Molecular epidemiology of Shigella flexneri isolated from pediatrics in a diarrhea-endemic area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Shigella flexneri is considered as an important causative agent of Shigellosis causing diarrhea in the countries with a low socioeconomic status. No study has been carried out on the molecular prevalence of S. flexneri in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. So this study was designed to evaluate the molecular prevalence of S. flexneri and their associated risk factors. A total of 2014 diarrheal stool samples were collected from January 2016 to May 2017 from pediatrics patients of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa followed by identification of S. flexneri through biochemical, serological, and molecular methods. The overall prevalence of Shigella species was found to be 7.9% (n = 160). The predominant Shigella specie was S. flexneri (n = 155, 96.8%) followed by S. boydii (n = 5, 3.1%). Interestingly, no sample was found positive for S. sonnei and S. dysenteriae. The majority of Shigellosis cases occurred from June to September. Potential risk factors related with Shigellosis were unhygienic latrine usage, bad hand washing, and consumption of unhygienic food and water, and pipe leakage in the sewage system. In this study, we have observed a high number of Shigellosis cases especially those caused by S. flexneri. It is suggested that effective health awareness programs should be organized by the regional health authorities to minimize the magnitude of pediatrics Shigellosis

Analysis of Security Attacks & Taxonomy in Underwater Wireless Sensor Networks

Abstract: Underwater Wireless Sensor Networks (UWSN) have gained more attention from researchers in recent years due to their advancement in marine monitoring, deployment of various applications, and ocean surveillance. The UWSN is an attractive field for both researchers and the industrial side. Due to the harsh underwater environment, own capabilities, open acoustic channel, it's also vulnerable to malicious attacks and threats. Attackers can easily take advantage of these characteristics to steal the data between the source and destination. Many review articles are addressed some of the security attacks and Taxonomy of the Underwater Wireless Sensor Networks. In this study, we have briefly addressed the Taxonomy of the UWSNs from the most recent research articles related to the well-known research databases. This paper also discussed the security threats on each layer of the Underwater Wireless sensor networks. This study will help the researcher’s design the routing protocols to cover the known security threats and help industries manufacture the devices to observe these threats and security issues

Whole genome sequencing of drug resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates from a high burden tuberculosis region of North West Pakistan

Tuberculosis (TB), caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria, is a leading infectious cause of mortality worldwide, including in Pakistan. Drug resistant M. tuberculosis is an emerging threat for TB control, making it important to detect the underlying genetic mutations, and thereby inform treatment decision making and prevent transmission. Whole genome sequencing has emerged as the new diagnostic to reliably predict drug resistance within a clinically relevant time frame, and its deployment will have the greatest impact on TB control in highly endemic regions. To evaluate the mutations leading to drug resistance and to assess for evidence of the transmission of resistant strains, 81 M. tuberculosis samples from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province (North West Pakistan) were subjected to whole genome sequencing and standard drug susceptibility testing for eleven anti-TB drugs. We found the majority of M. tuberculosis isolates were the CAS/Delhi strain-type (lineage 3; n = 57; 70.4%) and multi-drug resistant (MDR; n = 62; 76.5%). The most frequent resistance mutations were observed in the katG and rpoB genes, conferring resistance to isoniazid and rifampicin respectively. Mutations were also observed in genes conferring resistance to other first and second-line drugs, including in pncA (pyrazinamide), embB (ethambutol), gyrA (fluoroquinolones), rrs (aminoglycosides), rpsL, rrs and giB (streptomycin) loci. Whilst the majority of mutations have been reported in global datasets, we describe unreported putative resistance markers in katG, ethA (ethionamide), gyrA and gyrB (fluoroquinolones), and pncA. Analysis of the mutations revealed that acquisition of rifampicin resistance often preceded isoniazid in our isolates. We also observed a high proportion (17.6%) of pre-MDR isolates with fluoroquinolone resistance markers, potentially due to unregulated anti-TB drug use. Our isolates were compared to previously sequenced strains from Pakistan in a combined phylogenetic tree analysis. The presence of lineage 2 was only observed in our isolates. Using a cut-off of less than ten genome-wide mutation differences between isolates, a transmission analysis revealed 18 M. tuberculosis isolates clustering within eight networks, thereby providing evidence of drug-resistant TB transmission in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Overall, we have demonstrated that drug-resistant TB isolates are circulating and transmitted in North West Pakistan. Further, we have shown the usefulness of whole genome sequencing as a diagnostic tool for characterizing M. tuberculosis isolates, which will assist future epidemiological studies and disease control activities in Pakistan

FEDRP Based Model Implementation of Intelligent Energy Management Scheme for a Residential Community in Smart Grids Network

ABSTRACT In the framework of liberalized deregulated electricity market, dynamic competitive environment exists between wholesale and retail dealers for energy supplying and management. Smart Grids topology in form of energy management has forced power supplying agencies to become globally competitive. Demand Response (DR) Programs in context with smart energy network have influenced prosumers and consumers towards it. In this paper Fair Emergency Demand Response Program (FEDRP) is integrated for managing the loads intelligently by using the platform of Smart Grids for Residential Setup. The paper also provides detailed modeling and analysis of respective demands of residential consumers in relation with economic load model for FEDRP. Due to increased customer's partaking in this program the load on the utility is reduced and managed intelligently during emergency hours by providing fair and attractive incentives to residential clients, thus shifting peak load to off peak hours. The numerical and graphical results are matched for intelligent energy management scenario

An enhanced pattern detection and segmentation of brain tumors in MRI images using deep learning technique

Neuroscience is a swiftly progressing discipline that aims to unravel the intricate workings of the human brain and mind. Brain tumors, ranging from non-cancerous to malignant forms, pose a significant diagnostic challenge due to the presence of more than 100 distinct types. Effective treatment hinges on the precise detection and segmentation of these tumors early. We introduce a cutting-edge deep-learning approach employing a binary convolutional neural network (BCNN) to address this. This method is employed to segment the 10 most prevalent brain tumor types and is a significant improvement over current models restricted to only segmenting four types. Our methodology begins with acquiring MRI images, followed by a detailed preprocessing stage where images undergo binary conversion using an adaptive thresholding method and morphological operations. This prepares the data for the next step, which is segmentation. The segmentation identifies the tumor type and classifies it according to its grade (Grade I to Grade IV) and differentiates it from healthy brain tissue. We also curated a unique dataset comprising 6,600 brain MRI images specifically for this study. The overall performance achieved by our proposed model is 99.36%. The effectiveness of our model is underscored by its remarkable performance metrics, achieving 99.40% accuracy, 99.32% precision, 99.45% recall, and a 99.28% F-Measure in segmentation tasks

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices towards COVID-19 during the Rapid Rise Period: A Cross-Sectional Survey among Public University Students of Bangladesh

Bangladesh has experienced long term COVID-19 impact in the education sector where university students have suffered a lot. This cross-sectional study intended to evaluate the health behavior of public university students towards the COVID-19. The convenience sampling technique was employed during the rapid COVID-19 period. A total of 952 public university students participated in the KAP survey. Statistical analyses were performed depending on the data type. Study population demonstrated exemplary COVID-19 knowledge along with positive attitudes and preventive practices towards the COVID-19. Gender, university year, and major were determined as associating factors with their overall KAP. Female students reported better knowledge and practice regarding COVID-19 than their counterpart male students. Students living in the capital Dhaka city did not show positive attitudes towards COVID-19 compared to the students living outside the city. Students who were without their families demonstrated better attitudes compared to the students with their families. Broadcast media, print media, the internet, university, and social media were identified as sources of COVID-19 precautionary measures information for these students. Students showed better knowledge and attitude levels when used print media and university respectively compared to the students who used surrounding people as a source of information. This study enhances our understanding of the health behavior of public university students of Bangladesh. It has also determined the associating factors with their KAP level. The outcome of this study can assist the government, organizations, and the university to prepare for a comprehensive pandemic control effort.   Doi: 10.28991/SciMedJ-2021-0302-4 Full Text: PD

Between Qasbas and Cities: Language Shifts and Literary Continuities in North India in the Long Eighteenth Century

The cultural memory of Awadh is almost exclusively identified with Urdu poetry and courtesan culture, and already in the colonial period it came to stand as the epitome of the “last phase of Oriental culture” (‘Abdul Halim Sharar). But if instead of taking a retrospective, nostalgic view we approach literary culture in Awadh prospectively and multilingually and broaden our lens to consider not just the capitals, Faizabad and Lucknow, but also the qasbas (small towns), the small rural courts, the nearby growing city of Banaras, and the colonial capital of Calcutta, a different set of literary dynamics and shifts comes into view. The prevalent image of Awadh as identified with Urdu and Lucknow is not wrong, of course, but it does obscure the other stories, trajectories, and languages. This essay considers some of them. A multilingual and prospective approach helps us consider the circulation of literary tastes across the colonial divide and recognize the production of forgetfulness and ignorance that accompanied modern narratives of languages and literary histories, both colonial and Indian, and that made a host of texts “homeless” (Mohamad Tavakoli-Targhi)

Author Correction: Characterization of rifampicin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

The original version of this Article contained an error in the spelling of the author Otavio Cabral-Marques which was incorrectly given as Otavio Marques Cabral. The original Article has been corrected

Does health intervention improve socioeconomic inequalities of neonatal, infant and child mortality? Evidence from Matlab, Bangladesh

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Although there are wide variations in mortality between developed and developing countries, socioeconomic inequalities in health exist in both the societies. The study examined socioeconomic inequalities of neonatal, infant and child mortality using data from the Matlab Health and Demographic Surveillance System of the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Four birth cohorts (1983–85, 1988–90, 1993–95, 1998–00) were followed for five years for death and out-migration in two adjacent areas (ICDDR,B-service and government-service) with similar socioeconomic but differ health services. Based on asset quintiles, inequality was measured through both poor-rich ratio and concentration index.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The study found that the socioeconomic inequalities of neonatal, infant and under-five mortality increased over time in both the ICDDR,B-service and government-service areas but it declined substantially for 1–4 years in the ICDDR,B- service area.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The study concluded that usual health intervention programs (non-targeted) do not reduce poor-rich gap, rather the gap increases initially but might decrease in long run if the program is very intensive.</p