COMPOSITION OF THE ESSENTIAL OIL FROM MIMOSA PUDICA LINN.

Objectives: To determine the composition of the essential oil obtained from Mimosa pudica L. (Mimosaceae) Methods: The essential oil   of M. pudica was obtained by hydro distillation using a Clevenger apparatus and the chemical composition was determined by GC-MS analysis. Results: About 23 compounds were identified from the essential oil which constitutes about 98.92 % of the oil. Among the compounds identified phthalic acid dioctyl ester (27.76 %), α-Linolenic acid (20.34 %), Cinnamaldehyde (16.24 %) are the major compounds.  α-Linolenic acid is an n-3 fatty acid. Conclusion: α-Linolenic acid is one of the essential fatty acids, which is necessary for health and cannot be produced within the human body. Mimosa pudica L. (Mimosaceae) appears to be a promising herb to undergo a wide exploratio

Intern’s knowledge of clinical pharmacology and therapeutics at Puducherry: a cross-sectional study

Background: Internship is the intermediate period between under-graduation and general practice. The dexterity of health professional relies upon prescribing practices. Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics (CPT) is a crucial discipline for interns to acquire safe and rational prescription of drugs. Cultivating sound knowledge about CPT during under graduation is, henceforth, mandatory.Aims and objectives:To assess whether the undergraduate CPT teaching and internship training had prepared interns adequately for safe and rational prescription.To assess the awareness and reporting of adverse drug reaction (ADR).Methods: 110 interns were enrolled after obtaining informed written consent. A structured questionnaire was given to them including basic demographic information, undergraduate CPT teaching, experience of ADR and any deficiency in the under-graduate CPT teaching.Results: Response rate was 91 % in which 53 were males and 47 females. 81 considered themselves aware of CPT. 56% & 57% interns were able to prescribe drug safely and rationally respectively. Without supervision, they were confident to prescribe antacids (93%), vitamins and minerals (90%), NSAIDS (85%), antihistamines (82%), antibiotics (75%), antiemetics (62%) and antiasthmatics (52%). Only 22% had reported ADR and opined that it could lead to hospitalization (51%), prolonged hospital stay (33%), morbidity (16%) and death (21%). According to interns, the topics where more emphasis needed were ADR, dosage calculation, pediatric and emergency medicine and therapeutic drug monitoring during undergraduate CPT teaching.Conclusion: CPT teaching should be improved at undergraduate level for safe and rational prescribing including ADR monitoring, ADR reporting and dosage calculation

DOCKING STUDIES IN TARGET PROTEINS INVOLVED IN ANTIBACTERIAL ACTION MECHANISMS: ALKALOIDS ISOLATED FROM SCUTELLARIA GENUS

Objective: In the present work, docking study was performed for 22 selected alkaloids isolated from the genus Scutellaria to evaluate their affinity to bacterial proteins that are known targets for many antibiotics with a different mechanism of action: Inhibitors of cell wall synthesis, inhibitors of nucleic acids synthesis and antimetabolites.Methods: Molecular docking study was carried out using AutoDock 4.2 version and the visualization result using Chimera 1.10 and DiscoveryStudio 4.5.Result: Among the 22 alkaloids studied, with the DNA gyrase protein 1KZN and a dihydropteroate synthase enzyme 3TYE, the compound scutebarbatine E showed a docking score of −8.5 and −8.7 Kcal/mol, respectively, involving with hydrophilic and hydrophobic interactions. With respect to MurD ligase involved in cell wall synthesis 1UAG and 2X5O, the compound 6,7,nicotinyl scutebarbatine G fared well with a docking score of −10.1 and −10.2 Kcal/mol, respectively. Scutebarbatine G performed well with respect to 3UDI with binding scores of −9.3 K cal/mol.Conclusion: Overall, it seems that for the selected alkaloids from the genus Scutellaria, the main mechanism of the action is the inhibition of cell wallsynthesis.Keywords: Scutebarbatine, Alkaloids, Molecular docking, Antimicrobial studies

Mitochondrial Trafficking by Prohibitin-Kinesin-Myosin- Cadherin Complex in the Eye

Disruption of the mitochondrial-nuclear network leads to accelerated aging and age-related diseases, including age-related macular degeneration. The current study tested the hypothesis that mitochondrial morphology could be demonstrated quantitatively using a mathematic model and mitochondrial trafficking complex under stress conditions. To test our hypothesis, normal and aberrant mitochondria were examined quantitatively based on mitochondrial size, shape, position, composition, and dynamics. Adaptation of the mitochondrial network to changes in the intracellular oxidation and reduction milieu is critical for the survival of retinal pigment epithelial cells. Our mitochondrial interactome mapping demonstrated that a positive correlation may exist between oxidative stress-mediated phosphorylation and age-related disease progression. The current interactome may provide a potential therapeutic approach to treat mitochondria-induced neurodegeneration, including age-related macular degeneration

Gadanki radar observations of daytime E region echoes and structures extending down to 87 km

Observations of daytime E region echoes extending to altitudes as low as 87 km made using the Gadanki MST radar are presented. The echoing regions display descending layer resembling the characteristics of tidal winds and show structures with periods 2–4 min having both positive and negative slopes. At the center of the layer where strongest SNR is observed, the velocity is maximum and spectral width is minimum. At altitudes slightly above and below, where SNR is relatively low, velocity is low but spectral width is maximum. Daytime observations of echoes extending to such a low altitude and associated structures akin to nighttime quasi-periodic echoes throughout the observational period are the most significant results, not reported earlier from Gadanki and other locations. Other notable results are large SNR (as high as 15 dB) and spectral width (as high as 70 m/s) at the bottommost altitudes, where collisional damping of the plasma waves is significan

Characterization of VHF radar observations associated with equatorial Spread F by narrow-band optical measurements

International audienceThe VHF radars have been extensively used to investigate the structures and dynamics of equatorial Spread F (ESF) irregularities. However, unambiguous identification of the nature of the structures in terms of plasma depletion or enhancement requires another technique, as the return echo measured by VHF radar is proportional to the square of the electron density fluctuations. In order to address this issue, co-ordinated radar backscatter and thermospheric airglow intensity measurements were carried out during March 2003 from the MST radar site at Gadanki. Temporal variations of 630.0-nm and 777.4-nm emission intensities reveal small-scale ("micro") and large-scale ("macro") variations during the period of observation. The micro variations are absent on non-ESF nights while the macro variations are present on both ESF and non-ESF nights. In addition to the well-known anti-correlation between the base height of the F-region and the nocturnal variation of thermospheric airglow intensities, the variation of the base height of the F-layer, on occasion, is found to manifest as a bottomside wave-like structure, as seen by VHF radar on an ESF night. The micro variations in the airglow intensities are associated with large-scale irregular plasma structures and found to be in correspondence with the "plume" structures obtained by VHF radar. In addition to the commonly observed depletions with upward movement, the observation unequivocally reveals the presence of plasma enhancements which move downwards. The observation of enhancement in 777.4-nm airglow intensity, which is characterized as plasma enhancement, provides an experimental verification of the earlier prediction based on numerical modeling studies

Genome-wide profiling of histone modifications (H3K9me2 and H4K12ac) and gene expression in rust (uromyces appendiculatus) inoculated common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L)

Histone modifications such as methylation and acetylation play a significant role in controlling gene expression in unstressed and stressed plants. Genome-wide analysis of such stress-responsive modifications and genes in non-model crops is limited. We report the genome-wide profiling of histone methylation (H3K9me2) and acetylation (H4K12ac) in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) under rust (Uromyces appendiculatus) stress using two high-throughput approaches, chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-Seq) and RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq). ChIP-Seq analysis revealed 1,235 and 556 histone methylation and acetylation responsive genes from common bean leaves treated with the rust pathogen at 0, 12 and 84 hour-after-inoculation (hai), while RNA-Seq analysis identified 145 and 1,763 genes differentially expressed between mock-inoculated and inoculated plants. The combined ChIP-Seq and RNA-Seq analyses identified some key defense responsive genes (calmodulin, cytochrome p450, chitinase, DNA Pol II, and LRR) and transcription factors (WRKY, bZIP, MYB, HSFB3, GRAS, NAC, and NMRA) in bean-rust interaction. Differential methylation and acetylation affected a large proportion of stress-responsive genes including resistant (R) proteins, detoxifying enzymes, and genes involved in ion flux and cell death. The genes identified were functionally classified using Gene Ontology (GO) and EuKaryotic Orthologous Groups (KOGs). The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis identified a putative pathway with ten key genes involved in plant-pathogen interactions. This first report of an integrated analysis of histone modifications and gene expression involved in the bean-rust interaction as reported here provides a comprehensive resource for other epigenomic regulation studies in non-model species under stress

Photoreceptor Outer Segment-like Structures in Long-Term 3D Retinas from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

The retinal degenerative diseases, which together constitute a leading cause of hereditary blindness worldwide, are largely untreatable. Development of reliable methods to culture complex retinal tissues from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) could offer a means to study human retinal development, provide a platform to investigate the mechanisms of retinal degeneration and screen for neuroprotective compounds, and provide the basis for cell-based therapeutic strategies. In this study, we describe an in vitro method by which hPSCs can be differentiated into 3D retinas with at least some important features reminiscent of a mature retina, including exuberant outgrowth of outer segment-like structures and synaptic ribbons, photoreceptor neurotransmitter expression, and membrane conductances and synaptic vesicle release properties consistent with possible photoreceptor synaptic function. The advanced outer segment-like structures reported here support the notion that 3D retina cups could serve as a model for studying mature photoreceptor development and allow for more robust modeling of retinal degenerative disease in vitro

Direct correlation between the circadian sleep-wakefulness rhythm and time estimation in humans under social and temporal isolation

Several bodily functions in humans vary on a 24 h pattern and most of these variations persist with a circadian period of ca 25 h when subjects are studied under conditions of social and temporal isolation. We report in this paper that the estimates of short time intervals (TE) of 2 h are strongly coupled to the circadian rhythm in sleepwakefulness. There is a linear correlation between the number of hours humans stay awake (α) and their estimation of 2 h intervals. The coupling of TE to α appears to obtain only under conditions of physical well-being

DNA-based identification of Lentinula edodes strains with species-specific primers

Lentinula edodes is among the five globally cultivated edible mushrooms, which are wood decaying spore bearing Basidiomycetes possessing separate hyphae. Specific identification of this fungus from others in the division Basidiomycota using specific primers enables a fast and accurate detection through polymerase chain reaction (PCR). As a prelude to additional nutritional and sequence characterization research, we have developed a species specific PCR assay for this fungus after screening four primer-pairs and two universal primer pairs. The primer-pair LE1F/R was specific in amplifications of ATCC-defined L. edodes strains and did not amplify DNA from six medicinally and nutritionally important fungal reference strains, Oyster (Pleurotus ostreatus), Maitake (Grifola frondosa), Enoki (Flammulina velutipes), Baby bella (Agaricus bisporus), Porcini (Boletus edulis), and Chanterelle (Cantharellus cibarius). However, amplifications using the universal primers were positive for all six strains. This assay will therefore serve to validate morphology-based identifications of L. edodes strains.Keywords: Lentinula edodes, LE1F/R, species-specific primer