Representation of Non-Spatial and Spatial Information in the Lateral Entorhinal Cortex

Some theories of memory propose that the hippocampus integrates the individual items and events of experience within a contextual or spatial framework. The hippocampus receives cortical input from two major pathways: the medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) and the lateral entorhinal cortex (LEC). During exploration in an open field, the firing fields of MEC grid cells form a periodically repeating, triangular array. In contrast, LEC neurons show little spatial selectivity, and it has been proposed that the LEC may provide non-spatial input to the hippocampus. Here, we recorded MEC and LEC neurons while rats explored an open field that contained discrete objects. LEC cells fired selectively at locations relative to the objects, whereas MEC cells were weakly influenced by the objects. These results provide the first direct demonstration of a double dissociation between LEC and MEC inputs to the hippocampus under conditions of exploration typically used to study hippocampal place cells

Representation of odor habituation and timing in the Hippocampus

We performed simultaneous single-neuron recordings from the hippocampus and the olfactory bulb of anesthetized, freely breathing rats. Odor response properties of neurons in the olfactory bulb and hippocampus were characterized as firing rate changes or respiration-coupled changes. A panel of five odors was used. The rats had not been exposed to the odors on the panel before the experiment. The olfactory bulb and hippocampal neurons responded to repeated odor presentations in two ways: first, by changes in firing rate, and second, by respiratory tuning changes. Approximately 60% of bulbar neurons, 48% of hippocampal CA1 neurons, and 12% of hippocampal CA3 neurons showed statistically significant responses. None of the odor-responsive neurons in either the bulb or hippocampus responded to all of the odors on the panel. Repeated 10 sec odor stimuli presented at the intervals of 20, 30, 60, 110, and 160 sec were used to analyze the effect of the interval on odor response properties of the recorded neurons. Bulbar neurons were relatively nonselective for odor interval. Hippocampal neurons showed unexpected selectivity for the interval between repeated odor presentations. CA1 and CA3 neurons responded to only one to three of the intervals in the range. On the basis of these findings, we postulate that the hippocampus has the ability to keep track of the time elapsed between consecutive odor stimuli. This may act as a neuronal substrate for habituation and for complex tasks such as odor-guided navigation

Experimental and numerical study of a proton exchange membrane electrolyzer for hydrogen production

Hydrogen as a fuel source has received attention from researchers globally due to its potential to replace fossil based fuels for energy production. Research is being performed on hydrogen production, storage and utilization methods to make its use economically feasible relative to current energy sources. The PEM electrolyzer is used to produce hydrogen and oxygen using water and electricity. Focus of our study is to provide a benchmark experiment and numerical model of a single cell electrolyzer that can assist in improving the current state of understanding of this system. Parametric analysis of an experimental cell was performed to understand the effect of operating parameters of electrolyzer on its performance. A CFD model was developed to model the physics of electrolyzer. The model was validated with the experiment; the information presented here can be used as a tool to improve the design from thermo-fluid aspects of the electrolyzer

Classification of Rock Images using Textural Analysis

The classification of natural images is an useful task in current computer vision, pattern recognition applications etc. Rock images are a typical example of natural images, therefore their analysis is of major importance in the rock industry and in bedrock investigations. Rock image classification is based on specific textural descriptors which are extracted from the images. Using these descriptors, images are divided into various types. In the case of natural images, the feature distributions are often non-homogeneous and the image classes are also overlapping in the feature space. This can be problematic, if all the descriptors are combined into a single feature vector in the classification of an image. A method is presented for combining different visual descriptors in rock image classification. In this paper, k-nearest neighbor classification will be carried out for pair of descriptor separately. After that, the final decision is made by combining the results of each classification. The total numbers of the neighbors representing each class are used as votes in the final classification. The classification method will be tested using three types of rock. DOI: 10.17762/ijritcc2321-8169.15039

Evaluation of used eye drop containers for microbial contamination in outpatient department of tertiary care teaching hospital

Background: Contaminated eyedrops are considered as serious risk factor for many iatrogenic ocular infections. Apart from the risk of infection, microbial contamination may alter the pH of the solution thereby reducing the efficacy of drugs. Presently many preservatives are added to these eye drops preparations to extend the duration of use. Hence authors aimed this study to find the contamination rates in such eye drop preparations.Methods: This was a prospective observational research conducted at Ophthalmology OPD, of tertiary care teaching hospital for the period of 2 months. Total fifty five used eyedrops were collected.Results: Authors found that 25.45% of the collected eye drops were contaminated with various organisms, viz. E. coli (10.90%), Staphylococcus aureus (9.09%), Pseudomonas aerugenosa (1.81%), Bacillus subtilis (1.81%) and Candida albicans (1.81%). Among various eyedrops, mydriatic (60%) eyedrops had the highest rate of contamination. We also found that, different preservatives in the eye drops were presents with different level of microbial contamination.Conclusions: The present study showed that there is a definite co-occurrence between eyedrop contamination and ocular infections irrespective of preservatives. This research raises a concern about questionable efficacy of preservatives.

Concept of Satwavajaya Chikitsa (Psychotherapy)

Health is defined as, a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely an absence of disease or infirmity. Manas or Satwa plays an important role in keeping person healthy, even during the time of physical disorder Manas helps in relieving it. But during present day’s lifestyle and stress related environment, human beings are suffering from many psychological disorders; As many as 450 million people suffer from a mental or behavioral disorder. Among them nearly 1 million people commit suicide every year (WHO). So this balancing nature of mind nowadays is getting deprived under the influence of growing stress and strain in life. But treatment is not absolute in the modern science, but Ayurveda may provide better treatment modality in controlling or curing these then other existing sciences. Satwavajaya Chikitsa is a unique non-pharmacological approach for treating the mental disorders. It is the first of its kind and if developed can really prove much useful. So Satwavajaya plays major role to get rid of these problems. So it is very much essential to understand the concept of Satwavajaya Chikitsa

from pediococcus pentosaceus isolated from Kurdai

Kurdai is a traditional fermented whole wheat snack food, native to Maharashtra and parts of Gujarat. The microbes responsible for kurdai fermentation have been successfully isolated and identified as Leuconostoc lactis, Pedicoccus pentosaceus, Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus hominis, Klebsiella pneumonia and Lactobacillus plantarum. Pedicoccus pentosaceus one of microbes responsible for kurdai fermentation were identified. In the present work, Pedicoccus pentosaceus was explored for the production of pediocin which is a Class II bacteriocin produced by lactic acid bacteria, because they are heat stable and non-modified lantibiotics. Bacteriocins have been drawing the attention of the food industry because of their increased specificity and effectiveness at low concentrations in order to prevent the development of pathogens. The activity of pediocin was evaluated using various commercial strains as indicators such as Escherichia coli MTCC 40, Bacillus cereus MTCC 1272, Leuconostoc mesenteroides NCIM 2198, Lactobacillus fermentum NCIM 2165 and Lactobacillus helveticus NCIM 2733. It was shown that the highest pediocin activity was expressed against Lactobacillus helveticus NCIM 2733 with 4.89 + 0.13 Activity Units (AU)/mL being produced. Pediocin production was then optimized by controlling the incubation time, temperature seed age, inoculum density and initial pH of the growth media.Fil: Pavitra, Krishna Kumar. Institute of Chemical Technology. Food Engineering and Technology Department; IndiaFil: Deshmukh, Shrinivas R.. Institute of Chemical Technology. Food Engineering and Technology Department; IndiaFil: Sonawane, Sachin K.. Institute of Chemical Technology. Food Engineering and Technology Department; IndiaFil: Leblanc, Jean Guy Joseph. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucuman. Centro de Referencia Para Lactobacilos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucuman. Facultad de Medicina; ArgentinaFil: Arya, Shalini S.. Institute of Chemical Technology. Food Engineering and Technology Department; Indi

A conceptual study on Charakokta Nidana of Visarpa with special reference to present day Ahara and Vihara

The aim of Ayurveda is “Swasthasya Swasthya Rakshana” and “Aturasya Vikara Prashamana,” it is achieved on the bases of various concepts of Ayurveda. Nidana is one of them. To cope with the fast developing field of medicine many Ayurvedic concepts are to be reviewed, also must be updated and presented so as to fulfill the lacunae in diagnosis and treatment of the disease. With this background, the study “A conceptual study on Charakokta Nidana of Visarpa with special Reference to present day Aharaja and Viharaja” was carried out. All the skin diseases including Visarpa can be prevented if effective care is taken in terms of avoidance of predisposing factors. Since it is not very sure about the exact causative factors of Visarpa, so this Observational study may help to identify the most commonly involved Nidana. Nidana in causation of Visarpa which in turn may help for initiating preventive measures. Nidana of Visarpa explained in Charaka Samhita still holds good in present day life style

In Vivo Comparison of the Efficiency of En-Masse Retraction Using Temporary Anchorage Devices With and Without Orthodontic Appliances on the Posterior Teeth

Objective: To compare the effectiveness of en-masse retraction of maxillary anterior teeth using temporary anchorage devices with and without orthodontic appliances on the posterior teeth.Methods:In the study, 20 participants (18.25 ± 4.07 years) meeting the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into 2 groups using the sequentially numbered opaque sealed envelopes method. In group I (control group, n = 10), en-masse retraction was carried out with conventional high hooks soldered to the retraction wire and posterior teeth were included. In group II (experimental group, n = 10), the en-masse retraction was carried out without an orthodontic appliance on posterior teeth and a modified retraction wire was incorporated. In both groups, mini-implants were placed bilaterally between the maxillary second premolar and maxillary first molar, and a retraction force of 6 ounces (180 g) was applied using power chains. Lateral cephalograms and study models were taken before retraction and 4 months after retraction. All statistical analyses were performed with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software with a statistically significant level of 5%. We used unpaired t-tests for the comparison, and the error of the method was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients and the Bland–Altman method.Results: The maxillary incisor apex retraction, change in maxillary incisor in the vertical plane, and its inclination showed statistically significant differences (P < .05). The rate of retraction was significantly greater in the experimental group when evaluated clinically and in the study models (P < .05).Conclusion: The rate/amount of retraction evaluated clinically and in the study models was significantly faster/greater when the posterior teeth were not included during anterior retraction. Also, a greater amount of bodily retraction of anterior teeth was achieved

Molecular insights into Coumarin analogues as antimicrobial agents: Recent developments in drug discovery

A major global health risk has been witnessed with the development of drug-resistant bacteria and multidrug-resistant pathogens linked to significant mortality. Coumarins are heterocyclic compounds belonging to the benzophenone class enriched in different plants. Coumarins and their derivatives have a wide range of biological activity, including antibacterial, anticoagulant, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antitumour, and enzyme inhibitory effects. In the past few years, attempts have been reported towards the optimization, synthesis, and evaluation of novel coumarin analogues as antimicrobial agents. Several coumarin-based antibiotic hybrids have been developed, and the majority of them were reported to exhibit potential antibacterial effects. In the present work, studies reported from 2016 to 2020 about antimicrobial coumarin analogues are the focus. The diverse biological spectrum of coumarins can be attributed to their free radical scavenging abilities. In addition to various synthetic strategies developed, some of the structural features include a heterocyclic ring with electron-withdrawing/donating groups conjugated with the coumarin nucleus. The suggested structure−activity relationship (SAR) can provide insight into how coumarin hybrids can be rationally improved against multidrug-resistant bacteria. The present work demonstrates molecular insights for coumarin derivatives having antimicrobial properties from the recent past. The detailed SAR outcomes will benefit towards leading optimization during the discovery and development of novel antimicrobial therapeutics