Serological and molecular approaches for leptospirosis at a tertiary care centre in northern India

Background: Aims and objectives of the study was to determine prevalence rate of leptospirosis and recognition of common epidemiological situation and clinical manifestations of leptospirosis in patients with pyrexia of unknown origin at a tertiary care centre.Methods: This was a hospital based prospective observational study. The duration of study was from August 2015 to July 2016. Patients with clinical symptoms of pyrexia of unknown origin attending Gandhi Memorial and Associated Hospital, King George’s Medical University Lucknow during the study period were enrolled in this study. We performed the IgM ELISA and PCR for the leptospirosis at our centre and for the Micro Agglutination Test (MAT), we sent the serum samples to regional medical research centre Department of Health Research Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India Port Blair.Results: A Total of 104 symptomatic patients were recruited. Of total, IgM ELISA for leptospirosis were positive in 25 patients, PCR in 20 patients and MAT shows significant titres in 3 samples. The ROC curve analysis revealed significant diagnostic accuracy of IgM ELISA with 100.00% sensitivity and 78.22% specificity however showed less positive predictive value (12.0%) but high negative predictive value (100.0%). Most common presentation were fever, jaundice and rashes (40.4%) followed by fever and jaundice (29.8%).Conclusions: Leptospirosis IgM ELISA and PCR showed good detection accuracy. Age, sex, occupation is not significantly associated to the leptospirosis

NANOSUSPENSION: AN OVERVIEW

Nanotechnology has emerged as a tremendous field in the medicine. Nano refers to particles size range of 1-1000nm. Nanosuspensions are part of nanotechnology. Nanosuspensions contain submicron colloidal dispersion of pharmaceutical active ingredient particles in a liquid phase stabilized by surfactants. Nanosuspension technology is a unique andeconomical approach to overcome poor bioavailability that is related with the delivery of hydrophobic drugs, including those that are poorly soluble in aqueous media. Nanosuspensions are important carriers to develop novel drug formulations. Few techniques such as precipitation methods, milling methods and homogenization methods are developed to produce nanosuspension (NS) and have been successfully employed in large-scale production. They are administered by Parenteral, per oral, ocular and pulmonary routes. Now their application also extended to site specific delivery. Nanosuspensions are prepared by using wet mill, high pressure homogenizer, emulsionâ€solvent evaporation, melt emulsification method and super critical fluid techniques. Nanosuspension technology can be used to improve the stability as well as bioavailability of poorly soluble drug. Nanosuspensions are also use in various dosage forms, including specialized drug delivery system such as mucoadhesive hydrogel. The unique features of nanosuspensions have enabled their use in various dosage forms, including specialized delivery systems such as mucoadhesive hydrogels. Rapid strides have been made in the delivery of nanosuspensions by parenteral, per-oral, ocular and pulmonary routes. Currently, efforts are being directed to extending their applications in site-specific drug delivery

KIRGANELIA RETICULATA (POIR) BAILL.-A REVIEW ON ITS BOTANY, ETHNOBOTANY, PHYTOCHEMISTRY AND PHARMACOLOGY

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Kirganelia reticulata (Poir.) Baill. is known for its importance in various traditional medicine around the world and are proved pharmacologically as an antiviral against Hepatitis B, hepatoprotective, antidiabetic and antioxidant. In Ayurvedic system of Indian medicine recognized its activity against jaundice, diuretic, fever, liver disorder, in bleeding gums, small pox, syphilis, etc. Aim of the review: The review summarizes the up-to-date and comprehensive information concerning the botany, traditional use, phytochemistry and pharmacology of important drug. Kirganelia reticulata and discusses the possible future scope for future research. Material and methods: In present review covers a literature survey across from 1932 to 2012. The some information collected from published literature on species of Kirganelia reticulata (Poir.) Baill. (=Syn. Phyllanthus reticulatus Poir.) and traditional ayurvedic texts. Results: Phytochemical studies have shown the presence of many valuable compounds such as lignans, flavonoids, steroids, coumerins, triterpenes, phenols, flavonones, alkaloids are common compounds in test species. The extract and the compounds isolated from Kirganelia reticulata show a wide spectrum of Biological activities including antidiabetic, antibacterial, antioxidant, hepatoprotective, antiplasmodial, anticiceptive, analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties. Conclusion: The present review summarizes information concerning the morphology, ecology, ethanopharmacologically, phytochemistry, and traditional diseases and applications of K. reticulata. This review target at gathering the research work undertaken till date on this plant in order to provide sufficient baseline information for future works and commercial exploitation

Assessment and evaluation of PV based decentralized rural electrification: An overview

The challenges of providing electricity to rural households are manifold. Ever increasing demand-supply gap, crumbling electricity transmission and distribution infrastructure, high cost of delivered electricity are a few of these. Use of renewable energy technologies for meeting basic energy needs of rural communities has been promoted by the Governments world over for many decades. Photovoltaic (PV) technology is one of the first among several renewable energy technologies that was adopted globally as well as in India for meeting basic electricity needs of rural areas that are not connected to the grid. This paper attempts at reviewing and analyzing PV literature pertaining to decentralized rural electrification into two main categories--(1) experiences from rural electrification and technology demonstration programmes covering barriers and challenges in marketing and dissemination; institutional and financing approaches; and productive and economic applications, (2) techno-economic aspects including system design methodologies and approaches; performance evaluation and monitoring; techno-economic comparison of various systems; and environmental implications and life cycle analysis. The paper discusses the emerging trends in its concluding remarks.Decentralized rural electrification Solar Photovoltaics Tech-economic comparison Performance monitoring

Poly(styrene-block-methylmethacrylate) derived electrospun mesoporous nanofibers

Mesoporous materials are of great interest in fields of catalysis, biosensing, gas sensing and adsorption due to their high specific surface area as compared to macroporous materials and lower pore diffusion resistance when compared to microporous materials. The microphase separation property of block copolymers can be used to obtain mesoporous materials by selectively etching one of its polymer blocks. In this study, we have successfully demonstrated the synthesis of mesoporous poly (styrene-block-methylmethacrylate) (PS-b-PMMA) nanofibers using electrospinning. Morphology of these PS-b-PMMA fibers obtained by electrospinning depends on a number of process as well as solution parameters which were tuned to obtain long uniform and continuous fibers as confirmed by field emission electron microscopy. The nanofibers thus obtained were thermally annealed to assist the phase separation. Later the fibers were exposed to ultraviolet radiation followed by etching with a weak acid to remove the degraded polymer block leading to mesoporous PS-b-PMMA nanofibers, as confirmed by transmission electron microscopy. We also demonstrate the direct synthesis of porous PS-b-PMMA fibers driven by the rapid vaporization of the highly volatile solvent. A comprehensive study of the effect of electrospinning solvent and annealing and etching conditions on the specific surface area, porous structure including pore volume and pore size distribution is carried out using the nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms and the small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). We also analyzed the mesoporous nature of PS-b-PMMA nanofibers using fractal dimension analysis

Insights into the Fabrication and Electrochemical Aspects of Paper Microfluidics-Based Biosensor Module

Over the past ten years, microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (micro-PADs) have attracted a lot of attention as a viable analytical platform. It is expanding as a result of advances in manufacturing processes and device integration. Conventional microfluidics approaches have some drawbacks, including high costs, lengthy evaluation times, complicated fabrication, and the necessity of experienced employees. Hence, it is extremely important to construct a detection system that is quick, affordable, portable, and efficient. Nowadays, micro-PADs are frequently employed, particularly in electrochemical analyses, to replicate the classic standard laboratory experiments on a miniature paper chip. It has benefits like rapid assessment, small sample consumption, quick reaction, accuracy, and multiplex function. The goal of this review is to examine modern paper microfluidics-based electrochemical sensing devices for the detection of macromolecules, small molecules, and cells in a variety of real samples. The design and fabrication of micro-PADs using conventional and the latest techniques have also been discussed in detail. Lastly, the limitations and potential of these analytical platforms are examined in order to shed light on future research

A REVIEW UPDATED ON CHEMOTHERAPEUTICS

Antineoplastic therapy aims at completely eliminating all neoplastic cells, by either surgical, radio therapeutic or pharmacological (administration of drugs) intervention. If this is not possible or feasible, the aim of therapy becomes palliative, that is, its purpose is to reduce the number of neoplastic cells, to improve the symptoms and, if possible, to prolong survival while maintaining an adequate quality of life. Neoplastic cells constitute a heterogeneous cellular population, with biochemical, morphological and immunological differences. Consequently, they evidence a widely varying sensitivity to antineoplastic drugs. Furthermore, not all the cells present in a given tumor are in the same phase in the cell cycle (generally, in the proliferative or in the rest phase). When a neoplasm is diagnosed, most of its cells have usually attained a phase of decelerated growth, because of vascularisation problems, of nutrient competitively problems, of lack of physical space, or of problems of other types. Many of the chemotherapeutic drugs are most effective on cells that are in their division process, and this means that, in principle, a large proportion of the neoplastic cells will be resistant to the effects of a given drug. The small-molecule drugs are the ones whose molecular weight is less than 1000 Daltons. The fastest growing cells in the body are present in skin, hair follicles and lining of the gastrointestinal tract and hence they are affected the most during chemotherapy. In this present review summarized knowledge of chemotherapy by different way

Aerosol, a health hazard during ultrasonic scaling: A clinico-microbiological study

Context: Ultrasonic scaling is a routinely used treatment to remove plaque and calculus from tooth surfaces. These scalers use water as a coolant which is splattered during the vibration of the tip. The splatter when mixed with saliva and plaque of the patients causes the aerosol highly infectious and acts as a major risk factor for transmission of the disease. In spite of necessary protection, sometimes, the operator might get infected because of the infectious nature of the splatter. Aim: To evaluate the aerosol contamination produced during ultrasonic scaling by the help of microbiological analysis. Materials and Methods: This clinico-microbiological study consisted of twenty patients. Two agar plates were used for each patient; the first was kept at the center of the operatory room 20 min before the treatment while the second agar plate was kept 40 cm away from the patient's chest during the treatment. Both the agar plates were sent for microbiological analysis. Statistical Analysis: The statistical analysis was done with the help of STATA 11.0 (StataCorp. 2013. Stata Statistical Software, Release 13. College Station, TX: StataCorp LP, 4905 Lakeway Drive College Station, Texas, USA). Statistical software was used for data analysis and the P < 0.001 was considered to be statistically significant. Results: The results for bacterial count were highly significant when compared before and during the treatment. The Gram staining showed the presence of Staphylococcus and Streptococcus species in high numbers. Conclusions: The aerosols and splatters produced during dental procedures have the potential to spread infection to dental personnel. Therefore, proper precautions should be taken to minimize the risk of infection to the operator

Yield Gap Analysis of Black Gram under front Line Demonstration Program in Western Uttar Pradesh

This research endeavors to conduct a comprehensive yield gap analysis on black gram cultivation in Western Uttar Pradesh. The productivity and yield potential of urd crops in Western Uttar Pradesh face certain challenges due to various technological gaps and the limited adoption of advanced agricultural practices. In order to bridge these gaps and enhance the agricultural extension services, a Frontline Demonstration (FLD) program has been initiated. The study relies on data sourced from the annual reports published by SVP University of Agriculture and Technology, Meerut, ATARI Zone III to compile a comprehensive list of Key Variables of Success (KVSs) pertinent to FLDs on black gram. The performance evaluation provides nuanced insights into the strengths and areas for improvement in technology dissemination and adoption among farmers associated with these KVKs. The findings underscore the need for targeted enhancements to bridge the gaps between demonstrated and potential yields, fostering sustainable agricultural advancements in these regions