Psychological Drivers of Alternative Fuel Vehicles' Adoption and Ecologically Responsible Use

Environmental problems caused by global warming are becoming alarming with every passing day. To curb greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions, promoting alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) and sustainable transport mode choices is critical. This study explores the predictors of eco-social purchase, use, and conservation intentions in a developing country by employing an extended model of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB). Using a self-administered survey technique, data were collected from a nationally representative sample of 1372 customers of three leading automobile manufacturers from eight big cities of Pakistan. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) was applied to test the measurement and structural models. Results showed that the extended model of TPB received support in the context of Pakistani culture and for the targeted behaviours related to eco-social purchase, use, and conservation intentions concerning AFVs. Implications for marketers and theoretical contribution are discussed at the end

Hepatoprotective effect of desi and kabuli cultivars of Cicer arietinum L (chick peas) against carbon tetrachloride-induced toxicity in rats

Purpose: To determine the hepatoprotective potential of ethanol extracts of desi and kabuli cultivars of Cicer arietinum L. (chick peas). Methods: Hepatotoxicity was induced in rats using oral administration of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4). The rats were then orally administered different doses of the ethanol extracts of desi and kabuli cultivars of Cicer arietinum L. for 21 days. Oxidative stress parameters and hepatoprotective profiles were determined in serum samples using standard procedures. The effect of the treatments on liver histology was also determined. Results: Administration of extracts of desi and kabuli cultivars of Cicer arietinum L. to CCl4 treated rats at a dose of 300 mg/kg resulted in a significant (p ≤ 0.05) decrease in oxidative stress parameters, whereas catalase activity significantly increased (p ≤ 0.05); on the other hand, ALT and AST levels were decreased significantly (p ≤ 0.05), when compared to the control group. Conclusion: High doses of Cicer arietinum L (desi and kabuli cultivars) seem to have hepatoprotective and antioxidant effects on CCl4-induced toxicity in rats. This finding underscores the therapeutic importance of Cicer arietinum L. as a plant with hepatoprotective properties. Keywords: Cicer arietinum, Phenolics, Hepatotoxicity, Chick peas, Catalas

Alleviation of drought stress through foliar application of thiamine in two varieties of pea (Pisum sativum L.)

Drought stress poorly impacts many morphological and physio-biochemical processes in plants. Pea (Pisum sativum L.) plants are highly nutritious crops destined for human consumption; however, their productivity is threatened under drought stress. Thiamine (vitamin B1) is well-known essential micronutrient, acting as a cofactor in key metabolic processes. Therefore, this study was designed to examine the protective effect of foliar application of thiamine (0, 250, and 500 ppm) on two varieties of pea plants under drought stress. Here, we conducted the pot experiment at the Government College Women University, Faisalabad, to investigate the physio-biochemical and morphological traits of two pea varieties (sarsabz and metior) grown under drought stress and thiamine treatment. Drought stress was applied to plants after germination period of 1 month. Results showed that root fresh and dry weight, shoot fresh and dry weight, number of pods, leaf area, total soluble sugars, total phenolics, total protein contents, catalase, peroxidase, and mineral ions were reduced against drought stress. However, the application of thiamine (both 250 and 500 ppm) overcome the stress and also enhances these parameters, and significantly increases the antioxidant activities (catalase and peroxidase). Moreover, the performance of sarsabz was better under control and drought stress conditions than metior variety. In conclusion, the exogenous application of thiamine enabled the plants to withstand drought stress conditions by regulating several physiological and biochemical mechanisms. In agriculture, it is a great latent to alleviate the antagonistic impact of drought stress on crops through the foliar application of thiamine

Assessment of green and chemically synthesized copper oxide nanoparticles against hepatocellular carcinoma

Copper oxide nanoparticle (CuO-NPs) attracts the attentions of human beings due to unique physicochemical and biological properties. The chemical and green synthesis approaches were used to synthesis of CuO-NPs and plant leaves extract Azadirachta indica (A. indica) was preferred in green synthesis approach. The XRD analysis was used to analyze the monoclinic crystal structure and calculate the average crystallite size in the range of 15 ti 16 nm. While, the information about different rotational and vibrational modes attached on the spectrum of CuO-NPs was identified by FTIR. After that the UV-VIS analysis provided the information about the absorbance spectrums in the range of 235 and 220 nm. The MTT assay was perfomed to investigate liver carcinoma (HepG2 cells) interaction and absorbance of CuO-NPs towards mentioned cell lines were recorded and loss in HepG2 cells viability. In an overall assessment, anticancer response of comparative study of CuO-NPs towards liver carcinoma treatment contributes significantly after successful demonstration of essential steps of suggested experimental study. Finally, comparative study of experimental and mathematical modeling of anticancer activity towards normal and liver cancer cell lines were conducted and investigated. (c) 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of King Saud University. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P < 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely

Bacillus spp., a bio-control agent enhances the activity of antioxidant defense enzymes in rice against Pyricularia oryzae.

Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are found to control the plant diseases by adopting various mechanisms. Induced systemic resistance (ISR) is an important defensive strategy manifested by plants against numerous pathogens especially infecting at aerial parts. Rhizobacteria elicit ISR by inducing different pathways in plants through production of various metabolites. In the present study, potential of Bacillus spp. KFP-5, KFP-7, KFP-17 was assessed to induce antioxidant enzymes against Pyricularia oryzae infection in rice. The antagonistic Bacillus spp. significantly induced antioxidant defense enzymes i-e superoxide dismutase (1.7-1.9-fold), peroxidase (3.5-4.1-fold), polyphenol oxidase (3.0-3.8-fold), phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (3.9-4.4-fold), in rice leaves and roots under hydroponic and soil conditions respectively. Furthermore, the antagonistic Bacillus spp significantly colonized the rice plants (2.0E+00-9.1E+08) and secreted multiple biocontrol determinants like protease (1.1-5.5 U/mg of soil or U/mL of hydroponic solution), glucanase, (1.0-1.3 U/mg of soil or U/mL of hydroponic solution), siderophores (6.5-42.8 μg/mL or mg) in the rhizosphere of different rice varieties. The results showed that treatment with Bacillus spp. enhanced the antioxidant defense activities in infected rice, thus alleviating P. oryzae induced oxidative damage and suppressing blast disease incidence

Surface Modification of Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles with Hexamethyl Disilazane as Smart Carriers for Tocopherol Acetate

Nowadays, nanotechnology is growing very fast, appearing every day in many fields related to this nanotechnology. In the present study silica nanoparticles (Si NPs) were synthesized, their surface was modified using a silazane and mesoporous Si NPs were further used for the loading tocopherol acetate. Si NPs were synthesized from tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) in the presence of NaOH, with an easily handled, well known Stober method. In this, procedure TEOS was used as a source of silica and treated with NaOH and H2O, undergoing condensation and hydrolysis reactions to produce Si NPs. These Si NPs were then modified by the hexamethyl silazane to avoid agglomeration and can be used easily for targeted delivery, as smart carriers. In the end, tocopherol acetate was successfully loaded in the modified Si NPs and different parameters were recorded for optimum loading. All the samples were characterized through SEM XRD, FTIR, BET and UV-VIS spectroscopy. XRD peaks reveled the typical peak of mesoporous Si NPs appeared at 2θ = 22°. The pore size was found to be 2.45 nm. BET surface area was found to be 694.29 m2/g. FTIR presented the main peaks of functional groups at 1600 cm-1, 1000 cm-1 and 2900 cm-1 respectively. Modified Si NPs were synthesized and characterized, and the tocopherol was loaded inside the mesoporous Si NPs successfully. These experiments showed that mesoporous Si NPs can be used as smart carriers to deliver broad types of drugs efficiently

L'Auto-vélo : automobilisme, cyclisme, athlétisme, yachting, aérostation, escrime, hippisme / dir. Henri Desgranges

09 novembre 19131913/11/09 (A14,N4773)

Long term outcomes after pancreaticodoudenectomy: a single center experience from Pakistan

Published in July-2

Hydrogen sulfide: an emerging component against abiotic stress in plants

As a result of climate change, abiotic stresses are the most common cause of crop losses worldwide. Abiotic stresses significantly impair plants' physiological, biochemical, molecular and cellular mechanisms, limiting crop productivity under adverse climate conditions. However, plants can implement essential mechanisms against abiotic stressors to maintain their growth and persistence under such stressful environments. In nature, plants have developed several adaptations and defence mechanisms to mitigate abiotic stress. Moreover, recent research has revealed that signalling molecules like hydrogen sulfide (HS) play a crucial role in mitigating the adverse effects of environmental stresses in plants by implementing several physiological and biochemical mechanisms. Mainly, HS helps to implement antioxidant defence systems, and interacts with other molecules like nitric oxide (NO), reactive oxygen species (ROS), phytohormones, etc. These molecules are well-known as the key players that moderate the adverse effects of abiotic stresses. Currently, little progress has been made in understanding the molecular basis of the protective role of HS; however, it is imperative to understand the molecular basis using the state-of-the-art CRISPR-Cas gene-editing tool. Subsequently, genetic engineering could provide a promising approach to unravelling the molecular basis of stress tolerance mediated by exogenous/endogenous HS. Here, we review recent advances in understanding the beneficial roles of HS in conferring multiple abiotic stress tolerance in plants. Further, we also discuss the interaction and crosstalk between HS and other signal molecules; as well as highlighting some genetic engineering-based current and future directions.This work was supported by grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) of China (U1705233 and 31601337), the Science and Technology Foundation of Fujian Province, China (2017N0006) and Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Chin