Hamdard University

Objective: The current study was designed to assess the anxiolytic and anti-depressant effects of Euryale ferox seeds in mice. Methods: The study included a Control group, a Reference group (Diazepam & Fluoxetine), and two Test groups. Anxiolytic effects were evaluated using the Light/Dark Box and Hole Board tests, while the anti-depressant effect was assessed using the Forced Swim Test. Euryale ferox seeds demonstrated significant, dose-dependent anti-depressant and anxiolytic effects compared to diazepam andfluoxetine. The seeds showed promise as a potential therapeutic agent. Results: Euryale ferox extract (EEFx) at 500 and 1000 mg/kg showed significant anxiolytic and antidepressant effects in mice at p < 0.05. It increased time spent in the light area, exploratory behavior, and reduced latency to first poke and immobility time in the Forced Swim Test, comparable to diazepam and fluoxetine, indicating reduced anxiety and depression. Conclusion: The present work evidenced a significant dose-dependent effect, demonstrating anxiolytic and anti-depressant effects of the hydroalcoholic extract of Euryale ferox seeds. Investigations into benzodiazepine-type receptors, noradrenergic mechanisms, and the roles of different phytoconstituents present in fox nuts seed extract are recommended to understand the observed effectsand their relation to brain biogenic amines.

The arrival of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) has led to the development of programming-based environments for domestic and commercial applications of automation. This work is distributed into three sections: virtual assistant (VA), domestic robotics, and advanced user interface demonstration. A dissimilar public library is utilised for a virtual assistant and information to identify them, concluding the communication recognition procedure and then replying by viewing all the effects on the display screen. Domestic automation includes monitoring and changing applications. IoT-based methods were used to control the brightness of the bulb, and an IoT-based technique was used to control the speed of the DC fan. Finally, the output was displayed using a Graphical User Interface (GUI) constructed using the QT-designer tool and PyQT library. The primary value of this work is the ability to combine an AI-based virtual assistant, home automation, and a real-time graphical user interface into easy use system. Operator instructions are examined to deliver optimum solutions. The proposed scheme has better functional coverage, real-time visualisation, and better user interaction in comparison with the existing benchmark systems, which mostly concentrate on voice-based helpers and distributed IoT control systems. This scheme is recommended for use as an intellectual virtual assistant, which understands human speech and answers through created voices. This work is new because it is the first work where an AI virtual assistant, IoT based automatization, and real-time smart display are combined to make the interaction and constant situational awareness happen within one platform.

Ovarian cancer (OC) ranks as the third most frequently occurring gynecological cancer and is associated with a high rate of mortality despite advances in conventional therapies. Current diagnostic and treatment strategies lack specificity, sensitivity, and long-term clinical effectiveness. Recently, nanotechnology has aimed to overcome these limitations. Patients have a poor prognosis mainly due to late diagnosis, with a high rate of therapy resistance and recurrence. Due to the shortcomings of conventional drug therapies and diagnostic strategies, alternative nanotechnology-based approaches have been developed to overcome the drawbacks of typical methods. This paper provides an updated and comparative analysis of multiple nanoparticle platforms, including lipid-based, inorganic, and polymeric nanoparticles, as well as biosensors, for OC treatment and diagnosis. Nanotechnology has evolved as a promising strategy for targeted therapeutic delivery, enhancing efficacy and safety while reducing side effects and resistance associated with typical treatments. Nanotechnology also addresses challenges, such as early-stage disease detection and the identification of tumor biomarkers with high specificity and sensitivity. This article also covers recent and high-impact studies. This review provides a critical evaluation of challenges, including toxicity, targeting efficiency, and stability issues, as well as regulatory barriers that hinder the clinical progress of these nanotechnologies.

The present study investigates the transformative character of digital finance and financial technology (fintech) in supporting financial inclusion in Pakistan and discusses their impact in terms of income inequality critically. Pakistan is also experiencing tremendous expansion in the digital financial service category in the last ten years that is comprised of mobile money, digital payments and alternative credit scoring due to growth in mobile and internet penetration, favorable regulatory environment and new fintech solutions. Improved access to cheap financial services has the potential to strengthen the marginalized groups, boost entrepreneurship, and ease the process of adopting the formal financial system. Nevertheless, this paper also emphasizes risks that could potentially arise on the high pace of digitalization of finance. Using empirical data based on national surveys, fintech adoption data, and examples of the Pakistani digital finance ecosystem, the study appraises the effect of digital finance on economic participation behaviour by various groups of people, based on income. Results indicate that although digital financial services can potentially lessen the risks of inclusion and help eradicate poverty, policy interventions and design principles is the key to reducing risks.

Sodium arsenite (NaAsO2) and sonochemically synthesized copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO-NPs) pose escalating risks to aquatic animals due to their bio-accumulative potential, persistence, and interaction; when co-occurring, their combined effects represent a new class of emerging contaminants (ECs) with heightened ecological relevance. We synthesized CuO-NPs and characterized them using powder X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and UV-visible spectroscopy. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) were exposed to NaAsO2, CuO-NPs, and their combination for 28 days, and they were subjected to comprehensive histopathological analysis of muscle tissues and biochemical and genotoxic examinations on the 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th days of exposure. The synthesized CuO-NPs exhibited an average crystallite size of 10.56 nm, with a monoclinic crystalline structure and spherical morphology. Treatment with CuO-NPs and their co-exposure with NaAsO2 induced histomorphological alterations in muscle tissues, significantly elevated hepatic oxidative stress biomarkers (P ≤ 0.0001), and suppressed total protein (P ≤ 0.05), antioxidant (P ≤ 0.0001), and acetylcholinesterase (P ≤ 0.0001) enzyme activities. The imbalance of oxidants and antioxidants induced DNA damage, as revealed by the comet assay. The correlational analysis exhibited a strong, significant correlation (P = 0.05) among oxidative stress biomarkers, antioxidant enzyme activities, and DNA damage. These findings indicate that CuO-NPs exhibit individual and synergistic toxicity with NaAsO2, highlighting their potential ecological concerns.

Accelerated biological aging characterized by loss of telomeric iterations, epigenetic modification and persistent inflammation underlies increased risks of age related diseases, but benchmarking with machine learning (ML) methods for the classification of accelerated biological aging has been hindered by the scarcity of standardized datasets. In this research study, a synthetic cross-sectional dataset was developed consisting of 1000 commonly representing suburb ages of individuals representing normal and accelerated age profiles features simulated according to medical guidelines and research distributions, including chronological age, telomere length, epigenetic age, inflammatory markers (CRP, IL-6), senescence marker (p16INK4a), white blood cell counts. Multiple ML classifiers such as Random Forest, Gradient Boosting, Extra Trees, XGBoost and LightGBM, were evaluated using 5-fold cross validation, hyper parameter tuning, and probability calibration. All models showed best predictive performance with Extra Trees giving the best overall accuracy (98.5%) with runtime 14 seconds respectively, whereas XGBoost had a slightly lower accuracy (97.5%) but was the fastest at 3.76 seconds. This simulation based framework has the potential to contribute in a reproducible platform for assessing ML approaches for aging research and additionally underscores the potential of computational models in identifying accelerated aging and the need to evaluate the findings on large scale biological cohorts.

To explore the way in which colonial discourse still influences power relations, representation, and identity in a postcolonial situation, this paper analyzes the work of Ousmane Sembène’s Black Girl (La Noire de…, 1966) based on the theoretical background of Edward Said Orientalism. Despite the fact that the political autonomy was the formalization of the colonial rule, the movie shows that colonial subjection continues to exist in the form of daily habits, language, and cultural subordinations. It is the story of a young Senegalese woman Diouana who moves to France where she hopes to find an economic stability and social mobility, but instead becomes racialized and exploited sexually and psychologically in a French family home. This paper applies a qualitative analysis design by conducting a systematic analysis of verbatim dialogues of the original film script translated into English to facilitate analysis. The coded conversations were named into themes to determine common themes in relation to the Western superiority, colonial power, racial othering, objectification, silencing, loss of identity, and resistance in NVivo. The results show that the marginalization that Diouana undergoes is not a personal phenomenon but a structural effect of Orientalist ideology that would turn the African subject into an inferior being of the passive and having a value only through the work. The analysis also shows how language, commands, and silences are all means of domination, which strengthens colonial power even in a post-independence environment. Finally, the paper suggests that Black Girl reveals the long-term effects of the colonial system by showing how the roles of Orientalist images in the creation of social relations and subjectivity are still valid. The tragic destiny of Diouana allows Sembène to criticize the postcolonial illusion of equality and presupposes the immediate necessity to revisit Western discourses that are silent and inhuman to the formerly colonized nations.