A Descriptive Study to Assess the Prevalence of Anemia and Identify Dietary Practices among Adolescent Girls in Selected School of Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh

Introduction: Anemia is one of the major public-health problems that affects the world’s total population widely Anemia is known to affect people belonging to all age-groups, particularly women of child bearing age and children. Hence, the researcher felt the need to conduct a descriptive study to assess the prevalence of anemia and identify dietary practices among adolescent girls in selected school of Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh.Materials and Methods: Quantitative approach with descriptive survey design was used to achieve the objectives of the study. The sample consisted of 100 adolescent girls (11-17 years) from selected school of Moradabad. Convenient sampling technique was used to select the sample. A structured questionnaire was developed to identify dietary practices and to obtain demographic profile of adolescent girls and a recording sheet was used to collect data regarding their haemoglobin level.Results: The data collected was analysed and interpreted using both descriptive and inferential statistics. The study showed that 66% of the adolescents were anemic; out of which 31% were mild anemic, 25% moderate and 10% were severely anemic. There was a significant relationship between anemic statuses of the sample with their frequency of eating junk food. A pamphlet on prevention and management of anemia among adolescent was developed and disseminated to the adolescent girls.Conclusion: The point prevalence of anemia among adolescent girls was found to be 66%. The high prevalence of anaemia among adolescents demands due emphasis on iron and folic acid supplementation, iron rich food intake, health education regarding personal hygiene and periodical deworming to reduce the burden of anaemia among adolescent girls

Evolution and Spectral Response of a Steam Atmosphere for Early Earth with a coupled climate-interior model

The evolution of Earth's early atmosphere and the emergence of habitable conditions on our planet are intricately coupled with the development and duration of the magma ocean phase during the early Hadean period (4 to 4.5 Ga). In this paper, we deal with the evolution of the steam atmosphere during the magma ocean period. We obtain the outgoing longwave radiation using a line-by-line radiative transfer code GARLIC. Our study suggests that an atmosphere consisting of pure H$_{2}$O, built as a result of outgassing extends the magma ocean lifetime to several million years. The thermal emission as a function of solidification timescale of magma ocean is shown. We study the effect of thermal dissociation of H$_{2}$O at higher temperatures by applying atmospheric chemical equilibrium which results in the formation of H$_{2}$ and O$_{2}$ during the early phase of the magma ocean. A 1-6\% reduction in the OLR is seen. We also obtain the effective height of the atmosphere by calculating the transmission spectra for the whole duration of the magma ocean. An atmosphere of depth ~100 km is seen for pure water atmospheres. The effect of thermal dissociation on the effective height of the atmosphere is also shown. Due to the difference in the absorption behavior at different altitudes, the spectral features of H$_{2}$ and O$_{2}$ are seen at different altitudes of the atmosphere. Therefore, these species along with H$_{2}$O have a significant contribution to the transmission spectra and could be useful for placing observational constraints upon magma ocean exoplanets.Comment: 22 pages, 17 Figures, accepted for publication in ApJ on March

Metagenomic deep sequencing of aqueous fluid detects intraocular lymphomas.

IntroductionCurrently, the detection of pathogens or mutations associated with intraocular lymphomas heavily relies on prespecified, directed PCRs. With metagenomic deep sequencing (MDS), an unbiased high-throughput sequencing approach, all pathogens as well as all mutations present in the host's genome can be detected in the same small amount of ocular fluid.MethodsIn this cross-sectional case series, aqueous fluid samples from two patients were submitted to MDS to identify pathogens as well as common and rare cancer mutations.ResultsMDS of aqueous fluid from the first patient with vitreal lymphoma revealed the presence of both Epstein-Barr virus (HHV-4/EBV) and human herpes virus 8 (HHV-8) RNA. Aqueous fluid from the second patient with intraocular B-cell lymphoma demonstrated a less common mutation in the MYD88 gene associated with B-cell lymphoma.ConclusionMDS detects pathogens that, in some instances, may drive the development of intraocular lymphomas. Moreover, MDS is able to identify both common and rare mutations associated with lymphomas

Association between CD4+T lymphocyte levels and "red complex" pathogens of chronic inflammatory periodontal disease in HIV-positive patients

Masters of ScienceBackground: Infection with HIV results in gradual loss of immunologic functions, especially those mediated by CD4+T helper cells with consequent impairment of the immune response leading to severe manifestations of periodontal disease. The lower the CD4+T lymphocyte cell count or the higher the level of immunosuppression, the higher the incidence of periodontal disease in those patients will be. Putative periodontopathic bacteria namely Porphyromonas gingivalis, Treponema denticola and Tannerella forsythia, commonly referred to as "red complex", and many other bacterial species have been implicated in the initiation and progression of periodontal disease. Objective: The present study tests the association between different CD4+T lymphocyte levels and "red complex" pathogens using BANA, in HIV-positive patients with chronic inflammatory periodontal disease (CIPD). Methods: 120 HIV-positive patients from the infectious disease clinic at Tygerberg hospital participated in the study with a mean age of 33.3 years. The CD4+T lymphocyte counts were obtained from patient's medical records. The six Ramjford teeth were used for evaluating periodontal clinical parameters such as plaque index, gingival index, periodontal probing depth and clinical attachment loss. Subgingival plaque samples were collected and analyzed by the enzymatic BANA test for the detection of the "red complex". Results: The CD4+T lymphocyte mean level was 293.43cells/mm3. Statistically significant associations were found between CD4+T cell counts and probing depth (p= 0.0434) and clinical attachment loss (p= 0.0268). Significant associations were found between BANA with all the clinical indices (p= <0.05). However no association was found between CD4+T cell counts and BANA. Conclusion: HIV-positive patients show a high prevalence of "red complex" pathogens subgingivally. Immunosuppression seems to favour the colonization of these species, resulting in periodontal disease manifestations

Protein expression and antifungal effect of fluconazole-resistant Candida species following effective in vitro treatment with K21, a novel antifungal agent

Philosophiae Doctor - PhDBackground: Oropharyngeal candidiasis, caused by the fungus Candida, is the most common opportunistic infection affecting the quality of life of immunocompromised patients. Fluconazole is widely used as the first line of treatment for fungal infections. However, the inappropriate and misguided use of the drug has led to the evolvement of fluconazole-resistant Candida organisms. This arising resistance resulted in the urgent need for the development of new antimicrobial drugs. The aim of the present study was to investigate the antifungal action of K21, a novel antimicrobial quarternary ammonium compound, on fluconazole-resistant Candida species

The challenge of conducting qualitative research to understand the factors that influence equity in medical education: A scoping review

Introduction There are national and international concerns about equity in basic and postgraduate medical education, especially about differential rates of access and attainment across groups of learners. Qualitative research has been increasingly used to understand the factors that influence equity but there are potential limitations to this understanding related to how the research has been conducted. The aim of the scoping review was to identify how qualitative research exploring the factors that influence equity in basic and postgraduate medical education has been conducted. The intention was to inform future research. Methods The electronic databases British Education Index, Campbell Library, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, ERIC, Google Scholar, Health Management Information Consortium (HMIC), MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Web of Science and medical education journals were searched to identify relevant published articles between 2008 and April 2019. Results Among 19,523 articles identified from the literature search, 72 full text articles were included in the review. Most studies had a focus on only one background characteristic and only two studies had a strengths-based focus on individuals. Recommendations for change was at the ‘policy level’ in ten studies and four studies had learner recommendations for change. No studies with a participatory approach were identified. Conclusion The approach to conducting previous qualitative research appears to limit greater understanding of the complexity of factors that influence equity. In response to this challenge, we recommend that future research widen the focus to consider the experiences and strengths of individual learners in addition to those identified by background characteristics. Future qualitative research is recommended to have a broad focus on both the ‘policy level’ and ‘local level’, especially from multiple perspectives. We also recommend greater collaboration of participants with researchers throughout the research process.</p

What factors affect the duration and outgassing of the terrestrial magma ocean?

The magma ocean (MO) is a crucial stage in the build-up of terrestrial planets. Its solidification and the accompanying outgassing of volatiles set the conditions for important processes occurring later or even simultaneously, such as solid-state mantle convection and atmospheric escape. To constrain the duration of a global-scale Earth MO we have built and applied a 1D interior model coupled alternatively with a grey H2O/CO2 atmosphere or with a pure H2O atmosphere treated with a line-by-line model described in a companion paper by Katyal et al. (2019). We study in detail the effects of several factors affecting the MO lifetime, such as the initial abundance of H2O and CO2, the convection regime, the viscosity, the mantle melting temperature, and the longwave radiation absorption from the atmosphere. In this specifically multi-variable system we assess the impact of each factor with respect to a reference setting commonly assumed in the literature. We find that the MO stage can last from a few thousand to several million years. By coupling the interior model with the line-by-line atmosphere model, we identify the conditions that determine whether the planet experiences a transient magma ocean or it ceases to cool and maintains a continuous magma ocean. We find a dependence of this distinction simultaneously on the mass of the outgassed H2O atmosphere and on the MO surface melting temperature. We discuss their combined impact on the MO's lifetime in addition to the known dependence on albedo, orbital distance and stellar luminosity and we note observational degeneracies that arise thereby for target exoplanets

“It’s a Big Family Here.” Becoming and Belonging in a Service Providing Employment-Related Support for People with Mental Health Problems: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

The impact of employment for individuals with mental health problems is complex. However, research suggests that when support is provided for accessing employment and gaining roles and skills that are valued by others, a positive efect can be seen on recovery. Employment-related support can take many forms and there is a need for further research into the experience of accessing diferent kinds of services. The current paper examines the lived experience of 11 people participating in a UK social enterprise providing work experience, training, and skills development for those with mental health problems. Although ‘sheltered’, the organisational ethos strongly emphasised service-user empowerment, co-production, equality with staf, provision of valued social roles and person-centred support. Phenomenological analysis revealed that participants valued a sense of belonging and authentic relationships within the service, whilst being given the opportunity to rediscover an identity that may have been lost because of their mental health problem. However, participants also discussed how, although the service improved their self-value, some feared the ‘real world’ outside of the service and were unsure whether they would be met with the same support. Tensions between feld dominant approaches in supported employment and the experiences and values of the participants are explored. We argue that the fndings highlight the importance of a nurturing working environment and the value for recovery of a range of meaningful roles, beyond competitive employment

httk: R Package for High-Throughput Toxicokinetics

Thousands of chemicals have been profiled by high-throughput screening programs such as ToxCast and Tox21; these chemicals are tested in part because most of them have limited or no data on hazard, exposure, or toxicokinetics. Toxicokinetic models aid in predicting tissue concentrations resulting from chemical exposure, and a "reverse dosimetry" approach can be used to predict exposure doses sufficient to cause tissue concentrations that have been identified as bioactive by high-throughput screening. We have created four toxicokinetic models within the R software package httk. These models are designed to be parameterized using high-throughput in vitro data (plasma protein binding and hepatic clearance), as well as structure-derived physicochemical properties and species-specific physiological data. The package contains tools for Monte Carlo sampling and reverse dosimetry along with functions for the analysis of concentration vs. time simulations. The package can currently use human in vitro data to make predictions for 553 chemicals in humans, rats, mice, dogs, and rabbits, including 94 pharmaceuticals and 415 ToxCast chemicals. For 67 of these chemicals, the package includes rat-specific in vitro data. This package is structured to be augmented with additional chemical data as they become available. Package httk enables the inclusion of toxicokinetics in the statistical analysis of chemicals undergoing high-throughput screening