Efficacy of pregabalin versus nortriptyline in the treatment of chronic low backache with radiculopathy: an open label observational study

Background: The efficacy and safety of Pregabalin and Nortriptyline have been proved individually in low backache with radicular pain. However, there are limited number of studies comparing the efficacy of Pregabalin and Nortriptyline in Chronic Low Backache (CLBA) with radicular pain. Hence the present study was designed to determine the efficacy as well as tolerability of Pregabalin in comparison with that of Nortriptyline for reduction of pain in CLBA. The present study was an open label prospective observational study.Methods: Patients with CLBA, 15-60 years of age without specific cause and significant neurological deficit were included in the study. Severity of pain was assessed by Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). Patients were followed up at 2 and 4 weeks and their VAS scores and side effects were noted.Results: Both Pregabalin and Nortriptyline were effective in reducing pain, from baseline to 2 weeks and up to 4 weeks of treatment in chronic low backache with radicular pain, but there was no statistically significant difference between the two treatment groups. The incidences of side effects were less in the Nortriptyline treatment group as compared to Pregabalin.Conclusions: From the results of the present study it can be concluded that both Pregabalin and Nortriptyline were equally effective in the treatment of chronic low backache with radicular pain, but the incidence of adverse effects were more with Pregabalin as compared to Nortriptyline

Stable and Metastable vortex states and the first order transition across the peak effect region in weakly pinned 2H-NbSe_2

The peak effect in weakly pinned superconductors is accompanied by metastable vortex states. Each metastable vortex configuration is characterized by a different critical current density J_c, which mainly depends on the past thermomagnetic history of the superconductor. A recent model [G. Ravikumar, et al, Phys. Rev. B 61, R6479 (2000)] proposed to explain the history dependent J_c postulates a stable state of vortex lattice with a critical current density J_c^{st}, determined uniquely by the field and temperature. In this paper, we present evidence for the existence of the stable state of the vortex lattice in the peak effect region of 2H-NbSe_2. It is shown that this stable state can be reached from any metastable vortex state by cycling the applied field by a small amplitude. The minor magnetization loops obtained by repeated field cycling allow us to determine the pinning and "equilibrium" properties of the stable state of the vortex lattice at a given field and temperature unambiguously. The data imply the occurence of a first order phase transition from an ordered phase to a disordered vortex phase across the peak effect.Comment: 20 pages, 10 figures. Corresponding author: S. Ramakrishna

AN LC- MS/MS METHOD FOR THE DETERMINATION OF OMEPRAZOLE ON PROTON PUMP INHIBITOR IN HUMAN PLASMA

A sensitive and selective liquid chromatographic method coupled with tandem mass spectroscopy (LC-MS/MS) was developed for the quantification of omeprazole in human plasma. Lansoprazole was used as internal standard with plasma samples, extracted using 10mM ammonium acetate. A centrifuged upper layer was then evaporated and reconstituted with Acetonitrile: mobile phase buffer 70:30%v/v. The reconstructed samples were injected into a C18 column purospher star 5µ. The mobile phase was composed of ACN: mobile phase buffer (5mm ammonium bicarbonate buffer) in the ratio of 70:30%v/v with flow rate 1.0mL/min. The mass spectrometer was operated using positive ion mode and turbo electro spray ionisation. Nitrogen was used as the nebulizer, curtain, collision and auxiliary gases. Using MS/MS with multiple reactions monitoring (MRM) mode, omeprazole was detected without severe interferences from plasma matrix. Detection of omeprazole in human plasma was accurate and precision. This method has been successfully applied to the study of omeprazole in human specimensKeywords: Proton pump inhibitor, omeprazole, lansoprazole, LC-MS/MS, liquid liquid  extractio

POTENTIAL CYTOTOXIC DRUG EFFECTS OF SECONDARY METABOLITES DERIVED FROM SELECTED MEDICINAL PLANTS OF SAVANADURGA FOREST IN KARNATAKA

Objective: To evaluate the potential cytotoxic and antitumor activities of secondary metabolites of selected medicinal plants of Savanadurga forest, Karnataka. Methods: The soxhlet extracted crude methanolic leaf extracts of nineteen medicinal plants were assessed for their potential cytotoxic and antitumor activities by brine shrimp lethality assay and potato tumor inhibition assay at 100μg/ml respectively. Results: Kirganelia reticulata and Cissus quadrangularis showed highest cytotoxicity while Flacourtia indica failed to show any inhibitory activity in brine shrimp lethality assay. Kirganelia reticulata exhibited 100% antitumor activity while Albizzia amara failed to show any antitumor activity as tested by crown gall tumor inhibition assay. Conclusion: Both brine shrimp lethality assay and potato tumor inhibition assay indicated that Kirganelia reticulata seems to be the best anticancer plant

Status of DDT and pyrethroid resistance in Indian aedes Albopictus and absence of knockdown resistance (kdr) mutation

Background & objectives: Aedes albopictus is one of the vectors for dengue and chikungunya and emergence of pyrethroid resistance in this species could be of a major concern in controlling the vector. This study reports insecticide susceptibility status of Ae. albopictus to DDT and pyrethroids in some Indian populations and status of presence of knockdown resistance (kdr) mutations. Methods: Three to four day old adult female Ae. albopictus collected from Delhi, Gurgaon (Haryana), Hardwar (Uttarakhand), Guwahati (Assam) and Kottayam (Kerala) were bio-assayed with DDT (4), permethrin (0.75) and deltamethrin (0.05) impregnated papers using WHO standard susceptibility test kit. Mosquitoes were PCRgenotyped for F1534C kdr-mutation in the voltage-gated sodium channel (VGSC) gene. DDT and pyrethroid resistant individuals were sequenced for partial domain II, III and IV of VGSC targeting residues S989, I1011, V1016, F1534 and D1794 where kdr mutations are reported in Ae. aegypti. Results: Adult bioassays revealed varying degree of resistance against DDT among five populations of Ae. albopictus with corrected mortalities ranging between 61 and 92. Kerala and Delhi populations showed incipient resistance against permethrin and deltamethrin respectively. All other populations were susceptible for both the synthetic pyrethroids. None of the kdr mutations was detected in any of DDT, deltamethrin and permethrin resistant individuals. Interpretation & conclusion: Ae. albopictus has developed resistance against DDT and there is emergence of incipient resistance against pyrethroids in some populations. So far, there is no evidence of presence of knockdown resistance (kdr) mutation in Ae. albopictus. © 2015, Malaria Research Center. All right reserved

Enhancing the heat transfer of triangular pyramid solar still using phase change material as storage material

This paper presents the method of improvement of enhancing the performance of triangular pyramid solar still with and without latent heat energy storage. For comparing the productivity of solar still with and without LHTESS a solar still is designed, fabricated. Experiments are conducted in hot and humid climate of Chennai, India. Paraffin wax is used as LHTESS due to its feasible general and economic properties. The hourly productivity is slightly higher in case of solar still without LHTESS during sunny days. There is an increase of about 35% in production of fresh water with LHTESS than that of solar still without LHTESS. Also it was found that during the off shine period the fresh water produced from the still is higher. The solar still with and without LHTESS were found to be 4.5 L/m2day and 3.5 L/m2day

Structural Properties of Co2+ Ion Doped Calcium Cadmium Phosphate Hydrate Nanophosphor

Inorganic nanophosphor materials have captivated the worldwide attention into the field of solid-state lighting emission displays, plasma display panels, light-emitting diodes, IR quantum counters, scintillation, etc. Nanotechnology is the foremost superior in the development of phosphors with definite size and shape. Alkali and alkaline earth phosphates are promising candidates for the inorganic phosphor materials. Manufacturing of nano-inorganic materials gained much interest due to their advance lighting applications. In this work, novel Co2+ doped Calcium Cadmium Phosphate hydrate nanophosphor (CaCdPH: Co2+) was synthesized by a traditional solid-state reaction technique. The synthesized sample was characterized by Powder XRD, SEM equipped with EDX and FTIR techniques. The hexagonal phase of the prepared CaCdPH: Co2+sample was confirmed by X-ray diffraction results, and the average crystallite size was evaluated. FTIR demonstrated the formation of vibrational modes ascribed to phosphate molecules and other hydroxyl groups. The morphologies of the CaCdPH: Co2+ nanophosphor was investigated by scanning electron microscopy. © 2020 Author(s).One of the authors, T. Rajyalakshmi is thankful to JNTU Kakinada, DIC for financial assistance in the MHRD project. Authors express their special thanks to UGC-DRS, DST-FIST - New Delhi for providing financial assistance to the Dept. of Physics, Acharya Nagarjuna University. And also acknowledge the service render by scientific officers of Kerala University and Yogi Vemana University for their help providing XRD and SEM instruments for sample recordings

Reentrant Peak Effect in an anisotropic superconductor 2H-NbSe_2 : Role of disorder

The reentrant nature of Peak Effect is established in a single crystal of 2H-NbSe_2 via electrical transport and dc magnetisation studies. The role of disorder on the reentrant branch of PE has been examined in three single crystals with varying levels of quenched random disorder. Increasing disorder presumably shrinks the (H,T) parameter space over which vortex array retains spatial order. Although, the upper branch of the PE curve is somewhat robust, the lower reentrant branch of the same curve is strongly affected by disorder.Comment: 5 Pages of text, 4 figure

A study of supercooling of the disordered vortex phase via minor hysteresis loops in 2H-NbSe_2

We report on the observation of novel features in the minor hysteresis loops in a clean crystal of NbSe_2 which displays a peak effect. The observed behavior can be explained in terms of a supercooling of the disordered vortex phase while cooling the superconductor in a field. Also, the extent of spatial order in a flux line lattice formed in ascending fields is different from (and larger than) that in the descending fields below the peak position of the peak effect; this is attributed to unequal degree of annealing of the state induced by a change of field in the two cases.Comment: 5 pages of text + 6 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Critical points in the Bragg glass phase of a weakly pinned crystal of Ca3_3Rh4_4Sn13_{13}

New experimental data are presented on the scan rate dependence of the magnetization hysteresis width $\Delta M(H)$ ($\propto$ critical current density $J_c(H)$) in isothermal $M-H$ scans in a weakly pinned single crystal of Ca$_3$Rh$_4$Sn$_{13}$, which displays second magnetization peak (SMP) anomaly as distinct from the peak effect (PE). We observe an interesting modulation in the field dependence of a parameter which purports to measure the dynamical annealing of the disordered bundles of vortices injected through the sample edges towards the destined equilibrium vortex state at a given $H$. These data, in conjunction with the earlier observations made while studying the thermomagnetic history dependence in $J_c(H)$ in the tracing of the minor hysteresis loops, imply that the partially disordered state heals towards the more ordered state between the peak field of the SMP anomaly and the onset field of the PE. The vortex phase diagram in the given crystal of Ca$_3$Rh$_4$Sn$_{13}$ has been updated in the context of the notion of the phase coexistence of the ordered and disordered regions between the onset field of the SMP anomaly and the spinodal line located just prior to the irreversibility line. A multi-critical point and a critical point in the ($H,T$) region of the Bragg glass phase have been marked in this phase diagram and the observed behaviour is discussed in the light of recent data on multi-critical point in the vortex phase diagram in a single crystal of Nb.Comment: To appear in Current trends in Vortex State Studies - Pramana J. Physic