HFOV in inhalational injury associated ARDS with broncho-pleural fistula – An old friend to the rescue: Case report

Introduction: Patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) on mechanical ventilation often require high inspiratory pressure and positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP). However, effective ventilation becomes difficult in cases where a large air leak develops in patients. The management of such a case requires improvisation and the adoption of special ventilation strategies. Case and outcomes: We present a case study of a burn patient with airway involvement, developing ARDS and who developed a bronchopleural fistula (BPF) leading to failure of conventional ventilation. He was managed successfully with high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) and finally discharged. Conclusion: HFOV is a feasible option for ventilating patients with BPF when conventional ventilation fails. At a time when HFOV has largely been relegated to obsolescence, we hope to re-emphasize its relevance under particular circumstances

Alcoholic Extract of Eclipta alba

As per WHO estimates, 80% of people around the world use medicinal plants for the cure and prevention of various diseases including cancer owing to their easy availability and cost effectiveness. Eclipta alba has long been used in Ayurveda to treat liver diseases, eye ailments, and hair related disorders. The promising medicinal value of E. alba prompted us to study the antioxidant, nontoxic, and anticancer potential of its alcoholic extract. In the current study, we evaluated the in vitro cytotoxic and antioxidant effect of the alcoholic extract of Eclipta alba (AEEA) in multiple cancer cell lines along with control. We have also evaluated its effect on different in vivo toxicity parameters. Here, we found that AEEA was found to be most active in most of the cancer cell lines but it significantly induced apoptosis in human breast cancer cell lines by disrupting mitochondrial membrane potential and DNA damage. Moreover, AEEA treatment inhibited migration in both MCF 7 and MDA-MB-231 cells in a dose dependent manner. Further, AEEA possesses robust in vitro antioxidant activity along with high total phenolic and flavonoid contents. In summary, our results indicate that Eclipta alba has enormous potential in complementary and alternative medicine for the treatment of cancer

SU(3) Gauge Family Symmetry and Prediction for the Lepton-Flavor Mixing and Neutrino Masses with Maximal Spontaneous CP Violation

A model for the lepton-flavor mixing and CP violation is proposed based on the SU$_F$(3) gauge family symmetry and the Majorana feature of neutrinos. A consistent prediction for the lepton-flavor mixing and masses is shown to be resulted from the appropriate vacuum structure of SU$_F$(3) gauge symmetry breaking. By choosing the SU$_F$(3) gauge fixing condition to possess a residual $Z_2$ symmetry and requiring the vacuum structure of spontaneous symmetry breaking to have approximate global U(1) family symmetries, we obtain naturally the tri-bimaximal mixing matrix and largely degenerate neutrino masses in the neutrino sector and the small mixing matrix in the charged-lepton sector. With a simple ansatz that all the smallness due to the approximate global U(1) family symmetries is characterized by a single Wolfenstein parameter $\lambda \simeq 0.22$, and the charged-lepton mixing matrix has a similar hierarchy structure as the CKM quark mixing matrix, we arrive at a consistent prediction for the MNSP lepton-flavor mixing with a maximal spontaneous CP violation: $\delta =\pi/2$, $\sin^2\theta_{13} \simeq 1/2\lambda^2 \simeq 0.024$ ($\sin^22\theta_{13} \simeq 0.094$), $\sin^2\theta_{12} \simeq 1/3{3}(1 - 2\lambda^3) \simeq 0.326$ and $\sin^2\theta_{23} \simeq 1/2(1 - \lambda^2) \simeq 0.48$, which agree well with the current experimental data. The CP-violating Jarlskog-invariant is obtained to be $J_{CP} \simeq 1/6\lambda(1-\lambda^2/2-\lambda^3)\sin\delta \simeq 0.035$, which is detectable in next generation neutrino experiment. The largely degenerate neutrino masses with the normal hierarchy and inverse hierarchy are discussed and found be at the order $m_{\nu_i} \simeq O(\lambda^2) \simeq 0.04\sim 0.06$ eV with a total mass $\sum m_{\nu} \sim 0.15$ eV, which is testable in future precision astrophysics and cosmology.Comment: 14 pages, it is explicitly shown that the smallness for both the charged-lepton mixing and neutrino masses with the standard seesaw mechanism can naturally be explained by the approximate global U(1) family symmetries of vacuum structure in the SU(3) gauge family model, references added, published version in PL

Tri-bimaximal-Cabibbo Mixing

Recent measurements of the lepton mixing angle $\theta_{13}$ by the Daya Bay and RENO reactor experiments are consistent with the relationship $\theta_{13}\approx \theta_C/\sqrt{2}$ where $\theta_C$ is the Cabibbo angle. We propose Tri-bimaximal-Cabibbo (TBC) mixing, in which $\sin \theta_{13}= \sin \theta_C/\sqrt{2}$, $\sin \theta_{23}= 1/\sqrt{2}$ and $\sin \theta_{12}= 1/\sqrt{3}$. We show that TBC mixing may arise approximately from Tri-bimaximal, Bi-maximal or Golden Ratio neutrino mixing, together with Cabibbo-like charged lepton corrections arising from a Pati-Salam gauge group, leading to predictions for the CP-violating phase of $\delta \approx \pm 90^o, \pm 180^o, \pm 75^o$, respectively. Alternatively, we show that TBC neutrino mixing may realised accurately using the type I see-saw mechanism with partially constrained sequential right-handed neutrino dominance, assuming a family symmetry which is broken by a flavon common to quarks and neutrinos.Comment: 16 pages. References added, minor change

Parametrizing the Lepton Mixing Matrix in terms of Charged Lepton Corrections

We consider a parametrization of the lepton mixing matrix in which the deviations from maximal atmospheric mixing and vanishing reactor mixing are obtained in terms of small corrections from the charged lepton sector. Relatively large deviations for the reactor mixing angle from zero as indicated by T2K experiment can be obtained in this parametrization. We are able to further reduce the number of complex phases, thus, simplifying the analysis. In addition, we have obtained the sides of unitarity triangles and the vacuum oscillation probabilities in this parametrization. The Jarlskog rephasing invariant measure of CP violation at the leading order has a single phase difference which can be identified as Dirac-type CP violating phase in this parametrization.Comment: New references added, Phys. Lett. B (to appear

Tri-Bimaximal Neutrino Mixing and Discrete Flavour Symmetries

We review the application of non-Abelian discrete groups to Tri-Bimaximal (TB) neutrino mixing, which is supported by experiment as a possible good first approximation to the data. After summarizing the motivation and the formalism, we discuss specific models, mainly those based on A4 but also on other finite groups, and their phenomenological implications, including the extension to quarks. The recent measurements of \theta_13 favour versions of these models where a suitable mechanism leads to corrections to \theta_13 that can naturally be larger than those to \theta_12 and \theta_23. The virtues and the problems of TB mixing models are discussed, also in connection with lepton flavour violating processes, and the different approaches are compared.Comment: 26 pages, 5 figures, 4 tables. V3 submitted to add an acknowledgment to a network. Review written for the special issue on "Flavor Symmetries and Neutrino Oscillations", published in Fortschritte der Physik - Progress of Physic

Deviation from Tri-Bimaximal Mixing and Large Reactor Mixing Angle

Recent observations for a non-zero $\theta_{13}$ have come from various experiments. We study a model of lepton mixing with a 2-3 flavor symmetry to accommodate the sizable $\theta_{13}$ measurement. In this work, we derive deviations from the tri-bimaximal (TBM) pattern arising from breaking the flavor symmetry in the neutrino sector, while the charged leptons contribution has been discussed in a previous work. Contributions from both sectors towards accommodating the non-zero $\theta_{13}$ measurement are presented.Comment: 25 pages, 12 figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1109.232

Dark sector origin of the KOTO and MiniBooNE anomalies

We present a dark sector model that reproduces the KOTO, MiniBooNE and muon anomalous magnetic moment anomalies. The dark sector is comprised of a light scalar singlet $S$ that has a large coupling to a slightly heavier sterile neutrino that mixes with the active neutrinos. The scalar couples to standard model fermions via Yukawa couplings, and to photons via a higher-dimensional coupling. The KOTO signal is a result of the flavor-changing penguin process $K_L \to \pi^0 S$ followed by the decay of $S$ to neutrinos. The sterile neutrino produced in neutrino-nucleus scattering at MiniBooNE decays to an active neutrino and $S$, which decays electromagnetically and creates an event excess at low energies.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figure, 2 tables. Version to appear in PL

HEART UK Consensus Statement on Lipoprotein(a) - a call to action

Lipoprotein(a), Lp(a), is a modified atherogenic low-density lipoprotein particle that contains apolipoprotein(a). Its levels are highly heritable and variable in the population. This consensus statement by HEART UK is based on the evidence that Lp(a) is an independent cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor, provides recommendations for its measurement in clinical practice and reviews current and emerging therapeutic strategies to reduce CVD risk. Ten statements summarise the most salient points for practitioners and patients with high Lp(a). HEART UK recommends that Lp(a) is measured in adults as follows: 1)those with a personal or family history of premature atherosclerotic CVD; 2)those with first-degree relatives who have Lp(a)levels > 200nmol/l; 3) patients with familial hypercholesterolemia; 4) patients with calcific aortic valve stenosis and 5) those with borderline (but<15%) 10 year risk of a cardiovascular event. The management of patients with raised Lp(a) levels should include: 1) reducing overall atherosclerotic risk; 2)controlling dyslipidemia with a desirable nonHDL-cholesterol level of <100mg/d (2.5mmol/l) and 3) consideration of lipoprotein apheresis