Objective: Preparation of novel, safe, and low-cost composite by addition of graphene oxide (GO) to polyvinylpyrrolidone-acrylic acid composite (PVP-AAc) to remove the doxycycline hydrochloride (D) from polluted aquatic environment. Methods: Different concentrations of D were used to study the adsorption process of the antibiotic on the surface of GO/(PVP-AAc) hydrogel composite. The aquatic solution of D was used for studying the adsorption process through a series of different experiments to determine the contact time, adsorbate amount, appropriate temperature, the preferred pH, ionic strength, adsorption kinetics and isotherms on the adsorbent surface of GO/PVP-AAc composite. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) were used to detect the structure, functional groups and surface morphology of the composite before and after D adsorption. Results: Doxycycline is adsorb on the surface of GO/PVP-AAc hydrogel composite through by physical interactions. The adsorption kinetics correlated to the pseudo-second-order model, contact time studies of D equal to 180 min and the high R2 value of 0.98 indicates that Langmuir isotherm model better fitted to the data for the removal of D at 15 °C. The results of thermodynamic parameters show that the nature of the adsorption process is physical, exothermic, orderly and spontaneous. The adsorption capacity of D favors the acidic media. When NaCl is added to the solution, the adsorption capacity of D will increase. Conclusion: Graphene oxide/PVP-AAc composite is a novel, worthy and efficient adsorbent for the removal of the doxycycline polluted the water because of its low cost, hydrophilic properties, large surface area and special structure that give impressive dispersible activity in aquatic solutions.

Marburg virus (MARV) is one of the most harmful zoonotic viruses with deadly effects on both humans and nonhuman primates. Because of its severe outbreaks with a high rate of fatality, the world health organization put it as a risk group 4 pathogen and focused on the urgent need for the development of effective solutions against that virus. However, up to date, there is no effective vaccine against MARV in the market. In the current study, the complete proteome of MARV (seven proteins) was analyzed for the antigenicity score and the virulence or physiological role of each protein where we nominated envelope glycoprotein (Gp), Transcriptional activator (VP30), and membrane-associated protein (VP24) as the candidates for epitope prediction. Following that, a vaccine construct was designed based on CTL, HTL, and BCL epitopes of the selected protein candidates and to finalize the vaccine construct, several amino acid linkers, β-defensin adjuvant, and PADRE peptides were incorporated. The generated potential vaccine was assessed computationally for several properties such as antigenicity, allergenicity, stability, and other structural features where the outcomes of these assessments nominated this potential vaccine to be validated for its binding affinity with two molecular targets TLR-8 and TLR-4. The binding score and the stability of the vaccine-receptor complex, which was deeply studied through molecular docking-coupled dynamics simulation, supported the selection of our designed vaccine as a putative solution for MARV that should be validated through future wet-lab experiments. Here, we describe the computational approach for designing and analysis of this potential vaccine.

Objective: This study evaluated the effect of melatonin on the response of patients suffering from metabolic syndrome (MEBS) treated with metformin. Design: This study used two-armed groups in a double-blind, randomized controlled clinical trial. Materials and Methods: A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study was carried out on female patients diagnosed as having MEBS, according to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) diagnosing criteria of MEBS (2005), from the outpatient clinic in Al-Zahraa Teaching Hospital/Kut, Iraq. They were diagnosed utilizing laboratory and clinical investigations, then randomized into two groups. The first group (group A) was treated with metformin (500 mg) twice daily, in addition to a placebo formula once daily at bedtime for three months. The second group (group B) was treated with metformin (500 mg) twice daily after meals, in addition to melatonin (10 mg) once daily at bedtime for three months. Results: The treatment of patients with MEBS using metformin–melatonin showed an improvement in most MEBS components such as fasting serum glucose (FSG), lipid profile, and body mass index (BMI), in addition to a reduction in insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia. Simultaneously, there were increments in serum uric acid (UA), leptin, prolactin (PRL), and estradiol levels, while serum progesterone level decreased. Furthermore, patients treated with metformin–placebo showed less improvement in the studied parameters compared to that produced due to the inclusion of melatonin in the treatment protocol. Conclusion: Melatonin improves the effect of metformin on several components of MEBS such as FSG, lipid profile, and BMI, in addition to insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia, compared to metformin alone.