The Impact of Sequencing Human Genome on Drug Design to Treat Oral Cancer

Of all the known cancers, oral cancer is the most preventable and it is the second most deadly cancer after the breast cancer. Out of 609,640 deaths of overall cancers, 13,500 died of oral cancer. In spite of this enormous increase in loss of life, there are no useful drugs to treat oral cancer. Sequencing human genome identifies with precision and accuracy the specific mutations responsible for causing oral cancer. In this chapter, a novel approach to design drugs to attack mutated genes in squamous cell carcinoma responsible for causing oral cancer is proposed. Alkylating aziridines attack single-stranded DNA shutting off genes. Using dinitrobenzamide dye as a carrier for aziridine, we successfully made a novel class of drugs (CB 1954) which shuts off gene of a solid tumor, Walker Carcinoma 256, in rats. We translated the animal work in humans by using quinone as a carrier for aziridines making AZQ (US Patent 4,146,622) for attacking glioblastoma for treating brain cancer in humans. We propose to search for a carrier for aziridines to attack squamous cell carcinomas to treat oral cancer. Ethical issues are discussed. Since tobacco smoking causes oral cancer, it is the most preventable disease

The Rational Drug Design to Treat Cancers

Professor Ross of London University, England, was using nitrogen mustard to treat cancers by attacking both strands of tumor DNA. As a part of my doctoral thesis, I am to design drugs using aziridine to attack only one strand of DNA. Over the years, I made over 100 dinitrophenyl aziridine derivatives. One of them is dinitrobenzamide (CB1954) which gives a CI of 70, highest toxicity to animal tumor ever recorded. CB1954 wipes out a solid aggressive tumor by attacking a single-strand DNA of Walker carcinoma 256, in rat. My greatest challenge at NCI in USA is to translate the animal work which I did in London University to humans. As radiolabeled methylated quinone crosses the blood-brain barrier in mice, I decided to use quinone moiety as a carrier for aziridine rings to attack glioblastomas, the brain tumor in humans. By attaching two aziridines and two carbamate moieties to quinone, I made AZQ (US Patent 4,146,622). By treating brain cancer with AZQ , we observed that glioblastoma tumor not only stops growing but also starts shrinking. Literature search showed that AZQ is extensively studied

The Impact of Organizational Commitment and Job Satisfaction on the ITL of Academicians in HEIs of Developing Countries like Pakistan

Academicians are the role model of the system, accountable for producing specialized workforce for the poverty reduction and economic growth of any country. In the background of the developing countries like Pakistan, this role becomes more prominent. In this “Review Article” we endeavor to explore the consequences of organizational commitment and job satisfaction on intention to leave (ITL) of academicians in Higher Educational institutions (HEIs) of Pakistan with a view to construct a ‘Research Model’ on the issue, grounded in the contemporary research. This article stated the effect of job related factors (pay, supervision, promotion, working condition, co-workers) on job satisfaction. It is acknowledged from the present study that organizational commitment and job satisfaction have depressing impact on intention to leave and negatively related to each other. The literature also explores the fact that job related issues do effect the job satisfaction and organizational commitment of the Academicians. Keywords: Organizational Commitment, Job Satisfaction, Factors of Job satisfaction, ITL, Public Sector Universities

Sales Management Portal

In any business organization, sales is the department that generates revenue. No matter how good your manufacturing operation is, how cutting-edge your technology is, how tight your financial goals are or how progressive and forward-thinking your management techniques are, you must still have a sales mechanism in place, or everything else is useless. Why is this project important? A sales management portal is a phenomenal way to explain the importance of marketing or sales within the organization. it involves the possible way for all the people to get connected and get the information they may need for potential sales. Indeed, portal is a doorway for the process of marketing and get to the next step of any business. What problem does it solves? This project will cover all the options about the selling activities, where management can easily access the detailed report about the sales team and managing their performance. Therefore, the management will have the option of accessing updated information through their DASHBOARD and can leave important notes to the employee. The other important benefit includes, all the information about the clients and the communication between the sales team and the managers will be easily accessible for future purposes. Does it provide a new application/service, replace an existing application/service, or enhance an existing application/service? This project will cover more focused functionalities, such as: USER FRIENDLY OPTIONS: the designed features used in this project is easily understandable to anyone. NOTES: this is an additional feature, where the sales team can leave their opinion or comments in order to know the management about the ongoing work, which in turn the management can give their feedbacks. OPPORTUNITY: in addition to above, there is another feature included in this project where the sales person can easily evaluate the possibility of having opportunities to finalize the initiation of project. The Sales Management Portal will be available for its final presentation and release before 5th December 2016

Factors Leading to Acute Pancreatitis in Tertiary Care Hospitals in Pakistan – A Multicenter Study

Background: To determine the prevalence,etiological spectrum and outcomes of acutepancreatitis patients .Methods: In this was descriptive, observational,study patients presenting with clinical features ofacute pancreatitis, increased serum amylase and/orlipase levels and/or CT scan abdomen with featuressuggestive of acute pancreatitis were included.Ranson’s scoring was done over the first 48 hours.Contrast- enhanced CT scan abdomen withpancreatic protocol was done in selected patients.Cochrane-Armitage trend test was used to determinesignificance of correlation between complicationsand severity indices.Results: Out of 154 patients 59.1% were female.Gall stones (74%) was the commonest aetiology,followed by idiopathic ( 13%). Same admissioncholecystectomy was done in 44.7% of patients withgallstone pancreatitis. On admission, 14.9% of serumamylase and 18.8% (n=29) of serum lipase levelswere within 3 times the upper limit of normalvalues. Higher Ranson’s score and modified CTseverity index were associated with highercomplication and mortality rates. The complicationrate was 21.4 % and mortality was 7.1 % .Conclusion: Gallstone pancreatitis was found tobe the most common cause. The higher rate ofidiopathic pancreatitis in our study, along withhigher mortality in this subgroup, could be partiallyexplained due to lack of advanced diagnostics suchas MRCP and EUS. Overall complication andmortality rate was higher for which healthcareinfrastructure needs to be improved

The burden of anxiety and depression among patients with chronic rheumatologic disorders at a tertiary care hospital clinic in Karachi, Pakistan

Objectives: To study the burden of anxiety and depression as a comorbid among patients of chronic rheumatological disorders and to investigate possible determinants of depression and anxiety.Methods: It was a cross-sectional study conducted at the rheumatology clinic of The Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) Karachi, Pakistan. With convenient sampling, 111 patients who fulfilled inclusion/exclusion criteria were screened for anxiety and depression with help of Aga Khan University Anxiety and Depression Scale (AKUADS). The data was entered and analyzed by Statistical Package for Social Sciences (Version 10.0).Results: The population consisted mainly of middle aged (mean age 41) females (80.2%). The most common diagnosis was rheumatoid arthritis 57% followed by systemic lupus erythmatosis 17% and systemic sclerosis 9%. The permanent joint deformity was present in 33.3% patients and 36.9% patients were suffering from active disease with pain and inflammation. The frequency of anxiety and depression was 65.8%. Educational qualification, permanent joint deformity, active inflammation and time elapsed since diagnosis had significant association with anxiety and depression. Marital Status, gender, economic activity and monthly family income had no effect on the frequency of anxiety and depression.CONCLUSION: Almost two third of patients with chronic rheumatological disorders, also suffered from a concomitant mood disorder. Systematic evaluation of all patients for mood disorders and psychological distress in rheumatology clinics is highly recommended

Impact: Making a difference

The purpose of this document is to explore the diversity of perspectives on school improvement. It also chronicles the programme activities at PDCN, the rationale and evolution of the model Whole School Improvement Programme (WSIP), and the process and modus operandi of the working team of PDCN. It also portrays the modified version of WSIP, its impact on school improvement and the challenges that have emerged from it, along with our recommendations for further improvement

Comparison of Slow versus Rapid Feeding Regimen in Preterm Neonates in the reduction of hospital stay

Introduction: In preterm babies delay in the achievement of full feeds causes prolonged hospital stay. This study will help in the nutritional management of preterm babies which will shorten the hospital stay and reduce the economic burdens on parents. Objective: To compare the mean duration of hospital stay of preterm neonates with two different feeding protocols(slow feeding regimen versus rapid feeding regimen). Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in the neonatal unit at Izzat Ali Shah Hospital from October 2019 to March 2020 through a randomized controlled trial. A total of 102 (51 in each group) were randomized to slow feeding (Group A) and Rapid feeding(Group B). Depending on the birth weight and gestational age, a certain amount of breast milk was initiated, with increments of 15-20 mL/kg/day in the slow feeding group & 25-30 ml/kg/day in the rapid feeding group. Feeding was stopped temporarily in case of any sign of feeding intolerance, suspected necrotizing enterocolitis, recurrent apnoeic episodes, and neonatal seizures. The total target feed was 180 ml/kg per day. Infants were continued in the study until discharged from the hospital.   Results: Our study shows that the mean gestational agein Group A (Slow feeding) was 34 weeks with SD ± 2.68 while the mean gestational agein Group B (Rapid feeding) was 35 weeks with SD ± 1.98. In Group A (Slow feeding) 55% neonates were male while 45% neonates were female. Whereas in Group B (Rapid feeding) 57% neonates were male while 43% neonates were female. In Group A (Slow feeding) mean hospital stay was 22 days with SD ± 7.02. In Group B (Rapid feeding) mean hospital stay was 13 days with SD ± 3.72.  Conclusion: Our study concludes that mean hospital stay in the rapid advancement of feeds was shorter as compared to the slow feeding of preterm neonates