Impact Of Job Status And Demographic Trends On Quality Education: A Case Study Of Private Universities In Pakistan

The major purpose of this paper was to examine the quality of various aspects of higher education in the private sector of Pakistan by adopting a descriptive method of research. The population of the study constituted 270 administrators, 6,180 teachers and 61,108 students in existing 54 private universities and degree-awarding institutions of Pakistan. The method of cluster sampling was used to select the study sample of 840 people, which was carried out in two stages. In the first stage, 12 clusters of universities were randomly chosen out of the total population of private universities. In the second stage, 60 administrators, 180 teachers and 600 students were selected through a random sampling procedure with five administrators, 15 teachers and 50 students from each selected cluster. Three questionnaires, developed and refined through pre-testing, were used as measuring instruments to collect data. The researcher personally visited each university and collected data from the sample. The collected data was tabulated, analyzed and interpreted by using ANOVA and t test techniques

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

Etiology of stroke in young pakistani adults; results of a single center study

The aim of this study was to determine the demographic profile and incidence of young stroke at a tertiary care setup in Islamabad, Pakistan. Materials and Methods: This single centre, cross sectional study was conducted by recruiting 119 patients of either gender, ≥ 12and ≤ 45 years of age with stroke and receiving care at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad. Results: Total number of young strokes was 119 out of a total of 322 strokes i-e-, 36.9 %; 1/3rd strokes were in ≤ 45 years of age. Ischemic arterial strokes were 47% (56 out of 119) while venous ischemic strokes were 11.7 % (14 out of 119) and almost all in females (13 out of 14; 92.8 %).Infective causes of central nervous system were identified in24.3 % (29 out of 119). 49 patients (41.1 %) had hemorrhagic strokes. Major individual risk factors for stroke included hypertension identified in 35 (29.4 %)followed by diabetes mellitus in 8 (6.7 %) patients. Amongst infectious causes, CNS tuberculosis was the major infection associated with young stroke i-e-, 89.6 % (26 out of 29). Conclusion: Nearly 1/3rd of strokes in our population are in young.While risk factors in general for stroke stand true for young stroke as well namely hypertension and diabetes, CNS infections are a major cause of young stroke in Pakistan; particularly CNS TB. While majority of strokes in elderly are ischemic, strokes in young comparatively are almost equally divided between ischemia and hemorrhage i-e-, 1.4:1. 1/5th of these ischemic strokes are due to cerebral venous thrombosis. National level guidelines should therefore adopt different strategies for primary and secondary prevention, laboratory work up and imaging, and treatment of stroke in young

Isolation and characterization of a bacterial strain for aniline degradation

Aniline, a serious environmental threat and health risk to living organisms is being released into the soil and water bodies owing to its expanded use in industry. The objective of the present study was to isolate a strain from rhizospheric soil samples of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) taken from anagricultural site near the industrial area of Faisalabad, with the capability of degrading aniline with its maximum activity. The isolated strain was identified as Staphylococcus aureus ST1 a newly reported strain for aniline degradation. The strain ST1 showed tolerance up to 2000 ppm for aniline on mineral salt media plates and its degradative ability was checked through shake flasks experiments using HPLC. The strain was capable of degrading aniline and utilizing it as a sole source of carbon andenergy. Maximum reduction of aniline concentration in medium up to 59.65% was observed after 72 h. An enhancement in biodegradation was observed using glucose as an additional growth substrate. The degradative products analyzed by HPLC were catechol, phenol and some other unknown compounds. Plasmid curing showed the involvement of plasmid encoded genes which was later followed by the isolation of plasmid DNA, which was found to be a large one of ~40 kb having restriction sites for enzymes (EcoRI, BamHI, ClaI, StuI, PstI, and HindIII) used

PHYSICAL AND INDEX PROPERTIES OF LATE PRECAMBRIAN AND CAMBRIAN SALT RANGE ROCKS OF PUNJAB

Thirteen rock types including Sandstone, Siltstone, Dolomite, Shale, Gypsum and Rock Salt collected from five different formations of Salt Range area of Pakistan were tested to assess their physical and index properties. Specific gravity, dry and wet unit weights, moisture contents, porosity, water absorption and slake durability index were determined. Results indicate that most of the rocks have their specific gravity and unit weight values in the standard range. Higher durability indices and low water absorption values of sandstones and dolomite make them suitable for construction materials. While higher porosity of Baghanwala sandstone, lower and upper Khewra sandstone indicates their potential as hydrocarbon bearing reservoir and at the same time make them an ideal candidate for greenhouse gases sequestration in the subsurface.&nbsp

Isolated subdural hematoma due to dengue hemorrhagic fever: surgical intervention and review of the literature

Background: Central nervous system (CNS) complications of dengue fever, a mosquito-borne single standard RNA virus illness, are reported in Case Description: A 65-year-old male patient was admitted with high-grade febrile illness and diagnosed with dengue. The patient had no focal neurology and was managed adequately following the primary survey on admission but, then, developed severe thrombocytopenia and eventually the critical phase of dengue illness. On the 5th admission day, the patient collapsed. Glasgow Coma Score was 3/15 with bilaterally dilated, fixed pupils. Immediate computed tomography head revealed a large left SDH with a significant midline shift. SDH was emergently evacuated with two units of platelets transfused peroperatively and two additional units postoperatively. Thrombocytopenia resolved within 48 h, and interval scanning showed gradual resolution of SDH. The patient was discharged 18 days later. Five months later, on follow-up, the patient is well with mild left-sided weakness and an Extended Glasgow Outcome Score of 7. Conclusion: Isolated SDH is a rare but life-threatening hemorrhagic complication of DHF. Even in the critical phase of illness, with severe thrombocytopenia, surgical evacuation should be considered if the SDH is present in isolation, within an accessible area, and can be operated on immediately

Sustainable Irrigation Management for Higher Yield

Sustainable irrigation is sensible application of watering to plants in agriculture, landscapes that aids in meeting current survival and welfare needs. Sustainable irrigation management can help with climate change adaptation, labor, energy savings, and the production of higher-value and yield of crops to achieve zero hunger in water-scarce world. To ensure equal access to water and environmental sustainability, investments in expanded and enhanced irrigation must be matched by improvements in water governance. Sustainable irrigation must be able to cope with water scarcity, and be resilient to other resource scarcities throughout time in context of energy and finance. The themes and SDGs related to clean water, water resources sustainability, sustainable water usage, agricultural and rural development are all intertwined in the concept of “sustainable irrigation for higher yield.” Sustainable irrigation management refers to the capability of using water in optimum quantity and quality on a local, regional, national, and global scale to meet the needs of humans and agro-ecosystems at present and in the future to sustain life, protect humans and biodiversity from natural and human-caused disasters which threaten life to exist. Resultantly higher yields will ensure food security

Evaluation of internet access and utilization by medical students in Lahore, Pakistan

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The internet is increasingly being used worldwide in imparting medical education and improving its delivery. It has become an important tool for healthcare professionals training but the data on its use by medical students in developing countries is lacking with no study on the subject from Pakistan. This study was, therefore, carried out with an aim to evaluate the pattern of internet access and utilization by medical students in Pakistan.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A structured pre-tested questionnaire was administered to a group of 750 medical students in clinical years studying at various public and private medical colleges in Lahore. The questions were related to patterns of internet access, purpose of use and self reported confidence in performing various internet related tasks, use of health related websites to supplement learning and the problems faced by students in using internet at the institution.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A total of 532 medical students (70.9%) returned the questionnaire. The mean age of study participants was 21.04 years (SD 1.96 years). Majority of the respondents (84.0%) reported experience with internet use. About half of the students (42.1%) were using internet occasionally with 23.1%, 20.9% and 13.9% doing so frequently, regularly and rarely respectively. About two third of the students (61.0%) stated that they use internet for both academic and professional activities. Most of the participants preferred to use internet at home (70.5%). Self reported ability to search for required article from PubMed and PakMedinet was reported by only 34.0% of the entire sample. Students were moderately confident in performing various internet related tasks including downloading medical books from internet, searching internet for classification of diseases and downloading full text article. Health related websites were being accessed by 55.1% students to supplement their learning process. Lack of time, inadequate number of available computers and lack of support from staff were cited as the most common problems faced by students while accessing internet in the institution premises. There were significant differences among male and female students with respect to the place of internet use (p = 0.001) and the ability to search online databases for required articles (p = 0.014).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Majority of the medical students in this study had access to internet and were using it for both academic and personal reasons. Nevertheless, it was seen that there is under utilization of the potential of internet resources to augment learning. Increase in awareness, availability of requisite facilities and training in computing skills are required to enable better utilization of digital resources of digital resources by medical students.</p