Depression, Anxiety and Stress in Young Female Doctors is Associated with High Sexual Harassment Scores

Background: Sexual harassment, a known cause of stress in females, makes them vulnerable to mental health issues and affects their professional performance. The objectives of the study were to assess the frequency of sexual harassment among female doctors based on age, designation, marital status, and household income, and to find out the association between sexual harassment and depression, anxiety, and stress in female doctors. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at three tertiary care hospitals of Rawalpindi. on n=328 female doctors including House officers, Post Graduate Trainees, Senior Registrars, Assistants, Associates and Full Professors. We used the Sexual Harassment Experience Questionnaire and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale to assess sexual harassment and depression, anxiety and stress scores, p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The mean age of 301 female doctors was 30.12±7.8 years, equally represented from public and private hospitals. Mostly were married 154 (51.2%), working as House Officers 126(41.9%), The mean score on the Sexual Harassment Experience Questionnaire was 48.23±14.84, with higher scores (52.83±16.2) in unmarried females (≤30 years), working in junior levels in public sector hospitals (p=0.001). A significant positive correlation (0.471) between the Sexual Harassment Experience Questionnaire and Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale scores was observed. Conclusion: The incidences of sexual harassment were seen more in younger, unmarried junior female doctors. Higher Depression, Anxiety and Stress were found positively associated with higher Sexual Harassment scores. Hospitals should develop policies to protect female healthcare workers especially junior doctors, to minimize workplace sexual harassment negativity on mental health. Keywords: Sexual Harassment; Depression; Anxiety; Female; Hospitals

Practice and effect of pesticide use on farmers’ health in Sindh, Pakistan

Objectives: To identify the frequency and mode of pesticide application, its adverse health effects, and to assess farmers’ knowledge and practice of precautionary measures. Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted in Matli, Badin in the Sindh province of Pakistan from February to April 2020, and comprised farmers. Data was collected through face-to-face interview using a validated questionnaire. Data was analysed using SPSS 22. Results: Of the 332 farmers, 329(99.1%) were males. The overall mean age was 31.18±12.79 years (range: 21-30 years). Also, 269(81%) of them had not attended formal schooling, and the mean duration of farming practice was 1.64±0.859 years.` Further,  136(41%) participants did not follow the recommended frequency of pesticide application, accidental ingestion was reported by 208(62.7%) participants, and inhalation by 203(61.1%). Dumping of pesticide containers in open fields was a common practice for 247(74.4%) subjects, and 223(67.2%) showed interest in safety training sessions. Conclusions: Farmers of Sindh were found to be seriously exposed to pesticide risk because of inadequate knowledge. Key Words: Developing country, Farmers, Pakistan, Personal protective equipment, Pesticides. Continue..

Frontal bone tuberculosis presenting with blindness in a 14-year-old girl: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>The occurrence of tuberculosis in the flat bones of the skull is very rare. Only eight cases of tuberculosis of the frontal bone have been reported in the literature.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 14-year-old girl of Asian ethnicity presented with gradual loss of vision. A computed tomography scan of her head showed a diffuse, homogeneously ill-defined hyperdense lesion of size 2.9 × 5.3 cm (anteroposterior × thickness) involving the right orbit. Biopsy of the lesion confirmed the presence of epithelioid cells and Langerhans giant cells with caseous material. After surgical debridement with antitubercular treatment, the patient had an uneventful recovery.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Although rare, tuberculosis can affect the flat bones of the skull. Tuberculosis of the frontal bone can be included in the differential diagnosis of blindness.</p

Analysis of pattern of ABO Blood groups in pediatric diabetic patients – An observational study

Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is the most frequently occurring metabolic disorder, caused by inadequacy in secretion of insulin or malfunction leading to chronic hyperglycemia.  Well-established corroborations have been reported in the literature suggesting association of ABO blood group with DM. The available literature focuses on adult population, with limited information of said association in children. Thus this study was aimed to determine the association of ABO blood group with Diabetes in pediatric patients having confirmed diagnosis. This was a comparative cross sectional study conducted from October 2021-January 2022 at Endocrinology Ward, Children Hospital Lahore (CHL), Pakistan. The study was approved by the local research ethics committee of CHL and conducted according to the declaration of Helsinki 2000. Blood grouping was done by forward and reverse methods. A total of 25 patients, including 18 males and 7 females were included. Frequency of blood group B (n=10;40%) was highest followed by blood group O (n=4;16%), A blood group (n=3;12%), and AB (n=1;4%) in males. In females, the blood group AB (n=3;12%) has the highest frequency followed by O (n=2;8%). Blood group A (n=1;4%) and B (n=1;4%) had the  same frequency among female diabetic patient

Cloning and comparative modeling identifies a highly stress tolerant Cu/Zn cytosolic super oxide dismutase 2 from a drought tolerant maize inbred line

Plants have a complex system of stress response that deals with different types of stresses. Maize (Zea mays L.), one of the most important crops grown throughout the world, across a range of agro-ecological environments, employs complex mechanisms of gene regulation in response to drought stress. HKI 335 is a tropical maize inbred line showing remarkable adaptation to drought stress. Abiotic stresses, like drought, trigger the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) due to the incomplete reduction or excitation of molecular oxygen, eventually leading to cell damage. Superoxide dismutase (SOD, EC 1.15.1.1) is a metalloenzyme that acts as the first line of defense against ROS. We cloned the Sod2 gene from HKI 335 inbred line and analyzed its protein through detailed in silico characterization. Our comparative modeling revealed that at the level of tertiary structure, the HKI 335 SOD2 protein is highly similar to Potentilla atrosanguinea SOD2, which had been previously identified as highly thermostable SOD that can tolerate autoclaving as well as sub-zero temperatures. We performed phylogenetic analysis, estimated physicochemical properties, post-translational modifications, protein-protein interactions, and domain composition of this SOD2. The phylogenetic analysis showed that orthologous sequences of SOD from different species were clustered into two clusters. Secondary structure prediction indicates that SOD2 is a soluble protein and no transmembrane domains have been found. Most of the beta sheets have RSA value greater than 2. The Ramachandran plot from PDBsum revealed that most of the residues fall in the highly favored region. It was estimated that the value of the instability index was less than 40, the value of the aliphatic index was extremely high and the GRAVY value lies between −2 and +2. We could identify only one phosphorylation site, located at position 20 with a score of 0.692. Overall, the unique stress-tolerant properties of the HKI 335 SOD2, may be one of the reasons contributing to the high drought tolerance trait exhibited by HKI 335 maize inbred line. Further research may reveal more insights into the drought adaptation mechanism in maize and the eventual deployment of the trait in maize hybrids

Therapeutic Values of Earthworm Species Extract from Azad Kashmir as Anticoagulant, Antibacterial, and Antioxidant Agents

Aims. Current research aimed to explore the therapeutic values of different earthworms as antibacterial, anticoagulant, and antioxidant agents. Methods. Ten different earthworms, i.e., Amynthas corticis, Amynthas gracilis, Pheretima posthuma, Eisenia fetida, Aporrectodea rosea, Allolobophora chlorotica, Aporrectodea trapezoides, Polypheretima elongata, Aporrectodea caliginosa, and Pheretima hawayana, were collected and screened for biological activities. Antibacterial effect analysis of earthworm species was done against fourteen bacterial pathogens, i.e., Escherichia coli, Serratia marcescens, Streptococcus pyogenes, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (1), Salmonella typhimurium, Shigella flexneri, Enterobacter amnigenus, Serratia odorifera, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (2), Staphylococcus warneri, and Lactobacillus curvatus, via agar well diffusion, crystal violet, MTT, agar disc diffusion, and direct bioautography assays. Antioxidant potential was evaluated through ABTS and DPPH assays. Lipolytic, proteolytic, and amylolytic assays were done for lipase, protease, and amylase enzymes confirmation. In vitro anticoagulant effects were examined in the blood samples by measuring prothrombin time. Results. Results revealed that all earthworm extracts showed the inhibition of all tested bacterial pathogens except P. aeruginosa (1), P. aeruginosa (2), S. warneri, and L. curvatus. The maximum zone of inhibition of E. coli was recorded as 14.66 ± 0.57 mm by A. corticis, 25.0 ± 0.0 mm by P. posthuma, 20.0 ± 0.0 mm by E. fetida, and 20.0 ± 0.0 mm by A. trapezoid. Cell proliferation, biofilm inhibition, the synergistic effect of extracts along with antibiotics, and direct bioautography supported the results of agar well diffusion assay. Similarly, P. hawayana, A. corticis, A. caliginosa, and A. trapezoids increase the prothrombin time more efficiently compared to other earthworms. A. corticis, A. gracilis, A. rosea, A. chlorotica, P. elongata, and A. trapezoides showed maximum DPPH scavenging potential effect. Conclusions. The coelomic fluid of earthworms possessed several bioactive compounds/enzymes/antioxidants that play an important role in the bacterial inhibition and act as anticoagulant agents. Therefore, the development of new therapeutic drugs from invertebrates could be effective and potential for the prevention of the emergence of multidrug-resistant bacteria