Intellectual Property Law - Kendall-Jackson Winery v. E. & J. Gallo Winery

In Kendall-Jackson v. Gallo,l the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that grape leaf designs on wine bottles are not protected as trademarks under the Lanham Trademark Act because of widespread use in the industry. Accordingly, the Ninth Circuit upheld the district court\u27s decision to grant Gallo\u27s summary judgment motion in favor of Gallo

Color in Pharma: Color Associations and Expected Efficacies

Colors influence our daily perceptions and expectations which can manifest in a variety of ways. This research has three main objectives: the first is to demonstrate this effect on the relationship between the colors of pills and their perceived and expected efficacies. The second is to test this effect on a wide variety of demographics, thereby demonstrating that categories such as ethnicity, location, age, gender, educational levels, and pill usage frequency can influence the choices made by participants. Finally, the third objective is to understand the reasoning behind the choices made by participants, as well as the color associations exhibited. The stimuli colors chosen in this research are blue, green, red, white, and yellow, and the efficacies of interest are sedative, stimulant, anti-anxiety, pain-relief, and hallucinogenic. This research does not involve the intake of drugs by participants, but rather collects data via surveys. Three surveys were run separately over a span of 18 months. The first survey was conducted physically at two of RIT’s global campuses: USA and UAE on standardized iPad devices. The second survey was done online and covered four of RIT’s global campuses: USA, UAE, Croatia, and Kosovo. The third survey was launched online at five RIT global campuses: USA, UAE, Croatia, Kosovo, and China. While there were some clear patterns and similarities identified in the results, differences were also apparent across the various demographics considered in this study. It is evident that four out of the six efficacies tested had a strong association with a particular color, while the results of the remaining two efficacies varied based on different demographics. The strongest and most consistent color associations were those of white with pain relief and red with stimulant efficacies. The emerged patterns will help pharmaceutical companies, as well as medical practitioners, to better design and prescribe drugs, thus maximizing the effects of the pills on patients overall, and increasing their compliance rates

Diabetic retinopathy: an Indian perspective

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) can be defined as damage to microvascular system in the retina due to prolonged hyperglycaemia. The prevalence of DR in the Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology (CURES) Eye Study in south India was 17.6 per cent, significantly lower than age-matched western counterparts. However, due to the large number of diabetic subjects, DR is likely to pose a public health burden in India. CURES Eye study showed that the major systemic risk factors for onset and progression of DR are duration of diabetes, degree of glycaemic control and hyperlipidaemia. Hypertension did not play a major role in this cross-sectional analysis. The role of oxidative stress, atherosclerotic end points and genetic factors in susceptibility to DR has been studied. It was found that DR was associated with increased intima-media thickness and arterial stiffness in type 2 Indian diabetic subjects suggesting that common pathogenic mechanisms might predispose to diabetic microangiopathy. Curcumin, an active ingredient of turmeric, has been shown to inhibit proliferation of retinal endothelial cells in vivo. Visual disability from DR is largely preventable if managed with timely intervention by laser. It has been clearly demonstrated that in type 2 south Indian diabetic patients with proliferative DR who underwent Pan retinal photocoagulation, 73 per cent eyes with good visual acuity (6/9) at baseline maintained the same vision at 1 yr follow up. There is evidence that DR begins to develop years before the clinical diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. Our earlier study demonstrated that DR is present in 7 per cent of newly diagnosed subjects, hence routine retinal screening for DR even at the time of diagnosis of type 2 diabetes may help in optimized laser therapy. Annual retinal examination and early detection of DR can considerably reduce the risk of visual loss in diabetic individuals

Synchronous fruit splitting in nutmeg using plant growth regulators

In this study, a simple technique with hormone treatment was developed for synchronous splitting (ripening) of nutmeg fruits. The methodology involves harvesting physiologically mature fruits, dipping the harvested fruits in 500 ppm ethrel (2-chloroethylphosphonic acid) solution for 10 minutes, and then storing them in shade. By this method, 90 to 100 per cent fruits split in 18 to 20 hours. Width of the split which helps in easy separation of nut from fruit pericarp was on par with that of naturally split fruits. The dry recovery, nut to mace ratio and fresh and dry weight of the nut and mace of the treated fruits were comparable with naturally split fruits. The intrinsic quality i.e., oil, oleoresin and moisture content of nut and mace of treated fruits were on par with that of naturally split fruits. This indicates that nut and mace of treated fruits had similar physical and intrinsic quality parameters as that of naturally split fruits. The advantage of the method is that it is very effective in preventing aflatoxin (mycotoxin) contamination of nut and mace due to soil contact of naturally split fruits that fall on the ground. The method for synchronous fruit splitting in nutmeg is very simple and can be easily practiced by farmers. It also saves time, labour and money both for harvesting and processing of nutmeg. The cost of ethrel treatment would be around ` 800 per ton of fruit. This is the first report on the induction of synchronous and uniform fruit splitting (ripening) of pre-split harvested fruits in nutmeg

Differential gene expression of NADPH oxidase (p22phox) and hemoxygenase-1 in patients with Type 2 diabetes and microangiopathy

Aims: While the downstream effects of increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the pathogenesis of diabetes were well studied, only a few studies have explored the cellular sources of ROS. We examined whether protection against oxidative stress is altered in patients with diabetes and microangiopathy by examining changes in NADPH oxidase (p22phox) and hemoxygenase‐1 (HO‐1) levels. Methods: NADPH oxidase (p22phox) and HO‐1 gene expression were probed by RT‐PCR using leucocytes from patients with Type 2 diabetes without (n = 19) and with microangiopathy (n = 20) and non‐diabetic subjects (n = 17). Levels of lipid peroxidation as measured by thiobarbituric reactive substances (TBARS) and protein carbonyl content (PCO) were determined by fluorimetric and spectrophotometric methods, respectively. Results: p22phox gene expression (mean ± se) was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in diabetic patients with (0.99 ± 0.04) and without microangiopathy (0.86 ± 0.05) compared with control subjects (0.66 ± 0.05). Consistent with the mRNA data, the p22phox protein expression and NADPH oxidase activity was also increased in cells from diabetic patients compared with control subjects. However, HO‐1 gene expression was significantly (P < 0.05) lower in patients with (0.73 ± 0.03) and without microangiopathy (0.85 ± 0.02) compared with control subjects (1.06 ± 0.03). The mean (± se) levels of TBARS were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in diabetic patients with (14.36 ± 1.3 nm/ml) and without microangiopathy (12.20 ± 1.3 nm/ml) compared with control subjects (8.58 ± 0.7 nm/ml). The protein carbonyl content was also significantly (P < 0.05) higher in diabetic patients with (1.02 ± 0.04 nmol/mg protein) and without microangiopathy (0.84 ± 0.06 nmol/mg protein) compared with control subjects (0.48 ± 0.02 nmol/mg protein). In diabetic subjects, increased p22phox gene expression was negatively correlated with HO‐1 and positively correlated with TBARS, PCO, HbA1c and diabetes duration. In contrast, HO‐1 gene expression was correlated negatively with p22phox, TBARS, PCO, HbA1c and diabetes duration. Conclusion: Our results indicate that increased oxidative damage is seen in Asian Indians with Type 2 diabetes and microangiopathy and is associated with increased NADPH oxidase (p22phox) and decreased HO‐1 gene expression

Sex change of hatchery produced Amphiprion ocellaris: Influence of mating system removal on gonad maturation and nesting success

The influence of gonadal maturation and nesting success of the anemone fish Amphiprion ocellaris was analyzed through mating system removal. Four experiments viz., (i) Sex change of active male to female in the absence of active female, (ii) Juveniles in the presence of a functional male that was changing sex from male to female, (iii) Juvenile in the presence of a functional female, and (iv) Same length group juvenile fishes (total length: 50 mm) without the presence of adult fishes, were carried out. The gonad of male in experiment (i) showed first perceptible sign of sex inversion after 1 to 2 weeks. After 25 weeks the testicular zone almost disappeared and the gonad looked like maturing ovary with perivitellogenic oocytes and oocytes at various stages of development. The gonad of juveniles in the second experiment showed increased testicular development after 23 to 24 weeks, and testicular area became clearly discernible after 30 weeks. In the third experiment, the gonad of juvenile completed its spermatogenesis after 15 to 16 weeks and showed well-developed testicular zones. In the fourth experiment, the gonad of largest fish showed development of ovarian part after 24 weeks with oogonia and oocytes at various stages, and degeneration of testicular tissues. The observation of nesting success in the above experimental groups showed that spawning was obtained in the third group after 4 months of association; and after 12 to 18 months in the first and second groups, and after 20 to 24 months in the fourth group. The present study shows that in the absence or disappearance of adult female, the active male changes sex to female within a period of 25 weeks. The study also confirms that in the clownfish A. ocellaris, the largest and socially dominant fish in a host sea anemone (Heteractis magnifica) is generally female, whose gonads are functional ovaries with remnants of degenerated testicular tissues. The second largest fish in the same group is an active male and has gonad that are functioning testis but also possess non-functioning or latent ovarian cells (ovotestis). If the dominant female dies or is experimentally removed from the "queue", the male not only changes sex but also grows at an accelerated rate, and the juveniles also grow faster to become male and fill the size gap of the social group. This adaptation allows continuous reproduction. It is found that social structure plays an important role on the sex changing mechanism

Oxidative DNA damage and augmentation of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase/nuclear factor-kappa B signaling in patients with Type 2 diabetes and microangiopathy

Although oxidative stress and the subsequent DNA damage is one of the obligatory signals for poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) activation and nuclear factor-kappa B (NFκB) alterations, these molecular aspects have not been collectively examined in epidemiological and clinical settings. Therefore, this study attempts to assess the oxidative DNA damage and its downstream effector signals in peripheral blood lymphocytes from Type 2 diabetes subjects without and with microangiopathy along with age-matched non-diabetic subjects. The basal DNA damage, lipid peroxidation and protein carbonyl content were significantly (p < 0.05) higher in patients with and without microangiopathy compared to control subjects. Formamido Pyrimidine Glycosylase (FPG)-sensitive DNA strand breaks which represents reliable indicator of oxidative DNA damage were also significantly (p < 0.001) higher in diabetic patients with (19.41 ± 2.5) and without microangiopathy (16.53 ± 2.0) compared to control subjects (1.38 ± 0.85). Oxidative DNA damage was significantly correlated to poor glycemic control. PARP mRNA expression and PARP activity were significantly (p < 0.05) increased in cells from diabetic patients with (0.31 ± 0.03 densitometry units; 0.22 ± 0.02 PARP units/mg protein, respectively) and without (0.35 ± 0.02; 0.42 ± 0.05) microangiopathy compared to control (0.19 ± 0.02; 0.11 ± 0.02) subjects. Diabetic subjects with and without microangiopathy exhibited a significantly (p < 0.05) higher (80%) NFκB binding activity compared to control subjects. In diabetic patients, FPG-sensitive DNA strand breaks correlated positively with PARP gene expression, PARP activity and NFκB binding activity. This study provides a comprehensive molecular evidence for increased oxidative stress and genomic instability in Type 2 diabetic subjects even prior to vascular pathology and hence reveals a window of opportunity for early therapeutic intervention

Prevalence of bacterial vaginosis among reproductive age group women in a tertiary care centre

Background: Vaginal discharge in reproductive age poses a serious problem in the developing countries. Bacterial vaginosis also known as non-specific vaginitis is the most common cause of vaginal infections, detecting the organism at an early stage and initiating a proper treatment is very difficult in our country due to lack of awareness and proper follow-up. The disease manifests in the form of vaginal discharge with or without itching. It has a strong association with preterm labor, preterm premature rupture of membranes and low birth weight in pregnancy. The objective of this study was to find out the prevalence of bacterial vaginosis among the reproductive age group women, in a tertiary care centre.Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 150 women of the reproductive age group in the department of obstetrics and gynaecology Sree Mookambika Institute of Medical Sciences over a period of one month October 2018 the diagnosis was made with history and nugents scoring system.Results: Out of the total 150 women enrolled in the study 74 had positive results, 50% of them were of the age group 26-30.Conclusions: The study shows us the high prevalence of bacterial vaginosis

Captive Breeding and Seed Production of Marine Ornamental Fishes of India

The marine ornamental fishes are one of the most popular attractions in world wide due to their adaptability to live in confinement. Over the past decade, globally the marine aquarium industry has undergone a significant transformation and this industry is readily growing day by day due to their high commercial value