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Background The plants of B. rapa (syn. B. campestris) are the most important food crop of Pakistan for the production of cooking oil. Brassica plants infected by phytoplasma exhibit floral abnormalities including phyllody, virescence, hypertrophied sepal and aborted reproductive organs and affected flower developmental genes which reduces the yield manifold. Methods and results The expression level of flower developmental genes in healthy and phytoplasma infected brassica were compared by using semi-quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and DNA hybridization. In infected brassica, LEAFY (LFY) gene, controlling the development and maintenance of floral organ, and directly involved in controlling the homeotic gene expression was affected, while APETALA2, regulate the production of sepals and petals, were not altered. Whereas the genes WUSCHEL, APETALA3 and AGAMOUS, were significantly down-regulated, that were responsible for the identity of shoot and central meristem, petals and stamens production, and stamens and carpels development, respectively. The GLUB gene, controlling the production of beta-1,3-glucanases enzyme, was highly up-regulated. According to DNA hybridization results, AGAMOUS and APETALA3 were restricted to floral organs territories in healthy and phytoplasma infected brassica, indicating that their expression was tissue-specific. These outcomes indicated that flower abnormalities of phytoplasma infected B. rapa are linked with DNA methylation in the expression of homeotic genes regulating flower development. Conclusions Azacitidine act as a DNA demethylating reagent. By applying the foliar spray of azacitidine during the flower development, cells of Phytoplasma infected plants exhibits demethylation of DNA when treated with azacitidine chemical that incorporated as analogue of cytosine during the cell division stage. B. rapa showed the up-regulation of gene expression level significantly that restore the normal production of flowers, ultimately increase the oil production throughout the world.

Objective: To assess the impact of intracranial pressure (ICP) monitored therapy on mortality in patients with severe traumatic brain injury. Materials and Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted at the Department of Neurosurgery, Jinnah Hospital Lahore. Forty patients of both genders, aged between 15 to 60 years were randomly selected and divided into two groups (Control & Experimental). Patients injured within 24 hours with a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) of 8 or less and showing radiological evidence of raised intracranial pressure were included. Patients with extradural hematoma, penetrating injury, or those requiring any surgery were excluded from the study. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20. Results: No significant difference was found in mean age and gender among the two groups. The GCS of the control group was 6.2 ± 1.6 while that of the experimental group was 6.7 ± 1.6. The mean of the maximum ICP of the experimental group was 25.31 ± 8.48 mm of Hg. There was a significant difference in the mean duration of ventilation between the two groups. In the control group, 10 (50.0%) patients expired whereas in the experimental group, 8 (40.0%) patients expired. The proportion of mortality was higher in the control group but the difference was not statistically significant between the two groups (P value: 0.525). Conclusion: Intracranial pressure-monitored therapy was effective but statistically showed no significant superiority over unmonitored management.

A cross-sectional survey was conducted from February 2021 to June 2021, to assess the prevalence and nature of injuries among young professional cricketers from various academies and clubs in Lahore. The study comprised 149 cricketers representing different academies and clubs of Lahore. Injuries acquired between January and December 2019 were included as retrospective data. The findings revealed that 93 injuries were reported by 149 cricketers with a prevalence of 62.4%. Of these 41 (44%) injuries occurred during matches, 50 (54%) during practice, and 2 (2.1%) injuries were caused during fitness training. The head, neck, and face sustained 3 (3.2%) injuries, while the upper extremities received 35 (37.6%), the lower extremities 39 (41.9%), and the back and trunk 16 (17.2%). The most commonly injured players were fast bowlers 23 (24.7%). First time reported injuries were 66 (70.9%), while those repeated in the past were 16 (17.2%). --Continue

Date palms (P. dactylifera L.) are prominent in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Iran, UAE, Iraq as well as Algeria, Egypt and Pakistan. However, in Pakistan, the commercially grown cultivarsare Aseel, Dhaki, Falsi, Karbalai, Mozawati, Jan Swore, Kohra, Hillawi, Kohra and Begum Jhangi. R. ferrugineus considered as the chief and hazardous insect pest responsible for damage in palm orchards. this work probe the predilection of RPW in 11 divergent palm cultivars (Hillawi, Mozawati, Kechanr, Aseel, Shamrani, Khudravi, Dhaki, Zeri, Kobra, Zaidi, Denda) which frequently grown in different regions of Pakistan associated by way of impulsive expulsion from tissues of palm leaf using Y-shaped olfactometer for research. In addition, level of both antixenosis and antibiosis was spotted by examining the various parameters such as %age lure of weevils of mature female, general count of laid eggs in addition to their activeness. Furthermore, obtained results depicted that a positive contact was establish with minimum antixenotic consequence revealed by a cultivar, “Hillawi” among most hold of RPW adults (22.32%), number of eggs laid (16.66%) and egg hatching (84.66%). While other cultivars including Mozawati, Aseel, Kechanr, Shamrani, Khudravi, Dhaki, Zeri and Zaidi exhibited level of antixenosis with percent weevils attracted (18.13, 17.25, 14.67, 6.17, 5.88, 5.59, 3.5 and1.5%), no. of eggs laid (15, 14, 12.66, 10, 5.66, 4.33, 2.33 and 1.33) along with egg hatching percentages (82, 72.66, 68.33, 53.66, 37.66, 31, 13.33 and 5.66%) respectively. Moreover, “Hillawi” documented the maximum number of eggs similar with strains like Kechanr, Mozawati as well as Aseel while Kobra and Denda showed minimum attraction by RPW. Maximum RPW (6) were attracted in an olfactometer assay of sugarcane varieties.

A six degrees-of-freedom (DOF) two-radii Gough–Stewart Platform (GSP) can be designed to be dynamically isotropic and has been proposed for micro-vibration isolation. In many applications, the torsional mode can be ignored, and a 5DOF dynamically isotropic, parallel manipulator capable of attenuating three translational (3T) and two rotational (2R) modes are sufficient. In this work, we present the designs of a novel 5DOF dynamically isotropic parallel manipulator for vibration isolation where the torsion mode can be ignored. We present closed-form solutions in their explicit form, and these are obtained using a geometry-based approach. The first design is based on a modification to the two-radii GSP and provides enhanced design flexibility and feasibility. The second design, with the first five decoupled modes, is based on superposing geometrical parameters of two three-legged dynamically isotropic or decoupled parallel manipulators. It is shown that this design has two translational modes, namely the X, Y modes, which are decoupled from two rotational modes Rot(X), Rot(Y) and are controlled by two different sets of three legs. This feature can lead to simpler control and less power requirements if active vibration control is chosen. The designs presented in this work include the effect of asymmetry and the payload center of mass variation. The dynamically isotropic and decoupled designs were successfully validated using the finite element software ansys®. Experimental results based on a two-radii GSP prototype further validate analytical and simulation results.

To counter the insect infestation, plants respond with wide-ranging and highly dynamic biochemical reactions. Of these, the anti-oxidative activity is poorly understood. The red palm weevil (RPW) Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Oliver), one of the most widespread pests in Pakistan, prefers to infest date palm Phoenix dactylifera. Our present study investigated the feeding preference of RPW to 11 different date palm cultivars and the results suggested that the Hillawi cultivar was most preferred. Greater infestation rate, fecundity and hatching rate were also recorded from Hillawi and Mozawati than other cultivars. No significant decreases were observed in chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophylls and carotenoids of RPW-infested Hillawi cultivar over un-infested control. In contrast, the contents of enzymatic antioxidants including phenols, proline, hydrogen peroxide, anthocyanin, malondialdehyde, ascorbic acid and glycine betaine showed a drastic increase after RPW infestation, and there was enhanced superoxide dismutase, peroxidase and catalase activities. Furthermore, we recorded the increase of total protein and sugar contents in RPW-infested date palms. These findings offer valuable insight into the antioxidative molecular mechanism of date palms under RPW attack and may contribute to the breeding of insect-resistant crops.

The genus Nepeta belongs to the largest Lamiaceae family, with 300 species, which are distributed throughout the various regions of Africa, Asia, India, and America. Along with other plant families distinguished by their medicinal and therapeutic values, the Nepeta genus of Lameaceae remains relatively valuable. Hence, the phytochemicals of N. paulsenii Briq. were extracted using different plant parts, i.e., leaves, stem, roots, flowers, and the whole plant by using various solvents (ethanol, water, and ethyl acetate), obtaining 15 fractions. Each extract of dried plant material was analyzed by FT-IR and GC-MS to identify the chemical constituents. The cytotoxicity of each fraction was analyzed by MTT assay and mitochondrial membrane potential and nuclear condensation assays against lung cancer cells. Among the ethyl acetate and ethanolic extracts, the flowers showed the best results, with IC50 values of 51.57 μg/mL and 50.58 μg/mL, respectively. In contrast, among the water extracts of the various plant segments, the stem showed the best results, with an IC50 value of 123.80 μg/mL. 5-flourouracil was used as the standard drug, providing an IC50 value of 83.62 μg/mL. The Hoechst 33342 stain results indicated apoptotic features, i.e., chromatin dissolution and broken down, fragmented, and crescent-shaped nuclei. The ethanolic extracts of the flowers showed more pronounced apoptotic effects on the cells. The mitochondrial membrane potential indicated that rhodamine 123 fluorescence signals suppressed mitochondrial potential due to the treatment with the extracts. Again, the apoptotic index of the ethanolic extract of the flowers remained the highest. Hence it can be concluded that the flower part of N. paulsenii Briq. was found to be the most active against the A459 human lung cancer cell line.

Traditional methods of pest control are not able to prevent crop damage due to devastating pests. Therefore, through nanobiotechnology nano-bio pesticides and conjugated nanoparticles are produced ...

Biology of Zeugodacus tau (Walker) (Diptera: Tephritidae) was studied on bottle gourd under laboratory conditions. It was observed that 4-10 eggs/ female were laid singly or in clusters, embedded vertically or slightly slanting inside the fruits. Preoviposition, oviposition, post-oviposition and incubation periods were observed to be from 10 to 16, 11 to 28, 1 to 4 and 1 to 3 days, respectively. Mean larval period was 1.4, 1.8 and 2.8 days, for 1st, 2nd and 3rd instars, respectively, with total larval duration of 6.0 days. Prepupal and pupal period were 0.9 and 8.2 days, respectively. The mean longevity of male and female was 28.4 and 31.6 days, respectively.

BACKGROUND Alagille syndrome (AGS) is a rare genetic disease characterized by 5 typical features: peculiar facial anomaly, posterior embryotoxon, chronic cholestasis, butterfly-like vertebral-arch defects, and cardiovascular malformations. AGS in a liver transplant setting is particularly rare in Saudi Arabia. This case report presents successful anesthetic management in AGS patients during liver transplantation surgery. CASE REPORT We present here 2 patients with AGS who underwent liver transplantation surgery. Case 1 describes a 3-year-old boy who was diagnosed with AGS at the age of 2 weeks, manifesting as a prominent forehead, deep-set eyes, pointed chin, and butterfly-shaped vertebrae, along with coarctation of the aorta, peripheral branch pulmonary artery stenosis, direct hyperbilirubinemia, cholestasis, and G6PD deficiency. Case 2 describes a 12-year-old girl, known to have AGS, who presented with decompensated liver disease, portal hypertension, splenomegaly, hypersplenism, and portal vein thrombosis, as well as the other dysmorphic features of AGS, such as a prominent forehead, deep-set eyes, pointed chin, and butterfly-shaped vertebrae. The anesthetic management of the 2 patients started from the perioperative period with careful assessment and optimization of the cardiovascular system, intraoperative maintenance of stable hemodynamics, the use of inhaled nitric oxide when clinically indicated (used in case 1), and the use of goal-directed management of fluid as well as blood and blood products. These all played a major role in the successful management of anesthesia for these patients. CONCLUSIONS The important features of successful anesthetic management included thorough preoperative cardiovascular system evaluation and intra-operative maintenance of normal temperature, ionized calcium, pH, hemoglobin, and stable hemodynamics.

To counter the insect infestation, plants respond with wide-ranging and highly dynamic biochemical reactions. Of these, the anti-oxidative activity is poorly understood. The red palm weevil (RPW)

Tobacco cutworm, Spodoptera litura Feb. (Lepidoptera; Noctuidae) is a notorious cosmopolitan pest of numerous crops. Frequent evolution of insecticide resistance and polyphagous nature favors the survival of this voracious pest. Nanotechnology offers an alternative technique to overcome the limitations of existing pest management strategies. In the present study, the silver nanoparticles were synthesized from Ocimum basilicum leaf extract and UV-spectra at 464.17 nm confirmed their synthesis while crystalline nature of nanoparticles was evaluated by X-rays diffraction (XRD) pattern and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed their octagonal to spherical shape. Insecticidal potential of O. basilicum synthesized silver nanoparticles (ObAgNPs) was evaluated in comparison with some synthetic insecticides owning different mode of actions, including Coragen®, Proclaim®, Tracer® and Talstar® against S. litura. Probit analysis of 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th instars of S. litura showed that lethal concentrations (LCs) of tested nanoparticles and pesticides were positively correlated with older instars. All values of LC50, LC90 and LC95 were statistically different from each other with maximum on the 4th instar and minimum on 2nd instar of S. litura. Tukey’s HSD test revealed that ObAgNPs caused maximum mortality (21.67–96.67%) in 2nd instar larvae at the rate of 100–1500 mg/L followed by Coragen® (18.33–91.67%), Proclaim® (13.33–78.33%) and Talstar® (13.33–68.33%), while Tracer indicated the lowest larval mortality (11.67–66.67%) at the rate of 60–120 mg/L and a similar trend was assessed for all the successive instars of S. litura. Higher activity of carboxyl esterase and glutathione-s-transferases confirmed the development of insecticide resistance against the synthetic chemicals. Conclusively, ObAgNPs were found to be eco-friendly but the most effective biogenic compounds for the suppression of S. litura population as compared to the selected synthetic chemicals which may be hazardous for the environment as well as human health. This study will assist the pesticide industries to re-standardize the dose rates against Spodoptera litura.

Codling moth (Cydia pomonella, Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) is a quarantine pest of apple in Ladakh, India. We report Cydia pomonella granulovirus from infected larvae of codling moth for the first time in India. The two CpGV isolates were identified as (CpGV SKUAST-1 and CpGV SKUAST-2) and published in Genbank under accession number, MK801791 and MK801792, respectively. The mortality of CpGV was evaluated against 3rd instar larvae of codling moth at various concentrations viz., 10(2), 10(4), 10(6), 10(8), 10(10), 10(12) and 10(14) OB(S)/ml. The median lethal concentrations (LC(50) and LC(90)) were observed at 7.08 and 28.56 OB(S)/ml, respectively. In field, the infection rate by CpGV was 5.95 to 15.65%. Based on typical infection symptoms on the larvae, morphological features under the microscope and sequence results of the amplified product confirmed the first occurrence of CpGV from India. Thus, CpGV will form an important non-chemical strategy for managing this pest. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1007/s13337-020-00638-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Leaf and stripe rust caused by Puccinia recondita and Puccinia striiformis are important diseases of wheat in Pakistan and worldwide. The survey was carried out to monitor virulence pattern among t...

Summary The invasive red palm weevil (RPW) (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is one of the most destructive palm pests in the world. More options are needed for its management, including optimised use of microbial entomopathogens (EP). The sub-lethal effects of an entomopathogenic fungus (EPF) Beauveria bassiana (isolate WG-11) (Ascomycota: Hypocreales) (at 1 × 104 spores ml−1) and two entomopathogenic nematode (EPN) species, Heterorhabditis bacteriophora (at 100 infective juveniles (IJ) ml−1) and Steinernema carpocapsae (at 50 IJ ml−1) were evaluated in various combinations against laboratory-reared 3rd, 5th and 8th instar larvae of RPW in bioassays. Individual and combined effects of both EP were observed after the pre-application of B. bassiana fungus at 0-, 1- and 2-week intervals. Combined treatments were tested for antagonistic, additive and synergistic effects. Additive and synergistic effects were observed in B. bassiana/S. carpocapsae and in B. bassiana/H. bacteriophora combined treatments. Early instar larvae of RPW were more susceptible than older instars. Sole and combined EP treatments decreased pupation, subsequent emergence of RPW adults and hatching. Sub-lethal effects of EP were observed in R. ferrugineus following application at the above-mentioned rates to 3rd, 5th and 8th instar larvae, including reduced larval weights, increased larval, pre-pupal and pupal durations, reduced adult weights and life spans. Simultaneous combined applications of B. bassiana/S. carpocapsae and B. bassiana/H. bacteriophora at the above-mentioned rates against last instar (9th) larvae of R. ferrugineus reduced food consumption, frass production and affected weight gains.