Objectives: Dickkopf-1 (DKK-1) is WNT/b-catenin pathway antagonist which plays a detrimental role in the development of diabetic retinopathy (DR). This research aimed to assess serum DKK-1 levels in diabetic patients who have and have not developed DR and, compare them with the control subjects finding out whether we can use it as an indicator for DR early diagnosis and to find out which one of the widely used two groups of antidiabetic treatments had the greater effect on this biomarker and hence on the progression of DR. Methods: The study participants were divided into two subgroups: First, 70 patients (36 male, 34 female) with type 2 diabetes mellitus, among them 35 patients diagnosed with DR and 35 with no evidence of DR, and s

Background: Previous studies about the correlation of genetic polymorphisms in the multigene family of cyto- chrome P450 (CYPs), the effect of tobacco smoking, and the risk of developing cancer have been well in- vestigated in different populations, but not in Iraq. Furthermore, the studies of malignance occurrence re- lationship with cigarette tobacco smoking revealed the presence of strong association, however, little is known about the risk of Waterpipe (WP) tobacco smoking. Thus, determination two important genetic polymorphisms in CYP1A1, a main member of CYPs, among Iraqi men was our first aim. This is the first study that highlights the correlation of CYP1A1 polymorphisms with the risk of lung cancer in Iraq. The second aim was to ev

This study tries to clear the correlation and association between asthma, obesity and leptin levels. Also it will work to indicate the main risk factors which play role in the elevation of leptin level within asthmatic patients.  This is a case control study conducted on (38) asthmatic patients and (20) healthy control who were closely similar by age, gender and BMI. The main statistical tests used were student t test, linear regression test and correlation test. Significance was set at P < 0.05. Sampling method used for this study was convenience sampling method.  The main results of this study show a significant association and positive correlation between age (old age  â‰¥ 40 ye

t: - Sports training in itself is a means, not an end. It is the core process that involves using exercises to provide an opportunity for athletes to perform their duties with the highest level of efficiency by developing and enhancing their capabilities and potential, using them to gain the greatest benefit for themselves and, consequently, for their team. This requires the selection of various methods and different means of training, focusing on specific physical and skill-related aspects. Therefore, training plans should take into account individual differences between players. Many researchers and experts in the field of sports in general, and combat sports in particular, emphasize the importance of having a holistic approach in the tra

This study seeks to address the impact of marketing knowledge dimensions (product, price, promotion, distribution) on the organizational performance in relation to a number of variables which are (efficiency, effectiveness, market share, customer satisfaction), and seeks to reveal the role of marketing knowledge in organizational performance.

In order to achieve the objective of the study the researcher has adopted a hypothetical model that reflects the logical relationships between the variables of the study. In order to reveal the nature of these relationships, several hypotheses have been presented as tentative solutions and this study seeks to verify the validity of these hypotheses.

Cloud computing offers a new way of service provision by rearranging various resources over the Internet. The most important and popular cloud service is data storage. In order to preserve the privacy of data holders, data are often stored in cloud in an encrypted form. However, encrypted data introduce new challenges for cloud data deduplication, which becomes crucial for big data storage and processing in the cloud. Traditional deduplication schemes cannot work on encrypted data. Among these data, digital videos are fairly huge in terms of storage cost and size; and techniques that can help the legal aspects of video owner such as copyright protection and reducing the cloud storage cost and size are always desired. This paper focuses on v

After baking the flour, azodicarbonamide, an approved food additive, can be converted into carcinogenic semicarbazide hydrochloride (SEM) and biurea in flour products. Thus, determine SEM in commercial bread products is become mandatory and need to be performed. Therefore, two accurate, precision, simple and economics colorimetric methods have been developed for the visual detection and quantitative determination of SEM in commercial flour products. The 1st method is based on the formation of a blue-coloured product with λmax at 690 nm as a result of a reaction between the SEM and potassium ferrocyanide in an acidic medium (pH 6.0). In the 2nd method, a brownish-green colored product is formed due to the reaction between the SEM and phosph

Abstract
Objectives: this study aims to: (1). Assess self-esteem level and academic achievement for students of nursing colleges in southern Iraq. (2). Determine the relationship between levels of self-esteem and academic achievement of the student in the first semester. (3). Identify differences of self-esteem with gender and different age groups.
Methodology: a sample of (426 students) was purposively selected then collected by using a questionnaire which consisted of: I- Sociodemographic characteristics for assessing some important aspects of students, II- Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) III- Iraq Grading Scale for assessing student achievement. Finally statistical analysis (SPSS) for data processing.
Results: study resu

This study aimed to show the relationship between mental health and shyness for university students in Baghdad and Al – Mustansiria university which its subject was (200) students  ,          ( 100) males and  ( 100) females , Mental Health scale which is constructed by (Al – Janabi 1991) and developed by (Hassan 2006) was used for this aim  ,The scale of shyness was built according to a questioner to the students and according to previous publications and studies .

Multiple regulation analysis step - wise was used for data analysis in order to identify the possibility to find single or couple indications for the independent variable (mental

Chitinase-3-like 1 protein (YKL-40) is a glycoprotein primarily produced in the arthritic joint and plays a crucial role in inflammatory processes. The aim of the study is to establish the role of YKL-40 as a biomarker for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) compared to proinflammatory biomarkers and disease activity. The study included 58 patients and 18 control. Diseases activity score (DAS-28) and clinical disease activity index (CDAI) were measured. Serum level of YKL-40, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1B (IL-1β), erythrocyte sedimentation (ESR), rheumatoid factor (RF), C-reactive protein (CRP), and anti-citrullinated protein antibody (ACPA) were assessed. The results showed that the median serum YKL-40 level which was 5.42