Comparison of molecular markers to detect fresh sewage in environmental waters

Human-specific Bacteroides HF183 (HS-HF183), human-specific Enterococci faecium esp (HS-esp), human-specific adenoviruses (HS-AVs) and human-specific polyomaviruses (HS-PVs) assays were evaluated in freshwater, seawater and distilled water to detect fresh sewage. The sewage spiked water samples were also tested for the concentrations of traditional fecal indicators (i.e., Escherichia coli, enterococci and Clostridium perfringens) and enteric viruses such as enteroviruses (EVs), sapoviruses (SVs), and torquetenoviruses (TVs). The overall host-specificity of the HS-HF183 marker to differentiate between humans and other animals was 98%. However, the HS-esp, HS-AVs and HS-PVs showed 100% hostspecificity. All the human-specific markers showed >97% sensitivity to detect human fecal pollution. E. coli, enterococci and, C. perfringens were detected up to dilutions of sewage 10_5, 10_4 and 10_3 respectively.HS-esp, HS-AVs, HS-PVs, SVs and TVs were detected up to dilution of sewage 10_4 whilst EVs were detected up to dilution 10_5. The ability of the HS-HF183 marker to detect freshsewagewas3–4 orders ofmagnitude higher than that of the HS-esp and viral markers. The ability to detect fresh sewage in freshwater, seawater and distilled water matrices was similar for human-specific bacterial and viral marker. Based on our data, it appears that human-specific molecular markers are sensitive measures of fresh sewage pollution, and the HS-HF183 marker appears to be the most sensitive among these markers in terms of detecting fresh sewage. However, the presence of the HS-HF183 marker in environmental waters may not necessarily indicate the presence of enteric viruses due to their high abundance in sewage compared to enteric viruses. More research is required on the persistency of these markers in environmental water samples in relation to traditional fecal indicators and enteric pathogens

Knowledge and attitude among Indian medical students towards thalassemia: a study in Delhi NCR

Background: Thalassemia can easily be prevented by awareness, education, screening, premarital genetic counselling and prenatal diagnosis. There are only a handful of articles on knowledge and awareness about thalassemia among general population or parents of thalassaemic children. Aims and objectives was to evaluate the level of awareness, knowledge and attitudes of medical students towards thalassemia as well as to analyse the differences if any between the first year and second year MBBS students and their correlation with various socio-demographic parameters.Methods: This was an institutional based cross sectional observational descriptive study regarding knowledge and attitude of first and second year MBBS students about thalassemia using a pre-designed, structured, self-administered questionnaire. Data was analyzed using SPSS software version 17. Values of p<0.05 were considered significant.Results: Mean knowledge scores of second year MBBS students compared to first year MBBS were 11.73±1.78 versus 10.8±1.92, the difference being statistically significant, however, the difference between mean attitude scores was not found to be significant. There was no effect of age, gender, region or Kuppuswamy’s socio-economic class on the knowledge or attitude of MBBS students towards thalassemia.Conclusions: Majority of the MBBS students had good knowledge and positive attitude towards thalassemia. To confirm the observations, large scale studies need to be conducted comprising of different study populations. Screening for thalassemia should be made mandatory, as part of medical examination, at entry to a medical college so that the medical college students are sensitized and can spread awareness among general population

A Correlation of Tumor Budding and Tumor Stroma Ratio with Clinicopathological Factors in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Background: Squamous cell carcinoma is the most common carcinoma in the head and neck region. Both tumor budding and tumor stroma ratio are being studied in the recent years in various solid tumors for their role as a prognostic marker, however the studies in oral squamous cell carcinoma are limited. Methods: A total of 50 patients of oral squamous cell carcinoma proved histologically were included in the study over a period of 4 months (July 2022-October 2022). Tumor budding(TB) and Tumor stroma ratio (TSR) were evaluated on routine hematoxylin and eosin stained sections and these were correlated with clinicopathological parameters. Statistical analysis was done using Chi-square test and p value &lt;.05 considered significant. Result: The mean age was 52.72 +_ 13.16 and M: F of 7.1:1. Most of the tumors were located on tongue (46%) followed by buccal mucosa (26%), gingivobuccal sulcus (12%) and retromolar trigone (8%). Palate and alveolus were the other sites involved constituting 4% each. Both TB and TSR were found to be significantly associated with grade of the tuumor, lymph node metastasis and size of the tumor. A highly significant correlation was also found between Tb and TSR with a p value &lt;.001. Conclusion: Both TB and TSR can be easily evaluated on routine H&amp;E sections and are highly reproducible and found to be reliable independent prognostic markers in OSCC. Thus, this simple and cost-effective method of prognostification which is currently lacking will help in identifying patients with poor prognosis and thus, individualise the treatment plan. Keywords: Tumor Budding, Oral squamous cell carcinoma, Tumor stroma ratio

Solid-State Fermentation of Carrot Pomace for the Production of Inulinase by Penicillium oxalicum BGPUP-4

Inulinaze su važna skupina industrijskih enzima što se koriste u proizvodnji kukuruznog sirupa i fruktooligosaharida. Polifruktan inulin uobičajeno se upotrebljava za proizvodnju inulinaza, vrlo skupih suspstrata. Raznovrsni se agroindustrijski otpad koristi za ekonomičnu proizvodnju inulinaza. U ovom je radu odabrana komina mrkve kao podloga za proizvodnju inulinaze fermentacijom na čvrstoj podlozi s pomoću plijesni Penicillium oxalicum BGPUP-4. Komina mrkve dobra je podloga za bioprocese jer je bogata topljivim i netopljivim ugljikohidratima. Optimalna proizvodnja inulinaze iz komine mrkve postignuta je pomoću centralno složenog rotacijskog dizajna i metodologije odzivnih površina. Provedeno je 15 eksperimenata za utvrđivanje optimalnog raspona triju nezavisnih varijabli za proizvodnju inulinaze, i to: udjela vlage od 70 do 90 %, vremena inkubacije od 4 do 6 dana, te pH-vrijednosti od 5,0 do 7,0. Za proizvodnju inulinaze pri temperaturi od 30 °C upotrijebljena je komina mrkve na čvrstoj podlozi koja sadržava 0,5 % inulina, 0,2 % NH4H2PO4, 0,2 % NaNO3, 0,2 % KH2PO4, 0,05 % MgSO4·7H2O i 0,001 % FeSO4·7H2O. Pri optimalnim uvjetima (udjel vlage od 90 %, vrijeme inkubacije od 4 dana i pH-vrijednost od 7,0) proizvedeno je 322,10 IU inulinaze po gramu suhe tvari. Omjer inulinaze i invertaze (I/S) također je bio velik (3,38), što upućuje na zaključak da enzim ima inulinaznu aktivnost. Koeficijent višestruke korelacije (R) za proizvodnju inulinaze bio je 0,9995; a za omjer I/S 0,9947. Vrijednost R blizu 1 potvrđuje odličnu korelaciju između eksperimentalnih i predviđenih rezultataInulinases are an important class of industrial enzymes which are used for the production of high-fructose syrup and fructooligosaccharides. Inulin, a polyfructan, is generally employed for the production of inulinase, which is a very expensive substrate. A number of agroindustrial residues have been used for cost-effective production of inulinases. In the present study, carrot pomace was selected as a substrate for the production of inulinase by Penicillium oxalicum BGPUP-4 in solid-state fermentation. Carrot pomace is one of the good substrates for bioprocesses, because it is rich in soluble and insoluble carbohydrates. A central composite rotatable design (CCRD) used in response surface methodology was employed for the optimal production of inulinase from carrot pomace. Using CCRD, 15 runs were practiced to optimize the range of three independent variables: moisture content (70-90 %), incubation time (4-6 days) and pH (5.0-7.0) for inulinase production. Carrot pomace supplemented with 0.5 % inulin as an inducer, 0.2 % NH4H2PO4, 0.2 % NaNO3, 0.2 % KH2PO4, 0.05 % MgSO4·7H2O and 0.001 % FeSO4·7H2O was used for the production of inulinase in solid-state fermentation at 30 °C. Inulinase production (322.10 IU per g of dry substrate) was obtained under the optimized conditions, i.e. moisture content of 90 %, incubation time 4 days and pH=7.0. The corresponding inulinase/invertase (I/S) ratio (3.38) was also high, which indicates the inulolytic nature of the enzyme. Multiple correlation coefficients R for inulinase production and I/S ratio were 0.9995 and 0.9947, respectively. The R value very close to one indicates an excellent correlation between experimental and predicted results

Feasibility and acceptability of a remote stepped care mental health programme for adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic in India

Remote mental health services were rapidly deployed during the COVID-19 pandemic, yet there is relatively little contemporaneous evidence on their feasibility and acceptability. This study assessed the feasibility and acceptability of a stepped care mental health programme delivered remotely by lay counsellors to adolescents in New Delhi, India, during a period of ‘lockdown’. The programme consisted of a brief problem-solving intervention (“Step 1”) followed by a tailored behavioural module (“Step 2”) for non-responders. We enrolled 34 participants (M age = 16.4 years) with a self-identified need for psychological support. Feasibility and acceptability were assessed through quantitative process indicators and qualitative interviews (n = 17 adolescents; n = 5 counsellors). Thirty-one (91%) adolescents started Step 1 and 16 (52%) completed the planned Step 1 protocol. Twelve (75%) of the Step 1 completers were non-responsive. Eight (67%) non-responsive cases started Step 2, all of whom met response criteria when reassessed at 12 weeks post-enrolment. Adolescents favoured voice-only sessions over video-calls due to privacy concerns and difficulties accessing suitable devices. Counsellors noted challenges of completing remote sessions within the allotted time while recognising the importance of supervision for developing competence in new ways of working. Both adolescents and counsellors discussed the importance of working collaboratively and flexibly to fit around individual preferences and circumstances. Disentangling pandemic-specific barriers from more routine challenges to remote delivery should be a focus of future research

Feminist Attributes for Parenting: Suggested by Adichie

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, is a contemporary Nigerian writer. I choose her work Dear&nbsp;Ijeawele, Or, A Feminist Manifesto In Fifteen Suggestions, as it gives suggestion for parenting in a feminist manner. A series of personal letter accommodated in a book are refreshing take on parenting and can be studied as an initial guide to understand feminism as an ideology. My main focus with this paper is to focus on two different kinds of parenting suggested by her and by Lois Gould, from her short story The story of X, where she creates a narrative revolving around gender-neutral parenting, and how these two can be read together to give a refreshing take on parenting, which is radical in nature because it dissects the norms

Scar endometriosis with rudimentary horn: An unusual and elucidative report of a case diagnosed on histopathology and immunohistochemistry

Endometriosis is defined as the presence of functioning endometrial tissue outside the endometrial cavity. Scar endometriosis, also known as spontaneous abdominal wall endometriosis, is an unusual clinical presentation which often goes unnoticed. It usually develops after pelvic operations. The incidence has been estimated to be only 0.03%–0.15% of all cases of endometriosis. It can be either asymptomatic or present as abdominal wall pain at the site of surgical incision. It is most commonly diagnosed clinically or on ultrasonography. The treatment of choice predominantly remains surgical excision. We present a case of a 24-year-old female (known case of bicornuate uterus) who presented with chief complaints of abdominal pain for 1 month and 6 months after metroplasty. The patient was clinically diagnosed as a case of scar endometriosis with rudimentary horn and fistulous tract and taken up for surgery. Both the scar tissue and fistulous tract were removed and histopathology revealed only endometrial glands without stroma or hemosiderin-laden macrophages. Diagnosis of scar endometriosis was established on positive immunohistochemistry for estrogen and progesterone receptor in endometrial glands. Timely diagnosis and surgical excision of scar endometriosis along with close follow-up are necessary to prevent complications and recurrence

Small-Cell Neuroendocrine Carcinoma of the Cervix Masquerading as a Cervical Fibroid: Report of a rare entity

Primary neuroendocrine tumours of the cervix are extremely rare, with an incidence of only 0.5–1%; as such, these entities can present a clinical and diagnostic challenge. Small-cell neuroendocrine carcinomas of the cervix are highly aggressive tumours that have a tendency to metastasise. We report a 44-year-old woman who presented to the Gynaecology Clinic of the Employees State Insurance Corporation Medical College & Hospital, Faridabad, India, in 2016 with menorrhagia. Based on a clinical examination, she was provisionally diagnosed with a cervical fibroid. However, a biopsy revealed features of a small-cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the cervix which was subsequently confirmed via immunohistochemistry. An accurate diagnosis of a neuroendocrine carcinoma is vital as it forms the basis for treatment decisions as well as informing predictions for long-term survival