Adaptation to a bacterial pathogen in Drosophila melanogaster is not aided by sexual selection.

Theory predicts that sexual selection should aid adaptation to novel environments, but empirical support for this idea is limited. Pathogens are a major driver of host evolution and, unlike abiotic selection pressures, undergo epidemiological and co-evolutionary cycles with the host involving adaptation and counteradaptation. Because of this, populations harbor ample genetic variation underlying immunity and the opportunity for sexual selection based on condition-dependent "good genes" is expected to be large. In this study, we evolved populations of Drosophila melanogaster in a 2-way factorial design manipulating sexual selection and pathogen presence, using a gram-negative insect pathogen Pseudomonas entomophila, for 14 generations. We then examined how the presence of sexual selection and the pathogen, as well as any potential interaction, affected the evolution of pathogen resistance. We found increased resistance to P. entomophila in populations that evolved under pathogen pressure, driven primarily by increased female survival after infection despite selection for resistance acting only on males over the course of experimental evolution. This result suggests that the genetic basis of resistance is in part shared between the sexes. We did not find any evidence of sexual selection aiding adaptation to pathogen, however, a finding contrary to the predictions of "good genes" theory. Our results therefore provide no support for a role for sexual selection in the evolution of immunity in this experimental system

Role of ormeloxifene in the management of dysfunctional uterine bleeding: a prospective study

Background: Menorrhagia is an important healthcare problem and most common indication for hysterectomies worldwide. This study was carried out to assess the efficacy, safety and acceptability of Ormeloxifene in the medical management of Dysfunction uterine bleeding (DUB).Methods: For the study 50 women aged 27-48 years who attended the outpatient gynecology department in a tertiary care hospital with complaint of heavy menstrual flow were recruited. Ormeloxifene (60 mg) was given orally twice a week for first 12 weeks and then once a week for up to next 12 weeks. The primary outcome measures were reduction in menstrual blood loss which was measured by fall in PBAC (Pictorial blood assessment chart) score, rise in hemoglobin level and reduction in endometrial thickness.Results: The reduction in mean PBAC score at the end of 12th week was found to be statistically significant (P<0.001). There was also significant decrease in the mean endometrial thickness (P<0.001) after treatment with Ormeloxifene when compared to mean baseline value. The difference in mean hemoglobin level is 1.96 gm/dl between baseline and post treatment level was found to be statistically significant (P<0.001). No major adverse effects were experienced by patients in this study.Conclusions: Ormeloxifene is very effective and safe alternative in the management of dysfunction uterine bleeding. It has a good patient acceptability and compliance due to its minimal side effects, low cost and simple dosa

Predator-induced maternal effects determine adaptive antipredator behaviors via egg composition.

In high-risk environments with frequent predator encounters, efficient antipredator behavior is key to survival. Parental effects are a powerful mechanism to prepare offspring for coping with such environments, yet clear evidence for adaptive parental effects on offspring antipredator behaviors is missing. Rapid escape reflexes, or "C-start reflexes," are a key adaptation in fish and amphibians to escape predator strikes. We hypothesized that mothers living in high-risk environments might induce faster C-start reflexes in offspring by modifying egg composition. Here, we show that offspring of the cichlid fish Neolamprologus pulcher developed faster C-start reflexes and were more risk averse if their parents had been exposed to cues of their most dangerous natural predator during egg production. This effect was mediated by differences in egg composition. Eggs of predator-exposed mothers were heavier with higher net protein content, and the resulting offspring were heavier and had lower igf-1 gene expression than control offspring shortly after hatching. Thus, changes in egg composition can relay multiple putative pathways by which mothers can influence adaptive antipredator behaviors such as faster escape reflexes

Clinical and pathological correlation in benign breast diseases in women

Background: Benign breast diseases are a common problem presenting in a day to day surgical practice. A combination of three tests i.e. clinical examination, radiological imaging and pathological examination is commonly used to accurately diagnose breast diseases. This study was aimed to know the clinico-pathological correlation in diagnosing benign breast diseases in women.Methods: A study of 30 female patients of benign breast disease was conducted by clinical examination and comparing its accuracy with the pathological findings.Results: The highest incidence of benign breast diseases was in the age group of 30-39 years (33.3%). The most common presenting symptom was lump (53.3%) in the breast. The most common quadrant involved was the upper outer quadrant (60%). Fibroadenoma (53.3%) was the most common lesion in this study. The clinical examination in cases of fibroadenoma had sensitivity and specificity of 87.5 % and 92.8% respectively. In cases of fibrocystic disease, clinical examination had sensitivity and specificity of 85.7 % and 91.3% respectively.Conclusions: Overall clinical breast examination had a sensitivity of 90% and specificity of 98% in this study. Hence, combination of all three diagnostic modalities i.e. clinical, radiological and pathological examination should be used. But in rural areas where radiological and pathological facilities are not available, clinical examination can also give us a fair amount of idea in diagnosing benign breast diseases

Watershed development for rainfed areas: Concept, principles, and approaches

Land, water, and vegetation are the natural resources, which provide food, feed, fiber, and fuel needs for the survival of human beings. However, the growing biotic pressure and overexploitation of the natural resources are leading to their accelerated degradation, resulting in reduced productivity. The sustainable management of natural resources is the key for the sustenance and well-being of human beings. Water is a finite resource and an elixir of life; however, water is becoming scarce due its overexploitation to meet the demands of the ever increasing demographic pressure. Agriculture is a major consumer (75–80%) of water for food production globally......................

Semiautomated Glasgow-Blatchford Bleeding Score helps direct bed placement for patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeding.

OBJECTIVE: The Glasgow-Blatchford Bleeding Score (GBS) was designed to identify patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) who do not require hospitalisation. It may also help stratify patients unlikely to benefit from intensive care. DESIGN: We reviewed patients assigned a GBS in the emergency room (ER) via a semiautomated calculator. Patients with a score ≤7 (low risk) were directed to an unmonitored bed (UMB), while those with a score of ≥8 (high risk) were considered for MB placement. Conformity with guidelines and subsequent transfers to MB were reviewed, along with transfusion requirement, rebleeding, length of stay, need for intervention and death. RESULTS: Over 34 months, 1037 patients received a GBS in the ER. 745 had an UGIB. 235 (32%) of these patients had a GBS ≤7. 29 (12%) low-risk patients were admitted to MBs. Four low-risk patients admitted to UMB required transfer to MB within the first 48 hours. Low-risk patients admitted to UMBs were no more likely to die, rebleed, need transfusion or require more endoscopic, radiographic or surgical procedures than those admitted to MBs. No low-risk patient died from GIB. Patients with GBS ≥8 were more likely to rebleed, require transfusion and interventions to control bleeding but not to die. CONCLUSION: A semiautomated GBS calculator can be incorporated into an ER workflow. Patients with a GBS ≤7 are unlikely to need MB care for UGIB. Further studies are warranted to determine an ideal scoring system for MB admission

Physicochemical characterization and improved in vitro dissolution performance of diacerein solid dispersions with PVP K30

Solid dispersions (SDs) of poorly water soluble diacerein were prepared with polyvinylpyrrolidone K30 at drug to polymer ratios of 1:1, 1:3 and 1:5 w/w utilizing kneading technique. Physical mixture (PM) was prepared at drug to polymer ratio of 1:5 w/w for comparison. All formulations were further characterized by TLC, DSC, XRPD, SEM and dissolution studies. TLC indicated an absence of chemical interaction between drug and polymer. A prominent decrease in the crystallinity was accounted for diacerein in binary systems from XRPD data. DSC thermograms revealed a uniform molecular dispersion and generation of amorphous entities of drug accompanied by loss of crystalline and irregular shape with distinct changes in surface morphological features of diacerein detected in SEM photomicrographs. The drug dissolution properties of SDs were significantly improved (DP2: 95.87-100%) in comparison to crystalline diacerein and PM suggesting suitability of kneading method for improving the release rate properties of diacerein.Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aire

Physicochemical characterization and improved in vitro dissolution performance of diacerein solid dispersions with PVP K30

Solid dispersions (SDs) of poorly water soluble diacerein were prepared with polyvinylpyrrolidone K30 at drug to polymer ratios of 1:1, 1:3 and 1:5 w/w utilizing kneading technique. Physical mixture (PM) was prepared at drug to polymer ratio of 1:5 w/w for comparison. All formulations were further characterized by TLC, DSC, XRPD, SEM and dissolution studies. TLC indicated an absence of chemical interaction between drug and polymer. A prominent decrease in the crystallinity was accounted for diacerein in binary systems from XRPD data. DSC thermograms revealed a uniform molecular dispersion and generation of amorphous entities of drug accompanied by loss of crystalline and irregular shape with distinct changes in surface morphological features of diacerein detected in SEM photomicrographs. The drug dissolution properties of SDs were significantly improved (DP2: 95.87-100%) in comparison to crystalline diacerein and PM suggesting suitability of kneading method for improving the release rate properties of diacerein.Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aire

Early Soybean Planting in a Water-Limited Growing Season

Appropriate management, with a longer growing season during reproductive growth stages, can increase biomass and yield in soybean. Our objective was to determine the impact of three planting dates, two seed populations, and three maturity groups on grain yield in southeast Kansas. However, due to the severe drought in 2022, with a total rainfall of 18.84 inches during the soybean growing season (55% lower than the 10-yr average), the growing conditions were very limited, resulting in an average yield of 1.7 bu/a

Early Prediction of Movie Box Office Success based on Wikipedia Activity Big Data

Use of socially generated "big data" to access information about collective states of the minds in human societies has become a new paradigm in the emerging field of computational social science. A natural application of this would be the prediction of the society's reaction to a new product in the sense of popularity and adoption rate. However, bridging the gap between "real time monitoring" and "early predicting" remains a big challenge. Here we report on an endeavor to build a minimalistic predictive model for the financial success of movies based on collective activity data of online users. We show that the popularity of a movie can be predicted much before its release by measuring and analyzing the activity level of editors and viewers of the corresponding entry to the movie in Wikipedia, the well-known online encyclopedia.Comment: 13 pages, Including Supporting Information, 7 Figures, Download the dataset from: http://wwm.phy.bme.hu/SupplementaryDataS1.zi