Epidemiological Analysis of SARS-CoV-2 Transmission Dynamics in the State of Odisha, India: A Yearlong Exploratory Data Analysis

COVID-19 remains a matter of global public health concern. Previous research suggested the association between local environmental factors and viral transmission. We present a multivariate observational analysis of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in the state of Odisha, India, hinting at a seasonal activity. We aim to investigate the demographic characteristics of COVID-19 in the Indian state of Odisha for two specific timelines in 2020 and 2021. For a comparative outlook, we chose similar datasets from the state of New York, USA. Further, we present a critical analysis pertaining to the effects of environmental factors and the emergence of variants on SARS-CoV-2 transmission and persistence. We assessed the datasets for confirmed cases, death, age, and gender for 29 February 2020 to 31 May 2020, and 1 March 2021 to 31 May 2021. We determined the case fatalities, crude death rates, sex ratio, and incidence rates for both states along with monthly average temperature analysis. A yearlong epi-curve analysis was conducted to depict the coronavirus infection spread pattern in the respective states. The Indian state of Odisha reported a massive 436,455 confirmed cases and 875 deaths during the 2021 timeline as compared to a mere 2223 cases and 7 deaths during the 2020 timeline. We further discuss the demographic and temperature association of SARS-CoV-2 transmission during early 2020 and additionally comment on the variant-associated massive rise in cases during 2021. Along with the rapid rise of variants, the high population density and population behavior seem to be leading causes for the 2021 pandemic, whereas factors such as age group, gender, and average local temperature were prominent during the 2020 spread. A seasonal occurrence of SARS-CoV-2 transmission is also observed from the yearlong epidemiological plot. The recent second wave of COVID-19 is a lesson that emphasizes the significance of continuous epidemiological surveillance to predict the relative risk of viral transmission for a specific region

Fluorine substituted nano hydroxyapatite: Synthesis, bio-activity and antibacterial response study

In the present investigation, nano hydroxyapatite (HAp) and fluorine substituted hydroxyapatite (FHAp) with varying fluorine concentrations have been successfully prepared by hydrothermal method. The as synthesized powders were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), high resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) and ion chromatography (IC) for fluorine content analysis. XRD results showed shifting of HAp peaks with increasing fluorine substitution and detected calcium fluoride (CaF2) phase in the synthesized powders where theoretically 100% or more OH ions substituted by F ions. The crystallinity of HAp powder gradually increased and cell volume decreased with fluorine substitution. HRTEM of the synthesized powders showed the nano rod like morphology. The IC was carried out to understand the degree fluoridation in the synthesized powder. The IC result of in vitro fluorine ion leaching showed that fluorine concentration in aqueous medium depends on the degree of fluoridation in the synthesized powder. The as synthesized powders were checked for antimicrobial activity by using both Gram-negative (Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) strains. The powder having 33% fluorine substitution showed bactericidal effect. The in vitro fluorine ion release study showed significantly high fluorine concentration in aqueous medium for the HAp powders having more than 50% fluorine substituted. The in vitro cell viability assay using mouse osteoblast cell line (MC3T3-E1) confirmed that the powders were non-cytotoxic

Inteins in Science: Evolution to Application

Inteins are mobile genetic elements that apply standard enzymatic strategies to excise themselves post-translationally from the precursor protein via protein splicing. Since their discovery in the 1990s, recent advances in intein technology allow for them to be implemented as a modern biotechnological contrivance. Radical improvement in the structure and catalytic framework of cis- and trans-splicing inteins devised the development of engineered inteins that contribute to various efficient downstream techniques. Previous literature indicates that implementation of intein-mediated splicing has been extended to in vivo systems. Besides, the homing endonuclease domain also acts as a versatile biotechnological tool involving genetic manipulation and control of monogenic diseases. This review orients the understanding of inteins by sequentially studying the distribution and evolution pattern of intein, thereby highlighting a role in genetic mobility. Further, we include an in-depth summary of specific applications branching from protein purification using self-cleaving tags to protein modification, post-translational processing and labelling, followed by the development of intein-based biosensors. These engineered inteins offer a disruptive approach towards research avenues like biomaterial construction, metabolic engineering and synthetic biology. Therefore, this linear perspective allows for a more comprehensive understanding of intein function and its diverse applications

Effect of fluorine substitution on sintering behaviour, mechanical and bioactivity of hydroxyapatite

Fluorine substituted hydroxyapatite (FAp) with different degree of fluorine (F) substitution, has been synthesized using hydrothermal synthesis method. In the present work, as synthesized powders were consolidated by sintering at 1200 degrees C in air for 1 h. The sintered specimens were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) for phase analysis. Further, fluorine intake in the sintered specimens was evaluated using ion chromatography (IC). XRD peaks clearly showed biphasic nature of the sintered specimen. However, the sintered samples containing more than similar to 60% fluorine substitution showed no P-tricalcium phosphate (beta-TCP) phase formation. The IC results revealed that the degree of fluoridation decreased significantly in the sintered specimen compare to the respective as synthesized powders. The effect of actual fluorine content in the sintered specimens was further evaluated in terms of sinterability, surface energy, mechanical properties and in vitro cytocompatibility study. The surface energy of the sintered specimen decreased from 51.8 mN/m to 42.5 mN/m, in which degree of fluoridation varies from 0% to 110%. The in vitro cytocompatibility of the sintered specimen were carried out against mouse osteoblast cell line (MC3T3-E1). In vitro study showed that all the samples were nontoxic but cell proliferation for the samples containing more than 40% fluorine substitution became significantly low

Strontium doped hydroxyapatite from Mercenaria clam shells: Synthesis, mechanical and bioactivity study

Synthesis of strontium-doped hydroxyapatite from Mercenaria clam shells has been carried out by hydrothermal method. The doping of bioceramic, processed from biogenic resources is mostly unexplored. The objective is to understand the effect of strontium (Sr) incorporation on phase stability, sintering behaviour, mechanical properties and cytotoxicity of hydroxyapatite (HAp) derived from clam shells. The different molar concentrations of Sr, varies from 10, 30, 50, 70% of Ca, were substituted into the HAp. The synthesized powders were sintered at 1200 degrees C in air. The as synthesized powders and sintered specimens were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The crystallite size and cell parameters of sintered specimens were analyzed from XRD. The XRD of hydrothermally synthesized powders mostly matched with HAp with slight shifting due to Sr doping. However, some distinct Sr based compounds were also observed where Sr substitution is more that 50% of Ca. The XRD of sintered specimen showed increasing beta-tricalcium phosphate (beta-TCP) phase with Sr substitution. The sintered density of solid samples gradually increased from 3.04 g/cc to 3.50 g/cc and surface energy decreased with increasing Sr substitution. Similarly, microhardness, fracture toughness and nanohardness of solid samples found to be enhanced with Sr substitution. The elastic modulus gradually increased from 130 to 137 GPa for HAp and Sr substituted HAp (70% of Ca). The in vitro cytotoxicity of sintered specimen against mouse osteoblast cell line showed that all the samples were nontoxic. However cell proliferation found low for the solid samples containing more than 50% Sr substitution