Competence of Benzoil Tree (Moringa Oleifera L.) as Antibacterial and Antifungal Agent

Background: A plant’s activity towards biological properties is the first step to consider it for medicinal and therapeutic purposes. To evaluate the medicinal properties, we have determined the anti-bacterial and anti-fungal potential of Moringa oleifera L. (Benzoil tree). The focus was to obtain and isolate certain chemical substances that can neutralize the effect of common and pathogenic selected bacterial and fungal species collected from local hospitals of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.Methods: A total of five fractions were selected i.e. crude methanolic extracts, n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and aqueous extracts were prepared and their activity checked against four bacterial strains including Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus aurous, MRSA (methicillin resistance Staphylococcus aurous) and Serratia marcescens; and four fungal strains i.e. Fusarium oxysporum, Aspergillus flavus, Polysphondylium pallidum and Alternaria alternata.Results: The highest anti-bacterial activity shown by crude methanolic extract fraction i.e. (48-38%) and the lowest activity was exhibited by aqueous extract (15-0%) against all the selected bacterial strains. Similarly, the highest anti-fungal activity indicated by crude methanolic extracts (60-45%) against the four selected fungal species and lowest activity shown by the aqueous fractions (26-0%). Reasonable activity was also exhibited by others fractions as well.Conclusion: The outcomes of our experiment strongly supports that Moringa oleifera has significant antibacterial and antifungal activities, so the plant is effective antibacterial and antifungal agent.Keywords: Benzoil tree; Moringa oleifera; Antibacterial; Antifungal; Drum stick Tre

Efficiency of Virgin's Mantle (Fagonia cretica L.) as an Antibacterial and Antifungal Agent

Background: For medicinal purposes, biological activities are carried out on plant secondary metabolites in which common but very significant antimicrobial activities are focused. To evaluate the antimicrobial potential of Fagonia cretica L., different pathogenic microbial strains were obtained from KP, hospitals (already identified) to resolve the objectives of the current study.Methods: In the agar, well diffusion method, a total of eight strains (4 bacterial 4 fungal) Streptococcus mutans, MRSA (Methicillin resistance staphylococcus aureus), Serratia marcescens, and Staphylococcus aureus are the bacterial strains while the fungal strains are Alternaria alternate,  Aspergillus flavus, Fusarium oxysporum, and Polysphondylium pallidum pre-identified and isolated in hospitals, were used respectively to evaluate the potentiality of n-hexane, ethyl acetate, chloroform, aqueous, and crude methanolic fractions against these strains.Keywords: Virgin’s mantle; Fagonia cretica; Antibacterial; AntifungalResults: The highest significant (46-57% & 39-60%) antibacterial and antifungal activities were shown by the methanolic fraction while the lowest (28-35% & 25-35%) antibacterial and antifungal was shown by aqueous fraction against the selected microbial strains. Other fractions were also exhibited reasonable antimicrobial activities.Conclusion: The current study concluded that different fractions of F. cretica have significant antimicrobial potential and might be a source of antibiotics in future studies of that plant.Keywords: Virgin’s mantle; Fagonia cretica; Antibacterial; Antifungal

Substantial and sustained reduction in under-5 mortality, diarrhea, and pneumonia in Oshikhandass, Pakistan : Evidence from two longitudinal cohort studies 15 years apart

Funding Information: Study 1 was funded through the Applied Diarrheal Disease Research Program at Harvard Institute for International Development with a grant from USAID (Project 936–5952, Cooperative Agreement # DPE-5952-A-00-5073-00), and the Aga Khan Health Service, Northern Areas and Chitral, Pakistan. Study 2 was funded by the Pakistan US S&T Cooperative Agreement between the Pakistan Higher Education Commission (HEC) (No.4–421/PAK-US/HEC/2010/955, grant to the Karakoram International University) and US National Academies of Science (Grant Number PGA-P211012 from NAS to the Fogarty International Center). The funding bodies had no role in the design of the study, data collection, analysis, interpretation, or writing of the manuscript. Publisher Copyright: © 2020 The Author(s).Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Phytological Study of Freshwater Wetland Ecosystem of Bajwat Area

Freshwater wetlands are individual ecosystems that support a variety of wildlife, vegetation and microscopic life. The type of plants that exist in these areas describe the physico-chemical characteristics of their locality and vice-versa. This study was carried out at Marala wetlands in Bajwat Game Reserve. The study found 39 species of higher plants in the areas of the wetland and its associated terrain. The total species were arranged into 5 vegetation types, named on the basis of the dominant plant species, with their own composition of the species and present in different habitat conditions. The vegetative community Phragmites karka constituted an association of 8 plant species; Juncellus laevigatus had 10, Typha angustata had 13, Aeluropus lagopoides and Cyprus comylomeratus had 9 species each

Oaks (Family: Fagaceae) Diversity From Moist Temperate Forests of Lesser Himalayas, Pakistan

A detailed survey was conducted in five national parks and game reserves of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan to assess the biodiversity of family Fagaceae. Identification of the species was done using literary sources and comparison of samples with herbaria from Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad and Pakistan Museum of Natural History, Islamabad, Pakistan. A total of eight different species belonging to two genera were identified, including Quercus spp., Castanea sativa, Quercus glauca, Quercus baloot, Quercus incana, Quercus velutina, Quercus alba and Quercus dilatata. The greatest biodiversity was found in Banjosa Game Reserve (BGR) and Tolipir National Park (TNP), while Pir Chinasi National Park (PCNP), Pir Lasura National Park (PLNP) and Dhirkot National Reserve (DNR) had the least number of species

Distribution of A. modesta, A. julibrissin And M. himalayana Gamble In Pir Lasura National Park

Pir Lasura National Park (PLNP) in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan is located in the Kotli Forest division and spans across an area of 13,900 acres. The list obtained through this study included 46 tree species of angiosperms, out of which only 3 species belong to the family Mimosaceae; A. modesta, A. julibrissin and M. himalayana gamble. A. modesta had 1.6 % constancy and belonged to class Ⅰ, A. julibrissin had 3.3% relative cover and belonged to class Ⅰ, whereas the relative vegetative cover of Mimosa himalayana gamble was too less to be tabulated. All the three species of the Mimosaceae family were scantily available. However, A. modesta and A. julibrissin had enough vegetative cover with respect to other species for them to be reported whereas M. himalayana gamble didn’t have any significant distribution in the selected area

Diversity and Ethnobotanical Importance of Pine Species from Sub-Tropical Forests, Azad Jammu and Kashmir

A general investigation of sub-tropical forests, from Pir Chinasi National Park, Tolipir National Park, Dhirkot Nature Reserve and Banjosa Game Reserve was carried out during different months from February 2008 to May 2010. The relative abundance of species was calculated using line transects of 50m. A total of five different species (Abies pindrow. Cedrus deodara, Pinus wallichiana, Pinus roxburgii and Picea smithiana) from the Pinaceae family were recorded. The main reported use of Cedrus deodara and Pinus wallichiana by the local people was for furniture and construction purposes. Pinus wallichiana was observed as the dominant species from all the selected sites

An Annotated Checklist of Butterflies at Elevated Protected Areas of Pakistan

Different vegetation types, cater to the needs of butterflies at different stages of their life cycle. Some caterpillars are specific in their diet and egg-laying, such as the caterpillar of the Monarch butterfly, which mainly consumes leaves of milkweed and hence prefers laying eggs on this plant (Faldyn et al., 2018). This entomological research was undertaken at protected areas of Pakistan that include Dhirkot Nature Reserve, Pir Chanasi National Park, Banjosa Game Reserve, Pir Lasura National Park and Tolipir National Park. Forty-four different species of butterflies were recorded from the study area. The highest diversity of butterflies was observed from PCNP (34) and least from PLNP (15)

Medicinal Plants of Turmic Valley (Central Karakoram National Park), Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan

This study was undertaken to enumerate the medicinal plants of the area, find out the conservation status, and record the folk knowledge from the inhabitants of Turmic Valley during 2011-2013. The valley is located in the Rondo division of the District Skardu on the Northeastern side of the Indus River. The detailed information about the local flora regarding medicinal uses was collected from the local herbal healers (Hakeems) and other knowledgeable people. Locally used herbs of the area prevent and cure the people from various diseases such as joint pains, bronchitis, flu and fever, lowering blood pressure, constipation, liver disorders, stomach and abdominal problems, etc. The most common medicinal herbs found in the region belong to the families Gentianaceae, Berberidaceae, Umbelliferae, Labiatae, Rosaceae, Compositae, Urticaceae, and Ranunculaceae. The inhabitants of the valley mostly use the 42 plant species for the treatment of different health problems. Forty-two species of plants (including 4 Gymnosperms, 1 monocotyledon, and 37 dicotyledons) and 35 types of diseases have been identified during the current study. Thymus linearis, Rosa webbiana, Urtica dioca, Pleurospermum candollei, Berberis spp., Delphinium brononianum, and Mentha angustifolia were the commonly used plant species in the valley. The collected baseline data of this study will be helpfulfor young researchers in the fieldof taxonomy, ethnobotany, pharmacology, organic chemistry, and particularly for biodiversity conservation. Over exploitation, habitat destruction, and over grazing are the major threats for the loss of the important flora of the area

Ethnobotanical Importance and Relative Abundance of the Mulberry Family from Temperate Highlands, Pakistan

Five protected areas from temperate highlands of Pakistan were gauged for biodiversity of the Moraceae family. The National Park in Pir Lasura was studied from June to July 2009, in Banjosa from May to June 2009, in Pir Chanasi from April to May 2010, in Dhirkot (February 2008) and in Tolipir from April to May 2008. From the five protected areas surveyed, only three had species belonging to the family Moraceae. Three species were observed from Banjosa Game Reserve, two from Tolipir Nature Reserve and six from Pir Lasura National Park. The species commonly found were Ficus carica, Ficus Palmate, Ficus religiosa, Ficus bengalensis, Ficus spp., Ficus virens and Morus spp