Molecular targets of natural health products in arthritis

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and osteoarthritis (OA) consume 'natural health products' (NHPs) whose therapeutic efficacy, toxicity and mechanisms of action are poorly understood. In a previous issue of Arthritis Research and Therapy, Haqqi and colleagues characterized IL-1-activated mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 3 (MKK3) and p38-mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) isoforms in human OA chondrocytes. The cartilageprotective mechanisms of pomegranate extract involve diminishing MKK3-activated p38α, JNK, NF-κB and Runx2 pathways, which regulate inflammatory proteins and cartilage-destroying proteases. Epigallocatechin- 3-gallate, resveratrol, curcumin and other NHP active ingredients suppress multiple inflammatory and catabolic molecular mediators of arthritis. Non-toxicity, reduced severity and incidence of arthritis in animal models warrant testing NHP active ingredients for preventing human OA and RA

Mithramycin downregulates proinflammatory cytokine-induced matrix metalloproteinase gene expression in articular chondrocytes

Interleukin-1 (IL-1), IL-17 and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) are the main proinflammatory cytokines implicated in cartilage breakdown by matrix metalloproteinase (MMPs) in arthritic joints. We studied the impact of an anti-neoplastic antibiotic, mithramycin, on the induction of MMPs in chondrocytes. MMP-3 and MMP-13 gene expression induced by IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-17 was downregulated by mithramycin in human chondrosarcoma SW1353 cells and in primary human and bovine femoral head chondrocytes. Constitutive and IL-1-stimulated MMP-13 levels in bovine and human cartilage explants were also suppressed. Mithramycin did not significantly affect the phosphorylation of the mitogen-activated protein kinases, extracellular signal-regulated kinase, p38 and c-Jun N-terminal kinase. Despite effective inhibition of MMP expression by mithramycin and its potential to reduce cartilage degeneration, the agent might work through multiple unidentified mechanisms

The Impact of Supply Chain Capabilities on Logistic Efficiency for the Construction Projects

Rapid technological advancements force organizations to be more proactive and efficient it operations while previous studies revealed that most of the public sector projects go over in term of time and cost. Although extensive literature is available but only for the private sector, the investigations on the public sector are scarce. After plentiful literature, it has found that timely and sage supply chain is a major hurdle. Various strategies and approaches have been proposed to tackle the situation but after a thorough investigation, it was found that flexibility and collaboration are the topmost influencing factors in improving logistic efficiency. Thus the aim of this study is to empirically verify the positive impact of flexibility and collaboration on logistic efficiency. A questionnaire was adopted and distributed by random sampling to the strategic level of the construction projects in the city of Lahore, Pakistan. Multiple regressions were applied through SPSS. The finding of the study revealed that flexibility contributes 33%, collaboration contributes 35.5% in the logistic efficiency. It can be concluded that construction projects must be flexible and force stakeholders for collaboration. This study added in the frame of knowledge as new findings for public sector projects. This study will help the managers in completing their projects timely and accurately

Characterization of flow rate and Heat Loss in Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Duct System for Office Building

A building is an assemblage that is firmly attached to the ground and provides the performance of human activities and need to be considered in the daily operation in that building. The improvements in building performance are focused on improving the energy efficiency of buildings. This is approach by designing heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) duct system due to one of the most utilized energy in maintaining building performance and environment. The objectives of this research is to calculate the air (CFM) supply in office building, to characterize the velocity and head loss in a round and rectangular HVAC ducting system at various duct thickness and to optimize the thickness of the duct in HVAC system according to ASHRAE Standard. The increasing of velocity in duct system shows the increasing of head loss. The round duct design gives the lowest velocity and head loss in HVAC system approximately around 9.35% as compared to rectangular duct at 0.06 inches thickness. Hence, the trends of the head loss and duct thickness has influenced in reducing noise in HVAC duct system in order to select the best design concepts which is round shape design

Assessment of Water Quality and Heavy Metals Contamination of River Ravi in Pakistan

This study was carried out to evaluate the impact of untreated urban and industrial effluents on water quality of river Ravi. Water samples were collected from 11 polluted and relatively unpolluted sites at river Ravi during low flow season and analyzed for heavy metals content and physico-chemical parameters. Dissolved oxygen fell below the recommended limit for propagation of fish and other aquatic life as the river flows through Lahore up to Balloki Headworks. Manganese and lead contents were higher than permissible limits for aquatic ecosystems at several polluted sites of the river. Highest concentration of nickel, zinc, manganese, cadmium and lead detected in river water was 20.0 µg/L, 70.0 µg/L, 190.0 µg/L, 2.0 µg/L and 72.0 µg/L respectively. Findings revealed that river water at downstream sites of wastewater carrying drains was not suitable to support fish and other aquatic life due to its very low dissolved oxygen level

On the Soliton Solutions for the Stochastic Konno–Oono System in Magnetic Field with the Presence of Noise

In this study, we consider the stochastic Konno–Oono system to investigate the soliton solutions under the multiplicative sense. The multiplicative noise is considered firstly in the Stratonovich sense and secondly in the Itoˆ sense. Applications of the Konno–Oono system include current-fed strings interacting with an external magnetic field. The F-expansion method is used to find the different types of soliton solutions in the form of dark, singular, complex dark, combo, solitary, periodic, mixed periodic, and rational functions. These solutions are applicable in the magnetic field when we study it at the micro level. Additionally, the absolute, real, and imaginary physical representations in three dimensions and the corresponding contour plots of some solutions are drawn in the sense of noise by the different choices of parameters.This research was funded by Basque Government through Grants IT1555-22 and KK-2022/00090; and (MCIN/AEI 269.10.13039/501100011033/FEDER, UE) for Grants PID2021-1235430B-C21 and PID2021-1235430B-C22

Comparative Assessment of the Bioremedial Potentials of Potato Resistant Starch-Based Microencapsulated and Non-encapsulated Lactobacillus plantarum to Alleviate the Effects of Chronic Lead Toxicity

Lead (Pb) is a well-recognized and potent heavy metal with non-biodegradable nature and can induce the oxidative stress, degenerative damages in tissues, and neural disorders. Certain lactic acid bacterial strains retain the potential to mitigate the lethal effects of Pb. The present work was carried out to assess the Pb bio-sorption and tolerance capabilities of Lactobacillus plantarum spp. Furthermore, potato resistant starch (PRS)-based microencapsulated and non-encapsulated L. plantarum KLDS 1.0344 was utilized for bioremediation against induced chronic Pb toxicity in mice. The experimental mice were divided into two main groups (Pb exposed and non-Pb exposed) and, each group was subsequently divided into three sub groups. The Pb exposed group was exposed to 100 mg/L Pb(NO3)2 via drinking water, and non-Pb exposed group was supplied with plain drinking water during 7 weeks prolonged in vivo study. The accumulation of Pb in blood, feces, renal, and hepatic tissues and its pathological damages were analyzed. The effect of Pb toxicity on the antioxidant enzyme capabilities in blood, serum, as well as, on levels of essential elements in tissues was also calculated. Moreover, KLDS 1.0344 displayed remarkable Pb binding capacity 72.34% and Pb tolerance (680 mg/L). Oral administration of both non- and PRS- encapsulated KLDS 1.0344 significantly provided protection against induced chronic Pb toxicity by increasing fecal Pb levels (445.65 ± 22.28 μg/g) and decreasing Pb in the blood up to 137.63 ± 2.43 μg/L, respectively. KLDS 1.0344 microencapsulated with PRS also relieved the renal and hepatic pathological damages and improved the antioxidant index by inhibiting changes in concentrations of glutathione peroxidase, glutathione, superoxide dismutase, malondialdehyde, and activated oxygen species, which were affected by the Pb exposure. Overall, our results suggested that L. plantarum KLDS 1.0344 either in free or encapsulated forms hold the potentiality to deliver a dietetic stratagem against Pb lethality

Functional Foods and Human Health: An Overview

Functional food is a whole ingredient or a part of food that used as food for specific therapeutic purposes. It is divided into two wide categories: Conventional and modified functional foods. Conventional functional Foods are composed of natural or whole-food ingredients that provide functional substances while modified functional is food or food products in which add additional ingredients for specific health purposes. Plant-based food such as fruits, vegetables, herbs, cereals, nuts and beans contain vitamins, minerals, fiber, omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants and phenolic compounds that play a functional role in the human body against chronic diseases including cancer, cardiovascular and GIT-related disease. Some other foods or food products like juices, dairy products, fortified eggs and seafood are composed of functional components. Fish contain omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) that are played a functional role in heart health and brain development