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The precision of process monitoring often encounters challenges in determining the exact shift size. Therefore, combined control charts have gained considerable attention because of their excellent speed to detect simultaneously small-to-moderate and large-size shifts. The effectiveness of the applied quality control methods strongly depends on the performance of the measurement system. Measurement error presence contributes significantly negatively toward the performance of the usual control charting schemes. This article proposes novel two-sided combined Shewhart-Cumulative EWMA-sum (Shewhart-CUESUM) control charts designed to efficiently monitor the mean of normally distributed processes. In addition, to address measurement errors, the M-Shewhart-CUESUM chart is proposed, incorporating an additive measurement error model. Evaluation of the charts through Monte-Carlo simulations, considering metrics such as average run length (ARL), extra quadratic loss, relative ARL, and performance comparison index. It is found that the combined Shewhart-CUESUM outperforms than CUESUM chart. The results show that the presence of measurement errors can significantly diminish the charts’ performance, which can be mitigated by utilizing a multiple measurements scheme. Among the different well-established combined charts examined, the M-Shewhart-CUESUM chart shows considerably more sensitive to detecting simultaneously detect small and large size shifts. To employ simulated datasets to illustrate the impact of measurement errors and demonstrate the implications of the proposed charts on process mean shifts.

The increasing demand for wastewater treatment has become a notable trend for addressing global water scarcity. However, fouling is a significant challenge for wastewater distribution engineering systems. This study provides an approach using nanobubbles (NBs) to control fouling. The antifouling capacities of three types of NBs, six oxygen concentrations, and two application procedures (prevention and removal) are investigated. The results show that NBs effectively mitigate composite fouling—including biofouling, inorganic scaling, and particulate fouling—in comparison with the non-NBs group. More specifically, hydroxyl radicals generated by the self-collapse of NBs oxidize organics and kill microorganisms in wastewater. The negatively charged surfaces of the NBs transform the crystalline form of CaCO3 from calcite to looser aragonite, which reduces the likelihood of ion precipitation. Furthermore, the NBs gas-liquid interfaces act as gas “bridges” between colloidal particles, enhancing the removal of particles from wastewater. Lastly, although the NBs inhibit the growth of fouling, they do not significantly remove the already adhered fouling in non-NBs treated groups. This study anticipates that the application of NBs will address the significant fouling issue for various wastewater distribution engineering systems in order to meet the global challenge of sustainable water supplies.

The COVID-19 pandemic has great effects for economies internationally. This study studies the interconnection between COVID-19 metrics and Pakistan's premier stock exchange, the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) with the object of identifying the most effective machine learning (ML) model for predicting KSE developments in the pandemic. Our investigation periods the peak COVID-19 period from March 1, 2020, to November 26, 2021, applying data from both the KSE 100 index and COVID-19 associated variables. Five various ML methods were applied involving Linear Regression (LR), K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), Random Forest (RF), Regression Tree (Rtree), and Support Vector Machine (SVM) and measured their performance employing critical accuracy metrics such as Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE), Mean Squared Error (MSE), Mean Absolute Error (MAE), and R-squared (R2). The outcomes discover that the RF model outperformed its equivalents realizing an R2 of 0.91 with k = 5. These results conflict with a previous study that supported a negative impact of COVID-19 on improved stock markets. The visions from this study can assist investors in managing strategic investment decisions and assist policymakers in making measures to reduce the pandemic's effects on the stock market.

Zinc-ion supercapacitors (ZISCs) exhibit great potential to store energy owing to the benefits of high power density and environmentally friendly features. However, solving the drawbacks of low specific energy and poor cyclic performance at high current rates is necessary. Thus, developing better cathode materials is a practical and efficient way to overcome these limitations. This work presents an encouraging design of two-dimensional (2D) graphite ultrathin nanosheets (GUNSs) as a cathode material for ZISCs. The experimental results show that the GUNSs-based cathode material exhibits a wide surface area and rapid charge transformation features. The 2D GUNS as a cathode was tested in three-electrode systems, and it provided an exceptionally high capacitance of 641 F/g at 1 A/g in an aqueous ZnSO4 electrolyte, better than GUNS-N2 (462 F/g at 1 A/g) and pristine graphite (225.8 F/g at 1 A/g). The 2D GUNS has a rate performance of 43.8% at a current density of 20 A/g, better than GUNS-N2 (35.6%) and pristine graphite (8.4%) at the same conditions. Furthermore, a ZISC device was fabricated using GUNSs as cathode and Zn-foil as anode with 1 M ZnSO4 electrolyte (denoted as GUNSs//Zn). The as-fabricated GUNSs//Zn device exhibits an excellent capacitance of 182.5 F/g at 1 A/g with good capacitance retention of 97.2%, which is better than pristine graphite (94.6%), and nitrogen-doped GUNS (GUNS-N2) cathode (95.7%). In addition, the GUNSs//Zn device demonstrated an ultrahigh cyclic life of 10,000 cycles, and 96.76% of capacitance was maintained. Furthermore, the GUNSs//Zn device delivers a specific energy of 64.88 W h/kg at an ultrahigh specific power of 802.67 W/kg and can run a light-emitting diode for practical applications.

Abstract Background Considering the rapidly spreading monkeypox outbreak, WHO has declared a global health emergency. Still in the category of being endemic, the monkeypox disease shares numerous clinical characters with smallpox. This study focuses on determining the most effective combination of autoregressive integrated moving average model to encapsulate time dependent flow behaviour of the virus with short run prediction. Methods This study includes the data of confirmed reported cases and cumulative cases from eight most burdened countries across the globe, over the span of May 18, 2022, to December 31, 2022. The data was assembled from the website of Our World in Data and it involves countries such as United States, Brazil, Spain, France, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, United Kingdom, Germany and Canada. The job of modelling and short-term forecasting is facilitated by the employment of autoregressive integrated moving average. The legitimacy of the estimated models is argued by offering numerous model performance indices such as, root mean square error, mean absolute error and mean absolute prediction error. Results The best fit models were deduced for each country by using the data of confirmed reported cases of monkeypox infections. Based on diverse set of performance evaluation criteria, the best fit models were then employed to provide forecasting of next twenty days. Our results indicate that the USA is expected to be the hardest-hit country, with an average of 58 cases per day with 95% confidence interval of (00—400). The second most burdened country remained Brazil with expected average cases of 23 (00—130). The outlook is not much better for Spain and France, with average forecasts of 52 (00—241) and 24 (00—121), respectively. Conclusion This research provides profile of ten most severely hit countries by monkeypox transmission around the world and thus assists in epidemiological management. The prediction trends indicate that the confirmed cases in the USA may exceed than other contemporaries. Based on the findings of this study, it remains plausible to recommend that more robust health surveillance strategy is required to control the transmission flow of the virus especially in USA.

Objective: The study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of topical 2% coal tar in petroleum jelly as compared to plain petroleum jelly (Emollient) in the management of mild to moderate atopic dermatitis in children 1 to 16 years of age. Study Design: Quasi-experimental study design. Place and Duration of Study: The study was carried out at the Department of Dermatology, Capital Hospital Islamabad, Pakistan over a period of six months, from January 2023 to July 2023. Methods: A total of 68 patients, 34 in each group who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were enrolled in this study. Group- A received topical 2% coal tar in petroleum jelly while Group B was only administered plain petroleum jelly, twice daily for 12 weeks. The response was recorded using the eczema area severity index (EASI) and then analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20. Results: The mean age and the duration of disease in Group-A was 6.8±4.8 years & 27.9±28.0 months respectively, while it was 4.9±3.7 years & 20.9±18.2 months in Group-B. Males were predominant in Group-B n= 21 (61.8%), while males and females were equal in Group-A n=17 (50%). Final analysis at 12 weeks comparing the EASI revealed that treatment of Group-A (52.9%) was more effective than Group-B (17.7%). The difference being statistically significant (P=0.002). Conclusion: Topical 2% coal tar in petroleum jelly was more effective than petroleum jelly alone in treating mild to moderate AD in the pediatric population. How to cite this: Erfan M, Ali U, Sajid W, Syed TM, Noor H. Efficacy of 2% Coal Tar in Petroleum Jelly Over Plain Petroleum Jelly (Emollient) In The Treatment of Atopic Dermatitis in Pediatric Population. Life and Science. 2024; 5(4): 452-458. doi: http://doi.org/10.37185/LnS.1.1.545

Morgagni hernia is the rarest type of Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia(CHD). It accounts for 2% of all CHD cases and is detected incidentally through a chest xray The hernia occurs mostly on right side of diaphragm with incidence of 90%, 8% occur bilaterally and 2% limited to left side. It is predominant in females presenting symptom of abdominal pain. The presence of colonic sounds on chest examination is a significant finding in diagnosis. CT scans usually reveal a retrosternal or parasternal mass or fat density which represents omentum and air containing viscus. A case of a middle aged lady presenting with vague abdominal pain for the last eight years is reported. Suspicion was raised over a chest xray which highlighted the right dome of diaphragm being pushed up and the presence of gaseous shadow under the right dome .Subsequent computed tomography showed morgagani hernia . The patient underwent open transabdominal of the stomach and omentum , where the hernia sac not resected and a primary closure of the defect was performed. The post operative course was uneventful. Morgagni though rare, often remains undiagnosed and can lead to life threatening complications. Surgical intervention regardless of patient ‘s asymptomatic state should be offered to avoid complications. KEY WORDS: Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia, Morgagni, Surgery.

Abstract Patched domain-containing 1 (PTCHD1) is a well-established susceptibility gene for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual disability (ID). Previous studies have suggested that alterations in the dosage of PTCHD1 may contribute to the etiology of both ASD and ID. However, there has not yet been a thorough investigation regarding mechanisms that regulate PTCHD1 expression. We sought to characterize the Ptchd1 promoter in a mouse neuronal model, as well as to identify and validate cis regulatory elements. We defined specific regions of the Ptchd1 promoter essential for robust expression in P19-induced neurons. Evolutionarily-conserved putative transcription factor binding sites within these regions were subsequently identified. Using a pairwise comparison of chromatin accessibility between mouse forebrain and liver tissues, a candidate regulatory region, ~ 9.1 kbp downstream of the Ptchd1 stop codon was defined. This region harbours two ENCODE-predicted enhancer cis-regulatory elements. Further, using DNase footprint analysis, a putative YY1-binding motif was also identified. Genomic deletion of the entire 8 kbp downstream open chromatin region attenuated Ptchd1 transcription by over 60% in our neuronal model, corroborating its predicted regulatory function. This study provides mechanistic insights related to the expression of PTCHD1, and provides important context to interpret genetic and genomic variation at this locus which may influence neurodevelopment.

Recently, Abbas et al. [Enriched multivalued contractions with applications to differential inclusions and dynamic programming, Symmetry 13(8) (2021), 1350] obtained an interesting generalization of the Nadler fixed point theorem by introducing the concept of enriched multivalued contraction in the framework of Banach spaces. In this article, we define a new class of metrics on the family of closed and bounded subsets of a given metric space. Furthermore, fixed point theorems were established for enriched multi-valued contractions by substituting the Hausdorff metric with metrics from a specific class that are either metrically or sequentially equivalent to the Hausdorff metric. Some examples are provided to illustrate the concepts and results presented herein. These results improve, unify, and generalize several comparable results in the literature.

Objectives This study is aimed to investigate the COVID-19 vaccine acceptancy among public, along with measuring the underlining role played by the made-in-china perception and vaccination effectiveness towards vaccination acceptance. Material and methods A cross-sectional study was conducted that relied upon convenient and purposive sampling. Data was collected through online survey method predominantly in top-tier cities of Pakistan during the initial vaccination phase. The data was analyzed through 2-stage approach by employing Structural Equation Modeling in smart PLS 3.0. Results The results confirm the validity and reliability of data that was evaluated through VIF scores, HTMT ratio, CR, Cronbach’s alpha, and AVE. The outcomes indicate that vaccine effectiveness and made in china perception significantly affect the vaccination acceptance whereas, corona fear accelerates vaccination acceptance. Conclusions This study stabs to figure out the role of a stereotypical belief about made-in-china vaccination and its acceptance in country. The study proves that negative perception about country of origin negatively influence the vaccination acceptance. This negative perception should be focused on vaccination campaign. Moreover, study results revealed that perceived vaccination effectiveness significantly influence the acceptance. Therefore, it is important to build appositive perception of vaccination through campaign, a clear and source full communication is needed from government about vaccination effectiveness and need to discuss the level of its effectiveness, success rate to minimize the negative influence of made in china perception.

High sediment content in irrigation water is a common challenge in agricultural regions, leading to increased clogging of emitters and reduced system efficiency. Lateral flushing (LF) is an effective measure to reduce emitter clogging for drip irrigation systems. However, the effect of LF on the clogging with high sediment water in different types of emitters remains largely unknown. Thus the effects of LF on the clogging of 8 flat emitters (FE), 3 cylindrical emitters (CE), 3 single wing labyrinth emitters (SL) and 2 inlaid strip emitters (SE) were evaluated. The degree of emitter clogging fluctuation values was 5.4–25.6% higher in the non-flushed drip lines compared to the flushing treatments. Additionally, the average discharge ratio variation (Dra) and coefficient of uniformity (CU) were improved by 7.7–21.9% and 11.6–67.4%, respectively, in the flushed drip lines compared to the non-flushed ones. The CE, FE, SL and SE drip lines that underwent flushing treatment operated for an additional 240, 180, 120 and 60 hourse, respectively, compared to those without flushing treatment. The results indicate that the flushing effect is better for FE and CE due to the accumulation of clogging material at varying rates and locations within the emitters, as well as differences in emitter structure.

This research is based on the analysis of Monkeypox transmission, from may 7, 2022 to October 11, 2022, in 30 most affected countries around the globe. The most affected countries are selected through the cut point of at least 100 reported confirmed cases of infected persons over the aforementioned time span. We novely argue the exhibition of distributional similarities between the viral flow and well known power law in context of this neglected zoonotic disease. Moreover, model-based evidence suggesting the capability of pathogen to spread far and wide around its nucleus, are collected and presented. It is estimated that 70 % of the reported confirmed cases belonged to 20 % of the top most affected countries. Also, 70 % of the reported transmission was inflicted in 34 % of the days of reporting at least one case, on average.

The compounded Bell generalized class of distributions is proposed in this article as an alternative to the compounded Poisson generalized family of distributions. Some properties and actuarial measures are presented. The properties of a special model named Bell Weibull (BellW) are obtained such as the linear representation of density, rth moment, incomplete moment, moment generating function using Wright generalized hypergeometric function and Meijer’s G function, the pth moment of order statistics, reliability, stochastic ordering, and residual and reversed residual life. Moreover, some commonly used entropy measures, namely, Rényi, Havrda and Charvat, and Arimoto and Tsallis entropy are obtained for the special model. From the inferential side, parameters are estimated using maximum likelihood estimation. The simulation study is performed to highlight the behavior of estimates. Some actuarial measures including expected shortfall, value at risk, tail value at risk, tail variance, and tail variance premium for the BellW model are presented with the numerical illustration. The usefulness of the proposed family is evaluated using insurance claims and COVID-19 datasets. Convincing results are obtained.

Abstract Global agricultural trade creates multiple telecoupled flows of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). The flows of physical and virtual nutrients along with trade have discrepant effects on natural resources in different countries. However, existing literature has not quantified or analyzed such effects yet. Here we quantified the physical and virtual N and P flows embedded in the global agricultural trade networks from 1997 to 2016 and elaborated components of the telecoupling framework. The N and P flows both increased continuously and more than 25% of global consumption of nutrients in agricultural products were related to physical nutrient flows, while virtual nutrient flows were equivalent to one-third of the nutrients inputs into global agricultural system. These flows have positive telecoupling effects on saving N and P resources at the global scale. Reducing inefficient trade flows will enhance resource conservation, environmental sustainability in the hyper-globalized world.

Objective: This study aims to point out the association of modifiable risk factors and the prevalence and risk factors of overweight and obesity among adolescents aged 17-24 years. Study Design: Cross-sectional descriptive study. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted at the Department of Community Medicine, Combined Military Hospital (CMH) College Lahore, Pakistan from April 2022 to May 2022. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed on a sample size of 108 adult males through nonprobability convenient sampling in CMH Lahore Medical College, Lahore, Pakistan. HbA1c tests were conducted to check blood sugar. A questionnaire was distributed to collect data. SPSS software was used for the analysis of data using the Chi-square test. Results: A total of 108 male cadets participated in the study. Mean age was 20.20 years ±1.4 SD. The majority of participants were involved in physical activity and had healthy eating habits. Eighty-nine percent of respondents fall in the category of normal body mass index & 6.5% in the category of overweight & obese & 3.7 % were underweight. Forty-seven percent of subjects were physically active for ≤ 3 days/week & 57.4% were engaged for > 3 days/week. Fifty-seven percent of respondents had a screen time of 5-7 hours/day & 11.1% has > 7 hours/day. Among 108 respondents, 37% had snacking habits in between meals 1-2 times/week & 20.4% has 3-4 times/week. Conclusion: This study concludes that apart from non-modifiable risk factors, modifiable risk factors also have a major influence on the prevalence of overweight & obesity. Those who exercise & eat healthy have less risk of developing obesity as compared to those who have poor physical activity & unhealthy eating habits. How to cite this: Zaib S, Raza T, Ahmad A, Anwar S, Tariq SMH, Mubashar T. Prevalence of Obesity with its Associated Modifiable Risk Factors Among Adolescents of Aged 17-24 Years: Cross Sectional Study. Life and Science. 2024; 5(2): 210-215. doi: http://doi.org/10.37185/LnS.1.1.362

Introduction Adverse events are a major cause of patient harm in the hospitalised setting. Low-income and middle-income countries account for a disproportionate share of the global burden of adverse events. However, patient safety research is still centred around high-income countries and high-resource health systems. The methods and data produced from these efforts are ill-suited to low-income and middle-income systems due to the social and technical differences between these settings. We aim to use our pilot-tested, locally developed methodology to estimate the frequency and characteristics of adverse events in hospitalised patients in a lower-middle-income country to inform patient safety policies and initiatives.Methods and analysis This multi-centre study will employ a two-step chart review methodology to identify adverse events in a representative sample of patients admitted at five hospitals between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2019. The first step will include assessing patient files against a list of triggers to detect adverse events and the second step will involve an in-depth review of the events to capture pertinent characteristics. The triggers have been adapted from validated tools used in other studies. The reviewing team will be trained on the use of research tools and operational definitions to ensure that data are collected uniformly. The main outcome of interest is the rate at which adverse events occur in hospitalised patients. Further analysis will look to identify and quantify associations between the main outcome of interest and a variety of variables such as patient age and gender using tests of independence and regression techniques.Ethics and dissemination This study protocol has been approved by the Ethics Review Committee at Aga Khan University (Reference number: 2023-6324-24566). The findings of this study will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and disseminated to the public through national and international conferences, workshops, websites and social media.

Utilizing brackish water with drip irrigation technology, due to its precise water control alleviates the secondary soil salinization, and improves crop yield and quality, which offers sustainable agricultural development opportunities in saline areas. However, the complex characteristics of brackish water increase the risk of drip irrigation emitter clogging, which inhibit its promotion and adoption. It is necessary to find out the dominant water quality ions that lead to emitter clogging under multiple ion interactions when using brackish water under multiple ion coexistence conditions. Thus, the in-situ pilot research was conducted to study the emitter clogging mechanism using brackish water collected from 16 different salt-alkaline regions. A comprehensive evaluation with the consideration of 11 water quality ions on emitter clogging were conducted. Results showed that the degree of emitter clogging gradually increased in the first 40 days of irrigation, hereafter started an accelerated reduction until the days 64 of brackish water application. Spearman correlation and structural equation modelling were used to identify the main factors contribute to emitter clogging. And results indicated that calcium fouling (CF) and silica fouling (SF) were the major fouling minerals in the emitter flow channels. Ca2+, CO32-+HCO3-, pH, total hardness (TH), and zeta potential (ZP) were the key water characteristics leading to emitter clogging. These factors directly affected CF and SF, while also affecting the Mg2+, Mn2+, Cu2+, and other water quality factors which indirectly enhanced the CF and SF. Thereafter a few water quality control strategies were proposed based on emitter clogging and soil salinization mitigation. This study identified the key water quality ions that induce drip irrigation emitter clogging when using brackish water, provided solid support for solving the clogging issue, and promoted the high-efficient utilization of brackish water in saline areas.

Global Software Development (GSD) offers several benefits to software development organizations, including reduced development costs, the availability of low-wage and highly skilled employees, and an improved marketplace. Meanwhile, it faces severe communication, coordination, and control issues. The most important of these is the communication issue which is further categorized into socio-cultural, temporal, and geographical issues. Among these issues, researchers believe the socio-cultural issue is the most critical factor and, if not mitigated properly, may lead to software project failure. Although, in the past, many studies have identified socio-cultural distance-related issues, and a few studies proposed mitigation strategies. However, studies have yet to be carried out to prioritize and empirically evaluate all mitigation strategies. Thus the main objectives of this study are: a) to identify socio-cultural distance issues and mitigation strategies through a Systematic Literature Review (SLR), b) to empirically evaluate the impact of identified mitigation strategies on identified socio-cultural distance issues through a survey, and c) to prioritize effective mitigation strategies through a recommended Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). A total of six socio-cultural issues and twenty-eight mitigation strategies are identified from the SLR and survey. Out of which, seven mitigation strategies are most effective. This study’s findings will help software organizations to overcome socio-cultural distance issues by using the highest priority mitigation strategies to reduce losses.

This study examines the relationship between virtual team performance and its critical explaining factors, i.e., individual, team, organizational, and technological factors, by exploring the mediating effect of knowledge sharing. For this purpose, a conceptual framework is proposed based on an in-depth Systematic Literature Review (SLR) analysis. Next, data is collected through a survey from 252 IT practitioners working in Pakistan’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Statistical tests on collected data are applied in statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) and smart partial least squares (SmartPLS) to evaluate the proposed conceptual framework empirically. Finally, 19 industrial and 5 academic experts verified the framework. There is a consensus among researchers and practitioners regarding the factors that contribute to the explanation of knowledge sharing and virtual team performance. Thus, the current study’s outcome may facilitate the management of software organizations to improvise their knowledge sharing infrastructure, make the development process more efficient, avoid project failure and increase the productivity of virtual teams.

In this manuscript, the mean of the study and the auxiliary variable, as well as the rank of the auxiliary variable, were needed to develop a new, improved ratio-in-regression type estimator for population mean. Up to the first order of approximation, expressions for the bias and mean square error of the existing and proposed estimators are computed. The effectiveness and stability of our new, enhanced estimator are evaluated using simulation and two actual data sets. The suggested estimator's superior performance to all other considered estimators is shown both conceptually and numerically. The mean square error is the lowest, and PREs out-performs other known estimators by a factor of more than one hundred. Overall, we draw the conclusion that the suggested new improved estimator outperforms all its predecessors.

Objective: To compare the frequency of stroke-associated pneumonia in patients given prophylactic antibiotics versus those not given prophylactic antibiotics. Study Design: Comparative Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: The study was carried out at the Department of Internal Medicine, Combined st st Military Hospital (CMH), Peshawar, Pakistan from 1 August 2022 to 31 January 2023. Methods: We included 250 ischemic stroke patients and divided them into groups A, “Prophylactic group,” and B, “no prophylactic antibiotics group.” Patients were assessed at 7 days after admission for presence of “stroke associated pneumonia (SAP)” through clinical examination and chest X-rays. Data were analyzed using a statistical package for social sciences 22. For qualitative variables, frequency and percentages were used, whereas for quantitative data, the median (IQR) was used as the data were not normally distributed and contained outliers; using the median and IQR can be more appropriate for describing the central tendency and spread of the data compared to the mean and standard deviation. Results: In our study, the median age of the patients was 68(46-83) years. 61 (24.40%) of the patients were male while 189(75.60%) were female. The median BMI was 31 (19-44) kg/m2. Diabetes was present in 123 (49.20%) patients and 96(38.40%) had hypertension. We found that in the the “prophylactic antibiotics” group (A), 9 (7.20%) patients developed SAP, while in the “no prophylactic antibiotics” group (B) frequency of SAP was 34 (27.20%) (p< 0.001). Conclusion: Prophylactic antibiotics used in “ischemic stroke” patients provide better outcomes by reducing the incidence of “stroke-associated pneumonia”. Therefore, it should be given to all patients admitted to the hospital with ischemic CVA. How to cite this: Aslam MJ, Amir M, Sayed TM, Hashmat A, Hussain M, Fatima M.Role of Prophylactic Antibiotics in Preventing Stroke Associated Pneumonia in Patients with Ischemic Stroke. Life and Science. 2024; 5(1): 82-88. doi: http://doi.org/10.37185/LnS.1.1.465

The antioxidants in salam leaf extract have polar properties that affect their effectiveness in oil, thus requiring a surfactant to enhance dispersion. This study aims to investigate the impact of surfactant addition on the dispersion of salam leaf extract antioxidants in soybean oil based on iodine value and free fatty acids. The research involved extracting salam leaves and determining the best formulation with a combination of salam leaf extract and sorbitan monooleate surfactant based on antioxidant activity. The best formulation was then blended into soybean oil, which was subsequently heated discontinuously for 12 hours. The results indicated that the treatment observed based on its antioxidant activity is 0.8% salam leaf extract and 1% Sorbitan monooleate surfactant with IC50 antioxidant activity of 105.4712 ppm and which belongs to the medium category. The analysis were then performed for this treatment in heating I to heating IV iodine number (102.95gI2/100g, 102.38gI2/100g, 102.14gI2/100g, and 101.23gI2/100g respectively) and the free fatty acid (0.0633%, 0.0652%, 0.1163%, and 0.1743%, respectively). The effectiveness of salam leaf extract based on iodine number, peroxide number, and free fatty acid parameters showed that the treatment with the addition of salam leaf extract combined with sorbitan monooleate surfactant gave better results than without the addition of sorbitan monooleate surfactant.

A fascinating opportunity for screening lactic acid bacteria with the potential to ferment plant-based milk production exists in seaweed, a rich source of microbial variety. In this work, marine-derived lactic acid bacteria (LAB) will be identified and used to improve plant milk fermentation, paving the path for healthy and sustainable dairy substitutes. The methods applied in this research including the LAB isolation and identification by performing gram and catalase test. Then, the lactic acid bacteria transferred to fermentation in both plant and dairy milk to observe the ability to ferment plant-based products. It is resulted that the bacteria isolated can ferment the plant-based milk better than the dairy milk, suggesting that the potential of marine lactic acid bacteria to be applied in plant milk-based fermentation.

Brownies are food products that have a distinctive sweet chocolate taste with a soft texture. Brownies are generally loved by people from all walks of life, from children to adults, so they can be developed into highly nutritious products. By adding local vegetables such as mung beans and pumpkin, the aim was to use raw materials to diversify products and improve the nutritional value of products. This study aimed to determine the best formulation and nutritional profile of steamed brownie premix flour that uses mung bean flour and pumpkin flour. The research method employed five treatments followed by tests, known as sensory tests, including color, aroma, taste, and texture. The best treatments obtained will be tested for ash, water, protein fat fiber, and carbohydrate content. The nutritional content of formulated brownies flour were A0 treatment (Protein 14.49%, Fat 18.94%, Carbohydrates 41.16%, Fiber 24.86%), A2 (Protein 15.54%, Fat 22.50%, Carbohydrates 33.11%, Fiber 28.87%), and A3 (Protein 17.99%, Fat 24.59, Carbohydrates 28.55%, Fiber 30.88%). The best formulation for a steamed brownie premix using mung bean flour and pumpkin flour, namely, A2 treatment (40% wheat flour: 30% mung bean flour: 30% pumpkin flour).

Langsat (Lansium domesticum) is a tropical fruit classified as a climacteric fruit that can only last 4-6 days after harvesting. Skin colour is easier to brown and black after 4 days of harvesting. This condition does not affect the fruit flesh, but visually, it becomes unappealing. Ascorbic acid and polyethylene plastic packaging could be applied to extend shelf life and slow browning. This study aims to investigate the effect of different concentrations of ascorbic acid treatment and polyethylene plastic (PE) packaging on the browning index and shelf life of lan and to determine the best concentration of ascorbic acid during storage at 15 °C. The treatments used in this study involved immersing langsat fruit in different ascorbic acid concentrations: 1.5%, 2%, and 2.5%, respectively. The langsat fruit was then packaged using polyethylene plastic and stored at 15 °C. The results showed that using ascorbic acid could delay browning by up to 14 days, with the lowest browning index found in langsat fruit immersed in 2.5% ascorbic acid concentration and packaged in polyethylene plastic. Polyethylene plastic packaging and ascorbic acid during storage affected the shelf life of langsat fruit, extending it to 14 days.

The process of heat treatment is commonly used in food processing to improve colour, flavour, nutrition, and safety from microorganisms, while also reducing the potential of toxic chemical risks. However, researchers have identified a potential risk associated with the Maillard reaction in food products that occurred during in food heating process. The Maillard reaction occurs in three stages: the initial stage (such as in milk and UHT milk), the intermediate stage (as in lager beer and bakery products), and the advanced stage (as in stout beer, coffee, and chocolate). The Maillard reaction is influenced by both physical variables (such as temperature and time of treatment) and chemical variables (including pH, water activity, and substance). Acrylamide is one of the toxic chemical risks that can be formed during the Maillard reaction. This occurs when through the major pathway involving asparagine and carbonyl groups specifically, leading to the formation of N-glycoxyl-asparagine. Additionally, acrylamide can also be formed through oxidized acrolein and lipid oxidation. This review article used online search engines such as ScienceDirect, Google, and ResearchGate as literature research method.

Abstract Background In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, concerted efforts were made by provincial and federal governments to invest in critical care infrastructure and medical equipment to bridge the gap of resource-limitation in intensive care units (ICUs) across Pakistan. An initial step in creating a plan toward strengthening Pakistan’s baseline critical care capacity was to carry out a needs-assessment within the country to assess gaps and devise strategies for improving the quality of critical care facilities. Methods To assess the baseline critical care capacity of Pakistan, we conducted a series of cross-sectional surveys of hospitals providing COVID-19 care across the country. These hospitals were pre-identified by the Health Services Academy (HSA), Pakistan. Surveys were administered via telephonic and on-site interviews and based on a unique checklist for assessing critical care units which was created from the Partners in Health 4S Framework, which is: Space, Staff, Stuff, and Systems. These components were scored, weighted equally, and then ranked into quartiles. Results A total of 106 hospitals were surveyed, with the majority being in the public sector (71.7%) and in the metropolitan setting (56.6%). We found infrastructure, staffing, and systems lacking as only 19.8% of hospitals had negative pressure rooms and 44.4% had quarantine facilities for staff. Merely 36.8% of hospitals employed accredited intensivists and 54.8% of hospitals maintained an ideal nurse-to-patient ratio. 31.1% of hospitals did not have a staffing model, while 37.7% of hospitals did not have surge policies. On Chi-square analysis, statistically significant differences (p

Abstract Background Maternal obesity is a global issue that has devastating effects across the reproductive spectrum such as meiotic defects in oocytes, consequently worsening pregnancy outcomes. Different studies have shown that such types of meiotic defects originated from the oocytes of obese mothers. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop strategies to reduce the incidence of obesity-related oocyte defects that adversely affect pregnancy outcomes. Multiple growth factors have been identified as directly associated with female reproduction; however, the impact of various growth factors on female fertility in response to obesity remains poorly understood. Methods The immature GV-stage oocytes from HFD female mice were collected and cultured in vitro in two different groups (HFD oocytes with and without 50 nM IGF2), however; the oocytes from ND mice were used as a positive control. HFD oocytes treated with or without IGF2 were further used to observe the meiotic structure using different analysis including, the spindle and chromosomal analysis, reactive oxygen species levels, mitochondrial functional activities, and early apoptotic index using immunofluorescence. Additionally, the embryonic developmental competency and embryos quality of IGF2-treated zygotes were also determined. Results In our findings, we observed significantly reduced contents of insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) in the serum and oocytes of obese mice. Our data indicated supplementation of IGF2 in a culture medium improves the blastocyst formation: from 46% in the HFD group to 61% in the HFD + IGF2-treatment group (50 nM IGF2). Moreover, adding IGF2 to the culture medium reduces the reactive oxygen species index and alleviates the frequency of spindle/chromosome defects. We found increased mitochondrial functional activity in oocytes from obese mice after treating the oocytes with IGF2: observed elevated level of adenosine triphosphate, increased mitochondrial distribution, higher mitochondrial membrane potentials, and reduced mitochondrial ultrastructure defects. Furthermore, IGF2 administration also increases the overall protein synthesis and decreases the apoptotic index in oocytes from obese mice. Conclusions Collectively, our findings are strongly in favor of adding IGF2 in culture medium to overcome obesity-related meiotic structural-developmental defects by helping ameliorate the known sub-optimal culturing conditions that are currently standard with assisted reproduction technologies.

The investigation of exact solitary wave solutions to the nonlinear partial differential equation plays an important role to understand any physical phenomena in diverse applied fields. The current work is related to the most prominent nonlinear model named as the van der Waals normal form that appeared naturally and also industrially for the granular materials. In oceanography, the sea ice, sand and snow are some examples of aforesaid matter among others. We employ two novel integration approaches named as the simplest equation method and the expa function method to explore the above mentioned van der Waals model. As a backlash, many new solitary waves and other exact solutions are retrieved. The obtained results depict that the used approaches are simple and effective to deal with nonlinear models. Also, the numerical simulation of some solutions via two and three dimension graphical configurations are presented for certainty and exactness.

Background: Plasma high-density lipoproteins-cholesterol (HDL-C) is a marker of metabolic health; however, its association with age-associated muscle loss, termed sarcopenia, is unknown. We evaluated the clinical importance of HDL-C in predicting sarcopenia in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods: We investigated male healthy elderly and COPD patients, 54–79 years old (n = 55–59/group) through clinical examination, laboratory investigation, and spirometry. Sarcopenia was evaluated as low handgrip strength (HGS), appendicular skeletal mass index (ASMI), and gait speed. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were used to measure the circulating markers of inflammation (C-reactive protein [CRP]) and oxidative stress (8-isoprostanes). Results: The COPD patients exhibited reduced HGS, ASMI and gait speed, and higher CRP and 8-isoprostanes levels and incidence of sarcopenia than controls (all P < 0.05). Plasma HDL-C levels exhibited significant correlations with CRP, HGS, and 8-isoprostane levels (all P

In statistical process monitoring, it is often assumed that the sequential observations generated by processes are independent and identically distributed (iid). However, in real practice, these observations tend to exhibit an autocorrelation pattern. Thus, an autocorrelated process yields misleading results in terms of a high false alarm rate and slow detection of process changes if employing iid-based designed monitoring schemes. Therefore, in this article, we propose the dual cumulative sum (DCUSUM) and dual Crosier’s CUSUM (DCCUSUM) mean charts for monitoring the autocorrelated processes using a first-order autoregressive model. Monte Carlo simulations are extensively used to compute the performance measures: the average run length, standard deviation run length, extra quadratic loss, and relative average run length of the two-sided DCUSUM and DCCUSUM charts under both the zero-state and steady state cases. It is observed that as the level of autocorrelation increases, the performance of the studied charts deteriorates. Thus, a s-skipping sampling scheme is incorporated to reduce the negative effect of autocorrelation. To demonstrate the effect of autocorrelation and highlight implications further, a simulated dataset with a shift in the process mean is considered.

Purpose: Sarcopenia or age-associated muscle decline is common in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is an effective tool in reducing COPD phenotype, but its effects on sarcopenia and functional capacity are poorly known. We aimed to assess the restorative potential of PR on skeletal muscle and physical capacity in COPD patients. Methods: We investigated the male COPD patients, 56–71 years old (n = 55), through clinical examination, laboratory investigation, and spirometry. All patients were evaluated at two time points, 1 year apart before and following the PR. Reduced handgrip strength (HGS), appendicular skeletal mass index (ASMI), and gait speed were considered the clinical indexes of Sarcopenia. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay were used to measure the circulating markers of inflammation (C-reactive protein [CRP]) and oxidative stress (8-isoprostanes). Results: At baseline, the COPD patients had low HGS and gait speed and elevated CRP and 8-isoprostanes levels. According to four internationally recognized criteria, these patients also had a high incidence of Sarcopenia. One year of PR partially restored the HGS, gait speed, CRP, and 8-isoprostanes levels (all P < 0.05). However, the ASMI values were insignificantly restored following PR. PR also reduced the incidence of sarcopenia in COPD patients. Among various criteria for sarcopenia, the international working group on sarcopenia yielded the highest incidence of sarcopenia in COPD patients. Conclusion: Altogether, our data show the therapeutic potential of PR in skeletal muscle, physical performance, and systemic health in patients with COPD.

Information Technology (IT) is one of the fast-growing industries. On the one hand, IT organizations get benefits from their skilled and talented employees to increase their annual growth and productivity. On the other hand, IT and software organizations are facing a lot of challenges because of high employee turnover intention. The main causes of high employee turnover intention are lack of management support, low level of compensation plans, poor relationship with supervisors, limited development and training programs, and work stress. Therefore, the current study aims to identify and empirically evaluate the factors of turnover intention in Pakistan ’s software and IT industries. For this purpose, a systematic literature review is conducted to identify turnover intention factors from the literature. For the empirical evaluation, a survey is conducted to evaluate these identified factors. In the survey, a total of two hundred and fifty professionals from Pakistan ’s IT and software industry participated either through online Google Form or printed survey questionnaires. The collected data were analyzed using regression analysis performed in SPSS and Warp-PLS. The findings of this study illustrate that the recruitment & section, team & management support, performance & career management, salary & compensation, employee commitment, job security, recognition, organizational demographics, and personal demographics with mediating the role of job satisfaction have a significant impact on IT professionals’ turnover intention except for age and gender. The current study also depicts that there was a significant correlation between SLR and empirical results (r = 0.627, P = 0.039). It has been concluded that IT professionals prefer to work long tenure in the organization if they are offered better facilities in terms of compensation plans, career growth, and management support. The practical implication of this study is helpful for IT and software organizations’ top management to retain skilled employees and reduce their loss in annual revenue.

The acrosome is a membranous organelle positioned in the anterior portion of the sperm head and is essential for male fertility. Acrosome biogenesis requires the dynamic cytoskeletal shuttling of vesicles toward nascent acrosome which is regulated by a series of accessory proteins. However, much remains unknown about the molecular basis underlying this process. Here, we generated Ssh2 knockout (KO) mice and HA-tagged Ssh2 knock-in (KI) mice to define the functions of Slingshot phosphatase 2 (SSH2) in spermatogenesis and demonstrated that as a regulator of actin remodeling, SSH2 is essential for acrosome biogenesis and male fertility. In Ssh2 KO males, spermatogenesis was arrested at the early spermatid stage with increased apoptotic index and the impaired acrosome biogenesis was characterized by defective transport/fusion of proacrosomal vesicles. Moreover, disorganized F-actin structures accompanied by excessive phosphorylation of COFILIN were observed in the testes of Ssh2 KO mice. Collectively, our data reveal a modulatory role for SSH2 in acrosome biogenesis through COFILIN-mediated actin remodeling and the indispensability of this phosphatase in male fertility in mice.

Background Patient safety is a top priority for many healthcare organisations worldwide. However, most of the initiatives aimed at the measurement and improvement of patient safety culture have been undertaken in developed countries. The purpose of this study was to measure the patient safety culture at a tertiary care hospital in Pakistan using the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC).Methods The HSOPSC was used to measure the patient safety culture across 12 dimensions at Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi. 2,959 individuals, who had been working at the hospital, were administered the HSOPSC in paper form between June and September 2019.Results The response rate of the survey was 50%. In the past 12 months, 979 respondents (33.1%) had submitted at least one event report. Results showed that the personnel viewed the patient safety culture at their hospital favourably. Overall, respondents scored highest in the following dimensions: ‘feedback and communication on error’ (91%), ‘organisational learning and continuous improvement’ (85%), ‘teamwork within units’ (83%), ‘teamwork across units’ (76%). The dimensions with the lowest positive per cent scores included ‘staffing’ (40%) and ‘non-punitive response to error’ (41%). Only the reliability of the ‘handoffs and transitions’, ‘frequency of events reported’, ‘organisational learning’ and ‘teamwork within units’ was higher than Cronbach’s alpha of 0.7. Upon regression analysis of positive responses, physicians and nurses were found to have responded less favourably than the remaining professional groups for most dimensions.Conclusion The measurement of safety culture is both feasible and informative in developing countries and could be broadly implemented to inform patient safety efforts. Current data suggest that it compares favourably with benchmarks from hospitals in the USA. Like the USA, high staff workload is a significant safety concern among staff. This study lays the foundation for further context-specific research on patient safety culture in developing countries.

Introduction: The long-term complications of COVID-19 appear as significant health problems. However, the long-term muscle decline in these patients is poorly characterized. Methods: We investigated the age-related muscle decline, termed sarcopenia, before and following the COVID-19 infection in older male patients (n = 87). We evaluated handgrip strength (HGS) and functional capacity (short physical performance battery; SPPB) in COVID-19 patients 7–42 days before and one week and 6-month after COVID-19 infection. We used ELISA tests to measure plasma c-terminal agrin fragment-22 (CAF22), c-reactive protein (CRP), and 8-isoprostanes as markers of degraded neuromuscular junctions, inflammation, and oxidative stress, respectively. Results: Before the COVID-19 infection, 54 patients were non-sarcopenic, and 25 patients were sarcopenic, while eight patients subsequently developed sarcopenia. All patients exhibited reduced HGS and SPPB, while elevated CAF22, CRP, and 8-isoprostane levels one week post-COVID-19 infection (all p

Objective: To determine the success rate of Endonasal Endoscopic Dacryocystorhinostomy (Endo-DCR) in cases of chronic dacryocystitis secondary to primary acquired nasolacrimal duct obstruction (NLDO). Study Design: Quasi-experimental study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Oculoplastic Surgery, Armed Forces Institute of Ophthalmology Rawalpindi, from Sep 2018 to Nov 2019. Methodology: Endo-DCR under General Anaesthesia was performed on 100 patients of primary acquired nasolacrimal duct obstruction causing chronic dacryocystitis. Post-operatively these patients were checked on first post-op day, then on one week and finally four months after surgery. We removed silicone tubes of all the patients four months after surgery. To ensure patency of lacrimal passage, we did syringing and irrigation of lacrimal system of all cases, at conclusion of the study. We chose absence of epiphora and patent lacrimal system on syringing as indicators of successful procedure. Results: Hundred patients (males 37; females 63) were recruited for this study. Mean age of our sample population was 51.1 ± 29 years. Right nasolacrimal duct obstruction cases were 56 whereas left nasolacrimal duct obstruction cases were 44. Subjective improvement i.e., absence of epiphora was found in 90% patients. We got successful irrigation of lacrimal passages (objective improvement) in 94% of patients. Conclusion: Endo-DCR yields comparable results to external Dacryocystorhinostomy (Ex DCR). It offers additional benefits of esthetically better outcome, lesser complication rate and short surgery and patient recovery time.

There has been growing literature focusing on empirical evaluation of the key determinants of income distribution across the countries for the last three decades. The present study aims to assess the impact of political regime and shadow economy on income inequalities in Pakistan over the period 1975 to 2016. Two estimation techniques, namely, fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) and auto-regressive distributive lag (ARDL) model, have been used for estimation purposes. The findings indicate that democratic regimes and shadow economies significantly contribute to the worsening of income inequalities in the country. Furthermore, the results also reveal that democracy reinforces income inequalities promoting the impact of the shadow economy in Pakistan.

Abstract In a multi-branch family from Pakistan, individuals presenting with palmoplantar keratoderma segregate in autosomal dominant fashion, and individuals with intellectual disability (ID) segregate in apparent autosomal recessive fashion. Initial attempts to identify the ID locus using homozygosity-by-descent (HBD) mapping were unsuccessful. However, following an assumption of locus heterogeneity, a reiterative HBD approach in concert with whole exome sequencing (WES) was employed. We identified a known disease-linked mutation in the polymicrogyria gene, ADGRG1, in two affected members. In the remaining two (living) affected members, HBD mapping cross-referenced with WES data identified a single biallelic frameshifting variant in the gene encoding retinol dehydrogenase 14 (RDH14). Transcription data indicate that RDH14 is expressed in brain, but not in retina. Magnetic resonance imaging for the individuals with this RDH14 mutation show no signs of polymicrogyria, however cerebellar atrophy was a notable feature. RDH14 in HEK293 cells localized mainly in the nucleoplasm. Co-immunoprecipitation studies confirmed binding to the proton-activated chloride channel 1 (PACC1/TMEM206), which is greatly diminished by the mutation. Our studies suggest RDH14 as a candidate for autosomal recessive ID and cerebellar atrophy, implicating either disrupted retinoic acid signaling, or, through PACC1, disrupted chloride ion homeostasis in the brain as a putative disease mechanism.

Polymorphism in cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2C9 enzyme is known to cause significant inter-individual differences in drug response and occurrence of adverse drug reactions. Different alleles of the CYP2C9 gene have been identified, but the notable alleles responsible for reduced enzyme activity are CYP2C9*2 and CYP2C9*3. No pharmacogenetic data are available on CYP2C9*2 and CYP2C9*3 alleles in the Pakistani population. In Pakistan, pharmacogenetics, which examines the relationship between genetic factors and drug response, are in the early stages of development. We, for the first time, investigated the association between the CYP2C9 variant alleles CYP2C9*2 and CYP2C9*3 and the incidence of hypoglycaemia in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) receiving sulphonylurea medications. A total of n = 400 individuals of Pashtun ethnicity were recruited from 10 different districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan to participate in the study. The study participants were divided into two distinct groups: the case group (n = 200) and the control group (n = 200). The case group consisted of individuals with T2DM who were receiving sulphonylurea medications and experienced hypoglycaemia with it, whereas the control group included individuals with T2DM who were receiving sulphonylurea medication but did not experience sulphonylurea-induced hypoglycaemia (SIH). Blood samples were obtained from study participants following informed consent. DNA was isolated from whole blood samples using a Wiz-Prep DNA extraction kit. Following DNA isolation, CYP2C9 alleles were genotyped using MassARRAY sequencing platform at the Centre of Genomics at the Rehman Medical Institute (RMI). The frequency of CYP2C9*2 (low-activity allele) was more frequent in the diabetic patients with SIH compared to the control group (17.5% vs. 6.0%, p = 0.021). The frequency of its corresponding genotype CYP2C9*1/*2 was higher in cases compared to the control group (10% vs. 6% with p = 0.036); the same was true for genotype CYP2C9*2/*2 (7% vs. 3.5% with p = 0.028). Logistic regression analysis evidenced potential association of CYP2C9*2 allele and its genotypes with SIH. When adjusted for confounding factors such as age, weight, sex, mean daily dose of sulphonylurea, and triglyceride level, the association between the CYP2C9*2 allele and hypoglycaemia remained consistent. Confounding factors played no role in SIH (insignificant p-value) because both groups (cases and controls) were closely matched in term of age, weight, sex, mean daily dose of sulphonylurea, and triglyceride levels. Our study suggests that genetic information about a patient’s CYP2C9 gene/enzyme can potentially assist physicians in prescribing the most suitable and safest drug, based on their genetic make-up.

Biogenic nanoparticles are considered effective alternatives to chemical pesticides for the management of pathogenic plant diseases. This study was focused on the synthesis of stable silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to control challenging plant pathogenic bacteria in vitro and in planta. We synthesized AgNPs by reacting different proportions of silver nitrate and aqueous extract of Hedera nepalensis. The physicochemical properties of the synthesized AgNPs were determined by using various physical techniques. The TEM analysis revealed the AgNPs less than 50 nm in size and spherical shaped. For antibacterial assays, different concentrations (1000–15.62 µg/mL, 2-fold dilutions) of the extract-free AgNPs (Ef-AgNPs) or extract-mixed AgNPs (Em-AgNPs), and fruit extracts (FE) were used against plant pathogenic bacteria Erwinia carotovora subsp. carotovora, Erwinia carotovora subsp. atroseptica, and Ralstonia solanacearum. In the in vitro assays, we found significant inhibition of both bacterial species in response to maximum concentrations of AgNPs. Overall, Ef-AgNPs exhibited a higher percent inhibition of bacterial pathogens. In potato tubers assay, complete inhibition of Erwinia carotovora was observed, except for the lowest AgNPs concentration of 15.62 µg/mL. Similarly, exposure of tomato plants to Ralstonia solanacearum suspensions (OD600 = 0.2) in the soil-drenching experiment and post-exposure treatment with 1000 µg/mL and 125 µg/mL of AgNPs resulted in disease inhibition. This study provides the basis that biogenic nanoparticles prepared from Hedera nepalensis are one of the best substitutes to synthetic pesticide, having displayed better results to control the growth of phytopathogenic microbes. However, field studies need to be conducted in a controlled environment to scale up the current work and find out the efficacy of nanoparticles on a larger scale.

We report the single crystal growth, structural and magnetic properties of honeycomb spin-lattice compounds Na2M2TeO6 (M = Co, Ni) and spin dimer compound Na2Cu2TeO6. The single crystals of Na2M2TeO6 (M = Co, Ni, Cu) have been grown by the self-flux method, which is one of the good techniques to control the magnetic impurity, different crystalline phase, crystal morphology, crystal size and the crystal surface through the selection of a suitable self-flux. Crystal structure, magnetic and thermodynamics properties are examined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), magnetic susceptibility and heat capacity measurements, respectively. The single crystal XRD studies of Na2M2TeO6 (M = Co, Ni, Cu) show the purity and the high quality of grown single crystals. The measurements of magnetic susceptibility of Na2M2TeO6 show the distinct anisotropic behaviour of the prepared single crystals. The anisotropic behaviour and the complicated magnetic phase transitions observed arise from the distinct honeycomb planes constituted by MO6 octahedra in Na2M2TeO6 (M = Co, Ni) leading to the antiferromagnetic (AFM) interaction in the honeycomb planes. In the case of Na2Cu2TeO6 broad maximum occurring at 160 K is believed to arise from short-range one-dimensional antiferromagnetic correlations. The values of (effective magnetic moment) μeff. observed for Na2Co2TeO6, Na2Ni2TeO6 and Na2Cu2TeO6 are 5.42 μB, 3.17 μB and 1.96 μB respectively.

Aim: To compare the rate of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome in women with and without polycystic ovarian syndrome, and to determine the cut-off for the antral follicle count and the anti-Müllerian hormone level predictive of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome in both groups. Methods: This was a prospective cohort study conducted in women aged 20–35 years who were undergoing controlled ovarian stimulation. The women were divided into those with polycystic ovarian syndrome and the controls on the basis of the Rotterdam criteria. The outcome of stimulation was recorded, and the ovarian response markers were compared in both groups. Results: Among 689 women included in the study, 276 (40.1%) had polycystic ovarian syndrome, and 476 (59.9%) were used as the controls. Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome occurred in 19.6% of the cases, and in 7.7% of the controls (p

Clostridium perfringens produces core virulence factors that are responsible for causing hemorrhagic abomasitis and enterotoxemia making food, animals, and humans susceptible to its infection. In this study, C. perfringens was isolated from necropsied intestinal content of buffalo and cattle belonging to four major bovine-producing regions in the Punjab Province of Pakistan for the purpose offind out the genetic variation. Out of total 160 bovine samples (n: 160), thirty-three (n: 33) isolates of C. perfringens were obtained from buffalo (Bubales bubalis) and cattle (Bos indicus) that were further subjected to biochemical tests; 16S rRNA based identification and toxinotyping was done using PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) and PFGE (Pulse Field Gel Electrophoresis) pulsotypesfor genetic diversity. Occurrence of C. perfringens was found to be maximum in zone-IV (Bhakkar and Dera Ghazi Khan) according to the heatmap. Correlation was found to be significant and positive among the toxinotypes (α-toxin, and ε-toxin). Response surface methodology (RSM) via central composite design (CCD) and Box-Behnken design (BBD) demonstrated substantial frequency of C. perfringens based toxinotypes in all sampling zones. PFGE distinguished all isolates into 26 different pulsotypes using SmaI subtyping. Co-clustering analysis based on PFGE further decoded a diversegenetic relationship among the collected isolates. This study could help us to advance toward disease array of C. perfringens and its probable transmission and control. This study demonstrates PFGE patterns from Pakistan, and typing of C. perfringens by PFGE helps illustrate and mitigate the incidence of running pulsotypes.

This study examines the time-dependent, three-dimensional, laminar, incompressible, and inclined hydromagnetic flow of viscous fluid above a rotating disk. The disk is saturated in a porous space and moves vertically along axial direction. Heat transfer process is analyzed by the thermal radiation and convective boundary condition. Thermophoresis process is illustrated in the flow stream by mass equation. The similarity functions are exerted to transform the system of partial differential equations into a one independent variable expressions. The finite differences scheme is applied to the resultant dimensionalized system and then solved in iterative manner using Successive over Relaxation (SOR) method. The physical quantities are illustrated graphically in terms of velocity, thermal and concentration fields. Two-dimensional contour phenomenon and three-dimensional flow visualizations for some parameters are also sketched. The skin-friction co-efficient, frictional torque, Nusselt number and Sherwood number against selected parameters are discussed in tabular format.

This article obtains optical solitons to the Biswas-Arshed equation for birefringent fibers with higher order dispersions and in the absence of four-wave mixing terms, in a media with Kerr type nonlinearity. Optical dark, singular and bright soliton solutions are articulated by applying an imaginative integration technique, the extended trial equation scheme. Various additional traveling wave solutions are produced with this integration technique, which include rational solutions, Jacobi elliptic function solutions and periodic singular solutions. From the mathematical analysis some constraints are recognized that ensure the actuality of solitons.

This review aims to produce insight into the volatilities trio (COVID-19 crisis, stock markets, and crude oil volatility). The understanding of risk trends in stock markets of G7 economies and crude oil as a hedge are two vital concerns for investors, researchers, and portfolio managers around the globe. During the pandemic times, globally among others oil and stock markets are severely getting affected. Considering the main purpose and role of G7 countries to resolve global issues focusing on economic concerns, this review is planned. The published work in journals of repute was selected on the term mechanism (COVID-19 and stock markets or COVID-19 and oil prices) was conducted which resulted in 29 articles in total. It was found in the resulting articles that there exists plunged volatility in stock markets and crude oil due to COVID-19. Crude oil has mixed results as a hedge due to price fluctuation. It was found that prices of crude oil declined due to lockdowns which consequently decreased the demand, however, still demand caused lower oil price. Likewise, the COVID-19 triggered to increase in the volatility of all G7 stock markets. This review is the first of its kind combining theoretical information about the impact of COVID-19 on crude oil and stock markets around G7 countries. Moreover, current research opens potential avenues for future research and this review can be helpful for similar efforts at a later stage.

Abstract Loss of muscle mass and strength with aging, termed sarcopenia is accelerated in several comorbidities including chronic heart failure (CHF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD). However, the effective circulating biomarkers to accurately diagnose and assess sarcopenia are not known. We recruited male healthy controls and patients with CHF and COPD (n = 81–87/group), aged 55–74 years. Sarcopenia was clinically identified based on hand-grip strength, appendicular skeletal muscle index and physical capacity as recommended by the European working group for sarcopenia. The serum levels of amino-terminal pro-peptide of type-III procollagen, c-terminal agrin fragment-22, osteonectin, irisin, fatty acid-binding protein-3 and macrophage migration inhibitory factor were significantly different between healthy controls and patients with CHF and COPD. Risk scores for individual biomarkers were calculated by logistic regressions and combined into a cumulative risk score. The median cutoff value of 3.86 was used to divide subjects into high- and low-risk groups for sarcopenia with the area under the curve of 0.793 (95% CI = 0.738–0.845, p

القصور ظاهرة معماريّة قديمة في الجنوب الشّرقي وكانت تمثل مكانا لخزن الحبوب وسوقا تجاريّة ومركزا لخدمات متنوعة. وتتنوع القصور من قصور جبليّة في بني خداش وتطاوين وقصور سهليّة في الجفارة وتتجمع بالخصوص في مدنين وأمّ التمر. ويتكوّن القصر من مجموعة غرف وساحة وسقيفة واستعملت في البناء مواد محلية وتقنيات ناجعة. ومع انتصاب الحماية تراجع دور القصور وانهار الكثير منها وبعد الاستقلال تواصلت عمليات الهدم ولم يبق من قصور مدنين 3 قصور. ومع نموّ النشاط السياحي في جربة وجرجيس خلال الستينات ولاحقا في تطاوين برزت القيمة السياحية للقصور وتوجه الاهتمام لترميمها وتوظيفها سياحيا. فقصور مدنين يتوفر فيها متحف للتراث ومقهى ومحلات لبيع التحف ومنتجات الصناعات الحرفية. وتشهد هذه القصور إقبالا متزايدا من السّياح وهو ما يشجّع على تطوير أشكال توظيفها السياحي. ويستلزم الارتقاء بالواقع السياحي لقصور مدنين وأمّ التمر مواصلة جهود الصيانة والترميم وابتكار أشكال جديدة من العرض السياحي ومزيد التنسيق بين مختلف المتدخلين.

Purpose – This study aims to empirically explore e-banking service quality and its impact on the e-banking loyalty through a mediating impact of e-banking satisfaction. The account holders of three domestic systemically important banks of Pakistan were surveyed during COVID-19 to examine the electronic services provided by these banks. Design/methodology/approach – The data was collected through an adapted questionnaire by using emails and messaging applications. The database of a local marketing company in Pakistan was used, and 976 responses were included in the analysis. The structured equation modeling was used to test the propositions of study. Findings – The findings delineate that reliability and website design proved to increase e-banking loyalty, particularly during COVID-19. The link between e-banking privacy and security and e-banking loyalty was proved as fully mediated by e-banking satisfaction; however, indirect effect of the reliability and website design with e-banking loyalty was partially mediated. Practical implications – In strategic planning of e-banking mechanisms and the associated consumer behavior, the results of this study can be helpful for policymakers. In case of similar epidemics and natural calamities, consumers may depict similar behavior as shown during the lockdown and social distancing during COVID-19; hence, the study can help regulatory bodies in preparing their safety roadmap. Originality/value – The mediating effect of e-banking satisfaction between privacy & Security and e-banking loyalty implies that customer give importance to secure e-banking platforms. There can be a variation in their loyalty because of privacy concerns. The application of cognitive–motivational–relational (CMR) theory in a relationship between e-banking service quality and e-banking loyalty with a mediating role of satisfaction is an emotional response to capture the behavioral changes during COVID-19. It enables researchers to understand the CMR theory concerning COVID-19 and e-banking perspective.