Exploring water-absorbing capacity: a digital image analysis of seeds from 120 wheat varieties.

Wheat is a staple food crop that provides a significant portion of the world's daily caloric intake, serving as a vital source of carbohydrates and dietary fiber for billions of people. Seed shape studies of wheat typically involve the use of digital image analysis software to quantify various seed shape parameters such as length, width, area, aspect ratio, roundness, and symmetry. This study presents a comprehensive investigation into the water-absorbing capacity of seeds from 120 distinct wheat lines, leveraging digital image analysis techniques facilitated by SmartGrain software. Water absorption is a pivotal process in the early stages of seed germination, directly influencing plant growth and crop yield. SmartGrain, a powerful image analysis tool, was employed to extract precise quantitative data from digital images of wheat seeds, enabling the assessment of various seed traits in relation to their water-absorbing capacity. The analysis revealed significant transformations in seed characteristics as they absorbed water, including changes in size, weight, shape, and more. Through statistical analysis and correlation assessments, we identified robust relationships between these seed traits, both before and after water treatment. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Agglomerative Hierarchical Clustering (AHC) were employed to categorize genotypes with similar trait patterns, providing insights valuable for crop breeding and genetic research. Multiple linear regression analysis further elucidated the influence of specific seed traits, such as weight, width, and distance, on water-absorbing capacity. Our study contributes to a deeper understanding of seed development, imbibition, and the crucial role of water absorption in wheat. These insights have practical implications in agriculture, offering opportunities to optimize breeding programs for improved water absorption in wheat genotypes. The integration of SmartGrain software with advanced statistical methods enhances the reliability and significance of our findings, paving the way for more efficient and resilient wheat crop production. Significant changes in wheat seed shape parameters were observed after imbibition, with notable increases in area, perimeter, length, width, and weight. The length-to-width ratio (LWR) and circularity displayed opposite trends, with higher values before imbibition and lower values after imbibition.

Battling the Eagle's sharp beak, Eagle syndrome; a case report.

Eagle Syndrome is a pain syndrome of rare and unwonted incidence. Forbearer has an elongated styloid process or a calcified stylohyoid ligament, suppressing glossopharyngeal nerve leading to a mélange of symptoms including sporadic cervicofacial pain, headache, and foreign body sensation. Here we present case of a 65 year old military man of south Asian origin, who presented with complaints of sudden episodes of blackouts for past five years and pain in neck while turning head to left for past two months. Patient's ultrasound Doppler showed marked narrowing of proximal left internal carotid artery with approximate diametric stenosis of 70% according to The North American Symptomatic Carotid Endarterectomy Trial (NASCET).Further studies of MRI Brain was done,revealing small Foci of restricted diffusion along Territory of Left MCA along with age related Microangiopathic cerebral changes. CT Scan of neck was also done which showed Abnormal elongation of bilateral styloid process more on the left side. The case was discussed in a Multidisciplinary Team Meeting comprising ENT surgeon, vascular surgeon and surgical excision was planned through trans cervical approach. Surgery was successful as seen by post op and follow up scans.

Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy in a Patient With Classic Hodgkin's Lymphoma Post-Bone Marrow Transplant: A Case Report.

A 29-year-old male patient underwent an autologous bone marrow transplant. He was initially diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma and treated with 12 cycles of chemotherapy. Three months later, he presented with intermittent fever and underwent an MRI scan and a brain biopsy. Eventually, he was diagnosed with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy. For effective treatment and a plan of action, such cases necessitate multidisciplinary board meetings with input from experts in surgery, pathology, cancer, and infectious diseases.

Association of frequency of hereditary hemochromatosis (HFE) gene mutations (H63D and C282Y) with iron overload in beta-thalassemia major patients in Pakistan.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate any association between the frequency of hereditary hemochromatosis (HFE) gene mutation (H63D and C282Y) and iron overload in beta-thalassemia major (BTM) patients. METHODS: The case-control study was conducted from June 2016 to February 2018. Blood samples from 204 BTM patients and 204 normal controls were taken from the Sundas Foundation Blood Bank. These samples were analyzed for serum ferritin assay and HFE mutation. Ferritin level was measured on the ARCHITECT 1000SR. Both patient and control samples were analyzed for mutations using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). RESULTS: Serum ferritin levels for all patients were greater than 1000ng/mL. The p.H63D mutation was observed in 23 (11.3%) cases, out of which 19 cases were heterozygous for p.H63D and 4 cases were homozygous. In control samples, 4 cases (2%) were found heterozygous for the p.H63D, and no homozygous mutation was found. Significantly high serum ferritin levels were found in BTM patients with the H63D mutation (p=0.00). In the case of p.C282Y, neither homozygous nor heterozygous mutation was found in patients or in controls. CONCLUSION: H63D polymorphism is associated with iron overload in BTM patients. Larger-scale research is required to give an elaborated view of the association of the HFE mutation with iron overload in these patients and to confirm our conclusion.