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Background: Epilepsy is a medical condition that requires long-term treatment with antiepileptic drugs. Different epidemiological studies revealed an increased risk of atherogenic cardiovascular diseases in patients under antiepileptic therapy. The possible etiologic suggestion is alterations of the serum homocysteine, folate, and vitamin B12 metabolism. Objective: To evaluate serum homocysteine, folate, and vitamin B12 level in patients under antiepileptic monotherapy. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Biochemistry, Dhaka Medical College from July 2017 to June 2018 through purposive sampling. In this study, forty diagnosed patients under antiepileptic monotherapy and forty age and sex-matched apparently healthy control were selected according to selection criteria, from OPD of the Neurology department, Dhaka medical college hospital. Results: In patients under antiepileptic therapy, mean (±SD) of serum homocysteine (μmol/L), folate (ng/ml), and vitamin B12 (pg/ml) were 14.15±3.4, 13.61±2.02, 361.78±41.26 respectively. In the healthy control group, serum homocysteine (μmol/L), folate (ng/ml), and vitamin B12 (pg/ml) were 8.78±2.59, 16.71±2.06 and 366.69±44.15 respectively. Serum homocysteine level was found higher and folate level was found lower in patients with antiepileptic therapy which were statistically significant (p

Background : Postoperative wound infection is a common consequence following laparotomy for peritonitis. Peptic ulcer perforation followed by peritonitis remains as an important cause of mortality. In severe peritonitis, the use of exploratory laparotomy and intra-operative lavage with large amount of saline solution has been the standard of care to reduce risk of postoperative infections. Objective: To compare the outcome between povidone iodine mixed normal saline (N/S) lavage and conventional normal saline lavage in the management of peritonitis in a tertiary care public hospital in Bangladesh. Methodology: This was a randomized clinical trial conducted in the department of Surgery, Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College Hospital, Bogura during July 2013 to December 2013. There were total 50 patients, selected by purposive sampling as a diagnosed case of peritonitis due to peptic ulcer perforation. All the patients were divided into 2 groups by using coin toss as group A (conventional N/S) and group B (povidone iodine mixed with N/S). The data were collected using the pretested data collection sheet. Results were tested by chi-square test to see their level of significance with a p-value at

Tin oxide (SnO2) nano-crystalline thin films were deposited on silicon and glass substrates at room temperature by sputtering at a constant power of 30 W and different working pressure of 10, 7, and 5 mTorr. Surface morphology, electrical and optical properties of the films were investigated to optimise the deposition condition of the films as electron transport layer (ETL) for high-power conversion efficiency perovskite solar cells. The films were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), UV–Vis–NIR Spectrophotometer, and Four-point probe. SnO2 films obtained at working pressure of 10 mTorr exhibited uniform surface morphology with high light transmittance (90%) and conductivity (4 S/m). These sputtered SnO2 films appeared to have shown promising properties as ETL for PSC, and further investigation is justified to establish the optimal fabrication parameters and resulting energy conversion efficiency.

The shrimp industry of Bangladesh is facing severe problems and results less production. A study was conducted under a DFID-funded research project (TROPECA) to investigate the issue during 2004. The study was done in an aquatic system of Dumuria Upazila of Khulna district comprising a river (semi diurnal tidal system), a canal and 10 shrimp ponds. Shrimp culture practices within the study area were mostly extensive to improved extensive system. Shrimp were being produced without proper pond preparation, water management, fry nursing, and feed management due to a lack of technical knowledge. There were also concerns about the risks associated with the consequence of higher levels of financial investment. Consequently, production rates were low, averaging only 191 kg ha-1 in the system. Entrance of untreated river water in the pond having less depth (

Anthropogenic activities in a watershed may pose human health risks due to faecal contamination of surface waters. Thus, socioeconomic development is important when predicting future microbial water quality. Moreover, climate change alters meteorological conditions, thereby affecting flow regimes as well as fate and transport of microorganisms. In this study, possible risks due to socioeconomic development and climate change were assessed for the drinking water source Lake Vomb in Sweden by means of water quality modelling. The hydrological model ArcSWAT and the hydrodynamic model MIKE 3 FM were used to simulate fate and transport of two microorganisms, i.e., Cryptosporidium and E. coli, from the watershed to the water intake. The hydrological model and the hydrodynamic model were calibrated and validated using observed data on water flow and water temperature, respectively. The water quality in the watershed and in the lake was simulated for a baseline scenario and for future scenarios in the second half of this century. The future scenarios were formulated based on Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) and Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs). The modelling results illustrated the effects of climate changes and of socioeconomic development. The results were also interpreted in the context of infection risks to drinking water consumers using quantitative microbial risk assessment. This study clearly illustrates that socioeconomic development is important to include when investigating future microbial water quality.

Surface water quality is among the significant challenges in the Sutlej River basin, passing through Pakistan's most densely populated province. Currently, the overall surface water quality is grossly polluted, mainly due to the direct discharge of wastewater from the urban areas to the Sutlej River directly or through stream networks. Escherichia coli concentrations vary under extreme weather events like floods and droughts and socioeconomic circumstances like urbanization, population growth, and treatment options. This paper assesses the future E. coli load and concentrations using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) along with scenarios based on Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) and Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) developed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). E. coli concentrations according to a more polluted scenario disclose a near and mid future increase by 108% and 173%, and far future increases up to 251% compared to the reference period (baseline) concentrations. The E. coli concentration is reduced by - 54%, - 68%, and - 81% for all the projected time steps compared to the baseline concentrations. While highly improved sewerage and manure management options are adapted, the concentration is further reduced by - 96%, - 101%, and - 105%, respectively, compared to the baseline. Our modeling and scenario matrix study shows that reducing microbiological concentrations in the surface water is possible. Still, it requires rigorous sanitation and treatment options, and socioeconomic variables play an essential role besides climate change to determine the microbiological concentration of water resources and be included in future studies whenever water quality and health risks are considered.

Background: Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) vaccines have been licensed for usage and have been delivered over the globe in various regions. There is a lack of public awareness and understanding of COVID-19 vaccinations, however. As a result, researchers conducted a survey to see what Bangladeshis had to say about COVID-19 vaccinations. Methods: This cross-sectional study, conducted among the general population of Bangladesh, asked a series of questions about the KAP of the population with regard to COVID-19 vaccination, and the demographic characteristics of participants and the source of information with regard to the COVID-19 vaccine were recorded and analyzed. Results: A total of 386 complete surveys were included in the final analysis. 35.2% of people, who took part in it, said that everyone in Bangladesh should get the COVID-19 vaccine, while 64.8% said no to this idea. As a result of our survey, 73.6% of respondents believed that the new COVID-19 vaccination, which is now used in Bangladesh, may cause negative effects. Although a large number of the population was illiterate (44.6%), our study indicated that those with higher levels of education had a better understanding of the COVID-19 vaccination. This research indicated that those who had previously received a vaccination had a better understanding of the COVID-19 vaccine. For this to be successful, people must have had positive vaccination experiences in the past. There is a far greater awareness about COVID-19 vaccinations in urban areas compared to rural places. However, when multiple regressions were used, this association did not hold up. Conclusion: In Bangladesh, many are unfamiliar with the COVID-19 vaccination, but they have a positive attitude toward it. Before mass vaccines are planned in the near future, health education campaigns must begin immediately to assist people in better understanding their health.

Background: In a public health crisis, knowledge and understanding of disease transmission modes, fundamental hygiene concepts, and procedures are critical for designing effective control measures. The purpose of this research was to assess the Bangladeshi population's Knowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP) towards COVID-19. Methods: A series of questions about the KAP of the population about COVID-19 were asked in this cross-sectional study, which was conducted among the general population of Bangladesh over the age of 15, and participants' demographic characteristics and source of information about COVID-19 were recorded and analyzed. Results: Despite the fact that the majority of respondents (more than 60%) had a positive attitude about COVID-19, 70% of those questioned in Bangladesh had insufficient understanding and preventative actions. This latter discovery is promising and suggests a potential therapeutic strategy. Male and less educated respondents reported inadequate COVID-19 preventive methods, as well as a lack of understanding about signs and symptoms and transmission. The findings revealed a substantial link between knowledge, attitude, and practice among women of a certain gender, age, and education level. Male gender, non-healthcare-related jobs, single status, and a lesser degree of schooling were all substantially correlated with poorer knowledge scores, according to multiple linear regression analysis. Conclusion: The present study revealed a high attitude among the study population towards COVID-19 but a poor response on knowledge and preventive practices, which can be enhanced by awareness campaigns and proper planning.

Aim: Tuberculosis (TB) and diabetes mellitus continue to be significant public health problems. Diabetes screening of tuberculosis patients will provide early case diagnosis, improved diabetes control, and improved tuberculosis treatment result. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the prevalence and risk factors for diabetes in tuberculosis patients, as well as their influence on the treatment result of tuberculosis. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Bangladesh's randomly chosen peripheral health institutions. All TB patients above the age of 18 years were checked for diabetes. Age, gender, family history, smoking, and BMI were all considered as risk factors. Results: Out of 165 participants, diabetes was shown to be prevalent in 35% of TB patients. Diabetes was related to advanced age and type of tuberculosis; its origin (pulmonary or extra pulmonary) and socioeconomic level were found to be significant. Conclusion: Diabetes is a common comorbidity among tuberculosis patients. Over the age of 50 years, the risk of this twin morbidity increases significantly. Screening tuberculosis patients for fasting blood sugar values will aid in the early diagnosis of diabetes and will lead to a better prognosis.

The microtubule-associated protein tau is involved in more than 20 different neurological disorders characterized by aberrant intracellular aggregation of tau in the brain. Here, we investigated the aggregation of a novel 20-residue model peptide, tau

Abnormal deposition of tau in neurons is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease and several other neurodegenerative disorders. In the past decades, extensive efforts have been made to explore the mechanistic pathways underlying the development of tauopathies. Recently, the discovery of tau droplet formation by liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) has received a great deal of attention. It has been reported that tau condensates have a biological role in promoting and stabilizing microtubule (MT) assembly. Furthermore, it has been hypothesized that the transition of phase-separated tau droplets to a gel-like state and then to fibrils is associated with the pathology of neurodegenerative diseases. In this review, we outline LLPS, the structural disorder that facilitates tau droplet formation, the effects of posttranslational modification of tau on condensate formation, the physiological function of tau droplets, the pathways from droplet to toxic fibrils, and the therapeutic strategies for tauopathies that might evolve from toxic droplets. We expect a deeper understanding of tau LLPS will provide additional insights into tau physiology and tauopathies.

Background: Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer death in females, accounting for 23 percent of total cancer cases and 14 percent of cancer deaths.1 The lifetime probability of developing breast cancer is one in six overall (one in eight for invasive disease).2 In Bangladesh breast cancer is the 2nd most common cancer and also 2nd most leading cause of cancer death among the female population after cervical cancer.3 Despite the decreases in incidence rates in North America, breast cancer incidence has been increasing in other parts of the world, such as Asia and Africa. These international differences are thought to be related to societal changes occurring during industrialization.4,5 Methods: This was a Prospective Observational cross-sectional studyconducted among the 150 adult patients of breast carcinoma admitted in Department of surgery of Dhaka Medical College & Hospital, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University and Ahsania Mission Cancer & General Hospital during July 2012 to June 2013. After admission in surgery department, diagnosed patients (by ultrasonography and FNAC) with breast cancer were evaluated by history and physical examination, ultrasonography or mammography in a data collection sheet by the study physician.Tumor size was measured by physical examination, ultrasonography or mammography and during histopathological slide preparation. Histopathology of the dissected axillary lymph nodes determined the axillary lymph node status.Case record forms with appropriate questionnaire were filled for all patients. Results: This prospective documented study enrolled 150 cases of diagnosed breast cancer patient. The mean (+SD) age of the patients was 42.16 + 11.18 years with the range from 18 – 65 years. In this study, commonest presentation was painless breast lump in case of 84% patients. Next to it was nipple retraction (40%). Clinically, 52% of study populations were at stage II. Histologically, most of the tumor was at T2 stage (2.1 to 5 cm). Duct cell carcinoma was the predominant histological type (99.33%) and 58% patient had grade II tumors. 66% population showed metastasis of tumor cells in the axillary lymph node(s). Frequency of axillary lymph node metastasis increased as the tumor size increased. We found 33.33% T1 tumors had axillary lymph node metastasis, where as 58.97% T2 tumors and 93.75% T3 tumors showed axillary lymph node metastasis respectively. AKMMC J 2020; 11(2) : 107-112

Non-communicable disease (NCD) is now a burning public health issue in Bangladesh. Among crucial NCD risk factors, widespread low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels is of top concern in Bangladesh. Over the last ten years, through an extensive nationwide investigation in Bangladesh, we found that more than 80% apparently healthy rural women in Bangladesh have low HDL-C levels. Thus, the present study investigated whether a lifestyle intervention program through daily walking could improve the low HDL-C levels in these women. A total of 231 rural women in Bangladesh were studied using an interventional approach, and analysis was performed based on a case-control design between low HDL-C and normal HDL-C. The subjects underwent a ten-week daily walking program (1.5 km walk twice a day). Among 231 participants at baseline, those with low HDL-C levels were 82.5%. Mean total HDL-C levels were 39.4 mg/dl in low HDL-C subjects and 56.1 mg/dl in normal HDL-C subjects, respectively, at baseline levels. The percentage of hypertriglyceridemia was 25.5% in low, and 10.3% in normal HDL-C subjects and the percentage of diabetes mellitus was 16.4% in low and 7.7% in normal HDL-C subjects before the exercise intervention. Although blood glucose levels and blood pressure were not changed significantly after the exercise intervention, low HDL-C levels were significantly improved with exercise (baseline, 39.8 ± 0.56; exercised, 46.3 ± 1.01, p < 0.001). The current research findings show that even a 10-week mild exercise program improved low HDL-C levels in rural Bangladeshi women, which can be a potential strategy for the prevention of NCD.

In December 2019, a new human coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was discovered in Wuhan, China. Since then, the virus has spread over the world, affecting over 180 nations. SARS-CoV-2 has infected people of all ages, races, and genders, infecting both men and women and spreading at an alarming pace across communities. Given the virus's origin, much remains unknown; however, we do know that clinical presentations vary from a typical cold to more serious infections, including pneumonia, bronchitis, severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), multi-organ failure, and even death. COVID-19 is thought to have a more fast and severe progression in people with underlying health issues or co-morbidities, frequently resulting in death. Methods: This retrospective study was conducted at Bangladesh's Tertiary care hospital. 534 patients were selected for this study. Medical history, age, gender, and co-morbidities (including Hypertension, Diabetes, and CKD, etc.) were recorded at the time of diagnosis, biochemical parameters such as CRP, ESR, creatinine, FBS, Hb, and LDH were also recorded. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected using a real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) at diagnosis and throughout the follow-up of these patients. Results: The comorbid conditions, illness progression, and death rates in patients from a Bangladeshi tertiary care hospital were investigated in this study. COVID-19 patients with co-morbidities, such as hypertension or diabetes, are more likely to have a more severe course and development of the disease. Furthermore, individuals over the age of 60 who have co-morbidities and are infected have a higher incidence of admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) and death from the COVID-19. Conclusion: Where Vaccination, Early diagnosis, and Management lead to a better prognosis, patients with co-morbidities should take all steps to prevent contracting SARS CoV-2 since their prognosis is generally the poorest.

Inspired by nature, it is envisaged that a nanorough surface exhibits bactericidal properties by rupturing bacterial cells. In order to study the interaction mechanism between the cell membrane of a bacteria and a nanospike at the contact point, a finite element model was developed using the ABAQUS software package. The model, which saw a quarter of a gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli) cell membrane adhered to a 3 × 6 array of nanospikes, was validated by the published results, which show a reasonably good agreement with the model. The stress and strain development in the cell membrane was modeled and were observed to be spatially linear and temporally nonlinear. From the study, it was observed that the bacterial cell wall was deformed around the location of the nanospike tips as full contact was generated. Around the contact point, the principal stress reached above the critical stress leading to a creep deformation that is expected to cause cell rupture by penetrating the nanospike, and the mechanism is envisaged to be somewhat similar to that of a paper punching machine. The obtained results in this project can provide an insight on how bacterial cells of a specific species are deformed when they adhere to nanospikes, and how it is ruptured using this mechanism.

Aim: Metabolic Syndrome (MetS), a significant risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD), is now highly prevalent in South Asian countries, including Bangladesh. The diseases also affect young people. A large number of young populations with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) have MetS. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of MetS and the combination of components in patients with early age onset ACS (age ≤50 years). Methods: This prospective study comprised 678 consecutive patients age ≤50 years hospitalized for ACS during 2012-2013. The patients were categorized according to the criteria stated in the latest joint statement for the global definition of MetS. Results: Among 678 ACS patients, 236 (34.8%) patients have filled the criteria of MetS. The mean age was 42.4 ± 0.28 years. The prevalence of MetS was higher in females than in males (48.8% vs. 30.4%, p < 0.001). One component of MetS was found in 26.4%, two components in 29.8%, three or more components in 34.8% of young ACS study participants. Among the various components of MetS, low HDL and high TG were the crucial common components of MetS in young ACS patients in Bangladesh (low HDL: 51.9%, high TG: 44.8%). Conclusions: We conclude that the prevalence of MetSin patients with early age onset ACS (age ≤50 years) is high in Bangladesh. Since Low HDL and high TG are the most common components of MetSin our study, these biochemical parameters would be a clinical target for early treatment. Strategies are needed for the early detection and treatment of cardio-metabolic risk factors to prevent coronary artery disease progression and prognosis.

Tauopathies are neurodegenerative diseases characterized by the deposition of abnormal tau in the brain. To date, there are no disease-modifying therapies approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) for the treatment of tauopathies. In the past decades, extensive efforts have been provided to develop disease-modifying therapies to treat tauopathies. Specifically, exploring existing drugs with the intent of repurposing for the treatment of tauopathies affords a reasonable alternative to discover potent drugs for treating these formidable diseases. Drug repurposing will not only reduce formulation and development stage effort and cost but will also take a key advantage of the established toxicological studies, which is one of the main causes of clinical trial failure of new molecules. In this review, we provide an overview of the current treatment strategies for tauopathies and the recent progress in drug repurposing as an alternative approach to treat tauopathies.

The accumulation and amyloid formation of amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides is closely associated with the pathology of Alzheimer's disease. The physiological environment wherein Aβ aggregation happens is crowded with a large variety of metal ions including Zn

Faecal contamination of surface water sources is an important water quality issue worldwide. Although quite a few studies exist on surface water faecal contamination and variability of indicator bacteria, most of the studies have been based on larger river basins and in temperate region. The variability is relatively unknown in local scale and in tropical developing countries. In this study we assess how anthropogenic and environmental factors affect faecal contamination and physicochemical parameters in Rupsha and Bhairab rivers around Khulna city, Bangladesh. Water samples were collected from six locations of the rivers during a wet and dry period in 2018 to measure Escherichia coli (E. coli) concentrations. Water physicochemical parameters—temperature, turbidity, pH, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand and chemical oxygen demand were also measured. Higher concentrations of E. coli were found in the sampling sites located near the densely populated urban area compared to the downstream site, which receives fewer amounts of discharges from sewer drains. All the E. coli samples violated bathing water quality standards. E. coli concentrations were found to be correlated positively with precipitation and turbidity. A linear regression model was applied, that explains large part of the variation in E. coli concentration (R2 = 0.42). Water quality index assessment was also ranked the water quality as ‘poor’ category; indicate that the water is unsuitable for uses in domestic and recreational purposes and high health risks involved with the water use. The study findings highlight the problem of untreated sewage discharge into the rivers. Implementation of sewage treatment plant with adequate capacity is highly recommended.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to offer a better understanding of managing engagement in an emerging economy service. It explores the role of organisational climates for initiative and psychological safety as the key drivers of employee engagement (EE). It also examines the effects of EE on customer engagement (CE) and, in turn, on relationship commitment and switching intention. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected through a structured survey of service employees and customers of 69 bank branches in Bangladesh using two survey instruments. Responses were collected from 156 employees and 316 customers. A dyadic data set was created by matching customer data with the corresponding employee data collected from each bank branch. Structural equation modelling using AMOS (version 22.0) was employed for data analysis. Findings Organisational climates for initiative and psychological safety positively influence EE. In turn, EE significantly influences CE which has a significant impact on customer relationship commitment and switching intention. Research limitations/implications Future research could consider actual customer behaviour, such as repeat purchase, as the key outcome variable. Practical implications The findings emphasise that investment by service managers in organisational resources to facilitate favourable climates for initiative and psychological safety would engage employees at work, which would ultimately help to attain CE and commitment, and reduce switching intention. Originality/value This research extends the existing engagement literature with empirical evidence supporting two new EE drivers and two new CE outcomes. It offers a better understanding of managing engagement in the financial services industry of an emerging economy, focussing on the relationship chain from organisational climate to EE, CE and customer-based outcomes.

Text-type detection of a document is an essential pre-processing step in the implementations of many document-processing solutions, such as optical character recognition (OCR) and machine translation. Specifically, text-type detection research for Bangla is very rare, with only a handful of solutions ever reported in the literature. In this paper, we present a lightweight, small footprint convolutional neural network, which detects handwritten and printed types of content directly from scanned mixed-type document images. The proposed model achieves 99.82% recognition accuracy for this specific two-type classification problem.

Font detection is an essential pre-processing step for printed character recognition. In this era of computerization and automation, computer composed documents such as official documents, bank checks, loan applications, visiting cards, invitation cards, educational materials are used everywhere. Beyond just editing and processing documents, converting documents from one format to another, such as an invitation card, billboards is another major application area where a designer has to recognize the font details from the images. There is a lot of re-search on automatic font detection published for high-resource languages such as English. Still, not much has been reported for a low resource language such as Bangla. Bangla has a complex structure because of the use of diacritics, compound characters and graphemes. Furthermore, because of the popularity of digital, online publications, there has been a recent surge of fonts in Bangla. Font detection can also help analysts to detect changes in font choices based on sociopolitical divides: for example, consider that fonts common in Bangladesh may not be as popular among Bangla publications in India. In this paper, we present a convolutional neural network (CNN) approach for detecting Bangla fonts, using a space adjustment method dependent on a stacked convolutional auto-encoder (SCAE). As part of the work, we built a large corpus of printed documents consisting of 12,187 images in 7 different Bangla fonts, forming a total of 77,728 samples by augmentations to train and validate our model. Our proposed model achieves 98.73% average font recognition accuracy in the validation set.

Bangla is one of the world’s most widely-spoken languages, but few languages (or "script") automation solutions have been reported for it. To build an OCR system, it is very important to detect the language and type of printing style to run specific character recognition and segmentation modules. This paper presents a novel solution to automatically detect the language (Bangla vs English in terms of the script), and printing style (printed vs handwritten) from any given bilingual scanned document using multiple deep learning models.

At the era of this technology, we are seeking every stuff online first. Book was the best friend to us, still, it is. But this changed the way and medium by which we are being engaged with the book. Nowadays bookselling is more popular online than physically from the store. So books categorizing correctly is a very important problem. But there are many category books available like—Novel, Fiction, non-Fiction, etc. So manually categorizing books was a big deal for everyone. For that having an automatic book category system that uses a book title to categorizing books will help many people. Here, a method is proposed where Long short-term memory (LSTM) technique is used for categorizing books using books title. This model was trained on 1500 English and Bangla books title of four categories. The model reported promising results with training accuracy was 95.08% for English and 83.81% for Bangla. Different preprocessing techniques such as removing numeric data, null value removal, repeat data remove are used. In the Long short-term memory (LSTM) networks activation function ReLU is used in the hidden layer and softmax for the output layer.

The newspaper provides significant information every day. Each news describes every event largely, but the headline contained a summary of the news. A meaningful headline is very good for a reader who can understand the gist of corresponding news. Text generation is a language modelling where the machine can generate text automatically. Predict the next correct sequence of a text in the main concept of text generation. Using the text generation approach, automatic headline generation is the possible solution for any language. Many experiments have already been completed for English text generation but few in the Bengali language. Here, it has a big scope to generating an automatic news headlines generator for Bengali text using deep learning concept with bi-directional recurrent neural network (RNN). Bengali text summarization is our recent research work in Bengali NLP. During this research, Bengali text generation for text summarizer is challenging work. Thus, to solve these types of problem, automatic text generation is a good solution.

Handwriting recognition is still not a solved problem. With the advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning, the construction of Optical Character Recognition systems (OCRs) has become more effective. However, there is still no serious commercially available OCRs for many low-resource languages, such as Bangla. Bangla presents additional challenges, since oftentimes, the vowels and consonants in the middle of the words are abbreviated and replaced with notations called diacritics, and multiple letters can be combined to build shorthand representations, called compound characters. Furthermore, the compound characters can have diacritics as well, making the recognition task extremely complex. This means that a successful commercial OCR should not only model individual characters but also model these diacritics and combined characters, leading us to propose a grapheme-based holistic recognition approach. Borno is the first multiclass convolutional neural network-based deep learning model that can recognize Bangla handwritten characters with graphemes. The proposed model has been trained on a dataset of 1,069,132 images, with 50 basic characters, 10 numerals, 146 compound characters, 10 modifiers, and 6 consonant diacritics classes. The trained Borno model achieves a 92.61% average character recognition accuracy in the validation set.

Language detection is an essential pre-processing step in the implementations of many multilingual document-processing solutions, such as Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and machine translation. Specifically, language detection research for Bangla is very rare, with only a handful of solutions ever reported in the literature. In this paper, we present a lightweight, small footprint convolutional neural network, which detects Bangla and English languages-directly from scanned mixed-language document images. The proposed model achieves 99.98% recognition accuracy for this specific two-language classification problem.

Considered to be the next generation of heat transfer fluids (HTFs), nanofluids have been receiving a growing interest over the past decade. Molten salt nanofluids have been shown to have great potential as an HTF for use in high temperature applications such as direct absorption solar collector (DAC) system. Very few studies using molten salt nanofluids as the HTF in a DAC receiver can be found in the open literature. This study aimed to develop a 3D computational fluid dynamics model of the receiver of a DAC using graphite-nanoparticle-dispersed Li2CO3-K2CO3 molten salt nanofluid to investigate the effects of design and operation parameters on receiver performance. Receiver total efficiency using Li2CO3-K2CO3 salt was compared with that using solar salt nanofluid. Spectral properties of the base fluid and nanoparticles were modeled as wavelength-dependent and the absorption of the solar radiation was modeled as a volumetric heat release in the flowing heat transfer fluid. Initial results show that the receiver efficiency increases with increasing solar concentration, decreasing nanoparticle volume fraction, and decreasing receiver length. It was also found that the Carnot efficiency increases with increasing receiver length and nanoparticle volume fraction, and decreasing solar concentration and inlet velocity. Comparative study shows that solar salt HTF could provide higher total efficiency. However, a higher operating temperature of Li2CO3-K2CO3 will allow for a greater amount of thermal energy storage for a smaller volume of liquid.

The reading newspaper is a common habit in today's life. Before reading news article all are focused on the news headline. Understanding the meaning of news headline everybody can easily identify the news types. That means the containing news article provides positive or negative news. Analysis of the sentiment of the news headline is a good solution for this kind of problem. Sentiment Analysis is a chief part of Natural Language Processing. It mines any kinds of opinion and set the sentiment of any text. We proposed a method for Bengali news headline sentiment measurement with different kinds of the supervised learning algorithm and their performance. Firstly, we set sentiment of each news headline then used the classification method to predicting the news headline which was containing a positive or negative headline. After all, Bengali is one of the most used languages in this world. A lot of research work done previously in a different language but very few in the Bengali language. So, increasing the Bengali language research resource need to develop different kinds of tools and technology.

Plants are everywhere around the Earth. Plant identification is a very important problem for environmental protection and exploration. But getting to know various plants requires taking into account a large number of features which might be easy for a botanist but not easy for ordinary people. So having an automatic Plant identifier which uses a leaf to identifying plants will help many people. Here, a method is proposed where Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) technique is used to classify plants using leaf images. Using Adam optimizer and automatic Learning Rate reduction technique the model gave promising accuracy. This system was trained on 3600 RGB leaf images of 2 categories for 6 different plant species. The model reported promising results with validation accuracy was 95.86% and training accuracy was 96.54%. Different pre-processing techniques such as background whitening, noise removal are used. In the convolutional networks activation function ReLU is used in the hidden layer and Softmax for output layer.

Reducing number of forwarding nodes is the main focus of any broadcasting algorithm designed for ad-hoc wireless networks. All reliable broadcasting techniques can be broadly classified under proactive and reactive approaches. In proactive approach, a node selects a subset of its neighbors as forwarding node and announces the forwarding node list in the packet header during broadcast. On the other hand, no such forwarding list is generated in reactive approach. Rather, a node (cognitively) determines by itself whether to forward the packet or not based on neighbor information. Dominant pruning and Self-pruning are two example techniques that fall under proactive and reactive approach respectively. Between the two methods, dominant pruning shows better performance than self-pruning in reducing number of forwarding nodes as they work with extended neighbor knowledge. However, appended forwarding node list increases message overhead and consumes more bandwidth. As a result, the approach becomes non-scalable in large networks. In this paper, we propose a reactive broadcasting technique based on self-pruning. The proposed approach dubbed as “Improved Self-pruning based Broadcasting (ISB)” algorithm completes the broadcast with smaller packet header (i.e., with no overhead) but uses extended neighbor knowledge. Simulation results show that ISB outperforms dominant pruning and self-pruning. Furthermore, as the network gets more spread and denser, ISB works remarkably well.

This paper investigates the factors played significant role to use mobile internet services. A research framework was developed to testify the statistical relationships and a survey instruments were employed on mobile internet users to collect data from 413 students from five Universities. The UTAUT model of technology acceptance and use has been utilized as theoretical framework to measure the effects of the factors that account for intention and use of the mobile internet. A multiple regression analysis is carried out to determine the attributes that affect the intention and use of mobile internet. The study reveals that performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, perceived risk, and personalization appear significant among the six attributes to influence behavioral intention and behavioral intention and facilitating conditions perform significant factors to influence actual use of mobile internet. The findings may provide feedback and contribute to the improvement of service providers' strategy and marketing program.

Bangladesh is one of the highest mobile phone users' countries among ten in the world where mobile payment service is becoming a promising area with the speedy rise of mobile internet. Conversely, various researches on mobile phone users acceptance of mobile payment has not reveal clearly to a definite assumption for Bangladesh context considering technology acceptance model (TAM). A survey has conducted to collect data from 260 consumers of Bangladesh and then hypothesized model based on data analysis in SPSS. It has found that perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness are the drivers in the acceptance of mobile payment where subjective norms mediate them. Alternatively, perceived risk and perceived costs are treated as barriers toward behavioral intention to use mobile payment. This study explores new results in the TAM model in Bangladesh context and provided managerial insights to the mobile payment service providers to develop strategies in Bangladesh.

Nickel decorated electro-conducting melamine-formaldehyde resin (MFR) composites were prepared in two steps. In the first step micron-sized electro-conducting MFR/polyaniline (PAni) composite particles were prepared by in situ seeded chemical oxidative polymerization of aniline in presence of mesoporous MFR seed particles. Then surface of MFR/PAni composite particles were decorated/doped with Ni particles via in situ chemical reduction of Ni(II) salt. The size, chemical composition and magnetic properties of the prepared composite particles named as MFR/PAni/Ni were analyzed by scanning election microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface analysis, Fourier Transform IR (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), thermal gravimetric analyzer (TGA) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The results suggested that surface of MFR/PAni composite particles are best doped/decorated with Ni particles when MFR/PAni to Ni weight ratio was 1/0.1. An increase in Ni amount resulted in higher agglomeration and produced some free Ni particles. MFR/PAni/Ni composite particles possessed paramagnetic characteristics. The electrochemical/capacitive performance of MFR/PAni/Ni composite materials was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry (CV). Surface decoration/doping of MFR/PAni composite particles with increasing amount of Ni particles improved the specific capacitance value, suitable for application in supercapacitor.

Agribot is a robot deployed for agricultural purposes. This is a robot that performs the farming techniques. It is an autonomous prototype robot that will help farmers in the farmland. This is an arduino controlled robot that will be able to plough, sow and water the farmland. It can replace traditional farming machinery in third world country. It can perform all the functions of farming with the click of a switch. The robot will perform farming using the analogy of ultrasonic detection in order to change its position from one farming strip to another within 1s +_0.05s. At present specifications the robot can perform on 0.25 acre farm land. There is scope of upgrading the specs to perform in large scale farmland. The robot Thus, will contribute greatly in developing the farming strategies and reduce farmers cost of cultivation and will also increase their profit margins.

This study attempts to explore the effects of different key factors influencing the consumer acceptance of mobile banking, particularly those that affect the consumer's attitudes towards, and intention to use, this self-service banking technology in Bangladesh. The demographic, attitudinal, and behavioural characteristics of mobile bank users were examined. Consumer survey on 292 mobile bank users of different mobile network operators was undertaken where respondents completed questionnaire about their perceptions of mobile banking's ease of use, Infrastructural facility, self-control, social influence, perceived risk, perceived usefulness, and customer service with their lifestyle, and need for interaction with personnel. Correlation and One Sample t-test were used to determine whether these factors influence consumers' attitude and intention to use mobile banking. By addressing the concerns of and benefits sought by the consumers, marketers can create positive attractions and policy makers can set regulations for the expansion of mobile banking services in Bangladesh. This study offers an insight into mobile banking in Bangladesh focusing influencing factors, which has not previously been investigated.

Endothelin-1 (ET-1) is a potential marker of the endothelial dysfunction, which has been shown to be elevated in hypertensive subjects. No previous study has investigated the circulatory level of ET-1 and hypertension in a South Asian country. The present study assessed the circulating levels of ET-1 in subjects with or without hypertension and further examined the association of ET-1 with clinical and metabolic parameters. A total of 2543 rural Bangladeshi women with a mean age of 44.5 years were studied using a cross-sectional survey. Multiple regressions were used to examine the association between the circulatory ET-1 levels and hypertension. The prevalence of hypertension was 29.3%. The ET-1 levels were significantly higher in the hypertensive (mean 3.08 pg ml(-1), s.e. (0.19)) than in the non-hypertensive subjects (mean 2.01 pg ml(-1), s.e. (0.03)) (P = 0.001). After adjusting for age, the ET-1 level had significant positive associations with the diastolic blood pressure (P = 0.002), systolic blood pressure (P = 0.001), mean arterial pressure (P = 0.002) and fasting blood glucose (P = 0.002). In a tertile analysis, we found that hypertension in the subjects was significantly increased as the levels of ET-1 increased (P for the trend = 0.001). In a stepwise multiple regression analysis, after adjusting for age and all other potential variables, we found that the mean arterial pressure and the fasting plasma levels have significant associations with the ET-1 level. The present study demonstrates that there is a higher concentration of ET-1 among the hypertensive subjects in an apparently healthy population of Bangladeshi rural women. The relationship between ET-1 and hypertension requires further investigation to define the clinical utility and predictive value of serum ET-1 levels for hypertension for a South Asian population.

Aims Sepsis is a cluster of heterogeneous syndromes associated with progressive endotoxemic developments, ultimately leading to damage of multiple organs, including the heart. However, the pathogenesis of sepsis-induced myocardial dysfunction is still not fully understood. The present study is the first to examine alterations in expression of key angiogenic signaling system mediated by vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in septic heart and the effects of endothelin dual blocker (ETDB) on it. Main methods Normal Wistar rats were either administered with: a) vehicle only (control group), b) lipopolysaccharide only (LPS: 15 mg/kg) and then sacrificed at different time points (1 h, 3 h, 6 h and 10 h), and c) the last group was co-administered with LPS and ETDB (SB-209670, 1 mg/kg body weight) for 6 h and then sacrificed. Key findings Administration of LPS resulted in increases in levels of: a) serum tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, b) serum VEGF and c) serum endothelin (ET)-1 levels accompanied by up-regulation of cardiac VEGF and its downstream angiogenic signaling molecules. While cardiac TNF-α level was unchanged among experimental groups, cardiac ET-1 level was significantly higher in LPS-administered group. Significance We conclude that elevation in VEGF angiogenic signaling may be triggered by diminished oxygenation in the myocardium following LPS administration as a consequence of sepsis-induced microvascular dysfunction. Because of this cardiac dysfunction, oxygen supply may be inadequate at microregional level to support the normal heart metabolism and function. ETDB at 6 h further increased the elevated levels of VEGF angiogenic signaling in endotoxemic heart.

Aims: Endothelin-1 (ET-1) is a mediator of various physiological and pathological processes, including vascular inflammation, cell proliferation and vasoconstriction. Attenuation of ET action using ET-1 antagonists reduces pulmonary vascular leakage and inflammation in several models of lung injuries and experimental acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Based on these earlier reports, the current study investigates the patterns of ET-1 levels in circulation and pulmonary tissues in an experimental model of lavage-induced surfactant-depleted lung injury. Additionally, we also test the effects of open endotracheal suctioning (OES) and hyperinflation (HI) as recruitment maneuver following OES on ET-1 levels. Main methods: Briefly, 24 Japanese white rabbits were anesthetized and intubated. Normal saline was instilled into the lung and washed mildly. After instillation, rabbits were ventilated at definite settings at a total duration of 3 hours. OES and HI were performed every 15 minutes from the beginning of the protocol. Key findings: Here, we show that both circulatory and pulmonary ET-1 levels increased in models with lung injury induced by saline lavage compared to healthy control group. No further aggravation in expression of pulmonary ET-1 was seen after OES and HI, although OES and HI worsened arterial hypoxygenation and severity of lung injury. In contrast, circulatory ET-1 levels significantly decreased after OES and HI but were not associated with blood pressure changes. Significance: We conclude that in a saline lavage-induced lung injury model, both circulatory and pulmonary ET-1 levels increased. Further, OES and HI exerted differential effects on ET-1 expression at both circulatory and pulmonary levels.

Objectives:Endothelin-1 (ET-1), a potential marker of endothelial dysfunction has been shown to be elevated in hypertensive subjects. No study yet has investigated the circulatory level of ET-1 and hypertension in a country from South Asia. The present study assessed circulating levels of ET-1 in su

Objectives:It is unknown whether endothelin (ET)-1 affects the production of angiotensin II (AII) in the heart. We hypothesized that ET-1 may act on the upstream of renin-angiotensin system (RAS) in the hypertrophied heart. The aim was to investigate the effects of the ET blockade on the expression