder can only be diagnosed using chest X-Ray, ECG, Echocardiogram, Cardiac Catheterization and MRI of the Heart. The present work aims at estimating the fundamental frequency (pitch) and the vocal tract resonant frequencies (formants) from the cry signal of the infants. The pitch frequency and formant frequencies are estimated using frequency domain (Cepstrum) and Linear Prediction Code (LPC) methods. The results show that the fundamental frequency of the cry signal was between 600Hz-800Hz for the infants with Acyanotic heart disorders. This fundamental frequency helps in identifying Acyanotic heart disorders at an early stage
Formation of Binary & Ternary Chelates of Calmagite with Lanthanides in Presence of Some Amino Polycarboxylic Acids
172-173The formation constants of 1:1 and 1:2 binary Ln(III)-calmagite (CLM) and 1:1:1 ternary [Ln(III)-CLM-A] chelates [where Ln(III)=La, Pr, Nd, Gd, Dy and Y; A= iminodiacetic acid (IMDA), hydroxyethyliminodiacetic acid (HIMDA) and nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA)] have been determined pH-metrically in 50% (v/v) aq. methanol medium at 30°C and I= 0.1 M (NaClO4). The ligand calmagite coordinates as a secondary ligand in presence of IMDA, HIMDA and NTA with all the metal ions. The order of formation constants of binary as well as ternary chelates is found to be: La Y
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