Safety climate in Pakistani universities' laboratories: an assessment of individual factors

Objectives. Current research aims to identify factors that affect the occupational safety climate in university laboratories despite their perception as low-risk areas compared to industrial environments. Methods. A safety climate survey was conducted in science laboratories across various engineering universities in Pakistan. The survey questionnaire was administered to 406 personnel, and a quantitative method for analysis was selected to examine the socio-demographic variables. A 5-point Likert scale (1 =  strongly disagree to 5 =  strongly agree) was used to perceive responses from participants. Additionally, a scale reliability test was conducted, and multivariate analysis of variance was performed to determine the relationship between selected dependent and independent variables. Results. The study found an overall safety climate score of 3.16 ± 0.55, indicating a moderate to high perception of safety on a scale of 1-5. Parameters such as role in the laboratory, departments/disciplines, accident experience and safety training significantly affected the safety climate score, while gender, age group, duration in university and accident witnessing did not. Conclusion. Upper management involvement, safety communication and direct supervision are crucial for improving the safety climate of university laboratories. The study recommends the consideration of the identified significant safety climate dimensions in laboratory safety policy-making at academic institutes.

Physicochemical Attributes and Antioxidant Potential of Kernel Oils from Selected Mango Varieties

The current study appraises the variations in the yield and physicochemical and antioxidant attributes among kernel oils from the seven most widely consumed varieties of Pakistani mangoes, namely, Anwar Ratul, Dasehri, Fajri, Laal Badshah, Langra, Safed Chaunsa, and Sindhri. The yield of mango kernel oil (MKO) among the tested varieties of mangoes varied significantly (p < 0.05), ranging from 6.33% (Sindhri) to 9.88% (Dasehri). Physicochemical properties, including the saponification value, refractive index, iodine no., P.V, % acid value, free fatty acids, and unsaponifiable matter, for MKOs were noted to be 143.00-207.10 mg KOH/g, 1.443-1.457, 28.00-36.00 g/100 g, 5.5-2.0 meq/kg, 1.00-7.7%, 0.5-3.9 mg/g, and 1.2-3.3%, respectively. The fatty acid composition determined by GC-TIC-MS revealed the presence of 15 different fatty acids with variable contributions of saturated (41.92-52.86%) and unsaturated (47.140-58.08%) fatty acids. Among unsaturated fatty acids, values of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids ranged from 41.92 to 52.85 and 7.72 to 16.47%, respectively. Oleic acid (25.69-48.57%), stearic acid (24.71-38.53%), linoleic acid (7.72-16.47%), and palmitic acid (10.00-13.26%) were the prominent fatty acids. The total phenolic content (TPC) and DPPH radical scavenging (IC₅₀) capacity of MKOs varied from 7.03 to 11.00 mg GAE/g and 4.33 to 8.32 mg/mL, respectively. The results of most of the tested attributes varied significantly (p < 0.05) among the varieties selected. It can be concluded from the findings of this research work that MKOs from the tested varieties are potential sources of valuable ingredients for the development of nutrapharmaceuticals due to their potent antioxidant properties and high oleic fatty acid profile.

Erratum: Publisher Correction: Additive manufacturing for biomedical applications: a review on classification, energy consumption, and its appreciable role since COVID-19 pandemic

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s40964-022-00373-9.].

Additive manufacturing for biomedical applications: a review on classification, energy consumption, and its appreciable role since COVID-19 pandemic

The exponential rise of healthcare problems like human aging and road traffic accidents have developed an intrinsic challenge to biomedical sectors concerning the arrangement of patient-specific biomedical products. The additively manufactured implants and scaffolds have captured global attention over the last two decades concerning their printing quality and ease of manufacturing. However, the inherent challenges associated with additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, namely process selection, level of complexity, printing speed, resolution, biomaterial choice, and consumed energy, still pose several limitations on their use. Recently, the whole world has faced severe supply chain disruptions of personal protective equipment and basic medical facilities due to a respiratory disease known as the coronavirus (COVID-19). In this regard, local and global AM manufacturers have printed biomedical products to level the supply-demand equation. The potential of AM technologies for biomedical applications before, during, and post-COVID-19 pandemic alongwith its relation to the industry 4.0 (I4.0) concept is discussed herein. Moreover, additive manufacturing technologies are studied in this work concerning their working principle, classification, materials, processing variables, output responses, merits, challenges, and biomedical applications. Different factors affecting the sustainable performance in AM for biomedical applications are discussed with more focus on the comparative examination of consumed energy to determine which process is more sustainable. The recent advancements in the field like 4D printing and 5D printing are useful for the successful implementation of I4.0 to combat any future pandemic scenario. The potential of hybrid printing, multi-materials printing, and printing with smart materials, has been identified as hot research areas to produce scaffolds and implants in regenerative medicine, tissue engineering, and orthopedic implants.

Comparative study of hypoglycaemic and antioxidant potential of methanolic seed extract and oil of Nigella sativa on alloxanized diabetic rabbits

The present study was aimed to investigate the comparative antidiabetic potential of Nigella sativa seed extract and oil in an in vivo trial using rat animal model. The levels of antioxidants analysed in this study included catalase, vitamin C and bilirubin. NS methanolic extract and its oil were tested for their hypoglycemic effect against alloxanized diabetic rabbits (120mg/kg). The crude methanolic extract and the oil (2.5ml/kg/day) were given orally for 24 days that resulted in a significant reduction in glycaemia, particularly during the first 12 days of treatment (reductions of 58.09% and 73.27%, respectively), whereas the oil treated group normalised the levels of catalase (-69.23%), vitamin C (27.30%) and bilirubin (-51.48%) and the extract treated group normalised the levels of catalase (-65.38), vitamin C (24.15%) and bilirubin (-26.19%) at the end of the trial. The results have shown that the seed oil more significantly normalized the levels of serum catalase, serum ascorbic acid and total serum bilirubin as compared to the methanolic extract of Nigella sativa, so Nigella sativa seed oil (NSO) may be used as part of antidiabetic remedies against diabetes and utilized as a nutraceutical.

Variations in Physico-Chemical and Antioxidant Attributes of Grape Seed Oil as Function of Extraction Techniques

The aim of the current research work was to assess and compare the impact of two extraction techniques on the physico-chemical, and antioxidant parameters of grape seed oil (GSO). The GSO extracted by Soxhlet and Folch methods indicated a notable variation in the oil yield (8.58 % and 10.19%) and saponification value (196.35 and 189.33 mg of KOH g-1), respectively. However, no significant (p<0.05) variation was detected for density, acid value, refractive index, iodine no, unsaponifiable matter, and free fatty acids between the tested two oils. Meanwhile, the oil produced by Soxhlet method exhibited relatively a higher extent of unsaturated dienes, trienes, peroxide value, p-anisidine value, and thus poor oxidation state. A notable variation in the content of principal fatty acid (linoleic acid) was recorded between Folch extracted oil (70.11%) and Soxhlet extracted oil (66.57%). The contents of total tocopherols were noted to be considerably higher for Folch extracted oil (105.55 mg kg-1) than the Soxhlet extracted oil (73.70 mg kg-1). Among the individual phenolics analyzed by HPLC, gallic acid (14.02 mg kg-1) and caffeic acid (5.20 mg kg-1) were detected as major component in Folch extracted oil and Soxhlet extracted oil, respectively. The results of the present comparative study support that Folch method is relatively a good choice for the extraction of GSO with promising nutritive quality in terms of oxidation parameters, contents of linoleic acid and antioxidant phenolics.

Interactive effects of hydrogen sulphide and silicon enhance drought and heat tolerance by modulating hormones, antioxidant defence enzymes and redox status in barley (Hordeum vulgare L.)

Recent changes in climate have reduced crop productivity throughout much of the world. Drought and heat stress, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions, have seriously affected barley production. This study explored the separate and interactive effects of silicon (Si) and hydrogen sulphide (H₂ S) on plant growth and mitigation of the adverse effects of heat stress (DS) and drought stress (HS) in a barley pot experiment. The impacts of simultaneous DS + HS were more severe than individual stresses due to increased ROS production, malondialdehyde (MDA) content and higher electrolyte leakage (EL), thereby leading to reduced water, protein and photosynthetic pigment content. Exogenously applied Si and H₂ S alleviated the DS-, HS- and DS + HS-induced effects on barley by reducing ROS production, MDA and EL. A single application of H₂ S or Si + H₂ S increased plant biomass under all stress conditions, which can be ascribed to higher Si accumulation in barley shoots. A single application of Si or H₂ S significantly increased plant biomass. However, Si + H₂ S was the most effective treatment for metabolite accumulation and elevating activity of antioxidant enzymes to prevent toxicity from oxidative stress. This treatment also modulated osmolyte content, enhanced antioxidant activity and regulated the stress signalling-related endogenous hormones, abscisic acid (ABA) and indole acetic acid (IAA). Exogenous treatments regulated endogenous H₂ S and Si and resulted in higher tolerance to individual and combined drought and heat stress in barley.

Improving the quality of discharge care plan in the heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) cohort: a quality improvement study

Background

High-quality heart failure (HF) discharge summary (DS) is the cornerstone of effective communication during the transition from specialists to primary care. The combination of continuing involvement of multidisciplinary members, varying individual tolerance to treatments, and the need for multiple investigations beget intricate HFrEF management. The quality of the information included in DS following HF-related hospitalisation varies widely and may be sub-optimal in communicating patient's in-hospital care, leading to inadequate compliance to guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) and increased risk of re-hospitalisation. Notwithstanding this real-world observation, there remains a paucity of consensus on the standard of measurements of HF DS.

Purpose

We aimed to optimise the transmission of information between patients and HF multidisciplinary members to improve adherence to GDMT, follow-up (F/U) care coordination and patient education in line with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) recommendations.

Methods

A random sampling of the HFrEF cohort discharged from the cardiac unit at our institution following HF-related hospitalisation was performed across four distinct time points matched with respective interventions. Three iterative cycles (baseline analysis and two educational interventions – departmental teaching and dissemination of innovative mnemonics sheets – THE WET TO DRY [Figure 1]) were completed using Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) methodology. The quality of patients DS was objectively analysed based on the inclusion of physiological and investigation parameters, in-patient treatment, initiation/titration of GDMT, F/U care coordination, and patient education.

Results

Sixty-six patients, mean±SD age 74.6±12.8y were enrolled between 2018–2021. The baseline reporting of presenting complaints, trigger and investigation findings were high and consistent throughout all cycles. A positive trend was observed in the reporting of physiological parameters and in-patient treatment post-interventions. Patient education and vaccines offered remained low despite improving compliance. As such, a consensus on the provision of nurse-led pre-discharge review label and interactive patient personal passport (Figure 1) was achieved via a group of cardiologists and HF specialist nurses to address identified practice gap from preceding PDSA cycles. Full adherence to GDMT and the inclusion of F/U pathway were observed following the provision of nurse-led review label (Figure 2).

Conclusion

This study demonstrates that educational interventions – departmental teaching and innovative mnemonics can be effective in improving the quality of HF DS. Structured nurse-led review label and interactive patient personal passport are feasible interventions, which can be implemented at minimal cost to sustain adherence to GDMT, F/U care coordination and individualised patient education.

Funding Acknowledgement

Type of funding sources: None.

Assessment of ecto and endo parasites of Schizothorax plagiostomus inhabiting river Panjkora, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Fish provides main source of high quality protein to more than one billion people in the world. Fish parasites directly affect the productivity of fish and indirectly on human health. This research was aimed to assess the helminth parasites in Schizothorax plagiostomus (the snow trout) from river Panjkora, KP, Pakistan. A total of 88 fish samples (n= 88) were collected from the upper, middle and lower regions of the river through cast nets, hand nets and hooks. All the collected fish samples were examined in the Parasitology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Malakand for helminth parasites during July 2018 to February 2019.Among these fishes nematodes, trematodes, cestodes and acanthocephalan were isolated and identified. Overall prevalence of the fish parasites was 60.22% (53/88). The intensity of the parasite was observed from 1.7% to 4.61%. Highest prevalence was reported in summer season 86.36% while lowest in the winter season 36.36%. This study shows that summer season affects the fish business and result in poor quality fish meat with risk of zoonotic diseases. Adults were highly infected 82.25% while no infection was found in juvenile specimens. Female fish samples had higher prevalence 68.22% than males 48.22%. Fishes of the lower reaches had highest prevalence 60.22% than the upper reaches 40.0%. Fish samples with maximum length and weight were highly 76.92% infected than small sized fish with low body weight. Present study addresses that Rhabdochona schizothoracis in the intestine and Diplozoon paradoxum in gills of snow trout fish has a long term relationship and call as a natural infection in cyprinids and it is zoonotic threat to human.

Evaluation of ecto and endo parasitic fauna of Schizothorax plagiostomus inhabitants of river Swat, Khyber PakhtunKhwa, Pakistan

Fish is consumed as a rich and cheaper source of white meat and proteins all over the world. Fish farming is the leading source of income generation throughout the world. The present research study was conducted with aims to investigate the ecto and endo parasitic fauna of S. plagiostomus (snow trout) in River Swat. A total of 96 fish samples were collected on monthly basis from July-2018 to February-2019, from upper, middle and lower reaches. Fish samples were collected with the help of cast net, hand net and fishing rods. Local fishermen and experts help were also sought out for fish collection. 61 out of 96 fishes were found infected by helminth parasites. The total prevalence and intensity of 63.54% and 2.90 was observed respectively during data analysis. Highest monthly prevalence of 83.33% was recorded during July and August, while lowest prevalence of 33.33% was noted during February. Five species of helminths parasites were detected from S. plagiostomus, of which two were trematodes (Rhabdochona shizothoracis and Rhabdochona species), one species of Monogenia (Diplozoon paraddoxum), one species of Cestodes (Nippotaenia species), and one species of Acanthocephalan (Neoechynorhynchus devdevi). Highest parasite wise prevalence, intensity and relative density of 21.87%, 4.09 and 0.895 was noted for R. schizothoracis while the lowest prevalence, intensity and relative density of 4.16%, 1.25 and 0.052 was noted for N. devdevi. Highest infection of 76.08% was observed in adults host while lowest, 40% infestation rate was observed in young fish samples. 73.68% prevalence was observed in female hosts while only 56.90% prevalence was observed in male individuals. Higher infection (83.33%) was noticed during summer season, while lowest infection (44.44%) was observed during winter season. Similarly 71.79% fishes were found infected that were collected from lower reaches of the River Swat than the fish samples collected from upper reaches (52%).

Antidiabetic potential of Nigella sativa L seed oil in alloxaninduced diabetic rabbits

Purpose: To evaluate the antidiabetic, hypolipidemic and antioxidant potential of seed oil of Nigella sativa L (NSO). Methods: Nigella sativa seed oil (NSO) was extracted with Soxhlet apparatus using petroleum ether, and was given orally at a dose of 2.5 ml/kg body weight to alloxan-induced diabetic rabbits daily for 24 days. Biochemical parameters including total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TGs), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), very low lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL), high density lipoprotein (HDL) and plasma glucose were determined in the treatment and control groups. Furthermore, bilirubin, vitamin C, catalase and mean body weight were assessed. Results: NSO treatment significantly lowered serum blood glucose levels and lipid contents, but increased the mean body weight, HDL-C and vitamin C levels of diabetic rabbits (p < 0.001). Moreover, NSO significantly decreased catalase activity, TC, TGs, LDL-C and VLDL-C levels, but normalized bilirubin levels in diabetic rabbits. Conclusion: These results indicate that NSO possesses significant antidiabetic potential. Thus, it may be useful as an adjunct with antidiabetic medication but further studies are required to ascertain this. Keywords: Black cumin, Diabetes, Hypoglycemic, Hypolipidemic, Antioxidants

Modelling the Mechanical Attributes (Roughness, Strength, and Hardness) of Al-alloy A356 during Sand Casting

Sand-casting is a well established primary process for manufacturing various parts of A356 alloy. However, the quality of the casting is adversely affected by the change in the magnitude of the control variables. For instance, a larger magnitude of pouring velocity induces a drop effect and a lower velocity increases the likelihood of cold-shut and mis-run types of defects. Similarly, a high pouring temperature causes the formation of hot tears, whereas a low temperature is a source of premature solidification. Likewise, a higher moisture content yields microcracks (due to gas shrinkages) in the casting and a lower moisture content results in the poor strength of the mold. Therefore, the appropriate selection of control variables is essential to ensure quality manufactured products. The empirical relations could provide valuable guidance in this regard. Additionally, although the casting process was optimized for A356 alloy, it was mostly done for a single response. Therefore, this paper aimed to formulate empirical relations for the contradictory responses, i.e., hardness, ultimate tensile strength and surface roughness, using the response surface methodology. The experimental results were comprehensively analyzed using statistical and scanning electron microscopic analyses. Optimized parameters were proposed and validated to achieve castings with high hardness (84.5 HB) and strength (153.5 MPa) with minimum roughness (5.8 µm).

Ambulatory screening of diabetic neuropathy and predictors of its severity in outpatient settings

INTRODUCTION

Diabetic neuropathy is one of the most common causes of chronic neuropathic symptomatology and the most disabling and difficult-to-treat diabetic microangiopathic complication. The neuropathies associated with diabetes are typically classified into generalized, focal and multifocal varieties. There exists a scarcity of literature studying the correlation of different patient- and disease-related variables with severity of neuropathy.

OBJECTIVES

This study aims to delineate the prevalence of diabetic neuropathy in type 2 diabetes, describe its characteristics and find out predictors of its severity.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Eight hundred consecutive diabetic patients presenting to outpatient department (OPD) of Khan Research Labs (KRL) General Hospital and Centre for Diabetes and Liver diseases, Islamabad, during March-June, 2015 were made to complete a self-administered questionnaire (Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument-MNSI) and underwent a thorough physical examination according to MNSI protocols. A score of >2 was considered to be diagnostic for DPN. Patient and disease variables were noted. MNSI score was used as an index of severity of diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). Correlation of several patient- and disease-related variables with the severity of DPN was determined using multivariate regression.

RESULTS

Out of a total 800 patients screened, 90 (11.25%) were found to have diabetic neuropathy. Of these 90, 45.5% were males, the median age was 54.47 ± 10.87 years and the median duration of diabetes was 11.12 ± 9.8 years. The most common symptom was found to be numbness (63.6%) followed by generalized body weakness (61.5%). The common findings on physical examination were dry skin/callus (38.7%) and deformities (14.7%). Duration of diabetes was found to be the strongest predictor for development and severity of diabetic neuropathy followed by glycemic controls (HbA1c values) and age.

CONCLUSION

Duration of diabetes rather than diabetic controls predicts better the development and severity of diabetic neuropathy indicating a failure of intensive treatment to avert such complications.

Pediatric epidural tumors of the spine--experience of a decade from the Kashmir Valley

We present our experience after analyzing retrospectively the clinicopathological characteristics, surgical approaches, immediate and long-term postoperative complications and survival outcome of pediatric spinal epidural tumors treated over a period of 10 years from 2000 to 2009 in a tertiary-care hospital. Our study included benign and malignant tumors. The majority of our patients were boys (14:8). The duration of symptoms was longer in benign lesions. Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was the commonest malignant tumor and aneurysmal bone cyst was the commonest benign tumor. The mean duration of follow-up was 19 months (range 3-48 months). Most of the patients improved in their neurological grade after surgery; however, the degree of excision had no bearing on the length of survival for malignant lesions.