Infertility is a disease of the reproductive system defined by the failure to achieve a clinical pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse. Worldwide, infertility affects approximately 15% of all couples trying to conceive. Male infertility is responsible for about 50% of the infertility cases. Chromosomal abnormalities and Y-chromosome microdeletions are the most common genetic causes of male infertility. Klinefelter syndrome (KS) is the most prevalent factor of the chromosomal abnormality in the infertile male. Azoospermia Factor (AZF) microdeletions located on the Y chromosome are one of the recurrent genetic cause of male infertility. This study aims to investigate the prevalence of chromosomal anomalies and AZF microdeletions in 296 infertile Kurdish men in Erbil province, 289 patients diagnosed as azoospermia (97.6%) and 7 patients as severe oligozoospermia (2.4%) and 50 healthy men as control group. Twenty nine patients (9.8%) had various chromosomal abnormalities. The most common chromosomal abnormalities were found in sex chromosomes (93.1%; 29/27), among these abnormalities 20 patients (69%) had Klinefelter syndrome 47,XXY karyotype, 4 patients (13.8%) had 45X0/46, Xder(Y), 2 patients (6.9%) had XXY t(11;22)(q25;q13) and 1 patients (3.4%) had Mosaic Turner syndrome 46XY/45X0. The autosomal chromosomal abnormalities (6.9%; 2/29) detected in 2 patients 45, XY, rob (13;14) (q10;q10). Y chromosome microdeletions were found in 10 of 289 patients with azoospermia (3.5%), three of them (30%) had microdeletions in the AZFc region, 3 of them (30%) had microdeletions in the AZFb region, also other 3 patients had microdeletions in the b and c of AZF (AZF b,c) region, and the final one patient (10%) had microdeletions in the all a, b and c (AZF a,b,c) region. Combined Y chromosome microdeletions and chromosomal abnormalities were detected in 3 patients.
To compare the corneal epithelial thickness profile in patients with dry eyes and keratoconus suspect with normal healthy eyes.
The study involved 120 eyes with an age range from 19 to 30 years. Forty eyes had normal corneal topography and no dry eyes. Forty eyes had dry eyes but had normal corneal topography. The last 40 eyes were keratoconus suspect and had no symptoms or signs of dry eyes.
Central epithelial thickness was not different statistically for all eyes. ( p-value: 0.1). The superior epithelial thickness was 53.5 µm ±3.1 in the control
The use of medicinal plant preparations to clean and disinfect root canal infection is gaining popularity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the bioactive composition of leaf extracts of Moringa oleifera plants cultivated in Iraq (specifically Baghdad) and their antimicrobial activity against selected root canal pathogens for potential application in endodontic treatment. Materials and Methods. Moringa leaf extracts were prepared either through cold maceration or warm digestion techniques to perform an ethanolic or aqueous extraction, respectively. Phytochemical detection was performed before thin layer chromatography (TLC) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to measure flavonoids and phenolic compounds within both
... Show MoreAbstract. This study presents experimental and numerical investigation on the effectiveness of electrode geometry on flushing and debris removal in Electrical Discharge Drilling (EDD) process. A new electrode geometry, namely side-cut electrode, was designed and manufactured based on circular electrode geometry. Several drilling operations were performed on stainless steel 304 using rotary tubular electrodes with circular and side-cut geometries. Drilling performance was characterized by Material Removal Rate (MRR), Electrode Wear Rate (EWR), and Tool Wear Ratio (TWR). Dimensional features and surface quality of drilled holes were evaluated based on Overcut (OC), Hole Depth (HD), and Surface Roughness (SR). Three-dimensional
... Show MoreIn this paper, a mathematical model for the oxidative desulfurization of kerosene had been developed. The mathematical model and simulation process is a very important process due to it provides a better understanding of a real process. The mathematical model in this study was based on experimental results which were taken from literature to calculate the optimal kinetic parameters where simulation and optimization were conducted using gPROMS software. The optimal kinetic parameters were Activation energy 18.63958 kJ/mol, Pre-exponential factor 2201.34 (wt)-0.76636. min-1 and the reaction order 1.76636. These optimal kinetic parameters were used to find the optimal reaction conditions which
... Show MoreThe recent advances in technology, the increased dependence on electrical energy and the emergence of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) were all factors in the increased need for smart, efficient and reliable energy systems. This introduced the concept of the Smart Grid (SG). A SG is a potential replacement for older power grids, capable of adapting and distributing energy based on demand. SG systems are complex. They combine various components and have high requirements for real time reliable operation. This paper attempts to provide an overview of SG systems, by outlining SG architecture and various components. It also introduces communication technologies, integration and network management tools that are involved in SG sys
... Show MoreOne of the goals of adding adjuvants to agricultural spray solutions is to enhance the droplet size characteristics of this spray. Droplet size, in turn, has an influence in the deposited spray quality, in addition to the drift and losses of spray to off-target places. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effect of adding adjuvants to two types of water from different sources on the droplet size characteristics. Two types of adjuvants were employed in the tests: the active substance content of the first adjuvant was a 50% aqueous solution of sodium salt of alkylbenzenesulfonic acid—10% (HY), whereas the second was from rapeseed oil (natural origin)—85% (OL). Both adjuvants were tested in two concentrations: the first was
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