Antepartum transabdominal amnioinfusion in oligohydramnios - a comparative study

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of antepartum transabdominal amnioinfusion in oligohydramnios with the view to improving pregnancy outcome in oligohydramnios, a serious complication of pregnancy that is associated with a poor perinatal outcome and complicates 1-5% of pregnancies.Methods: The study comprised of a prospective analysis of 130 pregnant women with oligohydramnios, divided into two groups, the study and control group of 65 patients each and were similar with regard to age, gravidity, parity, gestational age. TAA was performed on all patients in the study group and the results were compared and analyzed.Results: Mean gestational age at first treatment was 29.98 weeks in study group. Mean pre-procedure amniotic fluid index was 4.01 and post-procedure was 12.49. A total of 106 infusions were done on 65 patients (mean1.63). Mean latency period in study group was 49.53 and in controls 26.49. There was significant decrease in fetal distress in patients in study group. 30 % of patients needed caesarean section in study group compared to 60% in controls. Number of preterm deliveries was 18 and 45 respectively in study and control groups. 61% of newborns in the study group weighed more than 2.5 kg compared to only 24% in control group. Neonatal ICU admissions and newborn deaths were lesser in study group.Conclusions: Transabdominal amnioinfusion is an extremely useful procedure to reduce complications arising from oligohyramnios. It significantly increases the latency period, decreases the occurrence of fetal distress preterm deliveries, need for caesarean or instrumental deliveries, improves birth weight of the newborns and significantly reduces the neonatal morbidity and mortality

Prevalence, serodiversity and antibiogram of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) in diarrhoeic calves and lambs of Kashmir valley (J&K), India

Enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) is the major cause of diarrhoea in neonatal animals. This study determined the prevalence, serological diversity, virulence gene profile and in-vitro antibiogram of ETEC isolates from diarrhoeic faeces of calves and lambs. The prevalence rate of ETEC in lambs was recorded 18.46 % with O8 as predominant serotype. However, in calves the prevalence rate was recorded 8.57 % with O15 and O26 as predominant serotypes. The antibiogram screening showed differential susceptibility pattern among ETEC isolates with highest resistance to ampicillin and highest sensitivity to enrofloxacin. In the present study, for the first time it was reported that the diarrhoea in calves and lambs occur due to virulent gene est not due to elt gene, which was absent in all the isolates

Gastrointestinal Beriberi as a prodrome of non-alcoholic Wernicke’s encephalopathy: a study of an emerging nutritional deficiency disorder from Kashmir, India

Background: Gastrointestinal manifestations of thiamine deficiency have not been well described in literature. Authors aimed to study the symptoms of gastrointestinal beriberi in a cohort of patients of non-alcoholic Wernicke’s encephalopathy and review the relevant literature.Methods: In a retrospective analysis, case records of 52 patients diagnosed with non-alcoholic Wernicke’s encephalopathy were analyzed for the nature of gastrointestinal symptoms, their duration, severity and associated findings, investigations and response to treatment. The available literature on gastrointestinal symptoms in thiamine deficiency disorders and gastrointestinal beriberi was reviewed.Results: Gastrointestinal symptoms were found in 46 of the 52 patients. The most common gastrointestinal symptom in our patients was recurrent vomiting in 42 patients. Eight patients had water brash. Ten patients had epigastric pain and 10 patients had anorexia. Based on the nature and severity of symptoms, patients were evaluated for their symptoms using endoscopy, ultrasonography, amylase and lactate levels, and routine laboratory studies and the results were normal in the majority of patients.  Gastrointestinal symptoms settled in all the patients after receiving intravenous thiamine. On reviewing the literature multiple studies were found to have reported prominent gastrointestinal symptoms in patients of Wernickes encephalopathy and other thiamine deficiency related disorders. However, the definition of gastrointestinal beriberi is not clearly stated.Conclusions: Gastrointestinal symptoms were prominent prodromal manifestations in our cohort of Wernicke’s encephalopathy and have also been amply reported in literature. Presence of gastrointestinal symptoms in individuals predisposed to thiamine deficiency without alternative explanation should be enough to label a patient as gastrointestinal beriberi. The study highlights the importance of recognizing gastrointestinal beriberi as a distinct syndrome that may precede the development of Wernicke’s encephalopathy

Physiological studies and proteomic analysis for differentially expressed proteins and their possible role in the root of N-efficient rice (Oryza sativa L.)

The root proteome of nitrogen-efficient and nitrogen-inefficient rice cultivars was compared in this study in order to investigate the differential expression of proteins under deficient (1 mM), low (10 mM) and high (25 mM) levels of nitrogen (N). Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) was assessed by biochemical assays such as N-uptake kinetics and activities of N-assimilation enzymes. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and MALDI–TOF–MS analysis resulted in the identification of 504 protein spots (210 and 294 spots in cvs. Rai Sudha and Munga Phool, respectively). A positive correlation was observed between physiological parameters and the concentration of a number of root proteins. Sixty-three spots showed a significant cultivar N-treatment effect on the level of expression. Functional aspects of eleven spots with major alterations in expression over control were critically analyzed. The data suggest that glutamine synthetase, cysteine proteinase inhibitor-I, porphobilinogen deaminase (fragment) and ferritin were involved in conferring N efficiency to the N-efficient rice cultivars/genotypes. Interestingly, these proteins are involved directly or indirectly in N assimilation. Such studies should help us in identifying and understanding the structural or functional protein(s) involved in the response to the level of nitrogen fertilization

Evaluation of Abelmoschus moschatus extracts for antioxidant, free radical scavenging, antimicrobial and antiproliferative activities using in vitro assays

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Abelmoschus moschatus </it>Medik. leaves and seeds are considered as valuable traditional medicine. The aromatic seeds of this plant are aphrodisiac, ophthalmic, cardio tonic, antispasmodic and used in the treatment of intestinal complaints and check queasiness. To give a scientific basis for traditional usage of this medicinal plant, the seed and leaf extracts were evaluated for their antioxidant, free radical scavenging, antimicrobial and antiproliferative activities.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In this study, antioxidant, antimicrobial and antiproliferative activities of <it>A. moschatus </it>extracts were evaluated in a series of <it>in vitro </it>assay involving free radicals, reactive oxygen species and their IC₅₀values were also determined. The antioxidant activities of the seed and leaf extracts of <it>A. moschatus </it>were determined by total antioxidant, DPPH, and ferrous reducing antioxidant property (FRAP) methods. In addition, the antiproliferative activity was also evaluated using colorectal adenocarcinoma and retinoblastoma human cancer cell lines. Moreover, six bacterial reference strains, two gram-positive (<it>Bacillus subtilis </it>and <it>Staphylococcus aureus</it>), four gram-negative (<it>Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus vulgaris </it>and <it>Salmonella enterica paratyphi</it>) and one fungal strain (<it>Candida albicans</it>) were used to evaluate its antimicrobial activity.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The results from this study showed that the antioxidant activities of <it>A. moschatus </it>as determined by the total phenol, flavonoids, total antioxidant and FRAP methods were higher in leaf than that of the seed extracts. On the other hand, the aqueous overnight seed extract (AMS-I) has shown significant radical scavenging activity as in 1, 1- Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radical, superoxide and lipid peroxidation as compared to other seed and leaf extracts. The AMS-I and AML-IV have shown activity against six and seven microorganisms respectively. Simulteneously, AMS-IV and AML-IV have demonstrated potential antiproliferative activity against two human cell lines - Colorectal adenocarcinoma (COLO-205) and retinoblastoma (Y79).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The seed and leaf extracts of <it>A. moschatus </it>possess significant antioxidant activity and could serve as free radical inhibitors or scavenger, or substitute, probably as primary antioxidants. The plant possesses moderate antibacterial activity against bacterial strains used in this study. Hydroalcoholic seed and leaf extracts also exhibited antiproliferative activity against two human cancer cell lines. <it>A. moschatus </it>may therefore, be a good candidate for functional foods as well as pharmaceutics.</p

High Cyclic Fatigue Behaviour of Varied Pitch Compression Springs for Automotive Applications

In this paper, fatigue life of coil springs was investigated as failure due to high cyclic loading during their service life is more common. For this purpose, two exclusive rear coil compression spring geometries were investigated using material type - siliconchromium steel SAE-AISI 9254 for this application. For these design models, the effect of changing component geometry using varying pitch arrangements of coils were examined to understand their structural durability and ability to withstand cyclic loading conditions. A finite element model based on industry standard designs was created to simulate real-life spring performance. In this study, the varied pitch designs were subjected to lower stresses in static analysis and have longer life estimates in the fatigue analysis. This confirms that a varied pitch can improve the performance of a coil spring. The result shows that design-1 incorporated a pitch design that reduced pitch at the centre coils of the spring performed better

Mapping 123 million neonatal, infant and child deaths between 2000 and 2017

Since 2000, many countries have achieved considerable success in improving child survival, but localized progress remains unclear. To inform efforts towards United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3.2—to end preventable child deaths by 2030—we need consistently estimated data at the subnational level regarding child mortality rates and trends. Here we quantified, for the period 2000–2017, the subnational variation in mortality rates and number of deaths of neonates, infants and children under 5 years of age within 99 low- and middle-income countries using a geostatistical survival model. We estimated that 32% of children under 5 in these countries lived in districts that had attained rates of 25 or fewer child deaths per 1,000 live births by 2017, and that 58% of child deaths between 2000 and 2017 in these countries could have been averted in the absence of geographical inequality. This study enables the identification of high-mortality clusters, patterns of progress and geographical inequalities to inform appropriate investments and implementations that will help to improve the health of all populations

The global burden of cancer attributable to risk factors, 2010-19 : a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background Understanding the magnitude of cancer burden attributable to potentially modifiable risk factors is crucial for development of effective prevention and mitigation strategies. We analysed results from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019 to inform cancer control planning efforts globally. Methods The GBD 2019 comparative risk assessment framework was used to estimate cancer burden attributable to behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risk factors. A total of 82 risk-outcome pairs were included on the basis of the World Cancer Research Fund criteria. Estimated cancer deaths and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) in 2019 and change in these measures between 2010 and 2019 are presented. Findings Globally, in 2019, the risk factors included in this analysis accounted for 4.45 million (95% uncertainty interval 4.01-4.94) deaths and 105 million (95.0-116) DALYs for both sexes combined, representing 44.4% (41.3-48.4) of all cancer deaths and 42.0% (39.1-45.6) of all DALYs. There were 2.88 million (2.60-3.18) risk-attributable cancer deaths in males (50.6% [47.8-54.1] of all male cancer deaths) and 1.58 million (1.36-1.84) risk-attributable cancer deaths in females (36.3% [32.5-41.3] of all female cancer deaths). The leading risk factors at the most detailed level globally for risk-attributable cancer deaths and DALYs in 2019 for both sexes combined were smoking, followed by alcohol use and high BMI. Risk-attributable cancer burden varied by world region and Socio-demographic Index (SDI), with smoking, unsafe sex, and alcohol use being the three leading risk factors for risk-attributable cancer DALYs in low SDI locations in 2019, whereas DALYs in high SDI locations mirrored the top three global risk factor rankings. From 2010 to 2019, global risk-attributable cancer deaths increased by 20.4% (12.6-28.4) and DALYs by 16.8% (8.8-25.0), with the greatest percentage increase in metabolic risks (34.7% [27.9-42.8] and 33.3% [25.8-42.0]). Interpretation The leading risk factors contributing to global cancer burden in 2019 were behavioural, whereas metabolic risk factors saw the largest increases between 2010 and 2019. Reducing exposure to these modifiable risk factors would decrease cancer mortality and DALY rates worldwide, and policies should be tailored appropriately to local cancer risk factor burden. Copyright (C) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license.Peer reviewe

Global, regional, and national cancer incidence, mortality, years of life lost, years lived with disability, and disability-Adjusted life-years for 29 cancer groups, 1990 to 2017 : A systematic analysis for the global burden of disease study

Importance: Cancer and other noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) are now widely recognized as a threat to global development. The latest United Nations high-level meeting on NCDs reaffirmed this observation and also highlighted the slow progress in meeting the 2011 Political Declaration on the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases and the third Sustainable Development Goal. Lack of situational analyses, priority setting, and budgeting have been identified as major obstacles in achieving these goals. All of these have in common that they require information on the local cancer epidemiology. The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study is uniquely poised to provide these crucial data. Objective: To describe cancer burden for 29 cancer groups in 195 countries from 1990 through 2017 to provide data needed for cancer control planning. Evidence Review: We used the GBD study estimation methods to describe cancer incidence, mortality, years lived with disability, years of life lost, and disability-Adjusted life-years (DALYs). Results are presented at the national level as well as by Socio-demographic Index (SDI), a composite indicator of income, educational attainment, and total fertility rate. We also analyzed the influence of the epidemiological vs the demographic transition on cancer incidence. Findings: In 2017, there were 24.5 million incident cancer cases worldwide (16.8 million without nonmelanoma skin cancer [NMSC]) and 9.6 million cancer deaths. The majority of cancer DALYs came from years of life lost (97%), and only 3% came from years lived with disability. The odds of developing cancer were the lowest in the low SDI quintile (1 in 7) and the highest in the high SDI quintile (1 in 2) for both sexes. In 2017, the most common incident cancers in men were NMSC (4.3 million incident cases); tracheal, bronchus, and lung (TBL) cancer (1.5 million incident cases); and prostate cancer (1.3 million incident cases). The most common causes of cancer deaths and DALYs for men were TBL cancer (1.3 million deaths and 28.4 million DALYs), liver cancer (572000 deaths and 15.2 million DALYs), and stomach cancer (542000 deaths and 12.2 million DALYs). For women in 2017, the most common incident cancers were NMSC (3.3 million incident cases), breast cancer (1.9 million incident cases), and colorectal cancer (819000 incident cases). The leading causes of cancer deaths and DALYs for women were breast cancer (601000 deaths and 17.4 million DALYs), TBL cancer (596000 deaths and 12.6 million DALYs), and colorectal cancer (414000 deaths and 8.3 million DALYs). Conclusions and Relevance: The national epidemiological profiles of cancer burden in the GBD study show large heterogeneities, which are a reflection of different exposures to risk factors, economic settings, lifestyles, and access to care and screening. The GBD study can be used by policy makers and other stakeholders to develop and improve national and local cancer control in order to achieve the global targets and improve equity in cancer care. © 2019 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe