Electronic Cigarette Cessation in Youth and Young Adults: A Case Series

Introduction: Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) usage use has increased exponentially, especially in youth and young adults. For many, the usage of these products results in a severe addiction, one that is difficult to discontinue. Further, e-cigarette cessation is challenging as there are no specific guidelines directing such medical management for patients and their respective clinicians. Here, we report a case series of patients who we are attempting to wean from e-cigarettes with medical guidance. Methods: Six patients who self-reported daily e-cigarette usage and were enrolled in our Tobacco Treatment Clinic (TTC) were followed for 12-months. An inventory of the e-cigarette product and usage was captured, along with responses to identify when the patients experienced majority of their cravings. Co-morbidities, if present, were documented. Documentation of interventions, counseling with or without pharmacological therapies, were captured. Primary outcome was cessation at 6-months. Results: The 6 patients enrolled in clinic ranged in age from 17 to 31 years, with 4 of the patients identifying as males and 2 as females. Patients were using e-cigarettes for 1 to 6 years prior to enrolling into the TTC. As for interventions, all patients received counseling and pharmacological interventions in the form of nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs). Three of the 6 patients were weaned off e-cigarettes by 6-months, with a fourth patient weaned off at the 8-month mark. Variables identified as barriers to cessation included non-compliance with medical regimen and peer influence. Discussion: Here we present a case series of attempting to wean persons from electronic cigarettes use. Given the lack of international guidelines in e-cigarette addiction management, we believe this case series will be of value for clinicians and their patients. Further studies are warranted to help patients with e-cigarette addiction in their attempt at cessation

Microtube Irrigation For Banana Cultivation in South Bihar: Participatory Assessement and Refinement

To evaluate the efficacy of drip irrigation to improve production and quality of horticultural crops in humid region of eastern India, a participatory study was carried out at four locations in Patna district (Bihar, India) with banana as target crop. Initially, the system was laid out as per conventional design having TABE (take apart button emitter) with 12mm lateral which gave 7.2 I/h discharge with coefficient of variation of 54%. The system was refined to improve its performance and reduce the cost as per need and perception of the farmers. Farmers expressed one TABE per plant insufficient and hence, TABE were replaced with newly designed star microtube emitters, which delivered water at four points in a circle of 25 cm diameter around a plant. A decreasing trend in the discharge along lateral was observed which was rectified by replacing the lateral with 16mm lateral. The system had better performance with less discharge variations and cheap as compared to conventional system. The system was tested with two varieties of banana: Alpan and dwarf Cavendish. Farmers were satisfied with the refinements and realized advantages of drip irrigation in early shooting and bunch emergence, better finger size and bunch size, and better returns. Considering annualised cost of the drip system and benefits due to improved production only, the B-C ratio was 1.0 I to 1.87 for var. Alpan and 1.61 to 1.75 for var. dwarf Cavendish

Oral health-related quality of life among HIV patients at antiretroviral therapy center government hospital, Jaipur

Introduction: According to center of disease control improving health outcomes of people living with HIV/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is one of the key recommendations proposed in 2010 with an ultimate goal of extending life and improving its quality. Aims: The aim was to assess oral health-related quality of life among HIV/AIDS patients at antiretroviral therapy (ART) center government hospital, Jaipur. Materials and Methods: A total of 245 patients who attended out-patient department of ART center of government hospital, Jaipur were asked to participate, out of which 237 were agreed to participate. Sampling was done using simple random sampling a structured questionnaire (Cronbach α - 0.85) was used (oral health impact profile). Statistical Analysis Used: Paired t-test P = 0.05. Results: Males were more than females. 37% individuals showed difficulty in doing usual job. 41% showed that they were unable to work to full capacity, 22.4% said they had painful gums, and 19.4% said sleep was interrupted. Conclusions: Patients with more severe AIDS manifestations complained of a poorer status of oral symptoms, functional limitations, emotional and social well-being related to their oral health

Poly(ethylene glycol)-<i>co</i>-methacrylamide-<i>co</i>-acrylic acid based nanogels for delivery of doxorubicin

<p>Polymeric nanogels have been widely explored for their potential application as delivery carriers for cancer therapeutics. The ability of nanogels to encapsulate therapeutics by simple diffusion mechanism and the ease of their fabrication to impart target specificity in addition to their ability to get internalized into target cells make them good candidates for drug delivery. The present study aims to investigate the applicability of poly(ethylene glycol)-<i>co</i>-methacrylamide-<i>co</i>-acrylic acid (PMA)-based nanogels as a viable option for the delivery of doxorubicin (DOX). The nanogels were synthesized by free radical polymerization in an inverse mini-emulsion and characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹H NMR), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry. DOX was physically incorporated into the nanogels (PMA-DOX) and the mechanism of its <i>in vitro</i> release was studied. TEM experiment revealed spherical morphology of nanogels and the hydrodynamic diameter of the neat nanogels was in the range of 160 ± 46.95 nm. The size of the nanogels increased from 235.1 ± 28.46 to 403.7 ± 89.89 nm with the increase in drug loading capacity from 4.68 ± 0.03 to 13.71 ± 0.01%. The sustained release of DOX was observed upto 80 h and the release rate decreased with increased loading capacity following anomalous release mechanism as indicated by the value of diffusion exponent (<i>n</i> = 0.64–0.75) obtained from Korsmeyer–Peppas equation. Further, cytotoxicity evaluation of PMA-DOX nanogels on HeLa cells resulted in relatively higher efficacy (IC₅₀~5.88 μg/mL) as compared to free DOX (IC₅₀~7.24 μg/mL) thus demonstrating that the preparation is potentially a promising drug delivery carrier.</p

Pressure-induced structural phase transformations in silicon nanowires

High-pressure structural behavior of silicon nanowires is investigated up to ~22 GPa using angle dispersive X-ray diffraction measurements. Silicon nanowires transform from the cubic to the β-tin phase at 7.5-10.5 GPa, to the Imma phase at ~14 GPa, and to the primitive hexagonal structure at ~16.2 GPa. On complete release of pressure, it transforms to the metastable R8 phase. The observed sequence of phase transitions is the same as that of bulk silicon. Though the X-ray diffraction experiments do not reveal any size effect, the pressure dependence of Raman modes shows that the behavior of nanowires is in between that of the bulk crystal and porous Si

Exercise, vascular stiffness, and tissue transglutaminase

Background: Vascular aging is closely associated with increased vascular stiffness. It has recently been demonstrated that decreased nitric oxide (NO)-induced S-nitrosylation of tissue transglutaminase (TG2) contributes to age-related vascular stiffness. In the current study, we tested the hypothesis that exercise restores NO signaling and attenuates vascular stiffness by decreasing TG2 activity and cross-linking in an aging rat model. Methods and Results: Rats were subjected to 12 weeks of moderate aerobic exercise. Aging was associated with diminished phosphorylated endothelial nitric oxide synthase and phosphorylated vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein abundance, suggesting reduced NO signaling. TG2 cross-linking activity was significantly increased in old animals, whereas TG2 abundance remained unchanged. These alterations were attenuated in the exercise cohort. Simultaneous measurement of blood pressure and pulse wave velocity (PWV) demonstrated increased aortic stiffness in old rats, compared to young, at all values of mean arterial pressure (MAP). The PWV-MAP correlation in the old sedentary and old exercise cohorts was similar. Tensile testing of the vessels showed increased stiffness of the aorta in the old phenotype with a modest restoration of mechanical properties toward the young phenotype with exercise. Conclusions: Increased vascular stiffness during aging is associated with decreased TG2 S-nitrosylation, increased TG2 crosslinking activity, and increased vascular stiffness likely the result of decreased NO bioavailability. In this study, a brief period of moderate aerobic exercise enhanced NO signaling, attenuated TG cross-linking activity, and reduced ex vivo tensile properties, but failed to reverse functional vascular stiffness in vivo, as measured by PWV.10 page(s