Objectives: Umbilical cord blood can be taken at birth and largely gives indication of fetal and maternal conditions. The aim of the study was to investigate the relation between sex hormones in cord blood and birth weight of newborns and pregnancy complications. Methods: Fifty cord blood samples were collected from newborns at labor room of Baghdad Teaching Hospital between May and October 2018. Blood was withdrawn from their mothers for lead analysis. Five milliliters (ml) of cord blood was taken, 3 ml was used for testosterone and estradiol analysis (using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) and 2 ml for lead measurement by lead care analyzer. Newborns weight and head circumference were measured. Delivered women were divided into four groups: Women with normal pregnancy, women with pre-eclampsia, diabetic women and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women. Results: There was no significant difference in age between women in all groups (P > 0.05). Birth weights, estradiol, and testosterone were significantly different between groups. Estradiol was higher in cord blood of newborns of PCOS women (P < 0.05) than others. Testosterone was higher in cord blood of babies of PCOS and pre-eclampsia women compared with those of diabetes (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences between male and female neonates regarding cord estradiol (3596.27 ± 1934.69, 3714.57 ± 1581.47 pg/ml respectively), and testosterone (393.18 ± 87.14, 361.43 ± 102.14 ng/ml respectively) (P > 0.05). Maternal lead levels correlated positively with cord lead (r = 0.905, P < 0.05), which correlated negatively with head circumference (r = −0.766, P < 0.05). Birth weight correlated negatively with estradiol (r = −0.295), but positively with testosterone (r = 0.006) (P > 0.05). Conclusion: Cord blood estradiol and testosterone levels do not differ between males and females. Estradiol was high in cord blood of PCOS mothers. Testosterone was high in cord blood of PCOS and pre-eclampsia mothers. The increase in cord lead causes decrease in babies head circumference.
Medicinal plants contain bioactive substances that are highly bioavailable in extracts or pure molecules, making them promising for therapeutic applications and precursors for chemo-pharmaceutical semi-synthesis. Harpagophytum procumbens (Devil’s Claw) is widely recognized as one of the most potent therapeutic herbs. This study aimed to extract seeds from H. procumbens using two types of solvents and to assess both qualitative and quantitative aspects of the extracts. The two extracts were evaluated for antibacterial and anti-biofilm activities using agar well diffusion assays against four bacterial isolates and two yeast isolates. Qualitative analysis identified the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, and terpen
... Show MoreSocial graphic design is the design that realizes the role and responsibility of the designer in society, and the use of graphic design in bringing about social change, especially as it is a professional contribution that plays an important role in the behavioral development of societies, and through the above, the researcher found a logical justification for his research problem, which is summarized by the following question: (What is the concept of Social Graphic Design and its implications in the fight against drug abuse)
While the two objectives of the research were identified in defining the social graphic design and its effect on combating drug abuse, and the theoretical framework was divided into two topics, the first study dea
In this work laser detection and tracking system (LDTS) is designed and implemented using a fuzzy logic controller (FLC). A 5 mW He-Ne laser system and an array of nine PN photodiodes are used in the detection system. The FLC is simulated using MATLAB package and the result is stored in a lock up table to use it in the real time operation of the system. The results give a good system response in the target detection and tracking in the real time operation.
In this study, the effect of glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) section and compressive strength of concrete in composite beams under static and low velocity impact loads was examined. Modeling was performed and the obtained results were compared with the test results and their compatibility was evaluated. Experimental tests of four composite beams were carried out, where two of them are control specimen with 20 MPa compressive strength of concrete deck slab and 50 MPa for other. Bending characteristics were affected by the strength of concrete under impact loading case, as it increased maximum impact force and damping time at a ratio of 59% and reduced the damping ratio by 47% compared to the reference hybrid beam. Under stat
... Show MoreThe present study was conducted to estimate the antimicrobial activity and the potential biological control of the killer toxin produced by
The durability of asphalt concrete is highly dependent on the geometry and mineralogy of coarse aggregates, yet their combined influence on mechanical and moisture resistance properties is still not fully understood. This study evaluates the effects of coarse aggregate geometry, specifically flat and elongated particle ratios and angularity, as well as mineral composition (quartz versus calcite), on asphalt mixture durability. The durability of mixtures was evaluated through Marshall properties as well as moisture susceptibility indicators, including the tensile strength ratio (TSR) and index of retained strength (IRS). Statistical analyses (ANOVA and t-tests) were also conducted to confirm the significance of the observed effects.
... Show MoreGlobally, breast cancer is the common malignancy affecting women and understanding its associated molecular events could help in disease prevention and management strategies. The present study was set to investigate an association between total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) polymorphisms with breast cancer. For this purpose, 100 subjects were participated in this work, including 50 female patients diagnosed with breast cancer recruited from Oncology hospital, Baghdad - Iraq and 50 healthy women as a control group. The concentration of antioxidants was measured in the serums collected from blood samples of breast cancer patients and healthy controls. While eNOS SNPs (rs1799983, G894T and rs2070744, T
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