Glycemia in early pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes

Detecting and managing mild hyperglycemiain early pregnancy is a research priority. Currently, there is no solid evidence for suitable diagnostic criteria, screening methods, and approaches for treating mild hyperglycemiain early pregnancy. Despite the absence of universally accepted guidelines, women who develop dysglycemia in early pregnancy have been diagnosed and treated as having early gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM)using the standard (24–28-week) criteria, which varies globally. That many women diagnosed with GDM in early pregnancy using the standard criteria do not have hyperglycemia in late gestation calls into question the suitability of this approach. Regardless, in my meta-analysis, women who developed GDM in early pregnancy were found to have a higher risk of perinatal mortality and neonatal hypoglycemia and were more likely to receive insulin therapy than those with late GDM. This urgently necessitates addressing GDM not just in late gestation but from the beginning of pregnancy. This thesis includes a range of research objectives, including investigating the utility of early pregnancy HbA1c for detecting GDM, defining and characterizing metabolic phenotypes of early GDM, comparing pregnancy outcomes among women with different degrees of hyperglycemia during pregnancy, and evaluating the accuracy of blood glucose meters in pregnancy. The analysis of the early pregnancy data of women enrolled in the Vitamin D and lifestyle intervention for GDM prevention (DALI) trial showed that HbA1c measured before 20 weeks of gestation had limited value for identifying GDM and predicting adverse pregnancy outcomes. This thesis refutes the current practice of using HbA1c to identify and treat GDM in early pregnancy. Apart from identifying major gaps in the knowledge of women with early hyperglycemia, this research provides insight into the metabolic heterogeneity of early GDM and highlights the need for a new model of care for women with early dysglycemia. This research provides future direction in GDM care by including insulin resistance screening for high-risk women and emphasizes the importance of using glucose meters that adjust for hematocrit interferences during pregnancy. This thesis has also shown the significance of early GDM and suggests that it should be considered as a separate but related clinical entity to GDM diagnosed later in pregnancy

Investigations towards the development of a novel multimodal fibre optic sensor for oil and gas applications.

Oil and gas (O&G) explorations are moving into deeper zones of earth, causing serious safety concerns. Hence, sensing of critical multiple parameters like high pressure, high temperature (HPHT), chemicals, etc., are required at longer distances. Traditional electrical sensors operate less effectively under these extreme environmental conditions and are susceptible to electromagnetic interference (EMI). Compared to electrical sensors, fibre optic sensors offer several advantages like immunity to EMI, electrical isolation, ability to operate in harsh environmental conditions and freedom from corrosion. Existing fibre optical sensors in the O&G industry, based on step index single mode fibres (SMF), offer limited performance, as they operate within a narrow wavelength window. A novel multimodal sensor configuration, based on photonic crystal fibre (PCF) and utilising a multiwavelength approach, is proposed for the first time for O&G applications. This thesis reports computational and experimental investigations into the new multimodal sensing methodology, integrating both optical phase-change and spectral-change based approaches, needed for multi-parameter sensing. It includes investigations to improve the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) by enhancing the signal intensity attained through structural, material and positional optimisations of the sensors. Waveguide related, computational investigations on PCF were carried out on different fibre optic core-cladding structures, material infiltrations and material doping to improve the signal intensity from the multimodal sensors for better SNR. COMSOL Multiphysics simulations indicated that structural and material modifications of the PCF have significant effects on light propagation characteristics. The propagation characteristics of the PCF were improved by modifying the geometrical parameters, and microstructuring the fibre core and cladding. Studies carried out on liquid crystal PCF (LCPCF) identified its enhanced mode confinement characteristics and wavelength tenability features (from visible to near infrared), which can be utilised for multi-wavelength applications. Enhancing core refractive index of the PCF improved the electric field confinements and thereby the signal intensity. Doping rare earth elements into the PCF core increases its refractive index and also provides additional spectroscopic features (photoluminescence and Raman), leading to a scope for multi-point, multimodal sensors. Investigations were carried out on PCF-FBG (Fibre Bragg grating) hybrid configuration, analysing their capabilities for optical phase-change based, multipoint, multi-parameter sensing. Computational investigations were carried out using MATLAB software, to study the effect of various fibre grating parameters. These studies helped in improving understanding of the FBG reflectivity-bandwidth characteristics, for tuning the number of sensors that can be accommodated within the same sensing fibre and enhancing the reflected signal for improved SNR. A new approach of FBG sensor positioning has been experimentally evaluated, to improve its strain sensitivity for structural health monitoring (SHM) of O&G structures. Further, experimental investigations were carried out on FBGs for sensing multiple parameters like temperature, strain (both tensile and compressive) and acoustic signals. Various spectroscopic investigations were carried out to identify the scope of rare earth doping within the PCF for photoluminescence and Raman spectroscopy based multimodal sensors. Rare earth doped glasses (Tb, Dy, Yb, Er, Ce and Ho) were developed using melt-quench approach and excitation- photoluminescence emission studies were carried out. The studies identified that photoluminescence signal intensity increases with rare earth concentration up to an optimum value and it can be further improved by tuning the excitation source characteristics. Photoluminescence based temperature studies were carried out using the rare earth doped glasses to identify their suitability for O&G high temperature conditions. Raman spectroscopic investigations were carried out on rare earth (Tb) doped glasses, developed using both melt-quench and sol-gel based approaches. Effect of 785 nm laser excitation on Raman signatures and suitability of rare earth doped materials for fibre-based Raman distributed temperature sensing (DTS) were also studied. Finally, a novel multimodal fibre optic sensor configuration is proposed for the O&G applications, consisting of rare earth doped photonic crystal fibre integrating Bragg gratings and operating in multiple wavelength regimes in a multiplexed fashion. The integrated sensor combination is expected to overcome the limitations of existing sensors with regards to SNR, sensing range and multimodal sensing capability

Role of MYD88 Protein in the Maintenance of Immunological Self-Tolerance: Induction of Autoimmunity by Salmonella Infection Consequent to MYD88 Deficiency.

Activation of the innate immune system is a prerequisite for the induction of adaptive immune responses to both infectious and non-infectious agents. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are a family of proteins important for recognizing pathogen associated molecular patterns. MyD88 is an adaptor molecule whose function is critical in TLR signaling. MyD88-deficient (MyD88-/-) mice exhibit heightened susceptibility to infections, even by attenuated strains of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium. Paradoxically, despite their hypersusceptibility, infected MyD88-/- mice produce elevated serum levels of anti-Salmonella antibodies regardless of the route of infection. This hypergammaglobulinemia was observed with both Th1-driven (IgG2c and IgG3) and Th2-driven (IgG1) antibody isotypes. The dysregulated antibody response also led to the production of autoantibodies as demonstrated by reactivity to dsDNA and thyroglobulin, positive nuclear staining with HEp2 cells, and immune complex deposition in the kidneys of MyD88-/- mice. Utilizing intracellular cytokine staining, real time PCR and 6-color flowcytometric analysis, we demonstrated that these autoimmune responses correlate with the activation of distinct populations of IFN-y+/IL-4+ and IFNy+/IL-10+ T helper lymphocytes. Further analysis revealed that these most likely represent a specialized family of cells known as follicular helper T cells (TFH cells) which function to promote B cell activation and antibody production. The aberrant expansion of these TFH-like cells could underlie the activation of autoreactive B cells leading to humoral autoimmunity. Our findings highlight a critical role for TLR-MyD88 pathway in controlling reactivity of self-antigens and provide a potential mechanism for the inter-relationship between microbial infections and autoimmune disease development in humans

Life Style and Moral Principles of Tribal People in Kumari District

Human beings all around the world are leading their life with certain rules and restrictions.  Many characteristics can be found among this group. They follow good moral principles in their life. The reasons for such living are obvious. Many legal principles and moral concepts were followed by them such as family life, productivity, worship, fasting and cleanliness. Systematic studies about the tribal people of Kumari district have been going on since the arrival of Europeans. Many studies have been conducted based on the life style of tribal people. The studies help us to know the reason why they are living as a tribal people in forest areas and reason behind it. The article explores the lifestyle and the moral principles of tribal people in Kanyakumari district

Development of a Thomson X-ray Polarimeter

We describe the current status of the design and development of a Thomson X-ray polarimeter suitable for a small satellite mission. Currently we are considering two detector geometries, one using rectangular detectors placed on four sides of a scattering element and the other using a single cylindrical detector with the scattering element at the center. The rectangular detector configuration has been fabricated and tested. The cylindrical detector is currently under fabrication. In order to compensate any pointing offset of the satellite, a collimator with a flat topped response has been developed that provides a constant effective area over an angular range. We have also developed a double crystal monochromator/polariser for the purpose of test and calibration of the polarimeter. Preliminary test results from the developmental activities are presented here.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, in "X-ray Polarimetry: A New Window in Astrophysics", edited by R. Bellazzini, E. Costa, G. Matt and G. Tagliaferri, Cambridge University Press (proceedings of "The Coming of Age of X-ray Polarimetry," Rome, Italy, April 27-30, 2009

Optical fibre-based sensors for oil and gas applications.

Oil and gas (O&G) explorations moving into deeper zones for enhanced oil and gas recovery are causing serious safety concerns across the world. The sensing of critical multiple parameters like high pressure, high temperature (HPHT), chemicals, etc., are required at longer distances in real-time. Traditional electrical sensors operate less effectively under these extreme environmental conditions and are susceptible to electromagnetic interference (EMI). Hence, there is a growing demand for improved sensors with enhanced measurement capabilities and also sensors that generates reliable data for enhanced oil and gas production. In addition to enhanced oil and gas recovery, the sensing technology should also be capable of monitoring the well bore integrity and safety. The sensing requirements of the O&G industry for improved sensing in deeper zones include increased transmission length, improved spatial coverage and integration of multiple sensors with multimodal sensing capability. This imposes problems like signal attenuation, crosstalks and cross sensitivities. Optical fibre-based sensors are expected to provide superior sensing capabilities compared to electrical sensors. This review paper covers a detailed review of different fibre-optic sensing technologies to identify a feasible sensing solution for the O&G industry

Psychological Elements in Eight Anthologies

In this article we can see information about the Psychological components found in the Ettuthogai Books, one of the Tamil literature Book . Sangha literature says that man should live in an honest way. The life ancient Tamil People was a dualistic life with nature. They lived with love and valor as two eyes. We can see the poetry of the Sangam era still alive as it is a psychological visual depiction of mutual understanding of domestic life and love life. Vocabulary, meaning, concentration, phonetic all these can be said to be the life wealth of Tamil People. This biological resource there is no doubt that psychological poetry is revealing. Appropriately, when our mind stumbles in confusion, knowledge and feeling are measured swinging up and down like plates. Comfort within our hearts. We can look at this point of seeking as a literary copy. In general, a literary copy is a mirror that reflects the mind. In that way, we can see that this research paper deals with psychological technique in micro units

Podcast Implementation in an Entry-Level Doctor of Physical Therapy First-Semester Course: Student Perceptions and Impact on Academic Performance

Podcasts have increased in popularity in the last decade, but description of their use in academic settings is lacking. The purposes of this study were to (1) investigate the difference in student performance on course examinations based on podcast usage and satisfaction and (2) examine the perceptions of educational benefits, usage preferences, and accessibility of podcasts in a clinical examination course in a hybrid Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) curriculum. This was a mixed-methods study that utilized a retrospective non-experimental correlational design, and data were collected and analyzed via self-report survey. Participants adopted five podcasts into learning and studying activities. An ANOVA indicated that there was a statistically significant (p = .01) difference in examination performance for podcast usage in the fourth episode, with those who listened more performing better. Level of agreement in podcast satisfaction had little impact on academic performance on examinations. A total of six themes emerged from qualitative analysis: podcasts provided listeners a supplementary study tool, connected the learner to the real world, and allowed convenient listening and multitasking. Listeners noted the experience could be enhanced by an improved streaming platform, preferred shorter-duration podcasts, and recommended podcasts to future cohorts. In a sample of 27 first-year hybrid DPT participants, 100% reported overall satisfaction with podcast content and would recommend them to future cohorts

Ethical Concepts in Eight Anthologies

Virtue is beneficial to human life.  It can give rise in life.  The purpose of this article is to find out about it through Ettuthogai Books. It is an ancient Tamil tradition to preach virtues common to all.  Moral concepts are abundant in the literature of Palanthamil.  Sangha literature says that man should live in an honest way.  Literature with human life.  Life is also closely related with historical situation.  Virtue means a bundle of good deeds meaning virtue is what gives rise to human life and promotes well-being in life. Kings of the Sangam era were high-spirited leaders who removed poverty by giving things to the poets and poets who came to him with a good heart.  Their high quality is to see their goods exchanged for others and their happiness when they receive them.   We can note that various views of virtue are revealed in the Ettuthogai Books, depending on the family structure, moral thought