The cornea is the clear front of the eye and its clarity is important for the transmission of light to the retina for visual perception. The corneal surface is composed of an epithelium that is renewed by stem cells located at the periphery of the cornea, in a region known as the limbus. These so-called limbal stem cells can become deficient or dysfunctional as a result of many causes including chemical and thermal burns to the eye, hereditary causes such as Aniridia and Ectodermal Dysplasia, inflammatory diseases such as StevensJohnson Syndrome and Mucous Membrane Pemphigoid, and iatrogenic causes such as radiation therapy and topical chemotherapy. In the resulting disease of of Limbal Stem Cell Deficiency the corneal epithelium cannot be maintained resulting in chronic epithelial defects and the surface becomes replaced by the conjunctival epithelium and its blood vessels which surrounds the cornea and limbus resulting in visual loss. Limbal Stem Cell Deficiency is therefore a painful and blinding disease. It is difficult to manage at the best of times.

Dr. Sajad Ahmad has developed an animal free culture method for limbal stem cells that has been used to successfully regenerate the corneal epithelium in patients with unilateral chemical burns and restore their vision. He is currently collaborating with centres in Edinburgh (UK), Oslo (Norway), Harvard University (Boston, USA) and Dublin (Ireland) to develop this technique in those centers for future mulitcenter clinical trials. He will outline this method. He was also the first to differentiate human embryonic stem cells into the corneal epithelial lineage and he will discuss this approach and the opportunities this presents.

Khwarizmi Science Society finds great pleasure in participating in the Science Exhibition organized on 16th of April at the Ali Institue of Education.

The Ali Institute of Education has earned recognition as one of the best teacher’s training institute in Pakistan. The Institute has organized a Science fair exhibiting  innovative models on basic concepts of science at the elementary and secondary levels.

The Khwarizmi Science Society, upon invitation, is participating in this exhibition and will be demonstrating a new range of science models and exhibits including:

1. Weather change experiments including Rain Gages, Air pressure, Wind speed and wind vanes
2. Seismometry
3. Astronomy
4. Craters in sand
5. Lunar phases
6. Spectrum of mercury

The event location is marked in the map below:

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The World Space Week is an international celebration of the contribution that space science and technology makes to the betterment of the human condition. It is celebrated in accordance with the two milestones that were achieved earlier in history. On October 4, 1957, the first man-made satellite was launched, the Sputnik 1, while on October 10, 1967, just ten years after the first flight of a satellite, the first international treaty, the outer space treaty, went into effect. During World Space Week, events and educational programs related to space are held globally.

As per our customs Khwarizmi Science Society is also going to celebrate this week to encourage world space week programs about the exploration of space and science and its impact on human imagination. The Khwarizmi science society is actively participating in SUPARCO's  Family Fair on 6th and 7th of October in the popular Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, Allama Iqbal Town.

 Activities arranged at our stalls include:

• Creating your own earthquake
• Lunar craters
• Telescope making
• Understanding sky charts
• Models of telescopes

Lahore Astronomical Society is partnering with the KSS in this activity.

A map of the location is given here:

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