Culture of non-conventional live feeds and their roles in mariculture of new species

Ctenophores, also known as comb jellies, are delicate gelatinous marine zooplankton belonging to the Phylum Ctenophora. Collection of intact specimens and captive rearing are challenging tasks, given the highly fragile nature of these organisms. The ctenophore Pleurobrachia bachei commonly found in Indian waters, belongs to the order Cydippida. This species is closely associated with lobster phyllosoma, and advanced phyllosoma of the sand lobster, Thenus unimaculatus, have been found to feed very well upon P. bachei. As a prerequisite for successful sand lobster larval rearing, captive rearing of P. bachei assumes great importance as a source of steady and constant supply of live feed for the developing lobster larvae

Dodecanacci superconductor-metamaterial photonic quasicrystal

Using the transfer matrix method, the present paper attempt to determine the properties of the photonic spectra of the Dodecanacci superconductor-metamaterial one-dimensional quasiperiodic multilayer. The numerical calculation is supported by using the transfer matrix method. At first, we analyze the transmission for Dodecanacci quasicrystal for different generations. After that, we analyze the effect of the thickness of the building blocks and the operating temperature. We observed that a vast number of forbidden bandgaps and transmission pecks are developed in its transmission spectra up to a certain generation number of Dodecanacci quasiperiodic sequence. If the generation number increases further, then the bandgaps become wider. According to the obtained results, depending on its generation, this structure can be used as an optical reflector or narrowband filter

Spectroscopic studies on monomers and dimers of thiaporphyrins

Synthesis and spectroscopic properties of porphyrin macrocycles with sulphur as the heteroatom in the porphyrin core have been studied. Electronic absorption spectra of these macrocycles show porphyrin-like behaviour with a strong Soret band and weakQ-bands. Substitution of the -NH groups of tetraphenylporphyrin (TPPH2) by sulphur causes a red shift of all the absorption bands and the magnitude of the red shift depends on the number of sulphur atoms substituted. Both the mono and dications of dithiaporphyrins (S2TPP) show larger bathochromic shifts ofQ-bands relative to TPPH2 indicating a stronger resonance interaction with the phenyl groups. A positive shift for both oxidation and reduction potentials is observed upon substitution of sulphur atoms. 1H NMR spectra of symmetrically substituted dithiaporphyrins show two sharp singlets for pyrrole protons and thiophene protons confirming the presence of a two-fold axis of symmetry. Only monothia derivatives (STPPH) form metal complexes [Ni(II), Cu(II)] and these metal complexes are five-coordinate with an apical chloride ligand. The water-soluble S2TPPS, prepared from sulphonating the para positions of phenyl rings shows extensive aggregation at high concentrations (> 10-4M). At low concentrations (≈ 10-610-7M), dimerisation can be induced by the addition of cations (K+, NH4+ ) and cation-crown ether complex. The induced red shifts upon dimerisation parallel findings reported for a variety of cofacial covalently linked porphyrin dimers

Development and testing the feasibility of a sports-based mental health promotion intervention in Nepal: a protocol for a pilot cluster-randomised controlled trial

Background: Mental wellbeing encompasses life satisfaction, social connectedness, agency and resilience. In adolescence, mental wellbeing reduces sexual health risk behaviours, substance use and violence; improves educational outcomes; and protects mental health in adulthood. Mental health promotion seeks to improve mental wellbeing and can include activities to engage participants in sport. However, few high-quality trials of mental health promotion interventions have been conducted with adolescents, especially in low- and middle-income countries. We sought to address this gap by testing SMART (Sports-based Mental heAlth pRomotion for adolescenTs) in a pilot cluster-randomised controlled trial (cRCT) in Bardiya, Nepal. // Methods: The objectives of the trial are to assess the acceptability and feasibility of SMART, test trial procedures, explore outcome distributions in intervention and control clusters and calculate the total annual cost of the intervention and unit cost per adolescent. The trial design is a parallel-group, two-arm superiority pilot cRCT with a 1:1 allocation ratio and two cross-sectional census surveys with adolescents aged 12–19, one pre-intervention (baseline) and one post-intervention (endline). The study area is four communities of approximately 1000 population (166 adolescents per community). Each community represents one cluster. SMART comprises twice weekly football, martial arts and dance coaching, open to all adolescents in the community, led by local sports coaches who have received psychosocial training. Sports melas (festivals) and theatre performances will raise community awareness about SMART, mental health and the benefits of sport. Adolescents in control clusters will participate in sport as usual. In baseline and endline surveys, we will measure mental wellbeing, self-esteem, self-efficacy, emotion regulation, social support, depression, anxiety and functional impairment. Using observation checklists, unstructured observation and attendance registers from coaching sessions, and minutes of meetings between coaches and supervisors, we will assess intervention fidelity, exposure and reach. In focus group discussions and interviews with coaches, teachers, caregivers and adolescents, we will explore intervention acceptability and mechanisms of change. Intervention costs will be captured from monthly project accounts, timesheets and discussions with staff members. // Discussion: Findings will identify elements of the intervention and trial procedures requiring revision prior to a full cRCT to evaluate the effectiveness of SMART

Impact of adoption of heat-stress tolerant maize hybrid on yield and profitability: Evidence from Terai region of Nepal

Abiotic stresses (drought, heat) are one of the major impediments to enhancing the maize productivity of marginal farmers in the facet of climate change. The present study attempts to investigate the impact of heat-tolerant maize hybrid on yield and income in the Terai region of Nepal. This study uses cross-sectional farm household-level data collected in August 2021 from a randomly selected sample of 404 rural households. We used a doubly robust inverse probability weighted regression adjustment method to obtain reliable impact estimates. Adoption of heat-tolerant hybrid increases yields by 16% and income by 44% in the spring season (a stress condition). Overall, yield increases by 12%, net income by 31%, saving of 40% in seed costs, and per capita food expenditure increases by 8.50%. Hence a conducive environment must be created for scaling up heat-tolerant maize varieties to increase productivity, minimize risk, and transform of the maize sector

Limonene and BEZ 235 induce apoptosis in COLO-320 and HCT-116 colon cancer cells

Deregulated apoptosis is the hall mark of many cancers, therefore every defect in apoptosis pathway could be a potential target for cancer treatment.The anticancer mechanism of limonene could be multifactorial. However, induction of apoptosis in cancer cells is proposed as the predominant mechanism in several of preclinical studies. Therefore, we determined to investigate the role of apoptosis in the anticancer activity of limonene and BEZ235 combination in COLO-320 and HCT-116 colon cancer cells. Cells after treatments were assessed for apoptosis by DAPI staining for fluorescent microscopic examination of apoptotic cells, estimation of caspases activities, Bcl-2 family proteins in addition to cell cycle analysis by flowcytometry. Results show that both drugs induced apoptosis as demonstrated by increased caspases activity, significant alterations in pro and anti-apoptotic proteins of Bcl-2 family in promoting apoptosis and cell cycle arrest at G1 phase. Over all, it is indicated that limonene and BEZ exerted anticancer activity is mediated through induction of apoptosis involving mitochondria mediated intrinsic death pathway in the selected CRC cells

Limonene and BEZ 235 inhibits growth of COLO-320 and HCT-116 colon cancer cells

D-Limonene is a dietary monoterpene with significant anticancer activity against many cancer types in preclinical and clinical studies. The study is designed to investigate synergistic anticancer effects of limonene and BEZ235 combination in COLO-320 and HCT-116 colon cancer cells. Cells were treated with both the drugs alone and in combination and the effects on cell viability; cell migration and clonogenic potential were examined. Results show that both drugs exhibited dose and time dependant cytotoxicity on the cell lines tested. CompuSyn analysis of the drug combination effects revealed the strong synergistic interaction of the combination. Our results also indicate that COLO-320 cells were more sensitive for anticancer effects of the drugs than HCT-116 cells. The presence of Ras and PI3K mutations in HCT-116 cells could possibly be one of the main reasons for the observed outcome as compared to the wild type expressions of them in COLO-320 cells

Internet search analytics for shoulder arthroplasty: what questions are patients asking?

Background Common questions about shoulder arthroplasty (SA) searched online by patients and the quality of this content are unknown. The purpose of this study is to uncover questions SA patients search online and determine types and quality of webpages encountered. Methods The “People also ask” section of Google Search was queried to return 900 questions and associated webpages for general, anatomic, and reverse SA. Questions and webpages were categorized using the Rothwell classification of questions and assessed for quality using the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmark criteria. Results According to Rothwell classification, the composition of questions was fact (54.0%), value (24.7%), and policy (21.3%). The most common webpage categories were medical practice (24.6%), academic (23.2%), and medical information sites (14.4%). Journal articles represented 8.9% of results. The average JAMA score for all webpages was 1.69. Journals had the highest average JAMA score (3.91), while medical practice sites had the lowest (0.89). The most common question was, “How long does it take to recover from shoulder replacement?” Conclusions The most common questions SA patients ask online involve specific postoperative activities and the timeline of recovery. Most information is from low-quality, non-peer-reviewed websites, highlighting the need for improvement in online resources. By understanding the questions patients are asking online, surgeons can tailor preoperative education to common patient concerns and improve postoperative outcomes. Level of evidence IV