Water Quality as a Measure to Understand Vulnerability and Viability Issues in Small-Scale Fisheries of Chilika Lagoon, India

Small-scale fisheries (SSFs) sustain millions of livelihoods worldwide by contributing to food security and income. However, small-scale fishing communities are marginalized and vulnerable due to cumulative impacts of sea-level rise, hydrological changes, hydrodynamic disruptions, overexploitation of resources, aquaculture, coastal and inland habitat loss, overfishing, lack of livelihood alternatives, along with food insecurity, occupational displacement, and outmigration. While most studies on SSF vulnerability have focused on economic, social, and political factors, limited research links these vulnerabilities with changes in the water quality. My research addresses this gap by examining the effects of water quality changes on the vulnerability of SSF and using this examination to advance potential approaches for achieving viability. A range of human-induced and natural factors shape the hydrodynamics of the lagoon. These include invasion of weeds, agricultural runoff, wastewater releases from industries, domestic discharge and sewage pollution, variation in the phytoplankton, fish species composition and fish landing, introduction of many chemical feeds, and uneaten food pellets and fish waste pollutes related to aquaculture production. Typically, a number of these factors come together to produce eutrophication and algal blooms which, in turn, control conditions of vulnerability and viability of fishing communities related to water quality. This research analyzes pathways of vulnerability resulting from water quality changes in small-scale fisheries systems in Chilika Lagoon, the largest coastal lagoon on the east coast of India and lifeline of the state of Odisha. Chilika Lagoon is a designated Wetland of International Importance (Ramsar Site under the Convention on Wetlands) since 1981. In the Lagoon, traditional small-scale capture fisheries support livelihoods of over 140,000 fisher communities in the vicinity of 424 villages within two kilometers of the wetland boundary. These communities are now being affected by the catastrophic influence of an endangered social-ecological system. An abrupt degradation phase between 1950 and 2000 in Chilika was due to opening of artificial sea mouth and introduction of aquaculture. The degradation phase resulted in major declines in fisheries influencing substantially the livelihood of coastal communities. Since then, the direct and indirect impacts of natural and anthropogenic factors had profound impacts on the poor and vulnerable populations, which are disproportionately dependent on small-scale fishing for their livelihoods. The study aims to examine processes and drivers of water quality changes in the social-ecological system of the lagoon resulting in key vulnerabilities of fishers and analyzing adaptive approaches that can create viable SSF. Evidence for the work is collected through a mixed approach of qualitative and quantitative research methods such as I-ADApT and systematic literature review. Based on this scrutiny, I produce schemes and solutions that can be used to assemble feasible approaches to advance viability for SSFs confronting various vulnerabilities now and into the future. Overall, the research addresses sustainable management of SSFs by providing details on how fisher vulnerability may be closely linked to water quality and its related impacts. Further, the research provides some answers to how SSF viability can be achieved through coping and adaptive responses by small-scale fishing communities to the changes in water quality

A CASE REPORT ON KARTAGENER'S SYNDROME

Kartagener’s syndrome is a rare congenital disorder consisting of situs inversus, bronchiectasis and sinusitis. It is a subgroup of immotile cilia syndrome called primary ciliary dyskinesia. In this syndrome generally male patients show infertility and reduced fertility in females. Mutation in DNAH5 gene located on chromosome 5p is responsible for this Mendelian disorder. Clinical manifestation involves recurrent respiratory infections and variability with multisystem involvement. Routine radiological tests are usually used for diagnosis. Prompt diagnosis and ideal management can prevent complications. Keywords: primary ciliary dyskinesia, situs inversus, bronchiectasis, dextrocardia

Evaluation of tumour associated macrophages in different histopathological types and grades of canine mammary tumours

Canine mammary tumours (CMTs) are the second highest reported tumours in female dogs, following skin tumours. Human breast cancers (HBCs) and CMTs share common clinical and molecular features and hence, CMTs are considered as ideal models to study the different aspects of HBC. The study utilised samples from 25 CMT suspected cases presented to University Veterinary Hospitals in Thrissur district from December 2020 to October 2021. The tumour samples were analysed histopathologically and the lesions were classified. Among the 25 cases, one was identified as ductal hyperplasia, one as a benign myxoma and all the others were found to be malignant neoplasms. Malignant tumours were further categorised into different histotypes.Histological Malignancy Grading (HMG) was also done in 23 malignant CMTs and 21.74 percent were found to be of grade I, 47.83 per cent were grade II and 30.43 per cent were grade III. Majority of the malignant tumours were simple carcinomas which comprised tubulopapillary, ductal, cribriform, solid and comedocarcinomas. Highly aggressive tumours like cribriform, solid, comedo and inflammatory carcinomas belonged to higher grades, either II or III. Infiltration of tumour associated macrophages (TAMs) was studied in different histotypes and grades of CMTs. It was identified that malignant high grade CMTs had greater TAM infiltration and hence, with further validation TAMs could be effectively used in predicting prognosis and also as a therapeutic target

International Gynaecological Cancer Society (IGCS) 2020 Annual Global Meeting: Twitter activity analysis

Objectives Twitter is the most frequently used social media platform by healthcare practitioners, at medical conferences. This study aimed to analyze Twitter conversations during the virtual International Gynecological Cancer Society 2020 conference to understand the interactions between Twitter users related to the conference. Methods Tweets using the hashtag ‘#IGCS2020’ were searched using the Twitter Search Application Programming Interface (API) during the period 10–13 September 2020. NodeXL Pro was used to retrieve data. The Clauset-Newman-Moore cluster algorithm clustered users into different groups or ‘clusters’ based on how users interacted. Results There were 2009 registrants for the virtual IGCS 2020 conference. The total number of users within the network was 168, and there were 880 edges connecting users. Five types of edges were identified as follows: ‘replies to’ (n=18), ‘mentions’ (n=221), ‘mentions in retweets’ (n=375), retweets (n=198), and tweets (n=68). The most influential account was that of the IGCS account itself (@IGCSociety). The overall network shape resembled a community where distinct groups formed within the network. Our current analyses demonstrated that less than 10% of the total members interacted on Twitter. Conclusion This study identified the most influential Twitter users within the ‘#IGCS2020’ community. he results also confirmed the community network shape of the #IGCS2020 hashtag and found that the most frequent co-related words were ‘ovarian’ and ‘cancer’ (n=39)

Genome-wide meta-analysis identifies 127 open-angle glaucoma loci with consistent effect across ancestries

Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), is a heritable common cause of blindness world-wide. To identify risk loci, we conduct a large multi-ethnic meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies on a total of 34,179 cases and 349,321 controls, identifying 44 previously unreported risk loci and confirming 83 loci that were previously known. The majority of loci have broadly consistent effects across European, Asian and African ancestries. Cross-ancestry data improve fine-mapping of causal variants for several loci. Integration of multiple lines of genetic evidence support the functional relevance of the identified POAG risk loci and highlight potential contributions of several genes to POAG pathogenesis, including SVEP1, RERE, VCAM1, ZNF638, CLIC5, SLC2A12, YAP1, MXRA5, and SMAD6. Several drug compounds targeting POAG risk genes may be potential glaucoma therapeutic candidates. Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is highly heritable, yet not well understood from a genetic perspective. Here, the authors perform a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies in 34,179 POAG cases, identifying 44 previously unreported risk loci and mapping effects across multiple ethnicities

Hysterectomy at the time of risk-reducing surgery in BRCA carriers

In this study, women at risk for BRCA were surveyed to understand their choice of prophylactic surgery and associated risk of uterine cancers. The study was conducted as an anonymous online web-based survey that assessed personal and family histories and choice of prophylactic surgery. Respondents were targeted through social media groups that bring awareness to hereditary breast and ovarian cancer.The study cohort included an international group of 601 respondents. The majority were female (99.3%), in their 40s (34.2%), and had completed college or graduate school (68.8%). 87% of respondents carry BRCA gene mutation. Of 339 respondents who underwent risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO), 55.8% had a hysterectomy at time of RRSO. Most common reasons for hysterectomy at time of RRSO included: 39% provider recommendation, 27.6% personal desire, 9.7% benign indications, 1.6% cancer in uterus, 1.1% precancerous uterine lesion, and 21.1% other (N = 185). In this cohort, nine were diagnosed with uterine cancer. Three were diagnosed after risk-reducing surgery. Both patients with uterine serous carcinoma were BRCA1 carriers.Two thirds of BRCA carriers surveyed had undergone RRSO. Of these, more than half had hysterectomy at time of RRSO. One third chose to have hysterectomy based on surgeon recommendation. <1% (2 out of 258) of BRCA1 gene mutation carriers reported being diagnosed with uterine serous carcinomas. While this incidence is low, it may be an underestimate based on the limitations of this study. Additional studies are needed to select which patients will benefit from concurrent hysterectomy and RRSO

Introduction to the medical professions through an innovative medical student-run pipeline program

Underrepresented minorities (URMs) make up a disproportionately small percentage of medical school applicants, matriculants, and physicians relative to the general US population. Preprofessional pipeline programs may help introduce URMs to careers in the medical field. MiniMeds was developed as a paracurricular enrichment program that targeted URM students. The curriculum was designed and administered by medical students, and 2 trials of this program were conducted. Data were collected pre and post program through a survey that assessed knowledge of medical concepts and knowledge of and interest in careers in medicine. Attendance at program sessions correlated with baseline knowledge about medical professions. Knowledge about medical concepts increased significantly from baseline to follow-up for boys, a group significantly represented by URMs in our cohort. Median scores for knowledge of medical careers increased significantly from baseline to followup for URMs as well as for boys and girls. Preprofessional pipeline programs such as MiniMeds are able to engage and develop medical knowledge in URM students at a critical developmental age. Further evaluation and implementation of programs that incorporate medical students to actively develop and lead pipeline programs are warranted