B.E.S.T: Basic Emotion & Sentiment Tracking

The emergence of depression, personality disorders, serious emotional disturbance & social anxiety disorder among children in our modern society is now alarming. Lack of interaction & communication is a major aspect of it. Nowadays, in nuclear family children aren’t able to get much of interaction with elders which leaves them most of the time by themselves, this affects their emotional development & expressiveness. So, our primary focus is on development of a system which can be fitted into any preferable or favourite toy which will ease the process of developing a child-toy emotional bond. Later the same will help for tracking of emotion & sentiments as the relation which child develops with the companion toy helps the child to be expressive about his/her thoughts, feelings & day to day events. A subsidiary goal is to improve communication & interaction between child and parents

Evidence for tissue selectivity of the synthetic androgen 7α-methyl-19-nortestosterone in hypogonadal men

The potent synthetic androgen 7α-methyl-19-nortestosterone (MENT) is resistant to 5α-reductase but is a substrate for aromatase. It may therefore offer selective sparing of the prostate gland while supporting other androgen-dependent tissues. MENT acetate implants were administered for 24 wk to 16 hypogonadal men, randomly allocated to 1 or 2 implants (groups I and II, respectively; releasing ∼400 μg/d·implant). Hemoglobin concentration and hematocrit were maintained during MENT treatment. Prostate volume fell in group I and to a small, but statistically nonsignificant, degree in group II; the level of prostate-specific antigen fell significantly in both. Lumbar spine bone mineral density decreased in both groups. Sexual behavior and erectile function declined in group I, but were maintained in group II. Thus, overall, one MENT implant appeared to provide subphysiological androgen replacement. The 2-implant dose of MENT was able to maintain most androgen-dependent functions, except bone mass, and there was evidence to support selective sparing of the prostate gland. These results demonstrate for the first time in humans the selectivity of MENT in tissues dependent on 5α-reductase. In addition, our data are consistent with the importance of adequate estrogenicity as part of the necessary spectrum of activity of an androgen for replacement therapy in men

Prostate-sparing effects in primates of the potent androgen 7alpha-methyl-19-nortestosterone: a potential alternative to testosterone for androgen replacement and male contraception

7alpha-Methyl-19-nortestosterone (MENT) is a potent synthetic androgen that cannot be converted to dihydrotestosterone. In this study we determined the relative androgenic, antigonadotropic, and anabolic potencies of testosterone vs. MENT in the nonhuman primate M. fascicularis. In castrated monkeys, dose-response relationships were generated for the effects of testosterone and MENT on gonadotropin levels, prostate growth, body weight, and lipid metabolism. In a pilot study, four monkeys were castrated, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to document a 50% loss of prostate volume within 8 weeks, verifying that MRI is a reliable means to measure prostate size in this species. Two additional groups of six monkeys each were then castrated and serially administered four graded dosages of testosterone or MENT via osmotic minipumps over 20 weeks. Complete suppression of LH was achieved with a minimum of 0.3 mg/day MENT, compared to 3.0 mg/day testosterone. MENT supported body weight 10 times more potently than did testosterone. Baseline prostate volumes were maintained with 0.1-0.2 mg/day MENT vs. 0.3 mg/day testosterone. Thus, in monkeys, MENT is 10 times more potent than testosterone with regard to the clinically desirable end points of gonadotropin suppression and anabolism, but only twice as potent at stimulating prostate growth. These results suggest that MENT may have a wider therapeutic index than testosterone for human androgen replacement and male contraception

Optic chiasmatic-hypothalamic gliomas: Is tissue diagnosis essential?

Background: Optic chiasmatic-hypothalamic gliomas are sellar-suprasellar lesions with variable radiological features. The advocated treatment is mainly primary radiotherapy without a histological diagnosis. However, in developing countries, like India infective granulomas (tuberculomas) in the suprasellar region radiologically can mimic optic chiasmatic-hypothalamic gliomas. Hence primary radiotherapy without histological confirmation may have deleterious consequences. Aim: The aim of the paper was to analyze the sensitivity and specificity of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in these lesions and to analyze the feasibility of primary radiotherapy. Patients and Methods: The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) characteristics of 24 patients with either histologically proven optic chiasmatic "pilocytic astrocytoma" or radiologically suspected optic chiasmatic-hypothalamic gliomas were analyzed. They were grouped into three groups on the basis of radiological features and treated with a suspected diagnosis. The final diagnosis was correlated with preoperative diagnosis, and the feasibility of managing these lesions without a histopathological confirmation is discussed. Results: The three radiological groups were: Group-1 solid tumors with or without microcysts in 9 patients (histology: 8 pilocystic astrocytomas and 1 tuberculoma); Group-2 mixed tumors with solid and cystic components in 9 patients (histology: 7 pilocytic astrocytomas and 2 craniopharyngiomas); Group-3 ring enhancing lesions in 6 patients (all the 6 patients initially received antituberculous treatment, in 3 patients the lesion resolved and in the remaining 3 patients the lesion was subjected to biopsy as it did not resolve, the biopsy was suggestive of pilocytic astrocytoma). Thus, MRI was shown to have a sensitivity of 83.33% and a specificity of 50% for diagnosing optic chiasmatic-hypothalamic gliomas. Conclusions: Various lesions like craniopharyngiomas, tuberculomas can mimic optic chiasmatic-hypothalamic gliomas radiologically, and it is not possible to diagnose them with certainty on the basis of radiological findings alone. Biopsy and tissue diagnosis should always be sought before instituting radiotherapy or chemotherapy for optic chiasmatic-hypothalamic gliomas

Nestorone®: Clinical applications for contraception and HRT

The 19-nor derivatives of progesterone are referred to as pure progestational molecules as they bind almost exclusively to the progesterone receptor (PR) without interfering with receptors of other steroids. In this category is Nestorone®, which has strong progestational activity and antiovulatory potency with no androgenic or estrogenic activity in vivo. These properties make it highly suitable for use in contraception and hormonal therapy (HT). Due to its high potency, very low doses of Nestorone may be delivered via long-term sustained-release delivery systems. Nestorone, 75 or 100μg per day, released by vaginal ring has suppressed ovulation in women, with inhibition of follicular maturation. A vaginal ring releasing both 150μg of Nestorone and 15μg of ethinyl estradiol per day has effectively suppressed ovulation for 13 consecutive cycles. Nestorone has also been used effectively in a single implant for contraception in breastfeeding women and shows promise for use in transdermal systems as a contraceptive or for HT when combined with estrogen

Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of 7α-methyl- 19-nortestosterone after intramuscular administration in healthy men the relative potency of MENT on muscle and the pituitary undergo 5α-reduction (Agarwal and Monder, 1988) so its

seminal vesicles is only 4-5-fold higher. This difference in relative potency is due to the fact that MENT does not 1 Steroid Research Laboratory, Institute of Biomedicine, undergo 5α-reduction It is The pharmacokinetics and acute pharmacodynamic changes a good candidate for implant administration in long-term after i.m. administration of MENT have not been studied androgen replacement therapy for hypogonadal men or as previously in men. Although the administration of MENT part of a male contraceptive system. To investigate the in the future will not be i. In study 2 the effect of six consecutive daily injections o

Bone and muscle protective potential of the prostate-sparing synthetic androgen 7α-methyl-19-nortestosterone: Evidence from the aged orchidectomized male rat model

This study reports the preclinical evaluation of the bone and muscle protective potential of the synthetic androgen 7α-methyl-19- nortestosterone (MENT™), as assessed in the aged orchidectomized rat model. Aged (13-month-old) orchidectomized Wistar rats were treated with different doses of MENT (4, 12 or 36 μg/day) subcutaneously for 16 weeks via mini-osmotic pumps. Analysis of the effects of androgen deficiency versus MENT replacement was performed using quantitative computed tomography (pQCT), dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) and biochemical markers of bone turnover. At the end of the study period, prostate weight in orchidectomized rats treated with low- (4 μg/day) or mid-dose (12 μg/day) MENT remained significantly lower compared to the sham-operated animals (-47% and -25%, respectively). High-dose MENT (36 μg/day), on the other hand, induced prostate hypertrophy (+21% versus sham). Low-, mid- and high-dose MENT were found to be effective in suppressing the acceleration of bone remodeling following orchidectomy, as assessed by osteocalcin and deoxypyridinoline. In addition, low-, mid- and high-dose were able to prevent the orchidectomy-induced bone loss, as evaluated by DEXA at the femur and total-body and by pQCT at the femur. Compared to sham-operated animals, the low- and mid-dose MENT groups showed no decline in lean body mass and no muscle atrophy (as measured by m. quadriceps weight) at 16 weeks, whereas high-dose MENT was associated with a significant decline in lean body mass (-8.5% versus sham) and quadriceps weight (-10.6%). We conclude that, in the aged orchidectomized rat model, low- and mid-doses of the synthetic androgen MENT have bone and muscle protective effects and do not induce prostate hypertrophy. The bone protective action of high-dose MENT, however, occurs at the expense of muscle wasting and prostate hypertrophy. Our findings support the need for human studies to explore the potential of MENT as an option for androgen replacement in aging men