Ultrasonic Speed and Related Acoustical Parameters of 1,1ʼ-Binaphthalene-2,2ʼ-diyl Diacetate Solutions at 308.15 K

The density (ρ), viscosity (η) and ultrasonic speed (U) (2 MHz) of chloroform, THF, ethyl alcohol, ethyl acetate, 1,4-dioxane and 1,1ʼ-binaphthalene-2,2ʼ-diyl diacetate (DBNA) solutions have been determined at 308.15 K. Various acoustical parameters namely specific acoustical impedance (Z), adiabatic compressibility (κa), Van der Waals constant (b), intermolecular path length (Lf), internal pressure (π), Raoʼs molar sound function (R), relaxation time (τ), classical absorption coefficient (α/f2)cl and solvation number (Sn) have been derived from ρ, η and U data and correlated with concentration (C). A fairly good to excellent correlation has been observed between a particular parameter and C. Linear increase of Z, R, b, (α/f2)cl and τ (except EA) (R2 = 0.90 – 0.999) and linear decrease of κs, π and Lf (R2 = 0.947 – 0.995) with C supported existence of powerful molecular interactions in the solutions and further supported by nonlinear increase of Sn with C. A fairly constant Gibbs free energy of activation has been observed in all the solvent systems studied

Antibacterial activity of methanolic and acetone extract of some medicinal plants used in indian folklore

Antibacterial study of methanolic and acetone extract in crude and treated (with 50 % lead acetate) form of medicinal plants Alstonia scholaris Linn. R.Br. (Stem bark, Apocynaceae), Achyranthus aspera Linn. (Whole plant, acantheceae), Moringa oleifera Lam. (Leaves, Morinaceae), Tinospora cordifolia (Stem, Menispermaceae), and Enicostema hyssopifolium (Willd) (Stem, Gentianaceae). Extractive values in methanol were found higher then the extractive value in acetone, for all plants. All extract of plants were tried at 40-mg/ml concentrations against eight strains of bacteria, by agarwell-difusion test. Acetone extract was found more active as compared to methanol extract. Phytochemical investigation revealed crude and treated extracts of all plants were containing more or less same type of chemical constituents (except protein and carbohydrate). Selected eight strains of bacteria were study for antibiotic susceptibility against standard antibiotics like Ampicillin (10µg), Tetracycline (25µg), Gentamicin (30µg), Co-Trimoxazole (25µg), Amikacin (10µg), by Octadisc. Treated extract of M. oleifera and A. scholaris were count as to new source of antimicrobial agent for the infectious diseases (Typhoid). Keywords: Antibacterial activity, Medicinal Plants, infectious diseases

The presence of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins in frontotemporal lobar degeneration with FUS positive inclusions

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration with fused in sarcoma–positive inclusions (FTLD-FUS) is a disease with unknown cause. Transportin 1 is abundantly found in FUS-positive inclusions and responsible for the nuclear import of the FET proteins of which FUS is a member. The presence of all FET proteins in pathological inclusions suggests a disturbance of transportin 1–mediated nuclear import. FUS also belongs to the heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein (hnRNP) protein family. We investigated whether hnRNP proteins are associated with FUS pathology implicating dysfunctional nuclear export in the pathogenesis of FTLD-FUS. hnRNP proteins were investigated in affected brain regions in FTLD-FUS using immunohistochemistry, biochemical analysis, and the expression analysis. We demonstrated the presence of several hnRNP proteins in pathological inclusions including neuronal cytoplasmic inclusions and dystrophic neurites. The biochemical analysis revealed a shift in the location of hnRNP A1 from the nucleus to the cytoplasm. The expression analysis revealed an increase in several hnRNP proteins in FTLD-FUS. These results implicate a wider dysregulation of movement between intracellular compartments, than mechanisms only affecting the nuclear import of FUS proteins

Effects of a four-year health systems intervention on the use of maternal and infant health services: results from a programme evaluation in two districts of rural Chad

BACKGROUND: Attendance of maternal and infant care services in rural Chad are consistently low. Our study aimed to assess the use of antenatal (ANC) and postnatal care (PNC) services, health facility delivery and infant health services after 4 years of a health systems intervention for improving the infrastructure, supplies, training and sensitization for maternal and infant health in two districts of rural Chad. METHODS: Data from a repeated cross-sectional household survey conducted in Yao and Danamadji in 2015 and in 2018 were analyzed. A stratified two-stage cluster sampling methodology was applied to achieve a representative sample of the rural settled and mobile population groups in the study area. A generalized linear model was applied to determine the health care utilization rates. Multivariate regression models were used to assess the association between the programme intervention and utilization outcomes of selected maternal and infant health services. RESULTS: Complete datasets were available for 1284 households at baseline. The endline analysis included 1175 households with complete survey data. The use of at least one ANC amongst pregnant women increased in both settled communities (from 80% in 2015 to 90% in 2018) and amongst mobile pastoralist communities (from 48% in 2015 to 56% in 2018). The rate of home delivery among settled communities and mobile pastoralists changed little between baseline and endline and remained high for both population groups. Individuals that were covered by the health systems intervention were however significantly more likely to attend ANC and less likely to give birth at home. PNC services only showed improvements amongst the settled communities (of 30%). Infants' reported health outcomes and vaccination coverage considerably improved; the latter especially among mobile pastoralist (from 15% in 2015 to 84% in 2018). CONCLUSION: A combination of health systems strengthening interventions was associated with an increased use of certain maternal and infant health services. However, to facilitate equitable access to and use of health care services in particular in times of increased vulnerability and by certain population groups in hard-to-reach areas, reinforced health education and culturally adapted communication strategies, including gender-specific messaging will be needed over a sustained period

Associations between cardiorespiratory fitness, physical activity and clustered cardiometabolic risk in children and adolescents: the HAPPY study

Clustering of cardiometabolic risk factors can occur during childhood and predisposes individuals to cardiometabolic disease. This study calculated clustered cardiometabolic risk in 100 children and adolescents aged 10-14 years (59 girls) and explored differences according to cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) levels and time spent at different physical activity (PA) intensities. CRF was determined using a maximal cycle ergometer test, and PA was assessed using accelerometry. A cardiometabolic risk score was computed as the sum of the standardised scores for waist circumference, blood pressure, total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein ratio, triglycerides and glucose. Differences in clustered cardiometabolic risk between fit and unfit participants, according to previously proposed health-related threshold values, and between tertiles for PA subcomponents were assessed using ANCOVA. Clustered risk was significantly lower (p < 0.001) in the fit group (mean 1.21 ± 3.42) compared to the unfit group (mean -0.74 ± 2.22), while no differences existed between tertiles for any subcomponent of PA. Conclusion These findings suggest that CRF may have an important cardioprotective role in children and adolescents and highlights the importance of promoting CRF in youth

Abnormalities in autonomic function in obese boys at-risk for insulin resistance and obstructive sleep apnea.

Study objectivesCurrent evidence in adults suggests that, independent of obesity, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can lead to autonomic dysfunction and impaired glucose metabolism, but these relationships are less clear in children. The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations among OSA, glucose metabolism, and daytime autonomic function in obese pediatric subjects.MethodsTwenty-three obese boys participated in: overnight polysomnography; a frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test; and recordings of spontaneous cardiorespiratory data in both the supine (baseline) and standing (sympathetic stimulus) postures.ResultsBaseline systolic blood pressure and reactivity of low-frequency heart rate variability to postural stress correlated with insulin resistance, increased fasting glucose, and reduced beta-cell function, but not OSA severity. Baroreflex sensitivity reactivity was reduced with sleep fragmentation, but only for subjects with low insulin sensitivity and/or low first-phase insulin response to glucose.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that vascular sympathetic activity impairment is more strongly affected by metabolic dysfunction than by OSA severity, while blunted vagal autonomic function associated with sleep fragmentation in OSA is enhanced when metabolic dysfunction is also present

A modified Inflammatory Bowel Disease questionnaire and the Vaizey Incontinence questionnaire are simple ways to identify patients with significant gastrointestinal symptoms after pelvic radiotherapy

After radiotherapy for pelvic cancer, chronic gastrointestinal problems may affect quality of life (QOL) in 6–78% of patients. This variation may be due to true differences in outcome in different diseases, and may also represent the inadequacy of the scales used to measure radiotherapy-induced gastrointestinal side effects. The aim of this study was to assess whether outcome measures used for nonmalignant gastrointestinal disease are useful to detect gastrointestinal morbidity after radiotherapy. Results obtained from a Vaizey Incontinence questionnaire and a modified Inflammatory Bowel Disease questionnaire (IBDQ) – both patient completed – were compared to those from a staff administered Late Effects on Normal Tissue (LENT) – Subjective, Objective, Management and Analytic (SOMA) questionnaire in patients who had completed radiotherapy for a pelvic tumour at least 3 months previously. In all, 142 consecutive patients were recruited, 72 male and 70 female, median age 66 years (range 26–90 years), a median of 27 (range 3–258) months after radiotherapy. In total, 62 had been treated for a gynaecological, 58, a urological and 22, a gastrointestinal tract tumour. Of these, 21 had undergone previous gastrointestinal surgery and seven suffered chronic gastrointestinal disorders preceding their diagnosis of cancer. The Vaizey questionnaire suggested that 27% patients were incontinent for solid stools, 35% for liquid stools and 37% could not defer defaecation for 15 min. The IBDQ suggested that 89% had developed a chronic change in bowel habit and this change significantly affected 49% patients: 44% had more frequent or looser bowel movements, 30% were troubled by abdominal pain, 30% were troubled by bloating, 28% complained of tenesmus, 27% were troubled by their accidental soiling and 20% had rectal bleeding. At least 34% suffered emotional distress and 22% impairment of social function because of their bowels. The small intestine/colon SOMA median score was 0.1538 (range 0–1) and the rectal SOMA median score was 0.1428 (range 0–1). Pearson's correlations for the IBDQ score and small intestine/colon SOMA score was −0.630 (P<0.001), IBDQ and rectum SOMA −0.616 (P<0.001), IBDQ and Vaizey scores −0.599 (P<0.001), Vaizey and small intestine/colon SOMA 0.452 (P<0.001) and Vaizey and rectum SOMA 0.760 (P<0.001). After radiotherapy for a tumour in the pelvis, half of all patients develop gastrointestinal morbidity, which affects their QOL. A modified IBDQ and Vaizey questionnaire are reliable in assessing new gastrointestinal symptoms as well as overall QOL and are much easier to use than LENT SOMA