An intensive study on pesticides contamination and its removal in fruits and vegetables collected from Ghaziabad, India

These days pesticides are extensively applied in agriculture to increase productivity; although these pesticides increase productivity but also have a negative impact on the consumer. Thus, pesticide exposure in agricultural products must be decreased. The present study attempted to assess pesticide residues in samples of apple, tomato, and brinjal and determine the efficacy of washing solutions in pesticide removal. For sample preparation, the QuEChERS method was employed, and prepared samples were analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Results of the study revealed that among the collected samples, 58.33 percent samples were showing lower pesticide residues as compared to the maximum residue limit (MRL) while 12.5 percent of the samples were showing higher pesticides residues as compared to the suggested MRL. Further, from the collected fruits and vegetable samples, the presence of the chlorantraniliprole, carbendazim, beta endosulfan, chlorpyrifos, malathion, carbaryl, thiomethoxam, DDT, and flubendiamide were detected in the range of 0.0–1.41 mg/kg. Among the detected pesticides, chlorpyrifos and flubendiamide were the most commonly detected pesticides. Effectiveness of different washing solutions was studied, which indicated a significant reduction in residues of all the washing solutions compared with the control (p < 0.05) and concluded that ascorbic acid and sodium bicarbonate solution was very effective in pesticides removal compared with water and chemical alone

Effect of air pollutants on physiological parameters and yield attributes of paddy and wheat crops in Faridabad region, India

Air pollution is one of the major problems in the Delhi NCR region due to industrial emissions, traffic congestion, population growth and rapid development. Air pollutants deteriorate the environment, human health, plants and crops. This study focuses on the physiological parameters and yield attributes of paddy and wheat crops in the vicinity of a gas-based national thermal power plant (NTPC) located in Faridabad. Ten sites were selected, including the control site within a 10 km aerial distance from the exhaust chimney stack of the power plant. Major air pollutants, such as NOx, SOx, O3, and PM10, were monitored using Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) guidelines. The air quality index (AQI) was moderately polluted at the sampling site, while good air quality was observed at the control site. The results showed that the photosynthetic rates were reduced to 46% in paddies and 48% in wheat crops. In the vegetative growth stage of paddies and wheat crops, the stomatal conductance of paddies decreased to 0.11 mmol m-2s-1 compared to 0.19 mmol m-2s-1 at the control site. The transpiration rate ranged from 0.6 to 7.7 μmol/m2/s in paddies and 1.2 to 9.8 μmol/m2/s in wheat crops. The R2 value ranged from 0.702 to 0.985, which shows a strong impact of the air quality index on the physiological parameters of crops. The yield reduction due to air pollution in paddies was 11.6%, and in wheat crops, it was 14.8%. This study also provides an inventory of air pollutants in Faridabad region and their subsequent impacts on crops

NEWER OPHTHALMIC IN SITU GEL OF MOXIFLOXACIN HYDROCHLORIDE: OPTIMIZATION USING BOX BEHNKEN STATISTICAL DESIGN

Objective: The present research work aims at describing the formulation and evaluation of the ocular delivery system of moxifloxacin hydrochloride (MH) based on the concept of ion sensitive in situ gelations. Methods: In situ gel was prepared by a hot method using 0.6% of gelrite, 0.25% hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC K4M) and 0.023% tamarind gum as bioadhesive polymers for sustained drug release. Optimization was done by Box Behnken Design with different concentration of gelrite (X1), HPMC K4M (X2) and tamarind gum (X3) as independent variables. In situ gel was optimized based on mucoadhesion index (Y1), Gel strength (Y2) and in vitro drug release (Y3). Influence of the quantitative variable on the dependent variable was predicted by a polynomial equation. Results: Infrared spectroscopy excluded any interaction between drug and excipients. The selected independent variables significantly influenced the responses and were able to sustain the drug release. The prepared gel with a pH of 6.8 to 7.4 exhibited non-newtonian flow with no ocular irritation. The formulation remained stable with no change in pH and viscosity after 30 d of stability study. Conclusion: Thus, moxifloxacin hydrochloride (MH) in situ gel is a viable alternative to a conventional delivery system with the properties of sustained drug release, prolonged ocular retention, and improved corneal penetration

Twenty questions about design behavior for sustainability, report of the International Expert Panel on behavioral science for design

How behavioral scientists, engineers, and architects can work together to advance how we all understand and practice design—in order to enhance sustainability in the built environment, and beyond.https://www.nature.com/documents/design_behavior_for_sustainability.pdfPublished versio

Sputum microbiome temporal variability and dysbiosis in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations: an analysis of the COPDMAP study

Background Recent studies suggest that lung microbiome dysbiosis, the disease associated disruption of the lung microbial community, might play a key role in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbations. However, characterising temporal variability of the microbiome from large longitudinal COPD cohorts is needed to better understand this phenomenon. Methods We performed a 16S ribosomal RNA survey of microbiome on 716 sputum samples collected longitudinally at baseline and exacerbations from 281 subjects with COPD at three UK clinical centres as part of the COPDMAP consortium. Results The microbiome composition was similar among centres and between stable and exacerbations except for a small significant decrease of Veillonella at exacerbations. The abundance of Moraxella was negatively associated with bacterial alpha diversity. Microbiomes were distinct between exacerbations associated with bacteria versus eosinophilic airway inflammation. Dysbiosis at exacerbations, measured as significant within subject deviation of microbial composition relative to baseline, was present in 41% of exacerbations. Dysbiosis was associated with increased exacerbation severity indicated by a greater fall in forced expiratory volume in one second, forced vital capacity and a greater increase in CAT score, particularly in exacerbations with concurrent eosinophilic inflammation. There was a significant difference of temporal variability of microbial alpha and beta diversity among centres. The variation of beta diversity significantly decreased in those subjects with frequent historical exacerbations. Conclusions Microbial dysbiosis is a feature of some exacerbations and its presence, especially in concert with eosinophilic inflammation, is associated with more severe exacerbations indicated by a greater fall in lung function. Trial registration number Results, NCT01620645.</p

Sonic Hedgehog and Notch Signaling Can Cooperate to Regulate Neurogenic Divisions of Neocortical Progenitors

Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) and innate-like lymphocytes have important roles in immune responses in the context of infection, cancer, and autoimmunity. The factors involved in driving the differentiation and function of these cell types remain to be clearly defined. There are several cellular signaling pathways involved in embryogenesis, which continue to function in adult tissue. In particular, the WNT, NOTCH, and Hedgehog signaling pathways are emerging as regulators of hematopoietic cell development and differentiation. This review discusses the currently known roles of WNT, NOTCH, and Hedgehog signaling in the differentiation and function of ILCs and innate-like lymphocytes

Functional Characterisation of the role of Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase CD148 in Macrophages

Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) represent a biochemical counterbalance to the activity of protein tyrosine kinases, thus regulating the dynamic phosphorylation state of a cell and controlling diverse physiological processes. In macrophages, tyrosine phosphorylation regulates many signalling pathways including growth, differentiation, activation, phagocytosis and adhesion. This study aimed at the functional characterisation of the receptor protein tyrosine phosphatase CD148 in macrophages. The transcriptional regulation of ptprj (which encodes for CD148) in mouse and human mononuclear phagocytic cells was characterised. The expression of ptprj was found to be highest in macrophages, myelomonocytic cell lines and macrophage-enriched tissues. Ptprj expression was down-regulated by the macrophage growth and differentiation factor macrophage colony stimulating factor-1 (CSF-1) and significantly up-regulated by bacterial components such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and CpG DNA. Both ptprj transcript and protein were induced and found to be associated with disease progression in mouse chronic inflammatory disease models. In vitro knockdown studies of ptprj using RNAi constructs confirmed that ptprj regulates macrophage activation and proliferation. Attempts to overexpress ptprj in mice in a macrophage-specific manner were unsuccessful, further suggesting that ptprj inhibits macrophage proliferation and/or differentiation. Following stimulation of bone-marrow derived macrophages (BMMs) with CSF-1 and LPS, there was a redistribution and association of CD148 with membrane ruffles, F-actin and Pyk2 suggesting a role for CD148 in regulating macrophage morphology in response to these stimuli. Treatment of BMMs with anti-CD148 monoclonal antibody inhibited CSF-1 induced macrophage spreading, cytoskeletal changes and chemotaxis, without affecting CSF-1 receptor downstream signalling and cell survival, thereby negatively regulating a subset of CSF-1 receptor responses in macrophages. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that CD148 is a regulator of macrophage activity and inflammation

Synthesis of antifungal organomercurials in dry media

2006-2009Mercurial derivatives of substituted thiobarbituric acid have been synthesised using dry media conditions under microwave irradiation