Ligand conjugated liposomal drug delivery system for enhanced brain uptake of ampicillin

Targeting of antimicrobial agents by means of liposomes may be of great value in the treatment of intra or extracellular infections compare to conventional forms of antimicrobial therapy. In the present study Ampicillin loaded non-targeted Polyethylene glycolated liposomes and targeted Glutathione Polyethylene glycollated liposomes of about 132.14 nm size were prepared with 80 % of drug entrapment. Prepared liposomes were evaluated for in vitro, in vivo release profile and brain uptake studies. Results of these studies revealed more absorption of drug than standard Ampicillin solution and non targeted liposomes (Auc0-6h 1858.908 µg h/ml) and 3.5 times increase in brain uptake. Incorporation of polyethylene glycol in the liposomes increased the drug concentration and circulation time in plasma as well as in the extracellular fluid of brain thus improved therapeutic availability of Ampicillin trihydrate

Chemosensory proteins (CSPs) in the cotton bollworm Helicoverpa armigera

Chemosensory proteins (CSPs) are a family of small, soluble proteins that play a crucial role in transporting odorant and pheromone molecules in the insect chemosensory system. Recent studies reveal that they also function in development, nutrient metabolism and insecticide resistance. In-depth and systematic characterization of previously unknown CSPs will be valuable to investigate more detailed functionalities of this protein family. Here, we identified 27 CSP genes from the genome and transcriptome sequences of cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner). The expression patterns of these genes were studied by using transcriptomic data obtained from different tissues and stages. The results demonstrate that H. armigera CSP genes are not only highly expressed in chemosensory tissues, such as antennae, mouthparts, and tarsi, but also in the salivary glands, cuticle epidermis, and hind gut. HarmCSP6 and 22 were selected as candidate CSPs for expression in Escherichia coli and purification. A new method was developed that significantly increased the HarmCSP6 and 22 expression levels as soluble recombinant proteins for purification. This study advances our understanding of insect CSPs and provides a new approach to highly express recombinant CSPs in E. coli

Inside sales social media use and its strategic implications for salesperson-customer digital engagement and performance

Highlights Inside salespeople rely on four main strategies when it comes to using social media in their roles to engage with customers. Inside sales strategic social media use leads to higher levels of customer digital engagement and, ultimately, performance. Firm digital technology resources may shape the effects of inside sales strategic social media use. Abstract The nature of inside sales has shifted, increasing in autonomy, importance, and scope. Moreover, buyers are changing their preferences from face-to-face interactions to virtual-based relationships, leading to a future full of opportunities for inside salespeople using social media. The practitioner literature suggests that inside sales represent the sales business model of the digital era and a distinct strategic selling approach. While there has been a recent surge in theoretical research on inside sales, extant research fails to explore how and why inside salespeople uses social media as a critical tool. Research on social media use in sales has neglected to consider the growing role of inside sales, where sellers lack the opportunity to meet with customers face-to-face and must routinely rely on remote communication to interact with customers. As such, we use a grounded theory approach to investigate the “lived experiences” of inside salespeople at the intersection with social media in sales. Emergent from our findings is a framework depicting: inside sales strategic social media use → inside salesperson-customer digital engagement → inside sales performance. We also find that firm digital technology resources serve as enablement factors that shape the effects of the social media strategies that inside salespeople use

Triggering through NOD-2 differentiates bone marrow precursors to dendritic cells with potent bactericidal activity

Dendritic cells (DCs) play a crucial role in bridging innate and adaptive immunity by activating naïve T cells. The role of pattern recognition receptors like Toll-Like Receptors and Nod-Like Receptors expressed on DCs is well-defined in the recognition of the pathogens. However, nothing is precisely studied regarding the impact of NOD-2 signaling during the differentiation of DCs. Consequently, we explored the role of NOD-2 signaling in the differentiation of DCs and therefore their capability to activate innate and adaptive immunity. Intriguingly, we observed that NOD-2 stimulated DCs (nDCs) acquired highly activated and matured phenotype and exhibited substantially greater bactericidal activity by robust production of nitric oxide. The mechanism involved in improving the functionality of nDCs was dependent on IFN-αβ signaling, leading to the activation of STAT pathways. Furthermore, we also observed that STAT-1 and STAT-4 dependent maturation and activation of DCs was under the feedback mechanism of SOCS-1 and SOCS-3 proteins. nDCs acquired enhanced potential to activate chiefly Th1 and Th17 immunity. Taken together, these results suggest that nDCs can be exploited as an immunotherapeutic agent in bolstering host immunity and imparting protection against the pathogens

Assessment for learning

Traditionally, assessment at the school level has been rote-based, with very little focus on understanding or application of concepts. We find this to be true, especially in India, based on our analysis of school papers. Questions such as ‘What is photosynthesis? Explain with the help of a neat and labelled diagram.’ are commonly found in school papers, and do not distinguish between a student who has understood the concept and a student who has simply memorized facts. Unsurprisingly, when you ask a person about what they learnt in school, a very common answer is ‘’Well, I’ve forgotten most of it...

Signaling through NOD-2 and TLR-4 bolsters the T cell priming capability of dendritic cells by inducing autophagy

T cells play a cardinal role in mediating protection against intracellular pathogens like Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). It is important to understand the factors that govern the T cell response; thereby can modulate its activity. Dendritic cells (DCs) are the major player in initiation and augmentation of T cell response. Targeting DCs to induce their optimum maturation and activation can lead to a better T cell response. Interestingly, we observed that combinatorial signaling of DCs through NOD-2 and TLR-4 fortified better yield of IL-12p40/70, IL-6 and IFN-γ and upregulated the expression of CD40, CD80 and CD86 costimulatory molecules. Further, we noticed improved phagocytic capabilities of DCs. Furthermore, NOD-2 and TLR-4 induced autophagy in DCs, which enhanced the activation of T cells. This study signifies that NOD-2 and TLR-4 exhibit synergism in invigorating the activity of DCs. Consequently, this strategy may have significant immunotherapeutic potential in bolstering the function of DCs and thus improving the immunity against pathogens

Decomposable representations and Lagrangian submanifolds of moduli spaces associated to surface groups

In this paper, we construct a Lagrangian submanifold of the moduli space associated to the fundamental group of a punctured Riemann surface (the space of representations of this fundamental group into a compact connected Lie group). This Lagrangian submanifold is obtained as the fixed-point set of an anti-symplectic involution defined on the moduli space. The notion of decomposable representation provides a geometric interpretation of this Lagrangian submanifold

Impact ionization of molecular oxygen by 3.5-MeV/u bare carbon ions

We have measured the absolute double-differential cross sections (DDCSs) for electron emission in ionization of O2 molecules under the impact of 3.5-MeV/u C6+ ions. The data were collected between 10 and 600 eV, in an angular range of 30◦ to 150◦. The single-differential cross sections (SDCSs) in emission angle and electron energy are deduced from the electron DDCS spectra. Also, the total cross section has been obtained from the SDCS spectra. The DDCS spectra as well as the SDCS spectra are compared with continuum distorted-wave eikonal initial-state calculations which employ molecular wave functions built as linear combinations of atomic orbitals. The DDCS ratio i.e. σO2/2σO, derived by dividing the experimental DDCS for molecular oxygen with the theoretical DDCS for atomic oxygen, does not show any primary or secondary oscillations arising from Young-type interference, which is apparently in contrast to what has been observed earlier for H2 and in agreement with the model calculation. Similarly, the forward-backward angular asymmetry increases monotonically with the velocity of the emitted electrons. However, the results on the DDCSs, SDCSs, the asymmetry parameter, and the nonexistence of oscillations are in qualitative agreement with the predictions of the model usedOne of the authors (F.M.) acknowledges the financial support from the MICINN Projects No. FIS2010-15127 and No. CSD 2007- 00010. C.A.T., R.D.R., and F.M. acknowledge the Programa de Cooperación Interuniversitaria e Investigación Científica entre España e Iberoamérica AECID Project No. A2/039631/1