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

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

THE Visual Outcomes and Prognostic Factors Associated With Open-Globe Injuries among the Pakistani Population

Objective: To determine the visual outcomes and prognostic factors associated with open globe-injuries in patients attending Sindh Institute of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences (SIOVS), Hyderabad, Pakistan. Methods: A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted at Sindh Institute of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences (SIOVS), Hyderabad from January 2022 to February 2023. All patients irrespective of age and gender attended the institute with open globe injury were enrolled. Visual outcomes of open-globe injury were recorded as length of wound and lens status. Complications associated with open-globe injury were also noted. Results: Of 336 patients, the mean age of the patients was 17.6 ± 15.6 years. There were 231 (68.7%) males and 105 (31.3%) females. The most common object of injury was stick/thorn and metal/iron i.e., 117 (34.8%) and 105 (31.3%) respectively. Center of cornea/visual axis involvement was observed in 207 (61.6%) patients. The mean length of the wound was 6.28 ± 3.65 mm. Status of the lens showed an intact lens in 140 (41.7%) patients and traumatic cataract with intact/rupture of capsule in 196 (58.3%) patients. A significant association between the length of the wound and the status of the lens was found with the object of injury (p-value <0.001), and center of cornea/visual axis involvement (p-value <0.001). Conclusion: In this study, the majority of patients with globe injuries were younger. Object of injury and center of cornea/visual axis involvement were two prognostic factors that were significantly associated with visual outcomes of globe injuries

Ethnomedicinal study of medicinal plants used to cure dental diseases by the indigenous population of district Buner, Pakistan

This is the first study of its own kind conducted with the aim to document and conserve the ethnomedicinal knowledge of plants used to cure dental diseases in Buner, Pakistan and to provide starting point for future pharmacological studies about new herbal drugs used for dental disorders. Several field trips were conducted in 2018-19 to collect indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants. A semi-structured questionnaire was used as tool for data collection in individual and group interviews and informants were selected by snowball sampling. In this study 935 men and 323 women were interviewed, yielding 55 plant species belonging to 34 families. Lamiaceae and Solanaceae were the dominant plant families used and the main life forms used were herbs (28 species). Leaves were the most used part (19 species). The local population was found to be sensitive and careful about oral hygiene and had rich ethnomedicinal knowledge

Medicinal plants used for veterinary diseases by the local inhabitants of the Teshil Tangi, District Charsadda, Pakistan

Therapeutic plants ethnically utilized for the cure of various aliments of animals have an important part in the rural veterinary healthcare system because allopathic medicines remain inaccessible, particularly in the third world countries. This work was carried out in Teshil Tangi District Charsadda, Pakistan, in 2016-18, aiming for conserving the ethnic medicinal plants knowledge about veterinary illnesses. Information was collected from older people, herbalists and pansaris (herbal sellers) via semi-structured questionnaire and open ended interviews. Quantification of the result was done by Relative Frequency Citation (RFC) and Use Value (UV).The result of current study comprises of the 118 therapeutic plant species’ collection which belong to forty-six families by interviewing 233 native informants. Among the 46 botanical families, Leguminosae with 14 species was the leading family. The most dominant growth habit was herbs constituted (68%). Leaves (42%) were the main morphological parts used for ethnoveterinary medicine. The highest UV was obtained for 0.52 for Silybum marianum (L.) and RFC (0.33) for Silybum marianum (L.). Most of the therapeutic plants have been utilized for curing digestive illnesses, followed by promote lactation and wounds healing. Due to the dense and diverse vegetation, the study area is rich in ethnobotanical knowledge and the people still use medicinal plants to cure animal diseases

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