Determination of toxic metals in water of lahor canal by atomic absorption spectroscopy

Present study describes the atomic absorption spectro-photometric determination of metals (Ni, Cr, Zn, Fe, As and Cu) in the surface water of Lahore canal passing through the center of Lahore (city) Pakistan. Analysis showed that month wise average Ni, Zn and As concentrations lies within the National Environmental Quality Standards limits for these metals as designed by Environmental Protection Agency Pakistan, while Cr, Fe and Cu showed marked rise in their month wise average concentrations from their limiting values

Draft genome sequence of the blaOXA-436- and blaNDM-1-harboring Shewanella putrefaciens SA70 isolate

ABSTRACT We sequenced a carbapenem-resistant Shewanella putrefaciens isolate cultured from the sink handle of a Pakistan hospital room. Assembly annotation indicates that the isolate has a chromosomal bla OXA-436 carbapenemase and a plasmid-borne bla NDM-1 gene. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a Shewanella species harboring bla NDM . </jats:p

How do general practitioners experience providing care to refugees with mental health problems? A qualitative study from Denmark

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited

Superficieibacter electus gen. nov., sp. nov., an extended-spectrum β-lactamase possessing member of the enterobacteriaceae family, isolated from Intensive Care Unit surfaces

<p>Two Gram-negative bacilli strains, designated BP-1(T) and BP-2, were recovered from two different Intensive Care Unit surfaces during a longitudinal survey in Pakistan. Both strains were unidentified using the bioMerieux VITEK MS IVD v2.3.3 and Bruker BioTyper MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry platforms. To more precisely determine the taxonomic identity of BP-1(T) and BP-2, we employed a biochemical and phylogenomic approach. The 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain BP-1(T) had the highest identity to Citrobacter farmeri CDC 2991-81(T) (98.63%) Citrobacter amalonaticus CECT 863(T) (98.56%), Citrobacter sedlakii NBRC 105722(T) (97.74%) and Citrobacter rodentium NBRC 105723(T) (97.74%). The biochemical utilization scheme of BP-1(T) using the Analytic Profile Index for Enterobacteriaceae (API20E) indicated its enzymatic functions are unique within the Enterobacteriaceae but most closely resemble Kluyvera spp., Enterobacter cloacae and Citrobacter koseri/farmeri. Phylogenomic analysis of the shared genes between BP-1(T), BP-2 and type strains from Kluyvera, Citrobacter, Escherichia, Salmonella, Kosakonia, Siccibacter and Shigella indicate that BP-1(T) and BP-2 isolates form a distinct branch from these genera. Average Nucleotide Identity analysis indicates that BP-1(T) and BP-2 are the same species. The biochemical and phylogenomic analysis indicate strains BP-1(T) and BP-2 represent a novel species from a new genus within the Enterobacteriaceae family, for which the name Superficieibacter electus gen. nov., sp. nov., is proposed. The type strain is BP-1(T) (= ATCC BAA-2937, = NBRC 113412).</p

Development of mixed metal metal-organic polyhedra networks, colloids, and MOFs and their pharmacokinetic applications

The coordination networking of discrete metal-organic polyhedra (MOPs) involving different ligands as well as metals is a challenging task due to the features of limited solubility and chemical stability of these polyhedra. An unusual approach, ligand-oriented polyhedral networking via click chemistry and further metal coordination is reported here. An alkyne decorated Cu(II)-MOP self-catalyzes the regioselective click reaction (1,3-dipolar cycloaddition) using azide-functionalized ligands under unconventional reaction conditions. Introducing new metal ions, M(II), interlinks the carboxylic groups on the MOP surfaces creating coordination networks. On the other hand, exposure of the respective individual ligand components in the presence of Cu(II) promotes an in-situ click reaction along with metal coordination generating a new 3D-framework. These materials demonstrated a high drug hosting potential exhibiting a controlled progressive release of anticancer (5-flourouracil) and stimulant (caffeine) drugs in physiological saline at 37 degrees C. These innovative and unconventional MOP networks provide a significant conceptual advance in understanding

Risk of reproductive complications following chlamydia testing:a population-based retrospective cohort study in Denmark

SummaryBackgroundUncertainty in the risk of reproductive complications (pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, and tubal factor infertility) following chlamydia infection and repeat infection hampers the design of evidence-based chlamydia control programmes. We estimate the association between diagnosed chlamydia and episodes of hospital health care (inpatient, outpatient, and emergency department) for a reproductive complication.MethodsWe constructed and analysed a retrospective population-based cohort of women aged 15–44 years from administrative records in Denmark (1995–2012). We used a subset of the national Danish Chlamydia Study. The master dataset contains all residents of Denmark (including Greenland) who had a positive chlamydia test recorded by a public health microbiology laboratory from Jan 1, 1992, to Nov 2, 2011. Individuals were randomly matched (by age and sex) to four individuals drawn from the population register (Danish Civil Registration System) who did not have a positive chlamydia test during this interval. The outcomes in the study were hospital episodes of health-care (inpatient, outpatient, and emergency department) with a diagnosis of pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, or tubal factor infertility.FindingsThe 516 720 women (103 344 positive, 182 879 negative, 230 497 never-tested) had a mean follow-up of 7·96 years. Compared with women with only negative tests, the risk of each complication was 30% higher in women with one or more positive tests (pelvic inflammatory disease, adjusted hazard ratio [AHR] 1·50 [95% CI 1·43–1·57]; ectopic pregnancy, AHR 1·31 [1·25–1·38]; tubal factor infertility, AHR 1·37 [1·24–1·52]) and 60% lower in women who were never-tested (pelvic inflammatory disease, AHR 0·33 [0·31–0·35]; ectopic pregnancy, AHR 0·42 [0·39–0·44]; tubal factor infertility AHR 0·29 [0·25–0·33]). A positive test had a minor absolute impact on health as the difference in the lifetime incidence of complications was small between women who tested positive and those who tested negative (pelvic inflammatory disease, 0·6%; ectopic pregnancy, 0·2%; tubal factor infertility, 0·1%). Repeat infections increased the risk of pelvic inflammatory disease by a further 20% (AHR 1·20, 95% CI 1·11–1·31).InterpretationA single diagnosed chlamydia infection increased the risk of all complications and a repeat diagnosed infection further increased the risk of pelvic inflammatory disease. Therefore, control programmes must prevent first and repeat infections to improve women's reproductive health.FundingUnrestricted partial funding from Frederiksberg Kommune, Frederiksberg, Denmark. BD held an Medical Research Council Population Health Scientist Fellowship (G0902120). KT held an National Institute for Health Research Post-Doctoral Fellowship 2009-02-055

Optimization of cutting parameter for machining Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy

Titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V, has been broadly used in industries, primarily medical manufacturing, and aerospace, due to their considerable mechanical properties. Aerospace structural components made of titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V) material, a difficult-to-machine material which results in massive cutting force, steep cutting temperature, and significant tool wear. In this research, carbide insert tool is used to cut a Ti-6Al-4V titanium block at constant depth of cut of 0.50 mm using the method of dry machining is investigated with the aim of estimating the effects of two manipulated cutting parameters, which are spindle speed (140 and 150 m/min), and feed rate (0.1 and 0.2). This was done to observe their effects on the tool wear of the insert. The objective of this study is to study the machinability performance of coated carbide insert tool under dry machining condition, and to optimize the cutting parameter to machine Ti-6Al-4V using dry machining method. It was found in this research that lowest valued parameter, Parameter 1 (140 m/min, 0.1 mm/rev) caused the most flank wear, and the roughest surface on the Ti-6Al-4V block. Lower speeds can possibly inflict higher shocking force, which leads to higher wear propagation