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A novel device-to-device (D2D) aided cooperative non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) scheme (termed as D2D-SG-NOMA) is proposed, where two similar gain (SG) near users (NUs) with the capability of D2D communication and one far user (FU) are served within two time slots. The NOMA pair is formed with a NU and the FU. The paired NU is employed as a decode-and-forward relay to assist FU. Contrarily, the unpaired NU can receive signals simultaneously from the base station (BS) and the other NU during the second time slot. Two different scenarios (i.e., S1 and S2) are investigated insightfully. In S1, the direct link between the BS and FU does not exist, whereas the direct link between the BS and FU exists in S2. The delay-tolerant capacity (DTC), outage probability, diversity order, and delay-limited capacity are investigated along with analytical formulation. The D2D-SG-NOMA achieves an increase of around 66% and 85% in DTC at 0 dB signal-to-noise (SNR) under S1 and S2, respectively than the existing NOMA scheme with successive relaying (termed as SR-NOMA). Contrarily, a reduced DTC improvement (i.e., around 3% and 10% in S1 and S2, respectively) is obtained at 40 dB SNR due to increased inter-symbol interference.

The study examined the relationship between dispensing patterns of prescription opioids, neighborhood-disadvantage-index, and standardized doses dispensed. Three-year&rsquo, s dispensing data drawn from 80 local government areas (LGAs) within Victoria, Australia&rsquo, s second most populous state, was analyzed. Quantities dispensed in defined daily dose (DDD)/1000-people/day were computed for LGAs of low, moderate, high, and very high socio-economic disadvantage. LGAs with various levels of dispensing, and neighborhood disadvantage were identified and mapped. A multivariable regression model examined the effect of neighborhood level disadvantage and identified other factors that are associated with standardized doses dispensed. More women were dispensed opioids than men. Dispensing increased with increasing age. Most of the LGAs with relatively high dispensing were socioeconomically disadvantaged and located outside the major cities. Dispensing gradually increased from low disadvantage to very high disadvantage areas. Dispensing of standardized doses were consistently higher in rural areas than in urban areas. Neighborhood level disadvantage, age, sex, and urbanization were significant factors in the standardized doses dispensed. As inappropriate dispensing of opioids is a major public health problem, research should facilitate understanding of utilization in small areas to enable tailored public health programs. Nationwide and consistent introduction of real-time prescription drug-monitoring programs, and structural interventions to reduce the fundamental causes of socioeconomic disadvantage and isolation are recommended.

Streptococcus uberis is a predominant pathogen in both clinical and subclinical varieties of bovine mastitis. The genetic and evolutionary relationships among S. uberis strains from different countries are poorly understood. In this paper we used S. uberiss multilocus sequence typing (MLST) method of genotyping to decipher the prevalence of sequence types (STs) and ST complexes by country and infection level, to delineate genetic relationships among prominent STs and ST complexes. Dataset collected from PubMLST database for S. uberis were subjected to clonal cluster and phylogenetic analyses using BURST, globally optimized eBURST (goeBURST) and neighborhood joining algorithm tools, respectively. Certain countries showed clear trends of strain prevalence whereas others had a more equally weighted, diverse population. Occurrence of different severities of disease varied among countries and displayed no direct correlation with sequence type (ST). Clonal cluster and phylogenetic analyses predicted the ancestral roles of certain prominent STs and indicated possible strain migration and reticulate and convergent evolution occurring within the S. uberis population at a global scale. Genome comparison of selected strains revealed the absence of SUB0822-SUB0826 response regulator proteins from ST-5 and ST-6 indicating their preference for contagious transmission. In conclusion, the findings of this study uncovered the global evolutionary dynamics of S. uberis and showed that the study of ST and ST complexes can be a useful technique in understanding prevalence patterns and clonal propagation of S. uberis isolates. Information generated from such studies would be crucial for monitoring infection outbreaks and directing further genomic investigations. [ J Adv Biotechnol Exp Ther 2021; 4(3.000): 311-321]

In the 21st century, any pandemic, especially, SARS-CoV-2 is a global burden due to high incidence, mortality, and mutation rate. Although several techniques have already been identified to control the pandemic or treat patients and causes of adverse impact on mental health, relatively only, fewer researchers have little concern about finding effective mitigation strategies to improve mental health. Therefore, this study aimed to find some common and unique approaches to manage mental health during a pandemic. Some strategies for the better management of mental health induced by SARS-CoV-2 infections are required for all classes of peoples. Early management is vital, and those must be associated with frontline workers and people staying at home, particularly in isolation centers and already identified as active cases. Experts have pointed out the need to pay specific attention to proper daily life. To manage abnormal mental conditions, such as anxiety, mood, personality, and psychotic disorder during the pandemic;social media, meditation, and psychological motivation with adequate diet, exercise, and sleep have significant roles in regulating some biological mechanism, incredibly immune, hormonal, and neural process. Management of mental health is mandatory for all at the time of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. We can consider all of the strategies mentioned above to treat mental health during and after the COVID-19 pandemic condition. © 2021,Bangladesh Society for Microbiology, Immunology and Advanced Biotechnology. All rights reserved.

CML presenting with isolated extreme thrombocytosis is rare. We reported a 47 years old man who presented with history of right sided lower abdominal pain, vomiting, significant lethargy and chest tightness. Patient was mildly anaemic and abdominal examination revealed no organomegaly. On investigation, he was found to have extreme thrombocytosis (2050x109/L) and mild leucocytosis (31.7 x109/L) with mild anaemia. In view of extreme thrombocytosis, he was investigated for myeloproliferative disease especially essential thrombocythemia. He was found to be positive for BCR-ABL by reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR) and negative for JAK2, CALR, MPL mutations. Ultimately, he was diagnosed as a case of CML with an atypical presentation. He received imatinib 400 mg/day and achieve complete haematological response at 15 days.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to examine the life expectancy (LE) and healthy life expectancy (HLE) of Omani adults with age and gender differentials, focusing on whether the higher LE of women than men is a gain or burden for women. Method: Data for the study come from multiple sources such as the 2010 population census, the 2008 World Health Survey in Oman, and secondary data published in the Statistical Yearbook of Oman. The life table and the modified life table proposed by Sullivan were used for estimating the LE and HLE of adult people of age 20 and above, respectively. Results: LE in Oman reached 76 years for both sexes in recent times. However, since 2010 LE has been stalled in the vicinity of 76 years in Oman. Women had higher LE than men (79 years versus 74 years). In terms of HLE, men outweighed women in Oman. At the age of 20, the gap between male-female LE was found to be 4.7 years in favor of females, whereas the gap between male-female HLE was found to be 5.8 years in favor of males. Females spent a relatively long time in poor health status than males (20.8 years versus 10.8 years) and the proportion of life spent in poor health was greater for females than males (35.0% vs. 19.3%). This revealed the paradox of less mortality but higher morbidity among women, supporting the “Failure of Success” hypothesis. Conclusion: Appropriate health policy and strategy need to be taken to reduce the gender gap in LE and HLE in Oman.

People in Bangladesh usually do not utilize handwashing facilities properly, which makes it challenging to implement hygiene practices of handwashing to reduce diarrhea and other health risks. Against this backdrop, this research attempts to assess the factors associated with Effective Handwashing Facilities (EHFs) in Bangladesh utilizing the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2019. This study utilizes descriptive statistics techniques and also bivariate and multivariable logistic regression methods by representing odd ratios to identify the relationship between associated factors and EHF in Bangladesh. The descriptive statistics show that about 74.22% of the households in Bangladesh have EHFs. Gender, education, ethnicity, male-head households, household wealth status, source of water, sanitation status, sharing toilet facility are identified as the potential determinants of EHF. As a result, we recommend that all levels of society in Bangladesh have continuous access to handwashing equipment and facilities to reduce hygiene-related illnesses especially diarrheal disease.

Objectives: To analyze post operative complications, local recurrence, functional outcome of speech & swallowing and survival rate following total laryngectomy. Methods: This prospective observational study was done in four major tertiary care medical college hospitals of Bangladesh from July 2000 to December 2019. All operations were done by a single surgeon, one of the authors of this study based on the personal experience. 45 patients were selected who underwent total laryngectomy for biopsy proven advanced (T3 and T4) laryngeal cancer as primary case & recurrent cases following radiotherapy. Patients were followed up monthly for three months and then six monthly for two years and yearly for rest of their life. Results: Age of the patients ranged from 42 to 80 years with mean age 56.7 years. In postoperative period 03 (6.6%) patients developed wound infection, 03 (6.6%) stomal stenosis, 03 (6.6%) stomal recurrence, 02 (4.4%) seroma, 02 (4.4%) pharyngo-cutaneous fistula and 01 (2.2%) case developed pharyngeal stenosis. In post laryngectomy voice rehabilitation 33 (73.3%) cases used esophageal voice, 07 (15.5%) cases used electrolarynx and 05 (11.1%) cases used bloom singer valve. Out of oesophageal speech, 2 patients had poor speech, Regarding swallowing all patients had very good swallowing except one patient who got pharyngeal stenosis, needed dilation. 3 patients died in subsequent 2 years follow-up and overall survival was 93.3%. Conclusion: Outcome of total laryngectomy depends on site and size of tumour, nodal metastases, recurrent cases and co-existing co-morbidities. Total laryngectomy with or without radiotherapy offers significantly higher local control and survival benefit with advanced laryngeal cancer, compared to radiotherapy only. Bangladesh J Otorhinolaryngol 2021; 27(2): 139-144

Graphical abstract, Several plants have traditionally been used since antiquity to treat various gastroenteritis and respiratory symptoms similar to COVID-19 outcomes. The common symptoms of COVID-19 include fever or chills, cold, cough, flu, headache, diarrhoea, tiredness/fatigue, sore throat, loss of taste or smell, asthma, shortness of breath, or difficulty breathing, etc. This study aims to find out the plants and plant-derived products which are being used by the COVID-19 infected patients in Bangladesh and how those plants are being used for the management of COVID-19 symptoms. In this study, online and partially in-person survey interviews were carried out among Bangladeshi respondents. We selected Bangladeshi COVID-19 patients who were detected Coronavirus positive (+) by RT-PCR nucleic acid test and later recovered. Furthermore, identified plant species from the surveys were thoroughly investigated for safety and efficacy based on the previous ethnomedicinal usage reports. Based on the published data, they were also reviewed for their significant potentialities as antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory agents. We explored comprehensive information about a total of 26 plant species, belonging to 23 genera and 17 different botanical families, used in COVID-19 treatment as home remedies by the respondents. Most of the plants and plant-derived products were collected directly from the local marketplace. According to our survey results, greatly top 5 cited plant species measured as per the highest RFC value are Camellia sinensis (1.0) > Allium sativum (0.984) > Azadirachta indica (0.966) > Zingiber officinale (0.966) > Syzygium aromaticum (0.943). Previously published ethnomedicinal usage reports, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory activity of the concerned plant species also support our results. Thus, the survey and review analysis simultaneously reveals that these reported plants and plant-derived products might be promising candidates for the treatment of COVID-19. Moreover, this study clarifies the reported plants for their safety during COVID-19 management and thereby supporting them to include in any future pre-clinical and clinical investigation for developing herbal COVID-19 therapeutics.

EGR1 (early growth response 1) is dysregulated in many cancers and exhibits both tumor suppressor and promoter activities, making it an appealing target for cancer therapy. Here, we used a systematic multi-omics analysis to review the expression of EGR1 and its role in regulating clinical outcomes in breast cancer (BC). EGR1 expression, its promoter methylation, and protein expression pattern were assessed using various publicly available tools. COSMIC-based somatic mutations and cBioPortal-based copy number alterations were analyzed, and the prognostic roles of EGR1 in BC were determined using Prognoscan and Kaplan-Meier Plotter. We also used bc-GenEx- Miner to investigate the EGR1 co-expression profile. EGR1 was more often downregulated in BC tissues than in normal breast tissue, and its knockdown was positively correlated with poor survival. Low EGR1 expression levels were also associated with increased risk of ER+, PR+, and HER2- BCs. High positive correlations were observed among EGR1, DUSP1, FOS, FOSB, CYR61, and JUN mRNA expression in BC tissue. This systematic review suggested that EGR1 expression may serve as a prognostic marker for BC patients and that clinicopathological parameters influence its prognostic utility. In addition to EGR1, DUSP1, FOS, FOSB, CYR61, and JUN can jointly be considered prognostic indicators for BC. [BMB Reports 2021; 54(10): 497-504].

Background: The experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of different dosages of lead in the hematological parameters of mice and to observe the antitoxic role of Vitamin E and Selenium in induced lead toxicities. Moreover, the toxic effect of lead in the reproduction of female mice was also examined. Methods: A total of 72 (48 male and 24 female) Swiss albino mice were used in the experiment. After adaptation, 42 male mice were selected for hematological studies and divided into seven groups (n=6) where Group A represented healthy control mice and Group B, C, and D were treated with lead acetate at the rate of 0.5mg/kg, 1mg/kg and 2mg/kg respectively. Similarly, three other groups B+, C+, and D+ were treated with lead acetate plus Vitamin E and Selenium at the rate of 2ml per liter drinking water. A total of 24 female mice were divided into four groups (n=6), group E represented control mice and Group F, G, and H were treated with lead acetate at the rate of 0.5mg/kg, 1mg/kg, and 2mg/kg for three weeks followed by matting and treatment was continued for another one week of gestation. Blood sample was analyzed from the hematological study group. Result: The lead treatment caused a dose-dependent decrease in the value of Hb and PCV significantly whereas the value of TEC and TLC were significantly decreased in Group C and D in relation to Control. The value of ESR increased significantly in a dose-dependent manner in Group D in relation to Control whereas MCV and MCH values were significantly decreased than that of control. The value of TEC, Hb, PCV, ESR, and TLC improved in the Lead plus Vitamin E- Selenium treated group as compared to the Lead treated group but, only Group C+ showed significant improvement as compared to Group C. The value of neutrophil and monocyte were significantly decreased were as lymphocyte and eosinophil were significantly increased relative to control. There was a dose-dependent effect of lead in pregnancy of female mice with the highest effect (premature delivery and infant mortality) on high dose treated mice. Conclusion: It can be concluded that lead has a great impact on hematological parameters and has an effect on various systems of the body. Premature birth and abortion are major effects of lead toxicity. Our results suggest that hemolysis of RBC and or impairment of erythropoiesis may be caused by lead toxicity and the hematological values can be restored by the use of Vitamin E plus Selenium.

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) shows remarkable variation in incidence that is not fully explained by known lifestyle and environmental risk factors. It has been speculated that an unknown exogenous exposure(s) could be responsible. Here we combine the fields of mutational signature analysis with cancer epidemiology to study 552 ESCC genomes from eight countries with varying incidence rates. Mutational profiles were similar across all countries studied. Associations between specific mutational signatures and ESCC risk factors were identified for tobacco, alcohol, opium and germline variants, with modest impacts on mutation burden. We find no evidence of a mutational signature indicative of an exogenous exposure capable of explaining differences in ESCC incidence. Apolipoprotein B mRNA-editing enzyme, catalytic polypeptide-like (APOBEC)-associated mutational signatures single-base substitution (SBS)2 and SBS13 were present in 88% and 91% of cases, respectively, and accounted for 25% of the mutation burden on average, indicating that APOBEC activation is a crucial step in ESCC tumor development.

The sulfhydryl bioregulator thiourea (TU) is effective in ameliorating the negative impact of different abiotic stresses in plants. To explore the significant performance of TU (5 mM TU, as foliar spray) in conferring mild (25% depletion of water from field capacity, FC), moderate (50% depletion from FC) and severe (75% depletion from FC) drought stress (applied at 25 days after sowing), physiological and biochemical responses of two chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) cultivars (cv. BARI Chola-7 and BARI Chola-9) were investigated in the current study. Shoot fresh weight, dry weight, chlorophyll content and leaf relative water content reduced noticeably in mild, moderate and severe drought stresses over control. A sharp increase of H2O2 accumulation, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and proline content were noticed at any level of drought stress which further declined in TU-treated drought-stressed plants. Thiourea-foliar application also increased ascorbate and glutathione contents and upregulated antioxidant enzyme activities, compared to drought-stressed plants alone. Thiourea-induced increased glyoxalase I and glyoxalase II activities are the indications of upregulated methylglyoxal detoxification system. Enhancement of antioxidant defense and glyoxalase system, osmoregulation and protection of photosynthetic pigments by TU improved growth, imparted oxidative stress tolerance, ameliorated ROS toxicity and improved physiology of chickpea plants under drought stress.

The microbiome of the anaerobic digester (AD) regulates the level of energy production. To assess the microbiome diversity and composition in different stages of anaerobic digestion, we collected 16 samples from the AD of cow dung (CD) origin. The samples were categorized into four groups (Group-I, Group-II, Group-III and Group-IV) based on the level of energy production (CH4%), and sequenced through whole metagenome sequencing (WMS). Group-I (n = 2) belonged to initial time of energy production whereas Group-II (n = 5), Group-III (n = 5), and Group-IV (n = 4) had 21–34%, 47–58% and 71–74% of CH4, respectively. The physicochemical analysis revealed that level of energy production (CH4%) had significant positive correlation with digester pH (r = 0.92, p 2 level (%) (r = 0.54, p Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Spirochaetes and Fibrobacteres phyla (> 93.0% of the total abundances). Simultaneously, 343 archaeal strains were detected, of which 95.90% strains shared across four metagenomes. We identified 43 dominant species including 31 bacterial and 12 archaeal species in AD microbiomes, of which only archaea showed positive correlation with digester pH, CH4 concentration, pressure and temperature (Spearman correlation; r > 0.6, p Methanosarcina vacuolate, Dehalococcoides mccartyi, Methanosarcina sp. Kolksee and Methanosarcina barkeri were highly specific for energy production. The correlation network analysis showed that different strains of Euryarcheota and Firmicutes phyla exhibited significant correlation (p = 0.021, Kruskal–Wallis test; with a cutoff of 1.0) with the highest level (74.1%) of energy production (Group-IV). In addition, top CH4 producing microbiomes showed increased genomic functional activities related to one carbon and biotin metabolism, oxidative stress, proteolytic pathways, membrane-type-1-matrix-metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP) pericellular network, acetyl-CoA production, motility and chemotaxis. Importantly, the physicochemical properties of the AD including pH, CH4 concentration (%), pressure, temperature and environmental temperature were found to be positively correlated with these genomic functional potentials and distribution of ARGs and metal resistance pathways (Spearman correlation; r > 0.5, p

A comparison of total polyphenols (TP) and flavonoids (TF) contents, antioxidant activity, and silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) biosynthesis potentiality of 35 common edible fruits in Bangladesh were studied. Among the fruits, Emblica officinalis showed the highest content of TP (89 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g powder), reducing power (OD, 1.98 at 1 mg powder/ml), and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH)-free radical scavenging activity (95.6% at 0.5 mg powder/ml) whereas the highest content (17.3 mg (+)-catechin equivalent (CE)/g powder) of TF was recorded in Garcinia cowa. The inhibitory concentration 50 (IC50) for DPPH-free radical scavenging of Annona reticulata, E. officinalis, G. cowa, Phoenix sylvestris, Psidium guajava and Syzygium cumini were 180, 21.8, 172, 188.9, 162.4 and 176.2 μg powder/ml, respectively. Litchi chinensis showed the highest total antioxidant capacity (79 mg GAE/g powder) followed by E. officinalis (69 mg GAE/g powder). The fruits showed a very strong correlation (r2 = 0.99) between TP and reducing power. P. guajava showed the highest potentiality (OD, 0.74 at 10 mg powder/ml) in the biosynthesis of AgNPs followed by S. cumini, A. reticulata and P. sylvestris. Therefore, most potential five fruits should be graded as E. officinalis > S. cumini > P. guajava > A. reticulata > P. sylvestris. Bangladesh J. Bot. 50(3): 445-451, 2021 (September)

Taking unjust and unlawful benefits of children’s labour for someone’s gain or gratification can be termed as economic exploitations in child labour. The study aimed to explore the prevalence of economic exploitations and their determinants among child labourers (CLs). Lalbagh, Hazaribagh, and Kamrangirchar sub-districts of Dhaka district were rationally chosen as the areas of the study. The study adopted a mixed-method design, where a proportional probability sampling was used. A list of 1753 CLs comprising 543, 587 and 626 from the selected study areas was prepared through a short enumeration survey and 324 CLs were interviewed systematically from the list to collect quantitative data using a face-to-face structured interview schedule. The study also collected qualitative data through 15 in-depth case interviews (five from each sub-district). Multivariate logistic regression was employed to determine the associated factors with the economic exploitations. Thematic analysis was followed, and then a concurrent technique was employed for data analysis. Results showed that 97% of the CLs were economically exploited. The multivariate logistic regression analysis identified that the socio-economic and occupational factors were significantly associated with these economic exploitations in different variables used in the study. On the other hand, the qualitative findings showed that the CLs were physically and verbally abused, engaged long working hours with less than minimum wage, involved in various hazardous jobs while hardly received treatment costs due to occupational injury. Finding would be an important guideline for the governmental and non-governmental organizations, policymakers, human rights workers and development practitioners in the related field.

This paper describes the fabrication process and characteristics of dimension- and position-controlled gallium nitride (GaN) microstructure arrays grown on graphene films and their quantum structures for use in flexible light-emitting device applications. The characteristics of dimension- and position-controlled growth, which is crucial to fabricate high-performance electronic and optoelectronic devices, were investigated using scanning and transmission electron microscopes and power-dependent photoluminescence spectroscopy measurements. Among the GaN microstructures, GaN microrods exhibited excellent photoluminescence characteristics including room-temperature stimulated emission, which is especially useful for optoelectronic device applications. As one of the device applications of the position-controlled GaN microrod arrays, we fabricated light-emitting diodes (LEDs) by heteroepitaxially growing InxGa1−xN/GaN multiple quantum wells (MQWs) and a p-type GaN layer on the surfaces of GaN microrods and by depositing Ti/Au and Ni/Au metal layers to prepare n-type and p-type ohmic contacts, respectively. Furthermore, the GaN microrod LED arrays were transferred onto Cu foil by using the chemical lift-off method. Even after being transferred onto the flexible Cu foil substrate, the microrod LEDs exhibited strong emission of visible blue light. The proposed method to enable the dimension- and position-controlled growth of GaN microstructures on graphene films can likely be used to fabricate other high-quality flexible inorganic semiconductor devices such as micro-LED displays with an ultrahigh resolution.

Residential area greenness may influence diabetes, but limited studies have explored this relationship in developing countries. This study assessed the association between residential area greenness and diabetes among urban adults in Bangladesh. The mediation effect of the body mass index (BMI) was also assessed. A total of 2367 adults aged ≥ 35 years were extracted from a nationally representative survey. Diabetes was characterised as fasting plasma glucose level be ≥ 7.0 mmol/L or taking prescribed medications to reduce blood sugar level. Residential area greenness was estimated by enhanced vegetation index. Binary logistic regression models were employed to estimate the association between residential area greenness and diabetes adjusting for sociodemographic factors. Mediation analysis was performed to assess whether BMI mediated the association between greenness and diabetes. Greater area greenness was associated with lower odds of diabetes (adjusted odds ratio 0.805, 95% confidence interval 0.693–0.935, p = 0.0052). BMI significantly mediated 36.4% of the estimated association between greenness and diabetes. Presence of areas of greenness adjacent to living area tends to be associated with lower diabetes prevalence. Findings emphasised the importance of preserving the local environment to tackle the growing diabetes prevalence in Bangladesh.

Air pollution is now a serious issue all over the world. Especially, people of developing countries are seriously affected by air pollution because, like other pollution, air pollution is not given importance. Due to the covid-19 lockdown, pollution is reduced, and as expected, the air quality of Dhaka city has improved. Daily AQI data was collected for the months of April, May and June (2020) and compared with the last six years of data for these months respectively. It was found that the mean AQI of Dhaka city in April, May, and June lower than the last six years in the same period. The mean AQI decreased 43.52 %, 22.37 %, 9,82 %, 16.38 %, 41.43 %, 34.16 % in April when compared with April 2014-2019 respectively and the mean AQI decreased 33.69 %, 37.97 %, 39.25 %, 36.81 %, 45.59 %, 44.15 % in May when compared with May 2014-2019 respectively. The mean AQI decreased 26.48 %, 11.40 %, 8.28 %, 30.61 %, 36.37 % and increase 3.07 % in June (2020) when it compared with June 2014-2019 respectively. This study includes the statistical examination of air quality before and at the time of covid-19 lockdown in Dhaka city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Scientific Research is the property of Rajshahi University, Faculty of Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Quality-by-design approach (QbD) was applied to develop an orally disintegrating tablet (ODT) formulation of aspirin and glycine. At first, the target quality profile and critical quality attributes (CQAs) of the product were identified. Risk assessment was accomplished by failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) method to assess the factors having a significant effect on CQAs like disintegration time (DT), friability and assay of aspirin and glycine. Low substituted hydroxypropyl cellulose (L-HPC), croscarmellose sodium (CCS) and punch-diameter were found critical for DT and friability. The box-Behnken design was applied to optimize those 3 factors to reach a target DT of ≤ 30 sec. It was found that a punch-diameter between 8.7 ~ 9.3 mm, CCS in a range of 4 % ~ 5 %, and L-HPC in a range of 2 % ~ 8 % produced the best oral disintegrating property and reduced the risk. In summary, this work represented an excellent example of the application of QbD approach in ODT formulation development.

Lung cancer in never smokers (LCINS) is a common cause of cancer mortality but its genomic landscape is poorly characterized. Here high-coverage whole-genome sequencing of 232 LCINS showed 3 subtypes defined by copy number aberrations. The dominant subtype (piano), which is rare in lung cancer in smokers, features somatic UBA1 mutations, germline AR variants and stem cell-like properties, including low mutational burden, high intratumor heterogeneity, long telomeres, frequent KRAS mutations and slow growth, as suggested by the occurrence of cancer drivers' progenitor cells many years before tumor diagnosis. The other subtypes are characterized by specific amplifications and EGFR mutations (mezzo-forte) and whole-genome doubling (forte). No strong tobacco smoking signatures were detected, even in cases with exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke. Genes within the receptor tyrosine kinase-Ras pathway had distinct impacts on survival; five genomic alterations independently doubled mortality. These findings create avenues for personalized treatment in LCINS.

With the optimal operating cost and optimal carbon emission target of the chemical logistics companies, a low-carbon routing optimisation with a multi-energy type vehicle combined problem is proposed by considering the concept of the logistics companies’ low-carbon behaviour. An integrated decision-making of multi-energy type vehicles combined strategy and route optimisation based on customer demand is presented, and an improved genetic algorithm is designed. A case study is then applied based on the data collected from the case research. The effectiveness of the improved genetic algorithm is tested. The two joint objectives of operating cost and carbon emission are examined through the cost analysis of environmental energy vehicles and traditional energy vehicles in different combination scenarios. The case analysis shows that a rational multi-energy type vehicle combination with route optimisation has a significant correlation with the operating cost and carbon emissions, while the environmental vehicle purchasing cost reduction and subsidy policy affect the operating cost.

Objectives: This study aimed to explore the intelligence quotient (IQ) profile among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and identify the most important subscales that predict the IQ. The analysis of an intellectual profile with age and gender differentials and the identification of a battery of subscales of intelligence are important for clinical management of ASD among children and for facilitating placement for remedial and educational services. Methods: Data were collected through an exploratory study of 100 children aged between three and 13 years, who were referred to the department of child health and development in Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, a tertiary hospital, in Oman between June 2016 and June 2019. Results: Among the 100 participants of this study, 79% were male, resulting in a male–female ratio of 4:1. The mean of full-scale IQ was found to be 68.6 } 18.1. Furthermore, the mean of nonverbal IQ (73.5 } 17.5) was significantly higher than that of verbal IQ (65.5 } 17.6). Finally, more than half (61%) of the children were observed to have had mild to moderate impairment in their IQ levels. Conclusions: Age and gender showed no significant association with IQ level. The regression analysis identified nonverbal fluid reasoning, nonverbal visual-spatial processing, nonverbal working memory and verbal knowledge as the significant predictors of total IQ. The crucial dimensions of verbal and nonverbal IQ identified in this study can be used to evaluate complicated cases. Keywords: Autism; Intelligence; Oman.

BACKGROUND: The study was conducted in BRAC-administered areas of the Bangladesh National Tuberculosis (TB) Programme (42 of 64 districts). According to the 2013–2017 financial support scheme, direct costs due to TB diagnosis were reimbursed among economically disadvantaged people with presumptive smear-negative pulmonary (PTB) and extrapulmonary TB (EPTB).OBJECTIVE: To describe the implementation of the scheme and associated changes in case notification.DESIGN: This was a descriptive study involving programme data.RESULTS: Between 2013 and 2017, persons reimbursed reduced from 125 680 to 88 763, and the case detection ratio increased from 18% to 24%. The number of patients with presumptive EPTB who were reimbursed decreased from 5024 to 3484. More than 95% were reimbursed for chest radiograph, fine-needle aspiration cytology and biopsy. However, large numbers of ancillary investigations were also reimbursed. During 2013–2017, the observed national quarterly new smear-negative PTB case notification rates (CNRs) were significantly higher than the forecasted CNRs (based on CNR trends during 2008–2012). New EPTB and all form TB CNRs increased but not significantly.CONCLUSION: Implementation of the financial support scheme was accompanied by a significant improvement in new, smear-negative PTB notification. The absence of a comparison arm was a key limitation, but comparison was not possible as the scheme was implemented in all districts.

Fungi attributed to enhance enzyme activities would be suitable for fast degradation of organic wastes. The present project was undertaken to get fungi from indigenous sources might have higher enzyme activities as well as non-phytopathogenic for fast degradation of organic wastes for the purpose of soil health improvement and reduction of fertilizers load for crop production as safe food approach. Accordingly, eight organic wastes were used for fungal species isolation and evaluated it in production of extracellular enzymes activities (amylase, cellulase, lipase and protease) and three crops seeds (mustard, mung bean and barley) germination. Thirty-nine distinct fungal isolates were tested against extracellular enzymes activities and the isolates of 2(1), 2(4), 2(6), 3(1), 3(7), 4(1), 4(2), 4(4) and 6(5) exhibited remarkable positive response to amylase, cellulase, lipase and protease enzymes activities. Subsequently, five fungal isolates [2(4): Trichoderma sp., 2(6): Trichoderma sp., 3(7): Aspergillus sp., 4(4): Trichoderma sp., and 6(5): Penicillium sp.] were selected based on superior performance in enzyme activities and used for seeds germination. Applied fungal suspension significantly (P ≤ 0.05) increased percent germination, radicle and plumule length but in most of the cases those values were insignificant to the results obtained in control treatment (tap water). The germination indices were higher at the treatments of 2(6), 3(7) and 6(5) isolates to mustard, mung bean and barley, respectively but closer to control treatment. Moreover, none of the applied fungi induced any pathogenic symptoms to any seeds. Perhaps these fungal isolates might play encouraging roles in proper management of organic wastes into compost for agronomic usages in future.

Background: Schwannoma is the most common neurogenic tumor of the posterior mediastinum. Though commonly become asymptomatic, back pain with intercostal neuralgia mimicking post herpetic neuralgia is rare presentation and infrequently found in the available literature. Case description: Here, we report a 22-year-old female without any history of trauma, surgery or infection presented with midback pain with radiation towards the right 10th intercostal space. Although clinical evaluation simulates the features of post herpetic neuralgia, she was mildly responsive to traditional conservative treatment. Later on, magnetic resonance imaging [MRI] was performed to rule out the neoplastic cause which ultimately revealed Schwannoma of the right 10th intercostal nerve. Patient symptomatically get well after complete removal of tumor. Beside this, we also briefly review the clinical presentation, neuroimaging features, different surgical options and outcome from the pertinent literature. Conclusion: This report emphasizes early radiological evaluation of dull aching resting pain to avoid unnecessary medications to prolong duration.

Suicide among adolescent has emerged as a major public health issue in many low and middle-income (LAMI) countries. Suicidal behavior including ideation and attempt are the most important predictors of completed suicide and offer critical points for intervention. This article reviews recent population and national data based studies of adolescent suicide and suicide attempters for analyzing risk factors for adolescent suicide and suicidal behavior. According to WHO estimates, 800,000 suicide deaths occurred worldwide in 2016 and it is the third leading cause of death for 15-19 year olds. The suicide rate in Bangladesh was 5.9 per 100,000 population in 2016 (4.7 for males and 7.0 for females). Approximately, 90 percent of suicide cases meet criteria for a psychiatric disorder, particularly major depression, substance abuse and prior suicide attempts are strongly related to adolescent suicides. The relationship between psychiatric disorders and adolescent suicide is now well established. Factors related to family adversity, social alienation and precipitating problems also contribute to the risk of suicide. The main target of effective prevention of adolescent suicides is to reduce suicide risk factors. Recognition and effective management and control of psychiatric disorders, e.g. depression, are essential in preventing adolescent suicides. Research on the treatment of diagnosed depressive disorders and of those with suicidal behavior is reviewed.

Background Gastroenteritis is a common infectious disease in children, which results in high mortality and morbidity, especially in resource-poor countries. This study presents the selected main gastroenteritis causing bacteria, including Escherichia coli O157, Salmonella and Shigella species delineating their prevalence and resistance pattern to the clinically used antibiotics. Results A total of 346 stool specimens from children of clinically suspected gastroenteritis below five years have been obtained, and bacterial pathogens were recovered using selective media, biochemical and serologic tests. We found that 35 (10%) of them were confirmed bacterial gastroenteritis (BGE) with either Escherichia coli O157 (14%), Salmonella spp. (43%), and Shigella spp. (43%). Nevertheless, the prevalence of E. coli O157, Salmonella spp., and Shigella spp. in this study were documented as 1.45%, 4.34%, and 4.34%, respectively. Moreover, 2 (40%) of E. coli O157, 4 (26.67%) of Salmonella spp., and 14 (93%) of the Shigella spp. were found as multidrug-resistant. Nonetheless, Shigella spp. isolates showed 100%, 87%, and 73% resistance to cotrimoxazole, ciprofloxacin, and azithromycin respectively, while E. coli O157 showed 80% resistance to cotrimoxazole and 60% to ciprofloxacin and azithromycin. On the contrary, cotrimoxazole, ciprofloxacin, azithromycin, and tetracycline were resistant in 40%, 47%, 27%, and 53% of Salmonella spp. isolates respectively. Conclusion These findings generate significant insights on the prevalence and antibiotic resistance of the three major gastroenteritis causing bacteria in the study area. Therefore, it will help physicians and policymakers selecting the right antibiotics in essential cases, particularly, reevaluation of recommending cotrimoxazole, ciprofloxacin, and azithromycin in the management of bacterial gastroenteritis.

Aggressive immune response, due to overexpressed proinflammatory molecules, has been characterized in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) patients. Some of those mediators have a dual and opposite role on immune systems at play behind differential disease severities. We investigated the expression of some cytokines and chemokines in COVID‐19 patients in Bangladesh. We diagnosed the patients by detecting severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 RNA in nasal swab samples by the real‐time RT‐PCR method. Thirty adult patients were preselected based on their disease severities and grouped into mild, moderate, and severe cases. Nine healthy volunteers participated in this study as a control. Relative expression of nine cytokines/chemokine in total leukocytes was semi‐quantified in SYBRgreen‐based real‐time quantitative reverse‐transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. We performed statistical tests on transformed log data using SPSS 24.0. At the onset of symptoms (Day 1), angiotensin‐converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) (p 0.05) were upregulated in all COVID‐19 groups, although the expression levels did not significantly correlate with disease severities. However, expressions of IL‐6, monocyte chemotactic protein‐1, macrophage inflammatory protein‐1α, tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α), RANTES (regulated upon activation, normal T cell expressed and secreted), and ACE2, on Day 14, were positively correlated with disease severities. Relative viral load at Day 1 showed no significant correlation with cytokine expression but had a significant positive correlation with RANTES and ACE2 expression on Day 14 (p

Background: Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL), most common Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (NHL) variety, is an aggressive, fast-growing form comprising up to 40% of all cases globally. Objective: To observe the treatment outcome of different subtypes of Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL) after first-line chemotherapy and also the association with IHC, presenting age, sex, and IPI score with outcome. Methodology: This is a retrospective data analysis included all DLBCL patients registered in the department of Haematology of National Institute of Cancer Research and Hospital (NICRH) between July 2016 to June 2019. Results: Total 188 cases were included in this study and mean age was 48 years with a Standard deviation of 15 years with Male (69.1%) predominance. We divide the cases into three different entities of DLBCL [Germinal Centre B-cell like (GCB), Non-GCB and others (NOS) among them Non-GCB variety was the prevalent (47.3%) one. After first line chemotherapy 52.1% complete remission with 7% death was observed in overall outcome. There was no significant difference in outcome among different types of DLBCL after chemotherapy based on Han’s algorithm. Rituximab with CHOP has significantly better outcome than CHOP alone arm (p: 0.021). Conclusion: This limited database study of NICRH will help to ascertain the outcome of DLBCL after first-line chemotherapy in Bangladesh.

A novel device-to-device (D2D) aided uplink transmission scheme exploiting non-orthogonal multiple access (termed as D2D-UNOMA) is proposed and investigated. In D2D-UNOMA, two similar gain near users (NUs) and a far user (FU) can transmit their information to the base station (BS) in two time slots. The NUs can directly communicate with the BS, whereas the FU requires assistance of one of the NUs to facilitate the communication. In addition, as part of D2D communications, one of the NUs can transmit to the other NU in the first phase, whereas the FU can transmit to a NU in the second phase. The performance of D2D-UNOMA is studied in terms of ergodic rate along with analytical formulation. Through numerical results, it is demonstrated that the proposed D2D-UNOMA can ameliorate the ergodic sum rate significantly compared to the conventional orthogonal multiple access.

Bisphenol-A (BPA) is an endocrine disruptor that is widely used in the manufacture of polycarbonate plastics, epoxy resins and dental sealants. It has adverse effects on reproduction. Black seed oil is frequently used as folk medicine for the promotion of good health and treatment of many ailments. The study was carried out to investigate the effect of Bisphenol-A (BPA) and black seed oil (BSO) on hematological parameters, hormone, sperm parameters and patho-physiological changes of testis in mice. A total of 15 male Swiss Albino mice (Mus musculus), of 25-28 days were used and randomly divided into 3 groups consisting 5 mice in each group. Group A served as vehicle control whereas group B and group C were as BPA and BPA plus BSO group respectively. Both BPA @ 50 mg/kg/day and BSO @ 1ml/kg/day were administered orally. Results revealed that BPA caused reduced hematological parameters (Hb, TEC, and PCV) in mice. Inclusion of BSO in BPA treated mice prevented the alterations of those values. Serum T4 and testosterone concentration were significantly (p [J Bangladesh Agril Univ 2021; 19(2.000): 223-229]

Here we report a jute endophyte Staphylococcus hominis strain MBL_AB63 isolated from jute seeds which showed promising antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus SG511 when screening for antimicrobial substances. The whole genome sequence of this strain, annotated using BAGEL4 and antiSMASH 5.0 to predict the gene clusters for antimicrobial substances identified a novel antimicrobial peptide cluster that belongs to the class I lantibiotic group. The predicted lantibiotic (homicorcin) was found to be 82% similar to a reported peptide epicidin 280 having a difference of seven amino acids at several positions of the core peptide. Two distinct peaks obtained at close retention times from a RP-HPLC purified fraction have comparable antimicrobial activities and LC–MS revealed the molecular mass of these peaks to be 3046.5 and 3043.2 Da. The presence of an oxidoreductase (homO) similar to that of epicidin 280- associated eciO or epilancin 15X- associated elxO in the homicorcin gene cluster is predicted to be responsible for the reduction of the first dehydrated residue dehydroalanine (Dha) to 2-hydroxypropionate that causes an increase of 3 Da mass of homicorcin 1. Trypsin digestion of the core peptide and its variant followed by ESI–MS analysis suggests the presence of three ring structures, one in the N-terminal and other two interlocking rings at the C-terminal region that remain undigested. Homicorcin exerts bactericidal activity against susceptible cells by disrupting the integrity of the cytoplasmic membrane through pore formation as observed under FE-SEM.

The present work contains synthesis of six Mannich base analogues of ciprofloxacin 2-7 those have been prepared by the Mannich reaction to investigate some therapeutic assessment. The structure of the analogues has been established by FT-IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, mass spectroscopy, and elemental analysis techniques. The derivatives were screened for their antimicrobial activities by the disc diffusion method. The antimicrobial activity of the analogues compared with the parent was evaluated against three Gram-positive, eight Gram-negative bacterial strains, and three different fungal strains. The synthesized compounds showed diverse antimicrobial profiles among which derivatives 2, 3 & 6 possessed enhanced activity in contrast to the ciprofloxacin. Additionally, unlike ciprofloxacin, most of the derivatives were found to demonstrate antifungal activity against Candida albicans. Cytotoxicity was also made against brine shrimp lethality assay. Interestingly, most of the derivatives revealed enhanced cytotoxic activity than that of ciprofloxacin.

There is a growing interest to researchers in human and animal studies through the addition of medicinal plants or their derivatives to their feeds due to the presence of bioactive compounds. A study was carried out to monitor growth performance, fecal microbial loads and nutrient digestibility in crossbred (Local x Holstein Friesian) growing calves. Treatment groups were: HFA1 (CON: Control group, basal diet: green grass + concentrate), HFA2 (CON + fruit of Emblica officinalis Gaertn. 0.5% in-feed and 0.1% in-water), HFA3 (CON + fruit of Terminalia bellirica Gaertn. Roxb. 0.5% in-feed and 0.1% in-water), and HFA4 (CON + fruit of Terminalia chebula Retz. 0.5% in-feed and 0.1% in-water). Addition of local herbal feed additives (HFA2, HFA3 and HFA4) improved weight gain and gain to feed ratio (p

This study examines how students from rural areas in Bangladesh face particular challenges in adapting to university dormitories in urban areas. There has been an increase in the number of students migrating from rural areas of Bangladesh to the cities for pursuing higher studies. These students face numerous challenges to adapt themselves to a diverse and unfamiliar cultural setting of an urban university dormitory. Following Oberg’s (1954, 1960) “culture shock” model, this study examines the adaptation challenges and coping strategies of rural students living at the urban university dormitories in Bangladesh. Mixed research methods, using paper-based questionnaires and semi-structured interviews, were used to collect data. Drawing upon a survey among 400 students and 10 in-depth interviews, this study identifies specific challenges that most students face in their adaptation process such as, substandard food quality, unhealthy accommodation, psychological trauma, depression and anxiety. The most effective coping mechanisms are fostering a positive attitude, joining social associations and talking to friends and families. It is expected that findings of this study would be useful for tertiary educational institutions to develop a support system that will help rural students better adapt to urban settings, which would positively contribute to their educational outcomes.

An effective and quality health care service is one of the fundamental visions of every government to its citizenry because it is only the healthy people that can be governed and will value developmental projects. Citizens having access to quality health services translate to significant development in modern society. Therefore, the provision of adequate funds for the sector is essential. However, the Nigeria health care sector is currently confronted with colossal issues that should be surmounted to enhance effective and quality health care delivery to the citizens. This study is rooted in the evidence of appropriate works of literature in the financing of public health care services in Nigeria. From the extant works of the literature surveyed, it was revealed that public health care services in Nigeria are financed by revenue that is accrued from public tax, funding from donors, health insurance, and direct payments made by individuals. Furthermore, public health service is mostly financed by direct payments made by individuals with the government. The most perturbing issues combating public health care financing are direct payments made by individuals, poor government funding, health care policy defects in implementation, and corruption scandals. On this note, the study recommended an effective and robust government funding of public health, implementation of sound health care policies, efficient monitoring of public funds utilization, and discouraging foreign medical trips. JEL Classification Codes: A19, B10, B25, C10, C53.

Lambertianic acid (LA) is a diterpene bioactive compound mainly purified from different species of Pinus. It is an optical isomer of another natural compound daniellic acid and was firstly purified from Pinus lambertiana. LA can be synthesized in laboratory from podocarpic acid. It has been reported to have potential health benefits in attenuating obesity, allergies and different cancers including breast, liver, lung and prostate cancer. It exhibits anticancer properties through inhibiting cancer cell proliferation and survival, and inducing apoptosis, targeting major signalling components including AKT, AMPK, NFkB, COX-2, STAT3, etc. Most of the studies with LA were done using in vitro models, thus warranting future investigations with animal models to evaluate its pharmacological effects such as antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects as well as to explore the underlying molecular mechanisms and toxicological profile. This review describes the chemistry, source, purification and therapeutic potentials of LA and it can therefore be a suitable guideline for any future study with LA.

The effect of gamma radiation on the decontamination of microbial population, physico-chemical, radiation sensitivity and sensory characteristics of common spices for storage were evaluated. Spices were irradiated with gamma doses of 0 (as control), 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 kGy, packed in the glass vials and stored at room temperature (22 ± 2°C) in the laboratory. In this research, Bacillus, Salmonella and Listeria species were identified in un-irradiated spice samples. Results also indicated that gamma radiation reduced the total microbial population compared to control and optimum gamma radiation doses (6 kGy for red chili and turmeric; 4 kGy for cumin, coriander, garlic and black pepper; 2 kGy for ginger powder samples) were identified for decontamination of the organisms in the studied spices. It was concluded that no significant differences before and after gamma radiation were observed in physico-chemical, nutritional and sensory properties but significantly changed in microbial load in spices samples.

PurposeThe aim of this study was to explore the reasons for preferring home as a birth delivery place and identify the socio-economic and cultural factors influencing the choice of delivery place in rural Bangladesh.Design/methodology/approachThe data for the study come from a community-based cross-sectional study conducted among 464 mothers in a rural sub-district of Bangladesh in 2019. Respondents were selected randomly from the frame listing all mothers with inclusion criteria, using a two-stage cluster sampling design. Data were collected through a face-to-face interview. Both descriptive and inferential statistics and logistic regression models were used for data analysis.FindingsThe results indicate a very high rate (58%) of home delivery. About 20% mothers never received ANC visit. Preference for home delivery was high (63%). Mothers with no education, aged 30 and above, multi-parity, low wealth status, lack of knowledge about institutional delivery, no or Originality/valueBased on primary data from a rural area, this study would help understand reasons and factors affecting home delivery and developing an appropriate strategy for the improvement of institutional delivery and maternity care services in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND More than 30 million children worldwide suffer from moderate acute malnutrition (MAM). Current treatments have limited effectiveness and much remains unknown about pathogenesis. Children with MAM exhibit perturbed development of their gut microbiota. METHODS Slum-dwelling Bangladeshi children, aged 12 to 18 months, with moderate acute malnutrition (n=124) received a microbiota-directed complementary food (MDCF-2) or an existing ready-to-use supplementary food (RUSF), twice daily for three months followed by a 1-month period of monitoring. We obtained weight-for-length, weight-for-age, and length-for-age Z-scores and mid-upper arm circumference at baseline and fortnightly, through four months. We compared the rate of change of these related phenotypes between baseline and three months, and between baseline and four months. We also measured levels of 4,977 proteins in plasma plus 209 bacterial taxa in fecal samples. RESULTS 118 children completed the intervention (n=59/arm). The rate of change in weight-for-length Z-score (β-WLZ), weight-for-age Z-score, and mid upper arm circumference is consistent with a benefit of MDCF-2 on growth over the course of the study including the one-month follow-up. Receipt of MDCF-2 was linked to the magnitude of change in levels of 70 β-WLZ-positively correlated plasma proteins including mediators of bone growth, neurodevelopment and inflammation (gene set enrichment analysis [GSEA];p

Background With fewer than 7% of patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) surviving 5 years after diagnosis, the receipt of recommended treatment is of utmost importance for patient survival. Nevertheless, treatment refusal by patients with SCLC has not been studied well. Our study examined factors associated with treatment refusal and the effect of refusal on patient survival. Methods From the National Cancer Database, we analyzed data of 107,988 patients with SCLC diagnosed between 2003 and 2012. Treatment refusals were analyzed separately for chemoradiotherapy among patients with limited stage disease (LS-SCLC) and chemotherapy among those with extensive stage disease (ES-SCLC). We used logistic regression to investigate factors associated with treatment refusal. We estimated survival probability using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared survival of those who received and refused treatment using Cox proportional hazards regression analysis. Results The refusal rates of chemoradiotherapy among patients with LS-SCLC and chemotherapy among those with ES-SCLC were 1.34% and 4.70%, respectively. From 2003 to 2012, trends show an increase of refusals, especially among the patients with ES-SCLC who were recommended chemotherapy. Multivariable analyses showed that in both SCLC groups, older age at diagnosis (>70 years), female gender, uninsured status, and presence of comorbidities were associated with treatment refusals. Patients with LS-SCLC who refused chemoradiotherapy had a higher risk of mortality than those who received treatment (HR, 4.96; 95% CI, 4.45-5.53); the median survival of those who refused treatment was 3 months vs 18 months for those who received it (P < .001). Similarly, patients with ES-SCLC who refused chemotherapy had a higher risk of mortality than those who received treatment (HR, 3.69; 95% CI, 3.48-3.92); the median survival was 1 month vs 7 months, respectively (P < .001). Conclusions Treatment refusal among patients with SCLC was associated with worse survival. Strategies to increase patient acceptance of the recommended treatment need to be studied further.

Contraception is not commonly used by Omani women because of socio-cultural traditions, religious beliefs and poor knowledge but among the users modern contraceptive methods are more popular than traditional methods. Multilevel analysis is conducted to investigate associations between individual and religion level characteristics and different type of contraceptive method and to obtain a better understanding of the factors associated with contraceptive method choices used by 15-49 years women in Oman using Oman National Reproductive Health Survey data. The results confirm the importance of individual's own characteristics have enduring effects on contraceptive method choices and it is found that for a given individual, contraceptive method choice varies across women's age, education level and their number of living children. We have found considerable differences in the results of the estimates between single and multilevel approaches.

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors were found to be clinically effective for treatment of patients with certain subsets of cancers carrying somatic mutations in receptor tyrosine kinases. However, the duration of clinical response is often limited, and patients ultimately develop drug resistance. Here, we use single-cell RNA sequencing to demonstrate the existence of multiple cancer cell subpopulations within cell lines, xenograft tumors and patient tumors. These subpopulations exhibit epigenetic changes and differential therapeutic sensitivity. Recurrently overrepresented ontologies in genes that are differentially expressed between drug tolerant cell populations and drug sensitive cells include epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, epithelium development, vesicle mediated transport, drug metabolism and cholesterol homeostasis. We show analysis of identified markers using the LINCS database to predict and functionally validate small molecules that target selected drug tolerant cell populations. In combination with EGFR inhibitors, crizotinib inhibits the emergence of a defined subset of EGFR inhibitor-tolerant clones. In this study, we describe the spectrum of changes associated with drug tolerance and inhibition of specific tolerant cell subpopulations with combination agents., It has been proposed that resistance to targeted therapies in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) is due to a nonhomogeneous cell population. Here the authors analyse preclinical NSCLC models using single-cell RNA-seq and identify drug tolerant cell states and subpopulations, as well as associated genes.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a severe neurodegenerative disease. The identification of patients at high risk of conversion from mild cognitive impairment to AD via earlier close monitoring, targeted investigations, and appropriate management is crucial. Recently, several machine learning (ML) algorithms have been used for AD progression detection. Most of these studies only utilized neuroimaging data from baseline visits. However, AD is a complex chronic disease, and usually, a medical expert will analyze the patient’s whole history when making a progression diagnosis. Furthermore, neuroimaging data are always either limited or not available, especially in developing countries, due to their cost. In this paper, we compare the performance of five widely used ML algorithms, namely, the support vector machine, random forest, k-nearest neighbor, logistic regression, and decision tree to predict AD progression with a prediction horizon of 2.5 years. We use 1029 subjects from the Alzheimer’s disease neuroimaging initiative (ADNI) database. In contrast to previous literature, our models are optimized using a collection of cost-effective time-series features including patient’s comorbidities, cognitive scores, medication history, and demographics. Medication and comorbidity text data are semantically prepared. Drug terms are collected and cleaned before encoding using the therapeutic chemical classification (ATC) ontology, and then semantically aggregated to the appropriate level of granularity using ATC to ensure a less sparse dataset. Our experiments assert that the early fusion of comorbidity and medication features with other features reveals significant predictive power with all models. The random forest model achieves the most accurate performance compared to other models. This study is the first of its kind to investigate the role of such multimodal time-series data on AD prediction.

Background: Biosafety is the principles, technologies and practices that are implemented to prevent the unintentional exposure to pathogens and toxins. Objective: The purpose of the present study was to assess the Status of biosafety safety measures practice by medical laboratory workers in public hospitals of Dhaka city. Methodology: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted with Data from Medical Laboratory Workers of Tertiary Level Public Hospitals of Dhaka City using a Semi-Structured Questionnaire. The study was conducted from May 2015 to November 2015. It was designed to assess the Status of Practicing Biosafety Safety Measures in Tertiary Level Public Hospitals of Dhaka City. The knowledge, training, level of education on Biosafety were assessed by medical laboratory workers. Result: The Data of this study is obtained from a total of 238 respondents. In this study it is observed that 224(94%) respondents could not say the concept of Biosafety as defined by WHO. In this study 118(49%) respondents do not know about biosafety cabinet and 84(35%) could say up to Biosafety Level IV and 36(15%) can say up to Biosafety Level 3. Orientation with biosafety tools is observed in 138(58%) respondents, 76(32%) got training during course and 78(33%) got training during service. Conclusion: In conclusion knowledge and training on biosafety of the laboratory worker are inadequate. Bangladesh Journal of Infectious Diseases 2020;7(2):49-56