Objectives: Dickkopf-1 (DKK-1) is WNT/b-catenin pathway antagonist which plays a detrimental role in the development of diabetic retinopathy (DR). This research aimed to assess serum DKK-1 levels in diabetic patients who have and have not developed DR and, compare them with the control subjects finding out whether we can use it as an indicator for DR early diagnosis and to find out which one of the widely used two groups of antidiabetic treatments had the greater effect on this biomarker and hence on the progression of DR. Methods: The study participants were divided into two subgroups: First, 70 patients (36 male, 34 female) with type 2 diabetes mellitus, among them 35 patients diagnosed with DR and 35 with no evidence of DR, and secondly, non-diabetic controls (11 male, 9 female) were selected from the patients attending Ibn AL-Haitham hospital for ophthalmology and a specialized center for endocrinology and diabetes. Venous blood samples of all participants were drawn after an overnight fast, and serum samples were stored at -20ºC until DKK-1 assay. Results: Serum DKK-1 showed significantly lower levels in diabetic patients with (6.1 ± 2 ng/mL) or without DR (14 ± 6.2 ng/mL) when compared to those of controls (34 ± 12.25 ng/mL) (p 0.05). Furthermore, serum DKK-1 levels were lower in the late stage of DR compared to the early stage 5.6 ± 1.7 and 7 ± 1.9 ng/mL, respectively. Furthermore, DPP-4 inhibitors cause a better increment in DKK-1 levels when compared to SU in the NDR group. Conclusions: Reduced serum levels of DKK-1 are related to the existence and worsening of DR and have the prospect to serve as an indicator for this condition.
The research is based on the basic idea that companies today are moving towards a new trend towards protecting the environment coupled with the increasing wareness of the pollution damage caused by these companies due to their operations and activities in the environment. The two main reasons that led the researchers to choose this subject is the need to adapt the companies themselves in response to successive developments, The great development was that companies moved from the sole economic responsibility of the business to social responsibility by emphasizing socially responsible profit. The problem of research is the knowledge of the availability of the dimensions of the green processing series in Kirkuk Cement Factory The re
... Show MoreBackground: Breast cancer (BC) is the most widespread cancer among women worldwide. Its incidence and mortality rates have risen in the previous three decades as a result of changes in risk factor profiles, improved cancer registry, and cancer detection. Objective: The study's goals were to establish if Ki-67 could be used as a potential marker in serum of cancer disease patients as well as their interaction with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and ES in various stages of breast cancer to assess their function in the progression of BC. Materials and Methods: The levels of Ki-67, VEGF and endostatin (ES) in serum were assessed by commercial enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits in 60 women diagnosed with breast cancer
... Show MoreMarketing Intelligence is one of the important methods of collecting information about competitors ' products and changes in customers ' tastes and needs that contribute to determining the policies to be followed in product development.
The problem of research, which seeks to be answered by the extent to which the companies in question have the appropriate and effective mechanisms to develop their products, and the nature of the relationship between the components of marketing intelligence and new product development policies. The importance of research is determined by the importance of obtaining important and necessary information to make the appropriate decision on the development of the new product an
... Show MoreAllowing Iraqi companies to use multiple systems and policies leads to varying levels of disclosure and no high symmetry between report preparers and users, and that the adoption of integrated reporting can reduce information asymmetry. The theoretical side addressed the concepts of these variables, and in the practical side the binary variable (0, 1) was used. To compensate for the value of the independent variable (integrated reporting) based on the Central Bank of Iraq’s classification of banks according to the (CAMLES) index, and the dependent variable (information asymmetry) was measured through two measures (price difference, unusual return), the research community was represented by (5) Banks out of the total of banks li
... Show MoreThis research aims at clarifying the concept of social auditing, which is one of the most important reasons for its emergence is social responsibility accounting and its role in measuring the social performance of enterprises. The study also aimed to know how social auditing has an impact and its role in improving the social performance of business organizations, and the research refers to testing the hypotheses of an impact of social auditing on social performance through a commitment to social responsibility. The research sample consisted of 200 individuals from 20 Algerian business organizations and represented individuals who were researched in managers and em
... Show Moreيهدف هذا العمل الى بيان طبيعة العلاقة بين الادارة بالتجوال والتجديد الاستراتيجي ، ومدى تأثير المتغير المستقل في المتغير التابع. تضمنت فقرات الاستبانة بوصفه الأداة الرئيسة لجمع البيانات ثلاث جوانب اساسية، تضمن الاول البيانات الشخصية للمستجيبين، فيما تضمن الجانب الثاني الفقرات الخاصة بمتغير الادارة بالتجوال من خلال خمسة ابعاد، فيما اشتمل الجانب الثالث على فقرات التجديد الاستراتيجي عبر تناول اربعة ابعاد. ي
... Show MoreThis work aims to show the nature of the relationship between management by walking around (the independent variable) and strategic renewal (the dependent variable), as well as it shows the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable. Questionnaire items were considered the main tool for data collection by three basic aspects. The first involved the personal data of the respondents, while the second included items related to management by walking in five dimensions, and the third is strategic renewal items by addressing four dimensions. The tourism sector, while the community has six Excellent grade hotels was taken into account in this wor
... Show MoreAbstract
The current study was conducted to assess the effect of advancing age on total serum IgE level in asthmatic patients. To this purpose, 90 asthmatic patients and 30 healthy individuals ( control group ) were enrolled. Asthmatic patients were categorized into four groups. Group A consisted of asthmatic patients (9) whose age was more than 20 and up to 30 y. Group B contained asthmatics (13) of age more than 30 and up to 40 y. Group C comprised those (23) of more than 40 and up to 50 y. Group D consisted asthmatic patients (45) of age more than 50 y. Total serum IgE level significantly changed in group D patients when compared with those of