Multi-drug-resistant uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is considered a significant challenge due to its ability to resist antibiotics and form biofilms. UPEC biofilm formers are well protected and largely inaccessible to antibiotics, which leads to persistent infections and evasion of the host immune system. Understanding how ciprofloxacin and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole affect biofilm formation is essential for improving treatment strategies for urinary tract infections (UTIs). A total of 76 UPEC isolates were obtained from Iraqi patients and identified using morphological and biochemical characteristics, as well as the Vitek®-2 Compact system. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were determined using the Vitek®-2 system, which is based on CLSI standards, followed by agar diffusion assays to determine MIC, sub-MIC (SMIC), and sub-sub-MIC (SSMIC). A 96-well microtiter plate assay was used to quantify the biofilm-forming ability of UPEC isolates and to evaluate the effects of ciprofloxacin and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole on UPEC biofilms. The MICs of ciprofloxacin were ≥ 4 µg/mL for resistant isolates and ≤ 0.25 µg/mL for sensitive ones. For trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, MICs were ≥ 320 µg/mL for resistant isolates and ≤ 20 µg/mL for sensitive isolates. Ciprofloxacin inhibited biofilm formation at SSMIC (1 µg/mL) and SMIC (2 µg/mL). Trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole also showed inhibitory effects, although to a lesser extent than ciprofloxacin. In pre-formed biofilms, ciprofloxacin influenced biofilm integrity at MIC (4 µg/mL), SMIC (2 µg/mL), and SSMIC (1 µg/mL), while trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole showed variable effects. Both ciprofloxacin and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole were capable of inhibiting biofilm formation; however, their efficacy varied. Despite their ability to inhibit initial biofilm formation, ciprofloxacin and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole appeared to promote the persistence of already formed UPEC biofilms. Determining the precise concentrations of these antibiotics is essential for effectively managing UTIs caused by
Purpose: To evaluate the effect of intravitreal Aflibercept injection on wet AMD both functionally and anatomically after loading doses. The secondary aim is to evaluate the effect of risk factors including (gender, age, smoking, hypertension, and diabetes meatus) on the patient’s response. Study Design: Interventional case series. Place and Duration of Study: Al-Haitham Eyes Teaching Hospital in Baghdad, Iraq, from November 2021 and September 2022. Methods: Fifty eyes of 47 patients with treatment naïve wet AMD were selected through convenient sampling. Data were collected for age, gender, smoking, and chronic disease. Clinical examination, best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), optical coherence tomography angiography
... Show MorePrevious experimental studies have suggested that hot mixed asphalt (HMA) concrete using hydrated lime (HL) to partially replace the conventional limestone dust filler at 2.5% by the total weight of all aggregates showed an optimum improvement on several key mechanical properties, fatigue life span and moisture susceptibility. However, so far, the knowledge of the thermal response of the modified asphalt concrete and thermal influence on the durability of the pavement constructed are still relatively limited but important to inform pavement design. This paper, at first, reports an experimental study of the tensile fatigue life of HMA concrete mixes designed for wearing layer application. Tests were conducted under three different temperatur
... Show MoreThe effect of Low-Level Laser (LLL) provided by green semiconductor laser with an emission wavelength of 532 nm on of human blood of people with brain and prostate cancer has been investigated. The effect of LLL on white blood cell (WBC), NEUT, LYMPH and MONO have been considered. Platelet count (PLT) has also been considered in this work. 2 ml of blood sample were irradiating by a green laser of the dose of 4.8 J/cm2. The results suggest a potential effect of LLL on WBC, PLT, NEUT, LYMPH, and MONO of people with brain and prostate cancer Key words: white blood cell , platelet , low-level laser therapy
Background: Suppression of quorum sensing (QS) that regulates many virulence factors, including antimicrobial resistance, in bacteria may subject the pathogenic microbes to the harmful consequences of the antibiotics, increasing their susceptibility to such drugs. Aim: The current study aimed to make an aqueous crude extract from the soil Proteus mirabilis isolate with the use of the gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) technique for its analysis, and then, study the impact of the extract on clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Methods: Preparation of crude extracts from P. mirabilis (both organic and aqueous), which were then analyzed by GC-MS to detect the bioactive ingredients. Furthermore, the extract’s capability to i
... Show MoreMulti-belled piles are piles with enlarged ends; these piles have one or further bells at the lower third part of the pile. These piles are suitable for many soils with problems such as softening clay, the variation of groundwater table, expansive soils, black cotton soil, and loose sand. The current study reviewed the behavior of belled piles in multi-layer soils subjected to axial compression and pullout loading. The review covered the experimental and theoretical works on belled piles in multi-layered soils. These piles were subjected to static and dynamic loadings in compression and pullout cases. Most theoretical results focused on software such as PLAXIS 3D. The axial load applied on the piles comes from the upper
... Show MoreInherited metabolic disorders (IMDs) are a diverse group of hereditary abnormalities that leads to a defect in metabolic pathway. Its diagnosis has been transformed by the innovations of molecular genetics and computational biology. Conventionally, diagnosis of IMDs is dependent on clinical findings and biochemical tests. Yet, these methods are limited due to a heterogeneity of such disorders and a large number of genes involved. The main objective of this review is to highlight the role of next-generation sequencing (NGS), including targeted gene panels, whole-exome sequencing (WES), and whole-genome sequencing (WGS), in the diagnosis of IMDs and providing reliable information in identifying genetic causes, and to explore the integrated an
... Show MoreIn this paper the use of a circular array antenna with adaptive system in conjunction with modified Linearly Constrained Minimum Variance Beam forming (LCMVB) algorithm is proposed to meet the requirement of Angle of Arrival (AOA) estimation in 2-D as well as the Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) of estimated sources (Three Dimensional 3-D estimation), rather than interference cancelation as it is used for. The proposed system was simulated, tested and compared with the modified Multiple Signal Classification (MUSIC) technique for 2-D estimation. The results show the system has exhibited astonishing results for simultaneously estimating 3-D parameters with accuracy approximately equivalent to the MUSIC technique (for estimating elevation and a
... Show MoreAggregate production planning (APP) is one of the most significant and complicated problems in production planning and aim to set overall production levels for each product category to meet fluctuating or uncertain demand in future. and to set decision concerning hiring, firing, overtime, subcontract, carrying inventory level. In this paper, we present a simulated annealing (SA) for multi-objective linear programming to solve APP. SA is considered to be a good tool for imprecise optimization problems. The proposed model minimizes total production and workforce costs. In this study, the proposed SA is compared with particle swarm optimization (PSO). The results show that the proposed SA is effective in reducing total production costs and req
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