Low dose unfractionated heparin with low dose aspirin in treatment of thrombo prophylaxis in utero placental insufficiency: a new vision in heparinization during pregnancy

Background: The use of heparin and aspirin in obstetric care has grown considerably since their introduction into clinical practice. Because of the physiological changes of pregnancy, the usage of heparin and optimal dosage of heparin remains uncertain. Here our institute designed low dose Unfractionated Heparin (5000 IU s/c daily) as thrombo Prophylaxis regimen. To study the outcome of low dose UFH (5000 IU sc /daily) + Low dose aspirin (75 mg oral per day) for thrombo prophylaxis in utero placental insufficiency, in patient with 2 or more abortions.Methods: This retrospective study was conducted in 135 patients with 2 or more abortions as obstetric history. Prophylactic low dose of UFH (5000 IU s/c daily) + LDA 75 mg oral was initiated.  The Primary outcome is live birth, and secondary outcomes is Reduced incidence of early onset of gestational hypertension (HT), Intrauterine Growth Retardation (IUGR).Results: Out of 135 women 131 gave live birth, 2 had first trimester abortion and 2 had intrauterine death by 5 to 6 months. PIH was higher in patients with more than 30 years of age.Conclusions: In our Retrospective, data combination of low dose UFH (5000IU s/c) + LDA (75mg oral) is as safe as routine thrombo prophylaxis with good compliance

Assessing the safety and efficacy of dinoprostone vaginal insert in pregnancy

Background: Induction of labor (IOL) is a procedure used to achieve vaginal birth when the hazards of extending the pregnancy for either the mother or the infant outweigh the dangers of delivery. It is often used in high-risk pregnancies, although it can also be useful in low-risk groups, as demonstrated by A Randomized Trial of Induction Versus Expectant Management (ARRIVE) study. Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted among 414 patients at Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology tertiary care hospital. The study was conducted for one-year duration in pregnant women with maternal age >18 years, gestational week >37 weeks, and Bishop score <7 was included in the study with no signs of labor. Demographic details such as age, pregnancy history, and mode of delivery were recorded for comparison. Patients with no induction of labor were administered misoprostol and/or dinoprostone based on clinical conditions with further evaluation of maternal complications, delivery time, birthweight of the fetus, and fetal heart rate. Data were analyzed based on percentages and a chi-square test was used (p-value <0.05). Results: The mode of delivery did not significantly affect delivery outcomes (p=0.354), with assisted delivery being the most common (35.41%). Indication for induction was found to be significant (p=0.034), with non-progress of labor being the most common indication (55.2%). Maternal complications were not significantly associated with delivery outcomes (p=0.390), with 60 (14.49%) patients experiencing complications. The use of misoprostol reported a significant difference between modes of delivery with 74.93% of vaginal delivery, 19.47% with lower segment cesarean section (LSCS), and 5.60% with assisted delivery (p value <0.03). Conclusions: In low-risk pregnant women, the dinoprostone or misoprostol vaginal inserts are both safe and effective for inducing labor. Nulliparous individuals and those who did not get epidural analgesia during labor had a higher chance of caesarean section

The Leishmania donovani LD1 locus gene ORFG encodes a biopterin transporter (BT1)

We have previously described two genes, ORFF and ORFG, from the LD1 locus near one telomere of chromosome 35, which are frequently amplified in Leishmania isolates. In Leishmania donovani LSB-51.1, gene conversion of the rRNA gene locus on chromosome 27 with these two genes resulted in their over-expression, because of their transcription by the RNA polymerase I-mediated rRNA promoter. The predicted ORFG protein has substantial sequence homology to the ESAG10 gene product from the Trypanosoma brucei VSG expression site and both are putative membrane proteins. Using successive rounds of gene replacement of the three ORFG genes in L. donovani LSB-51.1, ORFG null mutants were obtained. These mutant cell lines show a direct relationship between ORFG mRNA, protein expression levels and active transport of biopterin into the cells. Transformation of the null mutant with a plasmid containing ORFG restores biopterin transport activity. In addition, the null mutants are unable to grow in the absence of supplemental biopterin. Thus, ORFG encodes a biopterin transporter and has been renamed BT1

Effect of nutrition, harvesting date and fruit canopy position on yield and quality of Kinnow mandarin (Citrus nobilis x Citrus deliciosa)

Attractive peel colour and quality development in Kinnow (Citrus nobilis Lour x Citrus deliciosa Tenara) is a prime requisite for its fair market price. The objective of study was to find out the impact of canopy position, date of harvesting and nutrition on yield and quality of Kinnow mandarin. A field experiment was conducted in a four year old Kinnow orchard using factorial randomized block design with three replications. There were nine treatments comprised of various N, P, K levels and one control; two canopy positions (external and internal) and three harvesting dates (06.12.13, 26.12.13 and 16.01.14). Statistical analysis using SAS 9.3 software and Tukey's HSD test revealed the significance of various treatments, canopy positions and harvesting dates (P<0.01).The treatment comprising 400g+600g+240g (N+P2O5+K2O/plant) was found the best among other treatments with respect to yield (20.06 kg/tree) and other quality parameters (TSS, acidity, ascorbic acid and total carotenoids). Fruits which are present on external canopy of tree were superior in terms of quality (TSS, ascorbic acid, total carotenoids) as compared to fruits present on internal canopy of the tree.The Kinnow fruits harvested during the last week of December were found superior in terms of total carotenoids in juice and peel and ascorbic acid content. While the fruits harvested in second week of January were found superior in terms of TSS and acidity. Application of 400g, 600g and 240g of NPK respectively was found beneficial for quality fruit production of Kinnow. Quality of Kinnow fruits vary as per canopy position and date of harvesting, hence they should harvest at different times and also from different canopy positions according to purpose

Characterization of Leishmania donovani Aquaporins Shows Presence of Subcellular Aquaporins Similar to Tonoplast Intrinsic Proteins of Plants

Leishmania donovani, a protozoan parasite, resides in the macrophages of the mammalian host. The aquaporin family of proteins form important components of the parasite-host interface. The parasite-host interface could be a potential target for chemotherapy. Analysis of L. major and L. infantum genomes showed the presence of five aquaporins (AQPs) annotated as AQP9 (230aa), AQP putative (294aa), AQP-like protein (279aa), AQP1 (314aa) and AQP-like protein (596aa). We report here the structural modeling, localization and functional characterization of the AQPs from L. donovani. LdAQP1, LdAQP9, LdAQP2860 and LdAQP2870 have the canonical NPA-NPA motifs, whereas LdAQP putative has a non-canonical NPM-NPA motif. In the carboxyl terminal to the second NPA box of all AQPs except AQP1, a valine/alanine residue was found instead of the arginine. In that respect these four AQPs are similar to tonoplast intrinsic proteins in plants, which are localized to intracellular organelles. Confocal microscopy of L. donovani expressing GFP-tagged AQPs showed an intracellular localization of LdAQP9 and LdAQP2870. Real-time PCR assays showed expression of all aquaporins except LdAQP2860, whose level was undetectable. Three-dimensional homology modeling of the AQPs showed that LdAQP1 structure bears greater topological similarity to the aquaglyceroporin than to aquaporin of E. coli. The pore of LdAQP1 was very different from the rest in shape and size. The cavity of LdAQP2860 was highly irregular and undefined in geometry. For functional characterization, four AQP proteins were heterologously expressed in yeast. In the fps1Δ yeast cells, which lacked the key aquaglyceroporin, LdAQP1 alone displayed an osmosensitive phenotype indicating glycerol transport activity. However, expression of LdAQP1 and LdAQP putative in a yeast gpd1Δ strain, deleted for glycerol production, conferred osmosensitive phenotype indicating water transport activity or aquaporin function. Our analysis for the first time shows the presence of subcellular aquaporins and provides structural and functional characterization of aquaporins in Leishmania donovani

A Unique Modification of the Eukaryotic Initiation Factor 5A Shows the Presence of the Complete Hypusine Pathway in Leishmania donovani

Deoxyhypusine hydroxylase (DOHH) catalyzes the final step in the post-translational synthesis of an unusual amino acid hypusine (N€-(4-amino-2-hydroxybutyl) lysine), which is present on only one cellular protein, eukaryotic initiation factor 5A (eIF5A). We present here the molecular and structural basis of the function of DOHH from the protozoan parasite, Leishmania donovani, which causes visceral leishmaniasis. The L. donovani DOHH gene is 981 bp and encodes a putative polypeptide of 326 amino acids. DOHH is a HEAT-repeat protein with eight tandem repeats of α-helical pairs. Four conserved histidine-glutamate sequences have been identified that may act as metal coordination sites. A ∼42 kDa recombinant protein with a His-tag was obtained by heterologous expression of DOHH in Escherichia coli. Purified recombinant DOHH effectively catalyzed the hydroxylation of the intermediate, eIF5A-deoxyhypusine (eIF5A-Dhp), in vitro. L. donovani DOHH (LdDOHH) showed ∼40.6% sequence identity with its human homolog. The alignment of L. donovani DOHH with the human homolog shows that there are two significant insertions in the former, corresponding to the alignment positions 159-162 (four amino acid residues) and 174-183 (ten amino acid residues) which are present in the variable loop connecting the N- and C-terminal halves of the protein, the latter being present near the substrate binding site. Deletion of the ten-amino-acid-long insertion decreased LdDOHH activity to 14% of the wild type recombinant LdDOHH. Metal chelators like ciclopirox olamine (CPX) and mimosine significantly inhibited the growth of L. donovani and DOHH activity in vitro. These inhibitors were more effective against the parasite enzyme than the human enzyme. This report, for the first time, confirms the presence of a complete hypusine pathway in a kinetoplastid unlike eubacteria and archaea. The structural differences between the L. donovani DOHH and the human homolog may be exploited for structure based design of selective inhibitors against the parasite

Self-employment and marriage: Costs and benefits

This article highlights the effect of self-employment in a marriage by examining both the costs and possible benefits that are brought to bear when the breadwinner is in self-employment. Specific aspects identified as having an impact on the marital relationship were: work-family conflicts; role-division; stress; motivation for the start up of the business; the structure of the business; financial management; and personality characteristics. Via the interview schedule, it was possible to glean in-depth information from both spouses in the marriage on the advantages and disadvantages of being self-employed. Finally, recommendations are made both for therapeutic and preventive interventions with the couple as well as for interdisciplinary communication

Effect of the microtubule stabilising agent taxol on leishmanial protozoan parasites in vitro

Taxol, a mitotic spindle toxin, was found to selectively inhibit the proliferation of Leishmania donovani in vitro at nanomolar concentrations with an IC<SUB>50</SUB> of 35 nM. Concentrations of taxol as high as 50 nM, however, did not affect J774A.1 murine macrophages. Taxol (30 nM) also inhibited amastigote multiplication within a J774A.1 macrophage cell line when used in a 10-day experiment. It resulted in the in vitro assembly of L. donovani microtubules in a dose-dependent manner. When promastigotes were exposed to different concentrations of taxol for 24 h, cells were largely blocked in the G<SUB>2</SUB>-M phase of the cell cycle and there was a marked reduction in the percentage of cells in the S phase. The selective nature of taxol action against the parasite and its effectiveness in controlling amastigote multiplication emphasise its use as a promising chemotherapeutic against kala-azar

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Edited Book on Agriculture in Arid Regions with special reference to SoilsEdited Book on Agriculture in Arid Regions with special reference to SoilsNot Availabl