Introduction and Aim: The pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-39, a member of the IL-12 family plays a key role in the inflammatory response by modulating immune cell activity and inflammation. A literature search shows no study undertaken for the effect of IL-39's on arthritis so far. Hence, the purpose of this study was to investigate the role of IL-39 in rheumatoid arthritis. Materials and Methods: This study involved 80 patients with rheumatoid arthritis registered at the Rheumatology Clinic at Baghdad teaching hospital. The patients were divided into three groups based on treatments received. Group 1 included patients who were not on any treatment for arthritis, Group 2 with patients on hydroxychloroquine and or prednisone treatment, and Group 3 that received Enbrel® (etanercept) and HUMIRA® (adalimumab) treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. A control group was included in the study. Patients in all groups were assessed for their serum IL-39 concentration, C - reactive protein, Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody (ACCP) and ESR. Results: The patient age and BMI were not significantly different between the groups receiving treatment for Rheumatoid arthritis. A significant increase in the interleukin 39 concentration was observed in treatment groups (G1, G2, G3) as compared to normal healthy controls regardless of whether they were positive or negative for the anti-CCP test. Conclusion: This study showed that the serum interleukin IL-39 levels significantly increased in patients diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis thus suggesting that IL-39 could be considered as a potential inflammatory biomarker of RA.
Bipedal robotic mechanisms are unstable due to the unilateral contact passive joint between the sole and the ground. Hierarchical control layers are crucial for creating walking patterns, stabilizing locomotion, and ensuring correct angular trajectories for bipedal joints due to the system’s various degrees of freedom. This work provides a hierarchical control scheme for a bipedal robot that focuses on balance (stabilization) and low-level tracking control while considering flexible joints. The stabilization control method uses the Newton–Euler formulation to establish a mathematical relationship between the zero-moment point (ZMP) and the center of mass (COM), resulting in highly nonlinear and coupled dynamic equations. Adaptiv
... Show MoreArbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and sulphur foam added either at direct seeding or at transplanting decreased the effects of nematode (Meloidogyne javanica) on eggplant growth, and improved plant health. Experiments were conducted to study the possible interactions between the Mycorrhizal fungi (Glomus mossae and Gigaspora spp.) and sulphur foam to control M. javanica on eggplant at seed or seedling stage. Experiment at seed stage treated with Mycorrhiza or sulphur foam alone or together stimulated the growth and reduced Nematode infestation significantly. Treated plant at seedling stage increased plant growth and reduced the number of galls /gm of root system. The interaction between Mycorrhiza and sulpher foam treatments was not significant
... Show MoreSoftware-defined networks (SDN) have a centralized control architecture that makes them a tempting target for cyber attackers. One of the major threats is distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks. It aims to exhaust network resources to make its services unavailable to legitimate users. DDoS attack detection based on machine learning algorithms is considered one of the most used techniques in SDN security. In this paper, four machine learning techniques (Random Forest, K-nearest neighbors, Naive Bayes, and Logistic Regression) have been tested to detect DDoS attacks. Also, a mitigation technique has been used to eliminate the attack effect on SDN. RF and KNN were selected because of their high accuracy results. Three types of ne
... Show MoreMany athletes believe that it enhances the level of performance during training and competition, in addition to compensating for fluids during exercise when the levels of temperature and humidity in the atmosphere rise during the athlete's intensive training, as it increases the requirements for fluid compensation to avoid the risk of potential thermal disorders. If training continues for more than an hour causing fatigue, athletes are advised to drink carbohydrate drinks that quickly convert to glucose in the blood, while sodium should be included in the fluids consumed during exercise or matches that last more than (1-2 hours). The effect of drinking a drink containing 12% carbohydrates and electrolytes before each half of a simul
... Show MoreAbstract
The aim of the research is to identify the level of awareness and emotional experience among university students and to identify the effect of the educational program based on (Guttmann) model for developing awareness and emotional experience among university students by verifying the validity of the following zero hypotheses: 1) There are no statistically significant differences in the development of awareness and emotional experience among university students at the level of (0.05) between the mean scores of the experimental group in the pre and post-tests. 2) There are no statistically significant differences in the development of awareness and emotional experience among university students at the lev
... Show MoreSultan Said bin Sultan bin Ahmed bin Said Al-Busaidi (1223-1273 AH / 1806-1856 AD) was able to rule Oman and Zanzibar in a unified Arab-African state during his reign. However, it was separated for several reasons. Thus, the study aims to clarify the efforts made by Sultan Said for annexing Zanzibar to Oman, establishing the Arab-African Sultanate, and shedding light on the role played by Britain in dividing the Arab-African Sultanate and separating Zanzibar from the Omani rule in (1275 AH-1861 AD). The study has adopted the historical descriptive analytical approach. The study has reached several conclusions, such as: The economic motivators were the most important factors that pushed Sultan Said to move his capital from Muscat to
... Show MoreBackground: As photochemical reaction that can stiffen the cornea, CXL is the only promising method of preventing progression of keratectasia such as KC and secondary ectasia following refractive surgery. The aim of CXL is to stabilize the underlying condition with a small chance of visual improvement. Objective: To show the sequences of changes in visual acuity and topographic outcomes during 1 year post CXL for patients with progressive Keratoconus.Type of the study: Cross sectional studyMethods: CXL procedure was done for 45 eyes with progressive KC. The following parameters had been monitored pre operatively, 1, 3, 6 and 12 months postoperatively: K apex, K2, corneal thickness at thinnest location, anterior and posterior elevation po
... Show MoreObjective: To compare distal tibia nonunion plating and grafting with and without platelet-rich plasma (PRP) regarding union rate, union time and complications Conclusion: Combining PRP with autologous bone graft results in a higher union rate, less healing duration, less post-operative pain, and more callus formation. (Rawal Med J 202;45:629- 632). Methodology: In this prospective comparative study, 32 patients with nonunion tibia from July 2017 January 2019 were divided into two groups: group A (16 cases) were treated by plating and grafting with PRP and group B (16 cases) were treated by plating and grafting only. Keywords: Tibial nonunion, bone graft, plateletrich plasma. Results: There was higher union rate in group A related to group
... Show MoreBackground: Marginal adaptation is critical for long – term success of crown and bridge restoration. Computer aided design / computer aided manufacture (CAD/ CAM) system is gaining more importance in the fabrication of dental restoration. Objective: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of crystallization firing on the vertical marginal gap of IPS. emax CAD crowns which fabricated with two different CAD/CAM systems .Materials and Methods: Twenty IPS e.max CAD crowns were fabricated. We had two major groups (A, B) (10 crowns for each group) according to the CAD/CAM system being used: Group A: fabricated with Imes - Icore CAD/CAM system; Group B: fabricated with In Lab Sirona CAD/CAM system. Each group was subdivided into two s
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