Background: Polymorphisms in the TNF-α gene affect the development and progression of rheumatoid arthritis. Objective: To investigate the associations between (-806 T/C) and (-857 T/C) SNPs with rheumatoid arthritis severity and susceptibility in a sample of Iraqi patients. Methods: A case-control study was conducted in Baghdad, Iraq. Twenty healthy controls and 63 patients confirmed to be newly diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis were included. Those are divided into two groups (patients and controls), and the patients were further subdivided into severe and mild-moderate groups. Samples from those participants were analyzed for clinical and inflammatory parameter measurements. Genotyping by the Sanger method was performed to study the SNPs. Results: No associations were demonstrated between rheumatoid arthritis and polymorphisms at positions -806 and -857. Additionally, there were no differences in the distribution of those SNP genotypes and alleles among the severe and mild-moderate groups. Also, the (-806 C/T) SNP was found to be correlated with DAS 28 in all patients and with hs-CRP in the mild-moderate group. Finally, the -857 C/T SNP was found to be correlated with TNF-α within the mild-moderate group. Conclusions: Polymorphisms at positions -806 and -857 were not associated with rheumatoid arthritis susceptibility, and the CT genotype of -806 C/T SNP was associated with disease activity.
Abstract Daily dressing changes cause distress and pain for victims of burn injuries. The study aimed to determine the effect of music in reducing the pain and anxiety of thermally burned children during routine dressing changes. This quantitative study employed a randomized controlled trial design. The participants comprised 80 children at the Specialized Burns Hospital, in Baghdad, Iraq who were divided into two groups. The intervention group were exposed to three generic musical pieces (children’s music, nature sounds, and classical music) for 10-15 minutes. The researchers used the Objective Pain Scale, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and physiological parameters to measure the children’s responses immediately before the dressing cha
... Show MoreHedera helix L. plant belongs to the family Araliaceae that provide a host of bioactive compounds (mainly saponins) of important biological activities, like spasmolytic, secretolytic, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial activities. Literature survey revealed that there was no previously study concerning H. helix L. which is cultivated in Iraq, so we decided to carry out this study which include extraction, isolation, purification and identification of biologically important triterpenoid saponin hederacoside C from leaves of H. helix L. Extraction of hederacoside C was carried out using two methods; in the first method maceration was done with methanol 99.8% and in the second method soxhlet extraction wit
... Show MoreIn this paper synthesis and extensive investigation of the microstructural and optoelectronic properties of polyaniline (PANI), Multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNTs) and MWCNTs reinforced PANI composites is presented. MWCNTs- PANI composites have been deposited by spin coating on silicon wafer substrate. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy shows no difference between PANI and its composites. However a change in peaks shape and absorption intensity has been observed. A strong effect of the MWCNTs weight percentage on the PANI/MWCNTs composites has been demonstrated. It was find that the thermal stability improved with increasing MWCNTs content. The optical band gap of the PANI thin
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by persistent joint inflammation, which is a defining feature of this chronic inflammatory condition. Considerable advancements have been made in the field of disease-modifying anti-rheumatic medicines (DMARDs), which effectively mitigate inflammation and forestall further joint deterioration. Anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) drugs, which are a class of biological DMARDs (bDMARDs), have been efficaciously employed in the treatment of RA in recent times Adalimumab, a TNF inhibitor, has demonstrated significant efficacy in reducing disease symptoms and halting disease progression in patients with RA. However, its use is associated with major side effects and high costs. In addition,
... Show MoreBackground : Diabetes mellitus, also known as blood sugar, is a series of metabolic disorders described by high blood glucose levels (hyperglycemia), low blood glucose (hypoglycemia), or both, resulting from defects in insulin production, insulin action, or both. Numerous studies have shown that interleukin (IL-6) acts on skeletal muscle cells , liver cells, and pancreas cells to influence glucose balance and metabolism, which directly or indirectly contributes to the development of diabetes. Research in this area is crucial because diabetes is recognized as a major risk factor for many diseases like Diabetic retinopathy, Diabetic nephropathy, Diabetic Neuropathy , heart disease and others. Patients and methods : In this study, we
... Show MoreIn this work an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique has been used for detection of some inflammatory markers in serum of acute coronary syndrome (ACS)-Patients Admitted to the cardiac care unit (CCU) of Iraqi Centre For Heart Diseases and Ibn AlNafees Teaching Hospital. The present method includes quantitative measurement of interleukine-6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP), as their increase during symptoms may be responsible for identifying the mechanism of myocardial damag, in addition to their best performance than other quantitative tests perhaps due to their association with atherosclerotic process that belongs to the endothelial dysfunction. Aim of this study is to estimate the prevalence and correlation of IL-6 w
... Show MoreRheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, progressive, inflammatory autoimmune disease of unidentified etiology, associated with articular, extra-articular and systemic manifestation that require long-standing treatment. Taking patient’s beliefs about the prescribed medication in consideration had been shown to be an essential factor that affects adherence of the patient in whom having positive beliefs is an essential for better adherence. The purpose of the current study was to measure beliefs about medicines among a sample of Iraqi patients with Rheumatoid arthritis and to determine possible association between this belief and some patient-certain factors. This study is a cross-sectional study carried out on 250 already diagnosed rheumatoid
... Show MoreBackground: Obesity typically results from a variety of causes and factors which contribute, genetics included, and style of living choices, and described as excessive body fat accumulation of body fat lead to excessive body, is a chronic disorder that combines pathogenic environmental and genetic factors. So, the current study objective was to investigate the of the FTO gene rs9939609 polymorphism and the obesity risk. Explaining the relationship between fat mass and obesity-associated gene (FTO) rs9939609 polymorphism and obesity in adults. Methods: Identify research exploring the association between the obesity risk and the variation polymorphisms of FTO gene rs9939609. We combined the modified odds ratios (OR) as total groups and subgro
... Show MoreNumerous blood biomarkers are altered in COVID-19 patients; however, no early biochemical markers are currently being used in clinical practice to predict COVID-19 severity. COVID-19, the most recent pandemic, is caused by the SRS-CoV-2 coronavirus. The study was aimed to identify patient groups with a high and low risk of developing COVID-19 using a cluster analysis of several biomarkers. 137 women with confirmed SARS CoV-2 RNA testing were collected and analyzed for biochemical profiles. Two-dimensional automated hierarchy clustering of all biomarkers was applied, and patients were sorted into classes. Biochemistry marker variations (Ferritin, lactate dehydrogenase LDH, D-dimer, and C- reactive protein CRP) have split COVID-19 patien
... Show MoreThe purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of corrosive environment (corrosive ferric chloride of 1, 2, 5, 6% wt. at room temperature), immersion period of (48, 72, 96, 120, 144 hours), and surface roughness on pitting corrosion characteristics and use the data to build an artificial neural network and test its ability to predict the depth and intensity of pitting corrosion in a variety of conditions. Pit density and depth were calculated using a pitting corrosion test on carbon steel (C-4130). Pitting corrosion experimental tests were used to develop artificial neural network (ANN) models for predicting pitting corrosion characteristics. It was found that artificial neural network models were shown to be
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