Pathological blood clot in blood vessels, which often leads to cardiovascular diseases, are one of the most common causes of death in humans. Therefore, enzymatic therapy to degrade blood clots is vital. To achieve this goal, bromelain was immobilized and used for the biodegradation of blood clots. Bromelain was extracted from the pineapple fruit pulp (Ananas comosus) and purified by ion exchange chromatography after precipitation with ammonium sulphate (0-80 %), resulting in a yield of 70%, purification fold of 1.42, and a specific activity of 1175 U/mg. Bromelain was covalently immobilized on functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT), with an enzyme loading of 71.35%. The results of the characterization of free and immobilized bromelain demonstrated that the optimum pH for free and immobilized bromelain activity was 7.0, while the pH range of stability was from 5.0 to 8.5 and 4.0 to 9.0, respectively. The optimum temperature for free and immobilized bromelain activity was 45ºC, whereas the stability was 15 to 50°C and 15 to 55°C, respectively. The immobilized bromelain activity was decreased after the fifth reuse, and the storage period of the free and immobilized bromelain was decreased after 6 and 123 days, respectively. Casein was the best substrate-free bromelain, and fibrin was the best substrate for immobilized bromelain. The results of the purification of polyphenol oxidases (PPO) from potatoes by ion exchange chromatography gave a yield of about 54 %, a purification fold of 1.27, and a specific activity of 2804 U/mg. The current study showed that the immobilized bromelain can significantly biodegrade human blood clots in vitro, while the PPO enzyme has no significant effect on blood clots.
Pultruded materials made of Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (FRP) come in a broad range of shapes, such as bars, I-sections, C-sections, etc. FRP materials are starting to compete with steel as structural materials owing to their great resistance, low self-weight, and cheap maintenance costs, especially in corrosive conditions. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a novel concrete Composite Column (CC) using Encased I-Section (EIS) as a reinforcement in contrast to traditional steel bars by using Glass Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) as I-section (CC-EIS) to evaluate the effectiveness of the hybrid columns which have been built by combining GFRP profiles with concrete columns. To achieve the aims of this study, nine circular co
... Show MoreThis study investigates the effectiveness of mental games in enhancing shooting accuracy among young basketball players. Initially, baseline shooting accuracy was assessed through tests conducted prior to a three-week intervention involving mental games. A follow-up test revealed a significant improvement in participants' shooting accuracy following the intervention. Given the noticeable differences in the new shooting scores compared to the initial assessments, a second set of pre-intervention tests was conducted. These tests reaffirmed the significant enhancement in shooting accuracy, substantiating the hypothesis that mental games positively affect performance. The findings highlight the importance of these intervention programs
... Show MoreThis study was undertaken to diagnose routine settling problems within a third-party oil and gas companies’ Mono-Ethylene Glycol (MEG) regeneration system. Two primary issues were identified including; a) low particle size (<40 μm) resulting in poor settlement within high viscosity MEG solution and b) exposure to hydrocarbon condensate causing modification of particle surface properties through oil-wetting of the particle surface. Analysis of oil-wetted quartz and iron carbonate (FeCO₃) settlement behavior found a greater tendency to remain suspended in the solution and be removed in the rich MEG effluent stream or to strongly float and accumulate at the liquid-vapor interface in comparison to naturally water-wetted particles. As su
... Show MoreThe monthly time series of the Total Suspended Solids (TSS) concentrations in Euphrates River at Nasria was analyzed as a time series. The data used for the analysis was the monthly series during (1977-2000).
The series was tested for nonhomogenity and found to be nonhomogeneous. A significant positive jump was observed after 1988. This nonhomogenity was removed using a method suggested by Yevichevich (7). The homogeneous series was then normalized using Box and Cox (2) transformation. The periodic component of the series was fitted using harmonic analyses, and removed from the series to obtain the dependent stochastic component. This component was then modeled using first order autoregressive model (Markovian chain). The above a
... Show MorePsoriasis is a chronic, inflammatory condition that primarily affects the skin, hair, and joints and is associated with significant humanistic and economic consequences. This work induced psoriasis in mice using an imiquimod 5% cream, an immune response modifier that can cause psoriasis-like skin inflammation when given orally. Paquinimod is prepared as an ointment and has been topically given to mice before imiquimod application. In this study, albino mice were allocated into five groups and treated as follows: the control group received only a daily application of cream based on shaved back (62.5mg/2cm) with a daily topical dose of ointment for 14 consecutive days with the oral vehicle. The Imiquimod group received a daily topical
... Show MoreTo enhance the structural performance of concrete-filled steel tube (CFST) columns, various strengthening techniques have been proposed, including the use of internal steel stiffeners, external wrapping with carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) sheets, and embedded steel elements. However, the behavior of concrete-filled stainless-steel tube (CFSST) columns remains insufficiently explored. This study numerically investigates the axial performance of square CFSST columns internally strengthened with embedded I-section steel profiles under biaxial eccentric loading. Finite element (FE) simulations were conducted using ABAQUS v. 6.2, and the developed models were validated against experimental results from the literature. A comprehen
... Show MoreBackground: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is caused of 85% of all lung cancers. Among the most important factors for lung tumor growth and proliferation are the tyrosine kinase receptors that coded by the epidermal growth factor recep-tor (EGFR) gene. Activation of EGFR ultimately leads to developing of lung cancer. The present study was undertaken with an objective to detect EGFR mutations in bronchial wash from Iraqi patients with NSCLC before treatment. Methods: DNA was extracted from bronchial wash samples collected from 50 patients with NSCLC by using a Qiamp DNA Mini Kit (Qiagen, Hilden, Germany). Then, EGFR mutations were determined by using real-time RCR combined with two technologies, Amplification Refractory Mutation System (
... Show MoreObjective: This study aims to determine the effectiveness of health education oriented program on parents' awareness
towards adolescents' violence control.
Methodology: A quasi-experimental study was carried out in Baghdad city form 1st of April, 2008 to 1st of September,
2009. A purposive "non-probability" sample of 60 parents who have adolescents' violence in their families who were
selected according to specific criteria. The researcher divided the samples into two equal groups; the study and control
groups. The health education program, as well as a questionnaire was constructed as tools for data collection by the
researcher for the purpose of the study. Content validity was determined by a panel of experts in diffe