•In Iraq, building materials are transported and stored badly.•The percentage of cement and gypsum in the accumulated dust was high.•Studied materials deposition (even in small quantities) reduces ...transmissivity.•In dry cleaning used, the normal cement was the most difficult material to clean.•Technical gypsum has high degree of adhesion followed by sand.
Different building materials such as sand, cement, and gypsum are transported and stored poorly in Iraq (open-air), so large amounts of them fly into the air and form part of the dust. In this study, collected amounts of dust deposited for three months studied in a controlled manner. The components of the accumulated dust were examined and found that the largest part of it (more than 50%) is silicon oxides (sand), the rest of which represent most significant part of the components of cement and gypsum. In this study, the accumulation of building materials (sand, ordinary cement, egg cement, gypsum, and industrial gypsum) studied on the power output of a photovoltaic module (PV). The effect of periodic cleaning and its duration on the lost power of the PV were also studied.
The study results showed that the accumulation of these materials, even in small quantities on PV reduces the transmittance and reduces the resulting power because it prevents the arrival of solar irradiation to the PV. The accumulation of natural and white cement followed by sand and gypsum gave the most considerable loss of energy produced. The studied module cleaned without using any liquids so as not to react with the tested building materials. Natural cement is the most difficult of these materials in dry cleaning due to its particles' small size. The industrial gypsum causes the most substantial power reduction when accumulates in more than 25 g/m2. When studying the material's ability to adhere to the surface of the dry PV module, the industrial gypsum showed a high degree of adhesion followed by sand compared with the other studied materials. Three methods to prevent the dew water from being connected to the building material were studied, which is to clean the PV daily at the evening, cover the PV with plastic cover from evening until early morning, and turn the PV in the evening to face the ground. The first method limited in effectiveness, while the other two methods were effective in reducing dust accumulation damage and preventing its interaction with dew.
The Ba'th Party came to power in 1968 and remained for thirty-five years, until the 2003 US invasion. Under the leadership of Saddam Hussein, who became president of Iraq in 1979, a powerful ...authoritarian regime was created based on a system of violence and an extraordinary surveillance network, as well as reward schemes and incentives for supporters of the party. The true horrors of this regime have been exposed for the first time through a massive archive of government documents captured by the United States after the fall of Saddam Hussein. It is these documents that form the basis of this extraordinarily revealing book and that have been translated and analyzed by Joseph Sassoon, an Iraqi-born scholar and seasoned commentator on the Middle East. They uncover the secrets of the innermost workings of Hussein's Revolutionary Command Council, how the party was structured, how it operated via its network of informers and how the system of rewards functioned.
Acute lung injury (ALI) is a severe acute inflammatory reaction of the lungs caused by a variety of factors, which can lead to a high mortality rate. MicroRNAs are a novel therapeutic molecule that ...play a vital role in many diseases. However, its mechanism of action in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐induced mouse ALI is not clear. The study aimed to investigate the mechanism of action of miR‐497 in LPS‐induced ALI. As a result, it was found that the expression of miR‐497 in the inflammatory reaction showed a decrease in time and dose trends. Importantly, miR‐497 reduced LPS‐induced expression levels of related inflammatory factors. In addition, we also demonstrated that IRAK2 is a direct target molecule of miR‐497. Interestingly, we further found that miR‐497 inhibits the expression of IRAK2 by targeting IRAK2–3′UTR. Therefore, miR‐497 can partially negatively regulate the activation of IRAK2‐NF‐κB pathway in LPS‐induced inflammatory responses.
The study aimed to investigate the mechanism of action of miR‐497 in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐induced acute lung injury. In conclusion, all results disclose that miR‐497 partly attenuates LPS‐induced inflammatory injury by inhibiting the activation of the IRAK2‐NF‐κB pathway.
"John Cooley uncovered the truth about the west's creation of the extreme forces that attacked the US on 9/11. As an authority on the Middle East, he has been right so often he has few equals. In An ...Alliance Against Babylon: the US, Israel and Iraq, he breaks the silence on the pivotal role Israel has played in the west's imperial adventure in Iraq: indeed, how the tail in Tel Aviv has so often wagged the dog in Washington. This book is typically Cooley: much needed and brilliant." John Pilger 'A major contribution... John Cooley's face-to-face exchanges with so many of the key personalities who have shaped the Arab world give his observations a depth and a vitality that will captivate many people. ... Only someone who has been 'embedded' in the region for almost half a century could catch the nuances of the underlying tragedy that has contributed to the threat we refer to in simplistic terms as 'terrorism'.' Ray Close, former CIA Station Chief in Saudi Arabia 'The Iraq war is unintelligible without the history John Cooley's brave new book provides. The ancient Jewish communities of the Middle East were sacrificed during the 20th century to the selfish games of nationalist politicians and spy/entrepreneurs. British, Americans and Israelis had better read Cooley carefully if they hope to save the Christians and Kurds of Iraq from the deadly consequences of the current intervention.' Brady Kiesling, former US Diplomat in various Arab capitals who resigned in protest against George W. Bush's middle east policy The ruins of ancient Babylon still stand in Iraq. They are a reminder that today's conflict is only one of many that have engulfed the country, and the wider Middle East, over the centuries. John Cooley, a former correspondent for ABC News and the Christian Science Monitor, argues that America's new invasion and occupation of Iraq marks a turning point in the West's relationship with the Arab world, and alters the balance of power within the Middle East. He argues that the crucial factor in this new development is the relationship between Israel and the United States. Examining today's problems from this unique perspective, Cooley covers a broad sweep of history, from biblical Babylonian times until now. He shows how US and Israeli interests in the Middle East were contradictory at first. He explains how and why the US-Israel alliance gradually evolved. Drawing from unpublished sources, as well as from John Cooley's personal encounters with principal players such as David ben-Gurion, the Shah of Iran, Anwar al-Sadat, King Hussein of Jordan and Saddam Hussein himself, this book gives a uniquely valuable perspective on the complex history of Iraq and why it continues to be at the heart of world affairs. Praise for John Cooley's previous book, Unholy Wars: 'The definitive account.' Guardian 'A masterpiece of reportorial thoroughness, painstaking research, and serious reflection.'Edward W. Said 'Cooley's first-hand familiarity with both the Middle East and Central Asia is nearly unrivaled.' Los Angeles Times Book Review
Several studies have identified mutations in the MYD88L265P gene as a key driver mutation in several B-cell lymphomas. B-cell lymphomas that harbor the MYD88L265P mutation form a complex with ...phosphorylated Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) and are responsive to BTK inhibition. However, BTK inhibition in B-cell lymphomas rarely results in a complete response and most patients experience eventual disease relapse. Persistent survival signaling though downstream molecules such as interleukin 1 receptor-associated kinase 4 (IRAK-4), an integral part of the “myddosome” complex, has been shown to be constitutively active in B-cell lymphoma patients treated with BTK inhibitors. Emerging evidence is demonstrating the therapeutic benefit of IRAK-4 inhibition in B-cell lymphomas, along with possibly reversing BTK inhibitor resistance. While MYD88 gene mutations are not present in myeloid malignancies, downstream overexpression of the oncogenic long form of IRAK-4 has been found in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), particularly in AML and MDS that harbor mutations in splicing factors U2AF1 and SF3B1. These data suggest that the anti-leukemic activity of IRAK-4 inhibition can be exploited in relapsed/refractory (R/R) AML/MDS. In this review article, we discuss the currently available pre-clinical and clinical data of emavusertib, a selective, orally bioavailable IRAK-4 inhibitor in the treatment of R/R B-cell lymphomas and myeloid malignancies.
•Compromise programming (CP) is used to measure accuracy of gridded precipitation data.•Contradictory results by multiple statistical metrics is possible to tradeoff using CP.•GPCC is identified as ...the best gridded rainfall data for Iraq by CP.•GPCC can replicate the distribution and seasonal variability of rainfall of Iraq.
Appropriate selection of gridded precipitation data is very important for the region where long-term precipitation observations are not available. An approach based on compromise programing (CP) is proposed to select the gridded precipitation data for Iraq, where precipitation gauges are very sparse. The performance of seven widely used gauge-based, reanalysis and remote sensing-based gridded monthly precipitation data were assessed using observed precipitation records of 41 stations located within and surrounding Iraq. Obtained results showed the superiority of different datasets in term of different statistical metrics, namely percentage of bias, normalized root-mean-square error, Nash-Sutcliff efficiency, modified index of agreement, volumetric efficiency, and skill score. However, combining all the indices using CP, the gauge-based Global Precipitation Climatology Centre (GPCC) precipitation data was found best in term of replicating observed precipitation at 21 out of 41 stations. Validation of results using different approaches revealed that the GPCC precipitation was able to replicate annual and seasonal mean and variability and probability distribution of observed precipitation. The study concludes that CP can be used to select appropriate gridded precipitation data by avoiding confusion arise from contradictory results obtained using different statistical metrics.
Thymoquinone (TQ) is a bioactive component of black seed (Nigella sativa) volatile oil and has been shown to have anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties. In the present study, ...we explored the molecular mechanisms that underlie the anti-inflammatory effect of TQ and its target proteins using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated murine macrophage-like RAW264.7 and human monocyte-like U937 cells, together with LPS/D-galactosamine (GalN)-induced acute hepatitis and HCl/EtOH-induced gastritis mouse models. TQ strongly inhibited the production of nitric oxide (NO) and repressed NO synthase (iNOS), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, cyclooxygenase (COX)-2, interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-1β expression in LPS-activated RAW264.7 cells. Treatment of LPS/D-GalN-induced hepatitis and EtOH/HCl-induced gastritis mouse models with TQ significantly ameliorated disease symptoms. Using luciferase reporter gene assays, we also showed that the nuclear levels of transcription factors and phosphorylation patterns of signaling proteins, activator protein (AP)-1, and nuclear factor (NF)-κB pathways were all affected by TQ treatment. Finally, we used additional kinase and luciferase validation assays with interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase 1 (IRAK1) to show that IRAK1 is directly suppressed by TQ treatment. Together, these findings strongly suggest that the anti-inflammatory actions of TQ are caused by suppression of IRAK-linked AP-1/NF-κB pathways.
This paper observes the impact of working capital management on profitability of industrial sector in Iraq. Four companies based in Iraq namely: Iraqi Date processing, Iraqi carton manufactories, ...Baghdad soft drinks and Iraqi for tufted carpets randomly selected and analyzed for the present study over the period 2007 to 2016. Annual reports of these companies have been studied and significant ratios calculated. The variables that were identified as independent for working capital were, current ratio and quick ratio, while return on equity ROE as dependent variable for profitability. The Ordinary Least Square (OLS) model used to examine the impact of working capital management on profitability. Results indicate that ROE is positively related with working capital variables.
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