A clinical study on nimesulide hepatotoxicity

Background: Hepatic injury can occur with the use of nimesulide, a non steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. This study was done to evaluate the hepatic and renal functions in patients with rheumatological complaints receiving nimesulide for 2 weeks.Methods: Fifty patients with rheumatological complaints treated at orthopaedic outpatient clinic of a tertiary care centre with nimesulide 100mg twice daily were enrolled in this study. The sociodemographic details, details of comorbidities, history of use of alcohol or tobacco, indication for treatment with nimesulide etc. were recorded in a predesigned proforma. All patients were followed up for two weeks and reviewed at the end of each week for any gastrointestinal adverse effects, changes in blood routine, liver function tests and renal function tests. Data collected was entered in Microsoft Excel 2010, analysed and results were expressed as mean and standard deviation.Results: Out of the fifty patients analysed, mean age was 39 years. 66 % were males. Among liver function tests, only serum albumin and serum aspartate aminotransferase (SGPT) were altered after treatment with nimesulide. Blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine and blood routine remained normal. No gastrointestinal adverse effects were noted.Conclusions: Nimesulide produced changes in serum albumin and SGPT levels without prominent gastrointestinal or renal adverse effects

Chemical composition of leaf oils of Myristica beddomeii (King), Myristica fragrans (Houtt.) and Myristica malabarica (Lamk.)

Essential oil constituents of leaves of three Myristica species namely, Myristica beddomeii, M. fragransand M. malabarica were determined by gas chromatography and gas chromatography-massspectrometry. M. fragrans was dominated by monoterpenes (91%), M.  beddomeii contained mono-(48%) and sesquiterpenes(35%) whereas M. malabarica was dominated by sesquiterpenes (73%).The leaf oil of M.  beddomeii was dominated by α-pinene (19.59%), t-caryophyllene (14.63%) andβ-pinene (12.46%).  The leaf oil of M. fragrans contained sabinene (19.07%), α-pinene (18.04%), 4-terpineol (11.83%), limonene (8.32%) and  β-pinene (7.92%) as major compounds, while t-caryophyllene (20.15%), α-humulene (10.17%), nerolidol (9.25%) and  δ-cadinene (6.72%) werepredominant in the oil of M. malabarica. Linalool, α-terpineol, t-caryophyllene, β-elemene and γ-elemene were present in all the three species. This is the first report on the essential oil compositionof M. beddomeii leaves. &nbsp

Small scale entrepreneurship in marine ornamentals: A profitable venture for employment

The trade of marine ornamentals has been expanding in recent years and has grown into a multimillion dollar enterprise mainly due to the emergence of modern aquarium gadgets and technologies for setting and maintenance of miniature reef aquaria. Aquarium keeping is amongst the most popular of hobbies with millions of enthusiasts worldwide and the trade of marine ornamentals has been expanding in recent years and grown into a multimillion dollar enterprise. The recent emergence of modern aquarium gadgets and technologies for setting and maintenance of miniature reef aquaria made the aquarium keeping much easier than previous. Since the marine ornamental trade is operated throughout the tropics, the global marine ornamental trade is estimated at US$ 200-330 million. India is endowed with a vast resource potential of marine ornamentals distributed in the coral seas and rocky coasts with patchy coral formations. In the context of the expanding global scenario and the increasing demand in the domestic trade, it appears very much lucrative for India to venture into this industry

Seed production of Clown Fishes

Ornamental fish production for the aquarium industry is a multimillion dollar industry in the world. Aquarium keeping is amongst the most popular of hobbies with millions of enthusiasts worldwide. Although most fish kept in aquariums are from freshwater, the acquisitions of marine ornamental fish has greatly increased in recent years and are also popularized through children’s movies by starring charismatic colorful fishes and other creatures. Recent advances in fish husbandry and aquarium gadgets and technology have further facilitated the hobby. The vast array of organisms that make up the generic ornamental aquarium fish trade is staggering. In India, marine ornamental fish trade is an emerging field during the last two decades and day by day the industry in advancing. As the industry is growing, it also foster additional sideline business such as aquarium making, aquatic plants and live food production, grow- out culture there by provide job opportunity and livelihood option

Telomere shortening occurs in Asian Indian Type 2 diabetic patients

Aim: Telomere shortening has been reported in several diseases including atherosclerosis and Type 1 diabetes. Asian Indians have an increased predilection for Type 2 diabetes and premature coronary artery disease. The aim of this study was to determine whether telomeric shortening occurs in Asian Indian Type 2 diabetic patients. Methods: Using Southern‐blot analysis we determined mean terminal restriction fragment (TRF) length, a measure of average telomere size, in leucocyte DNA. Type 2 diabetic patients without any diabetes‐related complications (n = 40) and age‐ and sex‐matched control non‐diabetic subjects (n = 40) were selected from the Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology Study (CURES). Plasma level of malondialdehyde (MDA), a marker of lipid peroxidation, was measured by TBARS (thiobarbituric acid reactive substances) using a fluorescence method. Results: Mean (± SE) TRF lengths of the Type 2 diabetic patients (6.01 ± 0.2 kb) were significantly shorter than those of the control subjects (9.11 ± 0.6 kb) (P = 0.0001). Among the biochemical parameters, only levels of TBARS showed a negative correlation with shortened telomeres in the diabetic subjects (r = −0.36; P = 0.02). However, telomere lengths were negatively correlated with insulin resistance (HOMA‐IR) (r = −0.4; P = 0.01) and age (r = −0.3; P = 0.058) and positively correlated with HDL levels (r = 0.4; P = 0.01) in the control subjects. Multiple linear regression (MLR) analysis revealed diabetes to be significantly (P < 0.0001) associated with shortening of TRF lengths. Conclusions: Telomere shortening occurs in Asian Indian Type 2 diabetic patients

Status of marine fisheries of Kerala

Kerala with a coastline of 590 km is a significant contributor to the total marine fish landings of the country. A picture of the marine fisheries sector in Kerala during the years 2005 and 2010 is presented below (Table 1). With a continental shelf of about 40,000 km2 marine fisheries plays a vital role in the livelihood of the people

Impact of Migration and Acculturation on Prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes and Related Eye Complications in Indians Living in a Newly Urbanised Society

Background: Health of migrants is a major public health challenge faced by governments and policy makers. Asian Indians are among the fastest growing migration groups across Asia and the world, but the impact of migration and acculturation on diabetes and diabetes-related eye complications among Indians living in urban Asia remains unclear. Methodologies/Principal Findings: We evaluated the influence of migration and acculturation (i.e., migration status and length of residence) on the prevalence of type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and diabetes-related eye complications (diabetic retinopathy (DR) and cataract), among first-generation (defined as participant born in India with both parents born in India, n = 781) and second-generation (participants born in Singapore with both parents born in India, n = 1,112) Indian immigrants from a population-based study of Adult Indians in Singapore. Diabetes was defined as HbA1c≥6.5%, use of diabetic medication or a physician diagnosis of diabetes. Retinal and lens photographs were graded for the presence of DR and cataract. Compared to first generation immigrants, second generation immigrants had a higher age- and gender-standardized prevalence of T2DM (34.4% versus 29.0%, p<0.001), and, in those with T2DM, higher age- and gender-standardized prevalence of DR (31.7% versus 24.8%, p<0.001), nuclear cataract (13.6% versus 11.6%, p<0.001), and posterior sub-capsular cataract (6.4% versus 4.6%, p<0.001). Among first generation migrants, longer length of residence was associated with significantly younger age of diagnosis of diabetes and greater likelihood of having T2DM and diabetes-related eye complications. Conclusion: Second generation immigrant Indians and longer length of residence are associated with higher prevalence of diabetes and diabetes-related complications (i.e., DR and cataract) among migrant Indians living in Singapore. These data highlight potential worldwide impacts of migration patterns on the risk and burden of diabetes

Short-Term Enrichment Makes Male Rats More Attractive, More Defensive and Alters Hypothalamic Neurons

Innate behaviors are shaped by contingencies built during evolutionary history. On the other hand, environmental stimuli play a significant role in shaping behavior. In particular, a short period of environmental enrichment can enhance cognitive behavior, modify effects of stress on learned behaviors and induce brain plasticity. It is unclear if modulation by environment can extend to innate behaviors which are preserved by intense selection pressure. In the present report we investigate this issue by studying effects of relatively short (14-days) environmental enrichment on two prominent innate behaviors in rats, avoidance of predator odors and ability of males to attract mates. We show that enrichment has strong effects on both the innate behaviors: a) enriched males were more avoidant of a predator odor than non-enriched controls, and had a greater rise in corticosterone levels in response to the odor; and b) had higher testosterone levels and were more attractive to females. Additionally, we demonstrate decrease in dendritic length of neurons of ventrolateral nucleus of hypothalamus, important for reproductive mate-choice and increase in the same in dorsomedial nucleus, important for defensive behavior. Thus, behavioral and hormonal observations provide evidence that a short period of environmental manipulation can alter innate behaviors, providing a good example of gene-environment interaction