Pregnancy and delivery are physiological conditions that are marked by abrupt alterations to hormones, immunological and molecular characters. The current study aimed to evaluate oxytocin (OT), prolactin (PRL), cortisol and insulin growth factor-2 (IGF-2) levels as physiological biomarkers; programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1), programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1),interleukin-6 (IL-6) as immunological biomarkers, and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs; rs53576 and rs2254298) of oxytocin receptor gene OXTR as molecular factors in samples of Iraqi women undergoing caesarean section (CS) and normal delivery (ND). Blood samples were collected from 96 pregnant women at term with ages ranging between 16-43 years. Regarding the physiological biomarkers, the study findings indicated that the change in OT, cortisol and IGF-2 between CS and ND groups was not significant, While the PRL level indicated a highly significant (P≤0.001) decrease in the CS group, especially in comparison with the ND group. Immunological biomarkers demonstrated a significant (P≤05) elevation for PD-1 as well as for PD-L1 in the CS group as compared to the ND group. However, PD-1/PD-L1 ratio revealed a high significant (P≤0.001) rise in CS compared with ND. The IL-6 results revealed a significant (P≤0.001) reduction in the CS groups compared to the ND group. And regarding the SNP of OXTR (rs53576), the findings revealed no notable association in genotypes CC, TC and TT between both groups. In addition, the mutant C allele and the wild T allele revealed no significant association between CS and ND groups [OR=1.26 (0.68-2.3%)]. The SNP results of OXTR (rs2254298) showed a high positive association (P≤0.001) in genotypes GG, AG and AA between CS and ND groups. Also, the mutant G allele and the wild A allele revealed high significance (P≤0.001) between both groups [OR=5.3 (2.8-9.76%)].
Muscid flies Musca domestica L., M. biseta Hough, M. crassirostris Stein, M. sorbens Wied., Muscina stabulans (Fallen), Atherigona orientalis Schiner, Atherigona sp. and Limnophora quaterna (Loew) were captured by using yellow sticky traps from different provinces of Iraq during November 2010. The results showed the highest percentage of all collected species were recorded in Babylon (48.33%), while the lowest percentage was observed in Baghdad (4.88%). Musca domestica was the predominant species and was ranked first in overall prevalence in all provinces studies, while M. biseta was the lowest abundant specie
Collagen triple helix repeat containing-1 (CTHRC1) is an essential marker for Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), but its relationship with pro-inflammatory, anti-inflammatory, and inflammatory markers has been scantily covered in extant literature. To evaluate the level of CTHRC1 protein in the sera of 100 RA patients and 25 control and compare levels of tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin 10 (IL-10), RA disease activity (DAS28), and inflammatory factors. Higher significant serum levels of CTHRC1 (29.367 ng/ml), TNF-α (63.488 pg/ml), and IL-10 (67.1 pg/ml) were found in patient sera as compared to that in control sera (CTHRC1 = 15.732 ng/ml, TNF-α = 33.788 pg/ml, and IL-10 = 25.122 pg/ml). There was no significant correlation be
... Show MoreLeukemia or cancer of the blood is the most common childhood cancer, Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), is the most common form of leukemia that occurs in children. It is characterized by the presence of too many immature white blood cells in the child’s blood and bone marrow, Acute lymphoblastic leukemia can occur in adults too, treatment is different for children. Children with ALL develop symptoms related to infiltration of blasts in the bone marrow, lymphoid system, and extramedullary sites, such as the central nervous system (CNS). Common constitutional indications consist of fatigue (50%), pallor (25%), fever (60%), and weight loss (26%). Infiltration of blast cells in the marrow cavity and periosteum often lead to bone
... Show MoreCollagen triple helix repeat containing-1 (CTHRC1) is an essential marker for Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), but its relationship with pro-inflammatory, anti-inflammatory, and inflammatory markers has been scantily covered in extant literature. To evaluate the level of CTHRC1 protein in the sera of 100 RA patients and 25 control and compare levels of tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin 10 (IL-10), RA disease activity (DAS28), and inflammatory factors. Higher significant serum levels of CTHRC1 (29.367 ng/ml), TNF-α (63.488 pg/ml), and IL-10 (67.1 pg/ml) were found in patient sera as compared to that in control sera (CTHRC1 = 15.732 ng/ml, TNF-α = 33.788 pg/ml, and IL-10 = 25.122 pg/ml). There was no significant correlati
... Show MoreBackground: Although expression of the HER-
2/neuoncogene may be of some prognostic importance
in advanced ovarian cancer, its role in early-stage
disease has not been established. The current study
examined the prevalence and significance of HER-
2/neu expression in different grades of different types
of surface epithelial ovarian carcinoma.
Methods: Thirty eight female patients with surface
epithelial ovarian cancer were included in this study.
The blocks of corresponding formalin fixed, paraffinembedded
ovarian biopsies were retrieved from the
archives and hematoxylin-eosin slides of each ovarian
biopsy were reviewed and marked their grades of
differentiation , then a new sections from each sampl
The current study was conducted on 100 females who were divided into two main groups; 60 with breast cancer and 40 healthy controls. Blood samples were collected from both premenopausal and postmenopausal breast cancer and healthy women. The samples were appropriately processed for the analysis of trace elements (zinc, copper, and lead) by using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry (FAAS). The results showed a highly significant decrease (p< 0.01) in the mean serum level of zinc of in both pre- and postmenopausal breast cancer women (71.7 + 5.1 and 70.4 + 5.4 µg/dL, respectively) compared with healthy controls (89.7 + 10.2 and 97.5 + 13.2 µg/dL, respectively) . Also, a highly significant
... Show MoreBackground: The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) relates to the torch virus family and is believed to have a substantial impact on mortality and perinatal events, as shown by epidemiological and viral studies. Moreover, there have been documented cases of EBV transmission occurring via the placenta. Nevertheless, the specific location of the EBV infection inside the placenta remains uncertain. Methods: The genomic sequences connected to the latent EBV gene and the levels of lytic EBV gene expression in placental chorionic villous cells are examined in this work. A total of 86 placentas from patients who had miscarriage and 54 placentas from individuals who had successful births were obtained for analysis. Results: The research employed QPCR to dete
... Show MoreMycobacterium tuberculosis resistance to rifampicin is mainly mediated through mutations in the rpoB gene. The effects of rpoB mutations are relieved by secondary mutations in rpoA or rpoC genes. This study aims to identify mutations in rpoB, rpoA, and rpoC genes of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates and clarify their contribution to rifampicin resistance. Seventy isolates were identified by acid-fast bacilli smear, Genexpert assay, and growth on Lowenstein Jensen medium. Drug susceptibility, testing was performed by the proportional method. DNA extraction, PCR, and sequencing were accomplished for the entire rpoA, rpoB, and
... Show MoreLeishmaniasis is a group of parasitic diseases caused by Leishmania spp., an endemic infectious agent in developing countries, including Iraq. Diagnosis of cutaneous lesion by stained smears, serology or histopathology are inaccurate and unable to detect the species of Leishmania. Here, two molecular typing methods were examined to identify the promastigotes of suspected cutaneous leishmaniasis samples, on a species level. The first was species-specific B6-PCR and the second was ITS1-PCR followed by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) using restriction enzyme HaeIII. DNA was extracted from in vitro promastigote culture followed by amplification of kDNA by B6 or amplification and digestion of LITSR/L
... Show More