VALIDATED STABILITY INDICATING HIGH PERFORMANCE LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHIC METHOD FOR THE QUANTIFICATION OF ASENAPINE MALEATE

Objective: A stability indicating high performance liquid chromatography method using the photodiode array detector is developed and validated for the analysis of asenapine in bulk and in its tablet formulation. Methods: The method utilized a BDS Y Persil C18 (250 x 4.6 mm, 5 µm) column with 0.1% orthophosphoric acid and methanol (65:35 v/v) as mobile phase. The analysis was performed at 30 oC column temperature with a flow rate of 1 ml/min and detection at 227 nm. The method was validated for specificity, sensitivity, precision, linearity, accuracy and robustness. Asenapine was subjected to stress degradation studies under acidic, basic, oxidative, thermal and photolytic conditions. Results: Under optimized experimental conditions, asenapine was eluted from the column at a retention time of 6.781 min. The method was linear in the range of 100-300 µg/ml. The linear regression data showed good relationship (correlation coefficient (R2) = 0.9999). The relative standard deviation and mean recovery values were within limits. The analytical performance of the method was not affected when small variations in the experimental parameters were made. Degradation products resulting from stress degradation studies did not interfere with the detection of asenapine. Conclusion: The proposed stability indicting high performance liquid chromatography method is sensitive, precise, accurate, robust and specific. This method can be used for quantification of asenapine in bulk drug and in tablet dosage form in the presence of its stress degradation products

Geriatric prescription analysis with respect to “STOPP” and “START” criteria: a descriptive study in the Indian scenario

Background: Patients; sixty-five years of age and above, are a special risk group as far as drug prescribing is concerned. Prescription irregularities in such patients may be hazardous. STOPP/START criteria are considered as the most up to-date set of explicit criteria for evaluating geriatric prescriptions. To analyse geriatric prescriptions in a tertiary care centre with respect to STOPP/START criteria and WHO core drug prescribing indicators so as to get an idea of pattern of drug prescription in geriatric patients as well as frequency of potentially inappropriate prescriptions. Descriptive cross-sectional study in a tertiary care hospital.Methods: All inpatients aged 65 years and above who were prescribed at least one allopathic medication and consented to participate in the study were included and patients admitted for medical emergencies were excluded. Demographic data and details of drugs prescribed were collected from prescription chits and indoor case papers.Results: There was a high frequency of polypharmacy, prescription of antimicrobials and injections. Proportion of patients receiving at least one potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) as per STOPP criteria was 21.01%. Proportion of patients subjected to at least one potential prescribing omission (PPO) as per START criteria was 33.33%. Proportion of patients exposed to potentially inappropriate drug prescriptions as a whole (PIPs=PIMs+PPOs) was 46.37%. Statistical analysis used as descriptive statistics like numbers and percentages were used for data analysis.Conclusions: With regards to geriatric prescribing, adherence to WHO core prescribing indicators, prescription of drugs as per STOPP and START guidelines are indicative of scope for improvement

A study of adverse drug reactions in patients receiving treatment for multi-drug resistant tuberculosis

Background: A high frequency of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) is one of the major challenges in the treatment of Multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). Patients may refuse to continue treatment if ADRs are not properly addressed, drugs may be stopped unnecessarily and treatment may be terminated prematurely by inexperienced health workers, resulting in a high proportion of failure.Methods: Patients diagnosed for MDR-TB and registered in Drug Resistant TB centre (DR-TB) of tertiary care hospital during period of July 2014 to June 2015 were enrolled in the study. Data of patients hospitalized for the complaints of ADR in DR-TB centre during study period was collected.Results: Out of 468 patients, 60 (12.82%) patients developed at least one adverse reaction and were hospitalised for the same. Among 109 reported ADRs, Gastrointestinal upset was the most common ADR reported (5.98%) followed by psychosis (4.91%) and ototoxicity (2.99%).Conclusions: The health providers, the patients and their relatives should be sensitised about these ADRs for early detection and treatment. It can also be suggested that the setup of DR-TB centre should be integrated with psychiatry and ENT specialities, with all the provisions of early detection of ADR and treatment

Improving access to medicines for non-communicable diseases in rural India: a mixed methods study protocol using quasi-experimental design

Exit interview tool. Exit interview tool used in baseline survey of the ATM study. (PDF 150 kb

Experimental Study of a Tilt Single Slope Solar Still Integrated with Aluminum Condensate Plate

The low freshwater productivity of a conventional solar still is considered a challenge for researchers due to the high temperature of the glass cover or basin water depth. In current work, a newly designed solar still was suggested according to the climatic conditions of Yekaterinburg/Russia, which included an enhanced condensation and evaporation process by spraying a thin water film on a hot absorber plate and then passing the generated water vapor by free convection over the aluminum plate (low temperature). The distillation system under study was tested during July 2020 and 29 July was chosen as a typical day from 08:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. The results showed that the largest amount of water vapor condenses on the aluminum plate (about 46%), and the rest condenses on the glass cover. This means that the aluminum plate effectively improved productivity due to the flow of humid air naturally (free convection) on the aluminum plate (its surface temperature was lower than that of the glass cover). The cost analytical calculations showed that the cost of producing one liter of distilled water from the suggested solar still was 0.063$. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

STUDIES ON GENETIC VARIABILITY IN DAHLIA (Dahlia variabilis L.)

ABSTRACT Twenty five dahlia accessions were evaluated to ascertain genetic parameters of variability. Phenotypic coefficients of variation (PCV) were higher than genotypic coefficients of variation (GCV) for all the characters studied. However higher PCV and GCV estimates were found for stalk length of the flower, duration of flowering, number of ray florets/flower and individual flower weight. High heritability with high genetic advance was observed for vase life, diameter of flower, stalk length of the flower and individual flower weight

Development of Optimized Maintenance Program for a Steam Boiler System Using Reliability-Centered Maintenance Approach

Reliability centered maintenance (RCM) is a new strategic framework for evaluating system maintenance requirements in its operating conditions. Some industries employ predictive maintenance strategies in addition to preventive maintenance (PM) strategies, which increase production costs. As the breakdown maintenance (BDM) technique is used, the maintenance cost increases. The RCM approach is a mixture of these maintenance strategies that can be used to optimize the maintenance costs and to ensure the availability of the system. The RCM method was applied to the steam boiler system used in the textile industries for the research work reported in this paper. The RCM methodology stated in the literature cannot be implemented, as it is in Indian textile industries due to the lack of knowledge of RCM principles, a labor-oriented nature, the use of partially computerized information systems, an inadequate maintenance database, and information about maintenance costs and production loss. To resolve these issues, a modified RCM approach involving a large number of experts is developed. To apply this RCM methodology, critical components are identified through reliability and failure mode effect and criticality analysis (FMECA). Finally, scheduled maintenance strategies and their intervals are recommended to ensure that the system continues to operate properly. According to this study, implementing the RCM technique effectively will increase boiler system reliability and availability by 28.15 percent and 0.16 percent, respectively. Additionally, up to 20.32 percent of the maintenance cost can be saved annually by applying these scheduled maintenance programs. © 2022 by the authors

Wireless Communications at 60 GHz: A Single-Chip Solution on CMOS Technology

Non

A New Maximum Power Point Tracking Technique for Thermoelectric Generator Modules

Thermoelectric generators (TEGs) are devices that convert heat into electricity. This paper is about the design of a Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) technique for a TEG module. The module is built using 204 TEGs connected in series. It is connected to the load through a DC/DC boost converter. The MPPT technique used in this work is the Interval Type 2 Fuzzy Logic Controller (IT2FLC). To verify its performance, the IT2FLC is compared with a traditional Perturb and Observe (P&O) MPPT algorithm in the case of power and voltage response at steady state, load switching, and through various ranges of temperature differences (∆T). The TEG module is modeled and the whole system is simulated successfully using MATLAB SIMULINK R2017a. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Fine mapping studies identified a 113 kb region within “QTL-hotspot_a” for seed weight and drought related traits in chickpea

A “QTL-hotspot” region of 7 Mb size for drought component traits was identified on CaLG04, using a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population (ICC 4958 × ICC 1882) in chickpea. Further, skimbased genotyping by sequencing (GBS) approach with large SNP markers delimited the “QTL-hotspot” region into two sub-regions; viz, “QTL-hotspot_a” of 139.22 kb and “QTL-hotspot_b” of 153.36 kb, on the kabuli draft genome sequence. In order to validate and identify more recombinations in the sub-regions for further refinement, a fine mapping population with 1,911 lines was developed. Flanking markers of the two “QTL-hotspot” sub-regions were converted to KASPar assays and used to screen the fine mapping population consisting of 1,911 lines. As a result, 19 F2:3 recombinant families were identified. These families were phenotyped for seed weight and other drought-related traits. Comparison of genotype and phenotype data identified a genomic region of ~113 Kb size within “QTL-hotspot_a” responsible for 100 seed weight (100SDW) and other drought-related traits in chickpea. Subsequently, a syntenic study between the refined “QTL-hotpsot” region and desi genome identified a 2 Mb region on Ca_LG_4 pseudomolecule. Whole genome re-sequencing (WGRS) analysis of selected lines from each recombinant family identified several non-synonymous and InDel mutations within important candidate genes. Functional validation of these genes will help decipher the mechanism of drought stress tolerance in chickpea