Hanhart syndrome: A rare case report and review of literature

Hanhart syndrome is a rare congenital and genetic disease, in which the most common signs are short, incompletely developed tongue (hypoglossia), absent or partially missing fingers and/or toes (hypodactylia), malformed arms and/or legs (peromelia), and small jaw (micrognathia). Here, we report a case of Hanhart syndrome in an 18-year-old boy. The boy presented with few extraoral and intraoral abnormalities such as short toes and phalanges along with partial syndactyly in the left hand only were the most relevant. Other features such as micro and retrognathic face, incompetent lips, and wide nasal bridge were also significant. The boy was suffering for difficulties in speech and swallowing due to small tongue size, high arched palate, crowding, and few missing teeth. To provide adequate treatment to a patient with Hanhart syndrome, this study aimed to review and to analyze this literature and treatment protocols

Knowledge and awareness about optometry profession among rural versus urban population in Eastern India: a survey-based study

Background: The main purpose of this study was to determine the awareness of optometry and to create awareness of optometry among rural and urban population of Kolkata.Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among rural and urban population. A total of 671 participants- male=378 and female=293, were enrolled in this study. An amplified self-structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the participants through a survey camp.Results: Out of 671 subjects, (328 rural and 343 urban subjects), 62 (18.9%) and 166 (48.3%) (95%, CI: 1.93-1.88) were know about optometry in rural and urban population respectively. 4.9% and 14% (95%, CI: 1.97-1.94) did knew the difference between optometrist and ophthalmologists, while in participants opinion optometrist is assistant of ophthalmologist was 3.4% and 1.5% (95%, CI: 2.69-2.61) in rural and urban participants respectively. However, 18.2% (rural) and 32% (urban) (95%, CI: 2.31-2.17) participants think that optometrist is trained in detection and recognition of eye diseases while 22.6% and 26.8% (95%, CI: 3.20-3.02) thinks they can prescribe spectacles and contact lens independently in rural and urban participants respectively. All factors mentioned were found to be statistically significant (p<0.05) with the Chi square and ANOVA test in SPSS version 21.Conclusions: These findings seem to indicate lack of awareness and knowledge about optometry profession. There is a need to increase campaign in these areas via educational programs, awareness survey camp, a poster explaining the eye care, social media regarding eye care provider’s duties and practices, exhibitions for public concerning the profession of optometry

Diagnosis of Oral Cancers by Targeting VPAC Receptors: Preliminary Report

Introduction: Oral cancer is a major health problem. The study of exfoliative cytology material helps in the differentiation of premalignant and malignant alterations of oral lesions. The objective of this study was to assess the feasibility of detecting oral cancer by targeting genomic VPAC (combined vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating peptide) receptors expressed on malignant oral cancer cells. Patients & methods: All patients with suspected oral cavity cancers/lesions formed the study group. The samples from the oral cavity lesion or suspicious area were collected with a cytology brush. The harvested material was examined for malignant cells by 1. the standard PAP stain and 2. targeting the VPAC receptors on the cell surface using a fluorescent microscope. Similarly, malignant cells were identified from cells shed in oral gargles. Results: A total of 60 patients with oral lesions were included in the study. The histopathological diagnosis was squamous cell carcinoma in 30 of these. The VPAC receptor positivity both on the brush cytology staining as well oral gargle staining was more sensitive than the brush cytology PAP staining. The accuracy of the various techniques was as follows, brush cytology PAP staining at 86.67%, brush cytology VPAC staining at 91.67% and oral gargle VPAC staining at 95%. Conclusions: This preliminary study validates our belief that malignant cells in the saliva can be identified by targeting the VPAC receptors. The test is simple, easy, non-invasive and reliable in the detection of oral cancers

The US Program in Ground-Based Gravitational Wave Science: Contribution from the LIGO Laboratory

Recent gravitational-wave observations from the LIGO and Virgo observatories have brought a sense of great excitement to scientists and citizens the world over. Since September 2015,10 binary black hole coalescences and one binary neutron star coalescence have been observed. They have provided remarkable, revolutionary insight into the "gravitational Universe" and have greatly extended the field of multi-messenger astronomy. At present, Advanced LIGO can see binary black hole coalescences out to redshift 0.6 and binary neutron star coalescences to redshift 0.05. This probes only a very small fraction of the volume of the observable Universe. However, current technologies can be extended to construct "3rd Generation" (3G) gravitational-wave observatories that would extend our reach to the very edge of the observable Universe. The event rates over such a large volume would be in the hundreds of thousands per year (i.e. tens per hour). Such 3G detectors would have a 10-fold improvement in strain sensitivity over the current generation of instruments, yielding signal-to-noise ratios of 1000 for events like those already seen. Several concepts are being studied for which engineering studies and reliable cost estimates will be developed in the next 5 years

Legal Barriers to Accessing Safe Abortion Services in India: A Fact Finding Study

https://repository.nls.ac.in/books/1009/thumbnail.jp

Therapeutic potential of probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum AD3 on acetaminophen induced uremia in experimental rats

Summary: Background & aims: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is rapidly heading towards epidemic proportion globally, requires dialysis or kidney transplantation. No generally applicable therapies to slow progression of renal disease are available. The aim of this study was to evaluate Lactobacillus plantarum AD3 as an effective probiotic strain for acetaminophen induced uremic patient. Methods: Plasma uremic profiles, oxidative stress marker, DNA fragmentation assay of kidney tissue and kidney histological studies were investigated on acetaminophen-induced uremic rats (Wister strain albino male). Limited fecal matter analysis and HPLC of intestinal fluid were also performed. Results: In APAP treated rats, plasma urea, creatinine (Cr), glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (GOT) and malonaldehyde (MDA) level elevated significantly compared to negative control. However, level of plasma urea, creatinine, GOT and MDA in tested rats were significantly lower in comparison to uremic control (p < 0.05). Electrolytes profile of the tested plasma samples were in acceptable range. Glomerular necrosis, DNA damage of uremic rats were also significantly lowered. In contrast, SCFAs have been associated with attenuated kidney damage by protecting against oxidative stress. Conclusion: The urease positive probiotic L. plantarum AD3 strain have the antioxidative and antiuremic efficacy in acetaminophen induced experimental rats. Keywords: Acetaminophen induced uremia, Urease positive probiotic, Lactobacillus plantarum AD3, Rat mode