The present study aims to investigate the seroprevalence rate of Toxoplasma gondii infection and its relation to some demographic factors among males in Duhok province/Iraq. A total of 424 random blood samples were collected from the male population of different ages (18-60) years and different social-economic classes. Out of 424 samples examined, 108 (25.47%) were seropositive to the anti- T. gondii antibodies; 88 (20.75%) were found seropositive for IgG, while 20 (4.72%) samples were seropositive for IgM. Regarding occupation, the highest percentage for chronic toxoplasmosis was reported in workers followed by policemen and pensioners at rates of 23.96%, 23.6%, and 23.07%, respectively. The age group 18-30 years showed the highest seropositive rate which was 26.6%; the seropositivity rate decreased with the increase of age. Regarding the blood groups, the highest percentage of IgG was reported in both O+ and B- groups, which were 23.2% and 23.1%, respectively. The higher rate of seropositivity was observed among married males (21.32%) as compared to unmarried males (19.05%) and fertile (22.3%) versus sterile males (12.5%). Concerning IgM antibodies, the highest seropositivity (9.4%) was reported in infertile males. The results of this study showed the importance of demographic factors to the epidemiology of T. gondii in males, which support the role of public health in the control of infectious diseases.
Construction is a complicated process that takes place in an almost uncontrollable environment. Although projects can be carefully planned in advance in principle, there is a chance that unforeseen events and crises can disrupt these plans, affecting project development. Because the initial investment expenditures in construction projects are so large, they may be quickly influenced by crises, resulting in significant financial losses. The 2014 financial crisis was one of the most prominent crises that Iraq faced, which significantly impacted various activities in general and the construction industry in particular. Despite the importance of crisis management systems, the researchers found a great lack of local studies looking at cr
... Show MoreThe humid and warm conditions in greenhouses provide an excellent environment for pests’ living conditions, and therefore, they provide ideal medium for alien introductions. Molluscs are among the most significant pests that infest plastic covered greenhouses. To identify and report their mollusc species, 23 greenhouses in Iraq were surveyed between March 2023 and April 2024. Of these, 11 were found to be infested with snails. A total of 158 specimens were collected and morphologically identified to seven species: Monacha obstructa (L. Pfeiffer, 1842), Eobania vermiculata (O.F. Müller, 1774), Xeropicta krynickii (Krynicki, 1833), Rumina decollata (Linnaeus, 1758), Polygyra cereolus (Megerle Von Mühlfeld, 1818), Cochlicella barba
... Show MoreAbstract The present work included morphological, anatomical, and palynological characters for the new species Acaalypha australis L. specimens, which belong to the family Euphorbiaceae. The species recorded in the study for the first time in Iraq. The plants of this species are annual herbs with green, striated or sub – polygonal stem, and branched near bases, Leaves are simple spirally alternate and lanceolate in shape. Flowers are unisexual, arranged in the axial of distinct leafy and cordate bracts, female flower arranged at the bracts bases and each flower with trileafed perianth and superior ovary with trilobed stylar stigma which has dense and coiled stigmatic hairs. Male flowers are arranged as a mixed verticellate inflorescence a
... Show MoreOpenStreetMap (OSM) is the world’s biggest publicly licensed geographic data collection. Because OSM is rapidly being used in a wide range of applications, researchers have focused their efforts on determining its quality. The OSM buildings data quality is still ambiguous, due to the limitations, and a few researchers have evaluated the OSM buildings data quality through difficulties where the authoritative data are not obtainable. The focus of this research is to analyze and assess the accuracy of OSM buildings including completeness, and positional accuracy methods. Two different study areas in Baghdad city-Iraq have been investigated: Al-Rasheed and Al-Karrada. The process of the (OSM) data evaluation involved identifying the correspon
... Show MoreA revision study of the Sphecidae from Iraq is presented. A survey is conducted to collect the specimens from different regions; generally, there were 41 species belonging to 12 genera and 4 subfamilies are revised with synonyms.
The current investigation included the species previously reported in Iraq, which were not collected during the current investigations; the distribution and other information are also provided.
Objective: To determine the prevalence of bullying among primary schools’ children with some associated factors, and resultant effects. Methodology: This cross-sectional study with analytic elements was carried out from February through April 2022. It included a sample of 410 students from six governmental primary schools from both sides of Baghdad city. A self-constructed questionnaire was used. It comprised the following parts: Part (1): socio-demographic data, Part (2): questions that review the students’ exposure to bullying, and Part (3) entails the effects of bullying on those children. Results: The total sample was composed of 410 students; their mean age was 9.51±1.94 years. The prevalence of bullying was 56.34%. Studen
... Show More