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Current study was conducted during 2020 by Department of Economics, Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan to study evaluate the marketing channel of vegetables in Punjab pertaining to farm's profitability and the factors determining this profit based on primary data collected from 100 farmers each for 4 selected vegetables. Data were collected through structured questionnaire from 36 villages out of 7 cities of Faisalabad division while from 28 villages out of 5 cities of Bahawalpur division through purposive sampling technique. Gross margin analysis and mean regression was done to estimate the determinants of profit both at division level and for the pooled data. The gross margin per acre was calculated at Rs.171,676 for cucumber, Rs. 171,649 for green chilies, Rs. 315,229 for tomatoes and Rs. 33,002 for onions. The regression results showed age, farming experience, credit and storage facilities, production cost and commission to the middle man as significantly contributing factors in profit while the choice of production technique appeared to be particularly depending on the educational qualification of selected farmers. The peak age that yielded maximum profit was calculated at 49 and 42 years in Faisalabad and Bahawalpur division, respectively. Experience of farmers was significantly increased in profit. The commission to agent surpasses all other payments that farmers incurred during marketing process. The margin was around 39% and 33% of total cost for cucumber and chilies in Faisalabad while 34% and 43% percent for tomatoes and onion in Bahawalpur. So the enactment of farmers with middle man for the sale of crop was due to heavy reliance on them for loans; around 80 percent famers in Faisalabad while about 40 percent in Bahawalpur sought loans from middle man. The study suggested that healthy competition among farmers by providing them adequate storage facilities, sufficient credit, perfect market information and education could contribute positively in adopting advanced modes of production to minimize the production and marketing cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research focuses on the efficiency and productivity analysis of bitter gourd-capsicum multiple cropping systems under tunnels in Punjab, Pakistan. Given the wide land fragmentation and high population pressure, this is the dire need of time to get farmers involved in advanced and intensive farming techniques to attain self-sufficiency in production. This study conducted the efficiency and productivity analysis by applying the parametric and non-parametric techniques to evaluate the optimal utilization of farm resources in multiple cropping system and the efficiency gains from tunnel technology. The data were collected from 150 multiple bitter gourd-capsicum cropping system farms. The empirical findings yielded an average technical efficiency of score 0.79 in bitter gourd-capsicum cropping systems. More intrinsically, the apparent output gap is due to inefficient utilization of inputs within given farm resources that can be improved by proper farm management practices, enhancing farmers' knowledge regarding inputs quality and its time-effective utilization in addition to the marketing information about availability of innovative inputs. This is learned from the results that multiple cropping under tunnels appeared as a cutting-edge system among the prevalent agricultural practices in Pakistan that demands modernity and challenges on the part of farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study was aimed to analyze the therapeutic effect of selected medicinal plants, that is, Curcuma longa, Zingiber officinale, Trigonella graceum-foenum, Nigella sativa, and Syzygium aromaticum against carrageenan-induced oxidative stress and inflammation in rats. Phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of diverse range of bioactives. IC50 values for antioxidant assays including DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl), metal chelating, ABTS scavenging (2, 2′-Azino-Bis-3-Ethylbenzothiazoline-6-Sulfonic Acid), β-carotene bleaching, and H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) scavenging ranged from 37-294, 71-243.4, 69.66-191.8, 98.92-228.5, and 82-234.9 μg/mL, respectively. All tested plants extract were found active against tested pathogenic microorganisms with lowest minimum inhibitory concentrations. Oral administration of tested plants extracts in different doses (250, 500, and 1000 mg/kg b. w) did not exhibit any toxicological effects on hemato-biochemical profile of treated rats in comparison to control group rats. Further, plants extract exhibited considerable anti-inflammatory activity in rats paw inflammation and decreased cellular infiltration to inflammatory site in dose dependent manner. Pretreatment of animals with tested plants extract (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg b. w.) caused significant alteration in total antioxidants, oxidants, and enzymes activities in paw tissue homogenate and the effect was more pronounced at higher concentration (400 mg/kg b. w.). Results showed that tested plants extract are rich source of diverse classes of phenolics and have therapeutic potential against oxidative stress and inflammation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Profit efficiency of transplanted rice production (TRP) and direct seeded rice system (DRS) is gaining greater attention in Pakistan. Profit efficiencies of TRP and DRS are estimated with data from farmers belonging to various districts of Punjab. Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Sheikhupura, Jhang and Sialkot are the major rice producing areas of Punjab. The primary data is collected from the above mentioned areas through random sampling. Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) serves as a tool of obtaining reliable estimations of profit efficiency of rice production. Findings from SFA reveal profit efficiency of rice farmers for TRP to be 57% and 83% for DRS farmers. The results further Bring to light the loss of 43% profit of TRP and 17% profit loss of DRS due to unsuitable combinations of inputs. Direct seeded rice farmers displayed more efficiency compared to the transplanted rice farmers. However, for DRS and TRP farmers' opportunities still exist to maximize profit through adopting improved farming practices and production techniques. Moreover, the results also demonstrated that farmer's education, age, farming experience, extension service facility and land tenancy considerably effects profit efficiency of rice producers. Therefore, the efficiency of rice farmers can be improved through increase in the number of educated people in farming system, and the enrichment of extension services in the rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was aspired to investigate the factor of production that were influencing the technical efficiency of wheat crop in Pakistan. A formal survey of 430 wheat crop farmers was conducted in the district of Rahim Yar Khan in year 2014. In order to estimate the impact of farm inputs on wheat crop production, Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) was used. The major objectives of this survey were to identify factors of variation and effect of planting of wheat after BT and Non-BT-cotton varieties on wheat production. In this study, the average technical efficiency of wheat farms on collective level was around 0.76. The mean technical efficiency of wheat after Non-BT and BT-cotton was 0.78 and 0.74, respectively. The result of the study revealed that those farmers cultivated the wheat crop after Non-BT cotton were technically more efficient compared to those who cultivated wheat after BT-cotton. The major factors that were found to be compliant for improved wheat production in study area were operational holding under wheat crop, which was cultivated after Non-BT or BT cotton, date of sowing, number of irrigations, tractors and tubewell's ownership, tenancy status, farmer's education and experience. The result of the study reported that farmers of wheat crop have the potential to produce the maximum level of wheat production provided that the farmers should improve their management skills. It is prerequisite in farm sector that farmers should use their managerial ability, knowledge, and technical skills in order to obtain the higher production and farm returns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Pakistan, two methods mainly using for the transplanting of rice paddle (Conventional method) and Direct seeded method (Dry method) in rice growing areas of Punjab. In last some years, the direct seeded rice system is introduced in some of the rice cropping districts of Pakistan. The current research estimate the technical efficiency of conventional and dry rice farmers and also determine the factors which significantly contribute to increase the rice output. Moreover, this study estimated the sources of inefficiency. Data collected from 300 sample rice farmers into the Kharif cycle (2013-14) at five main rice growing districts of Punjab namely: Hafizabad, Sheikhupura, Jhang, Vehari, and Gujranwala. Stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) was applied to find the results of a study. Study results reveal that direct seeding method is more profitable for dry rice farmers in terms of yield and also increases the efficiency of farmers. Area under rice crop, NPK ratio, Seed, number of irrigation hour, weedicides, insecticides and pesticide variable would significantly contributes to improve the rice production. On average technical efficiency of sample rice farmers is 86 percent, which indicates that rice farmers in selected areas can increase the production of rice 14 percent only by managing efficiency level, without increasing input quantities. Hence, it is possible for rice farmers to increase rice output without increasing the level of inputs by using efficient management practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study considered the cost efficiency analysis of cotton-melon cropping system under tunnels. The data were collected from 150 farmers; those were cultivating cotton-melon crops in combination under tunnels. The study area was Punjab, Pakistan. The stochastic cost frontier analysis was used to estimate the allocative efficiency of cotton-melon cropping systems efficiency. The result illustrates that none of the farmers to be optimally using their inputs. The average allocative efficiency was around 75%. Approximately 36 percent of farms allocative efficiency varies from 0.20 to 0.60. Around 60% of farms allocative efficiency ranges from 0.61 to above 0.90. The under and over-utilization of inputs such as land, seeds, fertilizers and pesticides reflect the general performance of the inputs in terms of their degree of changes in cotton-melon output to change inputs reflected by the allocative efficiency analysis. It is indispensable that policies aimed at adapting innovative farming techniques must be implemented in an efficient manner. Effectively implementation of agricultural schemes, formal education and in-formal education should be realized. During and after conducting the agricultural research, it is needed to recommend the farmers about the rate of inputs application i.e. seed, pesticide spray and NPK that are best suited to the local weather patterns and cropping systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pakistan is the fastest urbanizing country among all of the South Asian Countries and its rural population may equalize that of the urban till 2030. There are other changes as well like population growth and the wealth effects that have been observed in Pakistan. These changes can affect the consumption pattern of the people, and hence result in the food demand shifts. The current study estimates for the presence of structural shifts in the demand for food in Pakistan for the selected food groups from the Household Integrated Economic Survey for the years1985-86, 1993-94, 2001-02 and 2007-08. Quadratic Almost Ideal Demand System (QUAIDS) is employed to estimate the budget shares and test for these shifts. The results confirm for the significance of the quadratic variables in the model except for the Oils' group. The presence of these shifts have been proved in Pakistan and hence there are other factors as well like urbanization that causing these shifts in food demand, apart from the changes in expenditures and the relative prices. Hence, agricultural import and export, and farm related policies should be made harmonious with the changing population statistics and pacing urbanization in Pakistan to make this transition period smooth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study has estimated the technical efficiency of Non-BT cotton and BT cotton production in Pakistan. Those farmers were selected as the respondents for the study that used to cultivate Non-BT cotton and BT cotton varieties. In Pakistan, the NonBT cotton varieties have been promptly substituted with the BT-cotton varieties. This substitution of imported BT-cotton seed is taking into account without considering the local environmental conditions of Pakistan. Thus the main objective of the research was on the comparative efficiency and the productivity analysis of BT-Cotton varieties with those of the conventional non-BT-Cotton varieties. The population of this research covers the area of Rahim Yar Khan of Pakistan. Two hundred and fifteen farms were selected from each of the NonBT-cotton farms and BT-cotton farms. The Cobb-Douglas Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) has been employed to determine the technical efficiency of these growers. Technical efficiency has been found dissimilar under both the situations. The estimated mean technical efficiency of NonBT cotton farmers has been found to be 0.70, and 0.90 is the technical efficiency found in that of the BT cotton farmers. Hence the average output of Non-BT cotton and BT-cotton farms could be increased by 30 and 10 percent, respectively by adopting the technology with an appropriate approach. The results of the inefficiency model reveal that the factors like education, experience and distance from the main market, are the most influential determinants of the technical efficiency in both NonBT and BT-cotton farms. Extension of cotton production required the development of cottonseed that will be suitable for environmental conditions of Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was conducted to estimate the major determinants of farm income and technical efficiency in the districts of Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan, Punjab, Pakistan during 2011-12. Data were collected from 201 farm managers using random sampling technique. For the estimation purpose, Stochastic Frontier Cobb Douglas production function was employed. The estimated result of technical efficiency was approximately 65 percent. It showed that on average farm managers are 65 percent efficient in managing farm income and there is still a room for increasing 35 percent farm income by fetching improvement in efficiency. The key farm specific factor that had negative impact on the farm income and efficiency was low prices of farm output relative to the prices of inputs. On the other side of the picture, farm markets' mechanism is quite poor and farmers are not getting due prices of farm output. There is mounting need of bringing development in the rural infrastructure by generating educational and technological facilities in rural areas, we can make farm manager more competitive in achieving new growth opportunities in agriculture sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farm production and efficiency have always been a primary research question for researchers and agricultural organizations of Pakistan. Meta-analysis in present study provides the statistical efficiency analysis as well as statistical information regarding methodological, regional and crop specific influences on farm sector of Pakistan. The data rely on the published research papers on efficiency analysis of Pakistan's farm sector from 1971 to 2014. Three models separately estimated included methodological model, crop specific model and provincial model. These models incorporated the impact of methodological variables, crop specific variables and regional variables impact on Mean Technical Efficiency Scores (MTES), such as parametric, non-parametric techniques, functional forms, data types, production technology dummies and variable size parameter. The analysis revealed the overall technical efficiency of Pakistan's farm sector as 73%. The results from meta-analysis clearly indicated that farm sector in Pakistan is way behind its optimum potential level. Hence there is sufficient room for improvement. To this end, government should be well-designed to evaluate the misdirected growth policies in farm sector of Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wheat is the main staple food item of the country's population and the largest grain crop as well. Pakistan has been regularly importing wheat, except for the few years. Wheat's domestic production has remained short of its domestic demands. To estimate the wheat varietal effect on wheat production and technical efficiency, a Cobb-Douglas Translog frontier analysis has been done. A primary research is conducted in the area of Rahim Yar Khan. Adoption of Modern wheat varieties is important for more profit as well as for enhancing the wheat productivity. However, modern wheat varieties have not been adopted widely in Pakistan. Farmers make use of traditional wheat varieties, whose yields are quite below the modern wheat varieties. The result of the study reveals that the parameter estimate of wheat variety is negative and significant also. The parameter of seed rate variable is also negative and statistically significant. A technical inefficiency of 22% is present in the production of wheat crop in the selected district. Majority of the farmers typically utilize the last year's crop seeds to economize the cost but this comes at another cost of loss of potential yield, which could be obtained through the use of modern varieties of seeds. Also considering the ecological conditions of the area is must before the adoption of any variety of seed, otherwise suboptimal output will be produced. Governmental check and regulation is also needed, dealers often sell fake seed varieties which discourages, the production and use of the original seed, and also the technological development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disruption of quorum sensing pathway of pathogenic microbes is considered as novel approach to fight against infectious diseases. The current study was planned to evaluate the antibiofilm and quorum sensing inhibitory potential of Lagerstroemia speciosa. Antibacterial and antibiofilm potential of L. speciosa extracts was determined through agar well diffusion and crystal violet assay against sinusitis isolates, that is, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Proteus mirabilis, and Klebsiella pneumoniae, while quorum sensing inhibition efficacy of L. speciosa extracts was determined through violacein inhibition assay using Chromobacterium pseudoviolaceum as bacterial model. The methanolic extract of L. speciosa presented the highest antimicrobial activity against E. faecalis and antibiofilm activity against K. pneumoniae (77.42 ± 1.51%), while n -hexane extract was found to be least active against all tested bacterial strains. Quorum sensing inhibition activity of L. speciosa extracts against C. pseudoviolaceum showed significant dose-dependent inhibition in violacein production by different concentrations of methanolic extract. Furthermore, none of the extracts of L. speciosa showed any hemolytic activity against human RBCs and hold considerable thrombolytic potential in comparison to streptokinase (75.9 ±.46%). In conclusion, findings suggest that L. speciosa leaves are excellent source of phytochemicals with potent antibiofilm and quorum sensing inhibition potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dengue fever is the most significant arthropod-transmitted viral disease in terms of mortality and morbidity, affecting at least 50 million people around the world. It is commonly recognized as "breakbone" fever as it is mostly associated with severe muscle and joint pain. The objective of the study was to evaluate and assess the levels of selected vitamins and hormones in serum of dengue patients from Faisalabad, Pakistan. Estimation of serum levels of vitamins D3 and K was carried out through spectrophotometer, while concentration of serum hormones, angiotensinogen and thrombopoietin, was determined through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit method. Hematological blood parameters were also investigated. Hematological parameters significantly (P < 0.05) differ in dengue fever patients and normal control subjects. Vitamin D3 level was found significantly (P < 0.05) decreased in test group (dengue patients) compared to control group (healthy individual). Vitamin K level was also reduced in test group compared to control group, but this reduction was nonsignificant (P > 0.05). Among the tested hormones, angiotensinogen level was found significantly (P < 0.05) lower in test group, while thrombopoietin was nonsignificantly (P > 0.05) higher compared to control group. In conclusion, the results of the current study demonstrated the significance of tested vitamins and hormones along with blood parameters in monitoring the dengue infected patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phytobioactive compounds are plant secondary metabolites and bioactive compounds abundantly present in medicinal plants and have remarkable therapeutic potential. Oxidative stress and antibiotic resistance are major causes of present‐day ailments such as diabetes, atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disorders, cancer, and inflammation. The data for this review were collected from Google Scholar, PubMed, Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), and Science Direct by using keywords: "Medicinal plants, Phytobioactive compounds, Polyphenols, Alkaloids, Carotenoids etc." Several studies have reported the pharmacological and therapeutic potential of the phytobioactives. Polyphenols, alkaloids, terpenes, and polysaccharides isolated from medicinal plants showed remarkable antioxidant, anticancer, cytotoxic, anti‐inflammatory, cardioprotective, hepatoprotective, immunomodulatory, neuroprotective, and antidiabetic activities. This literature review was planned to provide comprehensive insight into the biopharmacological and therapeutic potential of phytobioactive compounds. The techniques used for the extraction and isolation of phytobioactive compounds, and bioassays required for their biological activities such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti‐inflammatory, and cytotoxic activities, have been discussed. Characterization techniques for the structural elucidation of phytobioactive compounds such as HPLC, TLC, FTIR, GC–MS/MS, and NMR have also been discussed. This review concludes that phytobioactive compounds may be used as potential alternative to synthetic compounds as therapeutic agents for the treatment of various diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on forecasting the production and yield of food crops in Pakistan. Utilizing the "Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average" (ARIMA) model and data from 1948 to 2011. The data was obtained from Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Islamabad and various Economic Surveys of Pakistan. The result predicts that wheat (production and yield) forecast for 2029-30 to be about 37188 thousand tons and 3454 kg ha-1, respectively. The rice (production and yield) forecast for 2029-30 will be about 7176 thousand tons and 2630 kg ha-1, respectively. The maize (production and yield) forecast for 2029-30 will be about 5784 thousand tons and 6088 kg ha-1, respectively. In short, the production growth rate of wheat, rice and maize was higher in 2012. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study attempts to forecast production and yield of two main cash crops namely sugarcane and cotton crops of Pakistan by using Auto Regressive Moving Average (ARMA) and Auto Regressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) models of forecasting. Using data for 1948 to 2012, productions and yields of both crops were forecasted for 18 years starting from 2013 to 2030. ARMA (1, 4), ARMA (1, 1) and ARMA (0, 1) were found appropriate for sugarcane production, sugarcane yield, and cotton production respectively, whereas ARIMA (2, 1, 1) was the suitable model for forecasting cotton yield. Some diagnostic tests were also performed on fitted models and were found well fitted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sinusitis or rhinosinusitis is inflammation of the paranasal sinuses which can be due to autoimmune, allergy, and infection problems. Current study was aimed to evaluate the antibiofilm and antibacterial potential of different varieties of A sativum. Four different varieties (China white, China pink, Desi white, and Desi pink) were used and extracted with methanol and water. Results of antioxidant analysis of A sativum extracts showed that all varieties of garlic have considerable quantity of flavonoids with significant DPPH inhibition and reductive potential. Antibacterial activity of A sativum extracts was tested against different Gram negative and Gram-positive sinusitis isolates. All the sinusitis isolates were susceptible to both methanolic and aqueous extracts of different varieties of A sativum with least MIC values. Antibiofilm potential of extracts against sinusitis isolates was evaluated through crystal violet assay, and all extracts of A sativum were significantly effective against destruction of microbial biofilm. In summary, A sativum extracts possess effective antibacterial and antibiofilm activity against sinusitis isolates and can be utilized for prevention of drug resistance against sinusitis infections and further evaluation is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synthesis of heterocyclic compounds encompassing multiple functionalities and their biological screening is the most adapted strategy in the world for pharmacological evaluation of future drug candidates. The undertaken research was initiated by esterification 2-(1H-indol-3-yl)acetic acid (1) with catalytic amount of sulfuric acid in ethanol to ethyl 2-(1H-indol-3-yl)acetate (2), which was then reacted with hydrazine hydrate in methanol to achieve 2-(1H-indol-3-yl)acetohydrazide (3). The corresponding hydrazide 3 was reacted with a variety of arylsulfonyl chlorides (4a-j) in sodium carbonate solution (pH 9-10) to afford N-[2-(1H-indol-3-yl)acetyl]arylsulfonohydrazides (5a-j). The structural characterization of synthesized compounds was done by 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, IR and EI-MS spectral data. Moreover, these derivatives were evaluated for anti-bacterial potentials along with their % age hemolytic and enzyme inhibitory activities. It was found that compounds 5a, 5b, 5d and 5h revealed good anti-bacterial against all the bacterial strains used in this study, while 5d, 5g and 5h exhibited good enzyme inhibition potentials against BChE which were close to the reference standard eserine. These compounds also revealed low values of % hemolytic activity. Results of computational docking were also found in agreement with the enzyme inhibition data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study technical efficiency of sugarcane crop at province level was analyzed. A total of 299 sugarcane growers were interviewed in three main sugarcane growing districts (D.I. Khan, Malakand and Charsadda) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). Through a structured questionnaire, key questions were asked to gather data with respect to inputs utilization and socio-economic characteristics of selected sample of sugarcane growers. Using Stochastic Frontier Approach (SFA), mean technical efficiency of sugarcane crop in KP was around 70 percent ranging from minimum 53 to maximum possible efficient level of 98 percent. Results of study indicate that on average with same technology and resource base, yield of sugarcane can be increased by about 28% in order to reach the efficient fellow growers of sugarcane crop. Around 48.49% of the selected growers were below the mean technical efficiency level. Results from efficiency analysis show that age and off-farm income are quite influential socio-economic factors that affect technical efficiency of sugarcane growers in the study area. On inputs side farm size, labor, seed rate, tractor hours, irrigation and urea were found statistically significant. Therefore, based on findings, it is recommended that in order to encourage growers to apply optimal amount of these inputs and avoid uncertainty in returns, an effective system need to be put in place where cost of production might be considered while fixing sugarcane price. Also, there is need to keep experienced farmers involved in sugarcane production, because of positive relationship between grower's experience and technical efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study technical efficiency of sugarcane crop at province level was analyzed. A total of 299 sugarcane growers were interviewed in three main sugarcane growing districts (D.I. Khan, Malakand and Charsadda) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). Through a structured questionnaire, key questions were asked to gather data with respect to inputs utilization and socio-economic characteristics of selected sample of sugarcane growers. Using Stochastic Frontier Approach (SFA), mean technical efficiency of sugarcane crop in KP was around 70 percent ranging from minimum 53 to maximum possible efficient level of 98 percent. Results of study indicate that on average with same technology and resource base, yield of sugarcane can be increased by about 28% in order to reach the efficient fellow growers of sugarcane crop. Around 48.49% of the selected growers were below the mean technical efficiency level. Results from efficiency analysis show that age and off-farm income are quite influential socio-economic factors that affect technical efficiency of sugarcane growers in the study area. On inputs side farm size, labor, seed rate, tractor hours, irrigation and urea were found statistically significant. Therefore, based on findings, it is recommended that in order to encourage growers to apply optimal amount of these inputs and avoid uncertainty in returns, an effective system need to be put in place where cost of production might be considered while fixing sugarcane price. Also, there is need to keep experienced farmers involved in sugarcane production, because of positive relationship between grower’s experience and technical efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this work was to synthesize some methanesulfonamides bearing 1,4- benzodioxane moiety and to evaluate their cytotoxicity profile through hemolytic study. The synthetic methodology involved the reaction of 1,4-benzodioxane-6-amine (1) with methanesulfonyl chloride (2) in aqueous alkaline medium under stirring for 2-3 hours and dynamic pH control at 9 to form N-(2,3-dihydrobenzo[1,4]dioxin-6-yl)methanesulfonamide (3). The synthesized sulfonamide, 3, was dissolved in DMF and LiH was added as an activator. Then, it was stirred for 2-3 hours with a series of aralkyl/alkyl halides, 4a-g, to yield N-alkyl/aralkyl-N-(2,3-dihydrobenzo[1,4]dioxin-6- yl)methanesulfonamides (5a-g). The structural analysis of the derivatives was performed by FT-IR, 1H-NMR and EI-MS. When these molecules were evaluated for their hemolytic study, the molecule 5g was found to be least toxic amongst the series. Hence, this molecule might be utilized as safe therapeutic agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on a study conducted on patients of hospital in Pakistan suffering from posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Topics discussed include lesion distribution on imaging with MRI in patients, syndrome's effects on posterior part of brain with basal ganglia, brain stem and cerebellum; and its neurotoxic state of causing permanent neurological deficits and even death if delaying in diagnosis.

Purpose: To evaluate the antibacterial, enzyme-inhibitory and hemolytic activities of Salkylated/ aralkylated 2-(1H-indol-3-ylmethyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole-5-thiol derivatives. Methods:Antibacterial activities of the compounds were evaluated using broth dilution method in 96 well plates. Enzyme inhibitory activities assays were investigated against α-glucosidase, butyrylcholinesterase (BchE) and lipoxygenase (LOX) using acarbose, eserine and baicalien as reference standards, respectively. A mixture of enzyme, test compound and the substrate was incubated and variation in absorbance noted before and after incubation. In tests for hemolytic activities, the compounds were incubated with red blood cells and variations in absorbance were used as indices their hemolytic activities. Results: The compounds were potent antibacterial agents. Five of them exhibited very good antibacterial potential similar to ciprofloxacin, and had minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of at least 9.00 ± 4.12 µM against S. aureus, E.coli, and B. subtilis. One of the compounds had strong enzyme inhibitory potential against a-glucosidase, with IC50 of 17.11 ± 0.02 µg/mL which was better than that of standard acarbose (IC50 38.25 ± 0.12 µg/mL). Another compound had 1.5% hemolytic activity. Conclusion: S-Alkylated/aralkylated 2-(1H-indol-3-ylmethyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole-5-thiol deviratives with valuable antibacterial, anti-enzymatic and hemolytic activities have been successfully synthesized. These compounds may be useful in the development of pharmaceutical products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of probiotic yeast Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM I-745 in combination with prebiotic inulin on the probiotic survivability, physiochemical properties and stability of ice cream were evaluated. Addition of inulin increased the viability of S. boulardii CNCM I-745 with viable count of 6.16 log CFU/g in the synbiotic ice cream after 120 d of storage. Fermentation with the probiotic yeast and Lactobacillus-Streptococcus (LS) caused significantly (p < 0.05) decreased firmness of ice cream samples, S1-Pro (510.2g) and S2-Pro-LS (492.7g), compared with that (545.9g) of the control S0. However, addition of 1% and 2% inulin recovered the firmness of the synbiotic ice cream, S3-Syn1 (535.3g) and S4-Syn2 (548.3g), respectively. Synbiotic ice cream had improved melting property and stability as indicated by measurements of particle size, zeta potential and multiple light scattering. Among 27 volatile compounds identified in different ice cream formulations, the synbiotic ice-cream with 2% inulin contained higher concentrations (3983 μg/L) than S1-Pro (1479 μg/L) and S0-control (616.4 μg/L) ice creams. The synbiotic ice cream of this study represents a potential novel functional product containing probiotic yeast and prebiotic inulin. • Saccharomyces boulardii and inulin (prebiotic) were used to fortify ice-cream. • Inulin improved physicochemical and survival of yeast in synbiotic ice-cream. • Zeta potential and Turbiscan stability index confirmed stability synbiotic ice cream. • Synbiotic ice cream contained more volatile compounds. • Synbiotic ice cream-maintained viability of S. boulardii (6.16 log CFU/g) even after 120 days of freeze storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]