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Introduction: Diastolic function as is the current conventional tradition, in order to gain deeper understanding it is more useful to view diastolic function as a problem to be solved! Once the basic problem of normal physiology of diastole has been mastered, it is nearly self-evident as to what the issues are in clinical heart failure and which physiologic mechanism and its hard-wired compensatory pathways one is confronted with. Objective: To evaluate diastolic function of heart failure patients with systemic hypertension. Methods: The present prospective observational study was undertaken in Cardiology Department, Dhaka Medical College hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh from January to July, 2019. Fifty-four (54) patients with systemic hypertension who recently experienced heart failure with normal ejection fraction (≥50%) and no clinical history of ischaemic cardiomyopathy were studied. The patients were divided into two groups according to the degree of echocardiographic hypertrophy: Group-I (28 patients) with a ventricular mass/volume ratio >1.8 and group-II (26 patients) with a ratio

Sphagneticola trilobata (L.) Pruski is one of the most noxious invasive plant species, posing a serious threat to native biodiversity. This species has been invading large areas of Bangladesh for the last two decades. The study investigated the efficacy of herbicides and shading treatments during winter and monsoon to find an effective control method for S. trilobata. Both surface-inhabiting (Glyphosate) and root-inhabiting (Paraquat) herbicides were applied for six months in five different combinations (100% Glyphosate, 75% Glyphosate + 25% Paraquat, 50% Glyphosate + 50% Paraquat, 25% Glyphosate + 75% Paraquat, and 100% Paraquat) and the percentage coverage was measured for each experimental plot. Results from the study showed that all shading and chemical combinations of Glyphosate and Paraquat significantly reduced the percentage coverage of S. trilobata in each experimental plot (p < 0.05). However, the shading and Paraquat-dominated combinations reduced the coverage slowly compared to the Glyphosate-dominated ones. Among five different combinations, Paraquat-dominated herbicides were less effective in controlling the species. On the other hand, the Glyphosate-dominated combinations completely eradicated the species within a week but increased thereafter. Meanwhile, the seasonal variation was found to be highly significant (p < 0.0001) among treatments, and a significant reduction was observed in winter compared to the monsoon. The results of this study highlighted that the Glyphosate-dominated combinations were the fastest, while the Paraquat-dominated combinations and shading were slower control methods.

A survey was conducted to annotate the butterflies (Lepidoptera: Rhopalocera) of Khulna for the duration of August 2015 to August 2018. A total of 53 species belonging to 44 genera and 6 families were listed. Nymphalidae was recorded as the most dominant family with 14 genera and 19 species followed by Lycaenidae (13 species), Hesperiidae (8 species), Pieridae (7 species), Papilionidae (5 species) and a Riodinidae species. Among ten administrative upazilas Khulna sadar has the highest species richness with 41 species, followed by Phultala (36), Paikgacha (34), Dacope (31), Koyra (31),Rupsha (30), Terokhada (30), Digholia (29), Batiaghata (29) and Dumuria (28), respectively.

BACKGROUND : Wilson disease (WD) is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by mutation in the Adenosine Triphosphate 7B (ATP7B) gene. The spectrum of ATP7B mutation varies in different populations. The objective of this study was to identify the mutation in exon 8 and exon 14 of ATP7B gene in Bangladeshi children clinically diagnosed as WD. We also aimed to explore the phenotypic presentation.It was a cross sectional observational study. The study was conducted at the Department of Paediatric Gastroenterology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Dhaka, Bangladesh from January 2017 to June 2018. A total of 37 patients diagnosed with WD were enrolled for the study. Venous blood (about 3 mL) was drawn aseptically from each patient into tube containing ethyline diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) and preserved at -30°C for long-term preservation. The peripheral blood leukocytes of the patients and genomic DNAs were extracted. Exons 14 and 8 of ATP7B and their associated splice-site junctions were amplified by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The size and quantity of PCR products were verified by electrophoresis in 1.5% (w/v) agarose gel. 74 (37 × 2) PCR products were sent for Sanger Sequencing. The sequences were analyzed by Chromas version 2.6.6 software and the nucleotide blast was done by National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) nucleoblast. Finally, the sequences were analyzed using AB Applied Bio systems and were matched with the reference sequences using MEGA software.In this study, a single novel homozygous mutation pLeu.1071Val in the exon 14 was found in every (100%) studied child clinically diagnosed with WD. Heterozygous mutation p.Gly1061Glu in exon14 was also found in 6 patients (11%) with WD, which is one of the common mutations in this disease. In exon 8, p.Arg778Leu mutation was detected in one patient (2.7%), which is common in the Chinese and the South Asian populations and was heterozygous. Two novel heterozygous missense mutations p.K785R (2.7%) and p.S744F (2.7%) were also found in two other children in the exon 8.We found three novel mutations in Bangladeshi children with WD, one of which may be tagged as founder mutation for Bangladeshi population. This finding indicates the necessity to study the mutation profiles of the whole ATP7B gene in our population for risk prediction. A further large-scale study will help in the development of a Mutational Data Base of Bangladeshi population with WD.

Hydrochar is a carbon-rich material produced by the hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) of biomass. As a new concept, hydrochar has generated much research interest due to its ability to employ wet and dry biomass as feedstocks and its application in the agronomical, environmental, and energy sectors. This review considers the developments made with hydrochar as a soil amendment in terms of soil fertility, carbon sequestration, and fate of pollutants based on the available data. Moreover, the economic feasibility using a life cycle assessment of hydrochar has also been discussed. This review assessed that the hydrochar is an environmentally friendly soil amendments for plant growth by slow release of nutrients and carbon sequestration. Hydrochar application to the soil may increase the soil’s water-holding capacity but decreases the bulk density, although the water-holding capacity of hydrochar depends on the reaction temperature and particle size of the materials. Furthermore, the hydrochar may exert a positive effect on growth and abundance of different soil microbes. This paper not only summarizes the recent advances made in developing hydrochar as a soil amendment, it also discusses the challenges and limitations of hydrochar in a wider context.

An extensive floristic survey was done to annotate Phyllanthus of southwestern Bangladesh from 2015 to 2018. In total, 2189 individuals of Phyllanthus were counted and identified as eight different species (five herbs, two trees and a shrub). All species were examined following both morphological and anatomical methods, based on taxonomic notes. The listed species werePhyllanthus acidus, Phyllanthus amarus, Phyllanthus debilis, Phyllanthus emblica, Phyllanthus niruri, Phyllanthus urinaria, Phyllanthus reticulatusandPhyllanthus virgatus. Among them,Phyllanthus amarusandPhyllanthus debiliswere listed for the first time from Bangladesh during this study period.

Objective To evaluate anthelmintic activity of methanolic extract of leaves of Terminalia citrina ( T. citrina ) plant belonging to the Combretaceae family. Methods The tests of phytochemical screening included alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, quinines, anthocyanins, glycosides, carbohydrates and reducing sugars. The anthelmintic activity of methanolic extract of leaves of T. citrina was evaluated against Pheretima posthuma at three different concentrations (25 mg/mL, 50 mg/mL and 100 mg/mL) of extracts which involved determination of time of paralysis and time of death of worms. Results The phytochemical screening of T. citrina leaves revealed the presence of flavonoids, tannins, alkaloids, carbohydrates and reducing sugars. The present study indicated that methanolic extract significantly exhibited paralysis and also caused death of worms especially at highest concentration of 100 mg/mL, as compared to standard reference Albendazole (10 mg/mL). Conclusions This study suggests that the leaves of T. citrina possess potent anthelmintic activity.

Ibrahim Cardiac Medical Journal 2011; 1(2): 20-23 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/icmj.v1i2.13547

Mangrove provides a unique ecological environment for diverse communities and Sundarbans is a rapidly changing ecosystem due to various anthropogenic activities. In order to assess the spatial and temporal variation of total Nitrogen and total Phosphorus concentration in Major River Systems of Sundarbans, a study was carried out from September, 2010 to February, 2011. Fourteen sampling location from major river systems were chosen. During post monsoon and winter seasons the range of total Phosphorus (0.326-0.409 mg/L and 0.091-0.371 mg/L respectively) and total nitrogen (2.52-3.50 mg/L and 3.43-5.25 mg/L respectively) were observed in Rupsha - Passur river system. On the other hand the range of total Phosphorus (0.475-0.144 mg/L and 0.060-0.113 mg/L respectively) and total nitrogen (2.31-3.61 mg/L and 3.22- 5.95 mg/L respectively) were found in Arpangashia - Malancha river system during post monsoon and winter seasons. The nutrients of water of Baleswar- Bhola river system during rainy and dry seasons were found in the range of total Phosphorus (0.106-0.364 mg/L and 0.053-0.075 mg/L respectively) and total nitrogen (2.59-3.57 mg/L and 2.87-5.60 mg/L respectively). Total Nitrogen and total phosphorus levels were relatively higher than the EPA standards for surface water during the two seasons. The Dynamic nutrients level observed in the study area may have severe consequences on the in-dwelling aquatic flora and fauna.

The objective of this research was to investigate the acute toxicity of naproxen metal complexes in animal model. A detailed study was done on the physical, biochemical and hormonal parameters of both male and female swiss-albino mice after 14 day administration of naproxen and its metal complexes. There were no significant changes found in physical parameters observation for both male and female mice without some minor differences. However, naproxen metal complexes showed comparatively lower side effects than naproxen. This might indicated that the carboxylic group of naproxen(-COOH) took part in pathological reactions resulting in side effects in different parts of the organ. There were no significant changes in biochemical parameters, however, the mean value of blood glucose level and cholesterol seemed to be higher and triglyceride was lower. Thyroid hormone levels were found lower that was another indication inflammatory process. However, this might have the ability to lower the insulin secretion resulting in increasing blood glucose level. We did not find any changes in sex hormones level in this study.

DOI = 10.3329/bmrcb.v33i3.1143Bangladesh Med Res Counc Bull 2007; 33: 107-108

The advent of new technology has opened opportunities to the computer users to consider alternate ways for humans to interface with machines. Research groups are looking to use computer interfaces that can allow users to communicate with devices in a subtle way and allow virtual reality environments to create an immersing experience. Electromyography based wearable input device can interface with mobile devices in a subtle way. Electromyography can also be used for interactive computer gaming as well as to control flights through virtual joysticks and controllers. This study provides a brief review on various ways for humans electromyography (EMG) signal to interface with machines. Therefore, the crux of this study is to overview the up to date developments and research related to the EMG interface with the wearable devices. This study further opens up a passage for researchers and end users to advocate an excellent understanding of EMG interfacing with mechanical devices.