Microsatellite markers for the Indian golden silkmoth, Antheraea assama (Saturniidae: Lepidoptera)

Antheraea assama, an economically important and scientifically unexplored Indian wild silkmoth, is unique among saturniid moths. For this species, a total of 87 microsatellite markers was derived from 35 000 expressed sequence tags and a microsatellite-enriched sub-genomic library. Forty individuals collected from Tura and West Garo Hills region of Northeast India were screened for each of these loci. Ten loci from expressed sequence tags and one from genomic library were found to be polymorphic. These microsatellite markers will be useful resources for population genetic studies of A. assama and other closely related species of saturniids. This is the first report on development of microsatellite markers for any saturniid species

Inherent spiral stability in a fixed wing aircraft by means of a simplified pneumatic wing tip control system

The concept of the lateralizer device is to sense the difference in wing tip static pressures (differential pressures being created by wing tip venturis) produced when any deviation from straight to level flight occurs. In a steady state turn the low slow wing tip experiences less venturi suction than the high fast wing tip. This signal activates the appropriate servos connected to the ailerons to produce a wing leveling restoring moment. If the wing is subjected to rolling velocities due to changes of the local angle of attack at the tip, the downgoing wing tip operates at a higher angle than the upgoing one. If with an increase in the angle of attack the signal is such that it increases the venturi pressure, then the servos are activated to produce the most negative signal to an upgoing aileron which results in a wing leveling restoring moment. In other words, any deviation from straight and level flight in either roll or yaw is exploited and the difference signal from the differential pressures activates the servo to effect or produce the necessary corrective action to null the signal

Age-related changes in blood lymphocyte subsets of south Indian children

Background. Enumeration of lymphocyte subsets has been widely used for the diagnosis and monitoring of several haematological and immunological disorders. Various studies have demonstrated age, sex and racial differences in lymphocyte subset expression. Reference values are not available for Indian children and there is a need for this information to replace commonly used, but inappropriate, adult lymphocyte subset ranges. Methods. One hundred thirty-eight healthy children be tween 3 and 15 years of age, attending a local government school in Chennai, South India were included in the study. Haemoglobin levels, and total and differential cell counts were determined using an automated counter and lymphocyte subsets were analysed by flowcytornetry. Results. The mean (SD) absolute lymphocyte count declined with age from 4338 (1031) at 3 years to reach a plateau of 3096 (914) at 11-13 years (p < 0.05). A significant decline was also observed in the absolute numbers of CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ and CD19 + cells. However, the percentage values of CD3+, CD4+, CD8+, CD16/56+ cells and the CD4/CD8 ratio remained fairly stable across the age range. Conclusion. Our data would prove useful in interpreting disease-related changes in lymphocyte subsets in Indian children of different age groups. Age-related decrease in the absolute lymphocyte count as well as numbers of CD4 and CD8 cells was found to occur between the ages of 3 and 11 years. A normogram relating age to CD4 count has been developed

Specific identification, biology and symptoms of whitefly species infesting sunflower in South India

Whitefly species related to sunflower was identified as Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius). Further the identified whitefly species was confirmed to be indigenous B. tabaci on molecular basis by using B-biotype specific SCARs and biological silver leaf assay on sensitive pumpkin (cv Big variety). None of the whitefly samples could positive for the presence of B biotype. The results of the study on the pest life cycle under the laboratory conditions showed that, B. tabaci passed through four nymphal instars before the adult stage. The mean duration values of these stages were 5.6, 4.2, 4.4 and 5.6 days respectively. The total duration of the life cycle of B. tabaci ranged from 23- 42 days at the temperature of 29±2°C with a mean of 34.5. The damage to sunflower crop caused by the whitefly species is discussed with a special emphasis on its ability to transmit leaf curl viral disease

Comparative Study of Antihypertensive Drugs Amlodipine Besylate /Metoprolol Succinate and Nebivolol Hydrochloride /Valsartan Combinations in Bilayer Tablets

The present research is an approach to develop a formulation platform that shall help in minimizing the time and effort taken to develop a drug delivery system. Taking bilayer tablet technology as a representation for drug delivery system, well accepted antihypertensive drugs, Amlodipine besylate and Metoprolol succinate were considered as model drugs for the study. Initially the process variables like concentration of the disintegrants, Sodium starch Glycolate and cross carmellose sodium, Polymers HPMC K100M and K4M were standardized with these drugs so that the incorporation of a new combination drugs would provide predictable results with a minimal trial runs. Nebivolol hydrochloride and Valsartan were considered as test drugs since they are novel antihypertensive drug combination and their physicochemical and pharmacokinetic parameters were almost similar to that of the model drugs. The r value 0.98943 indicates a good correlation between the release profile of Amlodipine besylate (model drug) and Nebivolol hydrochloride (test drug) from the IR layer. Similarly, the r value in the range of 0.9998 indicates a good correlation between the release profile of Metoprolol succinate (model drug) and Valsartan (test drug) from the SR layer. The comparable experimental results of the model drugs and test drugs considered for this study infer that if two drugs are similar in their physicochemical and pharmacokinetic parameters, their behavior with respect to in vitro parameters will be similar provided formulation variables remains constant. This concept could be productive in developing drug delivery system for new drugs for which extensive research and time are major constraints. Keywords: Bilayer tablets, fixed unit dosage form, Amlodipine besylate, Metoprolol Succinate Nebivolol hydrochloride, Valsartan

Formulation and Evaluation of Bilayer Matrix Tablets of Nebivolol Hydrochloride and Valsartan

The present study is an attempt to develop bilayer matrix tablets of Nebivolol Hydrochloride and Valsartan with immediate release for Nebivolol Hydrochloride and sustained release for Valsartan. Superdisintegrants such as sodium starch glycolate and Crosscarmellose sodium were evaluated for immediate release of Nebivolol Hydrochloride and polymers HPMC K100M and K4M for sustained release of Valsartan. Preformulation studies were performed prior to compression. The compressed bilayer tablets were evaluated for weight variation, thickness, hardness, friability, drug content and in vitro drug release using USP dissolution apparatus type 2 in 0.01N HCl and phosphate buffer pH 6.8. All the pre and post compression parameters were found to be within the acceptable limits. The results of dissolution show that the formulations B3 was the best of all immediate and sustained release layer batches. The release kinetics of Valsartan was subject to curve fitting analysis in order to identify the best fit kinetic model. The regression analysis proves that the best formulations follow zero order release and drug release by diffusion process based on Fick’s law of diffusion. The data for stability studies infer no considerable change in drug content and dissolution rates as per ICH guidelines. The best formulation B3 was subjected to in vivo pharmacokinetic studies in rabbit model. In vitro, In vivo correlation (IVIVC) showed considerable linearity. Hence a novel bilayer tablet formulation of Nebivolol Hydrochloride and Valsartan was successfully developed by combining both immediate (IR) and sustained (SR) release layers. Keywords: Bilayer tablets, fixed unit dosage form, Nebivolol hydrochloride, Valsartan, LC-MS analysis

FTIR Spectroscopic Study of the Secondary Structure of Globular Proteins in Aqueous Protic Ionic Liquids

Protein misfolding is a detrimental effect which can lead to the inactivation of enzymes, aggregation, and the formation of insoluble protein fibrils called Amyloids. Consequently, it is important to understand the mechanism of protein folding, and under which conditions it can be avoided or mitigated. Ionic liquids (ILs) have previously been shown as capable of increasing or decreasing protein stability, depending on the specific IL, IL concentration and which protein. However, a greater range of IL-proteins need to be systematically explored to enable the development of structure-property relationships. In this work, the secondary structure of four proteins, lysozyme, trypsin, β-lactoglobulin and α-amylase, were studied in aqueous solutions of 10 protic ionic liquids (PILs) with 0–50 mol% PIL present. The PILs consisted of ethyl-, ethanol-, diethanol- and triethanolammonium cations paired with nitrate, formate, acetate or glycolate anions. The secondary structure was obtained using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. It was found that lysozyme and trypsin retained its secondary structure, consistent with a native folded state, for many of the aqueous IL solutions which contained a formate or nitrate anion at the most dilute concentrations. In contrast, α-amylase and β-lactoglobulin generally had poor stability and solubility in the IL solutions. This may be due to the isoelectric point of α-amylase and β-lactoglobulin being closer to the pH of the solvents. All four proteins were insoluble in ethyl-, ethanol- and diethanolammonium acetate, though α-amylase and trypsin retained their secondary structure in up to 20 and 30 mol% of triethanolammonium acetate, respectively. It was evident that the protein stability varied substantially depending on the protein-IL combination, and the IL concentration in water. Overall, the findings indicated that some ions and some ILs were in general better for protein solubility and stability than others, such as acetate leading to poor solubility, and EAN and EAF generally leading to better protein stability than the other PILs. This study of four proteins in 10 aqueous PILs clearly showed that there are many complexities in their interactions and no clear general trend, despite the similarities between the PIL structures. This highlights the need for more and larger studies to enable the selection and optimization of PIL solvents used with biomolecules