A case–control study (80 patients with chronic hepatitis B virus [HBV] infection and 96 controls) was performed to evaluate the association of an IL12A gene variant (rs582537 A/C/G) with HBV infection. Allele G showed a signifcantly lower frequency in patients compared to controls (31.2 vs. 46.9%; probability [p]=0.009; corrected p [pc]=0.027) and was associated with a lower risk of HBV infection (odds ratio [OR]=0.49; 95% confdence interval [CI]=0.29–0.83). A similar lower risk was associated with genotypes CG (17.5 vs. 29.2; OR=0.25; 95% CI=0.08–0.81; p=0.02) and GG (10.0 vs. 16.7; OR=0.25; 95% CI=0.07–0.91; p=0.036), but the pc value was not signifcant (0.12 and 0.126, respec‑ tively). Serum IL35 levels showed signifcant diferences between individuals of diferent genotypes (p=0.007). The highest median was associated with CA genotype (286.5 pg/mL), followed by genotypes CG (227.0 pg/mL), GG (206.5 pg/mL), CC (169.0 pg/mL), AA (137.5 pg/mL) and fnally AG (125.0 pg/mL). In conclusion, rs582537 appears to be an important genetic variant that may infuence not only susceptibility to HBV infection but IL35 levels.
Background: It is important to achieve good glycemic control to avoid long-term diabetic complications. It has been largely debated about the role of correct way of insulin administration to get the desired glycemic control.
Objective: To evaluate the effect of teaching diabetic patients who are on insulin therapy the correct way of injecting insulin and its effect on glycemic control.
Methods: A non randomized clinical trial with 820 diabetic patients on insulin therapy on whom A1 c estimation was performed before and after three months of teaching them the right injection technique.
Results : Sixty seven patients (8.17%) had A1 c 6.5% before they were enrolled in the study while the majority (753 patents, 91.82%) had A1 c 6.5%
Background: It is important to achieve good glycemic control to avoid long-term diabetic complications. It has been largely debated about the role of correct way of insulin administration to get the desired glycemic control.
Objective: To evaluate the effect of teaching diabetic patients who are on insulin therapy the correct way of injecting insulin and its effect on glycemic control.
Methods: A non randomized clinical trial with 820 diabetic patients on insulin therapy on whom A1 c estimation was performed before and after three months of teaching them the right injection technique.
Results : Sixty seven patients (8.17%) had A1 c 6.5% before they were enrolled in the study while the majority (753 patents, 91.82%) had A1 c 6.5%
Background: Diabetes mellitus a major factor that has adverse effects on the vascular system and the heart. It causes an increase in cardiac muscle thickness, resulting in decreased compliance and increased peripheral arterial stiffness. This study aims to assess the left ventricular mass (LVM) and left ventricular hemodynamic changes in diabetic patients measured by Doppler echocardiography. Patients and Methods: The study included 50 diabetic patients ranging in age between 25 and 80 years, (mean age: 54.1 ± 15.10, 19 males, 31 females) and 50 healthy subjects, aged 25 to 80 years (mean age: 48.52 ± 14.45, 11 males, 39 females). Doppler echocardiography was used to assess left ventricular function. The measurements included
... Show MoreStudies from our laboratory have shown that Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), an ingredient found in marijuana plant Cannabis sativa, can attenuate acute lung injury induced by Staphylococcus enterotoxin B (SEB). In the current study, we investigated the role of THC on the metabolism of SEB-activated lymphocytes. To this end, we determined metabolic potential of SEB-activated lymphocytes treated with vehicle or THC by performing the Cell Mito Stress Test. The oxygen consumption rate (OCR) in THC-treated cells was decreased when compared to vehicle-treated group whereas the extracellular acidification rate (ECAR) was similar in both the groups. Specifically, electron transport chain inhi
Finding the shortest route in wireless mesh networks is an important aspect. Many techniques are used to solve this problem like dynamic programming, evolutionary algorithms, weighted-sum techniques, and others. In this paper, we use dynamic programming techniques to find the shortest path in wireless mesh networks due to their generality, reduction of complexity and facilitation of numerical computation, simplicity in incorporating constraints, and their onformity to the stochastic nature of some problems. The routing problem is a multi-objective optimization problem with some constraints such as path capacity and end-to-end delay. Single-constraint routing problems and solutions using Dijkstra, Bellman-Ford, and Floyd-Warshall algorith
... Show MoreQuantum channels enable the achievement of communication tasks inaccessible to their
classical counterparts. The most famous example is the distribution of secret keys. Unfortunately, the rate
of generation of the secret key by direct transmission is fundamentally limited by the distance. This limit
can be overcome by the implementation of a quantum repeater. In order to boost the performance of the
repeater, a quantum repeater based on cut-off with two different types of quantum memories is suggestd,
which reduces the effect of decoherence during the storage of a quantum state.
Finding a new source of resistance is important to reduce the use of synthetic pesticides, which can meet the global need of suppressing pollution. In this study, the resistance of eight eggplant cultivars to Aphis gossypii was evaluated. Results of the current study highlighted that the cultivar Long-Green has a very strong resistance after 14 days post infestation whereas Pearl-Round and White-Casper cultivars were susceptible. The rest of the tested cultivars (Green-oblong, Purple-panter, Paris, Ashbilia, and Barcelona) had mild resistance. Also, the study found significant differences between the infested and non-infested plants among the tested cultivars in the plant’s height, fresh-, and dry-weight. The susceptible cultivars
... Show MoreSince the COVID-19 pandemic alarm was made by the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-coronavirus (CoV) 2, several institutions and agencies have pursued to clarify the viral virulence and infectivity. The fast propagation of this virus leads to an unprecedented rise in the number of cases worldwide. COVID-19 virus is exceptionally contagious that spreads through droplets, respiratory secretions, and direct contact. The enveloped, single-stranded RNA virus has a specific envelop region called (S) region encoding (S protein) that specifically binds to the host cell receptor. Viral infection requires receptors' participation on the host cell membrane's surface, a key- step for the viral invasion of susceptible cells.
Rec
... Show MoreBackground: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive airflow limitation that is preventable but not curable. It is associated with persistent symptoms that cause a considerable burden on individual productivity at work, and daily activities, and reduced quality of life, also burdening the healthcare system and society. Objectives: The study aims to measure the burden of COPD on patients in terms of daily activities and work productivity. It also seeks to investigate some inflammatory biomarkers' levels and their correlation with selected outcomes. Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional study on 120 stable COPD patients who were diagnosed and treated according to the GOLD guidelines at Kirkuk General Hospital's
... Show MoreBackground: Morganella morganii is one of the important nosocomial pathogens that may cause urinary tract infection and bacteremia.Methods: The above bacterium was identified from 250 bacterial strains which were isolated from 220 urine samples of patients with urinary tract infection. Antimicrobial susceptibility, by using disk diffusion method, of isolates was tested against some antibiotics.Results: Two M. moganii strains were isolated from female catheterized urinary tract patients, and identified by conventional biochemical tests and API20E system at the first time in Iraq. Both of them produced urease and hemolysin. Antimicrobial susceptibility test showed that these strains are resistant to, amoxicillin-clavulanate, cephalothin, g
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