Measurement of Yearly Wastage in Elementary Education

The problem of wastage in Elementary Education System is becoming gradually very serious, across the world. Various methods have been proposed by researchers to measure real wastage in an Indian educational system, which seem to be inadequate because of multiple reasons. One of the main reasons is the occurrence of different type of wastages in the elementary education system. Further, there no reliable and consistent database, of educational statistics, that are available. In this paper, we wish to propose a method for measuring the real wastage by using the appropriate statistical technique of sampling

Percutaneous trigger finger release using 18G hypodermic needle

Introductions: Patients of stenosing tenosynovitis or trigger finger presents with pain, swelling, limitation of finger movement, and triggering. Thickening of the A1 pulley, with resultant entrapment of flexor tendons, is the primary pathology. In failed conservative treatment, surgical release by open or percutaneous technique is used. The aim of this study was to evaluate the results of percutaneous release of trigger fingers using hypodermic 18-gauge needle under local anesthesia. Methods: A cross sectional study of percutaneous release of trigger fingers using hypodermic 18-gauge needle under local anesthesia was performed in outpatient clinic at Janaki Medical College Teaching Hospital, Janakpur, Nepal, from July 2016 to September 2017. Informed consent was obtained. All the patients were followed up on 3rd day, 1st week and one month in outpatient department, and further telephone follow up at three and six months after surgery. Results: There were 38 patients, female 25 and male 13, age 24 to 67 years. Successful release was achieved in 36/38 (95%) with normal activities within 48 hours. None had complications like digital neurovascular injury or tendon bowstringing. One patient had superficial skin infection and was treated successfully with oral antibiotics. Two (5.2%) had pain and recurrent triggering requiring open release in the first week. At one, three and six months follow up patients reported no triggering of released fingers. Conclusions: Percutaneous release with hypodermic 18-gauge needle under local anesthesia was an effective and convenient method with a low complication rate. Keywords: percutaneous release, trigger finger, 18-gauge hypodermic needl

Construction of genetic linkage map of the medicinal and ornamental plant Catharanthus roseus

An integrated genetic linkage map of the medicinal and ornamental plant Catharanthus roseus, based on different types of molecular and morphological markers was constructed, using a F2 population of 144 plants. The map defines 14 linkage groups (LGs) and consists of 131 marker loci, including 125 molecular DNA markers (76 RAPD, 3 RAPD combinations; 7 ISSR; 2 EST-SSR from Medicago truncatula and 37 other PCR based DNA markers), selected from a total of 472 primers or primer pairs, and six morphological markers (stem pigmentation, leaf lamina pigmentation and shape, leaf petiole and pod size, and petal colour). The total map length is 1131.9 cM (centiMorgans), giving an average map length and distance between two markers equal to 80.9 cM and 8.6 cM, respectively. The morphological markers/genes were found linked with nearest molecular or morphological markers at distances varying from 0.7 to 11.4 cM. Linkage was observed between the morphological markers concerned with lamina shape and petiole size of leaf on LG1 and leaf, stem and petiole pigmentation and pod size on LG8. This is the first genetic linkage map of C. roseus

Evaluation of Ferrocene Derivatives as Burn Rate Modifiers in AP/HTPB-Based Composite Propellants

Some ferrocene derivatives like 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine derivative of acetyl ferrocene, 1-pyrrolidinylmethyl ferrocene, di-ter-butyl ferrocene and 1,3-diferrocenyl-l-butene (DFB) have been synthesised and characterised by infrared, nuclear magnetic resonance, ultraviolet, iron content, etc. To study the effect of their incorporation on performance, ammonium perchlorate/hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene-based composite propellants containing these derivatives have been prepared and studied for burn rates, tensile strength and percentage elongation followed by their static test evaluation. A comparison of the properties of propellant containing solid and liquid ferrocene derivatives has been made with those containing Fe/sub 2/O/sub 3/ and n-butyl ferrocene, respectively. The data clearly indicates that these ferrocene derivatives are better than Fe/sub 2/O/sub 3/ and n-butyl errocene. Also, DFB is the best among these derivatives. Like composite propellants, DFB increases burn rate in fuel-rich propellants also

Prescription practices and availability of artemisinin monotherapy in India: where do we stand?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The World Health Organization has urged all member states to deploy artemisinin-based combination therapy and progressively withdraw oral artemisinin monotherapies from the market due to their high recrudescence rates and to reduce the risk of drug resistance. Prescription practices by physicians and the availability of oral artemisinin monotherapies with pharmacists directly affect the pattern of their use. Thus, treatment practices for malaria, with special reference to artemisinin monotherapy prescription, in selected states of India were evaluated.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Structured, tested questionnaires were used to conduct convenience surveys of physicians and pharmacists in eleven purposively selected districts across six states in 2008. In addition, exit interviews of patients with a diagnosis of uncomplicated malaria or a prescription for an anti-malarial drug were also performed. Logistic regression was used to determine patient clinical care, and institutional factors associated with artemisinin monotherapy prescription.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Five hundred and eleven physicians from 196 health facilities, 530 pharmacists, and 1, 832 patients were interviewed. Artemisinin monotherapy was available in 72.6% of pharmacies and was prescribed by physicians for uncomplicated malaria in all study states. Exit interviews among patients confirmed the high rate of use of artemisinin monotherapy with 14.8% receiving such a prescription. Case management, i.e. method of diagnosis and overall treatment, varied by state and public or private sector. Treatment in the private sector (OR 8.0, 95%CI: 3.8, 17) was the strongest predictor of artemisinin monotherapy prescription when accounting for other factors. Use of the combination therapy recommended by the national drug policy, artesunate + sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine, was minimal (4.9%), with the exception of one state.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Artemisinin monotherapy use was widespread across India in 2008. The accessible sale of oral artemisinin monotherapy in retail market and an inadequate supply of recommended drugs in the public sector health facilities promoted its prescription. This study resulted in notifications to all state drug controllers in India to withdraw the oral artemisinin formulations from the market. In 2010, artesunate + sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine became the universal first-line treatment for confirmed <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>malaria and was deployed at full scale.</p

GWAS identifies genetic loci underlying nitrogen responsiveness in the climate resilient C4 model Setaria italica (L.)

Introduction: N responsiveness is the capacity to perceive and induce morpho-physiological adaptation to external and internal Nitrogen (N). Crop productivity is propelled by N fertilizer and requires the breeding/selection of cultivars with intrinsically high N responsiveness. This trait has many advantages in being more meaningful in commercial/environmental context, facilitating in-season N management and not being inversely correlated with N availability over processes regulating NUE. Current lack of its understanding at the physio-genetic basis is an impediment to select for cultivars with a predictably high N response. Objectives: To dissect physio-genetic basis of N responsiveness in 142 diverse population of foxtail millet, Setaria italica (L.) by employing contrasting N fertilizer nutrition regimes. Methods: We phenotyped S. italica accessions for major yield related traits under low (N10, N25) and optimal (N100) growth conditions and genotyped them to subsequently perform a genome-wide association study to identify genetic loci associated with nitrogen responsiveness trait. Groups of accessions showing contrasting trait performance and allelic forms of specific linked genetic loci (showing haplotypes) were further accessed for N dependent transcript abundances of their proximal genes. Results: Our study show that N dependent yield rise in S. italica is driven by grain number whose responsiveness to N availability is genetically underlined. We identify 22 unique SNP loci strongly associated with this trait out of which six exhibit haplotypes and consistent allelic variation between lines with contrasting N dependent grain number response and panicle architectures. Furthermore, differential transcript abundances of specific genes proximally linked to these SNPs in same lines is indicative of their N dependence in a genotype specific manner. Conclusion: The study demonstrates the value/ potential of N responsiveness as a selection trait and identifies key genetic components underlying the trait in S. italica. This has major implications for improving crop N sustainability and food security

A compendium of molecules involved in vector-pathogen interactions pertaining to malaria

Malaria is a vector-borne disease causing extensive morbidity, debility and mortality. Development of resistance to drugs among parasites and to conventional insecticides among vector-mosquitoes necessitates innovative measures to combat this disease. Identification of molecules involved in the maintenance of complex developmental cycles of the parasites within the vector and the host can provide attractive targets to intervene in the disease transmission. In the last decade, several efforts have been made in identifying such molecules involved in mosquito-parasite interactions and, subsequently, validating their role in the development of parasites within the vector. In this study, a list of mosquito proteins, which facilitate or inhibit the development of malaria parasites in the midgut, haemolymph and salivary glands of mosquitoes, is compiled. A total of 94 molecules have been reported and validated for their role in the development of malaria parasites inside the vector. This compendium of molecules will serve as a centralized resource to biomedical researchers investigating vector-pathogen interactions and malaria transmission. © 2013 Sreenivasamurthy et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Integrating transcriptomic and proteomic data for accurate assembly and annotation of genomes

© 2017 Wong et al.; Published by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. Complementing genome sequence with deep transcriptome and proteome data could enable more accurate assembly and annotation of newly sequenced genomes. Here, we provide a proof-of-concept of an integrated approach for analysis of the genome and proteome of Anopheles stephensi, which is one of the most important vectors of the malaria parasite. To achieve broad coverage of genes, we carried out transcriptome sequencing and deep proteome profiling of multiple anatomically distinct sites. Based on transcriptomic data alone, we identified and corrected 535 events of incomplete genome assembly involving 1196 scaffolds and 868 protein-coding gene models. This proteogenomic approach enabled us to add 365 genes that were missed during genome annotation and identify 917 gene correction events through discovery of 151 novel exons, 297 protein extensions, 231 exon extensions, 192 novel protein start sites, 19 novel translational frames, 28 events of joining of exons, and 76 events of joining of adjacent genes as a single gene. Incorporation of proteomic evidence allowed us to change the designation of more than 87 predicted noncoding RNAs to conventional mRNAs coded by protein-coding genes. Importantly, extension of the newly corrected genome assemblies and gene models to 15 other newly assembled Anopheline genomes led to the discovery of a large number of apparent discrepancies in assembly and annotation of these genomes. Our data provide a framework for how future genome sequencing efforts should incorporate transcriptomic and proteomic analysis in combination with simultaneous manual curation to achieve near complete assembly and accurate annotation of genomes

Effect of projectile on incomplete fusion reactions at low energies

Present work deals with the experimental studies of incomplete fusion reaction dynamics at energies as low as ≈ 4 - 7 MeV/A. Excitation functions populated via complete fusion and/or incomplete fusion processes in 12C+175Lu, and 13C+169Tm systems have been measured within the framework of PACE4 code. Data of excitation function measurements on comparison with different projectile-target combinations suggest the existence of ICF even at slightly above barrier energies where complete fusion (CF) is supposed to be the sole contributor, and further demonstrates strong projectile structure dependence of ICF. The incomplete fusion strength functions for 12C+175Lu, and 13C+169Tm systems are analyzed as a function of various physical parameters at a constant vrel ≈ 0.053c. It has been found that one neutron (1n) excess projectile 13C (as compared to 12C) results in less incomplete fusion contribution due to its relatively large negative α-Q-value, hence, α Q-value seems to be a reliable parameter to understand the ICF dynamics at low energies. In order to explore the reaction modes on the basis of their entry state spin population, the spin distribution of residues populated via CF and/or ICF in 16O+159Tb system has been done using particle-γ coincidence technique. CF-α and ICF-α channels have been identified from backward (B) and forward (F) α-gated γspectra, respectively. Reaction dependent decay patterns have been observed in different α emitting channels. The CF channels are found to be fed over a broad spin range, however, ICF-α channels was observed only for high-spin states. Further, the existence of incomplete fusion at low bombarding energies indicates the possibility to populate high spin state

The International Natural Product Sciences Taskforce (INPST) and the power of Twitter networking exemplified through #INPST hashtag analysis

Background: The development of digital technologies and the evolution of open innovation approaches have enabled the creation of diverse virtual organizations and enterprises coordinating their activities primarily online. The open innovation platform titled "International Natural Product Sciences Taskforce" (INPST) was established in 2018, to bring together in collaborative environment individuals and organizations interested in natural product scientific research, and to empower their interactions by using digital communication tools. Methods: In this work, we present a general overview of INPST activities and showcase the specific use of Twitter as a powerful networking tool that was used to host a one-week "2021 INPST Twitter Networking Event" (spanning from 31st May 2021 to 6th June 2021) based on the application of the Twitter hashtag #INPST. Results and Conclusion: The use of this hashtag during the networking event period was analyzed with Symplur Signals (https://www.symplur.com/), revealing a total of 6,036 tweets, shared by 686 users, which generated a total of 65,004,773 impressions (views of the respective tweets). This networking event's achieved high visibility and participation rate showcases a convincing example of how this social media platform can be used as a highly effective tool to host virtual Twitter-based international biomedical research events