India’s Emerging Retail Systems: Coexistence of Tradition and Modernity

India’s retailing sector is expected to remain in a transition spiral for the foreseeable future. Because of India’s unique context—in terms of history, regulation, institutions, demographics, geography, and traditions—available theories of retail evolution have limited applicability to the retail situation in India. Drawing from the literature, as well as from empirical research and practical experiences of over a decade, this article presents a conceptual frame for understanding the retail sector of India and the likely future trajectory of this sector

Streptococcus agalactiae glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) elicits multiple cytokines from human cells and has a minor effect on bacterial persistence in the murine female reproductive tract

Streptococcus agalactiae glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), encoded by gapC, is a glycolytic enzyme that is associated with virulence and immune-mediated protection. However, the role of GAPDH in cellular cytokine responses to S. agalactiae, bacterial phagocytosis and colonization of the female reproductive tract, a central host niche, is unknown. We expressed and studied purified recombinant GAPDH (rGAPDH) of S. agalactiae in cytokine elicitation assays with human monocyte-derived macrophage, epithelial cell, and polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN) co-culture infection models. We also generated a S. agalactiae mutant that over-expresses GAPDH (oeGAPDH) from gapC using a constitutively active promoter, and analyzed the mutant in murine macrophage antibiotic protection assays and in virulence assays in vivo, using a colonization model that is based on experimental infection of the reproductive tract in female mice. Human cell co-cultures produced interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and IL-10 within 24 h of exposure to rGAPDH. PMNs were required for several of these cytokine responses. However, over-expression of GAPDH in S. agalactiae did not significantly affect measures of phagocytic uptake compared to an empty vector control. In contrast, oeGAPDH-S. agalactiae showed a small but statistically significant attenuation for persistence in the reproductive tract of female mice during the chronic phase of infection (10–28 days post-inoculation), relative to the vector control. We conclude that S. agalactiae GAPDH elicits production of multiple cytokines from human cells, and over-expression of GAPDH renders the bacterium more susceptible to host clearance in the female reproductive tract. One-sentence summary: This study shows Streptococcus agalactiae glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase, an enzyme that functions in glycolysis, gluconeogenesis and virulence, modifies phagocytosis outcomes, including cytokine synthesis, and affects bacterial persistence in the female reproductive tract

A review of the distribution of particulate trace elements in urban terrestrial environments and its application to considerations of risk

We review the evolution, state of the art and future lines of research on the sources, transport pathways, and sinks of particulate trace elements in urban terrestrial environments to include the atmosphere, soils, and street and indoor dusts. Such studies reveal reductions in the emissions of some elements of historical concern such as Pb, with interest consequently focusing on other toxic trace elements such as As, Cd, Hg, Zn, and Cu. While establishment of levels of these elements is important in assessing the potential impacts of human society on the urban environment, it is also necessary to apply this knowledge in conjunction with information on the toxicity of those trace elements and the degree of exposure of human receptors to an assessment of whether such contamination represents a real risk to the city’s inhabitants and therefore how this risk can be addressed

Acinetobacter infections: A growing threat in the hospital

Acinetobacter baumannii is a Gram Negative coccobacilli implicated in causation of wide spectrum of nosocomial infections. Multidrug resistant Acinetobacter (MDR Acinetobacter) is emerging as an important cause of hospital acquired infections like urinary tract infection, ventilator associated pneumonia, meningitis, bacteremia and infection in burns patients. The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence of Acinetobacter infections and ascertain the burden of MDR Acinetobacter in this hospital. This study is a retrospective review of Microbiology laboratory culture reports during the period 01 Jan 2012 to 31 Dec 2012 at INHS Asvini and includes 172 isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii. Multidrug resistant Acinetobacter was defined as resistance to more than three classes of antibiotics. Out of a total of3283 different isolates from various clinical samples during this period, 172 isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii were obtained. Antimicrobial susceptibility patterns for all available antibiotic classes for Acinetobacter were studied. Of all the Acinetobacter baumannii isolated, 38% were found to be Multidrug resistant which were resistant to most of the commonly used antibiotics including Aminoglycosides, Cephalosporins, Carbepenems, Extended Spectrum Penicillins and Fluroquinolones. The data suggests that Acinetobacter infections are a growing threat affecting a considerable proportion of critically ill patients

Antimicrobial resistance patterns of pseudomonas aeruginosa in a tertiary care hospital

Objective: To evaluate the antibiotic resistance patterns of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from various clinical samples in a tertiary care hospital. Materials and Methods: Between Mar 2013 to Feb 2014, 386 strains of P. aeruginosa were isolated from different clinical specimens and fully characterized by standard bacteriological procedures. Antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of each isolate were carried out by Kirby- Bauer disk diffusion method and results were interpreted according to Clinical Laboratory Standard Institute guidelines. Results: The isolation rate of P. aeruginosa in this study was 11.5%. Pus,urine and tracheal aspirates were important sources of P. aeruginosa. The highest resistance was reported to Ciprofloxacin while the lowest resistance to Imipenem. 17% of P. aeruginosa isolates were foundto bem ulti - drug resistant (MDR). Conclusion: The clinical significance of thesefindings emphasizes the importance ofjudicious and rational treatment prescription to limit the spread of antimicrobial resistance among P. aeruginosa strains. There is a need for periodical antimicrobial surveillance to monitor the resistance patterns in hospitals and prevent further spread of MDR strains

Density functional theory investigation of Cu(I)- and Cu(II)-curcumin complexes

Density functional theory is used to obtain the lowest energy geometries of bis-aqua curcumin complexes and bis-curcumin complexes of Cu(I) and Cu(II). Three conformations of curcumin, obtained by rotation of the substituted aromatic groups, were considered in each case. Steric repulsion, due to the methoxy–methoxy interactions, was found to be an important factor in determining the lowest energy conformer of Cu(II)(curcumin)2 but was less important for the Cu(I) analog. Using a sufficiently large basis set, the results show that the lowest energy Cu(II)(curcumin)2 geometry is square planar around the copper atom, in contrast to the results from a previous study (Shen et al. THEOCHEM-J Mol Struct 2005, 757, 199). In addition, other studies suggested that the formation of this complex is followed by the reduction of Cu(II) to Cu(I). We also examined the singly occupied molecular orbital, spin density, and natural bond orbitals of Cu(II)(curcumin)2. While the former two analyses show little evidence of electron transfer from curcumin into the Cu center, the latter indicates that Cu(II) is partially reduced to Cu(I) as a consequence of complexation. Finally, we consider the bis-aqua curcumin and bis-curcumin complexes on a reaction path involving progressive displacement of water molecules by curcumin ligands. The results show that the bis-curcumin complex is the most stable Cu(II) complex, showing consistently exothermic steps in the reaction path. However, for Cu(I), the final step in the reaction path is essentially thermoneutral, indicating that the 1:1 and 1:2 Cu(I) complexes are equally stable thermodynamically.Matthew A. Addicoat, Gregory F. Metha and Tak W. Ke