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Objective: To find out the prevalence and associated factors of undernutrition in a semi-rural setting. Method: The community-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Tehsil Battagram of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan, in January and February 2020 after approval from the ethics review committee of Nanjing Medical University, Jiangsu, China, and comprised children aged 6-59 months who had no physical or mental disability. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire. Anthropometric data was analysed using the World Health Organisation Anthro software. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to find out the association between dependent variables, like wasting, underweight and stunting, and independent variables , like socioeconomic, child, maternal and environmental characteristics. Data was analysed using SPSS 21. Results: Of the 504 children, 257(51%) were girls and 247(49%) were boys. The largest group was aged 36-47 months 127(25.2%), while the smallest group was aged 6-11 months 56(11.1%). Overall, 94(18.7%) children were wasted, 167(33.1%) were underweight and 248(49.2%) were stunted. Children whose family income was high had low odds for being wasted (odds ratio: 0.59, 95% confidence interval: 0.25-0.71), underweight (odds ratio: 0.30, 95% confidence interval: 0.08-0.72) and stunted (odds ratio: 0.54, 95% confidence interval: 0.30-0.80). Similarly, those children who were exclusively breastfed had low odds of being wasted were (odds ratio: 0.45, 95% confidence interval: 0.32-0.53), underweight (odds ratio: 0.56, 95% confidence interval: 0.42-0.78) and stunted (odds ratio: 0.62, 95% confidence interval: 0.51-0.97). ---Continue

C arotenoids are class of fat soluble pigments widely distributed in plants, animals and microorganisms (bacteria, algae, fungi, and yeast). They have been vastly used in the production of medicines, health products, animal feeds and cosmetics as food coloring. Microbial fermentation synthesis has become a major means of the natural carotenoids production. Carotenoids produced by microbial fermentation are all nontoxic and considered as a natural food additive. The using of yeast to produce carotenoids has a simple nutrient requirements, short fermentation cycle and simple reproductive method, while plant extraction has high cost, expensive price, and complex process. Sporidiobolus pararoseus which known as red yeast, is reach in β-carotene, γ-carotene, torulene and torularhodin and it has ability to synthesis them from low-cost carbon sources, but there are few reports about this yeast. Torulene and torularhodin are similar to lycopene in structure and their functional activity value needs further research. So far, few studies have been carried on the properties of these carotenoids and invigested there effects on acute lung inflammation, prostate cancer, diabetic nephropathy, obesity….etc . Production of carotenoids by Sporidiobolus pararoseus, their properties and their efects on diseases are reviewed in this article.