Combinatorial Potential of bait matrix against subterranean termites under lab and field conditions

Bait matrix of different treatments were evaluated against two termite species i.e. Odontotermes obesus and Coptotermes heimi both under laboratory and field conditions. Mean wood consumption in laboratory bioassays were investigated for 2, 4 and 6 weeks with maximum consumption was noted after 4 weeks. While, field experiment was conducted for 24 there was greater consumption of the loosely bound bait matrix compared to the tightly bound matrix. However, feeding was comparatively high in combinations with attractants. Overall, treated colonies experienced a 90-95% decrease in population size after 24 weeks of baiting. The queen in the royal chamber of the mound was found dead.

Political and Governance Challenges to Achieving Global HIV Goals with Injecting Drug Users: The Case of Pakistan

Background The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has recently set the ambitious “90-90-90 target” of having 90% of people living with HIV (PLHIV) know their status, receive antiretroviral therapy (ART), and achieve viral suppression by 2020. This ambitious new goal is occurring in a context of global “scale-down” following nearly a decade of heightened investment in HIV prevention and treatment efforts. Arguably international goals spur action, however, setting unrealistic goals that do not take weak health systems and variations in the nature of the epidemic across countries into consideration may set them up for failure in unproductive ways that lead to a decline in confidence in global governance institutions. This study explores how policy actors tasked with implementing HIV programs navigate the competing demands placed upon them by development targets and national politics, particularly in the current context of waning international investments towards HIV. Methods To examine these questions, we interviewed 29 key informants comprising health experts in donor organizations and government employees in HIV programs in Pakistan, a country where HIV programs must compete with other issues for attention. Themes were identified inductively through an iterative process and findings were triangulated with various data sources and existing literature. Results We found both political and governance challenges to achieving the target, particularly in the context of the global HIV scale-down. Political challenges included, low and heterogeneous political commitment for HIV and a conservative legal environment that contributed towards a ban on opiate substitution therapy, creating low treatment coverage. Governance challenges includedstrained state and non-governmental organization (NGO) relations creating a hostile service delivery environment, weak bureaucratic and civil society capacity contributing to poor regulation of the health infrastructure, and resource mismanagement on both the part of the government and NGOs. Conclusion Our findings suggest that in a context of waning international attention to HIV, policy actors on the ground face a number of practical hurdles to achieving the ambitious targets set out by international agencies. Greater attention to the political and governance challenges of implementing HIV programs in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) could help technical assistance agencies to develop more realistic implementation plans

EMOTIONAL CONTAGION AND JOB SATISFACTION AMONG TEACHERS OF CHILDREN WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES IN PAKISTAN

The Objective of current study was to investigate the relationship between emotional contagion, job satisfaction and different demographic variables among special education teachers. A sample of 80 special education teachers with age range of 20 to 50 years, from all kinds of learning disabilities, more than six months teaching experience were recruited from different special education centers of federal and Punjab. Emotional contagion was measured by Emotional Contagion Scale developed by Doherty (1997) and job satisfaction of teachers was measured by Teaching Satisfaction Scale (TSS) developed by Ho and Au (2002). Result showed that happiness is positively associated with job satisfaction and anger and sadness are negatively associated with job satisfaction, whereas emotions of love and fear were not associated with job satisfaction. Moreover, it has been found that different demographic variables of special education teachers such as education and pay scale are associated with job satisfaction whereas gender, age, job experience and marital status are not associated with job satisfaction. Results suggest that in order to improve job satisfaction of teachers, emotional contagion should be considered.   Article visualizations

Phylogenetic and chronological analysis of proteins causing Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases

It is evident that Neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's) have many similarities at cellular and molecular level as they carry parallel mechanisms including protein aggregation and inclusion body formation caused by protein mis-folding. The main objective of this study was to have detailed insight on variation and resemblance among these proteins. One hundred and four protein sequences, both directly and indirectly involved in disease mechanism to perform phylogenetic analysis revealing insight on evolutionary relationship among these proteins, were selected. The percentage of replicate trees, in which the associated taxa clustered together in the bootstrap test, was 1000 replicates. Various statistical tests were performed for the confirmation of results e.g., Tajma's Neutrality Test showed D gt 6, nucleotide diversity π gt 0.6 and ps value as greater than 1. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the protein sequences of neurodegenerative diseases had high sequence similarity and identity to each other as depicted by the evolutionary tree. It showed the similar mechanism of evolving from each other and had similar mechanism of generating mis-folding leading towards symptoms of disease

Human beings create their own destruction: Critical discourse analysis of Once Upon a Time by Nadine Gordimer

The prezzie study is a Critical Discourse Analysis of Nadine Gordimer’s short story “Once Upon a Time”. The idea is to spotlight that is in Nadine Gordimer’s mind how human beings create their own destruction. Gordimer’s work is full of racial discrimination and social insecurity in the people of the South-African society and this insecurity and racial discrimination show how insecure they people are. The study is the scrutiny of Ruth Wodak Model. Research explores the human race is responsible for creating its own devastation. Moreover, the study tells us how we prepare ourselves in the danger of insecurity and how we can prevent ourselves in such circumstances.

Frequency of Noise Induced Hearing Loss Among Traffic Wardens of Lahore

Background: Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is a major cause of disability throughout the world. It is the most common irreversible job-related hazard in the world with a higher burden in the developing regions of the world. Certain occupations are at high risk for NIHL. Traffic wardens could be considered highly vulnerable group as they are exposed to long hours of traffic noise. The objective of this study was to determine the frequency of noise induced hearing loss among traffic wardens of Lahore city.Material and Methods: It was a cross-sectional, descriptive study, carried out from 1st December 2018 to 31st May 2019, in which 329 traffic wardens appointed in 34 beats/sectors of Lahore city were included. Data was collected through a structured questionnaire, followed by Pure Tone Audiometry (PTA) of all the subjects.Results: A total of 329 traffic wardens were selected for this study. Mean age of the traffic wardens was 35.35 ± 1.21 years. NIHL was present in 174 (52.9%) traffic wardens, out of which, 138 (79.3%) had mild, 32 (18.4%) moderate, and 4 (2.3%) had moderately severe degree of hearing loss. Among the 329 traffic wardens, 165 (50.2%) had exposure to noise between 7am to 3pm (morning shift) and 42 (12.8%) had some problem with their hearing. Only 12 (3.6%) had ringing in the ears or tinnitus, 140 (42.6%) wore any hearing protection during duty hours and 42 (12.8%) said they had difficulty in hearing and frequently asked people to repeat themselves.Conclusion: In this study a high frequency of noise induced hearing loss was reported among traffic wardens of Lahore city with most of them having mild to moderate degree of hearing loss

Political and Governance Challenges to Achieving Global HIV Goals with Injecting Drug Users: The Case of Pakistan

Background: The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has recently set the ambitious “90-90-90 target” of having 90% of people living with HIV (PLHIV) know their status, receive antiretroviral therapy (ART), and achieve viral suppression by 2020. This ambitious new goal is occurring in a context of global “scale-down” following nearly a decade of heightened investment in HIV prevention and treatment efforts. Arguably international goals spur action, however, setting unrealistic goals that do not take weak health systems and variations in the nature of the epidemic across countries into consideration may set them up for failure in unproductive ways that lead to a decline in confidence in global governance institutions. This study explores how policy actors tasked with implementing HIV programs navigate the competing demands placed upon them by development targets and national politics, particularly in the current context of waning international investments towards HIV. Methods: To examine these questions, we interviewed 29 key informants comprising health experts in donor organizations and government employees in HIV programs in Pakistan, a country where HIV programs must compete with other issues for attention. Themes were identified inductively through an iterative process and findings were triangulated with various data sources and existing literature. Results: We found both political and governance challenges to achieving the target, particularly in the context of the global HIV scale-down. Political challenges included, low and heterogeneous political commitment for HIV and a conservative legal environment that contributed towards a ban on opiate substitution therapy, creating low treatment coverage. Governance challenges includedstrained state and non-governmental organization (NGO) relations creating a hostile service delivery environment, weak bureaucratic and civil society capacity contributing to poor regulation of the health infrastructure, and resource mismanagement on both the part of the government and NGOs. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that in a context of waning international attention to HIV, policy actors on the ground face a number of practical hurdles to achieving the ambitious targets set out by international agencies. Greater attention to the political and governance challenges of implementing HIV programs in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) could help technical assistance agencies to develop more realistic implementation plans

Relationship Between Serum Lactate Dehydrogenase Levels and Dengue Severity

To determine relationship betweenthe levels of serum Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH)onadmission and prognosis of dengue fever.Methods: Patients (n=62) admitted with thediagnosis of dengue fever were included. Onadmission, serum LDH levels were measured in allpatients and to find relationship we monitored allpatients upto discharge. Monitoring was done forvitals, different blood parameters and duration ofhospitalization.Results: Forty one (66.1%) were males and 33.9%(n=21) were females with mean age31.73±13years.During hospital stay, 61.3% patientshad Dengue fever (DF)while 39.7% patientsdeveloped dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF).LDHlevels were higher in patients with DHF(mean618.38U/L±219)as compared to the patients withdengue fever (mean 316.45U/L±104).Mann WhitneyU test showed the difference was statisticallysignificant (p<0.001).Conclusion: Patients with early increase in serumLDH showed more complications as compared tolow serum LDH level. High LDH can be used topredict outcome in dengue patients

Gastric MALT lymphoma: a rarity

Association of Helicobacter pylori (H. Pylori) infection with gastric \u27Mucosa Associated Lymphoid Tissue\u27 (MALT) lymphomas (MALTomas) is well established. In this study the frequency and characteristics of gastric MALToma over a period of 18 years was evaluated. During this period 24 patients with gastric MALToma were diagnosed; out of them, 13 (54.2%) had active H. Pylori infection. The mean and median age was 49.7 and 53.5 years. The male: female ratio was 17:7. The common presenting complaints were epigastric pain (n=10) and dyspepsia (n=9). Endoscopic findings revealed mild gastric hyperemia (n=16), superficial erosions (n=4) and superficial ulcers (n=4). It was concluded that the prevalence of gastric MALToma was very low in contrast to a high H. pylori gastritis in the Pakistani population