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.
This paper aims to decide the best parameter estimation methods for the parameters of the Gumbel type-I distribution under the type-II censorship scheme. For this purpose, classical and Bayesian parameter estimation procedures are considered. The maximum likelihood estimators are used for the classical parameter estimation procedure. The asymptotic distributions of these estimators are also derived. It is not possible to obtain explicit solutions of Bayesian estimators. Therefore, Markov Chain Monte Carlo, and Lindley techniques are taken into account to estimate the unknown parameters. In Bayesian analysis, it is very important to determine an appropriate combination of a prior distribution and a loss function. Therefore, two different
... Show MoreThe aim of this study is to show the concepts of nuclear shape and the geometrical picture to the even-even nuclei of 164,166,168E isotopes in the context of the Interacting boson Model IBM-1. The energy spectra were calculated and the effective charge values (eB) of the electromagnetic transition strength were obtained and used to calculate the B(E2) values of the electromagnetic transitions and the quadrupole moment Q of 2+ -states. The Hamiltonian parameters were calculated by taking in account the properties of these nuclei. Comparison were made with the available experimental data and included in tables. The geometrical picture of these nuclei were looked at by calculating the deformation which were represented by the potentia
... 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
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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
Allowing 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 MoreChronic periodontitis (CP) is an inflammatory disease affecting tooth supporting structures in response to bacterial dental plaque causing irreversible tissue destruction. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is an effective mediator in the pathogenesis of periodontitis. Polymorphisms in the COX-2 gene may contribute to its overexpression and increased disease susceptibility. To evaluate the association between -1195 A/G single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the promotor area of the cyclooxygenase-2(COX-2) gene and severity of chronic periodontitis in a sample of Iraqi population. -1195A/ G COX-2 SNP was investigated in 70 chronic periodontitis (CP) cases and 30 healthy controls. CP cases composed of 2 subgroups (35 moderate CP cases and 35 severe CP
... Show MoreGestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is the most common metabolic disorder that found during gestation and is define as hyperglycemia of variable severity with onset or first recognition during gestation that does not clearly characterize any form of the preexisting diabetes (American Diabetes Association [1]). It affects approximately 16.5% of pregnancies worldwide (Plows, et al.[2]). The placenta is an organ that connects the mother and her fetus during pregnancy (Gul, et al.[3]). In the placenta, glucose can be transformed into glycogen for storage by either glycogen synthase or using glycogenin as a prime. However, the function of glycogen deposition stays a matter of debate, it may be the source of fuel for placenta itself or the storag
... Show MoreReactive oxygen species (ROS) are produced as a result of biochemical processes that are not in balance with the body's antioxidant defense mechanism. This metabolic dysfunction is referred to the oxidative stress (OS). Metabolic dysfunction-associated diseases are affected by changes in the redox balance. It is now widely recognized that oxidative stress significantly affects diabetes mellitus (DM), particularly type 2 diabetes. The biochemical changes associated with DM could disturb the oxidative milieu, leading to several microvascular complications in diabetic patients. Thus, DM is a perfect disease to explore the harmful consequences of oxidative stress and how to treat it. Oxidative stress triggered by hyperglycemia is
... 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
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