Electrical output of bryophyte microbial fuel cell systems is sufficient to power a radio or an environmental sensor.

Plant microbial fuel cells are a recently developed technology that exploits photosynthesis in vascular plants by harnessing solar energy and generating electrical power. In this study, the model moss species Physcomitrella patens, and other environmental samples of mosses, have been used to develop a non-vascular bryophyte microbial fuel cell (bryoMFC). A novel three-dimensional anodic matrix was successfully created and characterized and was further tested in a bryoMFC to determine the capacity of mosses to generate electrical power. The importance of anodophilic microorganisms in the bryoMFC was also determined. It was found that the non-sterile bryoMFCs operated with P. patens delivered over an order of magnitude higher peak power output (2.6 ± 0.6 µW m-2) than bryoMFCs kept in near-sterile conditions (0.2 ± 0.1 µW m-2). These results confirm the importance of the microbial populations for delivering electrons to the anode in a bryoMFC. When the bryoMFCs were operated with environmental samples of moss (non-sterile) the peak power output reached 6.7 ± 0.6 mW m-2. The bryoMFCs operated with environmental samples of moss were able to power a commercial radio receiver or an environmental sensor (LCD desktop weather station).The authors are grateful for funding provided by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) (P.B., A.G.S. and C.J. Howe), EnAlgae (http://www.enalgae.eu/, INTERREG IVB NWE) (P.B. and C.J. Howe), the Royal Society URF (C.J. Harrison), the Gatsby Charitable Foundation (Fellowship GAT2962) (C.J. Harrison), the Leverhulme Trust (P.B. and C.J. Howe), the Shuttleworth Foundation (P.B.) and the Department of Science and Technology and the National Research Foundation of South Africa through the South African Research Chair Initiative Chair in Bioprocess Engineering (UID 64778) (S.T.L.H. and D.M.R.I.).This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from the Royal Society Publishing via https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.16024

Why Are Outcomes Different for Registry Patients Enrolled Prospectively and Retrospectively? Insights from the Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF).

Background: Retrospective and prospective observational studies are designed to reflect real-world evidence on clinical practice, but can yield conflicting results. The GARFIELD-AF Registry includes both methods of enrolment and allows analysis of differences in patient characteristics and outcomes that may result. Methods and Results: Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and ≥1 risk factor for stroke at diagnosis of AF were recruited either retrospectively (n = 5069) or prospectively (n = 5501) from 19 countries and then followed prospectively. The retrospectively enrolled cohort comprised patients with established AF (for a least 6, and up to 24 months before enrolment), who were identified retrospectively (and baseline and partial follow-up data were collected from the emedical records) and then followed prospectively between 0-18 months (such that the total time of follow-up was 24 months; data collection Dec-2009 and Oct-2010). In the prospectively enrolled cohort, patients with newly diagnosed AF (≤6 weeks after diagnosis) were recruited between Mar-2010 and Oct-2011 and were followed for 24 months after enrolment. Differences between the cohorts were observed in clinical characteristics, including type of AF, stroke prevention strategies, and event rates. More patients in the retrospectively identified cohort received vitamin K antagonists (62.1% vs. 53.2%) and fewer received non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (1.8% vs . 4.2%). All-cause mortality rates per 100 person-years during the prospective follow-up (starting the first study visit up to 1 year) were significantly lower in the retrospective than prospectively identified cohort (3.04 [95% CI 2.51 to 3.67] vs . 4.05 [95% CI 3.53 to 4.63]; p = 0.016). Conclusions: Interpretations of data from registries that aim to evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of patients with AF must take account of differences in registry design and the impact of recall bias and survivorship bias that is incurred with retrospective enrolment. Clinical Trial Registration: - URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier for GARFIELD-AF (NCT01090362)

Improved risk stratification of patients with atrial fibrillation: an integrated GARFIELD-AF tool for the prediction of mortality, stroke and bleed in patients with and without anticoagulation.

OBJECTIVES: To provide an accurate, web-based tool for stratifying patients with atrial fibrillation to facilitate decisions on the potential benefits/risks of anticoagulation, based on mortality, stroke and bleeding risks. DESIGN: The new tool was developed, using stepwise regression, for all and then applied to lower risk patients. C-statistics were compared with CHA2DS2-VASc using 30-fold cross-validation to control for overfitting. External validation was undertaken in an independent dataset, Outcome Registry for Better Informed Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation (ORBIT-AF). PARTICIPANTS: Data from 39 898 patients enrolled in the prospective GARFIELD-AF registry provided the basis for deriving and validating an integrated risk tool to predict stroke risk, mortality and bleeding risk. RESULTS: The discriminatory value of the GARFIELD-AF risk model was superior to CHA2DS2-VASc for patients with or without anticoagulation. C-statistics (95% CI) for all-cause mortality, ischaemic stroke/systemic embolism and haemorrhagic stroke/major bleeding (treated patients) were: 0.77 (0.76 to 0.78), 0.69 (0.67 to 0.71) and 0.66 (0.62 to 0.69), respectively, for the GARFIELD-AF risk models, and 0.66 (0.64-0.67), 0.64 (0.61-0.66) and 0.64 (0.61-0.68), respectively, for CHA2DS2-VASc (or HAS-BLED for bleeding). In very low to low risk patients (CHA2DS2-VASc 0 or 1 (men) and 1 or 2 (women)), the CHA2DS2-VASc and HAS-BLED (for bleeding) scores offered weak discriminatory value for mortality, stroke/systemic embolism and major bleeding. C-statistics for the GARFIELD-AF risk tool were 0.69 (0.64 to 0.75), 0.65 (0.56 to 0.73) and 0.60 (0.47 to 0.73) for each end point, respectively, versus 0.50 (0.45 to 0.55), 0.59 (0.50 to 0.67) and 0.55 (0.53 to 0.56) for CHA2DS2-VASc (or HAS-BLED for bleeding). Upon validation in the ORBIT-AF population, C-statistics showed that the GARFIELD-AF risk tool was effective for predicting 1-year all-cause mortality using the full and simplified model for all-cause mortality: C-statistics 0.75 (0.73 to 0.77) and 0.75 (0.73 to 0.77), respectively, and for predicting for any stroke or systemic embolism over 1 year, C-statistics 0.68 (0.62 to 0.74). CONCLUSIONS: Performance of the GARFIELD-AF risk tool was superior to CHA2DS2-VASc in predicting stroke and mortality and superior to HAS-BLED for bleeding, overall and in lower risk patients. The GARFIELD-AF tool has the potential for incorporation in routine electronic systems, and for the first time, permits simultaneous evaluation of ischaemic stroke, mortality and bleeding risks. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier for GARFIELD-AF (NCT01090362) and for ORBIT-AF (NCT01165710)

Two-year outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation: results from GARFIELD-AF.

AIMS: The relationship between outcomes and time after diagnosis for patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) is poorly defined, especially beyond the first year. METHODS AND RESULTS: GARFIELD-AF is an ongoing, global observational study of adults with newly diagnosed NVAF. Two-year outcomes of 17 162 patients prospectively enrolled in GARFIELD-AF were analysed in light of baseline characteristics, risk profiles for stroke/systemic embolism (SE), and antithrombotic therapy. The mean (standard deviation) age was 69.8 (11.4) years, 43.8% were women, and the mean CHA2DS2-VASc score was 3.3 (1.6); 60.8% of patients were prescribed anticoagulant therapy with/without antiplatelet (AP) therapy, 27.4% AP monotherapy, and 11.8% no antithrombotic therapy. At 2-year follow-up, all-cause mortality, stroke/SE, and major bleeding had occurred at a rate (95% confidence interval) of 3.83 (3.62; 4.05), 1.25 (1.13; 1.38), and 0.70 (0.62; 0.81) per 100 person-years, respectively. Rates for all three major events were highest during the first 4 months. Congestive heart failure, acute coronary syndromes, sudden/unwitnessed death, malignancy, respiratory failure, and infection/sepsis accounted for 65% of all known causes of death and strokes for <10%. Anticoagulant treatment was associated with a 35% lower risk of death. CONCLUSION: The most frequent of the three major outcome measures was death, whose most common causes are not known to be significantly influenced by anticoagulation. This suggests that a more comprehensive approach to the management of NVAF may be needed to improve outcome. This could include, in addition to anticoagulation, interventions targeting modifiable, cause-specific risk factors for death. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01090362

Risk profiles and one-year outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation in India: Insights from the GARFIELD-AF Registry.

BACKGROUND: The Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF) is an ongoing prospective noninterventional registry, which is providing important information on the baseline characteristics, treatment patterns, and 1-year outcomes in patients with newly diagnosed non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). This report describes data from Indian patients recruited in this registry. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 52,014 patients with newly diagnosed AF were enrolled globally; of these, 1388 patients were recruited from 26 sites within India (2012-2016). In India, the mean age was 65.8 years at diagnosis of NVAF. Hypertension was the most prevalent risk factor for AF, present in 68.5% of patients from India and in 76.3% of patients globally (P < 0.001). Diabetes and coronary artery disease (CAD) were prevalent in 36.2% and 28.1% of patients as compared with global prevalence of 22.2% and 21.6%, respectively (P < 0.001 for both). Antiplatelet therapy was the most common antithrombotic treatment in India. With increasing stroke risk, however, patients were more likely to receive oral anticoagulant therapy [mainly vitamin K antagonist (VKA)], but average international normalized ratio (INR) was lower among Indian patients [median INR value 1.6 (interquartile range {IQR}: 1.3-2.3) versus 2.3 (IQR 1.8-2.8) (P < 0.001)]. Compared with other countries, patients from India had markedly higher rates of all-cause mortality [7.68 per 100 person-years (95% confidence interval 6.32-9.35) vs 4.34 (4.16-4.53), P < 0.0001], while rates of stroke/systemic embolism and major bleeding were lower after 1 year of follow-up. CONCLUSION: Compared to previously published registries from India, the GARFIELD-AF registry describes clinical profiles and outcomes in Indian patients with AF of a different etiology. The registry data show that compared to the rest of the world, Indian AF patients are younger in age and have more diabetes and CAD. Patients with a higher stroke risk are more likely to receive anticoagulation therapy with VKA but are underdosed compared with the global average in the GARFIELD-AF. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION-URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01090362

Risk profiles and one-year outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation in India: Insights from the GARFIELD-AF Registry

BACKGROUND: The Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD–Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF) is an ongoing prospective noninterventional registry, which is providing important information on the baseline characteristics, treatment patterns, and 1-year outcomes in patients with newly diagnosed non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). This report describes data from Indian patients recruited in this registry. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 52,014 patients with newly diagnosed AF were enrolled globally; of these, 1388 patients were recruited from 26 sites within India (2012–2016). In India, the mean age was 65.8 years at diagnosis of NVAF. Hypertension was the most prevalent risk factor for AF, present in 68.5% of patients from India and in 76.3% of patients globally (P < 0.001). Diabetes and coronary artery disease (CAD) were prevalent in 36.2% and 28.1% of patients as compared with global prevalence of 22.2% and 21.6%, respectively (P < 0.001 for both). Antiplatelet therapy was the most common antithrombotic treatment in India. With increasing stroke risk, however, patients were more likely to receive oral anticoagulant therapy [mainly vitamin K antagonist (VKA)], but average international normalized ratio (INR) was lower among Indian patients [median INR value 1.6 (interquartile range {IQR}: 1.3–2.3) versus 2.3 (IQR 1.8–2.8) (P < 0.001)]. Compared with other countries, patients from India had markedly higher rates of all-cause mortality [7.68 per 100 person-years (95% confidence interval 6.32–9.35) vs 4.34 (4.16–4.53), P < 0.0001], while rates of stroke/systemic embolism and major bleeding were lower after 1 year of follow-up. CONCLUSION: Compared to previously published registries from India, the GARFIELD-AF registry describes clinical profiles and outcomes in Indian patients with AF of a different etiology. The registry data show that compared to the rest of the world, Indian AF patients are younger in age and have more diabetes and CAD. Patients with a higher stroke risk are more likely to receive anticoagulation therapy with VKA but are underdosed compared with the global average in the GARFIELD-AF

FRANCK-CONDON SPECTRAL CALCULATION ON TRANS-HYDROQUIONE USING CORRELATION FUNCTION APPROACH

Author Institution: Department of Chemical Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research; School of Chemistry, University of HyderabadIVR in polyatomic molecules has been found to be extremely fast even at energies as low as a few hundred wavenumbers. In order to understand the IVR dynamics better one can porceed to calculate the fluorescence spectra and compare with the experimental data. However, for polyatomic molecules with large number of vibrational modes even calculating a simple Franck-Condon spectrum is not a simple task. As a first step towards this we have calculated the excitation and dispersed fluorescence spectra of hydroquinone, ab initio, using a correlation function approach using a quadratic Hamiltonian. Time dependent coupled cluster method was used to propogate the wavefunction in time. The comparison between the calculated and experimental spectra will be presented and the validity of the method will be discussed $vis-\'{a}-vis$ the observed IVR behaviour

IVR IN THE S1S_{1} STATE OF CIS AND TRANS HYDROQUINONE AND p-DIMETHOXYBENZENE: EFFECT OF SYMMETRY VS ELECTRONIC STRUCTURE

Author Institution: Department of Chemical Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research; School of Chemistry, University of HyderabadHydroquinone and p-dimethoxybenzene exist in cis $(C_{2v})$ and trans $(C_{2h})$ isomers. The isomer (symmetry) and the energy dependence on the onset of intramolecular vibrational redistribution (IVR) was infered using dispersed fluorescence spectra. In the case of hydroquinone it was observed that both the isomers exhibit the same energy dependence on the IVR, and is evident at energies $\sim 1700 cm^{-1}$. However in the case of p-dimethoxybenzene, the onset of IVR for the cis isomer was observed at $\sim 900 cm^{-1}$, and that for trans isomer at $\sim 1300 cm^{-1}$. The extent of the state mixing in the $S_{1}$ state within the harmonic approximation was calculated using time dependent coupled cluster method. The experimental and the theoretical results will be compared and the validity of the harmonic approximation on the state mixing vis-a-vis the observed isomer dependent IVR behaviour will be discussed

Impact of Cluster Frontline Demonstrations on Yield of Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) in Prakasam District of Andhara Pradesh, India

The Cluster Front Line Demonstrations (CFLDs) offer a unique approach to establish a direct interface between farmers and researchers, where the latter are involved in planning, executing, and monitoring the demonstrations. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the impact of front line demonstrations conducted for chickpea crop in the Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh state. Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is a highly nutritious legume crop that is widely recognized as both a health food and a high-return crop. The front line demonstrations were conducted at the farmers’ fields to showcase the production potential and economic benefits of improved technologies. The findings revealed that the implementation of improved cultivation practices recommended under CFLDs, such as the use of recommended varieties, appropriate seed rate, timely sowing, and plant protection technology, resulted in a significant increase in gram crop yield compared to the check plots. The adoption of improved technologies led to higher yields, recording chickpea yields of 21.25, 21.75, and 19.50 q/ha during 2018-19, 2019-20, and 2020-21, respectively, which were 13.35%, 24.37%, and 22.22% higher than the prevailing farmer's practice. The average seed yield under improved practice (IP) was 20.83 q/ha, which was 15.48% higher than the farmer's practice (FP). The technology gap and extension gap ranged from 3.25 to 5.50 q/ha and 1.50 to 4.25 q/ha, respectively. The technology index value varied from 13.0% to 22.0% during the study period. The benefit-cost (B: C) ratio ranged from 2.23 to 2.84 under demonstration, while it was 2.15 to 2.57 under control plots. The average B: C ratio under IP (2.53) was 39.89% higher than that under FP

Isolation and identification of bacteria from marine biofilm on the artificial plat forms (iron panels) from Visakhapatnam coast, India

961-965Visakhapatnam coast is natural and colossal, the fishing harbor, Iron ore jetty of Visakhapatnam port, and Naval dockyard canal areas are studied for the locally associated biofilms. In the present study, Culturable bacteria forming marine biofilms were isolated and identified on artificial substrate (iron panels) according to Bergey, from Visakhapatnam coastal area, Northern Andhra Pradesh. Mainly 3 genera of 10 species were identified, they are Bacillus weihenstephanensis, Bacillus flexus, Serratia nematodiphila, Bacillus halotolerans, Bacillus aerius, Vibrio natriegens, Bacillus vallismortis, Bacillus endophyticus, Bacillus thuringiensis, Vibrio hepatarius. Where bacillus sps. are dominant and commonly found in all the three stations, Vibrio and Serratia were found in two stations