Undifferentiated Carcinoma of Larynx of Nasopharyngeal Type

Undifferentiated carcinoma of nasopharyngeal type arising in the larynx is unusual. This type of carcinoma-which occurs almost exclusively in nasopharynx-is very infrequent in the larynx (0.2%). Till date only 17 cases are reported in the medical literature. We present the clinical and histopathological findings along with the management of one additional case of undifferentiated carcinoma of nasopharyngeal type in the larynx which was managed successfully with radiotherapy

Insular Carcinoma of Thyroid Presenting as a Giant Skull Lesion: A Dilemma in Treatment.

Thyroid surgeons are becoming increasingly more aware of a histologically distinct subset of thyroid carcinoma whose classification falls between well-differentiated and anaplastic carcinomas with respect to both cell differentiation and clinical behavior. This subtype of tumors has been categorized as poorly differentiated or insular carcinoma, based on its characteristic cell groupings. Although the differentiation of insular carcinoma from other thyroid carcinomas has important prognostic and therapeutic significance, relatively little about insular carcinoma has been published in the otolaryngology literature. In this article, we discuss a case of insular carcinoma of thyroid presenting with concurrent distant metastasis to skull, lung, ribs, and inguinal region with review of the literature. We conclude that insular thyroid carcinoma warrants aggressive management with total thyroidectomy and excision of accessible giant lesion followed by radioactive iodine ablation of any remaining thyroid tissue

Degradation of acidic Orange G dye using UV-H2O2 in batch photoreactor

Degradation of Orange G dye has been investigated using UV irradiation with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in a batch photoreactor. UV irradiation and H2O2 resulted in significant photodegradation of the dye although the effect individual reaction was very little. The degradation was studied to elucidate the effect of various process parameters such as pH, concentration of dye, dose of H2O2, TiO2 and light intensity/light source with reflecting or non reflecting surface of photoreactor. Results showed the efficient degradation of Orange G for typical process conditions.Keywords: Orange G, UV/H2O2, photoreactor, degradation, process parameters

Assessment of Functioning of Village Health and Sanitation Committees (VHSCs) of Indore District

Background: The NRHM framework of implementation mentions provision of Village Health and Sanitation Committee (VHSC) in each revenue village that has to be formed within the overall framework of Panchayati Raj Institution (PRI). Objective: To review the current status of formation, training and functioning of VHSCs in Indore district and mechanism of utilization of united funds in these VHSCs. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out in 32 villages, of four blocks of Indore district. Different stakeholders of VHSCs of these 32 villages were included purposively as study subjects. Data was collected using predesigned, pretested semi structured questionnaires and checklist. Total of 133 interviews of different stakeholders and 32 record reviews were carried out. The quantitative data collected by interviews and record reviews was analyzed by SPSS software and qualitative data was analyzed manually using qualifier. Results: Significant association between knowledge and awareness about any aspect of VHSC and type of stakeholder has been observed. PRI members and Self Help Group (SHG) members have been found to be totally ignorant about many aspects of VHSC. No formal training has ever been imparted to the members of VHSCs regarding functioning of VHSC at village level. None of the functionaries were found to be aware of village health plan. Conclusion: The efficiency and impact of VHSCs have been found to be very limited

Mercaptophosphonic acids as efficient linkers in quantum dot sensitized solar cells

Control over the deposition of quantum dots (QDs) on nanostructured semiconductors is very important for the photovoltaic performance of QD sensitized solar cells. The best control is typically achieved using bifunctional molecular linkers, such as mercaptopropionic acid (MPA), to attach the QDs to metal oxides in a specific manner; however some materials, such as ZnO, are not compatible with these molecules due to their pH sensitivity. We have developed new linkers, mercaptophosphonic acids of different length, which allow efficient functionalization of ZnO nanowires and also mesoporous TiO2 without damaging their surface. Detailed XPS and contact angle studies of the mechanism of self-assembly of these acids show that their strong chelation of the oxide surface prevents protonic attack and etching. Using these linkers, we show that colloidal ternary quantum dots, CuInS2, can be conformally and homogeneously deposited on the functionalized metal oxides. Photophysical studies by means of time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy confirm efficient electron transfer from the QDs to the metal oxides with the rate and efficiency scaling with respect to the linker length and nature. The efficiency of the QD sensitized solar cells fabricated with such assemblies also strongly depends on the linkers used and follows the trends observed for the charge transfer

Deferred pre-emptive switch from calcineurin inhibitor to sirolimus leads to improvement in GFR and expansion of T regulatory cell population: a randomized, controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Measures to prevent chronic calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) toxicity have included limiting exposure by switching to sirolimus (SIR). SIR may favorably influence T regulator cell (T(reg)) population. This randomized controlled trial compares the effect of switching from CNI to SIR on glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and T(reg) frequency. METHODS: In this prospective open label randomized trial, primary living donor kidney transplant recipients on CNI-based immunosuppression were randomized to continue CNI or switched to sirolimus 2 months after surgery; 29 were randomized to receive CNI and 31 to SIR. All patients received mycophenolate mofetil and steroids. The main outcome parameter was estimated GFR (eGFR) at 180 days. T(reg) population was estimated by flowcytometry. RESULTS: Baseline characteristics in the two groups were similar. Forty-eight patients completed the trial. At six months, patients in the SIR group had significantly higher eGFR as compared to those in the CNI group (88.94 ± 11.78 vs 80.59 ± 16.51 mL/min, p = 0.038). Patients on SIR had a 12 mL/min gain of eGFR of at the end of six months. Patients in the SIR group showed significant increase in T(reg) population at 30 days, which persisted till day 180. There was no difference in the adverse events in terms of number of acute rejection episodes, death, infections, proteinuria, lipid profile, blood pressure control and hematological parameters between the two groups. Four patients taking SIR developed enthesitis. No patient left the study or switched treatment because of adverse event. CONCLUSIONS: A deferred pre-emptive switch over from CNI to SIR safely improves renal function and T(reg) population at 6 months in living donor kidney transplant recipients. Registered in Clinical Trials Registry of India (CTRI/2011/091/000034)

Seam grinning behavior of single jersey fabric

120-126Influence of fibre, yarn count, loop length and fabric direction on seam grinning behavior of a single jersey fabric has been investigated. A 33 Box–Behnken design is employed to investigate the influence of various parameters on seam grinning behavior of single jersey fabric. The test results show that the seam grinning d5ecreases for the specimen having lycra filament but it is maximum for 100% cotton specimen. At higher value of loop length, seam grinning decreases in cotton and polyester/cotton fabrics but increases for polyester-lycra and cotton-lycra fabric samples. It had also been seen that seam grinning is higher in wale-wise and bias direction as compared to that in course-wise direction. Hence, seam grinning can be reduced by choosing appropriate values of yarn count, loop length for a particular kind of fibre. This study will be helpful for garment industrialist to minimise the seam grinning effect among knitted garments and to improve quality of producing seam

Effect of yarn count and loop length on needle penetration force and needle cut index in single jersey fabrics

388-394The present study embodies the sewability of single jersey knitted fabric based on needle penetration force and needle cut index. Four types of single jersey fabric, viz. 100% cotton, polyester/cotton, polyester/lycra, and cotton/lycra, are taken for investigation. The materials are prepared on circular knitting machine by varying the yarn count and loop length. The influence of various parameters, viz. type of fibre, yarn count and loop length, on needle penetration force and needle cut index have been analyzed. In addition, the influence of seam direction on the needle cut index is also studied. A 3_level factorial design is employed to analyse the influence of there parameters. The statistical analysis shows that yarn count and loop length has a significant effect on needle penetration force and needle cut index. It has been observed that in all single jersey knitted fabrics, cotton-lycra and polyester-lycra half plated fabrics have higher value of needle penetration force than cotton and polyester/cotton.  The test results also show that for both coarser yarn and finer yarn count, longer loop length gives a lower value of needle penetration force. The needle cut index decreases with increase in the yarn count and loop length. Also it is observed that, the needle cut index is more in wale direction as compared to that in course direction. It is also concluded that cotton fabric samples are more susceptible to needle damages as compared to their counterparts

Optimization of parameters for needle cut index using TOPSIS method

319-324The influence of loop length, stitches per inch, and sewing needle type on needle cut index in 100% cotton single jersey fabric has been studied considering factorial design. Further optimization of factors using Design Expert Tool has been done followed by ranking the optimized solution through TOPSIS method along with the confirmatory test. The results show that sewing needle type has the highest contribution with 29.83% followed by the 23.08% for stitches per inch and 11.95% in the case of loop length as far as needle cut index in the course direction is concerned. In the wale direction, sewing needle type has the highest contribution with 50.45% followed by the 13.30% for loop length and 10.77% for stitches per inch. It has also been observed that SES needle type is generating more needle cut as compared to SUK and SAN type needles. It is confirmed that the error percentage has been the lowest for highest rank solutions and subsequently the error increases with decreasing rank in terms of closeness coefficient. The present study is expected to be helpful for garment industrialists in minimising the needle cut defect among knitted garments and improve the quality of producing seam

Seam performance of knitted fabrics based on seam strength and seam efficiency

22-28The current study has been conducted on 100% cotton, polyester/cotton and cotton/lycra single jersey fabrics for investigation of seam performance in term of seam strength and seam efficiency. The influence of various parameters, viz. sewing needle size, sewing needle type and seam angle, on seam performance of these fabrics have been studied and analyzed. The response surface methodology is employed to investigate their effect on seam strength and seam efficiency by analysis of variance and regression equations. The test results reveal that cotton and cotton/lycra fabrics have lower seam strength as compared to polyester/cotton fabric. Also, with increase in seam angle and needle size, seam strength decreases. However, with sewing needle type, an increase in seam strength is observed for all the three fabrics. The cotton/lycra half plated fabric shows higher seam efficiency among all the three fabrics. It is noted that seam efficiency increases with seam angle and sewing needle type. It has been found that SES needle type (Small ball point) exhibits poor seam efficiency but an improvement in efficiency has been observed with SUK (Medium ball point) and SAN needle type (Conical point) for all three knitted fabrics