This work aimed to investigate the prevalence of pathogenic fungi and evaluate the antifungal activity of Trichoderma orientale FMR12486 crude extract against pathogenic fungi isolated from patients attending the National Center for Thoracic and Respiratory Diseases (having a history of tuberculosis) and consultant of Dermatology of Baghdad hospital, Iraq. A total of 80 clinical specimens were collected: 20 skin scrapings specimens and 60 sputum specimens. The results of direct examination by KOH 10% and culture showed that 11 (55%) cases from 20 skin specimens were positive for fungal infections, while in the sputum specimens, 28 (47%) cases from 60 were positive. Candida albicans represented the most common fungal infection isolat

Background: It's believed that HBD-3 is involved in the tissue remodeling process of articular cartilage. Also, HBD-3 has anti-inflammatory properties. Objectives: The purpose of this study is to assay human beta-defensine-3 (HBD-3) in serum from rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and investigate its correlation with proinflammatory cytokines. Methods: In this case-control study, fifty-eight RA patients were aged 20–65 years, and 29 age-matched healthy subjects (HS) had no inflammatory rheumatic diseases. The disease activity score-28 joint erythrocyte sedimentation rate (DAS28-ESR) was used to measure RA activity. CRP, ACPA, HBD-3, TNF-α, and IL-1β were assessed using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique (ELISA). Res

For more than a decade, externally bonded carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites successfully utilized in retrofitting reinforced concrete structural elements. The function of CFRP reinforcement in increasing the ductility of reinforced concrete (RC) beam is essential in such members. Flexural and shear behaviors, ductility, and confinement were the main studied properties that used the CFRP as a strengthening material. However, limited attention has been paid to investigate the energy absorption of torsion strengthening of concrete members, especially two-span concrete beams. Hence, the target of this work is to investigate the effectiveness of CFRP-strengthening technique with regard to energy absorption of two-span RC

The Humidification-Dehumidification (HDH) desalination technique offers a viable solution for providing freshwater to populations in water-scarce, remote areas. This study experimentally investigates a novel humidifying method by cross airflow over water-wetted pottery tubes, which function as a humidifier, incorporating a thermoelectric cooler to condense water vapor for freshwater production. To optimize freshwater production and thermal efficiency, meticulous design of these components and appropriate operational parameters are selected. Experiments were performed in three environments with differing temperatures and relative humidity levels, while air velocity varied from 1.02 to 1.89 m/s, and thermoelectric cooler voltage ranged from 6

The university course timetable problem (UCTP) is typically a combinatorial optimization problem. Manually achieving a useful timetable requires many days of effort, and the results are still unsatisfactory. unsatisfactory. Various states of art methods (heuristic, meta-heuristic) are used to satisfactorily solve UCTP. However, these approaches typically represent the instance-specific solutions. The hyper-heuristic framework adequately addresses this complex problem. This research proposed Particle Swarm Optimizer-based Hyper Heuristic (HH PSO) to solve UCTP efficiently. PSO is used as a higher-level method that selects low-level heuristics (LLH) sequence which further generates an optimal solution. The proposed a

Precise and interpretable classification of autism-related behaviors is important for initial diagnosis, personalized intervention, and support arrangements. This study proposes an interpretable machine learning (ML) model using Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LightGBM) and Categorical Boosting (CatBoost) to classify behavioral patterns into four categories (normal, mild, moderate, and severe) associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) based on a custom 377-instance survey dataset from Iraqi parents and teachers of children aged 6-12. The model observes 16 key features across communication and social interaction, repetitive behaviors, language, and adaptive skills, preprocessed via interquartile range (IQR) outlier removal, me