The possible effects of COVID-19 vaccines on reproductive health and male fertility in particular have been discussed intensely by the scientific community and the public since their introduction during the pandemic. On news outlets and social media platforms, many claims have been raised regarding the deleterious effects of COVID-19 vaccines on sperm quality without scientific evidence. In response to this emerging conflict, we designed this study to evaluate and assess the effect of the Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA COVID-19 vaccine on male fertility represented by the semen analysis parameters.

Ten isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae, seven isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and nine isolates of Staphylococcus aureus, were obtained from 100 urine samples collected from Baghdad hospitals. All isolates were identified biochemically and confirmed by using VITEK 2 and were then tested for their susceptibility towards 6 antibiotics and for phenolic extracts of Thymus vulgaris and Cinnamomum cassia. All bacteria were greatly affected by T. vulgaris, especially K. pneumoniae. Viable count was performed, it was noted that the number of bacterial cells reduced from 1×108 CFU to 1.2× 103, 2×105 and 1.8×106CFU of K. pneumoniae, P. aeruginosa and S. aureus respectively. While C. cassiahad a slight effect on them. K. pneumoniae isola

Background and purpose: Animal model helps researchers to evaluate new treatment plan for human and understand pathological mechanism involved in a development of disease. The use of rats as an animal model for Alzheimer's research has become a favorite among researchers. Rats are capable in mimicking Alzheimer disease due to their intelligence and quick adaptation to nature. At present there are several methods that can be used to induce Alzheimer's animals, but each method has advantages and disadvantages. We need to learn other methods that can provide many advantages and few disadvantages. The Amyloid-beta 42 (Aβ-42) and Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) are thought to play an important role in the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease. Th

Lifestyle Medicine is the application of evidence-based lifestyle approaches for the prevention, treatment, and even the reversal of lifestyle-related chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, obesity, polycystic ovarian diseases, dementia, arthritis, and cancers

    In this article, the research presents a general overview of deep learning-based AVSS (audio-visual source separation) systems. AVSS has achieved exceptional results in a number of areas, including decreasing noise levels, boosting speech recognition, and improving audio quality. The advantages and disadvantages of each deep learning model are discussed throughout the research as it reviews various current experiments on AVSS. The TCD TIMIT dataset (which contains top-notch audio and video recordings created especially for speech recognition tasks) and the Voxceleb dataset (a sizable collection of brief audio-visual clips with human speech) are just a couple of the useful datasets summarized in the paper that can be used to test A

This study was aimed to investigate the lead and cadmium in water and in fish samples collected from three sites of Gharraf River at Thi Qar from September 2020 until April 2021. Results showed that (Pb) in river water ranged 0.156 - 4.306µg/l and the (Cd) 0.074 - 0.523 µg/l which recorded a significant differences among all sites as well as among all seasons. In addition the concentrations of Pb in some tissues  of  Cyprinus carpio ranged 0.069 - 4.98µg/g in muscles and kidney respectively, while Cd  ranged  0.038 - 1.46 µg/g in muscles and kidney respectively. The study also sho

This study was conducted to detect the prevalence of Babesiosis in different areas at Baghdad city, by using microscopic examination ;180 sheep’s head blood samples were collected from each local breed (122 males and 58 females) with different age groups from 6 months to more than one year old, during the period extended from 1/October2019 to end of April 2020.Giemsa stained blood smears were done for detection Babesia spp. ; The overall rate of  infection with Babesia spp. in sheep was 15.55% (28/180), significant differences P≤0.05 was  recorded between male 19.67% ( 24/122) and female 6.89% ( 4/58 ), and sheep with  equal or more than one year old  registered higher ra

The antibacterial activity of some extracts of A. eupatoria (aqueous and ethanolic) against some pathogenic bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli ) and their activity on wound healing in rats , also the presence of some active compounds in both extracts were detected . The results showed that the ethanolic extract was more effective on inhibiting tested bacteria than the aqueous extract . P.aeruginosa was the most resistant bacteria, while highest inhibition zone appeared on E.coli (20 mm) .There was a moderate activity against S.aureus with inhibition zone 15 mm. by using ethanolic extract (10 mg/ml) . The phytochemical analysis for detection of active compounds revealed the presence of Carbohydrate

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) contain free –COOH which thought to be responsible for the GI irritation associated with all traditional NSAIDs. The esterification of this group is one of an approach to ultimate aim for reduce the gastric irritation; so in this study we synthesized and preliminarily evaluated new ester compounds as new analogues with expected selectivity toward COX-2 enzyme. Synthetic procedures have been successfully developed for the generation of the target compounds (III a and b). The synthetic approach involved multi-steps procedures which include: Synthesis of 4-hydroxy benzene sulphonamide ( I b ), synthesis of Naproxen and Ibuprofen acyl chloride and then reacting them with 4-hydroxy benzene sulphon

In the current review, an updated list of dark beetle species (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae) recorded in Iraq was given. The current paper is based on previous studies in the literature and contains all dark beetles referred to in Iraq, except for the species within the Pimelinae subfamily. The investigation of this review showed the presence of 89 species belonging to 34 genera within five subfamilies. This work included mentioning the basionyms and synonyms for genera and species with their global distribution, as well as, correcting the scientific names that were mentioned in the previous checklists.

     The electrical resistivity method is one of the geophysical methods for detecting weak subsurface zone. The 2D resistivity data were used to compare three electrode configurations, Wenner, Dipole-dipole, and Schlumberger, to detect weak subsurface zones along a profile south of Baghdad near the Bismayah pumping station. The results show many zones of low resistivity that may be weak zones. A dipole-dipole array is a large number of measurements and is more sensitive than others. The Wenner-Schlumberger array has a depth also higher than other arrays. Wenner array has higher signal strength than other arrays. Because it is more sensitive to horizontal and vertical structures, the dipole-dipole array is the optimum for mapping sub

    The purpose of this study is to calculate the effect of the elastic wall of a hollow channel of Jeffrey's fluid by peristaltic flow through two concentric cylinders. The inside tube is cylindrical and the outside is a regular elastic wall in the shape of a sine wave. Using the cylindrical coordinates and assuming a very short wavelength relative to the width of the channel to its length and using governing equations for Jeffrey’s fluid in Navier-Stokes equations, the results of the problem are obtained. Through the Mathematica  program these results are  analysed.

In order to understand the effect of (length of pile / diameter of pile) ratio on the load carrying capacity and settlement reduction behavior of piled raft resting on loose sand, laboratory model tests were conducted on small-scale models. The parameters studied were the effect of pile length and the number of piles. The load settlement behavior obtained from the tests has been validated by using 3-D finite element in ABAQUS program, was adopted to understand the load carrying response of piled raft and settlement reduction. The results of experimental work show that the increase in (Lp/dp) ratio led to increase in load carrying capacity by piled raft from (19.75 to 29.35%), (14.18 to 28.87%) and (0 to 16.49%) , the maximum load carried

        In this work, an anti-reflection coating was prepared in the region (400-1000) nm of wavelength, with a double layer of silicon dioxide (SiO₂) as an inner layer and the second layer of the mixture (SiO₂) and titanium dioxide (TiO₂) with certain ratios, as an outer layer using the chemical spraying method with a number of 6 sprays of layer SiO₂ and 12 sprays of layer SiO₂ - TiO₂. Using the method of chemical spraying deposited on the glass as a substrate with a different number of sprays of SiO₂, and a fixed number of TiO₂-SiO₂. The optical and structural properties were determined using UV-Vis spectroscopy and atomic force mi

اصبح لمجالس الادارة في الشركات دوراً حاسماً في تعزيز الحوكمة الفاعلة، كونها تتحمل المسؤولية النهائية عن نظم الرقابة الداخلية في شركاتها، ويلعب التدقيق الداخلي دوراً اساسياً في مساعدة تلك المجالس على القيام بمهمات الحوكمة. ولهذا يبذل مجمع المدققين الداخليين الامريكي جهداً كبيراً في توجيه اعضاءه ليكونوا متخصصين في اصول حوكمة الشركات وتحسين وتقوية اخلاقيات العمل وسلامة المنظمة.

لذا فإن ا

            Semi-parametric regression models have been studied in a variety of applications and scientific fields due to their high flexibility in dealing with data that has problems, as they are characterized by the ease of interpretation of the parameter part while retaining the flexibility of the non-parametric part. The response variable or explanatory variables can have outliers, and the OLS approach have the sensitivity to outliers. To address this issue, robust (resistance) methods were used, which are less sensitive in the presence of outlier values in the data. This study aims to estimate the partial regression model using the robust estimation method with the wavel

In this paper, an Integral Backstepping Controller (IBC) is designed and optimized for full control, of rotational and translational dynamics, of an unmanned Quadcopter (QC). Before designing the controller, a mathematical model for the QC is developed in a form appropriate for the IBC design. Due to the underactuated property of the QC, it is possible to control the QC Cartesian positions (X, Y, and Z) and the yaw angle through ordering the desired values for them. As for the pitch and roll angles, they are generated by the position controllers. Backstepping Controller (BC) is a practical nonlinear control scheme based on Lyapunov design approach, which can, therefore, guarantee the convergence of the position tracking

ABSTRACT. A new three metal complexes of La(III), Ce(IV) and UO2(II) ions have been synthesized based on a Schiff base derived from the condensation of L-histidine and anisaldehyde. All prepared compounds were characterized by different spectroscopic techniques and Density-functional theory (DFT) calculations. The complexes were proposed to have an octahedral structure based on the investigated results. The optimized shape, numbering system, and dipole moment vector of Ligand and La, Ce, and UO2 (1:1) chelates were investigated. The Schiff base ligand and complexes exhibit moderate action against all of the bacteria tested, with P. aeruginosa, Klebsiella sp., and E. faecalis respectively being the order of inhibition.  

The optimum design is characterized by structural concrete components that can sustain loads well beyond the yielding stage. This is often accomplished by a fulfilled ductility index, which is greatly influenced by the arrangement of the shear reinforcement. The current study investigates the impact of the shear reinforcement arrangement on the structural response of the deep beams using a variety of parameters, including the type of shear reinforcement, the number of lacing bars, and the lacing arrangement pattern. It was found that lacing reinforcement, as opposed to vertical stirrups, enhanced the overall structural response of deep beams, as evidenced by test results showing increases in ultimate loads, yielding, and cracking of

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the possible the association between +3061 (G>A, rs1143676) missense mutation in exon 24 of the integrin α-4 subunit (ITGA-4) gene and the response to natalizumab in a sample of Iraqi multiple sclerosis patients. Methods: A sample of 59 patients with multiple sclerosis (16 males and 43 females; mean age of 32 years; age range of 15 to 52 years) receiving natalizumab for at least 12 consecutive months were involved in the study between March and August/ 2022. The sample was categorized into two groups according to their response to natalizumab treatment (responders and non-responders). Polymerase chain reaction and Sanger’s sequencing for the extracted deoxyribonucleic acid was pe

Recalcitrant adventitious root (AR) development is a major hurdle in propagating commercially important woody plants. Although significant progress has been made to identify genes involved in subsequent steps of AR development, the molecular basis of differences in apparent recalcitrance to form AR between easy-to-root and difficult-to-root genotypes remains unknown. To address this, we generated cambium tissue-specific transcriptomic data from stem cuttings of hybrid aspen, T89 (difficult-to-root) and hybrid poplar OP42 (easy-to-root), and used transgenic approaches to verify the role of several transcription factors in the control of adventitious rooting. Increased peroxidase activity was positively correlated with better rooting. We foun

Progression in Computer networks and emerging of new technologies in this field helps to find out new protocols and frameworks that provides new computer network-based services. E-government services, a modernized version of conventional government, are created through the steady evolution of technology in addition to the growing need of societies for numerous services. Government services are deeply related to citizens’ daily lives; therefore, it is important to evolve with technological developments—it is necessary to move from the traditional methods of managing government work to cutting-edge technical approaches that improve the effectiveness of government systems for providing services to citizens. Blockchain technology is amon