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Objective: To find the frequency of subclinical hypothyroidism in females with subfertility Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, CMH Hospital Kharan, for 6 months (1st Jan 2023 to 30th June 2023). A total of 159 females meeting inclusion criteria were included after taking informed consent. Females were enquired about infertility status and their thyroid status was measured in terms of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and free thyroxine (FT4). Mean and Standard Deviation were used for quantitative variables whereas frequency and percentages were used for categorical variables. Results: The mean age of females in this study was 27.86±7.58 years. The mean weight, height and BMI were 72.87 ± 13.31 kg, 1.64 ± 0.06 m, and 27.23 ± 4.90 respectively. Fifty-three (33.33%) females were obese and 106(66.67%) females were non-obese. The mean level of TSH was found to be 2.51 ± 2.29 mIU/mL with huge variation as the minimum TSH level was 0.1 and the maximum was 7.90 mIU/mL. The mean FT4 was 1.29±0.4 ng/dl with a minimum and maximum FT4 level of 0.70 and 1.90 ng/dl respectively. There were 43 (27%) females with subclinical hypothyroidism whereas, 116 (73%) did not have subclinical hypothyroidism. There was an association between subclinical hypothyroidism and obesity, p-value < 0.05. Conclusion: This study concludes that the prevalence of subclinical hypothyroidism was found to be greater in infertile women and hence routine screening of subclinical hypothyroidism among females with subfertility should be practiced. We also found an association of SCH with obesity in these females. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

White mold, caused by the necrotrophic fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, is a challenging disease to common bean cultivation worldwide. In the current study, two non-proteinogenic amino acids (NPAAs), γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and ß-alanine, were suggested as innovative environmentally acceptable alternatives for more sustainable management of white mold disease. In vitro, GABA and ß-alanine individually demonstrated potent dose-dependent fungistatic activity and effectively impeded the radial growth and development of S. sclerotiorum mycelium. Moreover, the application of GABA or ß-alanine as a seed treatment followed by three root drench applications efficiently decreased the disease severity, stimulated plant growth, and boosted the content of photosynthetic pigments of treated S. sclerotiorum-infected plants. Furthermore, although higher levels of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), superoxide anion (O2•-), and malondialdehyde (MDA) indicated that S. sclerotiorum infection had markedly triggered oxidative stress in infected bean plants, the exogenous application of both NPAAs significantly reduced the levels of the three studied oxidative stress indicators. Additionally, the application of GABA and ß-alanine increased the levels of both non-enzymatic (total soluble phenolics and flavonoids), as well as enzymatic (catalase [CAT], peroxidases [POX], and polyphenol oxidase [PPO]) antioxidants in the leaves of S. sclerotioruminfected plants and improved their scavenging activity and antioxidant efficiency. Applications of GABA and ß-alanine also raised the proline and total amino acid content of infected bean plants. Lastly, the application of both NPAAs upregulated the three antioxidant-related genes PvCAT1, PvCuZnSOD1, and PvGR. Collectively, the fungistatic activity of NPAAs, coupled with their ability to alleviate oxidative stress, enhance antioxidant defenses, and stimulate plant growth, establishes them as promising ecofriendly alternatives for white mold disease management for sustainable bean production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine the reference range of zinc in adult population (age range 20 to 29 years) of Lahore. Methods: It was a descriptive cross sectional study which was carried out from Jan- August 2012 in Chemical Pathology Department of University of Health Sciences, Lahore. Serum zinc concentration was measured by flame atomic absorption spectrometry in randomly selected 450 healthy adults aged 20 to 29 years. After application of exclusion criteria reference values were determined in apparently healthy subjects according to guidelines of International Federation of Clinical Chemistry. The data was entered & analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Serum Zn levels was expressed as Mean ± SD. Results: A total of 450 healthy subjects were included in this study. Out of these, 234 were females. Mean age was 25±0.13years. The mean concentration of zinc in serum of healthy individual was 24.02±7.03 µmol/L (range11.47-36.72). The mean±SD for males subjects were 22.33±6.42 µmol/L(range11.93-32.4). Similarly the mean±SD for females were 21.72±7.34 µmol/L (range9.94-36.87). Conclusion: This study presents reference range for serum zinc concentration in adult population of Lahore. The results showed that there is significant difference in serum level of zinc among different countries. This study will help us in establishing reference ranges of trace elements on larger population in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objective: Laboratory errors are one of the major factors that affect the diagnosis, prognosis, treatment and monitoring in patients. The objective of study is to evaluate the frequency and type of errors in different phases of testing at the Pathology Department of the Shalamar Hospital, Lahore and to evaluate the causes of errors. Methods: This observational study was carried out in Shalamar Hospital Laboratories Lahore from 1st July 2011 to 31st December 2011. Errors detected and documented on daily basis. Results: A total of 127,500 samples were received and processed during the six months period. Out of the total samples, 1530 (1.2) errors were detected. Among all errors pre-analytical errors were most common, with a frequency of 70.4%, post-analytical 17.5% and analytical 12.1%. Conclusions: Our study demonstrates the types and frequencies of errors. It is very important to monitor the all phases so to reduce the frequency of error for better reporting of lab results, ultimately which ensures the patient well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]