Green Synthesis and Characterization of Silver Nanoparticles using Pterocarpus Marsupium Roxb. and Assessment of its In-Vitro Anti Diabetic Activity

INTRODUCTION: Growth and applications of nano science and nanoparticles have a great footprint in recent years. There is increasing optimism that nanotechnology, as applied to medicine, will bring significant advances in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Working with these extremely small structures is very much interesting due to its unique properties. ADVANTAGES OF NANOPARTICLES Nanoparticles deliver drugs through oral, nasal, parenteral, intra-ocular routes etc. Ability to control and sustain the drug release before reaching the specific site of action Protects the drug from rapid degradation and maintains the drug at specific site Lower doses of drug shows high therapeutic efficacy and reduced sideeffects Drugs can be incorporated without any chemical reaction resulting in the preservation of pharmacological activity of the drug (Sriharitha* and Preethi. J, 2016) Based on their importance and unique features of nano particles, such as surface to mass ratio of nanoparticles is much larger than that of other particles, their quantum properties and their ability to adsorb and carry other compounds, nanoparticles (NPs) are more attractive. NPs have large surface area which is able to bind, adsorb and carry other compounds such as drugs, probes and proteins. Although the definition identifies nanoparticles as having dimensions below 0.1μm or 100 nm, especially in the area of drug delivery relatively large (size >100 nm) sufficient amount of drug loaded onto the particles. RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: Selection criteria for the herbal drug - Pterocarpus marsupium Roxb a) It is mainly used to lower blood glucose level. b) It is having better water soluble property. c) It does not have any toxic or side effects An attempt has been made to develop the above selected herbal drug as herbal silver nanoparticles to evaluate its anti diabetic activity. Green synthesis technique was adopted to the herbal silver nanoparticles. The Silver nanoparticles synthesised by using bark and wood extract were subjected to characterization and also evaluated for its anti diabetic activity. Also the research work includes the following areas 1. Development of cost effective and ecofriendly method. 2. Reduce toxicity of chemical reagents 3. Reduce side effects of drug 4. Enhancement of pharmacological activity 5. Enhancement of stability CONCLUSION: In vitro α amylase inhibition test suggests that Pterocarpus marsupium Roxb. silver nanoparticles exhibit good α amylase inhibition . Percentage inhibition of positive control Acarbose at lower and higher concentration was found to be 41.44% and 84.09% and that of Pterocarpus marsupium Roxb. silver nanoparticle were 21.88% and 71.14%. In vitro drug release kinetics were evaluated by substituting all the data in zero order, first order, Higuchi, Korsmeyer-Peppasmodels . The R2 values for zero order and first order is0.7723 and 0.5168 and that of Higuchi and Korsmeyer- Peppasmodels is 1.0000 and 0.9999 and the diffusion exponent n value is 0.15. From the release kinetics it was found that Pterocarpus marsupium Roxb. silver nanoparticles follows fickian diffusion transport mechanism. The association of plant Phytochemistry and nanotechnology will assure a secured manner of curing diversified diseases in nearby future. The current study proved that, the Pterocarpus marsupium Roxb. bark and wood extracts were capable of producing silver nanoparticles using green synthesis technique in association with silver nitrate. These nanoparticles were characterized and evaluated for various tests such as visual examination, uv- visible spectral analysis, FTIR spectroscopy, drug entrapment, determination of particle size, determination of zeta potentional, SEM analysis ,in- vitro anti diabetic study and in vitro drug release and kinetic study. The results of the above tests were showing promising results which can be a lead to develop Pterocarpus marsupium Roxb. as silver nanoparticles so as to enhance its anti diabetic activity

Evaluation of Antiamnesic Activity of Ayurvedic Formulation Saraswatha Grita in Scopolamine Induced Rat Model

Selective damage to a number of brain regions has been associated with amnesia, including a circuit comprising the hippocampus, the diencephalon and the fibers connecting them. One of the most promising approaches to treat amnesia is enhancing the acetylcholine level in the brain using acetyl cholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors. Classical drugs having side effects like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss, decreased appetite, muscle weakness, muscle cramps, fatigue, dizziness and headache Therefore, the search for new AChE inhibitors especially from plants with less side effects has great interest. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the anti amnesia activity of ayurvedic formulation Saraswatha ghrita (SG)in scopolamine induced rat model. For induction of amnesia, scopalamine was injected i.p ( single dose of 2 mg/kg ) in rats .1 hr before induction various doses of SG (100 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg) were administrated (p.0). To find out its Anti amnesic activity various behavioral studies, biochemical estimations, neurotransmitter evaluations and histopathalological studies have been performed. The results were promising like, in water maze the high dose SG treated group ( 400mg/kg ) escape latency time (6.167 ± 0.601sec) was significantly increased compared to scopolamine induced group (31.667 ± 1.174). Treatment with SG results in regains the levels of endogenous antioxidant levels to normal values. In case of acetyl cholinesterase activity SG treated group there was a significantly decrease level of acetyl cholinesterase (0.611 ±0.027) compared with scopolamine induced group (1.142 ±0.049) especially neuroprotective effect of SG was confirmed by histopathology. The inflammatory cells were absent, glial and astrocytes possess proper morphological features in SG treated group. So this study concludes the Anti amnesic activity of saraswatha gritha

Empowering indigenous communities in India through the use of design thinking methods

The project explored how user-led design research methods such as design thinking can be used to engage with, and empower indigenous communities in rural India, with a focus on how to improve their health and well-being. The project was a collaboration with researchers from Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham in India; villagers from indigenous tribal communities in the Kerala State of India; medical doctors and healthcare workers who work in these rural communities; and experts in eHealth solutions. The design thinking methods used in the project are based on many of the key principles of indigenous research methods, but also put a strong emphasis on how to generate impact by considering solutions that are desirable, feasible and viable. The project included ethnographic field work in three tribal villages in the Wayanad district of Kerala; participatory workshops to help discover and develop new ideas to meet the health needs of the indigenous tribal communities; and reflections by tribal villagers and healthcare workers on the benefits of the project, as well as limitations and on-going challenges. This paper documents the approach taken in the project and the lessons learnt - in particular, how design thinking methods and techniques can be effectively used to engage with indigenous communities in a respectful manner, to ensure equitable partnership, and to enable the mobilization of knowledge to help improve the health and well-being of indigenous communities in India

In search of the right literature search engine(s)

*Background*
Collecting scientific publications related to a specific topic is crucial for different phases of research, health care and ‘effective text mining’. Available bio-literature search engines vary in their ability to scan different sections of articles, for the user-provided search terms and/or phrases. Since a thorough scientific analysis of all major bibliographic tools has not been done, their selection has often remained subjective. We have considered most of the existing bio-literature search engines (http://www.shodhaka.com/startbioinfo/LitSearch.html) and performed an extensive analysis of 18 literature search engines, over a period of about 3 years. Eight different topics were taken and about 50 searches were performed using the selected search engines. The relevance of retrieved citations was carefully assessed after every search, to estimate the citation retrieval efficiency. Different other features of the search tools were also compared using a semi-quantitative method.
*Results*
The study provides the first tangible comparative account of relative retrieval efficiency, input and output features, resource coverage and a few other utilities of the bio-literature search tools. The results show that using a single search tool can lead to loss of up to 75% relevant citations in some cases. Hence, use of multiple search tools is recommended. But, it would also not be practical to use all or too many search engines. The detailed observations made in the study can assist researchers and health professionals in making a more objective selection among the search engines. A corollary study revealed relative advantages and disadvantages of the full-text scanning tools.
*Conclusion*
While many studies have attempted to compare literature search engines, important questions remained unanswered till date. Following are some of those questions, along with answers provided by the current study:
a)	Which tools should be used to get the maximum number of relevant citations with a reasonable effort? ANSWER: _Using PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar and HighWire Press individually, and then compiling the hits into a union list is the best option. Citation-Compiler (http://www.shodhaka.com/compiler) can help to compile the results from each of the recommended tool._
b)	What is the approximate percentage of relevant citations expected to be lost if only one search engine is used? ANSWER: _About 39% of the total relevant citations were lost in searches across 4 topics; 49% hits were lost while using PubMed or HighWire Press, while 37% and 20% loss was noticed while using Google Scholar and Scopus, respectively._ 
c)	Which full text search engines can be recommended in general? ANSWER: _HighWire Press and Google Scholar._
d)	Among the mostly used search engines, which one can be recommended for best precision? ANSWER: _EBIMed._
e)	Among the mostly used search engines, which one can be recommended for best recall? ANSWER: _Depending on the type of query used, best recall could be obtained by HighWire Press or Scopus.

Management and birth outcomes of pregnant women with Chiari malformations : a 14 years retrospective case series

Objective The management of Chiari malformations in pregnancy is challenging due to the perceived risk of adverse maternal neurological outcomes and raising intracranial pressure during labour. Our aim was to evaluate the management and health outcomes of pregnant women cared for at a regional referral center and highlight elements of best practice. Study Design A retrospective case series of all pregnant women diagnosed with Chiari malformation over fourteen years (January 2004- June 2018) at the Birmingham Women’s Hospital – UK. Results Twenty-one women (23 pregnancies) with Chiari malformation were included, four had syringomyelia (4/21,19%) and six had previously undergone craniovertebral decompression (6/21, 29%). The median age was 34-years (range 20-41), the median gravidity was two (range 1-8), the median parity was one (range 0-6), and the median extent of tonsillar herniation was 11 mm (range 9-18). The majority of women received their preferred mode of delivery (15 normal vaginal deliveries (15/23, 65.2%) and 6 elective Caesarean sections (6/23, 26.1%)) with two pregnancies ending with an emergency caesarean section for obstetric complications (2/23, 8.7%). Five Caesarean section were performed under general anaesthetic, two under spinal (2/23, 8.7%) and one under epidural anaesthesia (1/23, 4.3%) with no neurological sequelae. There were no adverse neurological outcomes at discharge postnatally. Conclusions Offering normal vaginal delivery with effective analgesia, for women with Chiari malformation, appears to be safe. Pregnancy care should be provided by a multi-disciplinary team with experience in managing Chiari malformation

Correlation between the genomic o454-nlpD region polymorphisms, virulence gene equipment and phylogenetic group of extraintestinal Escherichia coli (ExPEC) enables pathotyping irrespective of host, disease and source of isolation

Background: The mutS-rpoS intergenic region in E. coli displays a mosaic structure which revealed pathotype specific patterns. To assess the importance of this region as a surrogate marker for the identification of highly virulent extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC) strains we aimed to: (i) characterize the genetic diversity of the mutS gene and the o454-nlpD genomic region among 510 E. coli strains from animals and humans; (ii) delineate associations between the polymorphism of this region and features such as phylogenetic background of E. coli, pathotype, host species, clinical condition, serogroup and virulence associated genes (VAG)s; and (iii) identify the most important VAGs for classification of the o454-nlpD region. Methods: Size variation in the o454-nlpD region was investigated by PCR amplification and sequencing. Phylogenetic relationships were assessed by Ecor- and Multilocus sequence- typing (MLST), and a comparative analysis between mutS gene phylogenetic tree obtained with RAxML and the MLST grouping method was performed. Correlation between o454-nlpD patterns and the features described above were analysed. In addition, the importance of 47 PCR-amplified ExPEC-related VAGs for classification of o454-nlpD patterns was investigated by means of Random Forest algorithm. Results: Four main structures (patterns I-IV) of the o454-nlpD region among ExPEC and commensal E. coli strains were identified. Statistical analysis showed a positive and exclusive association between pattern III and the ExPEC strains. A strong association between pattern III and either the Ecor group B2 or the sequence type complexes known to represent the phylogenetic background of highly virulent ExPEC strains (such as STC95, STC73 and STC131) was found as well. RF analyses determined five genes (csgA, malX, chuA, sit, and vat) to be suitable to predict pattern III strains. Conclusion: The significant association between pattern III and group B2 strains suggested the o454-nlpD region to be of great value in identifying highly virulent strains among the mixed population of E. coli promising to be the basis of a future typing tool for ExPEC and their gut reservoir. Furthermore, top-ranked VAGs for classification and prediction of pattern III were identified. These data are most valuable for defining ExPEC pathotype in future in vivo assays

Preliminary assessment, restoration and aquaculture support for a small wetland

In line with the strategy of regional wetland datasets integration to a common national digital platform, map of small wetlands less than 2.2 ha in Kochi Taluk was prepared. A representative small wetland at Edakochi village of Kerala was selected through maps and field visits for preliminary assessment and restoration. Shuttle Radar Topography Mission’s Digital Elevation Model (DEM) was used to assess the general elevation, slope and flow accumulation pattern of the selected wetland along with assessment of the catchment area and drainage pattern. Restoration works of the selected wetland was carried out vis-a-vis side bund strengthening and sluice gate fortification. The comparative analysis of water quality assessment of wetland before and after restoration revealed improvement in water quality parameters as well as increase in water level. The Dissolved Oxygen level of the aquatic system was found to have increased substantially along with other several favourable changes in water parameters due to the restoration activities. The restored wetland at Edakochi was further utilised for multispecies farming of prawns, Pearl spot, Milk fish and Grey mullet and the harvest indicated sustainable yield. Aquaculture practice in wetlands with real time scientific advisories could ensure continuous data generation and village level climate resilience

The ACT-ONE trial, a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-finding study of the anabolic/catabolic transforming agent, MT-102 in subjects with cachexia related to stage III and IV non-small cell lung cancer and colorectal cancer: study design

Aims Cachexia, the wasting disorder associated with a wide range of serious illnesses including cancer, is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. There is currently no widely approved therapeutic agent for treating or preventing cancer-associated cachexia. Colorectal cancer and nonsmall cell lung cancer have relatively high incidences of cachexia, approximately 28% and 34%, respectively. Neurohormonal overactivity has been implicated in the genesis and progression of cachexia and beta receptor antagonism has been proposed as a potential therapy. MT-102, a novel anabolic/catabolic transforming agent, has a multi-functional effect upon three potential pharmacological targets in cancer cachexia, namely reduced catabolism through non-selective β-blockade, reduced fatigue, and thermogenesis through central 5-HT1a antagonism and increased anabolism through partial β-2 receptor agonism. Methods At least 132 male and female patients, aged between 25 and 80 years with a confirmed diagnosis of late-stage non-small cell lung cancer or colorectal cancer, with cachexia will be randomised to either one of the two MT-102 doses or placebo in a 3:1:2 ratio (MT-102 10 mg BD−1/MT-102 2.5 mg BD/placebo). Patients will continue on study treatment for maximally 16 weeks. The primary endpoint, to be analysed by assigned treatment group, will be body weight change over 16 weeks. For this endpoint, the study has 85% power (0.05% significance level) to detect per 4-week period a mean change of −0.8 kg in the placebo group and 0 kg in the high-dose MT-102 arm. The first patient was randomised in February 2011 and patient recruitment is expected to continue until mid-2012. Perspective The ACT-ONE trial is designed to test whether the anabolic/catabolic transforming agent MT-102 will positively impact on the rate of change of body weight in cancer cachexia, thereby evaluating a novel therapeutic strategy in this hitherto poorly treatable condition. A separate ACT-TWO trial will recruit patients who complete the ACT-ONE trial and remain on randomised double-blind medication. Participants in ACT-TWO will be followed for an additional period with a separate primary endpoint

Identification of the Transcriptional Regulator NcrB in the Nickel Resistance Determinant of Leptospirillum ferriphilum UBK03

The nickel resistance determinant ncrABCY was identified in Leptospirillum ferriphilum UBK03. Within this operon, ncrA and ncrC encode two membrane proteins that form an efflux system, and ncrB encodes NcrB, which belongs to an uncharacterized family (DUF156) of proteins. How this determinant is regulated remains unknown. Our data indicate that expression of the nickel resistance determinant is induced by nickel. The promoter of ncrA, designated pncrA, was cloned into the promoter probe vector pPR9TT, and co-transformed with either a wild-type or mutant nickel resistance determinant. The results revealed that ncrB encoded a transcriptional regulator that could regulate the expression of ncrA, ncrB, and ncrC. A GC-rich inverted repeat sequence was identified in the promoter pncrA. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSAs) and footprinting assays showed that purified NcrB could specifically bind to the inverted repeat sequence of pncrA in vitro; this was confirmed by bacterial one-hybrid analysis. Moreover, this binding was inhibited in the presence of nickel ions. Thus, we classified NcrB as a transcriptional regulator that recognizes the inverted repeat sequence binding motif to regulate the expression of the key nickel resistance gene, ncrA

Dietary iron intake in the first 4 months of infancy and the development of type 1 diabetes: a pilot study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Aims</p> <p>To investigate the impact of iron intake on the development of type 1 diabetes (T1DM).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Case-control study with self-administered questionnaire among families of children with T1DM who were less than 10 years old at the time of the survey and developed diabetes between age 1 and 6 years. Data on the types of infant feeding in the first 4 months of life was collected from parents of children with T1DM (n = 128) and controls (n = 67) <10 years old. Because some cases had sibling controls, we used conditional logistic regression models to analyze the data in two ways. First we performed a case-control analysis of all 128 cases and 67 controls. Next, we performed a case-control analysis restricted to cases (n = 59) that had a sibling without diabetes (n = 59). Total iron intake was modeled as one standard deviation (SD) increase in iron intake. The SD for iron intake was 540 mg in the total sample and 539 mg in the restricted sample as defined above.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The median (min, max) total iron intake in the first 4 months of life was 1159 (50, 2399) mg in T1DM cases and 466 (50, 1224) mg among controls (<it>P </it>< 0.001). For each one standard deviation increase in iron intake, the odds ratio (95% confidence interval) for type 1 diabetes was 2.01 (1.183, 3.41) among all participants (128 cases and 67 controls) while it was 2.26 (1.27, 4.03) in a restricted sample of T1 D cases with a control sibling (59 cases and 59 controls) in models adjusted for birth weight, age at the time of the survey, and birth order.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In this pilot study, high iron intake in the first 4 months of infancy is associated with T1DM. Whether iron intake is causal or a marker of another risk factor warrants further investigation.</p