Financial Sector Reform and Its Impact on Investment and Economic Growth: An Econometric Approach

The financial sector is central to economic development as it serves the role of intermediary by mobilising savings and subsequently allocating credit for productive activities. However, in many developing countries including Pakistan, administered interest rate, domestic credit controls, high reserve requirements, use of captive banking system to finance large budgetary requirements of the government and controls on international capital inflows have remained the main features of the monetary policy. These repressive policies had their repercussions in the form of excess liquidity with the banking system, disintermediation of cash flows, segmentation of financial markets, underdeveloped money and capital markets, etc. [McKinnon (1973) and Shaw (1973)], therefore, argued that low interest rate ceilings unduly restrict the real flow of loanable funds, thus depressing the quantity of productive investment. Financial liberalisation, on the other hand, is defined as policy measures designed to deregulate certain operations of the financial system and transform its structure with a view to achieving a liberalised market oriented system with an appropriate regulatory framework. The financial sector reforms would lead to increase in loanable funds by attracting more household savings to bank deposits due to higher interest rates. This, in turn, would result in greater investment and faster economic growth.

Topological Sensitivity Based Far-Field Detection of Elastic Inclusions

The aim of this article is to present and rigorously analyze topological sensitivity based algorithms for detection of diametrically small inclusions in an isotropic homogeneous elastic formation using single and multiple measurements of the far-field scattering amplitudes. A $L^2-$cost functional is considered and a location indicator is constructed from its topological derivative. The performance of the indicator is analyzed in terms of the topological sensitivity for location detection and stability with respect to measurement and medium noises. It is established that the location indicator does not guarantee inclusion detection and achieves only a low resolution when there is mode-conversion in an elastic formation. Accordingly, a weighted location indicator is designed to tackle the mode-conversion phenomenon. It is substantiated that the weighted function renders the location of an inclusion stably with resolution as per Rayleigh criterion.Comment: 31 pages, 1 figur

Subcellular glutathione homeostasis and characterisation of glutathione transport across the plasma membrane in Arabidopsis thaliana

Challenging environmental conditions are known to alter glutathione homeostasis, notably by inducing the accumulation of oxidized glutathione, an effect that may be influential in the perception or transduction of stress signals. The tripeptide glutathione (reduced form: GSH; oxidized form: GSSG) is a key player in maintaining cellular thiol-redox homeostasis. In Arabidopsis, two proteins are responsible for GSH biosynthesis, GSH1 and GSH2. GSH1 is exclusively localized in plastids, while GSH2 is localized in both plastids and cytosol. Thus, GSH synthesis is restricted to plastids and cytosol but there is a requirement for glutathione also in other subcellular compartments with the need for intracellular GSH transport. In addition, there is good indication pointing at long-distance transport of glutathione between different organs. The latter implies the need for transport of glutathione across the plasma membrane which is poorly understood. Null mutants of GSH1 are embryo lethal, while disruption of GSH2 is seedling lethal. In several genetic screens, different gsh1 mutants with defects in GSH biosynthesis have been identified. However, the effect of these mutations at the subcellular level was still elusive. In this study, the effect of GSH1 mutations on subcellular glutathione distribution was analysed in an allelic series of gsh1 mutants and wild-type plants. Fluorescent labelling of GSH with monochlorobimane (MCB) and HPLC measurements showed that the total amount of glutathione was affected by the respective mutations. Furthermore, the relative glutathione redox potential (EGSH) in different subcellular compartments measured with redox-sensitive fluorescent protein2 (roGFP2), showed that these mutations differentially affect the subcellular glutathione pool. The data indicate that mutations in GSH1 have a stronger effect on cytosolic and plastidial glutathione homeostasis than on mitochondrial glutathione homeostasis. Furthermore, crossing of bir6 (a mutant with diminished glutathione turnover) with the severely GSH deficient mutants, zir1 (a mutant The glutathione concentration is limited by the γ-glutamyl cycle, which is based on glutathione synthesis, degradation and transport. While the γ-glutamyl cycle was suggested as a classical pathway involved in glutathione transport across the plasma membrane there is also evidence for cytosolic glutathione degradation. Under sulfur deficiency, intense MCB fluorescence in γ-glutamyl-cyclotransferase (GGCT) null mutants and diminished MCB fluorescence in wild-type suggests that GGCTs specifically degrade GSH in the cytosol. While glutathione transport studies in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) have led to identification of Hgt1p as a high affinity glutathione transporter, genes encoding glutathione-specific transporters in the plasma membrane of plants remain largely unknown. To investigate the transport of glutathione across the plasma membrane, the severely glutathione-deficient Arabidopsis mutant rml1 was analysed using the roGFP2, which are able to monitor the local EGSH. Changes in the fluorescence ratio of roGFP2 expressed in the cytosol of rml1 with external supply of GSH, in combination with inhibitor studies revealed a highly efficient secondary active uptake of GSH across the plasma membrane. Furthermore, reduction of roGFP2 was only seen with GSH, but not with individual amino acids or GSSG. Additionally, a generated opt4rml1 double mutant further proved that the oligopeptide transporter 4 (OPT4) reported earlier is not the only GSH transporter in Arabidopsis but is rather complemented by a yet unknown high affinity transporter. These results have major implications for our understanding of the glutathione homeostasis in plants, with a particular focus on subcellular compartmentation, degradation, functionality and transport

Risk Factors for Bronchiolitis in Infants of Hazara Division - A Cross Sectional Study

OBJECTIVES Bronchiolitis is one of the major causes of hospitalization in the infants. Higher rate of hospitalization and mortality can be reduced by recognizing and control of risk factors for bronchiolitis. The objective of this study is to ascertain risk factors of bronchiolitis in infants, in local population of Hazara Division. METHODOLOGY This cross-sectional study was done in Ayub teaching hospital form January, 2020 till June 2020. Infants of both gender from age of 3 months to 12 months were included with diagnosis of bronchiolitis. Patients with croup, pneumonia, cystic fibrosis and bronchomalasia are excluded. Demographic variables, clinical characteristics and risk factors of bronchiolitis related to infant, mother and family were documented on specific proforma. The data was analyzed by SPSS 21. RESULTS There were 101 infants. Mean age was 5±3.5 months. Male to female ratio was 2.8. 77.2% infant had de livery through surgical procedure and 82% are term. 45% infants were exclusively breast fed. 34% patients room were carpeted, 35% exposed to molds and 81% had history of contact with infected person.28% infants are exposed to passive smoke, 49% had history of allergies and 60% mothers uses perfume to their child’s. 31% infants have more than 10 family members and are living in 2 rooms (p=0.000). Infant weaned at 6month have late onset of bronchiolitis as compare to infants weaned before 6 months (p=0.000). CONCLUSION Perfume/powder use, family history of allergies, history of contact with respiratory infection, delivery with surgical procedure as major new risk factors. Carpets, mold, passive smoking, overcrowding, are also contributing risk factors

Association of long term sodium valproate monotherapy and vitamin D3 levels in epileptic children

Objective: To determine the association of long term sodium valproate monotherapy and vitamin D3 levels in epileptic children Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Pediatrics, Children Hospital, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad for six months from 15th February 2019 to 14th August 2019. A total of one hundred and thirty (n=130) children and adolescents of either gender between age 3-18 years who had a history of two seizures at least 24 hours apart in their life and were on sodium valproate monotherapy for more than one year were enrolled in this study through non-probability, consecutive sampling. Serum vitamin D3 (25-hydroxy vitamin D) levels were measured in all the patients at the time of enrolment into the study. All the demographic data and laboratory investigations were entered on the predesigned proforma and analyzed through SPSS version 17. Results: Vitamin D3 deficiency was found in 47 (36.2%) children which were significantly higher among patients with older age and longer duration of treatment (P<0.05) while gender and BMI of the patients did not show any significant difference (P>0.05). Conclusion: Significant percentage of epileptic children on sodium valproate monotherapy was found to have vitamin D3 deficiency. Therefore we recommend routine screening of vitamin D3 deficiency in all the epileptic children on long-term sodium valproate therapy followed by vitamin D supplementation in deficient patients. &nbsp

Investigating the evolution of apoptosis in malaria parasites: the importance of ecology

Apoptosis is a precisely regulated process of cell death which occurs widely in multicellular organisms and is essential for normal development and immune defences. In recent years, interest has grown in the occurrence of apoptosis in unicellular organisms. In particular, as apoptosis has been reported in a wide range of species, including protozoan malaria parasites and trypanosomes, it may provide a novel target for intervention. However, it is important to understand when and why parasites employ an apoptosis strategy before the likely long-and short-term success of such an intervention can be evaluated. The occurrence of apoptosis in unicellular parasites provides a challenge for evolutionary theory to explain as organisms are expected to have evolved to maximise their own proliferation, not death. One possible explanation is that protozoan parasites undergo apoptosis in order to gain a group benefit from controlling their density as this prevents premature vector mortality. However, experimental manipulations to examine the ultimate causes behind apoptosis in parasites are lacking. In this review, we focus on malaria parasites to outline how an evolutionary framework can help make predictions about the ecological circumstances under which apoptosis could evolve. We then highlight the ecological considerations that should be taken into account when designing evolutionary experiments involving markers of cell death, and we call for collaboration between researchers in different fields to identify and develop appropriate markers in reference to parasite ecology and to resolve debates on terminology.Host-parasite interactio

Guillain-Barre Syndrome Following a Snakebite: A Case Report and Review of Literature

Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) is preceded by a respiratory or gastrointestinal illness in more than 50% of the patients. A rare association of GBS with a preceding snakebite is reported in the literature in only four previous cases. We present a case report of a patient diagnosed with GBS following the bite of a yellow-bellied sea snake (Hydrophis platurus) and a brief review of the available literature

Role of Triple Test in Evaluating Breast Lumps

Breast tissue undergoes constant physiological changes in a woman’s life because of influence of endocrine hormones during and after reproductive life. These changes may present as pain, lumpiness or both in the breast. Breast lumps are feared for cancer. Thus, it is important for women with a breast lump to receive appropriate evaluation. Clinical breast examination is first step in evaluation of breast lump. The diagnostic sensitivity of clinical breast examination is high (98%) whereas its specificity is low, averaging 48%. Ultrasound is preferred in evaluation of radiologically dense breasts and in the study of breasts with augmentation mammoplasties. Micro-calcifications on mammography are considered to be important signs of breast cancer. X-ray mammography detects microcalcifications in 30–50% of breast cancers. FNAC is a cheap, cost effective and readily available routine diagnostic with a sensitivity ranging between 89% to 98% and specificity between 98% to 100% for palpable breast lumps. When combined together triple test achieves a higher sensitivity, specificity and diagnostic accuracy than any of the investigations taken alone. We conducted a prospective study to evaluate breast masses by clinical assessment, imaging and pathological examination. Results were compared with histopathology. We concluded that triple assessment in breast lumps gives superior results than any of its modalities taken alone