Background: The discriminative power of the classical WHO parameters in relation to male fertility is quite low, because they only address few aspects of sperm quality and function. This has led investigators to focus their attention on the male gamete and in particular its genome.Objective: To explore which of the sperm DNA damage parameters measured by comet assay are more reliable, and their relations with the standard semen parameters.Methods: Study was done on 40 infertile men selected from couples attending the Institute of Embryo Reasearch and Infertility Treatment at Al-Kadhimiya City/ Baghdad in the period between February 2009 and May 2009, with a history of infertility of ≥1 years; and 15 healthy volunteers of proven fertility serving as control. Samples were allowed to liquefy for at least 30 minutes at 37°C and then evaluated according to the guidelines of the World Health Organization, 1999. The single cell gel electrophoresis (comet) assay was studied in the ejaculated spermatozoa. The exclusion criteria were the presence of azoospermia and severe oligospermia. Results were compared with the standard semen characteristics (concentration, motility and morphology).Results: Compared to healthy volunteers, infertile patients had highly significantly higher values of comet parameters (P = 0.00001). In all infertile patients, comet extent did not correlate with any of the classical semen parameters; whereas, tail length (μm), % DNA in tail, tail moment and olive moment had all significant negative correlations with the standard parameters. Significant positive correlations were observed between the studied comet parameters, except for the comet extent which was not significantly correlated with tail length and % DNA in tail (P = 0.06, P = 0.7; respectively).Conclusion: Comet assay is a very useful technique in assessing sperm DNA damage. Comet tail parameters and comet extent, may clarify different aspects of DNA damage, and together give a better insight to the integrity of the male genome.Keywards: sperm, comet extent, % DNA in tail, tail moment and olive moment
Background: Radiation therapy has the ability to destroy healthy cells in addition to cancer cells in the area being treated. However, when radiation combines with doxorubicin, it becomes more effective on breast cancer treatment. Objective: This study aims to clarify the effect of X-ray from LINAC combined with amygdalin and doxorubicin on breast cancer treatment, and the possibility of using amygdalin with X-ray instead of doxorubicin for the breast cancer treatment. Method: Two cell lines were used in this study, the first one was MCF-7 cell line and second one was WRL- 68 normal cell line. These cells were preserved in liquid nitrogen, prepared, developed and tested in the (place). The effect of three x-ray doses combined with a
... Show MoreHerbal remedies are used in induction of lactation. In view of that .Borage Officinalis was employed to ensure an abundant milk supply or rectify milk insufficiency .However, this remedy has not been scientifically tested .The animals were treated with the aqueous extract of Borage Officinalis flowers at a daily concentration of 100 mg / kg body weight /ml for each rat through Oro-gastric tube for 14 days. Animals were subdivided into subgroups according to their physiological status. Mammary glands of these animals were processed for histological, histochemical and immunohistochemical studies. Parameters indicated that the aqueous extract of Borage Officinalis flowers induced lactogenesis in the mammmary glands of virgin and pregnant rats
... Show MoreBackground: Dental erosion is a common oral condition which results due to consumption of high caloric and low pH acidic food such as carbonated drinks and fruit juices. It is expected that these food types can cause irreversible damage to dental hard tissues and early deterioration of the dental restorations. So, this study aimed to evaluate and compare the erosive potential effects of orange fruit juice and Miranda orange drink on the microhardness of an orthodontic composite material. Materials and methods: Thirty discs with a thickness of 2 mm and a diameter of 10 mm were prepared from orthodontic bonding composite. The prepared discs were equally divided into three groups (n=10). Microhardness analysis was carried out both prior to
... Show MoreBackground: Passive smoking and dental caries affect the integrity of the health of individuals and both of them affected by sociodemographic characteristics of those individuals. This research aimed to investigate the severity of dental caries in relation to salivary magnesium and zinc of stimulated whole saliva of a group of 10 years passive smokers in comparison with normal subjects. Materials and methods: the study group included 40 subjects (20boys and 20 girls), with an age of 10 years of passive smokers determined by a questionnaire. The control group included 40 normal subjects of the same gender and age of the study group. The diagnosis and recording of dental caries was measured by (D1-4MFS & d1-4mfs) index according to the criter
... Show MoreAcademic achievement is a professional standard for measuring student levels in the first stages. Therefore, any indication of the level of achievement makes us in an attempt to employ students in evening schools. The researcher has developed a closed questionnaire of (36) paragraphs. A total of (164) male and (24) female students were chosen from evening schools. The result of this research revealed that the number of students was a reason for the low level of their achievement, the lack of laboratories, educational methods, and techniques of the most prominent problems confirmed by students in these schools. In addition, to support educational institutions with their necessary needs. The most important conclusion in this research is th
... Show MoreThermal conductivity measurement was done for specimens of Polystyrene/ titanium dioxide, Polycarbonate/ titanium dioxide and Polymethylmetha acrylate/ titanium dioxide composites for weight ratio of 1.9/ 0.1 and 1.8/ 0.2 wt% for different thickness of the samples. The experimental results show that the thermal conductivity is increased with the increasing of thickness of layers and with the weight ratio of TiO2
Reproduction potential and age –specific fecundity of the Mealybug Planococcus citri Risso were studied in the laboratories of Biological control research unit,college of Agriculture –Baghdad university at 25± 2Cº and 60-70% R.H.with 16 light:8 dark photo period.The results showed that the survival ratio began to decline at the 38th day, the average female age was 20 days ,while the average age was 8 days at the first reproduction . Net reproduction rate ( Ro ) was 58.59 female female generation which prove that the population of the mealybug was of the unstable kind , intrinsic rate of increase (rm) was 0.118 femalefemale and the average length period of generation ( T ) was 34.30 days . Many local predators attack the mealybug
... Show MoreObjective: Many studies focused on clinical cases such as ovariohysterectomy of bitches and scarcely mentioned the histological features. The present study describes the cytoarchitecture characteristics of a local dog’s mature adult reproductive tract. Materials and Methods: Sixteen samples of uterus and cervix were obtained from local breed bitches to conduct this study. The organs were processed according to routine histopathological protocol and stained with hematoxylin and eosin, Masson’s trichrome, and combined Alcian blue (2.5 pH) and PAS (AB-PAS) stains. Results: The mature endometrium formed numerous short epithelial folds and epithelial crypts composed of mucous cells and cuboidal cells. The core of the endometrium is c
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