Studies on Buddleja asiatica antibacterial, antifungal, antispasmodic and Ca++ antagonist activities

Crude extract of Buddleja asiatica Lour and its fractions, chloroform (F1), ethyl acetate (F2) and nbutanol (F3) were evaluated for antibacterial, antifungal, antispasmodic and Ca++ antagonist activities. The antibacterial activity was performed against 11 types of bacteria. The crude extract and fractions F2 and F3 exhibited significant activity, while F1 showed low activity in killing the Shigella flexenari, Sternostoma boydi and Escherichia coli. In the rest bacteria, the crude extract and all the fractions (F1 to F3) revealed minimum to nil inhibitory effect. The fungicidal activity of the crude extract and all the fractions (F1 to F3) was also performed against six different fungi. The crude extract and fractions F1 and F3 displayed significant activity, while fraction F2 showed moderate activity against Fusarium solani. In the case of Microsporum canis, the crude extract and fraction F3 showed high activity but in the other four fungi, the inhibition area exhibited optimum to nil activity in crude extract and all the fractions (F1 to F3). In isolated rabbit jejunum preparations, B. asiatica crude extract caused concentration-dependent (0.03 to 1.0 mg/ml) relaxation of spontaneous and high K+ (80 mM)-induced contractions. The results indicate the antibacterial, antifungal, antispasmodic and Ca++ antagonist potential of B. asiatica Lour

Anti-nociceptive effect of Caralluma edulis on peripheral and central pain pathways

The purpose of the present research was to evaluate the phytochemical content and analgesic effect of Caralluma edulis (Ce.Cr). Established methods were used for phytochemical analysis of plant. The anti-nociceptic activity of Ce.Cr was scrutinized using acetic acid-induced writhings, tail immersion and hot plate methods. Ce.Cr was tested positive for the presence of therapeutically active metabolites such as alkaloids, flavonoids, glycosides, phenol, tannins, terpenoids and saponins. Ce.Cr at the dose of 10, 30 and 100 mg/kg inhibited acetic acid-induced abdominal writhes and increase the latency time to thermal stimuli in both tail immersion and hot plate tests, similar to standard drug. These results showed that the ethanolic extract of Caralluma edulis possesses anti-nociceptive property

External Resources and Economic Growth: An Empirical Analysis of South Asian Countries

This study aims to investigate the role of three important external resources on the economic growth of leading South Asian countries. A sample of four countries is studied from 1983 to 2014. Empirical analyses are carried out in two phases. First, we have checked the combined effect using CD test, CIPS, Pedroni, and Westerlund panel cointegration, pooled mean group (PMG) framework and Heterogeneous non-causality test. In the second phase, we compared the regional and country-wise estimations using ARDL bound testing, stability test, and Granger causality. Results suggest that remittances play a vital role in the economic growth of selected South Asian countries, whereas, imports and foreign direct investment found to be insignificant. Also, while evaluating the same model for the individual countries using the ARDL estimations also reveal that remittances significantly contribute to the economies of Pakistan and Sri Lanka and imports found to be negatively related with economic growth in the same economies. However, imports showed a strong relationship with the economic growth of Bangladesh. Thus, this paper has drawn some insights for the policymakers

Insights into Software Development Approaches: Mining Q&A Repositories

Context: Software practitioners adopt approaches like DevOps, Scrum, and Waterfall for high-quality software development. However, limited research has been conducted on exploring software development approaches concerning practitioners discussions on Q&A forums. Objective: We conducted an empirical study to analyze developers discussions on Q&A forums to gain insights into software development approaches in practice. Method: We analyzed 13,903 developers posts across Stack Overflow (SO), Software Engineering Stack Exchange (SESE), and Project Management Stack Exchange (PMSE) forums. A mixed method approach, consisting of the topic modeling technique (i.e., Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA)) and qualitative analysis, is used to identify frequently discussed topics of software development approaches, trends (popular, difficult topics), and the challenges faced by practitioners in adopting different software development approaches. Findings: We identified 15 frequently mentioned software development approaches topics on Q&A sites and observed an increase in trends for the top-3 most difficult topics requiring more attention. Finally, our study identified 49 challenges faced by practitioners while deploying various software development approaches, and we subsequently created a thematic map to represent these findings. Conclusions: The study findings serve as a useful resource for practitioners to overcome challenges, stay informed about current trends, and ultimately improve the quality of software products they develop

Insights into software development approaches: mining Q &A repositories

© 2023 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Context: Software practitioners adopt approaches like DevOps, Scrum, and Waterfall for high-quality software development. However, limited research has been conducted on exploring software development approaches concerning practitioners’ discussions on Q &A forums. Objective: We conducted an empirical study to analyze developers’ discussions on Q &A forums to gain insights into software development approaches in practice. Method: We analyzed 13,903 developers’ posts across Stack Overflow (SO), Software Engineering Stack Exchange (SESE), and Project Management Stack Exchange (PMSE) forums. A mixed method approach, consisting of the topic modeling technique (i.e., Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA)) and qualitative analysis, is used to identify frequently discussed topics of software development approaches, trends (popular, difficult topics), and the challenges faced by practitioners in adopting different software development approaches. Findings: We identified 15 frequently mentioned software development approaches topics on Q &A sites and observed an increase in trends for the top-3 most difficult topics requiring more attention. Finally, our study identified 49 challenges faced by practitioners while deploying various software development approaches, and we subsequently created a thematic map to represent these findings. Conclusions: The study findings serve as a useful resource for practitioners to overcome challenges, stay informed about current trends, and ultimately improve the quality of software products they develop.Peer reviewe

WHY DO CUSTOMERS PATRONIZE ISLAMIC BANKING IN MALAKAND DIVISION, KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA

Banks plays a vital role in the socio-economic development of a country. Like in other parts of the world, Pakistan has dual banking environment with intense competition. Knowing the key triggers of patronage factors is utmost important. The aim of the study is to identify the key factors contributing towards Islamic banking patronage factors in Malakand division, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. 280 customers of full-fledged Islamic banking or conventional banking with Islamic window were selected for the study. Data was collected through self-administered questionnaire designed based on the previous studies. Five pints likert scale range from very important to not important was used. Descriptive statistics and Friedman’s test were used to identify the factors associated with Islamic bank selection and their degree of importance. The results of the study revealed both religious and non-religious factors are considered by customers before opting for Islamic banking. Among the variable religiosity was most important predictor of Islamic banking, followed by friendly and cooperative staff, shariah compliant products, ATM facilities and referral by friends and family. However, banking hours cost of financing and return on investment were given less preference by customers.Results of the study are expected to benefit the bank officials at large as most of the population lives in rural areas of Pakistan. According to Pakistan bureau of statistics, 67% of population of Pakistan consists of rural while, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 83.1% accounts for rural population. Furthermore, the government authorities could also get more fruitful results by focusing on the factors identified in the study before devising any strategies for rural areas.Key Words: Riba, Islamic Banking, Religiosity, Shariah Compliance, Patronage, Non-Religious Factor

WHY DO CUSTOMERS PATRONIZE ISLAMIC BANKING IN MALAKAND DIVISION, KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA

Banks plays a vital role in the socio-economic development of a country. Like in other parts of the world, Pakistan has dual banking environment with intense competition. Knowing the key triggers of patronage factors is utmost important. The aim of the study is to identify the key factors contributing towards Islamic banking patronage factors in Malakand division, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. 280 customers of full-fledged Islamic banking or conventional banking with Islamic window were selected for the study. Data was collected through self-administered questionnaire designed based on the previous studies. Five pints likert scale range from very important to not important was used. Descriptive statistics and Friedman’s test were used to identify the factors associated with Islamic bank selection and their degree of importance. The results of the study revealed both religious and non-religious factors are considered by customers before opting for Islamic banking. Among the variable religiosity was most important predictor of Islamic banking, followed by friendly and cooperative staff, shariah compliant products, ATM facilities and referral by friends and family. However, banking hours cost of financing and return on investment were given less preference by customers.Results of the study are expected to benefit the bank officials at large as most of the population lives in rural areas of Pakistan. According to Pakistan bureau of statistics, 67% of population of Pakistan consists of rural while, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 83.1% accounts for rural population. Furthermore, the government authorities could also get more fruitful results by focusing on the factors identified in the study before devising any strategies for rural areas.Key Words: Riba, Islamic Banking, Religiosity, Shariah Compliance, Patronage, Non-Religious Factor

Anti-diarrheal, anti-secretory, anti-spasmodic and antiulcer activities of Acacia modesta (Mimosaceae) aerial parts

Purpose: To explore the pharmacological basis for folkloric use of Acacia modesta for treating diarrhea and gastrointestinal spasm.Methods: Acacia modesta crude extract (Am.Cr) for antidiarrheal activity (100, 300 and 1000 mg/kg) was investigated in terms of reduction in diarrhea droppings in castor-oil induced diarrhea, while antisecretory activity (300 and 1000 mg/kg) was studied in castor-oil induced model in mice. Isolated rabbit jejunum tissues were employed for in vitro experiments. For antiulcer assay, ethanol-induced gastrointestinal ulcer rat model was used.Results: Am.Cr tested positive for alkaloid, tannins and flavonoids. It exhibited protective effect against castor oil-induced diarrhea and intestinal fluid accumulation in mice at 100 - 1000 mg/kg, similar to the standard drugs, loperamide and atropine respectively. In isolated tissue (rabbit jejunum), Am.Cr concentration-dependently (0.01 - 3.0 mg/mL) produced relaxation of K+ (80 mM)-induced and spontaneous contractions at concentrations to papaverine. Am.Cr significantly inhibited (p < 0.001) ethanol-induced gastric ulceration in rats. In acute toxicity testing Am.Cr did not produce any mortality up to 5 g/kg dose.Conclusion: These results show that Acacia modesta possesses anti-diarrheal, anti-secretory, antispasmodic and anti-ulcer activities, probably mediated through dual mechanisms, including Ca2+ influx and PDE enzyme(s) inhibition. The presence of phytochemicals, such as flavonoids and tannins, suggest the validity of the acclaimed ethnomedicinal effects in hyperactive gut disorders.Keywords: Acacia modesta, Antidiarrheal, Antisecretory, Antispasmodic, Antiulce

Ethical Aspects of ChatGPT in Software Engineering Research

ChatGPT can improve Software Engineering (SE) research practices by offering efficient, accessible information analysis and synthesis based on natural language interactions. However, ChatGPT could bring ethical challenges, encompassing plagiarism, privacy, data security, and the risk of generating biased or potentially detrimental data. This research aims to fill the given gap by elaborating on the key elements: motivators, demotivators, and ethical principles of using ChatGPT in SE research. To achieve this objective, we conducted a literature survey, identified the mentioned elements, and presented their relationships by developing a taxonomy. Further, the identified literature-based elements (motivators, demotivators, and ethical principles) were empirically evaluated by conducting a comprehensive questionnaire-based survey involving SE researchers. Additionally, we employed Interpretive Structure Modeling (ISM) approach to analyze the relationships between the ethical principles of using ChatGPT in SE research and develop a level based decision model. We further conducted a Cross-Impact Matrix Multiplication Applied to Classification (MICMAC) analysis to create a cluster-based decision model. These models aim to help SE researchers devise effective strategies for ethically integrating ChatGPT into SE research by following the identified principles through adopting the motivators and addressing the demotivators. The findings of this study will establish a benchmark for incorporating ChatGPT services in SE research with an emphasis on ethical considerations