Background: Periodontal diseases are inflammatory diseases affecting the supporting tissues of the teeth. One of the leading environmental factors that are closely related not only to the risk but also to the prognosis of periodontitis is smoking. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of smoking on periodontal health status and to measure the levels of matrix metalloproteinase-9 in smokers and nonsmokers chronic periodontitis patients, also it aimed to test the correlation between the levels of matrix metalloproteinase-9 and the clinical periodontal parameters. Materials and Methods: Five milliliters samples of un-stimulated whole saliva and full-mouth clinical periodontal recordings (plaque index, gingival index, bleeding on probing, probing pocket depth and clinical attachment level) were obtained from forty patients of two groups (non smokers with chronic periodontitis and smokers with chronic periodontitis). All subjects were systemically healthy males, with age range (35-50) years. Salivary matrix metalloproteinase-9 levels were analyzed by using Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assays. Results: Statistical analysis revealed that probing pocket depth and clinical attachment level were higher in smokers than non smokers, while there were decreases in the numbers of bleeding sites in smoker when compared with non smoker subjects. Salivary matrix metalloproteinase-9 levels were significantly higher in smoker with chronic periodontitis patients than their non smoker counterparts. Conclusion: Salivary matrix metalloproteinase-9, as a biomarker, could reflect the increased periodontal tissue destruction due to the smoking.
Background: Periodontitis (PD) is well-known chronic disease affecting the periodontal ligament and alveolar bone, Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic joint disease with compound reasons characterized by synovial inflammation, subchondral bone remodeling, also the formation of osteophytes, that cause cartilage degradation. Chronic periodontitis and osteoarthritis are considered widely prevalent diseases and related to tissue destruction due to chronic inflammation in general health and oral health. The aim of this study is todetermine the association of chronic periodontitis and osteoarthritits in patients by analysing tumor necrosis factor alpha TNFα and high sensitive c-reactive protein (hsCRP) in the serum. Materials and Method: A tot
... Show MoreThe measurements of major and trace elements in different brands of milk powder selected from the Iraqis market via the X-ray fluorescence (XRF) Technique have been studied in the present work. The result of the measurements reveals the high concentrations of sodium, phosphorus, sulfur, chlorine, potassium, calcium and magnesium. Furthermore, low concentrations of aluminum, silicon, iron, bromine, molybdenum, iodine, barium, titanium, manganese, cobalt, chrome, nickel, copper, zinc and lead were detected. Neutron activation analysis (NAA) and Kjeldahl technique were also employed to determine the concentrations of nitrogen. It was found that the nitrogen concentration was in the range of (1.96 - 3.23) % which is within the permissible li
... Show MoreBackground: Antibiotic resistance is a problem leading to difficulty in treating microbial infections thatmay occur due to many causes. For the important pharmacist role as a reference for the information and theability to access to medications, they are vital members in lowering the development of antibiotic resistance,and also they support the proper use and control of antibioticsmisuse. Our goal is comparing the knowledge,attitude, practice of undergraduate and postgraduate pharmacy students and their perceptions about thecausing factors of antibiotic resistance in Iraq.Method: A cross sectional study was conducted involving the final year bachelor and postgraduate (masterand Philosophical doctor) students from different private
... Show MoreBackground: Oil refinery workers are continuously exposed to numerous hazardous materials. Petroleum contains the heavy metals as a natural constituent or as additives. These metals induce the production of ROS which associated with an oxidative damage to DNA, proteins, and lipids. This study was conducted to assess the salivary levels of heavy metals, salivary oxidative status, oral immunological activity (salivary sIgA) and assessment of the oral findings among the workers of Al-Daura oil refinery in Baghdad city. Subjects, Materials and Methods: This study was done in Al-Daura oil refinery; samples consist of 60 workers involved in refinery processes (study group) and 20 non-workers (control group). Oral examination and saliva collection
... Show MoreBackground: Human leukocyte antigen-G (HLA-G)and Toll-like receptor-9 (TLR-9)play a role in the regulation of autoimmune diseases and inflammatory processes. Aim of the study: To detect the HLA-G + 3142G > C gene polymorphism that associated with the susceptibility to SLE patients and associated with Hepatitis B infection and TLR-9 serum level. Patients and methods: This study was done on 75 SLE patients and 75 healthy control groups. Genotyping of HLA-G + 3142G > C were detected by PCR and PCR-RFLP methods. In addition to the estimation of Hepatitis B surface (HBs)antigen status by immunochromatography technique and TLR-9 serum level by ELISA technique. Results: The HLA-G + 3142G > C gene polymorphism between the SLE patients and controls
... Show MoreBackground: Orthodontic force is considered to stimulate cells in the periodontium to release many mediators such as cytokines which play a responsible role for periodontal and alveolar bone remodeling, bone resorption and new bone deposition. Aim of this study was carried out to estimate changes of the (interleukin-one beta, tumor necrosis factor – alpha and C-reactive protein) levels in unstimulated whole saliva during the leveling stage of orthodontic tooth movement. Materials and methods: The sample consisted of thirty adult patients (12 males and 18 females) with ages ranges (19-23) years. Each sample had Class I and Class II malocclusion dental classification and required bilateral extraction of their maxillary first premolars, und
... Show MoreToxoplasmosis is a widespread infection usually caused by Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) parasite. It occurs in humans and other warm blooded animals, causing severe problems. It was found that there is an alteration in the trace elements concentrations levels associated with some human diseases. This study aimed to investigate the changes in the concentrations of some trace elements (Mg, Fe , Zn, and Cu) in the sera of 60 immunocompetent patients with chronic toxoplasmosis and 82 healthy individuals as a control group. Measuring the serum level of seropositivity rate of anti-T. gondii antibodies was done by Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) Kit, while the concentrations of trace elements were measured by absorption spectrophotometry
... Show MoreFinancial crisis is one of the topics that have attracted the interest of researchers in recently. The research focused on the issue of the crisis of the Asian Tigers and the mortgage crisis and comparing them in terms of causes and repercussions. It may meet most of the financial crises in many of its causes, factors, roots and results in the advanced and the developing countries. This crisis has its own pattern and its causes and nature and it is characterized by a crisis of cash liquidity and the collapse of many banks and declare bankruptcy and a sharp decline in stock prices and indices of the stock market and so far the common denominators among the causes but does not mean this There are differences between the financial c
... Show MoreThe lower Cretaceous sandstones of Zubair and Nahr Umr formations are the main producing reservoirs in Subba oilfield in southern Iraq. Key differences in their petrophysical and depositional attributes exist affecting their reservoir characteristics. The evaluation of well logs and core porosity-permeability data show better reservoir properties in Nahr Formation. The Litho-saturation logs indicate greater thickness of oil-saturated reservoir units for Nahr Unr Formation associated with lower values of shale volume, and higher values of effective porosity. In addition, higher values of permeability for Nahr Umr Formation is suggested by applying porosity-irreducible water saturation cross plot. The reducing reservoir quality of Zub
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