Toxoplasma gondii is a unique intracellular parasite, which infect a large proportion of the world population, but uncommonly causes clinically significant disease. The present study was performed to estimate the prevalence of toxoplasmosis in 400 apparently healthy blood donor males, their ages were between 18 and 57 years using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay, and to examine the effects of infection on total testosterone, free testosterone and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) levels in their sera. Seroprevalence showed 10 (2.5 %) and 121 (30 %) of them had IgM and IgG antibodies respectively. Both acute and chronic toxoplasmosis in males recorded higher significant (P < 0.05) mean concentration for total and free testosterone hormone,

Dissolution of gypsum rock in water is significant, which may result in hydrocarbon reservoir formation and evaporate deposits. However, the complexity of the gypsum dissolution process is still of interest because of its uncleanness that requires more critical analysis. The objectives of this experimental study are emphasis on the dissolution characteristics of gypsum rock under room temperature and by various types of water; namely: deionized, tap, fresh, acidic, well, and normal rainwatre. In addition, the influences of dissolution on gypsum rock's mechanical and physical characteristics. Gypsum rock was obtained from Agjalar area, in the southwest of Sulaymaniyah city, Northern Iraq. Experimental results show that we

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can provide valuable spatial information products for many projects across a wide range of applications. One of the major challenges in this discipline is the quality of positioning accuracy of the resulting mapping products in professional photogrammetric projects. This is especially true when using low-cost UAV systems equipped with GNSS receivers for navigation. In this study, the influence of UAV flight direction and camera orientation on positioning accuracy in an urban area on the west bank of the Euphrates river in Iraq was investigated. Positioning accuracy was tested in this study with different flight directions and camera orientation settings using a UAV autopilot app (Pix4Dcapture software

Low grade crude palm oil (LGCPO) presents as an attractive option as feedstock for biodiesel production due to its low cost and non-competition with food resources. Typically, LGCPO contains high contents of free fatty acids (FFA), rendering it impossible in direct trans-esterification processes due to the saponification reaction. Esterification is the typical pre-treatment process to reduce the FFA content and to produce fatty acid methyl ester (FAME). The pre-treatment of LGCPO using two different acid catalysts, such as titanium oxysulphate sulphuric acid complex hydrate (TiOSH) and 5-sulfosalicylic acid dihydrate (5-SOCAH) was investigated for the first time in this study. The optimum conditions for the homogenous catalyst (5-SOCAH) wer

At present, the ability to promote national economy by adjusting to political, economic, and technological variables is one of the largest challenges faced by organization productivity. This challenge prompts changes in structure and line productivity, given that cash has not been invested. Thus, the management searches for investment opportunities that have achieved the optimum value of the annual increases in total output value of the production line workers in the laboratory. Therefore, the application of dynamic programming model is adopted in this study by addressing the division of investment expenditures to cope with market-dumping policy and to strive non-stop production at work.

The present study investigated the impact of fuel kind on the emitted emissions at the idling period. Three types of available fuels in Iraq were tested. The tests conducted on ordinary gasoline with an octane number of 82, premium gasoline with an octane number of 92, and M20 (consist of 20% methanol and 80% regular gasoline). The 2 liters Mercedes-Benz engine was used in the experiments.

The results showed that engine operation at idle speed emits high levels of CO, CO₂, HC, NOx and noise. The produced emission levels depend highly on fuel type. The premium gasoline (ON=92) represents the lower emissions level except for noise at all idling speed. Adding methanol to ordinary gasoline (ON=82) showed high levels of emi

This study aims to determine the impact of organization values as an independent variable across its dimensions (organization management values, organization mission values, relations management values, and environment management values) on achieve the strategic success which is the dependent variable and include its dimensions  (environmental analysis, creative thinking, strategic decision, effective implementation, and leadership capacities). The study is conducted in the Iraq Oil Ministry. It deployed the analytical descriptive approach. It focuses on the study problem enquiries throughout addressing several principal and sub-hypothesizes in regards to cause and effect relationship. To achieve this result

Many waste materials can be repurposed effectively within asphalt concrete to enhance the performance and sustainability of pavement. One of these waste materials is sawdust ash (SDA). This study explores the beneficial use of SDA as a substitute for limestone dust (LD) mineral filler in asphalt concrete. The replacement rate was 0%, 15%, 30%, 45%, and 60% by weight of total mineral filler. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was employed to assess the surface morphology of Sawdust (SD), SDA, and LD. In addition, a series of tests, including Marshall stability and flow, indirect tensile strength,moisture susceptibility, and repeated uniaxial loading tests, were conducted to examine the performance characteristics of asphalt mixtures of diffe

The research aims to diagnose the shortcomings and weaknesses in applying the dimensions of the quality of work life and the extent of their impact on employees’ attitudes and behaviors, and thus their relationship to enhancing their core competencies. The scientific value of the research stems from highlighting the importance of the dimensions of the quality of professional life in improving the productive efficiency of workers in the public sector and raising the level of organizational performance. Because the quality of working life plays an important role in enhancing the core competencies of employees in the public sector, it can also be an incentive or a disincentive for any employee by adapting to the economic and social condit