Mekong Migration Network Chiang Mai, Thailand

Poster created by students in the 2018 IWU Freeman Asia Internship Program

Perceived Barriers Towards Adoption Of Internet Banking Among Non-Metropolitan Internet Users Of Pakistan

Internet banking is a vital component of E-banking flourished rapidly in developed countries unlike developing countries. This paper provides recommendations for the banks offering internet services after examining the barriers in adoption of internet banking perceived by the active internet users living in non-metropolitan areas of Pakistan. Various, significantly perceived barriers identified by previous studies are presented after an extensive literature review in order to form a basis for developing questionnaire and comparing the findings. Data were collected from 520 customers of the banks offering internet services. The respondent’s selection criteria was being active internet user and living in non-metropolitan area of Pakistan. Findings show that the loss of personal service and one to one relationship with bankers, low perceived value of internet banking as compared to traditional banking and lack of knowledge, information are perceived to be the most significant barriers in adoption of internet banking among respondents. Unlike other studies lack of security, risk of hacking, fear of incomplete transactions and high financial risks are perceived to be moderately significant barriers. The study recommends that the banks should identify the information needs of the customers and establish the effective information channels to communicate the benefits and uses of internet banking services and develop long term relationship

Serum Copeptin As a Biomarker For IUGR

In obstetrical world, Intrauterine Growth Restriction (IUGR) occupies second slot as a cause of small for gestation neonates, first being premature birth, both of which result in potential neonatal morbidities and mortalities. IUGR is defined as an estimated fetal weight at one point in time at or below 10th percentile for gestational age. Annually about thirty million babies suffer from IUGR and out of these about 75% are Asians. IUGR has been found to be associated with increased levels of Copeptin. As copeptin is a marker of endogenous stress, so increased copeptin levels can indicate fetal and maternal stress in IUGR Objectives: The objectives of this study were to the compare maternal serum copeptin levels in pregnancies with IUGR and pregnancies with adequate for gestational age fetuses and to establish the significance of copeptin as a biomarker for IUGR. Methodology: It was a cross-sectional comparative study in which maternal serum copeptin levels were measured and compared in 60 patients divided in two groups, pregnancies with IUGR and normal pregnancies with adequate for gestation age fetuses between 28-35 weeks of gestation Results: Maternal serum copeptin levels were raised in pregnant women with IUGR as compared to that in pregnant women with adequate for gestational age fetuses. Mean ± SD maternal serum copeptin levels were 97.5 ± 6 pg/ml in pregnant women with AGA fetuses and 121 ± 7.8 pg/ml in pregnant women with IUGR. Conclusions: Maternal serum copeptin levels are raised in pregnancies with IUGR as compared to pregnancies with adequate for age fetuses which can represent as a possible clinical biomarker for identification of IUGR

ATTITUDE TOWARDS FEMALE STUDENT PARTICIPATION IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND COMPETITIVE SPORTS IN DEGREE GIRLS COLLEGES

Sports are generally opted either for the sake of recreation or for thecompetition or for achieving both the purposes at the same time. Competitivesports are played from amateur level of university competitions to theprofessional levels of regional, provisional, national and internationalcompetitions. The data was collected through Questionnaire that is “Attitudetowards female Students participation in Physical Education and Competitivesports (ATFSPPECS)”; the sample of study is comprised of 239 subjects,Female students of Government Girls Degree Colleges Hyderabad B.Sc.,B.Com, B.Cs, BA-I,II (N=180), Female Sports Directress(N=09),Parents(N=50). When laying out the plan or set of strategies for attractinggirls towards taking a part in sports or physical activities regularly, whatshould be kept in the mind is that the problem does not lie in the gender of theparticipant, lesser resources and deficient training and practicingopportunities are the real problems. The activities are not constructedappropriately and are not taught in the proper way and this is one of the bigproblems as well

Focused Ion Beam Tomography

To study the fundamental effect of shape and morphology of any material on its properties, it is very essential to know and study its morphology. Focused ion beam (FIB) tomography is a 3D chemical and structural relationship studying technique. The instrumentation of FIB looks like that of the scanning electron microscopy (SEM), but there is a major difference in the beam used for scanning. For SEM, a beam of electrons is used with scanning medium whereas in FIB, a much focused beam of ions is used for scanning. FIB can be used for lithography and ablation purposes, but due to advancements and high-energy focused beam, it is nowadays being used as a tomographic technique. Tomography is defined as imaging by sectoring or cross-sectioning any desired area. The hyphenation of FIB with energy-dispersive spectrometry or secondary ion mass spectrometry can give us elemental analysis with very high-resolution 3D images for a sample. This technique contributes to acquaintance of qualitative and quantitative analyses, 3D volume creations, and image processing. In this chapter, we will discuss the advancements in FIB instrumentation and its use as 3D imaging tool for different samples ranging from nanometer (nm)-sized materials to micrometer (μm)-sized biological samples

ASSESSING THE INCLINATION OF UNDERGRADUATE’S JHANG STUDENT TO THE PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES AND SPORTS

Objectives: Assessing the Inclination of undergraduate’s Jhang student to thePhysical Activities and sports. In instructive organizations requirement toinspire the scholars to join in physical events and sports. Physical education,health and sports science is an important part of schooling. Persons are fullystrain, depressive and nervousness during lifecycle. So, people need to regulartake part in physical events and sports. Method: A simple questionnairesurvey method had applied and used a random sampling technique to collectthe study information of 200 subjects from selected four institutesundergraduate’s Jhang student. The variables of the study were physicalactivities as esthetic practices, societal skills and healthiness & wellbeing hasrich perception in the inclination of undergraduate’s student study. Results:The results of consistency were found for healthiness & wellbeing 0.828,social knowledge 0.817 and an Esthetic experience 0.712. The total overall200 subject Cronbach’s alpha significance was 0.831 of both genders.Conclusion: The overall inclination to the selected variables was important.Undergraduate’s student was cognizant of the profits of physical activities andsports, healthiness and wellbeing for their esthetic practice to remainwellbeing in life

Assessment of Complete Coverage of Expanded Program on Immunization in Children at Mayo Hospital Lahore, Pakistan

Background: Goal of the expanded program on immunization (EPI) is to ensure full immunization of children under one year of age to globally eradicate poliomyelitis, tetanus, measles-related deaths and to extend all new vaccines and preventive health interventions to children in all parts of the world. Demographic and health survey 2012-13 showed that in Pakistan complete immunization coverage is very low (54%) to achieve this goal. The objective of this study was to assess any improvement in terms of vaccination coverage in Pakistan in the last 3-4 years.Material and Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out at outpatient department of Pediatric Medicine of Mayo Hospital Lahore from May, 2016 till November, 2016. The non-probability purposive sampling technique was used to include patients after taking informed consent. Demographic details were collected and parents were questioned about different vaccinations received and confirmed through vaccination card. Data analysis was done through SPSS version 20 and results were presented as frequencies and percentages. Chi-square test was applied for association among categorical variables.Results: Complete coverage of expanded program on immunization was achieved in 86% children. A statistically significant difference was noted between mother’s education and immunization coverage of children (P-value 0.013).Conclusions: Education of mother and socioeconomic status were two significant factors affecting immunization coverage. In order to meet target of 95% immunization coverage rate set by WHO, more awareness should be created among people with low socioeconomic status along with improvement of immunization facilities in these areas.Key words: Children, Expanded Program on Immunization, Immunization Coverag

The Impact of Pazopanib on the Cardiovascular System

Background: Pazopanib was FDA-approved in 2009 and has become the first line of treatment for renal cell carcinoma. Pazopanib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor that slows tumor growth and angiogenesis by its action on vascular endothelial and platelet-derived growth factor receptors. Unfortunately, the efficacy of this drug is limited by its cardiovascular toxicity, including hypertension. Goal: Gain a greater understanding of the mechanism of these side effects in order to: 1) identify patients who are at higher risk; 2) develop strategies to mitigate cardiovascular toxicity; and 3) aid in future drug development. Hypothesis: The hypertensive effects of pazopanib are due to sustained activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS). Methods: Wild type mice were dosed with 30 mg/kg of pazopanib twice daily for 42 days. Cardiac-specific beta-II spectrin knockout mice and flox control mice were dosed with 100 mg/kg once daily for 22 days, and an additional cohort was co-treated with Lisinopril (RAAS inhibitor). Blood pressures were monitored throughout treatment. Electrophysiological studies were conducted on isolated cardiomyocytes. Results: Pazopanib treatment led to an increase in blood pressure in all mice that received pazopanib. After 42 days, precursors to ventricular arrhythmias, such as delayed afterdepolarizations and prolonged action potential duration, were detected in cardiomyocytes. In mice that received 100 mg/kg of pazopanib, lisinopril co-treatment attenuated pazopanib-induced blood pressure rise and enlargement of the heart. Discussion: These results support our hypothesis regarding the involvement of the RAAS pathway, and validate the use of lisinopril for mitigating the hypertensive effects of pazopanib. Notably, the mechanism by which various tyrosine kinase inhibitors lead to hypertension may vary. Conclusion: Lisinopril is effective at attenuating the hypertensive effects of pazopanib, and it is worth determining whether the cardioprotective qualities of lisinopril are dependent upon blood pressure.Pelotonia Undergraduate Research Fellowship ProgramAcademic Major: Biochemistr

Identification of heavy metal ions from aqueous environment through gold, Silver and Copper Nanoparticles: An excellent colorimetric approach

Heavy metal pollution has become a severe threat to human health and the environment for many years. Their extensive release can severely damage the environment and promote the generation of many harmful diseases of public health concerns. These toxic heavy metals can cause many health problems such as brain damage, kidney failure, immune system disorder, muscle weakness, paralysis of the limbs, cardio complaint, nervous system. For many years, researchers focus on developing specific reliable analytical methods for the determination of heavy metal ions and preventing their acute toxicity to a significant extent. The modern researchers intended to utilize efficient and discerning materials, e.g. nanomaterials, especially the metal nanoparticles to detect heavy metal ions from different real sources rapidly. The metal nanoparticles have been broadly utilized as a sensing material for the colorimetric detection of toxic metal ions. The metal nanoparticles such as Gold (Au), Silver (Ag), and Copper (Cu) exhibited localized plasmon surface resonance (LPSR) properties which adds an outstanding contribution to the colorimetric sensing field. Though, the stability of metal nanoparticles was major issue to be exploited colorimetric sensing of heavy emtal ions, but from last decade different capping and stabilizing agents such as amino acids, vitmains, acids and ploymers were used to functionalize the metal surface of metal nanoparticles. These capping agents prevent the agglomeration of nanoparticles and make them more active for prolong period of time. This review covers a comprehensive work carried out for colorimetric detection of heavy metals based on metal nanoparticles from the year 2014 to onwards. © 202