Longitudinally Extensive Transverse Myelitis and Neuromyelitis Optica spectrum Disorder: A Tertiary Care Centre Experience

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE: To determine the frequency of longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis and Causes of longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis METHODOLOGY: A Cross-Sectional, retrospective study was conducted at Neurology Department, Mayo Hospital, Lahore from 1st January 2015 to 31st December 2015. Patients were included from inpatient with history of weakness of lower limbs/all four limbs with or without visual disturbances. History and clinical examination was consistent with transverse myelitis. Neuroimaging (MRI brain, (orbit in case of optic neuritis) and spinal cord) was done followed by LP/CSF, Vasculitis screening

Unsolved Tricky Issues on COTS Selection and Evaluation

Component Based Software Engineering (CBSE) approach is based on the idea to develop software systems by selecting appropriate components and then to assemble them with a well-defined software architecture. (CBSE) offers developers the twin benefits of reduced software life cycles, shorter development times , saving cost and less effort as compare to build own component. However the success of the component based paradigm depends on the quality of the commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components purchased and integrated into the existing software systems. It is need of the time to present a quality model that can be used by software programmer to evaluate the quality of software components before integrating them into legacy systems. The evaluation and selection of the COTS components are the most critical process. These evaluation and selection method cannot be resolved by the IT professionals itself. In this study the author tried to compare the twenty three available systematic methods for best evaluation and selection of COTS components

Genetics of drought tolerance at seedling and maturity stages in Zea mays L.

Shortage of irrigation water at critical growth stages of maize is limiting its production worldwide. Breeding drought-tolerant cultivars is one possible solution while identification of potential genotypes is crucial for genetic improvement. To assess genetic variation for seedling-stage drought tolerance, we tested 40 inbred lines in a completely randomized design under glasshouse conditions. From these, two contrasting inbred lines were used to develop six basic generations (P1, P2, F1, F2, BC1F1, BC2F2). These populations were then evaluated in a triplicated factorial randomized complete block design under non-stressed and drought-stressed conditions. For statistical analyses, a nested block design was employed to ignore the replication effects. Significant differences (p≤0.01) were recorded among the genotypes for investigated seedling-traits. Absolute values of fresh root length, fresh root weight, and dry root weight lead to select two genotypes, one tolerant (WFTMS) and one susceptible (Q66). Estimates of heritability, genetic advance, and genotypic correlation coefficients were higher and significant for most of the seedling-traits. Generation variance analysis revealed additive gene action. Narrow-sense heritability [F2 ≥ 65; F∞ ≥ 79] revealed the same results. Generation mean analysis signified additive genetic effects in the inheritance of cob girth, non-additive for plant height, grains per ear row and grain yield per plant, and environmental for ear leaf area, cob length, grain rows per ear, biomass per plant, and 100-grain weight under drought-stressed conditions. For conferring drought-tolerance in maize, breeders can adopt the recombinant breeding strategy to pyramid the desirable genes

HETEROTIC ESTIMATION AND ADAPTABILITY OF TOMATO HYBRIDS FOR FRUIT YIELD AND ITS RELATED TRAITS IN PAKISTAN.

Current study is emphasizing on the estimation of heterosis for different yield attributing traits and adaptability of tomato hybrids. It was performed in the research area of VCRP, HRI, NARC Islamabad during 2018-2019. Crossing was completed among six parents followed by line × tester. The analyzed data depicted significant differences (P ≤ 0.01) among all the characters.Due to desirable high negative heterotic values hybrids Peto-86 × Nagina and Riograndi × Roma were found suitable for breeding early maturing hybrids. For plant height maximum positive heterosis was observed in Riograndi × Nagina, for no. of cluster/plant in Naqeeb × Roma, for traits like flower cluster-1, fruit cluster-1, fruit length & width and single fruit weight in Naqeeb × Continental while for yield Riograndi × Continental showed maximum heterosis. Therefore among 9 tested hybrids Naqeeb × Continental was found to be highly preferable and recommended for utilization in different breeding programmes

Bioavailability and Metabolic Pathway of Phenolic Compounds

As potential agents for preventing different oxidative stress-related diseases, phenolic compounds have attracted increasing attention with the passage of time. Intake of fruits, vegetables and cereals in higher quantities is linked with decreased chances of chronic diseases. In plant-based foods, phenolic compounds are very abundant. However, bio-accessibility and biotransformation of phenolic compound are not reviewed in these studies; therefore, a detailed action mechanism of phenolic compounds is not recognized. In this article, inclusive concept of different factors affecting the bioavailability of phenolic compounds and their metabolic processes is presented through which phenolic compounds go after ingestion

Comparison of Effectiveness of Topical Versus Oral Nifedipine for Treatment of Chronic Anal Fissure

Objective: To compare the effectiveness of topical and oral Nifedipine in the treatment of chronic anal fissure.Patients and Methods: In this randomized control trial total of 124 patients with chronic anal fissure (CAF) were selected through OPD and divided randomly into two equal groups. In Group A the topical Nifedipine (2%) was applied, while in Group B the oral Nifedipine 10mg TDS was used. Both groups were compared in terms of pain and healing measured one month after starting treatment.Results: Mean age of the patients was 38.81±11.81 years. In both groups there was statistically significant difference for the age but no difference was found regarding gender and baseline visual analogue scale. Group A had better healing rate and pain relieve as compared to Group B. There was no difference between groups regarding the effectiveness of treatment.Conclusion: The topical Nifedipine has better healing effects as compared to the oral Nifedipine. The oral form is better in relieving pain after one month of treatment. There was no difference between oral and topical form in terms of overall effectiveness

Role of MicroRNA in Endometrial Carcinoma

Endometrial carcinoma (EC) is a hall mark of gynecological malignancies that usually affects women above the age 50. It is one of the major causes of mortality in females with ever increasing prevalence and the mortality rate is 1.7 to 2.4 per 100000 and each year 10000 death occur due to ECs. MiRNAs regulate the expression of different proto-oncogenes and signaling pathways that are directly or indirectly involved in the development of cancer. Different miRNAs i.e. (miRNA-449, miRNA 370, miRNA-424, and miRNA-152) which gets up or down regulated during endometrial cancer are the potential biomarkers for early diagnosis of EC. Targeting this relationship between the miRNA and signaling pathways may help in the development of new treatment in endometrial cancer. In current study, we reviewed literature from PubMed using miRNA and endometrial cancer as keywords and outlined the synthesis of potent miRNA and role of different miRNAs involved in ECs. The study revealed different sub types of miRNA played crucial role in the development of cancer by up and down regulation of different metabolic pathways. Many evidences have supported that miRNAs play role in control and regulation of different pathways leading to cancer and targeting these pathways may bring changes in the diagnosis as well as in treatment of EC

Relationship between the use of drugs and changes in body weight among patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Purpose: To investigate the impact of drugs on the body weight of patients.Methods: All the randomized controlled trials that evaluated the impact of medications on the body weight of patients were searched in various databases. Studies quantifying the impact of drugs on body weight when compared to placebo or any other treatment were considered for this review. Moreover, the quantitative synthesis of evidence was also performed by generating the forest plot.Results: A total of 20 studies involving 18,547 participants were included in the current review. Weight gains ranging from 0.5 to 2.6 kg were associated with the use of pioglitazone, espindolol, brexpiprazole, glimepiride and ezogabine while weight loss ranging from 1.1 to 12 kg was linked with the use of betahistine, naltrexone, bupropion, liraglutide, phentermine, topiramate, orlistat, zonisamide, duloxetine, semaglutide, metformin and linagliptin. The quantitative synthesis suggested that drugs can significantly reduce body weight by -0.53 kg (CI 95 % -1.01, -0.04, p < 0.04) when compared to standard treatment.Conclusion: The findings of this review suggest substantial association of drugs and weight change during pharmacotherapy. Pioglitzone, brexpiprazole, espindolol, ezogabine and glimepiride cause weight gain while naltrexone, bupropion, betahistine, topiramate, phentermine, zonisamide, semaglutide, linagliptin, liraglutide, orlistat, duloxetine and metformin were associated with weight loss. Drug-induced changes in body weight might cause serious consequences and should be addressed before initiating treatment