Conventional Taxonomy of Four Tilapia Species in South-East Coast of India

Tilapia belongs to the family Cichlidae. Tilapia is a generic term used to designate a group of commercially important food fishes belonging to the family Cichlidae. Tilapia species have been re-classified into three separate genera viz., Tilapia, Sarotherodon and Oreochromis, based mainly on their reproduction and feeding habits and biogeography. Tilapias are very sturdy in nature. The family Cichlidaeis is one of the most species-rich families of vertebrates. More than 3,000 species of cichlid fishes are distributed from Central and South America, through Africa and Madagascar to Southern India. Classification of species is fundamental for carrying out researches in biodiversity, ecology, evolutionary biology and conservation biology. With this as the background in the present study, four species of fishes namely O. mossambicus and O.niloticus, Tilapia rendalli and T.zilliiare were sequenced for their 647 bp, 645 bp, 642 and 481 region of cytochrome oxidase sub-unit I (COI) gene to test their efficacy in identifying the species and also to demonstrate their intra-species variations within the barcode region. The sequences were analyzed for their species identification, using the Barcode of Life Database (BOLD’s) identification engine. The COI sequences of O. mossambicus, O.niloticus, Tilapia rendalli and T.zillii from different geographical regions were extracted from NCBI for analyzing the intra-species variation. While comparing the sequences in the NCBI database with the present sequences, significant alignments with maximum similarity ranging from 99% to 100% were noticed. Four sequences are aligned using ClustalW. A phylogenetic tree was constructed with Bootstrap test. The optimal tree with the sum of branch length showed 0.000976 for O. mossambicus, 0.001556 for O. niloticus and 0.000000 for T. rendalli and T.zillii. In O. mossambicus, the maximum GC content was 46.9% whereas the GC content in all other closely related species was found to be 46% on an average. In O. niloticus, the maximum GC content of 47.9% was noticed and the closely related sequences exhibited 48% average in GC content (T.zillii 50.2% and T.rendalli 46.6%).The analyses revealed the molar concentration of bar-coded genes.The evolutionary relationship was inferred with the closely related sequences obtained from the NCBI database. Sequence divergence between individuals of the same species ranged from 0 to 0.057. Both phylography and phylogeographic signals were evident from the phylogram constructed with O. mossambicus and O.niloticus as the same group. Even though the present results confirm that the COI could be a potential barcode gene for species level identification, further research is needed for describing the divergence of sequences in a broader sense. Analysis of data undertaken with conventional tools like PCR amplification and gene sequencing methods clearly revealed the healthy nature of environment along the south-east coast of India.Keywords: Intra species, Variations, Barcode, Cytochrome oxidase, Phylogeneti

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Assessment of Coral Reef Environment Using Associated Fishes Along South-East Coast of India

In the present study, totally 162 species of coral reef associated fishes, belonging to 17 orders, 64 families and 94 genera have been recorded in Cuddalore, Parangipettai and Nallavadu reefs. The study was conducted for a period of two years from January 2012 to December 2013. In Cuddalore, during 2012 a total number of 138 species of coral reef associated fishes belonging to 83 genera, 55 families and 17 orders were recorded, and in 2013, as many as 131 species belonging to 76 genera, 51 families and 14 orders were recorded. In Parangipettai, 127 species of coral reef associated fishes belonging to 78 genera, 48 families and 13 orders were recorded during 2012, and in 2013, 120 species belonging to 73 genera, 45 families and 12 orders were recorded. In Nallavadu, 117 species of coral reef associated fishes were recorded in 2012. These belong to 77 genera, 51 families and 17 orders; whereas, in 2013, totally 112 species belonging to 75 genera, 52 families and 17 orders were recorded. Considering the family-wise distribution, families such as Carangidae, Serranidae and Lutjanidaeare were found dominant with 22, 15 and 12 species respectively, followed by Haemulidae and Mullidae (6 species each), Acanthuridae, Nemipteridae, Siganidae and Synodontidae (4 species each), Clupeidae, Ephippidae, Lethrinidae and Sphyraenidae (3 species each) and other families with less than three species.Shannon Wiener diversity index recorded was in the range of 5.775 (during pre-monsoon period in 2013 at Cuddalore) -4.326 (during summer in 2012 at Nallavadu). In Margalef’s richness index, the maximum of 13.74 was recorded in Cuddalore during pre-monsoon in 2012 and the minimum of 7.975 in Nallavadu during monsoon in 2013. In taxonomic diversity among the three regions, the maximum of 55.86 was recorded in Parangipettai and minimum (51.55) was found in Nallavadu during the pre-monsoon period in 2012. In phylogenetic diversity the maximum of 4217 Cuddalore and a minimum of 2467 were recorded in Nallavadu during summer in 2013. The higher values recorded in all diversity indices clearly showed the good health of the coral reef environment in the study area.Keywords: Health, Coral reef, Environment, Diversity indices, Fishe

Trastuzumab-conjugated vitamin e TPGS liposomes for sustained and targeted delivery of docetaxel

Expert Opinion on Drug Delivery106747-76

Theranostic liposomes of TPGS coating for targeted co-delivery of docetaxel and quantum dots

10.1016/j.biomaterials.2012.01.036Biomaterials33123494-3501BIMA

Vitamin e TPGS coated liposomes enhanced cellular uptake and cytotoxicity of docetaxel in brain cancer cells

10.1016/j.ijpharm.2011.09.045International Journal of Pharmaceutics4212332-340IJPH

Development of docetaxel-loaded vitamin e TPGS micelles: Formulation optimization, effects on brain cancer cells and biodistribution in rats

10.2217/nnm.11.111Nanomedicine73353-36

Not Available

Not AvailableSouthwest coast of India has great potential for development of deep sea fishing for crustaceans. Earlier exploratory surveys have revealed the existance of commercially exploitable stocks of deep-sea prawns, lobsters and crab along the Kerala coast and schemes are under way for their large scale exploitation. FORV Sagar sampada , in her 40th and 42nd cruises, undertook a detailed survey of the resource characteristics of deep sea crustaceans between Trivandrum and ponnani during january-february, 1988 and the results are presented in this paper. In the bottom trawlsoperated between 60 and 777 m depths, prawns formed sizable portion of the catch from the Quilon Bank. with maximum abundance (64-201 kg/hr) between 290 and 370m depth. The multi species catch consisted of appreciable quantities of large and medium sized species such as Aristeus alocki: Heterocarpus woodmasoni, H.gibbosus Plesionika spinipes, solenocera hextii and Penaeopsis jerryi suggesting scope for their commercial exploitation and export. The deep sea spiny lobster puerulus sewelli recorded the highest yield (180 kg/hr) at 235-307m depth of Trivandrum Among other crustaceans, the swarming Charybdis (Goniohellenus) smithii was an important component registering maximum catch at 240-380m depth of Alleppey. Information on sex ratios, size frequency and mean size distribution, abundance of breeding population etc, from different bathymetric zones have been provided for important species.Not Availabl

Development of a Coronary Heart Disease Risk Prediction Model for Type 1 Diabetes: The Pittsburgh CHD in Type 1 Diabetes Risk Mode

Aim - To create a coronary heart disease (CHD) risk prediction model specific to type 1 diabetes. Methods - Development of the model used data from the Pittsburgh Epidemiology of Diabetes Complications Study (EDC). EDC subjects had type 1 diabetes diagnosed between 1950 and 1980, received their first study exam between 1986 and 1988, and have been followed biennially since. The final cohort for model development consisted of 603 subjects and 46 incident events. Hard CHD was defined as CHD death, fatal/non-fatal MI or Q-waves. Baseline CHD risk factors were tested bivariately and introduced into a Weibull model. The prediction model was externally validated in the EURODIAB Prospective Complications Study. Results - In males, predictors were higher white blood cell count, micro- or macroalbuminuira, lower HDLc and longer diabetes duration. In females, larger waist/hip ratio, higher non-HDLc, higher systolic blood pressure, use of blood pressure medication, and longer diabetes duration were included. Models were robust to internal and external validation procedures. Conclusions - CHD risk prediction models for hard CHD in those with type 1 diabetes should include risk factors not considered by existing models. Using models specifically developed for predicting CHD in type 1 diabetes may allow for more targeted prevention strategie