DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION OF FREEZING RESISTANT INTRAVENOUS FLUID

Objectives: Hemorrhagic or hypovolemic shocks accounts for a large portion of civilian and military trauma deaths due to life-threatening blood loss which requires intravenous fluid infusion to prevent essential deficiencies of fluids. However, at low temperature (-150C) fluid bottles freeze out and can not be used in emergency. In view of that, objective of the present work is to develop a freezing resistant intravenous formulation (FRIV) and its in vivo safety and efficacy evaluation. Methods: FRIV formulations were developed using standardized ringer lactate (RL) formulation protocol, in which varying concentrations of ethanol and glycerol were added to induce desired physiochemical properties. Efficacy of FRIV was evaluated in terms of survival percentage of hemorrhagic animal models (Swiss albino strain mice). Acute toxicity studies were carried out through an infusion at dose levels (0, 20 and 40 ml/Kg b. wt.). Results: In vitro data showed that optimized FRIV (F-10) takes more time (360 ± 21 min) for freezing and less time in thawing (50 ± 4.50 min) in comparison to control which takes (110 ± 15 min) in freezing and (80 ± 7.25 min) in thawing. Formulations were found to be stable and sterile up to six months. In vivo efficacy data showed ≥ 75% survival in animals infused with FRIV as compared to control group in hemorrhagic animal models and no treatment related toxic effects of optimized formulation in terms of hematological, serum biochemistry and histopathological analysis. Conclusion: Pre-clinical safety and efficacy data of the present study indicated that developed FRIV formulation could be used for fluid recovery during the hemorrhagic shocks conditions in the combat scenario

Global burden of 288 causes of death and life expectancy decomposition in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

BACKGROUND Regular, detailed reporting on population health by underlying cause of death is fundamental for public health decision making. Cause-specific estimates of mortality and the subsequent effects on life expectancy worldwide are valuable metrics to gauge progress in reducing mortality rates. These estimates are particularly important following large-scale mortality spikes, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. When systematically analysed, mortality rates and life expectancy allow comparisons of the consequences of causes of death globally and over time, providing a nuanced understanding of the effect of these causes on global populations. METHODS The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 cause-of-death analysis estimated mortality and years of life lost (YLLs) from 288 causes of death by age-sex-location-year in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations for each year from 1990 until 2021. The analysis used 56 604 data sources, including data from vital registration and verbal autopsy as well as surveys, censuses, surveillance systems, and cancer registries, among others. As with previous GBD rounds, cause-specific death rates for most causes were estimated using the Cause of Death Ensemble model-a modelling tool developed for GBD to assess the out-of-sample predictive validity of different statistical models and covariate permutations and combine those results to produce cause-specific mortality estimates-with alternative strategies adapted to model causes with insufficient data, substantial changes in reporting over the study period, or unusual epidemiology. YLLs were computed as the product of the number of deaths for each cause-age-sex-location-year and the standard life expectancy at each age. As part of the modelling process, uncertainty intervals (UIs) were generated using the 2·5th and 97·5th percentiles from a 1000-draw distribution for each metric. We decomposed life expectancy by cause of death, location, and year to show cause-specific effects on life expectancy from 1990 to 2021. We also used the coefficient of variation and the fraction of population affected by 90% of deaths to highlight concentrations of mortality. Findings are reported in counts and age-standardised rates. Methodological improvements for cause-of-death estimates in GBD 2021 include the expansion of under-5-years age group to include four new age groups, enhanced methods to account for stochastic variation of sparse data, and the inclusion of COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality-which includes excess mortality associated with the pandemic, excluding COVID-19, lower respiratory infections, measles, malaria, and pertussis. For this analysis, 199 new country-years of vital registration cause-of-death data, 5 country-years of surveillance data, 21 country-years of verbal autopsy data, and 94 country-years of other data types were added to those used in previous GBD rounds. FINDINGS The leading causes of age-standardised deaths globally were the same in 2019 as they were in 1990; in descending order, these were, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lower respiratory infections. In 2021, however, COVID-19 replaced stroke as the second-leading age-standardised cause of death, with 94·0 deaths (95% UI 89·2-100·0) per 100 000 population. The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the rankings of the leading five causes, lowering stroke to the third-leading and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to the fourth-leading position. In 2021, the highest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa (271·0 deaths [250·1-290·7] per 100 000 population) and Latin America and the Caribbean (195·4 deaths [182·1-211·4] per 100 000 population). The lowest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 were in the high-income super-region (48·1 deaths [47·4-48·8] per 100 000 population) and southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania (23·2 deaths [16·3-37·2] per 100 000 population). Globally, life expectancy steadily improved between 1990 and 2019 for 18 of the 22 investigated causes. Decomposition of global and regional life expectancy showed the positive effect that reductions in deaths from enteric infections, lower respiratory infections, stroke, and neonatal deaths, among others have contributed to improved survival over the study period. However, a net reduction of 1·6 years occurred in global life expectancy between 2019 and 2021, primarily due to increased death rates from COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality. Life expectancy was highly variable between super-regions over the study period, with southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania gaining 8·3 years (6·7-9·9) overall, while having the smallest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 (0·4 years). The largest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 occurred in Latin America and the Caribbean (3·6 years). Additionally, 53 of the 288 causes of death were highly concentrated in locations with less than 50% of the global population as of 2021, and these causes of death became progressively more concentrated since 1990, when only 44 causes showed this pattern. The concentration phenomenon is discussed heuristically with respect to enteric and lower respiratory infections, malaria, HIV/AIDS, neonatal disorders, tuberculosis, and measles. INTERPRETATION Long-standing gains in life expectancy and reductions in many of the leading causes of death have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the adverse effects of which were spread unevenly among populations. Despite the pandemic, there has been continued progress in combatting several notable causes of death, leading to improved global life expectancy over the study period. Each of the seven GBD super-regions showed an overall improvement from 1990 and 2021, obscuring the negative effect in the years of the pandemic. Additionally, our findings regarding regional variation in causes of death driving increases in life expectancy hold clear policy utility. Analyses of shifting mortality trends reveal that several causes, once widespread globally, are now increasingly concentrated geographically. These changes in mortality concentration, alongside further investigation of changing risks, interventions, and relevant policy, present an important opportunity to deepen our understanding of mortality-reduction strategies. Examining patterns in mortality concentration might reveal areas where successful public health interventions have been implemented. Translating these successes to locations where certain causes of death remain entrenched can inform policies that work to improve life expectancy for people everywhere. FUNDING Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Optimization Criteria for Effort Estimation using Fuzzy Technique

Effective cost estimation is the most challenging activity in software development. Software cost estimation is not an exact science. Cost estimation process involves a series of systematic steps that provide estimate with acceptable risk. Some prevalent LOC based models are- Bailey Basili model, Alaa F. Sheta G.E. Model, and Alaa F. Sheta, Model 2 .Two new models, based on fuzzy logic sizing, are presented in this paper. Rather than using a single number, the software size is regarded as a triangular fuzzy number. We can optimize the estimated effort for any application by varying arbitrary constants for these models. The developed models are tested on 10 NASA software projects, on the basis of four criterions for assessment of software cost estimation models. Comparison of all the models, cited above, is done and it is found that the developed models provide better estimation

Sodium glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors for glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus: Quality of reporting of randomized controlled trials

Background: Sodium glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors represent a novel class of antidiabetic drugs. The reporting quality of the trials evaluating the efficacy of these agents for glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus has not been explored. Our aim was to assess the reporting quality of such randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and to identify the predictors of reporting quality. Materials and Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted for RCTs published till 12 June 2014. Two independent investigators carried out the searches and assessed the reporting quality on three parameters: Overall quality score (OQS) using Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) 2010 statement, Jadad score and intention to treat analysis. Inter-rater agreements were compared using Cohen's weighted kappa statistic. Multivariable linear regression analysis was used to identify the predictors. Results: Thirty-seven relevant RCTs were included in the present analysis. The median OQS was 17 with a range from 8 to 21. On Jadad scale, the median score was three with a range from 0 to 5. Complete details about allocation concealment and blinding were present in 21 and 10 studies respectively. Most studies lacked an elaborate discussion on trial limitations and generalizability. Among the factors identified as significantly associated with reporting quality were the publishing journal and region of conduct of RCT. Conclusions: The key methodological items remain poorly reported in most studies. Strategies like stricter adherence to CONSORT guidelines by journals, access to full trial protocols to gain valuable information and full collaboration among investigators and methodologists might prove helpful in improving the quality of published RCT reports

LEARNING MODELS FOR LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

In this paper, we present a model of language acquisition which can be used to explain how children learn a grammar by interacting with their surroundings. We build upon the model proposed by Komarova et al in the context of evolution of grammars. We test our model for two situations: One, in which an individual is trying to learn a grammar in an environment where everybody uses the same grammar, and the other in which different groups in the population use different grammars

Study of Grodzins product (E(2+1) * B(E2)↑) in the framework of the Asymmetric Rotor Model

A systematic dependence of Grodzins product (E(2+1) * B(E2)↑) on the asymmetry parameter Υ0 is studied in the Z = 50 − 82, N = 82 − 126 major shell space. The Grodzins product provides contributions of E(2+1) and B(E2) " simultaneously, which further reflects the shape phase transitions with asymmetry parameter 0. In the region of deformed nuclei, Grodzins product (E(2+1)*B(E2)↑) shows direct dependence on the asymmetry parameter 0. We discuss here for the first time the correlation between Grodzins product (E(2+1) * B(E2)↑) and the asymmetry parameter Υ0

Electrochemical studies on polystyrene based membrane of zirconium(IV) antimonoarsenate

1610-1614Electrochemical studies have been carried out on heterogeneous ion-exchange membranes of zirconium(IV) antimonoarsenate using polystyrene as a binder. Electrical characteristics like transport number, permselectivity and fixed charge density of the exchanger membrane and halide salts of some alkali and alkaline earth metals as electrolytes have been determined. The membrane potential data conforms to the Kobatake theoretical treatment of irreversible processes. The effect of electrolyte concentration on transport numbers and permselectivity has also been studied. Results indicate that the membrane is permselective for counterions and possesses weak electrical character

Maintainability Prediction for Object Oriented Software

Software maintainability is a measure of the ease with which a software system or component can be modified to correct faults, improve performance or other attributes, or adapt to a changed environment. The time spent and effort required for keeping software operational consumes about 40-70% of cost of entire life cycle. This study proposes a integrated measure for object oriented software based on two parameter - Class Coupling and Cyclomatic Complexity using fuzzy logic. This study also includes empirical data of maintenance time of classes which has been used to validate the proposed approach