Role of higher education in peace-building and strengthening national institutions

Socrates believes that goodness and truth, positive essences and pure ethical and moral instincts are placed there divinely in the soul. However, they are not brought to consciousness unless they are awakened or learned. Therefore, consensus on the important things in life is just below the surface waiting to be acknowledged. It is the destiny of mankind to seek out virtue such as courage and self-control, or propriety over the desires of ambitions or emotions that cloud the quest for truth. The concept of ignorance is what stands in the way of consensus, and that once one realizes that he does not know, a change in any disagreement can occur. (www.san.beck.org).Peer Reviewe

Zika virus infection: a public health emergency!

Zika virus belongs to the family of Flaviviridae. The Flaviviridae family also includes other human pathogens like West Nile virus (WNV), Yellow fever virus (YFV), mosquito transmitted Dengue virus (DENV), Tick borne encephalitic virus (TBEV) and Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV). Zika virus is a mosquito-borne disease and is transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquito

Rhnull: a rare blood group phenotype

Rhnull phenotype is a rare blood group characterized by the lack of expression of all Rh antigens (D, C, c, E and e) on the red cells. The phenotype is further classified into the regulator and amorph type based on underlying genetic defect. The clinical significance of its recognition is that such patients suffer from Rhnull syndrome associated with osmotically fragile red cells called stomatocytes with subsequent chronic haemolytic anaemia of varying degree. Another importance is that such subjects readily form alloantibodies on exposure to Rh antigens. We report herein rare Rhaull phenotype in a young pregnant female which was detected as a part of routine antenatal work-up for red cell antibody screening and identification

A New Risk-Based Method in Decision Making to Create Dust Sources Maps: A Case Study of Saudi Arabia

Dust storms are one of the major causes of the destruction of natural ecosystems and human infrastructure worldwide. Therefore, the identification and mapping of susceptible regions to dust storm formation (SRDSFs) is of great importance. Determining SRDSFs by considering the concept of risk in the decision-making process and the kind of manager’s attitude and planning can be very valuable in dedicating financial resources and time to identifying and controlling the negative impacts of SRDSFs. The purpose of this study was to present a new risk-based method in decision making to create SRDSF maps of pessimistic and optimistic scenarios. To achieve the purpose of this research, effective criteria obtained from various sources were used, including simulated surface data, satellite products, and soil data of Saudi Arabia. These effective criteria included vegetation cover, soil moisture, soil erodibility, wind speed, precipitation, and absolute air humidity. For this purpose, the ordered weighted averaging (OWA) model was employed to generate existing SRDSF maps in different scenarios. The results showed that the wind speed and precipitation criteria had the highest and lowest impact in identifying dust centers, respectively. The areas identified as SRDSFs in very pessimistic, pessimistic, neutral, optimistic, and very optimistic scenarios were 85,950, 168,275, 255,225, 410,000, and 596,500 km2, respectively. The overall accuracy of very pessimistic, pessimistic, neutral, optimistic, and very optimistic scenarios were 84.1, 83.3, 81.6, 78.2, and 73.2%, respectively. The very pessimistic scenario can identify the SRDSFs in the study area with higher accuracy. The overall accuracy of the results of these scenarios compared to the dust sources obtained from the previous studies were 92.7, 94.2, 95.1, 88.4, and 79.7% respectively. The dust sources identified in the previous studies have a higher agreement with the results of the neutral scenario. The proposed method has high flexibility in producing a wide range of SRDSF maps in very pessimistic to very optimistic scenarios. The results of the pessimistic scenarios are suitable for risk-averse managers with limited financial resources and time, and the results of the optimistic scenarios are suitable for risk-taking managers with sufficient financial resources and time.Peer Reviewe

The role of toll-like receptors in acute and chronic lung inflammation

By virtue of its direct contact with the environment, the lung is constantly challenged by infectious and non-infectious stimuli that necessitate a robust yet highly controlled host response coordinated by the innate and adaptive arms of the immune system. Mammalian Toll-like receptors (TLRs) function as crucial sentinels of microbial and non-infectious antigens throughout the respiratory tract and mediate host innate immunity. Selective induction of inflammatory responses to harmful environmental exposures and tolerance to innocuous antigens are required to maintain tissue homeostasis and integrity. Conversely, dysregulated innate immune responses manifest as sustained and self-perpetuating tissue damage rather than controlled tissue repair. In this article we review aspects of Toll-like receptor function that are relevant to the development of acute lung injury and chronic obstructive lung diseases as well as resistance to frequently associated microbial infections

Cryptococcus gattii: An Emerging Cause of Fungal Disease in North America

During the latter half of the twentieth century, fungal pathogens such as Cryptococcus neoformans were increasingly recognized as a significant threat to the health of immune compromised populations throughout the world. Until recently, the closely related species C. gattii was considered to be a low-level endemic pathogen that was confined to tropical regions such as Australia. Since 1999, C. gattii has emerged in the Pacific Northwest region of North America and has been responsible for a large disease epidemic among generally healthy individuals. The changing epidemiology of C. gattii infection is likely to be a consequence of alterations in fungal ecology and biology and illustrates its potential to cause serious human disease. This review summarizes selected biological and clinical aspects of C. gattii that are particularly relevant to the recent North American outbreak and compares these to the Australian and South American experience

Urban ecosystem services on the local level: urban green spaces as providers

Ecosystem services are provided at different spatial and service/functional scales. The local level is the basic unit for ecosystem services, especially when it comes to the human dimension of urban landscapes. These services are provided by green elements (patches) or basic complex ecosystems (green areas) which differ from their neighbourhoods through their structures and functions. This study reviews the generally available knowledge on urban green functions and services at the site level and explains them by using own studies in five different cities in three different continents related to distinct ecosystem services. This allows the development of a methodology to evaluate and compare ecosystem services at the site level. The methodology is based at two levels, patch and green space, and includes the relationship with the surrounding green and built-up space. Different urban green space types are characterized by their internal structures of vegetation, size, shape and location in relation to at least a semi-quantitative scaling of their urban ecosystem services. The evaluated urban green spaces are public urban green spaces. The urban ecosystem services assessed include climate regulation, biodiversity, nature experience, recreation and health. The actual urban challenges, such as land use change, adaptation to climate change, demographic change and urban cultural diversity, demand a systematic and very concrete monitoring of urban ecosystem services at the site level.Fil: Breuste, Jürgen. University of Salzburg. Department of Geography and Geology; AustriaFil: Schnellinger, Johanna. University of Salzburg. Department of Geography and Geology; AustriaFil: Qureshi, Salman. Birmingham City University. School of Architecture; Reino UnidoFil: Faggi, Ana Maria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales; Argentin

Successful use of rituximab in Evans syndrome and refractory immune thrombocytopenic purpura

Immune cytopenias are mediated by auto-antibodies produced by B-lymphocytes. Conventional treatment of immune-mediated haematological disorders includes immunosuppression with steroids and other immune modulating therapies and in some refractory cases, splenectomy. Response rates to conventional and second-line agents are variable and a proportion of patients require lifelong immunosuppression to maintain the disease in remission. Rituximab, an anti- CD 20 monoclonal antibody has gained widespread acceptance in the management of B-cell malignancies. Additionally, it has been used to treat the disorders associated with autoantibody production. We report herein the successful use of Rituximab in the treatment of two patients with autoimmune cytopenias one had Evan\u27s syndrome and other had refractory immune thrombocytopenic purpura. Both of these patients are still in remission at 16 and 25 months following treatment

Factor VII deficiency and pregnancy: a case report and review of literature

Factor VII deficiency is one of the \u27rare inherited disorders of coagulation.\u27 Few cases of Factor VII deficiency have been reported during pregnancy, a state which could potentially cause fatal haemorrhage. Here we report a case of a pregnant lady with a history of heavy menorrhagia and multiple first pregnancy failures. Delivery was carried out via Caesarean section due to non-reassuring foetal heart monitoring. Patient was treated with Fresh Frozen Plasma (FFPs) and Factor VII concentrates, however, the patient developed bleeding postoperatively. Literature indicates that whilst Factor VII levels rise during pregnancy in normal women, no increase is seen in homozygous cases, whereas there is a moderate rise in heterozygous individuals. History of heavy menorrhagia, multiple first pregnancy failures and a positive family history for bleeding disorders necessitate investigation and monitoring of Factor VII levels during pregnancy. Factor VII concentrates achieve adequate homeostasis in most cases. Recombinant Factor VIIa, however, is the treatment of choice and does not carry a risk of infection transmission or thrombus formation

Clinico-Epidemiological Study of Dengue Fever in Nishtar Medical University Hospital Multan, Pakistan

Introduction: Dengue fever is a common vector borne disease caused by dengue virus. In developing tropical countries, it is considered as one of the major public health problems. Consequently, this disease is highly associated with increased morbidity, mortality and economic burden to poorly resourced health system of less privileged countries. Aim and objectives: The current work is intended to assess the incidence, signs, symptoms, and epidemiological characteristics of cases of Dengue fever presenting in Nishtar Medical University Hospital Multan Pakistan. Study design: Descriptive cross-sectional study Place and duration of study: Department of Infectious Diseases, Nishtar Medical University Hospital Multan Pakistan. The time span of study was from January 01, 2016 to December 31, 2017. Method: The present work was a prospective cross –sectional study conducted in our centre.  A total 876 fever cases, fulfilling WHO criteria for dengue suspicion were included as target population of the study. For each individual case, detailed history and thorough physical examination was performed. In addition to routine baseline investigations, the disease-specific investigations such as rapid immuno chromatographic card test were also performed to confirm the diagnosis. A specifically predesigned proforma was used to collect socio- demographic profile, signs and symptoms of serologically diagnosed cases. The data were analyzed by using computer program SPSS 21. Results: The results of our study exposed that out of 576 suspected cases, 254 patients were serologically positive for Dengue fever. The highest number of cases (110 cases) was reported in the 3rd week of September. Maximum number of dengue cases reported were males belonging to 31-40 years age group from urban area. Fever was the main complaint in all the cases followed by vomiting, headache, and abdominal pain. Conclusion: Dengue is one of the major public health problems in developing countries like India. A large number of cases are reported in the monsoon and post-monsoon period in the month of September and October. Measures can be taken both at personal and government level to reduce morbidity and mortality from dengue. Keywords: Dengue, Epidemiology, Fever, Signs, Symptom