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Being present in substantial numbers, astrocytes play an indispensable role in maintaining homeostasis in the brain. However, their positive or negative involvement in pathological conditions in the brain has not been explored much. In recent years, an emerging thought of targeting astrocytes for the resolution of neurodegenerative diseases has gained momentum. In this study, we have attempted to explore the likelihood of targeting astrocytes by using a natural compound, gentiacaulein (GENT), for clearance of amyloid-β (Aβ) through autophagy and amelioration of neuroinflammation associated with Aβ. We found that GENT treatment of astrocytes hampered the transport of glucose across the cell membrane, which resulted in a reduction in ATP production. With increased treatment time, AMP: ATP ratio was increased significantly, which caused the induction of PRKAA1-mediated autophagy. We further show that increased autophagy considerably enhanced the clearance of amyloid-β by astrocytes. GENT reduced the Aβ mediated inflammation by inhibiting the nuclear translocation of NF-κB and decreased the release of inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6. The role of PRKAA1 in GENT-induced autophagy and anti-inflammatory activity was confirmed when its knockdown reversed these effects. Our data suggest that targeting astrocytes can be a good strategy to prevent/treat Alzheimer’s disease.

The model of Aczel-Alsina t-norm and Aczel-Alsina t-conorm is very flexible because of the involvement of a free parameter, where the algebraic norms and Drastic norms are the special cases of the Aczel-Alsina norms. Due to this reason, they are more superior and effective than other t-norms under fuzzy set theory. The major theme of this article is to introduce the concept of circular Pythagorean fuzzy linguistic variables, which is the combination of the circular Pythagorean fuzzy sets and linguistic term sets. Further, we evaluate the algebraic operational laws and Aczel-Alsina operational laws for circular Pythagorean fuzzy linguistic variables. Moreover, we initiate the circular Pythagorean fuzzy linguistic Aczel-Alsina power averaging operator, circular Pythagorean fuzzy linguistic Aczel-Alsina power weighted averaging operator, circular Pythagorean fuzzy linguistic Aczel-Alsina power geometric operator, and circular Pythagorean fuzzy linguistic Aczel-Alsina power weighted geometric operator for t-norm and t-conorm. The ideas of idempotency, monotonicity, and boundedness are also presented for the above operators. Waste reduction and recycling are pivotal components of sustainable waste management practices, significantly contributing to minimizing environmental impacts. Various strategies are employed to achieve these goals, addressing the complex challenges of waste management effectively. In this context, we introduce a multi-attribute decision-making approach utilizing our proposed operators, designed to tackle the intricacies of waste reduction and recycling within green supply chain management. This approach aims to enhance the applicability and value of the proposed theory. To demonstrate the effectiveness of our methodology, we provide numerical examples that evaluate and compare the proposed ranking values with existing results, highlighting the superiority and validity of the proposed approach.

Background: Forward head posture is associated with the upper trapezius myofascial trigger points and cause pain, restricted range of motion, and referred pain in the arm. The positional release technique is likely to focus on evaluating the efficacy of this manual therapy approach. Objective: To determine the effects of positional release technique for myofascial trigger points of the upper trapezius with forward head posture Method: A randomized control trial study was conducted in the Physiotherapy Department of THQ Hospital Wazirabad, Pakistan, from February 2021 to June 2021 with a sample size of n=32 male participants. Participants were recruited with pain intensity of at least 3 points on the Visual Analogue Scale at baseline, at least one active TrP in the upper trapezius that was diagnosed using the method described by Travel and Simon, and computer users who spend at least 6 hours per day in a sitting posture and are between the ages of 18 and 45. All subjects were randomly and equally allocated into the Positional Release Therapy (PRT) group and a conventional Physical Therapy group. A total 12 treatment sessions were given with 3 days a week for consecutive 4 weeks. The data was collected at the baseline and after the 12th session. The outcome measures for trigger point sensitivity were pain pressure threshold (PPT), visual analogue scale (VAS), active contra lateral flexion (ACLF), cranio-vertebral angle (CVA), and neck disability index (NDI). Data analysis was done through SPSS version-27. Results: The mean age of 34.3±6.57 years. The positional release therapy post-intervention results showed more significant improvement (p≤0.05) in all outcomes PPT, VAS, ACLF, CVA, and NDI between the groups with large effect size. Conclusion: Positional release therapy (PRT) is superior to conventional therapy in decreasing pain intensity and threshold with disability in patients of upper trapezius trigger points Keywords: cranio-vertebral angle; forward head posture; neck disability index; pain pressure threshold; positional release therapy; trigger points; upper trapezius; visual analogue scale.

The study of nanofluids has remarkable uses for researchers because of their fascinating implications in medication delivery, biotechnology, aerodynamic procedures, food privilege, nanotechnology, cool atomic reactors, chemotherapy, next generation film collectors and many more. Currently, the bioconvection technology is measured as a necessary procedure with suppressed compensation in bio-fuel, bio-technology, medical sciences, enzymes, bio-reactors, petroleum chamber machinery, nano-drug delivery, etc. The foremost plan of this exploration is to evaluate the influence of magnetohydrodynamics 3-dimensional flow of tangent hyperbolic nanofluid with gyrotactic motile microorganism through a linear stretching surface. Furthermore, the impressions of mixed convection, Joule heating along with viscous dissipation are as well a part of our research. The analytical expression of tangent hyperbolic liquid flow provides the governing non-linear partial differential equations; a proper transformation is used to transmit this system of equations in ordinary differential equations. To find out the numerical solution, the dimensionless equations are determined by means of BVP4C technique in MATLAB. The influences of miscellaneous substantial parameters on temperature, concentration along with motile microorganisms are accomplished by means of graphs. It can be observed that the heat transfer profile of tangent hyperbolic nanoliquid escalates by increasing the approximations of Eckert number, heat sink/source and power law index factor. A conflicting behavior is observed for Brownian motion parameter, stretching rate parameter along with Schmidt number in concentration profile. Furthermore, Peclet number and bioconvection Lewis number have decreasing impacts for microorganism profile. These nano fluid models with gyrotactic microorganisms are implemented in biodiesel fabrication, heat control systems, food factories, biomechanics, biomedical engineering, thermal exchangers, waste water treatment plant aero dynamical systems, and fundamental sustainable energy resources.

Model-based clustering technique is an optimal choice for the distribution of data sets and to find the real structure using mixture of probability distributions. Many extensions of model-based clustering algorithms are available in the literature for getting most favorable results but still its challenging and important research objective for researchers. In the model-based clustering, many proposed methods are based on EM algorithm to overcome its sensitivity and initialization. However, these methods treat data points with feature (variable) components under equal importance, and so cannot distinguish the irrelevant feature components. In most of the cases, there exist some irrelevant features and outliers/noisy points in a data set, upsetting the performance of clustering algorithms. To overcome these issues, we propose a fuzzy model-based t-clustering algorithm using mixture of t-distribution with an $${L_1}$$regularization for the identification and selection of better features. In order to demonstrate its novelty and usefulness, we apply our algorithm on artificial and real data sets. We further used our proposed method on soil data set, which was collected in collaboration with and the assistance of Environmental laboratory Karakoram International University (GB) from various point/places of Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan. The comparison results validate the novelty and superiority of our newly proposed method for both the simulated and real data sets as well as effectiveness in addressing the weaknesses of existing methods.

In biotechnology and biosensors bioconvection along with microorganisms play a important role. This article communicates a theoretic numerical analysis concerning the bioconvective Sutterby nanofluid flow over a stretchable wedge surface. Bioconvection is a remarkable occurrence of undercurrents fluid that is produced owing to the turning of microbes. It is considered for hydrodynamics unsteadiness and forms classified in interruption of inclined swimming microbes. Bioconvection is perceived practically in many uses for example pharmaceutical products, bio sensing applications, biomedical, bio-micro systems, biotechnology advancements and refining of mathematical models. Additionally, unsteady parameter influences are taken into account. Furthermore, no mass flux as well as heat sink/source consequences are measured in existing analysis. The similarity transformation are established for the non-linear PDEs of microorganism's field, nanofluid concentration, energy, momentum and mass for bioconvection flow of Sutterby nanofluid. Then, altered non-linear ODEs are resolved by utilizing the bvp4c technique. Moreover, nanofluids are declining in thermal and concentration fields and the greater number of Peclet number declines the field of microorganisms. Acquired numerical data displays that temperature field of nanofluid increases for more thermophoretic and unsteady parameters.

This work reported to investigate convective flow of non-Newtonian fluid effect on an exponentially stretchable surface. Effect of nanoparticle is considered in heat and mass equation. The transformation technique utilized on dimensionless equations is converted to non-dimensionless equations are solved thought numerical approach Bvp4c. Influence of approatiate analysis of velocities, heat and mass transport are scrutinized through figures. Furthermore, the comparative analysis of drag forces, Nusselt number and Sherwood number are evaluated over and done with tabulated values. It is give details that the temperature field strengthens with intensification in thermophoresis and random diffusions. Similarly, rises in thermophoresis effect parameter both temperature and concentration profile increasing.

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is accompanied by several complications, which emanate from the sickling of erythrocytes due to a point mutation in the β-globin chain of hemoglobin. Sickled erythrocytes are unable to move smoothly through small blood capillaries and therefore, cause vaso occlusion and severe pain. Apart from pain, continuous lysis of fragile sickled erythrocytes leads to the release of heme, which is a strong activator of the NLRP3 inflammasome, thus producing chronic inflammation in sickle cell disease. In this study, we identified flurbiprofen among other COX-2 inhibitors to be a potent inhibitor of heme-induced NLRP3 inflammasome. We found that apart from being a nociceptive agent, flurbiprofen exerts a strong anti-inflammatory effect by suppressing NF-κB signaling, which was evidenced by reduced levels of TNF-α and IL-6 in wild-type and sickle cell disease Berkeley mice models. Our data further demonstrated the protective effect of flurbiprofen on liver, lungs, and spleen in Berkeley mice. The current sickle cell disease pain management regime relies mainly on opiate drugs, which is accompanied by several side effects without modifying the sickle cell disease-related pathology. Considering the potent role of flurbiprofen in inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome and other inflammatory cytokines in sickle cell disease, our data suggests that it can be explored further for better sickle cell disease pain management along with the possibility of disease modification.

Summary: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) features pathogenic and abnormal endothelial cells (ECs), and one potential origin is clonal selection. We studied the role of p53 and toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) in clonal expansion and pulmonary hypertension (PH) via regulation of bone morphogenetic protein (BMPR2) signaling. ECs of PAH patients had reduced p53 expression. EC-specific p53 knockout exaggerated PH, and clonal expansion reduced p53 and TLR3 expression in rat lung CD117+ ECs. Reduced p53 degradation (Nutlin 3a) abolished clonal EC expansion, induced TLR3 and BMPR2, and ameliorated PH. Polyinosinic/polycytidylic acid [Poly(I:C)] increased BMPR2 signaling in ECs via enhanced binding of interferon regulatory factor-3 (IRF3) to the BMPR2 promoter and reduced PH in p53−/− mice but not in mice with impaired TLR3 downstream signaling. Our data show that a p53/TLR3/IRF3 axis regulates BMPR2 expression and signaling in ECs. This link can be exploited for therapy of PH.

A recent advancement in fluid dynamics is the consideration of nanofluids which has an extraordinary thermal conductivity characteristics and upsurge heat transfer in fluids. This paper examines the heat and mass transfer properties of a steady 3D movement of a sutterby nanomaterial on a bidirectional stretching plane. Nanoparticle mass flow and convective boundary conditions are deliberated. In addition, the effect of heat generation/absorption and non-linear thermal radiation is explored. Moreover, the latest proposed model of the nanofluid has been pondered which involves controlling the nanoparticle volume element at the wall submissively relatively than dynamically. We introduced a similarity transformation to change the equations of boundary layer to a self-similar system after that processed analytically with the help of the bvp4c scheme. The outcomes of several control parameters on heat and mass transfer properties are shown among graphs then scrutinized. The systematic outputs of the Nusselt number are premeditated via tables. We observed that by increasing the estimates of the Lewis number (Le) indicates a reduction in the concentration field as well as the thickness of the equivalent boundary layer. Similarly, it is seen that the concentration field decreases rapidly according to the Brownian motion parameter as compared to the Lewis number (Le).

Deoxynivalenol (DON, Vomitoxin) is a threatening mycotoxin that mainly produces oxidative stress and leads to hepatotoxicity in poultry. Antioxidant dietary supplements dramatically boost immunity, safeguarding animals from DON poisoning. Luteolin (LUT) is an active plant-derived compound that poses influential antioxidants. This study explored the effectiveness of LUT in combination with activated charcoal (AC) in detoxifying DON in broilers. The 180 one-day broiler chickens were allocated into five different groups having six replicates in each group, provided with ad libitum feed during the trial period (28 days) as follows: in the control group, basal diet (feed with no supplementation of LUT, AC or DON); in group 2, a basal diet added with 10 mg/kg DON from contaminated culture (DON); in group 3, a basal diet augmented by 350 mg/kg LUT and DON 10 mg/kg (DON + LUT); in group 4, a basal diet supplemented by DON 10 mg/kg + AC 200 mg/kg (DON + AC); and in group 5, a basal diet supplemented by 10 mg/kg DON + 350 mg/kg LUT + 200 mg/kg AC (DON + LUT + AC). Concerning the control group, the DON-treated broilers demonstrated a significant decrease in growth performance (p < 0.05) and serum immunoglobulin (p < 0.05) contents, negatively changing the serum biochemical contents and enzymatic activities and an increase in histopathological liver lesions. Furthermore, DON substantially increased (p < 0.05) malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration and decreased total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) levels in the serum and liver. The intake of AC and LUT to the DON-contaminated diet decreased DON residue in the liver and potentially reduced the adverse effects of DON. Considering the results, supplementation of LUT with mycotoxin adsorbent has protective effects against mycotoxicosis caused by DON. It could be helpful for the development of novel treatments to combat liver diseases in poultry birds. Our findings may provide important information for applying LUT and AC in poultry production.

Our previous study uncovered potent inhibitory effects of two naphthoquinones from Impatiens balsamina, namely lawsone methyl ether (2-methoxy-1,4-naphthoquinone, LME) and lawsone (2-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone), against α-glucosidase. This gave us the insight to compare the hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects of LME and lawsone in high-fat/high-fructose-diet- and nicotinamide-streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats for 28 days. LME and lawsone at the doses of 15, 30, and 45 mg/kg, respectively, produced a substantial and dose-dependent reduction in the levels of fasting blood glucose (FBG), HbA1c, and food/water intake while boosting the insulin levels and body weights of diabetic rats. Additionally, the levels of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TGs), high-density lipoproteins (HDLs), low-density lipoproteins (LDLs), aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), creatinine, and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) in diabetic rats were significantly normalized by LME and lawsone, without affecting the normal rats. LME at a dose of 45 mg/kg exhibited the most potent antihyperglycemic and antihyperlipidemic effects, which were significantly comparable to glibenclamide but higher than those of lawsone. Furthermore, the toxicity evaluation indicated that both naphthoquinones were entirely safe for use in rodent models at doses ≤ 50 mg/kg. Therefore, the remarkable antihyperglycemic and antihyperlipidemic potentials of LME make it a promising option for future drug development.

After the analysis and forecast of COVID-19 spreading in China, Italy, and France the WHO has declared the COVID-19 a pandemic. There are around 100 research groups across the world trying to develop a vaccine for this coronavirus. Therefore, the quantitative and qualitative analysis of the COVID–19 pandemic is needed along with the effect of rapid test infection identification on controlling the spread of COVID-19. Mathematical models with computational simulations are the effective tools that help global efforts to estimate key transmission parameters and further improvements for controlling this disease. This is an infectious disease and can be modeled as a system of non-linear differential equations with reaction rates. In this paper, we develop the models for coronavirus disease at different stages with the addition of more parameters due to interactions among the individuals. Then, some key computational simulations and sensitivity analysis are investigated. Further, the local sensitivities for each model state concerning the model parameters are computed using the model reduction techniques: the dynamical models are eventually changed with the change of parameters are represented graphically.

The world health organization (WHO) has declared the Coronavirus (COVID-19) a pandemic. In light of this ongoing global issue, different health and safety measure has been recommended by the WHO to ensure the proactive, comprehensive, and coordinated steps to bring back the whole world into a normal situation. This is an infectious disease and can be modeled as a system of non-linear differential equations with reaction rates which consider the rapid-test as the intervention program. Therefore, we have developed the biologically feasible region, i.e., positively invariant for the model and boundedness solution of the system. Our system becomes well-posed mathematically and epidemiologically for sensitive analysis and our analytical result shows an occurrence of a forward bifurcation when the basic reproduction number is equal to unity. Further, the local sensitivities for each model state concerning the model parameters are computed using three different techniques: non-normalizations, half-normalizations, and full normalizations. The numerical approximations have been measured by using System Biology Toolbox (SBedit) with MATLAB, and the model is analyzed graphically. Our result on the sensitivity analysis shows a potential of rapid-test for the eradication program of COVID-19. Therefore, we continue our result by reconstructing our model as an optimal control problem. Our numerical simulation shows a time-dependent rapid test intervention succeeded in suppressing the spread of COVID-19 effectively with a low cost of the intervention. Finally, we forecast three COVID-19 incidence data from China, Italy, and Pakistan. Our result suggests that Italy already shows a decreasing trend of cases, while Pakistan is getting closer to the peak of COVID-19.

Contagious caprine pleuropneumonia (CCPP) is a highly fatal infectious disease of goats, caused by Mycoplasma capricolum subsp. capripneumoniae (Mccp). This disease is causing huge economic losses to the goat industry in Pakistan. However, little is known about the epidemiology of CCPP, especially in the hard areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan, despite having a huge population of goats. Therefore, this study aimed to elucidate sero-molecular epidemiology and pathology associated with Mccp infection in goats in southern areas of KP including Dera Ismail Khan (DI Khan), Bannu, Karak, and Kohat. A total of 200 (50 from each area) serum samples were collected from clinically infected goats, whereas 600 various samples (nasal swab n = 50, pleural fluid n = 50, lungs n = 50 at each selected area of study) were collected from live goats showing respiratory clinical signs and dead/slaughter goats having lesions in the lungs/pleura. A commercial competitive ELISA kit confirmed anti-Mccp antibodies in altogether 17% of serum samples, while area-wise seroprevalence was recorded as follows: Kohat, 28%, Bannu, 18%, DI Khan, 14%, and Karak, 8%. Moreover, a total of 5.5% of samples collected from clinically positive live and dead goats for Mccp were found by species-specific PCR, whereas area-wise molecular prevalence of Mccp was found in 3% samples from Kohat, 7.33%, Bannu, 6%, Khan, 5.33%, and Karak, 3.33%. Of 400 clinically examined goats, 242 (60%) had nasal discharge, 207 (51%) had pyrexia, 50.75% (203) had coughing, 48.25% (193) had pneumonia, 23% (92) had lacrimation, 7.75% (31) had pneumonia with lacrimation, and 10 (2.5%) showed all signs. Of the total 200 dead/slaughtered goats, pleural fluid was found in 36 goats and consolidation and red hepatization were observed in 40 and 42 goats, respectively. The present study found the presence of prevailing Mccp strain in the goat population of the study area. The highest prevalence of Mccp was found in collected samples from Kohat by PCR. The highest seroprevalence of Mccp was found in serum samples collected from Kohat by ELISA.

Background: Suppressor of fused (SuFu) is a tumor-suppressor gene that regulates hedgehog signaling. Its involvement in some malignancies is broadly accepted. However, its association with colorectal cancer (CRC) pathogenesis is not clear. Likewise, no study has clearly associated blood-based inflammatory biomarkers with cancer diagnosis/prognosis as yet. Aim: Our goal was to look at SuFu expression levels in CRC patients and its relationship with other clinicopathological factors. Additionally, we looked into the function of a few blood-based biomarkers in CRC and whether or not a combined strategy at the genetic and clinical levels can be applied in CRC. Methods: The investigation included 98 histopathologically confirmed CRC samples and adjacent normal tissues (controls). A colonoscopy was followed by a targeted biopsy for each suspected colon cancer patient. A CT scan and MRI were also performed on every patient with rectal cancer. Real-time polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry (IHC) were used for assessment. A Beckman Coulter DxH900 was used to examine blood parameters. A Beckman Coulter DxI800 was used to identify pretreatment carcinoma embryonic antigens (CEA) and carbohydrate antigens (CA 19–9) in CRC patients. Results: The expression of SuFu was associated with gender, education, passive smoking, tumor grade, perineural invasion (PNI), lymph node metastasis (LNM), node status, stage, vital status, and recurrence (p < 0.05). In the combined analysis, the areas under the curve produced by the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and red cell distribution width (RDW) were the greatest (AUCRDW+PLR+NLR = 0.91, 95% CI: 0.86–0.93, p < 0.05). Furthermore, the most severe pathological features were linked to RDW, PLR, NLR, and HPR. SuFu expression, node status, LNM, PNI, and stage all had significant correlations with OS and DFS rates in IHC-based univariate survival analysis (p < 0.05). According to the Cox regression, CA-19.9 had a strong independent predictive link with 3-year DFS (p < 0.05). Conclusion: In CRC, SuFu was downregulated both transcriptionally and translationally, was primarily nucleo-cytoplasmic, and was expressed less in high-grade tumors. In addition, SuFu was linked to a poor overall and disease-free survival rate. It may be possible to use SuFu as a therapeutic target for CRC in the future. However, SuFu expression had no effect on RDW, PLR, NLR, or HPR serum levels.

Limited postharvest life of tomato fruit is due to its highly perishable nature. Hypobaric pressure is a new emerging hurdle technology usually used up to a pressure of 100 kPa for the preservation of fruits and vegetables. In this study, an integrated approach of hypobaric pressures (40 kPa and 50 kPa) and sponge-dipping of potassium permanganate (KMnO4) was designed for the postharvest life extension of tomato fruits. Fruits were treated with either 400 ppm of KMnO4, or 40 or 50 kPa hypobaric pressures, or their combination. Fruits without any treatment was considered as a control treatment. All groups were packaged in polypropylene trays as ready to retail and stored at room temperature at 25 ± 1 °C for 21 days. Basic quality parameters such as pH, total soluble solid, percent weight loss, percent spoilage, firmness, ethylene production rate, and color were evaluated at 3-day intervals. Results showed the application of hypobaric pressures and KMnO4, either alone or in combination, provided a synergistic effect in maintaining the quality compared to the control treatment during the 21 days of storage. The highest decay was found in the control compared to the combined treatments of KMnO4 + 40 kPa and KMnO4 + 50 kPa. Similarly, a decrease in firmness and color values was highest in the control treatment followed by the KMnO4 and 50 kPa hypobaric pressure compared to the combined treatment of KMnO4 + 50 kPa. In the same way, a high ethylene production rate was observed in the control, while the lowest ethylene production rate was found in KMnO4 + 50 kpa. Sensory evaluation indicated a highest score of 9 on the 9-point hedonic scale of tomato fruits. Among all groups, the combined application of 50 kPa hypobaric pressure + 400 ppm KMnO4 retained the best overall quality attributes compared to all other treatments throughout the experiment; therefore, this treatment could be applied at a commercial level for tomato fruits.

Nanofluids are the diluted interruptions of nano-sized particles in base fluid such as oil, ethylene glycol, water etc. Nanofluids have wide applications in industries because of their enhanced thermal properties. In present article, the stability analysis of MHD (Magneto-hydro-dynamic) Poiseuille flow of thermocapillary liquid layers of shear thinning nanofluids with oxide nanoparticles in base fluid (water) by imposing transverse magnetic field are studied. The oxide nanoparticles of Aluminum oxide (Al2O3), copper oxide (CuO), graphene oxide (GO), Iron oxide (Fe3O4), and titanium oxide (TiO2) are used. Numerical method used in current work is “cheybeshev collocation method”. To finding the eigenvalues from generalized Orr-sommerfeld equations, an algorithm named “QZ (Qualitat and Zuverlassigkeit)” used. The stability of different oxide nanoparticles based water nanofluids are compared and discussed through graphs. It has been found that Iron oxide based water nanofluid flow has more destabilizing effect and graphene oxide based water nanofluid flow has more stabilizing effect as compared to other oxide nanoparticles.

Pakistani nation is one of the least literate nations in the world with very high gender parity; in some parts of Pakistan the female literacy rate is the lowest one in the world. This alarming situation is mainly due to the non-availability of and poor accessibility to education. In the era of scientific development this problem can be solved through the application of cost effective technologies. Accessibility to and utility of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are on the rise in Pakistan therefore ICTs in distance education can play an effective role in bridging gender gap. This explanatory study had been designed to investigate into the existing trends and opportunities associated with the utilization of mobile phone and internet in open and distance learning (ODL) to promote female education in Pakistan and in the neighboring countries. Various indicators related to the mobile phone and internet were investigated in order to have an information and in-depth, to explore current trends and to find out practicable ways for the application of ICTs to enhance the accessibility of education for female gender. Quantitative data for this research was accessed from multiple resources: UNdata, the World Data Bank, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Ministry of Education and Ministry of Communication, country reports, past studies and other useful resource. It was found that ICTs have strengthened significantly since the advent of 21st century. Mobile phones and internet density have also been increasing continuously. Pakistani society has already achieved mobile phone readiness level and internet base has also expanded significantly so it can be the high time to apply these technologies in distance education to achieve the gender parity in education at all levels.

Aberrant activation of NLRP3 inflammasome has been implicated in several inflammatory diseases. Autophagy is one of the primary mechanisms that regulate NLRP3 inflammasome activity. In this study, we attempted to target NLRP3 inflammasome activity by a synthetic compound IIIM-941. We found that IIIM-941 inhibits ATP induced NLRP3 inflammasome by induction of autophagy through AMPK pathway in bone marrow derived macrophages (BMDMs) and J774A.1 cells. It was interesting to observe that IIIM-941 did not show any inhibitory activity against LPS induced pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6. The anti-NLRP3 activity of IIIM-941 was significantly reversed when we attempted to block autophagy by using either pharmacological inhibitor bafilomycin A1or by using siRNA against AMPK. Further, we found that IIIM-941 downregulated the expression of NLRP3 and prevented the oligomerization of ASC to exert its anti-NLRP3 inflammasome effect in J774A.1 cells. We validated inhibitory activity of IIIM-941 against NLRP3 in three different mice models. The anti-inflammatory effect of IIIM-941 was highly significant in ATP induced peritoneal inflammation model. IIIM-941 was similarly effective in suppressing MSU induced IL-1β in the air pouch model of inflammation without affecting the levels of TNF-α and IL-6. Finally, oral efficacy of IIIM-941 was also proved in MSU indued foot paw edema model of inflammation in mice at 10 and 20 mg/kg (b.w.). The compounds like IIIM-941 can be explored further for the development of therapies against diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease, where hampered autophagy and NLRP3 activation play a crucial role in the pathological development.

This article describes the heat and mass transport mechanism for non-Newtonian Cross fluid model past a wedge in the presence of hydrodynamic (MHD) and first order chemical reaction. The effects of hydromagnetic are also incorporated in momentum, thermal, and solutal slips on the surface of the wedge. The similarity transformation helps to simplify the complex model in the form of nonlinear partial differential equations (PDEs) into nonlinear ordinary differential equations (ODEs). The familiar numerical technique Bvp4c is applied. The optimal solutions of temperature, concentration fields exhibited via plots and Nusselt number, Sherwood number, drag forces are exhibited via tables.

Belief and plausibility measures in Dempster–Shafer theory (DST) and fuzzy sets are known as different approaches for representing partial, uncertainty, and imprecise information. There are several generalizations of DST to fuzzy sets proposed in the literature. But, less generalization of DST to intuitionistic fuzzy sets (IFSs), that can somehow present imprecise information better than fuzzy sets, was proposed. In this paper, we first propose a simple and intuitive way to construct a generalization of DST to IFSs with degrees of belief and plausibility in terms of degrees of membership and nonmembership, respectively. We then give belief and plausibility measures on IFSs and construct belief-plausibility intervals (BPIs) of IFSs. Based on the constructed BPIs, we first use Hausdorff metric to define the distance between two BPIs and then establish similarity measures in the generalized context of DST to IFSs. By employing the techniques of ordered preference similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS), the proposed belief and plausibility measures on IFSs in the framework of DST enable us to construct a belief-plausibility TOPSIS for solving multicriteria decision-making problems. Some examples are presented to manifest that the proposed method is reasonable, applicable, and well suited in the environment of IFSs in the framework of generalization of DST.

Abstract Background Hyperoxia is a frequently employed therapy for prematurely born infants, induces lung injury and contributes to development of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). BPD is characterized by decreased cellular proliferation, cellular migration, and failure of injury repair systems. Actin binding proteins (ABPs) such as VASP, cofilin1, and profilin1 regulate cell proliferation and migration via modulation of actin dynamics. Lung mesenchymal stem cells (L-MSCs) initiate repair processes by proliferating, migrating, and localizing to sites of injury. These processes have not been extensively explored in hyperoxia induced lung injury and repair. Methods ABPs and CD146+ L-MSCs were analyzed by immunofluorescence in human lung autopsy tissues from infants with and without BPD and by western blot in lung tissue homogenates obtained from our murine model of newborn hyperoxic lung injury. Results Decreased F-actin content, ratio of VASPpS157/VASPpS239, and profilin 1 expression were observed in human lung tissues but this same pattern was not observed in lungs from hyperoxia-exposed newborn mice. Increases in cofilin1 expression were observed in both human and mouse tissues at 7d indicating a dysregulation in actin dynamics which may be related to altered growth. CD146 levels were elevated in human and newborn mice tissues (7d). Conclusion Altered phosphorylation of VASP and expression of profilin 1 and cofilin 1 in human tissues indicate that the pathophysiology of BPD involves dysregulation of actin binding proteins. Lack of similar changes in a mouse model of hyperoxia exposure imply that disruption in actin binding protein expression may be linked to interventions or morbidities other than hyperoxia alone.

Abstract Impaired estrogens action is associated with features of the metabolic syndrome in animal models and humans. We sought to determine whether disruption of hepatic estrogens action in adult male mice could recapitulate aspects of the metabolic syndrome to understand the mechanistic basis for the phenotype. We found 17β-estradiol (E2) inhibited hepatic gluconeogenic genes such as phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1 (Pck-1) and glucose 6-phosphatase (G6Pase) and this effect was absent in mice lacking liver estrogen receptor α (Esr1) (LERKO mice). Male LERKO mice displayed elevated hepatic gluconeogenic activity and fasting hyperglycemia. We also observed increased liver lipid deposits and triglyceride levels in male LERKO mice, resulting from increased hepatic lipogenesis as reflected by increased mRNA levels of fatty acid synthase (Fas) and acetyl-CoA carboxylase (Acc1). ChIP assay demonstrated estradiol (E2) induced ESR1 binding to Pck-1, G6Pase, Fas and Acc1 promoters. Metabolic phenotyping demonstrated both basal metabolic rate and feeding were lower for the LERKO mice as compared to Controls. Furthermore, the respiratory exchange rate was significantly lower in LERKO mice than in Controls, suggesting an increase in lipid oxidation. Our data indicate that hepatic E2/ESR1 signaling plays a key role in the maintenance of gluconeogenesis and lipid metabolism in males.

Mathematically, complex chemical reactions can be simplified by “model reduction,” that is, the rigorous way of approximating and representing a complex model in simplified form. Furthermore, to reduce the dimension of the reaction mechanism there are different available model reduction techniques (MRT). Two MRT Spectral Quasi Equilibrium Manifold (SQEM) and Intrinsic Low Dimensional Manifold (ILDM) are applied here. Both techniques are good approximation techniques but not completely analytical. While for a case study, the complex behavior of the two-route reaction mechanism allied graphically. The characteristic properties of nodes and trees of reaction mechanism are addressed with the graph theory. The invariant solution curves and their comparison for two-route reaction mechanism have never been reported so far. Therefore, the aim of this article is to study such facts. The possible approaches to their solution and key problems are based on the Horiuti’s rules and their slow invariants. Both model-reduction techniques are applied to solve the high dimensional complex problem and comparison between invariant curves of both routes are presented graphically. The efficiency of ILDM with respect to time is compared with the SQEM graphically and in tabulated form by using MATLAB.

Clinical Research Presentation type: Oral Presentation Introduction: Graftability of the left anterior descending artery (LAD) has important prognostic value for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. However, with a totally occluded LAD, catheter coronary angiography might be insufficient to determine its graftability. We evaluated coronary computed tomographic angiography (CTA) in the assessment of LAD graftability when the distal segment was not well visualized by catheter angiography Methodology: We enrolled 31 patients with equivocal eligibility for CABG due to total occlusion of the LAD with poor distal flow defined by catheter angiography. Patients with LAD diameters ⩾1.5 mm by CTA underwent CABG surgery, and the diameter was reassessed intraoperatively. Results: The mean age was 54 ± 14; seven patients (23%) had suitable LAD targets on CTA and underwent successful CABG (group A). Another 24 patients (77%) had non-graftable LADs (group B). T- test analysis of group (A) showed no significant difference between mean LAD diameter measured by CTA and during surgery (1.6 ± 0.3 mm vs. 1.5 ± 0.3 mm, P = .21). The preoperative ejection fraction (EF) was not significantly different between groups A and B (35 ± 8% vs. 35 ± 7%. P = .2). After 21 ± 7 months follow-up, EF was significantly higher in group A than in group B (41 ± 5.8% vs. 34 ± 8%. P = .01, respectively). Six patients had patent LAD grafts on CTA follow-up one year after the surgery. Conclusion: CTA may provide valuable information about LAD size and graftability when catheter angiography is inconclusive.

There are two nearly identical molecules in the asymmetric unit of the title compound, C7H7NO. The molecules are nearly planar (r.m.s. deviations of 0.025 and 0.017 Å) and oriented at a dihedral angle of 28.98 (3)°. The two molecules are linked by a C—H...O hydrogen bond. In the crystal, weak intermolecular C—H...O hydrogen bonds link the molecules into zigzag chains along the c axis.

This article discusses how the use of translanguaging in teaching English can result in sociocultural benefits for Pakistan's multilingual Sindh province, where Sindhi, Urdu, Seraiki, Brahui, Balochi, Dhatki, Marwari, and other languages are spoken. Teaching approaches which emphasise the monolingual use of English in an English language teaching class can cause L2 learners to shift away from their sociocultural values and norms to the native (the English) speakers' sociocultural values and norms. This sociocultural change can be prevented by teaching English to L2 learners of English through translanguaging because it encourages L2 learners to use their language (L1) and preserve their culture. In ELT classrooms in Sindh, only English speaking is encouraged, while using a local language is prohibited. In this context, L2 learners of English in Sindh try to speak and behave like native speakers of English, bringing about a cultural shift. Conducting semi-structured interviews with ten teachers and ten students in Sindh, this study explores how translanguaging in ELT can create self-pride among L2 learners of English in Sindh. Moreover, this study also demonstrates how translanguaging can help in cultural maintenance by allowing L2 learners to express their L1 identities, wisdom, values, norms, folktales, literature, and proverbs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the biomechanical performance of various dental materials when filled in different cavity designs and their effects on surrounding dental tissues. Finite element models of three infected teeth with different cavity designs, Class I (occlusal), Class II mesial-occlusal (MO), and Class II mesio-occluso-distal (MOD) were constructed. These cavities were filled with amalgam, composites (Young's moduli of 10, 14, 18, 22, and 26 GPa), and glass carbomer cement (GCC). An occlusal load of 600 N was distributed on the top surface of the teeth to carry out simulations. The findings revealed that von Mises stress was higher in GCC material, with cavity Class I (46.01 MPa in the enamel, 23.61 MPa in the dentin), and for cavity Class II MO von Mises stress was 43.64 MPa, 39.18 MPa in enamel and dentin respectively, while in case of cavity Class II MOD von Mises stress was 44.67 MPa in enamel, 27.5 in the dentin. The results showed that higher stresses were generated in the non-restored tooth compared to the restored one, and increasing Young's modulus of restorative composite material decreases stresses in enamel and dentin. The use of composite material showed excellent performance which can be a good viable option for restorative material compared to other restorative materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]