Electrophoretic Study of d-Block Metal Ions on Plain and Tri-n-Butylamine (TBA) Impregnated Titanium (IV) Tungstate Layers

RPTLE of ninteen d block metal ion studied on TBA impregnated titanium(IV)tungstate layer in nine solvent system among them three are complex forming acids OA,TA, CA to study the effect of complexation on migration. Electrophoretic migration also correlated with Ionc potential,Kd of metal ions and Ka of acids,pH of electrolytes.The spots are well defined in RPTLE and Mi is positiv

Crowd Counting in Low-Resolution Crowded Scenes Using Region-Based Deep Convolutional Neural Networks

© 2013 IEEE. Crowd counting and density estimation is an important and challenging problem in the visual analysis of the crowd. Most of the existing approaches use regression on density maps for the crowd count from a single image. However, these methods cannot localize individual pedestrian and therefore cannot estimate the actual distribution of pedestrians in the environment. On the other hand, detection-based methods detect and localize pedestrians in the scene, but the performance of these methods degrades when applied in high-density situations. To overcome the limitations of pedestrian detectors, we proposed a motion-guided filter (MGF) that exploits spatial and temporal information between consecutive frames of the video to recover missed detections. Our framework is based on the deep convolution neural network (DCNN) for crowd counting in the low-to-medium density videos. We employ various state-of-the-art network architectures, namely, Visual Geometry Group (VGG16), Zeiler and Fergus (ZF), and VGGM in the framework of a region-based DCNN for detecting pedestrians. After pedestrian detection, the proposed motion guided filter is employed. We evaluate the performance of our approach on three publicly available datasets. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach, which significantly improves the performance of the state-of-the-art detectors

Bitter taste receptor agonists alter mitochondrial function and induce autophagy in airway smooth muscle cells

© 2017 the American Physiological Society. Airway remodeling, including increased airway smooth muscle (ASM) mass, is a hallmark feature of asthma and COPD. We previously identified the expression of bitter taste receptors (TAS2Rs) on human ASM cells and demonstrated that known TAS2R agonists could promote ASM relaxation and bronchodilation and inhibit mitogen-induced ASM growth. In this study, we explored cellular mechanisms mediating the antimitogenic effect of TAS2R agonists on human ASM cells. Pretreatment of ASM cells with TAS2R agonists chloroquine and quinine resulted in inhibition of cell survival, which was largely reversed by bafilomycin A1, an autophagy inhibitor. Transmission electron microscope studies demonstrated the presence of double-membrane autophagosomes and deformed mitochondria. In ASM cells, TAS2R agonists decreased mitochondrial membrane potential and increased mitochondrial ROS and mitochondrial fragmentation. Inhibiting dynamin-like protein 1 (DLP1) reversed TAS2R agonist-induced mitochondrial membrane potential change and attenuated mitochondrial fragmentation and cell death. Furthermore, the expression of mitochondrial protein BCL2/ adenovirus E1B 19-kDa protein-interacting protein 3 (Bnip3) and mitochondrial localization of DLP1 were significantly upregulated by TAS2R agonists. More importantly, inhibiting Bnip3 mitochondrial localization by dominant-negative Bnip3 significantly attenuated cell death induced by TAS2R agonist. Collectively the TAS2R agonists chloroquine and quinine modulate mitochondrial structure and function, resulting in ASM cell death. Furthermore, Bnip3 plays a central role in TAS2R agonist-induced ASM functional changes via a mitochondrial pathway. These findings further establish the cellular mechanisms of antimitogenic effects of TAS2R agonists and identify a novel class of receptors and pathways that can be targeted to mitigate airway remodeling as well as bronchoconstriction in obstructive airway diseases

Non-adiabatic radiative collapse of a relativistic star under different initial conditions

We examine the role of space-time geometry in the non-adiabatic collapse of a star dissipating energy in the form of radial heat flow, studying its evolution under different initial conditions. The collapse of a star with interior comprising of a homogeneous perfect fluid is compared with that of a star filled with inhomogeneous imperfect fluid with anisotropic pressure. Both the configurations are spherically symmetric, however, in the latter case, the physical space $t= constant$ of the configurations is assumed to be inhomogeneous endowed with spheroidal or pseudo-spheroidal geometry. It is observed that as long as the collapse is shear-free, its evolution depends only on the mass and size of the star at the onset of collapse.Comment: To appear in Pramana- j. of physic

A combined in vitro/in silico approach to identifying off-target receptor toxicity

Many xenobiotics can bind to off-target receptors and cause toxicity via the dysregulation of downstream transcription factors. Identification of subsequent off-target toxicity in these chemicals has often required extensive chemical testing in animal models. An alternative, integrated in vitro/in silico approach for predicting toxic off-target functional responses is presented to refine in vitro receptor identification and reduce the burden on in vivo testing. As part of the methodology, mathematical modelling is used to mechanistically describe processes that regulate transcriptional activity following receptor-ligand binding informed by transcription factor signalling assays. Critical reactions in the signalling cascade are identified to highlight potential perturbation points in the biochemical network that can guide and optimise additional in vitro testing. A physiologically-based pharmacokinetic model provides information on the timing and localisation of different levels of receptor activation informing whole-body toxic potential resulting from off-target binding

A dose verification method for high-dose-rate brachytherapy treatment plans

Aim: To evolve a fast dose verification method for high-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy treatment plans and to demonstrate its applicability in different clinical cases. Materials and Methods: We developed a software tool in VC++ for the Varisource HDR unit for HDR dosimetry plan verification using TG-43 parameters. HDR treatment dosimetry of a number clinical cases using Varisource was verified by comparison with the treatment planning system (TPS). Results: A number of different types of clinical cases treated by Varisource were evaluated. TPS calculated dose values and verification code calculated dose values were found to agree to within 3% for most of the dose calculation points. Conclusions: We have validated with clinical cases a fast and independent dose verification method of the dosimetry at selected points for HDR brachytherapy treatments plan using TG-43 parameters. This can be used for the verification of the TPS calculated dose at various points. The code is written to work with Varisource, but it can conceivably be modified for other sources also by using the fitted constant of the respective source

Effects of Four Host Plants on Biology and Food Utilization of the Cutworm, Spodoptera litura

Effects of four host plants, tobacco, Chinese cabbage, cowpea and sweet potato, on larval and pupal development and survival, and longevity and fecundity of adults of Spodoptera litura (F) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), were studied under laboratory conditions (26° C, 60–80% RH), as was the utilization of the four host plants and adaptation on tobacco. All of the biological parameters included in the study were affected by the host plants. In a choice test, S. litura females oviposited most on Chinese cabbage, least on tobacco, and intermediate on cowpea and sweet potato. S. litura larvae developed differently on the four host plants, from shortest to longest in the following order: Chinese cabbage, cowpea, sweet potato, and tobacco. Pupal development was shorter on cowpea than on the other three host plants, and males generally developed longer than females. More females than males were found among emerged adults, and male adults lived 1–2 d longer than females. Larvae survived best on cowpea (81.6%), followed by Chinese cabbage (75.5%), then sweet potato (66.1%), and worst on tobacco (49.2%). Pupal survival rates were relatively high (91.4 – 95.9%) in all four host plant treatments, although that on sweet potato was lower than those on the other three host plants. Pupal weights on tobacco and sweet potato were similar, but both were lower than those on Chinese cabbage and cowpea. Generally, male pupae weighed less than female pupae. Numbers of eggs oviposited by female S. litura were highest on sweet potato, followed by those on cowpea, Chinese cabbage, and lowest on tobacco. Relative food consumption rate was highest on sweet potato, followed by that on cowpea, Chinese cabbage, and lowest on tobacco. In contrast, S. litura larvae that fed on tobacco had higher efficiency of conversion of digested food, highest efficiency of conversion of ingested food, and lowest approximate digestibility as compared with larvae that fed on other host plants. The potential causes for S. litura outbreaks on tobacco are discussed

Comets, historical records and vedic literature

A verse in book I of Rigveda mentions a cosmic tree with rope-like aerial roots held up in the sky. Such an imagery might have ensued from the appearance of a comet having `tree stem' like tail, with branched out portions resembling aerial roots. Interestingly enough, a comet referred to as `heavenly tree' was seen in 162 BC, as reported by old Chinese records. Because of weak surface gravity, cometary appendages may possibly assume strange shapes depending on factors like rotation, structure and composition of the comet as well as solar wind pattern. Varahamihira and Ballala Sena listed several comets having strange forms as reported originally by ancient seers such as Parashara, Vriddha Garga, Narada and Garga. Mahabharata speaks of a mortal king Nahusha who ruled the heavens when Indra, king of gods, went into hiding. Nahusha became luminous and egoistic after absorbing radiance from gods and seers. When he kicked Agastya (southern star Canopus), the latter cursed him to become a serpent and fall from the sky. We posit arguments to surmise that this Mahabharata lore is a mythical recounting of a cometary event wherein a comet crossed Ursa Major, moved southwards with an elongated tail in the direction of Canopus and eventually went out of sight. In order to check whether such a conjecture is feasible, a preliminary list of comets (that could have or did come close to Canopus) drawn from various historical records is presented and discussed.Comment: This work was presented in the International Conference on Oriental Astronomy held at IISER, Pune (India) during November, 201

Grape Seed Proanthocyanidins Inhibit Melanoma Cell Invasiveness by Reduction of PGE2 Synthesis and Reversal of Epithelial-to-Mesenchymal Transition

Melanoma is the leading cause of death from skin disease due, in large part, to its propensity to metastasize. We have examined the effect of grape seed proanthocyanidins (GSPs) on melanoma cancer cell migration and the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects using highly metastasis-specific human melanoma cell lines, A375 and Hs294t. Using in vitro cell invasion assays, we observed that treatment of A375 and Hs294t cells with GSPs resulted in a concentration-dependent inhibition of invasion or cell migration of these cells, which was associated with a reduction in the levels of cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 expression and prostaglandin (PG) E2 production. Treatment of cells with celecoxib, a COX-2 inhibitor, or transient transfection of melanoma cells with COX-2 small interfering RNA, also inhibited melanoma cell migration. Treatment of cells with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate, an inducer of COX-2, enhanced the phosphorylation of ERK1/2, a protein of mitogen-activated protein kinase family, and subsequently cell migration whereas both GSPs and celecoxib significantly inhibited 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate -promoted cell migration as well as phosphorylation of ERK1/2. Treatment of cells with UO126, an inhibitor of MEK, also inhibited the migration of melanoma cells. Further, GSPs inhibited the activation of NF-κB/p65, an upstream regulator of COX-2, in melanoma cells, and treatment of cells with caffeic acid phenethyl ester, an inhibitor of NF-κB, also inhibited cell migration. Additionally, inhibition of melanoma cell migration by GSPs was associated with reversal of epithelial-mesenchymal transition process, which resulted in an increase in the levels of epithelial biomarkers (E-cadherin and cytokeratins) while loss of mesenchymal biomarkers (vimentin, fibronectin and N-cadherin) in melanoma cells. Together, these results indicate that GSPs have the ability to inhibit melanoma cell invasion/migration by targeting the endogenous expression of COX-2 and reversing the process of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition