Background: Strangles is a highly contagious equine respiratory disease caused by Streptococcus equi subsp. equi. It is a globally significant pathogen and one of the most common infectious agents in horses. In Iraq, no sequencing data on this pathogen are available, and only two molecular studies have been published to date. This study provides preliminary insights into strain diversity and provides a foundation for future large-scale investigations. Aim: This study aimed to investigate the molecular characteristics, identify SeM gene alleles, and perform a phylogenetic analysis of S. equi isolates from horses in Baghdad, Iraq. Methods: We analyzed 59 Streptococcus spp. isolates previously obtained from equine clinical samples. Conventional PCR targeting the SeM gene was used to identify S. equi. Additionally, nine PCR-positive SeM gene products were sequenced, followed by phylogenetic analysis and allele identification. Results: We confirmed 49 isolates as S. equi from the 59 isolates according to the molecular assay. Additionally, nine PCR products were used for sequencing and allele typing of the SeM gene which provided the initial report of SeM-97 allele identification in Iraq. Phylogenetic analysis along with SeM gene typing revealed a close relationship between the Iraqi strains and one Iranian strain with 100% sequence identity, revealing important epidemiological relationships that may indicate regional ties to the strain detected in Iran. Conclusion: The present study represents the first investigation of SeM allele typing in Iraq, identifying the SeM-97 allele of S. equi along with its unique amino acid variations. The findings highlight genetic similarities between Iraqi isolates and a strain from Iran, suggesting the potential regional dissemination of S. equi.
Background: Periodontal diseases (PD) are common chronic inflammatory diseases caused by pathogenic microorganisms colonizing the gingival area and inducing local and systemic elevations of pro-inflammatory cytokines resulting in tissue destruction by a destructive inflammatory process. Stress was considered as one of the important risk factors that cause many inflammatory diseases including PD. The purpose of this study wasto determines and compares clinical periodontal parameters (PLI, GI and BOP), stress level and salivary IL-1? level among dental students before, during and after mid-year exam, also to find the correlation among stress, IL-1? and clinical periodontal parameters. Materials and methods: The sample was consisted of 24 dent
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This study aims at investigating the relationship between mindfulness and academic self-efficacy among Northern Border University students. To achieve this objective, the researcher adopted the correlative survey method for (97) students. For data collection, the researcher developed a mindfulness scale consisting of (42) items divided into seven topics, each one consisting of six items. The researcher developed an academic self-efficacy scale consisting of (20) items, adopting a five-point Likert scale. The results showed that there is a high level of mindfulness among students at the level of the seven units which formed the mindfulness scale; the conscious thinking unit showed the highest mean value o
... Show MoreThe prevalence of using the applications for the internet of things (IoT) in many human life fields such as economy, social life, and healthcare made IoT devices targets for many cyber-attacks. Besides, the resource limitation of IoT devices such as tiny battery power, small storage capacity, and low calculation speed made its security a big challenge for the researchers. Therefore, in this study, a new technique is proposed called intrusion detection system based on spike neural network and decision tree (IDS-SNNDT). In this method, the DT is used to select the optimal samples that will be hired as input to the SNN, while SNN utilized the non-leaky integrate neurons fire (NLIF) model in order to reduce latency and minimize devices
... Show MoreIraqi calcium bentonite was activated via acidification to study its structural and electrical properties. The elemental analysis of treated bentonite was determined by using X-ray fluorescence while the unit crystal structure was studied through X-ray diffraction showing disappearance of some fundamental reflections due to the treatment processes. The surface morphology, on the other hand, was studied thoroughly by Scanning Electron microscopy SEM and Atomic Force Microscope AFM showing some fragments of montmorillonite sheets. Furthermore, the electrical properties of bentonite were studied including: The dielectric permittivity, conductivity, tangent loss factor, and impedance with range of frequency (0.1-1000 KHz) at different temperatu
... Show MoreIn this investigation , borax (B) (additive I) and chlorinated paraffin (CP.) (additive II) ,were used as flame retardants for each of epoxy and unsaturated polyester resins in the weight ratios of 2,4,6, & 8% by preparing films of (130×130×3) mm dimensions. Also films of these resins with a mixture of [50%(B.)+50%(CP.)] (additive III) in the same weight ratios were prepared in order to study the synergistic effect of these additives on the flammability of the two resins . Three standard test methods were used to measure the flame retardation which are : 1-ASTM : D-2863 2-ASTM : D-635 3-ASTM : D-3014
... Show MoreIntroduction and Aim: Cancers are a complex group of genetic illnesses that develop through multistep, mutagenic processes which can invade or spread throughout the body. Recent advances in cancer treatment involve oncolytic viruses to infect and destroy cancer cells. The Newcastle disease virus (NDV), an oncolytic virus has shown to have anti-cancer effects either directly by lysing cancer cells or indirectly by activating the immune system. The green fluorescent protein (GFP) has been widely used in studying the anti-tumor activity of oncolytic viruses. This study aimed to study the anticancer effect of a recombinant rNDV-GFP clone on NCI-H727 lung carcinoma cell line in vitro. Materials and Methods: The GFP gene was inserted t
... Show MoreGrass trimming operation is widely done in Malaysia for the purpose of maintaining highways. Large number of operators engaged in this work encounters high level of noise generated by back pack type grass trimmer used for this purpose. High level of noise exposure gives different kinds of ill effect on human operators. Exact nature of deteriorated work performance is not known. For predicting the work efficiency deterioration, fuzzy tool has been used in present research. It has been established that a fuzzy computing system will help in identification and analysis of fuzzy models fuzzy system offers a convenient way of representing the relationships between the inputs and outputs of a system in the form of IF-THEN rules. The paper presents
... Show MoreThe current study was conductedas a pot experiment to determine the effect of soil texture on biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) of six most efficient local isolates, specified, of Bradyrhizobium. Cowpea (Vignaunguiculata L.), as a legume host crop, was used as a host crop and 15N dilution analysis was used for accurate determination of the amount of N biologically fixed under experimental parameters specified. Soils used are clay loam, sandy clay loam and sandy loam. Biological Nitrogen Fixation (BNF), in different soil textural classes, was as in the following order: medium texture soil > heavy texture soil > light textured soil. Statistical analysis showed that there is a significant variation in BNF % among six Iraqi isolates in the th
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