AMELIORATIVE EFFECT OF BAUHINIA VARIEGATA ON HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA-INDUCED OXIDATIVE STRESS IN RATS

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the effect of the methanolic extract of Bauhinia variegata (L.) stem bark in albino rats. Methods: The coarsely powdered stem bark of B. variegata (L.) was extracted with methanol (BVMtE) and was finally filtered. The experimental animals were divided into five groups for the duration of 60 days: control group (Group I); high cholesterol diet (HCD)-fed group (Group II); BVME-treated (100 mg/g b. wt./day) HCD group (Group III); BVME-treated (200 mg/g b. wt./day) HCD group (Group IV); and atorvastatin-treated (40 μg/g b. wt./day) HCD group (Group V). Animals were sacrificed and blood and tissues were removed for biochemical and histological analysis. Results: Oral BVMtE administration to high cholesterol diet (HCD)-fed rats significantly normalized the serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides (TGs), phospholipid, aspartate and alanine transaminase, and alkaline and acid phosphatase. Reduced glutathione, superoxide dismutase, as well as atherogenic index of BVMtE-treated HCD rats showed significant normalcy as compared to HCD-fed rats. The histoarchitecture of heart and aorta of BVMtE-treated HCD-fed rats depicted marked normalcy as compared to HCD rats. Phytochemical analysis showed that plant is rich in active constituents, i.e., flavonoids, steroids, terpenoids, β-sitosterol, kaempferol-3-glucoside, and tannins. Conclusions: B. variegata has proved lipid lowering as well as antioxidant activity in high cholesterol diet-fed animals

Question of urban transport in India

Public bus transport is of great import in India. Not only is an efficient public bus system important for meeting the mobility needs in this rapidly growing economy, but a higher share of bus transport would also have a positive impact on pollution, both local and global, and energy demand. That apart, improved availability of public transport is critical for ensuring access to basic services such as education and health, and integrating rural communities into the economic mainstream. Hence, it is incumbent on governments in developing countries to institute appropriate policy initiatives to increase the share of public transport. The increasingly urban character of growth has led to a rapid growth in transportation activity in India cities

The Reasons of Boycotting Consumers and Supply Chain (case study: India)

Abstract- The article attempts to ascertain the positive and negative reasoning associated with boycotting a consumer and supply chain. Many have been mentioned in various write ups as to how a consumer boycott is organized and what are the features involved in it, but there are numerous reasons in todays marketplace that can either cause a consumer boycott and supply chain boycott to achieve what it intends to or simply fail for not carrying enough background. To successfully accomplish its motive, it becomes imperative to study what makes a boycott successful and what can cause it to be unsuccessful. Though, consumers are important to organize their protest, but not all protests can be instrumental towards a successful boycott, if it is the nature of detriment and the role of media that can either make a boycott, the same can be responsible to break a boycott midway. The article Attempts to ascertain the reasoning of success and failure in boycotting the consumer and supply chain. The study becomes important because many boycotts have been successful, but many went unnoticed in recent years, a sample size of 100 respondents has been surveyed with findings on primary data being discussed systematically. Key words: Boycott, Ethical, detriment, Consumers, Supply Chain, India

Plants Alkaloids Based Compound as Therapeutic Potential for Neurodegenerative

Although while getting a restful night\u27s sleep is essential for your mental and physical health, insomnia is very prevalent. More people are turning to complementary and alternative therapies to treat or prevent sleeplessness. For hundreds of years, herbal treatments like valerian, passionflower, lemon balm, lavender, and California poppy have been utilized successfully. After using these herbal medicines, sleep latency was reduced and subjective and objective measures of sleep quality improved. Their sedative and sleep-inducing effects are caused by interactions with several neurotransmitter systems in the brain, according to molecular research. The plant species can be divided into 76 different genera and 32 different families, with the Asteraceae (24.2%) and Lamiaceae (21.1%) being the most prevalent subgroups. Leaves (29%) and flowers (27%), respectively, are used to make the majority of infusions (70%) and decoctions (25%). Just the most well-known taxa—out of the 106 known—are treated here (A. arvensis L., C. nepeta L., C. monogyna Jacq., H. lupulus L., L. nobilis L., L. angustifolia Mill., M. sylvestris L., M. chamomilla L., M. officinalis L., O. basilicum L., P. rhoeas L., P. somniferum L., R. officinalis L., T. platyphyllus Scop., and V. officinalis L.). Further study is required to confirm the therapeutic potential of these substitutes and define the mechanism of action of bioactive compounds because only seven of the fifteen species chosen have been investigated for pharmacological activity as hypnotic-sedatives

Upgrading a Social Media Strategy to Increase Twitter Engagement During the Spring Annual Meeting of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine.

Microblogs known as tweets are a rapid, effective method of information dissemination in health care. Although several medical specialties have described their Twitter conference experiences, Twitter-related data in the fields of anesthesiology and pain medicine are sparse. We therefore analyzed the Twitter content of 2 consecutive spring meetings of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine using publicly available online transcripts. We also examined the potential contribution of a targeted social media campaign on Twitter engagement during the conferences. The original Twitter meeting content was largely scientific in nature and created by meeting attendees, the majority of whom were nontrainee physicians. Physician trainees, however, represent an important and increasing minority of Twitter contributors. Physicians not in attendance predominantly contributed via retweeting original content, particularly picture-containing tweets, and thus increased reach to nonattendees. A social media campaign prior to meetings may help increase the reach of conference-related Twitter discussion

Indoor Air Pollution and Its Determinants in Household Settings in Jaipur, India

Individuals spend 90% of their time indoors, primarily at home or at work. Indoor environmental factors have a signifcant impact on human well-being. It was a longitudinal study that assessed the major factors that reduce indoor air quality, namely particulate matter, and bio-aerosols, using low-cost sensors and the settle plate method, respectively also to determine the effect of atmospheric parameters and land use patterns in households of commercial, industrial, residential, slum, and rural areas of the city. PM2.5 concentration levels were similar in most parts of the day across all sites. PM10.0 concentration levels increased indoors in a commercial area. PM2.5 concentration showed a negative correlation with temperature and a positive correlation with relative humidity in some areas. Very high values of PM2.5 concentration and PM10.0 concentration have been observed in this study, inside households of selected rural and urban areas. Pathogenic gram-positive cocci, gram-positive rods, Aspergillus, and Mucor species were the most common bacterial and fungal species respectively found inside households. This study examined particulate matter concentration along with bio-aerosols, as very less studies have been conducted in Jaipur the capital of Rajasthan, a state in the western part of India which assessed both of these factors together to determine the indoor air quality. Rural households surrounding the periphery of the city were found to have similar pollution levels as urban households. So, this study may form the basis for reducing pollution inside households and also for taking suitable measures for the reduction of pollution in the indoor environment

Tablet-Based Puzzle Game Intervention for Cognitive Function and Well-Being in Healthy Adults: Pilot Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND Promoting cognitive health is key to maintaining cognitive and everyday functions and preventing the risk of cognitive impairment or dementia. Existing scientific evidence shows the benefits of various training modalities on cognition. One way to promote cognitive health is through engagement in cognitive activities (eg, board and video games). OBJECTIVE This study aims to investigate the benefits of dynamic adaptive casual puzzle games on cognitive function and well-being in healthy adults and older people. METHODS A total of 12 adults and older people (female participants: n=6; mean age 58.92, SD 10.28 years; range 46-75 years) were included in this pilot randomized controlled trial. This study used a crossover design with two phases (8 weeks each) and three measurement waves (pretest, midtest, and posttest). The participants were randomly allocated either to the control or experimental group. In the control group, participants read newspapers between the pre- and midtest, then switched to cognitive training with puzzle games. In the experimental group, the interventions were reversed. Baseline measurements (pretest) were collected before the intervention. The interventions were delivered on tablet computers and took place unsupervised at participants' homes. RESULTS The outcome measures included global cognitive function, higher cognitive function, and emotional well-being at 3 time points (pretest, midtest, and posttest) using standardized neuropsychological tests. The participants showed improvements in their visual attention and visuospatial measures after the puzzle game intervention. CONCLUSIONS The study showed that digital games are a feasible way to train cognition in healthy adults and older people. The algorithm-based dynamic adaption allows accommodations for persons with different cognitive levels of skill. The results of the study will guide future prevention efforts and trials in high-risk populations

Impact of cropping systems on physico-chemical characteristics of surface water during different seasons in Shimla region of Himachal Pradesh

The present investigations were carried out in the year 2014 with an objective to find out the impact of different cropping systems on nearby surface water resources in Shimla region of Himachal Pradesh. The aim of the study was to monitor the surface water bodies for pollution caused by nearby cropping systems in the Shimla area. In this study fruit, fruit + vegetable, vegetable and cereal based cropping systems were selected along with control (uncultivated land) and sampling was done during winter, summer and rainy seasons. The estimated water quality parameters revealed very less organic pollution and pH values were within the BIS prescribed limits of 6.5-8.5. Under vegetable based cropping system EC (500.23 µS cm?1), TDS (329.17 mg/l), BOD (1.48 mg/l), COD (31.09 mg/l), Cl- (25.66 mg/l), Ca (75.59 mg/l) and Mg (11.14 mg/l) were in high concentration, whereas No3- content were high under fruit + vegetable based cropping system. DO were maximum (8.61mg/l) under uncultivated land. Calcium and COD were high in some samples, which could be from anthropogenic sources, rest of the parameters were within the desirable limits prescribed by Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). The experimental data were statistically analysed through Analysis of variance (two way classification of data) indicated positive correlation among most of the physical and chemical parameters. Study reveals that cropping systems as well as seasonal changes has affected the water quality. The study carried out for water quality parameters, revealed the correlation of each parameter with one another under different cropping systems

Effect of input variable of GMAW on microstructure and mechanical properties of High Strength Low Alloy

228-236The present study focused on evaluating mechanical and microstructural properties of Gas Metal Arc (GMA) welded High Strength Low Alloys (HSLA) steel weldments at different heat inputs. Heat input plays a significant role in influencing welded joints' mechanical properties and microstructure. Nine different values of heat input were considered and the range of heat input value was from 1.89-2.61Kj/mm. From the results it was found that on increasing the heat input in the form of input parameters, the average Ultimate Tensile Strength (UTS) was increased and then decreased but at the same time grain coarsening in microstructure was also observed. From the rest result, it was also observed that on increasing the heat input value toughness of weldment also increases

Effect of elevated CO2 and temperature on growth parameters of pea (Pisum sativum L.) crop

Global warming is predicted to have negative effect on plant growth due to the damaging effect of high temperature on plant development. The field experiment was conducted during 2014-15 to study effect of elevated CO2 and temperature on growth parameters of pea (Pisum sativum L.) crop in order to check the effect of climatechange on vegetable crops. Effect was studied under four conditions i.e. Open Top Chambers, T1: OTC - elevated CO2550±10 ppm; T2: OTC -elevated CO2 550±10 ppm and temperature 1°C; T3: OTC - ambient CO2 and temperature (reference) and T4: natural condition. Maximum plant height at 50 % flowering was recorded in T1 (84.29cm) at elevated CO2 which differed significantly with T2 (79.47cm) at elevated CO2 and temperature, T3 (73.60cm) at ambient CO2 and temperature and natural condition (70.73cm). Minimum days to 50 per cent flowering were recorded in plants growing under T2 (68.56 days). Maximum pollen viability was recorded in T1 (77.42%) followed by T3 (76.36%), T4 (74.65%) and T2 (69.97%). Internode length of plants grown under T1 was maximum (7.01cm) followed by T2 (6.68cm), T3 (6.00cm) and T4 (5.05cm). Elevated temperature and CO2 had significant effects on growth and development in vegetables. Overall, growth parameters of pea crop were affected positively by elevated CO2 whereas under interaction effect of elevated CO2 and temperature these positive effects of CO2 were offset by elevated temperature effect and hampered the growth of pea crop which interns can affect the yield and quality of crop under changing climate scenario