Prevalence of Hepatitis C virus and its risk factors in blood donors in district Peshawar.

The current study was designed in order to elucidate the most sensitive method for daily practice as well as to evaluate the risk factors for HCV infection associated with blood transfusion in District Peshawar. A total of 1400 healthy volunteer blood donors were tested for Anti-HCV. A questionnaire was used to evaluate the risk factors. Initial testing of all blood samples was done by Immuno Chromatographic Technique (ICT) and confirmed by micro particle enzyme immunoassay (MEIA) and Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). The comparison among ICT, ELISA and MEIA techniques was also evaluated for the purpose of sensitivity. Among 1400 blood donors, 26 (1.85%) cases were found positive for Anti-HCV. These 26 cases were positive on MEIA, 16 individuals were positive on ELISA while 14 were positive on ICT. These 26 cases had different histories of dental treatment (50%), traveled abroad (23.07%), surgery (11.53%), blood transfusion (7.69%) and unknown reason (7.69%). Among all these different histories of dental treatment and blood transfusion were the main risk factors for HCV infection. The results revealed that MEIA is a quick and reliable technique for routine screening of blood donors particularly for controlling the spread of HCV.

Environmentally benign extraction of cellulose from dunchi fiber for nanocellulose fabrication.

In the current study, cellulose was extracted from the plant dunchi fiber by using an ecofriendly method followed by preparation of nanocellulose. The procedure involved an alkali treatment and chlorine-free bleaching for removal of lignin and hemicelluloses from material. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy provided the evidence about removal of hemicellulose and lignin. The morphological changes in the surface of lignocellulosic fibers were studied through scanning electron microscopy (SEM). X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis measured the degree of crystallinity of extracted cellulosic material. By using Segal method, the degree of crystallinity was found 66.7%. Crystal thickness was determined by Scherrer equation and its value was found to be 40.07 Å. The values were closed to the values observed for commercial microcrystalline cellulose (MCC). The TGA curve showed the thermal degradation pattern of the cellulosic material and it was closed to the thermal behavior of pure cellulose. Finally, nanocellulose was produced by acid hydrolysis from the obtained cellulosic material. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed the existence of nanocellulose with an average aspect ratio of 10.45 ± 3.44. In the future, dunchi fiber has a potential to be used as a renewable source to produce cellulose and subsequently its nanocellulose for a wide range of applications in composite materials.