Role of Panchakarma in Visha Chiktisa

Disease and death due to poisoning is a burning issue in worldwide. The term Poisoning not only limited upto animal and vegetable poisons, it can include Dooshivisha, Garavisha and various radiations. Ayurveda has described different methods of treatment in poisoning. Panchakarma therapy has great importance because it can remove toxins from deeper tissue level. Panchakarma procedures are used depending upon the route of entry of poison and absorption. This article concludes how Panchakarma procedures are useful in Visha Chikitsa as a detoxification therapy

Light Pollution in the City of Zagreb, December 2010 Through July 2011

Svjetlosno onečišćenje povećanje je prirodne vrijednosti osvjetljenja okoliša kao posljedica ljudskog djelovanja. U uvodu članka dajemo pregled uzroka i posljedica svjetlosnog onečišćenja te opisujemo tri osnovne metode mjerenja utjecaja umjetnog osvjetljenja na okolinu. Istraživačka grupa s RGN fakulteta odabrala je jednu od tih metoda kako bi razradila metodologiju mjerenja i obrade rezultata, korisnost mjerenja i stekla uvid u očekivane rezultate budućih mjerenja. Iznosimo opis i rezultat preliminarnog mjerenja osvjetljenja noćnog neba tokom osmomjesečnog perioda, napravljenog instrumentom postavljenim na zgradi Rudarsko-geološko-naftnog fakulteta.Light pollution can be defined as an increase in the amount of the light levels in the environment caused by the human activity. Although a part of the electromagnetic spectrum just as e.g. microwaves or UV radiation, visible light has been, until recently, treated as completely harmless and without any significant impact on the environment. From early 1960s onward, both science and society slowly begun to acknowledge the fact that light influences a large number of living organisms: plants, animals, and humans alike, in rather unsuspecting ways. It has been noticed as well, that poorly constructed outdoor light fittings allow the light to escape into the environment, outside of the target area. The term "light pollution" has been coined to describe the effect, that influences both ecology and economy of a region. Various methods of measurement can be used in order to assess the magnitude of light pollution effect, e.g. measuring direct illumination in the vicinity of the sources, remote sensing via satellite imagery, measuring the amount of light escaping the Earth\u27s surface and measuring the sky brightness as observed from the Earth\u27s surface. The research group at the Faculty of Mining, Geology and Petroleum Engineering, University of Zagreb, chose the third method, making use of the Unihedron\u27s Sky Quality Meter (SQM-LE). The goal of this first measurement period was to test the equipment, to obtain the preliminary data and to define the data processing methods. Measurements were collected at night during eight months. Following conclusions can be drawn from this experiment: 1. Measured values vary, strongly depending on atmospheric conditions. Main contribution to this variability comes from the water vapour and/or aerosol content in the atmosphere in the absence of clouds, or from the characteristics of the cloud layer above the SQM instrument in case of cloudy weather, water vapour being a rather efficient at reflecting and dispersing visible light. (The atmospheric conditions were assesed from the recordings obtained from the Croatian Meteor Network\u27s camera mounted next to the SQM-LE instrument. This camera records the night sky in search of the meteor trails. Since all recorded frames and events are time-stamped, matching these with SQM-LE readings was straightforward.) 2. Measured values fall into the interval [14 , 18.5] mag/arcsec2 3. Values can be expected to converge to: i) 17 mag/arcsec2 on average during springtime (on clear nights) ii) between 18 and 17 mag/arcsec2 on average, during winter (on clear nights) iii) between16 and 15 mag/arcsec2 , on average, during cloudy nights, regardless of season, depending on the height of the bottom of the cloud layer and the cloud density Further measurements are needed to get more accurate results as well as to extract any patterns or trends from the data. Also, the values obtained by measurements need to be input into models if the magnitude and the extent of light pollution in Zagreb area is to be monitored

RNAI MEDIATED GENE SILENCING OF EIF3A: A POSSIBLE SOLUTION TO CONTROL BREAST CANCER

Objective: The eukaryotic translational initiation factor 3A (eIF3A) is reported to be over expressed in most breast cancer cells. In the present study, our aim is to suppress the over expression of eIF3A in human breast cancer MCF-7 cell line using gene silencing technique (RNA interference (RNAi)).Methods: The artificial microRNA (amiRNA) targeting eIF3A gene was constructed by incorporating short interference RNA (siRNA) sequences against eIF3A gene into endogenous microRNA30 (miR-30) and cloned into pcDNA3.1 vector. The amiRNA containing plasmid was then transfected into MCF-7 cell line and the expression of eIF3A was examined by RT-PCR. The cytotoxicity of plasmid with amiRNA targeting eIF3A on MCF–7 cells was evaluated by MTT assay.Results: The amiRNA construct significantly inhibited eIF3A gene expression and reduce the cell viability of MCF-7 cell line.Conclusion: The usage of modified endogenous amiRNA in vector based expression system with significant gene silencing efficiency suggests that RNAi based gene silencing method can be considered as one of the effective means to control cancer.Â

CRYOSURGICO-THERAPEUTIC MANAGEMENT OF FOOT LESIONS IN ASIAN ELEPHANTS OF ODISHA, INDIA: A REVIEW OF 15 CASES

The present study was conducted on 15 healthy captive and/or wild Asian elephants of Odisha, divided into 3 groups (n=5), for management of different foot affections. Group A was comprised of conventionally treated elephants with surgical debridement of foot lesions followed by regular dressing. Group B and Group C elephants were treated with tip and swab method of cryotherapy, respectively. A non-significant (p>0.05) increase in clinic-physiological and haematobiochemical parameters had been observed; while the rectal temperature increased initially on day 3 followed by decrease in values from 7 days onwards alike a non-significant (p>0.05) decrease in TLC and neutrophil (%). It was concluded that as compared to conventional methods, cryotherapy via probe or tip applicator and swab method of freezing proved to be more fruitful in healing of foot lesions

Livelihood and diversification in Rural Coastal Communities : Dependence on Ecosystems Services and possibilities for Sustainable Enterprising in Zanzibar, Tanzania

Poverty and degradation of ecosystem services are prevalent features of the livelihood insecurity of coastal communities in Zanzibar, Tanzania. Livelihood diversification is typical in coastal rural areas and it is increasingly important to identify opportunities for income generation and ways to alleviate poverty. Sustainable enterprises provide a strong tool for livelihood development, but are still unable to find pathway towards development of ecosystem services and sustainable enterprises in coastal communities in Zanzibar.The aim of this study is to understand the existing livelihood diversification and income generating patterns in order to introduce sustainable enterprises in the future. Also, we aim to identify the conditions of the present dominant livelihood activities in terms of sustainability. During the study a household survey was conducted using a sample of 200 households from five coastal villages in Zanzibar. The data was collected by maintaining a daily diary and conducting comprehensive interviews. The statistical techniques, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), linear regression and other statistical measures were used to analyze the results. The ANOVA technique is used to test the differences in income generated by different livelihood sectors. The regression analysis techniques are employed to find out whether there is a correlation between numbers of livelihood activities and income.The results show that livelihood diversification is very high in coastal households in Zanzibar. With respect to ecosystem-based livelihoods, there is more household participation in fishing and seaweed farming, but it varies from village to village. Furthermore, fisheries and tourism are the most important sectors, and offer more opportunities to generate higher income for households. The findings suggest that there is space to improve the current dominant livelihood sectors in a sustainable way in the future. Livelihood management strategies are needed to take into account the market opportunities and their roles in livelihood development. Also, there is a need to identify possibilities to enhance livelihood opportunities in sectors with low household participation as an important way to reduce pressure on ecosystems. Finally, we outline the possible future impact of unsustainable development and of sustainable enterprises, and highlight the importance of a collaborative sustainable enterprise system to ensure livelihood security

Problems encountered in treatment of a Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius)

[Vet. World 2011; 4(8.000): 378-379

The short-form revised Eysenck personality questionnaire: A Hindi edition (EPQRS-H)

Background: There is a growing consensus about the validity of human personality traits as important dispositions toward feelings and behaviors (Matthews, Deary,& Whiteman, 2003). Materials and Methods: Here we examine the reliability of the Hindi translation of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised Short Form (EPQR-S; Eysenck, Eysenck,& Barrett, 1985), which consists of 48 items that assess neuroticism, extraversion, psychoticism, and lying. The questionnaire was first translated into Hindi and then back translated. Subsequently, it was administered to 202 students (78 men and 124 women) from Banaras Hindu University. The internal consistency of the scale was evaluated. Results: The findings provide satisfactory psychometric properties of the extraversion, neuroticism and lie scales. The psychoticism scale, however, was found to be less satisfactory. Conclusion: It can be proposed that due to satisfactory internal consistency scores, the EPQRS-H is a reliable scale for the measurement of various personality traits