Biomarkers such as Interleukin-6 (IL-6), Procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP) and Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) have a role in the pathogenesis of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The aim of this study was to explore the differences between serum levels of such biomarkers in severe and non-severe COVID-19 cases and compare them with normal people and to evaluate the sociodemographic variables and chronic diseases effect on the severity of COVID-19. The study included 160 subjects, divided into two groups, a case group of 80 patients, and a control group of 80 normal persons. The case group was divided into two subgroups: 40 severe COVID-19 patients and 40 patients with non-severe disease. Blood IL-6 was asses

Triticale is a hybrid of wheat and rye grown for use as animal feed. In Florida, due to its soft coat, triticale is highly vulnerable to Sitophilus oryzae L. (rice weevil) and there is interest in development of methods to detect early-instar larvae so that infestations can be targeted before they become economically damaging. The objective of this study was to develop prediction models of the infestation degree for triticale seed infested with rice weevils of different growth stages. Spectral signatures were tested as a method to detect rice weevils in triticale seed. Groups of seeds at 11 different levels (degrees) of infestation, 0–62%, were obtained by combining different ratios of infested and uninfested seeds. A spectrophotometer wa

Objective: Hesperidin (HSP) is a pharmacologically active organic compound found in citrus fruits and peppermint. We synthesized a new HSP derivative by reacting it with 5-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole-2-thiol in acetic acid. Methods: This compound was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared, proton nuclear magnetic resonance, and electron impact mass spectra. A molecular docking study explores the predicted binding of the compound and its possible mode of action. Bioavailability, site of absorption, drug mimic, and topological polar surface was predicted using absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) studies. Results: The docking study predicts that the new compound binds to the active sites of Aurora-B

In this study, a packed bed was used to remove pathogenic bacteria from synthetic contaminated water. Two types of packing material substrates, sand and zeolite, were used. These substrates were coated with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), which were prepared by decomposition of Ag ions from AgNO3 solution. The prepared coated packings were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The packed column consisted of a PVC cylinder of 2 cm diameter and 20 cm in length. The column was packed with silver nanoparticlecoated substrates (sand or zeolite) at a depth of 10 cm. Four types of bacteria were studied: Escherichia coli, Shigella dysenteriae, Pseudomonas aerugi

Thin films of Magnetite have been deposited on Galvanized Steel (G-S) alloy using RF-reactive magnetron sputtering technique and protection efficiency of the corrosion of G-S. A Three-Electrodes Cell was used in saline water (3.5 % NaCl) solution at different temperatures (298, 308, 318 & 328K) using potentiostatic techniques with. Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) and fitting impedance data via Frequency Response Analysis (FRA) were applied to G-S alloy with Fe3O4 and tested in 3.5 % NaCl solution at 298K.Results taken from Nyquist and Bode plots were analyzed using software provided with the instrument. The results obtained show that the rate of corrosion of G.S alloy increased with increasing the temperatures from 298 t

Excessive intake of fluoride, mainly through drinking water is a serious health hazard affecting humans worldwide. In this study, the defluoridation capacities of locally available raw waste beef bones have been estimated. Several experimental parameters including contact time, pH, bone dose, fluoride initial concentration, bone grains size, agitation rate, and the effect of co-existence of anions in actual samples of wastewater were studied for fluoride removal from aqueous solutions. Results indicated excellent fluoride removal effeciency up to 99.7% at fluoride initial concentration of 10 mg F/L and 120 min contact time. Maximum fluoride uptake was obtained at neutral pH range 6-7. Fluoride removal kinetic was well described by the ps

The chlorine concentration variation in Baghdad water networks was studied. The
chlorine data were collected from Mayoralty of Baghdad and Ministry of Environment
(MOE) for the networks for both sides of the city Karkh and Rasafa for (2008-2009). The
study of these data indicates that there are no systematic testing program .Classified GIS
maps showed that the areas far from the treatment plants have almost always low
chlorine concentration .This indicates that the problem of the low chlorine concentration
in the far areas is due to cracks of pipe along the conveyance path ,as expected. The area's
most frequently have low concentration are Al-sadir,Al-Kadhimya, and Al-Amiria . It
was found also that the chlorine c

This study proposes a pioneering Ethical Artificial Intelligence (EAI) framework for advancing sustainable development in Iraq by integrating eight multidimensional sustainability indicators—administrative, technological, economic, environmental, social, legal, security, and governance. Utilizing data from 60 completed development projects, the framework combines SPSS statistical analysis, the SMART-AI model, and Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) to identify key determinants of project success and failure. Results reveal a 37% project failure rate, with administrative and technological deficiencies emerging as the most influential predictors. The SMART-AI model achieved an accuracy of 91.3% using stratified k-fold cross-validation. A bilin

Hydroxide upon the chemical composition and dry matter(DM) and organic matter(OM) digestibility . Rice straw was treated with 4% sodium hydroxide using 30% of DM basis moisture, and incubated at 40 ºC for 40 days., DM digestibility (DMD) was significantly affected (P<0.01) by the treatment , where DMD increased The objective of this experiment was to study the effect of physical form (long ,chopped and ground ) and washing rice straw treated with sodium from 42.32 to 45.41% , OM digestibility (OMD) and total digestible nutrient (TDN) increased(P<0.05) from 47.38 and 49.33 to 49.67 and 52.83% ,respectively. While hemicellulose content increased (P<0.05 ) from 261.71 to 268.17 gm/kg DM ,and metabolizable energy (ME) from 7.11 to 7.48 MJ/

Equilibrium adsorption isotherm for the removal of trifluralin from aqueous solutions using ? –alumina clay has been studied. The result shows that the isotherms were S3 according Giels classification. The effects of various experimental parameters such as contact time, adsorbent dosage, effect of pH and temperature of trifluralin on the adsorption capacities have been investigated. The adsorption isotherms were obtained by obeying freundlich adsorption isotherm with (R2 = 0.91249-0.8149). The thermodynamic parameters have been calculated by using the adsorption process at five different temperature, the values of ?H, ?G and ?S were (_1.0625) kj. mol-1, (7.628 - 7.831) kj.mol-1 and (_2.7966 - _2.9162) kg.