“Impact Of Metformin Therpy on Serum Cobalamin and Homocysteine Among the Type II Diabetes Mellitus Patients”

Objective: The aim of the study is to observe the long-term treatment of metformin and its associated effect on Vitamin B12 among Type II Diabetes mellitus south Indian patients. Methods: An observational study conducted over a period of 54 months on Type II Diabetes mellitus patients who are in chronic therapy with metformin. The study described the Vitamin B12 levels among the Type II DM patients, which could alert the patients who are in the low and borderline range of serum Vitamin B12, which may prevent the risk of peripheral neuropathic complications and anaemic conditions, etc. Findings: Totally, 387 patients were enrolled as per the inclusion and exclusion criteria, including 232 males (59.94%) and 155 females (40.05%). A total of 39 patients had been observed to have low levels of Vitamin B12, among them 23 females (Mean 184.17 ±  S.D. 10.69) and 16 males (Mean 185.31± S.D 7.56), followed by 16 patients found to be above the normal range of Vitamin B12, among them 02 females (Mean 991 ±  S.D. 15.55) and 14 males (Mean 1578.14 ±  S.D. 406.93), followed by 76 patients had been found to be borderline of Vitamin B12, among them 43 females (Mean 220.76 ± S.D 6.50). Conclusion: High doses of chronic Metformin therapy may alter Vitamin B12 levels. Some of the patients had an abnormally high level of serum Vitamin B12, whose medical condition should be ruled out, and such Patients’ diet histories were also cross-examined, which was a mixed normal diet, and they had various medical conditions. However, the high chances of metformin-associated effects on Vitamin B12 with higher doses and long-term therapy of metformin, whose duration was 10 to 20 years, Moreover, age is also an important factor, and the study reveals that, among genders, female populations had a higher rate of low-level Vitamin B12 than male populations. Patients in the age group between 50 and 65 years had a higher rate of low-level Vitamin B12 than other age groups, total 20 patients, among them 12 females (Mean 183.08 ± S.D. 13.17) and 8 males (Mean 185.5 ± S.D. 4.3). Patients with other comorbid conditions also had low levels and borderline levels of Vitamin B12 and had been on long-term metformin therapy. Further, homocysteine investigations had been done on low and borderline vitamin B12 patients. Investigation of homocysteine had been done on low range (39) and border line (76) of vitamin B12 patients. Among Low vitamin B12, 13 patients have elevated level of Homocysteine (6 males & 7 females). Among border line of vitamin B12, 4 patients (2 males and 3 females) have elevated level of Homocysteine. Therefore, our study concluded that chronic therapy and higher doses of metformin may lead to a deficit in serum Vitamin B12, which requires regular checks on Vitamin B12 among Type 2 DM patients to avoid the risk of Peripheral neuropathy and other complications

Effect of multiwall carbon nanotubes on electrical and structural properties of polyaniline

Polyaniline (PANI) and PANI/CNT (multiwall carbon nanotubes, CNT) composites were prepared using an oxidative chemical polymerization method with ammonium persulfate and dodecyl benzene sulfonic acid as the oxidizing agent and surfactant, respectively. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy spectra illustrate the presence of PANI in the composite and show that some interaction exists between PANI and CNT. Embedding of CNT in the PANI matrix is confirmed by scanning electron micrography. Conductivity of the PANI/CNT composites was higher than that of pure PANI, and the maximum conductivity obtained was 4.44 S/cm at 20 wt. CNT

La<SUB>1−x</SUB>Ce<SUB>x</SUB>CrO<SUB>3</SUB> (0.0 ≤x≤ 1.0): a new series of solid solutions with tunable magnetic and optical properties

A new series of La1−xCexCrO3 (0.0 ≤ x ≤1.0) compounds in nanocrystalline form were synthesized using a two-step synthesis route, involving an initial combustion reaction followed by vacuum heating in the presence of a Zr sponge, which acted as an oxygen getter. For the first time, a homogeneous solid solution formation throughout the entire range was obtained in this series. These compounds were characterized using X-ray diffraction, diffuse reflectance UV visible spectrophotometry, and superconducting quantum interference device magnetometry. The crystallite size for the phase-pure products was confirmed to be ∼42−44 nm by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. All compounds (nanocrystalline) in this series are found to be predominantly antiferromagnetic in nature with a remarkable linear increasing trend in Neel temperature from 257 to 281.5 K as a function of decreasing Ce3+ content. Interestingly, the band gap also shows a linear decrease from 3.21 to 3.02 eV as a function of increasing Ce3+ concentration in the La1−xCexCrO3 series

Electrical, structural and magnetic properties of polyaniline/pTSA-TiO2 nanocomposites

Polyaniline (PANI)/para-toluene sulfonic acid (pTSA) and PANI/pTSA-TiO2 composites were prepared using chemical method and characterized by infrared spectroscopy (IR), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The electrical conductivity and magnetic properties were also measured. In corroboration with XRD, the micrographs of SEM indicated the homogeneous dispersion of TiO nanoparticles in bulk PANI/pTSA matrix. Conductivity of the PANI/pTSA-TiO2 was higher than the PAN[/pTSA, and the maximum conductivity obtained was 9.48 (S/cm) at 5 wt% of TiO2. Using SQUID magnetometer, it was found that PANI/pTSA was either paramagnetic or weakly ferromagnetic from 300 K down to 5 K with H-C approximate to 30 Oe and M-r approximate to 0.015 emu/g. On the other hand,PANI/pTSA-TiO2 was diamagnetic from 300 K down to about 50 K and below which it was weakly ferromagnetic. Furthermore, a nearly temperature-independent magnetization was observed in both the cases down to 50 K and below which the magnetization increased rapidly (a Curie like susceptibility was observed). The Pauli susceptibility (chi(pauli)) was calculated to be about 4.8 X 10(-5) and 1.6 x 10(-5)emug(-1) Oe(-1) K for PANI/pTSA and PANI/pTSA-TiO2, respectively