Hepatotoxicity induced by chronic suppurative otitis media in rats and effects of ceftazidime and amikacin on it.

Chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) is the chronic inflammation with perforation of middle ear. If CSOM is not treated, it may cause secondary inflammation of liver with elevated liver enzymes and histological changes. Present study is aimed to observe the hepatotoxic effects due chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) in CSOM induced rats and alsoto observe the effects of ceftazidime and amikacin to attenuate hepatotoxicity due to CSOM.

A mathematical modeling approach to measure the probability of HIV-1 transmission for different high-risk groups of Pakistan.

Introduction: Since 2010, the number of new HIV-1 cases has declined by 30% globally, however, in few countries, such as Pakistan, the cases have continued to increase, where the country witnessed a 57% increase in the number of new infections between 2010 and 2020. The HIV-1 epidemic in Pakistan is concentrated in certain high-risk groups, however, it is unknown which high-risk group has a higher likelihood of transmitting HIV-1 infections to vulnerable populations. This study aimed to apply mathematical probabilistic modeling to estimate the probability of HIV-1 transmission for different high-risk groups of Pakistan.

Probabilistic measures of HIV-1 transmission in different HIV-1 key population groups of Larkana, Pakistan.

Objective: To estimate the probability of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 transmission from different key HIV population groups using probabilistic modelling.

Methods: This study was conducted in December 2020. A probabilistic model was used to estimate the probability of HIV-1 transmission from different key HIV population groups in Larkana.

A Low-g MEMS Accelerometer with High Sensitivity, Low Nonlinearity and Large Dynamic Range Based on Mode-Localization of 3-DoF Weakly Coupled Resonators.

This paper presents a new design of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) based low-g accelerometer utilizing mode-localization effect in the three degree-of-freedom (3-DoF) weakly coupled MEMS resonators. Two sets of the 3-DoF mechanically coupled resonators are used on either side of the single proof mass and difference in the amplitude ratio of two resonator sets is considered as an output metric for the input acceleration measurement. The proof mass is electrostatically coupled to the perturbation resonators and for the sensitivity and input dynamic range tuning of MEMS accelerometer, electrostatic electrodes are used with each resonator in two sets of 3-DoF coupled resonators.

Typhoon eye effect versus ripple effect: the role of family size on mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan.

Background: The recent outbreak of COVID-19 has impacted adversely upon the mental health of millions of people worldwide. Impacts on the mental health conditions and the associated predictors relating to adults in Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world, during the COVID-19 remain understudied. Our aim was to investigate distress, anxiety, and overall mental health and their associated predictors among Pakistani adults in this pandemic.

Spirulina platensis (Blue-green algae): A miracle from sea combats the oxidative stress and improves behavioral deficits in an animal model of Schizophrenia.

Spirulina platensis (blue-green algae) is a nutritional supplement. It constitutes of high content of protein, antioxidants, various phytopigments and possesses neuroprotective activities. Schizophrenia (SZ) is recognized as a neuropsychiatric disorder in humans with a reduced lifespan followed with impairments in social as well as vocational functioning.

Machine and Deep Learning towards COVID-19 Diagnosis and Treatment: Survey, Challenges, and Future Directions.

With many successful stories, machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) have been widely used in our everyday lives in a number of ways. They have also been instrumental in tackling the outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19), which has been happening around the world. The SARS-CoV-2 virus-induced COVID-19 epidemic has spread rapidly across the world, leading to international outbreaks.

Capsule robot for gut microbiota sampling using shape memory alloy spring.

Background: Human gut microbiota can provide lifelong health information and even influence mood and behaviour. We currently lack the tools to obtain a microbial sample, directly from the small intestine, without contamination.

Methods: Shape memory alloy springs are used in concentric configuration to develop an axial actuator.

A Protein Microarray-Based Investigation of Cerebrospinal Fluid Reveals Distinct Autoantibody Signature in Low and High-Grade Gliomas.

Gliomas are one of the most aggressive primary brain tumors arising from neural progenitor cells. Delayed diagnosis, invasive biopsy, and diagnostic challenges stems the need for specific, minimally-invasive, and early diagnostic biomarkers. Tumor-associated (TA) autoantibodies are measurable in the biofluids long before the onset of the symptoms, suggesting their role in early diagnosis and clinical management of the patients.

Region-Based Segmentation and Wiener Pilot-Based Novel Amoeba Denoising Scheme for CT Imaging.

Computed tomography (CT) is one of the most common and beneficial medical imaging schemes, but the associated high radiation dose injurious to the patient is always a concern. Therefore, postprocessing-based enhancement of a CT reconstructed image acquired using a reduced dose is an active research area. Amoeba- (or spatially variant kernel-) based filtering is a strong candidate scheme for postprocessing of the CT image, which adapts its shape according to the image contents.

: Energy Efficient Joint Time Synchronization and Localization Algorithm Using Ray Tracing Model.

In underwater wireless sensor networks (UWSNs), localization and time synchronization are vital services that have been tackled independently. By combining localization and time synchronization, could save nodes energy and improve accuracy jointly. Therefore, it is of great significance to study joint synchronization and localization of underwater sensors with low energy consumption.

Bactericidal Effect of 5-Mercapto-2-nitrobenzoic Acid-Coated Silver Nanoclusters against Multidrug-Resistant .

is among the most multidrug-resistant bacteria in circulation today, and new treatments are urgently needed. In this work, we demonstrate the ability of 5-mercapto-2-nitrobenzoic acid-coated silver nanoclusters (MNBA-AgNCs) to kill strains of . Using an in vitro bactericidal assay, MNBA-AgNCs had been found to show significantly higher anti-gonococcal bioactivity than the antibiotics ceftriaxone and azithromycin and silver nitrate.

Towards successful business process improvement - An extension of change acceleration process model.

Change Acceleration Process model (CAP) emerged in early 90's as a set of principles for accelerating change management efforts in organizations. Business Process Improvement (BPI) projects open avenues of opportunity and success for organizations in this highly competitive era. However, most of these projects fail due to lack of commitment, communication, scope creep and inadequate resources.

Non-albicans Candida species: Emergence of neglected pathogens among population of Karachi.

Candida albicans was considered as the principal cause of opportunistic candidiasis but nowadays, neglected non-albicans Candida (NAC) species are evolving as more virulent and drug resistant strains. This research was intended to assess pervasiveness of candidiasis mainly caused by NAC species in Karachi city. A total of 562 clinical isolates of Candida spp.

Deep Ensemble Learning Based Objective Grading of Macular Edema by Extracting Clinically Significant Findings from Fused Retinal Imaging Modalities.

Macular edema (ME) is a retinal condition in which central vision of a patient is affected. ME leads to accumulation of fluid in the surrounding macular region resulting in a swollen macula. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) and the fundus photography are the two widely used retinal examination techniques that can effectively detect ME.

Alleviation of diazepam-induced conditioned place preference and its withdrawal-associated neurobehavioral deficits following pre-exposure to enriched environment in rats.

Diazepam is one of the widely prescribed sedative drugs for the treatment of anxiety and sleep disorders. However, its continuous use can induce addiction, tolerance, and withdrawal symptoms and, therefore, the pharmacological use of diazepam is restricted. Exposure to enriched environment can reduce the addiction to stimulants including amphetamine, cocaine, and nicotine.

Alteration in redox profile and behavioral effects following repeated administration of citral in rats.

Essential oils are natural products having several important chemical constituents. Traditionally used worldwide as natural alternatives for treating various pathological conditions due to their antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antifungal and antioxidants properties. Citral is one of the mono terpene present in lemon peel oil.

A Parallel Architecture for the Partitioning Around Medoids (PAM) Algorithm for Scalable Multi-Core Processor Implementation with Applications in Healthcare.

Clustering is the most common method for organizing unlabeled data into its natural groups (called clusters), based on similarity (in some sense or another) among data objects. The Partitioning Around Medoids (PAM) algorithm belongs to the partitioning-based methods of clustering widely used for objects categorization, image analysis, bioinformatics and data compression, but due to its high time complexity, the PAM algorithm cannot be used with large datasets or in any embedded or real-time application. In this work, we propose a simple and scalable parallel architecture for the PAM algorithm to reduce its running time.

Physical enrichment enhances memory function by regulating stress hormone and brain acetylcholinesterase activity in rats exposed to restraint stress.

To study the effects of stress on mental health activity is of great importance in neuropsychological studies as it may affect the lifelong performance related to brain and overall health and wellbeing of an individual. It is observed very often that exposure to stress during early life can alter the brain function which may reflect as cognitive disability. Impairment of memory is associated with increased oxidative stress which is due to enhanced production of free radicals that may lead to lipid peroxidation and disintegration of cell structure and functions.

Inhibition of diet-restriction-induced behavioral deficits by tryptophan administration in rats.

Diet has a great impact on brain health and function. It plays an important role to improve and control a number of psychiatric disorders such as depression, anxiety, hyperactivity and behavioral impulsivity. Anorexia Nervosa (AN) is one of the psychiatric disorder which is associated with diet.

In-vitro evaluation and in-silico studies applied on newly synthesized amide derivatives of N-phthaloylglycine as Butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) inhibitors.

Amide derivatives of N-phthaloylglycine were synthesized under Schotten Baumann reaction condition. The structures of synthesized compounds (4a-d) were characterized by using FTIR, HNMR and EI-MS. The compounds were evaluated for their in-vitro Butyrylcholinesterase inhibition and all of them exhibited good activity against this enzyme.

Impact of network aided platforms as educational tools on academic performance and attitude of pharmacology students.

Objective: This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the impact of learning management system and WhatsApp application as educational tools on students' academic achievement and attitude.

Methods: The sample population was the students of six medical colleges of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia attending Medical Pharmacology's semester course in Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) program from September 2016 to January 2017. An exploratory approach was adopted based on a comparison between students exposed to only in-class lectures (Group-N), in-class lectures together with WhatsApp platform to disseminate the lecture slides (Group-W) and students group with in-class lectures facility blended with Learning Management System (LMS) and WhatsApp platform (Group-WL).

Enriched environment palliates nicotine-induced addiction and associated neurobehavioral deficits in rats.

This study was designed to investigate the role of enriched environment in preventing and/or reducing the neurobehavioral deficits produced after nicotine administration in albino Wistar rats. Equal numbers of rat in two groups were either placed in social environment (control group) or social along with physically enriched environment for four weeks before the administration of nicotine. Exposure to different environmental conditions was followed by the intraperitoneal injection of nicotine at the dose of 0.