Knowledge of Maternal and Newborn Care Among Primary Level Health Workers in Kapilvastu District of Nepal

Background: Higher maternal and neonatal deaths are common in low‑ and middle‑income countries; due to less access to skilled help. Adequate knowledge and skills on maternal and newborn care (MNC) of community health workers can improve maternal and newborn health.Aims: To identify the knowledge of primary level health workers on some components of MNC.Subjects and Methods: Respondents were selected using simple random sampling method. For collecting the data, enumerators visited health institutions for 2 months from 1|st October to 31st November 2012, and structured interview schedule was used to gather the information. A cross‑sectional study was conducted in a total of one hundred and thirty‑seven primary level health workers in Kapilvastu district, Nepal. The Chi‑square test was employed to examine the association between the knowledge of health workers on MNC and designation and work experience. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 17.Results: In a total of 137 primary level health workers, more than half 53.2% (73/137) were senior auxiliary health workers/health assistant. Health workers having correct knowledge on contents of MNC were‑registration 32.1% (44/137), major components of antenatal care 57.7% (79/137), danger signs of pregnancy 39.4% (54/137), five cleans 59.1% (81/137), postnatal health problems 54.0% (74/137), majority to health action to newborn care, newborn bath and meaning of exclusive breastfeeding. There was a statistical association between designation of health workers and above‑mentioned components of MNC (P < 0.05).Conclusions: The differentials in the knowledge of MNC among primary level health suggest improving knowledge of the grass root level health workers with appropriate training and development programs.Keywords: Knowledge, Maternal and newborn care, Primary level health worker

Long-range electronic reconstruction to a dxz,yzd_{xz,yz}-dominated Fermi surface below the LaAlO3_3/SrTiO3_3 interface

Low dimensionality, broken symmetry and easily-modulated carrier concentrations provoke novel electronic phase emergence at oxide interfaces. However, the spatial extent of such reconstructions - i.e. the interfacial "depth" - remains unclear. Examining LaAlO$_3$/SrTiO$_3$ heterostructures at previously unexplored carrier densities $n_{2D}\geq6.9\times10^{14}$ cm$^{-2}$, we observe a Shubnikov-de Haas effect for small in-plane fields, characteristic of an anisotropic 3D Fermi surface with preferential $d_{xz,yz}$ orbital occupancy extending over at least 100~nm perpendicular to the interface. Quantum oscillations from the 3D Fermi surface of bulk doped SrTiO$_3$ emerge simultaneously at higher $n_{2D}$. We distinguish three areas in doped perovskite heterostructures: narrow ($<20$ nm) 2D interfaces housing superconductivity and/or other emergent phases, electronically isotropic regions far ($>120$ nm) from the interface and new intermediate zones where interfacial proximity renormalises the electronic structure relative to the bulk.Comment: Supplementary material available at Scientific Reports websit

Effect of Heat Stress on Crossbred Dairy Cattle in Tropical Nepal: Impact on Blood Parameters

Chitwan district of Nepal has been known as the dairy kingdom of the country considering its strategic location andpotential to easily provision inputs and produce as well as market quality milk across the country. However, theclimate especially during summer has been a challenge to farmers that potentially compromise the daily milk yieldof cows. Therefore, sixteen crossbred dairy cattle were placed in a RCBD fashion to assess the impacts of cold waterbathing in ameliorating effect of heat stress on their performance and body physiology. Routine assessment of themicroclimate within the experimental shed and blood parameters was made. The results from the experimentinferred that frequency of bathing (none, once, twice or thrice a day) did not have any significant impact onHaemoglobin, Haematocrit, Sodium, Potassium, Chloride and Bicarbonate levels in the blood plasma(p&gt;0.05). Inaddition, the animals did not exhibit any signs of physiological distress clinically either. A detailed study scopingtemperature humidity index and over a number of other milk and blood parameters are to be tested across a numberof other available breeds too in order for the researchers to come to a meaningful strategy to beat the heat stress

Age-related decline of de novo T cell responsiveness as a cause of COVID-19 severity

To the Editor, So far, little attention has been paid to the link between immunosenescence and the dramatic mortality rate of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in older age groups. Indeed, the number of cases of COVID-19, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is very low among children and teenagers, in contrast to the increased frequency in adults and the elderly, who are also more at risk of developing very serious symptoms and death (Guan et al. 2020; Wu and McGoogan 2020). As shown in Fig. 1, a similar epidemiological profile was observed during previous coronavirus (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 1, SARS-CoV-1, and Middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus, MERS-CoV) outbreaks (Jia et al. 2009; Salamatbakhsh et al. 2019). Notably, the same trend was also noted during West Nile virus and, with some exceptions in very young children, Ebolavirus outbreaks (Bower et al. 2016; Hayes et al. 2005). Likely this phenomenon is multifactorial. For instance, in elderly individuals with severe COVID-19, associated comorbidities are much more prevalent (Guan et al. 2020). In addition, the progressive accumulation of senescent cells during life may play a role in the vulnerability of old people to COVID-19, resulting in reduced functionality of the organs, such as the lungs, and facilitating conditions for the development of fibrosis. Moreover, senescent cells can generate a pro-inflammatory environment, referred to as SASP (for senescence-associated secretory phenotype), which includes many inflammatory cytokines (e.g., interleukin-6) and contributes to the basal hyperinflammatory status characteristic of the old person. This hyperinflammatory status might influence the expression of ACE2, CD147, cyclophilins, CD26, and other CoV-associated molecules in human tissues, thus favoring viral entry (Radzikowska et al. 2020). It likely also constitutes an already unbalanced pro-inflammatory background, on which the development of an exacerbated inflammatory response and acute respiratory distress syndrome may be facilitated upon SARS-CoV-2 infection

Neuropathological features of genetically confirmed DYT1 dystonia: investigating disease-specific inclusions.

IntroductionEarly onset isolated dystonia (DYT1) is linked to a three base pair deletion (¿GAG) mutation in the TOR1A gene. Clinical manifestation includes intermittent muscle contraction leading to twisting movements or abnormal postures. Neuropathological studies on DYT1 cases are limited, most showing no significant abnormalities. In one study, brainstem intraneuronal inclusions immunoreactive for ubiquitin, torsinA and lamin A/C were described. Using the largest series reported to date comprising 7 DYT1 cases, we aimed to identify consistent neuropathological features in the disease and determine whether we would find the same intraneuronal inclusions as previously reported.ResultThe pathological changes of brainstem inclusions reported in DYT1 dystonia were not replicated in our case series. Other anatomical regions implicated in dystonia showed no disease-specific pathological intracellular inclusions or evidence of more than mild neuronal loss.ConclusionOur findings suggest that the intracellular inclusions described previously in DYT1 dystonia may not be a hallmark feature of the disorder. In isolated dystonia, DYT1 in particular, biochemical changes may be more relevant than the morphological changes

Stellar Kinematics and Structural Properties of Virgo Cluster Dwarf Early-Type Galaxies from the SMAKCED Project. I. Kinematically Decoupled Cores and Implications for Infallen Groups in Clusters

We present evidence for kinematically decoupled cores (KDCs) in two dwarf early-type (dE) galaxies in the Virgo cluster, VCC 1183 and VCC 1453, studied as part of the SMAKCED stellar absorption-line spectroscopy and imaging survey. These KDCs have radii of 1.8'' (0.14 kpc) and 4.2'' (0.33 kpc), respectively. Each of these KDCs is distinct from the main body of its host galaxy in two ways: (1) inverted sense of rotation; and (2) younger (and possibly more metal-rich) stellar population. The observed stellar population differences are probably associated with the KDC, although we cannot rule out the possibility of intrinsic radial gradients in the host galaxy. We describe a statistical analysis method to detect, quantify the significance of, and characterize KDCs in long-slit rotation curve data. We apply this method to the two dE galaxies presented in this paper and to five other dEs for which KDCs have been reported in the literature. Among these seven dEs, there are four significant KDC detections, two marginal KDC detections, and one dE with an unusual central kinematic anomaly that may be an asymmetric KDC.The frequency of occurence of KDCs and their properties provide important constraints on the formation history of their host galaxies. We discuss different formation scenarios for these KDCs in cluster environments and find that dwarf-dwarf wet mergers or gas accretion can explain the properties of these KDCs. Both of these mechanisms require that the progenitor had a close companion with a low relative velocity. This suggests that KDCs were formed in galaxy pairs residing in a poor group environment or in isolation whose subsequent infall into the cluster quenched star formation.Comment: 14 pages, accepted for publication in Ap

Long-range electronic reconstruction to a dxz,yz-dominated Fermi surface below the LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interface

Low dimensionality, broken symmetry and easily-modulated carrier concentrations provoke novel electronic phase emergence at oxide interfaces. However, the spatial extent of such reconstructions - i.e. the interfacial ‘‘depth’’ - remains unclear. Examining LaAlO3/SrTiO3 heterostructures at previously unexplored carrier densities n2D 14 cm-2 , we observe a Shubnikov-de Haas effect for small in-plane fields, characteristic of an anisotropic 3D Fermi surface with preferential dxz,yz orbital occupancy extending over at least 100 nm perpendicular to the interface. Quantum oscillations from the 3D Fermi surface of bulk doped SrTiO3 emerge simultaneously at higher n2D. We distinguish three areas in doped perovskite heterostructures: narrow (nm) 2D interfaces housing superconductivity and/or other emergent phases, electronically isotropic regions far (\u3e120 nm) from the interface and new intermediate zones where interfacial proximity renormalises the electronic structure relative to the bulk