Staphylococcus aureus, which includes the methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), is a significant human pathogen producing different toxins and results in many different infection types, which include bacteremia, soft-tissue infections, as well as staphylococcal food poisoning. S. aureus is an important food-borne pathogen of humans due to ingestion of food containing enterotoxigenic strains. Detecting S. aureus femA and mecA genes was evaluated with the use of a Loop-mediated Isothermal Amplification Method (LAMP). The accuracy of this approach was similar to that attained using the approach of the conventional polymerase chain (PCR). Those two methods characterized 43 isolates of MRSA which were separated from different samples of foods and were not detected in the two other non-Staphylococcus strains (standard strains). The optimal temperature for the LAMP assay was 65°C, with a detection limit of 2.5ng/μL and 103cfu/ml, when compared to 12.5 ng/μL and 104cfu/ml for PCR. The LAMP assay permits a one-step characterization of a specific gene, with no special equipment, and needs less time compared to the traditional PCR. It is assumed that the LAMP assay is a promising alternative method for the rapid identification of S. aureus and could be used in resource-limited laboratories and fields.
The present work determines the particle size based only on the number of tracks detected in a cluster created by a hot particle on the CR-39 solid state nuclear track detector and depending on the exposure time. The mathematical model of the cross section developed here gives the relationship between alpha particle emitting from the (n, α) reaction and the number of tracks created and distribution of tracks created on the surface of the track detector. In an experiment performed during this work, disc of boron compound (boric acid or sodium tetraborate) of different weights were prepared and exposed to thermal neutron from the source. Chemical etching is processes of path formation in the detector, during which a suitable etching solut
... Show MoreThe accumulation of sediment in reservoirs poses a major challenge that impacts the storage capacity, quality of water, and efficiency of hydroelectric power generation systems. Geospatial methods, including Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing (RS), were used to assess Dukan Reservoir sediment quantities. Satellite and reservoir water level data from 2010 to 2022 were used for sedimentation assessment. The satellite data was used to analyze the water spread area, employing the Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) and Modified Normalized Difference Water Index (MNDWI) to enhance the water surface in the satellite imagery of Dukan Reservoir. The cone formula was employed to calculate the live storag
... Show MoreBackground. Implant insertion in regions with poor bone quantity, such as the posterior maxilla, is potentially associated with an increased rate of implant failure. Calcium sulfate can be used as the coating material for commercially pure titanium (CpTi) and as the bone graft material around implants when bound to eggshell powder to enhance the bone quality and quantity of bone defect regions. This study performed a torque removal test to evaluate the effectiveness of eggshell powder as a bone substitute for filling bone defects around CpTi-coated implants coated with nanocrystalline calcium sulfate. Materials and Methods. Eighty screw implant designs were used in the tibiae of 20 white New Zealand rabbits. A total of uncoated 20 s
... Show MoreGestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a growing health concern that usually appears during the second and third trimester stage of pregnancy and is characterized by carbohydrate intolerance of variable severity. The aim of the present study was to scrutinize the relationship between the G972R polymorphism of the insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) gene with GDM in the Iraqi female population. One hundred and twenty of blood samples taken from healthy women (control) and women with gestational diabetes mellitus in 3rd trimester stage of pregnancy, fasting blood glucose (FBG) and HbA1c% measured to diagnose GDM, lipid profile (cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL, LDL, and VLDL), insulin concentration, insulin resistance and beta ce
... Show MoreIn this study the Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrophotometry (FTIR) provides a quick, efficient and relatively inexpensive method for identifying and quantifying gypsum concentrations in the samples taken from different sites from different localities from Alexandria district southwest Baghdad. A comprehensive spectroscopic study of gypsum-calcite system was reported to give good results for the first time by using IR for analytical grades of gypsum (CaSO4.2H2O) and calcite (CaCO3) pure crystals. The spectral results were used to create a calibration curve relates the two minerals concentrations to the intensity (peaks) of FTIR absorbance and applies this calibration to specify gypsum and calcite concentrations in Iraqi gypsiferous soi
... Show MorePhytophagous stink bugs (Hemiptera, Pentatomidae) are economically important insect pests of fruit, vegetable, nut and field crops. This study was carried out during the season of 2013 in orchards within Erbil city, to follow the stink bug Mustha spinulosa (Lefebvre, 1831) seasonal fluctuation on some fruit trees: olive, plum, apricot, pear, apple and almond.
The stink bug reaches its maximum abundance throughout the second week of August (38.2/tree) coinciding with mean temperature and relative humidity of 33.40C and 28.14% respectively, and the highest total mean of the number of the insect was recorded on the olive trees (181.8/tree). The study reveals that the stink bug attacked 22 trees (fruit and forest) while it has not atta
A simple straightforward mathematical method has been developed to cluster grid nodes on a boundary segment of an arbitrary geometry that can be fitted by a relevant polynomial. The method of solution is accomplished in two steps. At the first step, the length of the boundary segment is evaluated by using the mean value theorem, then grids are clustered as desired, using relevant linear clustering functions. At the second step, as the coordinates cell nodes have been computed and the incremental distance between each two nodes has been evaluated, the original coordinate of each node is then computed utilizing the same fitted polynomial with the mean value theorem but reversibly.
The method is utilized to predict
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