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
The OpenStreetMap (OSM) project aims to establish a free geospatial database for the entire world which is editable by international volunteers. The OSM database contains a wide range of different types of geographical data and characteristics, including highways, buildings, and land use regions. The varying scientific backgrounds of the volunteers can affect the quality of the spatial data that is produced and shared on the internet as an OSM dataset. This study aims to compare the completeness and attribute accuracy of the OSM road networks with the data supplied by a digitizing process for areas in the Baghdad and Thi-Qar governorates. The analyses are primarily based on calculating the portion of the commission (extr
... Show MoreBackground: The presence of anatomic variations within the maxillary sinus such as septa has been reported to increase the risk of sinus membrane perforation during sinus elevation procedure for implant placement. This study aimed to measure the septal heights and correlate it with different types of septa. Material and methods: Thirty patients (15 males and 15 females) with partially edentulous maxillae and mean age (35) years were enrolled in this study. Sixty sinuses scanned with Spiral multislice Computed Tompgraphy, septal height measured after evaluation of septal type whether it was primary or secondary. Results: The results showed that 72.5 % of the septa detected were primary and this is statistically significant when compared w
... Show MoreThe research aims to identify the tax policy strategy adopted in Iraq after the change of the tax system in 2003 and beyond, and then make a comparison of the two strategies on corporate data whether they are charged with progressive tax rates and after the change of the system as the tax rates became fixed, and then indicate the changes In the tax proceeds, and knowing the imensions of the approved tax policy, is it a tax reform strategy or a strategy to attract investments.The research started from the problem of exposure of the Iraqi tax system to several changes, as this led to a reflection on the technical organization of taxes, in terms of the tax rate.The descriptive analytical approach was chosen to study the actual reality of th
... Show MoreApart from graduating five-star doctors, a particular medical college has the mission to motivate and offer researchers the opportunity to publish high-quality researches on various health problems and disseminate updated medical knowledge to a wide range of local and international readers. This could be accomplished by establishing a medical journal and releasing issues regularly
When a vehicle is left parked in the sun for an extended period, the gathered heat causes damage to several interiors within the cabin and causes discomfort for people and animals left inside the car. In the present work, the effect of the orientation of a parked white minibus on temperature distribution and cooling load calculation is studied experimentally in an open environment. Two different cases were studied facing south and facing east. For several hours, the temperature inside the car cabin had been monitored and measured at five separate locations. The cooling load calculations are carried out based on the experimental measurements. The results show that the overheating of parked cars always happens as a result
... Show MoreDue to the need for controlling and regulating of feed pellet. Pellet that is imported or locally manufactured is accompanied by cracking and crumbling percentage that occur during transporting and distributing to animals, using conveyors and mechanical feeders. This study aimed to determine the effect of particle size and die holes diameter in the machine on broiler feed pellets quality in pellet durability, pellet direct measurement, pellet expansion, and pellet length. Three particle size 2, 4, and 6 mm, and three diameters of die holes in the machine 3, 4, and 5 mm, have been used. The results showed that changing the particle size from 2 to 4 then to 6 mm led to a significant decrease in pellet durability and pellet lengths, pe
... Show MoreVocational stresses and their relation with the level of ambition among the lecturers of the university In general , vocational stresses affect the attention and the process of focusing making individual busy with solving of his daily problems instead of his job. The vocational stresses , anxiety and tension are factors effecting the physical and psychological ability of the individual. This study aims to measure the vocational stresses among the lecturers of the university , to measure the level of ambition among them, to identify the statistical differences significant among them according to sex variable, to identify the differences significant in level of ambition among them according to sex variable and to identify the correlation r
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