Background : Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is one of chronic gastrointestinal diseases in which patient may be asymptomatic or was complained from heartburn and regurgitation or pulmonary symptoms. Aim of the study : Examine the serum level of sHLA-G in GERD patients and can be used as a biomarker for early detection of GERD disease. Materials and methods : The design of the study was a case- control prospective enrolled forty patients consulted Gastroenterology Unit- Al-Kindy Teaching Hospital, were diagnosed as GERD by their physician, and compared to second forty control healthy group form January-2023 to May-2024. Serum used for quantitative assessment of soluble HLA-G (sHLA-G) using a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results : A higher proportion of females were observed in the GERD group compared to the control group (72.5% vs. 42.6%). This difference was statistically significant (p = 0.006). Level of sHLA-G Levels, a statistically non-significant difference was observed in sHLA-G levels between GERD patients and healthy controls (p = 0.158). The median sHLA-G level was non significantly higher in GERD patients (0.529 ng/mL) compared to controls (0.523 ng/mL). Conclusions : The present study provides early evidence for an association between elevated sHLA-G levels and GERD with limited diagnostic value, and revealed a significant negative correlation between sHLA-G levels and gender. Further studies is needed to elucidate the specific mechanisms underlying this relationship and to explore the potential of sHLA-G as a diagnostic or therapeutic target for GERD.
Acrylic polymer/cement nanocomposites in dark and light colors have been developed for coating floors and swimming pools. This work aims to emphasize the effect of cement filling on the mechanical parameters, thermal stability, and wettability of acrylic polymer. The preparation was carried out using the casting method from acrylic polymer coating solution, which was added to cement nanoparticles (65 nm) with weight concentrations of (0, 1, 2, 4, and 8 wt%) to achieve high-quality specifications and good adhesion. Maximum impact strength and Hardness shore A were observed at cement ratios of 2 wt% and 4 wt%, respectively. Changing the filling ratio has a significant effect on the strain of the nanocomposites. The contact angle was i
... 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 MoreThe technology of subsurface soil water retention (SWRT) uses a polyethylene trough that is fixed under the root zone of the plant. It is a modern technology to increase the values of water use efficiency, plant productivity and saving irrigation water by applying as little irrigation water as possible. This study work aims at improving the crop yield and water use efficiency of a cucumber plant with less applied irrigation water by installing membrane trough below the soil surface. The field experiment was conducted in the Hawr Rajab District of Baghdad Governorate in Winter 2018 for testing various trickle irrigation systems. Two agricultural treatment plots were utilized in a greenhouse for the comparison. Plot T1 has used a subsurface t
... Show MoreThis research work considers one of the authentic and most modern modes of storytelling, as employed by Garcia Marquez in one of his famous stories "An Old ManWith Enormous Wings" (1972). Technically, the work is divided into four parts: the first serves as an introduction to his literary works, his use of magic realism, and addresses mainly the interests of Arab readers; the second handles the development of modern short story through the perspective of realism, until the emergence of magic realism as a new style; the third deals with the origin, nature and development of this style, and his mastery of it; the fourth part tries to analyze the story and its plot, thoughts, characters, symbols and metaphors, in the light of the artistic p
... Show MoreThe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused an unprecedented disruption in medical education and healthcare systems worldwide. The disease can cause life-threatening conditions and it presents challenges for medical education, as instructors must deliver lectures safely, while ensuring the integrity and continuity of the medical education process. It is therefore important to assess the usability of online learning methods, and to determine their feasibility and adequacy for medical students. We aimed to provide an overview of the situation experienced by medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to determine the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of medical students regarding electronic medical education.
... Show MoreBackground: Parvovirus B19 is a human pathogenic virus associated with a wide range of clinical conditions. During pregnancy congenital infection with parvovirus B19 can be associated with poor outcome, including miscarriage, fetal anemia and non-immune hydrops.
Objective: The study aimed to determine the prevalenceof Parvovirus B19 DNA in pregnant women attending the Military hospital in Khartoum, demonstrating the association between the virus and poor pregnancy outcomes.
Subjects and methods: This study was a cross sectional study, testing pregnant Sudanese women whole blood samples (n= 97) for the presence of Parvovirus B1
... Show MoreCommunicative-based textbooks are developed and disseminated throughout the country.
However, it is difficult for teachers who themselves have learnt English through the traditional
approaches to suddenly be familiar with CLT (Communicative Language Teaching) principles
and teach communicatively. Therefore, many teachers remain somewhat confused about what
exactly CLT is and others familiar with CLT but unable to achieve communicative classroom
teaching. Consequently, those teachers need to be introduced to the CLT principles and they need
training in how to put CLT principles into practice. Accordingly, this study aims to find out the
effect of combining video lectures and Kolb experiential learning on EFL student-t
Experimental densities, viscosities η, and refractive indices nD data of the ternary ethanol+ n-hexane + 3-methyl pentane system have been determined at temperatures 293.15,303.15 and 313.15 K and at atmospheric pressure then these properties were calculated theoretically by using mixing rules for densities, viscosities and refractive indices .After that the theoretical data and the experimental data were compared due to the high relative errors in viscosities an equation of viscosity was proposed to decrease the relative errors.
Respiratory tract infections in sheep are among the important health problems that affect all sheep ages around the world. Nine bacterial isolates obtained from sheep with respiratory tract infections were selected to be used in the current study. The isolates included 3 Staphylococcus aureus, 4 Klebsiella pneumoniae, and 2 Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Following the primers design by the Primer3Plus software tool and optimization of the conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the primers were validated for their use in the multiplex PCR experiments. The MFEprimer program was used to check the suitability of the primer set combinations for multiplex PCR. The MFEprimer software was successful in designing the multiplex-PCR experiments and de
... Show MoreThe nucleon momentum distributions (NMD) and elastic electron scattering form factors of the ground state for some 1f-2p-shell nuclei, such as 58Ni, 60Ni, 62Ni, and 64Ni
isotopes have been calculated in the framework of the coherent fluctuation model (CFM) and expressed in terms of the weight function lf(x)l2 . The weight function (fluctuation function) has been related to the nucleon density distribution (NDD) of the nuclei and determined from the theory and experiment. The NDD is derived from a simple method based on the use of the single particle wave functions of the harmonic oscillator potential and the occupation numbers of the states. The feature of the l