SOUTHERN JOURNAL OF SCIENCES

This study was designed to examine the DPPH free radical-scavenging activity, in different concentrations (0.025, 0.05, 0.07, 0.1, 0.2, 0.04 and 0.6) of methanolic extracts of Salvia nemorosa L. collected from the northwest of Iran (Zonouz and Ardabil regions) at two-stage of growth (vegetative stage leaves, flowering stage leaves, and flowers). The result showed that the mean of inhibition percentage in the Zonouz region increased in various concentrations and between flowers, vegetative stage leaves, and flowering stage leaves, compared with the plants of the Ardabil region. In each of the regions of Zonouz and Ardabil, the highest amount of DPPH inhibition was observed in the vegetative stage leaves in comparison with flowering stage leaves and flowers. In addition, in the effect of DPPH radical trapping in different concentrations of methanolic extracts of Salvia nemorosa L. was observed that from each of the collected region, methanolic extracts from sage plants were dose-dependent and acted very effective and useful and the best antioxidant activity was in the high concentration of extracts, So in Zonouz and Ardabil regions, the content of inhibition of DPPH increased significantly, by increasing the concentration of 0.025 mg/ml to 0.6 mg/ml and in Zonouz region the content of inhibition of DPPH similarly increased in 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6 mg/ml concentrations. In the Ardabil region, the most content of inhibition of DPPH was seen in 0.4 mg/ml and 0.6 mg/ml concentrations, but in this region, the content of inhibition of DPPH in 0.2 mg/ml concentration there was only in vegetative stage leaves and flowering stage leaves.

Background: Human echinococcosis is a zoonotic disease caused by Echinococcus granulosus, the etiological agent of cystic echinococcosis (CE). Aim: This study aims to determine the epidemiological prevalence of Echinococcus granulosus in patients with hydatid cysts and evaluate serum TNF-α levels associated with echinococcosis, as well as the correlation between these levels and disease progression. Methods: Radiological examinations were performed to diagnose Echinococcus granulosus by identifying echinococcal cysts. The study included patients of all ages and both sexes from Al-Sader Medical City, Al-Hakeem General Hospital, Al-Haidarya General Hospital, and Al-Hayat Hospital. The study period was from October 2023 to the end of January 2024. Results: The mean TNF-α level in patients was 163.27 pg/ml, significantly higher than the mean level of 38.58 pg/ml in controls (p-value < 0.001). Conclusion: The prevalence of hydatid disease in Al-Najaf Al-Ashraf was found to be 33%. TNF-α levels are notably higher in patients with Echinococcus granulosus who are under 40 years of age compared to those over 40 years of age.

Cast iron alloys combine many elements such as carbon, iron, silicon, magnesium and can be usually classified according to their microstructure in ductile, gray, compacted, white, and malleable. Each one has particularities in terms of properties and applications. Hence, this study aims to evaluate the degree of nodularity (%) in a ductile cast iron alloy GGG 40. In this context, a methodology to investigate the degree of nodularity wasproposed. The ultrasonic method was used to determine the amount of ductile graphite as well as for parts release and thus facilitated the industrial operational execution. The effect of ultrasonic sound was investigated in sixtyseven ductile cast irons, and these analyses were further compared to the level of nodularity observed by metallography. Finally, based on the findings, the cast iron quality was guaranteed, leading to time savings, avoiding the microstructural examination, and thus promoting cost reductions.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a clinical disease correlated with a deficiency of insulin secretion or action.It is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The global burden of diabetes is rising dueto increasing obesity and population aging. Urinary tract infections (UTI) are common microbial infections knownto affect the different parts of the urinary tract accounting for major antibacterial drug consumption. About 150million UTI cases were diagnosed every year. Urinary tract infections are the most important and most commonsite of infections in a diabetic patient. Diabetic patients have been found to have a 5-fold frequency of acutepyelonephritis at autopsy than non-diabetics. Most of the urinary tract infections in patients with diabetes arerelatively asymptomatic. The presence of this syndrome predisposes to much more severe infections,particularly in patients with acute ketoacidosis, poor diabetic control, diabetic complications such as neuropathy,vasculopathy, and nephropathy. The Gram-negative aerobic bacilli are the large group of bacterial pathogensthat cause UTI with few species of Gram-positive bacteria. However, some fungi, parasites, and viruses havealso been reported to invade the urinary tract. Urinary tract infection affects women more than men due toseveral factors such as proximity of the genital tract to the urethra, anatomy of the female urethra, sexualactivity, menopause, and pregnancy. Other possible risk factors of UTI include allergy, obesity, diabetes, pasthistory of UTI, contraceptive use, catheter use, and family history. 

It is investigated the effect of synthesized organic compounds of 6-hydroxy-2,2,4-trimethyl-1,2- dihydroquinoline, its derivatives, and hydrogenated analogs. These compounds affected the height of seedlings when they were used for pre-sowing seed treatment of the following ornamental plants: annual ornamental grass – scarlet sage (Salvia splendens) and woody plant – yellow rhododendron (Rhododendron luteum). Prior to the sprouting process, the seeds of Rh. luteum and S. splendens were soaked in water solutions of compounds with concentrations of 0.01%, 0.05%, and 0.1% for 18 hours. Dihydro- and tetrahydroquinolines with a concentration of 0.05% proved to be the most effective for both plants. For Rhododendron luteum, the compounds of 6-hydroxy-2,2,4-trimethyl-1,2-dihydroquinoline, its derivatives, and hydrogenated analogs with a concentration of 0.1% proved to be the most effective. Dihydroquinolines at concentrations of 0.05 and 0.1% proved to have the strongest effect when applied to the studied perennial woody plant (Rhododendron luteum). Dihydroquinoline at the concentration of 0.05% also proved to be effective when applied to the annual grass (Salvia splendens). For annual S. splendens, tetrahydroquinoline at concentrations of 0.01 and 0.05% appeared to be the most effective. The pre-sowing seed treatment of grass Salvia splendens and woody plant Rhododendron luteum with the studied compounds demonstrated that their effect on the height of the seedlings is species-specific. The pre-sowing seed treatment of Rh. luteum and S. splendens allows increasing the height of the seedlings by 3-61 % and 17-25 %, respectively. It is suggested using the compounds of 6-hydroxy-2,2,4- trimethyl-1,2-dihydroquinoline, its derivatives, and hydrogenated analogs as effective growth stimulators for ornamental grasses and woody plants.

Background: in the last decades, colocalization analysis of fluorescently tagged biomolecules has proven to be a powerful approach to studying functional relationships between these biomolecules. However, in many cases, to give this analysis a biological meaning, colocalization coefficients must be tested statistically, comparing them with the colocalization expected by chance. Aim: It addressed the statistical significance of triple colocalization to distinguish real triple colocalization and classify different triple signal scenarios. Methods: we use biological and generated images of triple signal scenarios to contrast seven independent statistical facts with independent statistical tests. Three of these tests correspond to pairwise relationships (double scrambling tests), and the others correspond to triple relationships: single scrambling tests (red, green, and blue scrambling) and the triple scrambling test. The analysis and methodology proposed can be reproduced using the application developed in our laboratory. Results: In the study approach, we found true triple relationships ignored by using traditional methods of computing the statistical significance, while we could reinterpret cases of not significant triple colocalization wrongly considered as significant by traditional methods. Discussion: single scrambling tests can reveal significant triple colocalization for low levels of triple co-occurrence, even when all pairwise relationships were exclusion relationships. Moreover, on the other hand, single scrambling tests can reveal the absence of a significant triple colocalization for high levels of triple co-occurrence, even when all pairwise relationships were significant colocalization. Conclusion: all scrambling tests are useful to classify a specific scenario of a triple relationship. Dynamics like mitosis can be distinguished into their phases by triple signal relationships using these 7 independent statistical tests.