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Tânia M Bovolenta,1 Sônia Maria Cesar de Azevedo Silva,2 Roberta Arb Saba,3 Vanderci Borges,2 Henrique Ballalai Ferraz,2 Andre C Felicio1 1Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, São Paulo, 2Neurology Department, Federal University of São Paulo, UNIFESP, São Paulo, 3Neurology Department, Federal University of São Paulo, UNIFESP, São Paulo, Brazil Background: Although Parkinson’s disease is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disease worldwide, its cost in Brazil – South America’s largest country – is unknown.Objective: The goal of this study was to calculate the average annual cost of Parkinson’s disease in the city of São Paulo (Brazil), with a focus on disease-related motor symptoms.Subjects and methods: This was a retrospective, cross-sectional analysis using a bottom-up approach (ie, from the society’s perspective). Patients (N=260) at two tertiary public health centers, who were residents of the São Paulo metropolitan area, completed standardized questionnaires regarding their disease-related expenses. We used simple and multiple generalized linear models to assess the correlations between total cost and patient-related, as well as disease-related variables.Results: The total average annual cost of Parkinson’s disease was estimated at US$5,853.50 per person, including US$3,172.00 in direct costs (medical and nonmedical) and US$2,681.50 in indirect costs. Costs were directly correlated with disease severity (including the degree of motor symptoms), patients’ age, and time since disease onset.Conclusion: In this study, we determined the cost of Parkinson’s disease in Brazil and observed that disease-related motor symptoms are a significant component of the costs incurred on the public health system, patients, and society in general. Keywords: Parkinson’s disease, health economics, cost of illness, health evaluation, cost analysis

Abstract Background Psychological Insulin Resistance (PIR) and negative perceptions regarding insulin treatment are noteworthy challenges in T2DM management, which hinder the timely initiation of insulin treatment. To get past these obstacles a reliable tool is required to evaluate patients’ perspectives on insulin administration. Our study aims to conduct a comprehensive systematic review to evaluate the validity and reliability of different validation tests used in the psychometric validation of the ITAS in T2DM patients. Methods A literature search was carried out, using PubMed, Google Scholar, EMBASE, Cochrane Library and Science Direct. Only those studies assessing content validity, construct validity, concurrent validity, discriminant validity, internal consistency reliability (Cronbach’ α), and items-total correlation were retrieved. Results A total of 14 studies illustrated the validity and reliability of ITAS in T2DM patients. Content validity results of S-CVI was 0.97, and I-CVI was 0.8–1.00. Construct validity with factor loading was greater than the threshold value of 0.3. The concurrent validity of ITAS vs. PAID, WHO-5, and SPI was 0.35 (P

Abstract Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) is a tick-borne virus, and zoonosis, and affects large regions of Asia, Southwestern and Southeastern Europe, and Africa. CCHFV can produce symptoms, including no specific clinical symptoms, mild to severe clinical symptoms, or deadly infections. Virus isolation attempts, antigen-capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) are all possible diagnostic tests for CCHFV. Furthermore, an efficient, quick, and cheap technology, including biosensors, must be designed and developed to detect CCHFV. The goal of this article is to offer an overview of modern laboratory tests available as well as other innovative detection methods such as biosensors for CCHFV, as well as the benefits and limits of the assays. Furthermore, confirmed cases of CCHF are managed with symptomatic assistance and general supportive care. This study examined the various treatment modalities, as well as their respective limitations and developments, including immunotherapy and antivirals. Recent biotechnology advancements and the availability of suitable animal models have accelerated the development of CCHF vaccines by a substantial margin. We examined a range of potential vaccines for CCHF in this research, comprising nucleic acid, viral particles, inactivated, and multi-epitope vaccines, as well as the present obstacles and developments in this field. Thus, the purpose of this review is to present a comprehensive summary of the endeavors dedicated to advancing various diagnostic, therapeutic, and preventive strategies for CCHF infection in anticipation of forthcoming hazards. Graphical Abstract For the protection of medical personnel and effective case management, an early diagnosis of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is critical. CCHF is diagnosed through laboratory procedures such as RT-PCR, ELISA, virus isolation attempts, and ELISA detection of IgG and IgM antibodies. This review examines several biomarkers researched for their potential use in the diagnosis and prognosis of critical viral infections. It also explores the utility of more traditional diagnostic markers in predicting secondary complications, distinguishing Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) infection, and serving as severity indicators. CCHFV vaccine development is advancing at an accelerated rate, facilitated by the availability of a lethal animal infection model. Hence, this review aims to furnish a comprehensive synopsis of the endeavors devoted to various vaccine candidates utilizing distinct approaches against CCHFV. These candidates comprise inactivated, virus-like particles, recombinant proteins, and nucleic acid vaccines. Furthermore, supportive therapy serves as the principal modality of treatment. Human cases of CCHF have been treated with ribavirin, a broad-spectrum antiviral medication; nevertheless, the therapeutic advantages of this intervention remain elusive. This article analyzes the present advancements and prospective trajectories in the realm of antiviral approaches targeting CCHFV.

Abstract Background Hypoglycemia, a prevalent acute complication among individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D), manifests with varied symptoms. Those with diabetes who have previously encountered hypoglycemic episodes commonly develop a Fear of Hyperglycemia (FOH). Illness perception (IP) significantly affects self-care behaviors and health outcomes in individuals diagnosed with T2D. Objective This study examined the correlation between IP and FOH among T2D patients and predictors of FOH. Methods The present study employed a descriptive-analytical design. The target population for this investigation comprised patients diagnosed T2D who sought medical care at the clinic and endocrinology departments of a hospital affiliated with Alborz University of Medical Sciences. The data collection period spanned from August 2019 to March 2021. A total of 300 individuals were included in the sample. Questionnaires were administered to measure both IP and FOH. Statistical analysis was conducted to examine the association between IP and FOH, as well as to identify the predictors of FOH. Results The results of the study indicated a statistically significant relationship between FOH and the mean score of IP among patients with diabetes (p = 0.001, r = 0.393), suggesting a moderate positive correlation between these variables. Additionally, the duration of illness, IP, and level of education were identified as variables that predicted FOH (p

Abstract Objective The use of electrical source imaging (ESI) in assessing the source of interictal epileptic discharges (IEDs) is gaining increasing popularity in presurgical work‐up of patients with drug‐resistant focal epilepsy. While vigilance affects the ability to locate IEDs and identify the epileptogenic zone, we know little about its impact on ESI. Methods We studied overnight high‐density electroencephalography recordings in focal drug‐resistant epilepsy. IEDs were marked visually in each vigilance state, and examined in the sensor and source space. ESIs were calculated and compared between all vigilance states and the clinical ground truth. Two conditions were considered within each vigilance state, an unequalized and an equalized number of IEDs. Results The number, amplitude, and duration of IEDs were affected by the vigilance state, with N3 sleep presenting the highest number, amplitude, and duration for both conditions (P 0.05). ESI maps showed no differences in distance, quality, extent, or maxima distances compared to the clinical ground truth for both conditions (P > 0.05). Only when an absolute reference (wakefulness) was used, the channel involvement (P

Abstract This article introduces an innovative approach that utilizes machine learning (ML) to address the computational challenges of accurate atomistic simulations in materials science. Focusing on the field of molecular dynamics (MD), which offers insight into material behavior at the atomic level, the study demonstrates the potential of trained artificial neural networks (tANNs) as surrogate models. These tANNs capture complex patterns from built datasets, enabling fast and accurate predictions of material properties. The article highlights the application of 3D convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to incorporate atomistic details and defects in predictions, a significant advancement compared to current 2D image-based, or descriptor-based methods. Through a dataset of atomistic structures and MD simulations, the trained 3D CNN achieves impressive accuracy, predicting material properties with a root-mean-square error below 0.65 GPa for the prediction of elastic constants and a speed-up of approximately 185 to 2100 times compared to traditional MD simulations. This breakthrough promises to expedite materials design processes and facilitate scale-bridging in materials science, offering a new perspective on addressing computational demands in atomistic simulations.

Background: Insulin resistance, a major pathogenic factor in Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM), has an inverse correlation with adiponectin; therefore, the role of adiponectin in the pathogenesis of GDM has been suggested. The study aimed to determine mean adiponectin levels and the frequency of hypoadiponectinemia in patients with GDM. Methods: The study was carried out at Dr. Ziauddin University Hospital, Karachi from June 2016 to December 2017. A total of 99 women of age group 15-45 years diagnosed with GDM on Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) at 24-28 weeks of gestations were included in the study. Patient’s data was recorded on proposed proforma, regarding age, gestational age, parity, ethnicity, Body Mass Index (BMI). Serum samples for quantitative estimation of Adiponectin were collected. OGTT and were analyzed on Immunoassay in conjunction with control materials. Mean±Std. was calculated for quantitative variables percentages and frequencies for categorical variables. For significant differences between categories, an independent t-test and Chi-square test were used. Results: High frequency of hypoadiponectinemia was observed in GDM women with mean adiponectin levels of 6.90±2.86 µg/ml (95%CI: 6.33 to 7.47). Out of 99 GDM women, 91(91.92%) had hypoadiponectinemia while 8(8.08%) had normal Adiponectin levels. A significant (p=0.05) association was found between BMI and hypoadiponectinemia. Conclusion: In the majority of GDM females, hypoadiponectinemia was observed. The high frequency of hypoadiponectinemia suggests further large-scale studies, are warranted to ascertain the diagnostic accuracy of adiponectin as a potential biomarker for GDM. Keywords: Gestational Diabetes; Adiponectin; Pregnancy; Glucose Intolerance.

Background: Opportunistic pathogens such as Cryptosporidium, Isospora belli, Blastocystis, etc. cause various gastrointestinal and non-digestive diseases in people with HIV. These symptoms are especially severe in people with HIV who have a CD4 count of less than 200. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of parasitic infections in people living with HIV in Tabriz. Methods: This cross-sectional and descriptive study was performed on137 people with HIV referred to Behavioral Disease Counseling Centers in Tabriz, 2019-2021. Then, after receiving written consent, fecal samples were collected and evaluated for the detection of parasitic infections using direct methods, Ziehl-Neelsen and Trichrome Weber stain. Results: A total of 137 stool samples were collected, including 93 males and 44 females. Most of them were in the age range of 20-60 years. The overall frequency of parasitic infections was 57.7% and the highest prevalence was related to Blastocystis 24.1% and Cryptosporidium 14.6%. Conclusion: Due to the relatively high prevalence of parasitic infections, especially Blastocystis and Cryptosporidium in people with HIV in Tabriz, which can endanger the health of these patients, essential interventions, including personal hygiene training to control and prevent infection with these pathogens, seem to be necessary.

Abstract Background Low back pain (LBP) resides as a most common type of symptom pointing towards lumber radiculopathy. It is defined as burning sharp leg pain that originates from the back and goes all the way down your legs and extends into the toes and foot. Lumbosacral radiculopathy is caused by pathology of the intervertebral disk or associated structures. Different dimensional traction has been used to treat lumbar radiculopathy. This study aimed to compare the effects of 3-dimensional and 2-dimensional lumbar traction on pain and functional disability in patients with lumbar radiculopathy. The randomized clinical trial study of 4 weeks was carried out at the Lifeline Health Care Imaging and Pain Center and the Hamza Hospital Lahore. Twenty-six subjects were included in the clinical trial and divided into two groups after randomization. Group A received three-dimensional lumbar traction with traction force 50% of total body weight on Spine MT 3D traction machine, and group B received two-dimensional lumbar traction with traction force 50% of total body weight. Pre- and post-values of NPRS and ODI were noted. Results Parametric tests were used during statistical analysis because data was normally distributed. NPRS pre- and posttreatment values showed significant results with p-value

INTRODUCTION: The Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) and Platelet to Lymphocyte Ratio (PLR) have recently been reported as potentially useful indicators of inflammation. In this study, the authors investigated their predictive role for postoperative complications of Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG).METHOD: This study was conducted on the medical records of patients who had undergone isolated CABG in 2019-2020 in Isfahan, Iran. The baseline clinical characteristics were obtained from medical records. The diagnosis of postoperative Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) was defined based on the Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes guideline. The postoperative bleeding amount was measured from the total chest tube output during the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission after surgery. NLR and PLR were measured by dividing the neutrophil and platelet counts by the lymphocyte count, respectively. All data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.RESULTS: Of 356 patients, data of 280 patients, including 219 males and 61 females, were recruited. The mean age among all patients was 63.78±9.07 years. There were no significant differences between the bleeding group and non-bleeding group regarding NLR (2.33(1.89-2.73) vs. 2.20(1.63-3)) and PLR (119.26(94.41-146.39) vs. 110.26(82.13-136.34)) (p=0.742, p=0.228 respectively). NLR and PLR were significantly higher in AKI-positive patients (P< 0.001 and P=0.002, respectively). Only NLR showed the potential ability to predict postoperative AKI in the crude model (P

Purpose: Teduglutide is the first and only FDA-approved drug for long-term treatment of short bowel syndrome (SBS). The current study aimed to present an approach for production of teduglutide using recombinant DNA technology. Methods: The coding gene for teduglutide was cloned into pGEX-2T vector, where coding sequence for factor Xa cleavage site was added between GST and teduglutide coding genes. The GST-teduglutide protein was overexpressed in E. coli BL21 (DE3) strain and affinity purified using glutathione sepharose affinity column. Results: On-column proteolytic activity of factor Xa followed by size exclusion chromatography resulted in the pure teduglutide. Circular dichroism (CD) spectropolarimetry showed that the produced teduglutide folds into mainly α-helical structure (>50%), as expected. In mass spectroscopy analysis, the fragments of teduglutide resulted by cyanogen bromide cleavage as well as those expected theoretically due to mass fragmentation were identified. The functionality of the produced peptide was evaluated by measuring its proliferative effect on Caco2 intestinal epithelial cells, and the results indicated that produced teduglutide induces cell proliferation by 19±0.30 and 33±7.82 % at 1.21 and 3.64 µM concentrations, respectively, compared to untreated cells. Conclusion: Teduglutide was successfully expressed and purified and its functionality and structural integrity were confirmed by in vitro experiments. We believe that the experimental-scale method presented in the current study can be useful for pilot-scale and also industrial-scale production of teduglutide.

Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) is a positive-sense, single-stranded, enveloped RNA virus responsible for substantial economic losses to the poultry industry worldwide by causing a highly contagious respiratory disease. The virus can spread quickly through contact, contaminated equipment, aerosols, and personal-to-person contact. We highlight the prevalence and geographic distribution of all nine genotypes, as well as the relevant symptoms and economic impact, by extensively analyzing the current literature. Moreover, phylogenetic analysis was performed using Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis (MEGA-6), which provided insights into the global molecular diversity and evolution of IBV strains. This review highlights that IBV genotype I (GI) is prevalent worldwide because sporadic cases have been found on many continents. Conversely, GII was identified as a European strain that subsequently dispersed throughout Europe and South America. GIII and GV are predominant in Australia, with very few reports from Asia. GIV, GVIII, and GIX originate from North America. GIV was found to circulate in Asia, and GVII was identified in Europe and China. Geographically, the GVI-1 lineage is thought to be restricted to Asia. This review highlights that IBV still often arises in commercial chicken flocks despite immunization and biosecurity measures because of the ongoing introduction of novel IBV variants and inadequate cross-protection provided by the presently available vaccines. Consequently, IB consistently jeopardizes the ability of the poultry industry to grow and prosper. Identifying these domains will aid in discerning the pathogenicity and prevalence of IBV genotypes, potentially enhancing disease prevention and management tactics.

Introduction: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is characterized by dopamine deficiency in the corpus striatum due to the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. Symptoms include bradykinesia, resting tremors, unstable posture, muscular rigidity, and a shuffled gait. Thalictrum foetidum is traditionally used for neurodegenerative disorders. Objectives: This study aimed to explore the therapeutic potential of aqueous ethanolic extract of Thalictrum foetidum (AETF) against Parkinson-like symptoms and to investigate its underlying mechanism. Methodology: Thirty-six albino mice were randomly divided into 6 groups (n = 6): normal control, disease control, standard treatment (levodopa/carbidopa, 100/25 mg/kg), and 3 treatment groups (AETF at 200, 400, and 600 mg/kg). One hour before treatment, haloperidol (1 mg/kg, i. p .) was administered to induce Parkinson’s disease in all groups except the normal control group. Results: Behavioral analysis showed significant improvement ( P < .001) in motor function, muscular coordination, and reduced muscular rigidity and tremors. AETF also reduced oxidative stress. Histological examination of the brain showed reduced Lewy bodies, neurofibrillary tangles, and plaque formation. Conclusion: AETF alleviated PD symptoms by reducing neurodegeneration, modulating oxidative stress, and inhibiting the expression of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and associated inflammatory cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6).

Background: Due to the prevalence of COVID-19 disease and the growing demand for plasma therapy to assess its effectiveness, the potential impact of spirituality on plasma donation by COVID-19 patients, the role of spirituality can be considered more than before. Objective: We decided to conduct the present study to determine the effect of spirituality on plasma donation in the recovery from COVID-19. Methods: This was an analytical case-control study. The study population included all individuals who recovered from COVID-19, divided into two groups: case and control groups (90 subjects). The instrument used to assess spirituality in this study will be the Spiritual Assessment Inventory (SAI). Results: The results showed that there were statistically significant differences between the two groups in terms of total spirituality scores. The plasma donor group had a higher score (195.00 ± 19.70) compared to the control group (174.44 ± 29.06) who were not willing to donate plasma. Additionally, in the dimensions of awareness, actual acceptance, and magnification, the case group scored higher than the control group. Also, there was a statistically significant difference (P

Background: Short stature (SS) is defined as a height of 2.0 or more standard deviations (SD) below the population-specific mean height for age and gender. 2.5% of children have short stature, and it is one of the most frequent causes for children to see a growth specialist during their childhood. It is challenging to generalize about the effect of short stature on psycho-social adaption given the data currently available. Health-related quality of life (HrQoL) was generally shown to be lower in clinically identified short stature children than in population-based normal-sized reference groups. Aim: Examine the behavioral pattern and mental health of SS and its psychological influence on QoL of children/adolescence. In addition, compare the behavioral response and QoL between growth hormone deficiency GHD and control groups. Methods: It is a cross sectional study, included 80 participants (60 with GHD and 20 with normal height as control group) between 4 and 18 years old. The parents of the participants were given a parent-reported version of the written Quality of Life in Short Stature Youth QoLISSY questionnaire in Arabic in order to examine the association with the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants. Results: 51.25% female and 48.75% male included in this study, the mean age at assessment was 12.1 ± 2.7, and 11.8 ± 2.6 of the GHD and control group, respectively. There was significant difference in QoLISSY total score between GHD and control groups. The association between socio-demographic characteristics of the participants was significantly different. Conclusion: The QoL of Iraqi children with GHD showed lower scores in all domains of QoLISSY compared to normal children.

Introduction: Finding a non-invasive and repeatable tool has been recommended to make an accurate diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). Methods: 70 volunteers participated in three groups: 24 with mild dementia of AD, 24 in the first and second stages of PD, and 22 healthy controls. After valuing the scores of cognitive tests, the salivary levels of phosphorylated tau (p-tau), total alpha-synuclein (α-syn), and beta-amyloid 1–42 (Aβ)‏‎ proteins have been evaluated. Finally, the cutoff points, receiver operating characteristic (ROC), sensitivity, and specificity have been calculated to find accurate and detectable biomarkers. Results: Findings showed that the salivary level of Aβ was higher in both PD (p

Avian orthoreviruses have become a global challenge to the poultry industry, causing significant economic impacts on commercial poultry. Avian reoviruses (ARVs) are resistant to heat, proteolytic enzymes, a wide range of pH values, and disinfectants, so keeping chicken farms free of ARV infections is difficult. This review focuses on the global prevalence of ARVs and associated clinical signs and symptoms. The most common signs and symptoms include tenosynovitis/arthritis, malabsorption syndrome, runting–stunting syndrome, and respiratory diseases. Moreover, this review also focused on the characterization of ARVs in genotypic clusters (I–VI) and their relation to tissue tropism or viral distribution. The prevailing strains of ARV in Africa belong to all genotypic clusters (GCs) except for GC VI, whereas all GCs are present in Asia and the Americas. In addition, all ARV strains are associated with or belong to GC I-VI in Europe. Moreover, in Oceania, only GC V and VI are prevalent. This review also showed that, regardless of the genotypic cluster, tenosynovitis/arthritis was the predominant clinical manifestation, indicating its universal occurrence across all clusters. Globally, most avian reovirus infections can be prevented by vaccination against four major strains: S1133, 1733, 2408, and 2177. Nevertheless, these vaccines may not a provide sufficient defense against field isolates. Due to the increase in the number of ARV variants, classical vaccine approaches are being developed depending on the degree of antigenic similarity between the vaccine and field strains, which determines how successful the vaccination will be. Moreover, there is a need to look more closely at the antigenic and pathogenic properties of reported ARV strains. The information acquired will aid in the selection of more effective vaccine strains in combination with biosecurity and farm management methods to prevent ARV infections.

Background: Despite the existence of treatment strategies, there was no effective drug treatment available during the outbreak of COVID-19. Consequently, medicinal herbs were commonly used as complementary drugs to prevent COVID-19 and reduce the symptoms of the disease in many countries. Medicinal plants used in the preparation of anti-COVID-19 supplements have proven effective in reducing the symptoms of this disease, with various mechanisms such as strengthening the immune system, antiviral effects, and anti-inflammatory activities. Several herbal products based on traditional and complementary medicine have been used worldwide for the treatment of COVID-19 infection. Examples include Chinese herbal medicines such as Jinhua Qinggan and Lianhua Qingwen, Indian Kadha used as an immune booster and, Artemisia annua, which gained popularity in African countries like Madagascar during the COVID-19 pandemic. Latin American and Caribbean regions, such as Cuba, have utilized 'Prevengho-VIR' to prevent severe respiratory symptoms of COVID-19. Purpose: This study was conducted with the aim of introducing Iran's commercial herbal products for the management of COVID-19 based on clinical trials. Methods: Research articles based on clinical evidence of Iran's commercial herbal supplements for managing COVID-19 were collected from Google Scholar, PubMed, and ScienceDirect databases. In addition, the anti-COVID potential of medicinal plants used in these herbal products has also been discussed. Results: This study presents a comprehensive review of the 12 approved COVID-19 herbal supplements in Iran, based on related articles published so far that discuss their clinical use. The Food and Drug Administration of Iran has approved the use of commercial herbal products, including Alerguard®, Imfluna®, Palminavir®, Co Iran Amin®, PHR 160®, Colchinale®, Thymonige®, Covexirpars®, Mocozift, Saliravira®, Relung ZMZ®, and Ferula astragalus ZMZ®. These products are produced with herbal medicine and are intended for the symptomatic treatment of COVID-19. Furthermore, this review analyzes the specific 41 herbal compounds which used in each formula and their effectiveness in combating COVID-19 along with potential mechanisms of action for each herb. Conclusion: Clinical evidence suggests that polyherbal formulations, such as Imfluna®, PHR 160®, Covexir®, and Saliravira®, when used in conjunction with routine care of COVID-19, can potentially decrease the duration of hospital stay, accelerate clinical improvement, enhance tolerance against COVID‐19, and reduce symptoms such as fever, anorexia, dry cough, and muscle pain.

Objective: To reassess the reasons for blood donor deferrals as per donor history questionnaire and physical examination findings. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: Blood Bank, Dr. Ziauddin Hospital, Karachi Pakistan, from Jan 2017 to Dec 2020. Methodology: After approval from the Ethical Review Committee, all donors reporting at the blood bank were included. All donors were interrogated via a detailed donor health questionnaire. Data for donor history and physical examination findings were retrieved from the Blood Bank Information Software System (BBIS). Results: During the study period, 33,095 donors reported at the. Blood Bank. Of the total donors, 25,531(77.1%) were accepted and donated blood, while 7564(22.9%) were deferred for different reasons. The majority of donations were from males (32773,99.0%), and female donations accounted for 1%, while females accounted for more deferrals as compared to males. Most deferrals were due to low Hemoglobin (2722,36%), followed by injection/needle stick injuries (1994,26.4%). Less common causes observed were donors not feeling fit for donations, medications, etc. Conclusion: In our study, the deferral rate was 22.9%, with low haemoglobin being the most common cause, followed by injections/needle stick injuries.

ObjectiveType 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) is linked to cognitive deterioration and anatomical brain abnormalities like cerebral brain atrophy and cerebral diseases. We aim to develop an automatic deep learning-based brain atrophy diagnosis model to detect, segment, classify, and predict the survival rate.MethodsTwo hundred thirty-five MRI images affected with brain atrophy due to prolonged T2DM were acquired. The dataset was divided into training and testing (80:20%; 188, 47, respectively). Pre-processing is done through a novel convolutional median filter, followed by segmentation of atrophy regions, i.e., the brain shrinkage, white and gray matter is done through the proposed TRAU-Net model (Transfer Residual Attention U-Net), classification with the proposed Multinomial Logistic regression with Attention Swin Transformer (MLAST), and prediction of chronological age is determined through Multivariate CoX Regression model (MCR). The classification of Brain Atrophy (BA) types is determined based on the features extracted from the segmented region. Performance measures like confusion matrix, specificity, sensitivity, accuracy, F1-score, and ROC-AUC curve are used to measure classification model performance, whereas, for the segmentation model, pixel accuracy and dice similarity coefficient are applied.ResultsThe pixel accuracy and dice coefficient for segmentation were 98.25 and 96.41, respectively. Brain atrophy multi-class classification achieved overall training accuracy is 0.9632 ± 1.325, 0.9677 ± 1.912, 0.9682 ± 1.715, and 0.9521 ± 1.877 for FA, PA, R-MTA, and L-MTA, respectively. The overall AUC-ROC curve for the classification model is 0.9856. The testing and validation accuracy obtained for the proposed model are 0.9379 and 0.9694, respectively. The prediction model's performance is measured using correlation coefficient (r), coefficient determination r2, and Mean Square Error (MSE) and recorded 0.951, 0.904, and 0.5172, respectively.ConclusionThe brain atrophy diagnosis model consists of sub-models to detect, segment, and classify the atrophy regions using novel deep learning and multivariate mathematical models. The proposed model has outperformed the existing models regarding multi-classification and segmentation; therefore, the automated diagnosis model can be deployed in healthcare centers to assist physicians.

This paper includes the study about early embryonic death, predisposing factors of early embryonic death and treatment. Early embryonic death refers to the fetal mortality which varies in mare and camelids but most probably not later than 50 days of gestation. This duration may be divided into very early mortality, early mortality, and late embryonic mortality. This also varies in mare and camelids. There are different embryonic, maternal, environmental/external, infectious, and noninfectious factors which lead to early embryonic loss. Diagnosis is very difficult as in most of the cases resorption of fetus occurs, but it is done using ultrasound machine. Unfortunately, there is no treatment to avoid early embryonic mortality. However, new reproductive technologies have increased the service rate in a herd, and efforts are still being made to determine the rate and frequency of camel embryonic loss. [Open Vet J 2022; 12(6.000): 903-909]

Objective: Covid-19 is a highly contagious viral infection that has recently become a pandemic. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the disease has affected millions of people and taken many people's lives. The purpose of this paper is to predict and compare the number of cases and mortality rate due to Covid-19 every quarter in 2020 and 2021 in three countries: Iran, the United States, and South Korea. Materials and methods: The data of this study include the mortality rate of different countries of the world due to Covid-19, which has been approved by the World Health Organization (WHO). In this paper, to develop the mathematical model for mortality rate prediction, the data of the countries of Iran, the United States, and South Korea during the last two years from March 1, 2020, to March 1, 2022, have been used. In addition, the mortality trend was modeled using the MATLAB software toolbox version 2022b. During modeling, six methods including Fourier, Interpolant, Gaussian, Polynomial, Sum of Sine, and Smoothing Spline were implemented. Root Mean square error (RMSE) and final prediction error were used to evaluate the performance of these proposed methods. Results: As a result of the analysis, it was shown that the Smoothing Spline model with the lowest error rate was capable of accurately evaluating and predicting Covid-19 incidence and mortality rate. Using RMSE, a prediction of the Covid-19 mortality rate for three countries is 3.76498 × 10−5. The values of R-Square and Adj R-sq were 1 in all the experiments, which indicates the full compliance of the prediction model. Conclusion: Using the proposed method, the incidence rate and mortality rate can be properly assessed and compared with each other in three countries. This provides a better view of the progression of the coronavirus outbreak in spring, summer, autumn, and winter. By using the proposed method, governments will be able to prevent disease and alert people to follow health guidelines more closely, thereby reducing infection numbers and mortality rates.

Introduction The top research priority for cavernoma, identified by a James Lind Alliance Priority setting partnership was ‘Does treatment (with neurosurgery or stereotactic radiosurgery) or no treatment improve outcome for people diagnosed with a cavernoma?’ This pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) aims to determine the feasibility of answering this question in a main phase RCT.Methods and analysis We will perform a pilot phase, parallel group, pragmatic RCT involving approximately 60 children or adults with mental capacity, resident in the UK or Ireland, with an unresected symptomatic brain cavernoma. Participants will be randomised by web-based randomisation 1:1 to treatment with medical management and with surgery (neurosurgery or stereotactic radiosurgery) versus medical management alone, stratified by prerandomisation preference for type of surgery. In addition to 13 feasibility outcomes, the primary clinical outcome is symptomatic intracranial haemorrhage or new persistent/progressive focal neurological deficit measured at 6 monthly intervals. An integrated QuinteT Recruitment Intervention (QRI) evaluates screening logs, audio recordings of recruitment discussions, and interviews with recruiters and patients/parents/carers to identify and address barriers to participation. A Patient Advisory Group has codesigned the study and will oversee its progress.Ethics and dissemination This study was approved by the Yorkshire and The Humber—Leeds East Research Ethics Committee (21/YH/0046). We will submit manuscripts to peer-reviewed journals, describing the findings of the QRI and the Cavernomas: A Randomised Evaluation (CARE) pilot trial. We will present at national specialty meetings. We will disseminate a plain English summary of the findings of the CARE pilot trial to participants and public audiences with input from, and acknowledgement of, the Patient Advisory Group.Trial registration number ISRCTN41647111.

Background: This study aims to extract carotid wall vibrations non-invasively and evaluate changes in the carotid artery caused by age, BMI, and sex. Such evaluation can increase the possibility of detecting wall stiffness and atherosclerosis in the early stages and prevent heart attack and death. Method: To extract small vibrations of the carotid wall, the image-tracking method, and optical flow with four different methods were used. The study involved twenty participants, comprising six females and fourteen males, with a mean age of 36.25 years, mean weight of 75.2 Kg, and mean BMI of 25. The posterior wall motion and vibration were extracted using ultrasound RF signals. Result: 4 optical flow methods, Gunnar-Farneback, Horn- Schunk, Lucas-Kanade, and Lucas-Kanade derivative were used for all samples, and covariance, correlation, P-value, and R-squared were estimated. Results showed the differences in parameters such as age and BMI with carotid wall vibration. These values for age are ( , , , ) and for BMI are ( , , , ), respectively. For gender as a new parameter, a comparison between men’s and women’s vibrations was estimated. The range of measured vibrations by optical flow methods is about to and the mean standard deviation is . Conclusion: The results presented that gender affects the vibration of the vessel wall, which in men is more than in women. In addition, increasing age and BMI may increase the stiffness of the carotid wall and reduce vibrations that were evaluated previously. Using the Gunner-Farneback method as image tracking for small vibrations is the best way with the highest accuracy.

Dermanyssus gallinae is a hematophagous ectoparasite responsible for anaemia, weight loss, itching, dermatitis, and also decreased egg production in many domestic and wild bird species. Th e use of various synthetic acaricides such as avermectin and isoxazoline group is common in its treatment. Th is study aimed to compare the efficacy of Selamectin and Fluralaner on canaries during D. gallinae infestations. In the study, all canaries before treatment constituted the control group. Two groups of canaries were included in the study (n:40): Selamectin was applied to the first group (n:20) and Fluralaner to the second group (n:20). Selamectin was applied topically and infrascapularly at a 20 mg/kg dose, while Fluralaner was administered orally by a dose of 0.5 mg/kg. Parasite load was evaluated before and aft er treatment. With regard to the reduction in the mean number of red mites, the treatment successes of Selamectin and Fluralaner were evaluated as percentages of the efficacy. Th e percentage of efficacy of Selamectin and Fluralaner treatments were 80.0%, and 90.90%, respectively. We conclude that both drugs provide eff ective treatment in the treatment of D. gallinae infestation in canaries, nevertheless short-term clinical efficacy of Fluralaner was superior to Selamectin.

NER is a natural language processing technique that primarily classifies parts of parsed text into well-known named entities. In the domain of natural language processing, the recognition of name entities is used to classify nouns that appear in bulk text data and place these nouns into predefined groups, such as names of people, places, times, dates, organizations, etc. There is a lot of fragmented material and data on the Cyberspace, therefore scholars are working on several languages (i.e: Sindhi, English, etc.), by working on various approaches and techniques depending on their locations, to improve accessibility of filtered information for online users. The NER enhance the quality of NLP in applications including automated summarization, semantic web search, information extraction and retrieval machine translation and question answering, chatbots and others. This study designs an efficient framework to extract noun entities in Urdu using a hybrid approach. The UNER system not only extracts entities by searching through a list of names, but also extracts named entities by recognizing phrases in a given text. The UNER system is designed to recognize Urdu noun entities in pre-defined categories such as places, personal names, titled personal names, organizations, object names, trade names, abbreviations, dates and times, measurements, and text names in Urdu.

Gas-liquid membrane contactors are promising alternatives to conventional absorption technologies. However, despite their significant advantages, such systems face the major problem of gradual wetting of the porous polymeric membranes with liquid absorbents. In fact, wetting of porous polymeric membranes by liquid absorbents increases the mass transfer resistance of the membrane phase, which in turn, reduces the gas absorption efficiency. Accordingly, in this paper, the effect of membrane wetting on mass transfer resistance and absorption efficiency has been studied. The influence of effective parameters on membrane wetting phenomenon, such as absorbent and membrane properties, is investigated. In addition, different prevention methods of membrane wetting is discussed in detail. The results show the increase in the rate of wetting at high velocity and pressure of the absorbent. In the case of absorbents-containing organic compounds, their surface tension is decreased rapidly with the increasing concentration of organic compounds, which increased the wetting rate of the membrane. In addition, studies on various polymeric membranes have shown that the structural and chemical changes of the membrane surface, which occur due to long-term contact of the membranes with amine absorbents, strongly increase the wetting of the membranes, and thus, its functionality. Moreover, studies have shown that modifying the surface of membranes is one of the most effective methods to prevent the problem of wetting. By modifying the surface, the free energy of the membrane surface can be reduced and its roughness can be increased, thus increasing the hydrophobicity of the membrane surface. Among these, nanotechnology has been introduced as one of the most important technologies in the production of superhydrophobic membranes to prevent the problem of wetting the porous polymeric membranes.

Orthomyxoviruses are negative-sense, RNA viruses with segmented genomes that are highly unstable due to reassortment. The highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) subtype H5N8 emerged in wild birds in China. Since its emergence, it has posed a significant threat to poultry and human health. Poultry meat is considered an inexpensive source of protein, but due to outbreaks of HPAI H5N8 from migratory birds in commercial flocks, the poultry meat industry has been facing severe financial crises. This review focuses on occasional epidemics that have damaged food security and poultry production across Europe, Eurasia, the Middle East, Africa, and America. HPAI H5N8 viral sequences have been retrieved from GISAID and analyzed. Virulent HPAI H5N8 belongs to clade 2.3.4.4b, Gs/GD lineage, and has been a threat to the poultry industry and the public in several countries since its first introduction. Continent-wide outbreaks have revealed that this virus is spreading globally. Thus, continuous sero- and viro-surveillance both in commercial and wild birds, and strict biosecurity reduces the risk of the HPAI virus appearing. Furthermore, homologous vaccination practices in commercial poultry need to be introduced to overcome the introduction of emergent strains. This review clearly indicates that HPAI H5N8 is a continuous threat to poultry and people and that further regional epidemiological studies are needed.

Objective: To determine the factors for hesitancy and uptake of coronavirus disease-2019 vaccine, and to compare perinatal outcomes in vaccinated and nonvaccinated pregnant women. Method: The cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2021 to February 2022 at the Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital, Karachi, and the Holy Family Hospital, Karachi, and comprised pregnant women admitted in delivery suite for operative or vaginal delivery. Data was collected using a self-designed questionnaire which also explored knowledge about vaccine, contextual factors and reasons for and against vaccination. Perinatal outcomes included stillbirth, preterm delivery, low birth weight and Appearance-Pulse-Grimace-Activity-Respiration score. Also, 3cc blood was collected from the umbilical cord at the time of delivery, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique was used for antibodies titre. Data was analysed using SPSS 24. Results: Of the 186 women, 114(61.3%) with mean age 27.9±4.1 years were vaccinated, and 72(38.7%) with mean age 27.5±5.2 years were not vaccinated. Physician’s advise 104 (91.2%), vaccine safety and its effect on foetus 52(72.2%) were main determinants for vaccine uptake and refusal, repectively. Family and peer pressure was also responsible in 19(26.4%) cases for vaccine refusal. Body mass index, parity, level of education, socioeconomic status, history of coronavirus disease-2019 infection, booking status and presence of gestational diabetes mellitus were significantly different between the vaccinated and unvaccinated groups (p

Background Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is an endocrine metabolic disorder of women. Purpose This study aimed to explore the potential of aqueous extract of Garcinia cambogia Desr. (AEGC) in PCOS. Methodology The HPLC was used to determine the phytoconstituents present in Garcinia cambogia. Thirty adult female albino rats were divided into 6 groups: Normal control (NC) disease Control (PCOS; letrozole 1 mg/kg), plant extract (AEGC 100, 300, 500 mg/kg) and standard (metformin; 20 mg/kg). Disease was confirmed by vaginal smear cytology. After 10 weeks, animals were euthanized, ovaries dissected for histopathology, blood collected for hormonal and biochemical analysis. Results HPLC analysis showed the presence of phenolic contents; chlorogenic acid, gallic acid, coumaric acid while flavonoid contents were quercetin, kaempferol, and rutin. After treatment, there was dose dependent reduction of weight, ovarian cysts, improvement of follicle growth. DPPH radical scavenging percentage was 67.89%. Hormonal analysis showed a significant improvement ( P < .05) in follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), estrogen, and progesterone while a reduction in testosterone, luteinizing hormone (LH) and insulin level. Antioxidant enzymatic markers were significantly ( P < .05) increased. Lipid profile and LFTs were also improved. Conclusions The study validated the potential of Garcinia cambogia in the management of PCOS.

Wetting of polymeric hollow fiber membranes by chemical absorbents is one of the main challenges of gasliquid membrane contactors. This study explored an appropriate method to fabricate a superhydrophobic polypropylene (PP) hollow fiber membrane by incorporating fluorinated silica nanoparticles (fSiO2 NPs) on the PP membrane surface. The effect of the hydrophobic agent on the water repellent properties of the composite membrane was studied by varying (1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyltriethoxysilane/ tetraethylorthosilicate) (PFOTES/TEOS) molar ratio from 0 to 1. The composite membranes were characterized using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR), contact angle, mechanical strength and static wettability. The obtained results showed that the surface hydrophobicity and mechanical strength of the composite membranes increased compared to pure ones. The contact angle of 156° was obtained when the (PFOTES/ TEOS) molar ratio was 0.5. Furthermore, the CO2 absorption experiment was done to evaluate the performance of the fabricated membranes in a gas-liquid membrane contactor. The obtained results showed that the PP/fSiO2 composite membrane has more potential to be used in gas-liquid membrane contactors than commonly used polymeric membranes

The current study was an observational cross sectional survey conducted on 52 physical therapists of Punjab. Sampling technique used was probability purposive sampling. This study included both genders having experience of more than five years in either academics or clinical physical therapy. The novice practitioners are excluded. This study is conducted on the physical therapists of both private and government hospitals and institutes of Punjab. A self-structured Questionnaire was administered online and through email. Overall, 63% physical therapists were strongly needed the android apps for updated knowledge for clinical practice,55% therapists were strongly needed apps for the clinical training, clinical practice purpose and differential diagnoses, 59% therapist were needed android apps for pre and post-surgical management,57% physical therapists were needed android apps for patient home plan management

Opportunistic pathogens such as Cryptosporidium, Cystoisospora belli, and Cyclospora cayetanensis cause various gastrointestinal and non-digestive disorders in people with HIV/AIDS. These symptoms are especially severe in HIV-infected people who have a CD4+ count of less than 200 cells/mL. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of C. belli and C. cayetanensis infections among people living with HIV in Tabriz, northwest of Iran. This descriptive study was performed on 137 people with HIV who had been referred to behavioral disease counseling centers in Tabriz. Then, after receiving written consent, fecal samples were collected and evaluated for the detection of parasitic infections using direct methods and modified acid fast staining, as well as polymerase chain reaction (PCR).From the 137 fecal samples collected (98 males and 39 females, between 20 and 40 years old), 1.5% were positive for C. cayetanensis and 2.9% were positive for C. belli. Due to the prevalence of C. cayetanensis and C. belli in people with HIV in Tabriz, essential measures, including personal hygiene training for infection control and prevention, seem necessary.

The genre of metapoetry thematizes the fictional elements – the inspiration of a poet, his poetic process, meta-poetic metaphors, the role of the poet in society, and intertextual references – partaking in the making of poetry explicitly or implicitly carried through a poem within a poem technique. This paper presents Eva Müller-Zettlemann’s theoretical pronunciation of meta-poetic elements, i. e., poetic inspiration, poetic process, and meta-poetic metaphors, at play in the metalyrics of Taufiq Rafat from his anthologies Arrival of the Monsoon: Collected Poems 1947-78 (1985) and Half Moon: Poems 1979-1983 (2008). Rafat’s inspiration is the South-Asian terra firma and lived experience that makes him infuse the regional sensibility through a poetic process of perceiving and penning down immediately. His meta-poetic metaphor involves the invention of an image of cultural genesis that informs the process of poetic creativity. Moreover, the study also considers the explicit expression of the role of the poet in society and the functions of poetry in Rafat’s poems, otherwise a prose phenomenon. Thus, the paper analyzes the conscious expression of the construction of South-Asian singularity inspired by the cultural kernel in content and form in Rafat’s metalyrics.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a very common, complex, and heterogeneous endocrine disorder of women that involves a combination of environmental and genetic factors. PCOS affects women of growing age particularly at the early to late reproductive stage (15–35 years). Currently, PCOS affects 1 in every 10 women worldwide. It is characterized majorly by a raised level of androgens such as testosterone and a large number of ovarian cysts (more than 10) that cause anovulation, infertility, and irregular menstrual cycle. PCOS is also related to other endocrine and metabolic abnormalities, such as obesity, hirsutism, acne, diabetes, insulin resistance, and glucose impairment. PCOS can be treated with allopathic, ayurvedic, and natural or herbal medications along with lifestyle modifications. Herbal medicines remained in demand for numerous reasons such as high cost and side effects associated with the use of allopathic medicine and our traditional norms, which have helped humans to use more herbal products for their health benefits. Estrogenic and nonestrogenic phytochemicals present in various plant species such as Glycyrrhiza glabra L. [Fabaceae], Aloe vera (L.) Burm. f. [Asphodelaceae], Silybum marianum (L.). Gaertn. [Asteraceae], Serenoa repens (W.Bartram) Small [Arecaceae], Actaea racemosa L. [Ranunculaceae], and Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels [Apiaceae] are effective and harmless. Herbal medicines are found to be cost-effective, efficacious, and a highly esteemed source of management/treatment for PCOS than allopathic medicines. In this literature review, diagnosis, signs, and symptoms of PCOS; causes of hormonal imbalance; and risk factors associated with PCOS and their management are discussed briefly, and the focus was to find out the role of herbal remedies in PCOS management.

In this paper, adsorption of Congo red (CR) onto L-cysteine decorated with reduced graphene oxide/polyaniline composite at room temperature was investigated. The morphology and structure properties of as-prepared nanocomposite were verified by UV–visible spectroscopy (UV–visible), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometry (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Brunauer Emmett Teller (BET) studies. Effect ofabsorbent dosage, contact time, initial dye concentration and temperature were studied and optimal conditions for the adsorption process of Congo red dye were found. The obtained results indicated that isotherms data fitted well to Langmuir model. While kinetics data fitted well to the pseudo-second-order kinetic equation and the adsorption process was generally governed via intra-particle diffusion. Thermodynamic data showed that adsorption process of CR was endothermic and spontaneous in nature. At optimal conditions, the maximum adsorption capacity of CR was calculated and found to be 56.57 mg/g, which shows that L-cysteine functionalized reduced graphene oxide/polyaniline based nanocomposite can be efficiently used for wastewater management.

Primary myelofibrosis is a haematopoietic stem cell neoplasm resulting in ineffective haematopoiesis and bone marrow fibrosis. We present a case of a 67-year-old male patient who came to the oncology/haematology department of Dr. Ziauddin Hospital, Karachi, in February 2020 with complaints of weight loss, gastroesophageal reflux and loss of appetite. Continue...

Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer leading to death in women. Women with multicentric breast cancer were reported more likely to have poor prognosis. Here, we decided to study and compare the frequency distribution of multicentricity in different subtypes of breast cancer. Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional study that was performed in 2019–20 on medical records and breast pathology reports of 250 patients who undergone mastectomy due to breast cancer. Demographic data of all patients including age, along with other medical data such as menstruation condition, breast cancer grade, multicentricity status, stage, and expression of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) receptors were collected from medical records. Samples were divided into four subtypes of Luminal B, Luminal A, HER2 expressing, and basal-like. Results: The mean age of patients was 50.21 ± 11.15 years. Ninety-five patients (38%) had multicentricity and HER2 expressing (48.5%) and Luminal A (41.4%) were most common in patients with multicentricity. In addition, basal-like group presented with least multicentricity (13.5%) among the subtypes (P = 0.008). We also showed significant increased chances of multicentricity in Luminal B (odds ratio [OR] = 3.782) (P = 0.033), Luminal A (OR = 5.164) (P = 0.002), and HER2-expressing group (OR = 5.393) (P = 0.011). Conclusions: Taken together, we showed significantly increased chances of multicentricity in patients with HER2-expression, Luminal A, and Luminal B groups compared to basal-like group or triple negative. These results were in line with most previous studies; however, we showed higher rates of multicentricity among our population compared to some previous reports.

Abstract Background The larval stage of the tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus is the causative agent of hydatid disease in humans. This zoonotic parasitic infection remains a major health problem in certain areas of the world where is still endemic. In view of the ineffectiveness of some drug treatments, the surgical removal of cysts remains the preferred treatment option together with the administration of albendazole and mebendazole. However, severe side effects of these drugs have been reported which demands developing new scolicidal agents that confer suitable efficacy and fewer side effects during surgery. Methods To that purpose, in the present work we assessed the effectiveness of ivermectin (IVM), a macrocyclic lactone endectocide that has shown to be an effective nematocidal drug against other important parasitic infections. To overcome the limitations observed in some drug formulations and resistance, we used nano lipid carriers (NLCs) as a targeted and sustained drug delivery system for IVM. We evaluated the in vitro cestocidal and apoptotic effects of NLCs-loaded IVM versus IVM by quantifying the expression of caspase-3 mRNA. Results We found that after 60 and 120 min of administration, 800 μg/ml and 400 μg/ml NLCs-loaded IVM induced 100% mortality, respectively. On the other hand, the 800 μg/ml of IVM induced 100% mortality rate 150 min after administration. Additionally, we found that NLCs-loaded IVM induced higher mRNA caspase-3 expression suggesting a more potent apoptotic effect on the parasite. Conclusions These data suggest that NLCs-loaded IVM may be a promising alternative to current treatments although in vivo studies are needed.

Background and purpose: Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) is an obligatory intracellular protozoan parasite. Toxoplasmosis is highly prevalent and has a great effect on public health, therefor, there is a need for vaccine and sensitive diagnostic procedures. This study aimed at cloning and investigating the expression of ROP13 gene of T. gondii. Materials and methods: In this study, the gene was cloned in pTG19-T vector and transferred to a TOP10 strain of E.coli following ROP13 gene amplification using PCR. Then the ROP13 gene was sub cloned in expression plasmid pcDNA3. Also, pcROP13 was transferred to CHO cells and the expression level was evaluated by IFA method. Results: Cloning and sub cloning of ROP 13 gene were confirmed by PCR, sequencing and enzymatic digestion. The gene sequencing showed complete homology with a recorded sequence in the gene bank. Moreover, the expression of ROP13 gene in CHO eukaryotic cells was confirmed by IFA method. Conclusion: The results showed that ROP13 gene was successfully sub cloned into the pcDNA3 expression vector and expressed in CHO cells. Therefore, it can be used in the development of vaccines and in diagnostic tests.

Like fingerprints, lip prints are considered distinctive to an individual. A lip print found at the crime scene can help reveal the identity of the persons involved. The present study focuses on the differentiation of lip prints according to sex and studies the distribution of lip print patterns in various communities of the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh, India. A total of 400 samples of lip prints were collected from males and females of age group 18-24 years, belonging to Brahmins and Yadavs from the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh. The most prevalent was Type I lip print in Brahmin males and Type II in Brahmin females, whereas Type III pattern was the most common in Yadav males and females. When Lip patterns were statistically evaluated based on the sex differences in Brahmins, Type II and I patterns may help in sex determination. Whereas, when the data is compared between males and females of Yadavs, Type III lip print had high predominance in comparison to other patterns but may not help in sex determination.

Objective: To identify serodiagnosis and quantification of Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) infection among pregnant women in Salmas, northwest of Iran. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 276 blood samples were collected from pregnant women referred to the health care centers in Salmas city. The demographic variables were also recorded. Titers of anti-Toxoplasma IgM and IgG antibodies (Ab) were determined using the chemiluminescence immunoassay. Quantitative real-time PCR targeting the T. gondii repeated element gene was also performed on the blood sample. Results: Out of all, 19.92% (55/276) and 2.17% (6/276) patients were seropositive for anti-Toxoplasma IgG and IgM Ab, respectively. Moreover, the presence of T. gondii DNA was observed in 12.31% (34/276) blood samples. A significant relationship was observed between the IgG Ab seropositivity and contact with the cat as a risk factor (P=0.022). Conclusions: The seroprevalence rate of T. gondii infection in pregnant women is relatively low. Consequently, the seronegative pregnant women are at risk, and a considerable rate of positive blood samples for the presence of parasite's DNA should not be ignored. Besides, quantitative real-time PCR could be considered as an accurate method for diagnosis of acute toxoplasmosis especially when the precise results are of the most importance in pregnancy. Limiting contact with cats is also suggested for pregnant women.

Patients undergoing standard chemoradiation post-resection had MRIs at radiation planning and fractions 10 and 20 of chemoradiation. MRIs were 1.5T and 3D T2-FLAIR, pre- and post-contrast 3D T1-weighted (T1) and echo planar DWI with three b-values (0, 500, and 1000s/mm2) were acquired. T2-FLAIR was coregistered to T1C images. Non-overlapping T1 contrast-enhancing (T1C) and nonenhancing T2-FLAIR hyperintense regions were segmented, with necrotic/cystic regions, the surgical cavity, and large vessels excluded. The simplified IVIM model was used to calculate voxelwise diffusion coefficient (D) and perfusion fraction (f) maps; ADC was calculated using the natural logarithm of b = 1000 over b = 0 images. T1C and T2-FLAIR segmentations were brought into this space, and medians calculated. MGMT promoter methylation status (MGMTPMS), age at diagnosis, and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status were extracted from electronic medical records. The data were presented, analyzed, and described in the article, “Intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) modeling of diffusion MRI during chemoradiation predicts therapeutic response in IDH wildtype Glioblastoma”, published in Radiotherapy and Oncology [1].

Workplace deviant behavior (WDB) and workplace ostracism (WO) have emerged as one of the most toxic behaviors that breed self-protection and self-interest in today’s organizations. However, limited evidence is available on the underlying factors, such as organizational conflict (OC), knowledge-sharing behavior (KSB) and emotional intelligence (EI), in explaining the WO-WDB relationship. Hence, the present study aims to introduce and empirically validate a moderated-mediation model of workplace deviant behavior, involving WO, OC, KSB and EI, respectively. Drawing on study data from 250 officials in the higher education public sector institutions in Pakistan, and employing structural equation modeling with partial least squares, the findings revealed a significant positive effect of WO on WDB. Besides the validation of the mediating roles of OC and KSB, the findings also confirmed a significant moderating influence of EI. The study implications provide theoretical and practical insights to better interpret KSB, OI and EI in organizations that can generate effective deterrence towards WO and WDB.

Cyclospora cayetanensis infections remain one of the most common protozoan opportunistic causes of gastrointestinal diseases and diarrhea among people living with HIV and/or AIDS (PLWHA). This study was conducted to provide a summary of the evidence on the global burden of C. cayetanensis infection and associated risk factors among PLWHA. Scopus, PubMed, Science Direct, and EMBASE were searched up to February 2022. All original peer-reviewed original research articles were considered, including descriptive and cross-sectional studies describing C. cayetanensis in PLWHA. Incoherence and heterogeneity between studies were quantified by I index and Cochran’s Q test. Publication and population bias were assessed with funnel plots and Egger’s asymmetry regression test. All statistical analyses were performed using StatsDirect. The pooled prevalence of C. cayetanensis infection among PLWHA was 3.89% (95% CI, 2.62–5.40). The highest prevalence found in South America was 7.87% and the lowest in Asia 2.77%. In addition, the prevalence of C. cayetanensis was higher in PLWHA compared to healthy individuals. There was a relationship between a higher C. cayetanensis prevalence in PLWHA with a CD4 cell count below 200 cells/mL and people with diarrhea. The results show that PLWHA are more vulnerable to C. cayetanensis infection and emphasizes the need to implement the screening and prophylaxis tailored to the local context. Owing to the serious and significant clinical manifestations of the parasite, an early identification of seropositivity is recommended to initiate prophylaxis between PLWHA with a CD4 count ≤200 cells/mL and PLWHA who do not receive antiviral therapy.

Human papillomavirus infection is one of the most common genital infections. More than 100 types of the virus have been identified, most of which can infect the genital mucosa. The virus is associated with cancerous and precancerous lesions of the cervix. Some types, such as human papillomavirus 16 and 18, are highly carcinogenic; some other types, such as human papillomavirus 6 and 11, are mildly carcinogenic, with HPV 31.33 in between. This study describes the relationship between different types of HPV infection and the findings of a Pap smear. In this prospective study, 1,500 samples from patients who admitted to a private Pathology Laboratory in Isfahan were collected during the years 2019-2020. Two samples were collected from each patient, one for Pap smear study and the other for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test to detect different types of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. In a study of 1,500 samples, 236 were positive for Papillomavirus (HPV) infection in Pap smear. By examining the genotype of positive examples, it was found that 14.8% of the samples were infected with type 16, and 1.7% were infected with type 82. HPV infection is common in Iran and is almost similar to European countries such as Germany and Spain. We also found that using a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method to detect HPV viruses in vaginal secretions could be very useful. Our findings also show which disease is most associated with each type of HPV.

This study creates the profile of women entrepreneurs in Quetta city and examines their awareness level regarding Islamic banking and its products. The study is descriptive in nature and survey questionnaire was used for data collection. The data from 106 women entrepreneurs were collected who are engaged in multiple business activities in Quetta city. From the results it has been found that majority of the women entrepreneurs (i.e., 60%) knew about the term, Islamic banking but the sample size trimmed down as the research questions moved to awareness about Islamic principles, Shariah board, Islamic banking products, Islamic modes of finance and comparison of Islamic banking with conventional banking. It was found that only 10 (out of 106) women entrepreneurs are highly aware about Islamic banking, Islamic principles, Shariah board, Islamic banking products, and Islamic modes of finance. This study suggests that Islamic banks, scholars, and academicians should collaborate to enhance the awareness by arranging awareness campaigns, workshops, seminars, and training sessions on Islamic banking and its products among women entrepreneurs.