Improvement in seed germination by priming treatments in Black nightshade (Solanum nigrum L.)

The seeds must be viable and non-dormant for the efficient cultivation of the species of medicinal plants. The seeds of Solanum nigrum possess primary dormancy, which restricts germination. Hence, a laboratory experiment was conducted during 2019 in the Department of Seed Science and Technology, Agricultural College and Research Institute, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. The S. nigrum seeds were primed by soaking in different chemicals viz.,GA3 100ppm, Thiourea1%, KNO3 0.5%, Succinic acid 100 ppm, Ascorbic acid 100 ppm, hydro and dry control with soaking durations of 12h and seeds were dried under shade to bring back to their original moisture content and used for assessing the seed quality studies. The results revealed that among the different priming treatments Thiourea 1% recorded higher seed quality parameters viz, speed of germination (5.6), germination (88 %), seedling length (5.92 cm) and vigour index (520) and the enzyme activity of dehydrogenase (0.072 OD value) and lower values of electrical conductivity( 0.027 dsm-1),  amino acids (0.119 ?gg-1 ) and sugars ( 0.175 ?gg-1 ). Hence it could be recommended as pre-sowingg seed priming treatment in S. nigrum

A cross sectional knowledge attitude practice study on therapeutic drug monitoring among health care professionals in a tertiary care hospital

Background: Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) is used to optimize drug’s therapeutic effect. Aim of this study is to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of TDM in health care professionals.Methods: This was a questionnaire-based cross-sectional study. Questionnaires were distributed to 610 nursing staff and 20 lab technicians. Questionnaires had queries on demography, knowledge, attitude and practice. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation were used to analyse the data.Results: Among nurses, 7% had good, 60.9% had   fair and 32.2% had poor knowledge of TDM. Among lab technicians 18.2% had good and 81.8% had fair knowledge on TDM. 79.3% of nurses and all lab technicians had favourable attitude towards TDM. Weak positive correlation is seen between knowledge and attitude among nurses. 15.9% of nurses have sent request for TDM on phenytoin, sodium valproate, carbamazepine, methotrexate, lithium, clozapine, risperidone, tigecycline, vancomycin, gentamicin, digoxin and amiodarone. 100% lab technicians have estimated levels of methotrexate and lithium drug sample during the last one year.Conclusions: Though knowledge on indication and pharmacological basis of TDM is lacking among participants, their knowledge on sample collection and sample type is good. They have a positive attitude towards TDM. Nurses have requested TDM for only 12 drugs. TDM of only two drugs was done by lab technicians. Future training should focus on pharmacological basis, selection of appropriate drug candidate and indication for TDM service. TDM service should be made available in all tertiary care institutions

A Survey of Virtual Machine Placement Techniques and VM Selection Policies in Cloud Datacenter

The large scale virtualized data centers have been established due to the requirement of rapid growth in computational power driven by cloud computing model . The high energy consumption of such data centers is becoming more and more serious problem .In order to reduce the energy consumption, server consolidation techniques are used .But aggressive consolidation of VMs can lead to performance degradation. Hence another problem arise that is, the Service Level Agreement(SLA) violation. The optimized consolidation is achieved through optimized VM placement and VM selection policies . A comparative study of virtual machine placement and VM selection policies are presented in this paper for improving the energy efficiency

Attenuation of anxiety on acute administration of aqueous extract of Terminalia belerica fruit pulp in Swiss albino mice

Background: The objective of this study was to evaluate the attenuation of anxiety on acute administration of aqueous extract of Terminalia belerica fruit pulp (AETBFP) by using elevated plus maze test and dark and light arena models.Methods: Thirty Swiss albino mice were divided into five groups, Group I received vehicle (1% Gum acacia suspension, 3ml/kg, orally), Group II received standard drug Diazepam (1mg/kg, orally) and Group III, IV and V received AETBFP 9, 18 and 36 mg/kg, orally respectively. In elevated plus maze test, the mouse was placed on the central platform facing towards open arm. The percentage of time spent and frequency of entries and number of rears in open arm was counted for a period of 5 min. In dark and light arena, the time spent, number of entries and number of rears in light arena was counted for a period of 5 min. The mean±SEM values were calculated for each group. The data was analyzed using one-way ANOVA followed by Dunnet’s multiple comparison tests; p< 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.Results: Significant (p<0.05) reduction in anxiety was noted in experimental animals when given at a dose of AETBFP (36mg/kg), where number of entries and duration of stay in open arm and light arena increased in elevated plus maze and light and dark arena respectively when compared with control animals.Conclusions: Our study reveals that AETBFP at a dose of 36mg/kg has significant attenuation of anxiety in Swiss albino mice

KNOWLEDGE OF MODIFIABLE RISK FACTORS OF HEART DISEASE AMONG PATIENTS WITH CARDIOVASCULAR RISK

Objectives: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the leading killer diseases of people around the world. The purpose of this study was to examine the CVD risk factor and perception among individuals with high CVD risk.Methods: An observational study was conducted for 6 months in the Department of General Medicine of a Multi-Specialty Hospital. Patients who were hypertensive, diabetic, and dyslipidemia with/without comorbid disease were included. Patients who are seriously ill, mentally retarded, physical disabilities, history of CVD, etc., were excluded. CVD risk assessment was done using Framingham risk score, and knowledge assessment was done using knowledge questionnaire on CVD risk. Patient counseling was given to the patients based on their risk and knowledge level and also to improve knowledge about CVD risk and therapeutic goals for the control of blood pressure, blood glucose, lipid profile, and smoking cessation.Results: A total of 100 patients were included in this study comprising 46 males and 54 female. Male has more risk than female. The factors, viz., age, smoking habits, high cholesterol, and diabetes mellitus showed a greater risk in CVD. Knowledge levels assessed in those patients are 28% patients having poor knowledge, 30% patients having fair knowledge, and 42% patients having good knowledge.Conclusion: The study concluded that the participants showed poor knowledge in CVD, which could turn into insufficient preventative behaviors and suboptimal patient outcomes. Pharmacist implementation is needed to assess CVD risk and to improve the health-related quality of life.Keywords: Cardiovascular disease risk, Framingham risk score, Knowledge questionnaire

An optimized design modelling of PV integrated SEPIC-based four-switch inverter for sensorless PMBLDC motor control

The design of PV-based high gain SEPIC converter integrated with four-switch strategy, which has been used to achieve sensorless speed control of Permanent magnet Brushless DC motor (PMBLDC) is analysed in this work. Hence SEPIC converter coupled with Fuzzy Logic, MPPT Algorithm is employed to retain voltage. SEPIC converter is chosen as it has a continuous current operation with high gain; Fuzzy MPPT algorithm is used as it provides accurate results faster while the classical MPPT techniques provide the results with fluctuations in attaining the maximum power. Regarding the sensorless control of PMBLDC motor, the conventional six-switch strategy is replaced by four-switch strategy and the sensors are replaced by back EMF method. Four-switch strategy has the capability of reducing the losses, size, cost and complexity of control. For achieving the nominal speed, a closed-loop control is implemented with PI controller, which is tuned by GWO technique. The proposed methodology is more efficient as the motor speed remains unchanged even under the full load condition. The end result of traditional PI algorithm and PI algorithm, which have been tuned by GWO algorithm, is compared and simulated through MATLAB. This is also implemented and validated in hardware by FPGA Spartan 6E controller

A community-based study to evaluate the prevalence and risk factors for osteoporosis among menopausal and pre-menopausal women

Background: To determine the prevalence of osteoporosis among pre and post menopausal women using quantitative ultrasound of calcaneal bone and to identify the risk factors associated with osteoporosis.Methods: This prospective community based epidemiological study was conducted during 2019 in a suburban area attached to Sri Muthu Kumaran Medical College Hospital and Research Institute, Chennai. 305 subjects met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Using a structured questionnaire, demographic details, obstetric, gynaecological and medical history were collected. Quantitative ultrasound of the calcaneal bone was used to calculate the bone mineral density. Using statistical methods, risk factors for osteoporosis were analysed.Results: The mean age of the participants was 52.67±9.41 years, 62.2% were post menopausal and 37.38% were premenopausal. The BMD ‘T’ score was normal in 29.8%, osteopenia was diagnosed in 38.4% and osteoporosis in 31.8% of participants. 14% of premenopausal women and 42.4% of postmenopausal women were osteoporotic. Age, menopausal status, duration of menopause, and previous history of fractures emerged as significant risk factors for osteoporosis.Conclusions: The prevalence of osteoporosis is high among both pre-menopausal and menopausal women, but the awareness is limited. This study highlights the need for screening all women after the age of 40 years which is feasible using portable and easily available technology such as quantitative ultrasound of peripheral bones

Knowledge and awareness of cervical cancer prevention and HPV vaccination among medical and nursing students in a tertiary care hospital

Background: This study was done to assess the level of knowledge and awareness about cervical cancer and its prevention among medical and nursing students. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted during 2022 in a tertiary care hospital in Chennai. The study included 407 subjects; 224 medical students, and 183 nursing students and consent was obtained from each participant prior to the study. A questionnaire survey was used to assess their knowledge on cervical cancer and its prevention. Results: Out of the 407 participants, 95.5% of the medical students and 30.6% of the nursing students knew that HPV virus causes cervical cancer. Medical students had more knowledge on risk factors. 84.38% of medical students and 43.72% of nursing students were aware that vaccine is available for the prevention of cervical cancer. Overall nursing students had limited knowledge on cervical cancer and its prevention. 51.79% of the medical students and 27.87% of the nursing students acquired their knowledge about HPV vaccine through social media. The uptake of HPV vaccine was very low among both medical and nursing students. Conclusions: The results of our study demonstrate that there is a need for creating more awareness about cervical cancer and its prevention among medical and nursing students

MELT EXTRUDED AMORPHOUS FORMULATIONS OF POORLY BIO-AVAILABLE IMMUNOSUPPRESSANTS

Ph.DDOCTOR OF PHILOSOPH