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 secondly, non-diabetic controls (11 male, 9 female) were selected from the patients attending Ibn AL-Haitham hospital for ophthalmology and a specialized center for endocrinology and diabetes. Venous blood samples of all participants were drawn after an overnight fast, and serum samples were stored at -20ºC until DKK-1 assay. Results: Serum DKK-1 showed significantly lower levels in diabetic patients with (6.1 ± 2 ng/mL) or without DR (14 ± 6.2 ng/mL) when compared to those of controls (34 ± 12.25 ng/mL) (p 0.05). Furthermore, serum DKK-1 levels were lower in the late stage of DR compared to the early stage 5.6 ± 1.7 and 7 ± 1.9 ng/mL, respectively. Furthermore, DPP-4 inhibitors cause a better increment in DKK-1 levels when compared to SU in the NDR group. Conclusions: Reduced serum levels of DKK-1 are related to the existence and worsening of DR and have the prospect to serve as an indicator for this condition.
Background: Lowering the amount of iodinated contrast material and tube voltage may increase pulmonary artery opacification and thrombus identification without compromising picture quality.
Objectives: To explore the efficiency of using lower tube voltage and a lower contrast medium dose for conducting computed tomography for pulmonary angiography (CTPA) aiming to increase its accuracy in detecting pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE).
Subjects and Methods:100 patients scheduled for CTPA with a preoperative diagnosis of PTE were grouped into two: group A, (50 patients) got 1 mL/kg at 120 kV and group B, (50 patients) received 0.5 mL/kg at 80 kV.The tec
... Show MoreFrom 211 urine samples, Gram negative bacteria were isolated from only 61 urine samples with isolation percentage 28.9%. Escherichia coli were isolated percentage 70.49% while Klebsiella pneumoniae and Psendomonas aeruginosa were 8.19% and 6.55%, respectively.Proteus spp. Were isolated from 9 (14.75%), P. mirablis and P. vulgaris were isolates percentage 11.47% and 3.27%, respectively. Uroepithelial Cell Adhesin (UCA) fimbriae expression by P.mirabilis isolates was detected by the high capacity to adhesion to human uroepithetial cells, the isolate p.mirabilis U7 was adhesion to human uroepithelial cells mean no.30.2 bacteria/cell when grown on luria broth at 37C for 24h, but then grown it’s on luria agar at 37C for 24h the adhesion
... Show MoreBackground: The physiologic, biochemical and anatomic changes that occur during pregnancy are extensive and may be systemic or local. However, most of these changes return to pre pregnancy status six weeks postpartum. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of dental caries among preterm postpartum women and it's relation to baby birth weight and salivary interleukin-6 (IL-6). Materials and methods: 66 postpartum women were examined, 33 preterm postpartum women (study group) and 33 full term postpartum women (control group). Dental caries was recorded using, decayed, missing and filled surfaces index, also assess the decayed lesion by severity. Salivary samples were taken from all subjects to estimate salivary IL-6 levels. Babie
... Show MoreTNF-α-induced osteoclastogenesis is central to post-menopausal and inflammatory bone loss, however, the effect of phytoestrogens on TNF-α-induced bone resorption has not been studied. The phytoestrogens genistein, daidzein, and coumestrol directly suppressed TNF-α-induced osteoclastogenesis and bone resorption. TRAP positive osteoclast formation and resorption area were significantly reduced by genistein (10(-7) M), daidzein (10(-5) M), and coumestrol (10(-7) M), which was prevented by the estrogen antagonist ICI 182,780. TRAP expression in mature TNF-α-induced osteoclasts was also significantly reduced by these phytoestrogen concentrations. In addition, in the presence of ICI 182,780 genistein and coumestrol (10(-5) -10(-6) M) augmente
... Show MoreThe possible effect of the crude aqueous extract of soy bean seeds on some blood parameters (total count of red blood cells, white blood cell , (total and differential) blood platelates, packed cell volume and concentration of blood hemoglobin) was studied in 20 albino female mice which were allocated in four experimental groups (5 mice/group). The first group was orally treated with distilled water (control group) while the second, third and fourth group were given a concentration of 4%, 6% and 8% of the extract, respectively. At the end of the daily gavaging, which lasted for 4 weeks, the animals were killed, after recording their life body weight, and blood samples were collected from each mice to study the effect
... Show MoreActivation of farnesoid X receptor (FXR) markedly attenuates development of atherosclerosis in animal models. However, the underlying mechanism is not well elucidated. Here, we show that the FXR agonist, obeticholic acid (OCA), increases fecal cholesterol excretion and macrophage reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) dependent on activation of hepatic FXR. OCA does not increase biliary cholesterol secretion, but inhibits intestinal cholesterol absorption. OCA markedly inhibits hepatic cholesterol 7α‐hydroxylase (
في هذا العصر - الذي داهمت في الأخطار لغة الفصاحة والبيان - يبقى القرآن الكريم أعظم حافظ للغة السليمة ، وأكبر معين لأهلها للحفاظ على ثرائها وبلاغتها ، فهي باقية ببقائه ما بقي الليل والنهار .
وهذا البحث يدور حول حفظ القرآن الكريم وأثره على لغة الطفل، ويتكون من مقدمة : وفيها بيان أهمية الموضوع ، وخطة البحث ، ومنهجه، وثلاثة مباحث:
المبحث الأول : فضل حفظ القرآن الكريم ، وفوائد حفظه إجمالاً ، والمبحث الثاني :
... Show MoreA new results for fusion reactivity and slowing-down energy distribution functions for controlled thermonuclear fusion reactions of the hydrogen isotopes are achieved to reach promising results in calculating the factors that covered the design and construction of a given fusion system or reactor. They are strongly depending upon their operating fuels, the reaction rate, which in turn, reflects the physical behavior of all other parameters characterization of the system design
Several problems have emerged as a result of urban expansion or the connection of urban areas with rural areas. This process has led to the urbanization of rural areas, and to have overlapping edges and margins of areas, which were outside the basic design of the city. Accordingly, the present research assumes that the accelerating growth of Baghdad population has contributed significantly to the process of unplanned urbanization. Thus, the study aims to examine the factors that have led to an increase of urban sprawl at the expense of the agricultural land. The study has thus adopted the descriptive, analytical, and historical approaches relying on the simple linear regression method to predict the phenomenon of urban expansion and its
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