Genetic diversity of Cryptosporidium isolates from patients in North India

SummaryBackgroundCryptosporidiosis is a significant cause of diarrheal illness in both immunocompetent and immunocompromised populations. Cryptosporidium species infect a wide range of hosts including humans. Different species are morphologically indistinguishable, and molecular techniques have become the key to detection and source tracking. The present study was designed to study the genetic diversity of human Cryptosporidium isolates in North India.MethodsCryptosporidium oocysts were detected in stool samples by special staining of fecal smears. DNA was extracted with a Qiagen kit and all samples were genotyped by small subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid (SSU rRNA)-based nested PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) tool using enzymes SspI and VspI. Cryptosporidium hominis and Cryptosporidium parvum isolates were subtyped by sequence analysis of the nested PCR amplified gp60 gene.ResultsFifty-three fecal samples were found to be positive for Cryptosporidium oocysts. RFLP analysis revealed 39 isolates as C. hominis and 13 isolates of C. parvum; one sample failed amplification. gp60-based sequencing of C. hominis and C. parvum divided them into eight subgenotype families and 17 subtypes. gp60-based sequencing identified seven cases of mixed infection with C. hominis and C. parvum/Cryptosporidium meleagridis and showed the presence of C. meleagridis in six HIV-positive patients that were indistinguishable in RFLP.ConclusionsCryptosporidium isolates obtained in the present study from patients in North India belonged to three species, eight subgenotype families, and 17 subtypes. The existence of many Cryptosporidium species, subgenotypes, and subtypes along with mixed infections reveals the complexity of Cryptosporidium transmission; this heterogeneity indicates stable cryptosporidiosis transmission in North India. The results may have further implications in understanding the epidemiology and control of this infection

Taut domain analysis of transversely isotropic dielectric elastomer membranes

Actuation devices made of dielectric elastomers are prone to compression induced wrinkling instabilities, which can adversely affect their performance and may lead to device failure. On the other hand, wrinkles can be used constructively in certain applications demanding a controlled alternation of the surface morphology. The idea of taut states and the natural width under simple tension plays an important role in the analysis of compression generated instability (wrinkling). In case of electrically driven DE membranes, the domain of taut states in the plane of principal stretches is influenced substantially by the applied voltage and the film's constitutive properties. In the recent past, there has been an increasing interest in exploiting anisotropy in the material behavior of dielectric elastomers for improving their actuation performance. Spurred with these ongoing efforts, this paper presents a continuum mechanics based electromechanical model for predicting the thresholds on the domain of taut states of transversely isotropic planar dielectric elastomers. The developed analytical framework uses an amended energy function that accounts for the electromechanical coupling for a class of incompressible transversely isotropic dielectric membranes. The required expressions for the total Cauchy stress tensor and the associated principal stress components are evaluated utilizing the amended energy function. Finally, the concept of natural width under simple tension is implemented to obtained the nonlinear coupled electromechanical equation that evaluates the associated taut states domain of the transversely isotropic planar dielectric elastomers. Our results indicate that the extent of taut domain can be controlled by modifying the level and the principal direction of the transverse isotropy. The taut states domain for a particular level of applied electric field increases with increase in the anisotropy parameter, while the taut domains depleted with the increase in fiber orientations from 00to 900for an applied level of electrical loading. The fiber-reinforced wrinkle-tunable surfaces can be effectively designed and developed using the underlying analytical framework and the trends obtained in this study

A photonic crystal cavity-optical fiber tip nanoparticle sensor for biomedical applications

We present a sensor capable of detecting solution-based nanoparticles using an optical fiber tip functionalized with a photonic crystal cavity. When sensor tips are retracted from a nanoparticle solution after being submerged, we find that a combination of convective fluid forces and optically-induced trapping cause an aggregation of nanoparticles to form directly on cavity surfaces. A simple readout of quantum dot photoluminescence coupled to the optical fiber shows that nanoparticle presence and concentration can be detected through modified cavity properties. Our sensor can detect both gold and iron oxide nanoparticles and can be utilized for molecular sensing applications in biomedicine.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figure

Effectiveness Of 1.2% Simvastatin Gel as an Adjunct to Non-Surgical Therapy in The Treatment of Chronic Periodontitis: A Split Mouth Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND: Periodontitis is an inflammatory disease that results in bone resorption creating bony defects, which may cause tooth loss. AIM: The present study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of 1.2% Simvastatin gel as an adjunct to non-surgical therapy to treat chronic periodontitis (CP). MATERIALS AND METHOD: 25 patients with 50 sites were categorized into two treatment groups: Scaling and Root Planing plus 1.2% Simvastatin, and Scaling and Root Planing with placebo. Clinical parameters; site-specific plaque index, modified sulcus bleeding index (mSBI), pocket probing depth (PD), and relative attachment level (RAL) were recorded at baseline, 3, 6, and 9 months. RESULTS: Mean PD reduction and mean RAL gain was found to be greater in Simvastatin group than the placebo group, at 3, 6, and 9 months. CONCLUSION: Locally delivered Simvastatin was found to be effective in the treatment of chronic periodontitis (CP)

Adaptive High Beam Control in Vehicles using Image Processing

The numbers of accidents occurring in night are increasing day by day because of the improper illumination on the bended streets and also because of the blindness caused to the driver by high intensity beam coming from the front coming vehicle.With the end goal to give improved evening time security measures, this work means to plan and assemble a headlight by adjusting a traditional static headlamp by keeping in mindthe expenses and unwavering quality. Also, to switch the headlight to dipper when there’s a vehicle approaching from front reaches within a defined range

Epidemiological trends of tetanus from East Delhi, India: A hospital-based study

Objective: To study the demographic profile, prognostic indicators, and mortality of tetanus patients and treatment outcomes following intramuscular anti-tetanus immunoglobulin (ATG) alone or combined intrathecal and intramuscular ATG. Design: Retrospective study. Setting: Inpatients from a tertiary care hospital.Subjects: One hundred children under 12 years of age diagnosed with tetanus and admitted from January 2003 to December 2007 were included in the study. Methods: Case records of patients with neonatal tetanus (n = 30) and post-neonatal tetanus (n = 70) were evaluated retrospectively. The diagnosis of tetanus was based on World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. The outcomes of patients treated with either intramuscular ATG or both intrathecal and intramuscular ATG were separately compared in the neonatal and post-neonatal groups. Results: Our study revealed difficulty in feeding, trismus, spasms, rigidity, and opisthotonus posturing as the predominant clinical manifestations. The survival rate for children receiving tetanus immunoglobulin by the dual route was significantly higher than for children receiving the immunoglobulin via the intramuscular route. Seizures and tremors were poor prognostic factors associated with tetanus. Keywords: Tetanus, Immunoglobulin, Eliminatio

Detection of Leptospira in urine of apparently healthy dogs by quantitative polymerase chain reaction in Haryana, India

Background and Aim: Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease caused by bacteria of the genus Leptospira. The organism can spread through the urine of infected animals, which can get into water or soil and can survive there for weeks to months. The study was undertaken to detect the pathogenic Leptospira in healthy dogs' urinary shedding by real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Materials and Methods: Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease caused by bacteria of the genus Leptospira. To detect the pathogenic Leptospira organisms in dogs' urinary shedding, 239 urine samples were collected from healthy dogs from April 2018 to March 2019 from different areas of Haryana. All the urine samples were processed for DNA extraction and qPCR technique was used to detect the presence of Leptospira. Results: Out of 239 urine samples of dogs, none of the samples resulted in the detection of DNA of pathogenic Leptospira organisms. Conclusion: The present study indicated low risk of transmission of Leptospira organisms from dogs' urine to human beings in Haryana