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AimTo evaluate the inhibitory effect of ethanolic extract blackseed, seaweed, and calcium hydroxide intracanal medicament with Enterococcus faecalis biofilm. To study the binding interaction between the active components of blackseed and seaweed against the enterococcal surface protein of (E. faecalis) by molecular docking. Materials and MethodsThe ethanolic extracts of blackseed and seaweed were prepared using the Soxhlet apparatus. They were divided into three groups, namely, |Group I: Calcium hydroxide, Group II: Blackseed, and Group III: Seaweed. The antibacterial activity of the three groups was detected employing various concentrations ranging from 250, 125, and 62.5 μg/ml and based on the zone of inhibition. The inhibitory potential of medicaments to inhibit E. faecalis growth at various stages and kinetics plate were assessed following biofilm architecture evaluation by crystal violet biofilm assay. With the Swissdock suite, the molecular docking procedure was carried out. PyMOL version 4.1.5 was the program used for visualization. Since enterococcal surface protein (Esp) is primarily involved in the formation of biofilms, it was chosen as the target protein of E. faecalis. Based on their chromatographic investigations, Group II Thymoquinone (TQ) and Group III Ledenoxide were chosen as ligands. ResultsThe percentage of inhibition of E. faecalis biofilm was analyzed as statistically significant observed within groups. On post-hoc analysis, significant differences were present between the groups (P < 0.05). Molecular docking reveals binding energies of thymoquinone (Group II) and ledenoxide (Group III) against the enterococcal surface protein of E. faecalis were −6.90 Kcal/mol and −6.44 Kcal/mol, respectively. ConclusionCompared to seaweed, black seed extract exhibited higher antibacterial activity against the E. faecalis biofilm in microbial inhibition and molecular interaction.

BackgroundWe have previously found that, in the pathogenic yeast Candida albicans, 18S and 25S ribosomal RNA components, containing more than one phosphate on their 5'-end were resistant to 5'-monophosphate requiring 5' → 3″ exonuclease. Several lines of evidence pointed to RNAP II as the enzyme producing them.ResultsWe now show the production of such 18S and 25S rRNAs in Saccharomyces cerevisiae that have been permanently switched to RNAP II (due to deletion of part of RNAP I upstream activator alone, or in combination with deletion of one component of RNAP I itself). They contain more than one phosphate at their 5'-end and an anti-cap specific antibody binds to them indicating capping of these molecules. These molecules are found in RNA isolated from nuclei, therefore are unlikely to have been modified in the cytoplasm.ConclusionsOur data confirm the existence of such molecules and firmly establish RNAP II playing a role in their production. The fact that we see these molecules in wild type Saccharomyces cerevisiae indicates that they are not only a result of mutations but are part of the cells physiology. This adds another way RNAP II is involved in ribosome production in addition to their role in the production of ribosome associated proteins.

Background and Aims: No studies have evaluated the relationship between maternal arterial partial pressure of carbon dioxide (mPaCO2) and umbilical cord venous partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PCO2) in critically ill pregnant women at delivery. Based on the studies in healthy pregnant women, an mPaCO2 target of ≤50 mmHg is a suggested threshold during mechanical ventilation in critically ill parturients. We evaluated the relationship between mPaCO2 and neonatal cord gases in critically ill parturients at delivery as the primary objective. The relationship between mPaCO2 and APGAR scores at delivery was also analysed as a secondary objective. Methods: Maternal and neonatal cord gas data at delivery and APGAR scores were obtained by a retrospective chart review of 25 consecutive parturients with severe respiratory compromise who were delivered during mechanical ventilation. Linear regression was used to assess the relationship between mPaCO2 and umbilical artery and vein PCO2 and between mPaCO2 and APGAR scores at 1 and 5 min. Results: There was a positive correlation between mPaCO2 and neonatal cord venous PCO2 (P = 0.013). Foetal venous PCO2 exceeded predelivery mPaCO2 by 17.5 (7.5) mmHg. There was an inverse relationship between mPaCO2 and neonatal APGAR scores at 1 and 5 min (P = 0.006 and P = 0.007, respectively). Conclusion: Foetal cord venous PCO2 can be predicted if mPaCO2 values are known. Unlike in healthy pregnant women, there was an inverse relationship between rising mPaCO2 levels and neonatal APGAR scores in critically ill pregnant women who had several associated compounding factors.

Background: Speech-language therapists (SLTs) may recommend tube feeding even with minimal research evidence of its effectiveness, and an understanding of SLTs’ perceived practices is warranted. Objectives: To qualitatively describe a sample of South African SLTs’ perceived practices regarding feeding tube placement in people with advanced dementia. Method: Semi-structured online interviews were conducted via Microsoft Teams. Eight South African SLTs with a particular interest in advanced dementia, in public and private settings, were recruited. Data were analysed using inductive reflexive thematic analysis. Results: Three main themes were identified: (1) factors influencing SLTs’ decisions for feeding tube placement in people with advanced dementia; (2) nature of clinical setting and SLTs’ decision-making and (3) SLTs’ considerations to improve management of people with advanced dementia. Existing local palliative care guidelines were not employed in decisions about tube feeding. Most participants did not recommend tube feeding during end-of-life care. Perceived burden of care influenced participants’ decisions about tube feeding. Conclusion: Speech-language therapists in South Africa likely have an increased reliance on clinical experience rather than recent research and guidelines for decisions about feeding tube placement. Findings accentuate the importance of clinical supervision, mentoring and continuous professional development in the workplace. The findings are an urgent call to action to improve SLTs’ overall practices and ethical service delivery for people with advanced dementia and their families. Contribution: Factors and needs regarding SLTs’ decision-making about feeding tubes in people with advanced dementia are highlighted.

BackgroundWe have previously reported 18S and 25S ribosomal RNA molecules in Candida albicans resistant to processive 5' → 3' exonuclease, appearing as cells approached stationary growth phase. Initial analysis pointed to extra phosphate(s) at their 5'- end raising the possibility that they were newly transcribed. Here we report on additional experiments exploring this possibility and try to establish which of the RNA polymerases may be transcribing them.ResultsOligo-ligation and primer extension again showed the presence of extra phosphate at the 5'-end of the reported processing sites for both 18S and 25S ribosomal RNA components. Inhibition of Pol I with BMH-21 increased the presence of the molecules. Quantitation with an Agilent Bioanalyzer showed that resistant 18S and 25S molecules are primarily produced in the nucleus. Utilizing an RNA cap specific antibody, a signal could be detected on these molecules via immunoblotting; such signal could be eliminated by decapping reaction. Both the cap specific antibody and eIF4E cap-binding protein, increased fold enrichment upon quantitative amplification. Antibodies specific for the RNA Polymerase II c-terminal domain and TFIIB initiator factor showed the presence of Pol II on DNA sequences for both 18S and 25S molecules in chromatin precipitation and qPCR assays. Rapamycin inhibition of TOR complex also resulted in an increase of resistant 18S and 25S molecules.ConclusionsThese data raise the possibility of a role for RNA Polymerase II in the production of 18S and 25S molecules and indicate that efforts for more direct proof may be worthwhile. If definitively proven it will establish an additional role for RNA Polymerase II in ribosomal production.

Objectives:Cell therapies using mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) have been proposed as a promising new tool for the treatment of vocal fold scarring. However, the mechanisms by which MSCs promote healing as well as their duration of survival within the host vocal fold have yet to be defined. The aim of this work was to assess the persistence of embedded MSCs within a tissue-engineered vocal fold mucosal replacement in a rabbit model of vocal fold injury.Methods:Male rabbit adipose-derived MSCs were embedded within a 3-dimensional fibrin gel, forming the cell-based outer vocal fold replacement. Four female rabbits underwent unilateral resection of vocal fold epithelium and lamina propria and reconstruction with cell-based outer vocal fold replacement implantation. Polymerase chain reaction and fluorescent in situ hybridization for the sex-determining region of the Y chromosome (SRY-II) in the sex-mismatched donor-recipient pairs sought persistent cells after 4 weeks.Results:A subset of implanted male cells was detected in the implant site at 4 weeks. Many SRY-II-negative cells were also detected at the implant site, presumably representing native female cells that migrated to the area. No SRY-II signal was detected in contralateral control vocal folds.Conclusions:The emergent tissue after implantation of a tissue-engineered outer vocal fold replacement is derived both from initially embedded adipose-derived stromal cells and infiltrating native cells. Our results suggest this tissue-engineering approach can provide a well-integrated tissue graft with prolonged cell activity for repair of severe vocal fold scars.

Abstract Background We have previously found that, in the pathogenic yeast Candida albicans, 18S and 25S ribosomal RNA components, containing more than one phosphate on their 5′-end were resistant to 5′-monophosphate requiring 5′ → 3″ exonuclease. Several lines of evidence pointed to RNAP II as the enzyme producing them. Results We now show the production of such 18S and 25S rRNAs in Saccharomyces cerevisiae that have been permanently switched to RNAP II (due to deletion of part of RNAP I upstream activator alone, or in combination with deletion of one component of RNAP I itself). They contain more than one phosphate at their 5′-end and an anti-cap specific antibody binds to them indicating capping of these molecules. These molecules are found in RNA isolated from nuclei, therefore are unlikely to have been modified in the cytoplasm. Conclusions Our data confirm the existence of such molecules and firmly establish RNAP II playing a role in their production. The fact that we see these molecules in wild type Saccharomyces cerevisiae indicates that they are not only a result of mutations but are part of the cells physiology. This adds another way RNAP II is involved in ribosome production in addition to their role in the production of ribosome associated proteins.

Given a graph G = (V , E) , the problem of Graph Burning is to find a sequence of nodes from V , called a burning sequence, to burn the whole graph. This is a discrete-step process, and at each step, an unburned vertex is selected as an agent to spread fire to its neighbors by marking it as a burnt node. A burnt node spreads the fire to its neighbors at the next consecutive step. The goal is to find the burning sequence of minimum length. The Graph Burning problem is NP-Hard for general graphs and even for binary trees. A few approximation results are known, including a 3 -approximation algorithm for general graphs and a 2 -approximation algorithm for trees. The Graph Burning on directed graphs is more challenging than on undirected graphs. In this paper, we propose (1) A 2. 7 5 -approximation algorithm for a cactus graph (undirected), (2) A 3 -approximation algorithm for multi-rooted directed trees (polytree) and (3) A 1. 9 0 5 -approximation algorithm for the single-rooted directed tree (arborescence). We implement all three approximation algorithms, and the results are shown for randomly generated cactus graphs, multi-rooted directed trees and single-rooted directed trees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]