From different hospitals in Baghdad city, 25 clinical isolates of Proteus spp. were collected from different clinical samples, all isolates were identified as Proteus mirabilis by using bacteriological and biochemical assays in addition to Vitek-2 identification system. 15 (60%) isolates were identifying as Proteus mirabilis. The susceptibility of P. mirabilis isolates towards cefotaxime and ceftazidime was (66.6 %), (20%) consecutively; while extended spectrum β-lactamases producing P. mirabilis percentage was (30.7 %). Because blaVEB-1 was documented as an important indicator for increasing risk of extended spectrum beta ßlactamases producing P. mirabilis isolates that began to spread from many geographic area to Far east which inc

In this work, two different laser dye solutions were used to host highly-pure silicon nitride nanoparticles as scattering centers to fabricate random gain media. The laser dye was dissolved in three different solvents (ethanol, methanol and acetone) and the final results were obtained for methanol only. The silicon nitride nanoparticles were synthesized by dc reactive magnetron sputtering technique with average particle size of 35 nm. The random gain medium was made as a solid rod with high spectral efficiency and low production cost. Optical emission with narrow linewidth was detected at 532-534 nm as 9 mg of silicon nitride nanoparticles were added to the 10 -5 M dye solution. The FWHM of 0.3 and 3.52 nm was determined for Rhodamine B and

Background: A global health concern is methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The use of bacteriophages is one of the many novel control strategies against MRSA that are frequently sought. However, it is quite challenging to isolate enough lytic anti-MRSA phages. In order to extract, optimize, and remodel anti-MRSA phages, this study sought novel approaches.

Methods: Two ATCC MRSA strains and nine clinical MRSA isolates were used to isolate wild anti-MRSA phages from hospital settings, dirt, and sewage. The wild phages were optimized using plaque-based biokinetic techniques. Usi

Background: Because of the demands for aesthetic orthodontic appliances have increased, aesthetic archwires have been widely used to meet patient's aesthetic needs. The color stability of aesthetic archwires is clinically important, any staining or discoloration will affect patient’s acceptance and satisfaction. This study was designed to evaluate the color stability of different types of aesthetic archwires after immersion into different types of mouth washes. Materials and methods: Four brands of nickel titanium coated aesthetic arch wires: Epoxy coated (Orthotechnology and G&H) and Teflon coated (Dany and Hubit) were evaluated after 1 week, 3 weeks and 6 weeks of immersion into two types of mouthwashes (Listerine with alcohol and

This study aimed to find relationship between thymidine kinase-1 (TK-1) as tumor marker and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in Iraqi children patients with thrombocytopenia and with thrombocytosis. The present study conducted 60 children patients (30 patients with idiopathic thrombocytopenia purpura (ITP) and 30 patients with thrombocytosis caused by leukemia) attending the Children Fever Hospital in the Medical City / Baghdad, and 30 healthy children as a control group. All study groups were with range ages (1-15) years, and they were diagnosed by assay of platelet count, Prothrombin Time (PT), and partial Thromboplastin Time (PTT). The results shown elevation in plasma TK-1 and TAC values in children patients with thrombocytopenia and w

The current study aims to investigate the relationship between lipid peroxidation, represented by seminal malondialdehyde (MDA) level, and integrity of sperm plasma membrane, represented by the hypo-osmotic swelling (HOS) test score, in infertile men. One hundred and twenty Iraqi men (20 fertile and 100 infertile) shared in this study during their attendance to the High Institute for Infertility Diagnosis and Assisted Reproductive Technologies/Al- Nahrain University. The mean age of the fertile men was (30.46±0.78) years while the mean age of infertile men was (32.58±0.64) years with the duration of infertility (5.36±0.33) years. Semen samples were collected and the parameters of seminal fluid analysis were assessed; also, the HOS