ß-glucan mitigates ovalbumin-induced airway inflammation by preventing oxidative stress and CD8+ T cell infiltration.

BACKGROUND: Bronchial asthma is a severe respiratory condition characterized by airway inflammation, remodeling, and oxidative stress. ß-Glucan (BG) is a polysaccharide found in fungal cell walls with powerful immunomodulatory properties. This study examined and clarified the mechanisms behind BG's ameliorativeactivitiesin an allergic asthma animal model. METHOD: BG was extracted from Chaga mushroom and characterized using FT-IR, UV-visible, zeta potential, and 1H NMR analysis. The mice were divided into five groups, including control, untreated asthmatic, dexamethasone (Dexa)-treated (1 mg/kg), and BG (30 and 100 mg/kg)-treated groups. RESULTS: BG treatment reduced nasal scratching behavior, airway-infiltrating inflammatory cells, and serum levels of IgE significantly. Additionally, BG attenuated oxidative stress biomarkers by lowering malonaldehyde (MDA) concentrations and increasing the levels of reduced glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and catalase (CAT). Immunohistochemical and flow cytometric analyses have confirmed the suppressive effect of BG on the percentage of airway-infiltrating cytotoxic CD8+ T cells. CONCLUSION: The findings revealed the role of CD8+ T cells in the pathogenesis of asthma and the role of BG as a potential therapeutic agent for asthma management through the suppression of airway inflammation and oxidative stress.

Monitoring temporal variations in groundwater levels in urban areas using ground penetrating radar.

Monitoring temporal variations in groundwater levels provides a key to sustainable freshwater resource utilization and management, sustainable land use, and sustainable crop acreage, yield, and production. This study used ground penetrating radar (GPR) to monitor temporal variations in groundwater levels in urban areas, and to define the factors that control these variations. The city of Ismailia, Egypt, was selected as a test site because it is experiencing a rise in groundwater levels that poses potential environmental risks, and it lacks the groundwater wells necessary for monitoring and mitigation. Three main GPR profiles were collected in summer (July 2017) and winter (March 2018) using a 100-MHz antenna. On the collected GPR data, water table was defined as a continuous linear reflector of high amplitude. The water table appeared at 8.6 m and 9.5 m (below ground surface) in the summer and the winter surveys, respectively. The depths to the water table, as extracted from GPR surveys, are identical to those measured at a nearby water supply. The higher depth to the water table in the winter is related to excessive groundwater extraction and/or exceptional drought conditions and associated baseflow recession. Results highlight the importance of using GPR in urban areas as a unique, significant, practical, comprehensive, and cost-effective tool to image the subsurface and map the temporal variations in depth to the water table.