Role of Malik in Pukhtoon Tribal Areas

Pukhtoon society is composed of different tribes, which inhabit in the North Western part of Pakistan. These tribes are led by their respective leaders in their affairs. These tribal leaders are usually known as Maliks. The mechanism through which these Maliks represent the common tribal people is known as Maliki system. The Maliki system in tribal areas was started in 1890 by the British officer Robert Bruce.  The idea behind this was to control the local people indirectly through their own leaders. Their duty was to identify those who were causing disorder, and that time they were given monetary benefits known as Lungi. There were also stipends for common people known as moajab. The Maliki is hereditary and it goes to son after the death of his father. The Maliks are of two types; the lungi-holder, who is recognized by the Political Agent, and non lungi holder who is not recognized by the Political Agent. The Malik distributes the moajab in the community and also collects various fines from the tribes imposed by the government. He settles the disputes among the community members through Jirga (council of elders). He is the legal representative of the government and only he can verify and attest the documents of the people and he has the authority to bail out a person who is arrested by the Political Administration. He serves as the witness and guarantor in land purchasing cases. Malik also serves as authority by allowing the outsiders to reside in the community. The various developmental schemes of the government in the community are only given to Maliks. The appointment on various posts in government departments is carried out through the reference of these tribal chiefs. With the passage of time the powers of Maliks started to curtail. The most significant development in this regard was the introduction of adult franchise in the area in 1997 general elections by the then caretaker government. Before this development, the right to vote and to elect an MNA was only with the Maliks

Quantitative Estimation of Biocapped Surface Chemistry Driven Interparticle Interactions and Growth Kinetics of Gold Nanoparticles

In phytosynthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), biomolecules play a vital role in biocapping the surface of particles and generating the electrostatic repulsive forces to inhibit their growth kinetics. However, estimation of bioactive compounds influencing their surface characteristics through formation of electric repulsive forces (Velec\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$V_{elec}$$\end{document}), Van der Waals attraction forces (Vvdw\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$V_{vdw}$$\end{document}) and ultimately hindering their growth is still in the phase of obscurity. Current study, based on surface chemistry approach has been performed for identification of bioactive compounds in Elaeis guineensis leaves (EGL/OPL), acting as biocapping agents and directing the growth of AuNPs over a period of time. The quantitative estimation of interparticle interactions and modification in Ostwald ripening (MOR) model were also done to correlate the growth kinetic of AuNPs. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) showed the major contribution of oxygen, carbon and nitrogen elements, corresponding to polyphenolic, carboxylic and amides, in biocapping the surface of AuNPs and directing their interparticle interactions associated with growth kinetics. The Velec\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$V_{elec}$$\end{document} forces were reduced with an enhancement in the Vvdw\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$V_{vdw}$$\end{document} forces, depicting their major role in impeding growth of AuNPs. The MOR model exhibited an excellent agreement of predicted growth with experimental size enlargements of AuNPs, having 4.8% average absolute relative percentage error

Controllable phytosynthesis of gold nanoparticles and investigation of their size and morphology-dependent photocatalytic activity under visible light

© 2020 Elsevier B.V. Plants mediated synthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) containing desired characteristics for their suitable potential applications has been a challenging task, which is causing a major hindrance towards its commercialization. Therefore, herein phytosynthesis of AuNPs with required size and morphology has been achieved through manipulating the reaction conditions including reaction temperature and volume of Elaeis guineensis leaves (EGL) extract. Furthermore, photocatalytic potential of EGL mediated AuNPs having different size and shape has also been explored for the removal of methylene blue (MB) under visible light irradiation. The reaction temperature and volume of EGL strongly influenced the size and morphology of AuNPs, which are directly associated with the photocatalytic activities. The experimental results revealed that predominantly spherical and ultra-smaller size AuNPs with particle size of 16.26 ± 5.84 nm, formed at 70 °C showed the highest removal efficiency up to 92.55 % in 60 min. This highest photocatalytic activity of AuNPs could be attributed to the availability of higher number of low-coordinated gold (Au) atoms in the MB aqueous solution, which might have boosted the adsorption of the MB on the surface of particles and accelerated the degradation phenomenon. The proposed photocatalytic degradation mechanism of AuNPs for MB was also explained. The highly photoactive EGL mediated AuNPs with controllable morphology and size could be an advance step in future in chemical and biomedical applications

Life experiences and coping mechanisms among breast cancer patients in an urban Malaysian hospital : a qualitative study

Breast cancer is top-ranking cancer that affects the quality of life among women in Malaysia. Although it is very difficult to define the quality of life (QoL) precisely, it has a broad concept that affects global life satisfaction, which includes good health, adequate housing, employment, personal and family safety, interrelationships, education, and leisure pursuits. In this study, we aimed to discuss the life changes upon being diagnosed with breast cancer and their perception of social support. We also discussed the spirituality factor in patients’ coping mechanism with their health condition. This study was carried out using a purposive sampling method. The perception of social support, quality of life, and religiosity factor is discussed through the perspectives of nine breast cancer patients with an interview consisting of semi-structured questions. Basic interpretive qualitative methodology was applied to analyse the perception of social support and religiosity factor as a coping mechanism. The results showed that all the breast cancer patients reported good social support from family and friends except for one patient. Five themes were identified, namely patterns of life, supportive atmosphere, decision making and confidence, expectation, as well as psychological defences and spirituality. Seven out of nine patients reported that their religion helped them to cope with the disease by maintaining self-esteem, providing a sense of meaning and purpose, giving emotional comfort, and providing a sense of hope. In conclusion, social support and religious factor are very important in the lives of breast cancer patients in dealing with their health condition

Effect of gold and iron nanoparticles on photocatalytic behaviour of titanium dioxide towards 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ionic liquid

© 2019 Elsevier B.V. The high water solubility, chemical stability and low volatility of ionic liquids (ILs) have made them potentially persistent than conventional pollutants and toxic to the aquatic organisms. Therefore, extensive research efforts are being directed with an aim to develop cheap and efficient protocols to reduce the uncontrolled release of ILs in the environment. In the same line of action, titanium dioxide (TiO2) loaded with gold and iron nanoparticles were trialled for the photocatalytic degradation of highly concentrated 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride [BmimCl] ionic liquid. Furthermore, results pertaining to the degradation of the [BmimCl] using TiO2 loaded with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were compared with results obtained by using TiO2 loaded with Fe (NO3)3.9H2O and pristine TiO2 under same set of conditions. It was found that TiO2 decorated AuNPs demonstrated 7 times higher photocatalytic degradation for highly concentrated [BmimCl] in 60 min of reaction time in comparison to the pristine TiO2. Congruently, investigations also revealed that TiO2 loaded AuNPs expressed 3.3 times higher photocatalytic degradation of [BmimCl] in comparison to conventional photocatalyst TiO2@Fe under same reaction conditions. The higher photocatalytic performance associated with TiO2 loaded AuNPs was due to the enhanced Schottky barrier, which could have minimized the photocharge carrier resistance separation and migration. The mechanism for photocatalytic degradation of [BmimCl] using TiO2 loaded AuNPs has been also been described

Performance evaluation of phosphonium based deep eutectic solvents coated cerium oxide nanoparticles for CO2 capture

The critical challenge being faced by our current modern society on a global scale is to reduce the surging effects of climate change and global warming, being caused by anthropogenic emissions of CO2 in the environment. Present study reports the surface driven adsorption potential of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) surface functionalized cerium oxide nanoparticles (CeNPs) for low pressure CO2 separation. The phosphonium based DESs were prepared using tetra butyl phosphoniumbromide as hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) and 6 acids as hydrogen bond donors (HBDs). The as-developed DESs were characterized and employed for the surface functionalization of CeNPs with their subsequent utilization in adsorption-based CO2 adsorption. The synthesis of as-prepared DESs was confirmed through FTIR measurements and absence of precipitates, revealed through visual observations. It was found that DES6 surface functionalized CeNPs demonstrated 27% higher adsorption performance for CO2 capturing. On the contrary, DES3 coated CeNPs exhibited the least adsorption progress for CO2 separation. The higher adsorption performance associated with DES6 coated CeNPs was due to enhanced surface affinity with CO2 molecules that must have facilitated the mass transport characteristics and resulted an enhancement in CO2 adsorption performance. Carboxylic groups could have generated an electric field inside the pores to attract more polarizable adsorbates including CO2, are responsible for the relatively high values of CO2 adsorption. The quadruple movement of the CO2 molecules with the electron-deficient and pluralizable nature led to the enhancement of the interactive forces between the CO2 molecules and the CeNPs decorated with the carboxylic group hydrogen bond donor rich DES. The current findings may disclose the new research horizons and theoretical guidance for reduction in the environmental effects associated with uncontrolled CO2 emission via employing DES surface coated potential CeNPs

Clinical practice guidelines on the management of variceal bleeding

Gastroesophageal variceal bleeding occurs in 30 - 50% of patients of liver cirrhosis with portal hypertension, with 20-70% mortality in one year. Therefore, it is essential to screen these patients for varices and prevent first episode of bleeding by treating them with β-blockers or endoscopic variceal band ligation. Ideally, the patients with variceal bleeding should be treated in a unit where the personnel are familiar with the management of such patients and where routine therapeutic interventions can be undertaken. Proper management of such patients include: initial assessment, resuscitation, blood volume replacement, vasoactive agents, prevention of associated complications such as bacterial infections, hepatic encephalopathy, coagulopathy and thrombocytopenia, and specific therapy. Rebleeding occurs in about 60% patients within 2 years of their recovery from first variceal bleeding episode, with 33% mortality. Therefore, it is mandatory that all such patients must be started on combination of β-blockers and band ligation to prevent recurrence of bleeding. Patients who required shunt surgery/TIPSS to control the acute episode do not require further preventive measures. These clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) have been jointly developed by Pakistan Society of Hepatology (PSH) and Pakistan Society of Study of Liver Diseases (PSSLD)