From past to present : building skill transfer in Tajikistan

Peer reviewe

An Empirical Investigation of Organizational Justice and Public Service Motivation through Employee Commitment

Despite a highly paid private sector why people eager to join public sector. For understanding this phenomena, it is important to understand the theory and practice of public service motivation. This study aimed to identify possible predictors of public service motivation and its underlying a mechanism from a multilevel perspective. This paper also analyzed the mediating role of organizational Commitment in the relationship between Public Service Motivation and organizational justice in public sector universities in Pakistan.  A survey method was employed to collect the data from the employees who are working in public universities. The detail about results, implication and limitations are also discussed at the end. Keywords: Public service motivation (PSM), organizational justice, organizational commitment, public secto

Economics of Wheat Production in Mohmand Agency, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

The central theme of this research endeavour was to compute the cost and net returns of wheat crop. This study has also highlighted the significant variables contributing in wheat productivity. The study universe was two focused villages namely Malok-Korona and Peer-Qila of Ekaghund Tehsil, Mohmand Agency. The proportional allocation sampling technique was used to get the required sample size of 70 respondents. However, 26 respondents from Malok-Korona and 44 respondents from Peer-Qila were interviewed through face to face interview technique. The marked findings of this study divulge that vast majority of the farmers (61.43%) were using certified seed and the study area was predominantly dependent upon rainfall as reported by 60 % of the respondents. It is further revealed that the mean cost of production incurred by the sampled growers was estimated as Rs. 30,000 per acre. Income trend observed by 70 per cent of the respondent through wheat crop was found Rs.40000 per acre. The average income of farmers through wheat crop was Rs.35286 per acre. The estimated results of regression analysis corroborate the expected sign of the majority of coefficient of explanatory variables. Among explanatory variables seed, irrigation and labor days were significant while urea and FYM were found insignificant for crop yield. The study recommends that attempts for awareness, supply of loans, inputs like fertilizer, pesticide, apt agriculture approaches, demonstration plots and training programs should be made available to farmers for higher wheat production in Mohmand Agency

Competitive Advantage of Broiler Production in District Mansehra

Poultry is an important sub sector of livestock and is ahead of all other sub sectors in economic growth. Broilers production is a specialized branch of poultry farming. This research was conducted in Mansehra is the region where considerable amount of commercial broiler production takes place. The region of the study has a high concentration of commercial activities, infrastructural facilities like veterinary care as well as climate that favor the production and marketing of poultry meat products. This research was conducted in nine villages of district Mansehra namely Kotli Pain, KotliBala, Kheil, Tanda, Bafa, Chatar Plain, Ahl, Batal and Mongandawraha. The purpose of the research was to analyze the competitive advantage of broiler farming. There were 276 broiler farms in District Mansehra. Simple Random Sampling Technique was used for data collection from 70 respondents. Average total cost of production was found Rs. 738238.11 having average farm size of 3605 broilers. Feed and one day old chick costs constitute 90.01% of the total cost. Average expenditure on production per broiler was Rs. 220.20 having net profit per broiler of Rs. 24.11.Based on Porter study (1990), average variable cost (C) was used as a proxy for competitive advantage. Results of regression analysis show that the main factors that significantly affect competitive advantage of broiler farming in the study area was feed cost, day old chick cost, labor and medication cost while capacity utilization and extension service contacts negatively and significantly affect cost. It means that reducing the above mentioned costs and using installed capacity and extension service contacts will reduce production cost and will promote competitive advantage of broiler production. Broiler production should be encouraged through better feed management practices and also by feeding broilers with nutritious feed. Broiler farmers should be encouraged to fully use their installed capacity of their farm

Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes and Their Prognostic Value in Cutaneous Melanoma.

Recent breakthroughs in tumor immunotherapy such as immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) antibodies, have demonstrated the capacity of the immune system to fight cancer in a number of malignancies such as melanoma and lung cancer. The numbers, localization and phenotypes of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) are not only predictive of response to immunotherapy but also key modulators of disease progression. In this review, we focus on TIL profiling in cutaneous melanoma using histopathological approaches and highlight the observed prognostic value of the primary TIL subsets. The quantification of TIL in formalin-fixed tumor samples ranges from visual scoring of lymphocytic infiltrates in H&E to multiplex immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence followed by enumeration using image analysis software. Nevertheless, TIL enumeration in the current literature primarily relies upon single marker immunohistochemistry analyses of major lymphocyte subsets such as conventional T cells (CD3, CD4, CD8), regulatory T cells (FOXP3) and B cells (CD20). We review key studies in the literature on associations between TIL subsets and patient survival. We also cover recent findings with respect to the existence of ectopic lymphoid aggregates found in the TME which are termed tertiary lymphoid structures (TLS) and are generally a positive prognostic feature. In addition to their prognostic significance, the existence of various TIL sub-populations has also been reported to predict a patient's response to ICB. Thus, the literature on the predictive potential of TIL subsets in melanoma patients receiving ICB has also been discussed. Finally, we describe recently developed state-of-the-art profiling approaches for tumor infiltrating immune cells such as digital pathology scoring algorithms (e.g., Immunoscore) and multiplex proteomics-based immunophenotyping platforms (e.g., imaging mass cytometry). Translating these novel technologies have the potential to revolutionize tumor immunopathology leading to altering our current understanding of cancer immunology and dramatically improving outcomes for patients

Cytotoxic, antibacterial activity and physico-chemical properties of some acid catalyzed Schiff bases

Some novel Schiff bases have been derived using aromatic aldehydes and aromatic amine in ethanol under acidic conditions. The geometry of these Schiff bases was established using various spectroscopic methods like infrared (IR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry. The conductivity studies reveal the non electrolytic behavior of Schiff bases. The synthesized Schiff bases were tested in vitro with the aim of identifying novel lead compounds active against various types of bacteria and shrimps.Keywords: Acid catalyzed, Schiff bases, NMR, antibacterial activity, brine shrim

High hypoxia status in pancreatic cancer is associated with multiple hallmarks of an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment

Introduction: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), the most common form of pancreatic cancer, is a particularly lethal disease that is often diagnosed late and is refractory to most forms of treatment. Tumour hypoxia is a key hallmark of PDAC and is purported to contribute to multiple facets of disease progression such as treatment resistance, increased invasiveness, metabolic reprogramming, and immunosuppression.Methods: We used the Buffa gene signature as a hypoxia score to profile transcriptomics datasets from PDAC cases. We performed cell-type deconvolution and gene expression profiling approaches to compare the immunological phenotypes of cases with low and high hypoxia scores. We further supported our findings by qPCR analyses in PDAC cell lines cultured in hypoxic conditions.Results: First, we demonstrated that this hypoxia score is associated with increased tumour grade and reduced survival suggesting that this score is correlated to disease progression. Subsequently, we compared the immune phenotypes of cases with high versus low hypoxia score expression (HypoxiaHI vs. HypoxiaLOW) to show that high hypoxia is associated with reduced levels of T cells, NK cells and dendritic cells (DC), including the crucial cDC1 subset. Concomitantly, immune-related gene expression profiling revealed that compared to HypoxiaLOW tumours, mRNA levels for multiple immunosuppressive molecules were notably elevated in HypoxiaHI cases. Using a Random Forest machine learning approach for variable selection, we identified LGALS3 (Galectin-3) as the top gene associated with high hypoxia status and confirmed its expression in hypoxic PDAC cell lines.Discussion: In summary, we demonstrated novel associations between hypoxia and multiple immunosuppressive mediators in PDAC, highlighting avenues for improving PDAC immunotherapy by targeting these immune molecules in combination with hypoxia-targeted drugs.<br/

In Vitro, Ex Vivo, and In Vivo Evaluation of Nanoparticle-Based Topical Formulation Against Candida albicans Infection

Ketoconazole is commonly used in the treatment of topical fungal infections. The therapy requires frequent application for several weeks. Systemic side effects, allergic reactions, and prolonged treatment are often associated with non-compliance and therapy failure. Hence, we developed an optimized topical antifungal gel that can prolong the release of drug, reduce systemic absorption, enhance its therapeutic effect, and improve patient compliance. Ketoconazole-loaded PLGA nanoparticles were prepared by the emulsion/ solvent evaporation method and were characterized with respect to colloidal properties, surface morphology, and drug entrapment efficiency. The optimized ketoconazole-loaded PLGA nanoparticles and commercially available silver nanoparticles were incorporated into a Carbopol 934P-NF gel base. This arrangement was characterized and compared with commercially available 2% ketoconazole cream to assess physical characteristics of the gel, in vitro drug release, ex vivo skin permeation and retention, and in vivo studies on Wister male albino rats. The results showed that polymeric PLGA nanoparticles were very effective in extending the release of ketoconazole in our optimized formulation. Nanoparticles were smooth, spherical in shape, and below 200 nm in size which is consistent with the data obtained from light scattering and SEM images. The ex vivo data showed that our gel formulation could strongly reduce drug permeation through the skin, and more than 60% of the drug was retained on the upper surface of the skin in contrast to 38.42% of the commercial cream. The in vivo studies showed that gel formulation could effectively treat the infection. This study demonstrates that our topical gel could be effective in sustaining the release of drug and suggests its potential use as a possible strategy to combat antifungal-resistant Candida albicans

Evaluating the Relationship between Work-Family Conflict & Organizational commitment (A Survey of Nursing Staff in Public Sector Hospitals of District Bhakkar, Pakistan)

Organizational commitment of workers has captured the attention of social-researchers. Many organizations are facing the problem of less commitment among employees. Little importance has been given to work–family conflict as one of the many causes of decreasing commitment towards the job. This research was undertaken to check the impact of three forms of work-family conflict (WFC): Time, Behavior and Strain-based, on organizational commitment of nurses in public sectors hospitals of District Bhakkar, Pakistan. Data was collected through survey approach by administering the questionnaires among 110 nurses. Tests of Correlation and regression showed that, WFC-Time was the most significant predictors of less organizational commitment. These findings suggests to the nurses to manage their work and family commitments responsibly. Key Words: Work family conflict, time, strain, behavior, Organizational commitment, affective, normative, continuance

Measuring oral health during pregnancy: Sensitivity and specificity of a maternal oral screening (MOS) tool

Background: Being the parent of a severely injured child involves many stressors throughout the trauma journey. Internationally, little is known about the experiences or levels of emotional distress, parenting stress, quality of life, and resilience for parents of injured children. The aim of this study is to investigate the experiences, unmet needs and outcomes of parents of physically injured children 0–12 years over the 2 year period following injury. Methods/design: This is a prospective longitudinal study using an embedded mixed methods design. This design has a primary qualitative strand which incorporates supplementary quantitative data on child quality of life, and parental quality of life, parenting stress, emotional distress, and resilience at four time points; the acute hospitalisation phase, and at 6, 12 and 24 months following injury. The primary sample are parents of injured children 0–12 years hospitalised in the Australian states of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and South Australia. Primary data sources are child and parent demographic data; survey data; and semi-structured interview data across a 24 month period. Discussion: This study aims to address the existing gap in knowledge on the experiences and unmet support needs of parents in the 2 years following child injury to provide guidance for care provision for these families. There is a lack of evidence-based recommendations for supporting parents and families of injured children and strengthening their capacity to address the challenges they face