Personality and Functional Limitations: Investigating the Mediating Effect of Positive Social Exchanges

Research suggests a link between personality traits and various health outcomes. There is now a need to understand why this association exists by investigating potential underlying mechanisms. The current study investigated a potential mechanism that has not received much attention, positive social exchanges (PSS). PSS have been linked to health in various studies, but more research is needed to understand its association with health. The current study utilized data from 6,095 community-dwelling adults from the National Study of Midlife in the United States (MIDUS Wave 1; ages 20--75; Mage = 46.83, SD = 12.90). Using the Hayes PROCESS macro, we investigated whether PSS mediated the association between the Big Five personality traits (i.e. conscientiousness, neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, openness to experience) and functional limitations. The associations between neuroticism, conscientiousness, extraversion, and agreeableness and functional limitations were significantly mediated by PSS. Exploratory age moderation revealed that age significantly moderated the association between neuroticism, conscientiousness, and extraversion with functional limitations such that the association was stronger at older ages. Through further analyses of these paths, it is possible to get a stronger understanding of how these processes work

Scurvy induced changes and ascorbate defense in albino rats, Rattus norvegicus

An attempt has been made to find out effectiveness of scorbutogenic diet in albino rats, Rattus norvegicus. These animals received 50 and 80 gm cakes of scorbutogenic diet for 15 and 30 days respectively. No scurvy like symptoms were observed rather boils got appeared on their hind limbs, below ear and neck region. Steroid producing glands indicated enhanced steroidogenesis as evidenced by decreased concentrations of adrenal ascorbate and cholesterol. The results suggested that scorbutogenic diet was ineffective to cause scurvy in this species

Evaluating the pre-treatment protocol required to produce an effective carbonized waste adsorbent for organic pollution control

With the goal of fostering the circular economy, the present work was devised to minimize and manage agricultural waste by transforming it into biochar; a versatile dye removal adsorbent. Waterways across the globe are frequently fouled and contaminated with organic materials, especially via unregulated industrial effluents, producing toxic water supplies. Rhodamine B (RhB) and Methylene blue (MB) dyes were used as model organic pollutants in water. The contaminants were then readily extracted from environmental samples using sustainable wheat straw derived biochars. These materials were utilized in an effort to link the circular economy directly to environmental protection, reducing organic contamination by using a low carbon solution. Herein, two methods were adopted to refine a low temperature carbonized material, dependent on initial pre-treatment; leaching followed by milling (method-I) and milling followed by leaching (method-II). Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), nitrogen physisorption, proximate and ultimate analysis and Attenuated Total Reflectance-Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) were used to examine the properties of the synthesized materials. It was found that by altering the process of initial waste pre-treatment, an increase in available surface area (6.284 m2g−1–20.754 m2g−1) and pore structure can be found post feedstock pyrolysis. Additionally, FTIR of the biochar post extraction supported the adsorption process of both dyes, demonstrating a change in dye-adsorbent bonding, depending on the initial waste pre-treatment for the biochar. In batch mode, several operating parameters including pH, concentration, duration, and dose were optimized. Kinetics and adsorption isotherm studies for biochar synthesized by method-II pre-treatment (BC-II) revealed that the system follows Pseudo-first-order kinetics and Freundlich adsorption isotherm model with the relative R2 of 0.9989 and 0.9880 for RhB, comparing with 0.9933 and 0.9932 for MB. The optimal produced biochar, BC-II effectively removed 91.06% of RhB from solution at pH 4 and 92.43% for MB at pH 8. This study brings forth a solution to enhance waste management by creating a circular scenario and alleviate environmental contamination by utilizing wheat straw as a biochar adsorbent, produced under controlled and low temperature conditions

Enhanced Wastewater Remediation Using Mesoporous Activated Wheat Straw Biochars: A Dye Removal Perspective

The escalating contamination of water bodies by synthetic dyes necessitates innovative and ecoconscious strategies for wastewater treatment. In this study, activated biochars BC-800 (1:0.25), BC-800 (1:0.5), and BC-800 (1:1) from wheat straw were synthesized. Here, ratios denote the mass relationship between wheat straw and potassium hydroxide; “800” represents the pyrolysis temperature. These activated biochars were rigorously characterized revealing the most efficient material, BC-800 (1:1), presenting a surface area of 2578.82 m2/g and average pore diameter of 5.51 nm. Across parallel batch experiments, it effectively extracted synthetic dyes (rhodamine B (RhB), methylene blue (MB), and methyl orange (MO)) from wastewater within 15–20 min, primarily through chemisorption pathways. Increased surface area and porosity resulted in a greater dispersion of adsorption sites including C═C linkages (π–π interactions) and H-bonding via surface carbonyl groups (C═O). To understand the adsorption mechanism, Langmuir, Freundlich, and Temkin isotherm models were employed to investigate the equilibrium adsorption behavior. Results show that BC-800 (1:1) followed the Freundlich isotherm (R2: 0.9659 for RhB, 0.9927 for MB, and 0.9979 for MO, respectively), showing dye molecules form multilayers on the surface of the biochar (π-stacking). Biochar recycling through chemical regeneration demonstrated sustained dye removal efficiency >90% for BC-800 (1:1) over multiple cycles

QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS OF PAMABROM AND IBUPROFEN IN SYNTHETIC MIXTURE USING 1ST ORDER DERIVATIVE SPECTROSCOPY

Objective: The preliminary goal was to develop and validate 1st order derivative spectroscopic method for quantitative analysis of Pamabrom (PAMA) which is a xanthine diuretic and ibuprofen (IBU) which is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent from its synthetic mixture. Methods: Analytical method was developed on Shimadzu double beam spectrophotometer equipped with UV probe 2.42 as software using methanol as solvent. Quantification of PAMA was carried out at zero cross over point of IBU that is 291 nm and for IBU, it was achieved at 278 nm which is zero cross over point of PAMA. Method was validated according to ICH Q2 R1 guidelines. Results: Method showed a linear response in the range of 2-12 µg/ml of PAMA and 20-120 µg/ml of IBU. Method was found to be accurate with recovery between 99.7–100.9 % for PAMA and 100.3–100.7 % for IBU. The method was found to be accurate and precise for quantitative analysis of PAMA and IBU. Conclusion: The developed method was successfully validated as per ICH Q2 R1 guidelines and was successfully applied for quantitative analysis of a synthetic mixture of PAMA and IBU

Effect of doping of 8-hydroxyquinolinatolithium on electron transport in tris(8-hydroxyquinolinato)aluminum

Effect of doping of 8-hydroxyquinolinatolithium (Liq) on the electron transport properties of tris(8-hydroxyquinolinato)aluminum (Alq3) has been investigated as a function of temperature and doping concentration by fabricating electron only devices. It has been observed that current density in the devices increases with the doping of Liq up to a doping concentration of 33 wt. % and then decreases. Current density-voltage (J-V) characteristics of 0, 15, and 33 wt. % Liq doped Alq3 devices were found to be bulk limited and analyzed on the basis of trap charge limited conduction model. The J-V characteristics of 50 and 100 wt. % Liq doped Alq3 devices were found to be injection limited and were analyzed using the Fowler-Nordheim model. The increase in current density with doping up to 33 wt. % was found to be due to an increase in electron mobility upon doping, whereas the decrease in current density above 33 wt. % was due to the switching of transport mechanism from bulk limited to injection limited type due to an increase in barrier height. Electron mobility and variance of energy distribution have been measured by using transient electroluminescence technique to support our analysis. Electron mobility for pure Alq3 was found to be 1 × 10−6 cm2/V s, which increased to 3 × 10−5 cm2/V s upon doping with 33 wt. % Liq. The measured values of variance were 95, 87.5, 80, 72, and 65 meV for 0, 15, 33, 50, and 100 wt. % Liq doped Alq3 respectively. The increase in electron mobility upon doping has been attributed to a decrease in energetic disorder upon doping as evidenced by the decrease in variance. The increase in barrier height for the higher doping concentration was due to the disorder related correction σ2/2kT in the barrier height, which decreases with the increase in doping concentration

Role of Dietary Management and Physical Activity in Control of Hypertension in Rural Areas of Punjab-A Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: As reported by WHO, hypertension is the third ‘killer’ disease, accounting for one in every eight deaths worldwide. Many modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors are found to be associated with the disease. The present study aims to determine the role of dietary management and physical activity in the control of hypertension in a given population. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted that. Study included all hypertensive patients (290) from the field practice area of a tertiary care institute. A self-constructed, pretested questionnaire was used to enquire about the socio- demographic factors and other risk factors associated with hypertension. The data was analyzed using SPSS 23 and valid conclusions were drawn by using the chi-square test. Results: Out of 290 patients, 204 (70.3%) were females and 86 (29.7%) were males. Univariate analysis identified decreased salt intake, decreased fatty food consumption, physical activity, stress management, and spiritual help as highly significant factors affecting hypertension. On multivariate analysis, physical activity, stress management and spiritual help were found to be significant. Conclusion: The study showed that physical activity, stress management and spiritual help were significantly associated with hypertension control among the elderly. Measures should be taken to create awareness about lifestyle modifications in the control of hypertension

Characteristics and Prevalence of Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults (LADA)

Diabetes, one of the most commonly seen metabolic disorders, is affecting a major area of population in many developing as well as most of the developed countries and is becoming an alarming concern for the rising cost of the healthcare system. Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults (LADA) is a form of diabetes which is less recognized and underdiagnosed type of diabetes which appears to have characteristics of both type 1 (autoimmune in nature) and type 2 diabetes (adult age at onset and initial response to oral hypoglycemic agents). An epidemiological study was carried out on 500 patients in the western region of India. Various parameters such as age at onset, duration of diabetes, gender, basal metabolic index (BMI), type of diabetes, family history, HbA1c levels, cholesterol levels, and current treatment regimen were evaluated and correlated with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Moreover, diagnostic markers for LADA, namely, GAD autoantibodies and C-peptide levels, were determined for 80 patients selected from the epidemiological study. Some of the results obtained were found to be consistent with the literature whereas some results were found to be contradictory to the existing data

Ginseng: Pharmacological Action and Phytochemistry Prospective

Ginseng, the root of Panax species is a well-known conventional and perennial herb belonging to Araliaceae of various countries China, Korea, and Japan that is also known as the king of all herbs and famous for many years worldwide. It is a short underground rhizome that is associated with the fleshy root. Pharmacognostic details of cultivation and collection with different morphological characters are discussed. Phytocontent present is saponins glycosides, carbohydrates, polyacetylenes, phytosterols, nitrogenous substances, amino acids, peptides, vitamins, volatile oil, minerals, and enzymes details are discussed. The main focusing of the bioactive constituent of ginseng is ginsenosides are triterpenoid saponin glycosides having multifunctional pharmacological activities including anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant and many more will be discussed. Ginseng is helpful in the treatment of microbial infection, inflammation, oxidative stress, diabetes, and obesity. Nanoparticles and nanocomposite film technologies had developed in it as novel drug delivery for cancer, inflammation, and neurological disorder. Multifaceted ginseng will be crucial for future development. This chapter review pharmacological, phytochemical, and pharmacognostic studies of this plant