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In light of prevailing technological advancements, online shopping has become increasingly prevalent. A well-designed webpage interface, particularly in terms of visual appeal, has the potential to evoke customer emotions such as pleasure and arousal, thereby stimulating impulse buying among consumers. In contrast to global brands, local web stores have faced challenges in devising strategies to cultivate an environment conducive to enhancing brand perception and encouraging impulsive buying behavior, specifically in the realm of online local brand retailing. Previous studies have primarily focused on customers’ cognitive perspectives, including privacy concerns, content sharing, and websites credibility. However, existing research has yet to provide a comprehensive framework for understanding customers’ online impulse buying behavior. Addressing these gaps, this study aims to investigate the effect of different web store stimuli on creating consumers’ brand perception of online web stores and its impact on customers’ impulsive buying behavior. Data was collected through purposive sampling, involving 423 users of different online local web stores. The results showed interesting findings with implications for both theory and practice. Specifically, environmental stimuli, such as ambience (lighting), assortment, forum fnac and helping staff, were found to significantly enhance the brand perception of local web store outlets, consequently boosting customers’ impulse buying behavior.

Aims First Episode Psychosis (FEP) emerges at a young age, significantly shaping the trajectory of the disorder. Literature indicates a 60% increased risk of suicide within the initial year of diagnosis in FEP, early intervention in psychosis reduces the risk of suicide. Therefore, this study aims to co-adapt an existing culturally appropriate suicide prevention intervention (CMAP) and integrate this with a culturally adapted Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Psychosis (CaCBTp) for individuals with FEP experiencing suicidal ideation and to test its feasibility and acceptability in Pakistan. Methods This is a mixed-method study that involves two stages. Stage 1 was co-adaptation of the CMAP intervention for people with FEP patients. This involved one-to-one, in-depth interviews with individuals with FEP (n = 5), carers (n = 5) and a focus group discussion with 10 healthcare professionals. The second stage involves feasibility testing of the intervention. Participants are being recruited (n = 90) from outpatient psychiatric units across the cities of Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan, and Hyderabad in Pakistan. Eligible, consented participants are being randomized into either of two trial arms; intervention arm or treatment as usual arm (TAU). All participants are being assessed at baseline and at 3-month post-randomization on assessing participants on severity of suicidal ideation, severity of symptoms, functionality and quality of life using different scales. The intervention is comprised of 12 one-to-one sessions delivered over 3 months by trained therapists. Participants (n = 15) from the intervention arm will be interviewed at the end of intervention to explore the acceptance. Results Qualitative analysis of stage 1, utilizing thematic framework analysis, highlights barriers to help-seeking such as lack of awareness, inadequate social support, and mental health stigma. To adapt CMAP intervention, participants suggested changes in the use of Urdu words to make content simple for patients to understand, increase number of family sessions, include information about possible risk and protective factors of self-harm in this population and emphasize the addition of resilience-building messages in the manual. Stage 2 is currently ongoing, and we have successfully recruited healthcare facilities across all sites and randomized 12 participants into the trial. Conclusion This study will add valuable insights for refinement of existing interventions to address the unique needs of individuals with FEP in Pakistan. Intervention with suicide preventive strategies may help in reducing the risk of suicide. The culturally grounded approach ensures relevance, contributing to the global discourse on evidence-based mental health interventions.

Aims Breast cancer is major cause of mortality in females, affecting 2.1m women annually. Annual mortality rates are double within south Asian women compared with high-income countries. Pakistan has very high rates of breast cancer. Co-morbid depression and anxiety is reported in more than one third of breast cancer survivors and predict higher recurrence and poorer survival. Objective: To evaluate the clinical effectiveness of Moving on After Breast Cancer Plus Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (Moving on ABC Plus) to reduce depression and anxiety in breast cancer survivors in Pakistan. Methods A mixed method randomized controlled trial with 354 survivors of breast cancer recruited from the in- and out-patient services of oncology departments both from public and private hospitals of 5 major cities in Pakistan. Individuals scoring 10 or higher on either the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) or the Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7) were enrolled. All participants underwent assessments using the PHQ-9, GAD-7, Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy—Breast; EuroQol-5D; Multidimensional Scale for Perceived Social Support; Intrusive Thoughts Scale; and Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale at the baseline and were randomly assigned to one of two trial groups: Moving on ABC plus or routine care. Those in the intervention group received 12 individual sessions of Moving on ABC plus, facilitated by trained master-level psychologists over 4 months. Follow-up assessments were conducted at 3- and 6-months after randomization. Individuals in routine care group continued their standard care. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 15 participants from the intervention group upon completion of the intervention. Results The trial established the effectiveness of the integrated intervention, at 6-month follow up preserving 96% of retention. Intervention group reported a significantly higher reduction in depression, anxiety and intrusive thoughts, and improvement in health-related quality of life and self-esteem compared with routine care arm at end of the intervention. They endorsed the usefulness of intervention during qualitative interviews with improvement in psychological well-being, social support network, and interpersonal relationships. Fatigue was reported as a potential barrier to participating in the intervention. Conclusion Results of this trial are in favour of psychological intervention; therefore, such programs should be implemented as part of routine care to reduce psychological distress and improve quality of life of this vulnerable population.

Aims Suicide poses a significant public health issue, and the presence of suicidal thoughts stands out as a prominent risk factor, highlighting the importance of addressing this aspect for early intervention and prevention efforts. While older adults face an elevated risk of attempted suicide, research in this domain is currently constrained. This study aims to enhance and evaluate the efficacy of an E-CMAP (Culturally Manual Assisted psychological intervention for Elderly) in mitigating suicidal ideation among individuals aged 55 years and older in Pakistan. Methods The study will be carried out in 2 phases. Phase 1 is cultural adaptation and refinement of the intervention and phase 2 is exploratory randomised control trial. In Phase 1, focus groups were conducted (N = 2) with Health professionals and service users and carers for adaptation of CMAP manual for suicidal ideation. In Phase 2 randomized exploratory trial will be conducted with 192 older adults with suicidal ideation randomized either to 1) E-CMAP added to Treatment As Usual (TAU) or TAU arm. ECMAP is a problem solving intervention comprising 6 sessions delivered one to one over 3 months by trained therapists. All participants will be assessed at baseline and after intervention (i.e. 3 months) for suicidal ideation, hopelessness, depression, health-related quality of life, coping resources, satisfaction with intervention, and episodes of self-harm. Results Thematic Analysis of focus group discussions indicates that participants expressed a preference for incorporating a religious element into distraction techniques, delivering information about the significance of medical treatment, showcasing recorded sessions illustrating problem-solving techniques, and involving family throughout the intervention period. Conclusion A culturally tailored psychosocial intervention that incorporates problem-solving and cognitive components has the potential to decrease the risk of suicide among older adults.

Purpose The global burden of mental health difficulties among children underscores the importance of early prevention. This study aims to assess the efficacy, feasibility and acceptability of the Strong Families programme in enhancing child behaviour and family functioning in low-resource settings in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan.Methods and analysis This is a two-arm, multisite feasibility randomised controlled trial with an embedded process evaluation in three districts of Gilgit-Baltistan, namely Gilgit, Hunza and Skardu. 90 families living in these challenged settings, comprising a female primary caregiver aged 18 or above, and at least one child aged 8–15 years, will participate. Participants will be randomly assigned to either receive the Strong Families programme or to the waitlist group. Strong Families is a 7-hour family skills group intervention programme attended by children and their primary caregivers over 3 weeks. The waitlist group will be offered the intervention after their outcome assessment. Three raters will conduct blind assessments at baseline, 2 and 6 weeks postintervention. The primary outcome measures include the feasibility of Strong Families, as determined by families’ recruitment and attendance rates, and programme completeness (mean number of sessions attended, attrition rates). The secondary outcomes include assessment of child behaviour, parenting practices, parental adjustment and child resilience. Purposefully selected participants, including up to five caregivers from each site, researchers and facilitators delivering the intervention, will be interviewed. Descriptive statistics will be used to analyse primary and secondary outcomes. The process evaluation will be conducted in terms of programme context, reach, fidelity, dose delivered and received, implementation, and recruitment.Ethics and dissemination This study has been approved by the UNODC Drug Prevention and Health Branch in the Headquarters office of Vienna and the National Bioethics Committee of Pakistan. Findings will be disseminated through publication in reputable journals, newsletters and presentations at conferences.Trial registration number NCT05933850.

Abstract Background Self-harm is an important predictor of a suicide death. Culturally appropriate strategies for the prevention of self-harm and suicide are needed but the evidence is very limited from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of a culturally adapted manual-assisted problem-solving intervention (CMAP) for patients presenting after self-harm. Methods This was a rater-blind, multicenter randomised controlled trial. The study sites were all participating emergency departments, medical wards of general hospitals and primary care centres in Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Peshawar, and Quetta, Pakistan. Patients presenting after a self-harm episode (n = 901) to participating recruitment sites were assessed and randomised (1:1) to one of the two arms; CMAP with enhanced treatment as usual (E-TAU) or E-TAU. The intervention (CMAP) is a manual-assisted, cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT)-informed problem-focused therapy, comprising six one-to-one sessions delivered over three months. Repetition of self-harm at 12-month post-randomisation was the primary outcome and secondary outcomes included suicidal ideation, hopelessness, depression, health-related quality of life (QoL), coping resources, and level of satisfaction with service received, assessed at baseline, 3-, 6-, 9-, and 12-month post-randomisation. The trial is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov. NCT02742922 (April 2016). Results We screened 3786 patients for eligibility and 901 eligible, consented patients were randomly assigned to the CMAP plus E-TAU arm (n = 440) and E-TAU arm (N = 461). The number of self-harm repetitions for CMAP plus E-TAU was lower (n = 17) compared to the E-TAU arm (n = 23) at 12-month post-randomisation, but the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.407). There was a statistically and clinically significant reduction in other outcomes including suicidal ideation (− 3.6 (− 4.9, − 2.4)), depression (− 7.1 (− 8.7, − 5.4)), hopelessness (− 2.6 (− 3.4, − 1.8), and improvement in health-related QoL and coping resources after completion of the intervention in the CMAP plus E-TAU arm compared to the E-TAU arm. The effect was sustained at 12-month follow-up for all the outcomes except for suicidal ideation and hopelessness. On suicidal ideation and hopelessness, participants in the intervention arm scored lower compared to the E-TAU arm but the difference was not statistically significant, though the participants in both arms were in low-risk category at 12-month follow-up. The improvement in both arms is explained by the established role of enhanced care in suicide prevention. Conclusions Suicidal ideation is considered an important target for the prevention of suicide, therefore, CMAP intervention should be considered for inclusion in the self-harm and suicide prevention guidelines. Given the improvement in the E-TAU arm, the potential use of brief interventions such as regular contact requires further exploration.

Regeneration is a rare occurrence in the animal kingdom, but the earthworm stands out as a remarkable example of this phenomenon. Recent research has highlighted the promising wound healing properties of extracts derived from earthworms. Therefore, we propose that earthworm granulation tissue extract (EGTE) may facilitate wound healing by regulating immune responses in a rabbit diabetic wound model. Electron microscopy reveals that 70 % EGTE possesses noteworthy porosity with spherical to irregularly oval configuration. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) Characterization of EGTE revealed higher levels of ergosta-5,7,22-trien-3-ol, (3. beta.,22E). In-Vitro studies revealed significant anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties in dose dependent manner. Likewise, cytotoxicity assessments reveal that 70 % EGTE exhibits minimal harm to cells while displaying substantial antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. For In-Vivo studies excision wounds were created on the dorsal regions of the experimental animals and were divided as Group I (50 % EGTE), Group II (70 % EGTE), Group III (vehicle) and Group IV (distilled water). Over a 21-day observation period 70 % EGTE facilitated the early healing of wounds in the experimental animals, evident through prompt wound closure, granulation tissue formation, increased DNA content, enhanced tensile strength of the wound area and enhanced the expression/synthesis of wound healing markers/proteins. From these results it can be postulated that EGTE accelerates wound healing by immune modulation, dampening of inflammatory pathway and enhanced expression of growth markers. Henceforth making it promising candidate for therapeutic use in diabetic wound healing.

Objective: To compare early post-operative outcomes of Single versus Multiple Arterial grafts in Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG) surgery. Study Design: Analytical Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: Adult Cardiac Surgery, Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology/National Institute of Heart Diseases Rawalpindi Pakistan, from Jul 2022 to May 2023. Methodology: One hundred and forty nine patients planned for elective isolated CABG (with two or more grafts) were enrolled in study using consecutive sampling. They were allocated into two groups, group A (Multiple Arterial CABG group) and group B (Conventional CABG group). Data was collected on early post-op outcomes i.e. ICU stay, ventilation time, inotropic duration, chest drainage, rhythm complications including Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT) and mortality using a structured proforma. Chi-square and t-test were applied to make comparison between both groups. p

Objective: To determine the dose of Protamine required for reversal of Heparin effect in Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG). Study Design: Quasi-experimental study. Place and Duration of Study: Adult Cardiac Surgery Unit, Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology/National Institute of Heart Diseases, Rawalpindi Pakistan, from May to Dec 2022. Methodology: Total 382 patients were included in this study through consecutive sampling and were divided into two groups (n=191 participants in each group). After induction of anesthesia, baseline Activated Clotting Time (ACT) was measured. About 300units/kg of unfractionated Heparin was given non-randomly before establishing Cardiopulmonary Bypass (CPB). After termination of CPB, Protamine was administered in doses of 1 mg/kg and 1.5 mg/kg to Group-A and Group-B respectively. Protamine was diluted in 20ml of saline, and administered at a rate of 100ml/hr. Once Protamine was administered, blood sample was taken after 5min for ACT measurement. If this ACT was within 10% of baseline, it was taken as sign for reversal of Heparin effect. Student t-test and Chi-square test were applied to compare the groups and level of significance taken was p

Objective: To compare the effectiveness of combining Magnesium Sulphate with Amiodarone vs Magnesium Sulphate to prevent cardiac arrhythmias in Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG) patients. Study Design: Quasi-Experimental Study. Place and Duration of Study: Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology/National Institute of Heart Diseases Rawalpindi Pakistan, from Jul 2022 to Mar 2023. Methodology: Two hundred and sixty-two (n=262) Coronary Artery Bypass Graft patients, eligible for the study, were enrolled through consecutive sampling and divided into group A - experiment group (3 mg/kg amiodarone+30 mg/kg magnesium sulphate was given, n1=131) and group B- control group (30 mg/kg magnesium sulphate was given, n2=131) by non-random allocation lottery method at the removal of the aortic cross-clamp. The statistical package for social science, SPSS version 26:00 was used to analyse the data. Mean±SD was calculated for continuous variables whereas for categorical variables, percentages and frequencies were calculated. Chi-square test was utilized to find the association and student t-test was applied to find the mean difference between the study groups. Results: Study participants consisted of 194(74.1%) males and 68(26.0%) females. The patients' mean age was 57.29±9.88 years and 58.30±10.69 years respectively, in group-A and group-B. The frequency of pre and post-operative cardiac dysrhythmias was considerably different in both groups. In group-A, 22(16.7%) patients developed dysrhythmias, while in control group,dysrhythmias occurred in 49 (37.4%) patients (p-value

Abstract Background The use of psychoactive substances significantly impacts the health, social and economic aspects of families, communities and nations. There is a need to develop and test psychological interventions aimed for individuals with substance use disorder (SUD) in lower- and middle-income countries (LMICs), such as in Pakistan. The aim of this exploratory trial is to test the feasibility and acceptability of two culturally adapted psychological interventions in a factorial randomised controlled trial (RCT). Methods The proposed project will be conducted in three phases. The first phase of the study will focus on cultural adaptation of the interventions through qualitative interviews with key stakeholders. The second phase will be to refine and produce manually assisted interventions. Third and last stage would be to assess the feasibility of the culturally adapted interventions through a factorial RCT. The study will be carried out in Karachi, Hyderabad, Peshawar, Lahore and Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Recruitment of participants will take place from primary care and volunteer organisations/drug rehabilitation centres. A total of 260 individuals diagnosed with SUD (n = 65) in each of the four arms will be recruited. The intervention will be delivered weekly over a period of 12 weeks in both individual and group settings. Assessments will be carried out at baseline, at 12th week (after completion of intervention) and 24th week post-randomisation. The analysis will determine the feasibility of recruitment, randomisation, retention and intervention delivery. Acceptability of intervention will be determined in terms of adherence to intervention, i.e. the mean number of sessions attended, number of home assignments completed, attrition rates, as well as through process evaluation to understand the implementation process, context, participants’ satisfaction, and impact of the study intervention. The health resource use and impact on the quality of life will be established through health economic data. Discussion This study will provide evidence for feasibility and acceptability of culturally adapted manually assisted psychological interventions for individuals with SUD in the context of Pakistan. The study will have clinical implications if intervention is proven feasible and acceptable. Trial registration Name of the registry: ClinicalTrials.gov, Trial registration number: NCT04885569 , Date of registration: 25th April 2021.

The realignment of the production profile to respond to demanding market signals is one of the most important challenges that an animal breeders face today. Animal fibre being a significant contributor to the agricultural economy needs special attention. This is especially true for sheep and goats where fibre production can account for as much as 20% of the total gross income. It is therefore necessary to gain a better insight into the genes governing wool traits. Gene mapping studies have identified some chromosomal regions influencing fibre quality and production. These may help in the selection of animals producing better quality wool. These are more efficient and accurate than the conventional techniques. This paper critically reviews various genes governing fibre growth in animals and their importance. Fibre quality and production genes may provide novel insights into our understanding of the science of genetics and breeding. The discovery of new fibre-related genes and their functions may also help in future studies related to fibre development and in the development of new and advanced techniques for the improvement of fibre production and quality.

Over the past decade, significant progress in quantum technologies has been made, and hence, engineering of these systems has become an important research area. Many researchers have become interested in studying ways in which classical integrated circuits can be used to complement quantum mechanical systems, enabling more compact, performant, and/or extensible systems than would be otherwise feasible. In this article—written by a consortium of early contributors to the field—we provide a review of some of the early integrated circuits for the quantum information sciences. Complementary metal--oxide semiconductor (CMOS) and bipolar CMOS (BiCMOS) integrated circuits for nuclear magnetic resonance, nitrogen-vacancy-based magnetometry, trapped-ion-based quantum computing, superconductor-based quantum computing, and quantum-dot-based quantum computing are described. In each case, the basic technological requirements are presented before describing proof-of-concept integrated circuits. We conclude by summarizing some of the many open research areas in the quantum information sciences for CMOS designers.

We present a fully integrated cryogenic controller for electrostatically controlled quantum dots (QDs) implemented in a commercial 22-nm fully depleted silicon-on-insulator CMOS process and operating in a quantum regime. The QDs are realized in local well areas of transistors separated by tunnel barriers controlled by voltages applied to gate terminals. The QD arrays (QDA) are co-located with the control circuitry inside each quantum experiment cell, with a total of 28 of such cells comprising this system-on-chip (SoC). The QDA structure is controlled by small capacitive digital-to-analog converters (CDACs) and its quantum state is measured by a single-electron detector. The SoC operates at a cryogenic temperature of 3.4K. The occupied area of each QDA is $0.7 \times 0.4\mu \text{m}^2$ , while each QD occupies only $20 \times 80 \text{nm}^2$ . The low power and miniaturized area of these circuits are an important step on the way for integration of a large quantum core with millions of QDs, required for practical quantum computers. The performance and functionality of the CDAC are validated in a loop-back mode with the detector sensing the CDAC-compelled electron tunneling from the quantum point contact (QPC) node into the quantum structure. The position of the injected charge inside the QDA is intended to be controlled through the CDAC codes and programmable pulse width. Quantum effects are shown by an experimental characterization of charge injection and quantization into the QDA consisting of three coupled QDs. The charge can be transferred to a QD and sensed at the QPC, and this process is controlled by the relevant voltages and CDACs.

The post Covid-19 era steer towards stakeholder thinking, which demands to look for sustainable solutions in terms of other epidemics and food security is one of the most notable for the developing world. In South Asia, China Pakistan Economic Corridor could be an avenue for multi-layered socio-economic assistance where Pakistan can seek solution for one epidemic (food security) while engaged with the effects of pandemic through studying all the stakeholders. This could be a roadmap for the west-east or developed-underdeveloped countries reliance on one another for food security through economic corridor alike settings. Academically, it has been projected by the plethora of research that holistically and inclusively, stakeholder analysis is lacking in the available reservoir of research. Methodologically, the stakeholder analysis was performed in three layers-identification, investigation through social networks, and communication by prioritization matrix. The findings suggested that apart from stakeholders' differences in regard to interest, influence and knowledge, all of them agreed with the argument that China Pakistan Economic Corridor has enviably and irrefutably positive effects on food security. The policy implications project the need for integrated reports of various ministries to be unidirectional for having synergical effect and taking all the stakeholders into consideration as leaving any group behind will repeat the past results.

This paper presents a methodology to describe quantum mechanical states of charge qubits, realized as coupled quantum dots occupied by single electrons, using equivalent electrical circuits. We explain how to construct all equations starting from low-level simulations of wave functions and interpret the relationship between the parameters appearing in the resulting model and the parameters of the physical system. An efficient methodology to obtain 2D wave functions is presented. Results obtained in this study using a circuit simulator correspond to quantum dot arrays fabricated in a CMOS technology and recently published in the literature. The generalization of quantum mechanical equations, their conversion to equivalent circuits, and numerical examples are discussed.

Objective: To compare the hemodynamic stability with cisatracurium and atracurium in patients with low ejection fraction undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting. Study Design: Randomized controlled trial. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Anesthesiology, Army Cardiac Center, Lahore, from Jan 2018 to Nov 2018. Methodology: A total of 80 adult patients were recruited or invited to participate in this study. Further the cohort was divided in to two groups with respect to their treatment by draw method. Group I contained a total of 40 patients, which were given Cisatracurium 0.2mg/kg at induction of anesthesia. The group II patients constitute the same number but the treatment medication given was 0.5mg/kg Atracurium at induction. Results: Before anesthesia induction, pulse rate was 84.10 ± 5.54 bpm and 83.01 ± 5.72 bpm in group A and B, respectively (p=0.385). At 4 minutes after anesthesia induction, pulse rate was 83.05 ± 5.58 bpm and 86.37 ± 6.62 bpm in group A and B, respectively (p=0.017). Before anesthesia induction, mean arterial pressure was 71.07 ± 7.62 mmHg and 69.22 ± 10.77 mmHg in group A and B, respectively (p=0.378). At 4 minutes after anesthesia induction, mean arterial pressure was 68.22 ± 8.17 mmHg and 72.20 ± 8.09 mmHg in group A and B, respectively (p=0.032) table-II. Conclusion: We may conclude from our study that although there is significant difference of the change in arterial blood pressure due to the both drugs. The group A was having more stable hemodynamic indexes where the drug administrated was Cisatracurium.

Abstract We derive some properties and results for a new extended class of convex functions, generalized strongly modified h-convex functions. Moreover, we discuss Schur-type, Hermite–Hadamard-type, and Fejér-type inequalities for this class. The crucial fact is that this extended class has awesome properties similar to those of convex functions.

The study of convex functions is an interesting area of research due to its huge applications in pure and applied mathematics special in optimization theory. The aim of this paper is to introduce and study a more generalized class of convex functions. We established Schur (S), Hermite-Hadamard (HH), and Fejér (F) type inequalities for introduced class of convex functions. The results presented in this paper extend and generalize many existing results of the literature.

Objectives The aim of the project was to examine the acceptability and feasibility of a mobile phone application-based intervention ‘TechCare’, for individuals with psychosis in the North West of England. The main objectives were to determine whether appropriate individuals could be identified and recruited to the study and whether the TechCare App would be an acceptable intervention for individuals with psychosis.Methods This was a mixed methods feasibility study, consisting of a test-run and feasibility evaluation of the TechCare App intervention.Setting Early Intervention Services (EIS) for psychosis, within an NHS Trust in the North West of England.Participants Sixteen participants (test-run n=4, feasibility study n=12) aged between 18 and 65 years recruited from the East, Central and North Lancashire EIS.Intervention A 6-week intervention, with the TechCare App assessing participants’ symptoms and responses in real-time and providing a personalised-guided self-help-based psychological intervention based on the principles of Cognitive Behaviorual Therapy (CBT).Results A total of 83.33% (n=10) of participants completed the 6-week feasibility study, with 70% of completers achieving the set compliance threshold of ≥33% engagement with the TechCare App system. Analysis of the qualitative data suggested that participants held the view that the TechCare was both an acceptable and feasible means of delivering interventions in real-time.Conclusion Innovative digital clinical technologies, such as the TechCare App, have the potential to increase access to psychological interventions, reduce health inequality and promote self-management with a real-time intervention, through enabling access to mental health resources in a stigma-free, evidence-based and time-independent manner.Trial registration number ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02439619.

Abstract This commentary is on Shirley Gregor’s (2006) article titled “The Nature of Theory in Information Systems”, published in MIS Quarterly. In terms of theories, five types have been prominent in Gregor’s classification: (a) Theory of Analyzing (b) Theory of Explaining (c) Theory of Prediction (d) Theory of Explaining and Predicting (e) Theory of Design and Action. The author argued that this can help researchers to choose a differing epistemological approach to develop a theory that is under development. Furthermore, a structural breakdown of the theory has been projected that gives a better and clear understanding of the essential parts of the theory to researchers. However, some important questions emerge after reading the most cited article about the nature of theory in IS. The major ones are: (a) What is the difference between theory in general and theory in IS?, (b) Are the structural parts of the theory described by Gregor exhaustive and correctly presented?, (c) Different classifications of theories presented by Gregor are theory or theorizing in nature, and finally, (d) Gregor argued that management scientists did not provide anything regarding design and action theory, is that true?

Trichoderma species are potential fungal bio-control agents used against a wide range of soil borne plant pathogens. In the present study a total of 20 Trichoderma isolates viz., AT1, AT2, AT3, AT4, AT5, AT6, AT7, BT1, BT2, BT3, BT4, BT5, BT6, BT7, BT8, BT9, BT10, BT11, BT12, BT13 were isolated from vegetable fields of Kashmir valley and their efficacy was tested by using various biochemical tests. Thirteen isolates of Trichoderma viz., AT1, AT2, AT3, AT4, AT5, AT6, AT7, BT1, BT7, BT8, BT10, BT11 and BT12 were found to be positive for ammonia production. Similarly twelve isolates viz., AT2, AT3, AT7, BT1, BT3, BT4, BT7, BT8, BT10, BT11, BT12 and BT13 were found to be positive as far as the chitinase activity is concerned. In the IAA production assay maximum IAA was produced by isolate BT9 (6.605 µg mL-1) followed by BT6 (5.278 µg mL-1), while minimum IAA was produced by isolate AT1 (1.538 ìg mL-1). Only five isolates viz., AT1, AT2, AT3, AT4 and AT5 metabolized lactose and sucrose while seven isolates viz., AT1, AT2, AT3, AT4, AT5, AT6 and AT7 were found to metabolize maltose. Hydrocyanic acid (HCN) was observed to be produced by only three isolates of Trichoderma viz., AT3, AT5 and AT7. Trichoderma isolate AT3 qualifying most of the biochemical tests were morphological characterized as Trichoderma harzianum.

Smart bearings incorporating self-powered sensors and wireless data communications with intelligence in monitoring bearing conditions can help to detect early faults in aero-engine bearings. This paper presents the challenges in design and development of a sensing system with compact and low-power consumption sensors and the procedures for sensor performance evaluation under the requirements of aerospace standard. Industrial standard DO160 testing is necessary for preliminary testing of the smart sensing system prior to being installed in aero-engine, thus a laboratory test procedure has been developed for sensor performance evaluation for the smart aero-engine bearings in this project. As a case study, this paper presents the details and results of the accelerometer evaluation following the requirements in DO160.

To enhance the performance and reliability of aircraft propulsion systems, an integratedbearing condition monitoring system is proposed. This intelligent bearing must have advanced healthmanagement capabilities to provide early warning of problems. In most commercial high-temperatureapplications, the sensing system is located externally due to lack of appropriate electronic devicesthat can function at high temperature. This paper presents the design and implementation of aself-powered sensing system for use in a high-temperature aircraft environment. The performance ofthe thermoelectric generator and energy availability to process acceleration data is shown from ourlaboratory tests based on realistic operating conditions.

Despite all the internal and external criticisms of mental health services in Libya, they remain underdeveloped across the country. The World Health Organization has made efforts to improve the country's mental health services; however, until a stable government is formed, patients with mental illness will continue to be deprived of their basic needs.

Abstract Background Constipation, a common health problem, causes discomfort and affects the quality of life. This study intended to evaluate the potential laxative effect of triple fermented barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) extract (FBe), produced by saccharification, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Weissella cibaria, on loperamide (LP)-induced constipation in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats, a well-established animal model of spastic constipation. Methods Spastic constipation was induced via oral treatment with LP (3 mg/kg) for 6 days 1 h before the administration of each test compound. Similarly, FBe (100, 200 and 300 mg/kg) was orally administered to rats once a day for 6 days. The changes in number, weight, and water content of fecal, motility ratio, colonic mucosa histology, and fecal mucous contents were recorded. The laxative properties of FBe were compared with those of a cathartic stimulant, sodium picosulfate. A total of 48 (8 rats in 6 groups) healthy male rats were selected and following 10 days of acclimatization. Fecal pellets were collected one day before administration of the first dose and starting from immediately after the fourth administration for a duration of 24 h. Charcoal transfer was conducted after the sixth and final administration of the test compounds. Results In the present study, oral administration of 100–300 mg/kg of FBe exhibited promising laxative properties including intestinal charcoal transit ratio, thicknesses and mucous producing goblet cells of colonic mucosa with decreases of fecal pellet numbers and mean diameters remained in the lumen of colon, mediated by increases in gastrointestinal motility. Conclusion Therefore, FBe might act as a promising laxative agent and functional food ingredient to cure spastic constipation, with less toxicity observed at a dose of 100 mg/kg.

The viscoelastic properties of a cell cytoskeleton contain abundant information about the state of a cell. Cells show a response to a specific environment or an administered drug through changes in their viscoelastic properties. Studies of single cells have shown that chemical agents that interact with the cytoskeleton can alter mechanical cell properties and suppress mitosis. This envisions using rheological measurements as a non-specific tool for drug development, the pharmacological screening of new drug agents, and to optimize dosage. Although there exists a number of sophisticated methods for studying mechanical properties of single cells, studying concentration dependencies is difficult and cumbersome with these methods: large cell-to-cell variations demand high repetition rates to obtain statistically significant data. Furthermore, method-induced changes in the cell mechanics cannot be excluded when working in a nonlinear viscoelastic range. To address these issues, we not only compared narrow-gap rheometry with commonly used single cell techniques, such as atomic force microscopy and microfluidic-based approaches, but we also compared existing cell monolayer studies used to estimate cell mechanical properties. This review provides insight for whether and how narrow-gap rheometer could be used as an efficient drug screening tool, which could further improve our current understanding of the mechanical issues present in the treatment of human diseases.