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.
Introduction: COVID-19 vaccine have been indicated to successfully decrease the hazard for symptomatic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection furthermore associated hospitalisations. Objective: To study the immune response among different types of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. Methods: This study includes 100 vaccinated individuals (43 Sinopharm, 30 AstraZeneca and 27 Pfizer) with one or two doses from different health centres in Baghdad. During the period from April 2021 to the end of May 2021, SARS-CoV-2 IgG and SARS-CoV-2 IgM levels were detected using AFIAS-6 device depending on FIA (Fluorescence Immunoassay) technique. Results: 93% of the cases were positive for IgG levels, and negative in 7% case
... Show MoreBackground: Dental caries and periodontal disease are the most common and widely spread diseases affecting humans at different ages. Aim of this study is the assessment of prevalence and severity of dental caries, gingivitis, oral hygiene and enamel anomalies in relation to gender and residency among 15 years old students in Maysan governorate –Iraq. Materials and methods: The total sample composed of 750 students (400 males and 350 females, 450 urban and 300 rural) selected randomly from different high schools in the Governorate. Diagnoses and recording dental caries was according to the criteria of WHO (1987), Plaque index of Silness and Loe (1964) was used for plaque assessment, Ramfjord index (1959) was applied for the assessment
... Show MoreNuclear structure of 29-34Mg isotopes toward neutron dripline have been investigated using shell model with Skyrme-Hartree–Fock calculations. In particular nuclear densities for proton, neutron, mass and charge densities with their corresponding rms radii, neutron skin thicknesses and inelastic electron scattering form factors are calculated for positive low-lying states. The deduced results are discussed for the transverse form factor and compared with the available experimental data. It has been confirmed that the combining shell model with Hartree-Fock mean field method with Skyrme interaction can accommodate very well the nuclear excitation properties and can reach a highly descriptive and predictive power when investiga
... Show MoreDiabetes mellitus type II is a disorder of metabolism and complex diseases affected by genetic environmental factors and associated with inflammation. The symptoms of type II diabetes develop gradually, which are associated with increased blood concentration of marker of the endothelial inflammatory factors. The expression of adhesion molecules, including E-selectin, intracellular adhesion molecule-1(ICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) on the surface of vascular endothelial cells to help leukocyte stick to other surrounding tissues. Many researchers have made attempts to determine the significance of particular ABO phenotype for the susceptibility to diseases. Many reports show a strong association with the ABO blood grou
... Show MoreHeavy metal (HM) pollution has long been a significant source of environmental deterioration and a problem for the safety of food. Iraqis prefer rice over any other food, and since heavy metals have a direct impact on health, their traces in rice have drawn particular attention. Before cooking rice, it is usual in Iraq to wash and soak it. Some 55 varieties of imported and local rice were sampled from Erbil city markets in 2022 with the aim of determining the concentration of As, Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb before and after soaking. Standard procedure of acid digestions was applied on the raw and soaked samples. The solutions were analyzed using ICPE-9820 Shimadzu. The mean concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb (in mg/kg) in the rice samples bef
... Show MoreHepatitis C virus (HCV) is a liver disease that affects14 million people. Feasible research was conducted for identifying the genotypes and allele frequency of some single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the IL-28β genes and their predictive role in disease incidence in Iraqi patients. The SNPs (rs28416813, rs4803219, rs11881222, and rs8103142) of IL-28β have been associated with susceptibility to several diseases. Ninety eight (98) HCV patients were included in this research; with average age ± SE (42.28 ± 3.44) years. Also, 80 healthy people (with average age ± SE (29.40 ± 2.84) years) were included as a control group. The SNPs were detected by allele-specific PCR (polymerase chain reaction) using specific primers. The re
... Show MoreAn annotated list based both on personal collections and on literature records, is presented for twenty species and subspecies of Chrysomelinae from Iraq. Eight of which are newly recorded, bringing the total number of species and subspecies for Iraq to 25. Localities and host data are given for most species.
Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is a public health problem and many studies support the link between kidney dysfunction and cardiovascular events. Aldosterone has been shown for decades that a plasma aldosterone concentration is elevated in CKD. Whilst, Osteoprotegerin (OPG), after its capacity to protect bone, also osteoprotegerin is elevated in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), where it could predict the deterioration of kidney function, cardiovascular, vascular events and all-cause mortality. On the other hand, fibroblast growth factors (FGFs), in patients with CKD, its levels seem to increase progressively as kidney function worsens. The aim of the present study is to assess the correlations between serum osteoprotegerin
... Show MoreSheep are considered as an important part of livestock in the worldwide, particularly in Iraq, as they provide meat, milk, leather, wool, and manure. The present study aim is isolation and identification of staphylococci, enteric bacteria and Pseudomonas spp. Totally, 115 samples were collected from sheep (100 samples were collected from the nasal cavity of local sheep suffering from respiratory infections, and 15 samples were collected from apparently healthy local sheep). All the samples were collected from seven flocks located in Abu Ghraib and Al-Radwaniyah, Baghdad governorate, Iraq. The samples were taken during the period from October 2020 to February 2021. Staphylococcus spp., Pseudomonas spp., and enteric bacteria were detected fi
... Show MoreCommon walnut (