Osteoblast and osteoclast activity is disrupted in post-menopausal osteoporosis. Thus, to fully address this imbalance, therapies should reduce bone resorption and promote bone formation. Dietary factors such as phyto-oestrogens and Zn have beneficial effects on osteoblast and osteoclast activity. However, the effect of combinations of these factors has not been widely studied. We therefore examined the effect of coumestrol, daidzein and genistein in the presence or absence of zinc sulphate (Zn) on osteoclast and osteoblast activity. Osteoclast differentiation and bone resorption were significantly reduced by coumestrol (10- 7 m), daidzein (10- 5 m) and genistein (10- 7 m); and this direct anti-osteoclastic action was unaffected by Zn (10-

This study is an attempt to find whether arginine metabolism dysregulation by arginase activity is related to hyperglycemia, followed by changes in nitric oxide (NO) generation in type 2 diabetic patients. This study includes 42 control subjects (Group I), and 92 Iraqi patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The patient group was subdivided into two groups: Group II (54) with T2DM only and Group III (38) with T2DM and dyslipidemia (who were treating with atorvastatin along with diabetes treatment). The samples were obtained to measure arginase activity and NO levels. Serum arginase activity increased significantly in patients(groupII and groupIII) compared to control group. While serum NO level was significantly lower in diabetic pa

This narrative review focused on research investigating the impact of loneliness on the prevalence of dementia and its relationship with other risk factors. A comprehensive and rigorous search was conducted using a variety of scientific databases with specific keywords to identify all prior studies that examined the correlation between dementia and loneliness. The inquiry was confined to articles published in English from January 2017 to March 2024. The narrative review identified a consensus regarding the role of loneliness in enhancing the risk of all‐cause dementia, with a particular emphasis on the subjective perception of loneliness. This phenomenon may be caused by the sensations of exclusion, discrimination, and alienation that are

This study aims to use claystone beds exposed in the Injana Formation (Late Miocene) at Karbala-Najaf plateau, middle of Iraq for the manufacturing of perforated and ordinary bricks. The claystone samples were assessed as an alternative material of the recent sediments, which are preferred to remain as agricultural land. The claystones are sandy mud composing of 29.1 - 39.1% clay, 37.2 - 54.8% silt and 14.1-26.8% sand. They consist of kaolinite, illite, chlorite, palygorskite, and montmorillonite with a lot of quartz, calcite, dolomite, gypsum and feldspar. Claystone samples were characterized by linear shrinkage 0.01 - 0.1%, volume shrinkage 0.1 - 0.9%, bulk density 1.2 - 2.11gm/cm3 (1.68 g / cm3 average), and the efflorescence is

Quick and accurate quaternary mixture resolution of furosemide (FURO), carbamazepine (CARB), diazepam (DIAZ) and carvedilol (CARV) by using derivative spectrophotometric method was performed. FURO and CARV were determined by means of first (D1), second (D2), third (D3) and fourth (D4) derivative spectrophotometric methods, CARB was determined by using D1, D2, D3 derivatives, while D1 and D2 were used for the determination of DIAZ. The recommended methods were verified using laboratory prepared mixtures and then successfully applied for the pharmaceutical formulations analysis of the cited drugs. The results obtained revealed the efficiency of the proposed methods as quantitative tool of analysis of the quaternary mixture with no requirement

Toxicity with advanced glycation end products (AGEs) is a major problem in uremic patients. Treatment with peritoneal dialysis (PD) exacerbates AGE formation as a result of bioincompatibility of the conventional peritoneal dialysis fluid (PDF). The presence of glucose degradation products (GDPs) in PDF is the main cause of its bioincompatibility. Carnosine is an endogenous dipeptide with a powerful antiglycation/antioxidant activity. In an attempt to improve PDF biocompatibility, we evaluated the effect of carnosine in human peritoneal mesothelial cells (HPMC) incubated with PDF or GDPs in vitro. Methods: HPMC were incubated for short or prolonged time with PDF in the presence or absence of carnosine. Similarly, HPMC were incubated in the s

The research aims to study Sabkha mineralogy to determine the mineral types, the nature of the precipitation, and the patterns of salt crystallization. Two Sabkhas in Abu Ghraib, west of Baghdad, were studied. It was found that the Sabkhas were formed in flat ponds from saturated solutions in a semi-arid to arid climate. Halite predominates, followed by anhydrite and gypsum as evaporite minerals. As for the minerals of the Sabkha soil, it consisted of feldspar, calcite, quartz, and dolomite, in addition to the clay minerals represented by kaolinite, illite, and chlorite. Needle forms, hopper shapes, dendritic crystals, and polygon shapes are the main crystallization patterns dominantly found in the Sabkhas. All these types of crysta

The embryonic development of the Mosquito fish(Gambusia affinis) eye lens was investigated using light microscopy .The results indicated that the embryonic development of the lens does not correspond to that of the non spherical lenses of terrestrial vertebrates .This study showed that a very small cavity in the lens vesicle appears during development ,but it differs from that of the mammalian lens. The most important aspect in this study is that ,the posterior edge of the simple cuboidal epithelium which covers the anterior half of the surface of the lens is situated well beyond the equatorial region of the lens .As a result , the germinal and transitional zones became closer to the posterior pole rather than the anterior pole of the le