Many species are resistant to heavy metals in their surrounding polluted environment and Staphylococcus sp. is an example. This study aimed to isolate and characterize bacteria resistant to heavy metals in the Shatt Al-Arab River in southern Basra, Iraq. Based on the morphology and using Vitek II system, and due to their high resistance to heavy metals (mercury and chromium), two species of Staphylococcus (Staphylococcus lentus and Staphylococcus lugdunensis) were chosen and isolated. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the isolates against Hg and Cr was determined after 72 h. of incubation in solid media. All isolates were resistant to Hg (2000 mgL-1) and Cr (4000mgL-1). Living biomass of S. lentus and S. lugdunensis was used to remove the heavy metal ions in various concentrations (5, 10 and 25 mgL-1) of the solutions of aqueous metals. After 72 hours incubation, the removal percentage of S. lugdunensis was 98.91 and 78.78% for Hg and Cr respectively. That for S. lentus it was 77.83% for Cr after 72 hours, and 98.84% for Hg after 24 h. of incubation. The scanning electron microscope approved that the removal of these metals causes morphological changes in bacteria.
In this study, the effect of pumping power on the conversion efficiency of nonlinear crystal (KTP) was investigated using laser pump-power technique. The results showed that the higher the pumping power values, the greater the conversion efficiency (η) and, as the crystal thickness increases within limitations, the energy conversion efficiency increases at delay time of (0.333 ns) and at room temperature. Efficiency of 80% at length of KTP crystal (L = 1.75 X 10-3 m) and Pin = 28MW, and also, compare the experimental results with numerical results by using MATLAB program.
Biocompatible gold nanoparticles were successfully synthesized by hibiscus plant leaf extract as a bioreactor. The prepared nanoparticles were evaluated using UV/Vis spectroscopy, Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray Diffraction and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) . The study also investigated the effect of the different gamma irradiation doses on the size and dispersion of the produced nanoparticles. In UV- Vis spectra, the peak of Au NPs' surface plasmon resonance (SPR) was detected as a single peak at 543 nm. The gamma irradiation induced a blue shift in the SPR peak, which indicates that it might be applied as affective factor for size control. Physical as well as chemi
... Show MoreA simple method was used to create a graphene oxide/chitosan (GO/CS) nanocomposite, which was then used in batch experiments to remove copper ions from industrial wastewater under various conditions of initial concentration, adsorbent weight, pH, and contact time. Maximum removal percentage equal to 99.4 % for initial copper ion concentration of 5x10-2 mol/L at pH 6, time 75 min, temperature 25 °C, and adsorbing dose 0.1 g. The pseudo-second order kinetic model and the Freundlich isotherm adequately fit the experimental results. The process was spontaneous and endothermic, according to thermodynamic studies.
Background. “Polyetheretherketone (PEEK)” is a biocompatible, high-strength polymer that is well-suited for use in dental applications due to its unique properties. However, achieving good adhesion between PEEK and hydrophilic materials such as dental adhesives or cement can be challenging. Also, this hydrophobicity may affect the use of PEEK as an implant material. Surface treatment or conditioning is often necessary to improve surface properties. The piranha solution is the treatment of choice to be explored for this purpose. Methods. PEEK disks of 10 mm diameter and 2 mm thickness were used in this study. Those samples were divided into five groups (each group has five samples). The first is the control group, in which no
... Show MoreIn the present work, the possibility of treating many types of radioactive sources was examined practically. Six types of sealed radioactive sources were selected: 137Cs, 133Ba, 90Sr, 152Eu, 226Ra, and 241Am. The sources were exposed to a neutron flux emitted from 241Am/Be source for 33 days. The results showed a measurable reduction of activity for 226Ra, 241Am, and 152Eu, while the other radionuclides, 137Cs, 133Ba, and 90Sr, showed less response to neutron incineration.
Clinical keratoconus (KCN) detection is a challenging and time-consuming task. In the diagnosis process, ophthalmologists must revise demographic and clinical ophthalmic examinations. The latter include slit-lamb, corneal topographic maps, and Pentacam indices (PI). We propose an Ensemble of Deep Transfer Learning (EDTL) based on corneal topographic maps. We consider four pretrained networks, SqueezeNet (SqN), AlexNet (AN), ShuffleNet (SfN), and MobileNet-v2 (MN), and fine-tune them on a dataset of KCN and normal cases, each including four topographic maps. We also consider a PI classifier. Then, our EDTL method combines the output probabilities of each of the five classifiers to obtain a decision b
Autism Spectrum Disorder, also known as ASD, is a neurodevelopmental disease that impairs speech, social interaction, and behavior. Machine learning is a field of artificial intelligence that focuses on creating algorithms that can learn patterns and make ASD classification based on input data. The results of using machine learning algorithms to categorize ASD have been inconsistent. More research is needed to improve the accuracy of the classification of ASD. To address this, deep learning such as 1D CNN has been proposed as an alternative for the classification of ASD detection. The proposed techniques are evaluated on publicly available three different ASD datasets (children, Adults, and adolescents). Results strongly suggest that 1D
... Show MoreRemote sensing is a source of up-to-date information. The present study relied on various approaches for gathering information, including descriptive, quantitative and quantitative analytical processes. Particularly, we conducted the analysis of the satellite data ETM + of the satellite Landsat7 and the digital models of Digital Elevation Model of SRTM using ArcGIS9.2. The model depends on primary mathematical equations and constitutes an essential base for GIS applications that rely on data, computer, and software, performing the processes of data entry, analysis and processing. This paper deals with the geomorphological characteristics of a selected study area in Kirkuk province. The cha
... Show MoreOver the years, the prediction of penetration rate (ROP) has played a key rule for drilling engineers due it is effect on the optimization of various parameters that related to substantial cost saving. Many researchers have continually worked to optimize penetration rate. A major issue with most published studies is that there is no simple model currently available to guarantee the ROP prediction.
The main objective of this study is to further improve ROP prediction using two predictive methods, multiple regression analysis (MRA) and artificial neural networks (ANNs). A field case in SE Iraq was conducted to predict the ROP from a large number of parame
Background: Left ventricular function and volumes have major diagnostic and prognostic importance in patients with various cardiac diseases, such as ischemic heart disease which is a life-threatening heart disease condition characterized by systolic dysfunction and a decrease in cardiac output.
According to left ventricular ejection fraction, the degree of ischemic heart disease was classified as mild, moderate, and severe. To determine cardiac function and hemodynamics, the echocardiography technique is used, which is a noninvasive diagnostic method.
Patients and Methods: The study included 216 patients between 25 and 75 years old; 121 males and 95 females; 265 normal individuals (age range: 25 to 75 years ol
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