CHEMICAL COMPOSITION AND HEPATOPROTECTIVE EFFECTS OF POLYPHENOLIC FRACTION FROM RIVEA HYPOCRATERIFORMIS IN PARACETAMOL INDUCED LIVER DAMAGE IN WISTAR ALBINO RATS

Objective: This study was designed to chemical composition and hepatoprotective effects of a polyphenolic fraction of aerial parts of R. hypocrateriformis (PPFRH). It was shown to exhibit strong in vitro lipid peroxidation and scavenging activity against hydroxyl radical.Methods: The chemical composition of a polyphenolic fraction of R. hypocrateriformis was analyzed by High-performance liquid chromatography method. Hepatocellular injuries induced by paracetamol were assessed by liver damage in Wistar albino rat; the hepatoprotective effect was evaluated by biochemical parameters in rat serum, antioxidant hydroxyl radical scavenging activity and lipid peroxidation in liver tissue.Results: The polyphenolic fraction of aerial parts of R. hypocrateriformis for lipid peroxidation is significantly (p<0.05). In the hepatoprotective activity of liver enzymes and hepatic necrosis were significantly (p<0.001) closer to paracetamol. The correlation coefficient between the hydroxyl scavenging radical and total phenolic and flavonoid contents were found to be R² = 0.9045 and R² = 0.8876 suggesting the contribution of phenolic and flavonoid compounds of the polyphenolic fraction of aerial parts of R. hypocrateriformis by 90% and 88% to its radical scavenging activity.Conclusion: The polyphenolic fraction of aerial parts of R. hypocrateriformis possesses a significant protective effect against acute hepatotoxicity induced by paracetamol and which may be due to the phenolic and flavonoid components

Diversified farming systems for changing climate and consumerism

When we think about environmental degradation and climate change, the first things that come to our mind are cars and factories, but not how we grow, consume and dispose of. If we collectively put these things together, we account for nearly one-third of the human-induced climate change. That certainly put agriculture at the crossroads of system-level transformation towards healthy food, people, and the planet. Such food-system transformation requires a paradigm shift towards nature-friendly nutrition-rich diverse fruits and vegetables, and it should constitute at least 30-50% of our food plate from the current average of less than 10%. The only way left for us is to return to an ecological intensification with feedback loops that inter-links vital elements of complex agroecological transition within the planetary boundary limits. Farming in harmony with nature, carbon-neutral, enrich micro-hydrology and restore biodiversity to co-benefits the people and the planet. The context-specific regenerative agriculture practices that are ecologically sustainable and economically viable found to be best fit models for smallholder farmers and home gardeners. It is based on the sound ecological philosophy of production follows structure, composition and functions, and where ecosystem services and well being become default returns on their own. The recent advances in digital augmentation with ICTs enabled citizen science to provide powerful tools to aid the integration of frontier technology with indigenous knowledge. This leads to an ideal agro-ecosystem integrated with diverse crops, multi-purpose tree species, animals, and peoples in collective action to restore broken food systems and combat climate chang

SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION, AND BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY OF NOVEL N-PHENYLPROPYL-3-SUBSTITUTED INDOLINE-2-ONE DERIVATIVES

Objective: The objective of the present work deals with the synthesis, characterization and evaluation of antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of N-phenylpropyl-3-substituted indoline-2-one derivatives.Methods: A series of new 3-hydroxy-3-(2-oxoethyl)-1-(3-phenylpropyl) indolin-2-one derivatives 3(a-l) and 3-(2-oxoethylidene)-1-(3-phenylpropyl) indolin-2-one derivatives 4(a-l) were synthesized by knoevenagel condensation of N-phenylpropyl–5-substituted indole-2,3-diones with various acetophenones analogues. The chemical structures of synthesized compounds were confirmed by IR, 1HNMR and Mass spectroscopic and elemental data. These compounds were also screened for their in vitro antimicrobial and antioxidant activities.Results: Novel compounds 3-hydroxy-3-(2-oxoethyl)-1-(3-phenylpropyl) indolin-2-one derivatives 3(a-l) and 3-(2-oxoethylidene)-1-(3-phenylpropyl) indolin-2-one derivatives 4(a-l) were synthesised and characterized using spectral and analytical data. The results of antibacterial and antifungal and antioxidant activities showed that some of the synthesized compounds exhibited promising results.Conclusion: All the newly synthesized compounds were screened for antimicrobial activity by cup plate method and antioxidant activity by the DPPH method using Ciprofloxacin and Amphotericin B as standards against gram positive and gram negative bacteria and fungi respectively

Memory effect in weakly anchored surfaces of deformed helix ferroelectric liquid crystals

A wide-range memory effect in deformed helix ferroelectric liquid crystals (DHFLCs) has been investigated by electro-optical and textural methods. A comparative study has been performed on strongly and weakly anchored surfaces of DHFLC cells. The saturation voltage has been compared in both types of cells by studying the variation of tilt angle and spontaneous polarization with applied voltage. The long-lasting memory effect has been observed in untreated (weakly anchored) cells. It has been proposed that perfect memory in DHFLC cells without any surface treatment is due to the possibility of the absence of depolarization and ionic charges over the surfaces of the cells

Stress induced hyperglycemia and the subsequent risk of type 2 diabetes in survivors of critical illness

OBJECTIVE: Stress induced hyperglycemia occurs in critically ill patients who have normal glucose tolerance following resolution of their acute illness. The objective was to evaluate the association between stress induced hyperglycemia and incident diabetes in survivors of critical illness. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: All adult patients surviving admission to a public hospital intensive care unit (ICU) in South Australia between 2004 and 2011. PATIENTS: Stress induced hyperglycemia was defined as a blood glucose ≥ 11.1 mmol/L (200 mg/dL) within 24 hours of ICU admission. Prevalent diabetes was identified through ICD-10 coding or prior registration with the Australian National Diabetes Service Scheme (NDSS). Incident diabetes was identified as NDSS registration beyond 30 days after hospital discharge until July 2015. The predicted risk of developing diabetes was described as sub-hazard ratios using competing risk regression. Survival was assessed using Cox proportional hazards regression. MAIN RESULTS: Stress induced hyperglycemia was identified in 2,883 (17%) of 17,074 patients without diabetes. The incidence of type 2 diabetes following critical illness was 4.8% (821 of 17,074). The risk of diabetes in patients with stress induced hyperglycemia was approximately double that of those without (HR 1.91 (95% CI 1.62, 2.26), p<0.001) and was sustained regardless of age or severity of illness. CONCLUSIONS: Stress induced hyperglycemia identifies patients at subsequent risk of incident diabetes.Mark P. Plummer, Mark E. Finnis, Liza K. Phillips, Palash Kar, Shailesh Bihari, Vishwanath Biradar, Stewart Moodie, Michael Horowitz, Jonathan E. Shaw, Adam M. Dean

CPLR and Water Resource Utilization by Livestock Farmers in Different Ecosystems of India

The common property resources comprises of all such resources that are meant for common use of the villagers including all resources. The National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO), 1999 in its report defines CPRs as “Resources accessible to and collectively owned\held\managed by an identifiable community and on which no individual has exclusive property rights are called common property resources”. Over the time, there has been gradual decline in CPRs availability to the villagers. The CPRs play an important role in the livelihood of resource poor farmers. According to NSSO, 1999, the percentage of Common Property Land Resources in total geographical area, Common Property Land Resources per household (ha.), Common Property Land Resources per- capita (ha.) is 15, 0.31 and 0.06 respectively. Components of Common Property Land Resources include Community Pastures and grazing land (23%), Village Forest and woodlots (16%) and Other (61%) and there has been reduction of 19 ha in CPR land during last 5 years (per 1000 ha.). The animal land intensity in India is high with an average land holding size of 1.57 ha supporting nearly 2.94 bovines and 1.14 ovine. This in turn puts pressure on common property resources. In developing countries, common property resources (CPRs) can be an important source of income for certain individuals within households (Maggs and Hoddinott, 1997). The common lands are significant form of natural resource endowment in developing countries, play a vital role in maintaining the ecological balance, and in supporting the rural poor, in eking out their livelihood (Qureshi and Kumar, 1998). The objective of present study is to assess the utilization of CPLRs (Common Property Land Resources) and water resources in different ecosystems of India

Assessment of spatio-temporal vegetation dynamics in tropical arid ecosystem of India using MODIS time-series vegetation indices

In the present study, we analyzed spatio-temporal vegetation dynamics to identify and delineate the vegetation stress zones in tropical arid ecosystem of Anantapuramu district, Andhra Pradesh, India, using Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Vegetation Condition Index (VCI), and Vegetation Anomaly Index (VAI) derived from time-series Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) 16-day products (MOD13Q1) at 250 m spatial resolution for the growing season (June to September) of 19 years during 2000 to 2018. The 1-month Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) was computed for 30 years (1989 to 2018) to quantify the precipitation deficit/surplus regions and assess its influence on vegetation dynamics. The growing season mean NDVI and VCI were correlated with growing season mean 1-month SPI of dry (2003) and wet (2007) years to analyze the spatio-temporal vegetation dynamics. The correlation analysis between SPI and NDVI for dry year (2003) showed strong positive correlation (r = 0.89). Analysis of VAI for dry year (2003) indicates that the central, western, and southwestern parts of the district reported high vegetation stress with VAI of less than − 2.0. This might be due to the fact that central and south-western parts of the district are more prone to droughts than the other parts of the district. The correlation analysis of SPI, NDVI, and VCI distinctly shows the impact of rainfall on vegetation dynamics. The study clearly demonstrates the robustness of NDVI, VCI, and VAI derived from time-series MODIS data in monitoring the spatio-temporal vegetation dynamics and delineate vegetation stress zones in tropical arid ecosystem of India