Effect of climate change on horticultural crops

The effect of global warming is now visible in many parts of the world. Abnormality in climate patterns, induced by accelerated warming, has started to affect a catchment-specific hydrologic cycle. Higher temperatures lead to a high rate of evaporation and dry conditions in some areas of the world. Severe weather events are now more common. Scientists believe that rapid warming in the last several decades is mostly due to human-induced changes in the atmosphere, on top of some natural variations. Impacts of climate change are complex as they can be both direct and indirect, the biggest casualty being natural resources such as agriculture. Agriculture is a carefully manipulated ecological system, the productivity of which could increase because higher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere could allow a higher rate of photosynthesis. However, many interacting factors are at work. At higher levels of warming, estimated monetary impacts generally become negative, and studies, allowing for disastrous possibilities, can reach high negative outcomes. Moreover, the perennial plants (mostly fruit plants) are at more risk than annuals or seasonals

Causes and prevention of cherry cracking: a review

Cherry fruit is considered to be quite sensitive to cracking and is the major limiting factor for profitable cherry production in most of the cherry-producing regions of the world. At times, the cracking severity can reach up to 90 %. Although most of the fruit cracking is attributed to direct and possibly localized water uptake through the fruit skin, there are many other interactive factors that can contribute to cracking including the variety grown, skin properties, climate, and so on. The cracking in cherry has been categorized in three distinct forms: stem end cuticular fractures, nose or apical cracking, and the third, side cracking, which is a large crack usually deep into the pulp on the cheek of the fruit and is considered to be most damaging. The type of the crack developed may depend on the particular etiological factor and the shape of the fruit. However, the problem can be minimized to a great extent by knowing the cause and accordingly, adapting certain management practices, of which irrigation management, protective covers, and mineral supplements are of prime consideration

Prevalence of chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus, and association with sleep quality among hemodialysis patients in Pakistan.

BackgroundThe prevalence of chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus (CKD-aP) varies from 22% to 84% among patients receiving hemodialysis. It occurs more frequently at night, and often affects patient's sleep quality. CKD-aP is often unreported by patients, and many do not receive effective treatment. There is, however, a paucity of available data on the prevalence and impact of CKD-aP on patients receiving hemodialysis in Pakistan.MethodsA multicenter cross-sectional study was undertaken from July 2016 to April 2017 at a tertiary care hospitals in Pakistan.Results354 patients undergoing hemodialysis were studied. 35.6% had CKD for 1-2 years, and 42.4% were receiving hemodialysis for 1-2 years. The prevalence of pruritus was 74%. The median [interquartile range] score for pruritus was 10.0 (out of possible 25) [8.0-12.0]; while the median [interquartile range] Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) score was 8.0 (out of possible 21) [7.0-10.0]'. Pruritus was significantly correlated with the sleep score (r = 0.423, pConclusionsChronic kidney disease-associated pruritus is very common in patients receiving hemodialysis in Pakistan. Pruritus is significantly associated with poor sleep quality

NEUROSCAN: Revolutionizing Brain Tumor Detection Using Vision-Transformer

 Brain tumor detection is a pivotal component of neuroimaging, with significant implications for clinical diagnosis and patient care. In this study, we introduce an innovative deep-learning approach that leverages the cutting-edge Vision Transformer model, renowned for its ability to capture complex patterns and dependencies in images. Our dataset, consisting of 3000 images evenly split between tumor and non-tumor classes, serves as the foundation for our methodology. Employing Vision Transformer architecture, we processed high-resolution brain scans through patching and self-attention mechanisms. The model is trained through supervised learning to perform binary classification tasks. Our employed model achieved a high of 98.37% in tumor detection. While interpretability analysis was not explicitly performed, the inherent use of attention mechanisms in the Vision Transformer model suggests a focus on important brain regions and enhances its potential for prioritizing crucial information in brain tumor detection

NEUROSCAN: Revolutionizing Brain Tumor Detection Using Vision-Transformer

 Brain tumor detection is a pivotal component of neuroimaging, with significant implications for clinical diagnosis and patient care. In this study, we introduce an innovative deep-learning approach that leverages the cutting-edge Vision Transformer model, renowned for its ability to capture complex patterns and dependencies in images. Our dataset, consisting of 3000 images evenly split between tumor and non-tumor classes, serves as the foundation for our methodology. Employing Vision Transformer architecture, we processed high-resolution brain scans through patching and self-attention mechanisms. The model is trained through supervised learning to perform binary classification tasks. Our employed model achieved a high of 98.37% in tumor detection. While interpretability analysis was not explicitly performed, the inherent use of attention mechanisms in the Vision Transformer model suggests a focus on important brain regions and enhances its potential for prioritizing crucial information in brain tumor detection

The association between CKD-associated pruritus and quality of life in patients undergoing hemodialysis in Pakistan:A STROBE complaint cross-sectional study

Chronic kidney disease (CKD)-associated pruritus is one of the most common symptoms found in patients who undergo dialysis for CKD, leading to a compromised quality of life. This study aimed to investigate the association between CKD-associated pruritus and the quality of life in patients undergoing hemodialysis in Pakistan. A cross-sectional multicenter study was carried out from July 2016 to April 2017 in 2 tertiary care hospitals in Pakistan. Patients aged 18 years and above of both genders, undergoing hemodialysis, understood the Urdu language, and were willing to participate; were included. Of 354 recruited patients with a response rate of 100%, majority (66.1%) of the patients were males. The median (intra-quartile range [IQR]) age of patients was 42.0 [34.0-50.0] years. The prevalence of pruritus was 74%. The median [IQR] score for pruritus was 10.0 (out of possible 25) [8.0-12.0]. Multivariate linear regression revealed a statistically significant association between CKD-associated pruritus with age of patients (β=0.031; 95% confidence interval [CI]=0.002-0.061; P=.038), duration of CKD (β=-0.013; 95% CI=-0.023 - 0.003; P=.014) and quality of life (β= -0.949; 95% CI=-1.450; -0.449). The median [IQR] score for health-related quality of life was 52.00 [43.00-58.00].Prevalence of CKD-associated pruritus was reported to be 74% and it negatively affected the patient's quality of life. Patients with moderate to severe CKD-associated pruritus have poor quality of life. With an increase in intensity of pruritus, the QOL score decreased among the patients undergoing hemodialysis. Copyright © 2019 the Author(s)