Antibacterial, Antifungal and Antiviral Nanocomposites: Recent Advances and Mechanisms of Action

Over the past ten years, there has been a significant increase in research into the study of nanocomposites. Nanocomposites vary in their physical and chemical properties. In today’s era, eco-friendly, nontoxic, biocompatible, biobased fillers and composites should be synthesized to increase their societal value in various aspects. These materials have seen extensive use across several industries, from biosensors to biomedicine. Great strides have been made in the field of Microbiology, particularly as Antibacterial agents, among these applications. The objective of this review is to present a thorough analysis of several Nanocomposites that reveal promising antibacterial activity. Such Nanocomposites are reviewed in detail, as well as their antibacterial efficacy is discussed

TNF-α promoter polymorphism: a factor contributing to the different immunological and clinical phenotypes in Japanese encephalitis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>More than three billion populations are living under the threat of Japanese encephalitis in South East Asian (SEA) countries including India. The pathogenesis of this disease is not clearly understood and is probably attributed to genomic variations in viral strains as well as the host genetic makeup. The present study is to determine the role of polymorphism of TNF-alpha promoter regions at positions -238G/A, -308G/A, -857C/T and -863C/A in the severity of Japanese encephalitis patients.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Total of 142 patients including 66 encephalitis case (IgM/RT-PCR positive), 16 fever cases (IgM positive) without encephalitis and 60 apparently healthy individuals (IgG positive) were included in the study. Polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) using site specific restriction enzymes were implemented for polymorphism study of TNF alpha promoter.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Following the analysis of the digestion patterns of four polymorphic sites of the TNF- alpha promoter region, a significant association was observed between the allele -308A and -863C with the patients of Japanese encephalitis.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>TNF- alpha 308 G/A has been shown to be associated with elevated TNF- alpha transcriptional activity. On the other hand, polymorphism at position -863C/A in the promoter region has been reported to be associated with reduced TNF- alpha promoter activity and lower plasma TNF levels. As per the literature search, this is the first study to identify the role of TNF- alpha promoter in JE infection. Our results show that subjects with - 308A and -863C alleles are more vulnerable to the severe form of JE infection.</p

Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

Primary renal echinococcosis

Echinococcosis is a parasitic infection caused by the larval stage of a cestode Echinococcus granulosus and is endemic in sheep farming regions of developing countries. It manifests as hydatid cyst and most commonly is found in liver followed by lungs. Renal hydatid cyst is rare and amounts for 2% of all cases. There are no specific clinical manifestations, and hence diagnosis of renal hydatid disease is missed out easily without imaging. We report a case of 50-year-old female who had 6 months history of lower abdominal pain with hematuria, found to have right renal hydatid cyst on imaging which was treated with right nephrectomy with pre- and post-operative albendazole treatment

A cephalometric analysis to establish a correlation of different ridge relations to three levels of camper's line in edentulous patients: An in vivo study

Aim: This study was undertaken with an aim to establish a relationship between normognathic (Class I), retrognathic (Class II), and prognathic (Class III) ridge relation and superior, middle, and inferior levels of the ala-tragus line in edentulous individuals, by utilizing arbitrary and cephalometric methods. Methodology: Ninety edentulous male patients were selected for the study, and after establishing tentative jaw relation, radiopaque ball bearings were attached on three levels of the tragus and inferior part of the ala of the nose. Furthermore, orthodontic wire was attached to maxillary occlusal rims. Lateral cephalometric radiographs were taken, and tracings were carried out to compare and to evaluate the cephalometrically derived ridge relations with that of the visually analyzed ridge relations based on the mounted casts in relation to the ala-tragus line. The results obtained were statistically analyzed using one-way ANOVA test, and multiple comparisons were carried out using the Bonferroni tests. The interoperator variability for obtaining ridge relations using visual analysis and the cephalometrically obtained ridge relations were analyzed using the Kappa statistics. Results: The result obtained states that 78 participants out of 90 participants are in total agreement with the Kappa value of 0.8. Conclusion: The study concluded that for Class I and Class III, the inferior part of the tragus forming the ala-tragus line, and for Class II, the middle part of the tragus should be considered for establishing the occlusal plane

Interaction of Tau Protein with Model Lipid Membranes Induces Tau Structural Compaction and Membrane Disruption

The misfolding and aggregation of the intrinsically disordered, microtubule-associated tau protein into neurofibrillary tangles is implicated in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. However, the mechanisms of tau aggregation and toxicity remain unknown. Recent work has shown that anionic lipid membranes can induce tau aggregation and that membrane permeabilization may serve as a pathway by which protein aggregates exert toxicity, suggesting that the plasma membrane may play dual roles in tau pathology. This prompted our investigation to assess tau's propensity to interact with membranes and to elucidate the mutually disruptive structural perturbations the interactions induce in both tau and the membrane. We show that although highly charged and soluble, the full-length tau (hTau40) is also highly surface active, selectively inserts into anionic DMPG lipid monolayers and induces membrane morphological changes. To resolve molecular-scale structural details of hTau40 associated with lipid membranes, X-ray and neutron scattering techniques are utilized. X-ray reflectivity indicates hTau40s presence underneath a DMPG monolayer and penetration into the lipid headgroups and tailgroups, whereas grazing incidence X-ray diffraction shows that hTau40 insertion disrupts lipid packing. Moreover, both air/water and DMPG lipid membrane interfaces induce the disordered hTau40 to partially adopt a more compact conformation with density similar to that of a folded protein. Neutron reflectivity shows that tau completely disrupts supported DMPG bilayers while leaving the neutral DPPC bilayer intact. Our results show that hTau40s strong interaction with anionic lipids induces tau structural compaction and membrane disruption, suggesting possible membrane-based mechanisms of tau aggregation and toxicity in neurodegenerative diseases

Abstracts of Scientifica 2022

This book contains the abstracts of the papers presented at Scientifica 2022, Organized by the Sancheti Institute College of Physiotherapy, Pune, Maharashtra, India, held on 12–13 March 2022. This conference helps bring researchers together across the globe on one platform to help benefit the young researchers. There were six invited talks from different fields of Physiotherapy and seven panel discussions including over thirty speakers across the globe which made the conference interesting due to the diversity of topics covered during the conference. Conference Title:  Scientifica 2022Conference Date: 12–13 March 2022Conference Location: Sancheti Institute College of PhysiotherapyConference Organizer: Sancheti Institute College of Physiotherapy, Pune, Maharashtra, Indi

Proceedings of National Conference on Relevance of Engineering and Science for Environment and Society

This conference proceedings contains articles on the various research ideas of the academic community and practitioners presented at the National Conference on Relevance of Engineering and Science for Environment and Society (R{ES}2 2021). R{ES}2 2021 was organized by Shri Pandurang Pratishthan’s, Karmayogi Engineering College, Shelve, Pandharpur, India on July 25th, 2021. Conference Title: National Conference on Relevance of Engineering and Science for Environment and SocietyConference Acronym: R{ES}2 2021Conference Date: 25 July 2021Conference Location: Online (Virtual Mode)Conference Organizers: Shri Pandurang Pratishthan’s, Karmayogi Engineering College, Shelve, Pandharpur, India

Publisher Correction: Whole-genome sequencing of a sporadic primary immunodeficiency cohort (Nature, (2020), 583, 7814, (90-95), 10.1038/s41586-020-2265-1)

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper