Nowhere is American author Shirley Jackson’s (1916-1965) social and political criticism is so intense than it is in her seminal fictional masterpiece “The Lottery”. Jackson severely denounces injustice through her emphasis on a bizarre social custom in a small American town, in which the winner of the lottery, untraditionally, receives a fatal prize. The readers are left puzzled at the end of the story as Tessie Hutchinson, the unfortunate female winner, is stoned to death by the members of her community, and even by her family. This study aims at investigating the author’s social and political implications that lie behind the story, taking into account the historical era in which the story was published (the aftermath of the bloody World War II) and the fact that the victim is a woman who is silenced and forced to follow the tradition of the lottery. The paper mainly focuses on the writer’s interest in human rights issues, which can be violated even in civilized communities, like the one depicted in the story. The shocking ending, the researchers conclude, is Jackson’s protest against dehumanization and violence.
Three monogenean species of the genus Gyrodactylus viz. G. cotti Roman, 1956 on gills of Planiliza abu, G. mikailovi Ergens & Ibragimov, 1976 on gills of Chondrostoma regium and G. prostae Ergens, 1963 on gills of Alburnus caeruleus were recorded from Tigris river at Al-Shawwaka region, Baghdad. The description and measurements of these parasites as well as their illustrations where given. All these parasites are recorded here for the first time in Iraq.
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
... Show MoreLactobacillus Plantarum and Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG were encapsulated using 3% of alginate via extrusion technique. And the probiotics capsules produced were further coated used 1% chitosan to increase the survival of probiotics, and evaluation of The heat resistance of the slow pasteurization and fast pasteurization for Lb,pla and Lb.GG for control and bacteria coated one layer and bacteria coated two layer at 63°C/ 30 minutes and 72°C/ 15 seconds. The results indicate that the Probiotic coated two layer are more resistant to pasteurization temperatures at 63°C/ 30 minutes and 72°C/ 15 seconds than the Probiotic coated one layer. While the results of the control follow a significant reduction for viability of cell toward pasteuri
... Show MoreBlood lipids are important mediators of host defense during the acute phase of innate immunity. Parasites may induce significant changes in lipid parameters, as has been shown in vitro study where substitution of serum by lipid/cholesterol in medium and in experimental models (in vivo). Thus changes in lipid profile occur in patients that having active infections with most of the parasites. Toxoplasma cannot synthesize cholesterol and depends upon acquisition of low density lipoprotein (LDL)-derived from the host cell, via endocytosis mediated by the LDL receptor or the LDL receptor-related protein.The present study is conducted to evaluate the changes in lipid profile in T. gondii infected women.A total of patients included 87 aborted wom
... Show MoreBackground: Characterization of the ovarian masses preoperatively is important to inform the surgeon about the possible management strategies. MRI may be of great help in identifying malignant lesion before surgery. Diffusion Weighted Imaging (DWI) is a sensitive method for changes in proton of water mobility caused by pathological alteration of tissue cellularity, cellular membrane integrity, extracellular space perfusion, and fluid viscosity.
Objective: to study the diagnostic accuracy of DWI in differentiation between benign and malignant ovarian masses.
Type of the study:Cross-sectional study.
Methods: this study included 53with complex
... Show MoreMedicinal plants contain bioactive substances that are highly bioavailable in extracts or pure molecules, making them promising for therapeutic applications and precursors for chemo-pharmaceutical semi-synthesis. Harpagophytum procumbens (Devil’s Claw) is widely recognized as one of the most potent therapeutic herbs. This study aimed to extract seeds from H. procumbens using two types of solvents and to assess both qualitative and quantitative aspects of the extracts. The two extracts were evaluated for antibacterial and anti-biofilm activities using agar well diffusion assays against four bacterial isolates and two yeast isolates. Qualitative analysis identified the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, and terpen
... Show MoreIGF-1 is a protein produced by the liver in response to growth hormone stimulus.One important key in effectively preventing and treating osteo arthritis, is establishing a healthy balance of IGF-1. Leptin is a hormone produced by adipose tissue, acting as a sensor of fat mass in part of a negative feedback loop that maintains a set point for body fat stores. Leptin plays an important role in &nbs
... Show MoreA simple and sensitive spectrophotometric method is described for the determination of diclofenac sodium (DCL), in pure form and pharmaceutical formulations. The method is based on the oxidation of 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine (2,4-DNPH) and coupling of the oxidized product with DCL in alkaline medium to give intensively colored chromogen which exhibits maximum absorption (λmax) at 600 nm, and the concentration of DCL was determined spectrophotometrically. The optimum reaction conditions and other analytical parameters were evaluated. In addition to classical univariate optimization, modified simplex method (MSM) has been applied in optimization of the variables affecting the color producing reaction. Beer’s law is obeyed in the
... Show MoreThis work examines numerically the effects of particle size, particle thermal conductivity and inlet velocity of forced convection heat transfer in uniformly heated packed duct. Four packing material (Aluminum, Alumina, Glass and Nylon) with range of thermal conductivity (from200 W/m.K for Aluminum to 0.23 W/m.K for Nylon), four particle diameters (1, 3, 5 and 7 cm), inlet velocity ( 0.07, 0.19 and 0.32 m/s) and constant heat flux ( 1000, 2000 and 3000 W/ m 2) were investigated. Results showed that heat transfer (average Nusselt number Nuav) increased with increasing packing conductivity; inlet velocity and heat flux, but decreased with increasing particle size.Also, Aluminum average Nusselt number is about (0.85,2.
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