ISOLATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ANTIOXIDANT (FLAVONE-3-RUTINOSIDE, 3, 3’, 4’, 5, 7-PENTAHYDROXY) FROM LEAVES OF MELIA DUBIA

Objective: Various antioxidants are extensively found at different levels in many medicinal plants. This study mainly focuses on identification and separation of antioxidant from the leaf extract of Melia dubia. Materials and Methods: Soxhlet extraction adopted for extraction using solvents, namely hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, 70% Ethanol, methanol, and water. The antioxidant capacity of six extracts was analyzed by quick and convenient 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl method. The compound responsible for high scavenging activity was isolated and separated by chromatography techniques such as thin-layer chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography. Antioxidant was characterized by UV-visible, Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR), H1-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), C13-NMR, and mass spectroscopy. Results and Discussion: On extraction, water extract shows the highest yield percentage followed by methanol and 70% ethanol. Based on our results, IC50 value among the extracts, methanol and 70% ethanol, showed high antioxidant activity. Antioxidant which is commonly present in the methanol and 70% ethanol extract is flavone-3-rutinoside, 3, 3’, 4’, 5, 7-pentahydroxy. Conclusion: The occurrence of the antioxidant, i.e. rutin flavonoid was identified in the study, and the biological activity of this compound will determine in future work

IN VITRO ANTIPLASMODIAL ACTIVITY OF NATIVE INDIAN SEAWEED SARGASSUM SP.

ABSTRACTObjectives: To investigate the antiplasmodial activity of three different solvent extracts of Sargassum tenerrimum against Plasmodium falciparum.Methods: The seaweed species of S. tenerrimum were collected from Rameshwaram, Southeast coast of India. The collected samples were dried andextracted with three different polaritic (hexane, acetone, and ethylacetate) solvents and tested against P. falciparum parasite strain.Results: Acetone extract exhibited better activity than the other two extracts. The inhibitory concentration values of acetone S. tenerrimum werefound to be 27.82 and 18.14 µg/ml at 24-48 hrs, respectively. S. tenerrimum crude extracts were subjected for the phytochemical analysis, and itshowed the presence of steroids, alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, glycosides, amino acids, and phenol compounds. The gas chromatography-massspectroscopy result reveals that the presence of 10 major and minor compounds in the S. tenerrimum extract. In that, cyclotrisiloxane hexamethylcompounds might be responsible for the effective parasite suppression.50Conclusion: It can be concluded from the present study that the acetone extract of S. tenerrimum has strong antiplasmodial activity. Furthermore, thestudy has been extended to the isolation of the possible active compounds that is responsible for the antiplasmodial properties.Keywords: Antiplasmodial assay, Different polaritic solvents, Plasmodium falciparum, Sargassum tenerrimum

Solanum melongena leaf extract based zinc oxide nanoparticles synthesis using green chemistry concepts

1273-1277Nanoparticles of zinc oxide (ZnO NPs) have been synthesised from naturally available Eggplant, Solanum melongena leaf extract. The methodology has been optimized to obtain ZnO NPs which as are characterized using UV-Visible, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and FT-Infra red (FTIR) tools to confirm their nano dimensions and chemical properties. The SPR band is obtained at 389 nm in UV-visible absorption spectrum confirmes the formation of ZnO NPs while the presence of -OH, -C-O, -CH2 and –COO groups at vibrational frequencies of 3500, 105, 3000 and 1640 cm-1, respectively are observed from FTIR. Further, the SEM images show regular flakes like structure, and the average distribution of the nanoparticle is found to be around 100 nm. The newly synthesised ZnO NPs using leaf extract of Solanum melongena show considerable activity against both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. The ZnO NPs is proved to be more potent against Staphylococcus aureus than E. coli

Solanum melongena leaf extract based zinc oxide nanoparticles synthesis using green chemistry concepts

Nanoparticles of zinc oxide (ZnO NPs) have been synthesised from naturally available Eggplant, Solanum melongena leaf extract. The methodology has been optimized to obtain ZnO NPs which as are characterized using UV-Visible, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and FT-Infra red (FTIR) tools to confirm their nano dimensions and chemical properties. The SPR band is obtained at 389 nm in UV-visible absorption spectrum confirmes the formation of ZnO NPs while the presence of -OH, -C-O, -CH2 and –COO groups at vibrational frequencies of 3500, 105, 3000 and 1640 cm-1, respectively are observed from FTIR. Further, the SEM images show regular flakes like structure, and the average distribution of the nanoparticle is found to be around 100 nm. The newly synthesised ZnO NPs using leaf extract of Solanum melongena show considerable activity against both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. The ZnO NPs is proved to be more potent against Staphylococcus aureus than E. coli

The role of ultrasonically induced acoustic streaming in developing fine equiaxed grains during the solidification of an Al-2% Cu alloy

Recent research and a simulation of heat transfer and solidification during acoustically generated convection showed that the location of the coolest liquid, and thus the place where the first grains are expected to form, is under the sonotrode. Further, the generated vigorous convection produces a very flat temperature gradient in the bulk of the melt facilitating the formation of a refined equiaxed structure throughout the casting. This study validates these findings through a series of experiments on an Al-2 wt pct Cu alloy, which evaluate grain formation under the sonotrode over time and relate this to the formation of the macrostructure of a cast ingot. Analysis of the results confirms the predictions of the simulation and shows that, for the conditions applied, most grains nucleated in the cavitation zone are swept into the melt by acoustically generated convection and, over a period of 70 seconds, the number of grains increase and they grow with spherical and globular morphology gradually filling the casting with refined equiaxed grains. It was found that the macrostructure of each casting is made up of three microstructural zones. A fine grained equiaxed zone forms from the bottom of the casting due to settling of grains during and after termination of ultrasonic treatment (UST), which increases in size with the increasing duration of UST. Above this zone, a coarse-grained structure is formed due to depletion of UST-generated grains on termination of UST. At the top of the casting, a zone of columnar grains growing from the top surface of the melt is formed. The latter two zones decrease in size with the increasing UST duration until 80 seconds, when the macrostructure consists entirely of the equiaxed zone. (C) The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society and ASM International 201

Classification and Regression Tree (CART) analysis to predict influenza in primary care patients

Abstract Background The use of neuraminidase-inhibiting anti-viral medication to treat influenza is relatively infrequent. Rapid, cost-effective methods for diagnosing influenza are needed to enable appropriate prescribing. Multi-viral respiratory panels using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays to diagnose influenza are accurate but expensive and more time-consuming than low sensitivity rapid influenza tests. Influenza clinical decision algorithms are both rapid and inexpensive, but most are based on regression analyses that do not account for higher order interactions. This study used classification and regression trees (CART) modeling to estimate probabilities of influenza. Methods Eligible enrollees ≥ 5 years old (n = 4,173) who presented at ambulatory centers for treatment of acute respiratory illness (≤7 days) with cough or fever in 2011–2012, provided nasal and pharyngeal swabs for PCR testing for influenza, information on demographics, symptoms, personal characteristics and self-reported influenza vaccination status. Results Antiviral medication was prescribed for just 15 % of those with PCR-confirmed influenza. An algorithm that included fever, cough, and fatigue had sensitivity of 84 %, specificity of 48 %, positive predictive value (PPV) of 23 % and negative predictive value (NPV) of 94 % for the development sample. Conclusions The CART algorithm has good sensitivity and high NPV, but low PPV for identifying influenza among outpatients ≥5 years. Thus, it is good at identifying a group who do not need testing or antivirals and had fair to good predictive performance for influenza. Further testing of the algorithm in other influenza seasons would help to optimize decisions for lab testing or treatment.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134640/1/12879_2016_Article_1839.pd

The Impact of HAART on the Respiratory Complications of HIV Infection: Longitudinal Trends in the MACS and WIHS Cohorts

Objective: To review the incidence of respiratory conditions and their effect on mortality in HIV-infected and uninfected individuals prior to and during the era of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Design: Two large observational cohorts of HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected men (Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study [MACS]) and women (Women's Interagency HIV Study [WIHS]), followed since 1984 and 1994, respectively. Methods: Adjusted odds or hazards ratios for incident respiratory infections or non-infectious respiratory diagnoses, respectively, in HIV-infected compared to HIV-uninfected individuals in both the pre-HAART (MACS only) and HAART eras; and adjusted Cox proportional hazard ratios for mortality in HIV-infected persons with lung disease during the HAART era. Results: Compared to HIV-uninfected participants, HIV-infected individuals had more incident respiratory infections both pre-HAART (MACS, odds ratio [adjusted-OR], 2.4; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.2-2.7; p<0.001) and after HAART availability (MACS, adjusted-OR, 1.5; 95%CI 1.3-1.7; p<0.001; WIHS adjusted-OR, 2.2; 95%CI 1.8-2.7; p<0.001). Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease was more common in MACS HIV-infected vs. HIV-uninfected participants pre-HAART (hazard ratio [adjusted-HR] 2.9; 95%CI, 1.02-8.4; p = 0.046). After HAART availability, non-infectious lung diseases were not significantly more common in HIV-infected participants in either MACS or WIHS participants. HIV-infected participants in the HAART era with respiratory infections had an increased risk of death compared to those without infections (MACS adjusted-HR, 1.5; 95%CI, 1.3-1.7; p<0.001; WIHS adjusted-HR, 1.9; 95%CI, 1.5-2.4; p<0.001). Conclusion: HIV infection remained a significant risk for infectious respiratory diseases after the introduction of HAART, and infectious respiratory diseases were associated with an increased risk of mortality. © 2013 Gingo et al

Improving cost-effectiveness and access to cognitive behavior therapy for depression: providing remote-ready, computer-assisted psychotherapy in times of crisis and beyond

Introduction. There is growing evidence that computer-delivered or –assisted forms of cognitive-behavior therapy (CCBT) are helpful, but cost-effectiveness versus standard therapies is not well established. Objective. To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of a therapist-supported method for CCBT in comparison to standard CBT. Method. 154 drug-free MDD outpatients were randomly assigned to either 16 weeks of standard CBT (up to twenty 50-minute sessions) or CCBT using the Good Days Ahead program (including up to 5.5 hours of therapist contact). Outcomes were assessed at baseline, weeks 8 and 16, and at 3 and 6 months post-treatment. Economic analyses took into account the costs of services received and work/social role impairment. Results. In the context of almost identical efficacy, a form of CCBT that used only about onethird the amount of therapist contact as conventional CBT was highly cost-effective compared to conventional therapy and reduced cost of treatment by $928 per patient. Conclusions. A method of CCBT that blended internet-delivered modules and abbreviated therapeutic contact reduced the cost of treatment substantially without adversely affecting outcomes. Results suggest that use of this approach can more than double the access to CBT. Because clinician support in CCBT can be provided by telephone, videoconference, and/or email, this highly efficient form of treatment could be a major advance in remote treatment delivery

Colposcopy attendance and deprivation: A retrospective analysis of 27 193 women in the NHS Cervical Screening Programme

This study is funded by a grant from the UK Department of Health (no. 106/0001). ED and NM are supported by the Policy Research Unit in Cancer Awareness, Screening, and Early Diagnosis. The Policy Research Unit receives funding for a research programme from the Department of Health Policy Research Programme. It is a collaboration between researchers from seven institutions (Queen Mary University of London, University College London, King’s College London, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Hull York Medical School, Durham University and Peninsula Medical School)

TURBOMOLE: Modular program suite for ab initio quantum-chemical and condensed-matter simulations

TURBOMOLE is a collaborative, multi-national software development project aiming to provide highly efficient and stable computational tools for quantum chemical simulations of molecules, clusters, periodic systems, and solutions. The TURBOMOLE software suite is optimized for widely available, inexpensive, and resource-efficient hardware such as multi-core workstations and small computer clusters. TURBOMOLE specializes in electronic structure methods with outstanding accuracy–cost ratio, such as density functional theory including local hybrids and the random phase approximation (RPA), GW-Bethe–Salpeter methods, second-order Møller–Plesset theory, and explicitly correlated coupled-cluster methods. TURBOMOLE is based on Gaussian basis sets and has been pivotal for the development of many fast and low-scaling algorithms in the past three decades, such as integral-direct methods, fast multipole methods, the resolution-of-the-identity approximation, imaginary frequency integration, Laplace transform, and pair natural orbital methods. This review focuses on recent additions to TURBOMOLE’s functionality, including excited-state methods, RPA and Green’s function methods, relativistic approaches, high-order molecular properties, solvation effects, and periodic systems. A variety of illustrative applications along with accuracy and timing data are discussed. Moreover, available interfaces to users as well as other software are summarized. TURBOMOLE’s current licensing, distribution, and support model are discussed, and an overview of TURBOMOLE’s development workflow is provided. Challenges such as communication and outreach, software infrastructure, and funding are highlighted