The Master’s thesis of student Doaa Ghanem Al-Arazi, titled “Pathophysiology and Molecular Study of Metabolic Syndrome in Iraqi Patients,” was successfully defended at the College of Biotechnology under the supervision of Assistant Professor Dr. Shaimaa Rabee Madhkour.

The study involved the evaluation of several biochemical, hematological, and hormonal parameters among all participants, along with the completion of a structured questionnaire for both the patient and control groups. Data were analyzed using appropriate statistical methods to determine the significance of the findings.

The results indicated that patients with metabolic syndrome had significantly higher Body Mass Index (BMI) compared to healthy individuals in the control group, with the majority of patients falling into the overweight or obese categories.

Hormonal analysis revealed a significant decrease in the levels of AgRP, α-MSH, and ACTH in patients compared to healthy controls (p < 0.001). These findings suggest a potential role for AgRP and α-MSH as biomarkers related to lipid metabolism, while the lack of association with ACTH may reflect a different hormonal regulatory mechanism in these patients.

The study also identified a significant correlation between AgRP levels and HDL (r = 0.299, p = 0.009), as well as between α-MSH and HDL (r = 0.284, p = 0.014), indicating the possible involvement of the melanocortin axis in lipid metabolism regulation in affected individuals.

Furthermore, the results suggest that the AA genotype in the MC3R gene and the TT genotype in the MC4R gene may be associated with increased susceptibility to metabolic syndrome. The study highlights the importance of the hormonal markers AgRP and α-MSH in evaluating metabolic dysfunction linked to the disease.

The thesis was awarded a grade of Excellent.