This study was carried out to determine the heavy metal accumulation of Juncus rigidus Desfontaines, 1798 from three different regions of the Basrah Province in Southern of Iraq. Specifically, the concentrations of lead, nickel, and cadmium were determined in the roots, culms and leaves of the plant. The results indicated that the highest accumulation of the heavy metal was recorded in lead (Pb) 12.50± 3.58 mg kg^-1and then in nickel (< 0.30). The lowest value was recorded for cadmium (< 0.05). As well, lead concentrations in J. rigidus varied in different locations and parts of the plant from undetectable in control to 12.66, 19.33, and 9.80 mg kg^-1 in leaves, culm, and roots respective

This study aimed to assess the possible association of oxytocin (OXT) gene with reproductive traits in two groups of Awassi ewes that differ in their reproductive potentials. Sheep were genotyped using PCR—single-stranded conformation polymorphism approach. Three genotypes were detected in exon 2, CC, CA, and AA, and a novel SNP was identified with a missense effect on oxytocin (c.188C > A → p.Arg55Leu). A significant (p < 0.01) association of p.Arg55Leu with the twinning rate was found as ewes with AA and CA genotypes exhibited, respectively a lower twinning ratio than those with the wild-type CC genotype. The deleterious impact of p.Arg55Leu was demonstrated by all in silico tools that were utilized to assess the effect of this varian

An experimental and numerical study was carried out to investigate the heat transfer by natural convection in a three dimensional annulus enclosure filled with porous media (silica sand) between two inclined concentric cylinders with (and without) annular fins attached to the inner cylinder under steady state condition. The experiments were carried out for a range of modified Rayleigh number (0.2 ≤Ra*≤ 11) and extended to Ra*=500 for numerical study and for annulus inclination angle of (δ = 0˚, 30˚, 60˚ and 90˚). The numerical study was to give the governing equation under assumptions that used Darcy law and Boussinesq’s approximation and then it was solved numerically using finite difference approximation. It was found that t

Background: Tap waters play an important role in fulfilling the people needs for drinking and domestic purposes. Contaminate the tap water with different pollutants has become an issue of great concern for 90% of people who are depended on the tap water as the main source of drinking. Pollutants can make their way easily into the delivering pipes which suffer from the leaking resulting in decreasing the quality of water. Objective: Therefore, assess the water quality for drinking purpose by calculating the water quality index is an important tool to ascertain whether the water is suitable for human consumption or not. Methods: In the present work, the water quality of the Al-Salam, western region of Baghdad city, Iraq was investigated for 7

Two-dimensional unsteady mixed convection in a porous cavity with heated bottom wall is numerically studied in the present paper. The forced flow conditions are imposed by providing a hydrostatic pressure head at the inlet port that is located at the bottom of one of the vertical side walls and an open vent at the top of the other vertical side wall. The Darcy model is adopted to model the fluid flow in the porous medium and the combination effects of hydrostatic pressure head and the heat flux quantity parameters are carefully investigated. These governing parameters are varied over wide ranges and their effect on the heat transfer characteristics is studied in detail. It is found that the time required to reach a desired temperature at th

Objective: Pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) is a major pregnancy complication that leads to maternal mortality. Here, we have scrutinized the correlation between serum levels of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in PIH.Methods: Serum samples were collected from 80 Iraqi women (40 women with PIH as patients group, 20 normotensive pregnant women as a positive control, and 20 normotensive non-pregnant women as a negative control) all groups were diagnosed clinically.Results: Serum of H2O2 and SOD levels was measured for all studied groups. Results showed that there were no significant variances in age and gestational age distribution between all studied groups. Furthermore, result showed that the serum level o

Delays and disruption are a common issue in both community and personal building programs The problem exists all throughout the world, but it is particularly prevalent in Iraq, where millions of dollars are squandered each time as a outcome. Delays and interruptions may have serious consequences not just for Iraq's construction plans, but also for the country's economic and social status. While numerous studies have been conducted to investigate the factors driving delays and disruption in Iraqi construction projects, slight consideration has been given to by what means project management implements and approaches have affected the occurrence of project delays and disruption. After analyzing the crucial reasons for delays and instability in

Background: Studying and investigating the transverse strength(Ts), impact strength(Is), hardness (Hr) and surface roughness(Ra) of conventional and modified autopolymerizing acrylic resin with different weight percentages of biopolymer kraftlignin, after curing in different water temperatures; 40°C and 80°C. Material and Methods: Standard acrylic specimens were fabricated according to ADA specification No.12 for transverse strength, ISO 179 was used for impact testing, Shore D for hardness and profilometerfor surface roughness. The material lignin first dispersed in the monomer, then the powder PMMA is immediately added. Ligninadded in different weight percentages. Then cured using pressure pot (Ivomet) in two temperatures;40°C a

ABSTRACT Background: Color changes that are detectable to human eye can affect the esthetic appearance of ceramic veneers. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the effect of artificial accelerated aging on the color of ceramic veneers cemented with different resin cements. Materials and Methods: Sixty discs were prepared with 0.5 mm thickness, 30 discs made from IPS e.max press (Ivoclar Vivadent) and 30 discs were made from VITA Enamic (VITA Zahnfabrik). The discs were cemented with three resin cements: Variolink Veneer MV 0 shade (Ivoclar Vivadent), Rely X veneer Translucent shade (3M ESPE) and NX3 Nexus Clear shade (Kerr Corporation) with 0.1 mm thickness. The spectrophotometer Easyshade Advance was used to measure the co