The study of the distribution of major oxides and heavy metals in some plants collecting and analyzing eighteen plant samples of vegetables including carrot, onion, eggplant, cucumber, and okra obtained from Abu Ghraib land located about 20 km west of Baghdad, Iraq. Eighteen plant samples of vegetables,.Heavy metals can have a severe impact if released into the environment, even in trace quantities. These can enter the food chain from aquatic and agricultural ecosystems and indirectly threaten human health.. Trace elements and oxides of As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Se, Th, U, V, and Zn were measured in plant samples using an X-Ray Fluorescence Instrument (XRF). TEs analyses of vegetables were performed in the Iraqi German Laboratory in the Department of Geology, University of Baghdad. The results of XRF indicated that the highest Mean ± SD concentrations of As, Cr, Mo, Cu, Ni, Pb, Se, V and Zn were 5.24 ± 1.846, 229.436 ± 53.598, 12.97 ± 3.95, 69.128 ± 60.577, 87.14 ± 56.711, 18.826 ± 7.572, 0.5 ± 0, 88.506 ± 5.902 and 236.25 ± 227.55 ppm in carrot. Eggplant exhibited the highest concentration of Mn and U, which was 56.923 ± 39.584 and 1.76 ± 1.81 ppm, respectively. However, the total hazard quotient (THQ) of the investigated elements indicated that their levels have no potential to cause a risk to consumers’ health, except Cr (THQ >1), which was higher in all plant samples. This study suggests the safety of vegetables (carrot, onion, eggplant, cucumber, and okra) harvested from farms in Abu-Ghraib, Baghdad, and their low risk of inducing serious health events and raises a concern of the elevated levels of Cr, which necessitate innovative methods to decrease its risk.
Background: Bacteriocin is a peptidic toxin has many advantages to bacteria in their ecological niche and has strong antibacterial activity. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluation of bacteriocin using Streptococcus sanguinis isolated from human dental caries.
Subjects and Methods: Thirty five streptococcus isolates were diagnosed and tested for their production of bacteriocin, and then the optimal conditions for production of bacteriocin were determined. After that, the purification of bacteriocin was made partially by ammonium sulfate at 95% saturation levels, followed by and gel filtration chromatography
... Show MoreBiodiesel is an environmentally friendly fuel and a good substitution for the fossil fuel. However, the purity of this fuel is a major concern that challenges researchers. In this study, a calcium oxide based catalyst has been prepared from local waste eggshells by the calcination method and tested in production biodiesel. The eggshells were powdered and calcined at different temperatures (700, 750, 800, 850 and 900 °C) and periods of time (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 hr.). The effect of calcination temperature and calcination time on the structure and activity of the solid catalyst were examined by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Brunaure-Emmett-Teller (BET). The optimum catalyst performance was obtained at 900 °C
... Show MoreAcinetobacter baumannii received attention for its multi-drug resistant associated with many severe infections and outbreaks in clinical environment. The aims of the study are to investigate the antibiotic susceptibility profile of clinically isolated A. baumannii, biofilm production, and the efficiency of Low Frequency Ultrasound (LFU) and honey to attenuate biofilm production. A total of 100 samples were taken from different sources from Baghdad hospitals. The susceptibility patterns revealed the percentage of pan drug resistant (PDR) isolates were 1.5 %, 72.7 % were extended drug resistant (XDR), 16.7 % were multidrug resistant (MDR), and 9.1 % were non MDR and sensitive to most antibiotics used. The ability to form
... Show MoreThe cost‐effective dual functions zeolite‐carbon composite (DFZCC) was prepared using an eco‐friendly substrate prepared from bio‐waste and an organic adhesive at intermediate conditions. The green synthesis method used in this study ensures that chemically harmless compounds are used to obtain a homogeneous distribution of zeolite over porous carbon. The greenly prepared dual‐function composite was extensively characterized using Fourier transform infrared, X‐ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, N2 adsorption/desorption isotherms, field emission scanning electron microscope, dispersive analysis by X‐ray, and point of zero charges. DFZCC had a surface area o
The extraction of Eucalyptus oil from Iraqi Eucalyptus Camadulensis leaves was studded using water distillation methods. The amount of Eucalyptus oil has been determined in a variety of extraction temperature and agitation speed. The effect of water to Eucalyptus leaves (solvent to solid) ratio and particle size of Eucalyptus leaves has been studied in order to evaluate the amount of Eucalyptus oil. The optimum experimental condition for the Eucalyptus oil extraction was established as follows: 100˚C extraction temperature, 200 rpm agitation speed; 0.5 cm leave particle size and 6:1 ml: g amount of water to eucalyptus leaves Ratio.
In the present study, the effectiveness of a procedure of electrocoagulation for removing chemical oxygen demand (COD) from the wastewater of petroleum refinery has been evaluated. Aluminum and stainless steel electrodes were used as a sacrificial anode and cathode respectively. The effect of current density (4-20mAcm−2), pH (3-11), and NaCl concentration (0-4g/l) on efficiency of removal of chemical oxygen demand was investigated. The results have shown that increasing of current density led to increase the efficiency of COD removal while increasing NaCl concentration resulted in decreasing of COD removal efficiency. Effect of pH was found to be lowering COD re