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During the plastic state of concrete, any hindrance or resistance of the free volume change in plastic concrete induce tensile stresses and or strains in the concrete element. Crack formation is expected to occur if the tensile stress and strain is greater than the capacity of the concrete. Investigation into the tensile properties and relaxation behaviour of plastic concrete was carried out using a direct tensile testing machine. The capillary pressure was measured during the tensile tests in low evaporation conditions, as well as in a climate controlled chamber where the concrete was exposed to high evaporation conditions. Most of the measured strength gain (tensile capacity) of the concrete is due to the capillary pressure in the pores of the fresh concrete which keeps the particles together by means of free water in the concrete during the early stiffening phase of the concrete. Later the hydration products bridge the pores which provides strength to the concrete. The capillary pressure results indicate how the rate of hydration influence the interconnectivity of the pores, and the contribution to the measured strength gain of the fresh concrete. The capillary pressure measurements during tensile tests revealed that the mechanism behind relaxation is the negative capillary pressure build-up induced by the mechanical tensile strain. The results also showed a correlation between the build-up of the capillary pressure in the concrete and the tensile deformation of the fresh concrete where the capillary pressure increased as the tensile load increased.

OBJECTIVE: This Study aimed to determine the frequency of sensory neuropathy in the feet of asymptomatic people with type II diabetes mellitus. METHODOLOGY: This cross-sectional Study was conducted at the medical department of MTI/Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar, between April - October 2022. A total of 133 patients were observed using a non-probability consecutive sampling technique. Patients aged 25-60 years who had type II diabetes mellitus for more than one year were included, while patients with vitamin B12 deficiency who used multivitamins were excluded from the study. SPSS version 20 was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: Age-wise distribution 25-30 Years (4.5%), 31-40 Years (21.8%), 41-50 Years (45.9%), and 51-60 Years (27.8%) (mean 45.56±3.3). Gender-wise, 104 (78.2%) were male and 29 (21.8%) were female. Regarding education level, 57 (42.9%) were illiterate, 46 (34.6%) had secondary education, and 30 (22.6%) had higher education. Residency status indicated 105 (78.9%) from urban areas and 28 (21.1%) from rural areas. Socioeconomic status was distributed as follows: 53 (39.8%) with a monthly income >100,000 Rs, 46 (34.6%) with an income range of 50,000 to 100,000 Rs, and 34 (25.6%) with an income range <50,000 Rs. Sensory neuropathy was found in 60 (45.1%) patients and absent in 73 (54.9%). CONCLUSION: The Study revealed a notably high prevalence of sensory neuropathy. Prompt identification and focused treatment are essential, especially for patients over 40, sedentary lifestyles, and those with diabetes for more than two years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection has a profound impact worldwide, with approximately 75.7 million individuals suffering and around 32.7 million individuals dead attributed to AIDS-related causes. HIV/AIDS impacts the gastrointestinal system with various symptoms influenced by infections, and the introduction of modern Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) has significantly changed the prevalence of these GI disorders. Objective: This study aimed to determine the frequency of endoscopic findings in HIV patients with dysphagia. Study type, settings & duration: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of General Medicine, Lady Reading Hospital (LRH), Medical Teaching Institute (MTI), Peshawar from July to December 2020. Methodology: The study included 136 HIV-infected patients with dysphagia who underwent upper GI endoscopy. All patients underwent upper GI endoscopy following informed consent. The baseline Information, including demographic data, including age, gender, and duration of HIV infection, was collected for each patient. Data analysis was performed using (SPSS) version 23. Results: According to the findings, gastric erythema (18.4%), Candida esophagitis (30.1%), peptic ulcer (9.6%), hiatal hernia (21.3%), erosions (5.1%), and Candida antral gastritis (16.9%) were the most frequent endoscopic findings. The mean age of the patients was 43.316±6.92 years, the mean duration of HIV infection was 12.632±5.26 months, and the mean weight was 80.345±6.56 Kg. Conclusion: According to the study's findings, most HIV patients who experienced gastrointestinal symptoms also had opportunistic infections and altered upper GI mucosa. Early endoscopic and histological evaluation is recommended for these individuals in order to support fast detection and treatment of upper GI issues, which will enhance patient outcomes and quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pneumocystis Jiroveci Pneumonia (PCP) remains a prevalent opportunistic infection in individuals with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. It is associated with a mortality rate of 10% to 20% during the initial infection, and this rate significantly escalates when mechanical ventilation is required. Earlier studies have suggested that individuals with HIV/AIDS who have PCP may benefit significantly from the combination of corticosteroid treatment with other antibiotic therapy. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the potential role of adjunctive corticosteroid therapy in the treatment of patients with Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia (PCP) and HIV. The primary goal of our study was to ascertain patient survival until their discharge from the hospital and to understand their experience with respiratory failure. Methodology: This double-blind, placebo-controlled trial study was conducted at the Department of Medical Unit, Lady Reading Teaching Hospital, Peshawar. The study spanned six months following approval from the hospital's ethical board. The sampling technique employed was non-probability convenience-based sampling. The sample size was determined using Open Epi with a confidence level of 95%, a margin of error of 2%, and a population proportion of 0.916, resulting in an estimated sample size of 86 and in this study a total of 90 study cases were enrolled. Results: A total of 90 HIV positive cases were enrolled in this study of which 73 (81.2%) were male and 17 (18.8%) were female. The study cases were divided into two groups for study purpose. One group treated with corticosteroids and the other one is placebo groups. All patients enrolled in this study also screened for baseline blood investigations and no significant differences was found in these investigations. Among the corticosteroids group, 35 (777.8%) patients survived until hospital discharge, as compared to placebo group where 8 (17.8%) were survived until hospital discharge (CI 0.08 - 0.77: P<0.001). Conclusions: Early adjunctive corticosteroid therapy represents a pivotal intervention for patients with AIDS suffering from severe Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. This treatment not only enhances survival rates but also significantly reduces the incidence of respiratory failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Wild.) is acknowledged as golden grains, is widely regarded as a multipurpose crop. The nutritional and health benefits of quinoa have made it a popular food around the world in the last decade. It is a nutrient-rich pseudo-cereal crop that has been introduced to Pakistan in the past because of its medicinal and commercial value. The plant contains huge number of phytochemicals i.e. amino acids, fiber, minerals, vitamins, secondary metabolites, bioactive proteins and peptides which could be used in various medicine for human and other animal's health. It has been reported that the quinoa leaves, root, and seed are used in the treatment of diabetes, cancer, inflammations, fungal infections, and other numerous health problems. In addition, its high energy, nutrient content, therapeutic properties, and lack of gluten, it is considered to be useful for children, the elder, lactose-intolerant people, and osteoporosis in women. Besides, it is considered a crop oil, because the seed oil fractions are extremely nutrient-dense and can be used in skin care, cosmetics, and as a raw material for other products. This comprehensive study provides medical uses, phytochemical constituents, and pharmacological activities of quinoa. Also, the anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antidiabetic, antioxidant, antitumor, antilipidemic, antibacterial, and antifungal effects have been reviewed. This review is providing the detail study about the phytochemicals and pharmacological evaluation of quinoa till date, and also provides pave for future investigations and exploitation of C. quinoa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrogen (N) deposition has been influencing ecological process, for instance N addition can affect plant growth and then alter plant community composition. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) is one of the important soil microbiota, which play a key role in plant growth, especially under harsh environmental conditions. However, the effects of AMF on plant growth under N addition are still not well understood. To investigate the mechanism how AMF affect plant growth under N addition, a microcosm experiment was conducted with four N addition levels. The results showed that AMF increased aboveground biomass of Leymus chinensis by 21.5% and 4.8% under with and without N addition, respectively. AMF expressively improved the net photosynthetic rate by 44% and 29%, soluble protein by 65% and 40% under with and without N additions, respectively. The chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, chlorophyll a + b and carotenoids content in leaves treated by AMF were greater than those without AMF treatment. AMF also significantly increased the metabolomics enzymes glutamate dehydrogenase, glutamine oxoglutarate aminotransferase, alanine transaminase and nitrogen reductase activity under N addition. However, the level of glutamine synthetase and soluble carbohydrates increased significantly under N addition in non‐inoculated AMF plants. The result showed that the response of AMF to L. chinensis was stronger than nitrogen deposition, which indicates that AMF could increase plant growth by improving photosynthetic characters and affecting metabolomics enzymes of L. chinensis under N addition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Engineering problems are generally solved by gathering domain specific knowledge and then developing algorithms to solve that particular problem. Machine learning is an Engineering discipline that helps us solve these problems by collecting a large datasets and then with the help of that data it is possible to create black box machine output of which can then be used to solve real world problems [1]. This paper cites the basis of machine learning concepts and the methods which can be applied to intrusion detection in the cyber security industry. Machine learning is used to generate predictive models that can be used to classify requests on to a server. Main goal is to build a machine learning model that can classify a request on a server into a normal request or a malicious request based on the server's behaviour and determine the type of attack. Proposing a new system that employs data science community such as normalization through the minmax algorithm, feature selection through the chi square method, planning to separate the data by the Gaussian kernel and then approaching to employ two machine learning models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Byline: Yaseen Khan Saad Ali Muhammad Zeeshan and Zahid Khan Abstract OBJECTIVE: To study the demographic characteristics of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive patients registered/diagnosed at Anti Retroviral Therapy (ART) [...]

Background: Neurological manifestations affecting the nervous system at all stages of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection are common. Neurological complications occur in more than 40% of patients with HIV infection. They are the presenting feature of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) in 10-20% of cases. At autopsy the prevalence of neuropathological abnormalities is 80%. Although an ongoing decline in HIV associated Central Nervous System (CNS) diseases has been observed in very recent years, the mortality from these diseases remains high. Objective: To study the type and frequency of different neurological involvements in patients with HIV infection at tertiary care hospital in Peshawar, KPK and to correlate them with CD4 counts. Study design, settings and duration: This retrospective observational study was carried at Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar, KPK, Pakistan over a period of 8 years from May 2009 to June 2017. Subjects and Methods: A total of 100 HIV sero-positive patients of both genders, aged >18 years, showing clinical evidence of central nervous system (CNS) involvement were included. Their clinical manifestations, laboratory investigations, and neuroimaging were studied. Laboratory investigations along with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), EEG and nerve conduction study of the brain/spine was also performed. Results: Tuberculous meningitis was the most common presentation as secondary CNS illness (49%), followed by cryptococcal meningitis (16%) and cerebrovascular accidents (7%). Furthermore, 6% had neurosyphilis, 5% had acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) associated dementia and peripheral neuropathy occurred in 17% of the patients. Headache was the most common neurological symptom seen in 42% of the patients. Seizures were noted in 35% of the patients. CD4 was significantly low in most of the patients with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, HIV associated encephalopathy (HAD) and cryptococcal meningitis compared with other neurological manifestations. CD4 counts in tuberculous meningitis and HIV associated encephalopathy were 115/μl and 83/μl, respectively. Conclusion: CNS tuberculosis was the most common secondary infection seen in HIV patients followed by cryptococcal meningitis. A high index of clinical suspicion of neurological involvement in HIV patients helps in the early diagnosis and early institution of specific treatment, which in turn decreases the morbidity and mortality considerably. Early treatment and prophylaxis of neurological problems in HIV patients is very important to decrease the mortality rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of absolute alcohol injection in the management of bleeding gastric varices. Material and methods: This descriptive study was conducted in the department of Gastroenterology, Hayatabad Medical Complex Peshawar from September 2006 to September 2009. Twenty Seven patients with portal hypertension fulfilling the inclusion criteria and consenting were included in the study. Endoscopy was arranged within 12 hours of admission to the hospital. The gastric varices were injected with 5-10 ml of absolute alcohol depending upon the size of the varices. Both intravariceal and paravariceal techniques were used. Subsequent endoscopy sessions were arranged at 2 weeks intervals. The outcomes assessed were variceal eradication, rebleed and death. Findings were noted and entered into a structured proforma. Data was analyzed using SPSSv.10. Results: Fifteen (55.56%) patients were male and 12 (44.44%) were female with a mean age of 47.52±5.09 years. Twenty one (77.78%) patients had cirrhosis due to chronic hepatitis C, 4 (14.81%) were HBV related while 2 (7.40%) had alcoholic liver disease. Majority (70.73%) had child's class C followed by B and A (18.51% and 11.11% respectively). Variceal eradication was achieved in 19(70.37%) patients. Three were lost to follow up while 5 died due to uncontrolled bleeding. Post sclerotheraphy ulceration was the most common complication (64%) followed by pyrexia (28%), Retrosternal/epigastric pain (16%) and dysphagia (8%). Conclusion: Sclerotherapy with absolute alcohol may be effective in achieving hemostasis in bleeding gastric varices but with exceptionally high rate of complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Myrica nagi Hook (syn. Myrica esculenta Buch. & Ham) (Myricaceae) is commonly known as box berry. The bark of Myrica nagi is used in the treatment of mental illness by different ethnic groups of the rural region of Orissa (India). In the present work, the anxiolytic and antidepressant effects of an ethanol extract of M. nagi were analyzed at three different dosages (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg, p.o.) by elevated plus-maze, light/dark exploration test, tail suspension test, and the forced swimming model. Oral administration of the ethanol extract (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg, p.o.) of M. nagi showed significant (p < 0.01) and dose-dependent anxiolytic activity by increasing time spent in the open arms of the elevated plus-maze and in the lit box indicating an anxiolytic effect. Nevertheless this treatment was unable to exhibit an effect identical to antidepressants in the tail suspension and forced swimming tests. Altogether, these results suggest an anxiolytic effect of the ethanol extract of M. nagi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]