Evaluation of Louisiana asphalt pavement friction

This study aims to comprehensively investigate the effect of asphalt mix designs to address skid resistance. The current Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (LADOTD) specification for friction design considers only the friction rating of aggregate defined by the polished stone value (PSV) obtained by the British pendulum tester (BPT), which is associated with only the micro-texture of asphalt pavement surfaces. The objective of this study is to recommend an asphalt surface friction mix design guideline which is based on both micro- and macro-texture of the wearing course mix. The objective was achieved by evaluating four typical laboratory prepared Louisiana asphalt mix designs, each with three different aggregate blends. The polishing and texture properties of aggregates were characterized by the British pendulum tester, micro-deval test, and aggregate imaging system (AIMS). The micro- and macro-texture of the asphalt mix surface were evaluated with a dynamic friction tester (DFT) and circular texture meter (CTM) at different polishing cycles and test speeds. The results were combined into International Friction Index (IFI). The DFT measurements were found to be sensitive to the coarse aggregate type (micro-texture) and CTM measurements were sensitive to the mix design (aggregate gradation). Further, an inventory dataset of locked wheel skid tester (LWST) measured field skid-number (SN) was obtained from the LADOTD’s Materials Laboratory. The dataset was analyzed to determine the effects of traffic loading, aggregate, and mixture types on the measured SN values. The laboratory results indicated that the overall skid resistance of an asphalt mixture depends on both micro- and macro-texture, and it is possible to design an asphalt mix with the combination of high friction mixture and low friction aggregate or vice-versa. The study also showed that blending of low and high friction aggregates together can possibly produce an asphalt mixture with an adequate field skid resistance. An attempt was also made to estimate the friction threshold values for Louisiana pavements. Finally, a set of predictive models were developed to recommend an asphalt friction mix design procedure for Louisiana pavements

Neurodegeneration with Brain Iron Accumulation: Two Additional Cases with Dystonic Opisthotonus

Background: Specific phenomenology and pattern of involvement in movement disorders point toward a probable clinical diagnosis. For example, forehead chorea usually suggests Huntington’s disease; feeding dystonia suggests neuroacanthocytosis and risus sardonicus is commonly seen in Wilson’s disease. Dystonic opisthotonus has been described as a characteristic feature of neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation (NBIA) related to PANK2 and PLA2G6 mutations. Case report: We describe two additional patients in their 30s with severe extensor truncal dystonia causing opisthotonic posturing in whom evaluation revealed the diagnosis of NBIA confirmed by genetic testing. Discussion: Dystonic opisthotonus may be more common in NBIA than it is reported and its presence especially in a young patient should alert the neurologists to a possibility of probable NBIA

Vascular mediators in chronic lung disease of infancy: role of endothelial monocyte activating polypeptide II (EMAP II)

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic lung disease of prematurity. Over the years, the BPD phenotype has evolved, but despite various advances in neonatal management approaches, the reduction in the BPD burden is minimal. With the advent of surfactant, glucocorticoids, and new ventilation strategies, BPD has evolved from a disease of structural injury into a new BPD, marked by an arrest in alveolar growth in the lungs of extremely premature infants. This deficient alveolar growth has been associated with a diminution of pulmonary vasculature. Several investigators have described the epithelial / vascular co-dependency and the significant role of crosstalk between vessel formation, alveologenesis, and lung dysplasia's; hence identification and study of factors that regulate pulmonary vascular emergence and inflammation has become crucial in devising effective therapeutic approaches for this debilitating condition. The potent antiangiogenic and proinflammatory protein Endothelial Monocyte Activating Polypeptide II (EMAP II) has been described as a mediator of pulmonary vascular and alveolar formation and its expression is inversely related to the periods of vascularization and alveolarization in the developing lung. Hence the study of EMAP II could play a vital role in studying and devising appropriate therapeutics for diseases of aberrant lung development, such as BPD. Herein, we review the vascular contribution to lung development and the implications that vascular mediators such as EMAP II have in distal lung formation during the vulnerable stage of alveolar genesis

An Unusual Cause of Camptocormia

Background: Camptocormia is defined as forward flexion of the spine that manifests during walking and standing and disappears in recumbent position. The various etiologies include idiopathic Parkinson’s disease, multiple system atrophy, myopathies, degenerative joint disease, and drugs. Case Report: A 67-year-old diabetic female presented with bradykinesia and camptocormia that started 1 year prior to presentation. Evaluation revealed levosulpiride, a dopamine receptor blocker commonly used for dyspepsia, to be the culprit. Discussion: It is well known that dopamine receptor blockers cause parkinsonism and tardive syndromes. We report a rare and unusual presentation of camptocormia attributed to this commonly used gastrointestinal drug in the Asian population

Evaluating the impact of comprehensive epilepsy education programme for school teachers in Chandigarh city, India

AbstractPurposeSchool teachers can play a key role in the first-aid management of school children experiencing a seizure. The teachers have a pivotal role in disseminating knowledge to the children of diseases experienced by them and developing positive attitudes among the children regarding the diseases. The present study investigated the knowledge and practices used by teachers to manage epileptic seizures. The study also tested an epilepsy intervention educational package to see whether it improved the knowledge and practices of the teachers regarding epilepsy.MethodsA total of 85 teachers in schools from Chandigarh, a city of northern India, participated in the study. At the start of the study the teachers completed a pre-tested, semi-structured questionnaire on the first-aid management of epileptic seizures. They were then presented with an intervention package that included audio-visual material on basic aspects of epilepsy. The teachers were then retested after the intervention (one immediately and another after three months from the intervention). A scoring system was devised to quantify the knowledge, attitude and skills of teachers.ResultsMore than 90% of the teachers had previously either heard or read about epilepsy. Nearly half of the teachers said that books and magazines were the most common source of their information, followed by the internet. A comparison of the knowledge, attitudes and skills about the first-aid management of epilepsy based on the before and after questionnaire scores showed significant improvements in the various domains (p<0.05).ConclusionThe epilepsy intervention educational package provided a positive, short term, impact on the knowledge and skills of teachers about epilepsy. There is a need for regular workshops to improve and reinforce the knowledge and skills of the teachers about health problems like epilepsy

The Use of Bio‐Agents for Management of Potato Diseases

Potato is an important food crop in the world as well as in India. It is being affected by different pathogens, viz. fungi, bacteria, viruses and nematodes. These pathogens may cause significant yield losses of the crop, if proper protection measures have not been applied. Among potato pathogens, Phytophthora infestans, Alternaria solani, Rhizoctonia solani and Fusarium spp. are the major pathogens in the fungal group, whereas Ralstonia solanacearum, Pectobacterium spp. and Streptomyces spp. are in the bacterial group. For management of these pathogens, various methods, that is, chemical control, biological control, resistant varieties, cultural control and physical control, are applied. Resistant varieties are the best and cheapest method for managing the diseases. However resistant varieties are break down their resistant over the years and moreover against some pathogen absolute resistant are not available. Chemical management is the second best option for managing the diseases, due to continuous and irrational use of the chemicals; pathogens have developed resistance against certain class of fungicides/bactericides. Moreover, these chemicals also assist in environmental pollution and toxicity in the produce. Bio‐agents are naturally occurring living organisms, which are found in rhizosphere, phylloplane, etc. These bio‐agents help in not only managing the diseases but also increasing the crop yield. Therefore, the use of bio‐agents for biological management of potato crops is the focused research area worldwide

Reconstructing an ancestral genotype of two hexachlorocyclohexane-degrading Sphingobium species using metagenomic sequence data.

Over the last 60 years, the use of hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) as a pesticide has resulted in the production of &gt;4 million tons of HCH waste, which has been dumped in open sinks across the globe. Here, the combination of the genomes of two genetic subspecies (Sphingobium japonicum UT26 and Sphingobium indicum B90A; isolated from two discrete geographical locations, Japan and India, respectively) capable of degrading HCH, with metagenomic data from an HCH dumpsite (∼450 mg HCH per g soil), enabled the reconstruction and validation of the last-common ancestor (LCA) genotype. Mapping the LCA genotype (3128 genes) to the subspecies genomes demonstrated that &gt;20% of the genes in each subspecies were absent in the LCA. This includes two enzymes from the 'upper' HCH degradation pathway, suggesting that the ancestor was unable to degrade HCH isomers, but descendants acquired lin genes by transposon-mediated lateral gene transfer. In addition, anthranilate and homogentisate degradation traits were found to be strain (selectively retained only by UT26) and environment (absent in the LCA and subspecies, but prevalent in the metagenome) specific, respectively. One draft secondary chromosome, two near complete plasmids and eight complete lin transposons were assembled from the metagenomic DNA. Collectively, these results reinforce the elastic nature of the genus Sphingobium, and describe the evolutionary acquisition mechanism of a xenobiotic degradation phenotype in response to environmental pollution. This also demonstrates for the first time the use of metagenomic data in ancestral genotype reconstruction, highlighting its potential to provide significant insight into the development of such phenotypes

An Unusual And Intriguing Presentation Of Sydenham’s Chorea

A 26-year-old male born of a non-consanguineous marriage with normal birth and developmental history presented with abnormal movements for the last 15 years. He first noticed changes in his handwriting. The movements were jerky, non-stereotyped, and were associated with violent flinging movements. They were not preceded by any premonitory urge and were only partially suppressible. The movements gradually progressed to involve the face and neck, and, over the next 5 years, became generalized. His parents also complained of behavioral disturbances such as hyperactivity, aggressiveness, and obsessive-compulsive behavior. There was no history of cognitive decline, psychosis, seizures, or myoclonic jerks. Family history was non-contributory. There was no history of rheumatic fever, vasculitis, or exposure to toxins. The patient suffered frequent throat infections until the age of 5 years. He had been previously prescribed multiple medications, without significant improvement (tetrabenazine, haloperidol, valproate, clonazepam in various combinations). This letter shows an unusual presentation of Sydenham’s chorea lasting more than 15 years and highlight the utility of antineuronal antibodies in such a scenario

A rare case of bilateral bifid ribs: a case report

Bilateral bifid (bifurcation) rib is very rare malformation of thoracic wall. In this case, we observed variation involving right 6th and left 7th rib in 21 year female. The right 6th and 7th rib and its costal cartilage were bifurcated enclosing a small oval additional intercostal space

Case of foreign body as a broom handle in the rectum

A 68 yrs old male patient with a foreign body (broom handle cover 11’inch) introduced as sexual perversion presented with lower abdominal pain, the management emphasis is a transanally retrieval and ruling out of rectal and colonic perforation under colonoscopy guidance under local anesthesia in pad