Distribution of nitrate in the water resources of Pakistan

Water quality monitoring activities have recognized the nitrate contamination in the drinking water sources as one of the major quality issue of Pakistan. Adopting a  uniform sampling design, 747 samples were collected from a wide range of irrigated or non-irrigated regions having distribution of samples in sixteen cities as Lahore (79), Kasur (46), Faisalabad (30), Khushab (50), Chakwal (51), Mianwali (30), Jhelum (53), Bahawalpur (60), Karachi (60), Mirpur Khas (55), Peshawar (38),  Risalpur (35), Quetta (81), Ziarat (21), Loralai (21), Mastung (37). The results   showed that 19% of the total samples have nitrate concentration beyond the  permissible safe limit of 10 mg/L falling in the concentration  range of 11-160 mg/L  of nitrate. The highest percentage contamination (23%) is found in water samples collected from both the Balochistan and Punjab provinces. Comparatively higher  nitrate levels of <70 % in the groundwater sources like hand pumps and wells  support the possibilities of increased contamination in the areas cultivated using heavy doses of fertilizers. Findings of the study provide support for further  epidemiological investigations and potential strategy for mitigating the issue in theaffected regions.Key words: Nitrate-N, groundwater contamination, hand pumps,   methemoglobinemia, Pollution, nutrients, fertilizer, agriculture

On the finite mixture of exponential, Rayleigh and Burr Type-XII Distributions: Estimation of Parameters in Bayesian framework

In recent years, the finite mixtures of distributions have been proved to be of considerable attention in terms of their practical applications. This paper aims about studying the problem of estimating the parameters of a 3-component mixture of Exponential, Rayleigh and Burr Type-XII distributions using type-I right censoring scheme in Bayesian framework. The elegant closed form expressions for the Bayes estimators and their variances using the non-informative and the informative priors are derived for censored sample as well as for complete sample. The hyperparameters are elicited using prior predictive distribution when no or little prior information is available. The posterior predictive distribution with different priors is derived and the equations necessary to find the lower and upper limits of the Bayesian predictive intervals are constructed. A detailed simulation study is carried out to investigate the performance (in terms of variances) of the Bayes estimators. Finally, the model is illustrated using the real life data. Bayes estimators using the informative prior have been observed performing superior

Synchronization of N-Non-Linear Slave Systems with Master System Using Non-Adaptive and Adaptive Coupled Observers

Synchronization of N-slave chaotic systems with a master system is a challenging task, particularly in recent times. In this paper, a novel methodology is proposed for synchronizing the N number of slave systems with a master system. The proposed methodology is based on coupled adaptive synchronous observers. The difference between the corresponding states of master and slave systems is converged to the origin by means of a novel feedback control scheme to achieve synchronization between the master and slave systems. The efficacy of the proposed methodology is verified through a simulation of FitzHugh–Nagumo non-linear systems in MATLAB. The simulation results validate and prove claims, and these systems are successfully synchronized by CCS and CCAS observer-based control

Correlation of Foot Wears with MSK Disorders in Ankle Joints Among Females

AIM: This paper is a report of study conducted to explain the factors that causes ankle sprain by wearing high heels among students of Sargodha medical college and university of Sargodha.BACKGROUND: High heeled shoes have been worn for several centuries and despite numerous cautions against their use, they remain extremely popular. Wearing high heeled shoes is thought to increase the individual’s likelihood of experiencing a lateral ankle sprain. The 19th century saw the first warnings that wearing high heels footwear could lead to trips and falls. Previous investigations have shown that high heeled shoes align the foot in planter flexion, modifying the relative orientation of the skeletal structures of ankle, midtarsal, and metatarsophalangeal joints, and alter the insertion angles of the foot and gliding joint muscles, therefore increasing the risk factor for ankle sprain.METHODS: observational non-experimental study was conducted via a questionnaire which was distributed among 500 female students of SMC (Sargodha medical college) and university of Sargodha. These female students fall in age group between18-26.RESULT: The result of our study concluded that the types of heel and height of heel are the most significant factors that cause ankle sprain. The ankle sprain caused by wearing pencil heels and by use of <3 inch heels are greatest. Keywords: Pencil heel, height of heel, Ankle sprain, SMC, Female student. DOI: 10.7176/JHMN/80-09 Publication date:September 30th 202

FREQUENCY OF CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE USING CALCIUM SCORING BY 640 SLICE CT

Coronary artery disease is the narrowing of coronary arteries which is usually caused by the atherosclerosis that leads to restriction of blood flow to the heart muscles. Atherosclerosis is a buildup of plaque or deposition of fats on the inner walls of arteries and is calculated by calcium scoring. Calcium scoring is a test to assess the presence and degree of plaque in the coronary arteries. Objective: To find the frequency of coronary artery disease using calcium scoring by 640 slice CT.   Methods: A descriptive study was conducted at Punjab Institute of Cardiology, Lahore. 155 participants including 117 (75.5%) males and 38 (24.5%) females were selected through convenient sampling technique. SPSS version 21.0 was used for data analysis. Results: Analysis of data showed that out of 155 patients, 54 (34%) patients had no lesion and 101 (65.2%) had CAD. Only 2 patients had 5 lesions. Out of 117 males, 38 had no plaque and 40 males had moderate plaque in coronary arteries. Out of 38 females, 16 female patients had no plaque, 5 female patients had moderate plaque. 99 (63.9%)  patients were non-smokers, out of them, 46 patients had no plaque and 17 patients had moderate plaque. 56 (36.1%) patients were smokers, out of these 8 had no plaque and 28 patients had moderate plaque. In total 103 (66.5%) patients who were hypertensive, 28 patients had no plaque, 36 had moderate plaque. Out of 52 (33.5%) patients who were without hypertension, 26 patients had no plaque, 36 patients had moderate plaque. Out of 155, 94 (60.6%) patients had diabetes, out of these 27 patients had no plaque, 32 patients had moderate plaque. Of 61 (39.4%) patients with diabetes, 27 had no plaque, 13 were with moderate plaque. 52 patients who were between the age of 26-35 years, 18 patients had no plaque, 14 patients had moderate plaque and of 8 patients between the age of 66-75 years, 3 had moderate plaque. Conclusions: In our sample the ratio of males was greater than females. In males, moderate plaques are most common and most of the females are those with no plaque. 54 % patients have no plaque and only 3 patients have minimal plaque. Smokers were least affected. It is concluded that hypertension affects the population more than any other risk factor. From our study it is also concluded that the people within the age range of 26 to 35 years are most likely to develop CAD Key words: Computed Tomography, Calcium Scoring, Coronary Artery Disease DOI: 10.7176/JHMN/71-13 Publication date: February 29th 202

Anticancer screening of medicinal plant phytochemicals against Cyclin-Dependent Kinase-2 (CDK2): An in-silico approach

Background: Cyclin-Dependent Kinase-2 (CDK2) is a member of serine/threonine protein kinases family and plays an important role in regulation of various eukaryotic cell division events. Over-expression of CDK2 during cell cycle may lead to several cellular functional aberrations including diverse types of cancers (lung cancer, primary colorectal carcinoma, ovarian cancer, melanoma and pancreatic carcinoma) in humans. Medicinal plants phytochemicals which have anticancer potential can be used as an alternative drug resource.Methods: This study was designed to find out anticancer phytochemicals from medicinal plants which could inhibit CDK2 with the help of molecular docking technique. Molecular Operating Environment (MOE v2009) software was used to dock 2300 phytochemicals in this study.Results: The outcome of this study shows that four phytochemicals Kushenol T, Remangiflavanone B, Neocalyxins A and Elenoside showed the lowest S-score (-17.83, -17.57, -17.26, -17.17 respectively) and binds strongly with all eight active residues Tyr15, Lys33, Ileu52, Lys56, Leu78, phe80, Asp145 and Phe146 of CDK2 binding site. These phytochemicals could successfully inhibit the CDK2.Conclusion: These phytochemicals can be considered as potential anticancer agents and used in drug development against CDK2. We anticipate that this study would pave way for phytochemical based novel small molecules as more efficacious and selective anti-cancer therapeutic compounds

Biological evaluation of potent antioxidant, lipoxygenase inhibitor and antibacterial: A comparative study

AbstractThree biologically active new Schiff bases, 2-[(3-hydroxybenzylidene)amino]phenol 5, 2-[(4-hydroxybenzylidene)amino]phenol 6 and 4-[(2-hydroxyphenylimino)methyl]benzene-1,3-diol 7, were synthesized by the reaction of 2-aminophenol 1 with three different hydroxyl-benzaldehydes 2–4. They were characterized by spectroscopic analysis (IR, 1H NMR, EI-MS) along with elemental analyses. The products were biological screened out for antioxidant, lipoxygenase inhibition, antibacterial and urease inhibition activities. The compounds 5 and 6 showed potent while 7 showed moderate antioxidant activity. Compound 6 showed potent whereas 5 and 7 showed significant lipoxygenase inhibition activity. All the target compounds showed excellent activities against Staphylococcus intermedius, Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhi bacteria. All the compounds showed non-significant activity against urease enzyme

Identifying and Ranking Landfill Sites for Municipal Solid Waste Management: An Integrated Remote Sensing and GIS Approach

Disposal of municipal solid waste (MSW) is one of the significant global issues that is more evident in developing nations. One of the key methods for disposing of the MSW is locating, assessing, and planning for landfill sites. Faisalabad is one of the largest industrial cities in Pakistan. It has many sustainability challenges and planning problems, including MSW management. This study uses Faisalabad as a case study area and humbly attempts to provide a framework for identifying and ranking landfill sites and addressing MSW concerns in Faisalabad. This method can be extended and applied to similar industrial cities. The landfill sites were identified using remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS). Multiple datasets, including normalized difference vegetation, water, and built-up areas indices (NDVI, NDWI, and NDBI) and physical factors including water bodies, roads, and the population that influence the landfill site selection were used to identify, rank, and select the most suitable site. The target area was distributed into 9 Thiessen polygons and ranked based on their favorability for the development and expansion of landfill sites. 70% of the area was favorable for developing and expanding landfill sites, whereas 30% was deemed unsuitable. Polygon 6, having more vegetation, a smaller population, and built-up areas was declared the best region for developing landfill sites and expansion as per rank mean indices and standard deviation (SD) of RS and vector data. The current study provides a reliable integrated mechanism based on GIS and RS that can be implemented in similar study areas and expanded to other developing countries. Accordingly, urban planning and city management can be improved, and MSW can be managed with dexterity

3-Benzyl-2-sulfanyl­idene-1,3-thia­zolidin-4-one

In the title compound, C10H9NOS2, the five-membered heterocyclic ring and the benzyl moiety are oriented at a dihedral angle of 77.25 (4)°. In the crystal, infinite polymeric C(6) chains extending along [001] are formed due to C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds. C—H⋯π inter­actions link the chains, building up a three-dimensional network