Local behaviour of the derivative of a mid point cubic spline interpolator

In the present paper, we obtain an asymptotically precise estimate for the derivative of the difference between the cubic spline interpolating at the mid points of a uniform partition and the function interpolated

Liquisolid Compacts: A Review

Solubility is a major problem for nearly one third drugs in their development phase. Liquisolid technique is a most promising technique for promoting dissolution by increase in solubility. Liquisolid compact technology is a novel concept for oral drug delivery. Liquisolid compact technology was first described by spireas et.al. (1998). According to the new formulation method of liqui-solid compacts, liquid medications such as solutions or suspensions of water insoluble drugs in suitable nonvolatile liquid vehicles can be converted into acceptably flowing and compressible powders by blending with selected powder excipients

Modulation of rat peripheral polymorphonuclear leukocyte response by nitric oxide and arginine

The effect of nitric oxide (NO) on the luminol-dependent chemiluminescence (LCL) response of rat polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNLs) was analyzed by using sodium nitroprusside (SNP), a NO donor, and L-arginine (L-arg), a NO precursor. A significant reduction in the LCL intensity was observed in presence of SNP (100 μmol/L) or L-arg (5 or 10 mmol/L) in arachidonic acid (AA) phorbol ester (PMA) and formyl- methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine stimulated PMNLs. However, opsonized zymosan-induced LCL was not attenuated significantly. Reduction in hydroxyl radical and superoxide generation was also observed in SNP- or L-arg-pretreated cells. D-Arg (10 mmol/L) pretreatment did not inhibit PMNLs' LCL response. Furthermore, methylene blue (5 μmol/L) and L-NG- mono methyl-L-arginine (100 or 300 μmol/L) significantly attenuated the LCL response, as induced by various agonists. Cyclic GMP did not alter the reactive oxygen species generation from rat PMNLs. In addition, AA-induced release of myeloperoxidase, a marker of azurophilic granules, was found to be enhanced in L-arg- (10 mmol/L) pretreated PMNLs. The results suggest that NO inhibits free radical generation from rat PMNLs

Assessment of genetic diversity in Indian Barnyard millet (Echinochloa spp. complex) using morphological and molecular markers

In the present study, morphological and molecular markers (RAPD primers) were used to analyze the genetic diversity and genetic relationships among 21 accessions of Echinochloa spp. complex comprising the wild and cultivated species collected from Melghat and adjoining regions of Vidarbha, Maharashtra. The availability of diverse genetic resources is a prerequisite for genetic improvement of any crop including barnyard millet. A high degree of molecular diversity among the landraces was detected. Among the 21 genotypes, two major groups (A and B) were formed, at 67.28 % similarity, which clearly encompasses 15 accessions of E. frumentacea and 6 accessions of E. colona. Higher similarity was observed in accessions of E. frumentacea. The accessions IC 597322 and IC 597323 also IC 597302 and IC 597304 showed more than 94% similarity among themselves. The classification of genetic diversity has enabled clear-cut grouping of barnyard millet accessions into two morphological races (E. frumentacea and E. colona)

Effect of ethrel spray on the ripening behaviour of mango (Mangifera indica L.) variety 'Dashehari'

An experiment was carried out to investigate the effect of post harvest spray of different concentrations (100, 200, 400, 600 and 800 ppm) of ethrel (2-chloroethyl phosphonic acid) on ripening and colour development in ‘Dashehari’ mango fruits harvested in second week of June, 2015. The treated fruits were assessed for physico-chemical parameters such as physiological loss in weight (%), firmness (Kg/cm2), TSS (°Brix), titrable acidity (%), total carotenoids (mg/100g) and peel chlorophyll (mg/100g) and observations were recorded at 2 days interval during 8 days storage at ambient temperature. Changes in total soluble solids (8.5 to 23.23° Brix), total carotenoids (0.807 to 7.12 mg/100g) and PLW (14.58%) showed increasing trends up to 8 days during storage whereas fruit firmness (8.5 to 0.68 Kg/cm2), titrable acidity (1.26 to 0.08%) and total peel chlorophyll (5.2 to 0.14 mg/100g) showed decreasing trends. At the end of the storage period for 8 days, Ethrel spray at 600 ppm induced uniform ripening with attractive yellow colour within 4 days while untreated control fruits failed to ripen uniformly and remain light green even after 8 days of storage. Ripening advances by 4 days in fruits sprayed with 600 ppm ethrel com-pared to unsprayed control fruits

Comparative study of Monascus sanguineus and Monascus purpureus for red pigment production under stress condition

Abstract Monascus sp. is known for pigment production. Monascus sp. synthesized pigment has been used as food colorants for quite a long time. According to literature, many strains have been isolated from Monascus, which are internationally acknowledged and there are many studies on Monascus purpureus, Monascus anka or other species. In the present study, Monascus strain was isolated and identified as Monascus sanguineus on the molecular basis. This strain was then compared with a reference strain Monascus purpureus MTCC 410 for red pigment production under stress condition. Both strains were treated with different stress conditions viz. different concentration of glycerol, NaCl, peptone and also with the spores treated at different temperatures. Both strains had shown increased pigmentation under stressed condition. Maximum pigment yield was observed with 0.5M glycerol concentration for both strains (Monascus sanguineus 33.4 color value units (CVU)/ml, Monascus purpureus 36.7 CVU/ ml). For salt stress, both strains produced maximum pigment with 3% NaCl concentration. At 12% NaCl concentration, both the strains showed very slow growth and almost no pigment yield. When spores were treated with different temperatures, Monascus sanguineus produced maximum pigment with spores treated at 90 o C, whereas Monascus purpureus lost viability at this range

In vitro effect of Withania somnifera, AYUSH-64, and remdesivir on the activity of CYP-450 enzymes: Implications for possible herb−drug interactions in the management of COVID-19

Ayurvedic medicines Withania somnifera Dunal (ashwagandha) and AYUSH-64 have been used for the prevention and management of COVID-19 in India. The present study explores the effect of Ashwagandha and AYUSH-64 on important human CYP enzymes (CYP3A4, CYP2C8, and CYP2D6) to assess their interaction with remdesivir, a drug used for COVID-19 management during the second wave. The study also implies possible herb−drug interactions as ashwagandha and AYUSH-64 are being used for managing various pathological conditions. Aqueous extracts of ashwagandha and AYUSH-64 were characterized using LC-MS/MS. A total of 11 and 24 phytoconstituents were identified putatively from ashwagandha and AYUSH-64 extracts, respectively. In addition, in silico studies revealed good ADME properties of most of the phytoconstituents of these herbal drugs and suggested that some of these might possess CYP-450 inhibitory activity. In vitro CYP-450 studies with human liver microsomes showed moderate inhibition of CYP3A4, 2C8, and 2D6 by remdesivir, while ashwagandha had no inhibitory effect alone or in combination with remdesivir. AYUSH-64 also exhibited a similar trend; however, a moderate inhibitory effect on CYP2C8 was noticed. Thus, ashwagandha seems to be safe to co-administer with the substrates of CYP3A4, CYP2C8, and CYP2D6. However, caution is warranted in prescribing AYUSH-64 along with CYP2C8 substrate drugs. Furthermore, preclinical and clinical PK studies would be helpful for their effective and safer use in the management of various ailments along with other drugs

Environmental value of dung in mixed crop-livestock systems

Dung is an important byproduct of livestock. It is used as manure, or is converted into dung cakes for use as fuel or mixed with clay for flooring and plastering of mud houses. Apart from these important uses of dung, it also has a great environmental value. Its contributions to environment could be positive as well as negative. From the negative side, methane emission from manure management is a negative environmental externality. The positive externality is the use of dung cake as domestic fuel, which can be seen as a substitution or replacement of the equivalent amount of thermal energy from fuel-wood or fossil-fuel. It is a great saving on fuel-wood by cutting down of standing forests and trees, and another is the saving of land that is required to produce replacement amount of fuel-wood for dung cake. In the present paper we have estimated the quantity of fuel-wood that would be required to replace dung-cake as domestic fuel, and the land area that would be required to produce or supply that amount of fuel-wood. At current feeding rates, India produces over 83 million tonnes of dry dung-cake, which is used annually by the rural households as domestic fuel for cooking and warming. If this amount of dung cake was to be replaced by fuel wood, the country will require producing an additional amount of 23.5 million tonnes of fuel-wood, and the additional land requirement for fuel-wood plantation will be about 2.35 million ha. From the perspective of food production, supposing that under traditional rainfed agriculture food grains yield ranges from 1.5 to 2 tonnes/ha, the land saved would produce 3.5 to 5 million tonnes of foodgrains

Some absolutely effective product methods

It is proved that the product method A(C,1), where (C,1) is the Cesàro arithmetic mean matrix, is totally effective under certain conditions concerning the matrix A. This general result is applied to study absolute Nörlund summability of Fourier series and other related series

Quantum sensing of paramagnetic spins in liquids with spin qubits in hexagonal boron nitride

Paramagnetic ions and radicals play essential roles in biology and medicine, but detecting these species requires a highly sensitive and ambient-operable sensor. Optically addressable spin color centers in 3D semiconductors have been used for detecting paramagnetic spins as they are sensitive to the spin magnetic noise. However, the distance between spin color centers and target spins is limited due to the difficulty of creating high-quality spin defects near the surface of 3D materials. Here, we show that spin qubits in hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), a layered van der Waals (vdW) material, can serve as a promising sensor for nanoscale detection of paramagnetic spins in liquids. We first create shallow spin defects in close proximity to the hBN surface, which sustain high-contrast optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) in liquids. Then we demonstrate sensing spin noise of paramagnetic ions in water based on spin relaxation measurements. Finally, we show that paramagnetic ions can reduce the contrast of spin-dependent fluorescence, enabling efficient detection by continuous wave ODMR. Our results demonstrate the potential of ultrathin hBN quantum sensors for chemical and biological applications.Comment: 4 figure