An Abattoir Based Study on Brucellosis, Bovine Tuberculosis and Paratuberculosis in Buffaloes and Cattle at Faisalabad, Pakistan

A study was carried out to investigate the prevalence of these diseases at Faisalabad abattoirs in buffaloes and cattle. For this purpose, 400 consecutive animals, including 200 buffaloes and 200 cattle were included in the study. Blood and diseased organ, tissue samples were collected for further processing. For a study on the prevalence of brucellosis, the serum samples were screened by RBPT (Rose Bengal Precipitation Test). The overall prevalence of brucellosis recorded was 10% and 11% in buffaloes and cattle, respectively. The prevalence of brucellosis did not vary between male and females, three age groups and three weight groups each in buffalo and cattle. However, the odds of contracting brucellosis were 3.8 vs 1 for cattle than buffalo at an age below 5 years. On the basis of specific gross and histopathological lesions in different organs/tissues, including lungs, liver, lymph nodes and intestine, the prevalence of bovine tuberculosis and paratuberculosis were assessed. The suspected prevalence of bovine tuberculosis was 1.5% and 1%, while it was 3.75% and 4.1 % in case of paratuberculosis in buffaloes and cattle, respectively. The cattle revealed significant (P = 0.05) difference between age groups on the basis of suspected lesions of tuberculosis in lungs with young cattle showing the lesions more than adult, but it was not so in buffaloes. The odds of contracting paratuberculosis in males were 3.74 vs 1 of buffalo than cattle. The other comparisons were not marked between age groups, sex and weight groups between buffaloes and cattle. The prevalence of these diseases is not unexpected in abattoir and is a threat not only for workers at the slaughterhouse, meat sellers (butchers) but also to the general public

Prospective randomized controlled pilot study on the effects of almond consumption on skin lipids and wrinkles.

ObjectiveAlmonds are a rich source of fatty acids and antioxidants, and their supplementation is known to significantly modulate serum lipids. The effects of almond on the skin's lipid barrier and the appearance of wrinkles have not yet been elucidated. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of almond consumption on facial sebum production and wrinkles.MethodsThis was a prospective, investigator-blinded, randomized controlled trial in which subjects consumed 20% of their daily energy consumption in either almonds or a calorie-matched snack for 16 weeks. This study was completed at the UC Davis Dermatology clinic. Participants were a volunteer sample of generally healthy postmenopausal females with Fitzpatrick skin types 1 and 2. A facial photograph and image analysis system was used to obtain standardized photographs and information on wrinkle width and severity at 0, 8, and 16 weeks. Measurements of transepidermal water loss and sebum production were also completed at 0, 8, and 16 weeks.ResultsFifty healthy postmenopausal females were recruited, 31 participants were enrolled, and 28 completed the study. Under photographic analysis, the almond group had significantly decreased wrinkle severity and width compared with the control group at 16 weeks (p < .02). Changes in skin barrier function were nonsignificant, measured by the transepidermal water loss (p = .65) between the almond and control groups relative to baseline after 16 weeks. No adverse effects were reported.ConclusionOur study demonstrates that daily almond consumption may reduce wrinkle severity in postmenopausal females to potentially have natural antiaging benefits

Capstone Case Study Guide MAPFRE

Mapfre is a Top-Notch insurer and a competitive and fast-evolving insurance company. Clark team will help Mapfre to organize to secure systems availability and resilience to support the business process. Assist and recommend the IT team for further analysis and identify data, trends, and patterns and come up with to improve the service

Absorbed Radiation Dose in Radiosensitive Organs Using 64- and 320-Row Multidetector Computed Tomography: A Comparative Study

Aim. To determine absorbed radiation dose (ARD) in radiosensitive organs during prospective and full phase dose modulation using ECG-gated MDCTA scanner under 64- and 320-row detector modes. Methods:. Female phantom was used to measure organ radiation dose. Five DP-3 radiation detectors were used to measure ARD to lungs, breast, and thyroid using the Aquilion ONE scanner in 64- and 320-row modes using both prospective and dose modulation in full phase acquisition. Five measurements were made using three tube voltages: 100, 120, and 135 kVp at 400 mA at heart rate (HR) of 60 and 75 bpm for each protocol. Mean acquisition was recorded in milligrays (mGy). Results:. Mean ARD was less for 320-row versus 64-row mode for each imaging protocol. Prospective EKG-gated imaging protocol resulted in a statistically lower ARD using 320-row versus 64-row modes for midbreast (6.728 versus 19.687 mGy, P < 0.001), lung (6.102 versus 21.841 mGy, P < 0.001), and thyroid gland (0.208 versus 0.913 mGy; P < 0.001). Retrospective imaging using 320- versus 64-row modes showed lower ARD for midbreast (10.839 versus 43.169 mGy, P < 0.001), lung (8.848 versus 47.877 mGy, P < 0.001), and thyroid gland (0.057 versus 2.091 mGy; P < 0.001). ARD reduction was observed at lower kVp and heart rate. Conclusions:. Dose reduction to radiosensitive organs is achieved using 320-row compared to 64-row modes for both prospective and retrospective gating, whereas 64-row mode is equivalent to the same model 64-row MDCT scanner

A Comparative Study of Customer Preferences for Telecommunication Technologies in Pakistan

The telecommunication industry is a huge and ever-growing industry and it is contributing dominantly to the economy in terms of revenue generation and being one of the biggest taxpayers to the government. Telecommunication is now considered to be a basic necessity. In this paper, a study has been conducted to know the customer preferences of telecommunication technologies in Lahore, Pakistan, and also to compare different customer preferences for telecommunication technologies. From the results of our study, we have concluded that there is a great variation among people in terms of their usage of mobile phones and internet services. Furthermore, results regarding the relationship between the socio-demographic characteristics and the preference towards specific telephony and internet service providers have also been analyzed. This work is unique when the scenario of Pakistan is considered. No such study has been conducted in Pakistan to know the customer preferences in Pakistan. Some recommendations for the telecommunication operators have also been discussed which can help to know their customer needs in a better fashion

National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank: A standard based biospecimen and clinical data resource to enhance translational research

Background: Advances in translational research have led to the need for well characterized biospecimens for research. The National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank is an initiative which collects annotated datasets relevant to human mesothelioma to develop an enterprising biospecimen resource to fulfill researchers' need. Methods: The National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank architecture is based on three major components: (a) common data elements (based on College of American Pathologists protocol and National North American Association of Central Cancer Registries standards), (b) clinical and epidemiologic data annotation, and (c) data query tools. These tools work interoperably to standardize the entire process of annotation. The National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank tool is based upon the caTISSUE Clinical Annotation Engine, developed by the University of Pittsburgh in cooperation with the Cancer Biomedical Informatics Grid™ (caBIG™, see http://cabig.nci.nih.gov). This application provides a web-based system for annotating, importing and searching mesothelioma cases. The underlying information model is constructed utilizing Unified Modeling Language class diagrams, hierarchical relationships and Enterprise Architect software. Result: The database provides researchers real-time access to richly annotated specimens and integral information related to mesothelioma. The data disclosed is tightly regulated depending upon users' authorization and depending on the participating institute that is amenable to the local Institutional Review Board and regulation committee reviews. Conclusion: The National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank currently has over 600 annotated cases available for researchers that include paraffin embedded tissues, tissue microarrays, serum and genomic DNA. The National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank is a virtual biospecimen registry with robust translational biomedical informatics support to facilitate basic science, clinical, and translational research. Furthermore, it protects patient privacy by disclosing only de-identified datasets to assure that biospecimens can be made accessible to researchers. © 2008 Amin et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd