In the present study we evaluated the anti-tumor potential of samsum ant venom (SAV) from Pachycondyla
sennaarensis on the human breast carcinoma cell line MCF-7. We found that SAV induced growth
arrest of MCF-7 cells without affecting the viability of MCF-10 (non-tumorigenic normal breast epithelial
cells) and normal PBMCs. We then analyzed its impact on IGF-1-mediated MCF-7 cell proliferation and its
effect on the underlying IGF-1 signaling pathways. Using flow cytometry analysis, we showed that the
percentage of apoptotic cells was fourfold higher in SAV-treated cells as compared to untreated cells.
More importantly, treatment with SAV induced a marked reduction in actin polymerization and a subsequent
marked reduction in IGF-1-mediated cell proliferation. In addition to growth-inhibitory and proapoptotic
effects, significant reductions were also observed in the phosphorylation of AKT and ERK,
but not p38MAPK, in SAV-treated cells as compared to untreated cells. Our data reveal unique anti-tumor
effects of samsum ant venom.

OBJECTIVE:

We investigated the impact of maternal food restriction during gestation and lactation on the number and function of peripheral T cells in adult male offspring.

STUDY DESIGN:

Pregnant rats either received ad libitum (control) feed or were 50% food restricted (FR) from day zero of gestation to delivery and during the lactation period. After weaning, pups from control and FR mother rats were fed normally until they reached 8 weeks of age. At 8 weeks of age, blood parameters, plasma cytokine levels, and T cell number and function were determined in 10 male offspring from each group.

RESULTS:

FR offspring exhibited decreased numbers of total and CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes and a significant reduction in plasma IL-2 and IL-7 compared with control offspring. In addition, T lymphocytes from FR offspring exhibited a 2-fold decrease in IL-2- and IL-7-mediated AKT and STAT5 phosphorylation, altered actin polymerization, and diminished superantigen-mediated proliferation and cytokine production as compared with control offspring.

CONCLUSIONS:

aken together, these findings suggest that early undernutrition, particularly during the prenatal and lactation periods, attenuates T cell survival and the immune response.

To investigate T-cell functional molecules and inflammatory cytokines and to assess T-cell apoptosis
in malnourished infants, 64 infants from undernourished women and 28 healthy control infants were
recruited to the study. Malnourished infants showed a significant decrease in the levels of circulating IL-2
and IL-7 and increases in the levels of IL-1, IL-6, IL-10 and TNF-, as measured by flow cytometry. There
was a significant reduction in the number of CD3+ T cells and an increase in apoptotic T cells, which was
associated with an up-regulation of CD95 and PD-1 expression on CD3+ T cells in malnourished compared
to control infants. Significant reductions were also observed in the phosphorylation of AKT and STAT5
and in the expression of CCR7 and CXCR4 receptors in malnourished children, and these reductions were
associated with a significant reduction in T-cell migratory capacity to their ligands CCL21 and CXCL12,
respectively, as measured using an in vitro chemotaxis assay. Taken together, these data suggest that
lymphocytes from malnourished infants are short-lived and dysfunctional.

Steady natural convection cooling of a localized
heat source at the bottom wall of an enclosure filled
with Cu-water nanofluid for a variety of thermal boundary
conditions at the sidewalls has been studied in the present
paper. Finite difference method was employed to solve the
dimensionless governing equations of the problem. The
effects of governing parameters, namely, solid volume
fraction, the different values of the heat source length and
the different locations of the heat source on the streamlines
and isotherms contours as well as maximum temperature,
Nusselt number and average Nusselt number along the heat
source were considered. The present results are validated
by favorable comparisons with previously published results.
The results of the problem are presented in graphical and
tabular forms and discussed.

In this paper, a numerical solution of flow and heat transfer in micropolar fluid outside a stretching
permeable cylinder with thermal stratification and suction/injection effects. The governing system of partial
differential equations is converted to ordinary differential equations by using similarity transformations,
which are then solved using numerical technique. The cases of strong concentration of microelement
and weak concentration of microelement were considered. Our purpose from this study is to investigate
the effects of the governing parameters, namely the suction/injection parameter, thermal stratification
parameter, Prandtl number, vortex viscosity parameter and Reynolds number on the velocity profiles,
pressure distributions, angular velocity profiles and temperature profiles as well as the skin friction
coefficient, dimensionless wall couple stress and the Nusselt number. The numerical results are validated
by favorable comparisons with previously published results. The results are shown graphically. The values
of the skin friction coefficient, dimensionless wall couple stress and the Nusselt number are presented in
tables. Copyright  2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

This paper presents a numerical investigation of laminar mixed convection cooling of heat source embedded on the bottom wall of an enclosure
filled with nanofluids. The transport equations for a Newtonian fluid are solved numerically with a finite volume approach using the SIMPLE
algorithm. The influences of governing parameters, namely, Rayleigh number location and geometry of the heat source, the type of nanofluid and
solid volume fraction of nanoparticles on the cooling performance is studied. The present results are validated by favourable comparisons with
previously published results. The results of the problem are presented in graphical and tabular forms and discussed.

Via Gaussian 98, calculations have been carried out as B3LYP/6-31G** basis sets and the predominant tautomers of benzalbarbituric acid (BenzalBA) have been defined taking in consideration the energy of the density functional theory. The electronic transition energies have been calculated for the possible tautomers by the configuration interaction between the ground configuration Eigenfunction and the excited configuration Eigenfunctions explaining the absence of the relative intensity change in the UV spectrum by the heat effect as a result of the coincidence of the transition energies of the possible tautomers. The electronic spectra (UV–visible) were scanned for BenzalBA in different solvents of different polarities to determine the Einstein transition probabilities, dipole strengths, oscillator strengths, lifetime of the excited states and extinction coefficients. The hydrogen bonding and the orientation energy of the polar solvent molecules toward BenzalBA molecule were determined from the spectral studies in mixtures of polar and non-polar solvents. Some complexes were prepared from BenzalBA with some divalent metal ions, i.e. Fe++, Zn++ or Cu++. Their structures have been confirmed by elemental analysis, mass spectra, 1H NMR spectra, atomic absorption spectra and UV–visible spectra. It has been concluded that the structures of the complexes have the C2h point group symmetry in which two BenzalBA moieties are chelated to any one of the metal ions Fe++, Zn++ and Cu++.