Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with polymorphic expression. B cells have an essential contribution in immune system activation via the production of different cytokines and functioning as potent antigen-presenting cells. Therefore, a drug that particularly targets B cells may represent an ideal therapeutic approach for SLE. Rituximab (RTX), an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody causing transient B-cell depletion, has been used to manage SLE. This study aims to assess Rituximab effects on lupus nephritis (LN) patients when added to conventional immunosuppressants. Twenty four patients, 15-32 years old, with class III/IV/V LN were involved in this study. All were on steroids before lupus nephritis occurrence. They were given rituximab induction therapy and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) maintenance therapy. RTX was indicated for refractory and relapsing SLE. Several investigations done before and after RTX treatment and in the last follow up (done one year after starting Rituximab). Those included protein in urine, serum creatinine, double stranded DNA, C3, C4, and Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR). Proteinuria decreased significantly after RTX treatment and in the last measurement (P=0.01 and P=0.001, respectively). Serum creatinine significantly decreased only in the last measurement (P=0.02). Double stranded DNA decreased remarkably after treatment (P=0.01) with a further decrease in the last measurement (P=0.006). C3 and C4 increased after treatment but the increase was significant only for C3 (P=0.002) and this increase continues till the last measurement (P=0.0006). Active urine sediments found in fifteen patients and disappeared after RTX treatment. Rituximab can be promising in treating lupus nephritis when used along with traditional immunosuppressants. It can reduce disease activity and improve renal function in such patients.
Three N-(hydroxylphenyl) dimethylmaleimides were directly prepared in good yields (81-86)% from the reaction of dimethylmaleic anhydride with amino phenols. The prepared imides were esterified to the corresponding benzoates, methacrylates and cinnamates via their reaction with different acid chlorides in the presence of triethylamine. The prepared esters were tested as plasticizers for PVC via preparing of thirty six samples of PVC with the prepared esters in certain weight ratio followed by recording their softening points. Comparison the results with the universal plasticizers for PVC (DOP) and (DBP) indicated that the prepared esters in general have high plasticizing efficiency.
To evaluate the bioactivity and the cytocompatibility of experimental Bioglass-reinforced polyethylene-based root-canal filling materials. The thermal properties of the experimental materials were also evaluated using differential scanning calorimetry, while their radiopacity was assessed using a grey-scale value (GSV) aluminium step wedge and a phosphor plate digital system. Bioglass 45S5 (BAG), polyethylene and Strontium oxide (SrO) were used to create tailored composite fibres. The filler distribution within the composites was assessed using SEM, while their bioactivity was evaluated through infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) after storage in simulated body fluid (SBF). The radiopacity of the composite fibres and their thermal properties were
... Show MoreArsenic is a prevalent and pervasive environmental contaminant with varied amounts in drinking water. Arsenic exposure causes cancer, cardiovascular, liver, nerve, and ophthalmic diseases. The current study aimed to find the best conditions for eliminating arsenic from simulated wastewater and their effect on biomarkers of hepatic in mice. Adsorption tests including pH, contact duration, Al-kheriat dosage, and arsenic concentrations were evaluated. Seventy-two healthy albino mice (male) were accidentally allocated into nine groups (n = 8), the first group was considered as healthy control, the second group (AL-Kheriat), and other groups received AL-Kheriat and arsenic 25, 50, 75, 100, 125, 150 and 175 mg/kg, respectively. Next 10 days, the
... Show MoreBioindicators have an important role in assessing the quality of water bodies. Aquatic oligocheates, was used as a bioindicator to assess the sediment quality of Al-Hindyia and AL-Abbasyia river (branches of Euphrates River in Iraq). Two sites in each river have been chosen for this purpose, site S1 was located at Al-Hindyia River and S2 at Al-Abbasyia River. Some kinds of biological indices were used in this study, comprising the percentage of oligochaetes in benthic invertebrates, ranged from 20.3-60.16%. While the percentage of Tubificidae within benthic invertebrates was close 43.3-43.9%.Index of pollution D ranged from 0.13-0.21. The maximum percentage of aquatic oligochaetes to insects larvae of family
... Show MoreThis study outlines the synthesis of substituted 1,2,4-triazole derivatives through the cyclization reaction of thiourea derivatives. The process begins with the reaction of different halides with KSCN to produce isothiocyanate derivatives. then followed by a reaction with isonicotinic acid hydrazide to yield thioureas (1-6), with a yield rate of (72-88%). Then, compounds (1-6) were treated with alkaline medium 4 N (NaOH) to produced 1,2,4-triazole derivatives (7-12) with a yield (51-69%).The structure of the prepared compounds was characterized using FTIR,1HNMR and 13CNMR spectroscopy. Some of the synthesized compounds were tested for antimicrobial activity when, compound 9 showed strong activity against gram positive bacteria (Sta
... Show MoreThis study aimed to improve the microencapsulation technique using a type coating the encapsulation Layer by Layer, which provide the best protection for life Lactobacillus casei in the extrusion method and use the microencapsulation of materials of the protein concentrated by protein 80% and the coating with alginate and chitosan have the results showed the variation in the difference of the binding process encapsulation yield among the types of coating through. by studying of these the effect o stability of the bio probiotic free cell and the three types coated towards three different concentrations from bile salts 0, 0.3, 0.5 and 0.7% when the periods of time different of zero and two and three hours at incubation the recorded
... Show MoreGreen areas are an essential component of city planning, as they serve as an outlet for them to spend their free time, in addition to the environmental role that these green areas play in improving the city’s climate by purifying the air and beautifying the city. The study’s problem is summarized in identifying the appropriateness of the current spatial distribution of green areas in the city of Najaf with the current population densities and the pattern in which green areas are distributed using GIS and knowing the per capita share of those green areas in the city, the research assumes that the inconsistency of spaces between regions Green and residential neighbourhoods need to c
In recent days, the escalating need to seamlessly transfer data traffic without discontinuities across the Internet network has exerted immense pressure on the capacity of these networks. Consequently, this surge in demand has resulted in the disruption of traffic flow continuity. Despite the emergence of intelligent networking technologies such as software-defined networking, network cloudification, and network function virtualization, they still need to improve their performance. Our proposal provides a novel solution to tackle traffic flow continuity by controlling the selected packet header bits (Differentiated Services Code Point (DSCP)) that govern the traffic flow priority. By setting the DSCP bits, we can determine the appropriate p
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