Severe anemia in late pregnancy: a retrospective study at a tertiary care rural medical college in Gujarat, India

Background: Anaemia in pregnancy is the commonest medical disorder in developing countries like India. It has multifactorial etiology and is associated with increased maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. The study aimed at analyzing the socio-demographic variables and also the maternal and perinatal outcome of pregnant women admitted to labour room with severe anaemia (Hb <7 gm%) late in pregnancy.Methods: This is a retrospective observational study done at a tertiary care rural medical college in Gujarat over a 3 year period from January 2014 to December 2016.Results: Results of the study were analyzed. Out of 3963 deliveries during the study period 225 (5.6%) patients were severely anaemic. There were 177 (78.6%) unbooked patients and 169 (75.1%) were multigravidas. Majority of patients belonged to under 24 yr age group. Maternal complications were in form of preterm labour (44%), pre-eclampsia-ecclampsia (24.8%), cardiac failure (2.2%), PPH (2.2%) maternal death (0.4%). Neonatal outcome was analyzed in terms of prematurity (44%), LBW (24.8%), NICU admission (15.1%), still birth (4.4%), neonatal death (11.5%).Conclusions: Severe anaemia during pregnancy is associated with adverse maternal and perinatal outcome. It is also one of the preventable indirect cause of maternal mortality. Imparting health education to adolescent girls, regular antenatal check-ups, early diagnosis and treatment along with active participation of ASHA workers at grass-root level might help in bringing down the prevalence. A more focused approach is warranted towards pregnant women in rural and underdeveloped areas of India

Marine Algae as a Natural Source for Antiviral Compounds

Coronavirus or COVID-19 is started from the China, Wuhan city in December 2019 and soon later, spread around 190 countries and declared as pandemic on March 11, 2020 by WHO. Healthcare systems all over the world are fighting against this pandemic. Most of the countries are lockdown for uncertain periods to protect their people from this pandemic as a result the world economy is struggling to cope up with the current situation. Several countries have conducted research studies to produce vaccine or antiviral drug but there is still no specific solution for the prevention or treatment of COVID-19 infection in general. Along with other treatment methods, many countries are fuelling their demand for antiviral compounds from natural resources due to coronavirus. Microalgae and cyanobacteria are excellent source of antiviral activity. Several cyclic or linear peptides and depsipeptides isolated from cyanobacteria are protease inhibitors, which is considered as significant antiviral candidate. Micro and macroalgae were one of the first sources of natural compounds showing in vitro anti-HIV activity. Numerous in vitro or in vivo studies has shown the potential of algae against wild range of viruses. The use of natural products in the manufacturing of drugs is an ancient and well-established practice. Marine microorganisms are known producers of pharmacological and anti-viral agents and may provide unlimited biological resources to produce therapeutic drugs for the treatment and control of viral diseases in humans. Our major intention to write this review to bring world’s attention in terms of public health and public policy practices across the world to grab an opportunity from this known healthcare practices, and conventional platform to produce vaccine or antiviral medicine to overcome COID-19

In silico de novo design of NNRTIs of HIV-1: Functional group based computational molecular modelling approach

1484-1493Seven novel lead compounds, acting as NNRTIs of HIV-1, are extracted from a database of, in silico de novo designed, 500 compounds. Functional group based computational molecular modelling techniques are used for such design of Acylthiocarbamate derivatives. Effect of structural characteristics on the antiviral activity of these derivatives has also been studied. Statistical regression techniques namely, Non-linear (Back Propagation Neural Network, Support Vector Machine) and linear (Multiple Linear) chemometric regression methods are used in developing the relationships of Kier-Hall Electrotopological State Indices (ERingA, EO8, EN9, EO14, ES16, EN17, EO19, ER, and ER1) with the HIV-1 antiviral activity. The relative potentials of these methods are also assessed and the results suggest that BPNN (r2 = 0.845, MSE = 0.142, q2 = 0.818) describes the relationship between the descriptors and antiviral activity in a relatively better manner than SVM-ε-radial (r2 = 0.844, MSE = 0.144, q2 = 0.807) and MLR (r2 = 0.836, MSE = 0.150, q2 = 0.805)

Selection of DNA nanoparticles with preferential binding to aggregated protein target.

High affinity and specificity are considered essential for affinity reagents and molecularly-targeted therapeutics, such as monoclonal antibodies. However, life's own molecular and cellular machinery consists of lower affinity, highly multivalent interactions that are metastable, but easily reversible or displaceable. With this inspiration, we have developed a DNA-based reagent platform that uses massive avidity to achieve stable, but reversible specific recognition of polyvalent targets. We have previously selected these DNA reagents, termed DeNAno, against various cells and now we demonstrate that DeNAno specific for protein targets can also be selected. DeNAno were selected against streptavidin-, rituximab- and bevacizumab-coated beads. Binding was stable for weeks and unaffected by the presence of soluble target proteins, yet readily competed by natural or synthetic ligands of the target proteins. Thus DeNAno particles are a novel biomolecular recognition agent whose orthogonal use of avidity over affinity results in uniquely stable yet reversible binding interactions

Synthesis of enantiomerically enriched benzimidazole-triazoles: Application as organocatalyst for asymmertric Diels-Alder reaction

93-1014-(Benzimidazolylmethyl)-1,2,3-triazole derivatives 8a-g and 9a-g have been developed using click chemistry protocol in regioselective manner and in high yields. These compounds have geometry to behave as chiral tweezers due to the presence of flexibly bound pi-rich hetero-aryl rings in addition to a chiral center. The synthesized chiral benzimidazole-triazoles have been found to be useful as organocatalysts for the enantioselective Diels-Alder (DA) reaction between anthrone 10 and maleimide detivatives 11a-g. Enantioselectivity levels have been found to be dependent on several factors including nature of substituents in benzimidazole-triazoles 8a-g and 9a-g

Angular size test on the expansion of the Universe

Assuming the standard cosmological model as correct, the average linear size of galaxies with the same luminosity is six times smaller at z=3.2 than at z=0, and their average angular size for a given luminosity is approximately proportional to 1/z. Neither the hypothesis that galaxies which formed earlier have much higher densities nor their luminosity evolution, mergers ratio, or massive outflows due to a quasar feedback mechanism are enough to justify such a strong size evolution. Also, at high redshift, the intrinsic ultraviolet surface brightness would be prohibitively high with this evolution, and the velocity dispersion much higher than observed. We explore here another possibility to overcome this problem by considering different cosmological scenarios that might make the observed angular sizes compatible with a weaker evolution. One of the models explored, a very simple phenomenological extrapolation of the linear Hubble law in a Euclidean static universe, fits the angular size vs. redshift dependence quite well, which is also approximately proportional to 1/z with this cosmological model. There are no free parameters derived ad hoc, although the error bars allow a slight size/luminosity evolution. The type Ia supernovae Hubble diagram can also be explained in terms of this model with no ad hoc fitted parameter. WARNING: I do not argue here that the true Universe is static. My intention is just to discuss which theoretical models provide a better fit to the data of observational cosmology.Comment: 44 pages, accepted to be published in Int. J. Mod. Phys.

Purification and preliminary characterization of a xylanase from Thermomyces lanuginosus strain SS-8

Thermomyces lanuginosus SS-8 was isolated from soil samples that had been collected from near self-heating plant material and its extracellular cellulase-free xylanase purified approximately 160-fold using ion exchange chromatography and continuous elution electrophoresis. This xylanase was thermoactive (optimum temperature 60 °C) at pH 6.0 and had a molecular weight of 23.79 kDa as indicated by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis. The xylanase rapidly hydrolyzed xylan directly to xylose without the production of intermediary xylo-oligosaccharides within 15 min of incubation under optimum conditions. This trait of rapidly degrading xylan to xylose as a sole end-product could have biotechnological potential in degradation of agro-wastes for bioethanol manufacturing industry

The Cloud Aerosol Interaction and Precipitation Enhancement Experiment (CAIPEEX): overview and preliminary results

While the demand for enhancing rainfall through cloud seeding is strong and persistent in the country, considerable uncertainty exists on the success of such an endeavour at a given location. To understand the pathways of aerosol-cloud interaction through which this might be achieved, a national experiment named Cloud Aerosol Interaction and Precipitation Enhancement EXperiment (CAIPEEX) in two phases, was carried out. The rationale of CAIPEEX, the strategy for conducting the experiment, data quality and potential for path-breaking science are described in this article. Pending completion of quality control and calibration of the CAIPEEX phase-II data, here we present some initial results of CAIPEEX phase-I aimed at documenting the prevailing microphysical characteristics of aerosols and clouds and associated environmental conditions over different regions of the country and under different monsoon conditions with the help of an instrumented research aircraft. First-time simultaneous observations of aerosol, cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) and cloud droplet number concentration (CDNC) over the Ganges Valley during monsoon season show very high concentrations (&gt; 1000 cm-3) of CCN at elevated layers. Observations of elevated layers with high aerosol concentration over the Gangetic valley extending up to 6 km and relatively less aerosol concentration in the boundary layer are also documented. We also present evidence of strong cloud- aerosol interaction in the moist environments with an increase in the cloud droplet effective radius. Our observations also show that pollution increases CDNC and the warm rain depth, and delays its initiation. The critical effective radius for warm rain initiation is found to be between 10 and 12 µm in the polluted clouds and it is between 12 and 14 µm in cleaner monsoon clouds