Tamils and Fish as Exhibited in Sangam Literature

Sangam literature conveys to us the high character, way of life, and experience of the Tamils. The five divisions of ancient Tamil society (ainththinai) were characterised by numerous cultures. In the later stage, based on the term attribute, the word "culture" was constructed. Culture refers to the biological structure of human society. One of the main elements of Tamil culture is food. The Tamils excelled in cooking food with taste, and selecting food with taste. At a time when other countries were eating raw food, the Tamils used to grind the food they had to eat and make it into broth, adding aromatics to prevent illness. The Tamils were the first to cook food in a civilised manner. Food has been used as the daily food of Tamils. Tamils enjoy cooking mangoes with fish gravy. They had the habit of eating fried food and drying it as 'karuvadu', which could be used later. The fish is given as a gift to the girlfriend as well. They have improved in the fishing industry. Different vessels are used for catching fish. Fish oil is used to light candles. Fish oil is used for barter. They know what kind of fish is available in which coastal area and go to that area in the respective seasons to catch fish. This research paper has been prepared by selecting the places found in the Sangam literature about fish

Case report on tuberous sclerosis: a rare cause of seizure

We report a case of tuberous sclerosis in a 19 years old teenage patient with generalized tonic-clonic seizure. MRI brain showed linear CSF filled structure with surrounding gliosis extending from the frontal horn of right lateral ventricle to the pial surface of right frontal lobe-postoperative change. Multiple small T2/ FLAIR hyper-intensities without diffusion restriction in bilateral frontal temporal parietal and left occipital lobes, predominantly involving the cortex and sub-cortical white matter and small focus of calcification in left parietal peri-ventricular white matter. He was treated with valproic acid, sodium valproate and levetiracetam and showed prompt improvement. Epilepsy in tuberous sclerosis complex is a group of genetic disorders manifesting in childhood. Secondary causes of tuberous sclerosis should be suspected when there is abrupt onset in adulthood. The case highlights an uncommon case of epilepsy in tuberous sclerosis in young adult patient

Targeting Polyamine Oxidase to Prevent Excitotoxicity-Induced Retinal Neurodegeneration

Dysfunction of retinal neurons is a major cause of vision impairment in blinding diseases that affect children and adults worldwide. Cellular damage resulting from polyamine catabolism has been demonstrated to be a major player in many neurodegenerative conditions. We have previously shown that inhibition of polyamine oxidase (PAO) using MDL 72527 significantly reduced retinal neurodegeneration and cell death signaling pathways in hyperoxia-mediated retinopathy. In the present study, we investigated the impact of PAO inhibition in limiting retinal neurodegeneration in a model of NMDA (N-Methyl-D-aspartate)-induced excitotoxicity. Adult mice (8–10 weeks old) were given intravitreal injections (20 nmoles) of NMDA or NMLA (N-Methyl-L-aspartate, control). Intraperitoneal injection of MDL 72527 (40 mg/kg body weight/day) or vehicle (normal saline) was given 24 h before NMDA or NMLA treatment and continued until the animals were sacrificed (varied from 1 to 7 days). Analyses of retinal ganglion cell (RGC) layer cell survival was performed on retinal flatmounts. Retinal cryostat sections were prepared for immunostaining, TUNEL assay and retinal thickness measurements. Fresh frozen retinal samples were used for Western blotting analysis. A marked decrease in the neuronal survival in the RGC layer was observed in NMDA treated retinas compared to their NMLA treated controls, as studied by NeuN immunostaining of retinal flatmounts. Treatment with MDL 72527 significantly improved survival of NeuN positive cells in the NMDA treated retinas. Excitotoxicity induced neurodegeneration was also demonstrated by reduced levels of synaptophysin and degeneration of inner retinal neurons in NMDA treated retinas compared to controls. TUNEL labeling studies showed increased cell death in the NMDA treated retinas. However, treatment with MDL 72527 markedly reduced these changes. Analysis of signaling pathways during excitotoxic injury revealed the downregulation of pro-survival signaling molecules p-ERK and p-Akt, and the upregulation of a pro-apoptotic molecule BID, which were normalized with PAO inhibition. Our data demonstrate that inhibition of polyamine oxidase blocks NMDA-induced retinal neurodegeneration and promotes cell survival, thus offering a new therapeutic target for retinal neurodegenerative disease conditions

AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF STAFF PRODUCTIVITY AND FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY OF MICROFINANCE INSTITUTIONS IN JAFFNA DISTRICT, SRILANKA (SPECIAL REFERENCE TO CO – OPERATIVE RURAL BANKS)

Microfinance institutions (MFIs) focus on providing credit to the poor who have no access to formal banking institutions, mainly, commercial banks, in order to reduce poverty and to help the poor for setting up their own income generating businesses. Providing credit to the poor in many cases is a very costly activity, and, hence, MFIs are often loss making institutions, i.e they are not financially sustainable, requiring them to depend on outside financial assistance. Recently, however, there seems to be a shift in the focus from subsidizing MFIs institutions to a business model based on financial sustainability and efficiency of these institutions. An important element in the desirability of MFIs‘ approach to poverty alleviation is the promise of financial sustainability through financial and operating self sufficiency. In this way this study analyses the impact of the staff productivity on financial sustainability of Co – operative Rural Banks, commonly known as CRBs, located in Jaffna district. The number of active loan clients to number of staff members, and the number of active loan clients to number of loan officers and gross portfolio outstanding per loan officers are used to measure the staff productivity. The Operational self – sufficiency (OSS) and financial self-sufficiency (FSS) are used to estimate the financial sustainability. Out of thirty four co-operative rural banks in Jaffna district, twenty branches were selected for the study covering their operations during a period of 2003 -2007.The research findings indicate that the staff productivity has the significant impact on Operational self – sufficiency and financial self sufficiency of these institutions. Key words: Microfinance, Operational self - sufficiency, financial self - sufficiency, Staff Productivity.For full paper: [email protected]

Pharmacological Inhibition of Spermine Oxidase Suppresses Excitotoxicity Induced Neuroinflammation in Mouse Retina

Polyamine oxidation plays a major role in neurodegenerative diseases. Previous studies from our laboratory demonstrated that spermine oxidase (SMOX, a member of the polyamine oxidase family) inhibition using MDL 72527 reduced neurodegeneration in models of retinal excitotoxicity and diabetic retinopathy. However, the mechanisms behind the neuroprotection offered by SMOX inhibition are not completely studied. Utilizing the experimental model of retinal excitotoxicity, the present study determined the impact of SMOX blockade in retinal neuroinflammation. Our results demonstrated upregulation in the number of cells positive for Iba-1 (ionized calcium-binding adaptor molecule 1), CD (Cluster Differentiation) 68, and CD16/32 in excitotoxicity-induced retinas, while MDL 72527 treatment reduced these changes, along with increases in the number of cells positive for Arginase1 and CD206. When retinal excitotoxicity upregulated several pro-inflammatory genes, MDL 72527 treatment reduced many of them and increased anti-inflammatory genes. Furthermore, SMOX inhibition upregulated antioxidant signaling (indicated by elevated Nrf2 and HO-1 levels) and reduced protein-conjugated acrolein in excitotoxic retinas. In vitro studies using C8-B4 cells showed changes in cellular morphology and increased reactive oxygen species formation in response to acrolein (a product of SMOX activity) treatment. Overall, our findings indicate that the inhibition SMOX pathway reduced neuroinflammation and upregulated antioxidant signaling in the retina

Phenotypic Assessment of Probiotic and Bacteriocinogenic Efficacy of Indigenous LAB Strains from Human Breast Milk

Breast milk is the combination of bioactive compounds and microflora that promote newborn’s proper growth, gut flora, and immunity. Thus, it is always considered the perfect food for newborns. Amongst their bioactives, probiotic communities—especially lactic acid bacteria (LAB)—are characterized from breast milk over the first month of parturition. In this study, seven LAB were characterized phenotypically and genotypically as Levilactobacillus brevis BDUMBT08 (MT673657), L. gastricus BDUMBT09 (MT774596), L. paracasei BDUMBT10 (MT775430), L. brevis BDUMBT11 (MW785062), L. casei BDUMBT12 (MW785063), L. casei BDUMBT13 (MW785178), and Brevibacillus brevis M2403 (MK371781) from human breast milk. Their tolerance to lysozyme, acid, bile, gastric juice, pancreatic juice, and NaCl and potential for mucoadhesion, auto-aggregation, and co-aggregation with pathogens are of great prominence in forecasting their gut colonizing ability. They proved their safety aspects as they were negative for virulence determinants such as hemolysis and biofilm production. Antibiogram of LAB showed their sensitivity to more than 90% of the antibiotics tested. Amongst seven LAB, three isolates (L. brevis BDUMBT08 and BDUMBT11, and L. gatricus BDUMBT09) proved their bacteriocin producing propensity. Although the seven LAB isolates differed in their behavior, their substantial probiotic properties with safety could be taken as promising probiotics for further studies to prove their in vivo effects, such as health benefits, in humans

Pharmacological Inhibition of Spermine Oxidase Reduces Neurodegeneration and Improves Retinal Function in Diabetic Mice

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a significant cause of blindness in working-age adults worldwide. Lack of effective strategies to prevent or reduce vision loss is a major problem. Since the degeneration of retinal neurons is an early event in the diabetic retina, studies to characterize the molecular mechanisms of diabetes-induced retinal neuronal damage and dysfunction are of high significance. We have demonstrated that spermine oxidase (SMOX), a mediator of polyamine oxidation is critically involved in causing neurovascular damage in the retina. The involvement of SMOX in diabetes-induced retinal neuronal damage is completely unknown. Utilizing the streptozotocin-induced mouse model of diabetes, the impact of the SMOX inhibitor, MDL 72527, on neuronal damage and dysfunction in the diabetic retina was investigated. Retinal function was assessed by electroretinography (ERG) and retinal architecture was evaluated using spectral domain-optical coherence tomography. Retinal cryosections were prepared for immunolabeling of inner retinal neurons and retinal lysates were used for Western blotting. We observed a marked decrease in retinal function in diabetic mice compared to the non-diabetic controls. Treatment with MDL 72527 significantly improved the ERG responses in diabetic retinas. Diabetes-induced retinal thinning was also inhibited by the MDL 72527 treatment. Our analysis further showed that diabetes-induced retinal ganglion cell damage and neurodegeneration were markedly attenuated by MDL 72527 treatment. These results strongly implicate SMOX in diabetes-induced retinal neurodegeneration and visual dysfunction