Background Type two diabetes (T2DM) is characterized by insufficient insulin production and secretion. Additionally, the body develops insulin resistance which affects 90–95% of diabetics. Complex cytokines, receptors, genetic pathways, and the immune system are involved in T2DM. Interleukin-18 (IL-18) is one of the inflammatory cytokines associated with Type 2 diabetes. Environmental and genetic variables, including genetic polymorphisms, can increase T2DM risk and its consequences. Single nucleotide gene polymorphisms (SNPs) are important risk factors for diabetes that can be used to find the disease early and treat it better. Objective This study aimed to determine the levels of IL-18 in the serum of Iraqi patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus, as well as the effect of IL-18 SNP rs1946518 (-607 G/T) in the etiology of T2DM. Materials and Methods This study involved 100 T2DM patients (52 males and 48 females) who visited Al-Karamah Teaching Hospital and Baghdad Teaching Hospital. 52 Iraqi control subjects (26 males and 26 females) were included. A sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to quantify the IL-18 serum levels of 48 patients and 40 healthy controls. The genotype of IL-18 was determined using Real-time (RT) Taqman PCR. Results According to age, the current study revealed a non-significant correlation (p-value > 0.05) among the studied groups. IL-18 levels in the T2DM group were substantially greater than in the healthy control. In addition, the genotyping frequencies revealed that the frequency of TT genotyping was higher in T2DM group than in healthy control (80% versus 66.7%, OR: 2.0), whereas the frequency of GT genotyping was lower in T2DM than in healthy persons (20% versus 33.3%, OR: 0.5). Conclusion: This Iraqi’s novel study indicated that IL-18 and it’s SNP(rs1946518) contributes to the pathophysiology of Type 2 diabetes mellitus.
The purpose of this study is to compare the influence of three teaching methods, as represented by problem-based learning (PBL), the PBL with lecture method, and the conventional teaching on undergraduate physics students' group work skills among bachelor’s degree physics students. In this study, the pre- and post-test were done and the instruments were administered to the students for data collection. The actual sample size comprises of 122 students, who were selected randomly from the physics department, college of education in iraq. Overall, the statistical results rejected null hypothesis of this study. Thus, using the PBL without or with lecture method enhances the skills of the group work among the bachelor’s degree physics studen
... Show MoreThe aim of this research is to assess the validity of Detailed Micro-Modeling (DMM) as a numerical model for masonry analysis. To achieve this aim, a set of load-displacement curves obtained based on both numerical simulation and experimental results of clay masonry prisms loaded by a vertical load. The finite element method was implemented in DMM for analysis of the experimental clay masonry prism. The finite element software ABAQUS with implicit solver was used to model and analyze the clay masonry prism subjected to a vertical load. The load-displacement relationship of numerical model was found in good agreement with those drawn from experimental results. Evidence shows that load-displacement curvefound from the finite element m
... Show MoreTin dioxide (SnO2) were mixed with (TiO2 and CuO) with concentration ratio (50, 60, 70, 80 and 90) wt% films deposited on single crystal Si and glass substrates at (523 K) by spray pyrolysis technique from aqueous solutions containing tin (II) dichloride Dihydrate (SnCl2, 2H2O), dehydrate copper chloride (CuCl2.2H2O) and Titanium(III) chloride (TiCl3) with molarities (0.2 M). The results of electrical properties and analysis of gas sensing properties of films are presented in this report. Hall measurement showed that films were n-type converted to p- type as titanium and copper oxide added at (50) % ratio. The D.C conductivity measurements referred that there are two mechanisms responsible about the conductivity, hence it possess two act
... Show MoreA Wearable Robotic Knee (WRK) is a mobile device designed to assist disabled individuals in moving freely in undefined environments without external support. An advanced controller is required to track the output trajectory of a WRK device in order to resolve uncertainties that are caused by modeling errors and external disturbances. During the performance of a task, disturbances are caused by changes in the external load and dynamic work conditions, such as by holding weights while performing the task. The aim of this study is to address these issues and enhance the performance of the output trajectory tracking goal using an adaptive robust controller based on the Radial Basis Function (RBF) Neural Network (NN) system and Hamilton
... Show MoreThis paper presents the ability to use cheap adsorbent (corn leaf) for the removal of Malachite Green (MG) dye from its aqueous solution. A batch mode was used to study several factors, dye concentration (50-150) ppm, adsorbent dosage (0.5-2.5) g/L, contact time (1-4) day, pH (2-10), and temperature (30-60) The results indicated that the removal efficiency increases with the increase of adsorbent dosage and contact time, while inversely proportional to the increase in pH and temperature. An SEM device characterized the adsorbent corn leaves. The adsorption's resulting data were in agreement with Freundlich isotherm according to the regression analysis, and the kinetics data followed pseudo-first-or
... Show MoreFinite Element Approach is employed in this research work to solve the governing differential equations related to seepage via its foundation's dam structure. The primary focus for this reason is the discretization of domain into finite elements through the placement of imaginary nodal points and the discretization of governing equations into an equation system; An equation for each nodal point or part, and unknown variables are solved. The SEEP / W software (program) is a sub-program of the Geo-Studio software, which is used by porous soil media to compensate for the problems of seepage. To achieve the research goals, a study was carried out on Hemrin dam, which located in the Diyala River 100 km northeast of Baghdad, Iraq. Thus, o
... Show MoreRoller Compacted Concrete (RCC) is a mass concrete with zero slump consisting of well-graded aggregate, cementitious materials and water. RCC has many advantages over other pavement types, particularly cost and speed of construction. However, it also presents difficulties with high-speed applications related to surface texture and surface evenness. These difficulties have so far restricted the use of RCC to the lower layers of normal roads. This study investigates the possibility of expanding the application of RCC for normal roads and highways by using a two-layer system of roller compacted concrete. The suitability of RCC for such an application depends fundamentally on bond strength between the layers. The bond strength measured by shear
... Show MoreSensing insole systems are a promising technology for various applications in healthcare and sports. They can provide valuable information about the foot pressure distribution and gait patterns of different individuals. However, designing and implementing such systems poses several challenges, such as sensor selection, calibration, data processing, and interpretation. This paper proposes a sensing insole system that uses force-sensitive resistors (FSRs) to measure the pressure exerted by the foot on different regions of the insole. This system classifies four types of foot deformities: normal, flat, over-pronation, and excessive supination. The classification stage uses the differential values of pressure points as input for a feedforwar
... Show More