Factors affecting in vitro plant regeneration from cotyledonary node explant of Senna sophera (L.) Roxb. – A highly medicinal legume

An efficient in vitro regeneration protocol has been developed for a medicinal legume Senna sophera (L.) Roxb. using Cotyledonary Node (CN) explants. The plant exhibits high medicinal potential and is being used in several traditional and homeopathy system of medicine. The present study described an in vitro regeneration protocol, where different factors were optimized for maximum multiplication and propagation. The age of the explant, plant growth regulators, basal medium, pH of the medium and sucrose concentrations markedly influenced in vitro propagation of S. sophera. Among 14, 21 and 28 day-old CN explants, 21 day-old explants were found to be the most responsive. A maximum of 19.50 ± 0.51 shoots/explant were produced from 21 day-old seedling explants, having an average shoot length of 5.23 ± 0.14 cm in 86.00 ± 2.08% cultures after 6 weeks of incubation on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with benzyl adenine (BA) (5.0 μM) + naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) (1.0 μM) and containing 3% sucrose with pH value adjusted at 5.8. The highest rooting frequency (96.00 ± 2.08%) with maximum of 7.63 ± 0.23 roots/shoot having an average root length of 4.86 ± 0.35 cm was obtained on half-strength MS medium with 1.0 μM indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) and solidified with 0.25% phytagel. The plantlets were acclimatized in sterile soilrite under controlled conditions, hardened and successfully transferred to soil in natural conditions with 90% survival rate. The regenerated plants showed no morphological variations in terms of leaf shape, flower shape, pod size, number of seeds etc., when compared with the naturally grown plants in the field.Keywords: Senna sophera, fabaceae, cotyledonary node, in vitro shoot regeneration, rooting, acclimatizationAfrican Journal of Biotechnology, Vol. 13(3), pp. 413-422, 15 January, 201

Attitude of Library Professionals towards Professional Development in Public Sector Universities of Pakistan

The study aims to measure the librarians’ opinions about different professional development activities, and investigates the attitude towards learning outcomes of Professional Development Courses PDCs. Quantitative research approach followed by survey design was adopted to meet set objectives of the study. The population of study was consisting upon university library professionals working in public sector HEC recognized universities of Lahore. Census sampling technique was applied. Professional librarians from 15 different universities participated in the study. Questionnaire was shaped to assess attitude of the participants towards PDCs. A total of 67 participants responded the questionnaire. Gathered data was analyzed through Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) Software. Findings of the study reveal that respondents had positive attitude towards HEC digital library resources, information retrieval techniques, training on research methods and information literacy programs Results showed that the PDCs developed new skills enhanced IT skills; satisfied users’ needs), and increased expertise in management. Significant differences were found in attitude of the respondents related to different statements of professional development based upon gender, designation, professional qualification and experience. This study is a valuable addition in body of literature and a benchmark for the university authorities to adopt PDCs for the implementation of user centered services

Optical Diagnostic of Dengue Virus Infected Human Blood using Raman, Polarimetric and Fluorescence Spectroscopy

In this chapter, we present the optical diagnosis of normal and dengue viral‐infected human blood using Raman, Polarimetric, Transmission, and Fluorescence Spectroscopic techniques. The possibility of using light in diagnosis and treating illness has been known for thousands of years. The properties of light and lasers provided many modern applications at home, in industry, and in the field of medicine. Laser use in the field of medicine is large and steadily growing. This growth is based on the versatility of laser light. Efficient and accurate diagnosis of dengue is of primary importance for clinical care. A range of laboratory diagnostic methods has been developed to support patient management and disease control. The choice of diagnostic method depends on the purpose for which the testing is done, the type of laboratory facilities and technical expertise available, costs, and the time of sample collection. The dengue viral infection is mostly diagnosed through laboratory tests; these tests include detection of the virus, virus antigen, anti‐dengue virus antibody, complement fixation test, neutralization tests, and detection of virus nucleic acid. As dengue infection most rapidly increases in different regions, early diagnostic confirmation of dengue infection in patients allows for timely clinical intervention, etiological investigation, and disease control. Hence, diagnosis of dengue disease during the acute phase should be a priority and is a public health concern. Lasers and optics have many applications in medical sciences; diagnosis and treatment of diseases with lasers and light are latest and noninvasive techniques. Development of light‐based apparatus has evolved into tools for improved diagnosis and treatment modalities in medical sciences. The methods of the laser spectroscopy make it possible to obtain direct information regarding the structure and dynamics of the functional groups of biomolecules. Development of new light sources, optics, and diode laser of different wavelengths makes them attractive for spectroscopy of biological molecules. In our study, more than 600 dengue viral‐infected blood or blood sera samples and 25 non‐dengue healthy blood samples were analyzed using four different optical methodologies. In the first study, Raman spectrum peaks for normal samples observed at 1527, 1170, and 1021 cm−1 show the presence of different biological materials, including lipids, carbohydrates, skeletal C–C stretch of acyl chains, and guanine. Raman peaks at 1467, 1316, 1083, and 860 cm−1 were observed in dengue‐infected patients, representing CH2/CH3 deformation of lipids and collagen, guanine, lipids, and protein peaks using 532 nm laser sources. In our second study, an optical diagnosis of dengue virus infection in the whole blood is presented utilizing Mueller matrix polarimetry. Mueller matrices were extracted using light source from 500 to 700 nm with scanning step of 10 nm. Polar decomposition of the Mueller matrices for all the blood samples was performed that yielded polarization properties including depolarization, diattenuation, degree of polarization, retardance and optical activity, out of which, depolarization index clusters up the diseased and healthy into different groups. The average depolarized light in the case of dengue infection in the whole blood decreases, whereas for the healthy blood samples it increased. This suggests that the depolarization index of the polarized light was at wavelengths 500–700 nm; in this case, we find that depolarization index values are higher for dengue viral infection when compared to normal samples. This technique can effectively be used for the characterization of the dengue virus infected at an early stage of the disease. In the third experiment, the transmission absorption spectra of dengue‐infected whole blood samples were observed in ultraviolet to near infrared range (400–800 nm) of about 30 conformed infected patients and were compared to normal blood samples. Transmitted spectra of dengue‐infected blood showed two strong spectrum peaks at 540 and 580 nm wavelength of illuminating light, whereas in case of normal blood below 600 nm total attenuation was observed. The two strong absorption peaks from 500 to 600 nm are characteristic of cell damage and dengue virus antibodies IgG and IgM produced against dengue antigen. In the last study, we report an optical diagnosis of dengue‐infected whole blood and controlled samples with Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy (LSCM) over a laser excitation of 488, 543, and 633 nm wavelength. Based on our findings, the system has potential applications in the detection and quantification of dengue virus‐infected cells, antigen, and antibodies in blood in vitro

Innovative machine vision technique for 2D/3Dcomplex and irregular surfaces modelling

Abstract—This study propose and demonstrates a novel technique incorporating multilayer perceptron (MLP) neural networks for feature extraction with Photometric stereo based image capture techniques for the analysis of complex and irregular 2D profiles and 3D surfaces. In order to develop the method and to ensure that it is capable of modelling non-axisymmetric and complex 2D/3D profiles, the network was initially trained and tested on 2D profiles, and subsequently using objects consisting of between 1 and 4 hemispherical 3D forms. To test the capability of the proposed model, random noise was added to 2D profiles.3D objects were coated with various degrees of coarsenesses(ranging from low-high). The gradient of each surface normalwas quantified in terms of the slant and tilt angles of the vector about the x and y axis respectively. The slant and tilt angles were obtained from the bump maps and these data were subsequently employed for training of a NN that had x and y as inputs and slant and tilt angles as outputs. The network employed had the following architecture: MLP and a Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm (LMA) for training the network for 12,000 epochs. At each point on the surface the network was consulted to predict slant and tilt and the actual slant and tilt was subtracted, giving a measure of surface irregularity. The network was able to model the underlying asymmetrical geometry with an accuracyregression analysis R-value of 0.93 for a single 3D hemispheres and 0.90 for four adjacent 3D non-axisymmetric hemispheres

Specification errors of asset-pricing models for a market characterized by few large capitalization firms

The evaluation for the specification errors of asset-pricing models is conducted using numerous characteristic portfolios for the Finnish stock market. The selection of the market is motivated by the atypical setting wherein few firms dominate the total market capitalization and small numbers of stocks are listed. We report diverging risk-returns trade-offs for the average tendencies of the stocks and for the actual growth in the invested stocks. We show Carhart (1997) model produces the smallest pricing errors across all the tested specifications although with different significant risk for EW and VW test portfolios. Deviations in the significant risk factors in the asset pricing tests becomes prevalent for using a simple technique of equally weighted (EW) and value weighted (VW) test assets. We suggest more cautious analyses for markets that have peculiar features instead of generalizing to standard evidence.peerReviewe

GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY-MASS SPECTROMETRY ANALYSIS OF METHANOLIC LEAF EXTRACT OF CASSIA ANGUSTIFOLIA VAHL.

ABSTRACTObjective: The leaves of Cassia angustifolia Vahl. are employed for the treatment of several human diseases. Therefore, the present study wasundertaken to determine the phytocomponents present in the methanolic extract of the leaves by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)Methods: The collected leaf samples were dried and extracted in methanol. Screening of the extract was done by GC-MS which is an importanttechnique for the separation and identification of different phytochemicals.Results: The methanolic extract of the leaves of C. angustifolia revealed the presence of 45 different phytochemicals. The prevailing compounds were1 butanol, 3 methyl acetate (area % 7.47), 6, 6-dideutero-nonen-1-Ol-3 (area % 10.45), pentadecanoic acid (area % 9.22), and squalene (area %12.30). Vitamin E (area % 3.85) has also been found in the leaf extract. Some of the compounds possess biological activities.Conclusions: It can be concluded from the present study that some of the identified phytochemicals could be responsible for the medicinal value orbiological activity of the plant leaves.Keywords: Senna, Leaf extract, Methanol, Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, Phytochemicals, Vitamin E

Craniocerebral aspergillosis: A review of advances in diagnosis and management

Craniocerebral aspergillosis is a rare but dangerous central nervous system infection. The infection has a spectrum of presenting features, mostly affecting immunocompromised individuals. The incidence appears to be on the rise that has been especially observed in the immunocompetent population. A high index of suspicion, a comprehensive understanding of the infectious process and advanced laboratory and radiological diagnostic techniques, allow early diagnosis. Surgery, followed by systemic antifungal medications, remains the cornerstone of management. Early administration of empirical anti-fungal agents along with immunomodulators may further improve prognosis. Immunocompetent patients tend to have better outcomes as compared to those who are immunocompromised. Patients with intradural disease carry the worst prognosis

Comparison of antibacterial activity of parent plant of Tylophora indica Merr. with its in vitro raised plant and leaf callus

The antibacterial potential of an endangered medicinal plant Tylophora indica was analyzed by agar well diffusion method and its activity was compared with that of its in vitro raised plant and callus. The extracts of parent plant of T. indica showed good antibacterial activity against gram negative bacteria only; whereas, the extracts from in vitro raised plant and leaf callus showed good activity against both gram positive and gram negative bacteria. Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) of the alcoholic leaf extract of in vitro raised plant was determined by broth microdilution method. MIC against gram positive bacteria ranged from 3.05 to 12.0 μg/ml and MIC against gram negative bacteria ranged from 1.53 to 24.0 μg/ml. The present study leads to conclusion that extracts of T. indica contains good antibacterial activity which can be used in the treatment of various infections showing resistance to treatment by currently used antimicrobial agents. As the in vitro raised plant and callus gave better results as compared to parent plant, in vitro cultivation of explants may be used to obtain novel antibacterial compounds. This is the first report on antibacterial activity of T. indica through in vitro raised plant and its callus.Keywords: Tylophora indica, in vitro raised plant and callus, antibacterial activityAfrican Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(31), pp. 4891-489

Skills of ICTs among Library Professionals of South Punjab

The study aimed to explore the skills, knowledge, abilities, and competencies of library professionals working in the academic libraries of public sector universities and private sector universities located in south Punjab. Library professionals working in the libraries of public sector universities and private sector universities were the population of the study. Convenience sampling technique was used to meet the objectives of the study. Quantitative research technique followed by the questionnaire as a data collection tool was used to accomplish the research. The findings of the study revealed that ICT is an essential part of the libraries and librarians are there to perform library operations to facilitate the library users of their respective libraries. It is the basic necessity of the present age to learn new skills, abilities, and competencies related to ICTs to survive in the profession of librarianship. Training courses about ICT are an effort to enhance the skills of library professionals. Library associations can play an important role in uplifting the trainings regarding ICTs

Barriers for the Adoption of Professional Development Courses (PDCs) in Public Sector University Libraries

Objective: The purpose of the study was to explore the major problems of Library Professionals working in the academic libraries of public sector universities regarding participation in Professional Development Courses (PDCs). Methodology: Public sector Universities affiliated with Higher Education Commission (HEC) Pakistan, located in Lahore, Pakistan were the target population. The Census sampling technique was adopted to accomplish the objectives of the conducted study. 67 respondents participated in the study. A quantitative research technique was used in the study. A self-created questionnaire was used to collect the data. Key Findings: The findings of the study revealed that a good number of respondents were willing to participate in development activities. But, due to numerous hurdles included shortage of library staff, poor allocation of budget for development activities and non-interesting attitude of organizational administration towards the professional development of Library professionals were the major barriers towards professional development activities. Rationale and Significance: Past literature indicated that no study was conducted covering the objective of barriers in professional development. No researcher made the proper investigation in the local scenario. It was highly desired to explore the barriers in participating in professional development activities in the local context. Implication: This study would contribute to the professional literature. It will also assist policy makers to take initiatives for the capacity building of library professionals