Elevated Interleukin-13 (IL-13) may play an important role in the pathophysiology of COVID-19, yet, the attenuated response did not notice across all severe cases. Susceptibility to asthma in specific populations is associated with several SNPs of multifunctional cytokines, such as IL-13, IL-31 and IL-33. This prospective case-control study is designed to investigate the extent of genetic susceptibility in subsets of Iraqi patients with COVID-19 by targeting the variants of interleukin IL-13rs20541 polymorphism in relation to disease susceptibility and severity of clinical presentation. One hundred samples were obtained from the throat, nasopharyngeal and nasal swabs enrolled in this study. Eighty samples of the throat, nasopharyngeal and nasal localization swabs were obtained from patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) (both COVID-19 and non-COVID19 patients), while other 20 nasopharyngeal swabs were included as a healthy control group (AHC). Detection of IL-13rs20541 polymorphism was done by ARMS technique. The frequencies of GG- genotype in ARDS- patients with COVID-19, non-COVID19-, and AHC groups were respectively 14%, 12% and 3%, where, and as compared to the control group, showed a significant increase in COVID-19 patients. The AA- genotype in patients with COVID-19 group, non- COVID-19 group and healthy control group documented the frequency of 9%, 7%, and 14%, respectively, where the frequency decreased in the patient's groups as compared to the AHC group. Finally, and among the studied groups, an increase of AG- genotype (as rate OR=1.89) was documented compared to genotype GG and A-. Genetic polymorphisms in the IL-13rs20541 gene might influence its functions in patients with SARS-associated respiratory tract infection and thus might involve the pathogenicity of patients with COVID-19.
Smear zone is usually formed around the prefabricated vertical drains (PVD’s) due to mandrel driving. The geotechnical properties of the soil in this zone exhibit significant changes that affect the performance of the PVD’s. The most relevant property in this respect is the coefficient of permeability. So far, no serious attention is paid to investigate the effects of shearing under large shear strains on the geotechnical properties of the soft soil in Fao region. In this study, an extensive laboratory testing program was conducted to assess the characteristics of the smear zone with an emphasis on the permeability coefficient of Fao soft soil. The results show that the permeability of the smear zone is about 70% of
... Show MoreThe Sequencing Batch Reactor system (SBR) is a major component of the municipal wastewater biological treatment system and water reclamation that provides high-quality water that could be reused in restricted plants that which require large quantities of water despite the lack of water. The research aims to investigate the performance of a pilot plant SBR unit under real operation conditions that was installed and operated in Al-Rustamiya Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP), Baghdad, Iraq. Results showed that the BOD5/COD ratio of the raw wastewater was within the average value at 0.66 emphasizing the organic nature of the influent flow and hence the amenability to biological treatment. The results also ensured that the treatment pro
... Show MoreThe quality of groundwater in the Al-Hawija area was assessed using a water quality index. Data of nine physico-chemical parameters of 28 groundwater wells were used to calculate the water quality index (WQI). A heterogeneous water quality was reported, where in close proximity to the Lesser Zab River (LZR), it has low WQI values and permissible for human consumptions due to the dilution processes by fresh water; whereas, it becomes deteriorated in areas located far away the river. The values of WQI ranges from 22 to 336, indicating a good to very poor groundwater quality.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of hydrated lime addition methods as filler replacement on fatigue performance of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA). Three types of addition methods of hydrated lime were introduced namely dry HL on dry aggregate and saturated surface aggregate above 3% and slurry HL on dry aggregate, ordinary Lime stone powder was reduced by three HL percentage (1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 %). The effect of different methods were investigated on the fatigue properties of HMA using, third-point flexural fatigue bending Test. Pneumatic Repeated Load System (PRLS) was carried out to establish the effect of hydrated lime on the fatigue failure criteria and to select the proper hydrated lime application methods on fatigue behavior o
... Show MoreThis study aims to simulate and assess the hydraulic characteristics and residual chlorine in the water supply network of a selected area in Al-Najaf City using WaterGEMS software. Field and laboratory work were conducted to measure the pressure heads and velocities, and water was sampled from different sites in the network and then tested to estimate chlorine residual. Records and field measurements were utilized to validate WaterGEMS software. Good agreement was obtained between the observed and predicted values of pressure with RMSE range between 0.09–0.17 and 0.08–0.09 for chlorine residual. The results of the analysis of water distribution systems (WDS) during maximum demand
Background: The immune system of the oral cavity suffers alterations due to fixed orthodontic treatment which act as potent stimulus for oral secretory immunity. The aims of this study are to estimate the effect of fixed orthodontic appliance on the level of salivary sIgA at different time intervals, and to verify the gender difference. Materials and method: The patient's history, clinical examination, and fixed orthodontic appliances were placed for 30 Iraqi orthodontic adult patients had class II division 1 and/ or class I malocclusion (15 males and 15 females) aged 18-25 years old. The unstimulated whole saliva was collected from each sample immediately before wearing fixed appliance (control group T0 as base line), and after 2 weeks (T1
... Show MoreThe study investigates the water quality of the Orontes River, which is considered one of the important water recourses in Syria, as it is used for drinking, irrigation, swimming and industrial needs. A database of 660 measurements for 13 parameters concentrations used, were taken from 11 monitoring points distributed along the Orontes River for a period of five years from 2015-2019, and to study the correlation between parameters and their impact on water quality, statistical analysis was applied using (SPSS) program. Cluster analysis was applied in order to classify the pollution areas along the river, and two groups were given: (low pollution - high pollution), where the areas were classified according to the sources of pollution to w
... Show MoreBackground: This in vitro study evaluated the fracture resistance of weakened endodontically treated premolars with class II MOD cavities restored with different composite restorations (Low-shrinkage Filtek P90, nanohybrid Filtek Z250 XT and SDR bulk fill). The type and mode of fracture were also assessed for all the experimental groups. Materials and Method: Fifty human adult maxillary premolar teeth were selected for this study. Standardized extensive class II MOD cavities with endodontic treatment were prepared for all teeth, except those that were saved as intact control. The teeth were divided into five groups of ten teeth each (n=10): (Group 1) intact control group, (Group 2) unrestored teeth with endodontic treatment, (Group 3) resto
... Show MoreWater has a great self-generating capacity that can neutralize the polluting interventions carried out by humans. However, if human activities continue this uncontrolled and unsustainable exploitation of this resource, this regenerating capacity shall fail and it will be jeopardized definitively. Shatt Al-Arab River in South of Iraq. It has an active role in providing water for irrigation, industry, domestic use and a commercial gateway to Iraq. in the last five years Shatt Al-Arab suffered from a rise in pollutants due to the severe decline in sewage networks, irregular networks and pesticide products, as well as the outputs of factories and companies that find their way to water sou
المواقف افي الدول العربية قراءة تحليلية في مواقف لدولية من التغيير (الولايات المتحدة - الاتحاد الاوروبي - روسيا)