Design and Study of Swirl Injector of Pulse Detonation Engine

Future Indian Air force and Navy Capabilities indicate the need for a supersonic cruise missile. Therefore, there exists a need for a low cost, light-weight, and efficient means of supersonic propulsion. In this paper my main emphasis on Pulse Detonation Engine, in pulse detonation engine humphey cycle is used ,PDE has thermodynamic efficiency greater than 50% as compared to 35% for present day propulsion technology constant-pressure Brayton cycle currently in use in gas turbines/ramjets/scramjets. Pulse Detonation Engines (PDE's) represent an upcoming new approach to propulsion and with the simplicity of its construction; PDE's produce thrust more efficiently than the current engines and produces a higher specific thrust. Since current rocket engines require heavy and expensive pumps; with mechanical simplicity and thermodynamic efficiency PDE's offer a viable alternative to reduce the cost of launching spacecraft

Urban Cholera transmission hotspots and their implications for Reactive Vaccination: evidence from Bissau city, Guinea Bissau

Use of cholera vaccines in response to epidemics (reactive vaccination) may provide an effective supplement to traditional control measures. In Haiti, reactive vaccination was considered but, until recently, rejected in part due to limited global supply of vaccine. Using Bissau City, Guinea-Bissau as a case study, we explore neighborhood-level transmission dynamics to understand if, with limited vaccine and likely delays, reactive vaccination can significantly change the course of a cholera epidemic

A candidate gene-based association study of introgressed pod shatter resistance in Brassica napus

267-276Yield losses at maturity due to unsynchronized pod shattering remain a major rapeseed breeding challenge. Variation for shatter resistance in the germplasm collections is inadequate for breeding manipulations. We have recently transferred resistance to pod shattering from Brassica carinata to Brassica napus. Introgression lines (ILs) were phenotyped for shatter resistance using the pendulum machine. Introgressive breeding was successful in enhancing rupture energy in the ILs, which varied from 1.8 to 7.2 milli Joules (mJ) for Environment 1 (E1) and 2.7 to 6.5 mJ for E2 while the corresponding values for natural B. napus ranged from 2.2-3.5 mJ (E1) and 2.2-4.3 mJ (E2), respectively. B. carinata had average rupture energy of 6.3 mJ (pooled over environments). On the basis of data averaged over two environments, I2 (6.3 mJ), I3 (5.2 mJ), I8 (5.6 mJ), I22 (5.1 mJ), I32 (5.2 mJ) and I41 (5.2 mJ) appeared very promising as germplasm resources for future breeding. Significant marker trait association between candidate gene NAC NAM (no apical meristem, Petunia), ATAF1/2 (Arabidopsis thaliana activating factor) and CUC2 (cup-shaped cotyledon, Arabidopsis) and rupture energy explained 19% of variation for the trait. IND3 (indehescent 3) also appeared to be associated with rupture energy under E1. These polymorphisms serve as encouraging candidates for developing molecular markers useful in marker-assisted deployment of introgressed shatter resistance

A candidate gene-based association study of introgressed pod shatter resistance in Brassica napus

Yield losses at maturity due to unsynchronized pod shattering remain a major rapeseed  breeding challenge. Variation for shatter resistance  in the germplasm collections is  inadequate for breeding manipulations. We have recently transferred resistance to pod shattering from Brassica carinata to Brassica napus. Introgression lines (ILs) were phenotyped for shatter resistance using the pendulum machine. Introgressive breeding was successful in enhancing rupture energy in the ILs, which varied from 1.8 to 7.2 mJ for E1 and 2.7 to 6.5 mJ for E2 while the corresponding values for natural B. napus ranged from 2.2 - 3.5 mJ (E1) and 2.2 - 4.3 mJ (E2) respectively. B. carinata had an average rupture energy of 6.3 mJ (pooled over environments).  On the basis of data averaged over two environments, I2 (6.3 mJ), I3 (5.2 mJ), I8 (5.6 mJ), I22 (5.1 mJ), I32 (5.2 mJ) and I41 (5.2 mJ) appeared very promising as germplasm resources for future breeding. Significant marker trait association between candidate gene NAC and rupture energy explained 19% of variation for the trait. NDEH 3 also appeared to be associated with rupture energy under E1. These polymorphisms represent promising candidates for the development of molecular markers for marker-assisted deployment of introgressed shatter resistance

A case of bronchogenic adenocarcinoma in a guinea pig (Cavia porcellus)

A spontaneous case of bronchogenic adenocarcinoma in an adult female albino guinea pig characterized by presence of proliferative neoplastic bronchial epithelial cells forming nests, and vacuolation in the liver parenchyma, is reported

Prevalence and tick loads in Nguni cattle reared in different environmental conditions across four provinces of South Africa

BACKGROUND AND AIM: In tropical and subtropical countries, ixodid ticks are among livestock’s most economically important ectoparasites. Although Nguni cattle from South Africa have adapted to harsh environments, it is unknown whether they will be resistant to ticks, and the diseases carried by ticks under various climatic conditions. Therefore, this study aimed to compare tick load and estimate the prevalence of different tick species among Nguni cattle under different environmental conditions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Tick counts were conducted monthly under natural challenges over 2 years on 586 Nguni cattle located at ARC-Roodeplaat and Loskop farms (warmer climate), Mukhuthali Nguni Community and the University of Fort Hare farms (cooler climate). The generalized linear model procedure of the Statistical Analysis System was used to analyze the data. It fitted the location (farm), sex, year, month or season, and animal age as covariates. RESULTS: The tick species (relative prevalence) observed were as follows: Amblyomma hebraeum (42%), Rhipicephalus evertsi (22%), Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) spp. (16%), Rhipicephalus appendiculatus (11%), Hyalomma marginatum (5%), and Rhipicephalus simus (4%). Tick infestation was significantly affected by location, season, year, month of the tick counting and age of the animal. Loskop farm had the highest tick count (m = 30.69) and showed the largest variation in tick count. Compared to the other seasons, higher tick counts were seen during the hot-dry (September–November) and hot-wet (December–February) seasons. A. hebraeum was the dominant tick species across all four farms, followed by R. evertsi. The perianal region (under the tail head), the perineum and the belly body locations were the most preferred tick attachment sites. CONCLUSION: These results provide useful information for developing appropriate control strategies for ticks and tick-borne diseases in these provinces of South Africa. Further work must investigate the feasibility of genetic improvement for tick resistance

Images in Clinical Urology: Complex open pyeloplasty in a pelvic kidney

A pelvic kidney occurs in between 1 in 2200 and 1 in 3000 people,1 due to failure of ascent during development. It is commonly asymptomatic and usually functions normally. Pelvic ureteral junction obstruction can either be congenital or acquired, and is characterized by intrinsic stenosis or extrinsic compression of the ureter at the junction with the pelvicalyceal renal system. This can cause symptomatic or asymptomatic hydronephrosis. We describe the complex case and management of a patient with a massive pelvic ureteral junction obstruction in a pelvic kidney

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour arising in the adrenal gland: a case report.

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour arising in the adrenal gland is exceptional. As far as we are aware, there have been only three previous reports in the literature. We report a fourth case

ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTI-PROLIFERATIVE EFFECTS OF AN ETHYL ACETATE FRACTION OF THE HYDRO-ETHANOLIC EXTRACT OF SYNEDRELLA NODIFLORA (L) GAERTN

Objective: Synedrella nodiflora is traditionally used in the treatment of several ailments. Pharmacologically, this plant has anticonvulsant, sedative, anti-nociceptive and anti-proliferative effects. This study further investigated S. nodiflora for its antioxidant and in vitro inhibition of cancerous cell lines. Methods: Phytochemical assays, and the DPPH radical scavenging method were employed in preliminary screening for antioxidant activities of the crude hydro-ethanolic extract (SNE) and resulting fractions. The potent ethyl acetate fraction (EAF), was further investigated for total phenol and flavonoid contents, reducing power, lipid peroxidation potential, and cytotoxic effects on human breast cancer (MCF-7), leukemic (Jurkat), and normal liver (Chang’s liver) cell lines. Results: The extract contained phenols, flavonoids, tannins, glycosides, sterols, terpenoids, and alkaloids. It scavenged for DPPH with an IC50 of 114 µg/ml, whereas that of EAF was 8.9 µg/ml. EAF prevented peroxidation of egg lecithin at an IC50 of 24.01±0.08 µg/ml. These IC50s are four and three times lower than the reference standards. EAF produced anti-proliferative effects against MCF-7, and Jurkat cell lines with IC50s of 205.2 and 170.9 µg/ml, respectively. EAF had a high IC50 of 252.2 µg/ml against Chang’s liver cells. At 0.1 mg/ml EAF had similar total flavonoid content to SNE, but a significantly higher total phenol content. Conclusion: The ethyl acetate fraction of S. nodiflora, exhibited the most potent antioxidant activity. It inhibited the proliferation of breast and leukemic cancer cell lines, whiles having weak cytotoxic effect on normal liver cells. These can be explored for further drug development