Sorghum seeds suffer from a low germination ratio, so a factorial experiment was carried out in the Seed Technology Laboratory, Department of Field Crops, College of Agricultural Engineering Sciences, University of Baghdad during 2022 according to a Completely Randomized Design with four replications to study the effect of stimulating seeds with aqueous extract of banana peels with a concentration of (0, 15, 25 and 35%) and citric acid at concentrations (0, 50, 100 and 200 mg L-1) on viability and vigour of seed properties. Seeds that soaked with banana peel extract at a concentration of 25% outperformed in first count (79.8%), final count (85.0%), radicle length (13.2 cm), plumule length (11.6 cm), and seedling vigour index (2109), noting

Baghdad, one of Iraq’s most crowded cities, faces severe air pollution caused by rapid population growth, dense traffic, and limited green spaces. Monitoring at five sites in Al-Rusafa during 2024–2025 showed that pollutant levels, especially PM₁₀, PM₂.₅, and TSP, exceed national and global limits. The most polluted areas lacked vegetation and had heavy traffic, while greener zones showed lower concentrations. Seasonal variations were evident: winter had the highest pollution, summer the lowest but with greater plant stress. Ascorbic acid and the Air Pollution Tolerance Index (APTI) proved reliable indicators of plant resistance. Overall, the study confirms plants’ role as effective bio monitors and stresses the need f

The effect of the aqueous extract of fenugreek seeds (Trigonella Foenum Graecum L.), Rhodium complex (?) with formula [RhL2CLH2O].1 1/2 ETOH and palladium (?) [pdl2].2ETOH,where L=2-hydroxy phenyl piperonalidine was studied on two cancer cell lines. The first cell line was intestine cancer of female albino mice (L20B), the second one was Rhabdomysarcomas (RD)cell line in human. The activity of the new complexes and the aqueous extract was compared to the well-known anticancer drug (cis-platin) by utilizing the in vitro system. The cell lines were treated with four concentrations of cis-platin 31.25,62.5,125 and 250 ?g/ml for 72 hour exposure time. The same concentrations were used with extract and the new complexes. This study showed that t

Due to its various resistance mechanisms, Pseudomonas aeruginosa is the most prevalent opportunistic infection that kills hospitalized patients. Thus, therapeutic options become limited. Objective: The study aimed to estimate the antibiofilm effectiveness of Conocarpus erectus leaf extracts against MDR P. aeruginosa isolates and examines pelA and algD gene expression. Subjects and Methods: One hundred-fifty clinical samples were collected from five Baghdad hospitals between September 2021 and January 2022. Samples were grown on different mediums. Despite cetrimide agar's ability to detect P. aeruginosa, only 83 isolates developed at 42°C. VITEK 2 compact system identification followed. This study examined 83 of P. aeruginosa isolates for r

Clausena excavata (Lour.), locally known as “Kemantu hitam,” is a common plant in Malaysian folklore medicine. This study evaluated the antioxidant properties of the solvent extracts of C. excavata leaves and determined the acute toxicity of methanolic extract C. excavata (MECE) leaves in Sprague‐Dawley rats. Harvested leaves were dried and subjected to solvent extraction using petroleum ether, chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol in succession. The antioxidant activity of each extract was determined using the ferric‐reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and 2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picryl dihydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity. The total pheno

Galantamine was isolated from the bulb part of Narcissus jonquilla L. plant cultivated in Iraq. The compound was identified by different chemical analysis like: Fourier Transforms Infrared spectra (FTIR), High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and mass spectroscopy and 1H-NMR.