Synthesis Of Carbohydrate Functionalized Dendrons For Use As Multivalent Scaffold And In Self-Assembled Structures

Carbohydrates are implicated in a large number of biological processes ranging from cell-cell interactions to bacterial and viral infection. Lectins are carbohydrate-binding proteins that are generally specific for certain sugars. However, typical carbohydrate–lectin interactions tend to have very low monomeric binding affinities. In many cases, the binding of saccharide ligands by protein receptors can be improved significantly through the attachment of multiple saccharide residues to a common support. Dendronized polymers constitute a class of macromolecules whose nanoscale size, rigidity, and functionality can be controlled with precision by tuning their molecular architecture. It is hypothesized that due to their large size and tunable properties, carbohydrate-functionalized dendronized polymers can be designed to be highly efficient ligands for lectins. In the current work, we generated a library of dendronized polymers, with different generations of mannose-terminated dendrons conjugated to a polycaprolactone backbone to study their lectin binding abilities. This work also describes the self-assembly of amphiphilic linear-dendron hybrids synthesized from galactose-functionalized dendrons coupled with a linear polypeptide poly-γ-benzyl-L-glutamate (PBLG). Collectively, this work provides the synthesis and applications of mannose and galactose based glycodendrons and their applications in ultra-high multivalent scaffolds and self-assembled structures for carbohydrate-lectin binding studie

To study the impact of design considerations on customer satisfaction in a dialysis facility of a super-specialty tertiary care hospital in Delhi, India

Background: In recent times, patient focused hospital architecture is gaining attention. The current scenario demands to provide living spaces for families rather than ware houses for the sick. Attitudes, aspiration and values of the society must be clearly understood while planning a facility.Methods: This prospective cross sectional observational study was carried out over a period of one year at the Dialysis unit of a tertiary care, super specialty hospital in North India with the objective to establish that minor structural changes can enhance customer delight which includes patients and their attendants of a chronic disease patient population visiting a health care facility and satisfaction of the staff of the facility. The tool used was a structured 5 point Likert scaled questionnaire including unstructured interviews. These were held with 200 patients availing treatment in the old and new dialysis unit each and who have at least had three dialysis treatments within 6 months in the both the units. Also, for staff satisfaction, 25 staff working for at least one month in the old unit and new unit each. Data was analysed using SPSS 17.0 software.Results: Good design and quality of care were regarded important for patient experience. For patients, overall functioning and efficiency of the processes in the facility dependent on the design of the building was most important. Just over half of all surveyed patients felt that design impacted their relationship with their doctor and the quality of the care received. For attendants, waiting area including billing facility fetched the highest parameter for satisfaction. For staff the importance of access to support services, safety and provision of basic facilities resonated with the patient views presented above. Privacy, confidentiality and patient safety through careful design of waiting room, reception and consulting room were high staff priorities. Design that facilitated communication between team members also emerged as an important area although the change in design did not make much difference in emotional wellbeing and work life balance of the staff.Conclusions: This study did not yield sufficient data to confirm or refute either concept, though clearly this merit further investigation. Some unexpected findings were reported. Specifically, the survey data rated privacy and the availability of comfortable physical conditions as the highest priority for both staff and patients

EFFECTS OF AEROBIC EXERCISE ON INDIVIDULAS WITH DOWN SYNDROME VIA TELEREHABILITATION

BACKGROUND: Most of the children and adolescents with Down’s syndrome (DS) have poor aerobic capacity, physical fitness and demonstrate diminished cognitive abilities. Recent studies suggest that increased physical activity may prove to be important for maintaining components of cognition, including memory along with physical fitness. In addition, there is interest among practitioners in determining the efficacy of virtual exercise classes, which can be more convenient for clients. However, it is unknown whether group exercise classes delivered over videoconferencing achieve desired outcomes—particularly in special populations such as those with DS. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of aerobic exercise practiced over video conferencing on physical fitness and cognition in individuals with DS METHOD: A pilot study was carried out with 5 individuals having DS. 10 weeks of an aerobic exercise protocol of moderate intensity was delivered via videoconferencing. Before and after the 10-week intervention, VO2max was estimated using a previously established method, and cognitive ability was assessed using a 61-item questionnaire. RESULT: Following the 10-week intervention, significant increases were noted for both aerobic fitness as well as cognitive abilities CONCLUSION: Aerobic exercises will help to maintain or improve physical fitness in individuals with DS. Perhaps more importantly, it is also apparent that aerobic exercise positively affects cognitive function as well. Videoconferencing is an effective platform for delivering aerobic exercise prescriptions in cases where in-person practice is not possible. Future work is needed to determine whether these outcomes are achieved with a larger sample and across a broader population of those with DS

Evaluation of hair growth promoting activity of petroleum ether extract of Abrus precatorius Linn. on Wistar Albino rats

In present investigation was carried out to screening of hair growth promoting potentiality of petroleum ether extract of Abrus precatorius leaf. Preliminary chemical tests and TLC analysis revealed the presence flavonoids and saponins. Hair growth promoting activity of petroleum ether of Abrus precatorius was screened by considering different parameters which included time taken for covering bald patch, length of hair produced, percentage of hair follicles in anagen and telogen phases, time of hair growth initiation and completion and level of minerals in blood. The petroleum ether extract of Abrus precatorius showed a very good hair growth promoting activity at a dose of 300 mg/kg which was comparable to that of 2% minoxidil. After 30 days of treatment with test and standard drugs it was observed that, time taken for covering the bald patch, hair growth initiation and completion time and quantitative hair growth were found to be comparable to that of the standard drug. An increase in percentage of hair follicles turning from telogen phase to anagen phase was noted. The control treated group of animals showed poor hair growth for all the parameters. Keywords: Abrus precatorius Linn, Anagen, Catagen, Telogen, Minoxidi

Does robotic service improve restaurant consumer experiences? An application of the value-co-creation framework

One recent application of technology In the foodservice industry involves robotic services in restaurants, mainly because it reduces labor costs and increases efficiencies. Driven by the value co-creation framework, the purpose of this study was to examine the impact of robot service on restaurant customer experiences and satisfaction. The sample includes a total of 1381 reviews posted from January 2015 to January 2020. This study used the software Leximancer to analyze the data and identified the following themes: Food, Robot, Quality, Ordering and Delivery Serivces. The findings further indicated that robotic services play an essential role in creating positive dining experiences and are more likely to lead to higher satisfaction levels. Based on the results, this study discussed how robotic services might contribute to customers’ value co-creating process and affect their evaluation of the dining experiences. This study, however, is delimited to English reviews and North American restaurants

Enhancement in structural, morphological and optical features of thermally annealed zinc oxide nanofilm

This paper presents the study of surface morphological, optical and microstructural features of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanofilm layered upon p-type Si substrate of <100> orientation by employing conventional RF magnetron sputtering system at different annealing temperatures. The effect of annealing on the nano-film is examined using different characterization techniques such as Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy), UV-vis spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The sharp diffraction peak at (002) orientation is seen by the XRD spectra which signifies a better growth of single crystalline thin film along the z-axis with the hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure. The surface morphological study shows that the grain size of the thin film intensifies from 22.06 nm to 36.77 nm when the annealing temperature is increased whereas there is a decrease in the values of lattice constants (a=b, c), FWHM (full width at half maximum), residual stress, lattice strain and dislocation density by increasing annealing temperature. The enhancement in the grain size makes the thin film appropriate for MEMS device applications including piezoelectric energy harvesters, gas sensors, etc. The optical bandgap of the ZnO thin film is estimated using Kubelka-Munk (KM) approach and it decreases from 3.23 to 3.16 eV for As-deposited, 400 °C, 600 °C and 800 °C respectively which makes the annealed thin film apposite for optoelectronic device applications. The intensity of the Raman peaks strengthens with the annealing temperature. These results prove that the annealing extensively enhances the crystallinity, structural, morphological and optical features of ZnO thin film and hence becomes suitable for nanoelectronic device applications