Effective decision-making process is the basis for successfully solving any engineering problem. Many decisions taken in the construction projects differ in their nature due to the complex nature of the construction projects. One of the most crucial decisions that might result in numerous issues over the course of a construction project is the selection of the contractor. This study aims to use the ordinal priority approach (OPA) for the contractor selection process in the construction industry. The proposed model involves two computer programs; the first of these will be used to evaluate the decision-makers/experts in the construction projects, while the second will be used to formulate the OPA mathematical model. The experts’ interview was used to identify the criteria of evaluation process of the decision-makers/experts, while Delphi survey with principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted to identify the required selection criteria of the construction projects contractors. The results illustrate that there are 20 criteria for selecting the construction contractor, and 7 criteria for evaluating the decision-makers/experts in the construction projects. Finally, the proposed model has been applied in a real construction project, and showed good results.
This work involves separating and studying the aminoacylase-1 (ACY1) of amniotic fluid from healthy pregnant, mainly one peak with higher activity has been isolated by DEAE-Cellulose ion exchange from the proteinous supernatant produced by deposition of proteins using ammonium sulfate (65%) after dialysis. The purification folds reaching to 19 folds also gave one protein peak when injected into the gel filtration column, a high ACY1 purity was obtained, with 38 folds of purification. It was found that the molecular weight of the isolated ACY1 was up to 46698 Dalton when using gel chromatography technique.The effect of ACY1 isolate was studied on rats with oxidative stress caused by lead acetate(LA) at 40 mg / kg body weight and compare
... Show MoreThis comprehensive review examines the efficacy and safety of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) inhibitors in treating various autoimmune diseases, and focuses on their application in Iraqi patients. Elevated TNF-α levels are linked to autoimmune disorders, leading to the development of anti-TNF-α therapies such as infliximab, etanercept, adalimumab, certolizumab pegol, and golimumab, which have gained FDA approval for conditions like psoriasis, in¬flammatory bowel disease, ankylosing spondylitis, and rheumatoid arthritis. While these therapies demonstrate sig¬nificant therapeutic benefits, including improved quality of life and disease management, they also carry risks, such as increased susceptibility to infections and pote
... Show MoreHypertension is a major health problem throughout the world because of its high prevalence and its association with increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. It is defined as systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure ≥ 90 mmHg. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy, safety and cardiovascular disease risk lowering ability, of three antihypertensive drug regimens.
A retrospective study was carried out on 66 hypertensive patients, divided in to three groups based on their antihypertensive drug regimens (ACE inhibitors, β-blockers treated and combination antihypertensive therapy, the combination therapy consist of two or more of the following antihypertensive drugs ACE inhibitor di
... Show MoreThis study aims at identifying the notion of Post-Occupancy Evaluation (POE) pertinent to the performance of three general hospitals constructed inside the Sulaimani City, tracing the relationship between the quality of the indoor environments and medical staff (doctors and nurses) satisfaction level. Using some indoor environment elements in the right way will positively influence the mood, stress level of the medical staff, and patient recovery as a result. The POE toolkits (AEDET and ASPECT) have been implemented on targeted wards at the selected hospitals. AEDET and ASPECT questionnaires were distributed among 152 medical staff to obtain their perspectives. In total, 112 valid questionnaires were received. The medica
... Show MoreEvaluation of trace elements in Iraqi chewing gums are unavailable, particularly pollution of toxic elements, materials which change the values of PH in the Oral. Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) were successfully employed to determine the concentration of 7 trace elements (essentially toxic and nonessential) and the PH, in thirteen different brands of chewing gum generally consumed in Iraq. Combined wet and dry digestion procedures were applied. Two types of heated graphite tubes were used, coated and uncoated tubes treated with tungsten solution. Result showed that Cu, Al and Zn were at very high levels in almost all brands whereas Mn was found to be high in brands A and O only.
The pharmacokinetics and bioequivalence of a newly developed extended-released (ER) tablet containing 400 mg pentoxifylline as a test product was compared with the reference brand product Trental® 400 mg ER tablet produced by Sanofi-Aventis. Two separate studies were conducted simultaneously. The first study was conducted under fasting condition, whereas, the second study was conducted under fed condition; using the same batches of the test and reference products in both studies. In each study, both products were administered to 32 healthy male adult volunteers applying a single-dose, two-treatment, two-period, two-sequence, randomized crossover design with one-week washout period between dosing. Twenty two blood samples we
... Show MoreAll major organs may be impacted by the connective disease systemic lupus erythematosus, a separate risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD). Adhesion molecules like intercellular adhesion molecules (ICAM) and vascular cell adhesion molecules (VCAM) can detect endothelial damage and dysfunction, which appear to play a crucial role. This study investigated whether people with SLE had elevated subclinical and clinical atherosclerosis risk factors. Traditional CAD risk factors such as smoking, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia cannot entirely explain this elevation. It is thought that immunological dysfunction also increases CAD risk in SLE patients. The study aimed to assess early endothelial changes in SLE Iraqi female patients w
... Show MoreThis paper deals with one of the most important issues in a foreign language teaching and learning, i.e. speaking test assessment. After giving a survey of literature written on the meaning and definition of a speaking test assessment, two sections have been devoted to tackle the most important issues in this topic. Section one, which is the theoretical part of this paper, sheds light on the basic definitions of the term ‘speaking assessment’ which are, according to the researcher’s point of view, sufficient to cover the area of the study. This section based on applied linguistic theories and researches in order to enhance our understanding of the what is meant by «a speaking test assessment«In addition,it explains the most importan
... Show MoreATTAPULGITE clay was modified in this study by the graphene oxide sheets and the clay was diagnosed before and after modification using several techniques (Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy FT-IR, X-ray powder diffraction XRD, Scanning electron microscope SEM , energy dispersive spectroscopy EDX ) ,The surface of the attapulgite clay (before (Ata) after modification by graphene oxide (Ata-GO) ) was applied to adsorption of the Alizarin dye from its water solutions through the application of several kinetic models (pseudo first-order model , pseudo second -order model , intraparticle diffusion model ),It was found that the practical results follow pseudo second -order model. The process of modification on the surface of the mud has imp
... Show More