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Among the established breeds of buffalo in Pakistan, the Nili-Ravi breed is dominant in the Punjab Province. The purpose of the study is to determine the chemical composition and fatty acid profile of buffalo milk. Milk is a complete food and contains all the nutritional components in balanced form. It helps to meet important nutritional needs of the human body. The buffaloes were divided into 3 groups on the basis of lactation period i.e. early, middle and late lactation. A total of 90 milk samples were obtained for analysis. Buffalo milk samples were analyzed for proximate analysis, parameters like fat, crude protein, lactose, ash, solids not fat (SNF), total solids (TS), pH and acidity were determined. Fatty acid profile of buffalo milk was determined by the method, Association of Office of Agricultural Chemists (AOAC, 2000). Milk fat content (%) was found to be significantly (p<0.05) lower in the early (6.52) and mid lactation (6.61) stages than the late lactation stage (6.85). The content of TS (%) was found to be significantly (p<0.05) higher in the late lactation (14.62 and 15.45) stage than the early (12.94 and 13.65)) and mid lactation (13.76 and 14.14) stages. In contrast, the content of total protein (4.31% to 4.78%), Solid not fat (8.40% to 8.70%), lactose (4.36% to 4.74%) and ash (0.18% to 0.19%) did not vary significantly among the different lactation stages. The values of Butyric acid, Caproic acid, Myristic acid, Stearic acid and Oleic acid showed significant increase towards end of lactation. These values of fatty acids also revealed that there is significant difference among the animals and lactation stages of Nili Ravi buffalo milk. Results showed that Capric acid, Lauric acid, Palmitic acid, Linoleic acid and Linolenic acid decreased in early to middle and increased towards end of lactation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Breastmilk being the ideal nutrition from birth to 2 years and beyond has many health benefits for both newborn and mothers. This study will assess the feasibility and acceptability of a continuum of care programme, which is a health facility and community based till 6 months post partum to encourage ideal breastfeeding practices., Methods and Analysis: A pilot randomised control trial having two-parallel arms of intervention and control groups was conducted in gynaecology and obstetrics department of Aziz Bhatti Shaheed Teaching Hospital with a community outreach component of 6 months. 50 women between 28 and 32 weeks of gestation fulfilling inclusion criteria will be allocated in 1:1 randomly into intervention and control groups through computer-generated random number generator software. 25 participants in intervention group will receive counselling and training on breast feeding during antenatal visits along with a family member of support by a trained female doctor within the hospital, at birth by a trained nurse and at home for 6 months by a trained lady health worker. It will be supported by reading materials and videos through a mobile phone WhatsApp application. The 25 participants in control group will receive the support already provided within the hospital and at home. The primary outcomes feasibility and acceptability will be determined at 6 months post partum from participants and providers by a semistructured questionnaire. The secondary outcomes are rates of infant early initiation and exclusive breast feeding at 2 weeks, 1, 3 and 6 months, Infant Feeding Attitude at 1 month and Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy at 3 months. Quantitative and qualitative data will be analysed via SPSS software V.20 and thematic analysis, respectively., Conclusion: This pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) will guide the interventions for the definite RCT., Ethics and Dissemination: Approved by institutional ethical committee, informed consent from all participants and results will be disseminated in peer-reviewed journal., Trial Registration Number: NCT05951868., Competing Interests: Competing interests: No, there are no competing interests., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Introduction: The genomic miscellany of malaria parasites can help inform the intensity of malaria transmission and identify potential deficiencies in malaria control programs. This study was aimed at investigating the genomic miscellany, allele frequencies, and MOI of P. falciparum infection., Methods: A total of 85 P. falciparum confirmed isolates out of 100 were included in this study that were collected from P. falciparum patients aged 4 months to 60 years in nine districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. Parasite DNA was extracted from 200µL whole blood samples using the Qiagen DNA extraction kit following the manufacturer's instructions. The polymorphic regions of msp-1, msp-2 and glurp loci were genotyped using nested PCR followed by gel electrophoresis for amplified fragments identification and subsequent data analysis., Results: Out of 85 P. falciparum infections detected, 30 were msp-1 and 32 were msp-2 alleles specific. Successful amplification occurred in 88.23% (75/85) isolates for msp-1, 78.9% (67/85) for msp-2 and 70% (60/85) for glurp gene. In msp-1, the K1 allelic family was predominantly prevalent as 66.66% (50/75), followed by RO33 and MAD20. The frequency of samples with single infection having only K1, MAD20 and RO33 were 21.34% (16/75), 8% (6/75), and 10.67% (8/75), respectively. In msp-2, both the FC27 and 3D7 allelic families revealed almost the same frequencies as 70.14% (47/67) and 67.16% (45/67), respectively. Nine glurp RII region alleles were identified in 60 isolates. The overall mean multiplicity of infection for msp genes was 1.6 with 1.8 for msp-1 and 1.4 for msp-2, while for glurp the MOI was 1.03. There was no significant association between multiplicity of infection and age groups (Spearman's rank coefficient = 0.050; P = 0.6) while MOI and parasite density correlated for only msp-2 allelic marker., Conclusions: The study showed high genetic diversity and allelic frequency with multiple clones of msp-1, msp-2 and glurp in P. falciparum isolates in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. In the present study the genotype data may provide valuable information essential for monitoring the impact of malaria eradication efforts in this region., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Objective: To describe the different causes of infertility based on findings of diagnostic laparoscopy and their comparative frequency in primary and secondary infertility., Study Design: A cross-sectional study., Place and Duration of Study: Obstetrics and Gynaecology Unit of Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar, from January to December 2005., Methodology: All patients undergoing diagnostic laparoscopy for primary or secondary infertility were included. Male factor infertility cases was excluded. Frequency of the causes and finding was determined., Results: One hundred and thirty six (70.46%) patients with primary and 57 (29.54%) with secondary infertility underwent diagnostic laparoscopy. Seventy (51.47%) with primary and 26 (45.51%) with secondary infertility had no visible abnormality. Bilateral tubal blockage was found in 32 (23.53%) primary and 16 (28.07%) cases of secondary infertility. Dense pelvic adhesions forming adnexal mass were found in 9 (6.61%) and 6 (10.5%) of primary and secondary respectively. Two cases each of bicornuate uterus and double uterus in primary infertility patients. Ovarian pathology was found in 18 (13.23%) primary and 4 (7.01%) cases of secondary infertility. PCO (polycystic ovaries) were detected in 12 (8.82%) and 2 (3.5%) cases of primary and secondary infertility respectively. Endometriotic cysts and deposits were found in 15 (10.29%) cases of primary and 3 (5.26%) cases of secondary infertility., Conclusion: Tubal disease is a common factor responsible for infertility and diagnostic laparoscopy is a valuable technique for complete assessment of female infertility and making treatment decisions according to the cause.