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.
Purpose - This study relies on the descriptive and analytical approach through collecting and analyzing the necessary data, as this approach focuses on polling the opinions of the research sample and its directions, and aims to develop a model that studies the relationship between knowledge creation and organizational ambidexterity in Iraqi private banks and verifying its validity experimentally.
Design / Methodology / Introduction - A survey was conducted through a questionnaire form to collect data from a sample of (113) managers in private commercial banks. In addition, this study used the AMOS program and the ready-to-use statistical program package (SPSS V.25) to test the proposed hypotheses of the t
... Show MoreRetainers have the potential to detrimentally impact periodontal health and contribute to tooth decay.
To investigate periodontal health and bacterial biofilm related to Poly-Ether-Ether-Ketone (PEEK) fixed retainers as compared to Dead-soft coaxial fixed retainer (DSC).
A two-arm parallel groups single-centre randomized c
In the present study, histological study was carried out on adult chickens to shed light on the effects of GH and IGF-1 on the heart, liver, and gizzard. The microscopic examination had shown that GH and IGF1 promote protein synthesis in the heart tissue. The herein work referred to the presence of a considerable amount of adipose tissue among the bundles of cardiac muscles, which is related to the metabolic process. The results also revealed that GH and IGF-1 promote both protein synthesis and Mitosis in the tissues of the liver and gizzard Moreover, the above hormones stimulate apoptosis, regeneration and secretory activity in gizzard secretory glands
Abstract
The aim of the research is to demonstrate the impact of long-term investment on profitability, and in order to achieve this goal, long-term investment was chosen, represented by (the ratio of long-term investments to total investments, the ratio of long-term investment to the total (deposits) as independent variables, and studying its impact on the dependent variable, which is profitability as measured by the rate of return on investments, the rate of return on equity. In order to reach the results, the inductive approach and the analytical descriptive approach were used, and the research found a significant impac
... Show MoreBackground: The present study aimed to assess the distribution, prevalence, severity of malocclusion in Baghdad governorate in relation to gender and residency Materials and Methods: A multi-stage stratified sampling technique was used in this investigation to make the sample a representative of target population. The sample consisted of 2700 (1349 males and 1351 females) intermediate school students aged 13 years representing 3% of the total target population. A questionnaire was used to determine the perception of occlusion and orthodontic treatment demand of the students and the assessment procedures for occlusal features by direct intraoral measurement using veriner and an instrument to measure the rotated and displaced teeth. Results a
... Show MoreThis research aims at identifying the communicative habits and content reflections on the communication process, especially the young audience which is one of the main group for whom the announcements are made. Because young people face life with passion and aspiration making them respond to each effect used by the media in the design of the advertising using all the effective techniques, attractive methods for young children like depending on drama, technical tricks, music and logos easily to be remembered and responded to the desires of the young in their entertainment. This research also aims at identifying the impact of the internet as a channel of commercial advertising on the purchasing behavior of young people at the universities
... Show MoreThe research of three-based financial indicators to create value for shareholders, have been identified research problem in a number of the questions revolved around the extent to which it can express its based performance metrics to create value for the essence and the reality of the surveyed enterprises performance, Can the departments surveyed companies to choose the scale or the most harmonizing index and an expression of the actual performance of the company, has the goal of research is to diagnose the strengths and weaknesses in the performance of the surveyed enterprises through the use of a number of based on the concept of creating economic value and the search for the most suitable indicator to the reality of the perfor
... Show MoreThe current research aims to identify the level of impact of strategic improvisation as an independent variable on organizational health. The dependent variable in the Department of Health of Dhi Qar to reach appropriate mechanisms in order to reach appropriate mechanisms and recommendations proposed to contribute to the achievement of organizational health in the Department of Health of Dhi Qar (the research department) and based on the importance of the subject of research in government institutions and the important and service role of the Department of Health of Dhi Qar in the Iraqi society. The descriptive analytical approach was adopted in the completion of the research based on the opinions of the leaders in the surveyed depa
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