Hina Baloch

‘SALAM’ DOCUFILM on the sci-ence and life of Dr Abdus Salam, won the Raw Science Film Fes-tival (RSFF) in Santa Barbara, California, US on January 6th, 2018. ‘Salam’ won 1st place in the category: Professional Docu-mentary Feature > 60 minutes. ‘Salam’ is the debut produc-tion of Kailoola Prodctions. This year’s festival judges included eminent personalities, including Kip Thorne, 2017’s Nobel Lau-reate in Physics. The festival themed, “the bridge between sci-ence and media”.

‘Salam’ is a 75 minutes long documentary based on Pakistani physicist Dr Muhammad Abdus Salam, the renowned physicist who took home the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1979. This film re-volves around the life of Dr Ab-dus Salam in all its colors, vitali-ty, and tragedy.

This winning video is a fea-tured documentary about man who pass through two worlds with ease. One of science and religion, modernity and tradition, war and peace and obscurity and celebrity. This film draws the at-tention towards state of affairs in the world today, where knowl-edge is sacrificed at the dais of ignorance and intolerance, de-priving the coming generation of all that is precious.

Reminiscing about how chal-lenging it has been to produce ‘Salam’, the filmmakers told, “it took about twelve years of pains-taking research, recce, amassing

archives, restoring archives, film-ing, editing, animating and music composing. The research work and production were completed in 2012, but then more filming, more editing have culminated in roughly 75 minutes of content”.

“We are humbled and honored to have been recognized by a major science film festival”, they further added.

The film will continue to screen at festivals around the globe after which, the producers hope, it will be available to everyone on a popular online streaming portal.

Dr Salam was not only a great physicist, he was the most in-

fluential scientific personality of the twentieth century. He was the only Pakistani Nobel Lau-reate of his time, but most un-fortunately, marginalized by his own country. Dr Salam was so much more than just a celebrity scientist.

Dr Salam himself is heard stating in the film that “This is the scientific age. We cannot escape it. No one in the East can and no one in the West can”. The film comprises footage of Salam re-ceiving the Nobel Prize, and from his life spent in the US, UK, Italy, and Pakistan; interviews from Salam’s family, friends, and col-leagues, and Steven Weinberg,

the famous American physicist who shared the Nobel Prize with Salam in 1979, and many other scientists.

Malala Yousafzai, the other Pakistani Nobel Laureate re-marked on film, “I am delighted to know that a documentary is produced on the life story of the great Pakistani physicist. Dr Abdus Salam has been and continues to be an inspiration for children who have a passion for learning, discovering and inventing; the whole country is proud of his contributions. His story of brilliance needs to be told and amplified.”

Kailoola Productions was founded in 2004 to serve as a platform to inform the public on all aspects of science, par-ticularly in developing countries where access is limited and huge information divides exist. The mission is to promote scientific knowledge, thought and inquiry through television and film. Kailoola Productions has start-ed developing a film on famed neurosurgeon Dr. Ayub Ommaya another brilliant Pakistani who featured in the article “The Mus-lims who shaped America – from brain surgeons to rappers”, as their next project.

www.TechnologyTimes.PkJanuary 01 — 07, 2018Pages: 8 Vol: IX Issue No: 01

NEW COUNCIL of Pakistan Academy of Sciences (PAS) took over the Office on January 1, 2018, for 3 Year tenure that is from 2018 to 2020.

Pakistan Academy of Scienc-es (PAS) is a non-governmen-tal and non-political supreme scientific body of Distinguished Scientists. The Academy has a status of the consultative and advisory given by Government of Pakistan. All problems relating to scientific development and mat-ters of national and international importance in the field of science are referred to the Academy.

A Council governs Pakistan Academy of Sciences. The coun-cil includes its President, 2 Vice Presidents, Secretary General, Associate Secretary General and Treasurer. The previous council has successfully completed its

tenure of 3 years from 2015 to 2017. The elected Office Bearers are Prof. Dr. M. Qasim Jan (Pres-ident), Prof. Dr. Kausar Abdullah Malik (Vice President), Prof. Dr. Ajmal Khan (Vice President), Prof. Dr. M. Aslam Baig (Sec-retary General), Prof. Dr. A. R. Shakoori (Associate Secretary General) and Prof. Dr. G. A. Mia-na (Treasurer).

Distinguished Scientists with outstanding contributions in Sci-ence and Technology become

the Fellow. Those scientists that have contributed substantially to the development of science in Pakistan may become a Foreign Fellow. The young scientists that must be under 40 years age can join as Member of the Academy. PAS goals are to promote higher studies and research in pure and applied sciences in Pakistan. The Academy also spread scientif-ic knowledge and establish and maintain association and relations between the Pakistani scientists and the international Scientists.

PAKISTAN WILL soon design pol-icies and strategies that will lead to improvements in quality of Pa-kistani product. The policies will be based on the first-ever survey for National Industrial Innovation.

Pakistan Council for Science and Technology (PCST) will con-duct the ‘First National Industrial Innovation Survey’ with the allo-cation of Rs. 45.041 million, told by Prof. Dr. Anwar-ul-Hassan Gi-lani, Chairperson PCST. Survey is a project approved by the PCST.

The survey will provide the insights into the innovation pro-cess in the industrial sector of Pakistan. The future planning and management for industrial pro-duction will be benefitted from this survey.

He further said that survey would boost our economy as well as earning of foreign ex-change and will have long-term effects.

It would also be a landmark step to achieve the target set un-der vision 2025 aimed to increase export from US $ 25 billion to US $ 150 billion annually.

PAS new council took over the charge First national industrial survey to be held: Dr Gilani

Docufilm ‘Salam’ won Raw Science Film Festival Award 2017

02 – TechnologyTimes.Pk

Methods used for screening genomic libraryGenome is the total DNA or total information present on DNA of a certain organism. Human genome has 46 chromosomes or 3 billion base pairs containing intron, axons, functional DNA as well as Junk DNA.....

BioTechEDITORIAL

Methods used for screening genomic

libraryEDUCATION IS considered the key to the success of nations. World history is spectator to this fact. In this age of modern de-velopment, higher education has achieved a central role in the process of growth of success, and research is the heart of higher education, which is being enjoying the prime importance across the globe, except in our country Pakistan. All the developed na-tions across the globe developed a healthy “research culture” in academia and their S&T ministries bridging the gap between industry and academia. On the other side Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST) in Pakistan has spent one more year in deciding where to spent the meager amount of allocated budget. Surely it will be caught between two stools situation for them. Pakistan, being as developing state has a lot of constraints on the road of development. Pakistan is way more behind in marathon of research and up till now not even succeed to develop an inspiring research culture. Outside our country there is found an estab-lished trend of practical application of knowledge rather than only teaching youth “knowledge is power”. They don’t only learn it but also teach them for how to use this power. Syllabus which is being taught in our institutions is based on research needs of developed countries like UK, US, France, Germany, Australia and other. There is a lack of vision and dedication in research organizations and in academia as well. The other main differ-ence between Pakistani research organizations and others is the availability of resources. In most of the cases, research topics re-volve around the culture of convenience, ease and soft targets for students. Research supervisors do not prepare them up-to-date needs, resultantly the students don’t meet the modern-day chal-lenges because mostly research students are allotted the same old repeated topics to make their work easy and it also help the supervisor to fulfill the assignment regardless of outcome. At the same time, it is a hard fact that financial constrain is major hurdle for innovative research. Besides the requirements, it is seen that in any kind of financial crunch, MoST is among those few minis-tries that are axed outrightly. The current budget of MoST is only PKR 2.42 billion which is 0.05 percent of total budget. Whereas, India and Iran have 0.8 and 0.7 percent respectively, that clearly shows their interest in developing their countries. Government has taken many steps to improve the standard of higher educa-tion and R&D culture but unfortunately these steps are just verbal claims. The overall state of science and technology remain as miserable as previous years, rather declining. Due to insufficient funding it is not possible to continue research projects, and in most of the cases the available fund is only left for non-devel-opment expenditures. In Pakistan there is prompt need of vast research in every field for its successful survival in the current era of research and technology. The solution to every problem lies in research whether it is scientific or social problem, it can be solved by quality and precise research. There is urgent need to polish our youth who have fertile minds. The only task is to train them to use the available resources in an effective and fruitful manner to be more productive, and to empower them to search their hidden potential and invaluable capabilities. A lot of low-cost projects can made highly valuable and worth importance by developing innovative ideas which will be suitable for local society to derive large benefits. This practice can take us to val-uable healthy research culture in Pakistan else research culture will remain a distant dream in Pakistan.

Executive Editor A. M. Zaidi Editor SAMZ Paras Ali

Incharge Editorial Section Hina Rasheed BalochNews Editor Najamus Sahar Durrani

Incharge Web Section Sayyed Shozib AbbasBureau Chief Karachi Syed Ali Raza

www.technologytimes.pkE-mail: info@technologytimes.pk

HeadOffice BureauOffice Suite 5, G Floor, Khudadaad Heights C-89, Sherton Heights Margalla Avenue, E-11, Islamabad Abul Hassan Isphahani Rd, Karachi Phone: +92 316 532 77 03 Phone: +92 333 57 55 926

Volume IX — Issue 01No. 8444/2 (100) Press - 2009

Published by S. A. Mustafa Zaidi Paras Alifor “Foundation for Comprehensive Social Development (FCSD)”

Asim Munawar

January 01 — 07, 2018

Genome is the to-tal DNA or total information pres-ent on DNA of a certain organism. Human genome has 46 chromo-

somes or 3 billion base pairs con-taining intron, axons, functional DNA as well as Junk DNA. The genome in eukaryotes is in form of chromosomes in well-defined nucleus while in prokaryotes the genome is not present in nucle-us. For developing a complete genomic library, we go on four steps, Isolation of DNA, cleaning, fractionization and cloning. Once a genomic library is prepared, it can be stored and can be helpful in purification, storage and anal-ysis purpose. If we have a DNA fragment and we want to know either this fragment or gene is present in our library or not? If we find it in our genomic library we can re-sequence it analyzes.

There are four methods used for Library screening.

Hybridization:In this process we need to

prepare a probe, probe is a sin-gle stranded DNA molecule ei-ther labeled with radioactivity or fluorescent protein. Probe is labeled so that it gives fluores-cent signals or colored precipi-tates. Radioactive labeling gives radioactive signals by replacing phosphate backbone with radio-active phosphate (p35). While in non-radioactive probe a specific protein. E.g. biotin is attached because when it reacts with sub-strate colored precipitates are produced. Probe in some expec-tations may be RNA.

Next requirement is Nylon membrane and we labeled this membrane so that we can exact-ly locate required fragment. We paste this membrane on culture plate, bacteria attach to mem-brane and bacterial lyses occur. Due to lyses bacterial genome is exposed; add certain buffer and process of fixation along with neutralization occur. Double stranded strands are converted into single strands, now expose probe to the membrane and pro-

vide the conditions under which probe can hybridize with its complementary fragment. Upon hybridization between probe and its complementary fragment we get signals either fluorescence or coloration. For radioactive probe signal X-ray can be used to clear-ly indicate signals. Signals tell that where our fragment of inter-est is present.

Expression: We use expression method to

find a gene in our library. Vector for cloning is provided with ex-pression system. For screening a gene fragment provide vector with a promoter at 5’ and a termi-nator at 3’ end. In CDNA library there is always a gene in vector while in genomic library there is a chance to have complete gene in vector, it may be Junk or in-tron which cannot be transcribed as gene. Our main target is RNA which is product of transcription of gene (DNA). Rest of process is like hybridization. One expression occurs at RNA level and second transcription occurs at protein level. For expression at protein level, promoter is used. Promoter helps to express protein, shift the protein to membrane and provide antibody. Due to antigen-anti-body reaction we get signals. These signals indicate protein of require gene in library which also indicates gene of our interest.

Hybrid arrest and release:In this method there are two

sets of hybridization and tran-scription. Firstly, release hybridi-zation and arrest the transcription. It means hybridization is done and after that transcription is allowed to occur. As in hybridization, bac-teria are subjected to lyses, here we will provide enzymes and nu-cleotides in vitro and there is a gene it will transcribe.

The points in colony where hybridization occurred, the DNA was lyses from double strand-ed to single strand so at those points there will be no transcrip-tion. We are interested in points where no transcription occurred. Now provide certain buffer which will make double stranded DNA into single stranded which re-

main intact in first process. Again provide in vitro conditions for transcription by arresting hy-bridization.

Chromosomal walking:After target identification we

are interested to check what is present in its neighborhood. We need a pair of primers, if a clone fragment is incomplete part of gene, junk or intron, the primers may not attach. But for a gene or complete fragment the primers will attach. As the vector is circu-lar, the primers begin to move in opposite direction and we get two linear strands. After sequencing of these strands, one can get info of sequence at right and left side of fragment of interest.

Conclusion: In DNA libraries, the informa-

tion is stored as a set of DNA molecules, each of which con-tains biological sequences that can be used for a variety of ap-plications. All DNA libraries are collections of DNA fragments that represent a particular bi-ological system of interest. By analyzing the DNA from a par-ticular organism or tissue, re-searchers can answer a variety of important questions. The two most common uses for these DNA collections are DNA se-quencing and gene cloning. The aforementioned genome-wide association studies can identify candidate genes stemming from many functional traits. Genes can be isolated through genomic libraries and used on human cell lines or animal models to further research. Furthermore, creating high-fidelity clones with accu-rate genome representation and no stability issues would con-tribute well as intermediates for shotgun sequencing or the study of complete genes in functional analysis.

The author are from 1Department of Entomology, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, 2Department of Plant and Environmental Protection, NARC, Park Road Islamabad, and 3Department of

Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University of Agriculture Faisalabad. The corresponding

author can be reached on Asimvirk3762@gmail.com

Asim Munawar1, Aqsa Arshad1, Muhammad Ishaque Mastoi2, Shehbaz Sharif1 and Muhammad Ali3

Need to develop R&D culture in Pakistan

03 – TechnologyTimes.PkSciTech

Pak-Sino health diplomacy: A novel paradigm for CPEC project

History of ‘one medicine – one health’

Mirza Abdul Aleem Baig

Dr. Muhammad Usman Naseer

The global develop-ments are shifting the nature of human interaction across a wide range of so-cial sphere includ-ing the economic,

political, cultural, health and environmental. Globalization is driving a world system com-prising national economies and societies that are increasingly in-fluenced by factors outside their borders. Contemporary globali-zation is a driving force behind the rise of health as a foreign policy concern. Currently, many governments are implementing structural and administrative re-forms aimed at improving health system performance. Many of these reforms are advocated by international organizations and consequently, the focus tends to concentrate on areas such as financing, management, and structure of health system. Among the major focus of re-forms is to ensure quality health care provisions are affordable to all and that health service should be accessible to all.

Historically, Pakistan and China have a multidimensional relationship, providing a good example of peaceful coexistence between two states with differing beliefs, social, cultural, and ever changing geo-political arche-types. China has supported Paki-stan economically, militarily and

politically, while Pakistan was China’s only reliable free world diplomatic partner during its in-ternational isolation. Since its founding in 1949, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has been connecting significance to utilize health as a tool for en-dorsement of foreign relations, playing different function at dif-ferent times. Similarly, launched by President Xi Jinping in 2013, the OBOR/BRI vision proposed to push economic integration and connectivity across the three continents of Asia, Africa, and Europe, through the con-struction of new land and mar-itime transport infrastructures and the development of pipe-lines and information networks. This grand vision envisages an overland “Silk Road Economic Belt” across the Eurasian conti-nent and a “Maritime Silk Road” across Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean. Given its geo-stra-tegic position, Pakistan is ideally poised to serve as interconnec-tion between the two routes; that is the reason the Chinese lead-ership has acknowledged CPEC as a flagship project in the whole scheme of OBOR/BRI.

Traditionally, health issues have resided in a political po-sition in policy practice, so as having momentous importance in CPEC project. In recent years, certain health issues have re-ceived attention at the highest

levels of national and internation-al politics. The threats from bi-oterrorism, infectious diseases, pandemic and epidemic diseas-es, viruses of special concern and an increasing awareness of the link between health and eco-nomic development have each devised a role in relating health to the traditional foreign policy goals of protecting state security and promoting national economic interests. Health and diplomacy are closely linked phenomenon as health is a highly scientific and technical domain and states cannot ignore the epidemiologi-cal reality of many health crises, it can be hypothesized that the health research community and scientific research evidence play a powerful influencing role in the development process.

The architecture of health di-plomacy is progressively mul-tifaceted in the 21st century. The mounting awareness of the prospective value of the assimi-lation of health in foreign policy as a phenomenon worthy of fur-ther attention, principally in the CPEC. The geo-strategic corridor is beneficial not only for Pak-Sino relations but also, for the regional development that will eventually benefit all neighboring countries. In this regard the government of Pakistan, health and foreign poli-cy planners may perform the fol-lowing roles:• Integrateahealthperspective

into traditional foreign poli-cy and create an information platform for Pak-Sino Health Diplomacy.

• Establishthecoordinatingof-fice for Health Diplomacy to highlight the connection be-tween health and well-being, social and economical devel-opment.

• Utilize science and technol-ogy, and health personnel in diplomatic activities/missions and promote strategic joint research and development with China and regional coun-tries with high diplomatic im-portance.

• And,exhibitgoodmoralchar-acter; exceptionally give pri-ority to fight against corrup-

tion and nepotism throughout not only CPEC development but also, society as-a-whole.

Pakistan’s location at the cusp of Central Asia, South Asia, and West Asia makes it ideally suit-ed for inter-regional trade. The infrastructures developed under the CPEC will not only facilitate Pakistan but also China, to ac-complish the dream of becoming a regional and global trading, dip-lomatic and health tourism nuclei. Once the projects are put into practice, Pakistan’s geo-strategic location should make it a potential nexus for the Eurasian “Silk Road Economic Belt” and a Southeast Asian “Maritime Silk Road”. The CPEC could then not only serve as a game changer for Pakistan, but also for the entire region.

It was Calvin Schwabe’s thorough rethinking of the concept of “one medicine” in 1976 that fully recog-nized the close systemic interaction of humans and animals for nutrition, live-

lihood and health. International organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organ-ization (FAO) have institutional-ized “one medicine” partly as Veterinary Public Health (VPH), the contribution of veterinary medicine to public health. “One health” has seen unprecedented revival in the last decade with

fostered awareness, scientific debate, research programmes, integrated disease surveillance and an open toolbox in the fields of disease surveillance, epidemi-ological studies and health care provision.

Ancient healers were often priests and cared for both hu-mans and animals. They gained anatomical and pathological skills from slaughtering sacrificial ani-mals and deciding on their purity for sacrifice. Veterinary medicine appears to have been a distinct discipline during the Zhou Dynas-ty in China (11–13th century). The

Zhou Dynasty had one of the earli-est organizations of an integrated public health system including medical doctors and veterinari-ans. A Chinese text by Xu Dachun (‘on the origin and development of medicine’) from the 18th century states that: “The foundations of veterinary medicine are as com-prehensive and subtle as those of human medicine and it is not pos-sible to place one above the other” (translated from German). Claude Bourgelat, the founder of the first veterinary school in Lyon in 1762, was heavily criticized when he recommended human clinical training for the veterinary curricu-

lum. However, in the 19th century, with the advent of cellular pathol-ogy, scientists like Rudolf Virchow developed a strong interest in link-ing human and veterinary med-icine as a form of comparative medicine based on the discovery of similar disease processes in humans and animals. For exam-ple, major animal diseases such as rinderpest, rather than human epidemics, were the stimulus for medical research in South Afri-ca and tsetse fly (Glossina spp.) control was motivated primarily by cattle trypanosomiasis.

Integrated medical thinking

was conveyed to North Ameri-ca by William Osler, a student of Virchow. He is credited for having coined the term “one medicine”, although no direct written evi-dence for this has been found. In the 20th century, both scienc-es specialized to such an extent that their association was hardly visible and less often practiced. It was Calvin Schwabe’s thor-ough rethinking of the concept of “one medicine” in 1976 that fully recognized the close sys-temic interaction of humans and animals for nutrition, livelihood and health. Today, the earliest

January 01 — 07, 2018

Pak-Sino health diplomacy: A novel paradigm for CPEC project

Mirza A Aleem Baig

The global developments are shifting the nature of human interaction across a wide range of social sphere including the economic, political, cultural, health and environmental......

History of ‘one medicine – one health’It was Calvin Schwabe’s thorough rethinking of the concept of “one medicine” in 1976 that fully recognized the close systemic interaction of humans and animals for nutrition, livelihood .....Dr. M Usman Naseer

Continued on page 05

Maillard reac-tion is non- e n z y m a t i c b r o w n i n g between car-bonyl group of carbohy-

drates and amine group of pro-teins in heated or processed food products under high tempera-ture. Acrylamide first declared to be a foodborne carcinogen by Swedish National Food Adminis-tration in 2002 as it reported in many carbohydrates- based food products like potato chips, bread, coffee beans.

According to European Food Safety Authority Acrylamide, does not exist in the raw mate-rials of food products. But, when heating these materials under certain critical temperature i.e. above 120 degree especially carbohydrates containing foods produce acrylamide through the maillard reaction between reduc-ing sugars and free amino acid especially asparagine (Stadler et al., 2002, Mottram et al., 2002). Granvogl and Schiberle, (2007) stated that during maillard reac-tion upon enzymatic decarboxyl-ation of free asparagine an inter-mediate is formed i.e. 3-APA and produce acrylamide with heating even without carbonyl source. Enzymatic decarboxylation of asparagine may also result in acrylamide (Zyzak et al., 2003). Stadler and Scholz (2004) de-scribed the acrylamide formation through acrolein and acrylic acid. Casado et al., (2013) declared through their findings that in ster-ilized olives peptides/proteins are precursor for acrylamide forma-tion.

European Food Safety Author-ity (efsa) in June 2015 issued a report in which mentioned the overall sources, causes, and effects of acrylamide on the hu-man health. According to WHO (2010) potential risk assessment strategies must be improved to explore the nutritional and bio-logical linkages of acrylamide. Acrylamide is mainly formed in food i.e. Baked, Grilled, Roasted, usually absent in boiled and mi-crowaved food (Fogliano, 2014).

In March 2010, the United

States Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA) reported about the risk and hazard dose-re-sponse assessment to lethal activity of acrylamide through conducting tests on animals to obtain references values of car-cinogenic activity for humans in multiple tissues and degenerative peripheral nerve damage. Fed-eral Institute for Risk Assess-ment (BfR) revealed through the series of testing process that acrylamide intake relation with cancer development is inconsist-ent. (BfR, 2011). Health Cana-da in 2012 presented a detailed acrylamide dietary exposure and its assessment to cause chronic cancer through series of obser-vations showed that acrylamide is a potential health concern (Health Canada, 2012).

In 2013, The Danish Nation-al Food Institute (DTU) reported that depicts about contaminants of food observed for the period 2004–2011. In this period Dan-ish population’s dietary intake especially for those products that are potential source of acryla-mide was observed with the con-clusion that acrylamide is signifi-cant for food safety (DTU, 2013). The Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) revealed in 2014 through a comprehen-sive report on 24th Australian Total Diet Study (TDS), in which acrylamide also considered through research and experi-ment’s by observing the behavior of various food and beverages as dietary intake source of acryla-mide and declared that acryla-mide is a genotoxic and carcino-genic for human health (FSANZ, 2014).

In 2011, the National Toxi-cology Program (NTP) explored that AA is human carcinogen through logical anticipation (NTP, 2011). The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) categorized acrylamide as Group 2A carcinogen i.e. may be car-cinogen to human health (IARC, 1994). Acrylamide when ingest-ed it is absorbed in Gastrointes-tinal Tract (GIT) and metabolized. These metabolites moves to all major body organs and parts especially Glycidamide. Glycid-

amide reacts with DNA to form DNA adducts and is more reactive to DNA than acrylamide. Charac-terization of glycidamide-DNA adducts (Beland, 2015) to check its reactivity. Several Mitigation strategies for acrylamide are proposed and tested by various researchers as it mainly evident in potato and cereal based prod-ucts but less in dairy products. Capuano and Fogliano (2010)

described the feasible mitigation approaches like varietal improve-ment, recipe modification, and addition of certain proteins, ami-no acids, acidulants, enzymes, cyclodextrin, natural antioxidants or antioxidant extracts etc.

Replacement of reducing sug-ars with sucrose and of ammoni-um bicarbonate with sodium bi-carbonate). Alteration in process like change in baking and frying

time and temperature as well as pH level of various ingredients of the products. Up to now, most beneficial and authentic tool to control acrylamide is addition of an enzyme asparaginase (Cap-uano and Fogliano, 2010). Its main activity is to catalyze the hydrolysis of asparagine in as-partic acid and ammonia hence reducing the precursor asparag-ine concentration.

04 – TechnologyTimes.PkFoodTechJanuary 01 — 07, 2018

Maillard reaction: a source of potentially carcinogen acrylamide compound in

thermally processed foods

Maillard reaction a source of potentially carcinogen acrylamide compoundMaillard reaction is non- enzymatic browning between carbonyl group of carbohydrates and amine group of proteins in heated or processed food products under high temperature. Acrylamide first declared to be.....Mehtab Shoukat

Mehtab Shoukat

Acrylamide when ingested it is absorbed in Gastrointestinal

Tract (GIT) and metabolized. These metabolites moves to

all major body organs and parts especially Glycidamide.

Glycidamide reacts with DNA to form DNA adducts and is

more reactive to DNA than acrylamide. Characterization

of glycidamide-DNA adducts to check its reactivity

A lemon is a fruit that is best known for sour taste and use in food items. The juice of the lemon is about 6% citric acid which gives

it a sour taste. The distinct of sour taste of lemon juice, it is a main ingredient in juices and diet. Lemon comprises high amount of calcium, magnesium, vitamin C and potassium. It also contains minor amount of vitamin A and iron. Lemons were first known to be affective in scurvy which was very common disease in sailors in 1747. Egyptians also eat lem-ons and consume lemon juice to protect themselves against a variety of poisons. Lemons have strong anti-bacterial, anti-viral and immune boosting proper-ties. They are also use in variety of weight loss program owing to being admirable digestive aid and liver cleanser. Lemons hold 22 anti-cancer compounds in-cluding limonene. Study have exposed that the limonene oil ex-tracted from lemon vines, help to cure cancer and tumors.

Following are some most sig-nificant health benefits of lemon;• Natural treatment for arthri-

tis and rheumatism. When uric acid is not fleshed out immediately as its excess amount would be deposited in the joints and cause arthri-tis. Lemon use can stimulate the liver, while simultaneous-ly dissolving in the uric acid gathering within the joints.

• Lemons have keep bloodvessels soft and flexible and by removing any firmness, high blood pressure will be reduced. Infect when a lem-on is consumed regularly there are less chance of heart failure due to its vitamin B content. Those having high blood pressure should drink fresh lemon water numerous times a day. It is clever idea to drink one glass of lemon juice early in the morning or in empty stomach. This will stabilize your blood pressure, so it should be a part of your daily diet plan.

• Lemon contains citric acidwhich is effective in treatment of acne. Vitamin C found in citrus fruits is vital for healthy and glorious skin. Its alkaline nature kills diverse types of bacteria identified to cause acne. Lemon contains an-ti-bacterial and anti-microbial properties which fight bacte-ria causing acne. Lemons act as a chemical exfoliate which removes dead skin cells that causing skin reaction. It also acts as a natural chemical peal since it eliminates exces-sive oil, firm the skin which will leave your face fresh, smooth and clean

• Itmaybereasonableforasth-matic patients to test vitamin C on an individual basis if they have exacerbations of asthma caused by respiratory infections. More research on the role of vitamin C on com-mon cold-induced asthma is

needed.• Foods that are high in vita-

min C and other antioxidants may help to strengthen the immune system against the germs that cause cold and flu. One study has indicated that, while vitamin C supple-ments do not appear to less-en the incidence of colds in a population, they may help reduce the period of a cold. Vitamin C may also help to boost immunity in people who are undergoing extreme physical activity.

• Fruit juices and acidic liq-uids can impact the enamel of teeth, so it is best to dilute concentrated lemon juice with water or drink through a straw.

• Lemons are high in potas-sium, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium. A high con-centration of essential ions is valuable for good heart health, and brain and nerve function.

• Lemon juice encourageshealthy digestion in the di-gestive tract and can reduce symptoms of heartburn, burping and bloating.

• Citrus juiceshavebeenveri-fied to preserve the concen-tration of antioxidants found in green tea, even after the digestion process, so that the body can benefit with the bigger concentration of anti-oxidants. Just add a squeeze of lemon to your next cup of green tea.

• Lemon water dissolves uric

acid, which could be in ex-cess in the body. Excess uric acid in the body can cause inflammation of joints. Lemon upsurges the acidity in your body which can remove uric acid and decrease inflamma-tion.

• Lemonsalsocontainpotassi-um which play a key role in proper functioning of brain. This also increase productiv-ity and happiness throughout the entire day.

• While lemonsare commonlyassociated with being acidic because of their taste, they do not act acidic in the body. Lemons have an alkaline ef-fect on the body after con-sumption, which give you

better digestion and energy for the day. Having a properly alkalized body help you sleep better, suffer fewer colds, have fewer headaches, wake up with more energy, keep your skin youthful and im-prove your digestion.

• Lemonwater has a powerfulcleansing consequence on the liver by strengthening enzyme functions. The liver is a central organ that aids the internal organs, digestive system and circulatory system. Warm wa-ter with lemon flushes out the toxins in the body and detoxify one of the body’s most impor-tant organs.

The authors are from UCA, University of Sargodha, Sargodha

forms of healing of humans and animals are still widely practiced in traditional pastoral societies. It is thus not surprising that the contemporary “one medicine” idea grew out of experiences in African communities. It was con-ceived and conceptually consol-idated during Calvin Schwabe’s work with Dinka pastoralists. It basically means that there is no difference of paradigm between human and veterinary medicine, and is an extension of notions of comparative medicine that were prevalent in North American vet-erinary and medical schools in the 1970s and 1980s. Both sciences share, as a general medicine, a common body of knowledge in anatomy, physiology, pathology, and the origins of diseases in all species. For example, close genomic relationship of animals and humans exists in cancer ge-netics, and many cancer genes

were discovered in animals prior to identifying similar pathologies in humans. Such cross-over work should, however, not lead to an “Other one medicine”, but should contribute to the convergence of an integrated approach to health of all species.

International organizations such as the World Health Organ-ization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have institutionalized “one med-icine” partly as Veterinary Public Health (VPH), the contribution of veterinary medicine to public health. The concept of “ecosystem health” extends “one medicine” to the whole ecosystem, including wildlife. Sustainable development depends on the mutualism of health and well-being of humans, animals and the ecosystems in which they coexist. Conservation-ists have recognized and promot-ed what are known as the “Man-

hattan principles”, that the health and sustainable maintenance of wildlife in natural reserves are mutually interdependent with the health of communities and the livestock surrounding them. Final-ly, many of the causative agents with bioterrorism potential are zo-onoses and hence require mutual animal and public health vigilance for rapid detection. The term “one medicine”, having a rather clinical connotation, reflects insufficiently the interactions between human and animal health that reach far beyond individual clinical issues and include ecology, public health and broader societal dimensions. “One medicine” evolves thus to-wards “one health” through prac-tical implementation and careful validation of contemporary think-ing on health and ecosystems and their relevance for global public and animal health development.

A strategic framework for re-

ducing risks of infectious dis-eases at the animal-human-eco-system interfaces was first released at the 6th International Ministerial Conference on Avian and Pandemic Influenza in Sharm el-Sheikh, in October 2008 and has further evolved under the trademark protected term “One World One HealthTM” during an expert consultation in Winnipeg, Canada in 2009. “One health” has seen unprecedented revival in the last decade with fostered aware-ness, scientific debate, research programmes, integrated disease surveillance and an open toolbox in the fields of disease surveil-lance, epidemiological studies and health care provision. Despite all efforts of cooperation between human and animal health, isolated silo thinking persists, particularly in the public health sector. For ex-ample, an official of the Canadian Food Safety Agency (CFIA) com-

plained about the lack of cooper-ation with human health counter-parts in testing involved people. How can the public health sector perceive advantages of using “one health”? Demonstrating ev-idence of an added value of “one health” compared to conventional separated sectoral approaches is the major task that lies ahead, and represents the unfinished agenda of “one health” in view of further systemic conceptual develop-ments. Further evidence of public health benefits by interventions in animals, by joint health care pro-vision, or by joint disease surveil-lance, should be generated to fos-ter interactions between human and animal health at the academic level, in ministries and in interna-tional organizations in industrial and developing countries.

The author is researcher at University of Agriculture Faisalabad

05 – TechnologyTimes.PkNutritionTechJanuary 01 — 07, 2018

Health benefits of Lemon

Health benefits of LemonA lemon is a fruit that is best known for sour taste and use in food items. The juice of the lemon is about 6% citric acid which gives it a sour taste. The distinct of sour taste of lemon juice, it is a main ingredient in juices and diet. Lemon comprises high amount of calcium, .....

Mehwish Raza

Mehwish Raza, Dr.Rashad Mukhtar Balal, Mujahid Ali

From page 03 – History of ‘one medicine – one health’

Leishmaniasis is a disease which is caused by bite of female Sand Fly. Sand Fly is a tiny insect belongs to Order Diptera, the

same order in which mosquito and house fly exist. The scientific name of genus of this small crea-ture is Phlebotomus spp. Sand fly sucks blood from humans and other domesticated and wild animals. In the course of sucking blood, it transmits parasitic pro-tozoa (Leishmania) in host body that causes severe illness in hu-mans.

The disease is existed in the six continents except Antarctica. The disease can be transmitted through two ways: zoonotic cy-cle involves various wild and do-mesticated animals like kanga-roos, rats, rabbits, cats and dogs etc. and anthroponotic cycle which involves humans as reser-voir. The later can be observed in highly populated areas.

Globally, Leishmaniasis is di-vided into multiple types. Among these, the important ones are Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL), Cu-taneous Leishmaniasis (CL) and Muco-Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (MCL). Out of above mentioned, VL is the most threatening form resulting into the death of patient if not cured whereas CL is mild but the most usual form and can be lead to disability of the dis-eased organ if left untreated.

CL also called as Aleppi boil. In our languages, this is known as “Lahori Phora” or “Jahangiri Phora”. Mostly, adults and old aged people are vulnerable to this. Lesions development on the part of body where the fly bites, is common indication of the dis-ease. According to World Health Organization (WHO) 1.3 million cases of CL are reported annual-ly throughout the world. Most of the disease incidences are pres-ent in New World (Americas), the Mediterranean basin, the Middle East and Central Asia while in Pakistan it is present in all prov-inces of the country.

The other name of MCL is Es-pundia. This form of the disease destroys mucosal membrane of nose, throat and sensitive body parts of the patient. Majority of the reported cases are present in South American countries like Brazil, Peru and Bolvia. In Paki-stan, 2 cases are reported from Sargodha (Central Punjab) and from Azad Kashmir the number is 8 thus, it proves the disease in country. This is the least un-

derstood form of Leishmaniasis than the others.

Visceral Leishmaniasis is commonly known as Kala Azar. Mainly, young children are sus-ceptible to VL. The symptoms are enlargement of spleen & liv-er and uneven phases of fever. According to WHO, 200 000 to 300 000 deaths are reported an-nually throughout the world and this number can be even more because of weak reporting sys-tem as nations with high burden of disease are poor and have not developed case reporting sys-tem(s). More than 90% of the cases occur in India, Bangladesh and Ethiopia. In past years, 02 cases have been reported from Karachi in Pakistan.

CL on body partsOnly female Sand Fly sucks

blood from animals including man and causes disease trans-mission. Sand fly is a minute fly-ing insect comprises of 1-3 mm in size, smaller than the size of mosquito which is usually 5-7 mm in size. The insect gets its daily life energy from nectar of flowers, fruits and honey dew secreted from the aphids (plant lice). Sand flies are poor fliers and they can move only 2 km away from their habitats how-ever, can cover larger distances in case of wind blowing, due to their smaller size and low weight. Forest floor is its best resting site due to conducive microclimate. Sand flies prefer also to inhabit in abandoned nests of birds, rep-tiles and small rodents because of availability of rotting fecal ma-terial which is preferred food for their larvae. The vector is usu-ally whitish to greyish in color while the body is fully covered with hairs. Mainly, sand flies are present in tropics and sub-trop-ics regions. Sand flies cannot be found in those tertiaries where the temperature falls below 15°C. These are usually divided in two groups: one is the species of new world and the other one is from old world. Scientifically, we call first group as Lutzomy-ia which is the main carrier of pathogen in Americas (North & South) and the second group as Phlebotomus, whose species are causing disease in remaining part of the world including Paki-stan. The documented species are more than 800 which belong to the subfamily Phlebotominae out of them, ninety-eight species are reported to spread leishma-niasis in humans. Female fly can lay a small batch of eggs without sucking blood but requires blood

meal for more egg laying. After emergence from pupa, male ro-tates its external genitalia within 24 hours to become sexually mature. Sometimes, copulating occurs on the host where the fe-male is taking blood. There is no preferred timing for its biting like in case of mosquitoes and can attack at any time. But at the time of dusk they attack more. They always move in groups. The dis-ease-causing agent can be found in dense vegetation, wall ceilings and in tree holes etc.

Vector: Sand FlyBasically, there is no vaccine

or oral medicine for CL. The only treatment for CL is a glucantime injection which costs for 800-1000 Rs. Usually for treatment of one ulcer, on the average sev-en injections can be used which may be increased depending on

the condition of patient. For the treatment of other types there is no specific medication available. So, the only way to control the disease is to control the popula-tion of vector sand fly.

The vector can be controlled by destruction of their habitats / breeding sites like soil in hu-man dwellings, rotted manure, garbage in the street, hollow trees, roots of large trees and abandoned nests etc. All the above-mentioned activities in-volve community participation. This approach is one of the cost effective and an easiest way to get rid from number of diseases. For successful control of disease or vector, the efficient method is to mobilize communities by shar-ing true knowledge and by bring-ing change in human behavior. The other way is to maintain

cleanliness and hygienic condi-tions which is also not possible without involvement of people. Cleanliness refers to cleaning of their homes, surroundings, avoidance from throwing gar-bage into streets and appropriate disposal of debris. The other pre-ventive methods are secondary in nature which includes use of insect repellents like DEET, mos-quito nets, keep body covered, use of light color dress and avoid passing through the endemic ar-eas of vector infestation.

By adoption of above men-tioned preventive methods, we can save ourselves and other people from biting of sand flies consequently protecting the so-ciety to get Leishmaniasis.

The authors are affiliated with Department of Entomology, Muhammad Nawaz Shareef

University of Agriculture, Multan.

06 – TechnologyTimes.PkHealthTechJanuary 01 — 07, 2018

Leishmaniasis: A threatening disease

Leishmaniasis: A threatening diseaseLeishmaniasis is a disease which is caused by bite of female Sand Fly. Sand Fly is a tiny insect belongs to Order Diptera, the same order in which mosquito and house fly exist. The scientific name of genus .....Syed Haroon Masood

Syed Haroon Masood Bukhari and Dr. Unsar Naeem-Ullah

The vector can be controlled by destruction of their

habitats / breeding sites like soil in human dwellings,

rotted manure, garbage in the street, hollow trees, roots

of large trees and abandoned nests etc. All the above-

mentioned activities involve community participation.

This approach is one of the cost effective and an easiest

way to get rid from number of diseases

07 – TechnologyTimes.PkTechWire

PAKISTAN AND China consented to MoU that scientist exchange programmes and joint research projects in the field of science and technology. The MoU was signed by Rana Tanveer Hussain, Federal Minister for Science & Technology of Pakistan and Yao Jing, Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China in a meeting.

Other attendees of the meet-ing included Yasmeen Masood, Federal Secretary for Science & Technology, Dr. Shahzad Alam, Chairman Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Re-search (PCSIR), Dr. S.M. Ju-naid Zaidi, Executive Director, CIIT, Professor Dr. Muhammad Ashraf, Chairman Pakistan Sci-ence Foundation (PSF) and other senior officers of attached de-partments.

Yao Jing, Ambassador Ex-traordinary & Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China presented his credential to the Mr. Rana Tanveer Hussain, Fed-eral Minister for Science & Tech-nology. He also said that Pakistan and China shared a long and joint history of technological cooper-ation. Both countries had signed MoU and agreements on joint

Research Programmes.Various training and scholar-

ships programmes were offered to Pakistani students and tech experts by Yao Jing, Ambassa-dor Extraordinary & Plenipoten-tiary of the People’s Republic of China.

The Ambassador also appre-ciated keen interest of the Pa-kistani government in the new innovative strategy of Science & Technology. China looks forward to many bilateral programmes in Science & Technology with the Government of Pakistan and Min-istry of Science & Technology.

The aim of the meeting was to put stress not only on coop-eration in the establishment of Science & Technology Com-plex, Science City and Technol-ogy Parks but support Pakistan in achieving technological ad-

vancements. The meeting has also dis-

cussed the initiatives unleashed by the CPEC. The chair empha-sized that Pakistan needs new wave of technologies like info technology and biotechnology to progress.

For the establishment of Na-tional Centre for Transfer of Tech-nology and Centre of Excellence in Natural Medicine, the meeting sought technical assistance from China. The meeting has pro-posed ultramodern Joint Labo-ratory Project facility in Gwadar, Pakistan.

The meeting concluded that Pakistan and China jointly work towards a new level of bilateral Science & Technology coopera-tion that can seize the opportu-nity of the Belt and Road initia-tive.

PAKISTAN AND Silicon Valley, has just backed another Pakistani Startup ConnectHear. This start-up gets investment for an Indian investor, Asha Jadeja.

Three youngsters have found-ed the ConnectHear. The aim be-hind ConnectHear is to minimize the gap between the mute & deaf. They aimed to serve the commu-nity by establishing a sign lan-guage interpretation system at large.

An automated audio-to- PSL (Pakistani Sign Language) ap-plication for mobile devices was under process. The company is working to become a compre-hensive platform that can unlock the world for the marginalized sector of our society.

Asha had officially announced the operations of her investment firm Dot Edu Ventures in Pakistan in September. She had vowed to invest and work in the Pakistani startups. She has also invested in startups like EBolt, Campus-Feed, ClubInternet & many others in Pakistan.

Ms. Jadeja, based in California holds in her portfolio tech com-panies like Google, Uber, PayPal, Pinterest, Weebly, and more than 100 others. She invested in Con-

nectHear is an equity free grant to help the startup.

She said that grant from Mot-wani Foundation is first kind of transaction in Pakistan. This will be a future-exit of this company will be rolled back 100% into charitable causes. She further stated that I can see ConnectHear be an important player that can bring the handicapped population into the mainstream workforce.

Dot Edu Ventures in Paki-stan has officially star ted op-erations. More investments are expected in early-stage tech-nology companies by Asha. These investments will help new, up and coming investors to par tner with angel investors, to comprehend the market and have effectively made a mod-est bunch of organizations, to moderate their fears.

NATIONAL INCUBATION Center (NIC) Islamabad, launched under the public-private partnership of Ministry of Information Technol-ogy and Telecom (MOITT), Ignite (formerly National ICT R & D Fund), Jazz and Teamup.

NIC will start accepting ap-plications for its 3rd Cohort. To apply to this incubation program in Pakistan Startups are encour-aged from across the country.

The National Incubation Center is home to over forty startups is providing them with a world-class facility, mentorship, incubation, and acceleration pro-grams.

FbStart by Facebook, Hult Prize, Invest2Innovate, Acumen Fund, Katapult Accelerator and IBM are working with NIC as in-ternational and local partners to drive economic growth through innovation in information and communication technology (ICT).

Startups from all genres in-cluding; biotech, fintech, IoT, are encouraged to apply for the pro-gram. Program is of 12-months. The program will focus on ac-tionable training to mentor start-ups by experts and thought lead-ers from across industries. The advanced facility of its kind nur-tures innovation, growth through one on one mentor sessions, tech talks. It also allows startups to connect with industry veter-ans. The National Incubation pro-gram also provides startups with access to grants, VC network,

and digital payment solutions.NIC go through a rigorous

evaluation process of applied startups. While selection will on the criteria defined by the NIC panel.

Startups are encouraged to participate in local and are high-lighted in international events. Some of the existing startups i.e. Manhunt, Lets Innovate, Mapa-lytics and Anzen at the NIC made their mark and showcased their products at the 4FYN held in Bar-celona this year.

The Jazz xlr8 program has been instrumental in laying the foundation for a sustainable tech-nology ecosystem, and in pro-viding resources and expertise to help young entrepreneurs fulfill their potential. Jazz xlr8 works in-line with Vimpelcom’s ‘Make Your Mark’ initiative, which aims to help shape the future genera-tion through exposure and seed funds.

CANADIAN GOVERNMENT is open to provide a 52-week work permit or a permanent resident to Pakistani tech startups for better connectivity and penetration in the international market.

Pakistani startups and en-trepreneurs will have tickets to the Toronto-Waterloo region, also known as the Silicon Valley North. The Silicon Valley is home to many tech startups and inter-national companies.

The representative of Accel-erator Centre, Canadian Silicon Valley, has revealed visa pro-gramme for the Pakistani tech startups and entrepreneurs to the Momentum Pakistan-2018.

Momentum Pakistan-2018, a mega event that is bringing dig-

ital world’s giants like Facebook, Amazon Web Services, IBM and Microsoft and several others to Karachi, Pakistan. The represent-atives of these tech giants will mentor and support with tools and funds the Pakistani entre-preneurs and startups. Premier Pakistani and international com-panies will discuss sharing their APIs (Application Programming Interface) with other startups.

Canadian government has facilitated Pakistanis with some relaxations in visa programme so that local startups can have a platform to brand and build their business in the international mar-ket.

Momentum Pakistan found-er Amir Jafri said that Canadian

representative will be the part of Momentum 2018, in Karachi to support the local startups. The center will also address the concerns related to the visa pro-gramme once a month through a video session on the Momentum Pakistan-2018 platform.

‘ROSHAN PAKISTAN, an app for electricity is introduced by the federal government. This new app will notify customers about power outages and billing details.

Android smartphone users can download this app as it is available at Google Play Store. ‘Roshan Pakistan’, android app, is launched under the banner of Power Information Technology Company (PITC).

Apart from providing billing information to customer, this app will also inform about the load shedding schedule.

It has a special feature called Bill Estimator that enable its us-ers to estimate its bill. They will only have to insert their con-sumed units to know the exact value of their electricity bill.

The app description says that Roshan Pakistan is stepping for-ward to access Billing Details, and Load Shedding Schedule at their fingertips

Federal Minister for Power Di-vision Awais Leghari said that the mobile application will help mil-lions of consumers and help them to know the feeder information.

Pakistan & China consented to exchanges scientists for joint research projects

Pakistani startup gets invest-ment by Asha Jadeja

NIC Islamabad announced its third Cohort

Canada offering relaxation in visa policy for Pakistani tech startups

‘Roshan Pakistan’ app for load shedding schedule

January 01 — 07, 2018

08 – TechnologyTimes.PkTechWireJanuary 01 — 07, 2018

IN PAKISTAN unemployment, among IT graduates are often heard. While Dr. Umar Saif, VC of IT University, claimed that there is a shortage of IT experts in Pa-kistan.

The reason behind this short-age is that IT graduates do not have certain skills like critical thinking. Unfortunately, major-ity of university graduates and school students in Pakistan do not have critical thinking. The creation of a well informed and critical workforce is stopped by a system of rote learning in our schools.

We should learn lessons from pluralistic Muslim countries such as Malaysia. The late prime min-ister of Singapore Lee Kaun Yew in his book ‘From Third World to the First World’ called Mahathir Mohamad the best ‘Malaysian leader’. Lee said that Malaysia has been modernized by Ma-hathir. Malaysia moves away from traditionalism and towards becoming a tolerant, peaceful country because Mahathir has emphasized on science, espe-

cially computer science. In Pakistan especially, Pun-

jab is following the same thing. Punjab Information Technology Board, headed by the dynamic and industrious Dr. Umar Saif, Plan 9, Pakistan’s version of Sil-icon Valley, has become highly active. It is the idea of Dr. Umar Saif.

Pakistan is facing two chal-lenges in this regard. While uni-versities, academia, and industry collaborate on Plan 9, venture capitalism is missing. Invest-ment mindset is the other chal-lenge that is faced in this regard. Businessmen invest in textiles and real states but not in IT in-dustry.

PAKISTAN SCIENCE Foundation (PSF) organized Science Quiz Competition which is the part of its Science Popularization Pro-gram on the topic of “Climate Change and Biodiversity”. Team from Pir Mehar Ali Shah Arid Ag-riculture University (PMAS-AAU) took first place, while, National University of Science and tech-nology (NUST) stood as first run-ner-up, and Fatima Jinnah Wom-en University (FJWU) as second runner-up.

This quiz competition was or-ganized among the students of Natural sciences and emerging technologies from universities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Total five number of universities par-ticipated in the competition.

Dr. Muhammad Rafique DG Pakistan Museum of Natural History (PMNH), Dr. Ibrar Shin-wari Chairman Environmental Sciences at International Islamic University Islamabad and Cap Mr. Asghar Hayat Chief Editor Engineering were the judges of the competition.

In opening remarks, Dr. Ashraf

Chairman PSF highlighted the im-portance of Science and its ben-efits for the society. He told the audience that PSF is energetically promoting and popularizing Sci-ence and Technology in Pakistan.

He further added that objec-tive of quiz competition was to encourage students to look be-yond their textual knowledge and establish a relationship between theory and application of the learnt scientific concepts.

Chief Guest Dr. Shaukat Hameed in his address said, “Cli-mate Change is the vital subject to highlight its importance for fu-

ture survival of mankind and bio-diversity on this planet earth”. He emphasized that students have to work hard for solving environ-mental issues in the country.

Top three teams were award-ed cash prizes of Rs 20,000, Rs, 15,000 and Rs 10,000 respec-tively along with shields and Cer-tificates.

Dr. Shaukat Hameed along with guests of honor awarded the winning teams. A large number of students of different universi-ties, and personalities from aca-demia and industry participated in the competition.

NOW ADOPTING modern tech-nologies is an undeniable fact in every field of life. Modern tech-nologies can provide effective tools and methods that in turn can save the cost.

Dr. Abdul Majid, country man-ager International Centre for Ag-riculture Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA) has said that Pakistan must adopt the latest technologies of farming and water so that effort, time, and money can be saved.

Pakistan has a great potential for agriculture as it has a fertile land for farming. Unfortunate-ly, dry areas in Pakistan due to the lack of a proper mechanism of providing water are useless. Sindh is a province that is as-sociated with such dry regions. During a recent meeting held with Agriculture Service Provid-ers (ASPs) in Sindh, Dr. Majid emphasized on the need of the adoption of new tools, the only

solution to the problems of Pa-kistan.

While talking with ASPs of the Jamshoro district at the U.S-Pa-kistan Centre for Advanced Stud-ies in Water (USPCAS-W), MUET, Dr. Majid pointed that the availa-bility of the duplicate of the Ba-nana Tree Shredder in the coun-try is important. This machine can convert the residual banana to organic fertilizers that are ben-eficial for soil.

UNIVERSAL SERVICE Fund (USF) has spread telecom ser-vices specifically in far-flung ar-eas of Pakistan. Now experts are looking for their role again for the promotion of broadband services across Pakistan.

Balochistan, largest province of Pakistan by area,

Pakistan’s largest province by area, through USF projects worth billions of rupees and services by various telecommunication operators, has witnessed the de-velopment of telecom infrastruc-ture in 2017.

since 2007, USF under the Ministry of Information Technol-ogy has disbursed grants worth Rs50 billion to different operators for projects in different telecom regions.

Ufone received the highest subsidy of Rs14 billion followed by PTCL with Rs12.2 billion and Telenor with Rs5.2 billion.

According to the USF spokes-person and USF data 5 out of 6 optical fiber projects are based in Balochistan. Balochistan has the lowest number of mobile phone user that about 46% population has access to either mobile, wireless or a fixed line network leaving a big room for improve-ment.

USF spokesman further said that since January 2017, USF has been working to spread telephone and now broadband services in far-flung areas like Awaran-Lasbela, Kohistan, Kha-

ran-Washuk, Dera Bugti, Khyber, and Mohmand. This effort from USF will create opportunities and uplift socioeconomic life of the people.

Parvez Iftikhar, USF CEO, said that USF ready to launch broad-band services by three steps laying fiber optic cables, digital literacy and creating local con-tent. Apart from introducing the services, USF will also train peo-ple in schools, hospitals, govern-ment offices or other places for social gathering.

USF will also need to create local content and translate into different languages about their daily life like new techniques of farming or tips about cattle rear-ing in local language.

Iftikhar further added that in this way demand for cellular companies and internet services. Recently low-cost smartphone running on light-weight mobile software Android Oreo Go has been launched by Google in India at a price of Rs2,000. Soon the phone will be introduced in Paki-stan that is a potential market for telecommunication products and services.

PAKISTAN IS a victim of many inherited genetic disorders due to the trend of cousin marriages. By establishing a mutome that is a genetic mutation database that will help provide genetic coun-seling and screening, and aid in personalized healthcare accord-ing to the software developers.

Pakistan Genetic Mutation Database (PGMD) by using Pu-bMed database of references and abstracts as well as consul-tations with leading genetic sci-entists of the country has made this software. PGMD is covering around 1,000 mutations impli-cated in 120 types of syndromic and non-syndromic disorders.

The database is of extreme importance to country like Pa-kistan where cousin marriag-es are common in society said Saadullah Khan, PGMD’s chief coordinator, assistant professor

of biotechnology and genetic engineering in Kohat University of Science & Technology, and an author of a report on the project published in December 2017 in the European Journal of Medical Genetics.

Higher rates of infant mortali-ty, birth defects, learning difficul-ties, blindness, deafness, dumb-ness, epilepsy, thalassemia, spontaneous abortion, infertility, stillbirth, and metabolic disorder are few of the medical risks of first cousin marriages.

In Pakistan, the percentage of consanguineous marriages (cousin marriages) is 62.70%, highest among countries of ‘con-sanguinity belt’. Whereas the percentage is 40 in Middle East countries.

Pakistan has a rich population having various kinds of genetic diseases or disorders that make

Pakistan high in first-degree con-sanguinity. PGMD have found a number of mutations by different researchers said, Khan.

“In order to ensure security and confidentiality on a priority basis, PGMA will assure their assistance to researchers, cli-nicians and genetic counselors. The identities, addresses, eth-nicity, locality, gender etc., of individuals, will be kept secret to avoid the misuse of data”, Khan informed SciDev.Net.

Lack of IT experts in Pakistan, claimed Dr Umar

PMAS-AAU took first place in PSF Inter Universities Science Quiz Competition

Modern farming techniques are need of time: Dr Majid

USF to spread broadband services in far-flung areas of Pakistan

PGMD important database to test and avoid genetic disorders