Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with polymorphic expression. B cells have an essential contribution in immune system activation via the production of different cytokines and functioning as potent antigen-presenting cells. Therefore, a drug that particularly targets B cells may represent an ideal therapeutic approach for SLE. Rituximab (RTX), an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody causing transient B-cell depletion, has been used to manage SLE. This study aims to assess Rituximab effects on lupus nephritis (LN) patients when added to conventional immunosuppressants. Twenty four patients, 15-32 years old, with class III/IV/V LN were involved in this study. All were on steroids before lupus nephritis occurrence. They were

Silymarin, a flavolignans from seeds of ‘milk thistle’ “Silybum marianum” has been widely used from ancient times because of its excellent hepatoprotective action. It has been used clinically to treat liver disorders including acute and chronic viral hepatitis, toxin/drug-induced hepatitis and cirrhosis and alcoholic liver disease. The efficacy and dose-response effect of silymarin (125, 250 and 500 mg/kg) were assessed using egg albumin-induced paw edema in rats as a model of acute inflammation. In this model, 56 rats were used and allocated into 7 subgroups each containing 8 rats. All treatments were given intraperitonealy 30 minutes before induction of inflammation by egg albumin and then the increase

Excess alcohol consumption is associated with numerous metabolic changes and homeostasis disturbances of many macro- and micro-elements in the body. It has been associated with multiple pathologies at all levels. In the digestive apparatus, alcohol has generally been related to its toxic effects upon the liver. Alpha-1 antitrypsin (α-1 AT or AAT) plays an important role in controlling inflammation, coagulation and repair mechanisms in the body and most α-1 AT in the body is produced by the liver; from the other hand, Intrinsic factor (IF), which is a glycoprotein produced by the parietal cells of the stomach is necessary for the absorption of vitamin B12 in the small intestine. This study was designed to assess serum levels of α-1 AT and

During treatment of inflammatory diseases, many conventional therapies (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) used to relief pain and inflammation. Chronic use of  the intended drugs is frequently associated with serious side effect, which may lead to discontinuation of treatment . The efficacy and dose- response effect of ammi majus extraxt  (2 , 4, 8 , 16, and 32 mg/rat) were assessed using  formalin to induce paw edema in rats as a model of chronic inflammation respectively. In this study,  42 rats were used and allocated into 7  groups each containing 6 rats, representing control (Distilled  water) , standard (piroxicam ) and test extract ( 2 , 4 , 8 , 16 and 32 mg/rat of Ammi majus alcoholic e

Background: Acetaminophen (N-acetyl-para-aminophenol, or APAP) poisoning, whether intentional or accidental, is a major general health problem, with its toxicity prevalence significantly increasing in many countries. Currently, acetaminophen is considered one of the main causes of acute liver failure globally.

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible hepatoprotective effect of Omega-3,6,9 against acetaminophen-induced hepatotoxicity in albino male mice.

Methods: Thirty-five albino male mice were randomly divided into five groups: Group 1 (the negative control) received liquid paraffin orally at a dose of 10 ml/kg for t

Ficus (FIC) leaf extract used as corrosion inhibitor for carbon steel alloy (C.S) in two corrosive environments (saline and acidic) with four concentrations (1, 2, 3 and 4 ppm) at varied temperature range between (298-328 K) using electrochemical polarization measurements. The importance of this work focused on the use the green chemistry that is far from the chemical materials effect. The results of polarization presented the FIC inhibitor consider a mixed type (anodic and cathodic) inhibitor. Tafel curve used to evaluate the corrosion inhibition activity. In a saline medium, the best inhibitor efficiency reaches to (87%) in 2 ppm and IE% reach to (99%) for HCl medium inhibited by 1ppm. Langmuir isotherm obeys the study by thermodynamic pa

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is the most frequent endocrinal disease commonly associated with thyroid disorders .The study is conducted at the Specialized Center for Endocrinology and Diabetes in Baghdad ,during December 2014 up to October 2015.This study was done to investigate the prevalence of anti- thyroid peroxidase (Anti-TPO) antibody in patients suffered from type 2 diabetes with thyroid disorders .The study groups included a total number of 80 subjects consisting of 60 type 2 diabetic patients divided into 20 hyperthyroidism subjects (group 1) ,20 hypothyroidism subjects (group 2), 20 euthyroidism subjects (group 3) and 20 healthy controls (group 4) . The fasting blood samples were analyzed for (T3,T4,TSH) by using Vitek Immuno d

The efficiency of attapulgite liners as anti-seepage for crude oil is examined. Consideration is given to the potential use of raw attapulgite and mixture attapulgite with prairie hay and coconut husk as liners to prevent crude oil seepage. Attapulgite clay used in this study was brought from Injana formation /Western Desert of Iraq. Two types of Crude oil brought from Iraqi oil fields were used in experiments; heavy crude oil from East-Baghdad oil field and light crude oil from Nassiriya oil field. Initially the basic properties of attapulgite and crude oils were determined. The attapulgite clay was subjected to mineralogical, chemical and scanning electron microscope analyses. Raw Attapulgite 150µm, 75µm, and 53µm were tested

Background: Moringa peregrina is widely used in the traditional medicine of the Arabian Peninsula to treat various ailments, because it has many pharmacologically active components with several therapeutic effects. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the inhibitory effect of Moringa peregrina seed ethanolic extract (MPSE) against key enzymes involved in human pathologies, such as angiogenesis (thymidine phosphorylase), diabetes (α-glucosidase), and idiopathic intracranial hypertension (carbonic anhydrase). In addition, the anticancer properties were tested against the SH-SY5Y(human neuroblastoma). Results: MPSE extract significantly inhibited α-glucosidase, thymidine phosphorylase, and carbonic anhydrase with half-maximal i