Background: Saliva plays an important role in oral health. Several salivary proteins are involved in the antimicrobial defence mechanism and are able to eliminate or inhibit bacterial growth in the oral cavity. Secretory IgA (SIgA) is one of the principal antibodies present in saliva, could help oral immunity by preventing microbial adherence, neutralizing enzymes and toxins. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between salivary Streptococcus Mutans (SM) count and S IgA in stimulated whole saliva in children with primary dentition compared to those with permanent teeth in relation to some oral hygiene parameters. Material and methods: Stimulated whole saliva was collected from 50 children (25 with primary dentation and 25 with permanent teeth). Salivary flow rate and pH was measured. Oral hygiene index (OHI) and gingival inflammation was assessed using classical method. S IgA level was measured using an immunoassay kit and SM count was determined by culture media. Results: Mean salivary flow rate, pH and S IgA were significantly higher among children with permanent teeth compared to those with primary dentition. Compared to primary dentition, permanent dentition was associated with a significantly reduced mean plaque index, increased mean gingival index and reduced mean salivary SM count. Although plaque index showed a statistically significant positive correlation with SM count, gingival index showed a weak negative correlation with bacterial count. S IgA, PH and flow rate showed a statistically significant moderately strong negative correlation with bacterial count. Conclusion: This study showed a clear correlation between count of SM in stimulated whole saliva and both SIgA and plaque index.
A faunistic review of the genus Chaitophorus Koch, 1854, including four species in Iraq is given; the distribution data of each species and their hosts have been recorded. In this investigation the poplar leaf aphid Ch. populialbae (Boyer de Fonscolombe, 1841) is recorded here for the first time in Iraq on popular trees Populus euphratica Oliv. during the period from November 2016 to April 2017 in Baghdad province.
A brief description for apterous viviparous female of this species is given; and a key to the species of the genus Chaitophorus is constricted.
We aimed to obtain magnesium/iron (Mg/Fe)-layered double hydroxides (LDHs) nanoparticles-immobilized on waste foundry sand-a byproduct of the metal casting industry. XRD and FT-IR tests were applied to characterize the prepared sorbent. The results revealed that a new peak reflected LDHs nanoparticles. In addition, SEM-EDS mapping confirmed that the coating process was appropriate. Sorption tests for the interaction of this sorbent with an aqueous solution contaminated with Congo red dye revealed the efficacy of this material where the maximum adsorption capacity reached approximately 9127.08 mg/g. The pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetic models helped to describe the sorption measure
This study presents, for the first time, an innovative Jet Plasma-assisted technique for the green synthesis of TiO₂@Ag core–shell nanoparticles using chard leaf extract as a natural reducing and stabilizing agent. The Jet Plasma provides a highly energetic environment that accelerates nucleation and core–shell formation at low temperatures without toxic precursors. The synthesized nanoparticles exhibited uniform and stable structures, as confirmed by comprehensive characterization techniques including X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ultraviolet–visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and zeta potential analysis. XRD patterns confirmed the crystalline anatase
... Show MoreAcinetobacter baumannii (A. baumannii ) is considered a critical healthcare problem for patients in intensive care units due to its high ability to be multidrug-resistant to most commercially available antibiotics. The aim of this study is to develop a colorimetric assay to quantitatively detect the target DNA of A. baumannii based on unmodified gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) from different clinical samples (burns, surgical wounds, sputum, blood and urine). A total of thirty-six A. baumannii clinical isolates were collected from five Iraqi hospitals in Erbil and Mosul provinces within the period from September 2020 to January 2021. Bacterial isolation and biochemical identification of isolates
... Show MoreHumanity is confronted with a growing array of environmental challenges that demand immediate attention and cannot be disregarded. One of the issues the world faces is air pollution, which presents a significant risk to both the environment and human well-being. The capitalist system has a great impact on the exacerbation of air pollution and environmental deterioration. This impact is reflected in Caryl Churchill’s post-apocalyptic play Not Not Not Not Not Enough Oxygen (1971). The play presents a futuristic scenario in which humanity faces grave consequences due to the polluting practices of capitalism and the unsustainable exploitation of natural resources. It depicts a future in which environmental degradation drives people
... Show MoreIn this research , we study the inverse Gompertz distribution (IG) and estimate the survival function of the distribution , and the survival function was evaluated using three methods (the Maximum likelihood, least squares, and percentiles estimators) and choosing the best method estimation ,as it was found that the best method for estimating the survival function is the squares-least method because it has the lowest IMSE and for all sample sizes