Frobenius partition theoretic interpretations of some basic series identities

Using generalized Frobenius partitions we interpret five basic series identities of Rogers combinatorially.  This extends the recent work of Goyal and Agarwal and yields five new 3-way combinatorial identities

Comparison of three clinical and three ultrasonic equations in predicting fetal birth weight

Background: Antenatal assessment of fetal weight is important part in the management decisions during labour, thereby improving perinatal outcome. There are a large number of clinical methods and ultrasonic formulae for predicting fetal birth weight (EBW) with varying degrees of accuracy. This study was an attempt to compare the accuracy of three clinical and three ultrasonic methods in Indian population. The method with highest accuracy can be used in high and low resource setting in a country like ours with diverse resource settings.Methods: This was a prospective non randomized cohort study done on 100 antenatal patients in PGIMER, Dr. RML Hospital; New Delhi from Nov 2011 to Jan 2013 EBW (Expected Birth Weight) was calculated applying the 6 formulae three clinical and three ultrasonic and statistical analysis done after delivery comparing with ABW (Actual Birth Weight).Results: Accuracy in all ABW within 10% of ABW was 94 % with Johnson's method, 92 %with Dares method and 62 % with obstetrical equation. It was 100% with Hadlock 2 equation, 96% with Shepherd's and 86% with Warsoff equation Sensitivity for IUGR i.e. wt <2.5 kg was low in clinical methods, highest was only 46.2% with Johnsons. In ultrasonic methods all the three equations had 100% sensitivity making ultrasound the preferred modality in diagnosing macrosomia.Conclusions: The major finding of this study is that clinical estimation of fetal weight is as accurate as ultrasonographic method of estimation within normal range of birth weight Ultrasonographic methods was statistically more accurate with smaller mean errors and more within 10% of actual birth weight. Johnson formula gave most accuracy in clinical methods Ultrasound should be used to confirm clinical methods if IUGR or Macrosomia is suspected. No single method should be used if EBW is a part of decision but two or more methods should be combined

Structure-Based Phylogeny as a Diagnostic for Functional Characterization of Proteins with a Cupin Fold

The members of cupin superfamily exhibit large variations in their sequences, functions, organization of domains, quaternary associations and the nature of bound metal ion, despite having a conserved beta-barrel structural scaffold. Here, an attempt has been made to understand structure-function relationships among the members of this diverse superfamily and identify the principles governing functional diversity. The cupin superfamily also contains proteins for which the structures are available through world-wide structural genomics initiatives but characterized as "hypothetical". We have explored the feasibility of obtaining clues to functions of such proteins by means of comparative analysis with cupins of known structure and function.A 3-D structure-based phylogenetic approach was undertaken. Interestingly, a dendrogram generated solely on the basis of structural dissimilarity measure at the level of domain folds was found to cluster functionally similar members. This clustering also reflects an independent evolution of the two domains in bicupins. Close examination of structural superposition of members across various functional clusters reveals structural variations in regions that not only form the active site pocket but are also involved in interaction with another domain in the same polypeptide or in the oligomer.Structure-based phylogeny of cupins can influence identification of functions of proteins of yet unknown function with cupin fold. This approach can be extended to other proteins with a common fold that show high evolutionary divergence. This approach is expected to have an influence on the function annotation in structural genomics initiatives

A prospective study of demographic profile, risk factors and pregnancy outcome in Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C virus positive pregnant women in a tertiary care centre

Background: Viral hepatitis is the most common liver disease in pregnancy and is also the most common cause of jaundice in pregnancy in tropical countries. Risk factors for transmission are intravenous drug abuse, surgical and dental procedures done without adequate sterilization of instruments, sexual route etc. Early diagnosis and management can prevent maternal and fetal complications. This study was done to evaluate the frequency, risk factors and pregnancy outcome in hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) positive antenatal women.Methods: This case control study was conducted in Teerthankar Mahaveer Medical College and Research Centre, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, India from January 2017 to June 2018 on total 2511 pregnant women. The serum samples were checked for presence of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and presence of IgG antibodies to HCV. Analysis of sociodemographic profile, risk factors and pregnancy outcome were done in all HBV and HCV positive women.Results: Out of 2511 pregnant women, 292 were tested positive for hepatitis. Maximum number of women were in the age group of 21-30 years. Most of the seropositive women were multipara. Frequency of positivity was maximum for HCV (67.1%). The risk factors for transmission in study population were intravenous drug abuse, blood transfusion, history of surgery and tattooing.Conclusions: Hepatitis infection rate is increasing. Universal screening for HBV and HCV can be recommended in pregnant women in developing countries. Education and awareness of public and health care workers can reduce the risk of transmission.

Utility of urine reagent strips in rapid bedside diagnosis of bacterial meningitis

Background: Bacterial meningitis is a medical emergency and late diagnosis and treatment can lead to neurological damage and death. For definitive diagnosis of meningitis, laboratory based CSF analysis is required which is based on microscopy, protein and sugar estimation. This requires laboratory set up with experienced pathologist and long turn around time. Hence urinary reagent strips as a semiquantitative method can be applied for CSF analysis. This method can be used where laboratory set up is not available as well as bedside test for early diagnosis of bacterial meningitis. The present prospective study was undertaken to evaluate the utility of urine reagent strips in rapid diagnosis of bacterial meningitis. The aim of the present was to evaluate the role of urine reagent strips in the analysis of cerebrospinal fluid in suspected cases of meningitis.Methods: The prospective study was carried out in the department of pathology in a tertiary care centre for a period of 6 months from September 2018 to February 2019. CSF analysis of suspected cases of meningitis was done with urine reagent strip as well as with standard laboratory method. The results of both were compared.Results: Out of 79 cases of meningitis, 68.35% cases were of bacterial meningitis. The specificity and sensitivity of CSF analysis with reagent strip was 93.33% and 82.35% respectively, for cell count, 94.4% and 88.2% respectively for proteins and 91.3% and 60.2% respectively for glucose.Conclusions: Semiquantitative analysis of CSF sample with urine reagent strips helps in rapid diagnosis of bacterial meningitis and can be useful to facilitate therapeutic decisions in resource constrained settings

Synthesis of Al and Ag nanoparticles through ultra-sonic dissociation of thermal evaporation deposited thin films for promising clinical applications as polymer nanocomposite

Nanoparticles (NPs) having well-defined shape, size and clean surface serve as ideal model system to investigate surface/interfacial reactions. Ag and Al NPs are receiving great interest due to their wide applications in bio-medical field, aerospace and space technology as combustible additives in propellants and hydrogen generation. Hence, in this study, we have synthesized Ag and Al NPs using an innovative approach of ultra-sonic dissociation of thin films. Phase and particle size distributions of the Ag and Al NPs have been determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Thin film dissociation/dissolution mechanism, hence conversion into NPs has been characterized by SEM- scanning electron microscope. EDXA & ICPMS have been performed for chemical analysis of NPs. Optical properties have been characterized by UV-Vis and PL spectroscopy. These NPs have also been investigated for their anti-bacterial activity against Escherichia coli bacteria. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time when NPs has been synthesized by ultra-sonic dissociation of thin films. As an application, these NPs were used further for synthesis of nanocomposite polymer membranes, which show excellent activity against bio film formation

Identification of local conformational similarity in structurally variable regions of homologous proteins using protein blocks.

International audienceStructure comparison tools can be used to align related protein structures to identify structurally conserved and variable regions and to infer functional and evolutionary relationships. While the conserved regions often superimpose well, the variable regions appear non superimposable. Differences in homologous protein structures are thought to be due to evolutionary plasticity to accommodate diverged sequences during evolution. One of the kinds of differences between 3-D structures of homologous proteins is rigid body displacement. A glaring example is not well superimposed equivalent regions of homologous proteins corresponding to α-helical conformation with different spatial orientations. In a rigid body superimposition, these regions would appear variable although they may contain local similarity. Also, due to high spatial deviation in the variable region, one-to-one correspondence at the residue level cannot be determined accurately. Another kind of difference is conformational variability and the most common example is topologically equivalent loops of two homologues but with different conformations. In the current study, we present a refined view of the "structurally variable" regions which may contain local similarity obscured in global alignment of homologous protein structures. As structural alphabet is able to describe local structures of proteins precisely through Protein Blocks approach, conformational similarity has been identified in a substantial number of 'variable' regions in a large data set of protein structural alignments; optimal residue-residue equivalences could be achieved on the basis of Protein Blocks which led to improved local alignments. Also, through an example, we have demonstrated how the additional information on local backbone structures through protein blocks can aid in comparative modeling of a loop region. In addition, understanding on sequence-structure relationships can be enhanced through our approach. This has been illustrated through examples where the equivalent regions in homologous protein structures share sequence similarity to varied extent but do not preserve local structure

Salivary uric acid as a non-invasive marker of early onset preeclampsia

Background: Preeclampsia is one of the most common complications in pregnancy and is a major cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. Early prediction of preeclampsia is crucial in proactive management of the patient. Uric acid is a biomarker of hypertension. Methods: A prospective study was done on 200 pregnant females in their first or early second trimester of pregnancy and were followed till one week of delivery or termination of pregnancy. After taking socio-demographic details, detailed medical and obstetric history was taken. Blood pressure of the patients was routinely measured and mean arterial pressure was calculated. Blood and saliva samples were taken and were analysed following standard protocol for serum and salivary uric acid levels respectively. Participants were classified into normotensive and preeclampsia groups depending on the criteria met. Results: Preeclampsia group participants had significantly more adverse and feto-maternal outcomes. Salivary uric acid is a promising diagnostic predictor of preeclampsia in pregnant women by the virtue of being a non-invasive investigation with cut off value 4.86 mg/dl having a sensitivity of 70.8%, specificity of 45.7% and a PPV of 81.3%. Salivary uric acid level and mean arterial pressure were found to be better predictors of preeclampsia as compared to salivary uric acid level. Conclusions: Salivary uric acid is a reliable predictor of preeclampsia in pregnant females in first and early second trimester of pregnancy. Further largescale studies are warranted to establish an accurate cut off value with good diagnostic properties for Indian population

Neonatal outcome in early term and late term pregnancy

Background: Full-term neonates born between 37- and 41-weeks’ gestational age have been considered a homogeneous, low-risk group. However, recent evidence from studies has pointed toward increased NICU admissions and morbidity associated with births (37-38 weeks) compared with term neonates (39-41 weeks). The objective of this study was to compare the short-term morbidity of early-term vs term neonates in a county-based birth cohort using the primary objective of admission to a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) or neonatology service. Methods: Retrospective observational population-based 2 year birth cohort study at Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology GSVM Medical College, Kanpur. All full-term live births comprised the birth cohort; this information was obtained from the hospitals’ perinatal databases, and data pertaining to NICU, or neonatology service admissions were extracted from individual medical records.  Gestational age of early term (37 0/7-38 6/7 weeks) verses term (39 0/7-4 10/7 weeks). Admission to the NICU or neonatology service. Results: There were 17,132 live births during the 2 year period, of which 13679 had a gestational age between 37 and 41 weeks. Of all live births, 6204 (45.3%) were early term. Compared with term infants, early-term neonates had significantly higher risks for the following: hypoglycaemia (29.9% verses 14.7%), NICU or neonatology service admission (20.9% vs12.05 %), need for respiratory support (36.8% verses 29.9%), treatment with intravenous antibiotics [39.4% verses 25. Delivery by caesarean section was common among early-term births (45.9%)]. Conclusions: Early-term births are associated with high neonatal morbidity and with NICU or neonatology service admission. Evaluation of local prevalence data will assist in implementation of specific preventive measures and plans, as well as prioritize limited health care resources

Identifying the risk factors of antepartum haemorrhage and to evaluate the feto maternal outcome in antepartum haemorrhage cases

Background: Antepartum haemorrhage is an obstetric emergency contributing to a significant percentage of perinatal and maternal morbidity and mortality. Approximately 30% of maternal deaths are caused by ante-partum haemorrhage. In spite of a lot of improvement in antenatal care and intrapartum surveillance, antepar-tum haemorrhage has not reduced. Present study was conducted to assess the causes of APH and to compare the fetomaternal outcome among placenta previa and abruptio placenta group.Methods: The study was conducted in BRD medical college Gorakhpur, over a period of 1 year (October 2019 to September 2020) in which 100 cases of APH were taken and classified into placenta previa and abruptio placenta group and their fetomaternal outcome were compared.Results: In our study, out of 100 cases of APH 69% cases were of placenta previa followed by abruptio placen-ta in 29% cases and rest 2% cases were unclassified APH. Multigravida is the major risk factor in both placenta previa and abruptio placenta group. Second major risk factor in placenta previa group was h/o LSCS and in abruptio placenta group was HDP. Stillbirth was significantly seen in abruptio placenta group whereas Low birth weight babies (1.5-2.5 kg) were more in placenta previa group. Though the maternal outcome is poor in placenta previa group but the fetal outcome is worse in abruptio placenta group.Conclusions: APH neither can be reliably predicted nor can be prevented but only a comprehensive focused experienced team work can reduce maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality