The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused a pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) which represents a global public health crisis. Based on recent published studies, this review discusses current evidence related to the transmission, clinical characteristics, diagnosis, management and prevention of COVID-19. It is hoped that this review article will provide a benefit for the public to well understand and deal with this new virus, and give a reference for future researches.

Breast cancer (BC) is first of the top 10 malignancies in Iraq. Dose‐volume histograms (DVHs) are most commonly used as a plan evaluation tool. This study aimed to assess DVH statistics using three‐dimensional conformal radiotherapies in BC in an adjuvant setting.

Water quality planning relies on Biochemical Oxygen Demand BOD. BOD testing takes five days. The Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) is increasingly used for water resource forecasting. This work designed a PSO technique for estimating everyday BOD at Al-Rustumiya wastewater treatment facility inlet. Al-Rustumiya wastewater treatment plant provided 702 plant-scale data sets during 2012-2022. The PSO model uses the daily data of the water quality parameters, including chemical oxygen demand (COD), chloride (Cl^-), suspended solid (SS), total dissolved solids (TDS), and pH, to determine how each variable affects the daily incoming BOD. PSO and multiple linear regression (MLR) findings are compared, and their perfor

Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) is considered a standard treatment for nephrolith or kidney stones measuring less than 20 mm. Anatomical, machine-related, and stone factors play pivotal roles in treatment outcomes, the latter being the leading role. This paper examined the relationship between stone density on native CT scans and ESWL treatment to remove renal stones concerning several treatments. One hundred and twenty patients (64 males and 56 females) were enrolled and completed the study from April 2019 to September 2020. Inclusion criteria were a single renal pelvis stone of 5–20 mm to be treated for the first time in adult patients with no urinary or musculoskeletal anatomical abnormalities. We assessed patients

The high cost of chemical analysis of water has necessitated various researches into finding alternative method of determining portable water quality. This paper is aimed at modelling the turbidity value as a water quality parameter. Mathematical models for turbidity removal were developed based on the relationships between water turbidity and other water criteria. Results showed that the turbidity of water is the cumulative effect of the individual parameters/factors affecting the system. A model equation for the evaluation and prediction of a clarifier’s performance was developed:

Model: T = T₀(-1.36729 + 0.037101∙10^λpH + 0.048928t + 0.00741387∙alk)

The developed model will aid the predictiv

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with polymorphic expression. B cells have an essential contribution in immune system activation via the production of different cytokines and functioning as potent antigen-presenting cells. Therefore, a drug that particularly targets B cells may represent an ideal therapeutic approach for SLE. Rituximab (RTX), an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody causing transient B-cell depletion, has been used to manage SLE. This study aims to assess Rituximab effects on lupus nephritis (LN) patients when added to conventional immunosuppressants. Twenty four patients, 15-32 years old, with class III/IV/V LN were involved in this study. All were on steroids before lupus nephritis occurrence. They were

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with polymorphic expression. B cells have an essential contribution in immune system activation via the production of different cytokines and functioning as potent antigen-presenting cells. Therefore, a drug that particularly targets B cells may represent an ideal therapeutic approach for SLE. Rituximab (RTX), an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody causing transient B-cell depletion, has been used to manage SLE. This study aims to assess Rituximab effects on lupus nephritis (LN) patients when added to conventional immunosuppressants. Twenty four patients, 15-32 years old, with class III/IV/V LN were involved in this study. All were on steroids before lupus nephritis occurrence. They were

Two different polyvinyl alcohol/polyvinyl chloride (PVA/PVC) hollow fiber composite nanofiltration membranes were prepared after PVC hollow fiber membranes were coated using dip-coating method with PVA aqueous solution, which was composed of PVA, fatty alcohol polyoxyethylene ether (AEO9), and water [PVA/AEO9/water (4:0.5:95.5) wt%]. Effect of two different PVC hollow fiber immersion times in coating solution were studied. Cross-section, internal and external surfaces of the PVC hollow fibers and PVA/PVC composite nanofiltration membranes structures were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), pure water permeation flux and solutes rejection. It was found that, the coating layer thickness on the outer surface of the 19 wt% P