Derivation of An Equation to Measure The Sense of The Comfort (Study in Applied Climatology)

يعد موضوع الحرارة الحسية من المواضيع المهمة التي تدخل حيز التطبيق في الدراسات المتعلقة بالمناخ وتأثيره على راحة الانسان وصحته, ففي الدراسات التخطيطية والمعمارية يسعى المخططون والمهندسون دائما لتوفير بيئة عمرانية ملائمة لعيش الانسان ومزاولة اعماله في ظل تأثير عناصر المناخ السائدة , والعمل على تخفيف ذلك التأثير قدر المستطاع من خلال العديد من الوسائل . يهدف البحث لإيجاد صيغة رياضية يمكن من خلالها معرفة مقدار درجة الحرارة الحسية المؤثرة في راحة الانسان لكل شهر من اشهر السنة ولأي بلد حول العالم , ومن خلال الخوض في هذا الموضوع تمكن الباحثان من اشتقاق معادلة رياضية ادخل فيها ثلاثة عناصر للمناخ (درجة الحرارة والرطوبة النسبية وسرعة الرياح) , وبعد تطبيق المعادلة على مناخ محافظات الفرات الاوسط من العراق فقد اعطت نتائج دقيقة وواقعية ومفهومة وبطريقة سهلة .The subject of sensual heat is regarded as an important topic that comes into application in climatic studies and its impact on human comfort and health. in planning and architectural studies planners and engineers aim to provide an urban environment appropriate for-living and working under the prevailing climate elements. They also work to mitigate this effect as much as possible through various methods. The research aims to find a mathematical formula by which to find out the amount of sensual temperature that affects the comfort of humans for each month of the year and for each country around the world. Researchers derived a mathematical equation in which three climate elements (temperature, relative humidity and wind speed) were inputted, and after applying the equation to the climate data of the Middle Euphrates Provinces of Iraq, accurate realistic and understandable results were obtained

The antiproliferative effect of mulberry (Morus alba L.) plant on hepatocarcinoma cell line HepG2

This study aimed to investigate the antiproliferative effect of aqueous and organic extracts of mulberry leaves (Morus Alba L.) on human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cell line. Mulberry leaf extracts were prepared using the solvents: water, 50% aqueous MeOH, and 100% MeOH for different time intervals, while the cells treated with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) served as control. The effects of aqueous and organic extracts of M. alba L. leaves on HepG2 cell viability, nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) gene expression, alfa-fetoprotein (AFP), albumin (ALB), gammaglutamyl transpeptidase (γ-GT) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) were measured. The results of the cell viability assays showed that water, 50% aqueous MeOH, and 100% MeOH extracts exhibited a highly significant inhibitory effect on HepG2 cell proliferation which was evidenced by a reduction in viable cell count. The results were confirmed by microscopical examination of cell morphology. Furthermore, the mulberry leaf extracts suppressed the activity of NF-κB gene expression of HepG2 cells compared to the control. Also a highly significant depression occurred at the levels of AFP, γ-GT and ALP in HepG2 cells compared with that of controls in a time dependent manner. By contrast, the mulberry leaf extracts increased the secretion of ALB. Therefore, the conclusion was that the organic and aqueous extracts of mulberry leaves inhibit the growth of HepG2 cells through suppressing the activity of NF-κB gene expression and modulate the biochemical markers.Keywords: HepG2 cell line; Morus alba L.; NF-κB; Antiproliferative effect; Alfa-fetoprotei

Elevated Uptake of Plasma Macromolecules by Regions of Arterial Wall Predisposed to Plaque Instability in a Mouse Model

Atherosclerosis may be triggered by an elevated net transport of lipid-carrying macromolecules from plasma into the arterial wall. We hypothesised that whether lesions are of the thin-cap fibroatheroma (TCFA) type or are less fatty and more fibrous depends on the degree of elevation of transport, with greater uptake leading to the former. We further hypothesised that the degree of elevation can depend on haemodynamic wall shear stress characteristics and nitric oxide synthesis. Placing a tapered cuff around the carotid artery of apolipoprotein E -/- mice modifies patterns of shear stress and eNOS expression, and triggers lesion development at the upstream and downstream cuff margins; upstream but not downstream lesions resemble the TCFA. We measured wall uptake of a macromolecular tracer in the carotid artery of C57bl/6 mice after cuff placement. Uptake was elevated in the regions that develop lesions in hyperlipidaemic mice and was significantly more elevated where plaques of the TCFA type develop. Computational simulations and effects of reversing the cuff orientation indicated a role for solid as well as fluid mechanical stresses. Inhibiting NO synthesis abolished the difference in uptake between the upstream and downstream sites. The data support the hypothesis that excessively elevated wall uptake of plasma macromolecules initiates the development of the TCFA, suggest that such uptake can result from solid and fluid mechanical stresses, and are consistent with a role for NO synthesis. Modification of wall transport properties might form the basis of novel methods for reducing plaque rupture

Circulating microparticles: square the circle

Background: The present review summarizes current knowledge about microparticles (MPs) and provides a systematic overview of last 20 years of research on circulating MPs, with particular focus on their clinical relevance. Results: MPs are a heterogeneous population of cell-derived vesicles, with sizes ranging between 50 and 1000 nm. MPs are capable of transferring peptides, proteins, lipid components, microRNA, mRNA, and DNA from one cell to another without direct cell-to-cell contact. Growing evidence suggests that MPs present in peripheral blood and body fluids contribute to the development and progression of cancer, and are of pathophysiological relevance for autoimmune, inflammatory, infectious, cardiovascular, hematological, and other diseases. MPs have large diagnostic potential as biomarkers; however, due to current technological limitations in purification of MPs and an absence of standardized methods of MP detection, challenges remain in validating the potential of MPs as a non-invasive and early diagnostic platform. Conclusions: Improvements in the effective deciphering of MP molecular signatures will be critical not only for diagnostics, but also for the evaluation of treatment regimens and predicting disease outcomes

Corporate venturing in family business: the effects on the family and its members

Previous literature on corporate entrepreneurship (CE) in family business (FB) focusses on the determinants of CE and presents conflicting results on its effects on firm-level performance. We argue that previous studies have overlooked the idea of FBs being complex social systems comprising three components, controlling families, business entities and individual family members; and any business activity in a FB should also be studied with respect to its effects on the family and individual family members, which ultimately impacts the performance. Moreover, previous FB literature addresses CE as a monolithic concept and does not separate its two primary types: corporate venturing (CV) and strategic renewal (SR). This article focusses solely on CV, investigating the impact of CV on FB. The research is based upon a set of longitudinal in-depth case studies of three FBs engaged in CV initiatives. The findings suggest that CV can have positive, negative or possibly both effects at the family and individual levels depending on four moderating factors. At the individual level, if a succession process is present, CV may increase the incumbent leader's capability to effectively direct the selection and development process of next generation family members (NGFMs) as well as the NGFMs’ human capital. However, CV could also reduce the affective commitment of NGFMs to the core business and such a risk appears to be higher when CV participation in the FB strategy is low. At the family level, development of CV initiatives may both enhance and reduce the family cohesion. The risk of its decrease grows with greater relevance of non-active family members’ ownership and the greater financial impact of the CV initiative itself