Preoperative work up: are the requirements different in a developing country?

In developing countries there is a tendency to advocate routine testing in asymptomatic healthy patients to identify undocumented significant medical conditions. A retrospective review of pre- operative laboratory investigations undertaken in patients attending the General Surgical department was performed. Three hundred and twenty patients case notes were reviewed, patients were selected on the basis of common general surgical procedures. Two hundred and sixteen patients (67.5%) did not have any associated medical illness on history and physical examination. Analysis of laboratory results showed that 42/216 (19.4%) had low hemoglobin. An abnormal chest X-ray was the next common abnormality 11/103 (10.6%). Mild hypokalemia (\u3e 3 mEq/L) was seen in 6/123 (4.8%) and a raised blood sugar level was seen in 1/113 (0.88%) patients. Only one patient with hemoglobin of 4.8 gm/dL needed preoperative intervention, the rest of the abnormalities did not effect the treatment plan or outcome. The results were in general agreement with other studies except for the high proportion of low hemoglobin seen in the female population. It is suggested that a thorough history and physical examination is a reliable and inexpensive preoperative screening tool. Guidelines for pre-operative investigations in American Society of Anesthesiologists Grade I (ASA I) patients are suggested

Innovative methods of ground improvement for railway embankment Peat Fens foundation soil

The aim of this research was to assess the feasibility of biocementing a problematic foundation soil of railway embankments from Peat Fens in East Anglia, UK. Biocementation of soil is an emerging, novel ground improvement technique. It has recently attracted the interest of researchers worldwide because it has been proposed as potentially environmentally superior to chemical grouts and other common soil stabilisers e.g. cement or lime (linked to high CO2 11 emissions). In this study we screened and isolated non-pathogenic indigenous ureolytic microbial candidates with potential for biocementation from samples originating from Peat Fens in East Anglia, UK. Four strains were selected as the most suitable candidates, based on their growth rate and their viability in a wide range of temperatures, pH and soil moisture contents corresponding to typical seasonal field conditions. After a number of Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS) tests, one strain (Bacillus licheniformis) was selected as the most promising for this soil treatment and used for further study. Two different methods of implementation of the treatments were considered, namely pressure flow soil column and electrokinetic injection. The UCS results supported by CaCO3 measurements as well as microstructural SEM-EDS analysis proved that biocementation did occur for both implementation methods and for a number of treatment combinations. Ongoing work on optimisation of treatments and implementation methods is carried out towards the upscaling of the techniques for in situ implementation which is planned for the next stage of the research

Towards the Development of Sustainable Ground Improvement Techniques —Biocementation Study of an Organic Soil

Ongoing research effort is dedicated to the development of innovative, superior and cost-effective ground improvement techniques to mitigate natural and man-made hazards while minimising waste and other environmental impacts. In this context, the nature-based process of biocementation of soils has been proposed as a potentially more sustainable technique than conventional chemical ground improvement practices. This paper focuses on the biocementation of an organic soil of the UK railway network. Having recently proven the feasibility of biocementing this soil using indigenous ureolytic bacteria, in this paper, the authors perform a parametric study to identify treatments successful in increasing the strength of the soil. Selected treatments are then applied to the soil to assess its volume change during consolidation, secondary compression and shrinkage upon drying. The results show that, depending on the treatments used, biocementation has increased the unconfined compressive strength by up to 81% compared to that of the control samples. For selected treatments and the range of water contents tested (55–33%), shrinkage upon drying reduced by 16%, while the volumetric strains of the soil upon 1-D compression reduced by 32–47%. This was reflected in the values of the coefficient of volume compressibility and the coefficient of secondary compression (the latter either reduced by up to an order of magnitude or secondary compression was not observed altogether in the testing period). Overall, the results proved that biocementation improved considerably the mechanical properties of the organic soil, which gives promise for addressing the settlement problems of this soil

Biocementation of an organic soil using indigenous ureolytic bacteria

This paper describes research aiming at assessing the potential for biocementation of an unsuitable organic foundation soil encountered in the UK railway network. As opposed to the majority of previous studies it focuses on isolation and use of non-pathogenic, indigenous ureolytic bacterial strains from the in situ soil, which are capable of inducing calcite precipitation. The paper describes the procedures for indigenous bacteria isolation and screening, their growth and urease activity and shows results from soil strength and calcite precipitation testing proving biocementation for this type of soil using indigenous bacteria

Implementation of biocementation for a partially saturated problematic soil of the UK railway network

This paper refers to biocementation of a problematic soil of the UK railway network as a potential stabilisation technique of this soil using indigenous ureolytic bacteria. The soil is peat, a soft foundation soil also subject to oxidation wastage. As the peat is under existing embankments, electrokinetics (EK) is proposed as a promising technique to implement treatments. In the context of unsaturated soils the paper thus focuses on two particular aspects relevant for the implementation of treatments and the stability of this soil, namely: a) the effect of degree of saturation of the peat on the bio-electrokinetic treatment ; b) the soil water retention curve of the soil affecting flow and transport; these are relevant as we focus on understanding and modelling the implementation of treatments through electrokinetics; moreover for the peat it is of importance to understand moisture exchange in the vadose zone and control groundwater table levels (e.g. during electrokinetics) in order to prevent further oxidation. After isolation and screening of indigenous microorgansisms Bacillus licheniformis was selected for further testing. The results in terms of unconfined compressive strength, CaCO3 content, swelling and compression behaviour and water retention proved the feasibility of biocementation using this indigenous microorganism. Ongoing work is assessing the required treated soil characteristics and related required biocementation degree to solve UK rail's peat foundation problems. Upscaling of the techniques towards in situ implementation is also planned in the next stage of the research

The effect of endurance exercise on both skeletal muscle and systemic oxidative stress in previously sedentary obese men

Background: Obesity is associated with low-grade systemic inflammation, in part because of secretion of proinflammatory cytokines, resulting into peripheral insulin resistance (IR). Increased oxidative stress is proposed to link adiposity and chronic inflammation. The effects of endurance exercise in modulating these outcomes in insulin-resistant obese adults remain unclear. We investigated the effect of endurance exercise on markers of oxidative damage (4-hydroxy-2-nonenal (4-HNE), protein carbonyls (PCs)) and antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase) in skeletal muscle; urinary markers of oxidative stress (8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), 8-isoprostane); and plasma cytokines (C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), leptin, adiponectin). Methods: Age- and fitness-matched sedentary obese and lean men (n=9 per group) underwent 3 months of moderate-intensity endurance cycling training with a vastus lateralis biopsy, 24-h urine sample and venous blood samples taken before and after the intervention. Results: Obese subjects had increased levels of oxidative damage: 4-HNE (+37% P⩽0.03) and PC (+63% P⩽0.02); evidence of increased adaptive response to oxidative stress because of elevated levels of copper/zinc SOD (Cu/ZnSOD) protein content (+84% P⩽0.01); increased markers of inflammation: CRP (+737% P⩽0.0001) and IL-6 (+85% P⩽0.03), and these correlated with increased markers of obesity; and increased leptin (+262% P⩽0.0001) with lower adiponectin (−27% P⩽0.01) levels vs lean controls. Training reduced 4-HNE (−10% P⩽0.04), PC (−21% P⩽0.05), 8-isoprostane (−26% P⩽0.02) and leptin levels (−33% P⩽0.01); had a tendency to decrease IL-6 levels (−21% P=0.07) and IR (−17% P=0.10); and increased manganese SOD (MnSOD) levels (+47% P⩽0.01). Conclusion: Endurance exercise reduced skeletal muscle-specific and systemic oxidative damage while improving IR and cytokine profile associated with obesity, independent of weight loss. Hence, exercise is a useful therapeutic modality to reduce risk factors associated with the pathogenesis of IR in obesity

Monitoring of particulate matter concentrations at high altitude ecosystems of Pakistan and China

Particulate matter exhibits different behavior with altitude. A comparative analysis was carried out to monitor PM1, PM2.5, PM4, PM10 and PMTotal at elevations above 3000 m in both China and Pakistan. Real time monitoring of PM was carried out at both sites using a DustTrak DRX (model 8533, TSI Inc.) for 24 hours each. In Pakistan, the average value of PMTotal was 415 ± 16 μg/m3 while in China the value was considerably lower i.e. 110 ± 57 μg/m3. The 24-hour mean values recorded were well above the WHO recommended limit of 25 μg/m3. These results indicate that, even at sites some distance from anthropogenic sources, PM concentrations still pose a health risk

EFFECT OF INDUCED MUTATION FOR VARIETAL IMPROVEMENT IN SOME LOCAL GRAPEVINE CULTIVARS

ABSTRACT Grape is important crop with high nutritional value, however there is a great need for improving the quality of the crop. Cultures were maintained in vitro on MS medium supplemented with 2.5 mg/L BAP+ TDZ 3.0 mg/ L. The effect of different doses of gamma irradiation as well as chemical mutagenesis by Sodium azide was studied. It was noted that doses up to 5 Gy helped to increase plant height from irradiated nodes. At 5 Gy, there was an increase of 4.7, 5 and 4.5 cm in plant height in Desi, Sundar Khani and Chinese varieties of grapes respectively. On further increase in concentration from 6 to 10 Gy, there was a gradual decrease in plant height. Sodium azide was selected to induce mutations in the nodal explants. Nodal explants of the varieties were subjected to different sodium azide concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 0.5%. It was noted that the height of plantlet decreased with an increase in concentration of sodium azide In explants treated with 0.2% sodium azide the plant height was 4 cm which increased to 4.2cm when the explants were treated with 0.3% sodium azide. Further increase in concentration not only caused decreases in length but also led to complete necrosis. In the present study, DNA analysis by RAPD markers was used to analyze mutagenesis. The RAPD analyses indicated that the plantlets subjected to gamma radiation had a great genetic diversity as compared to the control

Limb Immobilization Induces a Coordinate Down-Regulation of Mitochondrial and Other Metabolic Pathways in Men and Women

Advancements in animal models and cell culture techniques have been invaluable in the elucidation of the molecular mechanisms that regulate muscle atrophy. However, few studies have examined muscle atrophy in humans using modern experimental techniques. The purpose of this study was to examine changes in global gene transcription during immobilization-induced muscle atrophy in humans and then explore the effects of the most prominent transcriptional alterations on protein expression and function. Healthy men and women (N = 24) were subjected to two weeks of unilateral limb immobilization, with muscle biopsies obtained before, after 48 hours (48 H) and 14 days (14 D) of immobilization. Muscle cross sectional area (∼5%) and strength (10–20%) were significantly reduced in men and women (∼5% and 10–20%, respectively) after 14 D of immobilization. Micro-array analyses of total RNA extracted from biopsy samples at 48 H and 14 D uncovered 575 and 3,128 probes, respectively, which were significantly altered during immobilization. As a group, genes involved in mitochondrial bioenergetics and carbohydrate metabolism were predominant features at both 48 H and 14 D, with genes involved in protein synthesis and degradation significantly down-regulated and up-regulated, respectively, at 14 D of muscle atrophy. There was also a significant decrease in the protein content of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase, and the enzyme activity of cytochrome c oxidase and citrate synthase after 14 D of immobilization. Furthermore, protein ubiquitination was significantly increased at 48 H but not 14 D of immobilization. These results suggest that transcriptional and post-transcriptional suppression of mitochondrial processes is sustained throughout 14 D of immobilization, while protein ubiquitination plays an early but transient role in muscle atrophy following short-term immobilization in humans

Comparative Analysis of V-Akt Murine Thymoma Viral Oncogene Homolog 3 (AKT3) Gene between Cow and Buffalo Reveals Substantial Differences for Mastitis

AKT3 gene is a constituent of the serine/threonine protein kinase family and plays a crucial role in synthesis of milk fats and cholesterol by regulating activity of the sterol regulatory element binding protein (SREBP). AKT3 is highly conserved in mammals and its expression levels during the lactation periods of cattle are markedly increased. AKT3 is highly expressed in the intestine followed by mammary gland and it is also expressed in immune cells. It is involved in the TLR pathways as effectively as proinflammatory cytokines. The aims of this study were to investigate the sequences differences between buffalo and cow. Our results showed that there were substantial differences between buffalo and cow in some exons and noteworthy differences of the gene size in different regions. We also identified the important consensus sequence motifs, variation in 2000 upstream of ATG, substantial difference in the “3′UTR” region, and miRNA association in the buffalo sequences compared with the cow. In addition, genetic analyses, such as gene structure, phylogenetic tree, position of different motifs, and functional domains, were performed to establish their correlation with other species. This may indicate that a buffalo breed has potential resistance to disease, environment changes, and airborne microorganisms and some good production and reproductive traits