Browsing by Author "Nouman Rasool"

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    Detection of dry bloodstains on different fabrics after washing with commercially available detergents
    (Australian Journal of Forensic Sciences, 2015) Samreen Mushtaq; Nouman Rasool; Sehrish Firiyal
    Blood is significant evidence that can help an investigator solve a crime. It can link a suspect to a crime and also help in reconstructing the crime scene. Criminals often attempt to eliminate bloodstained evidence at a scene by washing it. These attempts can result in alteration, or partial or complete removal of stained areas. Many presumptive tests are used to detect the bloodstains on clothes. In this study, bloodstained fabrics were washed with commercially available and frequently used detergents. Kastle-Meyer (KM), Leucomalachite green (LMG), Tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) and Hemastix tests were used to detect the presence of blood on these washed fabrics. The Hemastix test was found to be the most sensitive to detecting the washed stains on all cloths. The Leucomalachite green test was found to be the least sensitive. The ability of a fabric to retain blood after washing depends not only upon the chemistry and manufacturing of the fabric but also on the type of detergent. The time of immersion of the fabric with detergent also affects the removal of stains from fabrics. Ariel showed the best results in removing bloodstains from all fabrics. Cotton polyester and khaddar showed the maximum retention of blood after washing with either of the detergents, whereas silk polyester had the minimum ability to hold bloodstains.
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    Forensic science in Pakistan; present and future
    (Egyptian Journal of Forensic Sciences, 2018) Mahmood; Rana Muhammad Mateen; Asma Tariq; Nouman Rasool
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    In silico targeting of non-structural 4b protein from dengue virus 4 with spiropyrazolopyridone: study of molecular dynamics simulation, admet and virtual screening
    (VirusDisease, 2018) Waqar Hussain; Iqra Qaddir; Sajid Mahmood; Nouman Rasool
    Dengue fever is one of the most prevalent disease in tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), approximately 3.5 billion people have been affected with dengue fever. Four serotypes of dengue virus (DENV) i.e. DENV1, DENV2, DENV3 and DENV4 have up to 65% genetic variations among themselves. dengue virus 4 (DENV4) was first reported from Amazonas, Brazil and is spreading perilously due to lack of awareness of preventive measures, as it is the least targeted serotype. In this study, non-structural protein 4B of dengue virus 4 (DENV4NS4B) is computationally characterised and simulations are performed including solvation, energy minimizations and neutralisation for the refinement of predicted model of the protein. The spiropyrazolopyridone is considered as an effective drug against NS4B of DENV2, therefore, a total of 91 different analogues of spiropyrazolopyridone are used to analyse their inhibitory action against DENV4NS4B. These compounds are docked at the binding site with various binding affinities, representing their efficacy to block the binding pocket of the protein. Pharmacological and pharmacokinetic assessment performed on these inhibitors shows that these are suitable candidates to be used as a drug against the dengue fever. Among all these 91 compounds, Analogue-I and Analogue-II are analysed to be the most effective inhibitor having potential to be used as drugs against dengue virus.
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    Probing the pharmacological parameters, molecular docking and quantum computations of plant derived compounds exhibiting strong inhibitory potential against ns5 from zika virus
    (Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology, 2018) Nouman Rasool; Amir Jalal; Adnan Amjad; Waqar Hussain
    Zika virus (ZIKV) is known for microcephaly and neurological disease in humans and the nonstructural proteins of ZIKV play a fundamental role in the viral replication. Among the seven nonstructural proteins, NS5 is the most conserved and largest protein. Two major functional domains of NS5 i.e. methyltransferase (MTase) and RNAdependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) are imperative for the virus life cycle and survival. The present study explicates the inhibitory action of phytochemicals from medicinal plants against NS5 from ZIKV, leading to the identification of potential inhibitors. The crystal structure of the protein is retrieved from RCSB protein data bank. A total of 2035 phytochemicals from 505 various medicinal plants are analysed for their pharmacological properties and pharmacokinetics. Compounds having effective drug-likeness are docked against the protein and further analysed using density functional theory approach. Among the 2035 phytochemicals, 13 are selected as potential inhibitors against MTase having high binding affinities and 17 compounds are selected for RdRp. HOMO and LUMO energies are calculated for the docked compounds within and outside binding pockets of MTase and RdRp, adapting the B3LYP hybrid exchange-correlation functional with def2-SV(P) basis set. Physicochemical properties such as ionization energy, electronic chemical potential, electronegativity, electron affinity, molecular softness, molecular hardness and electrophilicity index have also been analysed for selected phytochemicals. Based upon the results, it is concluded that the selected phytochemicals are highly competent to impede the replication of the virus by inhibiting the ZIKV-NS5.
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    Recent trends in molecular epidemiology of hepatitis c virus in mardan, kpk Pakistan
    (Infection, Genetics and Evolution, 2018) Braira Wahid; Muhammad Waqar; Nouman Rasool; Zobaria Rehman; Jamaluddin Saeed; Muhammad Wasim; Muhammad Arif Khan; Amjad Ali; Shazia Rafique; Muhammad Idrees; Sajjad
    To determine the genotypic distribution of HCV, frequency of risk factors involved in its transmission, and correlation of genotype with viral load in Mardan population which is the second largest city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), Pakistan. Blood samples of 1140 were collected from different regions of Mardan and major proportion of recruited patients were internally displaced people (IDPs), refugees, and slum dwellers. Complete patient’s history was analyzed to assess the possible risks involved in HCV transmission. Viral genotype was determined by PCR (polymerase chain reaction) whereas, HCV RNA was measured by qRT PCR. Data was analyzed using SPSS statistical software. Our results indicate 3a as the most abundant subtype in Mardan population followed by 3b, 2a, 2b, 4a, untypeable, mixed, 1a, and 1b. In contrast to previous findings, genotype 1 was the least prevalent genotype and the overall prevalence of HCV in Mardan population was significantly higher in females (n=687, 60.2%) than males (n=453, 39.7%). Significant difference between-genotypes and gender was observed in genotype 1 (p < 0.034) and genotype 3 (p < 0.004). The mean age was 44 (SD±9.51). The most frequently found mixed genotype was 3a+1b and mixed genotype was more prevalent in males. The proportion of middle-aged people (41-49 years) was higher whereas, older and younger people were least infected with HCV. This is the first study that showed substantial correlation of genotype 3 with low and intermediate viral load in Mardan population. Moreover, high and extremely high viral load was associated with other genotypes. Our findings showed that most of the patients who experienced high and extremely high viremia in their blood were males and belonged to Takhat Bhai and Mardaan regions. There were significant difference in the prevalence of HCV genotype 3a (p=0.001) and genotype 3b (p=0.005) in different regions of Mardan. Pre-treatment viral load is significantly high (p 0.001) in tehsil Mardan patients infected with HCV genotype 3 as compared to other genotypes. Unsafe medical prractices such as medical ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT and dental surgeries, intravenous drug use, and blood transfusions were the main risk factors for HCV transmission in Mardan, KPK Pakistan. This study gives clear insights into the epidemiological status of HCV in Mardan population. Genotype 3 is correlated with low and intermediate viral load whereas high viral loads were revealed among patients infected with genotypes other than genotype 3. In the absence of better data and robust epidemiological information, this detailed analysis of HCV genotypes with special reference to risk factors, pretreatment viral load, gender, and age will provide the baseline data for development of optimal HCV eradication and preventive strategies.
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    Structural and quantum mechanical computations to elucidate the altered binding mechanism of metal and drug with pyrazinamidase from mycobacterium tuberculosis due to mutagenicity
    (ournal of Molecular Graphics and Modelling, 2018) Nouman Rasool; Saima Iftikhar; Waqar Hussain
    Pyrazinamide is known to be the most effective treatment against tuberculosis disease and is known to have bacteriostatic action. By targeting the bacterial spores, this drug reduces the chances for the progression of the infection in organisms. In recent years, increased instances of the drug resistance of bacterial strains are reported. Pyrazinamidase, activator for pyrazinamide, leads to resistance against the drug due to mutagenicity across the world. The present study aimed at the quantum mechanistic analysis of mutations in pyrazinamidase to gain insights into the mechanism of this enzyme. Quantum mechanical calculations were performed to analyse the effect of mutations at the metal coordination site using ORCA software program. Moreover, conformational changes in PZase binding cavity has also been analysed due to mutations of binding pocket residues using CASTp server. In order to elucidate the behaviour of the mutant pyrazinamidase, docking of PZA in the binding pocket of PZase was performed using AutoDock Vina. Analysis of results revealed that iron showed weak binding with the metal coordination site of the mutant proteins due to alteration in electron transfer mechanism. The binding cavity of the mutant PZase has undergone major conformational changes as the volume of pocket increased due to bulky R-chains of mutated amino acids. These conformational changes lead to weak binding of the drug at binding cavity of PZase and reduce the drug activation mechanism leading to increased drug resistance in the bacterial strains.
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    Tattooing trend: major cause of HCV transmission among youngsters
    (Infectious Diseases, 2018) Braira Wahid; Komal Saleem; Nouman Rasool; Shazia Rafique; Amjad Ali; Muhammad Waqar; Muhammad Idrees