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 anti-IF Abs (IgG) among heavy alcoholics to clarify the relationship between alcohol addiction and such liver and/or stomach disorders. Fifty-four consecutive alcohol-dependent males were enrolled as a target group and 30 age matched males were considerate as a control group. The level of alpha-1 antitrypsin (α-1 AT) and anti-intrinsic factor (IF) antibodies were investigated by single radial immunodiffusion (SRID) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) respectively. We found from a total of 54 alcoholic patients that the mean age of patients is 37.5 years with a progressive increase in cases at third decade of age. They reported an average addiction period of more than 18 years. Most patients (93%) were currently smoking; and 18.5% were psychiatric; about 9% of them used to have co-addictions like heroin, valium and artin; another 9% had multiple sclerosis. We observed a non significant decrease of α-1 AT levels in alcoholics compared to control group (p>0.05), while there was a high significant increase in the level of anti-IF Abs in alcoholics, sera compared with control group (p<0.05). Furthermore; the serum level of α-1 AT and anti-IF Abs in alcoholic group are not related to age of starting consumption of alcohol. Specifically, we found no significant differences in the levels of α-1 AT and anti-IF Abs between those who start drinking prior to age 18 years (N=32), and after age 18 years (N=22) p>0.05. On the other hand; there is a statistically significant correlation between α-1 AT levels and the duration of alcohol consumption (p<0.05); similarly; theere was a highly significant correlation between the levels of anti-IF Abs and the duration of alcohol consumption was observed (p<0.05).The results suggest that Excess alcohol consumption is associated with numerous metabolic changes and homeostasis disturbancesof many macro- and micro-elements in the body. It has been associated with multiple pathologies at all levels.
Afamin, which is a human plasma glycoprotein, a putative multifunctional transporter of hydrophobic molecules and a marker for metabolic syndrome. Afamin concentration have been proposed to have a significant role as a predictor of metabolic disorders. Since NAFLD is associated with metabolic risk factors, e.g., dyslipidemia, insulin resistance and visceral obesity, it is considered as the hepatic manifestation of the metabolic syndrome. The objective of this study is to determine Afamin levels in hypothyroid patients with and without fatty liver disease and compare the results with controls. Also to study the relationship of Afamin level with the Anthropometric and Clinical Features (Age, Gender, BMI and Duration of Hypothyroidism) , Serum
... Show MoreBackground: Neural tube defects (NTDs) are said to be inherited in a multifactorial fashion, i.e. genetic-environmental interaction. Maternal nutritional deficiencies had long been reported to cause NTDs, especially folate deficiency during early pregnancy. More attention had been paid to the exact mechanism by which this deficiency state causes these defects in the developing embryo. The most significant of all researches was that connecting reduced folate and increased homocysteine level in maternal serum on one hand and the risk of developing a NTD baby on the other hand. Objectives : to determine the significance of homocysteine level in Iraqi mothers who gave birth to babies with NTDs as compared to normal controls. Patients, Materials
... Show MoreMultiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurodegenerative disorder with various clinical types. Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) is significantly elevated in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of MS patients compared with that of healthy controls. The aim of this study is to evaluate serum levels of GFAP in relation to disease activity in relapsing-remitting MS patients and to compare them with those of healthy controls. Method: This study involved 58 MS patients of relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) type, 22 in an active stage of the disease and 36 in remission, and 50 healthy individuals as age- and sex-matched controls. Blood samples were taken from the patients at the MS Clinic of the Baghdad Teaching Hospital, and the serum levels of GFAP were determ
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Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is still considered a worldwide leading cause of mortality and morbidity. Within the last decades, different modalities were used to assess severity and outcome including Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), imaging modalities, and even genetic polymorphism, however, determining the prognosis of TBI victims is still challenging requiring the emerging of more accurate and more applicable tools to surrogate other old modalities
The present study aimed to determine the serum sex hormone levels among Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) patients before and after 3 months of oral administration of 5-α reductase inhibitor(finasteride). Forty BPH patients and 40 healthy men from Amara city were involved in this study, their ages were between 40-59 year. They were all subjected to direct estimation of hormones by MinVidas method including Testosterone (T), Estradiol (E2), Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH), Luteinizing Hormone (LH), Prolactin (PRL), and Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) before and after 3 months of treatment with 5α-reductase inhibitor (finasteride) (the healthy individuals didn’t take finasteride).The results showed that T level was significantly lo
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Lead acetate as one of the environmental pollutants can threats the life of living creatures in many ways, it has a long half-life, accumulates mainly in the soft tissue and leads to adverse effects in these tissues. An experiment was conducted to study the effect of oral feeding of lead acetate on histological features of liver, kidney, testis and muscle of albino mice. Mice were treated with 0.05 mg/100 ml lead acetate (LA) for 10 days (group A) and for and for 20 days (group B) and for 30 days (group C). The histological section of liver of mice group A characterized by slightly blurred trabecular structure with foci of hepatitis which increased with cytoplasmic vacules in group B but in group C liver reveal necrosis, heamorrhage,
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An experimental study was performed to estimate the forced convection heat transfer performance and the pressure drop of a single layer graphene (GNPs) based DI-water nanofluid in a circular tube under a laminar flow and a uniform heat flux boundary conditions. The viscosity and thermal conductivity of nanofluid at weight concentrations of (0.1 to 1 wt%) were measured. The effects of the velocity of flow, heat flux and nanoparticle weight concentrations on the enhancement of the heat transfer are examined. The Nusselt number of the GNPs nanofluid was enhanced as the heat flux and the velocity of flow rate increased, and the maximum Nusselt number ratio (Nu nanofluid/ Nu base fluid) and thermal performance factor
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