42 research outputs found
Effect of Neem Oil on Sperm Mitochondrial Activity
It is a known fact that neem oil has some effect on motility of sperm. Motility of sperm depends on mitochondrial activity present in mid-piece of sperm. In the present study, the mitochondrial activity of sperm was evaluated after treating semen with the different quantities of neem oil. The mitochondrial activity was also evaluated after subjecting the semen samples for different incubation periods keeping the quantity of semen as well as that of neem oil same. Tests were done on thirty normozoospermic semen samples with motile score more than 75%. It was found that as the quantity of neem oil increases, the mitochondrial activity decreases significantly (P < 0.001). Similar results were found, when same quantity of neem oil was treated with same quantity of semen, but incubating for different time durations. The mitochondrial activity decreases significantly (P < 0.001) from one minute to twenty minutes. So, it indicates that as the contact period between neem oil and semen increases the mitochondrial activity decreases significantl
XQR-30: The ultimate XSHOOTER quasar sample at the reionization epoch
The final phase of the reionization process can be probed by rest-frame UV absorption spectra of quasars at z ≳ 6, shedding light on the properties of the diffuse intergalactic medium within the first Gyr of the Universe. The ESO Large Programme 'XQR-30: the ultimate XSHOOTER legacy survey of quasars at z ≃ 5.8-6.6' dedicated ∼250 h of observations at the VLT to create a homogeneous and high-quality sample of spectra of 30 luminous quasars at z ∼6, covering the rest wavelength range from the Lyman limit to beyond the Mg ii emission. Twelve quasar spectra of similar quality from the XSHOOTER archive were added to form the enlarged XQR-30 sample, corresponding to a total of ∼350 h of on-source exposure time. The median effective resolving power of the 42 spectra is R ≃ 11 400 and 9800 in the VIS and NIR arm, respectively. The signal-to-noise ratio per 10 km s-1 pixel ranges from ∼11 to 114 at λ ≃ 1285 Å rest frame, with a median value of ∼29. We describe the observations, data reduction, and analysis of the spectra, together with some first results based on the E-XQR-30 sample. New photometry in the H and K bands are provided for the XQR-30 quasars, together with composite spectra whose characteristics reflect the large absolute magnitudes of the sample. The composite and the reduced spectra are released to the community through a public repository, and will enable a range of studies addressing outstanding questions regarding the first Gyr of the Universe
An update of the Worldwide Integrated Assessment (WIA) on systemic insecticides. Part 2: impacts on organisms and ecosystems
New information on the lethal and sublethal effects of neonicotinoids and fipronil on organisms is presented in this review, complementing the previous WIA in 2015. The high toxicity of these systemic insecticides to invertebrates has been confirmed and expanded to include more species and compounds. Most of the recent research has focused on bees and the sublethal and ecological impacts these insecticides have on pollinators. Toxic effects on other invertebrate taxa also covered predatory and parasitoid natural enemies and aquatic arthropods. Little, while not much new information has been gathered on soil organisms. The impact on marine coastal ecosystems is still largely uncharted. The chronic lethality of neonicotinoids to insects and crustaceans, and the strengthened evidence that these chemicals also impair the immune system and reproduction, highlights the dangers of this particular insecticidal classneonicotinoids and fipronil. , withContinued large scale – mostly prophylactic – use of these persistent organochlorine pesticides has the potential to greatly decreasecompletely eliminate populations of arthropods in both terrestrial and aquatic environments. Sublethal effects on fish, reptiles, frogs, birds and mammals are also reported, showing a better understanding of the mechanisms of toxicity of these insecticides in vertebrates, and their deleterious impacts on growth, reproduction and neurobehaviour of most of the species tested. This review concludes with a summary of impacts on the ecosystem services and functioning, particularly on pollination, soil biota and aquatic invertebrate communities, thus reinforcing the previous WIA conclusions (van der Sluijs et al. 2015)
Approaches in biotechnological applications of natural polymers
Natural polymers, such as gums and mucilage, are biocompatible, cheap, easily available and non-toxic materials of native origin. These polymers are increasingly preferred over synthetic materials for industrial applications due to their intrinsic properties, as well as they are considered alternative sources of raw materials since they present characteristics of sustainability, biodegradability and biosafety. As definition, gums and mucilages are polysaccharides or complex carbohydrates consisting of one or more monosaccharides or their derivatives linked in bewildering variety of linkages and structures. Natural gums are considered polysaccharides naturally occurring in varieties of plant seeds and exudates, tree or shrub exudates, seaweed extracts, fungi, bacteria, and animal sources. Water-soluble gums, also known as hydrocolloids, are considered exudates and are pathological products; therefore, they do not form a part of cell wall. On the other hand, mucilages are part of cell and physiological products. It is important to highlight that gums represent the largest amounts of polymer materials derived from plants. Gums have enormously large and broad applications in both food and non-food industries, being commonly used as thickening, binding, emulsifying, suspending, stabilizing agents and matrices for drug release in pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. In the food industry, their gelling properties and the ability to mold edible films and coatings are extensively studied. The use of gums depends on the intrinsic properties that they provide, often at costs below those of synthetic polymers. For upgrading the value of gums, they are being processed into various forms, including the most recent nanomaterials, for various biotechnological applications. Thus, the main natural polymers including galactomannans, cellulose, chitin, agar, carrageenan, alginate, cashew gum, pectin and starch, in addition to the current researches about them are reviewed in this article.. }To the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientfíico e Tecnológico (CNPq) for fellowships (LCBBC and MGCC) and the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nvíel Superior (CAPES) (PBSA). This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit, the Project RECI/BBB-EBI/0179/2012 (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027462) and COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684) (JAT)
Effect of Neem Oil on Sperm Mitochondrial Activity
It is a known fact that neem oil has some effect on motility of sperm. Motility of sperm depends on mitochondrial activity present in mid-piece of sperm. In the present study, the mitochondrial activity of sperm was evaluated after treating semen with the different quantities of neem oil. The mitochondrial activity was also evaluated after subjecting the semen samples for different incubation periods keeping the quantity of semen as well as that of neem oil same. Tests were done on thirty normozoospermic semen samples with motile score more than 75%. It was found that as the quantity of neem oil increases, the mitochondrial activity decreases significantly (P < 0.001). Similar results were found, when same quantity of neem oil was treated with same quantity of semen, but incubating for different time durations. The mitochondrial activity decreases significantly (P < 0.001) from one minute to twenty minutes. So, it indicates that as the contact period between neem oil and semen increases the mitochondrial activity decreases significantly
Health-related quality of life using QOLIE-31: Before and after epilepsy surgery a prospective study at a tertiary care center
Background: Outcome following epilepsy surgery has traditionally been
measured in terms of relief of seizures. However, changes in
health-related quality of life (HRQOL) after surgery for intractable
epilepsy are also important to document. There are no studies on the
Indian population which assess the outcome of epilepsy surgery in terms
of HRQOL. Materials and Methods: We conducted a prospective study on
the patients undergoing epilepsy surgery for intractable seizures,
between February 2004 and May 2006 at our center. All patients cleared
for epilepsy surgery by the epilepsy surgery team were taken up for
study. All patients < 15 years age and mentally retarded or with
progressive neurological diseases were excluded. Demographic profile,
seizure characteristics and seizure outcome using Engel grading was
assessed. Health-related quality of life was assessed using QOLIE-31
questionnaire before surgery and six months after surgery. Results:
Thirty-six patients satisfying the inclusion/exclusion criteria were
included in the analysis. Twenty-nine of these (Group 1) had good
seizure outcome (Engel 1 and 2), while seven patients (Group 2) had
poor seizure outcome (Engel 3 and 4) at six months. Overall, 77% of all
study patients were completely seizure-free at follow-up. There was no
baseline difference in the seven domains of QOLIE-31 between the two
groups. There was very significant improvement ( P value> 0.005
using paired sample T test) in all the domains of QOLIE-31 in the good
outcome group after surgery. Health-related quality of life improvement
was seen in all the domains in the poor outcome group also, however, it
was statistically significant only for the following parameters:
seizure worry, overall QOL, emotional wellbeing, energy fatigue and
social functioning domains. Improvement in seizure worry, overall QOL,
emotional wellbeing and social functioning was significantly more in
Group 1 as compared to Group 2. Conclusion: Complete seizure-free
state after surgery is associated with very significant improvement in
HRQOL parameters. Several, but not all parameters of HRQOL as assessed
by QOLIE-31, improved after surgery even in the poor seizure outcome
group. The improvement in domains of seizure worry, overall QOL,
emotional wellbeing and social functioning is significantly more in
those patients in whom complete seizure-free state is achieved
Surgical outcome of cortical dysplasias presenting with chronic intractable epilepsy: A 10-year experience
Background: There has been sparse description of cortical dysplasias (CDs) causing intractable epilepsy from India. Aim: Clinical retrospective study of CDs causing intractable epilepsy that underwent surgery. Materials and Methods: Fifty-seven cases of CDs reviewed (1995 till July 2006) are presented. All patients had intractable epilepsy, and underwent a complete epilepsy surgery workup (inter ictal electroencephalography (EEG), video EEG, MRI as per epilepsy protocol, SPECT {interictal, ictal with subtraction and co-registration when required}, and PET when necessary). Surgical treatment included a wide exposure of the pathology with a detailed electrocorticography under optimal anesthetic conditions. Mapping of the sensori-motor area was performed where indicated. Procedures included resection either alone or combined with multiple subpial transactions when extending into the eloquent areas. Results: Our study had 28 (49.12%) cases of isolated focal CDs, and 29 (50.67%) with dual pathology. Average age at the time of onset of seizures in our series was 7.04 years (three months to 24 years), and average age at the time of surgery was 10.97 years (eight months to 45 years). Among coexistent pathologies, one had associated MTS, 16 had coexistent gangliogliomas and 12 (dysembryonic neuroepithelial tumor) DNTs. At an average follow-up of 3.035 years (range 5-10 years), three patients were lost to follow-up. Fifty-one per cent (29/57) patients had a good outcome (Engel Grade I) and 26%(15/57) had a Grade II outcome. Conclusion: Cortical dysplasias have a good outcome if evaluated and managed with concordant electrical and imaging modalities