Kidney Injury Incidence in COVID-19 Patients and Evaluation of Several Function Variables

Background: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of acute kidney injury (AKI) in COVID-19 patients treated at AL-Saddar Teaching Hospital (Najaf, Iraq). Methods and Results: The study population consisted of 190 patients treated at AL-Saddar Teaching Hospital (Najaf, Iraq) between June 1 and August 20, 2022. Clinical signs, lung abnormalities, and a positive result from real-time PCR for nasopharyngeal swab samples have all been used to identify infection. Clinical and laboratory information on the patients was gathered for the investigation. A comparative analysis was conducted between patients with acute kidney injury (AKI) (n=67) and without AKI (n=123). The patients without acute kidney injury (AKI) frequently left the hospital in better health (80.9%), and they did not require dialysis, compared to 22.4% of those who had AKI. The percentage of patients in each group admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) significantly differed with respect to KI: 46.3% with AKI and 15.4% without AKI (P<0.0001). Furthermore, patients with AKI had a higher rate of mortality (13.4%) than those without AKI (0.8%) (P=0.0002). Conclusion: The results indicated that AKI is prevalent in hospitalized COVID-19 patients and is attributed to in-hospital death rates

ANTIFUNGAL ACTIVITY OF CHITOSAN AGAINST Rhizopus stolonifer

These days instead of chemical pesticides, various natural alternatives have been used for the management of post-harvest diseases. This research was carried out to evaluate the antifungal potential of different chitosan concentrations viz., 5, 10, and 15 mg/µl against Rhizopus stolonifer by the agar dilution and well diffusion methods. The evaluation was carried out after seven days of incubation by measuring the inhibition of R. stolonifer mycelial growth. Results of the study revealed that the chitosan had a significant inhibitory effect on mycelial growth and maximum mycelial growth inhibition was reported at the 10 and 15 mg/µl concentrations and these two treatments are not significantly different. Based on these results, the best concentration (15 mg/µl) was further evaluated by the well diffusion technique. The average inhibition zones formed by the higher concentration was 25mm. Results of the study suggested that chitosan can be used for the management of post-harvesting diseases of tomatoes

Influence of Okra Extract Supplementation on Some Haematological Parameters of Male Mice Exposed to Aflatoxin

This research was directed to determine the influence of an alcoholic extract of okra on the lessening of the destructive impact of the aflatoxin produced by Aspergillus fumigatus in white mice and its influence on some physiological blood parameters. Different food samples, (grains and fruits) such as &nbsp;(wheat, barley, corn, rice, citrus, strawberries, and apples) were selected for the isolation of a variety of fungi. The results showed&nbsp; that Aspergillus flavus 15(18.7%), Aspergillus niger12(15%), Penicillium spp 7(8.7%), Aspergillus terreus 7 (8.7%), Aspergillus fumigatus7(8.7%), Alternaria spp. 10 (12.5%), Aspergillus parasiticus 6 (7.5%) Fusarium 6 (7.5%), Penicillium chrysogenum5(6.3), Mucor spp.2(2.5%),and Rhizopus stoloinfier 3(5.5%).The identified fungi were tested for aflatoxin production, and the results revealed&nbsp; that Aspergillus fumigatus produced the most aflatoxin. Okra alcoholic extract was tested in vivo against&nbsp; the negative impact of aflatoxins using different concentrations. The findings revealed that alcoholic extracts showed reasonable influence on some blood parameters, and the results are promising. &nbsp