Protective potential of methanol extract of Digera muricata on acrylamide induced hepatotoxicity in rats

This study was aimed to evaluate the probable protective effects of Digera muricata methanol extract (DME) against acrylamide (AA) induced hepatocellular injuries in female Sprague-Dawley rat. Phytochemical screening for the presence of different bioactive chemical groups was also carried out. The daily dose (6 mg/kg bw i.p.) injection of AA for 15 days caused significant increase in serum level of liver marker enzymes and metabolites: AST, ALT, ACP, ALP, LDH, BUN, creatinine, direct bilirubin and total bilirubin, while significant decrease in total protein and albumin. Hepatic level of antioxidant enzymes; CAT, POD, SOD, GSH-Px, GST and QR, and GSH contents were significantly decreased, while γ-GT and MDA was significantly increased. Treatment of DME (100, 150 and 200 mg/kg), dose dependently, ameliorated the toxicity of AA and the studied parameters were reversed towards the control level. Hepatic lesions induced with AA were reduced with DME treatment. Phytochemical screening indicates the presence of flavonoids, alkaloids, terpenoids, saponins, tannins, phlobatanin, coumarins, anthraquinones and cardiac glycosides. Total phenolic and flavonoids contents were 205±0.23 and 175.0±0.65 mg/g as equivalent to gallic acid and rutin, respectively in DME. In conclusion, the results suggest that the hepatoprotective effects of DME against AA-induced oxidative injuries could be attributed to the phenolics and flavonoids.Key words: Digera muricata, acrylamide, alanine aminotransferase, antioxidant enzymes, TBARS, flavonoids

Preventing oxidation of canola and sunflower oils by addition of pomegranate seed oil

The study was designed to explore the antioxidative effect of pomegranate seed oil (PSO) at different concentrations (5 and 7%) against oxidation of plant-based oils (canola oil and sunflower oil) during storage (60 days) as compared to artificial antioxidant butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA, 200 ppm). Rancimat and Schaal oven analysis were employed for the assessment of potential consequences of PSO against oxidation in plant based oils. The variation in total phenolic contents (TPC), antioxidant activity, peroxide value (POV), and tocopherol contents during storage were evaluated by Schaal oven test at 62 °C. The substantially (P≤0.05) higher induction period (IP) values were observed for PSO blended oil samples as compared to blank oil samples. The addition of PSO in plant-based oils improved the oxidative stability by enhancing the antioxidant potential and TPC, decreasing POV, and slowing down the degradation of tocopherol contents during storage. The findings of the present study suggest that PSO might be used as an alternative potential antioxidant to synthetic antioxidants

Effective thermodynamics of strongly coupled qubits

Interactions between a quantum system and its environment at low temperatures can lead to violations of thermal laws for the system. The source of these violations is the entanglement between system and environment, which prevents the system from entering into a thermal state. On the other hand, for two-state systems, we show that one can define an effective temperature, placing the system into a `pseudo-thermal' state where effective thermal laws are upheld. We then numerically explore these assertions for an n-state system inspired by the spin-boson environment.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure

Growth Response of Buffel Grass (Cenchrus ciliaris) to Phosphorus and Mycorrhizal Inoculation

Arbuscular-mycorrhizal symbiosis confers numerous benefits to host plants including improved tolerance to abiotic and biotic stresses. Although the majority of grasses form an arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis, little is known of the mycorrhization of Buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris). A pot study was conducted in sterilized soil to determine the effect of mycorrhizal inoculation and phosphorus amendment on the biomass production in C. ciliaris. Mycorrhizal fungi used were Gigaspora rosea, Glomus intraradices and Glomus etunicatum. Inoculation with Gigaspora rosea alone, and combined incoculation with Glomus intraradices + Gigaspora rosea and Glomus intraradices + Glomus etunicatum signifi cantly (P<0.05) increased dry biomass in unamended and 25 kg P2O5 ha-1 treatments. Combined inoculation with Glomus intraradices + Gigaspora rosea and Glomus intraradices + Glomus etunicatum showed pronounced (P<0.05) eff ect on dry biomass compared to inoculation with Gigaspora rosea alone in unamended and 25 kg P2O5 ha-1 treatments. Combined inoculation with Glomus intraradices + Glomus etunicatum resulted in signifi cantly (P<0.05) higher dry biomass campared to the combined inoculation with Glomus intraradices + Gigaspora rosea and inoculation with Gigaspora rosea alone in unamended and 25 kg P2O5 ha-1 treatments. Th e results clearly show that inoculation of C. ciliaris plants with mycorrhizal fungi Gigaspora rosea, Glomus intraradices and Glomus etunicatum is highly benefi cial for the growth and biomass production in the absence or presence of P2O5 under sterile soil conditions. Inoculation of C. ciliaris plants with these mycorrizal fungi may help in forage production in marginal and shallow soils of the rangelands of Pakistan

Local Anaesthetic Flush Reduces Postoperative Pain and Haematoma Formation After Great Saphenous Vein Stripping—A Randomised Controlled Trial

AbstractObjectivesTo observe the effect of local anaesthetic flush through the great saphenous vein (GSV) tunnel on postoperative pain and haematoma formation following saphenous vein stripping operations.DesignProspective, double-blind, randomised, control trial.MethodsOne hundred patients were randomized to receive 20ml of local anaesthetic (bupivacaine 0.25%+adrenaline) or saline control flush through the GSV tunnel after stripping in a double-blind study. Visual analogue pain scores were used to measure postoperative pain daily for the 1st week, then at 3 weeks and 6 weeks. Patients were examined during the 1st, 3rd and 6th week for haematoma formation.ResultsIn the control group the median postoperative pain score was 4 (range 0–7) in the immediate postoperative period compared to a median of 1 (range 0–4) in the LA group (p<0.001). The median pain score on day-4 was 4 (range 1–6) (control) vs. 1 (range 0–3) (LA group) (p<0.001, Mann–Whitney Utest) and on day-6 it was 1 (range 0–5) (control) vs. 0 (range 0–5) (LA group) (p<0.001, Mann–Whitney). Twelve patients (24%) developed a haematoma in the GSV tunnel in the control group compared to three patients (6%) in the LA group (p=0.007).ConclusionFlushing of the GSV tunnel with bupivacaine plus adrenaline significantly reduces postoperative pain and haematoma formation in patients undergoing GSV stripping for varicose veins

Aggregated Traffic Models for Real-World Data in the Internet of Things

Traffic models play a key role in the analysis, design and simulation of communication networks. The availability of accurate models is essential to investigate the impact of traffic patterns created by the introduction of new services such as those forecasted for the Internet of Things (IoT). The Poisson model has historically been a popular aggregated traffic model and has been extensively used by the IoT research community. However, the Poisson model implicitly assumes an infinite number of traffic sources, which may not be a valid assumption in various plausible application scenarios. The practical conditions under which the Poisson model is valid in the context of IoT have not been fully investigated, in particular under a finite (and possibly reduced) number of traffic sources with random inter-arrival times. In this context, this letter derives exact mathematical models for the packet inter-arrival times of aggregated IoT data traffic based on the superposition of a finite number of traffic sources, each of which is modelled based on real-world experimental data from typical IoT sensors (temperature, light and motion). The obtained exact models are used to explore the validity of the Poisson model, showing that it can be extremely inaccurate when a reduced number of traffic sources is considered. Finally, an illustrative example is presented to show the importance of having accurate and realistic models such as those presented in this letter