Background: Beta thalassemia major (β-TM) is an inheritable condition with many complications, especially in children. The blood-borne viral infection was proposed as a risk factor due to the recurrent blood transfusion regimen (hemotherapy) as human parvovirus B19 (B19V). Objective: This study investigated the B19V seroprevalence, DNA presence, B19V viral load, and B19V genotypes in β-TM patients and blood donors. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study incorporating 180 subjects, segregated into three distinct groups each of 60 patients, namely control, β-TM, and β-TM infected with Hepatitis C Virus (HCV). For the B19V prevalence in the studied group, the ELISA technique and real-time PCR were used. The genotyping was followed by the resultant sequence. Results: Both B19V IgM and IgG antibody positivity rates are higher among β-TM patients compared to controls. The B19V IgM (35%) and B19V IgG (21.67%) antibodies positivity in β-TM patients compared to 23.3% and 18.33% positivity in the controls was significantly observed. The prevalence of B19V was (8.3%), and the viral copy number in β-TM patients ranged from ≥104– 106 copies/ml than in controls. The B19V genotype 1 subtype a was the only genotype according to the VP1-VP2 region (288 pb) in this study. Conclusions: The prevalence of B19V in patients may be higher than in controls. B19V screening in high-risk groups, such as blood donors, may considerably reduce the prevalence of B19V.
Background Depression is one of the most common medical illnesses worldwide. Medical students during their training will be subjected to many stressors, both mentally and emotionally. Objectives Assess the prevalence of depressive symptoms among medical students and to identify any association between depressive symptoms and some socio-demographic factors.
The performance of photovoltaic (PV) panel having staggered metal foam fins was examined experimentally in Baghdad, Iraq. Three staggered metal foam fin configurations attached to the backside of the PV panel were studied. The measured parameters were front and back surfaces temperature, open voltage and current circuits, maximum power, and PV efficiency. It was noted that the maximum electrical efficiency enhancement was 4.7% for staggered metal foam fins (case III) than the reference PV panel. The operating temperature of the cell was increased when the value of solar intensity was high. Thereby, the electrical efficiency was decreased. It was found that the metal foam fins decreased the PV temperature by 2-3 o
... Show MoreBackground: Prematurity and its complications are the major causes of neonatal and infant morbidity and mortality. Although the cause of preterm labor is often unknown, numerous etiological risk factors may be implicated. To identify the risk factors that lead to prematurity and assess the neonatal outcomes that preterm neonates may develop. Methods: This case-control study was conducted at AL-Elwiya Pediatric Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq, from the 1st of June to the 31st of December 2019. A non-randomized sample of 700 neonates admitted to the neonatal care unit was included in this study and divided into two groups of preterm full-term neonates as the experimental and control groups, respectively (n=350 each). The same questionnaire w
... Show MoreAbstract:
Recently, there is a widespread attention about the service at the level of each of the research and academic studies, and at the organizational level as well. The subject of orientation towards the service aspect is starting to be of this attention being of the modern subjects, relatively, which appeared at the end of the last century, as well as the link of this subject with the relationship between the organization and its customers, and how to provide high quality services to get their satisfaction. Thus, the specialists from researchers were interested in this field to develop an appropriate scale to measure the organizational orientation toward service, and it was the most prominen
... Show MorePurpose: the purpose of this study is to investigate how managers working for the General Authority for Irrigation and Reclamation Projects react to the impact of Emotional Intelligence (EI) on their performance. Theoretical framework: The current study includes an intellectual framework on two variables, namely EI and Manager Performance (MP), because it is essential to investigate the relationship between these two variables and the impact of EI on MP. Design/methodology/approach: The research problem is that a manager's capacity to make wise decisions about their work or interactions with subordinates is diminished when they have inadequate EI. The questionnaire is used as a tool for gathering data for the study, and the st
... Show MoreA significant increase in the incidence of non-O157 verotoxigenic Escherichia coli (VTEC) infections have become a serious health issues, and this situation is worsening due to the dissemination of plasmid mediated multidrug-resistant microorganisms worldwide. This study aims to investigate the presence of plasmid-mediated verotoxin gene in non-O157 E. coli. Standard microbiological techniques identified a total of 137 E. coli isolates. The plasmid was detected by Perfectprep Plasmid Mini preparation kit. These isolates were subjected to disk diffusion assay, and plasmid curing with ethidium bromide treatment. The plasmid containing isolates were subjected to a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for investigating
... Show MoreSeveral toxigenic cyanobacteria produce the cyanotoxin (microcystin). Being a health and environmental hazard, screening of water sources for the presence of microcystin is increasingly becoming a recommended environmental procedure in many countries of the world. This study was conducted to assess the ability of freshwater cyanobacterial species Westiellopsis prolifica to produce microcystins in Iraqi freshwaters via using molecular and immunological tools. The toxigenicity of W. prolifica was compared via laboratory experiments with other dominant bloom-forming cyanobacteria isolated from the Tigris River: Microcystis aeruginosa, Chroococcus turigidus, Nostoc carneum, and Lyngbya sp. signifi
... Show MoreThe purpose of the study is the city of Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, was chosen to study the spectral reflection of the land cover and to determine the changes taking place in the areas of the main features of the city using the temporal resolution of multispectral bands of the satellite Landsat 5 and 8 for MSS and OLI sensors respectively belonging to NASA and for the period 1999-2021, and calculating the increase and decrease in the basic features of Baghdad. The main conclusions of the study were, This study from 1999 to 2021 and in two different seasons: the Spring of the growing season and Summer the dry season. When using the supervised classification method to determine the differences, the results showed remarkable changes. Where h
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