Iraqi Journal of Science (IJS) is a blind peer-reviewed open access journal issued by the College of Science at the University of Baghdad. It is a monthly journal that publishes original research articles in a wide range of subjects. The prestigious interdisciplinary editorial board in the journal reflects the diversity of subjects covered in the journal. The journal is being published since 1956. The journal is basically self-financed by applying fees on the researcher's work published in the journal. However, the journal is also supported by the college of science at the University of Baghdad.
College of Science - University of Baghdad
A Novel Image Decomposition Employing Gaussian Curvature based Edge preserving Filter for Brain Tumor Detection through Image Fusion
The process of combining images from multiple medical imaging sources without any distortion or loss of information is known as medical image fusion. It improves the usefulness of medical imaging for the diagnosis and treatment of medical issues by maintaining every feature in the fused image. Recent years have seen the introduction of many image fusion techniques that show the significant progress in the field of medical diagnosis. However, the fusion performance of these contemporary methods is prone to distortion, noise, and blurring. To address these drawbacks of the current methods, this work presents a novel fusion methodology for a visually pleasing appearance. Using Gaussian curvature and guided filters, a new decomposition technique with an edge-preserving smoother is firstly described. The primary objective of this approach is to preserve edge haloes while recovering the structural information. The "weighted average" technique is used to merge source images based on the weights that were computed based on significant edge details. This technique can enhance contrast and highlight significant details in the fused image. We evaluate our proposed methodology on multiple pairs of publically available medical imaging datasets. The quantitative evaluation indicates that the suggested fusion strategy for multimodal image fusion improves the average IE by 5.8, MI by 34.8%, MSSIM by 31%, and QAB/F by 40% over the current methods, making it appropriate for usage in the medical area for correct diagnosis.
Gaussian curvature, Guided filter, Medical image fusion,Weighted average, Qualitative, Quantitative evaluation
Copyright (c) 2025 Iraqi Journal of Science https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Pharmacological Evaluation of Najas gracillima from the Bay of Bengal Coastal Regions: In Vitro and In Silico Studies
Najas gracillima is a green seaweed commonly found in North America and East Asia. This study explored its phytochemical composition and assessed its antioxidant activity using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) assays, along with α-amylase inhibition and cytotoxicity evaluations via the brine shrimp lethality bioassay (BSLB) and the HeLa cancer cell line. The acetone extract of Najas gracillima (ANG) showed a total phenolic content of 14.26 ± 1.86 mg GAE/g extract and a total flavonoid content of 10.27 ± 2.24 mg QUE/g extract. ANG demonstrated strong antioxidant activity (IC₅₀ for DPPH: 14.57 ± 0.93 µg/mL; IC₅₀ for ABTS: 32.17 ± 1.35 µg/mL) and moderate α-amylase inhibition (IC₅₀: 54.97 ± 3.36 µg/mL). While it showed mild cytotoxicity in the BSLB assay (LC₅₀: 673.08 μg/mL), no cytotoxic effects were observed against HeLa cells. Molecular docking analysis revealed that the identified compounds exhibited strong binding affinities to relevant drug target proteins associated with the observed biological activities. These findings suggest that N. gracillima may serve as a valuable source of bioactive compounds with potential applications in managing oxidative stress and diabetes.
Effect of Moringa Leaves Water Extract Combined with Collagen and Vitamin C on Malondialdehyde Levels in Rats Exposed to Oxidative Stress
The increasing prevalence of free radical-related diseases has led to a greater reliance on herbal medicines, such as Moringa oleifera (ML), as antioxidants. However, limited evidence exists regarding the combined effect of herbal and conventional antioxidants on malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. This research assessed simplisia characterization, phytochemical screening, antioxidant activity of ML water extract (ML-WE), and serum MDA levels in animal models using ELISA. Forty-two Wistar rats were randomly divided into seven groups: a negative control, a positive control, and five treatment groups. All treatment groups were exposed to lead for seven days, followed by supplementation with either ML-WE (200 mg/kg BW), vitamin C (36 mg/kg BW), collagen (27 mg/kg BW), or their combinations. ML-WE showed strong antioxidant activity (IC50: 81.761 ppm). MDA levels differed significantly among groups (p < 0.001). Combining ML-WE with collagen reduced MDA levels more than ML-WE alone (14.65 ± 0.66 vs 21.32 ± 0.95 nmol/mL, p < 0.05) but was less effective than collagen monotherapy. Similarly, ML-WE combined with vitamin C showed no statistically significant improvement. These results indicate that while ML-WE has strong antioxidant properties, no synergistic effects were observed in combination therapies.
Gold Mineralisation in Metamorphic Rocks on Buru Island, Indonesia: Rock Facies, Geochemistry, Alterations, Mineralisation, and Types of Ore Deposits
Indonesia is a country rich in natural resources, one of which is gold deposits scattered across several locations, including the islands of Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, Maluku, Nusa Tenggara and Papua. This study aims to (1) determine the type of alteration contained in the research area based on the altered mineral set resulting from the alteration process and the characteristics of gold deposits in metamorphic rocks in the study area, (2) determine the mineralisation characteristics of gold deposits by conducting geochemical analysis, (3) determine the type of metamorphic facies in host-rocks Gold deposits in the research area, (4) explain how the distribution of gold content from the results of geochemical analysis, (5) explain the genetic characteristics of gold deposits in the study area based on geochemical analysis and petrographic analysis. This study involved a field survey and random rock sampling at Mount Botak, Buru Regency, Maluku Province, Indonesia. Rock samples were analysed by petrographic analysis, XRD (X-ray Diffraction) analysis, XRF (X-ray fluorescence) analysis, ICP-OES (inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry) analysis, and AAS (atomic absorption spectrometry) analysis. The study results indicate that the host rock of gold deposits on Buru Island is a metamorphic rock formed by greenschist facies. The types of alterations are silicic, sericitization, argilic, and chloritization. The mineralisation is generally in quartz veins with a crustiform texture and a slight vein stockwork. Au levels ranged from 0.23 to 5.9 g/ton, which was not accompanied by Ag enrichment. Based on the analysis of gold deposits in the research area, it is an orogenic-type of deposit formed in a mesozonal environment, typically at a depth of 5-10 km. The implications of the research results can be applied to gold exploration purposes in Indonesia, particularly for gold deposits that have metamorphic host rocks.
Analyzing Materials and Determining their Physical Properties Using Spectral Sensing Technology from Satellite Images: Methodology and Applications
The spectral remote sensor technology was used to study the Kurdistan region of Iraq to determine the characteristics of surface minerals and by analyzing satellite images across multiple spectral ranges, distinctive spectral signatures were specified for several metals such as zinc (ZN), Lead (PB), and Parium (BA), as well as the use of thermal infrared to detect free abnormalities and the results were verified through field measurements and admonitory, where the selection accuracy was 85% according to the absolute error (MAPE) and 0.045 for RMSé and the results showed that spectral signatures for metals were distributed in nearby and remote IR ranges, helping to determine mineral sediments such as zinc and lead in carbonate rocks and infrared data and it also revealed a surface temperature between 20°C and 35°C, with thermal anomaly indicating metal concentrations and the study confirms the effectiveness of spectral remote sensing as an inexpensive and accurate tool for minerals, which enhances sustainable resource management strategies in Iraq.
Copyright (c) 2026 Iraqi Journal of Science https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Nonlinear optical characteristics of Nile blue films doped with the polymers PMMA, PVC and their blend by using z-scan technique
The nonlinear optical characteristics of the laser dye Nile blue doped with Polyvinyl chloride (Nb /PVC), poly methylmethacrylate Nb/ (PMMA) and their blend N /(blend of PMMA 50 %+PVC 50%) was studded. Free-casting technique method was used for deposited the films. The nonlinear properties of the films studded by using Z- scan technique .Z-scan experiment was performed using continuous wave (CW) diode laser at 650 nm in two parts with power of 50 mw . The first part was done using a closed-aperture placed in front of the detector to measure the nonlinear refractive index ,with the second part; the aperture in front the detector was removed (open aperture) to measure the nonlinear absorption coefficient. The open-aperture curve exhibits a normalized transmittance (valley), indicating the presence of induced absorption. The observed nonlinearity is found to be of the third order, as it fits to two photon absorption process (TPA). The closed-aperture curve exhibits a peak to valley shape, indicating a negative value of the nonlinear refractive index n2. The effective values of the nonlinear refractive index n2, the nonlinear absorption coefficient β2, real and imaginary parts of the third-order optical nonlinearity, χ(3) for Nb/PMMA+PVC films comparatively with that of Nb/PMMA and Nb/PVC has much lower optical transmittance value obtained shows that these films can be used as efficient optical limiters.
Copyright (c) 2021 Iraqi Journal of Science https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
ADL: A New Dataset of Select Arabic-Derived Letters for Handwritten Character Recognition
Arabic text and characters recognition are among the most challenging problems in the field of optical character recognition (OCR) due to the complex nature of the letters and their variance in forms. This paper presents a new ADL dataset of the Arabic derived letters: Che (چ), Ngain (ڠ), Pe (پ), Ve (ڤ), Zhe (ژ), and the three versions of Gaf (گ, ڭ, and ݣ). This dataset consists of 55,440 images from scanned handwritten papers made by 30 participants of different ages, thus ensuring demographic and stylistic diversity. The dataset has been evaluated on three different models: a Support Vector Machine (SVM), a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), and a Vision Transformer (ViT) to demonstrate its practical usability. Several forms for different alphabet positions are used to represent each letter: isolated, initial, medial, and final, to reflect its real-world usage, which increases the value of the dataset for machine learning applications. The dataset was enriched using data augmentation techniques based on random rotation, horizontal shift, and zooming with nearest neighbor interpolation to fill empty pixels, which allowed for representing each character in a balanced way while preserving the essential structural elements. The dataset, as the first structured resource on some derived letters of the Arabic language, aims to fill a crucial gap in datasets focused on Arabic script and to advance research on handwritten character recognition. This dataset has important implications for linguistic research, practical applications, and advances in automated text processing systems by supporting better recognition of these non-original derived letters, especially in optical character recognition (OCR) systems.
Enhanced Intelligent System Model for Managing Anxiety in In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) Patients
In vitro fertilization (IVF) program patients have elevated anxiety levels. Therefore, they immediately contact fertility doctors through existing communication media to get treatment. However, fertility doctors cannot respond quickly due to high workloads. The intelligent health system that implements the Case-Based Reasoning (CBR) model is widely used to assist doctors in handling patient complaints. However, the system provides opportunities for modification so that the performance of the CBR model increases and further assists fertility doctors in handling IVF patient anxiety. This study modified the CBR model by integrating several previous research results (CCBR similarity formula, combination of CBR with Rule-Based Reasoning, the role of patient feedback, and the application of a minimum standard value of 80%). Measurement of the coefficient matrix to assess system performance using the Chris Case-Based Reasoning (CCBR) similarity formula produced an accuracy value of 52.58%, and the performance of the combination of the CBR model with the Rule-Based Reasoning model increased the accuracy value by 47.42%, so it can be stated that the CCBR model is a better intelligent system model for handling IVF patient anxiety.
GIS-MCDA Based Land Capability Analysis for Sustainable Food Production in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq
Food production is vital to global food security, entailing significant social, economic, and environmental implications. The Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) possesses abundant natural and human resources essential for agriculture, including extensive agricultural land, water resources, and a favorable climate. However, challenges such as population growth, displacement of large numbers of residents from other provinces to the Kurdistan Region, unplanned urban expansion encroaching on agricultural areas, useless land accumulation, and agricultural land degradation pose substantial threats to sustainable food production (SFP). The study's primary objective is to assess and map the potential for SFP in the region, enabling stakeholders to formulate strategies for sustainability and ensure food security. The methodology involved classifying land capability using Geographic Information System - Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis GIS-MCDA approaches, including the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process-hybrid model (F-AHP) and fuzzy analytical network process F-ANP. The dataset encompassed variables related to land capability for food production, categorized into six main groups: topography, climate elements, water resources, land use-landcover (LULC), geology, and soil characteristics, each with about eighteen sub-factors. Results from F-AHP and F-ANP indicated consistent findings across factor weights and land capability classifications in KRI, showing no significant disparities. Only 10.72% of the region's total land 4245.7 km2 exhibited high capability, while 28.68%, 11355 km2, 34.18%, 13534 km2, and 18.1%, 7168 km2, were moderately capable, low capability, and limited capable land, respectively. An 8.32%, 3295.4 km2 of Kurdistan's land was deemed unsuitable for SFP. The study's insights are crucial for experts, planners, governments, and stakeholders, facilitating the assessment of current food production. Based on these findings, appropriate plans and strategies can be developed to uphold long-term food security in the Kurdistan region.
B-cell Lymphoma 9 (BCL9) Gene Methylation as a Biomarker for Gastrointestinal Diseases and Gastric Cancer Risk
In this study, the link between bacterial infection and BCL9 gene methylation was examined, which is crucial to cancer formation. Also, it examined patients' gene methylation levels for stomach ulcers, gastritis [acute and chronic], and duodenal ulcers and cancer risk. Using MS-RT-PCR, BCL-9 methylation was associated more strongly with clinical variables. Substantial differences in BCL-9 methylation between patients and controls (median 1.368, Interquartile Range [0.912-1.468] vs. 1.001, [0.861-1.211], p<0.05). Interestingly, males had substantially greater BCL-9 methylation levels than females (median 1.186, Interquartile Range [1.139-1.308] vs. 0.986, Interquartile Range [0.875-1.150], p<0.05). A significant difference was observed in BCL-9 methylation between acute and chronic gastritis patients (median 1.213, Interquartile Range [1.083-1.378] vs. 1.013, Interquartile Range [0.855-1.130], p<0.05), suggesting that chronic inflammation may impact BCL-9 methylation patterns. BCL-9 methylation was strongly linked with treatment status (r= 0.293, p<0.01). BCL-9 methylation was linked to gastrointestinal diseases such as chronic gastritis. This strongly suggests that BCL9 gene methylation can be detected early. This evidence can be utilized to create cancer treatment and prevention medicine.
Integrating XGBoost and Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs) to Optimize COVID-19 Mortality Prediction
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has severely affected worldwide health, but the prediction of patient mortality remains difficult to achieve accurately. Current predictive methods mainly concentrate on clinical condition measurements without a complete view of death predictions. This research fills the void between advanced modelling through XGBoost and Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs) for improved COVID-19 mortality prediction analysis. We applied a systematic four-phase approach to collect data from the "COVID-19 Symptoms Dataset containing symptoms and death cases as well as mortality rates and confirmed cases, " prior to data processing and analysis stages, including cleaning, visualization and feature analysis, followed by the implementation and optimization of XGBoost models and RNN frameworks. The final stage involved performance assessment with accuracy, precision recall, and F1-score. The evaluation results demonstrate RNNs deliver superior performance than XGBoost by achieving 94% accuracy, 93% recall, 92% F1-score, and 92% precision, at a time when XGBoost reaches 88.47% accuracy alone. Results demonstrate the advantage of XGBoost-RNN integration for mortality predictions, which enables public health services to create better resource plans.
Assessment of Heavy Metal Content in Plant Waste and Environmental Impact Evaluation through Thermal Analysis
The growing trend of converting plant waste into energy requires a comprehensive analytical investigation into the potential environmental risks of heavy metal pollution. Therefore, this paper presents an in-depth analytical study of the heavy metal content in waste samples of Eucalyptus collected from three locations in Iraq: Al-Khadra District, Al-Taji, and Samarra. The analysis included ultimate and proximate, ICP-MS, Thermal, and SEM-EDX analysis. TGA/DTG analyses were used to characterize the thermal behavior of the samples; the obtained TG and DTG curves were used to evaluate the volatilization of heavy metals during the gasification process. Results indicated that the samples followed a general trend of heavy metal contamination with Pb, followed mainly by Al, Fe, Ni, As, and Cu. Increasing temperature through TGA experiments raised the heavy metal content in char to maximum volatilization at 900°C. This work emphasizes assessing heavy metal content in plant waste, intending to evaluate the environmental impact of such wastes and has shown how gasification is among the promising thermos-conversion technologies for waste-to-energy conversion. The outcome of this work adds to the development of strategies that could be used to mitigate the environmental impact of heavy metal contamination in plant waste while assisting in sustainable energy production.
Antibacterial and Post-biofilm Effects of Biosynthesized Copper Oxide Nanoparticles Using Pseudomonas aeruginosa Pyocyanin
The increasing resistance of bacteria to conventional antibiotics has driven the search for alternative antimicrobial agents, such as metal nanoparticles. Copper oxide nanoparticles exhibit strong antibacterial and antibiofilm properties due to their high surface-to-volume ratio and reactive oxygen species generation. The biosynthesis of nanoparticles (NPs) using microorganisms offers an eco-friendly and cost-effective approach compared to chemical methods. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a pathogenic bacterium, produces pyocyanin, a redox-active pigment with metal-reducing properties, which can facilitate the synthesis of CuO NPs. Pyocyanin acts as a stabilizing and reducing agent, enabling the formation of NPs with enhanced biocompatibility and antimicrobial efficacy. The research involves the isolation of P. aeruginosa, extraction of pyocyanin, and subsequent biosynthesis of copper oxide nanoparticles. The findings are expected to provide insights into novel therapeutic strategies for combating resistant bacterial strains, addressing a critical public health need. Samples were collected from Baghdad-Al-Yarmouk Teaching Hospital, Ghazi Al-Hariry Hospital, and Al-Imamein Al-Khadumein Teaching. The copper oxide nanoparticles were synthesized from P. aeruginosa using the biological method and characterized using Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), and Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). These confirmed that it is a nanoparticle. The antimicrobial efficiency of CuO NPs was determined for Six multidrug-resistant bacterial isolates using a well diffusion assay (WDA). The maximum inhibition zone of P. aeruginosa was 34 mm at a concentration of 500mg/ml of CuO NPs. CuO NPs showed consistent inhibition on all strains. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of copper nanoparticles (CuO NPs) biosynthesized using pyocyanin, as an antibacterial agent and antibiofilm after formation against P. aeruginosa, there is a proportional relationship between the concentration of nanoparticles and their effect on non-planktonic cells within the biofilm texture.
A Photometric and Spectroscopic Study of IC 2473, an Outer Pseudo-ring Galaxy (R′1)
This work aims to study the outer Pseudo-ring galaxy IC 2473 by analyzing its spectroscopic and photometric data using griz filters from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). The ellipse task from the STSDAS library was applied within the IRAF environment to analyze the isophotes and extract the galaxy's structural and optical properties using surface photometric techniques. This analysis helped determine important parameters such as ellipticity, surface brightness, and position angle, enabling a precise characterization of the galaxy's structure. A least-square fitting method was used to effectively study the morphological features. Spectroscopically, the emission line flux [OII] was analyzed to estimate the star formation rate (SFR), which was found to be approximately 0.124 M⊙ yr-1. The mass of the supermassive black hole (MBH) was calculated using the M–σ relationship, and it was approximately 2.2×10⁷ M⊙, with a Schwarzschild radius of 6.5×10⁷ km. In addition, the effective density of the black hole (ρ_BH) within the Schwarzschild radius was calculated and found to be approximately 3.75×10⁴ kg/m³. This study provides a comprehensive and integrated analysis of the structural, physical, and dynamical aspects of IC 2473, contributing to our understanding of the internal structure of pseudo-ring galaxies and their associated stellar activity.
An Intensive Study of Finite Dimensional Hesitant Fuzzy Normed Linear Spaces
The author's previous covered the concept of fuzzy normed linear space into hesitant fuzzy normed linear space. This work introduces hesitant fuzzy n-normed linear space as a generalization of n-normed space in addition to the generic t-norm, which is the major objective, and provides an expanding family of S*-n-norms that correspond to fuzzy n-norms. The decomposition theorem of a hesitant fuzzy norm into a set of crisp norms has been proven to fail when a t-norm other than "min" is used. This paper also addresses essential conclusions for fuzzy normed linear spaces of limited dimensions within a broad t-norm framework.
Detection of Some Antibiotic-Resistance Genes (qnrB, qnrS, parE, and armA) for Escherichia coli Isolated from Tigris River, Baghdad, Iraq
Safe water is a crucial resource for the survival and sustenance of life, and its scarcity is a major cause of water-related ailments, particularly in underdeveloped nations. The aim of this study was to determine the antibiotic sensitivity pattern of Escherichia coli isolated from the surface waters of the Tigris River and the detection of resistance genes (qnrB, qnrS, parE, and armA) for E. coli. A total of 32 bacterial isolates of E coli were collected for analysis from four distinct sites: S1 Al-Muthana Bridge, S2 Al-Sarrafia Bridge, S3 Al-Senak Bridge, and S4 Al-Jadriyah Bridge. Water samples were collected from November 2023 until July 2024. The isolation of E. coli is performed using membrane filtration techniques and biochemical analysis followed by the VITEK2. The antimicrobial susceptibility of E. coli isolates was assessed using the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method, employing a selection of 10 specific antibiotics for evaluation. The resistance genes for E. coli isolates were detected using the PCR technique. The results showed that both nitrofurantoin and ampicillin showed significantly higher resistance (100%), significant proportions of resistance to some β-lactam antibiotics (ceftazidime, cefoxitin, and ampicillin were 94%,94%,100% respectively) , another significant resistance for aminoglycosides antibiotics ( gentamycin and amikacin, 81-84%), cephalosporins antibiotics group showed significant differences ( ceftriaxone and cefuroxime , 59-93.8%), carbapenems antibiotics ( imipenem,72%), quinolones group presented low resistance proportion ( ciprofloxacin, 43.8%). All identified genes are complete sets with two, three, or four genes. Fourteen isolates showed resistance to fluoroquinolones (ciprofloxacin), and 26 showed resistance to aminoglycosides (gentamycin). Nine isolates (28.1%) showed the presence of qnrB, and 7 isolates (21.9%) showed the presence of qnrS genes. Of the 26 resistant isolates to gentamycin, 20 isolates (62.5%) showed the presence of the armA gene, and the parE gene was found among all selected isolates for fluoroquinolones and aminoglycosides (100%). The double association qnrB and qnrS was found in 12 isolates (37.5%), This research highlights the necessity of implementing regular surveillance of urban rivers to control the spread of antimicrobial resistance (ARM) genes in aquatic environments.
Production enhancement and chemical characterization of pyocyanin pigment extracted from Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Pyocyanin is a blue-greenish phenazine pigment produced by certain strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This secondary product pigment is revealed to have antibacterial, anticancer, antiparasitic, antioxidant, and antibiofilm formation activity. This study investigates the effects of organic solvents, such as toluene, surfactants, and particularly triton X-100, on pyocyanin synthesis in the presence of glycerol. Moreover, the pyocyanin pigment was chemically characterised using Fourie Transform Infra-Red spectroscopy (FT-IR). The results showed the highest yield of pyocyanin was produced when glycerol 1% was the only carbon source used in the growth medium (nutrient broth). The production of pyocyanin went up to 31.1 mg/L and 13.1 mg/L when either 0.2% toluene or 0.3% triton X-100 was added to the nutrient broth along with 1% glycerol. This was compared to the control level of 6.2 mg/L. FT-IR analysis revealed that pyocyanin had a hydroxyl group (O-H), an aromatic hydrocarbon ring (C-H), aliphatic saturated hydrocarbon chains (CH, CH2, CH3), and a C=N bond. It seems that adding glycerol-toluene to the nutrient broth medium can help P. aeruginosa make more extracellular yields, such as pyocyanin. Furthermore, FT-IR analysis showed that pyocyanin is biologically safe (has no biological toxic chemical compounds), and these findings confirmed that pyocyanin could be widely used in applications such as in the therapeutic, medication, nutrition, fabric, bio-control, nanotechnology, and physicochemical industries.
Biological Preparation of Iron-Zinc Oxides Core-Shell (Fe3O4-ZnO) Nanoparticles Using Nerium oleander Extracts and Their Activities Against F. oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici
This study aimed to use Nerium oleander as a reducing and stabilizing agent for core-shell nanoparticles of iron and zinc (Fe3O4-ZnO) to use as an antimicrobial agent. The biosynthesized (Fe3O4-ZnO) NPs were characterized by various techniques such as UV-VIS, AFM, EDX, TEM, and Zeta potential. The wavelength of the (Fe3O4-ZnO) core-shell nanoparticles was (319 nm), the diameter was identified by atomic force microscopy (AFM), the average diameter was 78.74 nm, the core and shell nanoparticles (Fe3O4-ZnO) were confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) through the dark inner region representing the core and the bright part surrounding the dark region representing the shell and Zeta potential for (Fe3O4-ZnO) core-shell nanoparticles was 29.89- mV. For molecular diagnosis of Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici, DNA was extracted to determine the identity of the isolate. The sample contained the target DNA fragments of 680 base pairs in size. The result was 100% identical in the NCBI GenBank database with F. oxysporum. The ITS rDNA sequence of the strain has been deposited in the NCBI GenBank database (GenBank accession numbers PQ060101). The antimicrobial activity of the core and shell nanoparticles (Fe3O4-ZnO) was recorded at 400 μg/mL with a maximum inhibition zone of 33 mm in diameter and minimum inhibition zone at 100 μg/mL with a diameter of 13 mm.
Using GPR Technique Assessment for Study the Sub-Grade of Asphalt andConcrete Conditions
The Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is frequently used in pavement engineering for road pavement inspection. The main objective of this work is to validate nondestructive, quick and powerful measurements using GPR for assessment of subgrade and asphalt /concrete conditions. In the present study, two different antennas (250, 500 MHz) were used. The case studies are presented was carried in University of Baghdad over about 100m of paved road. After data acquisition and radar grams collection, they have been processed using RadExplorer V1.4 software implementing different filters with the most effective ones (time zero adjustment and DC removal) in addition to other interpretation tool parameters. The interpretation results showed that with 250 MHz antenna, the buried plastic pipe and the flexible pavement layer were identified. The later appeared as one layer without identifying the rigid pavement layer. With 500 MHz antenna, the plastic pipe, rigid pavement, appeared clearly. Moreover, the short type of maximum time window using antenna 500 MHz appeared to be the most suitable for detecting some radar anomalies (plastic pipe, and pavement thickness) which were clearly defined. While, the suitable radar wave velocity was 100 m/ns for estimation of the flexible and rigid pavement layer thicknesses respectively. No change is obtained with changing point interval. . Finally, this diagnostic tool of GPR for pavement defects and damages investigations seems very promising, cost effective and efficient in its implementation.
Copyright (c) 2023 Iraqi Journal of Science https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
Synthesis, Characterization, and Elimination of Amoxicillin by Using V2O5 and NiO Nanoparticles
The nanoparticles (V2O5 and NiO) were synthesized via reflux and characterized using various techniques including atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV/visible spectroscopy, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Initially, the nanoparticles were dried at 90 oC, to obtain the as prepared nanoparticles (V2O5.1.8H2O and Ni(OH)2), followed by annealing at 500 oC to produce the oxide nanoparticles (V2O5 and NiO). The average grain sizes of the nanoparticles as prepared were 30.51nm, 55.70 nm, which decreased to 21.49 nm and 37.07 nm after annealing, respectively. The nanoparticles were employed for the removal of amoxicillin (AMX) as a contaminant in a water solution. V2O5.1.8H2O nanoparticles exhibited the most effective removal activity among all types of nanoparticles, with a percentage removal (%R) of 64.01% and a removal capacity (qt) of 5.89 g/mg. Therefore, vanadium pentoxide in its prepared form (V2O5.1.8H2O) demonstrated the best removal activity.
The Potential Anti-Obesity Effect of Heated Stingless Bee Honey in Mice Fed a High-Carbohydrate High-Fat Diet
Stingless bee honey (SBH) has been widely recognized for its unique bioactive compounds and potential health benefits, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the effects of heat processing on SBH's bioactivity, particularly its potential anti-obesity effects, remain inadequately explored. This study aims to evaluate the potential anti-obesity effects of heated SBH in mice fed a high-carbohydrate, high-fat (HCHF) diet. This study utilized 30 male white mice with an average weight of 19.03±1.44 g were randomly divided into six groups (n=5). The animals were divided as follows: Group A (Normal Control): Mice fed a standard laboratory diet with no HCHF diet or SBH supplementation. Group B (HCHF Control): Mice fed an HCHF diet without SBH treatment. Group C (HCHF + Unheated SBH): Mice fed an HCHF diet and supplemented with unheated SBH. Group D (HCHF + Heated SBH at 50°C): Mice fed an HCHF diet and supplemented with SBH heated at 50°C. Group E (HCHF + Heated SBH at 75°C): Mice fed an HCHF diet and supplemented with SBH heated at 75°C. Group F (HCHF + Heated SBH at 90°C): Mice fed an HCHF diet and supplemented with SBH heated at 90°C. Mice were administered honey once daily orally for eight weeks. At the end of treatment, body weight, white adipose tissue accumulation, adipose tissue morphology and histology, blood glucose levels, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and HDL-cholesterol were measured. The results showed that mice fed HCHF without SBH administration had abnormal adipose tissue morphology and histology, while administration of heated SBH, especially at a temperature of 50°C, significantly improved the morphological and histological structure of adipose tissue under normal conditions. Administration of heated SBH also reduced adipose tissue weight, decreased fasting blood glucose levels, and increased lipid profiles. Thus, SBH, particularly when heated at 50°C, as a natural therapeutic agent for managing obesity.
Up Up-regulation of Soluble Programmed Death Ligand 1 (PD L1) Level as a Potential COVID-19 Severity-Associated Bio-parameter
Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) may be in a position to interact hydrophobically with the spike glycoprotein or its epitopes of SARS-CoV-2, which, in addition to the neuroinvasive capability it possesses, triggers hyperactivation of the Program Death Ligand1. A case-control study (67 COVID-19 patients and 23 healthy controls) was conducted to detect the role of soluble Program Death-Ligand1 (sPDL-1). The sPD-L1 serum concentrations were measured with an ELISA kit, while the SARS-CoV-2 infection was determined earlier via a real-time PCR evaluation kit. The findings demonstrated that median sPD-L1 levels in patients were substantially more significant compared to healthy controls (1349 vs. 737.8 pg/ml; p < 0.0001). Most patients were considered high producers of sPD-L1 (> median=990.8 pg/ml) compared to controls (65.7%; p=0.001). Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis indicated that an sPDL-1 level of more than 887.6 pg/ml distinguishes patients from control (area under the curve = 0.831; p < 0.0001) and is considered an excellent indicator that distinguishes patients with different severity at risk (area under the curve = 0.91; p < 0.0001). The sPD-L1 levels showed a significant relationship with the severity of infection by COVID-19 (p < 0.0001), which were significantly increased with C-reactive protein (CRP) (p = 0.021) and Ferritin levels, making both of them a promising prognostic marker for infection progress. The sPD-L1 had a crucial role in the progression of infection along with SARS-CoV-2 wild type and their variants, and future studies are required to inhibit sPD-L1 based-interferons expression.
Determination of the MESEP Events of 2-9th April 2001 According to ERNE/SOHO Observation
On 2-9th April 2001 the Energetic and Relativistic Nuclei and Electron (ERNE) instrument on the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) observed three gradual solar energetic particle (SEP) events separated by 9 hour and 7days respectively, in association with three effective solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). In this paper, a study of MESEP events was considered. As the definition of this phenomenon suggested there might be many sources for each MESEP event. This event has been examined in order to view the different sources that might relate to suspected accelerator of the SEPs. A careful analysis for the spectra and associated emission with such eruptions was made. Soft X-ray emission was observed by the Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) was used to indicate the associated solar flares, earth radio stations were used to determine the associated radio emissions. While three instruments, beside (ERNE) were used from the SOHO satellite, the Large Angle Spectrometric Coronagraph (LASCO) to follow the CMEs, the Extreme-ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT) for observing the Morton waves to indicate the CME location and the Charge, Element, and Isotope Analysis System CELIAS to indicate the shock waves caused by CMEs.
shock wave, Solar Energetic Particle SEP, Multi-Eruption Solar Energetic Particle (MESEP) events.
Determine phytochemical content of three medicinal plants and evaluate antimicrobial activities against some types of food borne microorganisms
two solvent extracts (Mehanol and aqueous) of three medicinal plants Sage (Saliva officinalis L.), Chamomile (Matrica chammile L.) and Anise (Pimpinella anisum L.) were evaluated for their antimicrobial efficacy against several food pathogens and spoilage microorganisms. the results revealed that the alcoholic extract of three medicinal plants had significant antimicrobial action against all tested microbes compared with aqueous extract. the phytochemical examination of the three medicinal plants revealed the presence of carbohydrates, phenoles, flavonoids, tannins, proteins, saponinsand alkaloids in the Sage and Anise plant extracts but absence of saponins in the alcoholic extract of Chamomile plant. the results showed the plant extracts had a considerable effect on the cell membranes of gram positive bacteria. In conclusion, plant extracts are effective natural antimicrobial and can utilized safely as food preservatives.
Optimization of CuInSSe-Based Solar Cell Simulated by SCAPS-1D Software: Role of 30% Efficiency
Copper Indium Sulfur-Selenide (CISSe)-based solar cell is examined by optimization several aspects including absorber layer thickness, buffer layer thickness, window layer thickness, working temperatures and energy band gap values. The optimization of these factors has resulted in optimum absorber layer thickness of 3000 nm, optimum CdS thickness of 10 nm, optimum ZnO thickness of 10 nm, optimum working temperature of 300 K and optimum energy band gap of 1.5 eV. The best device performance consisting of these optimum values results in a PCE of 30.51% correlated to FF of 83.7%, JSC of 47.188 mA.cm-2 and VOC of 0.773 Volt. The results are promising and pave the way towards high PCE of CISSe-based solar. However, there might be a differences when these factors are applied in an experimental procedure due to the preparation conditions.
Variations in Vegetation Cover in Al-Suwaira District during The period (2017-2023) Using Remote Sensing Data and Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
This research aims to determine the extent of change in the vegetation cover of the Al-Suwaira region in the period 2017-2023, as this region faces many problems, the most important of which are urban expansion at the expense of agricultural land, soil erosion, climate change, pollution. The region is located in southern Iraq, where water resources are scarce compared to the northern and central parts. The Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier was applied to the seven scenes adopted in this work from Landsat 8 and Landsat 9 satellite data, and the area and percentage of each land cover category in the study area were calculated. The results indicated that the percentage of vegetation cover during 2017-2023 decreased by 1% annually using a graphical relationship between the percentages for each scene and the years. This decrease in the vegetation cover of the Al-Suwaira region is considered a dangerous indicator that threatens the ecosystem. Accordingly, the study recommends that the concerned authorities monitor the region's ecosystem and take the necessary measures and procedures to increase the water level in the Tigris River, reclaim lands, and encourage farmers to pay attention to agriculture.
Secure and Robust Watermarking Using NSST-LWT-DCT-SVD for Copyright Protection
The ongoing issue of unauthorized image distribution poses a serious modern challenge. This research introduces an innovative dual image watermarking technique that determines a potential embedding area in a small 4×4 DCT block and employs a hybrid approach of NSST-LWT-DCT-SVD to ensure efficient copyright protection. The watermark images are integrated using the red and green channels. These channels are then transformed using NSST-LWT to extract the low-frequency sub-band. Following this, the low-frequency section is divided into 4×4 blocks. The Human Visual System (HVS) is then used to select the appropriate blocks, which are transformed using DCT. Certain coefficients from the middle frequency of the DCT are chosen for decomposition with SVD. The singular values are then employed for embedding the watermark bits. Experimental results indicate that the proposed technique is a viable option for image watermarking, achieving average PSNR and SSIM values of up to 45.9 dB and 0.9962, respectively, while closely approaching a value of 1 for NC performance.
Molecular Identification of Some Antibiotic-Resistance Genes and Antibiotic Susceptibility Profile of Enterococcus faecalis Isolated from Clinical Samples
Enterococcus spp. are a commensal bacteria and opportunistic pathogens that seriously threaten public health. Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus faecium are responsible for about 90% of the enterococcal infections. The ability of E. faecalis to resist many of the utilized antibiotics, which makes the treatment hard, together with its ability to form a biofilm that allows it to cause severe infections, make these bacteria a threat to public health. The study aimed to identify the resistance patterns and species distribution of E. faecalis strains isolated from clinical samples. Conventional methods were used to identify 52 E. faecalis isolates from patients at Al-Imam al-Sadiq teaching hospital in HIilla / Iraq, and a species-specific PCR assay was used for molecular identification for confirmation. The Kirby Bauer test was used to test antibiotic susceptibility to 15 antibiotics and analyze the distribution of two different resistance genes among the isolates (bla-TEM and GyrA). Statistical analysis showed significant differences (P<0.0001) for the antibiotic type and the response's nature. Among E. faecalis, the most prevalent was resistance to oxacillin, penicillin, erythromycin, Rifampicin, clindamycin, and Vancomycin, with a 100% ratio. While the percentage of the resistant isolates to the other antibiotics sorted in descending order was ceftazidime (85%), ampicillin (84.6%), amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (61%), Ciprofloxacin (23%), co-trimoxazole (13.46%), Gentamicin (7.69%), and Chloramphenicol (7.69%). PCR results detected the presence of the gyrA gene in 57.6% (30/52) of the isolates, while the bla TEM appeared in 78.8% of them )41/52(. According to the current study, E. faecalis was found to be resistant to a number of antibiotics and to have genes that resist antibiotics, such as bla-TEM and gyrA.
Evaluation of Air Pollution with NO2, SO2, and PM2.5 in Nasiriyah City Center, South of Iraq
Air pollution is considered one of the most dangerous types of pollution because of the problems and risks it causes to living organisms on the surface of the Earth. This paper studied the emission of air pollutants (nitrogen dioxide, NO2, sulfur dioxide, SO2, and particulate matter PM2.5) in the city center of Nasiriyah. The data were taken from the European Mediterranean Weather Forecast (ECMWF) during the year (2022). The pollutant roses were plotted, which show the most pollutant source from the northwest direction of the electric power plant in the city and another source from the south (Nasiriyah refinery and Saba oil field). The daily rates of NO2, SO2 and PM2.5 concentrations (in µg/m3) were studied and evaluated during the four months. The Air Quality Index (AQI) was calculated and the results showed that the NO2 and SO2 categories were good while for PM2.5 was unhealthy for people with respiratory diseases and unhealthy causing the daily AQI (160 µg/m3 as the annual mean) to be high in 2022.
Simulation of Solar Coronal Magnetic Field UsingPotential Field Model
In this paper, 3D simulation of the global coronal magnetic field, which use observed line of sight component of the photosphere magnetic field from (MDI/SOHO) was carried out using potential field model. The obtained results, improved the theoretical models of the coronal magnetic field, which represent a suitable lower boundary conditions (Bx , By , Bz) at the base of the linear force-free and nonlinear force free models, provides a less computationally expensive method than other models. Generally, very high speed computer and special configuration is needed to solve such problem as well as the problem of viewing the streamline of the magnetic field. For high accuracy special mathematical treatment was adopted to solve the computation complexity.