The detection of fungi contaminating maize grain and the effect of four plant extracts Azadirachta indica, Eucalyptus globulus Glycyrrhiza glabra and Zingiber officinale on the growth of A. flavus and its ability to produce AflatoxinB1. The results showed that the incidence of Aspergillus spp., was 52.75% of the isolated fungi, of which 29.50% was due to Aspergillus flavus, followed by Penicillium spp., with an incidence of 21.06%, and then Fusarium spp., with a rate of 18.13%. The percentage of toxin-producing A. flavus isolates reached 70.8% out of 24 isolates. The results showed the effect of alcoholic plant extracts at a concentration of 10 mg/ml on the fungal growth activity of A. flavus, the alcoholic extract of neem leaves was superi
... Show MoreTreated effluent wastewater is considered an alternative water resource which can provide an important contribution for using it in different purposes, so, the wastewater quality is very important for knowing its suitability for different uses before discharging it into fresh water ecosystems. The wastewater quality index (WWQI) may be considered as a useful and effective tool to assess wastewater quality by indicating one value representing the overall characteristic of the wastewater. It could be used to indicate the suitability of wastewater for different uses in water quality management and decision making. The present study was conducted to evaluate the Al-Diwaniyah sewage treatment plant (STP) effluent quality based on wastewa
... Show MoreThis study aims to evaluate drinking water quality at the Al Wahda plant (WTP) in Baghdad city. A conventional water treatment plant with an average flow rate of 72.82 MLD. Water samples were taken from the influent and effluent of the treatment plant and analyzed for some physicochemical and biological parameters during the period from June to November 2020. The results of the evaluation indicate that treated water has almost the same characteristics as raw water; in other terms, the plant units do not remove pollutants as efficiently as intended. Based on this, the station appears to be nothing more than a series of water passage units. However, apart from Total dissolved solids, the mean values of all parameters in th
... Show MoreObjective: Using green chemistry, an effective, inexpensive, and environmentally safe method, sulfur nanoparticles with specific properties can be prepared and used in nanotechnology. This research aimed to prepare sulfur nanoparticles from chilli pepper extract and determine their effectiveness against colon cancer. Method: Chilli pepper extract obtained from local markets was treated with aqueous sodium thiosulfate (Na2S2O7.5H2O). After mixing, it was continuously stirred, heated, and filtered. NaBH4 was then added, resulting in a yellow precipitate. The precipitate was centrifuged, purified, and dried at 250°C. Results: Standardised tests such as UV-Vis, XRD, SEM, TEM, AFM, and EDX were used, resulting in sulfur nanoparticles with an av
... Show MoreTo develop a petrol engine so that it works under the bi-engine pattern (producer gas-petrol) without any additional engine modifications, a single-point injection method inside the intake manifold is a simple and inexpensive method. Still, it leads to poor mixing performance between the air and producer gas. This deficiency can cause unsatisfactory engine performance and high exhaust emissions. In order to improve the mixing inside the intake manifold, nine separate cases were modelled to evaluate the impact of the position and angle orientation inside the intake manifold on the uniformity and spread of the mixture under AFR=2.07. A petrol engine (1.6 L), the maximum engine speed (8000 rpm), and bi-engine mode (petrol-producer ga
... Show MoreThe present research was performed to study the qualitative and quantitative composition of epiphytic algae on the aquatic host plant Ceratophyllum demersum L. Four sites in Tigris River, at Wassit Governorate were covered, during the seasons of Autumn 2017, winter 2018, Spring 2018, and Summer 2018. The study also included measuring the physiochemical parameters (temperature of air and water, pH , water level, EC, salinity, TDS, TSS, dissolved oxygen, BOD5, alkalinity, total hardness, calcium, magnesium, total nitrogen, total phosphourus). The total number of species of epiphytic algae was145 species, 98 species belonging to Bacillariophyceae, followed by 27species of class Cyanophyceae, 19 species of class Chloroph
... Show MoreEndothelin-1 (ET-1) is a potent vasoconstrictor hormone that has been identified as an important factor
responsible for the development of cardiovascular dysfunctions. ET-1 exerts its vasoconstrictor activity
through two pharmacologically distinct receptors, ETA and ETB that are found in vascular smooth muscle
cells (VSMCs) and the vasodilator activity through an ETB receptor located on endothelial cells. This study
aimed to show the impact of 1µM L-arginine (LA), 100µM tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4), and their combined
effect on ET-1 activity in both lead-treated and lead-untreated rat aortic rings. This means, investigating how
endothelial dysfunction reverses the role of nitric oxide precursor and cofa
A field experiment was conducted in Yusufiya sub-district - Mahmudiya township/Baghdad governorate in silty loam texture soil during the spring season of 2020. The experiment included three treatments with three replicates, as the Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) was used according to the arrangement of the split design block. The treatments are in the irrigation system, which included surface drip irrigation (T1) and sprinkler irrigation (T2). Secondly, the Irrigation levels including the irrigation using 0.70 Pan Evaporation Fraction PEF (I1), irrigation using 1.00 PEF (I2), and irrigation using 1.30 PEF (I3). Coupled with, Pota
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