Liquefaction of empty palm fruit bunch (EPFB) in alkaline hot compressed water

Effect of alkalis (NaOH, KOH and K2CO3) on liquefaction of EPFB (emptypalmfruitbunch) biomass liquefaction was investigated under subcritical water conditions in a batch reactor operating at 270 °C and 20 bars for a period of 20 min. Catalytic performance and suitable biomass to water ratio that supported higher EPFB conversion, liquid hydrocarbons yield and lignin degradations were screened. Analytical results indicate that maximum of 68 wt% liquids were produced along with 72.4 wt% EPFB mass conversions and 65.6 wt% lignin degradation under 1.0 M K2CO3/2:10 (biomass/water) conditions. In comparison, the experiments that were performed in the absence of alkalis yielded only 30.4 wt% liquids, converted 36 wt% EPFB and degraded 24.3 wt% lignin. Furthermore, biomass to water ratios >2:10 decreased both solid mass conversion and liquid hydrocarbons' yield. The reactivity of the alkalis was in the order of K2CO3 > KOH > NaOH. The liquid compositions were dominantly phenols and esters; the highest value of phenol (60.1 wt% of liquid yield) was achieved in the case of K2CO3 (1.0 M) with 5 g EPFB/25 ml water ratio while 1.0 M NaOH yielded maximum esters (86.4 wt% of liquid yield). The alkali promoted process assisted with hotwater treatments seemed promising for production of bio-oils from EPFB

ANTIFUNGAL ACTIVITY OF METHANOLIC ROOT EXTRACT OF WITHANIA SOMMNIFERA AGAINST FUSARIUM OXYSPORUM F. SP. CEPAE

Background: Basal rot of onion (Allium cepa L.) caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cepae is a common soil-borne disease that causes significant yield losses. Generally, synthetic fungicides are used to combat the menace which cause environmental pollution. The present study was carried out to assess the antifungal activity of Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal, a Solanaceous medicinal plant, against the pathogen of this disease. Materials and Methods: Different concentrations (from 0.5 to 4%) of methanolic extract of root, stem and fruit of the test plant species were prepared and their bioactivity was assessed against the target fungal pathogen. Methanolic extract of root was further fractionated with n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and n-butanol. Different concentrations of these extracts viz. 200, 100… 3.125 mg mL-1 were prepared and assessed for their antifungal activities. Results: Methanolic root extract exhibited the best antifungal activity causing up to 93% decrease in biomass of the fungal pathogen. n-hexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate fractions of methanolic root extract exhibited pronounced antifungal activity resulting in 46–79%, 40–73% and 35–76% reduction in fungal biomass, respectively. Conclusion: The present study concludes that root extract of W. somnifera possesses potent antifungal constituents which can be used for the control of F. oxysporum f. sp. cepae

The Role of Lead Toxicity on Eruption Rate of Hypofunctional Incisors in Albino Wistar Rats

OBJECTIVES This objective of this study was to evaluate the role of a heavy metal- lead acetate in the eruption rate of hypo functional incisors in albino Wistar rats. METHODOLOGY An experimental study was done in animal house of Post Graduate Medical Institute, Lahore since March 2019 to March 2020. 34 adult albino Wistar rats were randomly divided into two groups (n=17 for each group) i.e., control and lead acetate group. Right mandibular incisors were selected for this study. Selected incisors were marked 1mm above the level of gingival papillae. The incisors were cut above this mark to make it hypo-functional. The readings were measured by digital Vernier caliper. This was considered as day 0. Incisors length was measured at day 0, 3, 6, 12 and 15 and eruption was calculated. The data was analyzed using SPSS version 22. RESULTS Eruption rate was similar throughout the study except last follow up. At the end of this study eruption of incisors in albino Wistar rats in control was 03.30±0.72mm, in lead 02.43±1.19mm. At day 15, the difference between control and lead group was statistically significant (p-value 0.033). CONCLUSION These results reveal that besides other causes of delayed tooth eruption excessive lead intoxication are also acausative factor of delayed tooth eruption

Role of VAM in alleviating allelopathic stress of Parthenium hysterophorus on maize (Zea mays L.)

Experiments were conducted to evaluate the impact of allelopathic potential of Parthenium hysterophorus on germination, growth and yield of maize (Zea mays L.) as well as the role of Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhizae (VAM) in alleviating allelopathic stress. In the first experiment germination and seedling growth response of maize to 5, 10, 15, 25 and 50 % w/v aqueous extract of P. hysterophorus was studied in petri dishes. Higher concentrations of 25 and 50% aqueous extract of Parthenium significantly reduced the germination of maize grains. Root and shoot growths of seedlings were also similarly affected. In the other experiment, shoot material of P. hysterophorus was cut into very small pieces and mixed in the heat sterilized pot soil @ 0, 5 and 10 % w/w, half the pots were inoculated with VAM. The results regarding the various vegetative and reproductive growth parameters revealed that the maize crop was not susceptible to applied rates of P. hysterophorus Mulch, the maize growth was considerably enhanced in 5 % treatment while in 10 % mulch treatment crop growth was as good as in control while plants inoculated with VAM showed markedly enhanced the crop growth both in control as well as Parthenium mixed treatments. Mycorrhizal colonization was markedly suppressed by mixing shoot material of P. hysterophorus at vegetative growth stage especially in 10 % treatment.&nbsp

PREDICTIVE MODELING USING CAPILLARY PRESSURE MODELS AND FLUID DENSITIES AND THEIR EFFECT ON RESERVOIR FLUID DISTRIBUTION AND DYNAMICS

Capillary pressure has always been a point of concern for reservoir modeling. It describes the initial pressure at which the de-saturation will be initiated and at the other extreme; it defines the irreducible saturation of the displaced fluid. In this study, Brooks & Corey and Van Genuchten models are used to predict maximum displacement pressure data with reference to non-uniformity in pore-size distribution. Both models are compared and a correlation has been developed to predict maximum displacement pressure with reference to variation in pore-size distribution index for Van Genuchten model. Further, the fluid distribution and water-oil contact level with reference to free-water level has been calculated using both models for reservoir modeling. The obtained results show that Van Genuchten model gives higher thickness for transition zones and difference in water-oil contact level with reference to free water level, as compared to Brooks and Corey correlation. Furthermore, on comparative basis, these differences increase with the decrease in uniformity in pore size distribution. Thus, the degree of uncertainty and complexity in developing reservoirs and analyzing fluid dynamics increases, in case of tighter or heterogeneous formations. Further, this study also shows that density also plays an important role in fluid dynamics and distribution with the reservoir

EDDEEC: Enhanced Developed Distributed Energy-Efficient Clustering for Heterogeneous Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) consist of large number of randomly deployed energy constrained sensor nodes. Sensor nodes have ability to sense and send sensed data to Base Station (BS). Sensing as well as transmitting data towards BS require high energy. In WSNs, saving energy and extending network lifetime are great challenges. Clustering is a key technique used to optimize energy consumption in WSNs. In this paper, we propose a novel clustering based routing technique: Enhanced Developed Distributed Energy Efficient Clustering scheme (EDDEEC) for heterogeneous WSNs. Our technique is based on changing dynamically and with more efficiency the Cluster Head (CH) election probability. Simulation results show that our proposed protocol achieves longer lifetime, stability period and more effective messages to BS than Distributed Energy Efficient Clustering (DEEC), Developed DEEC (DDEEC) and Enhanced DEEC (EDEEC) in heterogeneous environments

PRIMARY MALIGNANT MELANOMA UTERINE CERVIX

A 40-year-old premenopausal female presented with foul-smelling per vaginal discharge for 3 months. Diagnostic work revealed a locally advanced primary malignant melanoma of uterine cervix. The patient declined pelvic surgery and was treated with Dacarbazine. Malignant melanoma is a rare tumour of skin and has been ranked in the top ve cancers of Australia and Sweden. It is a tumour of melanocytes which forms melanin pigment in the skin. In men, the most common site is trunk while in females common site is limbs. However, melanoma can arise from mucosal surfaces where the melanocytes are present. Most common mucosal sites are head and neck followed by female genital tract. Key words: Cervix, dacarbazine, malignant melanoma

Risk factors for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in urban Pakistan: A multicenter case-control study

Objective: To evaluate risk factors for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in an urban setting of Pakistan.DESIGN AND Methods: In this multicenter case-control study, patients aged 15years old or older with sputum culture and sensitivity (C/S) diagnosed with pulmonary MDR-TB were defined as cases, whereas patients aged 15years old or older with sputum C/S diagnosed and susceptible to pulmonary TB were regarded as controls. Fifty cases and 75 controls were enrolled from three tertiary-care hospitals in Karachi.Results: Multivariable logistic regression models showed that cases were more likely to have had a TB patient in the house prior to the diagnosis of MDR-TB (adjusted odds ratio [ORadj]=3.1, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.2, 8.3) or had a history of prior TB treatment (ORadj=4.2, 95% CI: 1.1, 15.4). Furthermore, cases compared with controls tended to be male (ORadj=3.6, 95% CI: 1.4, 9.7), 15-25years of age (ORadj=3.7, 95% CI: 1.2, 11.3), of Sindhi ethnicity (adjusted OR=9.1, 95% CI: 1.9, 43.4) or with low educational attainment (ORadj OR=5.5, 95% CI: 1.7-17.6, for no formal schooling; ORadj=3.8, 95% CI: 1.1-14.1, 1 for 1-5 school years).CONCLUSIONS: A TB patient in the house or a history of prior TB treatment was strongly associated with MDR-TB in this study. Furthermore, younger age, male gender, Sindhi ethnicity and poor educational attainment entailed a high risk for MDR-TB. Targeted educational intervention for patients and their contacts may minimize the noncompliance with prescribed TB treatment and lessen MDR-TB magnitude in settings like Karachi

Chemical control of wilt in Shisham (Dalbergia sissoo Roxb.)

Fusarium solani (Mart.) Appel & Wr. was isolated from the roots of shisham (Dalbergia sissoo Roxb.) plants of 6–30 years age, showing symptoms of wilt disease at different stages. In vitro toxicity assays with three fungicides revealed that Benomyl is the most effective in controlling mycelial growth of F. solani followed by Ridomil Gold while Aliette had insignificant effect. Field study showed that application of 50 liters of 200 ppm Benomyl can effectively recover 6‑8 years old wilting shisham plants