A study on cord blood nucleated RBC count: A marker of fetal asphyxia

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study is an attempt to establish a relationship between the levels of nucleated RBC’s and to assess the severity of perinatal asphyxia and early neonatal outcome. There by preventing complications such as hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, neurological impairment and polycythemia. METHODS: In this study 320 patients who have undergone emergency LSCS at Govt kilpauk medical college were taken. Singleton term pregnancies primi /multi babies of more than 2.5kg appropriate for gestational age irrespective of indication, without any maternal co morbid factors were taken up. Inclusion and exclusion criteria, study protocol were designed. Various parameters were also studied including NICU Admissions, relation with gravida, maternal age, LSCS indication, duration of labour. RESULTS: NRBC’S were significantly high in cord blood of patients with prolonged first and second stage of labour and who underwent emergency lscs for fetal distress and deep transverse arrest. Also increased NRBC’S were noted in babies with low apgar score. Babies with birth asphyxia who were diagnosed by the pediatrician, showed an increased levels of NRBC’S. NRBC count increased proportionately to the severity of HIE. CONCLUSION: From this study it was concluded that estimating the number of nucleated RBC/100 WBC in umbilical cord venous blood sample of new born is an important test, the sample being obtained non invasively from otherwise discarded specimen and analyzed by personnel or equipment readily available in most hospital laboratories. The level of nucleated RBCs/100 WBCs correlates with acute intrapartum asphyxia and can be used as an index of early neonatal outcome

A comparative clinical study between intra-caesarean and interval intra uterine copper device insertion in caesarean deliveries

Background: Health and family welfare of Indian Ministry, emphasis on postpartum IUCD insertion. Here we conducted a clinical study comparing intra-caesarean and interval CuT-380A insertion in caesarean deliveries.Methods: A systematic study with 150 patients in each group, recruited clients alternately. Group A Intra-Caesarean Cu-T insertion and Group B Interval Cu-T insertion in caesarean deliveries. Groups were followed up at 6th week and 6th month post insertion with a set of parameters. Missed strings, expulsion and infection rates were the primary outcome measures.Results: Infection rate is higher in Group A (2.3%) at 6th week, and at 6th month infection rate is higher in Group B (1.8%). Missed strings are higher in intra-caesarean than in interval insertion method both at 6th week and 6th month follow up p=0.000, hence significant. Expulsion rate is higher in Group A (2.5%) at 6th week, and at 6th month expulsion rate is higher in Group B (1.9%). There are no complications such as uterine perforation or contraceptive failures in both the groups during the study period. By analysis, there are no significant differences in infection and expulsion rates between the groups. For missed strings there is significant difference between the groups with more missed strings in intra-caesarean insertion method.Conclusions: To conclude, intra-caesarean method is equally effective as interval IUCD insertion method without added complications in caesarean deliveries, with advantage of high motivation, good compliance, safety and ease for the provider to deliver services.

Antiproliferative Effect of Ethanolic Medicinal Fungus Extract of Agaricus bisporus on HEP2 Cancer cell lines

This study aims to determine the anti-proliferative effect of fungus Agaricus bisporus. Phytochemical analysis was performed and antiproliferative activity of Agaricus bisporus was analyzed by MTT assay The preliminary phytochemical screening of Agaricus bisporus revealed the presence of phenolics, carbohydrates alkaloids, flavonoids and tannins. The Antiproliferative potential of the ethanol extract was studied on Hep2 cell lines by MTT assay. The extract had an IC50 value of 100μg/mL which showed cell viability.  Thus, the study revealed that Agaricus bisporus could be considered as a significant source of phytochemicals and can act as antiproliferative agent. Keywords: Phytochemical, antiproliferative, Agaricus bisporus, DPPH assay, Hep2 cell line

Ethyl 3′-(2,4-dichloro­phen­yl)-5′-hydr­oxy-5′-methyl-4′,5′-dihydro­spiro­[fluorene-9,2′(3′H)-furan]-4′-carboxyl­ate

The furan ring and the five-membered fluorene unit in the title compound, C26H22Cl2O4, adopt envelope conformations. Inter­molecular C—H⋯O inter­actions between symmetry-related mol­ecules involving two C—H groups and an O atom as a bifurcated acceptor generate centrosymmetric hydrogen-bonded dimers with cyclic R 2 2(16) and R 2 2(8) ring motifs. A short C—H⋯Cl intramolecular contact occurs in the molecule

Eimeria species occurrence varies between geographic regions and poultry production systems and may influence parasite genetic diversity

Coccidiosis is one of the biggest challenges faced by the global poultry industry. Recent studies have highlighted the ubiquitous distribution of all Eimeria species which can cause this disease in chickens, but intriguingly revealed a regional divide in genetic diversity and population structure for at least one species, Eimeria tenella. The drivers associated with such distinct geographic variation are unclear, but may impact on the occurrence and extent of resistance to anticoccidial drugs and future subunit vaccines. India is one of the largest poultry producers in the world and includes a transition between E. tenella populations defined by high and low genetic diversity. The aim of this study was to identify risk factors associated with the prevalence of Eimeria species defined by high and low pathogenicity in northern and southern states of India, and seek to understand factors which vary between the regions as possible drivers for differential genetic variation. Faecal samples and data relating to farm characteristics and management were collected from 107 farms from northern India and 133 farms from southern India. Faecal samples were analysed using microscopy and PCR to identify Eimeria occurrence. Multiple correspondence analysis was applied to transform correlated putative risk factors into a smaller number of synthetic uncorrelated factors. Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to identify poultry farm typologies, revealing three distinct clusters in the studied regions. The association between clusters and presence of Eimeria species was assessed by logistic regression. The study found that large-scale broiler farms in the north were at greatest risk of harbouring any Eimeria species and a larger proportion of such farms were positive for E. necatrix, the most pathogenic species. Comparison revealed a more even distribution for E. tenella across production systems in south India, but with a lower overall occurrence. Such a polarised region- and system-specific distribution may contribute to the different levels of genetic diversity observed previously in India and may influence parasite population structure across much of Asia and Africa. The findings of the study can be used to prioritise target farms to launch and optimise appropriate anticoccidial strategies for long-term control

Cryptic Eimeria genotypes are common across the southern but not northern hemisphere

The phylum Apicomplexa includes parasites of medical, zoonotic and veterinary significance. Understanding the global distribution and genetic diversity of these protozoa is of fundamental importance for efficient, robust and long-lasting methods of control. Eimeria spp. cause intestinal coccidiosis in all major livestock animals and are the most important parasites of domestic chickens in terms of both economic impact and animal welfare. Despite having significant negative impacts on the efficiency of food production, many fundamental questions relating to the global distribution and genetic variation of Eimeria spp. remain largely unanswered. Here, we provide the broadest map yet of Eimeria occurrence for domestic chickens, confirming that all the known species (Eimeria acervulina, Eimeria brunetti, Eimeria maxima, Eimeria mitis, Eimeria necatrix, Eimeria praecox, Eimeria tenella) are present in all six continents where chickens are found (including 21 countries). Analysis of 248 internal transcribed spacer sequences derived from 17 countries provided evidence of possible allopatric diversity for species such as E. tenella (FST values ⩽0.34) but not E. acervulina and E. mitis, and highlighted a trend towards widespread genetic variance. We found that three genetic variants described previously only in Australia and southern Africa (operational taxonomic units x, y and z) have a wide distribution across the southern, but not the northern hemisphere. While the drivers for such a polarised distribution of these operational taxonomic unit genotypes remains unclear, the occurrence of genetically variant Eimeria may pose a risk to food security and animal welfare in Europe and North America should these parasites spread to the northern hemisphere

Using Semantic Web technologies in the development of data warehouses: A systematic mapping

The exploration and use of Semantic Web technologies have attracted considerable attention from researchers examining data warehouse (DW) development. However, the impact of this research and the maturity level of its results are still unclear. The objective of this study is to examine recently published research articles that take into account the use of Semantic Web technologies in the DW arena with the intention of summarizing their results, classifying their contributions to the field according to publication type, evaluating the maturity level of the results, and identifying future research challenges. Three main conclusions were derived from this study: (a) there is a major technological gap that inhibits the wide adoption of Semantic Web technologies in the business domain;(b) there is limited evidence that the results of the analyzed studies are applicable and transferable to industrial use; and (c) interest in researching the relationship between DWs and Semantic Web has decreased because new paradigms, such as linked open data, have attracted the interest of researchers.This study was supported by the Universidad de La Frontera, Chile, PROY. DI15-0020. Universidad de la Frontera, Chile, Grant Numbers: DI15-0020 and DI17-0043

Population, genetic, and antigenic diversity of the apicomplexan Eimeria tenella and their relevance to vaccine development

The phylum Apicomplexa includes serious pathogens of humans and animals. Understanding the distribution and population structure of these protozoan parasites is of fundamental importance to explain disease epidemiology and develop sustainable controls. Predicting the likely efficacy and longevity of subunit vaccines in field populations relies on knowledge of relevant preexisting antigenic diversity, population structure, the likelihood of coinfection by genetically distinct strains, and the efficiency of cross-fertilization. All four of these factors have been investigated for Plasmodium species parasites, revealing both clonal and panmictic population structures with exceptional polymorphism associated with immunoprotective antigens such as apical membrane antigen 1 (AMA1). For the coccidian Toxoplasma gondii only genomic diversity and population structure have been defined in depth so far; for the closely related Eimeria species, all four variables are currently unknown. Using Eimeria tenella, a major cause of the enteric disease coccidiosis, which exerts a profound effect on chicken productivity and welfare, we determined population structure, genotype distribution, and likelihood of cross-fertilization during coinfection and also investigated the extent of naturally occurring antigenic diversity for the E. tenella AMA1 homolog. Using genome-wide Sequenom SNP-based haplotyping, targeted sequencing, and single-cell genotyping, we show that in this coccidian the functionality of EtAMA1 appears to outweigh immune evasion. This result is in direct contrast to the situation in Plasmodium and most likely is underpinned by the biology of the direct and acute coccidian life cycle in the definitive host