Background: The therapeutic effect of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in liver cirrhosis is limited by their entrapment in the pulmonary vessels. Thus, the use of MSC-derived exosomes has become a promising strategy. The current work aimed to compare the role of human umbilical cord blood-MSCs (hUCB-MSCs) and their derived exosomes in the alleviation of liver cirrhosis focusing on the role of miR-23b and miR-221 and their direct effectors in inflammatory and autophagic pathways.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: IL-6 polymorphisms were associated to viral infection outcomes through affection of IL-6 production and it is an early indicator of tissue injury and systemic inflammatory response. The study aimed to determine whether genetic IL-6 polymorphisms, serum interleukin-6 level and inflammatory markers (Presepsin, CXCL-10, C3, and C4) are associated with the prediction of disease severity in pediatric COVID-19 patients and its possible use as a prognostic tool in pediatric patients admitted to hospital.
Methods: This prospective cohort study was conducted on 150 children with COVID-19.
Background: Plasma-activated water (PAW) is an innovative promising technology which could be applied to improve poultry health. The current study investigated the effects of drinking water supply with PAW on quail behaviour, performance, biochemical parameters, carcass quality, intestinal microbial populations, and internal organs histopathology. A total of 54 twenty-one-day-old Japanese quail chicks were randomly allotted to three treatments provided with PAW at doses 0, 1 ml (PAW-1), and 2 ml (PAW-2) per one litter drinking water.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study aimed to investigate the effect of supplementation of chitosan nanoparticles (CSNPs) on the capacitation of bovine spermatozoa during the in vitro fertilization process. Hyperactivated motility (HAM) and acrosome reaction (AR) of sperm cells as well as in vitro fertilization and cleavage rates are the main parameters used to estimate the effect of CSNPs on bovine spermatozoa's fertilizing ability. In this study, three different concentrations of CSNPs (10, 20 and 100 μg/mL) were prepared and characterized.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnergy scarcity and conventional energy problems are the main reason of finding a renewable source of energy which is cheap and environmental friendly, therefore, biodiesel production is one of the most promising solutions of this problem. Also, Egyptian castor is one of the most important crops for oil production compared with other commonly used oil crops. The main aim of this study is to enhance the production of bio-oil from Egyptian castor seeds by using microwave and ultrasonic as pre-treatments.
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