Synthesis and characterization of silver nanoarticles from extract of Eucalyptus citriodora

The primary motivation for the study to develop simple eco-friendly green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using leaf extract of Eucalyptus citriodora as reducing and capping agent. The green synthesis process was quite fast and silver nanoparticles were formed within 0.5 h. The synthesis of the particles was observed by UV-visible spectroscopy by noting increase in absorbance. Characterization of the particles was carried out by X-ray diffraction, FTIR and electron microscopy. The developed nanoparticles demonstrated that E. citriodora is good source of reducing agents. UV-visible absorption spectra of the reaction medium containing silver nanoparticles showed maximum absorbance at 460 nm. FTIR analysis confirmed reduction of Ag+ to Ag0 atom in silver nanoparticles. The XRD pattern revealed the crystalline structure of silver nanoparticles. The SEM analysis showed the size and shape of the nanoparticles. The method being green, fast, easy and cost effective can be recommended for large scale production of AgNPs for their use in food, medicine and materials

Insecticidal, brine shrimp cytotoxicity, antifungal and nitric oxide free radical scavenging activities of the aerial parts of Myrsine africana L.

The crude methanolic extract and various fractions derived from the aerial parts of Myrsine africana were screened in vitro for possible insecticidal, antifungal, brine shrimp lethality and nitric oxide free radical scavenging activities. Low insecticidal activity (20 %) was shown by chloroform (CHCl3) and aqueous fractions against Tribolium castaneum and Rhizopertha dominica, respectively. Good cytotoxic activity (66.66 %) was shown by the n-hexane fraction of the plant at 1000 μg/ml. The rest of the fractions showed low lethality at higher doses. No antifungal activity was observed for the crude extract and fractions screened against various fungal strains. The plant crude extract and fractions showed a concentration dependent nitric oxide free radical scavenging activity.Key words: Myrsine africana, insecticidal, brine shrimp lethality, antifungal and nitric oxide free radical scavenging assay

Anti-inflammatory activity and a new compound isolated from aerial parts of Myrsine africana

A new compound was isolated from the ethyl acetate (EtOAc) fraction of the aerial parts of Myrsine africana. The compound was eluted with mobile phase of EtOAc and n-hexane at a ratio of 0.2:9.8. The structure of the compound was identified with the help of 13C-NMR, 1H-NMR, heteronuclear multiple bond correlation (HMBC), heteronuclear multiple quantum coherence (HMQC), nuclear overhauser effect spectroscopy (NOESY) and correlation spectroscopy (COSY). The crude methanolic extract and various fractions of the aerial parts of the plant were also screened for anti-inflammatory activity. The EtOAc and n-hexane fractions of the plant showed moderate (44.8 and 40.9%, respectively) antiinflammatory activity, while the rest of the fractions and crude extract showed low activity at concentration of 500 μg/ml against human neutrophils.Key words: Myrsine africana, anti-inflammatory activity, indomethacin

Prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in Pakistan and implications for the future

Background and aims: Vitamin D deficiency (25-hydroxyvitamin D - VitDD) affects over one billion people worldwide. VitDD results in progression of osteoporosis as well as other conditions. Previous studies have shown high rates of VitDD in Pakistan despite appreciable levels of sunshine. However, none have assessed VitDD across all age groups, genders, incomes and locations to guide future strategies. Methods: Questionnaire and blood sampling among 4830 randomly selected citizens. Results: High levels of VitDD among all age groups, genders, income levels and locations. 53.5% had VitDD, 31.2% had insufficient Vitamin D and only 15.3% normal Vitamin D. Conclusion: High rates of VitDD in Pakistan despite high levels of sunshine and previous Food Acts asking for food fortification with Vitamin D. Public health strategies are needed to address high VitDD rates, including food fortification, i.e. nurture, alongside increasing exposure to sunlight, i.e. nature. This will involve all key stakeholder groups

Uvođenje novog katetera u cistostomiji kliničkih slučajeva opstruktivne urolitijaze u goveda.

The present study was carried out to evaluate a simple innovative tube cystostomy technique for the management of bovine clinical cases of obstructive urolithiais. The materials of this study formed 20 clinical cases of obstructive urolithiasis, equally and randomly distributed in two groups. Diagnosis of the disease was made on the basis of a history of anuria, clinical signs, radiographic and ultrasonographic examinations. The confirmed cases of obstructive urolithiasis were managed by two surgical techniques, i.e., tube cystostomy with Foley’s catheter (group A) and tube cystostomy with simple polyvinyl chloride catheter tubing (group B). In all the animals litholytic agents, anti-infl ammatory drugs and antibiotics, along with urine acidifiers, were given. The surgical techniques were evaluated on the basis of clinical, haematobiochemical parameters, and postoperative surgical complications. Duration of surgery and overall success rate were also recorded in each group. Haematobiochemical alterations returned to normalcy more quickly in the animals of group A as compared to those of group B. The survival rate was similar in the animals of both the groups; however complications like catheter blockade were found more often in group A animals. Tube cystostomy with polyvinyl chloride tubing may be a feasible method for the management of obstructive urolithiasis in field conditions. It needs more refinement and further evaluation before its recommendation for in field use.Ovo istraživanje bilo je provedeno radi prosudbe vrijednosti novoga jednostavnoga postupka cistostomije pri obradi kliničkih slučajeva opstruktivne urolitijaze u goveda. Dvadeset goveda s klinički dokazanom opstruktivnom urolitijazom bilo je nasumce podijeljeno u dvije skupine po deset goveda. Dijagnoza je bila postavljena na osnovi podataka o anuriji, prisutnim kliničkim znakovima te na osnovi radiografske i ultrazvučne pretrage. Potvrđeni slučajevi opstruktivne urolitijaze bili su obrađeni dvama kirurškim postupcima: cistostomijom kod koje je bio rabljen Foleyev kateter (skupina A) i uporabom jednostavnoga polivinil-kloridnoga katetera (skupina B). Svima životinjama bile su primijenjene litolitičke tvari, protuupalni lijekovi, antibiotici i sredstva za zakiseljavanje mokraće. Kirurške tehnike bile su vrednovane na osnovi kliničkih, hematoloških i biokemijskih pokazatelja i postoperativnih kirurških komplikacija. Za svaku skupinu uzeto je u obzir trajanje operacije i njezina uspješnost. Promjene u hematološkim i biokemijskim pokazateljima brže su se vratile na normalne vrijednosti u životinja skupine A u odnosu na skupinu B. Stopa preživljavanja bila je slična u životinja obiju skupina. Međutim, komplikacije poput začepljenja katetera bile su češće u životinja skupine A. Cistostomija pri kojoj je rabljen polivinil-kloridni kateter lako je izvediva metoda za obradu opstruktivne urolitijaze u terenskim uvjetima. Ipak, prije preporuke za terensku uporabu nužno je njezino daljnje usavršavanje

Factors associated with low birthweight in term pregnancies: A matched case-control study from rural Pakistan

Low birthweight (LBW) remains a significant public health problem in Pakistan and further understanding of factors associated with LBW is required. We conducted a hospital-based matched case control study to identify risk factors associated with LBW in a rural district of Pakistan. We found that illiteracy (AOR: 2.68; 95% CI: 1.59 - 4.38), nulliparity (AOR: 1.82; 95% CI: 1.26-2.44), having a previous miscarriage/abortion (AOR: 1.22; 95% CI: 1.06-2.35), having \u3c 2 antenatal care (ANC) visits during last pregnancy (AOR: 2.43; 95% CI: 1.34-2.88), seeking ANC in third trimester (AOR: 3.62; 95% CI : 2.14-5.03), non-use of iron folic acid during last pregnancy (AOR: 2.72; 95% CI: 1.75-3.17), having hypertension during last pregnancy (AOR: 1.42; 95% CI: 1.13-2.20), being anemic (AOR: 2.67; 95% CI: 1.65-5.24) and having postpartum weight o

Effect of tannery effluents on seed germination and growth of two sunflower cultivars

The wastewater of a tannery in Multan, Pakistan, was alkaline with high biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) values along with much higher concentrations of total settle able salts and suspended solids, sodium adsorption ratio and high amount of sodium having the water quality class C3S1. Effluent was examined for its chemical constituents and the effect of its various dilutions was examined in greenhouse on two newly recommended sunflower cultivars (FH-330 and FH- 245) during their whole growth period. Percentage of germination, chlorophyll, carbohydrates and protein contents of both the sunflower cultivars showed significant (p = 0.05) decreasing trend with increasing effluent concentrations. Vegetative growth parameters like plant height and number of leaves per plant were significantly (p = 0.05) reduced with the increasing levels of effluents. Rate of leaf senescence of both cultivars was higher under higher effluent concentrations. Yield of sunflower crop in both cultivars was significantly (p = 0.05) reduced due to effluent concentrations. Seeds per capitulum were decreased to 49%, seeds weight per plant to 61 - 66% and 100-seed weight to 49 - 59%. The appearance of pale yellowish color of the affected plants was due to reduction in photosynthetic material under higher effluent concentration. Full strength effluent concentration caused the reduction in biomass accumulation and reproductive growth of sunflower cultivars. The results revealed that cultivar FH-330 was relatively resistant to varying effluent concentrations as compared to the cultivar FH- 245. However, the tannery effluents due to the presence of chemicals are not suitable for inclusion in irrigation system.Key words: Tannery effluents, sunflower, seed germination, growth, adverse effect, reduced yield

Optimal Haptic Communications over Nanonetworks for E-Health Systems

A Tactile Internet-based nanonetwork is an emerging field that promises a new range of e-health applications, in which human operators can efficiently operate and control devices at the nanoscale for remote-patient treatment. A haptic feedback is inevitable for establishing a link between the operator and unknown in-body environment. However, haptic communications over the terahertz band may incur significant path loss due to molecular absorption. In this paper, we propose an optimization framework for haptic communications over nanonetworks, in which in-body nanodevices transmit haptic information to an operator via the terahertz band. By considering the properties of the terahertz band, we employ Brownian motion to describe the mobility of the nanodevices and develop a time-variant terahertz channel model. Furthermore, based on the developed channel model, we construct a stochastic optimization problem for improving haptic communications under the constraints of system stability, energy consumption, and latency. To solve the formulated nonconvex stochastic problem, an improved time-varying particle swarm optimization algorithm is presented, which can deal with the constraints of the problem efficiently by reducing the convergence time significantly. The simulation results validate the theoretical analysis of the proposed system

The family planning know-do gap among married women of reproductive age in urban Pakistan

Objective: To examine the prevalence and predictors of family planning (FP) know-do gaps among married women of reproductive age (MWRA) in low socio-economic urban areas of Karachi, Pakistan.Design: This was a cross-sectional survey of randomly selected 7288 MWRA (16-49 years) to identify predictors of the know-do gap in FP using a logistic regression model.Results: More than one third (35.5%) of MWRA had FP know-do gap, i.e., despite having a knowledge of contraceptives and desire to limit or delay childbearing, they were not using contraceptives. Women were less likely to use FP if they were getting older (25-35 years: OR 1.45, 95% CI 1.09-1.94; \u3e35 years: OR 3.02, 95% CI 1.90-4.80), from certain ethnicities (Sindhi: OR 1.64, 95% CI 1.11-2.42; Saraiki: OR 1.66, 95% CI 1.01-2.71; other minorities: OR 2.37, 95% CI 1.63-3.44); did not receive FP counselling: OR 1.43, 95% CI 1.13-1.80; and had not made a joint decision on FP: OR 1.44, 95% CI 1.06-1.98). Conversely, women were more likely to use contraceptives if they had \u3e10 years of schooling (OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.46-0.94), with each increasing number of a living child (OR 0.68, 95% CI 0.62-0.75) and each increasing number of contraceptive method known (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.88-0.98).Conclusion: The predictors associated with the FP know-do gap among MWRA should be considered when planning future strategies to improve the contraceptive prevalence rate in Pakistan