Relationship between Cervical Vertebral Maturation and Chronological Age: A Mixed Longitudinal Study

The cervical vertebrae have been proposed as a method of determining skeletal maturation.This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between chronologic age and the individual skeletal maturity as assessed by means of the cervical vertebral maturation (CVM) method

Population infection estimation from wastewater surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 in Nagpur, India during the second pandemic wave

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has emerged as an effective environmental surveillance tool for predicting severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) disease outbreaks in high-income countries (HICs) with centralized sewage infrastructure. However, few studies have applied WBE alongside epidemic disease modelling to estimate the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in low-resource settings. This study aimed to explore the feasibility of collecting untreated wastewater samples from rural and urban catchment areas of Nagpur district, to detect and quantify SARS-CoV-2 using real-time qPCR, to compare geographic differences in viral loads, and to integrate the wastewater data into a modified Susceptible-Exposed-Infectious-Confirmed Positives-Recovered (SEIPR) model. Of the 983 wastewater samples analyzed for SARS-CoV-2 RNA, we detected significantly higher sample positivity rates, 43.7% (95% confidence interval (CI) 40.1, 47.4) and 30.4% (95% CI 24.66, 36.66), and higher viral loads for the urban compared with rural samples, respectively. The Basic reproductive number, R0, positively correlated with population density and negatively correlated with humidity, a proxy for rainfall and dilution of waste in the sewers. The SEIPR model estimated the rate of unreported coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases at the start of the wave as 13.97 [95% CI (10.17, 17.0)] times that of confirmed cases, representing a material difference in cases and healthcare resource burden. Wastewater surveillance might prove to be a more reliable way to prepare for surges in COVID-19 cases during future waves for authorities

RNA-Seq of untreated wastewater to assess COVID-19 and emerging and endemic viruses for public health surveillance

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic showcased the power of genomic sequencing to tackle the emergence and spread of infectious diseases. However, metagenomic sequencing of total microbial RNAs in wastewater has the potential to assess multiple infectious diseases simultaneously and has yet to be explored.MethodsA retrospective RNA-Seq epidemiological survey of 140 untreated composite wastewater samples was performed across urban (n = 112) and rural (n = 28) areas of Nagpur, Central India. Composite wastewater samples were prepared by pooling 422 individual grab samples collected prospectively from sewer lines of urban municipality zones and open drains of rural areas from 3rd February to 3rd April 2021, during the second COVID-19 wave in India. Samples were pre-processed and total RNA was extracted prior to genomic sequencing.FindingsThis is the first study that has utilised culture and/or probe-independent unbiased RNA-Seq to examine Indian wastewater samples. Our findings reveal the detection of zoonotic viruses including chikungunya, Jingmen tick and rabies viruses, which have not previously been reported in wastewater. SARS-CoV-2 was detectable in 83 locations (59%), with stark abundance variations observed between sampling sites. Hepatitis C virus was the most frequently detected infectious virus, identified in 113 locations and co-occurring 77 times with SARS-CoV-2; and both were more abundantly detected in rural areas than urban zones. Concurrent identification of segmented virus genomic fragments of influenza A virus, norovirus, and rotavirus was observed. Geographical differences were also observed for astrovirus, saffold virus, husavirus, and aichi virus that were more prevalent in urban samples, while the zoonotic viruses chikungunya and rabies, were more abundant in rural environments.InterpretationRNA-Seq can effectively detect multiple infectious diseases simultaneously, facilitating geographical and epidemiological surveys of endemic viruses that could help direct healthcare interventions against emergent and pre-existent infectious diseases as well as cost-effectively and qualitatively characterising the health status of the population over time

Differential acetylcholinesterase activity in rat cerebrum, cerebellum and hypothalamus

381-386Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) has been purified from three different regions of rat brain using Sephadex® G 200 column. SDS PAGE (6%) showed single band for the purified AChE fractions. Purified and lyophilized AChE from different (NH4)2SO4 precipitated fractions of three brain parts were utilized for in vitro enzyme kinetics using Dimethoate (Dmt) as inhibitor. Km values for cerebellum and hypothalamus were almost similar whereas cerebrum showed a different Km value compared to other two regions. With the drug Rivastigmine it was found that % G1 and G4 forms of AChE in three different parts of brain are different

Aluminium related changes in brain histology: Protection by calcium and nifedipine

948-950Aluminium (Al; 50 mg AlCl3/kg body wt/day) treatment caused a marked change in histological picture of normal brain as indicated by an increased number of vacuolated spaces. These changes returned to normal partially by simultaneous treatment with nifedipine (0 .7 mg/kg body wt/day) and completely by similar treatment with 50 ppm calcium (CaCl2 ; 12.5 mg/kg body wt./day). Neither nifedipine nor calcium treatment alone altered the normal histological condition. The histological changes could not be correlated with the decrease in calcineurin activities in brain as nifedipine decreases calcineurin activity without any histological changes. Hence the histological changes may be considered as specific for Al and not due to a general decrease in calcineurin activity

Effect of high arsenic content in drinking water on rat brain

51-54The permissible limit of arsenic content in drinking water is 0.05 ppm, whereas, in many parts of West Bengal the arsenic level in drinking water is 0.1 ppm, frequently 0.3 ppm and even 3.0 ppm, though rarely. In order to assess possible risk to brain function by drinking such water, rats were given arsenic mixed in drinking water at the above four concentrations for 40 days. There was increased lipid peroxidation at all doses of arsenic, including the 'permissible limit', decrease in glutathione level, superoxide dismutase and glutathione reductase activities, indicating the free-radical-mediated degeneration of brain.</span

Relationship between Cervical Vertebral Maturation and Chronological Age: A Mixed Longitudinal Study

The cervical vertebrae have been proposed as a method of determining skeletal maturation.This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between chronologic age and the individual skeletal maturity as assessed by means of the cervical vertebral maturation (CVM) method

Imprints of lockdown and treatment processes on the wastewater surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 : a curious case of fourteen plants in Northern India

The present study investigated the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome– coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) genomes at each treatment stage of 14 aerobic wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) serving the major municipalities in two states of Rajasthan and Uttarakhand in Northern India. The untreated, primary, secondary and tertiary treated wastewater samples were collected over a time frame ranging from under-lockdown to post-lockdown conditions. The results showed that SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in 13 out of 40 wastewater samples in Jaipur district, Rajasthan and in 5 out of 14 wastewater samples in the Haridwar District, Uttarakhand with the E gene predominantly observed as compared to the N and RdRp target genes in later time-points of sampling. The Ct values of genes present in wastewater samples were correlated with the incidence of patient and community cases of COVID-19. This study further indicates that the viral RNA could be detected after the primary treatment but was not present in secondary or tertiary treated samples. This study implies that aerobic biological wastewater treatment systems such as moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) technology and sequencing batch reactor (SBR) are effective in virus removal from the wastewater. This work might present a new indication that there is little to no risk in relation to SARS-CoV-2 while reusing the treated wastewater for non-potable applications. In contrast, untreated wastewater might present a potential route of viral transmission through WWTPs to sanitation workers and the public. However, there is a need to investigate the survival and infection rates of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater.Published versionThis research was funded by research grants from the Department of Biotechnology-GoI [Grant No. BT/RLF/Re-entry/12/2016]