This study aimed to investigate the ability of clove and cinnamon extracts to make pathogenic multidrug-resistant (MDR) Klebsiella pneumoniae more sensitive to the host’s immune system and thereby interrupt the bacterial infection process in the rat model. Therefore, 60 Wistar male rats were used in this study. The phytochemical constituents of the plant extract were analysed using the gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) technique. Then, the capability of the plant extracts, as prophylactic and treatment, against K. pneumoniae in rats was studied by estimating the complete blood counts (CBCs) and the serum concentrations of interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) before and after the treatment. The results showed that the main phytoconstituent present in the aqueous ethanolic extract of cinnamon was cinnamaldehyde, and eugenol for clove. Concerning the haematological parameter, significant alterations in white blood cell counts, lymphocytes %, monocytes %, granulocytes %, and plateletcrit % were observed in the blood of animals. Increased IL-4 and IFN-γ levels occurred following the administration of cinnamon and clove, and that increase was dose-dependent. To conclude, clove and cinnamon ethanolic extracts exerted potent immunomodulatory effects against K. pneumoniae. The study recommends further exploration of these plant extracts separately or in combination to develop alternative therapies against MDR K. pneumoniae infections.
The ability of beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) to uptake three pharmaceuticals (diclofenac, mefenamic acid and metronidazole) from two types of soil (clay and sandy soil) was investigated in this study to explore the human exposure to these pharmaceuticals via the consumption of beans. A pot experiment was conducted with beans plants which were grown in two types of soil for six weeks under controlled conditions. During the experiment period, the soil pore water was collected weekly and the concentrations of the test compounds in soil pore water as well as in plant organs (roots, stems and leaves) were weekly determined.
The results showed that the studied pharmaceuticals were detected in all plant tissues; their concentration
Semiconductor-based photocatalytic processes are widely applied as ecofriendly technology for degrading organic pollutants. Establishing photocatalytic heterojunctions with Z-type photocarriers transfer pathways is projected to be a superb strategy to enhance photocatalytic behavior. In this paper, novel and stable (0D/2D) heterojunctions of CoS-embedded boron-doped g-C3N4 (CoS/BCN) with a high rate of charges transfer/separation were assembled for degradation of malachite green dye (MG). The CoS/BCN photocatalyst achieves a photodegradation efficiency of 96.9 % within 1 h of LED illumination, which is 2.5 and 1.4-fold enhancement compared with bare g-C3N4 and BCN, respectively. Besides, the results of species-trapping trials exhibited that
... Show MoreEnglish teachers in Iraq and other countries around the world up to this time use traditional methods to help students memorize new vocabularies. The sense of words or structure is not to be given in either the native tongue or the target language by definition, but is induced by the way the form is used in the situation. Situational Language Teaching (SLT) has recently become the needed method for improving speaking skills. It indicates the application of learning the language in actual and social exchange expressions so as to let learners do as required in classroom and non-classroom circumstances. This pilot study seeks to answer the following questions: Can SLT improve English speaking skills of target learners? How SLT contribute to th
... Show MoreBackground: Post-partum depression (PPD) is a form of postnatal depression that affects mothers. Clinical manifestations usually appear within six months after delivery. Risk factors that influence the severity of post-partum depression are not fully known in the Iraqi population.
Objectives: We aim to evaluate the risk factors and identify potential predictors that may influence the symptom levels (severity) of post-partum depression among Iraqi women from Baghdad.
Subjects and Methods: The current study is cross-sectional, and we used the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and a cut-off value of 13 to differentiate patients into two those with lower symptom levels (LSL) and higher symptom levels (HSL). We also explored p
Gas Lasers are important tools that are used in variety purposes, for their low and (cw) output power. The aim of this study was to prepare a way to calculate an optimum stimulated emission cross-section in a gas laser containing a mixture of Xenon and Neon by (30%-70%). The process was a theoretical study of each gas in separate in terms of their physical properties as an active medium. The results of these calculations are logic and more convenient than other mixtures used before
Recently times, industrial development has increased, including plastic industries, and since plastic has a very long analytical life, it will cause environmental pollution. Therefore studies have resorted to reusing recycled plastic waste (sustainable plastic) to produce environmentally friendly concrete (green concrete). In this research, some studies were reviewed and then summarized into several things, including the percentage of plastic replacement from the aggregate and the effect of this percentage on the fresh properties of concrete, such as the workability and the effect of plastic waste on the hardening properties of concrete such as dry density, compressive, tensile and flexural strength.
Background: Avascular necrosis (AVN) is defined as cellular death of bone components due to interruption of the blood supply; the bone structures then collapse, resulting in bone destruction, pain, and loss of joint function. AVN is associated with numerous conditions and usually involves the epiphysis of long bones, such as the femoral head. In clinical practice, AVN is most commonly encountered in the hip. Early diagnosis and appropriate intervention can delay the need for joint replacement. However, most patients present late in the disease course. Without treatment, the process is almost always progressive, leading to joint destruction within 5 years.Treatment of a vascular necrosis depends mainly on early diagnosis which mainly base
... Show MoreTraditionally, path selection within routing is formulated as a shortest path optimization problem. The objective function for optimization could be any one variety of parameters such as number of hops, delay, cost...etc. The problem of least cost delay constraint routing is studied in this paper since delay constraint is very common requirement of many multimedia applications and cost minimization captures the need to
distribute the network. So an iterative algorithm is proposed in this paper to solve this problem. It is appeared from the results of applying this algorithm that it gave the optimal path (optimal solution) from among multiple feasible paths (feasible solutions).
The research demonstrates new species of the games by applying separation axioms via sets, where the relationships between the various species that were specified and the strategy of winning and losing to any one of the players, and their relationship with the concepts of separation axioms via sets have been studied.