IDENTIFYING ELEMENTS OF THE CODE OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS FOR TEACHERS IN THE BHAGAVAD GITA: A HERMENEUTIC STUDY

The Bhagavad Gita is a holy scripture of the Hindu Religion and a section of the Mythological Epic Mahabharatha. This text ascribes to the philosophical discourse between Krishna and the Great Pandava warrior Arjuna which took place at the Kurukshetra battlefield. The role played by Krishna in the Mahabharata war is not just being Arjuna’s charioteer, but also a guide who urges Arjuna for to maintain his righteous disposition and justful thoughts. In the present study, there has been an attempt made to trace out the educational implications from the perspective of Krisha as an ideal teacher and Arjuna as dutiful student through a hermeneutic approach. Sixty three verses of Bhagwad Gita have been drawn and implications have been drawn out that are relevant in the current teaching learning practices. The analysis reveals that the philosophy of the Bhagavad Gita has great potential to address the some of the crucial aspects of Education.   Article visualizations

Artemisinin production by plant hairy root cultures in gas- and liquid-phase bioreactors

Key message Alternative biotechnological protocol for large-scale artemisinin production was established. It featured enhanced growth and artemisinin production by cultivation of hairy roots in nutrient mist bioreactor (NMB) coupled with novel cultivation strategies. Artemisinin is used for the treatment of cerebral malaria. Presently, its main source is from seasonal plant Artemisia annua. This study featured investigation of growth and artemisinin production by A. annua hairy roots (induced by Agrobacterium rhizogenes-mediated genetic transformation of explants) in three bioreactor configurations—bubble column reactor, NMB and modified NMB particularly to establish their suitability for commercial production. It was observed that cultivation of hairy roots in a non-stirred bubble column reactor exhibited a biomass accumulation of 5.68 g/l only while batch cultivation in a custom-made NMB exhibited a higher biomass concentration of 8.52 g/l but relatively lower artemisinin accumulation of 0.22 mg/g was observed in this reactor. A mixture of submerged liquid-phase growth (for 5 days) followed by gas-phase cultivation in nutrient mist reactor operation strategy (for next 15 days) was adopted for hairy root cultivation in this investigation. Reasonably, high (23.02 g/l) final dry weight along with the artemisinin accumulation (1.12 mg/g, equivalent to 25.78 mg/l artemisinin) was obtained in this bioreactor, which is the highest reported artemisinin yield in the gas-phase NMB cultivation

Knowledge, attitude and practices of pregnant women regarding anemia, iron rich diet and iron supplement

Background: Anemia in pregnancy has detrimental effects on maternal and child health and prevalence of anemia during pregnancy is alarmingly high, inspite of the implementation of  the national nutritional anemia prophylaxis programme which provides iron and folic acid which are the essential nutrients lacking in  their diet. The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of pregnant women regarding anemia, Iron rich food and iron supplements and also to assess the impact of these factors and other socio demographic variables on the hemoglobin levels of these vulnerable groups of women.Methods: This is a cross sectional, descriptive institution based study conducted at Sri Manakula Vinayagar medical college hospital, Puducherry, India. Sample size was calculated using formula for single proportion with 5% marginal error and 95% CI and a non-response rate of 10% and was found to be 316. Data collection was carried out using a predesigned, self-administered questionnaire in local language in the antenatal clinic at the time of routine antenatal checkup, from pregnant women who consented to participate in the study. At the same sitting, 1 ml of blood was collected for hemoglobin estimation, analyzed and the result was recorded and disclosed to the patient. The data was entered in SPSS and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (Chi square test).  A p value of <0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.Results: Assessment of knowledge revealed that only 39.87% of the participants were aware of and understood the term anemia. 53.8% of the participants accepted that pregnant women were more vulnerable to anemia and 66.1% responded correctly that the fetus will be affected by severe anemia. Only 32.6% gave the correct response that pregnant women should take iron supplementation in spite of taking a healthy diet. Only 44.62% of the participants were aware of their hemoglobin level in the current pregnancy. Knowledge about food rich in iron was poor among the participants. At least 1/5th of the participants have not received educational information regarding anemia from     any source. The overall attitude towards antenatal checkup, healthy diet and the benefits of iron supplementation was generally good among the participants 49.36% of the participants were taking only the usual diet during their pregnancy. 74.36% claimed to have taken iron supplementation regularly whereas 9.8% had not taken iron supplementation. On hemoglobin estimation it was found that 62.97% of the participants were anemic taking 11 grams as the cut off for anemia.  The only significant determinants of hemoglobin levels were regular intake of iron supplements   (p value   0.006) and timing of iron consumption (p value 0.0262).Conclusions: The present study indicated the lack of knowledge regarding anemia, iron rich foods and the importance of iron supplementation during pregnancy. Targeted estimation of hemoglobin levels in adolescent girls and women in reproductive age group, intensive counseling and motivation of pregnant women to consume Iron and folic acid and ensuring adequate supply to them, intensive de-worming, provision of toilet facilities to all households would help in reducing the incidence of anemia in pregnant women

Scar endometriosis following hysterotomy: a case report

Scar endometriosis is a rare entity mostly following obstetrical and gynecological surgeries and difficult to diagnose. It is often misdiagnosed as abscess, suture granuloma or lipoma. We report a case of scar endometriosis following hysterotomy - because of its rarity

Thyroid disorders in women with abnormal uterine bleeding: a tertiary hospital based cross sectional study from Puducherry, India

Background: The most common complaint with which women present for gynecological consultation is abnormal uterine bleeding which may be due to varied etiology. Among non-structural causes for AUB, endocrinological disorders like thyroid dysfunction is very common. Thyroid dysfunction is often overlooked, and unnecessary hormonal or surgical interventions are performed in patients with AUB.Methods: This is a hospital based cross sectional study carried out in Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospital, Puducherry between January 2017 to June 2017 for a period of 6 months and the participants were 200 women attending gynecological OPD with complaints of abnormal uterine bleeding. After obtaining a written informed consent from the participants a detailed history and complete examination including a thorough gynecological examination was performed. A transvaginal ultrasound examination to note for any structural causes for AUB was performed. Thyroid function test (FT3, FT4, TSH) was performed in all study participants and they were then categorized into euthyroid, hypothyroid, hyperthyroid, subclinical hypo or hyperthyroid based on the results. After preliminary preparation all participants were subjected for an endometrial biopsy in the outpatient department and the tissue obtained was sent for histopathological analysis. All the information was tabulated and analyzed using SPSS 22 version with descriptive and inferential statistics (chi square test). A p value of < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.Results: Heavy menstrual bleeding was the most common menstrual abnormality found in 85% of the study participants.77% had structural causes for AUB whereas 23% had non-structural causes. 79.5% of the patients with AUB were euthyroid whereas 20.5% had some form of thyroid dysfunction. Subclinical hypothyroidism was the most common thyroid dysfunction (15.5%) in this study followed by hypothyroidism (3.5%). Only 1.5% of patients had hyperthyroidism. In the present study no, significant association was found between any particular thyroid dysfunction and specific menstrual pattern or endometrial pattern in histopathology.Conclusions: Testing and treating for thyroid disorder would prove to be cost effective in patients with AUB particularly with nonstructural causes as it would avoid many costly interventions done for AUB

Role of immunoturbidimetric plasma fibrin D-dimer test in patients with coronary artery disease as well as ischemic heart disease in emergency medicine

The aim of the present was to assess the value of the ELISA D-dimer (hemostatic marker) assay in patients with coronary artery disease as well as ischemic heart disease presenting to the emergency department with chest pain syndrome. Methods: We measured levels of D-dimers (µg/ml by immunoturbidimetric assay) in 120 patients with angiographically proved CAD, consecutive outpatients with chest pain, arterial fibrillation, acute coronary syndromes and 240 age and sex matched healthy controls. Demographic characteristics were assessed by a standardized questionnaire, and a complete lipid profile was performed for all subjects. In addition to this inflammatory marker C- reactive protein was also measured. Result: The distribution of D-dimer levels skewed to the right, and plasma mean levels were higher in cases than in control (mean: 2.51±3.60 vs .41±.59 µg/ml; p<0.001). In contrast, correlation of D-dimer was found with C-reactive protein (p<0.001) and is higher in cases than controls. Conclusion: Plasma D-dimer levels are strongly and independently associated with the presence of CAD in patients with stable angina. These results support the concept of a contribution of intravascular fibrin to atherothrombogenesis

E-learning as a tool to impart knowledge of surgical procedures in the undergraduate medical teaching

Background: E-learning is in a budding stage in developing countries. As present-day students are gadget-friendly, introducing a surgical e-learning module may create interest and help in understanding the surgeries easily. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of E-learning in improving the knowledge component of surgical procedures for undergraduate students and to analyze students’ feedback regarding its usefulness. Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted among 67 final-year MBBS students, who had completed 1 week of operation theatre (OT) posting in obstetrics and gynecology. Recording of videos for must-know surgeries in gynecology was done. Video editing and audio description of surgical steps were done. A YouTube channel was created and surgical videos were uploaded. Links to 2 surgical videos and additional teaching materials were uploaded to the college learning management system daily for 2 consecutive weeks. A telegram group was formed for posting questions daily. Pre-test and post-test were conducted and the results were analyzed. Results: The mean marks obtained in the pre-test were 6.567±1.9 and the post-test was 15.22±2.5 (Paired t test p=0.0001). Students mentioned that combining OT posting with an e-learning module helped them to build their knowledge of surgical procedures. Telegram quizzes helped them to increase their understanding of surgeries. 34 students wanted e-learning module to be conducted on other topics also. Conclusions: E-learning is highly effective in improving knowledge component of surgical procedures for undergraduate students. E-learning can be made more effective by adding formative assessment. Combining surgical e-learning module with operation theatre posting can enhance knowledge and understanding

Correlation of the Lowest HMO Transition Energies with the Electronic Absorption Frequencies of Some Organic Dyestufts: s-Cyanines & Merocyanines

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Age-related differences in expectation-based novel word learning

Adult language users can infer the meaning of a previously unfamiliar word from a single exposure to this word in a semantically and thematically constrained context, henceforth, predictive context (Borovsky et al., 2010 Cognition, 116(2), 289–296; Borovsky et al., 2012 Language Learning and Development, 8(3), 278–302). Children use predictive contexts to anticipate upcoming stimuli (Borovsky et al., 2012 Language Learning and Development, 8(3), 278–302; Mani & Huettig, 2012 Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 38(4), 843–847), but the extent to which they rely on prediction to learn novel word forms is unclear (Gambi et al., 2021 Cognition, 211, 104650). Here, we examine children’s one-shot learning from predictive contexts using a modified version of the one-shot learning ERP paradigm for children aged 7–13 years. In a first learning phase, we presented audio recordings of expected words and unexpected novel pseudowords in strongly and weakly constraining sentence contexts. In the following priming phase, the same recorded words and pseudowords were used as primes to identical/synonymous, related, and unrelated target words. We measured N400 modulations to the word and pseudoword continuations in the learning phase and to the identical/synonymous, related, or unrelated target words in the priming phase. When initially presented in strongly constraining sentences, novel pseudowords primed synonymous targets equally well as word primes of the same intended meaning. This pattern was particularly pronounced in older children. Our findings suggest that, around early adolescence, children can use single exposures to constraining contexts to infer the meaning of novel words and to integrate these novel words in their lexicons