Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic and debilitating autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation with subsequent cartilage and bone destruction. Cytokines are  key mediators of inflammation and can be found in abundance both in the joint and blood of patients. This study was designed to evaluate the role of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines in pathogenesis of RA, as well as study the correlation among these cytokines.
Patients and methods: Forty patients with RA and thirty age-matched healthy controls were included in this study. Serum cytokines were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
Results: The serum levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1α, IL-2, IL-6, IL-8

Background: Acute phase proteins which include C-reactive protein (CRP) and haptoglobin (Hp) are associated with inflammatory diseases such as injury, infection or malignancy, cardiovascular disease and obesity. Atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) evaluated as the atherogenicity index is correlated with different diseases.
Objective : The study was to investigate hs-CRP and Hp concentration in Iraqi patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) and calculate AIP which predicts this disease.
Subject and Method: The study included 64 subjects (39 patients with CAD and 25 healthy subjects as a control group). The markers of inflammatory hs-CRP and Hp levels were measured. Lipid profile (Total cholesterol TC,

Background: Knowledge about the clinical problems during the fast of Ramadan is important in order to opens the way to further research aimed at discovering the significance of Ramadan fasting in patients with heart disease.
Patients and Methods: Eighty-six outpatients with heart disease with intention to fast were studied in the month of Ramadan 2010 (1430 H) at the Ibn Al-bitar Hospital. Detailed clinical and biochemical assessments were performed within 3 days before the start of Ramadan and then on the last day of Ramadan.
Results: There were 54 (62.8%) males and 32 (37.2%) females with a mean age of 56.3 years (range, 17-84 ). Forty-six patients (53%) had coronary artery disease, 23 patients (27%)

Background:

Background: Ulcerative colitis is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); its extragastrointestinal manifestations vary from one country to another. This study identifies the prevalence of the extragastrointestinal manifestations in a sample of Iraqi patients with ulcerative colitis and their relation to disease activity.
Patients and Methods: A descriptive study was conducted on 100 patients with established diagnosis of ulcerative colitis, who attended Baghdad Teaching hospital and Gastroenterology center in Baghdad during the period from May 2009 to January 2010. A direct interview and thorough clinical examination were done to determine the history of the disease, its severity and the presence or

Background:recent data indicate the prevalence of cardiovascular disease in patientswith high cystatin-C level;it can be used as a good predictor for assessment of mortality in cardiovascular diseases regardless of the status of renal function.
Patients and methods: Onehundred twenty (120) patients with ischemic heart disease admitted to this study at Baghdad teaching hospital for the period from January 2011 to September2011,Those patients categorized into two groups (60) diabetic and (60) non diabetic in comparison to fifty healthy control.Fasting serum cystatin-C was measured in all patients and controls.
Results: The level of serum cystatin-C, in diabetic patients with ischemic heart disease was (2.05±0.55 μg/L). Its level in

  The study was aimed to isolate and identify endophytic fungi from myrtle (Mrtus communis) leaves and study their extracellular enzymes activity. Results revealed isolation of 99 species or ioslated of endophytic fungi obtained from 500 leaves fragment, which represented colonization frequency (CF) of 20.4%. Those fungi were related to 23 species or isolates, Aspergilli were dominated over all species (11 species) with CF 14%. Moreover A. niger and A. flavus showed the higtest CF values over all. Other isolated fungi were related to the genera: Penicillium spp., Cladosporium sp., Cunninghamella sp., Derchslera sp., Alternaria sp. Paecilomyces sp. and sterile fungi (mycelia sterilia). Extracelluar enzymes activity showed varation in

      Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a heterogeneous autoimmune disease characterized by elevated levels of circulating anti-nuclear autoantibodies and interferon-alpha (INFs-α). Interferon regulatory factor-5 (IRF5) plays an important role in the induction of type I interferon and pro-inflammatory cytokines, and participates in the SLE pathogenesis. This study aimed to investigate the role of IRF5 gene expression levels in a sample of SLE Iraqi patients and its correlation with disease activity, and to identify its diagnostic ability as a biomarker reflecting disease activity. Blood samples were taken from 45 participants diagnosed with SLE cases classified according to the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria. T

Objective: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients have increased morbidity and mortality from premature cardiovascular (CV) disease (CVD). Framingham risk score (FRS) is a simplified coronary prediction tool developed to enable clinicians to assess the risk of a cardiovascular event and to identify candidate patients for risk factors modifications worldwide. The predictive ability of the FRS varies between populations, ethnic groups, and socio-economic status. The aim of this study is to find if there is any correlation between the Framingham risk score and the inflammatory and biochemical parameters used to measure disease activity and functional ability in Iraqi patients with active RA.