A Rare Case of Peritonitis Following Spontaneous Rupture of Pyometra

Pyometra is the accumulation of pus in the uterine cavity. The reported incidence varies from 0.5% in young patients to 13.6% in elderly patients attending gynecological clinic. It is a common complication of malignancy of cervix and uterine body. The cause of pyometra is the occlusion of cervical canal by benign or malignant growth, stenosis following age‑related atrophy, radiation treatment, or surgery on the cervix. A spontaneous rupture of pyometra causing diffuse peritonitis is very rare, with reported incidence of 0.01% to 0.5% in elderly women. Unless recognized in time, it can be a life‑threatening condition. We present a case of 65‑year‑old woman who presented with this rare and life‑threatening complication. She was treated by emergency exploratory laparotomy. Total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo ophorectomy was performed. Patient had uneventful postoperative period.Keywords: Peritonitis, postmenopausal woman, rupture of pyometr

Development of Ultraviolet Spectrophotometric Method for Analysis of Lornoxicam in Solid Dosage Forms

Purpose: An ultraviolet spectrophotometric system was developed and validated for the quantitative determination of lornoxicam in solid dosage forms.Methods: Lornoxicam was dissolved in 0.01M NaOH and analysed using ultraviolet (UV) spectrophotometry. Various analytical parameters such as linearity, precision, accuracy, limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were determined according to International Conference on Harmonization (ICH) guidelines.Results: Absorbance maximum in 0.01M NaOH was 377 nm. Beer’s law was obeyed over the concentration range of 2 - 20 mg/ml with a correlation coefficient (r2) value of 0.999. Percent range of error was 0.344 and 0.261 at 0.05 and. 0.01 confidence limits, respectively. Intra- and inter-day precision (% RSD) at different concentration levels were < 2 %, indicating that the proposed derivative spectrophotometric method is highly reproducible during one run and between different runs; LOD and LOQ were 0.105 and 0.318 mg/ml, respectively signifying that it can be adopted for routine quality testing. Mean recovery was 100.82 % for tablets. Low values of % RSD indicate the reliability of the proposed methodConclusion: The proposed method is highly sensitive, precise, accurate, cost-effective, reliable and rapid for the estimation of lornoxicam in solid dosage forms.Keywords: Lornoxicam, UV Spectrophotometry, Quantitative determination, Solid dosage forms

Prevalence of cardiovascular health risk behaviors in a remote rural community of Sindhuli district, Nepal

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is emerging as a public health menace among low and middle income countries. It has particularly affected the poorest. However, there is paucity of information about CVD risk factors profile among Nepalese rural communities where the majority of people live in poverty. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the prevalence of cardiovascular health risk behaviors in an outback community of Nepal. METHODS: We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional study in Tinkanya Village Development Committee (VDC), Sindhuli between January and March, 2014. Total 406 participants of age 20 to 50 years were selected randomly. Data were collected using WHO-NCD STEPwise approach questionnaires and analyzed with SPSS V.16.0 and R i386 2.15.3 software. RESULT: The mean age of participants was 36.2 ± 9 years. Majority of participants (76.3%) were from lower socio-economic class, Adibasi/Janajati (63.1%), and without formal schooling (46.3%). Smoking was present in 28.6%, alcohol consumption in 47.8%, insufficient fruits and vegetables intake in 96.6%, insufficient physical activity in 48.8%; 25.6% had high waist circumference, 37.4% had overweight and obesity. Average daily salt intake per capita was 14.4 grams ±4.89 grams. Hypertension was detected in 12.3%. It had an inverse relationship with education and socio-economic status. In binary logistic regression analysis, age, smoking, body mass index (BMI) and daily salt intake were identified as significant predictors of hypertension. CONCLUSION: Present study showed high prevalence of smoking, alcohol consumption, insufficient fruit and vegetable intake, daily salt intake, overweight and obesity and hypertension among remote rural population suggesting higher risk for developing CVD in future. Nepalese rural communities, therefore, are in need of population-wide comprehensive intervention approaches for reducing CVD health risk behaviors

A multi-perspective dynamic feature concept in adaptive NC machining of complex freeform surfaces

This paper presents a new concept of feature for freeform surface machining that defines the changes in feature status during real manufacturing situations which have not been sufficiently addressed by current international standards and previous research in feature technology. These changes are multi-perspective, including (i) changes in depth-of-cut: the geometry of a feature in the depth-of-cut direction changes during different machining operations such as roughing, semi-finishing and finishing; (ii) changes across the surface: a surface may be divided into different machining regions (effectively sub-features) for the selection of appropriate manufacturing methods for each region such as different cutting tools, parameters, set-ups or machine tools; and (iii) changes in resources or manufacturing capabilities may require the re-planning of depth-of-cuts, division of machining regions and manufacturing operations (machines, tools, set-ups and parameters). Adding the above dynamic information to the part information models in current CAD systems (which only represent the final state of parts) would significantly improve the accuracy, efficiency and timeliness of manufacturing planning and optimisation, especially for the integrated NC machining planning for complex freeform surfaces. A case study in an aircraft manufacturing company will be included in this paper

Hollow mesoporous silica nanoparticles for intracellular delivery of fluorescent dye

In this study, hollow mesoporous silica nanoparticles (HMSNs) were synthesized using the sol-gel/emulsion approach and its potential application in drug delivery was assessed. The HMSNs were characterized, by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), nitrogen adsorption/desorption and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), to have a mesoporous layer on its surface, with an average pore diameter of about 2 nm and a surface area of 880 m2/g. Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) loaded into these HMSNs was used as a model platform to assess its efficacy as a drug delivery tool. Its release kinetic study revealed a sequential release of FITC from the HMSNs for over a period of one week when soaked in inorganic solution, while a burst release kinetic of the dye was observed just within a few hours of soaking in organic solution. These FITC-loaded HMSNs was also found capable to be internalized by live human cervical cancer cells (HeLa), wherein it was quickly released into the cytoplasm within a short period of time after intracellular uptake. We envision that these HMSNs, with large pores and high efficacy to adsorb chemicals such as the fluorescent dye FITC, could serve as a delivery vehicle for controlled release of chemicals administered into live cells, opening potential to a diverse range of applications including drug storage and release as well as metabolic manipulation of cells

Sustainable food security in India—Domestic production and macronutrient availability

<div><p>India has been perceived as a development enigma: Recent rates of economic growth have not been matched by similar rates in health and nutritional improvements. To meet the second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG2) of achieving zero hunger by 2030, India faces a substantial challenge in meeting basic nutritional needs in addition to addressing population, environmental and dietary pressures. Here we have mapped—for the first time—the Indian food system from crop production to household-level availability across three key macronutrients categories of ‘calories’, ‘digestible protein’ and ‘fat’. To better understand the potential of reduced food chain losses and improved crop yields to close future food deficits, scenario analysis was conducted to 2030 and 2050. Under India’s current self-sufficiency model, our analysis indicates severe shortfalls in availability of all macronutrients across a large proportion (>60%) of the Indian population. The extent of projected shortfalls continues to grow such that, even in ambitious waste reduction and yield scenarios, enhanced domestic production alone will be inadequate in closing the nutrition supply gap. We suggest that to meet SDG2 India will need to take a combined approach of optimising domestic production and increasing its participation in global trade.</p></div

Preservation and recovery of mangrove ecosystem carbon stocks in abandoned shrimp ponds

Mangrove forests capture and store exceptionally large amounts of carbon and are increasingly recognised as an important ecosystem for carbon sequestration. Yet land-use change in the tropics threatens this ecosystem and its critical ‘blue carbon’ (carbon stored in marine and coastal habitats) stores. The expansion of shrimp aquaculture is among the major causes of mangrove loss globally. Here, we assess the impact of mangrove to shrimp pond conversion on ecosystem carbon stocks, and carbon losses and gains over time after ponds are abandoned. Our assessment is based on an intensive field inventory of carbon stocks at a coastal setting in Thailand. We show that although up to 70% of ecosystem carbon is lost when mangroves are converted to shrimp ponds, some abandoned ponds contain deep mangrove soils (>2.5 m) and large carbon reservoirs exceeding 865 t carbon per hectare. We also found a positive recovery trajectory for carbon stocks in the upper soil layer (0-15 cm) of a chronosequence of abandoned ponds, associated with natural mangrove regeneration. Our data suggest that mangrove carbon pools can rebuild in abandoned ponds over time in areas exposed to tidal flushing

Early stage transplantation of bone marrow cells markedly ameliorates copper metabolism and restores liver function in a mouse model of Wilson disease

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Recent studies have demonstrated that normal bone marrow (BM) cells transplantation can correct liver injury in a mouse model of Wilson disease (WD). However, it still remains unknown when BM cells transplantation should be administered. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential impact of normal BM cells transplantation at different stages of WD to correct liver injury in toxic milk (tx) mice.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Recipient tx mice were sublethally irradiated (5 Gy) prior to transplantation. The congenic wild-type (DL) BM cells labeled with CM-DiI were transplanted via caudal vein injection into tx mice at the early (2 months of age) or late stage (5 months of age) of WD. The same volume of saline or tx BM cells were injected as controls. The DL donor cell population, copper concentration, serum ceruloplasmin oxidase activity and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels in the various groups were evaluated at 1, 4, 8 and 12 weeks post-transplant, respectively.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The DL BM cells population was observed from 1 to 12 weeks and peaked by the 4^thweek in the recipient liver after transplantation. DL BM cells transplantation during the early stage significantly corrected copper accumulation, AST across the observed time points and serum ceruloplasmin oxidase activity through 8 to 12 weeks in tx mice compared with those treated with saline or tx BM cells (all <it>P </it>< 0.05). In contrast, BM cells transplantation during the late stage only corrected AST levels from 4 to 12 weeks post-transplant and copper accumulation at 12 weeks post-transplant (all <it>P </it>< 0.05). No significant difference was found between the saline and tx BM cells transplantation groups across the observed time points (<it>P </it>> 0.05).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Early stage transplantation of normal BM cells is better than late stage transplantation in correcting liver function and copper metabolism in a mouse model of WD.</p

Modulating Pharmacokinetics, Tumor Uptake and Biodistribution by Engineered Nanoparticles

Inorganic nanoparticles provide promising tools for biomedical applications including detection, diagnosis and therapy. While surface properties such as charge are expected to play an important role in their in vivo behavior, very little is known how the surface chemistry of nanoparticles influences their pharmacokinetics, tumor uptake, and biodistribution.Using a family of structurally homologous nanoparticles we have investigated how pharmacological properties including tumor uptake and biodistribution are influenced by surface charge using neutral (TEGOH), zwitterionic (Tzwit), negative (TCOOH) and positive (TTMA) nanoparticles. Nanoparticles were injected into mice (normal and athymic) either in the tail vein or into the peritoneum.Neutral and zwitterionic nanoparticles demonstrated longer circulation time via both i.p. and i.v. administration, whereas negatively and positively charged nanoparticles possessed relatively short half-lives. These pharmacological characteristics were reflected on the tumor uptake and biodistribution of the respective nanoparticles, with enhanced tumor uptake by neutral and zwitterionic nanoparticles via passive targeting

Rhinovirus-induced basic fibroblast growth factor release mediates airway remodeling features

BACKGROUND: Human rhinoviruses, major precipitants of asthma exacerbations, induce lower airway inflammation and mediate angiogenesis. The purpose of this study was to assess the possibility that rhinoviruses may also contribute to the fibrotic component of airway remodeling. METHODS: Levels of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) mRNA and protein were measured following rhinovirus infection of bronchial epithelial cells. The profibrotic effect of epithelial products was assessed by DNA synthesis and matrix metalloproteinase activity assays. Moreover, epithelial cells were exposed to supernatants from cultured peripheral blood mononuclear cells, obtained from healthy donors or atopic asthmatic subjects and subsequently infected by rhinovirus and bFGF release was estimated. bFGF was also measured in respiratory secretions from atopic asthmatic patients before and during rhinovirus-induced asthma exacerbations. RESULTS: Rhinovirus epithelial infection stimulated mRNA expression and release of bFGF, the latter being positively correlated with cell death under conditions promoting rhinovirus-induced cytotoxicity. Supernatants from infected cultures induced lung fibroblast proliferation, which was inhibited by anti-bFGF antibody, and demonstrated increased matrix metalloproteinase activity. Rhinovirus-mediated bFGF release was significantly higher in an in vitro simulation of atopic asthmatic environment and, importantly, during rhinovirus-associated asthma exacerbations. CONCLUSIONS: Rhinovirus infection induces bFGF release by airway epithelium, and stimulates stroma cell proliferation contributing to airway remodeling in asthma. Repeated rhinovirus infections may promote asthma persistence, particularly in the context of atopy; prevention of such infections may influence the natural history of asthma