Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a neglected disease in tropical countries, including Iraq. Several studies have sought to examine chemotherapies for leishmaniasis treatment but most of them are of toxic and/or undesirable side effect, therefore, the need for investigating new fewer toxic therapies is essential. Aim of study: In this study, the cytotoxic effect of Artemisinin (ART), a novel herbal compound, was screened against the two forms, promastigotes and amastigotes, of the Iraqi isolate of Leishmania tropica, the causative agent of Baghdad boil. Material and methods: Different concentrations (1000, 500, 250, 125, 62.5, 31.25, 15.6 and 7.8) µM of Artemisinin were screened to investigate the leishmanicidal activity of the herbal compound against the two forms of the parasite along three times of follow up (24, 48, 72) hour using MTT cytotoxicity assay. Results: The results showed that growth rate and cell viability were significantly decreased at all studied concentrations. The IC50 was measured after 72 hours of follow up and was 2.625 µM and 2.636 µM for promastigotes and amastigotes, respectively. Conclusion: These findings approved the leishmanicidal efficacy of Artemisinin against the of L. tropica and can be further studied to screen its effectiveness in vivo for exploring a safer herbal drug for treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis.
This study involved the treatment of textile wastewater contaminated with direct blue 15 dye (DB15) using a heterogeneous photo-Fenton-like process. Bimetallic iron/copper nanoparticles loaded on bentonite clay were used as heterogeneous catalysts and prepared via liquid-phase reduction method using eucalyptus leaves extract (E-Fe/Cu@BNPs). Characterization methods were applied to resultant particles (NPs), including SEM, BET, and FTIR techniques. The prepared NPs were found with porous and spherical shapes with a specific surface area of particles was 28.589 m2/g. The effect of main parameters on the photo-Fenton-like degradation of DB15 was investigated through batch and continuous fixed-bed systems. In batch mode, pH, H2O2 dosage, DB15 c
... Show MoreBackground: Implant stability is a mandatory factor for dental implant (DI) osseointegration and long-term success. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of implant length, diameter, and recipient jaw on the pre- and post-functional loading stability. Materials and methods: This study included 17 healthy patients with an age range of 24-61 years. Twenty-two DI were inserted into healed extraction sockets to replace missing tooth/ teeth in premolar and molar regions in upper and lower jaws. Implant stability was measured for each implant and was recorded as implant stability quotient (ISQ) immediately (ISQ0), and at 8 (ISQ8) and 12 (ISQ12) weeks postoperatively, as well as post-functional loading (ISQPFL). The pattern of implant
... Show MoreThe current study aimed to use some bacterial isolates from the local soil of Baghdad city by study the effects of temperature, pH and incubation period on the growth rates of isolated bacteria and choose the optimal conditions for their diversity and for understanding bacterial growth and their requirements for survival and proliferation. This information can be applied to obtain their high growth rate for use in various fields such as agriculture, medicine and environmental sciences in the future. And it used to assess the degree of variation in across bacteria species in pH, temperature and incubation period. A number of local bacterial isolates as
In addition to the primary treatment, biological treatment is used to reduce inorganic and organic components in the wastewater. The separation of biomass from treated wastewater is usually important to meet the effluent disposal requirements, so the MBBR system has been one of the most important modern technologies that use plastic tankers to transport biomass with wastewater, which works in pure biofilm, at low concentrations of suspended solids. However, biological treatment has been developed using the active sludge mixing process with MBBR. Turbo4bio was established as a sustainable and cost-effective solution for wastewater treatment plants in the early 1990s and ran on minimal sludge, and is easy to maintain. This
... Show MoreAl2O3 and Al2O3–Al composite coatings were deposited on steel specimens using Oxy-acetylene gas thermal spray gun. Alumina was mixed with Aluminum in six groups of concentrations (0, 5, 10,12,15 and 20% ) Al2O3, Specimens were tested for corrosion using Potentiodynamic polarization technique. Further tests were conducted for the effect of temperature on polarization curve and the hardness tests for the coated specimens. At first, Modelling was carried out using MINITAB-19, least square method, as a 2nd degree nonlinear model, bad results were achieved because of the high nonlinearity. Better result w
Virtual reality, VR, offers many benefits to technical education, including the delivery of information through multiple active channels, the addressing of different learning styles, and experiential-based learning. This paper presents work performed by the authors to apply VR to engineering education, in three broad project areas: virtual robotic learning, virtual mechatronics laboratory, and a virtual manufacturing platform. The first area provides guided exploration of domains otherwise inaccessible, such as the robotic cell components, robotic kinematics and work envelope. The second promotes mechatronics learning and guidance for new mechatronics engineers when dealing with robots in a safe and interactive manner. And the thir
... Show MoreThe ring modulator described in part I of this paper is designed here for two operating wavelengths 1550nm and 1310nm. For each wavelength, three structures are designed corresponding to three values of polymer slot widths (40, 50 and 60nm). The performance of these modulators are simulated using COMSOL software (version 4.3b) and the results are discussed and compared with theoretical predictions. The performance of intensity modulation/direct detection short range and long rang optical communication systems incorporating the designed modulators is simulated for 40 and 100Gb/s data rates using Optisystem software (version 12). The results reveal that an average energy per bit as low as 0.05fJ can be obtained when the 1550nm modulator is d
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