muhammad qasim

This article introduces a dual problem of widely used calibration ratio-type estimators for estimating population mean of the study variable considering auxiliary information under dual constraints using stratified systematic sampling design. Under large sample approximations, the expression for bias and variance of the proposed estimator are derived. In addition, the optimality condition for the proposed estimator and hence optimum variance expression is also obtained for the same. Moreover, a study based on real-life data is carried out to judge the performance of the proposed calibration estimator in terms of minimum relative bias and relative root mean squared error criterion. The study reveals that the calibration ratio-type estimator under dual constraints may be preferred in practice as it provides consistent and more precise parameter estimates.

 The genus Proteus is a Gram-negative bacterium with a unique characteristic of swarming. Mainly three species are involved in initiating urinary tract infections in the community and in immunocompromised patients, particularly in patients going through long-term catheterization. Due to their strong virulence factors like biofilm formations, protease, and hemolysin, they can lead to lengthening infections in affected individuals. Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts that are beneficial to human health and can be used as an alternative for the control of nosocomial diseases. Lactobacilli are one of the common probiotics mostly found in yogurt and other fermented foods that have been used as a substitute for infection control.

 The current study was designed to screen potential probiotic bacteria to encounter antibiotic-resistant and virulent Proteus species.

 In the current study, using probiotics, already known antibiotic-resistant isolates (n = 25) of Proteus were processed to characterize their virulence factors and their inhibition. Biofilm formation, protease, and hemolysin activities were studied using different phenotypic detection methods. Further, their virulence genes zapA, flg, hmpA, mrp, and rsbA were explored using their genomic DNA. These isolates were found resistant to different classes of antibiotics, and a strategy was designed to inhibit their growth by using probiotic bacteria isolated from the soil.

 Virulence factors first, all isolates were subjected to biofilm detection, and they were 32% (n = 8) strong, 40% (n = 10) moderate, 16% (n = 4) weak, and 12% (n = 3) non-biofilm producers. All isolates were positive for swarming activity by showing a differentiated ring form of growth. Protease activity showed 56% (n = 14) isolates. Only 24% (n = 6) of isolates were positive for hemolysin. Virulence factors and molecular mechanisms were studied, and gene rsbA responsible for swarming was amplified in 17 (68%) Proteus isolates, and mrp responsible for fimbria was detected in 19 (76%) bacterial isolates. Further, these isolates were subjected to flagella, protease, and hemolysin, and it was revealed that flg 11 (44%), 13 (52%) protease coding zapA, and hmA gene coding hemolysin were amplified in 2 (8%) Proteus isolates. Probiotic bacteria isolated from soil samples were probed for antagonistic activity against Proteus species. The probiotic bacteria were identified as Lactobacillus plantarum, Bacillus subtilis, and B. licheniformis. Due to their strong growth inhibitory effects against Proteus, it is crucial to characterize further the metabolites that have shown suppressive results against Proteus.

 Findings from the current study will provide new avenues for drug development and also help clinicians manage resistant pathogens in healthcare settings. Probiotic applications for infection control can be useful in treating resistant pathogens. Further purification and characterization of metabolites will provide alternative options for managing resistance issues in microbes.

During the last few decades, nanotechnology has gained many applications in almost all fieldsof life because of the unique properties of nanoparticles (NPs). Nanotechnology has speciallymarked its name in the field of medicine. However, NPs toxicity is detrimental to human healthand is a prime concern in applied medicine. They can cause insomnia, vertigo, madarosis,epistaxis, hypokalemia, lymphopenia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, etc. There is agap in knowledge regarding the study of the toxicological effects of NPs. Mechanisms thatare responsible for this toxicity are not fully understood yet. Phytochemicals have naturaltherapeutic effects of reducing metal NPs’ toxicity by acting as stabilizers and nontoxicreducing agents. However, the interaction between phytochemicals and NPs is remained to beelucidated. This review will provide in-depth knowledge about the various types of inorganicNPs and their associated toxicities, key parameters determining the toxic behaviour of NPs, andthe mechanisms behind their cytotoxicity. It also emphasizes the need for further research tounderstand the interaction between various phytochemicals and NPs for therapeutic purposes.

This article introduces a two-step calibration technique for the inverse relationship between study variable and auxiliary variable along with the double use of the auxiliary variable. In the first step, the calibration weights and design weights are set proportional to each other for a given sample. While in the second step, the constant of proportionality is to be obtained on the basis of some different objectives of the investigation viz. bias reduction or minimum Mean Squared Error (MSE) of the proposed estimator. Many estimators based on inverse relationship between $x$ and $y$ have been already developed and are considered to be special cases of the proposed estimator. Properties of the proposed estimator is discussed in details. Moreover, a simulation study has also been conducted to compare the performance of the proposed estimator under Simple Random Sampling Without Replacement (SRSWOR) and Lahiri-Midzuno (L-M) sampling design in terms of percent relative bias and MSE. The benefits of two-step calibration estimator are also demonstrated using real life data.

Aqueous Two-Phase System (ATPS) is an effective, simple, and single-step technique used for the partial purification of biological molecules. The aim of the study was to develop ATPS technique for the isolation and partial purification of lipases. ATPS composed of polyethylene glycol and ammonium sulfate was used in this study to partially purify lipase from the fermentation broth of a Bacillus strain isolated from local soil. The effect of different percent compositions of PEG 4000, 6000, and 10,000 along with 6.60%, 7.26%, 7.92%, and 8.26% ammonium sulfate was studied on the separation behavior of lipase. The optimal condition for the isolation and partial purification of lipases from soil bacterial was 12.5 % of PEG 10,000 with 7.92% ammonium sulfate. The recovery of lipase was 78.3% in the top phase (rich in PEG).

In this paper, we characterize local $T_{0}$ and $T_{1}$ quantale-valued gauge spaces, show how these concepts are related to each other and apply them to $mathcal{L}$-approach distance spaces and $mathcal{L}$-approach system spaces. Furthermore, we give the characterization of a closed point and $D$-connectedness in quantale-valued gauge spaces. Finally, we compare all these concepts to each other.

  Irregular/blocked fields are routinely used in radiotherapy. The doses of these fields are usually calculated by means of equivalent square method that is inherently prone to uncertainty. On the other hand, Clarkson’s sector integration method is a dose calculation method which offers far better accuracy in dose calculation of irregular fields. The Scatter Air Ratio (SAR) of an individual sector, in which whole field has been divided, is calculated and averaged over all sectors to find total SAR for the whole field. Percentage depth dose (PDD) and tissue-maximum ratio (TMR) for irregularly shaped beams can be calculated by the SAR values using the standard relationships of these measurement quantities.
Material and The present study was conducted on 40 actual patient treatment fields. The PDD values for depths up to 15 cm were calculated using both Clarkson’s sector integration method and conventional methods, and their results were compared with the measured PDDs for all patients. Maximum deviation for Clarkson’s calculation was under 2.7% for any field size, shape, and depth. However for conventional methods, this value exceeded ±5.5% for some field shapes, specifically at larger depths. Better results of sector integration are more prominent for field shapes with a large field size and a shielded area of regular shape. For the treatment fields with a very large degree of approximation for assessing reduced field size, Clarkson’s method is the most accurate technique for the calculation of absorbed dose.

The present study was undertaken to analyze the phytochemical content and biological activity of Cichorium intybus seeds traditionally used in Charsadda, Pakistan against multidrug resistant (MDR) bacterial pathogens..
This study explored the qualitative and quantitative antibacterial potential of C. intybus. Further qualitative analysis of phytochemical content was performed..
Cichorium intybus seed extracts were prepared in aqueous, chloroform, ethanol, and hexane separately..
All the extracts of C. intybus seeds were screened for antibacterial activity and phytochemical content. Cichorium intybus seed extract showed considerable activity against MDR pathogenic bacteria. In the well diffusion method, aqueous extracts showed a higher zone of inhibition against Pseudomonas aeruginosa (16 mm ± 0.7 mm) and Acinetobacter baumannii (13 mm ± 0.5 mm), whereas chloroform, ethanol, and hexane extracts showed activity against P. aeruginosa (11 mm ± 0.3 mm, 12 mm ± 0.5 mm, and 11 mm ± 0 mm, respectively) as compared to Imipenem, a broad spectrum antibiotic. Minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration values for aqueous and ethanol extracts indicate that they were more effective against MDR bacteria. Phytochemical analysis revealed that aqueous and ethanol extracts were rich in alkaloids, carbohydrates, gallotannins, and triterpenoids, whereas chloroform and hexane extracts were more concentrated with phenolics, pseudotannins, saponins, and tannins. Cichorium intybus seed extract demonstrated potential activity against MDR human pathogenic bacteria..
The undertaken study has for the first time reported the effects of C. intybus seed extracts against MDR bacterial pathogens. Findings of the current study will be helpful for further elucidation of bioactive molecules for therapeutic use against MDR bacterial pathogens..

The effects of sodium chloride (NaCl) salinity (control; canal water with 0.4 dS m-1), 2.5 dSm-1, 5.0 dS m-1, 7.5 dS m-1 and 10.0 dS m-1, respectively) developed after 6 weeks of pruning (beginning of study) on plant growth, flowering and quality of three cut rose (Rosa hybrida L.) cultivars viz. ‘Kardinal’, ‘Angelique’ and ‘Gold Medal’ were studied to achieve better management, quality production and ascertaining salinity tolerance of promising cut roses being grown commercially in Pakistan. Plants were grown in pure sand in order to eliminate substrate salinity effect on plants. Number of leaves branch-1, leaf area, leaf total chlorophyll contents, bud diameter, flower diameter and flower quality were greater when plants were grown with canal water (control) having only 0.4 dS m-1 salinity, which also reduced interval between flushes by early flowering, while plant height, number of flowers plant-1 flush-1, fresh and dry weight of a flower, stem length and diameter were greater with 2.5 dS m-1 substrate salinity followed by canal water (control). Among cultivars, ‘Angelique’ proved comparatively more salt tolerant as compared with ‘Kardinal’ and ‘Gold Medal’ by producing vigorous growth and greater number of flowers. In summary, cut rose cultivars studied cannot tolerate higher substrate salinity and preferably be grown with