Urginea indica and its role in psoriasis: A Review

Psoriasis an inflammatory disease of the skin, non-infections. It is an increased proliferation of the skin layers due to excessive division of the cell in the basal layers of the skin. The disease is characterized by well defined plaques with large adherent silvery scales, associated with sever itching. Dryness of skin and silvery scaling are symptoms. It is one of the most common skin disorders in humans, treatments are not available in English Medicine it is available in Ayurveda using Urginea indica (Liliaceae) and Chinese Herbal Medicine (CHM) has been used for treating psoriasis and systematic administration of one such CHM is effective in psoriasis. Ayurveda treatments have no side effects reported so far when compared to English Medicine. The present study is a review of earlier work and explored the currently used and the historically, used herbal remedies in the treatment of psoriasis

Biosystematics studies on medicinal plant Urginea indica Kunth. liliaceae - A review

Indian squill, Urginea spp. is a very important and rare medicinal plant endemic to India, Africa and Meditteranian Regions. It has magical potential to heal many human diseases with cardiatonic, anticarcinomic, anti jaundice, anti dropsy, anti asthmatic, anti epileptic, dermatological and diuretic properties. Besides it has abortifacient effects and affects on menstrual cycle. It also finds its use as pesticides against fungus, insects and rats. Wide genetic and chromosomal variations were also still being researched to differentiate the different populations of Urginea. The biodiversity and germplasm collection is also a major area of emphasis to protect the rare genus. The basic taxonomic work to higher molecular developmental studies are still being explored in this genus. It is also a great source for many organic compounds yet to be characterized and discovered for its extensive possibility as potential bioactive molecule. The genetic variability and genomic studies are still being a hot topic in research

Knowledge, attitude and practice of insulin use and its adverse effects in adult diabetic population

Background: Diabetes is a disease when left untreated, leads to many complications. India is emerging as a diabetic capital of the world. Insulin is widely used as a therapeutic option, and hence this study was conducted to assess the awareness of Insulin use and its adverse effects in diabetic population.Methods: The study was a questionnaire survey conducted in adult patients with diabetes who are on Insulin therapy. The participants’ knowledge, attitude and practice were assessed by using a questionnaire consisting of 32 questions. Scores were allotted to each question, and evaluated after applying appropriate statistical tests.Results: The mean age of the participants was 57.26±11.24 years. About 54% were males. 46% belonged to rural areas. The mean knowledge score was 17.53±4.40, mean attitude score 7.42±4.85 and the mean practice score was 6.56±1.91. 40% responded that they will return the expired insulin vials to the pharmacy. The most common reason for non adherence was economical constraints (60%). The females had better knowledge (17.60±4.43 vs. 17.45±4.40, p>0.88), attitude (8.21±3.84 vs. 6.58±5.56, p>0.09) and practice (6.97±1.84 vs. 6.13±1.92, p0.297), attitude (8.70±3.95 vs. 6.06±5.37, p 1.395) than the rural counterparts.Conclusions: There exists a gap between knowledge attitude and practice of insulin use. This can be overcome by conducting awareness programmes by health care providers, to sensitise people about the proper use, side effects and the methods of disposal of insulin vials

(E)-3-Phenyl-2-(1-tosyl-1H-indol-3-ylcarbon­yl)acrylonitrile

In the title compound, C25H18N2O3S, the indole moiety is planar and makes a dihedral angle of 89.95 (09)° with the phenyl ring of the sulfonyl substituent. The mol­ecular conformation features a weak C—H⋯N short contact and the crystal packing reveals a weak C—H⋯O hydrogen bond

Reproduction in the deep-sea penaeoid shrimp Aristeus alcocki Ramadan, 1938 (Decapoda: Penaeoidea: Aristeidae) from southwestern India

The Arabian red shrimp, Aristeus alcocki Ramadan, 1938, is one of the targets of commercial trawlers operating since 2000 along the Indian coasts at depths of 200–850 m. We report for the first time on the reproductive biology, insemination frequency, ovarian maturation, gonadosomatic index (GSI), size at maturity, and fecundity of A. alcocki investigated macroscopically and validated histologically using monthly trawl samples from the southwestern coast of India. Females have an open thelycum with five gonad developmental stages (I to V) and two stages (I and II) in males. A total of 4,170 specimens were examined and 68.6% of the females had been inseminated (carapace length (CL) 22.0–53.0 mm), predominantly during January to May. Females in stage I (immature) measured on average CL 25.5 ± 0.87 mm, those in stages IV and V (mature) CL 41.5 ± 0.62 mm. Immature males were smaller, mean CL 20.5 ± 0.5 mm. Size at first sexual maturity for females was estimated as CL 35.07 mm (total length (TL) 120–170 mm) and the inseminated specimens (CL50is) were mature at CL 31.45 mm using a non-linear method. The smallest mature female was CL 35 mm, whereas the size at maturity (CL50ms) of males was estimated as CL 19.6 mm (TL 75–96 mm). We also report synchronous oocyte development and continuous spawning activity with a peak during January to April. Information on the reproduction of this deep-water shrimp will help fishery managers estimate the stock sustainability and develop resource management measures

Evaluation of perioperative complications using a newly described staging system for placenta accreta spectrum

Introduction: The antenatal diagnosis of placenta accreta spectrum (PAS) is in large part subjective and based on expert interpretation. The aim of this study was to externally evaluate a recently developed staging system based on specific and defined prenatal ultrasound (US) features in a cohort of women at risk of PAS undergoing specialist prenatal US, in particular relating to surgical morbidity at delivery. Materials and methods: Database study of cases with confirmed placenta previa. In all, the placenta was evaluated in a systematic fashion. PAS was subclassified in PAS0-PAS3 according to the loss of clear zone, placental lacunae, bladder wall interruption, uterovesical hypervascularity and increased vascularity in the parametrial region. Results: 43 cases were included, of whom 33 had major placenta previa. 31 cases were categorized as PAS0; 3, 4 and 5 cases as PAS1, PAS2 and PAS3, respectively. All women underwent caesarean section and hysterectomy was required in 10. The comparison of the perinatal outcomes among the PAS categories yielded greater operative time (50 (35–129) minutes for PAS0 vs 70 (48–120) for PAS1 vs 95 (60–150) for PAS2 vs 100 (87–180) for PAS3, p < 0.001) and estimated blood loss (800 (500–2500) mls for PAS0 vs 3500 (800–7500) for PAS1 vs 2850 (500–7500) for PAS2 vs 6000 (2500–11000) for PAS3, p < 0.001) for the highest PAS categories, which were also associated with a higher rate of hysterectomy (p < 0.001), blood transfusion (p = 0.002) and admission to ITU or HDU (p < 0.001) and longer postoperative admission of 3 (1–9) days for PAS0 vs 3 (2–12) for PAS1 vs 4.5 (3–6) for PAS2 vs 5 (3–22) for PAS3, p = 0.02. Conclusion: Perioperative complications are closely associated with PAS stage. This information is useful for counselling women and may be important in allocating staff and infrastructure resources at the time of delivery

Homozygous R627W mutations in POLG cause mitochondrial DNA depletion leading to encephalopathy, seizures and stroke-like episodes

Mutations in the mitochondrial DNA maintenance gene POLG (DNA Polymerase Gamma, Catalytic Subunit), encoding mitochondrial DNA polymerase gamma (pol γ), are associated with an extremely broad phenotypic spectrum. We identified homozygous POLG c.1879C>T; p.R627W mutations in two siblings from a consanguineous South Asian family following targeted resequencing of 75 nuclear-encoded mitochondrial genes. Both patients presented with encephalopathy, seizures and stroke-like episodes, and mitochondrial DNA depletion was confirmed in the proband's muscle tissue. Subsequent Sanger sequencing of POLG in a further 275 unrelated probands with genetically unconfirmed mitochondrial disease revealed a third unrelated proband with a similar phenotype harboring homozygous c.1879C>T; p.R627W mutations and a fourth patient, with a milder clinical disorder, harboring compound heterozygous POLG c.1879C>T; p.R627W and c.2341G>A; p.A781T mutations. Given endogamous practices in the Indian subcontinent, homozygous POLG c.1879C>T; p.R627W mutations should be excluded in South Asian patients presenting with encephalopathy, seizures and stroke-like episodes

2-Iodo-3-(4-meth­oxy­anilino)-5,5-dimethyl­cyclo­hex-2-en-1-one

The cyclo­hexene ring in the title compound, C15H18INO2, adopts a sofa conformation. The dihedral angle between the cyclo­hexene (through all ring atoms) and benzene rings is 63.3 (1)°. The mol­ecular conformation features an N—H⋯I short contact and the crystal packing features C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds

Economical cultivation system of microalgae Spirulina platensis for lipid production

The marine algae Spirulina platensis was cultured in a medium of palm oil mill effluent (POME) and the production of lipid in the biomass was optimized. Among 7 species Spirulina platensis was isolated from the marine sample which have greater lipid potential was collected from Pantai Teluk Cempedak, Kuantan which is located at East Coast region of Pahang state. At 28+2 °C, the maximum lipid content in the biomass harvested at the end of a 15 days batch culture was quantified with the following values of the experimental factors: POME concentration with (10%, 20% and 30%) (v/v) and light intensity (3,000 lux, 4,000 lux, 5,000 lux). Under the optimized conditions with 20% of POME, the maximum dry mass concentration of the was 754.5 mg L−1 with lipid 34.5% production on day 13 of a batch culture, declining to ∼687 mg L−1 on day 15. At 5,000 lux light intensities, the maximum yield obtained was 854.6 mg L−1 with lipid 35.8% production on day 14, it declined to 732.8 mg L−1 on day 15

Stability Assessment of p i n Perovskite Photovoltaic Mini Modules Utilizing Different Top Metal Electrodes

Long term stability is one of the major challenges for p i n type perovskite solar modules PSMs . Here, we demonstrate the fabrication of fully laser patterned series interconnected p i n perovskite mini modules, in which either single Cu or Ag layers are compared with Cu Au metal bilayer top electrodes. According to the scanning electron microscopy measurements, we found that Cu or Ag top electrodes often exhibit flaking of the metal upon P3 top contact removal laser patterning. For Cu Au bilayer top electrodes, metal flaking may cause intermittent short circuits between interconnected sub cells during operation, resulting in fluctuations in the maximum power point MPP . Here, we demonstrate Cu Au metal bilayer based PSMs with an efficiency of 18.9 on an active area of 2.2 cm2 under continuous 1 sun illumination. This work highlights the importance of optimizing the top contact composition to tackle the operational stability of mini modules, and could help to improve the feasibility of large area module deployment for the commercialization of perovskite photovoltaic