Uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) is problematic and still the leading cause of urinary tract infections worldwide. It is developed resistance against most antibiotics. The investigation, surveillance system, and efficient strategy will facilitate selecting an appropriate treatment that could control the bacterial distribution. The present study aims to investigate the epidemiology and associated risk factors of uropathogenic E. coli and to study their antibiotic resistance patterns. 1585 midstream urine specimens were collected from symptomatic urinary tract infections (UTI) patients (225 males and 1360 females) admitted to Zakho emergency hospital, Zakho, Kurdistan Region, Iraq from January 2016 until the end of December 2018. Specimens were inoculated on blood and MacConkey plates and incubated at 37оC for 24 hours. Uropathogenic E. coli was diagnosed based on gram staining, colony characteristics, and standard biochemical tests in accordance with local standards and guidelines. All isolates were screened for their antibiogram pattern using the disk diffusion method based on the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines. The results showed that out of 1585 urine specimens, 1026 (64.7%) were UTIs positive with a statistically higher rate in 2016 (83.6%) (P< 0.0001). The UTIs frequency in females was significantly higher than males (P< 0.0001). Generally, the uropathogenic E. coli represented 21.1% with the highest level in 2016 (22.9%). The uropathogenic E. coli rate was higher, statistically not significant, in females (21.4%) than males (18.5%) (P=0.4946). Additionally, through the three years of study, uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) was in high frequency in February and May 2016. The female’s age group from 20 to 39 years was the most vulnerable (46%) form total infected females, while those from 70-74 years (1%) were the least susceptible in males and females. A high percentage (80.56 %) of multidrug resistance E. coli isolates was observed with high resistance against -lactamase and macrolides antibiotics. However, higher sensitivity was towards imipenem and meropenem. In conclusion, the wrong and overuse of antibiotics will increase the resistance rate of E. coli. For this reason, proper use of available antibiotics is necessary. Also, the educational programs and periodic monitoring of antimicrobial susceptibility are essential for reducing the antibiotic resistance rate.
Contamination of surface and groundwater with excessive concentrations of fluoride is of significant health hazard. Adsorption of fluoride onto waste materials of no economic value could be a potential approach for the treatment of fluoride-bearing water. This experimental and modeling study was devoted to investigate for the first the fluoride removal using unmodified waste granular brick (WGB) in a fixed bed running in continuous mode. Characterization of WGB was carried out by FT-IR, SEM, and EDX analysis. The batch mode experiments showed that they were affected by several parameters including contact time, initial pH, and sorbent dosage. The best values of these parameters that provided maximum removal percent (82%) with the in
... Show MoreThe present study deals with the morphological and histological aspects of the forebrain(Cerebrum) in the Columba livia domestica (Gmelin, 1789) to identify the histoarchitecture of its layers. This bird' has a large head found as perpendicular to the longitudinal axis. The morphological results reveal that for brain (Cerebrum) pear shaped, its outer surface is smooth without folds or deep grooves. Cerebrum is made up of two regions, the Pallium and the Subpallium. The Cerebral cortex includes four layers of hyperpallium (Wulst) , Dorsolateral corticoid area (CDL), Hippocampus, Piriform cortex. The internal cortex of cerebrum consists of Dorsal Ventricle ridge which includes the mesopallium, nidopallium, and archospallium. All these reg
... Show MoreIn this study the rate of infection in acute and chronic Toxoplasma gondii parasite that causes toxoplasmosis was determined. This study was Included 120 blood samples that collected from pregnant women revisions to some clinics and laboratories in Baghdad civil as well as 10 blood samples from non-infected women as a control group. All blood samples were collected in the first three months of the pregnancy period for detection toxoplasmosis by using serological tests of test kit ( Toxo , IgG.,Toxo , IgM ). To detect antibodies specialized type of IgG &IgM in acute and the chronic infection by Electro Clia manner using a Roche Cobas e411. The results showed that the total infection rate was (55.83)%, the rate of infection in acu
... Show MoreThe electronic characteristics, including the density of state and bond length, in addition to the spectroscopic properties such as IR spectrum and Raman scattering, as a function of the frequency of Sn10O16, C24O6, and hybrid junction (Sn10O16/C24O6) were studied. The methodology uses DFT for all electron levels with the hybrid function B3-LYP (Becke level, 3-parameters, Lee–Yang-Parr), with 6-311G (p,d) basis set, and Stuttgart/Dresden (SDD) basis set, using Gaussian 09 theoretical calculations. The geometrical structures were calculated by Gaussian view 05 as a supplementary program. The band gap was calculated and compared to the measured valu
... Show MoreArtificial intelligence (AI) offers significant benefits to biomedical research and academic writing. Nevertheless, using AI-powered writing aid tools has prompted worries about excessive dependence on these tools and their possible influence on writing proficiency. The current study aimed to explore the academic staff’s perspectives on the impact of AI on academic writing. This qualitative study incorporated in-person interviews with academic faculty members. The interviews were conducted in a semi-structured manner, using a predetermined interview guide consisting of open-ended questions. The interviews were done in person with the participants from May to November 2023. The data was analyzed using thematic analysis. Ten academics aged
... Show MoreThis work deals with the effect of adding aluminum nanoparticles on the mechanical properties, micro-hardness and porosity of memory-shape alloys (Cu-Al-Ni). These alloys have wide applications in various industrial fields such as (high damping compounds and self-lubricating applications). The samples are manufactured using the powder metallurgy method, which involved pressing in only one direction and sintered in a furnace surrounded by an inert gas. Four percentages (0%, 5%, 10%, and 15%) of aluminum nanoparticles were fabricated, which depended on the weight of aluminum powder (13%) in the sample under study. To find out which phase is responsible for the reliability of the formation of this type of alloy and its porosity, X-ray diffr
... Show MoreThe dual nature of asphalt binder necessitates improvements to mitigate rutting and fatigue since it performs as an elastic material under the regime of rapid loading or cold temperatures and as a viscous fluid at elevated temperatures. The present investigation assesses the effectiveness of Nano Alumina (NA), Nano Silica (NS), and Nano Titanium Dioxide (NT) at weight percentages of 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8% in asphalt cement to enhance both asphalt binder and mixture performance. Binder evaluations include tests for consistency, thermal susceptibility, aging, and workability, while mixture assessments focus on Marshall properties, moisture susceptibility, resilient modulus, permanent deformation, and fatigue characteristics. NS notably im
... Show MoreThe dual nature of asphalt binder necessitates improvements to mitigate rutting and fatigue since it performs as an elastic material under the regime of rapid loading or cold temperatures and as a viscous fluid at elevated temperatures. The present investigation assesses the effectiveness of Nano Alumina (NA), Nano Silica (NS), and Nano Titanium Dioxide (NT) at weight percentages of 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8% in asphalt cement to enhance both asphalt binder and mixture performance. Binder evaluations include tests for consistency, thermal susceptibility, aging, and workability, while mixture assessments focus on Marshall properties, moisture susceptibility, resilient modulus, permanent deformation, and fatigue characteristics. NS notably im
... Show More