Background: Hypothyroidism is the most abundant thyroid disorder worldwide. For decades, levothyroxine was the main effective pharmacological treatment for hypothyroidism. A variety of factors can influence levothyroxine dose, such as genetic variations. Studying the impact of genetic polymorphisms on the administration of medications was risen remarkably. Different genetic variations were investigated that might affect levothyroxine dose requirements, especially the deiodinase enzymes. Deiodinase type 2 genetic polymorphisms’ impact on levothyroxine dose was studied in different populations. Objective: To examine the association of the two single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)s of deiodinase type 2 (rs225013 and rs225014) and levothyroxine dose requirements. Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Baghdad Center for Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Therapy located in Baghdad/ Iraq, from March to June 2022. Based on levothyroxine dose, the enrolled patients were divided into two groups: low dose group < 1.7 µg/kg/day and high dose group ≥ 1.7 µg/kg. Then genotyping analysis was done for both groups of the study. Results: The mean age of the participants was 40.35 ± 9.5 years with a mean body mass index of 30.61 ± 5.72 kg/m2. The mean levothyroxine doses in the low- and high-dose groups were 81.67 ± 30.74 µg/day and 161.67 ± 35.19 µg/day, respectively. Significant differences existed in the levels of TSH and TT4 between the study’s groups. Conclusion: This study indicated that the differences in levothyroxine dose, TSH, TT4 and TT3 levels were not associated with the DIO2 rs225013. Similarly, the differences in TSH, TT3 and TT4 levels revealed a non-significant association with DIO2 rs225014 except for levothyroxine dose which was higher in the patients who carried the wild type allele (TT).
Rapid worldwide urbanization and drastic population growth have increased the demand for new road construction, which will cause a substantial amount of natural resources such as aggregates to be consumed. The use of recycled concrete aggregate could be one of the possible ways to offset the aggregate shortage problem and reduce environmental pollution. This paper reports an experimental study of unbound granular material using recycled concrete aggregate for pavement subbase construction. Five percentages of recycled concrete aggregate obtained from two different sources with an originally designed compressive strength of 20–30 MPa as well as 31–40 MPa at three particle size levels, i.e., coarse, fine, and extra fine, were test
... Show More
A novel welded demountable shear connector for sustainable steel-concrete composite structures is proposed. The proposed connector consists of a grout-filled steel tube bolted to a compatible partially threaded stud, which is welded on a steel section. This connector allows for an easy deconstruction at the end of the service life of a building, promoting the reuse of both the concrete slabs and the steel sections. This paper presents the experimental evaluation of the structural behavior of the proposed connector using a horizontal pushout test arrangement. The effects of various parameters, including the tube thickness, the presence of grout infill, and the concrete slab compressive strength, were assessed. A nonlinear finite element mode
... Show MoreThe deposition method of perovskite solar cell layers significantly impacts device functionality and the achievement of industrial goals. Aluminum (Al) nanoparticles with rutile titanium oxide (TiO2) nanoparticle thin films are fabricated on Fluorine Tin Oxide (FTO) glass substrates by nanosecond pulsed fiber laser deposition (PLD) to be used as a plasmonic electron transport layer (ETL) in perovskite solar cell (PSC). The effect of various pulsed fiber laser parameters on the structural, optical, and surface morphology on Al/TiO2 films is extensively examined utilizing a variety of measurement techniques; X-ray diffraction (XRD), Ultraviolet–visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy, Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and Atomic
... Show MoreA detailed methodology is presented in this paper for the calculation of nucleate boiling safety margin (NBSM) in nuclear research reactors using a temperature function with three different thermal-hydraulic hot-spot analyses: nominal, cumulative and statistical for normal operating condition and coolant flow variation. A computer simulation program is developed for applying the methodology to the IRT-5000 reactor based on experimental core data. According to cumulative analysis as the overconservative approach, the NBSM at normal operating condition of thermal power 5 MW and coolant velocity 1.672 m/s was 2.3% with reactor power limit 5.13 MW. However, during power or coolant flow trip condition, transient nucleate boiling would occur for
... Show MoreIn this work, multilayer nanostructures were prepared from two metal oxide thin films by dc reactive magnetron sputtering technique. These metal oxide were nickel oxide (NiO) and titanium dioxide (TiO2). The prepared nanostructures showed high structural purity as confirmed by the spectroscopic and structural characterization tests, mainly FTIR, XRD and EDX. This feature may be attributed to the fine control of operation parameters of dc reactive magnetron sputtering system as well as the preparation conditions using the same system. The nanostructures prepared in this work can be successfully used for the fabrication of nanodevices for photonics and optoelectronics requiring highly-pure nanomaterials.
Objective: The present study aimed to determine the association of quality of life with the resilience of intensive care unit (ICU) nurses. Methods and Materials: A cross-sectional study was performed, including 105 ICU nurses from five hospitals in Iraq, using a convenience sample method. Data were gathered through a self-administered questionnaire that includes three sections: the demographics, the Brooks Quality of Nursing Work Life survey, and the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10 (CD-RISC-10). Findings: The QWL of the ICU nurses was moderately satisfied (mean = 161.42), and the level of resilience was moderate (mean = 26). A statistically significant positive correlation between QWL and resilience. Conclusion: Strategies
... Show MoreThe present paper focuses on studying a rhetorical form often used in Spanish linguistic discourse .It also examines the study two sides (theoretical and practical), the concept of metaphor, the most important modern school that deals with this issue, the development of this technique and its relationship with other intellectual ideologies, and the role metaphor plays in interpreting the meaning of the linguistic discourse especially in conveying political message. The study allows the formulation and the creation of a conceptual picture for the purposes of metaphor in the linguistic discourse used in Spanish press. It investigates discursive models from the Spanish press,
... Show More