National Defence University, Pakistan

About: National Defence University, Pakistan is a education organization based out in Islamabad, Pakistan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Decision support system & Population. The organization has 802 authors who have published 816 publications receiving 3701 citations. The organization is also known as: National Defence University of Pakistan & National Defence University Islamabad.

Melatonin ameliorates the adverse effects of leptin on sperm

Abstract: This study examined the effects of melatonin on leptin-induced changes in sperm parameters in adult rats. Five groups of Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with either leptin or leptin and melatonin or melatonin for 6 weeks. Leptin was given daily via the intraperitoneal route (60 μg kg-1 body weight) and melatonin was given in drinking water (10 mg kg-1 or 20 mg kg-1 body weight per day). Upon completion, sperm count, sperm morphology, 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine, Comet assay, TUNEL assay, gene expression profiles of antioxidant enzymes, respiratory chain reaction enzymes, DNA damage, and apoptosis genes were estimated. Data were analyzed using ANOVA. Sperm count was significantly lower whereas the fraction of sperm with abnormal morphology, the level of 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine, and sperm DNA fragmentation were significantly higher in rats treated with leptin only. Microarray analysis revealed significant upregulation of apoptosis-inducing factor, histone acetyl transferase, respiratory chain reaction enzyme, cell necrosis and DNA repair genes, and downregulation of antioxidant enzyme genes in leptin-treated rats. Real-time polymerase chain reaction showed significant decreases in glutathione peroxidase 1 expression with increases in the expression of apoptosis-inducing factor and histone acetyl transferase in leptin-treated rats. There was no change in the gene expression of caspase-3 (CASP-3). In conclusion, the adverse effects of leptin on sperm can be prevented by concurrent melatonin administration.

Prevalence, awareness, treatment and control of diabetes mellitus among the elderly: The 2011 National Health and Morbidity Survey, Malaysia.

Abstract: Diabetes mellitus is an important cardiovascular risk factor. The objective of this study was to provide population-based estimates on the prevalence, awareness, treatment and control rate of diabetes among the older persons in Malaysia. Analysis of secondary data from a cross-sectional national population-based survey was done, which was conducted in 2011 throughout Malaysia. A total of 2764 respondents (15.5%) were older persons. The overall prevalence of diabetes among older persons was 34.4% in which 65.2% were aware of their diabetes status. Out of those who were aware, 87.5% had been treated. Only 21.8% of those treated had their diabetes controlled. The results of multiple logistic regression showed that the factors associated with higher awareness rates were women, Indians and higher income groups; factors associated with higher treatment rates were urban residents and those who were married and widow/widower/ divorcee. There was a high overall prevalence, awareness and treatment rate of diabetes among older persons in Malaysia but with suboptimal control rate.

Materials and design issues for military helmets

Abstract: As weaponry technology has advanced, the ballistic threat to humans has increased significantly. As well as the military, civilians who are exposed to these threats as part of their everyday work require adequate protective equipment. This increasing demand for body armour and ballistic helmets is driving the protective equipment industry to create lightweight, reliable protection adapted for specific applications and marketable to a wide range of consumers. This chapter focuses on a few theoretical aspects of head impact mechanics and related head injury criteria, considering design, manufacturing and testing procedures, with particular emphasis on the modern materials and tools used in the search for lightweight, cost-efficient and effective equipment.

Spatio-temporal analysis of temperature variability, trend, and magnitude in the Hindu Kush region using Monte Carlo and Sen’s slope approaches

Abstract: The present study explores the spatial and temporal deviations in temperature using Monte Carlo (MC) and Sen’s slope (SS) approaches in the Hindu Kush (HK) region. Climate change holds sturdy association against the temperature trend that has generated adverse impacts in the form of floods. In this attempt, for trend analysis, temperature has been selected as a meteorological parameter. This study mainly focuses on exploring the tendency in average temperature with respect to time and the consequential flood recurrences in the region. For the current study, data regarding temperature were typically collected from Pakistan Meteorological Department. In the study region, there are a total of seven meteorological station falls namely Dir, Chitral, Drosh, Saidu, Malam Jabba, Kalam, and Timergara. The temperature time series data was calculated and analyzed using MC and SS approaches for trend detection in order to demonstrate the kind of fluctuation in the Hindu Kush region. The resultant analysis further revealed that in the meteorological station of Dir, a more significant positive trend (α = 0.0001) was found in mean monthly maximum, minimum, and monthly normal temperature. Likewise, at Drosh, a positive trend is detected in mean monthly maximum (α = 0.04), monthly minimum (α = 0.003), and monthly average (α = 0.0005). Moreover, at Saidu met station, there is also a trend detected in temperature sub-variables such as monthly maximum (α = 0.0001) and monthly minimum (α = 0.001). In addition to these, at Kalam, there is a temperature trend noted for monthly minimum (α = 0.01) and monthly average (α = 0.02). Furthermore, the analysis demonstrates that there is no trend detected in the remaining stations, i.e., Chitral, Malam Jabba, Drosh, and Timergara. The overall analysis discovered that there is a sturdy relationship between climate change phenomenon and temperature variability. After using SS test to the temperature data of mean monthly maximum (TMMMax), the results explored that Kalam station grips the highest magnitude, i.e., Q = 0.76; however, Timergara shows the lowermost, i.e., Q = − 0.34. For the monthly minimum temperature (TMMMin), at Kalam again, the highest value (Q = 0.005) was detected; however, other stations revealed a negative trend, except Drosh which express no change in terms of magnitude. Similarly, in terms of monthly normal temperature (TMNor), Timergara station (Q = − 0.4) verified a negative trend magnitude and Malam Jabba station again trendless. Among all, the met station of Malam Jabba which holds an altitude of 2591 m is a hilly station just followed by Kalam having 2103 m height; however, Dir holds 1375 m height and the rest of the met stations show low elevation. The main reason for the temperature difference is the altitude of the study region.