The role of diffusion-weighted imaging in the evaluation of adnexal lesions

Purpose: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been used as a problem-solving tool in the diagnosis of adnexal lesions. Both benign and malignant ovarian masses can present as complex adnexal lesions. Preoperative diagnosis of malignancy is essential for planning the surgical approach and appropriate treatment regimen. The aim of our study was to determine the role of diffusion-weighted MRI (DWI) in differentiating benign from malignant adnexal lesions. Material and methods: Fifty-five patients (constituting 67 lesions) referred to MRI for evaluation of adnexal lesions were studied using 1.5 T MRI. The signal on DWI (qualitative) and ADC values (quantitative DWI) of the solid and cystic components of the lesions were analysed separately. Chi-square test, cross tabulation, and ROC curves were used to determine features on DWI that could distinguish benign from malignant lesions. Results: Of the 67 lesions, 50 were benign and 17 were malignant. There was a significant association of hyperintense signal of solid components on T2W and DWI with malignancy, with a p-value of 0.003 and 0.001, respectively. Benign lesions showed hypointense signal on T2W and DWI. ADC values of the solid components could not dis tinguish benign from malignant lesions; p = 0.290. The signal intensity and ADC values of the cystic fluid in benign and malignant lesions showed a significant overlap. Conclusions: Qualitative DWI acts as an adjunct to conventional MRI in differentiating benign from malignant adnexal lesions showing solid/mixed morphology. It plays no role in distinguishing lesions based on their cystic components. ADC values play no role in differentiating benign from malignant adnexal lesions irrespective of lesion morphology

Crouzon’s syndrome with adenotonsillitis: conventional surgery in altered anatomy.

Background/Objectives: Crouzon’s syndrome is characterized by premature closure of the cranial sutures, midface hypoplasia, orbital deformities & other associated abnormalities.Children with Crouzon syndrome frequently have obstructive sleep apnea due to the underdevelopment of the midface.Case report: A 12 year old boy of Crouzon’s syndrome with chronic adeno-tonsillitis was managed by adeno-tonsillectomy under general anaesthesia by scalpel cautery method. The boyresponded well to surgery & the mild sleep disorder disappeared within a week uveventfully.Conclusion: Sleep disorders in this condition can be treated by improving the airway by selective procedures like midface advancement, mandibular expansion , adeno-tonsillectomy,uvulo-palatopharyngoplasty, anterior tongue reduction & endoscopic tracheal granuloma excision.

Human otoacariasis: a common outbreak in rubber growing belt of Karnataka.

Background/Objective: Soft tick in the ear is a very common acute painful and distressing condition in the flowering months of October to March. It’s a common condition in the rubber growing belt of Sullia.The mouthparts of the tick grips firmly the skin of the external auditory canal or the tympanic membrane and sucks blood and swells up. Otoscopy and removal of the tick from the ear can be done in outpatients in adults and difficult in a frightened irritable child.Materials and methods: 312 cases of intra-aural ticks presenting to the opd and casualty which included 131 males and 181 females were included in the study.Results: Out of the 312 cases of intra-aural ticks, 170 cases were treated in the outpatient and 140 cases under short general anesthesia with oto-microscopy.Conclusion: Intra-aural tick infestation is an acute painful condition which needs prompt management by an experienced otolaryngologist. Proper visualization and instrumentation is necessary to avoid complications.

Procesos de resistencia, derechos colectivos y despojo de los bienes comunes en el neoliberalismo

Se puede hablar de décadas acumuladas en el debate acerca de los nuevos rumbos que ha tomado el modelo de acumulación capitalista y su largo caudal de impactos negativos en esferas tales como las relacionadas con la violación de derechos colectivos de los pueblos indígenas. Entre otras cosas, ello se expresa en el asedio y despojo de sus territorios, vulnerando la autonomía que las propias legislaciones nacionales e internacionales les han reconocido,  así como el derecho a un medio ambiente sano y sustentable. Esta es una de las grandes paradojas, pues tenemos avances importantes en los sistemas de derecho en materia de derechos humanos e incluso de derechos de la naturaleza, como es el caso de Bolivia; sin embargo, el giro extractivista que recorre especialmente América Latina e India (Svampa, 2012, Harvey, 2004) muestran que estamos ante un escenario profundamente devastador de estos derechos. Por este motivo, seguirá siendo fundamental que desde la academia y el activismo social y jurídico prosigamos analizando de forma crítica los entramados políticos y económicos que son la base de los nuevos despojos, así como sobre la discriminación, la racialización y la violencia contra los pueblos y líderes que cuestionan y luchan desde diferentes trincheras contra las nuevas formas de expropiación y saqueo de los recursos y por tanto, del patrimonio biocultural que constituyen sus territorios. En dicho contexto, este dossier de la revista Abya Yala aborda la problemática desde perspectivas y entornos geográficos distintos como son Colombia (María Rocío Bedoya), Chile (Anahy Gajardo), Panamá (Osvaldo Jordán), India (Navaneeta Rath y Annapurna Pandey; y Binay Kumar Pattnaik y Sanghamitra Panda), Estados Unidos, Honduras y Surinam (Faye Harrison), dando cuenta de las políticas públicas de desarrollo económico que los estados neoliberales están poniendo en práctica. De esta manera, abordan los procesos de resistencia como la consolidación de movimientos de protesta social construyendo alianzas intersectoriales, conformadas por pueblos y organizaciones indígenas y afrodescendientes, miembros de la sociedad civil, ambientalistas, académicos y abogados, entre otros actores

The Challenges of Neoliberal Policies and the Indigenous People’s Resistance Movement in Odisha, India

This paper focuses on a social movement struggling to preserve the natural environment and the traditional livelihood of the Kondhs who live in the shadow of the Niyamagiri mountains in the Indian State of Odisha. This region is rich in bauxite and people are exploited by the state and Vedanta, a multinational private company in the name of extraction and development. These developments are indicative of the state and central government’s covert and overt resolve of becoming a facilitator for the big corporate houses to take over the development projects at the cost of local communities and natural resources. The Indigenous people’s resistance movement is primarily in opposition to such projects, which have harmed their social and natural environment. The Kondhs have organized themselves in opposition to neo-liberal economy rut by globalization and promoted by the state. Niyamagiri has become a site of resistance of forces unleashed by capitalist neo- liberal economy and the state run by upper caste elites

Double band microwave rectifier for energy harvesting

Energy harvesting has been investigated by many researchers due to their ability to generate power by using existing sources which eliminate the need of batteries and power supply that requires extra cost to the system. Rectifier is the main component in energy harvesting where it converts RF sources to DC power. This work presents the design and investigation of the seven-stage rectifier. A Villard configuration is chosen with consists of two HSMS 2850 Schottky diodes and two through hole ceramic capacitors for each stage. The aim of this article is to study and evaluate the rectifier performance at 550 MHz and 900 MHz frequency range. Rectifier properties such as number of stage, capacitance effects, and variation in capacitor\u27s combination, and are analyzed and discussed in this article. The result shows that the designed rectifier is operate well at the targeted frequencies. Measured results show that voltages of 9.17 V and 3.78 V are obtained for an input of 0 dBm at 900 MHz and 550 MHz, respectively. The circuit is generating 44.4% rectified output than in the reference wor

JUB1 suppresses Pseudomonas syringae

Phytohormones act in concert to coordinate plant growth and the response to environmental cues. Gibberellins (GAs) are growth-promoting hormones that recently emerged as modulators of plant immune signaling. By regulating the stability of DELLA proteins, GAs intersect with the signaling pathways of the classical primary defense hormones, salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonic acid (JA), thereby altering the final outcome of the immune response. DELLA proteins confer resistance to necrotrophic pathogens by potentiating JA signaling and raise the susceptibility to biotrophic pathogens by attenuating the SA pathway. Here, we show that JUB1, a core element of the GA - brassinosteroid (BR) - DELLA regulatory module, functions as a negative regulator of defense responses against Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 (Pst DC3000) and mediates the crosstalk between growth and immunity

Transcription factor ANAC032 modulates JA/SA signalling in response to Pseudomonas syringae

Responses to pathogens, including host transcriptional reprogramming, require partially antagonistic signalling pathways dependent on the phytohormones salicylic (SA) and jasmonic (JA) acids. However, upstream factors modulating the interplay of these pathways are not well characterized. Here, we identify the transcription factor ANAC032 from Arabidopsis thaliana as one such regulator in response to the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 (Pst). ANAC032 directly represses MYC2 activation upon Pst attack, resulting in blockage of coronatine‐mediated stomatal reopening which restricts entry of bacteria into plant tissue. Furthermore, ANAC032 activates SA signalling by repressing NIMIN1, a key negative regulator of SA‐dependent defence. Finally, ANAC032 reduces expression of JA‐responsive genes, including PDF1.2A. Thus, ANAC032 enhances resistance to Pst by generating an orchestrated transcriptional output towards key SA‐ and JA‐signalling genes coordinated through direct binding of ANAC032 to the MYC2, NIMIN1 and PDF1.2A promoters

A revisit on solar cell: generation of electricity by harvesting sunlight

In the present day knowledge based society, Science transforms the Culture. This can be witnessed through the contemporary rationalized society that aroused with the advancement of science. Such revolutionised change leading to very fast modern-day walks of life can essentially be credited to the progression in light based technologies. However, in order to meet the continuously mounting demand for energy in this developed world, one has to look for the renewable energy resources and among all such resources most abundant one is the sunlight. In this context, an attempt has been made here to report a brief review on the development of solar cell, the simplest device that converts sunlight to electricity. Further, this article also presents the contributions of CSIR-CGCRI in this field