An Annotated List of Indo ceylonese Termites

Volume: 38Start Page: 208End Page: 20

Familial hypomagnesemia, hypercalciuria and nephrocalcinosis with novel mutation

Familial hypomagnesemia with hypercalciuria and nephrocalcinosis (FHHNC) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder that is caused by mutation in genes coding for tight junction proteins claudin-16 and claudin-19. It is characterized by renal wasting of magnesium and calcium associated with the development of nephrocalcinosis and renal stones by early childhood. Most of them progress to end-stage renal failure by the second or third decade. Here, we report two siblings with FHHNC, who presented with nephrocalcinosis without any extrarenal manifestations, one of them having novel homozygous nonsense mutation in claudin-16 (CLDN16) (c.620G>A, p. Trp207Ter). Both were treated with dietary changes, hydrochlorothiazide, potassium citrate, and magnesium supplementation. FHHNC is a rare cause of nephrocalcinosis, and we believe that it should be considered in the presence of nephrocalcinosis with hypercalciuria and hypomagnesemia

Attenuated levels of phospholipids in the striatum of rats infused with rotenone causing hemiparkinsonism as detected by simple dye-lipid complex

Parkinson's disease (PD), a progressive neurodegeneration, is characterized by loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra (SN) and loss of motor co-ordination. Impaired metabolism of major lipids such as phospholipids which play regulatory roles in cellular functions and signaling has been implicated in the pathology of PD. We aim to investigate the striatal phospholipids (PLs) in hemiparkinsonism infused by rotenone in rats. As there are no cost-effective modes of PL, we have utilized dye-lipid complex technique for the first time in PD models for screening and also for semi-quantifying (individually) the levels of the deregulated PL in brain samples. Rats were divided into 2 groups: i. control and ii. ROT-infused which received intracranial injection of Rotenone (6μg/μl; flow rate 0.2μl/min). At the end of experimental period of 14 days, the striatum was dissected out for the analyses of PLs. Dye-based detection of PL and two-dimensional thin-layer chromatographic analyses of PL were performed. Detection of dye-PL complex was possible for phosphatidyl choline (PC), phosphatidyl inositol (PI), and spingomyelin (SM) (but not for phosphatidyl ethanolamine-PE) using dyes viz victoria blue B, toluidine blue and ammonium ferrothiocyanate, respectively. Two-dimensional analyses of phospholipids confirmed the dye-PL complex and depicted significant reduction (p<0.05) on semi-quantitative assessment, in the striatum of control and hemiparkinsonic rats. We suggest a low level of PLs esp of PI in striatum of rats using a simple dye-detection that was validated by HR-LCMS. The finding implies that a critical role is being played by these PLs (PC, PI and SM) mainly PI (p<0.001), in rotenone infused hemiparkinsonism, thus deserving wider but simpler investigations to detect and identify their role in parkinsonism

Dental pain as a determinant of expressed need for dental care among 12-year-old school children in India

Objective: We have undertaken a cross-sectional study to assess factors associated with dental pain that determine the expressed needs for dental care among 12-year-old school children in India. Materials and Methods: A total of 2 250 school children were surveyed after being drawn through stratified cluster random sampling. The simultaneous effects of sociodemographic characteristics, pain characteristics, and the impact of pain on the quality of life were studied in association with the expressed needs for dental treatment. Results: Among the studied school children, 71.4% suffered from dental pain, only 27.7% expressed need for dental healthcare. Socioeconomic status (SES) was a statistically significant determinant. Pain characteristics like the severity of pain and pain on eating hot and cold foods were significantly associated with expressed needs. Impact characteristics associated with expressed needs were embarrassment in showing teeth, brushing teeth, and difficulty in eating and drinking. Logistic regression analysis yielded a Nagelkerke R 2 value of 0.106. Conclusion: Important determinants of expressed needs for dental care among the studied population were SES, pain intensity, pain on thermal stimuli, impact characteristics like eating/drinking and embarrassment in showing teeth

Unusual presentation of familial gingival fibromatosis among male siblings

Gingival enlargement refers to any increase in the size of normal gingiva. The gingiva may be enlarged in response to various interactions between the host and the environment. It can be of various types including inflammatory, drug induced, associated with systemic disease, neoplastic, false, and idiopathic. Idiopathic gingival enlargement is a rare condition of undetermined etiology. The enlargement can be localized or generalized to entire dentition and is usually associated with the emergence of the teeth into the oral cavity and may regress after extraction. Treatment aims to solve patient's psychological, esthetic, and masticatory needs. This is a case series of four siblings (3 boys and 1 girl) who reported to the Department of Periodontology with a chief complaint of swollen gums and difficulty in eating. After careful clinical examination and histopathological evaluation, a diagnosis of familial gingival fibromatosis was made. Treatment plan included gingivectomy and gingivoplasty and follow-ups

Biological Notes on Sinoxylon Sudanicum Lesne and Its Parasites in S. India

Volume: 44Start Page: 460End Page: 46

Notes on Indian Thysanoptera with Brief Descriptions of new Species

Volume: 34Start Page: 1029End Page: 104