Potassium and zinc improves physiological performance, nutrient use efficiency, and productivity of wheat.

Despite the critical role of balanced nutrition in crop productivity, the use of potash (K) and zinc (Zn) is not much practiced by Pakistani farmers. The reduced nutrient uptake and crop productivity together increase the costs associated with fertilization and revisit farmers' confidence in the efficacy and profitability of fertilizers. To address this problem, a field study was conducted in the research area of the MNS-University of Agriculture, Multan, in collaboration with Engro Fertilizers Limited. The research plan consisted of five treatments, including T1 = control (without N, P, K, and Zn fertilizers), T2 = NP in practice (NP at 32-23-0 kg acre-1), T3 = recommended NP (NP at 48-34.5 kg acre-1), T4 = balanced NPK (NP+K at 48-34.5-30 kg acre-1), and T5 = balanced NPK + Zn (NPK+Zn at 48-34.5-30 + 7.5 kg acre-1). Wheat was used as a test crop, and its growth, yield, and physiological and nutritional parameters were studied. The results indicated that NPK+Zn balanced nutrition increased plant height, spike length, photosynthetic rate, water use efficiency, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, and grain yield by 13%, 15%, 44%, 60%, 63%, 39%, and 78%, respectively, compared with the control. It was found that the combined application of NP, K, and Zn improved the recovery efficiency of applied nutrients, i.e., nitrogen recovery efficiency (NRE) by 230%, phosphorus recovery efficiency (PRE) by 136%, potassium recovery efficiency (KRE) by 135%, and zinc recovery efficiency (ZnRE) by 136% compared to NP-alone application. Agronomic use efficiency of applied fertilizers, such as potassium agronomic use efficiency (KAUE) by 71%, phosphorus agronomic use efficiency (PAUE) by 72%, nitrogen agronomic use efficiency (NAUE) by 70%, and zinc agronomic use efficiency (ZnAUE) by 72%, was observed compared to NP-alone application. The results showed that NPUE, PPUE, NPUE, and ZnPUE were reduced by 5%, 3%, 3%, and 5%, respectively, compared to NP-alone application. Our findings suggest that K and Zn should be made an essential part of wheat nutrition management for higher yield and better quality of produce.

SPN based RGB image encryption over Gaussian integers.

This research paper proposes a novel approach for constructing substitution boxes (S-boxes) over Gaussian integers, which are complex numbers with integer coefficients. The proposed method is based on the properties of the Gaussian integers and their arithmetic operations and ensures the S-boxes exhibit strong cryptographic properties. Furthermore, the paper demonstrates how these S-boxes can be utilized for image encryption through a substitution-permutation network (SPN) over Gaussian integers. The SPN involves iteratively applying the S-box and a permutation layer to the input image, which effectively scrambles the image data. Experimental results show that the proposed method achieves high security and robustness against various attacks while providing efficient encryption and decryption performance. This research thus provides a promising avenue for developing secure image encryption schemes based on Gaussian integers.

Pulmonary barotrauma as a complication of mechanical ventilation for management of COVID-19 associated acute respiratory distress syndrome (CARDS).

Objectives: To identify that incidence of pulmonary barotrauma secondary to mechanical ventilation for the management of acute respiratory distress syndrome associated with coronavirus-disease-2019, and to compare it with the incidence of pulmonary barotrauma trauma secondary to mechanical ventilation associated with all the other causes. METHODS: The retrospective case-control study was conducted at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, and comprised data from October 2020 to March 2021 of patients who underwent mechanical ventilation. The data was divided into two groups. Data of acute respiratory distress syndrome associated with coronavirus-disease-2019 was in group 1, and that of acute respiratory distress syndrome associated with any other cause in control group 2. Medical records were reviewed to obtain demographic and clinical data, while the institutional picture archiving and communication system was used to review radiological images. Data was analysed using SPSS 24. RESULTS: Of the 261 cases, 115(44%) were in group 1; 87(75.6%) males and 28(24.3%) females. There were 146(56%) controls in group 2; 96(65.7%) males and 50(34.2%) females. There were 142(54.4%) subjects aged >60 years; 61(43%) in group 1 and 81(57%) in group 2. The incidence of pulmonary barotrauma in group 1 was 39(34%) and 8(5.5%) in group 2 (p<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Mechanical ventilation in the management of acute respiratory distress syndrome associated with coronavirusdisease- 2019 was found to be associated with a significantly higher incidence of pulmonary barotrauma than acute respiratory distress syndrome associated with any other cause.

Fetal choroid plexus arteriovenous malformation, masquerading as a neoplastic lesion.

A woman in her 20s, who was pregnant, underwent a routine antenatal ultrasound revealing organised intraventricular haemorrhage and a vascular area in the left thalamic region. Fetal MRI raised suspicion of arteriovenous malformation (AVM). The baby was delivered at 36 weeks via C-section, and initial brain MRI suggested a possible neoplastic lesion.Cerebral angiography confirmed a large AVM involving the left choroid plexus with arterial feeders from the left anterior and posterior choroidal arteries and a large venous varix draining into the vein of Galen. Both arterial feeders were successfully embolised with Onyx and glue, achieving complete occlusion.Choroid plexus AVMs are rare and often lead to intraventricular or intraparenchymal haemorrhage. Surgical treatment has shown success, but endovascular management is effective, especially for small, deep-seated AVMs, offering a better prognosis.

SOx Functionalized NiOOH Nanosheets Embedded in Ni(OH)2 Microarray for High-Efficiency Seawater Oxidation.

A nano-micro heterostructure has been established to address the challenges of selectivity, stress, pitting corrosion, and long-term durability of anodes in unpurified seawater. The heterostructure comprised NiOOH nanosheets embedded within a high surface area Ni(OH)2 microarray, and the surface structure is further functionalized with sulfate (SOx ). This cation-selective protective layer impedes chloride (Cl- ) diffusion and abstracts H from reaction intermediates, leading to enhanced selectivity and corrosion resistance of the anode. The multilevel porosity within the randomly oriented nanosheets and the underlying support provide short diffusion channels for ions and mass migration, ensuring efficient ion transport and long-term structural and mechanical durability of the active sites, even at high current density. Remarkably, the catalyst requires a small input voltage of 400 mV to deliver a current density of 1 A cm-2 and maintains it for over 168 h without noticeable degradation or hypochlorite formation. Spectroscopic analysis and density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that the Ni electronic structure in the +3 valence state, its strong structural interaction with the underlying microarray, and the functionality of SOx significantly reduce the required potential for O-O coupling.

Acidified manure and nitrogen-enriched biochar showed short-term agronomic benefits on cotton-wheat cropping systems under alkaline arid field conditions.

Application of organic residues such as farm manure and biochar in various agricultural environments have shown positive effects on soil carbon sequestration. However, there is a lack of consensus regarding the agronomical benefits of a single and small dose of biochar and farm manure in arid alkaline soils. Therefore, a field experiment with the given treatments (1) control (no amendment), (2) acidified manure (AM) at 300 kg ha-1, (3) nitrogen (N) enriched biochar (NeB) at 3 Mg ha-1, and (4) an equal combination of AM + NeB (150 kg ha-1 AM + 1.5 Mg ha-1 NeB)) was conducted in a typical cotton-wheat cropping system. A parallel laboratory incubation study with the same amendments was carried out to account for soil carbon dioxide emission (CO2). The N enrichment of biochar and its co-application with acidified manure increased soil mineral N (NO3- and NH4+) in the topsoil (0-15 cm), and increased total N uptake (25.92% to 69.91%) in cotton over control, thus reducing N losses and increased uptake over control. Compared to the control, co-application of AM + NeB significantly improved soil N and P bioavailability, leading to increased plant biomass N, P, and K (32%, 40%, 6%, respectively) uptake over control. The plant's physiological and growth improvements [chlorophyll (+ 28.2%), height (+ 47%), leaf area (+ 17%), number of bolls (+ 7%), and average boll weight (+ 8%)] increased the agronomic yield in the first-season crop cotton by 25%. However, no positive response was observed in the second season wheat crop. This field study improved our understanding that co-application of acidified manure and N-enriched biochar in small dose can be a strategy to achieve short-term agronomic benefits and carbon sequestration in the long run.

Percutaneous endovascular removal of a broken port-a-catheter from right atrium using manual made snare.

Fracture and migration of port-a-catheter, following long term access into the central venous vasculature is a rare clinical scenario. The consequences of fracture and migration includes fragmented device relocating into the right atrium or ventricle, eventually causing life threatening complications such as arrhythmias, pseudoaneurysms, perforations or very rarely embolization. We report a case of a 67-year-old female with a broken port-a-catheter which had been placed initially for chemotherapy for bilateral breast cancer. Chest radiograph showed the fragmented catheter had migrated to the right atrium; which was successfully removed via percutaneous radiological endovascular intervention. No immediate post procedure complication was noted.

Correlation Of Computerized Tomography (CT) Severity Score For COVID-19 Pneumonia With Clinical Outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Though various computerized tomography (CT) severity scores have been described for risk prognostication for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), most are challenging to calculate and have variable inter-observer agreement. The objective of this study was to develop a simple CT severity score (CT-SS) with good inter-observer agreement and assess its correlation with clinical outcome. METHODS: This retrospective study was conducted at the Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH), from April-August 2020. All patients who were PCR positive for COVID-19 and underwent CT chest examination at AKUH were included. Severity of disease was described on the basis of a 10-point CT severity score (CT-SS) devised at our institution. CT-SS were categorized as Low (0-7) and High (8-10). Inter-observer reliability between radiologist and COVID-19 intensivist was assessed using the Kappa statistic. RESULTS: A total of 73 patients were included, the majority male (58.9%) with mean age 55.8±13.93 years. The CT-SS rated on 0-10 showed substantial inter-observer reliability between radiologist and intensivist with a Kappa statistic of 0.78. Patients with CT-SS 8-10 had a significantly higher ICU admission & intubation rate (53.8% vs. 23.5%) and mortality rate (35.9% vs. 11.8%; p=0.017), as compared to those with CT-SS 0-7. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that the described CT severity score (CT-SS) is a quick, effective, and easily reproducible tool for prediction of adverse clinical outcome in patients with COVID 19 pneumonia. The tool shows good inter-observer agreement when calculated by radiologist and physician independently.

Insight into UV-induced simultaneous photocatalytic degradation of Ti3C2Tx MXene and reduction of U(VI).

With the development of MXene as the efficient adsorbent for U(VI), the tendency of MXene coming into contact with U(VI) in wastewaters increases. Motivated by UV light irradiation applied in wastewater treatments, the UV light induced photochemical co-transformation of Ti3C2Tx MXene and U(VI) is studied. To clarify the role of U(VI) induced Ti3C2Tx aggregation in phototransformation of Ti3C2Tx, the aggregation kinetics of Ti3C2Tx in the presence of various valent radioactive ions are investigated, obtaining the critical coagulation concentrations (CCC) of Ti3C2Tx for Cs+, Sr2+, UO22+, Eu3+, and Th4+. Besides, the colloidal stability of UV-induced Ti3C2Tx as a function of standing time is discussed. The results show that the aggregation behavior of Ti3C2Tx induced by radioactive ions follows the classical Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory and the Schulze-Hardy rule. The UV irradiation will change the physicochemical properties and colloidal stabilities of Ti3C2Tx. Furthermore, the degradation of Ti3C2Tx can be accelerated by UV irradiation and further promoted by the presence of U(VI). The removal of U(VI) is highest in the case of Ti3C2Tx combined with UV irradiation via adsorption and reduction. This study provides an example demonstrating that the simultaneous transformation of Ti3C2Tx (adsorbent) and U(VI) (adsorbate) to mild toxic components.

Photocatalytic Z-Scheme Overall Water Splitting: Recent Advances in Theory and Experiments.

Photocatalytic water splitting is considered one of the most important and appealing approaches for the production of green H2 to address the global energy demand. The utmost possible form of artificial photosynthesis is a two-step photoexcitation known as "Z-scheme", which mimics the natural photosystem. This process solely relies on the effective coupling and suitable band positions of semiconductors (SCs) and redox mediators for the purpose to catalyze the surface chemical reactions and significantly deter the backward reaction. In recent years, the Z-scheme strategies and their key role have been studied progressively through experimental approaches. In addition, theoretical studies based on density functional theory have provided detailed insight into the mechanistic aspects of some breathtakingly complex problems associated with hydrogen evolution reaction and oxygen evolution reaction. In this context, this critical review gives an overview of the fundamentals of Z-scheme photocatalysis, including both theoretical and experimental advancements in the field of photocatalytic water splitting, and suggests future perspectives.

Endovascular coil embolization of ruptured and unruptured intracranial aneurysms: review of a 15 year single center experience in Pakistan.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the outcome of endovascular treatment of intracranial aneurysm over 15 years. METHODS: The retrospective study was conducted at the at Radiology Department of Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, and comprised medical records from April 2003 to April 2018 of patients who received endovascular treatment for intracranial aneurysm. Multiple variables reviewed included demographics, clinical presentation, aneurysm morphology, technique used, technique outcome and clinical outcome. Data was analysed using SPSS 22. RESULTS: Of the 242 patients, 111(45.8%) were males and 131(54.1%) were female. The overall mean age was 46.3+/-13.543 years (range: 9-78years). Aneurysm size was <5mm in 95(40.4%) patients, 5-10mm in 98(41.7%) and >10mm in 42(17.9%) patients. Aneurysms were located in the anterior communicating artery in 93(38.4%) patients, internal carotid artery 48(19.8%) patients and posterior communicating artery 26(10.7%) patients. Patients with higher initial Hess and Hunt grade were more likely to have higher modified Rankin scale score after treatment (p=0.001). Overall, 222(91.7%) patients were treated successfully. Complications were noted in 37(15.2%) patients and 10(4.0%) patients died. CONCLUSIONS: No correlation was found between Hess and Hunt grades and aneurysm severity based on aneurysm size, neck and ruptured/unruptured cases.

To determine the efficacy of bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sampling in differentiating Cushing disease from ectopic Cushing syndrome.

Management of endogenous Cushing syndrome is based on its aetiology. Increased Adrenocorticotropic Hormone (ACTH) levels are the most common cause of this disorder and, therefore, it is critical to determine the source of ACTH before further management. Dynamic post contrast MRI is currently the most common investigation implied to diagnose pituitary adenoma; however, it comes with the drawback of low specificity and high false positive results. Inferior petrosal sinus sampling (IPSS) is an established invasive procedure performed to differentiate central versus peripheral source of ACTH which, in turn, results in hypercortesolaemia. This is a series of 14 patients who underwent IPSS at the Department of Radiology, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, from January 2006 to December 2018. The case series emphasises the role of IPSS in the management of ACTH-dependent Cushing syndrome and combined efficacy of Dynamic post-contrast MRI and the procedure under focus.

Gd-Doped Ni-Oxychloride Nanoclusters: New Nanoscale Electrocatalysts for High-Performance Water Oxidation through Surface and Structural Modification.

Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is a bottleneck process in the water-splitting module for sustainable and clean energy production. Transition metal-based electrocatalysts can be effective as water-splitting catalytic materials because of their appropriate redox properties and natural abundance, but the slow kinetics because of strong adsorption and consequently slow desorption of intermediates on the active sites of catalysts severely hamper the dynamics of the released molecular oxygen and thus remains a formidable challenge. Herein, we report the development of structurally and surface-modified PA-Gd-Ni(OH)2Cl (partially alkylated gadolinium-doped nickel oxychloride) nanoclusters (NCs, size ≤ 3 nm) for enhanced and stable OER catalysis at low overpotential and high turnover frequency. The ameliorated catalytic performance was achieved by controlling the surface coverage of these NCs with hydrophobic ligands and through the incorporation of electronegative atoms to facilitate easy adsorption/desorption of intermediates on the catalyst surface, thus improving the liberation of O2. Such a surface and structural modification and uniform distribution at the nanoscale length are indeed worth considering to selectively tune the catalytic potential and further modernize the electrode materials for the challenging OER process.

Triple-wide-band Ultra-thin Metasheet for transmission polarization conversion.

Polarization converters play an important role in modern communication systems, but their wide and multiple band operation to facilitate volume and size reduction is quite challenging. In this paper, a triple-band Linear Polarization to Circular Polarization (LP-to-CP) converter is presented using a novel design procedure based on geometric parameters optimization of a metasheet. The proposed converter is ultrathin, wideband, stable over a wide range of incident angles, and polarization diverse. The conductor layer of metasheet is patterned with a square ring and five square-patches diagonally intersecting each other. To validate the proposed method, an LP-to-CP convertor in X-band (7.3~9.6 GHz) and dual Ka-bands (25.4~31.4 GHz, 35.4~42.2 GHz) is presented. The performance is quite stable in wide range of frequencies and against the variation of incident angles from -25° to 25°. After performing model-based theoretical paradigm analysis, and full-wave simulation and optimization, the converter is fabricated and the measurements are performed inside the anechoic chamber. The measured results, close to simulation results, depict the validity and reliability of the proposed design.

Super Wide Band, Defected Ground Structure (DGS), and Stepped Meander Line Antenna for WLAN/ISM/WiMAX/UWB and other Wireless Communication Applications.

This paper presents a new shape (s-shape monopole) of a super wideband antenna using stepped meander lines, a quarter waveguide transformer feeding line, and a defected ground structure (DGS). The antenna will be used for multiple wireless communication applications like WIMAX/WLAN/ISM/UWB, and also for several wireless communication applications. The total dimensions of the proposed antenna are 35 mm × 35 mm × 1.57 mm or 0.36 λo × 0.36 λo × 0.016 λo, which are the corresponding electrical dimensions with free-space wavelength (λo) at the lower operating frequency. The antenna is designed and simulated into two steps: the first (Antenna 1) covers a bandwidth of 18.2 GHz, while the second (Antenna 2, using DGS) covers a super wide bandwidth of 37.82 GHz (3.08-40.9 GHz). The measured fractional bandwidth and bandwidth ratio of the antenna are 174.68% and 13.009:1, respectively, which is operating from 3.09-40.2 GHz. The maximum calculated gain and efficiency are 5.9 dBi and 92.7%, respectively. The time-domain performance is good due to the calculation of the system fidelity factor, group delay, and its linear and constant phase variation.

Role of salicylic acid in regulating ethylene and physiological characteristics for alleviating salinity stress on germination, growth and yield of sweet pepper.

BACKGROUND: During a preliminary study, effects of 0, 20, 40, and 60 mM NaCl salinity were assessed on germination rate in relation to electrolyte leakage (EL) in sweet pepper. Results explored significant rises in ethylene evolution from seeds having more EL. It was, therefore, hypothesized that excessive ethylene biosynthesis in plants due to salinity stress might be a root cause of low crop productivity. As salicylic acid is one of the potent ethylene inhibitors, thus SA was used to combat effects of ethylene produced under salinity stress of 60 mM NaCl on different physiological and morphological characteristics of sweet pepper. METHODOLOGY: The effect of 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 and 0.6 mM SA was evaluated on seed germination, growth and yield of sweet pepper cv. Yolo wonder at salinity stress on 60 mM NaCl. Seeds were primed with SA concentrations and incubated till 312 h in an incubator to study germination. Same SA concentrations were sprayed on foliage of plants grown in saline soil (60 mM NaCl). RESULTS: Seeds primed by 0.2 to 0.3 mM SA improved germination rate by 33% due to suppression of ethylene from 3.19 (control) to 2.23-2.70 mg plate-1. Electrolyte leakage reduced to 20.8-21.3% in seeds treated by 0.2-0.3 mM SA compared to 39.9% in untreated seeds. Results also explored that seed priming by 0.3 mM improved TSS, SOD and chlorophyll contents from 13.7 to 15.0 mg g-1 FW, 4.64 to 5.38 activity h-1 100 mg-1 and 89 to 102 ug g-1 compared to untreated seeds, respectively. Results also explore that SA up to 0.2 mM SA applied on plant foliage improved LAI (5-13%), photosynthesis (4-27%), WUE (11-57%), dry weight (5-20%), SOD activity (4-20%) and finally fruit yield (4-20%) compared to untreated plants by ameliorating effect of 60 mM NaCl. Foliar application of SA also caused significant increase in nutrient use efficiency due to significant variations in POD and SOD activities. CONCLUSION: Salicylic acid suppressed ethylene evolution from germinating seeds up to 30% under stress of 60 mM NaCl due to elevated levels of TSS and SOD activity. Foliar application of SA upgraded SOD by lowering POD activity to improve NUE particularly K use efficiency at salinity stress of 60 mM NaCl. Application of 0.2 and 0.3 mM SA emerged as the most effective concentrations of SA for mitigating 60 mM NaCl stress on different physiological and morphological characteristics of sweet pepper.

High Efficient and Ultra Wide Band Monopole Antenna for Microwave Imaging and Communication Applications.

The paper presents a highly efficient, low cost, ultra-wideband, microstrip monopole antenna for microwave imaging and wireless communications applications. A new structure (z-shape, ultra-wideband (UWB) monopole) is designed, which consists of stepped meander lines to achieve super-wide bandwidth and high efficiency. Three steps are used to design the proposed structure for the purpose to achieve high efficiency and wide bandwidth. The antenna bandwidth is enhanced by varying the length of meander line slots, optimization of the feeding line and with the miniaturization of the ground width. The simulated and measured frequency bands are 2.7-22.5 GHz and 2.8-22.7 GHz (156% fractional bandwidth), respectively. The dimensions of the antenna are 38 mm × 35 mm × 1.57 mm, and its corresponding electrical size is 2.41 λg × 2.22 λg × 0.09 λg, where guided wavelength λg is at the center frequency (12.75 GHz). This antenna achieved a high bandwidth ratio (8.33:1). The realized gain is varying from 1.6-6.4 dBi, while that of efficiency is 70% to 93% for the whole band. Radiation patterns are measured at four operating frequencies. It has an acceptable group delay, fidelity factor, and phase variation results that satisfy the limit of ultra-wideband in the form of the time domain.

Complementary Metamaterial Sensor for Nondestructive Evaluation of Dielectric Substrates.

In this paper, complementary metamaterial sensor is designed for nondestructive evaluation of dielectric substrates. The design concept is based on electromagnetic stored energy in the complementary circular spiral resonator (CCSR), which is concentrated in small volume near the host substrate at resonance. This energy can be employed to detect various electromagnetic properties of materials under test (MUT). Effective electric permittivity and magnetic permeability of the proposed sensor is extracted from scattering parameters. Sensitivity analysis is performed by varying the permittivity of MUT. After sensitivity analysis, a sensor is fabricated using standard PCB fabrication technique, and resonance frequency of the sensor due to interaction with different MUT is measured using vector network analyzer (AV3672series). The transcendental equation is derived for the fabricated sensor to calculate relative permittivity for unknown MUTs. This method is very simple and requires calculating only the resonant frequency, which reduces the cost and computation time.

High-Sensitivity Microwave Sensor for Liquid Characterization Using a Complementary Circular Spiral Resonator.

This paper describes a low-cost, small size, and high-sensitivity microwave sensor using a Complementary Circular Spiral Resonator (CCSR), which operates at around 2.4 GHz, for identifying liquid samples and determining their dielectric constants. The proposed sensor was fabricated and tested to effectively identify different liquids commonly used in daily life and determine the concentrations of various ethanol⁻water mixtures at by measuring the resonant frequency of the CCSR. Using acrylic paint, a square channel was drawn at the most sensitive position of the microwave sensor to ensure accuracy of the experiment. To estimate the dielectric constants of the liquids under test, an approximate model was established using a High-Frequency Simulator Structure (HFSS). The results obtained agree very well with the existing data. Two parabolic equations were calculated and fitted to identify unknown liquids and determine the concentrations of ethanol⁻water mixtures. Thus, our microwave sensor provides a method with high sensitivity and low consumption of material for liquid monitoring and determination, which proves the feasibility and broad prospect of this low-cost system in industrial application.