Study of Thermo-Sensitive In-Situ Gels for Ocular Delivery

The aim of the present study was the development of thermo-sensitive in-situ gels for in-vitro evaluation of ophthalmic delivery systems of ketorolac tromethamine (KT), based on methylcellulose (MC) in combination with hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose (HPMC). The gel temperature of 1% MC solution was observed at 60°C. It was found that 6% oral rehydration salt without dextrose (ORS) was capable to reduce the gel temperature below physiological temperature. HPMC was added to increase viscosity and drug release time. The results indicated a large increase in viscosity at 37°C with addition of HPMC whch provided sustained release of the drug over a 4h period. From in-vitro release studies, it could be concluded that the developed systems were thus a better alternative to conventional eye drops

Near total laryngectomy: a single institutional experience

Background: Near total laryngectomy (NTL) aims to remove cancer of larynx and hypopharynx while maintaining a lung powered, prosthesis free voice. The oncological and functional outcomes of NTL have been encouraging but the surgical procedure is complex. In this study, we present our experience with NTL in order to encourage more ENT and head and neck surgeons to take up the procedure.Methods: Twenty-eight patients, who had undergone NTL at State cancer institute, Guwahati are analysed retrospectively for survival, disease free status, functional outcomes and complications.Results: There were two recurrences: one local recurrence which was salvaged by a completion total laryngectomy. The other patient had distant metastasis and died eventually. Overall survival (OS) was 96.43% and event free survival (EFS) was 92.86%. The patient who died had extra-nodal extension (ENE) on post op histology (p=0.274). Two patients failed to develop any speech had stenosis of the shunt. One of these was the only Salvage NTL case (p=0.057). Tracheostome stenosis, poor swallow and shunt stenosis were the common complications in our series. Most of them resolved with some intervention. Multiple complications were seen in the salvage NTL cases.Conclusions: Careful case selection and well executed surgery leads to acceptable results following NTL. Special attention should be paid to the salvage cases as they are prone to develop complications and failure to attain speech. Patients with adverse post-op histopathological examination (HPE), like ENE should be kept under close follow up

Inter-Landau-level Andreev Reflection at the Dirac Point in a Graphene Quantum Hall State Coupled to a NbSe2 Superconductor

Superconductivity and quantum Hall effect are distinct states of matter occurring in apparently incompatible physical conditions. Recent theoretical developments suggest that the coupling of quantum Hall effect with a superconductor can provide a fertile ground for realizing exotic topological excitations such as non-abelian Majorana fermions or Fibonacci particles. As a step toward that goal, we report observation of Andreev reflection at the junction of a quantum Hall edge state in a single layer graphene and a quasi-two dimensional niobium diselenide (NbSe2) superconductor. Our principal finding is the observation of an anomalous finite-temperature conductance peak located precisely at the Dirac point, providing a definitive evidence for inter-Landau level Andreev reflection in a quantum Hall system. Our observations are well supported by detailed numerical simulations, which offer additional insight into the role of the edge states in Andreev physics. This study paves the way for investigating analogous Andreev reflection in a fractional quantum Hall system coupled to a superconductor to realize exotic quasiparticles.Comment: published verio

Performance of summer sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) hybrids under different nutrient management practices in coastal Odisha

The field experiment was conducted at Department of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, OUAT, Bhubaneswar during summer 2014 to find out appropriate hybrids and nutrient management practices for summer sunflower. Application of recommended dose of Fertiliser(RDF) i.e. 60-80- 60 kg N, P2O5-K2O ha -1 + ZnSO4 @ 25 kg ha -1 recorded the maximum capitulum diameter (15.60cm), seed yield (2.17 t ha -1 ), stover yield (4.88 t ha -1 ) and oil yield (0.91 t ha -1 ), while application of RDF + Boron@ 1 kg ha-1 recorded the highest number of total seed (970) and filled seed per capitulum (890) with the lowest unfilled seed (80) and sterility percentage (9.0%). The hybrid ‘Super-48’ recorded the highest seed and oil yield of 2.17 and 0.91 t ha -1 , respectively, at recommended dose of fertiliser + ZnSO4 @ 25 kg ha -1 . Experiment was conducted in evaluating the new hybrids in addition to evaluate the response of variety to different nutrient management practices

Barilius torsai (Teleostei: Cypriniformes: Cyprinidae), a new freshwater fish from the Brahmaputra drainage, India

Barilius torsai is described from the Torsa, a tributary of Brahmaputra River system in West Bengal, India. The new species is distinguished from all its congeners by the presence of a complete lateral line with 52–53 scales, 29 pre-dorsal scales, pectoral fin notched, two well-developed pairs of barbels (rostral and maxillary), length of rostral barbel slightly larger than maxillary, which reaches the orbit. Tubercles on snout and lower jaw absent, 9–11 blue vertical bars along the body, dorsal fin hyaline with dark pigment concentrated along lower two-third of the dorsal-fin rays

POTENTIAL APPLICATION OF DENDRIMERS IN DRUG DELIVERY: A CONCISE REVIEW AND UPDATE

This review gives concise information about the application of dendrimers in the field of drug delivery. Due to their unique architecture these have improved physical and chemical properties. Due to their terminal groups these show high solubility, miscibility and reactivity. Dendrimers have well defined size, shape, molecular weight and monodispersity. These properties make the dendrimers a suitable carrier in drug delivery application. Dendrimers are unimolecular miceller in nature and due to this enhances the solubility of poorly soluble drugs. Their compatibility with DNA, heparin and polyanions make them more versatile. Dendrimers, also referred as modern day polymers, they offer much more good properties than the conventional polymers. Due to their multivalent and mono disperse character dendrimers have stimulated wide interest in the field of chemistry biology, especially in applications like drug delivery, gene therapy and chemotherapy. Self assembly produces a faster means of generating nanoscopic functional and structural systems. But their actual utility in drug delivery can be assessed only after deep understanding of factors affecting their properties and their behavior in vivo. Key words: Dendrimers, Drug targeting, nanoscale carriers