Brief Review of literature on Puti Lohas

Rasashastra is a science which deals with the pharmaceuticals of medicines out of mercury, minerals, metals, gem stones and animal products etc. Loha and Dhatu are consider as one and the same. Puti Lohas are those drugs which emits bad smell while they are melting. Many references of Puti Lohas is available in Ayurvedic classics since Vedakala to modern texts. Puti Lohas cannot be degraded since they are having their own identity in mineralogy and clinical practice of Ayurveda

Salinity Tolerance of Forage Range Legumes during Germination and Early Seedling Growth

Salinity is one of the rising problems causing tremendous yield losses in many regions of the world especially in arid and semiarid regions. In India, about 5.95M ha areas were affected by salinity. Five states viz. Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh accounts for 48% of the total salt affected soils of the country. Establishment of seedlings at early growth stages of crop plants as one of the most important determinants of high yield is severely affected by soil salinity. Increasing salinity levels significantly decreased germination parameters, shoot and root length, shoot and root fresh and dry weights of some forage sorghum cultivars (Kandil et al., 2012). Therefore, in the present investigation three forage range legumes namely centro, clitoria and siratro were tested for their relative salt tolerance to increasing levels of salinity in those combinations of salts which nearly exist in the natural salt affected soils

Age and frailty are independently associated with increased COVID-19 mortality and increased care needs in survivors: results of an international multi-centre study

Introduction Increased mortality has been demonstrated in older adults with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), but the effect of frailty has been unclear. Methods This multi-centre cohort study involved patients aged 18 years and older hospitalised with COVID-19, using routinely collected data. We used Cox regression analysis to assess the impact of age, frailty and delirium on the risk of inpatient mortality, adjusting for sex, illness severity, inflammation and co-morbidities. We used ordinal logistic regression analysis to assess the impact of age, Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS) and delirium on risk of increased care requirements on discharge, adjusting for the same variables. Results Data from 5,711 patients from 55 hospitals in 12 countries were included (median age 74, interquartile range [IQR] 54–83; 55.2% male). The risk of death increased independently with increasing age (>80 versus 18–49: hazard ratio [HR] 3.57, confidence interval [CI] 2.54–5.02), frailty (CFS 8 versus 1–3: HR 3.03, CI 2.29–4.00) inflammation, renal disease, cardiovascular disease and cancer, but not delirium. Age, frailty (CFS 7 versus 1–3: odds ratio 7.00, CI 5.27–9.32), delirium, dementia and mental health diagnoses were all associated with increased risk of higher care needs on discharge. The likelihood of adverse outcomes increased across all grades of CFS from 4 to 9. Conclusion Age and frailty are independently associated with adverse outcomes in COVID-19. Risk of increased care needs was also increased in survivors of COVID-19 with frailty or older age

Resequencing of 429 chickpea accessions from 45 countries provides insights into genome diversity, domestication and agronomic traits

We report a map of 4.97 million single-nucleotide polymorphisms of the chickpea from whole-genome resequencing of 429 lines sampled from 45 countries. We identified 122 candidate regions with 204 genes under selection during chickpea breeding. Our data suggest the Eastern Mediterranean as the primary center of origin and migration route of chickpea from the Mediterranean/Fertile Crescent to Central Asia, and probably in parallel from Central Asia to East Africa (Ethiopia) and South Asia (India). Genome-wide association studies identified 262 markers and several candidate genes for 13 traits. Our study establishes a foundation for large-scale characterization of germplasm and population genomics, and a resource for trait dissection, accelerating genetic gains in future chickpea breeding

Age and frailty are independently associated with increased COVID-19 mortality and increased care needs in survivors: results of an international multi-centre study

INTRODUCTION: Increased mortality has been demonstrated in older adults with COVID-19, but the effect of frailty has been unclear.METHODS: This multi-centre cohort study involved patients aged 18years and older hospitalised with COVID-19, using routinely collected data. We used Cox regression analysis to assess the impact of age, frailty, and delirium on the risk of inpatient mortality, adjusting for sex, illness severity, inflammation, and co-morbidities. We used ordinal logistic regression analysis to assess the impact of age, Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS), and delirium on risk of increased care requirements on discharge, adjusting for the same variables.RESULTS: Data from 5,711 patients from 55 hospitals in 12 countries were included (median age 74, IQR 54-83; 55.2% male). The risk of death increased independently with increasing age (>80 vs 18-49: HR 3.57, CI 2.54-5.02), frailty (CFS 8 vs 1-3: HR 3.03, CI 2.29-4.00) inflammation, renal disease, cardiovascular disease, and cancer, but not delirium. Age, frailty (CFS 7 vs 1-3: OR 7.00, CI 5.27-9.32), delirium, dementia, and mental health diagnoses were all associated with increased risk of higher care needs on discharge. The likelihood of adverse outcomes increased across all grades of CFS from 4 to 9.CONCLUSIONS: Age and frailty are independently associated with adverse outcomes in COVID-19. Risk of increased care needs was also increased in survivors of COVID-19 with frailty or older age

Effect of Biogut on Growth Performance of Cyprinus carpio (Linn.) Fingerlings.

In this study we evaluated the effect of three levels of Biogut (a probiotic) on growth performance of common carp fingerlings. Biogut was incorporated into a formulated diet (protein level: 35%) at 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5% of the diet and designated as T1, T2 and T3 and T0, the fourth (control) diet, without biogut. The diets were fed to common carp fingerlings, stocked at 10/tank, with three replicates, for 60 days. Results indicated that the common carp fingerlings fed with the diets containing biogut exhibited increased growth compared to those fed the control diet. The survival rate was 100% in all the groups. The average weight and length of common carp was maximal in the 0.5% biogut treated group. Specific growth rate, protein efficiency ratio, RNA/DNA ratio and protease activity were also highest in the group fed on 0.5% biogut. The results demonstrate that 0.5% biogut supplementation in the diet of common carp fingerlings produces positive effects

A Study of Clinical and Biochemical Profile of Adrenal Insufficiency in AIDS Patients

ABSTRACT Most common and clinically relevant endocrine organ dysfunction in AIDS patients is that of adrenal cortex. But, adrenal insufficiency (AI) is seldom diagnosed in clinical practice because symptoms do not appear until more than 90% of the gland has been destroyed and symptoms suggestive of adrenal insufficiency are not uncommon in patients of AIDS without AI. There is lack of studies to look for characteristic features in such group, which can raise a suspicion and lead us to do biochemical evaluation, to detect early HPA axis involvement, to prolong as well as improve quality of life. Fifty HIV seropositive patients were selected, detailed history, clinical examination and biochemical parameters were recorded. Their basal cortisol and 30-min, 60-min, post synacthen test were performed, based on which the patients were grouped as AIDS with AI (AIDS-Ab) and AIDS without AI (AIDS-N) .The clinical feature and laboratory findings of these two groups were compared and interpreted using Chi square test as a test of significance and for comparison of laboratory data the Mann Whitney was used. In our study, in comparison to AIDS-N, AIDS-Ab patients had more frequency of weakness, weight loss, fever, gastrointestinal disturbances like nausea, vomiting. They also had lower range of CD4 count, hypoglycemia, high ESR, eosinophilia, hyponatremia, hyperkalemia, low Na/K ratio. In AIDS patients, symptoms like significant weight loss, low CD4 count, not on ART, hypoglycemia, increased ESR, hyponatremia, hyperkalemia, low Na/K ratio, low basal plasma cortisol levels as seen in the present study, should direct us in suspecting the risk of patient going for AI. In such patients stimulation tests could be done to confirm AI. The importance of early detection becomes clear from the fact that AI adds to the mortality of AIDS patient, and also early intervention in such patients prolongs as well as adds quality to life