Despite not being digested, trace elements and/or heavy metals are important for the activity of enzymes, physiological processes, and homeostasis. If certain trace elements are present in excess, they can have harmful effects and pose major health hazards. Objective: The aims to examine the connection between serum zinc, copper levels, and the Cu/Zn ratio, and several anthropometric parameters, including an index of body mass and the waist-hip ratio. In our study, we used atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) to measure serum levels of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) in 60 individuals, 30 patients with kidney cancer and 30 healthy controls. We assessed serum uric acid, creatinine, and urea using the semi-auto analyzer BA-88A (Korea). The results

Wireless sensor applications are susceptible to energy constraints. Most of the energy is consumed in communication between wireless nodes. Clustering and data aggregation are the two widely used strategies for reducing energy usage and increasing the lifetime of wireless sensor networks. In target tracking applications, large amount of redundant data is produced regularly. Hence, deployment of effective data aggregation schemes is vital to eliminate data redundancy. This work aims to conduct a comparative study of various research approaches that employ clustering techniques for efficiently aggregating data in target tracking applications as selection of an appropriate clustering algorithm may reflect positive results in the data aggregati

Background: to evaluate the effect of different dentifrices on the surface roughness of two composite resins (nanofilled-based and nanoceramic – based composite resins). Materials and methods: Forty specimens (diameter 12 mm and height of 2mm) prepared from different composite resin materials: Z350 (nanofilled composite, and Ceram-X (nanoceramic) .they were subjected to brushing simulation equivalent to the period of 1 year. The groups assessed were a control group brushed with distilled water (G1), Opalescence whitening toothpasteR (G2), Colgate sensitive pro-relief (G3) and Biomed Charcoal Toothpaste (G4). The initial and final roughness of each group was tested by surface roughness tester. The results were statistically analyzed using

This study evaluated the structural changes of enamel treated by the Regenerate system and carbon dioxide (CO2) laser against acid challenge. Thirty human enamel slabs were prepared and assigned into three groups: Group I: untreated (control); Group II: treated with the Regenerate system; and Group III exposed to CO2 laser. All specimens were subjected to an acid challenge (pH 4.5–7.0) for 14 days. Specimens were evaluated and compared at 120 points using five Raman microspectroscopic peaks; the phosphate vibrations ν1, ν2, ν3, and ν4 at 960, 433, 1029, and 579 cm−1, respectively, and the carbonate at 1070 cm−1, followed by Vickers microhardness test. The ratio of carbonate to phosphate was correlated to the equivalent mic

     In this work, the detection of zinc (Zn) ions that cause water pollution is studied using the CSNPs- Linker-alkaloids compound that was prepared by linking extracted alkaloids from Iraqi Catharanthus roseus plant with Chitosan nanoparticles (CSNPs) using maleic anhydride. This compound is characterized by an X-ray diffractometer (XRD) which shows that it has an orthorhombic structure with crystallite size in the nano dimension. Zeta Potential results show that the CSNPs-Linker-alkaloids carried a positive charge of 54.4 mV, which means it possesses high stability.  The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) shows a new distinct band at 1708.93 cm-1 due to C=O esterification. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) image

Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs) are integral to Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), enabling real-time communication between vehicles and infrastructure to enhance traffic flow, road safety, and passenger experience. However, the open and dynamic nature of VANETs presents significant privacy and security challenges, including data eavesdropping, message manipulation, and unauthorized access. This study addresses these concerns by leveraging advancements in Fog Computing (FC), which offers lowlatency, distributed data processing near-end devices to enhance the resilience and security of VANET communications. The paper comprehensively analyzes the security frameworks for fog-enabled VANETs, introducing a novel taxonomy that c