Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is one of the chronic inflammatory autoimmune diseases which occurs as a result of unknown reasons. This study was conducted at Baghdad Teaching Hospital/City of Medicine, where blood samples were taken from 60 Iraqi patients with RA (49 females and 11 males) and these patients were matched by age and sex with 20 healthy controls (16 females and 4 males). Patients with RA were diagnosed by a consultant rheumatologist according to ACR / EULAR criteria in 2010. In this study the patients were divided into four groups as follows; the first group consisted of 12 patients treated with methotrexate (MTX), the second group consisted of 10 patients treated with etanercept, the third group consisted of 18 patients treated with a combination of MTX, etanercept and prednisolone, the fourth group consisted of 20 patients treated with MTX and etanercept. Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect CCL18/PARC antibodies, while a spectrophotometer (Humalyzer2000) was used for the measurement of alkaline phosphatase (ALP). Serum levels of CCL18 / PARC showed a significant increase in RA patients compared with healthy controls (p ≤ 0.001). The levels of CCL18/PARC showed a significant correlation with disease activity (CDAI), except in RA patients treated with etanercept. There was also no significant correlation between CCL18/PARC and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). The results showed a significant increase in serum levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) was recorded in RA patients (with treatment) as compared to healthy controls (p ≤ 0.001).
The aim of the present research is to study different protein fractions in sera of children and adolescent with β –thalassemia major and minor and to compare the results with that of healthy control.One hundred fifty children and adolescents were enrolled in this study,including 50 patients with β- thalassemia major , 50 patients with β- thalassemia minor as pathological control group and another apparently 50 healthy individuals as a control group. The age of all studied groups ranged from (4-18)years.Total protein, albumin and immunoglobulins were estimated in sera of all subjects. A Significant decrease was found in the total protein and albumin&nb
... Show MoreBackground: Phytotherapy is the usage of herbal species with medicinal properties for the management of various diseases. Gingivitis and periodontitis are diseases that involve the role of both the bacteria and the host immune response. Over the years, various researches have shown the importance of herbal products in the management of periodontal diseases. Aims of the study: To evaluate the efficacy of locally applied Salvia officinalis gel as adjunctive in the treatment of chronic periodontitis. Subjects and methods: Fourteen patients (10 males and 4 females) with chronic periodontitis were enrolled in the present study with total number of twenty-eight periodontal pockets utilizing a split mouth design, the pockets were divided i
... Show MoreBackground: In recent years, the multidrug-resistant (MDR) Escherichia coli has increased in urinary tract infections (UTIs). One of the highly distributed chromosomally encoded traits of resistance is efflux pump. The current study aimed to investigate the most common members of 5 classes of efflux pumps among uropathogenic E. coil isolates.
Methodology: E. coli isolates were isolated using conventional bacteriology tests and confirmed by the uidA gene. An antibiotic susceptibility test has been done against 25 antibiotics using disc diffusion method. Efflux pump genes have been examined via polymerase chain reaction. Biofilm formation was investigated by a
... Show MoreThe compound 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), an environmental contaminant, is a potent ligand for aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). In the current study, we made an exciting observation that naive C57BL/6 mice that were exposed i.p. to TCDD showed massive mobilization of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) in the peritoneal cavity. These MDSCs were highly immunosuppressive and attenuated Con A–induced hepatitis upon adoptive transfer. TCDD administration in naive mice also led to induction of several chemokines and cytokines in the peritoneal cavity and serum (CCL2, CCL3, CCL4, CCL11, CXCL1, CXCL2, CXCL5, CXCL9, G-CSF, GM-CSF, VEGF, and M-CSF) and chemokine receptors
Cardiovascular disorders are refer to the class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels (arteries and veins). While the term technically refers to any disease that affects the cardiovascular system. Cholesterol is classified as a sterol (a contraction of steroid and
... Show MoreThe aim of this research was to indicate the opinion of the Iraqi consumer awareness of the risks associated with consuming canned food, the questionnaire was included 20 questions for label information, consumer culture, shopping, marketing, awareness and knowledge as a tool to survey the opinions of 300 consumers in Baghdad, the data was analyzed by using percentage, weighted mean, and weight percent, the results obtained showed that the Iraqi consumer need more information, training and guidance programs in food safety handling issue for canned food, especially in analysis of label information and growing of consumer culture for shopping, right marketing, awareness and knowledge.