Terror as well as terrorism could result in substantial levels of losses for any economy. This pa... more Terror as well as terrorism could result in substantial levels of losses for any economy. This paper empirically examines the impact of terrorism on trade openness, renewable, fossil energy, and economic growth in the case of Pakistan over the period 1990-2017. We use the autoregressive distributive lag (ARDL), bound testing model, to explore the short and long-run relationship among trade openness, renewable energy, economic growth, fossil energy, and terrorism. The error correction model (ECM) reveals the short-run relationship between trade openness, economic growth, renewable and fossil energy, and terrorism. In general, we find economic growth on domestic terrorism is strong. We also find the terrorist activities decrease the trade volume. The findings suggest that terrorism has a negative influence on Pakistan's economic growth and trade. Pakistan needs to make strict policies in terms of the utilization of more renewable energies, while, in the meantime, to resolve military and political differences with the help of its diplomatic channels specifically in the country and particularly in South Asia.
Pakistan has a large and dispersed primary public health system that gives citizens access to tra... more Pakistan has a large and dispersed primary public health system that gives citizens access to trained doctors and staff, and to subsidized medicines. However, both the use of these facilities and health outcomes remain low. Improvements in information and communications technology provide exciting opportunities to leverage technology to improve management. This paper presents a detailed qualitative and quantitative study of the institutional context in which such interventions in the public health sector in Punjab would be trialed. We describe the structure and management of primary healthcare facilities, present selected results from a survey of a representative sample of basic health units, and identify some key issues. We also report and discuss officials’ responses to the question of how services might be improved.
In the paper, we present new semi-analytical approach for FDE?s consisting in combination of the ... more In the paper, we present new semi-analytical approach for FDE?s consisting in combination of the method of steps and a technique called differential transformation method (DTM). This approach reduces the original Cauchy problem for delayed or neutral differential equation to Cauchy problem for ordinary differential equation for which DTM is convenient and efficient method. Moreover, there is no need of any symbolic calculations or initial approximation guesstimates in contrast to methods like the homotopy analysis method, the homotopy perturbation method, the variational iteration method or the Adomian decomposition method. The efficiency of the proposed method is shown on certain classes of FDE?s with multiple constant delays including FDE of neutral type. We also compare it to the current approach of using DTM and the Adomian decomposition method where Cauchy problem is not well posed.
Cold agglutinin disease is a rare disorder characterized by an autoimmune hemolytic anemia occurr... more Cold agglutinin disease is a rare disorder characterized by an autoimmune hemolytic anemia occurring at low temperatures. Physical examination findings, often limited to acrocyanosis, are combined with a thermal amplitude test to help establish the diagnosis. Thermal amplitude testing determines the highest temperature at which the cold agglutination will occur and is an important parameter in diagnosing cold agglutinin disease. Here we describe a 57-year-old white man of German and Nicaraguan descent with known chronic cold agglutinin disease who presented to our ophthalmology clinic for evaluation of a cataract. During routine cataract surgery, the lowered temperature of the conjunctiva from intermittent flow of balanced salt solution at room temperature induced a cold agglutination reaction in conjunctival vessels easily visible under a surgical microscope. To the best of our knowledge, this method of demonstrating cold agglutinin disease has not been described in the literature ...
Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) is the most prevalent central nervous system (CNS) tumor in pediatric ... more Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) is the most prevalent central nervous system (CNS) tumor in pediatric population and accounts for an approximate of 5-6% of all gliomas. This neoplasm can occur at all levels of the neuraxis, with majority (67%) arising in the cerebellum and optic pathway. PAs are World Health Organization Grade I tumors and are the most benign of all astrocytomas characterized by an excellent prognosis. Other differentials include subependymal giant cell astrocytoma (SEGA), ependymoma, meningioma, and low-grade gliomas such as pilocytic or diffuse astrocytoma; calcification is more commonly regarded as a feature of benign or slow-growing tumors. We present a case of a 17-year-old female presenting with an unusual cause of hydrocephalus, a rare case of a calcified pilocytic astrocytoma as an intraventricular tumor. PA rarely presents as an intraventricular tumor and should be included in the differential diagnosis of a large mass with massive intratumoral calcification.
Inflammasomes are multiprotein complexes having nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat... more Inflammasomes are multiprotein complexes having nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat consisting members along with pyrin and HIN domain family. An inflammasome mainly consists of cytoplasmic sensor molecule such as NLRP3, the adaptor apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing caspase recruitment domain) protein along with effector procaspase-1. The inflammasome regulates caspase-1 activation, resulting in secretion of interleukin-1β and interleukin-18. The inflammasome activation is linked with infection, stress, or other immunological signals involved in inflammation. The pathophysiological role of NLRP3 inflammasome in immune regulation, inflammatory receptor-ligand interactions, microbial-associated molecular patterns, danger as well as pathogen associated molecular patterns has been demonstrated in last few years. Furthermore, the role of the inflammasome in peripheral and central nervous system involved with cytokine and chemokine inflammatory responses has...
In this paper, we proposed a new computational algorithms called a new approach to linear and non... more In this paper, we proposed a new computational algorithms called a new approach to linear and nonlinear Schrödinger equations using the Natural Decomposition Method (NDM). The proposed method is a combination of the Natural transform Method (NTM) and Adomian Decomposition Method (ADM). The new computational algorithms is applied directly without using any transformation, linearization, discretization or taking some restrictive assumptions. Exact solutions of two illustrative examples was successfully fund using the proposed method, and the results are compared with the results of the existing methods. This shows the reliability, efficiency, and accuracy of the proposed method.
In this paper, a new powerful and efficient technique Reconstruction of Variational Iteration Met... more In this paper, a new powerful and efficient technique Reconstruction of Variational Iteration Method (RVIM) is applied to find the exact solutions to the linear and nonlinear Schrödinger equations. The Reconstruction of Variational Iteration Method (RVIM) is independent of small parameters as well as algorithm overcomes the difficulty arising in calculating nonlinear intricately terms. The method is capable of reducing the size of calculation and easily overcomes the difficulty of the perturbation technique or Adomian polynomials. Besides, it provides us with a simple way to ensure the convergence of series solution, so that we can always get enough accuracy in approximations. The present results are in good agreement with the existing literature.
The neural guidance molecular, Slit2, and its cognate receptor, Robo1, play critical roles in the... more The neural guidance molecular, Slit2, and its cognate receptor, Robo1, play critical roles in the development of the nervous system, nevertheless, their functions are not limited to this system. Numerous studies have shown decreased Slit2 expression in a wide variety of cancers, highlighting its potential as a tumor suppressor. However, the Slit2/Robo1 signaling axis was reported to induce either suppressive or stimulatory effects on tumor growth and metastasis, depending on cellular context. There is a paucity of information on the effects of the Slit2/Robo1 signaling axis on the growth and metastasis of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Large-scale data mining of the Oncomine database has revealed heterogeneous expression of Slit2 in HCC. We screened the Sk-hep-1, a cell line showing a relatively high level of Slit2, and low level of Robo1 expression. After Slit2 knockdown and Robo1 overexpression in these cells, we found Slit2 and Robo1 exerted opposing effects on tumor growt...
This study considers SEIVR epidemic model with generalized nonlinear saturated incidence rate in ... more This study considers SEIVR epidemic model with generalized nonlinear saturated incidence rate in the host population horizontally to estimate local and global equilibriums. By using the Routh–Hurwitz criteria, it is shown that if the basic reproduction number [Formula: see text], the disease-free equilibrium is locally asymptotically stable. When the basic reproduction number exceeds the unity, then the endemic equilibrium exists and is stable locally asymptotically. The system is globally asymptotically stable about the disease-free equilibrium if [Formula: see text]. The geometric approach is used to present the global stability of the endemic equilibrium. For [Formula: see text], the endemic equilibrium is stable globally asymptotically. Finally, the numerical results are presented to justify the mathematical results.
Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Neural Information Processing, 2002. ICONIP '02., 2002
This paper examines the possibility of recognizing sign language gestures using sensor gloves. Pr... more This paper examines the possibility of recognizing sign language gestures using sensor gloves. Previously sensor gloves are used in games or in applications with custom gestures. This paper explores their use in Sign Language recognition. This is done by implementing a project called "Talking Hands", and studying the results. The project uses a sensor glove to capture the signs of American Sign Language performed by a user and translates them into sentences of English language. Artificial neural networks are used to recognize the sensor values coming from the sensor glove. These values are then categorized in 24 alphabets of English language and two punctuation symbols introduced by the author. So, mute people can write complete sentences using this application.
In many developing countries, public sector absence is both common and highly intractable. One ex... more In many developing countries, public sector absence is both common and highly intractable. One explanation for this is that politicians provide public jobs with limited work requirements as patronage. We test this explanation for absence in Pakistan using: (i) a controlled evaluation of a novel smartphone technology designed to increase inspections at rural clinics; (ii) data on election outcomes in the 241 constituencies where the experiment took place; (iii) attendance recorded during unannounced visits and; (iv) surveys of connections between local politicians and health sta↵. Three results suggest that absence is linked to patronage. First, while doctors are present at 40 percent of facilities during unannounced visits in highly competitive electoral districts, they are almost always absent in captured districts. Second, doctors who know their local parliamentarian personally are present during an average of 0.727 of three unannounced visits, while unconnected doctors are present at 1.309 of the three visits. Last, the e↵ects of the smartphone monitoring technology, which almost doubled inspection rates, are highly localized to competitive electoral districts. We also find evidence that program impact is in part due to the transmission of information to senior o cers using manipulations of an online dashboard.
Proceedings on Seventh International Conference on Information Visualization, 2003. IV 2003., 2000
Recently the considerable potential of virtual reality has been recognized for the scientific stu... more Recently the considerable potential of virtual reality has been recognized for the scientific study, diagnosis and treatment in the field of mental healthcare. It provides unique opportunity to provide natural interface and to mimic actual challenges faced by impaired subjects in ...
WORLD JOURNAL OF PHARMACY AND PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES
Synthetic nonionic surfactants such as alkyl or dialkyl poly glycerol ether class when hydrated g... more Synthetic nonionic surfactants such as alkyl or dialkyl poly glycerol ether class when hydrated give niosomes. Niosomes are the drug carriers which provide substitute to liposomes and encapsulate the solutes in a way similar to liposomes. These may be unilamellar or multilamellar vesicles, present more in vitro stability and improved stability of drugs entrapped in comparison with the dosage forms which are conventional. [1] Niosomes can hold amphiphillic as well as lipophilic drugs and have the advantage of being biocompatible, biodegradable and non immunogenic over liposomes. Niosomes are used for targeted as well as controlled release for the treatment of many diseases including cancer, viral and other microbial diseases. Encapsulation of drugs in niosomes results in prolonged existence of drugs in circulation and improved penetration into the tissues targeted. [2] The purpose of this review is to have an overview of preparation, composition, structure and applications of niosomes in pharmacy. The main purpose of development of niosomal preparations is to control the release profile of the drugs by making their release sustained and targeting drugs to the sites desired.
Helminth parasites of veterinary importance cause huge revenue losses to agrarian economy worldwi... more Helminth parasites of veterinary importance cause huge revenue losses to agrarian economy worldwide. With the emergence of drug resistance against the current formulations, there is a need to focus on the alternative approaches in order to control this menace. In the present study, biocompatible zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) were used to see their in vitro effect on the biliary amphistomes, Gigantocotyle explanatum, infecting Bubalus bubalis because these nanoparticles are involved in generation of free radicals that induce oxidative stress, resulting in disruption of cellular machinery. The ZnO NPs were synthesized by using egg albumin as a biotemplate and subsequently characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), X-ray Diffraction and Spectrophotometrical, which showed that ZnO NPs were highly purified wurtzite type polycrystals, with a mean size of 16.7 nm. When the parasites were treated with lower concentrations (0.004% and 0.008%) of the ZnO NPs, the worms mounted a protective response by stimulating the antioxidant system but the treatment of G. explanatum with 0.012% ZnO NPs produced significant inhibition of the antioxidant enzymes like superoxide dismutase (SOD) (p< 0.05) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) (p<0.01), while the level of malondialdehyde (MDA), a lipid peroxidation marker, was significantly (p< 0.01) elevated. SEM and histopathology revealed pronounced tegumental damage showing the disruption of surface papillae and the annulations, particularly in the posterior region near acetabulum. The under expression of a number of polypeptides, loss of worm motility in a time dependent manner, further reflect strong anthelmintic potential of ZnO NPs. It can be concluded that the anthelmintic effect might be due to the production of reactive oxygen species that target a variety of macromolecules such as nucleic acid, protein and lipids which are involved in different cellular processes.
As the world hunts eagerly for alternative fuel sources, microalgae are attracting wide interest.... more As the world hunts eagerly for alternative fuel sources, microalgae are attracting wide interest. Lipids derived from algae hold great promise as a biofuel feedstock. The high-lipid content found in some species is a fundamental edge. So are algae's high per-acre productivity and its ability in thriving in areas not already used for food production. Therefore, there are vigorous research initiatives aimed to develop alternative renewable and potentially carbon neutral solid, liquid and gaseous biofuels as alternative energy resources. However, alternate energy resources akin to first generation biofuels derived from terrestrial crops such as sugar beet, sugarcane, rapeseed and maize place an enormous strain on world food markets, contribute to water shortages and precipitate the destruction of the world's forests. Second generation biofuels derived from lignocellulosic agriculture and forest residues; however there is a serious concern over competing land use or required lan...
Terror as well as terrorism could result in substantial levels of losses for any economy. This pa... more Terror as well as terrorism could result in substantial levels of losses for any economy. This paper empirically examines the impact of terrorism on trade openness, renewable, fossil energy, and economic growth in the case of Pakistan over the period 1990-2017. We use the autoregressive distributive lag (ARDL), bound testing model, to explore the short and long-run relationship among trade openness, renewable energy, economic growth, fossil energy, and terrorism. The error correction model (ECM) reveals the short-run relationship between trade openness, economic growth, renewable and fossil energy, and terrorism. In general, we find economic growth on domestic terrorism is strong. We also find the terrorist activities decrease the trade volume. The findings suggest that terrorism has a negative influence on Pakistan's economic growth and trade. Pakistan needs to make strict policies in terms of the utilization of more renewable energies, while, in the meantime, to resolve military and political differences with the help of its diplomatic channels specifically in the country and particularly in South Asia.
Pakistan has a large and dispersed primary public health system that gives citizens access to tra... more Pakistan has a large and dispersed primary public health system that gives citizens access to trained doctors and staff, and to subsidized medicines. However, both the use of these facilities and health outcomes remain low. Improvements in information and communications technology provide exciting opportunities to leverage technology to improve management. This paper presents a detailed qualitative and quantitative study of the institutional context in which such interventions in the public health sector in Punjab would be trialed. We describe the structure and management of primary healthcare facilities, present selected results from a survey of a representative sample of basic health units, and identify some key issues. We also report and discuss officials’ responses to the question of how services might be improved.
In the paper, we present new semi-analytical approach for FDE?s consisting in combination of the ... more In the paper, we present new semi-analytical approach for FDE?s consisting in combination of the method of steps and a technique called differential transformation method (DTM). This approach reduces the original Cauchy problem for delayed or neutral differential equation to Cauchy problem for ordinary differential equation for which DTM is convenient and efficient method. Moreover, there is no need of any symbolic calculations or initial approximation guesstimates in contrast to methods like the homotopy analysis method, the homotopy perturbation method, the variational iteration method or the Adomian decomposition method. The efficiency of the proposed method is shown on certain classes of FDE?s with multiple constant delays including FDE of neutral type. We also compare it to the current approach of using DTM and the Adomian decomposition method where Cauchy problem is not well posed.
Cold agglutinin disease is a rare disorder characterized by an autoimmune hemolytic anemia occurr... more Cold agglutinin disease is a rare disorder characterized by an autoimmune hemolytic anemia occurring at low temperatures. Physical examination findings, often limited to acrocyanosis, are combined with a thermal amplitude test to help establish the diagnosis. Thermal amplitude testing determines the highest temperature at which the cold agglutination will occur and is an important parameter in diagnosing cold agglutinin disease. Here we describe a 57-year-old white man of German and Nicaraguan descent with known chronic cold agglutinin disease who presented to our ophthalmology clinic for evaluation of a cataract. During routine cataract surgery, the lowered temperature of the conjunctiva from intermittent flow of balanced salt solution at room temperature induced a cold agglutination reaction in conjunctival vessels easily visible under a surgical microscope. To the best of our knowledge, this method of demonstrating cold agglutinin disease has not been described in the literature ...
Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) is the most prevalent central nervous system (CNS) tumor in pediatric ... more Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA) is the most prevalent central nervous system (CNS) tumor in pediatric population and accounts for an approximate of 5-6% of all gliomas. This neoplasm can occur at all levels of the neuraxis, with majority (67%) arising in the cerebellum and optic pathway. PAs are World Health Organization Grade I tumors and are the most benign of all astrocytomas characterized by an excellent prognosis. Other differentials include subependymal giant cell astrocytoma (SEGA), ependymoma, meningioma, and low-grade gliomas such as pilocytic or diffuse astrocytoma; calcification is more commonly regarded as a feature of benign or slow-growing tumors. We present a case of a 17-year-old female presenting with an unusual cause of hydrocephalus, a rare case of a calcified pilocytic astrocytoma as an intraventricular tumor. PA rarely presents as an intraventricular tumor and should be included in the differential diagnosis of a large mass with massive intratumoral calcification.
Inflammasomes are multiprotein complexes having nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat... more Inflammasomes are multiprotein complexes having nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat consisting members along with pyrin and HIN domain family. An inflammasome mainly consists of cytoplasmic sensor molecule such as NLRP3, the adaptor apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing caspase recruitment domain) protein along with effector procaspase-1. The inflammasome regulates caspase-1 activation, resulting in secretion of interleukin-1β and interleukin-18. The inflammasome activation is linked with infection, stress, or other immunological signals involved in inflammation. The pathophysiological role of NLRP3 inflammasome in immune regulation, inflammatory receptor-ligand interactions, microbial-associated molecular patterns, danger as well as pathogen associated molecular patterns has been demonstrated in last few years. Furthermore, the role of the inflammasome in peripheral and central nervous system involved with cytokine and chemokine inflammatory responses has...
In this paper, we proposed a new computational algorithms called a new approach to linear and non... more In this paper, we proposed a new computational algorithms called a new approach to linear and nonlinear Schrödinger equations using the Natural Decomposition Method (NDM). The proposed method is a combination of the Natural transform Method (NTM) and Adomian Decomposition Method (ADM). The new computational algorithms is applied directly without using any transformation, linearization, discretization or taking some restrictive assumptions. Exact solutions of two illustrative examples was successfully fund using the proposed method, and the results are compared with the results of the existing methods. This shows the reliability, efficiency, and accuracy of the proposed method.
In this paper, a new powerful and efficient technique Reconstruction of Variational Iteration Met... more In this paper, a new powerful and efficient technique Reconstruction of Variational Iteration Method (RVIM) is applied to find the exact solutions to the linear and nonlinear Schrödinger equations. The Reconstruction of Variational Iteration Method (RVIM) is independent of small parameters as well as algorithm overcomes the difficulty arising in calculating nonlinear intricately terms. The method is capable of reducing the size of calculation and easily overcomes the difficulty of the perturbation technique or Adomian polynomials. Besides, it provides us with a simple way to ensure the convergence of series solution, so that we can always get enough accuracy in approximations. The present results are in good agreement with the existing literature.
The neural guidance molecular, Slit2, and its cognate receptor, Robo1, play critical roles in the... more The neural guidance molecular, Slit2, and its cognate receptor, Robo1, play critical roles in the development of the nervous system, nevertheless, their functions are not limited to this system. Numerous studies have shown decreased Slit2 expression in a wide variety of cancers, highlighting its potential as a tumor suppressor. However, the Slit2/Robo1 signaling axis was reported to induce either suppressive or stimulatory effects on tumor growth and metastasis, depending on cellular context. There is a paucity of information on the effects of the Slit2/Robo1 signaling axis on the growth and metastasis of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Large-scale data mining of the Oncomine database has revealed heterogeneous expression of Slit2 in HCC. We screened the Sk-hep-1, a cell line showing a relatively high level of Slit2, and low level of Robo1 expression. After Slit2 knockdown and Robo1 overexpression in these cells, we found Slit2 and Robo1 exerted opposing effects on tumor growt...
This study considers SEIVR epidemic model with generalized nonlinear saturated incidence rate in ... more This study considers SEIVR epidemic model with generalized nonlinear saturated incidence rate in the host population horizontally to estimate local and global equilibriums. By using the Routh–Hurwitz criteria, it is shown that if the basic reproduction number [Formula: see text], the disease-free equilibrium is locally asymptotically stable. When the basic reproduction number exceeds the unity, then the endemic equilibrium exists and is stable locally asymptotically. The system is globally asymptotically stable about the disease-free equilibrium if [Formula: see text]. The geometric approach is used to present the global stability of the endemic equilibrium. For [Formula: see text], the endemic equilibrium is stable globally asymptotically. Finally, the numerical results are presented to justify the mathematical results.
Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Neural Information Processing, 2002. ICONIP '02., 2002
This paper examines the possibility of recognizing sign language gestures using sensor gloves. Pr... more This paper examines the possibility of recognizing sign language gestures using sensor gloves. Previously sensor gloves are used in games or in applications with custom gestures. This paper explores their use in Sign Language recognition. This is done by implementing a project called "Talking Hands", and studying the results. The project uses a sensor glove to capture the signs of American Sign Language performed by a user and translates them into sentences of English language. Artificial neural networks are used to recognize the sensor values coming from the sensor glove. These values are then categorized in 24 alphabets of English language and two punctuation symbols introduced by the author. So, mute people can write complete sentences using this application.
In many developing countries, public sector absence is both common and highly intractable. One ex... more In many developing countries, public sector absence is both common and highly intractable. One explanation for this is that politicians provide public jobs with limited work requirements as patronage. We test this explanation for absence in Pakistan using: (i) a controlled evaluation of a novel smartphone technology designed to increase inspections at rural clinics; (ii) data on election outcomes in the 241 constituencies where the experiment took place; (iii) attendance recorded during unannounced visits and; (iv) surveys of connections between local politicians and health sta↵. Three results suggest that absence is linked to patronage. First, while doctors are present at 40 percent of facilities during unannounced visits in highly competitive electoral districts, they are almost always absent in captured districts. Second, doctors who know their local parliamentarian personally are present during an average of 0.727 of three unannounced visits, while unconnected doctors are present at 1.309 of the three visits. Last, the e↵ects of the smartphone monitoring technology, which almost doubled inspection rates, are highly localized to competitive electoral districts. We also find evidence that program impact is in part due to the transmission of information to senior o cers using manipulations of an online dashboard.
Proceedings on Seventh International Conference on Information Visualization, 2003. IV 2003., 2000
Recently the considerable potential of virtual reality has been recognized for the scientific stu... more Recently the considerable potential of virtual reality has been recognized for the scientific study, diagnosis and treatment in the field of mental healthcare. It provides unique opportunity to provide natural interface and to mimic actual challenges faced by impaired subjects in ...
WORLD JOURNAL OF PHARMACY AND PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES
Synthetic nonionic surfactants such as alkyl or dialkyl poly glycerol ether class when hydrated g... more Synthetic nonionic surfactants such as alkyl or dialkyl poly glycerol ether class when hydrated give niosomes. Niosomes are the drug carriers which provide substitute to liposomes and encapsulate the solutes in a way similar to liposomes. These may be unilamellar or multilamellar vesicles, present more in vitro stability and improved stability of drugs entrapped in comparison with the dosage forms which are conventional. [1] Niosomes can hold amphiphillic as well as lipophilic drugs and have the advantage of being biocompatible, biodegradable and non immunogenic over liposomes. Niosomes are used for targeted as well as controlled release for the treatment of many diseases including cancer, viral and other microbial diseases. Encapsulation of drugs in niosomes results in prolonged existence of drugs in circulation and improved penetration into the tissues targeted. [2] The purpose of this review is to have an overview of preparation, composition, structure and applications of niosomes in pharmacy. The main purpose of development of niosomal preparations is to control the release profile of the drugs by making their release sustained and targeting drugs to the sites desired.
Helminth parasites of veterinary importance cause huge revenue losses to agrarian economy worldwi... more Helminth parasites of veterinary importance cause huge revenue losses to agrarian economy worldwide. With the emergence of drug resistance against the current formulations, there is a need to focus on the alternative approaches in order to control this menace. In the present study, biocompatible zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) were used to see their in vitro effect on the biliary amphistomes, Gigantocotyle explanatum, infecting Bubalus bubalis because these nanoparticles are involved in generation of free radicals that induce oxidative stress, resulting in disruption of cellular machinery. The ZnO NPs were synthesized by using egg albumin as a biotemplate and subsequently characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), X-ray Diffraction and Spectrophotometrical, which showed that ZnO NPs were highly purified wurtzite type polycrystals, with a mean size of 16.7 nm. When the parasites were treated with lower concentrations (0.004% and 0.008%) of the ZnO NPs, the worms mounted a protective response by stimulating the antioxidant system but the treatment of G. explanatum with 0.012% ZnO NPs produced significant inhibition of the antioxidant enzymes like superoxide dismutase (SOD) (p< 0.05) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) (p<0.01), while the level of malondialdehyde (MDA), a lipid peroxidation marker, was significantly (p< 0.01) elevated. SEM and histopathology revealed pronounced tegumental damage showing the disruption of surface papillae and the annulations, particularly in the posterior region near acetabulum. The under expression of a number of polypeptides, loss of worm motility in a time dependent manner, further reflect strong anthelmintic potential of ZnO NPs. It can be concluded that the anthelmintic effect might be due to the production of reactive oxygen species that target a variety of macromolecules such as nucleic acid, protein and lipids which are involved in different cellular processes.
As the world hunts eagerly for alternative fuel sources, microalgae are attracting wide interest.... more As the world hunts eagerly for alternative fuel sources, microalgae are attracting wide interest. Lipids derived from algae hold great promise as a biofuel feedstock. The high-lipid content found in some species is a fundamental edge. So are algae's high per-acre productivity and its ability in thriving in areas not already used for food production. Therefore, there are vigorous research initiatives aimed to develop alternative renewable and potentially carbon neutral solid, liquid and gaseous biofuels as alternative energy resources. However, alternate energy resources akin to first generation biofuels derived from terrestrial crops such as sugar beet, sugarcane, rapeseed and maize place an enormous strain on world food markets, contribute to water shortages and precipitate the destruction of the world's forests. Second generation biofuels derived from lignocellulosic agriculture and forest residues; however there is a serious concern over competing land use or required lan...
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