The levels of circulating angiogenic and anti-angiogenic factors, namely vascular endothelial growth factor–A (VEGF-A) and soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 (sVEGFR-1), have been linked to the development of renal dysfunction due to the proliferation of microvasculature within the kidneys of type 2 diabetic (T2DM) patients. The study aims to scrutinize serum levels of VEGF and sVEGFR-1 in a sample of Iraqi diabetic nephropathy patients to support their reliability as markers for the prediction of nephropathy in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients as well as to assess the ACE inhibitor’s effect on the levels of these two markers. Method: The ninety participants of this case-control study were split into three gr

A study carried out in quail’s field owned by the Department of Animal production/ Collage of Agriculture / Tikrit University. For the period 14/ 5/ 2016 to 4/ 6/ 2016 in order to study the effect of adding Curcuma longa - to the diet of quails - on some productive and physiological characteristics of the Japanese quail birds bred for meat production. Using (48) quail birds which are two weeks old provided by Department of Agricultural Research. The birds were divided randomly after weighing them into three treatments; four replicate treatments for (4 bird/ replicate). The treatments as follows: (T1) control group (fed diet without any supplement), second (T2) and third (T3) groups were fed diet supplemental 4.5 and 9g Curcuma powder /

Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor and 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is a potent ligand for AhR and a known carcinogen. While AhR activation by TCDD leads to significant immunosuppression, how this translates into carcinogenic signal is unclear. Recently, we demonstrated that activation of AhR by TCDD in naïve C57BL6 mice leads to massive induction of myeloid derived-suppressor cells (MDSCs). In the current study, we investigated the role of the gut microbiota in TCDD-mediated MDSC induction. TCDD caused significant alterations in the gut microbiome, such as increases in Prevotella and Lactobacillus, while decreasing Sutterella and Bacteroides. Fecal transplants from TCDD-treated

Background: Alveolar ridge expansion is proposed when the alveolar crest thickness is ≤5 mm. The screw expansion technique has been utilized for many years to expand narrow alveolar ridges. Recently, the osseodensification technique has been suggested as a reliable technique to expand narrow alveolar ridges with effective width gain and as little surgical operating time as possible. The current study aimed to compare osseodensification and screw expansion in terms of clinical width gain and operating time. Materials and methods: Forty implant osteotomies were performed in deficient horizontal alveolar ridges (3–5 mm). A total of 19 patients aged 21–59 years were randomized into two groups: the screw expansion group, which invo

The electrical and thermal performance of a typical single pass hybrid photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) air collector is modeled, simulated and analyzed for two selected case studies in Iraq. An improved mathematical thermo-electrical model is derived in terms of design, operating and climatic parameters of the hybrid solar collector to evaluate its important characteristics: collector flow and heat removal factors, PV maximum power point and its temperature coefficient, and overall power and efficiency. Unlike previous PV/T thermal models, the present model is obtained with some additions and corrections in radiation and convection heat coefficients for the top loss and for the air duct with more applicable sky temperature correlation. The well