A comparative study of obstetrics outcome of placenta previa in scarred versus unscarred uterus at tertiary Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal

Background: Placenta previa is an obstetric life-threatening condition with several maternal and fetal complications. The objective of this study is to compare the maternal and fetal outcome of placenta previa in scarred and unscarred uterus.Methods: A retrospective case control study was carried out on 85 cases of placenta previa in the department of obstetrics and gynecology, Paropakar Maternity and Womens Hospital (PMWH) Kathmandu from April 2019 to May 2020 of which 46 had scarred uterus and 39 cases had unscarred uterus.Results: Sixty-one of patients were less than 30 years of age, 62% presented with gestational age 28 to 37 weeks and 67% had parity between 1 to 5. Frequency of placenta previa in scarred uterus was 54% and that in unscarred uterus was 46%. Eighty percent cases with scarred uterus had anterior placenta compared to 33% of cases of unscarred uterus with p value of 0.009. 42% had grade 4 placenta previa on ultrasonography. 45 percent of patient with scarred uterus had PPH compared to 23% in unscarred group with p value of 0.03. Malpresentation was found in 7 cases in scarred group and in one case in unscarred. Cesarean hysterectomy was performed in 6 cases in scarred category compared to 2 in unscarred. Low birth weight was present in 28 cases in scarred category compared to 15 cases in unscarred category with p value 0.03.Conclusions: This study concluded that fetal and maternal outcome is adverse for cases of placenta previa with scarred uterus compared to unscarred uterus

Sequence based polymorphic (SBP) marker technology for targeted genomic regions: its application in generating a molecular map of the Arabidopsis thaliana genome

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Molecular markers facilitate both genotype identification, essential for modern animal and plant breeding, and the isolation of genes based on their map positions. Advancements in sequencing technology have made possible the identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for any genomic regions. Here a sequence based polymorphic (SBP) marker technology for generating molecular markers for targeted genomic regions in Arabidopsis is described.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A ~3X genome coverage sequence of the <it>Arabidopsis thaliana </it>ecotype, Niederzenz (Nd-0) was obtained by applying Illumina's sequencing by synthesis (Solexa) technology. Comparison of the Nd-0 genome sequence with the assembled Columbia-0 (Col-0) genome sequence identified putative single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) throughout the entire genome. Multiple 75 base pair Nd-0 sequence reads containing SNPs and originating from individual genomic DNA molecules were the basis for developing co-dominant SBP markers. SNPs containing Col-0 sequences, supported by transcript sequences or sequences from multiple BAC clones, were compared to the respective Nd-0 sequences to identify possible restriction endonuclease enzyme site variations. Small amplicons, PCR amplified from both ecotypes, were digested with suitable restriction enzymes and resolved on a gel to reveal the sequence based polymorphisms. By applying this technology, 21 SBP markers for the marker poor regions of the Arabidopsis map representing polymorphisms between Col-0 and Nd-0 ecotypes were generated.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The SBP marker technology described here allowed the development of molecular markers for targeted genomic regions of Arabidopsis. It should facilitate isolation of co-dominant molecular markers for targeted genomic regions of any animal or plant species, whose genomic sequences have been assembled. This technology will particularly facilitate the development of high density molecular marker maps, essential for cloning genes based on their genetic map positions and identifying tightly linked molecular markers for selecting desirable genotypes in animal and plant breeding experiments.</p

Characterization of hot deformation behavior of Al0.3CoCrFeNi high entropy alloy and development of processing map

This study presents the characteristics of hot deformation behavior of a Al0.3CoCrFeNi high entropy alloy in the temperature and strain rate ranges of 1023–1423 K and 10–3–10 s–1, respectively. The constitutive flow behavior was modeled based on the hyperbolic–sinusoidal Arrhenius–type equations and a mathematical relation was used to observe the influence of true – strain on material constants. To define hot workability of the alloy, a processing map was developed based on the principles of dynamic materials model. Accordingly, a dynamic recrystallization (DRX) domain in the temperaure and strain rate ranges of 1273–1423 K and 10–2–2 x 10–1 s–respectively, with a peak efficiency of ~45 % at 1423 K/6 x 10–2 s–1, was identified as prudent for processing. At lower temperatures (1048–1148 K) and strain rates (10–3–3x10–3 s–1), a dynamic recovery (DRV) domain was identified with a peak efficiency of 38% at 1123 K/10–3 s–1. A large instability regime occurred above 3x10–1 s–1 with an increased tendency of adiabatic shear bands. It extended to lower strain rates 10–2–10−1 s−1 at temperatures <1123 K, manifested by localized shear bands and grain boundary cracking . At low strain rates (5x10–3–10–3 s–1) and temperatures (1148 – 1298 K), particle stimulated nucleation of new DRX grains occurred at B2 precipitates, though the efficiency of power dissipation dropped sharply to 9%.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

Dynamic softening kinetics of Al0.3CoCrFeNi high-entropy alloy during high temperature compression and its correlation with the evolving microstructure and micro-texture

To establish the characteristics and kinetics of dynamic softening in a Al0.3CoCrFeNi high–entropy alloy (HEA), isothermal compression tests were carried out in a suitable temperature range of 1273–1423 K at 10−2 and 10−1 s−1 in accord with our previous study. It was found that the discontinuous dynamic recrystallization (DRX) was the dominant microstructural reconstitution mechanism. The conditions of critical stress/strain for the onset of dynamic recrystallization were determined using the Poliak–Jonas analytical criterion. Further, a kinetic model was established based on the Avrami-type function in order to be able to predict the volume fraction of DRX. The DRX volume fraction expectedly increased with strain. The microstructural investigation of the isothermally compressed specimens revealed a good agreement with the proposed DRX kinetics model and validated its accuracy. Additionally, the evolution of DRX with strain was characterized by interrupting the test carried out at 1323 K/10−1 s−1 at different strains. The progress of DRX evolving as increased formation of new recrystallized grains further corroborated the predictions of the kinetic model. The micro-texture analysis revealed random texture in the recrystallized grains, whereas the unrecrystallized grains had shown their preferred orientation towards the fiber texture.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

Constitutive modeling and hot deformation processing map of a new biomaterial Ti–14Cr alloy

A new biomaterial Ti–14Cr alloy was designed for biomedical applications. The manufacturing process of Ti alloys through hot deformation is crucial for controlling the grain structure and the mechanical performance of the alloy. In the present study, several compression tests at elevated temperatures (1123–1273 K) and strain rate ranges of 0.01–10 s−1 were conducted using a Gleeble-3800 thermomechanical simulator. A processing map of the studied alloy was constructed using the principles of the dynamic material model to evaluate the hot workability and deformation mechanisms at different ranges of temperature and strain rate. The resulting grain structure was correlated with the processing map. The processing map showed that adiabatic shear bands are expected to form at low temperatures (1123–1223 K) and moderate to high strain rates (1–10 s−1), whereas the nucleation of wedge cracks is likely to develop at the grain boundary at high temperatures and low strain rates (1248–1273/0.01 s−1). Consequently, a deterministic domain in the temperature and strain rate ranges of 1148–1273 K and 0.01–0.1 s−1, respectively, was identified as the domain of dynamic recrystallization with a peak efficiency of the order of ∼70% at 1173 K/0.01 s−1, and these were considered to be the optimum parameters for hot deformation. The constitutive flow behavior was modeled based on the hyperbolic–sinusoidal Arrhenius-type equations, and a mathematical relation was used to elucidate the influence of true strain on material constants.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

CTO: A Community-Based Clinical Trial Ontology and Its Applications in PubChemRDF and SCAIViewH

Driven by the use cases of PubChemRDF and SCAIView, we have developed a first community-based clinical trial ontology (CTO) by following the OBO Foundry principles. CTO uses the Basic Formal Ontology (BFO) as the top level ontology and reuses many terms from existing ontologies. CTO has also defined many clinical trial-specific terms. The general CTO design pattern is based on the PICO framework together with two applications. First, the PubChemRDF use case demonstrates how a drug Gleevec is linked to multiple clinical trials investigating Gleevec’s related chemical compounds. Second, the SCAIView text mining engine shows how the use of CTO terms in its search algorithm can identify publications referring to COVID-19-related clinical trials. Future opportunities and challenges are discussed

Mechanochemical feedback control of dynamin independent endocytosis modulates membrane tension in adherent cells.

Plasma membrane tension regulates many key cellular processes. It is modulated by, and can modulate, membrane trafficking. However, the cellular pathway(s) involved in this interplay is poorly understood. Here we find that, among a number of endocytic processes operating simultaneously at the cell surface, a dynamin independent pathway, the CLIC/GEEC (CG) pathway, is rapidly and specifically upregulated upon a sudden reduction of tension. Moreover, inhibition (activation) of the CG pathway results in lower (higher) membrane tension. However, alteration in membrane tension does not directly modulate CG endocytosis. This requires vinculin, a mechano-transducer recruited to focal adhesion in adherent cells. Vinculin acts by controlling the levels of a key regulator of the CG pathway, GBF1, at the plasma membrane. Thus, the CG pathway directly regulates membrane tension and is in turn controlled via a mechano-chemical feedback inhibition, potentially leading to homeostatic regulation of membrane tension in adherent cells

Overview of the interactive task in BioCreative V

Fully automated text mining (TM) systems promote efficient literature searching, retrieval, and review but are not sufficient to produce ready-to-consume curated documents. These systems are not meant to replace biocurators, but instead to assist them in one or more literature curation steps. To do so, the user interface is an important aspect that needs to be considered for tool adoption. The BioCreative Interactive task (IAT) is a track designed for exploring user-system interactions, promoting development of useful TM tools, and providing a communication channel between the biocuration and the TM communities. In BioCreative V, the IAT track followed a format similar to previous interactive tracks, where the utility and usability of TM tools, as well as the generation of use cases, have been the focal points. The proposed curation tasks are user-centric and formally evaluated by biocurators. In BioCreative V IAT, seven TM systems and 43 biocurators participated. Two levels of user participation were offered to broaden curator involvement and obtain more feedback on usability aspects. The full level participation involved training on the system, curation of a set of documents with and without TM assistance, tracking of time-on-task, and completion of a user survey. The partial level participation was designed to focus on usability aspects of the interface and not the performance per se. In this case, biocurators navigated the system by performing pre-designed tasks and then were asked whether they were able to achieve the task and the level of difficulty in completing the task. In this manuscript, we describe the development of the interactive task, from planning to execution and discuss major findings for the systems tested