AI is a viable alternative to high throughput screening: a 318-target study

: High throughput screening (HTS) is routinely used to identify bioactive small molecules. This requires physical compounds, which limits coverage of accessible chemical space. Computational approaches combined with vast on-demand chemical libraries can access far greater chemical space, provided that the predictive accuracy is sufficient to identify useful molecules. Through the largest and most diverse virtual HTS campaign reported to date, comprising 318 individual projects, we demonstrate that our AtomNet® convolutional neural network successfully finds novel hits across every major therapeutic area and protein class. We address historical limitations of computational screening by demonstrating success for target proteins without known binders, high-quality X-ray crystal structures, or manual cherry-picking of compounds. We show that the molecules selected by the AtomNet® model are novel drug-like scaffolds rather than minor modifications to known bioactive compounds. Our empirical results suggest that computational methods can substantially replace HTS as the first step of small-molecule drug discovery

Oral health knowledge and practices among rural government primary school teachers of Mangalore, Karnataka

Objectives: To assess the Knowledge and Practice regarding Oral Health among the Rural Government Primary school teachers of Mangalore, Karnataka, India. Materials & Method: A self administered close ended questionnaire consisting of 15 items was distributed among the rural primary school teachers of Mangalore (n= 165). Comparison of knowledge and practice amongst the three age groups was done with Kruskal Wallis test. Comparison of mean scores between the genders was done using Mann-Whitney-U test. Comparison of mean scores across four educational qualification groups was done using Kruskal Wallis test. Results: Significant difference (p< 0.01) was found across the three age groups for the mean practice scores. There was significant difference between the genders with females scoring better for the mean knowledge, practice and the total scores. Conclusions: Oral health knowledge was lacking among the primary school teachers of rural Mangalore, although practices were satisfactory. Oral health education program targeting only the teachers is of utmost importance in the light of the present study results

Synthesis, characterization of zro₂:Tb³⁺ (1-9 mol %) nanophosphors for blue lighting applications and antibacterial property

This paper reports the structural, morphological, and antibacterial studies of ZrO2:Tb3+ nanophosphors (NPs). The ZrO2:Tb3+ NPs were synthesized by hydrothermal route using Amylamine as surfactant. ZrO2:Tb3+ nanophosphors was characterized by Powder X-ray Diffraction(PXRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM),Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), Photoluminescence(PL), Raman spectra, Fourier Transform Infrared radiation(FTIR) and Transmission Electron Microscope(TEM). PXRD analysis shows better crystallinity, cubic in-phase and good homogeneity of the synthesized phosphors were confirmed. When the Tb3+ concentration varies, we obtain blue emissions from ZrO2:Tb3+ NPs. ZrO2:Tb3+ NPs have a promising approach to blue light sources in the display application. SEM images show that ZrO2:Tb3+ nanophosphors have good morphology with a nonporous structure. TEM and SAED pattern confirms that ZrO2:Tb3+ nanophosphors are crystalline in nature. ZrO2:Tb3+ (9mol %) nanophosphors possessed a good antibacterial ability. © 2021 by the authors

Knowledge, attitude and practice regarding handling of extracted human teeth among students of a dental college in Bhopal

Introduction: Extracted human teeth have been used commonly in dental institutions to train students acquire the skills to perform on live patients. No disinfectant mentioned in the literature as 100% effective is completely safe. Although there are studies on the effectiveness of disinfectants, assessment of knowledge, attitude and practice regarding the handling of extracted teeth among dental students are rare. Aims: The aim was to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice regarding handling of extracted teeth among the students of a dental college in Bhopal. Materials and Methods: A self-designed, close-ended questionnaire containing 16 questions was distributed to 500 students including the undergraduates and postgraduate students of a dental college in Bhopal. The questionnaire comprised 5 questions on knowledge, 5 on attitude and 6 on the practice towards handling of extracted human teeth. The responses were coded and entered in Microsoft excel and analyzed using SPSS 14. Mann-Whitney U-test was used to compare the mean knowledge, attitude and practice scores across genders. Statistical significance of mean knowledge, attitude and practice scores across year of study was assessed using Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: Of the 500 questionnaires distributed, 412 were returned with a response rate of 82.4%. The total mean knowledge, attitude and practice scores were 1.25 ± 1.12, 5.00 ± 1.12 and 4.89 ± 0.96 respectively. Comparison of mean knowledge, attitude and practice scores between genders was not significant. The difference in mean attitude and practice scores across year of study were statistically significant. Conclusions: Instructions regarding handling of extracted teeth need to be given to students when they enter the BDS curriculum. It′s always safe to follow the guidelines issued by the Center for Disease Control while handling extracted teeth

Assessing the nicotine content of smoked and smokeless forms of Tobacco Available in Bhopal

Context: Abuse of tobacco, such as drug and alcohol abuse, is a worldwide public health problem. Once a person is addicted to nicotine, quitting smoking is difficult. A measure of the addictive potential of tobacco products is the amount of nicotine available from them. The present study is an attempt to assess the nicotine content of tobacco products available in Bhopal. Aims: This study aims to assess the nicotine content of some popular brands of smoked (cigarettes and bidis) and chewed forms (pan masalas containing tobacco) of tobacco available in Bhopal. Settings and Design: This was an in vitro cross-sectional study. Subjects and Methods: Six brands of cigarettes (filtered), six brands of bidis, and six brands of chewed tobacco (pan masalas) were used for the study. The methodology published by Association of Official Analytical Chemists was followed, and reagents conforming to American Chemical Society specifications were used. Statistical Analysis Used: One-way ANOVA, Bonferroni post hoc test. Results: The mean nicotine levels for cigarettes, bidis, and chewed tobacco were 7.84 ± 5.10, 16.86 ± 5.66, and 16.30 ± 3.33, respectively. The differences in the mean scores were compared using one-way ANOVA and were found to be statistically significant with F = 6.636 and P = 0.009. Bonferroni post hoc test assessed the difference in mean nicotine content among the groups indicating that the difference between cigarettes versus bidis and cigarette versus chewed tobacco was significant with P = 0.016 and 0.024, respectively. Conclusions: Bidis had the highest content of nicotine, followed by chewed tobacco (pan masalas) and cigarettes

Career in dentistry: By choice or chance-reasons for choosing dentistry among the first-year dental students of a college in India

Objective: To determine the factors that lead to the choice of dentistry as an occupation among the first-year dental students in a private dental college in Mangalore, Karnataka, India. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 100 first year Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) students was carried out using a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of total eight close-ended questions, which included demographic (age and gender) and career choice-related items. Data was collected, analyzed, and was represented as numbers and percentage. Results: The response rate was 100%. Majority of the students (80%) chose dentistry as a professional career as compared to the 20% who got in by chance. About 72% of them chose dentistry because of their interest, 13% because they were unable to procure a seat in medicine and 10% due to family influence. Majority of them (85%) had undergone career guidance courses in school and were told about various career options. On completion of their undergraduate course in dentistry, 73% preferred to pursue post-graduation and 23% desired to establish private practice. Conclusions: The first years of A. B. Shetty Memorial Institute of Dental Sciences, Mangalore have chosen dentistry as a professional career mostly due to their personal interest and influence of family and friends