Allelic variation at the Vrn-A1, Vrn-B1, Vrn-D1, Vrn-B3 and Ppd-D1a loci of Pakistani spring wheat cultivars

Flowering time in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is controlled by vernalization and photoperiod response, and earliness per se genes. The genetic basis of flowering time has not been investigated in Pakistani bread wheat. This study was, therefore, conducted to determine the allelic composition at Vrn-A1, Vrn-B1, Vrn-D1, Vrn-B3 and Ppd-D1a loci of 59 Pakistani spring bread wheat cultivars. These cultivars, along with 4 isogenic lines for vernalization genes were characterized with previously reported DNA markers designed for detecting allelic variation at 4 Vrn (Vernalization) and 1 Ppd (Photoperiod) loci. Spring habit Vrn-A1a allele was found in 36% cultivars either alone or with spring habit Vrn-B1 and Vrn-D1 alleles. Two wheat cultivars had the dominant Vrn-A1c allele, whereas none of the cultivars had Vrn-A1b. Spring habit Vrn-B1 was the most frequent allele (64%) present either alone or with Vrn-A1a, Vrn-A1c and Vrn-D1. Spring habit Vrn-D1 was found in 61% cultivars. Vrn-D1 was singly found in 25% cultivars and along with Vrn-B1 in 29% cultivars. Dominant Vrn-B3 was absent in all cultivars studied. All cultivars except Era had the photoperiod insensitive allele Ppd-D1a. We did not find any association between the flowering time and Vrn allelic composition of the studied cultivars. This indicated that the partial vernalization requirement of cultivars with Vrn-B1 and Vrn-D1 alleles is probably fulfilled during Pakistani growing season. Earliness per se and the photoperiod sensitive loci other than Ppd-D1 need to be investigated to further understand the genetic basis of flowering time in Pakistani wheat

ANALYSIS OF URDU LANGUAGE COLLECTION IN UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES OF LAHORE, PAKISTAN

Mother language and national language play pivotal role in the educational developments of the nations. Much importance is being awarded for the promotion of these languages all over the world as well as inPakistan. National languages are considered as official languages in many of the countries. In this regard recently the Government of Pakistan and courts ruled out the implementation of Urdu as official language. Quantitative research method followed by survey was opted for the completion of this study. Two separate questionnaires were used to get the relevant data from the respondents (Librarians and Students). This study explored library collection (including Urdu language collection) which is in total 1299384 books, 497 journals, 76 magazines, 89 newspapers, 34504 thesis/ dissertations/ projects, 13211 audio/ video (CDs/DVDs) and 18000 other types of collections available cumulatively in the public sector university libraries of the Lahore and also explored that majority of public sector libraries in Lahore have collection in Urdu language on various subjects but a very little in numbers. Change of curricula in English medium; lack of enough space in libraries and availability of similar information in other languages are pointed out as major hurdle for acquisition of the material in Urdu language. Regarding users’ perception it was revealed that they consider the books in Urdu language as more useful for the better understanding of concepts. Regarding satisfaction the users it is found they are satisfied with the availability of collection in Urdu language in their university libraries. The majority of respondents read books in Urdu language for leisure reading while books in English language for their course work

Nexus between willingness to pay for renewable energy sources: Evidence from Turkey

The willingness to pay (WTP) plays a central role in directing appropriate policy regarding ambitious renewable energy targets. Based on this discrepancy, this study intends to investigate the willingness to pay (WTP) for Turkish citizens regarding green electricity by using a one-way analysis of variance (one-way ANOVA). The interviews were conducted comprising 2500 households in 12 major metropolitan cities of Turkey, which is based on the contingent valuation method and consists of 26 questions. The results indicate that for a 20% share of renewable energy, middle-income groups are willing to pay higher than lower and upper-income groups. Moreover, highly environmentally conscious people tend to pay more for a 20% share of green energy. On the other hand, high-income groups and old age groups indicated a positive and high willingness to pay for a 30% share of renewable energy (RE) sources. In addition, primary school and undergraduate educational groups recorded highly significant results for willingness to pay. The results also indicate that Turkish citizens are willing to pay 9.25 Turkish liras (TL) per month for a 20% share and 4.77 Turkish liras per month for a 30% share of renewable energy in total energy production.Q1WOS:0005681197000043289747

Potential Economic and Household Income Gains from Trade Liberalization by Using MyGTAP Model

The current study attempted to calculate the potential gains/losses to the household income in Pakistan. The study has employed MyGTAP model which was initially developed by Minor & Walmsley (2012) and is extension of standard GTAP model. The standard GTAP model was linked with a representative household model by using the Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) to capture the effects of trade liberalization on economic growth and income distribution. The study used eight different simulations to calculate the impact of trade agreements with EU, SAARC, China and India and found a significant rise in economic growth. Regardless of some limitations, the model developed in this study produced significant results that may help to explain the current debate on trade liberalization. The results of the study conclude that it is manufacturing sector that may help to improve the income of all types of household and economic growth

Potential Economic and Household Income Gains from Trade Liberalization by Using MyGTAP Model

The current study attempted to calculate the potential gains/losses to the household income in Pakistan. The study has employed MyGTAP model which was initially developed by Minor & Walmsley (2012) and is extension of standard GTAP model. The standard GTAP model was linked with a representative household model by using the Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) to capture the effects of trade liberalization on economic growth and income distribution. The study used eight different simulations to calculate the impact of trade agreements with EU, SAARC, China and India and found a significant rise in economic growth. Regardless of some limitations, the model developed in this study produced significant results that may help to explain the current debate on trade liberalization. The results of the study conclude that it is manufacturing sector that may help to improve the income of all types of household and economic growth

An Intelligent Automatic Fault Detection Technique Incorporating Image Processing and Fuzzy Logic

Fault detection is considered an important and challenging task to be incorporated in many industrial applications. It has gained interest in recent years, and many techniques have been proposed for developing an effective fault detection approach due to its significant importance in everyday life. This study presents an automated intelligent fault detection technique incorporating image processing and fuzzy logic. Image processing is the first step where features such as entropy estimation, color-based segmentation and depth estimation from gradients are obtained. The extracted features (number of {blobs, minima, maxima}, and estimated entropy) act as input to the fuzzy logic. The subsequent step incorporates fuzzy logic; the four inputs are fed to fuzzy which extract the fault and acts as knowledge rule-based tool and final step, i.e. the output generation, classifies it accordingly into four categories of faults (rust, bumps, hole, wrinkles/roller marks). The proposed method is compared with Linear Vector Quantization, and Multivariate Discriminant Function approaches. The method is tested on a database of 150 images. The proposed method demonstrated its significance and effectiveness with performance accuracy of 99%, 98%, 96.8% and 97.6% for rust, bumps, holes and wrinkles/roller marks respectively

Determination of factors associated with critical weight loss in oral cavity carcinoma patients: A retrospective cohort study.

Introduction  Critical weight loss is defined as an unintentional weight loss of ≥ 5% at 1 month or ≥ 10% at 6 months from the start of treatment. Critical weight loss leads to deterioration of the immune function and reduced tolerance to treatment (surgery ± radiochemotherapy) as well as increased complication rates. Objective  Critical weight loss, defined as a weight loss of ≥ 5% after 1 month or ≥ 10% after 6 months from the start of treatment, is not uncommon in head and neck cancer patients. We aimed to assess the factors associated with critical weight loss during the treatment of oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma patients. Methods  A retrospective cohort study was performed at the Aga Khan University Hospital, in Karachi, Pakistan, on 125 patients. Patients receiving adjuvant therapy were considered exposed, and the outcome was critical weight loss. Results  The mean age of presentation was 46.9 ± 12.8 years in patients undergoing surgery and adjuvant therapy, with 119 (79.3%) of them being male and 31 (20.7%) female. One hundred and twelve patients (81.3%) developed critical weight loss at 6 months from the start of treatment, and the only significant variable associated with critical weight loss was the stage of the disease ( p  = 0.03). Conclusion  A large proportion of patients with oral cancer developed critical weight loss requiring a need for intervention. The overall stage of the disease is a significant predictor of critical weight loss in patients undergoing treatment

Effects of polyphenol-rich traditional herbal teas on obesity and oxidative stress in rats fed a high-fat–sugar diet

Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and Zingiber officinalis teas are traditionally used for the therapies of various diseases, including obesity. The present research work was planned to appraise the potential of polyphenol-rich extracts of selected herbal plants in obesity and related biochemical parameters of high-fat–sugar diet-induced obese rats. Three herbal teas were prepared from Hibiscus rosa-sinensis flowers and Zingiber officinalis rhizomes and their mixture (3:1, respectively). Total phenolic contents (TPC) of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and Zingiber officinalis extracts were found to be 5.82 and 1.45 mg/g of dry plant material, measured as GAE, while total flavonoid contents (TFC) were 9.17 and 1.95 mg/g of dry plant material, measured as CE, respectively. Two doses (250 and 500 mg/kg BW) of each tea were administered and body weight, BMI, kidney, liver, and atherogenic indices, TC, TG, HDL, LDL, VLDL, BT, AST, ALT, AP, SC, MDA, SOD, GSH, and TAC of rats groups were measured. Data showed that higher doses of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis significantly reduced the rat's BMI (0.50 g/cm2) in comparison with the high-fat–sugar diet group (0.79 g/cm2). All treatment groups, especially H-500 group, showed a significant decrease in the elevated kidney and liver weights and atherogenic index in comparison with HFSDC groups. Higher doses of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis significantly decreased the levels of AST, ALT, AP, and SC in comparison with the HFSDC group. A significant decrease in the levels of serum TC, TG, LDL, and VLDL was observed in all the treatment groups in comparison with the HFSDC group. Furthermore, all the teas, especially higher doses of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, prevented the alterations in MDA, SOD, and GSH levels of experimental groups, thus showing the potential against oxidative stress. It can be concluded from these results that Hibiscus rosa-sinensis teas exhibited strong protective effects against obesity and oxidative stress, especially at higher doses

Outcome of 2000 Cases of Phacoemulsification

Phacoemulsification cases performed at Fauji Foundation Hospital, Rawalpindi. Methods: This study was conducted in the Department of Ophthalmology, Fauji FoundationHospital, Rawalpindi, from October 2004 to March 2007. It comprised 2000 cases of phacoemulsification with intraocular lens (IOL) implantation which wereperformed at Fauji Foundation Hospital in two and a half years. Variables analysed included patient’s age and sex, pre-existing conditions limiting final visualacuity (VA), and type of anesthesia used. Outcome measures included intra operative and postoperative complications and final visual acuity. Results: Of the 2000 cases, there were 72% female and 28% male patients. 62% of patients were given periocular whereas 38% were operated in topical anesthesia. 15.35% of patients suffered intra operative complications. Intra operative complications were: radial tear in 5% cases, posterior capsular (PC) rent without vitreous loss in 3.45% and PC rent with vitreous loss in 4.85% of patients, iris damage in 0.83%, zonular dehiscence in 0.6% of cases, and nuclear fragment drop in 0.3% of patients. Of total patients, 91% of patients kept their appointment for 8 weeks follow up. Postoperatively corrected visual acuity after elimination of factors reducing best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was 6/9 or better in 89% of cases. Postoperative complications were seen in 20.83% of patients, which included mild to moderate striate keratitis in 11.98%, mild to moderate anterior uveitis in 4.01%, raised intra ocular pressure (IOP) in 0.73%, wound leakage in 0.3%, ophthalmoplegia in 0.05% and endophthalmitis in 0.10% of cases. Posterior capsularopacification (PCO) was seen in 3.65% of patients in 8 weeks of followup. Post operative astigmatism was from 0 – 4.5 D. Conclusion: Phacoemulsification is much safer, predictable, relatively atraumatic procedure and it provides early rehabilitation. It is associated with more patient as well as surgeon satisfaction

Salivary oxidative stress and antioxidant capacity in smokeless tobacco (Naswar) users

Naswar, a smokeless tobacco product, commonly consumed in Pakistan, is associated with a 10-fold increase in the risk of oral cancer. However, little is known about Naswar's underlying toxicity mechanisms. The current study aimed to investigate the effects of Naswar use on oral health and salivary parameters. A case-control study was conducted among Naswar users ( =42) and age-matched healthy controls ( =42) in Pakistan in 2019. Participant data were collected using questionnaires. Decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT) scores were computed during clinical examinations. Unstimulated whole saliva was collected to assess salivary flow rate, pH, and salivary total oxidative stress (TOS)/total antioxidant capacity (TAC) using commercially available kits. Participants' oral health parameters were compared between cases and controls using ANOVA. No significant differences were observed between the two groups in terms of age, oral health, and hygiene practices and mean DMFT score. Mean salivary pH and the salivary flow rate was significantly ( <0.001) higher in Naswar users (7.7 and 0.71 mL/minute, respectively) than in non-users (6.95 and 0.52 mL/minute, respectively). Although TOS and TAC were not significantly different between the groups, Naswar users generally had a higher TOS (51.6±42 µmol/L) and lower TAC (0.55±0.18 mmol/L) than non-users (TOS 45.5±38.2 µmol/L and TAC 0.57±0.17 mmol/L). Correlational analysis also revealed a significant positive correlation between DMFT score and Naswar use duration ( =0.796, <0.001) and the number of dips/units consumed each day ( =0.515; <0.001). Habitual Naswar use is associated with increased salivary flow rate, pH, and TOS, and reduced TAC levels in Pakistani adults compared to non-users. The pro-oxidant changes may contribute toward deleterious effects of Naswar use including oral cancer