Antifungal activity of essential oils and their volatile constituents against respiratory tract pathogens causing Aspergilloma and Aspergillosis by gaseous contact

Aspergillosis is an acute chronic and rapidly fatal disease which is not contagious. Invasive Aspergillosis is often found in severely immuno-suppressed patients, and is characterized by invasion of blood vessels which can result into dissemination to other organs. Aspergilloma is a fungal ball that develops in previous cavitary lung lesions. Essential oils and their volatile constituents have been used as antifungal, anti-infectious and antimicrobial agents. Inhalation of vapours of the essential oils kill invaders attached to the inner respiratory lining and worksynergistically with the body defences. In this study, 16 essential oils were used against Aspergillus niger and A. fumigatus of which about 14 oils proved to be effective. Results showed that the most effective oils against both Aspergillus species were found to be of Cinnamomum zeylanicum (Cinnamon), Syzygium aromaticum (Clove), Carum carvi (Caraway), Cymbopogon citrates (Lemongrass), Foeniculum vulgare (Fennel) and Myristica fragrans (Nutmeg). Moderately effective oils were of Gaultheria procumbens (Wintergreen), Pinus palustris (Turpentine), Sesamum indicum (Sesame), Trachyspermum ammi (Ajowain) and Origanum vulgare (Oregano). The oils of Lavandula augustifolia (Lavender), Elletaria cardamomum (Cardamon) and Cymbopogon nardus (Citronella) showed minimum activity. Azadirachta indica (Neem) and Linum usitatissimum (Linseed) showed no activity giving no inhibition zones

State-Dependent and -Independent Effects of Dialyzing Excitatory Neuromodulator Receptor Antagonists into the Ventral Respiratory Column

Unilateral dialysis of the broad-spectrum muscarinic receptor antagonist atropine (50 mM) into the ventral respiratory column [(VRC) including the pre-Bötzinger complex region] of awake goats increased pulmonary ventilation (V̇i) and breathing frequency (f), conceivably due to local compensatory increases in serotonin (5-HT) and substance P (SP) measured in effluent mock cerebral spinal fluid (mCSF). In contrast, unilateral dialysis of a triple cocktail of antagonists to muscarinic (atropine; 5 mM), neurokinin-1, and 5-HT receptors does not alter V̇i or f, but increases local SP. Herein, we tested hypotheses that 1) local compensatory 5-HT and SP responses to 50 mM atropine dialyzed into the VRC of goats will not differ between anesthetized and awake states; and 2) bilateral dialysis of the triple cocktail of antagonists into the VRC of awake goats will not alter V̇i or f, but will increase local excitatory neuromodulators. Through microtubules implanted into the VRC of goats, probes were inserted to dialyze mCSF alone (time control), 50 mM atropine, or the triple cocktail of antagonists. We found 1) equivalent increases in local 5-HT and SP with 50 mM atropine dialysis during wakefulness compared with isoflurane anesthesia, but V̇i and f only increased while awake; and 2) dialyses of the triple cocktail of antagonists increased V̇i, f, 5-HT, and SP

Effects on Breathing of Agonists to μ-opioid or GABA\u3csub\u3eA\u3c/sub\u3e Receptors Dialyzed into the Ventral Respiratory Column of Awake and Sleeping Goats

Pulmonary ventilation (V̇I) in awake and sleeping goats does not change when antagonists to several excitatory G protein-coupled receptors are dialyzed unilaterally into the ventral respiratory column (VRC). Concomitant changes in excitatory neuromodulators in the effluent mock cerebral spinal fluid (mCSF) suggest neuromodulatory compensation. Herein, we studied neuromodulatory compensation during dialysis of agonists to inhibitory G protein-coupled or ionotropic receptors into the VRC. Microtubules were implanted into the VRC of goats for dialysis of mCSF mixed with agonists to either μ-opioid (DAMGO) or GABAA (muscimol) receptors. We found: (1) V̇I decreased during unilateral but increased during bilateral dialysis of DAMGO, (2) dialyses of DAMGO destabilized breathing, (3) unilateral dialysis of muscimol increased V̇I, and (4) dialysis of DAMGO decreased GABA in the effluent mCSF. We conclude: (1) neuromodulatory compensation can occur during altered inhibitory neuromodulator receptor activity, and (2) the mechanism of compensation differs between G protein-coupled excitatory and inhibitory receptors and between G protein-coupled and inotropic inhibitory receptors

Stability analysis for yield and its attributing traits in advanced breeding lines of rabi sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench)

An experiment was carried out involving twenty three advanced breeding lines along with two checks M 35-1 and Muguthi during rabi season 2012-13 at four locations. Observations were recorded on 10 different characters viz., plant height (cm), stem diameter (cm), ear head length (cm), ear head diameter (cm), days to 50 per cent flowering, days to maturity, 100 seed weight (g), fodder yield per plot (kg), seed yield per plot (kg), and lodging percentage. The pooled analysis of variance revealed that mean sum of squares due to genotypes was significant for ear head diameter, days to 50 per cent flowering, days to maturity and fodder yield, indicating presence of considerable amount of variability in the genotypes. The mean sum of square due to environment + (genotypes x environment) was significant for plant height, ear head length (cm), ear head diameter (cm), days to 50 per cent flowering, fodder yield per plot (kg), seed yield per plot (kg), and lodging percentage characters except stem diameter, days to maturity and 100 seed yield. On the basis of stability parameters a four genotypes viz., GS-6 (2364 kg/ha), GS-16 (2454 kg/ha), GS-22(2775 kg/ha) and GS-23(2978 kg/ha) were found most stable over Gulbarga, Raichur, Bellary and Malnoor environments of Hyderabad Karnataka region

Vertex Sparsifiers: New Results from Old Techniques

Given a capacitated graph $G = (V,E)$ and a set of terminals $K \subseteq V$, how should we produce a graph $H$ only on the terminals $K$ so that every (multicommodity) flow between the terminals in $G$ could be supported in $H$ with low congestion, and vice versa? (Such a graph $H$ is called a flow-sparsifier for $G$.) What if we want $H$ to be a "simple" graph? What if we allow $H$ to be a convex combination of simple graphs? Improving on results of Moitra [FOCS 2009] and Leighton and Moitra [STOC 2010], we give efficient algorithms for constructing: (a) a flow-sparsifier $H$ that maintains congestion up to a factor of $O(\log k/\log \log k)$, where $k = |K|$, (b) a convex combination of trees over the terminals $K$ that maintains congestion up to a factor of $O(\log k)$, and (c) for a planar graph $G$, a convex combination of planar graphs that maintains congestion up to a constant factor. This requires us to give a new algorithm for the 0-extension problem, the first one in which the preimages of each terminal are connected in $G$. Moreover, this result extends to minor-closed families of graphs. Our improved bounds immediately imply improved approximation guarantees for several terminal-based cut and ordering problems.Comment: An extended abstract appears in the 13th International Workshop on Approximation Algorithms for Combinatorial Optimization Problems (APPROX), 2010. Final version to appear in SIAM J. Computin

Measurement of the 58Ni(α, γ) 62Zn reaction and its astrophysical impact

Funding Details: PHY 08-22648, NSF, National Science Foundation; PHY 0969058, NSF, National Science Foundation; PHY 1102511, NSF, National Science FoundationCross section measurements of the 58Ni(α,γ)62Zn reaction were performed in the energy range Eα=5.5to9.5 MeV at the Nuclear Science Laboratory of the University of Notre Dame, using the NSCL Summing NaI(Tl) detector and the γ-summing technique. The measurements are compared to predictions in the statistical Hauser-Feshbach model of nuclear reactions using the SMARAGD code. It is found that the energy dependence of the cross section is reproduced well but the absolute value is overestimated by the prediction. This can be remedied by rescaling the α width by a factor of 0.45. Stellar reactivities were calculated with the rescaled α width and their impact on nucleosynthesis in type Ia supernovae has been studied. It is found that the resulting abundances change by up to 5% when using the new reactivities. © 2014 American Physical Society.Peer reviewe

Stellar 36,38^{36,38}Ar(n,γ)37,39(n,\gamma)^{37,39}Ar reactions and their effect on light neutron-rich nuclide synthesis

The $^{36}$Ar$(n,\gamma)^{37}$Ar ($t_{1/2}$ = 35 d) and $^{38}$Ar$(n,\gamma)^{39}$Ar (269 y) reactions were studied for the first time with a quasi-Maxwellian ($kT \sim 47$ keV) neutron flux for Maxwellian Average Cross Section (MACS) measurements at stellar energies. Gas samples were irradiated at the high-intensity Soreq applied research accelerator facility-liquid-lithium target neutron source and the $^{37}$Ar/$^{36}$Ar and $^{39}$Ar/$^{38}$Ar ratios in the activated samples were determined by accelerator mass spectrometry at the ATLAS facility (Argonne National Laboratory). The $^{37}$Ar activity was also measured by low-level counting at the University of Bern. Experimental MACS of $^{36}$Ar and $^{38}$Ar, corrected to the standard 30 keV thermal energy, are 1.9(3) mb and 1.3(2) mb, respectively, differing from the theoretical and evaluated values published to date by up to an order of magnitude. The neutron capture cross sections of $^{36,38}$Ar are relevant to the stellar nucleosynthesis of light neutron-rich nuclides; the two experimental values are shown to affect the calculated mass fraction of nuclides in the region A=36-48 during the weak $s$-process. The new production cross sections have implications also for the use of $^{37}$Ar and $^{39}$Ar as environmental tracers in the atmosphere and hydrosphere.Comment: 18 pages + Supp. Mat. (13 pages) Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. Let

Probing the single-particle character of rotational states in 19^{19}F using a short-lived isomeric beam

A beam containing a substantial component of both the $J^{\pi}=5^+$, $T_{1/2}=162$ ns isomeric state of $^{18}$F and its $1^+$, 109.77-min ground state has been utilized to study members of the ground-state rotational band in $^{19}$F through the neutron transfer reaction $(d$,$p)$ in inverse kinematics. The resulting spectroscopic strengths confirm the single-particle nature of the 13/2$^+$ band-terminating state. The agreement between shell-model calculations, using an interaction constructed within the $sd$ shell, and our experimental results reinforces the idea of a single-particle/collective duality in the descriptions of the structure of atomic nuclei

The first direct measurement of ¹²C (¹²C,n) ²³Mg at stellar energies

Neutrons produced by the carbon fusion reaction ¹²C(¹²C,n)²³Mg play an important role in stellar nucleosynthesis. However, past studies have shown large discrepancies between experimental data and theory, leading to an uncertain cross section extrapolation at astrophysical energies. We present the first direct measurement that extends deep into the astrophysical energy range along with a new and improved extrapolation technique based on experimental data from the mirror reaction ¹²C(¹²C,p)²³Na. The new reaction rate has been determined with a well-defined uncertainty that exceeds the precision required by astrophysics models. Using our constrained rate, we find that ¹²C(¹²C,n)²³Mg is crucial to the production of Na and Al in Pop-III Pair Instability Supernovae. It also plays a non-negligible role in the production of weak s-process elements as well as in the production of the important galacti