127 research outputs found
Some observations on a copepod parasite from a flying fish and a bunch of flying fish eggs attached to a flotsam
observations made on a copepod parasite from a flying
fish and a bunch of flying fish eggs are described
A rare presentation of hypothyroidism
In this case report, we have brought out a very rare presentation of hypothyroidism in the form of cataplexy and this case is of significance because there have been no similar case reports of hypothyroidism presenting as cataplexy so far. The other highlight of the case is that treatment of hypothyroidism alone resulted in complete freedom from cataplexy without the need for agrypnotic drugs
Distribution and abundance of pteropod and heteropod molluscs in the EEZ and adjoining waters of India
The pteropod and heteropod molluscs formed an Important constituent in the zooplankton of the EEZ of India and the
adjacent areas. Between them the pteropods dominated numerically over the heteropads in all situations. The average
density of pteropods in the area investigated was 734 (expressed as number per 1000 m3 of water) and heteropoda was33
Quantitative abundance of amphipods around Andaman-Nicobar Islands
The present study deals with the quantitative distribution and abundance of
amphipods of the Andaman Sea in time and space, based on the zooplankton samples
collected during the cruises 46- 73 of FORV Sagar Sampada during 1988-1990.
Mean number of amphipods (no/1000 m ) reached the maximum of 1763 in January
and the minimum of 315 in July. The seasonal density was maximum during the
northeast monsoon and minimum for the southwest monsoon and their mean numbers
were estimated as 812 and 463/1000 m respectively. In general, they were abundant
in the region where the station depths ranged between 50 and 100 m with the mean
estimated as 800/1000 m of water. Analysis of day and night samples did not show
any remarkable variation. The distribution and abundance of amphipods in relation
to time and space are discussed in the paper
Zooplankton abundance in the continental shelf waters of the northeast coast of India
Higher concentrations of zooplankton standing stock and population occurred
in the region off Chilka lake and Paradip (19° 10'N-19° 55'N and 85°09'E-86° 50'E)
during January and off Visakhapatnam (17°30'N- 18°28'N and 83°14'E- 84°29*E)
during November and April. The most productive period along the northwestern part
of the Bay of Bengal was the northeast monsoon season (October-January) followed
by the premonsoon season (February-May). High abundance of copepods, chaetognaths,
siphonophores, cladocerans, fish larvae, planktonic molluscs, amphipods,
foraminifers and larval polychaetes constituted the northeast monsoon maximum.
Very low biomass values were recorded during the southwest monsoon season
(June-September). The neretic zone up to 50 m depth was rich in zooplankton
population during northeast monsoon and further to a lesser extent up to 100 m during
the premonsoon season. However, a steady decline was evident with increasing depth
zones. The less saline northern part exhibited remarkable differences in the abundance
of the population and standing stock in such a way that 63% of the total was
confined to the northern region. Fish eggs were predominant during February-May
and larvae in July and January-February. The peak period of the zooplankton
population coincided with the maximum landings of the pelagic and demersal fishery
resources of the northwestern coast of the Bay of Bengal
Distribution and abundance of cladocerans in the eastern Arabian Sea
Of the two species, Penilia avirostris Dana and Evadne tergestina Claus
encountered, 86% of the population of the former occurred within the 50 m depth
zone and 75% of the total population of the latter in the 50 m-100 m depth zone.
Striking day-night variations in the population densities of Penilia and Evadne were
observed. The samples collected at night contained 99.7% and 88% of the populations
of the former and latter species respectively. Swarming of Evadne and Penilia is a
regular phenomenon during the southwest monsoon season.The highest concentration
of the former species was observed in August and that of the latter in September.
High concentrations of Penilia and Evadne were observed in the 30 m depth zone
off Cochin and in the 40 m depth zone off Karwar. The abundance of Penilia
observed in the 30 m depth zone of Wadge Bank off Cape Comorin coincided with
its maximum recorded in August off Cochin. The length frequency studies on Penilia
and Evadne showed that different size classes dominated in the different regions from
07°N to 19°N and that an increase in size of the individuals was evident from south
to north in both Penilia and Evadne. Fecundity of Penilia was the highest in the
southernmost region between 07°00'N and 09°00'N while that of Evadne was in the
northern region, 15°N- 19°N. Gamogenetic females of both Penilia and Evadne
were very few in number. Occurrence of large numbers of parthenogenetic females
of Penilia and Evadne with well developed advanced embroys in their brood
pouches in the night samples probably suggest nocturnal brood maturation
Antidiabetic activity of 3-hydroxyflavone analogues in high fructose fed insulin resistant rats
Synthetic 3-hydroxyflavone analogues (JY-1, JY-2, JY-3, JY-4), were tested for antidiabetic activity in high-fructose-diet-fed (66 %, for 6 weeks) insulin-resistant Wistar rats (FD-fed rats). The fasting blood glucose, insulin, creatinine and AGEs were decreased to near normal upon treatment with test compounds. Insulin resistance markers such as HOMA-IR, K-ITT, plasma triglycerides, lipids, endogenous antioxidant defense and glycogen were restored in FD-fed rats after treatment with 3-hydroxyflavones. It is known that insulin resistance is partly because of oxidative stress and hence antioxidant activity was determined. They exhibited significant in vitro DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activity (IC50: 10.66-66.63 μM). Test
compounds inhibited ROS and NO production in RAW 264.7 cells (IC50: 10.39–42.63 μM) and they were found as potent as quercetin. Further, the test compounds inhibited lipid peroxidation at low concentrations (IC50: 99.61-217.47 μM). All test compounds at concentrations 100-200 μM protected calf thymus DNA-damage by Fenton reaction. In addition, test compounds inhibited protein glycation in different in vitro
antiglycation assays. JY-2 showed maximum potency in all the stages of glycation which was comparable to the standard quercetin and aminoguanidine. Test compounds also enhanced the glucose uptake by L6 myotubes at an EC50 much lower than that of quercetin. Thus the synthetic 3-hydroxyflavones were found to have good antidiabetic activity by pleotropic and multimodal suppression of insulin resistance and enhancement of glucose uptake by skeletal muscles. These compounds are non-toxic at the doses tested. Further, the combined antioxidant and antiglycation activities of these molecules have complementary benefits in management of diabetes
Ichthyofauna of the Mangrove Ecosystem
The mangroves are breeding, nursery, feeding
and hiding grounds for a certain group of finfish,
crustacea and shellfish among the aquatic fauna and
include those which enter from the sea as well as
those which migrate down from the upstream
stretches of rivers. An inventory of the ichthyofauna
of the mangrove ecosystems has been prepared as
part of a NATP project to assess the biodiversity
Zooplankton abundance and secondary production in the seas around Andaman-Nicobar Islands
Areas of remarkably higher concentrations of zooplankton standing stock were
encountered in the northeastern (12°46'-13° 30 N and 93°03'-93°35' E) and
southern (08°30'-09°30'N and 92o00'-92o41'E) regions the Andaman and
Nicobar seas. The NE monsoon (October-January) was the most productive
season followed by the premonsoon (February-May). The zooplankton
population occurred in high abundance when the surface waters were
characterised by low temperature and salinity. Occurrence of eggs and larvae
of finfishes, pelagic tunicates, euphausiids, copepods, amphipods, foraminifers
and lucifers in profusion accounted for the NE monsoon maximum. SW
monsoon (June-September) was the least productive season. Monthly
variations displayed high standing stock during November-February period
and low during April-October with slight improvements in May-June and
August-September. A comparison made on the standing stock of the southern
and northern regions with respect to 10°N revelaed a rich population in the
less saline waters north of 10°N to the west and east of islands contributing
to the overall abundance of almost all the groups especially of the fish eggs
and larvae, larval decapods, larvae of molluscs and mysids. The difference in
biomass observed with reference to 93CE to the east and west was conspicuous
such that the lowest 45.97 ml occurred in the eastern Bay of Bengal and the
highest 54.44 ml in the western Andaman sea. Greater proliferation of
zooplankton fauna encountered in the southwest, southeast and northwest
regions of the island system during the NE monsoon was followed by the
premonsoon maximum in the northeastern region. The neretic areas upto 50
m depth showed poor abundance, however, the 50-100 m depth zone was
singularly rich recording further steady decline with increasing depth.
The average values of secondary production estimated for the entire area of
investigation was 4.8 gC/m2/yr. The peak period of the zooplankton population
in the northern and southern sectors coincided with the maximum landings
of the pelagic fishery resources of the Andaman-Nicobar Islands
High Sensitivity Cardiac Troponin-T STAT in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients and Healthy Individuals: A Comparative Study
Introduction: Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is a metabolic disorder
that shares the phenotype of hyperglycaemia, with several
factors contributing to the disease, including decreased insulin
secretion and glucose utilisation, as well as increased glucose
production. There is a strong association between DM and
Cardiovascular Disease (CVD). High-sensitivity cardiac troponin
T (hs-cTnT), which is a marker of subclinical myocardial damage,
is used in the risk stratification of asymptomatic individuals.
Aim: To estimate and compare hs-cTnT Short Turn Around
Time (STAT) levels in diabetic patients without Acute Myocardial
Infarction (AMI) with age and sex matched controls and also to
investigate the correlation between hs-cTnT STAT and Glycated
Haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels.
Materials and Methods: A comparative cross-sectional study
was conducted in the Department of Biochemistry and Outpatient
Clinic, Department of Medicine, Government Medical College,
Kozhikode, Kerala, India, from April 2019 to April 2020. The study
subjects were divided into two groups: Group 1 consisted of 58
patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) without AMI, and
Group 2 comprised 58 healthy individuals who were age and sex
matched. No specific sampling technique was employed. After
obtaining consent, T2DM patients who attended the outpatient
clinic were evaluated with fasting blood glucose, HbA1c,
Electrocardiogram (ECG), and hs-cTnT STAT estimation. Controls
were selected and evaluated for the same from apparently healthy
bystanders of other patients, medical and paramedical staff, and
others willing to participate. Statistical analysis was performed
using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version
22.0 software.
Results: The mean value of Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS) and
HbA1c was higher in T2DM patients compared to healthy
individuals. hs-cTnT showed a positive moderate correlation
with HbA1c (rho=0.53), which was statistically significant
(p-value<0.001). Simple linear regression analysis showed that
in the case group, for a 1% increase in HbA1c levels, there was
a 2.38 unit increase in hs-cTnT levels, which was statistically
significant (p-value<0.001).
Conclusion: hs-cTnT levels are significantly elevated in T2DM
patients without overt CVD compared to age and sex matched
healthy individuals. T2DM is a risk factor for increased levels
of biomarkers for atherosclerotic CVD, and proper glycaemic
control reduces the levels of hs-cTnT in T2DM patients
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