Background: Opportunistic viral infections make an important threat to renal transplantation recipients (RTRs), and with the use of more intense newly-developed immunosuppressive drugs; the risk of renal allograft loss due to reactivation of these viruses has increased considerably. At the top priority of these viruses lie BK polyomavirus (BKV) and human cytomegalovirus (CMV). Reactivation of these viruses in these chronically immunosuppressed RTRs can lead to renal impairment and subsequently allograft loss, unless early detected and properly treated. Objectives: The study aimed to detect and quantify plasma viral load of BKV and CMV in RTRs using quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR), in order to study the prevalence of these two viruses in the sole renal transplantation center in Baghdad, and correlate viral load with the diseases severity. Furthermore, the prevalence of BKV-CMV coexistence in RTRs, to find out whether infection by one of them is a risk factor for infection by the other was investigated. Patients and Methods:A total of 99 RTR were enrolled in the study, and 15 non-transplanted patients with chronic kidney diseases (CKD) together with 15 health living donors (LD) were taken as controls. Plasma samples were taken from all participants. From which viral DNA was extracted, and then real time PCR technique was used to measure the viral load. Results:Out of 99, 12 (12.12%) of RTR patients were positive for BK viremia with a viral load (VL) ranging from (1x102 to 1x109 copies/ml), while none of the control groups was BK positive, and 5 patients out of these 12 had BKV nephropathy. For CMV, 13.13% of RTR patients had positive CMV viremia with a VL ranging from (1.25x102 to 7.94x107 copies/ml), and only one of the CKD controls was CMV positive. Only 3 patients had BK-CMV coexistence, which was statistically not a significant risk factor for one another. Conclusion: Our study suggests that both BK polyomavirus and CMV should be considered important causes for nephropathy and allograft loss in RTRs in Iraq.
Background: This study was formulated to compare the effect of 5%hydrofluoric acid in comparison to 37%phosphoric acid with and without the application of silane on bond strength of composite to porcelain. Materials and Methods: Specimen preparation was divided in to two phases, metal-disks fabrication (8mm-diameter and 4mm-thickness) and ceramic veneering. Thirty two specimens were prepared, sandblasted with 50 μm aluminum oxide, and divided into four groups of eight samples. Groups I and III were etched with 37%phosphoric acid while groups II and IV were etched with 5%hydrofluoric acid; and groups I and II were silaneted while groups III and IV were not. Heliobond, and resin composite were applied to each specimen using a plastic transpa
... Show MoreCyprinidae species are the most abundant and widely distributed fish species in the inland waters of Iraq. Cyprinids are complex species, and it is difficult to identify them on the basis of morphology. Thus, the morphological characteristics must be achieved and confirmed by molecular analysis. Twenty specimens of Cyprinion kais Heckel, 1843 (Piscies, Cypriniformes, Cyprinidae) were collected from two localities at Tigris River in the middle of Iraq: five specimens from Al-Tharthar Lake, Saladin Province, and 15 specimens from Al- Zubaydiyah sub-district, Wasit Province
This study investigated the effect of using brainstorming as a teaching technique on the students’ performance in writing different kinds of essays and self regulation among the secondary students. The total population of this study, consisted of (51) female students of the 5th Secondary grade in Al –kawarzmi School in Erbil during the academic year 2015-2016. The chosen sample consisted of 40 female students, has been divided into two groups. Each one consists of (20) students to represent the experimental group and the control one. Brainstorming technique is used to teach the experimental group, and the conventional method is used to teach the control group. The study inst
... Show MoreBackground: As photochemical reaction that can stiffen the cornea, CXL is the only promising method of preventing progression of keratectasia such as KC and secondary ectasia following refractive surgery. The aim of CXL is to stabilize the underlying condition with a small chance of visual improvement. Objective: To show the sequences of changes in visual acuity and topographic outcomes during 1 year post CXL for patients with progressive Keratoconus.Type of the study: Cross sectional studyMethods: CXL procedure was done for 45 eyes with progressive KC. The following parameters had been monitored pre operatively, 1, 3, 6 and 12 months postoperatively: K apex, K2, corneal thickness at thinnest location, anterior and posterior elevation po
... Show MoreDye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) create imitation photosynthesis by using chemical reactions to produce electricity from sunlight. DSSC has been pursued in numerous studies due to its capability to achieve efficiencies of up to 15% with artificial photosensitizer in diffuse light. However, artificial photosensitizers present a limitation because of the complex processing of metal compound. Therefore, various types of sensitizers were developed and synthesized to surpass the artificial sensitizer performances such as natural sensitizers from bio-based materials including plants, due to simple processing techniques and low environmental impact. Thus, this study examines the potential and properties of natural sensitizers from the was
... Show MoreThe study was conducted to determine the effect of of cumin (Cuminum cyminum) and ginger (Zingiber officinale) powder on performance in Japanese quails. 630 bird (7 birds for each treatment) nine weeks of age were used. Experiment was continued for 12 weeks divided to six periods and the birds distributed randomly on nine combinations of cumin and ginger, three levels of each plant powder namely, 0, 0.5 and 1%. T1 (Control) contain the slandered diet (0% of cumin and 0% of ginger), T2: (0% of cumin and 0.5% of ginger), T3: (0% of cumin and 1% of ginger), T4: (0.5% of cumin and 0% of ginger), T5: (0.5% of cumin and 0.5% of ginger), T6: (0.5% of cumin and 1% of ginger), T7: (1% of cumin and 0% of ginger), T8: (1% of cumin and 0.5% of ginger),
... Show MoreA series of new 4-(((4-(5-(Aryl)-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl)benzyl)oxy)methyl)-2,6-dimethoxy phenol (6a-i) were synthesized from cyclization of 4-(((4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxy benzyl)oxy)methyl)benzohydrazide with substituted carboxylic acid in the presences of phosphorusoxy chloride.The resulting compounds were characterized by IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, and HRMS data. 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazide (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays were used to screen their antioxidant properties. Compounds 6i and 6h exhibited significant antioxidant ability in both assay. Furthermore, type of substituent and their position of the aryl attached 1,3,4-oxadiazole ring at position five are play an important roles in enhancing or declining the antio
... Show MoreGypseous soils are considered one of the most problematic soils. The skirted foundation is an alternative technology that works to improve the bearing capacity and reduce settlement. This paper investigates the use of square skirted foundations resting on gypseous soil subjected to concentric and eccentric vertical load with eccentricity values of 4, 8, and 17 mm in 16 experimental model tests. To obtain the results by using this type of foundation, a small-scale physical model was designed to obtain the load–settlement behavior of the square skirted foundation; the dimension of the square footing is 100 mm × 100 mm with 1 mm thickness, the skirt depth (