Zanco Journal of Pure and Applied Sciences

A total of 953 fish specimens (521 females and 432 males), belonging to 19 species were collected from Greater Zab river at Aski-Kalak town and from Lesser Zab river at Kanibi village, Taqtaq town in north of Iraq, during the period of January to December 2022. only 11 fish species (842 specimens) were sympatric in both rivers, 2 species (14 specimens) were in Greater Zab and 6 species (97 specimens) were in Lesser Zab. The samples were examined for ecto-parasites. The study revealed the existence of 31 monogenean species, including twenty-one species of Dactylogyrus, three `species of Dogielius, two species of Diplozoon and one species of Solostaminides. During present study, it was found that, overall the prevalence of monogenean infection was 59.44 % for grater Zab river and 54.6% for the lesser Zab river. There were no significant differences in the percentage incidence in the overall of infection with this group of parasites from both rivers instead of there was obvious difference in the distribution and spread of parasitic fauna in both rivers.

Synthetic dyes are frequently used as additive compounds in different industries. The dramatic increase of toxic dyes and their strong durability and stability in aquatic environments lead to rising severity of both the environment and human health. The current study shows the efficiency of bacteria as biological agents in decolorizing some hazardous dyes, without energy supply and chemical substance uses. In this study, the potential of two identified proteus strains (P. strain C and P. strain Y) isolated from the main opened wastewater of Soran City-Iraq was assessed for decolorization of Methylene blue (MB) and Methyl orange (MO). The bacterial strains were separately and together as a consortium tested at different concentrations of the selected dyes (10, 30, 50 and 100 mg/l). After 48 hours of incubation, the decolorization efficiency of the two isolates was significantly observed with respect to the concentrations, and this efficiency lowered with increasing concentration. The decolorization efficiency for MB dye ranged from 67% to 75% by P. strain C, and from 73% to 79% by P. strain Y. Whereas, the efficiency of the mixed culture of the two isolated bacteria (consortium) ranged in 79-88%. MO was more easily degradable than MB, and the efficiency was >90% by individual experiment, and >96% by consortium. In conclusion, the two newly isolated proteus strains were confirmed as promising biological agents for degradation of MB and MO. Therefore, the isolates can be proposed as biological agents for bioremediation under environmental sustainability.

Phlomis is a significant genus in the Lamiaceae family. However, a comprehensive biosystematics evaluation of Phlomis kurdica has never been conducted. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to analyze the morphological, anatomical, trichome, and crystal characteristics of P. kurdica. The morphological characteristics were compared with the flora of Turkey and Iran. The anatomical findings were compared with the results of previous research on other Phlomis and Lamiaceae members. To study anatomy, cross sections of the plant's root, stem, and leaf parts were examined. P. kurdica is a perennial plant with ascending growth. Morphologically leaves are simple and vary in shape from oblong to oblong-ovate. The inflorescence resembles a verticillate cyme. The corolla is bilabiate and yellow, while the calyx is tubular with five subequal lobes. There are three main types of glandular trichomes: petalate, capitate, and dendroid, which coexist with glandular and non-glandular branches. Three kinds of non-glandular trichomes were also identified: dendroid with non-glandular branches, stellate, and simple. Anatomically, root have 1-3 rows of pith rays. The stem is quadrangular, with four collenchyma patches at the corners. The leaf was amphistomatic. The stomata were of the diacytic kind. The petiole had a circular form with vascular bundles of the crescent-shaped collateral kind in its center. Prismatic and styloid crystals were observed in cross-sectioned organs. Certain morphological and anatomical features provide significant information for taxonomy.

Research on Ostracod identification in Iraq is currently limited, specifically in Erbil Province with relatively few studies conducted on this topic. As a result, there is a significant knowledge gap regarding the diversity and distribution of ostracod species within the country. This study fills significant gaps by study the morphology and molecular analysis of three novel ostracoda species which are (Stenocypris hislopi, Cypridopsis vidua and Candona neglecta), that belong to two families (Cyprididae and Candonidae), collected from 17 different sites in boundary Erbil Province, during September 2021 to October 2022. For biological analysis, a number of aquatic plants, green algae, and zooplanktonic net were used. Meanwhile, some physical and chemical parameters were taken. Following a comprehensive morphological study, the PCR product of the COI gene was subjected to sequencing, and the resulting sequences were deposited in the GenBank database under unique accession numbers. Subsequently, phylogenetic analysis was conducted, leading to the identification of the examined species, which are now being reported from the Kurdistan region. This study focused on molecular inquiry besides morphology identification. This finding implies that molecular methods ought to be used in subsequent biodiversity studies in order to assess species diversity accurately.

The revised harmonious fuzzy technique (RHFT) is a method used to solve fuzzy optimization problems. It was capitalized as an extension of the classical linear programming technique to handle constraints and objectives that are fuzzy. The harmonious fuzzy technique HFT aims to find a solution that satisfies the uncertain restraints and optimizes the uncertain objectives while taking into account the uncertainty or fuzziness of the problem parameters. This work demonstrates how the RHFT can be utilized to dexterously solve “fully fuzzy multi-goal linear fractional programming (FFMOLFP) problems”. Initially, the FFMOLFP problem can be converted to “single goal linear fractional programming (SOLFP) problems” consuming the modified brittle linear technique. Second, the RHFT is applied to converted brittle problems into linear programming problem, which follow, “the single-goal problem” is made on so on applied the revised harmonious fuzzy for apiece level. at the end, the obtained LPP will be solved by applied the simplex algorithm. To illustrate the application of this method, two examples will be provided. Also, the numerical results are simulated by comparing between proposed method and efficient ranking function methods for fully fuzzy linear fractional programming problems FFLFPP

A factorial experiment was conducted under laboratory conditions to evaluate the inhibitory effect of ethanomethanolic extracts of Sonchus oleraceus L. and Lactuca virosa L. against Fusarium verticillioides and Fusarium oxysporum causing root and crown rot disease in sweet corn. The GC-MS analysis indicated diverse phytochemicals in both plant types, however, S. oleraceus had more active components than L. virosa. In general, Tetracosane, Bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and Nonadecane are the dominant active components. The results of pathogenicity revealed that the isolated fungi were pathogenic to sweet corn, as both led to significant increase (p ≤ 0.05) in the percentage of infection. However, the F. verticillioides isolate had the highest infection percentage of 85.00% with significant differences (p ≤ 0.05) compared to the control group. Results of the antagonistic effect showed that the ethanomethanolic extract of S. oleraceus had the highest significant inhibitory percentages (p ≤ 0.05) against both Fusarium isolates. Furthermore, positive relationship between the investigated concentrations and the inhibition percentage towards the maximum concentration of 9 mg/mL that revealed 100% inhibition capacity. The concentration of 7% reported an inhibition rates against F. verticillioides of 87% and 81% for each of S. oleraceus and L. virosa extracts, respectively. Also, the 7 mg/mL concentration significantly reduced the radial growth of F. oxysporum fungi causing an inhibition rates of 90% and 78%, respectively. Further investigation would be valuable in precise characterization of active compounds and developing them into more sustainable fungicides.

This study presents the first isolation of the fungus Cryptococcus laurentii from common carp Cyprinus carpio in fish ponds in Zrarati area. Erbil City, Kurdistan Region of Iraq. A total of 98 common carp specimens were collected from ponds in the region and examined for fungal infestations from September 2023 and by the end of April 2024. The identification of the fungal isolates was conducted using morphological analysis and the VITEK 2 compact system from Erbil International Hospital. The discovery of C. laurentii in common carp in Iraq signifies a novel finding, shedding light on the fungal diversity present in fish populations and aquaculture environments. The present research underscores the importance of monitoring and managing fungal infections in fish to ensure the health and sustainability of aquaculture practices in the region. The present record of species of fungi of C. laurentii is considered the first record in Iraq since no previous were seen.

This study was undertaken to monitor and assess the distribution of the wheat chafer, Anisoplia sp. and to determine how severe wheat crop could be infested by the beetle, utilizing both traditional field surveys and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology. The beetle is a destructive soil pest that causes severe damage to various cereal crops. Thus, the study analyzed key soil parameters including (soil texture, EC, pH, organic matter) and crop biological parameters including (chlorophyll content, water content, and Leaf Area Index) to assess the health of wheat crops and the impact of beetle infestation. The larval stage was collected from wheat fields across twelve villages located in the four directions of Erbil (North, East, West and South) in various period of time (November, January, and March), and GIS data was used to map the spatial distribution of infestations. Results indicated significant variation in the beetle population density and severity of wheat infestation across different geographic locations, with the highest levels of 7.51 larvae /M2 and 54.39% wheat infestation observed in villages located in the West direction of Erbil. Further, January 2023 attained the highest larvae population, 7.32 larvae /M2. The population density of the larvae correlated with both the texture and organic matter of the soil. GIS-based mapping revealed correlations between field-collected data and remote sensing parameters, enabling accurate prediction of infestation severity. The study demonstrates the potential of integrating traditional and modern techniques to monitor pest populations and improve pest management strategies in wheat production.

This study presents a Level of Detail 2 building reconstruction approach for open and occluded areas from stereo-satellite imagery. The approach combines deep learning techniques, and digital surface models with model-driven methodology. The best performance of deep learning algorithms (U-Net, FCN, and Mask R-CNN) for building boundary segmentation was selected and then integrated with model-driven technique for the purpose of accurate geometric building fitting employing digital surface model (DSM) generated by semi global matching. The Reconstructed model was refined by utilizing OpenStreetMap library and graph cut optimization method. The suggested methodology is tested on the GeoEye-1 satellite imagery dataset for Erbil City, which is validated with ground truth data. The proposed algorithm presented promising results, it is shown that the model can predict building heights for ridge and eave to a mean absolute error of 0.70 m, and in the occluded area was approximately 1.0 m. Meanwhile, the computed root mean square error are shown to be within 0.9 m for the ridge and eave, which is essentially small. While for occluded area it was approximately 1.2 m and 0.8 m for ridge and eave heights, respectively. This indicates that the predicted values are close to real values. Furthermore, most of the building’s roofs were correctly classified in both open and occluded areas. These findings underline the effectiveness of the model-driven deep learning approach in producing reliable and accurate LoD2 building reconstructions, a precondition for detailed urban analysis and 3D city modeling.

Bio-based powders are produced from renewable resources such as plants, agricultural waste, or even algae. These materials offer a compelling alternative to conventional plastics, which are often obtained from fossil fuels. New types of powder materials for the 3D printing process need to be characterised. They play an important role in 3D printing technology. Based on the results from testing, process parameters can be adjusted. There are currently no standardised methods for the testing of 3D printing materials. The moulding sand material has the same material properties as the renewable bio-based powders used for 3D printing.

In order to efficiently characterise the material, conventional foundry sand testing methods were considered. In this study, the existing testing facilities of the foundry industry were used to test the properties of Miscanthus, a plant in the grass family.

The results show that the universal testing machine can be used for general characterisation of relevant material properties, but modifications to the specimen geometry and testing technology are required for in-depth investigation of new powder materials for the 3D printing process.