Background: The discriminative power of the classical WHO parameters in relation to male fertility is quite low, because they only address few aspects of sperm quality and function. This has led investigators to focus their attention on the male gamete and in particular its genome.Objective: To explore which of the sperm DNA damage parameters measured by comet assay are more reliable, and their relations with the standard semen parameters.Methods: Study was done on 40 infertile men selected from couples attending the Institute of Embryo Reasearch and Infertility Treatment at Al-Kadhimiya City/ Baghdad in the period between February 2009 and May 2009, with a history of infertility of ≥1 years; and 15 healthy volunteers of proven fertili

Background: Thermocycling simulates the temperature dynamics in the oral environment. This in vitro study done to measure and compare the effect of thermocycling on the shear bond strength of stainless steel and sapphire brackets bonded to human enamel teeth using light cured orthodontic adhesive and debonded at various time, and to measure adhesive remnant index after debonding. Materials and Methods: one-hundred-twenty extracted upper first premolars for orthodontic reason were used in this study; depending on weather thermocycled or not, the sample was divided into two main groups, then within each group 30 teeth were used for stainless-steel brackets (Bionic®) and for sapphire brackets (Pure®). Both groups were subdivided into three

Poverty phenomenon is very substantial topic that determines the future of societies and governments and the way that they deals with education, health and economy. Sometimes poverty takes multidimensional trends through education and health. The research aims at studying multidimensional poverty in Iraq by using panelized regression methods, to analyze Big Data sets from demographical surveys collected by the Central Statistical Organization in Iraq. We choose classical penalized regression method represented by The Ridge Regression, Moreover; we choose another penalized method which is the Smooth Integration of Counting and Absolute Deviation (SICA) to analyze Big Data sets related to the different poverty forms in Iraq. Euclidian Distanc

This study deals with free convection heat transfer for the outer surface of two
cylinders of the shape of (Triangular & Rectangular fined cylinders with 8-fins),
putted into two different spaces; small one with dimension of (Length=1.2m,
height=1m, width=0.9m) and large one with dimension of (Length=3.6m, height =3m,
width=2.7m). The experimental work was conducted with air as a heat transport
medium. These cylinders were fixed at different slope angles (0o, 30o, 60o and 90o)
.The heat fluxes were (279, 1012, 1958, 3005, 4419) W/m2, where heat transferred by
convection and radiation. In large space, the results show that the heat transfer from
the triangular finned cylinder is maximum at a slope angle equals

A Genetic Algorithm optimization model is used in this study to find the optimum flow values of the Tigris river branches near Ammara city, which their water is to be used for central marshes restoration after mixing in Maissan River. These tributaries are Al-Areed, AlBittera and Al-Majar Al-Kabeer Rivers. The aim of this model is to enhance the water quality in Maissan River, hence provide acceptable water quality for marsh restoration. The model is applied for different water quality change scenarios ,i.e. , 10%,20% increase in EC,TDS and BOD. The model output are the optimum flow values for the three rivers while, the input data are monthly flows(1994-2011),monthly water requirements and water quality parameters (EC, TDS, BOD, DO and

ABSTRACT Background:- White spot lesions are common esthetic problem that compromise the success of orthodontic treatment. This study aimed to assess white spot lesions in patients with fixed orthodontic appliance at different time intervals. Materials & Methods:- Thirty two patients (24 females and 8 males) were included in this study and they underwent clinical examination for white spot lesions using enamel decalcification index at four time intervals: (2-3 weeks after appliance insertion, 2, 4 and 6 months). Results:- The patients were free of white spot lesions at the appliance insertion visit. The mean of white spot lesions was 2.22 which were increased significantly during six months to reach 24.59 at the end of study. There was a si

The central nervous system is the most important system and is very sensitive to any accidental infection during ontogenesis; it includes brain and spinal cord. The cerebellum is the second largest part of the brain after cerebrum and it’s very sensitive to the abnormal changes during the embryological development. This study was designed to investigate the effect of the maternal exposure of selected concentrations of suspension of nanoparticles on the ontogenesis of the rat cerebellum after embryos implanted in uterus. A total of 60 female pregnant rats were divided in to three groups, each contains 20 females. Group1 (G1) was treated orally with 2mg/kg /body weight (b. wt) of suspension of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs). While group 2 (G

The effects of using aqueous nanofluids containing covalently functionalized graphene nanoplatelets with triethanolamine (TEA-GNPs) as novel working fluids on the thermal performance of a flat-plate solar collector (FPSC) have been investigated. Water-based nanofluids with weight concentrations of 0.025%, 0.05%, 0.075%, and 0.1% of TEA-GNPs with specific surface areas of 300, 500, and 750 m2/g were prepared. An experimental setup was designed and built and a simulation program using MATLAB was developed. Experimental tests were performed using inlet fluid temperatures of 30, 40, and 50 °C; flow rates of 0.6, 1.0, and 1.4 kg/min; and heat flux intensities of 600, 800, and 1000 W/m2. The FPSC’s efficiency increased as the flow rate and hea

Background: Menopause can bring oral health problems and also associated with significant adverse changes in the orofacial complex. After menopause, women become more susceptible to periodontal disease due to deficiency of estrogen hormone. Current study aimed to evaluate the periodontal health status in relation to salivary constituent including pH, flow rate and some elements (Magnesium, Calcium and inorganic phosphorus) of pre and post-menopause women. Materials and Methods: Periodontal health status of 52 women aged 48-50 years old (26 pre-menopause and 26 post-menopause) were examined including (gingival index, plaque index, calculus index, probing pocket depth and clinical attachment level). Salivary sample was collected for two women