Antibacterial activity of Glycyrrhiza glabra roots against certain gram-positive and gram-negative bacterial strains

The present study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial potency of grinded crude material (root of Glycyrrhiza glabra) against some gram-positive and gram-negative bacterial strains. Two solvents (methanol and acetone) were used to extract the phytochemicals from the test material. Four different concentrations (100%, 75%, 50% and 25%) of methanolic and acetonic extract were used to investigate the inhibiting properties against Salmonella typhi, Escherichia.coli, Vibrio cholerae, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus and Bacillus subtilis strains. Among methanol and acetone extracts, later exhibited low antibacterial activity. The 100% (w/v) concentration of both extracts showed maximum inhibition against B. subtilis followed by E. coli, S. aureus, B. cereus, S. typhi and V. Cholerae. Maximum activity in acetonic extract was obtained against B. cereus followed by S. typhi, E. coli, V. cholerae and S .aureus and minimum in B. subtilis. A reverse pattern of inhibition activity was found in both extacts (methanolic and acetonic) against B. subtilis. Maximum activity was found in methanolic extract against B. subtilis (18.6 mm) but it was only 14.3 mm against this strain in acetonic extract. The antibacterial activity of the crude samples corresponded to that of concentration. Hence there was positive correlation of antibacterial activity with the test material

Comparison between roll-over test and placental localization for early prediction of preeclampsia

Background: Preeclampsia is a common disorder of pregnancy and a major cause of maternal, foetal and neonatal mortality and morbidity. The roll-over test is based on the observation that significant supine hypertension is present for a period of 8 to 10 weeks prior to the onset of preeclampsia. The objective of the present study was to study and compare roll-over test with placental localization for early prediction of preeclampsia.Methods: In this prospective number bound study, a total of 200 unselected singleton pregnant females were included. All women were subjected to ultrasonography for placental localization at 24 weeks of gestation. They were subjected to roll-over test twice, first at 24 weeks and then at 28–30 weeks of gestation. Either the development of preeclampsia as per ACOG criteria or delivery was taken as end point in this study.Results: Of 200 women, 148 had a central placenta and 52 had a unilateral placenta. 37 women had preeclampsia, out of which 68 % had a unilateral placenta and 51 % had positive roll-over test. However when the roll-over test was performed at 24 weeks, it was negative in all study cases. So it had got no role as an early predictor of preeclampsia.Conclusions: This study concludes that ultrasonographic localization of the placenta seems to be a simple and easy to perform predictive test for incipient preeclampsia as compared to the roll-over test

Evaluation of relationship between microbial load and drug efficacy of Andrographis paniculata during storage

Three different extracts of Andrographis paniculata obtained by using three different solvents i.e. acetone, ethanol and water, were used to find out correlation of antimicrobial potency of the drug among them and with storage period of six months. Antibacterial activities were assessed by well diffusion method against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, and Salmonella typhi and antifungal activity by food poisoning technique against Candida albicans. No definite pattern of antimicrobial nature in acetone, ethanol and aqueous extract could be observed. Acetone extract showed maximum inhibitory (18.3mm) effect among all extract in general. Ethanol extract could attain second position and aqueous extract failed to inhibit growth of any organism even at 100% concentration. A declined trend of inhibitory effect of extract with increased number of storage days has been found showing a negative relation between inhibitory effect of the drug and storage duration. But positive correlation between inhibitory effect and concentration has been recorded. No inhibition was recorded against E. coli by any of the extract Bacterial load in term of CFU/g was found tremendously enhanced with increase of storage period. Negative correlation between microbial load and drug efficacy had been established while positive correlation between microbial load and storage period had been recorded

Study of Dissipative Collisions of 20^{20}Ne (∼\sim7-11 MeV/nucleon) + 27^{27}Al

The inclusive energy distributions of complex fragments (3 $\leq$Z $\leq$ 9) emitted in the reactions $^{20}$Ne (145, 158, 200, 218 MeV) + $^{27}$Al have been measured in the angular range 10$^{o}$ - 50$^{o}$. The fusion-fission and the deep-inelastic components of the fragment yield have been extracted using multiple Gaussian functions from the experimental fragment energy spectra. The elemental yields of the fusion-fission component have been found to be fairly well exlained in the framework of standard statistical model. It is found that there is strong competition between the fusion-fission and the deep-inelastic processes at these energies. The time scale of the deep-inelastic process was estimated to be typically in the range of $\sim$ 10$^{-21}$ - 10$^{-22}$ sec., and it was found to decrease with increasing fragment mass. The angular momentum dissipations in fully energy damped deep-inelastic process have been estimated from the average energies of the deep-inelastic components of the fragment energy spectra. It has been found that, the estimated angular momentum dissipations, for lighter fragments in particular, are more than those predicted by the empirical sticking limit.Comment: 16 pages, 9 figure

Evidence of large nuclear deformation of 32^{32}S∗^{*} formed in 20^{20}Ne + 12^{12}C reaction

Deformations of hot composite $^{32}$S$^{*}$ formed in the reaction $^{20}$Ne ($\sim$ 7 -- 10 MeV/nucleon) + $^{12}$C have been estimated from the respective inclusive $\alpha$-particle evaporation spectra. The estimated deformations for $^{32}$S$^{*}$ have been found to be much larger than the `normal' deformations of hot, rotating composites at similar excitations. This further confirms the formation of highly deformed long-lived configuration of $^{20}$Ne + $^{12}$C at high excitations ($\sim$ 70 -- 100 MeV) -- which was recently indicated from the analysis of the complex fragment emission data for the same system. Exclusive $\alpha$-particle evaporation spectra from the decay of hot composite $^{32}$S$^{*}$ also show similar behaviour.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure

Genitourinary infections as a risk factor for preterm prelabour rupture of membranes: a hospital based case control study

Background: Preterm Prelabour Rupture of Membranes (PPROM) is a leading cause of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality. The objective of our study was to bring forward the association between genitourinary infections and PPROM in Indian scenario.Methods: This retrospective case-control study was conducted in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, in a tertiary referral teaching hospital in Punjab. A total of 150 women were evaluated for genitourinary infections and their association with PPROM. Cases group 1 (n=75) included pregnant females with diagnosis of PPROM based on history and vaginal examination. Control group 2 (n=75) included pregnant women admitted to labour room at 37 completed weeks of gestation or more and with no history of PPROM. The control group was matched to case group with respect to age and parity. Case to control ratio was taken as 1:1. A multivariate analysis was used to find the association between PPROM and genitourinary infections. Microsoft Excel and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), Version 21 were used for data analysis. A P value of <0.05 was determined to be statistically significant.Results: In our study genitourinary infections were seen in 16 women in Case Group 1 (21.3%), compared to 7 women in Control Group (9.3%). Genitourinary infections were associated significantly with PPROM (p 0.02) (odds ratio [OR], 2.618; 95% Confidence interval [CI], 1.021-7.239).Conclusions: Screening for genitourinary infections should be considered especially in high risk cases. Early recognition and prompt treatment of genitourinary infections is the key to optimize the maternal and fetal outcome in PPROM

A randomized comparison between misoprostol and dinoprostone for cervical ripening and labor induction in patients with unfavorable cervices

Background: The induction of labor remains as one of the major challenges in obstetrics even in this modern era. The ideal priming agent is one that causes cervical change that is most similar to that seen in natural ripening process. This study was aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of intravaginal Misoprostol and compare its effects with intracervical dinoprostone gel for cervical ripening and labor induction in patients with unfavourable uterine cervices.Methods: This was a one-year prospective study conducted in the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of a 800 bedded premier teaching hospital in Ludhiana. The study population consisted of all pregnant women admitted to the labor ward beyond 37 weeks of gestation and requiring induction of labor for various medical and obstetrical indications. Frequencies, proportions, mean and standard deviation were done while chi square and t-test were used for determination of significance.Results: A total of 153 mothers fulfilled the criteria to be included in the study of which 81 mothers were induced by misoprostol and 72 mothers by dinoprostone gel respectively. There was no statistical difference in the maternal age, parity and gestation at the onset of study in the two groups. The ANC complications were also statistically similar. There was no significant difference in the mean initial Bishop Score in the two groups. 3.42 in the Misoprostol group and 3.56 in the Dinoprostone group. The mean Bishop Score after 8 hour of the first dose was 7.86 in the Misoprostol group and 6.88 in the Dinoprostone group. The mean time taken from the induction to the onset of labor was 5.57 hours in the misoprostol group and 8.04 hours in the dinoprostone group. There were no cases of tachysystole or hyperstimulation in both the groups.Conclusions: Misoprostol is a more efficacious cervical ripening and labor inducing agent compared to dinoprostone gel and can be used safely in the North Indian setting

Audit into stillbirths: a tertiary hospital experience

Background: The objective of the study was to evaluate the prevalence, risk factors and causes of stillbirth.Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted from January 2014 until December 2014 in a tertiary referral teaching hospital in Punjab. The 2014 birth register from the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology was reviewed and the data was collected. The results were tabulated and data was analyzed as frequencies, percentages and descriptive statistics.Results: During the one-year study period, there were 1528 registered pregnancies in the hospital and 64 pregnant women were diagnosed to have stillbirth resulting in a stillbirth rate of 40.63 / 1000 live births. More than 75% of the stillbirths were noted in women between 21 to 30 years of age. Pregnant women who were unbooked (72.5%) had higher rates of stillbirths. More than 80% of the stillbirths were preterm. Anaemia (41.93%), pre-eclampsia (25.8%) and antepartum hemorrhage (24.19%) were the most common maternal risk factors noted in these patients. Maternal factors contributed to 37.5% of the causes of stillbirths. The other causes for stillbirths were placental factors (32.8%) and fetal factors (6.2%). In 23.43% of the cases the cause was unknown.Conclusions: India shares a high burden of stillbirths with priority gaps in reporting and recognizing at the health policy level. Better counting of stillbirths and improved cause-of-death data can advocate child survival strategies.

Feto-maternal outcome in pregnancies with preterm premature rupture of membranes: a tertiary hospital experience

Background: Preterm premature rupture of the membranes (PPROM) is a known dreaded complication of pregnancy as it is associated with significant perinatal complications. The objective of our study was to bring forward the incidence and feto-maternal outcome in pregnancies with PPROM in Indian scenario. Methods: This retrospective cohort study was conducted in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, in a tertiary hospital in Punjab between January 2014 and December 2014. Medical records of all pregnant patients who were admitted to our department with PPROM on the basis of clinical and /or laboratory data were reviewed. These 75 women were divided into two groups according to gestation age (GA), Group 1- early PPROM (24- 33 6/7 weeks of GA) (n=38) and Group 2- late PPROM (34-36 6/7 weeks of GA) (n=37). A multivariate analysis was used to find the association between PPROM and perinatal outcome.Results: During the study period, there were 1528 deliveries in the hospital and 75 pregnant women were diagnosed to have PPROM giving an overall incidence of 4.9%. In both the groups most common maternal complication was chorioamnionitis (15.7% vs. 2.7%) and most common neonatal complication was physiological jaundice (56.8% vs. 69.2%). Most of the babies required phototherapy (50% vs. 43.5%) and antibiotics. Our study demonstrated that patients in group 1 had significant increase in the frequency of chorioamnionitis, hyaline membrane disease, septicaemia, periventricular leukomalacia, intrauterine pneumonia, need for ventilator support and inotropes. Patients in group 2 had significant increase in the frequency of APGAR score <7 at 1 min, APGAR <7 at 5 min and LSCS rate.Conclusions: The study result implies that lesser the gestation age more are the chances of fetomaternal complications in patients with PPROM. Early PPROM is associated with higher rates of perinatal morbidity and mortality

Characterization of fragment emission in ^{20}Ne (7 - 10 MeV/nucleon) + ^{12}C reactions

The inclusive energy distributions of the complex fragments (3 $\leq$ Z $\leq$ 7) emitted from the bombardment of ^{12}C by ^{20}Ne beams with incident energies between 145 and 200 MeV have been measured in the angular range 10$^{o} \leq \theta_{lab} \leq$ 50^{o}. Damped fragment yields in all the cases have been found to be the characteristic of emission from fully energy equilibrated composites. The binary fragment yields are compared with the standard statistical model predictions. Enhanced yields of entrance channel fragments (5 $\leq$ Z $\leq$ 7) indicate the survival of orbiting-like process in ^{20}Ne + ^{12}C system at these energies.Comment: 18 pages, 13 figure