Tackling water and food crisis in South Asia: Insights from the Indo-Gangetic Basin

CPWF-IWMI “Basin Focal Project for the Indus-Gangetic Basin” is an initiative by the CPWF, to identify steps to be taken towards integrated management of the IGB’s water and land resources to improve productivity and ensure future sustainability of all production and ecosystems in the basin. The project was developed with the objective of conducting basin-wide analysis of the conditions, constraints and opportunities for improving agricultural water productivity and alleviating poverty through high potential interventions. This objective was accomplished through rigorous analysis and mapping of water availability and access, poverty, and productivity of water and identifying potential interventions that contribute to improved water productivity and poverty alleviation in the Indo-Gangetic basin

Gingival biotype and its clinical significance – A review

AbstractGingival biotype has a significant impact on the outcome of restorative and regenerative therapy. The disparity in treatment outcome is possibly because of the difference in tissue response to trauma. Hence in clinical practice identification of the periodontal biotype is significant. Gingival thickness can be assessed by various invasive and non invasive methods. Thick and thin tissues often respond differently to inflammation and trauma. Periodontal surgical technique can improve the tissue quality and treatment outcome. This review paper highlights the general aspects of gingival biotype, methods to assess gingival thickness, response to treatment, techniques to improve tissue quality and its clinical significance

Clinical profile of premenopausal female patients with coronary artery disease

Background: Coronary artery disease is becoming the leading cause of death in the world. The incidence of CAD in females has increased rapidly in the past decades. This study aimed to analyze the clinical profile of premenopausal women with CAD and elucidate on the possible risk factors.Methods: Premenopausal female patients admitted with an acute coronary syndrome as diagnosed by history, ECG and laboratory tests were recruited. Clinical and biochemical parameters were recorded.Results: Mean age of study participants was 41.6±8.18 yrs. Unstable angina (60%) was the most common clinical presentation. Proportion of women with various risk factors of CAD in our study population were as follows dyslipidemia (65%), family history of premature CAD (57.5%), hypertension (55%), diabetes mellitus (42.5%), hypothyroidism (40%), PAD (37.5%), CKD (35%) and SLE (20%). Most (95%) of the study population had high LDL-c. Three fourth (77.5%) of the study population had low HDL Approximately half of the study population had fatty liver on ultrasonography. Triglyceridemia was found in 72.5% of the study population.Conclusions: Premature CAD is increasingly evident in young premenopausal women in India. Premenopausal CAD in India is of multi factorial causation and dyslipidemia, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, central obesity and family history of premature CAD play a crucial role in its development

Prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and its correlation with coronary artery disease (CAD)

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a common association of Type 2 diabetes mellitus and diabetes mellitus is a leading risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD). This study aims at estimating the prevalence of NAFLD by ultrasonography and to correlate NAFLD with CAD in a group of patients with Type 2 DM.Methods: Consecutive patients of Type 2 diabetes fulfilling the inclusion criteria were recruited. Clinical and biochemical parameters were recorded. NAFLD was diagnosed by ultrasonography.Results: The prevalence of NAFLD was 41.2% in the study group (n=114) and was higher in females. Prevalence of NAFLD in the younger age group was significantly higher than that in the older age group. Elevated liver enzymes, elevated HbA1C, duration of diabetes, obesity, acanthosis nigricans and metabolic syndrome were all significantly associated with NAFLD. CAD was significantly higher in the NAFLD subgroup (72.46%) compared to the non-NAFLD subgroup (52.63%) (p=0.001). Using binary logistic regression analysis, it was found that NAFLD is an independent predictor of CAD (p=0.002).Conclusions: NAFLD is extremely common in people with Type 2 diabetes and is associated with a higher prevalence of CAD.NAFLD is an independent risk factor for development of CAD. Thus, identification of NAFLD in diabetics might help in predicting the risk of CAD and to adopt the necessary preventive strategy.

Bis{μ-2-[bis­(pyridin-2-yl)methyl­idene]hydrazinecarbothio­amidato}bis­[bromido­copper(II)] methanol disolvate

In the centrosymmetric binuclear title compound, [Cu2Br2(C12H10N5S)2]·2CH3OH, the CuII ion adopts a slightly dis­torted square-pyramidal coordination geometry. The hydrazine carbothio­amide moiety and one of the pyridyl rings together adopt an almost planar arrangement, with a maximum deviation of 0.052 (4) Å for the C atom of the thio­urea moiety. There are two mol­ecules of methanol solvent per complex in the asymmetric unit. The nonconventional intra­molecular C—H⋯Br hydrogen bonds make the mol­ecule more rigid, whereas the conventional N—H⋯N and O—H⋯Br inter­molecular hydrogen-bonding inter­actions, supported with N—H⋯π inter­actions, establish a supra­molecular linkage among the mol­ecules in the crystal. An intermolecular C—H⋯O inter­action is also present

Mitigation of quorum sensing mediated virulence factors of Pseudomonas aeruginosa: the role of Meldrum’s acid activated furan

The rapid emergence of drug resistant pathogens is a major threat which has warranted the development of alternative strategies to combat infectious diseases. In this work, we have tested the anti-virulent activity of Meldrum’s acid activated furan (MAF) and 1,3-dimethyl barbituric acid activated furan (BAF) against Chromobacterium violaceum and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. It was found that MAF significantly reduced the violacein production and biofilm formation of C. violaceum at sub-inhibitory concentrations. The quorum sensing (QS) regulated virulence factors of P. aeruginosa including biofilm formation, motility, pigment production, and elastase activity were also found to be reduced considerably at sub-inhibitory concentrations of MAF. Additionally, MAF downregulated the expression of genes in the QS circuitry of P. aeruginosa, demonstrating the potential of MAF in lowering the pathogenicity of P. aeruginosa. In silico studies demonstrated the potential of MAF to compete with the signaling molecules of C. violaceum and P. aeruginosa for the QS receptor interaction. In vivo studies using Caenorhabditis elegans demonstrated the anti-pathogenicity of MAF by enhancing the survival of P. aeruginosa-infected C. elegans. These results suggest that activated furan compounds could be potential inhibitors of QS-mediated virulence factors in C. violaceum and P. aeruginosa, encouraging their use in combating multidrug-resistant pathogens

Multi-proxy evidence for an arid shift in the climate and vegetation of the Banni grasslands of western India during the mid- to late-Holocene

Tropical semi-arid grasslands are a widespread and ecologically and economically important terrestrial biome. Here, we use paleoecology to understand woodland–grassland transitions across the mid- to late-Holocene period in the Banni grassland, western India. Multi proxy analyses involving palynology, phytoliths and elemental geochemistry were carried out on two sediment cores retrieved from wetlands (Chachi and Luna), to understand temporal fluctuations in vegetation, moisture availability and other environmental parameters. Based on the results, the Chachi core was divided into two major climatic phases. Phase 1 (4600–2500 cal. yr BP) was characterised by high precipitation and abundance of pollen types and phytolith morphotypes that indicate the presence of woody savanna, and mesic herbaceous taxa. Phase 2 (2500 cal. yr BP to the present) was characterised by lower precipitation, lower abundance of mesic taxa and an increase in grass phytolith abundance. However, the period from ~1000 cal. yr BP to the present was characterised by the increased abundance of leguminous taxa, dryland herbs/shrubs and a decline in grass phytolith abundance. The Luna core (~1000 cal. yr BP to the present) also showed results matching with the Chachi core for this latter period. Overall, moisture availability in the ecosystem appears to have declined since 4600 cal. yr BP, and the vegetation has responded to this. Although the balance between tree, shrub and grass elements has fluctuated, overall, the region has remained as an open ‘grass and shrub savanna’ with sparse woody vegetation throughout this period. Our study provides insights into the vegetation dynamics and environmental settings in a poorly understood tropical arid-grassland ecosystem from Asia during the mid-late-Holocene

Adjunctive benefit of probiotic supplementation along with nonsurgical therapy for peri-implant diseases – A systematic review and meta-analysis

Peri-implant diseases are prevalent conditions, but a predictable management strategy is still lacking. The objective of the present article was to evaluate the adjunctive benefits of probiotics with nonsurgical therapy in the management of peri-implant diseases. The review protocol was registered in PROSPERO and prepared according to PRISMA guidelines. Randomized controlled clinical trials in patients diagnosed with the peri-implant disease where probiotic was used as an adjunct to nonsurgical therapy were included in the study. The risk difference of percentage reduction in bleeding on probing, plaque accumulation, and mean difference in probing pocket depth reductions at implant level were estimated using a random effect model due to high heterogeneity among studies. Four studies fulfilled the criteria for selection. Two of them presented data on both peri-implantitis and peri-implant mucositis and they were considered separate studies during meta-analysis. Significant reduction in percentage of bleeding on probing was noticed at 1 and 3 months (−0.28 [−0.48, −0.09], P = 0.004 and − 0.19 [−0.35, −0.02], P = 0.03, respectively), but the reduction was not statistically significant at 6 months. Similar results were also observed for plaque accumulation. No statistically significant reduction in probing pocket depth was observed in the probiotic group during any of the re-evaluations. Conclusion: Adjunctive therapy of probiotics may improve the efficacy of nonsurgical therapy of peri-implant diseases for up to 3 months. However, moderate certainty was observed for a reduction in bleeding on probing after 1-month re-evaluation alone