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 given rituximab induction therapy and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) maintenance therapy. RTX was indicated for refractory and relapsing SLE. Several investigations done before and after RTX treatment and in the last follow up (done one year after starting Rituximab). Those included protein in urine, serum creatinine, double stranded DNA, C3, C4, and Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR). Proteinuria decreased significantly after RTX treatment and in the last measurement (P=0.01 and P=0.001, respectively). Serum creatinine significantly decreased only in the last measurement (P=0.02). Double stranded DNA decreased remarkably after treatment (P=0.01) with a further decrease in the last measurement (P=0.006). C3 and C4 increased after treatment but the increase was significant only for C3 (P=0.002) and this increase continues till the last measurement (P=0.0006). Active urine sediments found in fifteen patients and disappeared after RTX treatment. Rituximab can be promising in treating lupus nephritis when used along with traditional immunosuppressants. It can reduce disease activity and improve renal function in such patients.
This research asks what are negative social behaviours in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) raised by the talk shows on the (NRT) channel? Furthermore, it aims to identify the most significant themes addressed by talk shows on the (NRT) channel regarding negative social behaviours in the KRI by using the content analysis approach through non-random purposive sampling to understand the dialogue contents that dealt with this subject. This study has reached a set of results: through its talk shows, the (NRT) channel attempts to create a media vision about the spread of negative social behaviours in the KRI and stand up to the dangers associated with these behaviours. At the same time, those programs tried to marginalize the behaviours that
... Show MoreThe Reasons behind the decadence of the studies concerning the evening school in Salah al Deen A field study
The resort to the eloquence of the poetic image as a style reveals the poet's creativity and creativity in dealing with external influences, and reflect them with emotional images express a sense of intense emotional imagination, and this imagination stems from the experience of a poetic sense of truth, tasted by the recipient before the creator of the poetic text.
Numerical simulations have been carried out on the solar chimney power plant systems. This paper gives the flow field analysis for a solar chimney power generation project located in Baghdad. The continuity, Naver-stockes, energy and radiation transfer equations have been solved and carried out by Fluent software. The governing equations are solved for incompressible, 3-D, steady state, turbulent is approximated by a standard k - model with Boussiuesq approximation to study and evaluate the performance of solar chimney power plant in Baghdad city of Iraq. The different geometric parameters of project are assumed such as collector diameter and chimney height at different working conditions of solar radiation intensity (300,450,600,750
... Show MoreBuilding numerical reservoir simulation model with a view to model actual case requires enormous amount of data and information. Such modeling and simulation processes normally require lengthy time and different sets of field data and experimental tests that are usually very expensive. In addition, the availability, quality and accessibility of all necessary data are very limited, especially for the green field. The degree of complexities of such modelling increases significantly especially in the case of heterogeneous nature typically inherited in unconventional reservoirs. In this perspective, this study focuses on exploring the possibility of simplifying the numerical simulation pr