Avian influenza virus (H5N1); effects of physico-chemical factors on its survival

Present study was performed to determine the effects of physical and chemical agents on infective potential of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 (local strain) virus recently isolated in Pakistan during 2006 outbreak. H5N1 virus having titer 108.3 ELD50/ml was mixed with sterilized peptone water to get final dilution of 4HA units and then exposed to physical (temperature, pH and ultraviolet light) and chemical (formalin, phenol crystals, iodine crystals, CID 20, virkon®-S, zeptin 10%, KEPCIDE 300, KEPCIDE 400, lifebuoy, surf excel and caustic soda) agents. Harvested amnio-allantoic fluid (AAF) from embryonated chicken eggs inoculated with H5N1 treated virus (0.2 ml/egg) was subjected to haemagglutination (HA) and haemagglutination inhibition (HI) tests. H5N1 virus lost infectivity after 30 min at 56°C, after 1 day at 28°C but remained viable for more than 100 days at 4°C. Acidic pH (1, 3) and basic pH (11, 13) were virucidal after 6 h contact time; however virus retained infectivity at pH 5 (18 h), 7 and 9 (more than 24 h). UV light was proved ineffectual in inactivating virus completely even after 60 min. Soap (lifebuoy®), detergent (surf excel®) and alkali (caustic soda) destroyed infectivity after 5 min at 0.1, 0.2 and 0.3% dilution. All commercially available disinfectants inactivated virus at recommended concentrations. Results of present study would be helpful in implementing bio-security measures at farms/hatcheries levels in the wake of avian influenza virus (AIV) outbreak

Avian influenza virus (H5N1); effects of physico-chemical factors on its survival

Present study was performed to determine the effects of physical and chemical agents on infective potential of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 (local strain) virus recently isolated in Pakistan during 2006 outbreak. H5N1 virus having titer 108.3 ELD50/ml was mixed with sterilized peptone water to get final dilution of 4HA units and then exposed to physical (temperature, pH and ultraviolet light) and chemical (formalin, phenol crystals, iodine crystals, CID 20, virkon®-S, zeptin 10%, KEPCIDE 300, KEPCIDE 400, lifebuoy, surf excel and caustic soda) agents. Harvested amnio-allantoic fluid (AAF) from embryonated chicken eggs inoculated with H5N1 treated virus (0.2 ml/egg) was subjected to haemagglutination (HA) and haemagglutination inhibition (HI) tests. H5N1 virus lost infectivity after 30 min at 56°C, after 1 day at 28°C but remained viable for more than 100 days at 4°C. Acidic pH (1, 3) and basic pH (11, 13) were virucidal after 6 h contact time; however virus retained infectivity at pH 5 (18 h), 7 and 9 (more than 24 h). UV light was proved ineffectual in inactivating virus completely even after 60 min. Soap (lifebuoy®), detergent (surf excel®) and alkali (caustic soda) destroyed infectivity after 5 min at 0.1, 0.2 and 0.3% dilution. All commercially available disinfectants inactivated virus at recommended concentrations. Results of present study would be helpful in implementing bio-security measures at farms/hatcheries levels in the wake of avian influenza virus (AIV) outbreak

Determining the Effect of Innovations for Mobile Banking Adoption in Pakistan

Mobile banking is the source of checking the daily banking affairs at anywhere, where the internet service is available. The main objective of this research was to check the impact of innovations on adoption of mobile banking in Pakistan. The research was based on primary data, which was collected from 500 students of all the public and private universities of Pothohar region (Islamabad/Rawalpindu) by means of a questionnaire. Random Sampling Technique was used and through SPSS the correlation analysis and regression analysis were calculated. The correlation analysis results showed that there is positive significant relationship between Innovations, with adoption of mobile banking in Pakistan. The regression analysis showed that the value of R square = 0.621, which means that the independent variable Innovation has 62%  effect on dependent variable  Mobile Banking Adoption. This research will helpful for banking sector and other related commercial organizations. Keywords: Innovations, Telecom Sector, Mobile banking, Pakistani Environment

Impact of Risk and Ethics on Adoption of Mobile Banking in Pakistan

Mobile banking is information based one of the newly introduced digital banking services in Pakistan. The objective of this research was to analyze the impact of risk and ethics on consumer behavior towards adoption of mobile banking in Pakistan. This research was totally based on primary data, which was collected during the field survey through questionnaire from 500 students of private and public universities of Pothohar region (District Islamabad/Rawalpindi). The correlation and regression analysis was calculated by using SPSS software. The correlation results showed that there is insignificant relationship with Ethic, and significant relationship was found with Risk. The regression results showed thatR square = 0.621, which stated that the independent variables (Risk and ethis) have 62%  effect on dependent variable Mobile banking adoption and the model can predict the research results. So, ethic is main hurdle for mobile banking adoption. The findings are helpful for managers to reorganize their business plans to capture maximum latentbusinesses. Keywords: Telecom sector, Mobile banking Adoption, Risk, Ethics

Digital Twin Concept, Method and Technical Framework for Smart Meters

Smart meters connect smart grid electricity suppliers and users. Smart meters have become a research hotspot as smart grid applications like demand response, power theft prevention, power quality monitoring, peak valley time of use prices, and peer-to-peer (P2P) energy trading have grown. But, as the carriers of these functions, smart meters have technical problems such as limited computing resources, difficulty in upgrading, and high costs, which to some extent restrict the further development of smart grid applications. To address these issues, this study offers a container-based digital twin (CDT) approach for smart meters, which not only increases the user-facing computing resources of smart meters but also simplifies and lowers the overall cost and technical complexity of meter changes. In order to further validate the effectiveness of this method in real-time applications on the smart grid user side, this article tested and analyzed the communication performance of the digital twin system in three areas: remote application services, peer-to-peer transactions, and real-time user request services. The experimental results show that the CDT method proposed in this paper meets the basic requirements of smart grid user-side applications for real-time communication. The container is deployed in the cloud, and the average time required to complete 100 P2P communications using our smart meter structure is less than 2.4 seconds, while the average time required for existing smart meter structures to complete the same number of P2P communications is 208 seconds. Finally, applications, the future development direction of the digital twin method, and technology architecture are projected

Nexus of Block Chain Alignment, Supply Chain Agility, Supply Chain Performance and their Impact on Firm’s Environmental Performance: A Developing Country Perspective

Blockchain technology has significant potential for improving the environmental performance of businesses and supply chains. One of the key benefits of blockchain is its ability to provide greater transparency and traceability in supply chains. This can enable companies to better monitor and manage their environmental impacts, such as carbon emissions and waste production, throughout their supply chain. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the use of blockchain technology in improving supply chain alignment (SCA), supply chain agility (SCAG), and supply chain performance (SCP), and their influence on the environmental performance (EP) of firms. Additionally, the study aimed to identify the moderating effect of innovative climate (IC) on the relationship between SCA, SCAG, SCP, and EP. The researchers employed a quantitative research paradigm and collected data through a survey questionnaire. The sample was collected using the probability cluster sampling method and consisted of 350 personnel in executive and middle management positions. The results indicated that SCA, SCAG, and SCP positively impact the EP of businesses, and this relationship is moderated by IC. The study's findings have several theoretical and practical implications, including the potential for blockchain technology to improve supply chain sustainability and the importance of fostering an innovative climate to enhance the positive effects of SCA, SCAG, and SCP on EP

Welfare of Pet Birds and Potential Zoonoses

The human-animal interaction had long been established and currently emerged in multiple aspects including housing of animals for food and as pets. The “pet birds” are the wild or exotic birds having high genetic value and are housed under captivity as companions or for ornamental purposes. The commonly housed pet birds are either passeriformes or psittaciformes. These birds are housed under conditions to meet standard requirements for welfare of pet birds. Besides the pet birds and human relationship, these birds are potential carriers or transmitters of several pathogens considered responsible for zoonotic diseases. The range of the zoonotic diseases consisted of bacterial, viral, parasitic and fungal diseases. The mode of transmission is also an important entity for understanding the spread mechanism of zoonotic diseases. The transmission and spread is predominantly through the direct contact and in the few conditions through the vectors; termed as vector-borne transmission. Altogether, in this chapter, the authors have discussed different aspects of welfare of pet birds, categories of zoonotic diseases along with mode of transmission and spread of zoonoses. At the last, few aspects of welfare of pet birds and prevention and control guidelines of zoonoses are suggested for the personal biosafety and public health

Adaptive Market Hypothesis: A Comparison of Islamic and Conventional Stock Indices

We assess informational efficiency of nine Dow Jones Islamic market indices and their counterpart conventional Morgan Stanley indices using data from 1996 to 2020. We test the martingale difference hypothesis of no return predictability overtime and assess the adaptive market hypothesis over different market conditions. We find that the null is rejected in a number of periods in line with the adaptive market hypothesis for both Islamic and conventional stock indices. However, we do not observe any significant differences in return predictability between Islamic and conventional stocks over different market conditions including financial crisis of 2007-08 and COVID-19 pandemic

Computational and pharmacological evaluation of stevioside derivatives for antinociceptive and antiinflammatory potential

Purpose: To carry out computational and pharmacological evaluation of two stevioside derivatives in order to develop more effective candidates for analgesia and inflammation.Methods: Primarily, compounds were docked against targets of nociception and inflammation such as cyclooxygenase-1, cyclooxygenase-2, 5-lypooxygenase 12-lypooxygenase, 15-lypooxygenase, prostaglandin synthase, leukotrienes C4 synthase, mu, kappa, and delta receptors to obtain their possible binding modes. Test compounds were then screened in animal model of nociception and inflammation.Results: The results of docking show that IO possesses good affinity when compared to ID. IO showed two hydrogen bonds against COX-1 and COX-2. IO also demonstrated good binding against 5-LOX, 12- LOX and 15-LOX, exhibited four, one and two hydrogen bonds respectively. Against PG synthase and LTC4, both IO and ID produced moderate binding. IO also showed significant binding against opoid receptors (p < 0.05). IO and ID significantly decrease the number of writhes to 21.20 ± 2.1 and 27.0 ± 2.12 at 10 mg/kg in acetic acid mediated pain test respectively. In hot plate method, IO and ID increase the latency period of mice to 14.14 ± 0.40 and 10.50 ± 0.34 s, respectively. IO and ID significantly reduced the paw edema to 1.69 ± 0.14 and 1.94 ± 0.14 mL, respectively, in acute inflammation (p < 0.05). In chronic inflammatory model, IO and ID decreased paw volume to 3.26 ± 0.38 and 4.20 ± 0.38 mL, respectively.Conclusion: The results show that IO is a promising candidate for further development as analgesic and anti-inflammatory agents. However, their pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles need to be investigated. Keywords: Computational, Stevioside, Docking, Analgesic, Anti-inflammator