Changing roles of library professionals in the knowledge society

Library is an effective source of information to be shared by people of all kinds. A good library hosts everything under the sun in the form of words to enrich the knowledge of the users. Providing information about everything under the sun, under one roof in one geographical location is next to impossible. Hence there must be a way to share information that is spread over, and that can be achieved only through the effective use of electronic media. Complete computerization of all the libraries and a dedicated, centralized server to host information available at different libraries will help in effective sharing of information. A library is completely computerized only if the user irrespective of background or knowledge, is able to access information available in the library from anywhere just by typing few letters/words

Glycemic and Lipid Metabolic Markers in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients after Consuming Red Pigmented Parboiled Rice as a Staple—A Clinical Trial

Red pigmented rice has been proven to have unique properties beneficial to health. These might be further enriched if parboiled. This study investigated the effects of consumption of RPPR on glycemic response, lipid profile and BMI in diabetics. For this prospective study patients with diabetes mellitus (aged 40-75 yrs) in a prison (n = 69) were recruited. Their usual diet in prison was red pigmented rice. They were served 180 g of RPPR for 16 weeks during intervention period.Fasting Plasma Glucose (FPG) and BMI was assessed at 0, 4, 8, 12 weeks and glycated haemoglobin and lipid profile at 0 and 16 weeks. Values at 0 weeks were compared with those at 4, 8, 12, 16 weeks after consuming RPPR using ANOVA repeated measures. HBA1c and lipid profile at 16 weeks were compared with the 0 week value. During consumption of RPPR, FPG was significantly reduced at 8 (p = 0.006), 12 (p = 0.002), and 16 weeks (p = 0.005), with a significant reduction of the BMI at 8 (p = 0.028) and 16 weeks (p = 0.003). At the end of 16 weeks of consuming RPPR, LDL, Total Cholesterol (TC) and TC/HDL ratio were significantly reduced compared to 0 weeks (p = 0.001, p = 0.013, p = 0.032, respectively. These results suggest that RPPR consumption reduces FPG, LDL, TC,TC/HDL ratio and BMI

PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING AND IN VITRO ANTIOXIDANT POTENTIALS OF EXTRACTS OF TEN MEDICINAL PLANTS USED FOR THE TREATMENT OF DIABETES MELLITUS IN SRI LANKA

Background: Over the last decade, extensive research work has focused on the potential health benefits of antioxidants while many medicinal plant extracts have been evaluated for their antioxidant profile. Medicinal plants selected for this study are widely used in traditional medicine for the treatment of diabetes mellitus in Sri Lanka some of which are recommended as dietary supplements to the existing therapies. The present study aimed at determining the total polyphenol contents and total antioxidant activities of aqueous extracts of 10 selected Sri Lankan medicinal plants by three in vitro methods; Materials and Methods: DPPH(2, 2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl), FRAP (ferric reducing power) and NO (nitric oxide) assays. The aqueous plant extracts were tested at the concentration of 0.05 g/mL. The total polyphenol content was determined according to the Folin-Ciocalteu method while the total antioxidant activity was evaluated by DPPH, FRAP and NO assays with L-ascorbic acid as reference compound. Results: The total polyphenol content of the plant extracts varied from 0.41 to 13.00 mg GAE (gallic acid equivalents) per gram dry weight. The antioxidant activities ranged in IC50 of 36.89-101.27 µg/mL, IC50 of 139.56-419.93 µg/mL, 0.12-8.98 µM for DPPH, NO, FRAP assays, respectively. A significant positive correlation was observed between total polyphenol content and antioxidant activities (P< 0.05). Conclusion: Phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of polyphenolic compounds, alkaloids and flavonoids in the plant materials which also possessed in vitro antioxidant potentials. Polyphenolic compounds contribute significantly to the total antioxidant capacities of medicinal plant extracts

The costs in provision of haemodialysis in a developing country: A multi-centered study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Chronic Kidney Disease is a major public health problem worldwide with enormous cost burdens on health care systems in developing countries. We aimed to provide a detailed analysis of the processes and costs of haemodialysis in Sri Lanka and provide a framework for modeling similar financial audits.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This prospective study was conducted at haemodialysis units of three public and two private hospitals in Sri Lanka for two months in June and July 2010. Cost of drugs and consumables for the three public hospitals were obtained from the price list issued by the Medical Supplies Division of the Department of Health Services, while for the two private hospitals they were obtained from financial departments of the respective hospitals. Staff wages were obtained from the hospital chief accountant/chief financial officers. The cost of electricity and water per month was calculated directly with the assistance of expert engineers. An apportion was done from the total hospital costs of administration, cleaning services, security, waste disposal and, laundry and sterilization for each unit.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The total number of dialysis sessions (hours) at the five hospitals for June and July were 3341 (12959) and 3386 (13301) respectively. Drug and consumables costs accounted for 70.4-84.9% of the total costs, followed by the wages of the nursing staff at each unit (7.8-19.7%). The mean cost of a dialysis session in Sri Lanka was LKR 6,377 (US$56). The annual cost of haemodialysis for a patient with chronic renal failure undergoing 2-3 dialysis session of four hours duration per week was LKR 663,208-994,812 (US$ 5,869-8,804). At one hospital where facilities are available for the re-use of dialyzers (although not done during study period) the cost of consumables would have come down from LKR 5,940,705 to LKR 3,368,785 (43% reduction) if the method was adopted, reducing costs of haemodialysis per hour from LKR 1,327 at present to LKR 892 (33% reduction).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This multi-centered study demonstrated that the costs of haemodialysis in a developing country remained significantly lower compared to developed countries. However, it still places a significant burden on the health care sector, whilst possibility of further cost reduction exists.</p

Scholarly Communication through e-Theses in Academic Libraries: Case Study from Regional Centre for Strategic Studies (RCSS) Library, Sri Lanka

<p> </p><p>ETDs provide unique content of university-generated information. It saves shelf space, serve more users at the same time, and provide more timely access. It can be built up browsing deep web and according to the subject interest of particular scholarly community. Undergraduates and other researchers can go through ETD repository of the institute before undertaking any new research study. It eventually becomes a part of the institutional repository. It helps them immensely to produce a valuable scholarly piece to the scholarly community in the world.</p><p><br></p><p> <br></p><p><br></p

Gmelina arborea Roxb. (Family: Verbenaceae) Extract Upregulates the β-Cell Regeneration in STZ Induced Diabetic Rats

Gmelina arborea Roxb. (common name: Et-demata, Family: Verbenaceae) has been used traditionally in Sri Lanka as a remedy against diabetes mellitus. The objective of the present study was to evaluate antidiabetic mechanisms of the aqueous bark extract of G. arborea in streptozotocin induced (STZ) diabetic male Wistar rats. Aqueous bark extract of G. arborea (1.00 g/kg) and glibenclamide as the standard drug (0.50 mg/kg) were administered orally using a gavage to STZ diabetic rats (65 mg/kg, ip) for 30 days. The antidiabetic mechanisms of aqueous extract of G. arborea (1.00 g/kg) were determined at the end of the experiment. The fasting blood glucose concentration was significantly lowered and the serum insulin and C-peptide concentrations were increased by 57% and 39% in plant extract treated rats on day 30, respectively (p<0.05). The histopathology and immunohistochemistry results of the plant extract treated group showed a regenerative effect on β-cells of the pancreas in diabetic rats. In addition, serum lipid parameters were improved in G. arborea extract treated diabetic rats. The results revealed that the aqueous stem bark extract of G. arborea (1.00 g/kg) showed beneficial effects against diabetes mellitus through upregulating the β-cell regeneration and biosynthesis of insulin in diabetic rats