An experimental study to evaluate the anti-inflammatory effect of moringa oleifera leaves in animal models

Background: Inflammatory diseases are a major cause of morbidity and disability of work force throughout the world. The treatment of inflammation with standard steroidal and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs shares the risk of toxicity on various organ systems. Moringa oleifera, an herbal plant has been claimed to be effective in the treatment of various types of inflammatory conditions. However, there is lack of scientific studies to ratify these claims. Therefore, the present study was undertaken to explore the anti-inflammatory activity of aqueous extract of leaves of Moringa oleifera (AEMO) in experimentally induced inflammation in albino rats.Methods: The study was commenced after obtaining approval from Institutional Animal Ethical Committee using AEMO leaves in Albino wistar rats (150-200 gm) of either sex. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated using carrageenan induced paw edema model, cotton pellet induced granuloma method and formaldehyde induced paw edema method. For each set of experiment, animals were divided in three groups of six animals each. In each experiment, 1st group was given normal saline (5 ml/kg/day), 2nd group was given standard anti-inflammatory drug dexamethasone (0.5 mg/kg/day) and 3rd group was given Moringa oleifera (200 mg/kg/day).Results: Aqueous extract of Moringa oleifera leaves at dose of 200 mg/kg, p.o. exhibited the significant anti-inflammatory effect in all the models used in this study.Conclusions: It can be concluded from our study that aqueous extracts of Moringa oleifera leaves possess anti-inflammatory activity

Strain-driven criticality underlies nonlinear mechanics of fibrous networks

Networks with only central force interactions are floppy when their average connectivity is below an isostatic threshold. Although such networks are mechanically unstable, they can become rigid when strained. It was recently shown that the transition from floppy to rigid states as a function of simple shear strain is continuous, with hallmark signatures of criticality [Sharma et al., Nature Phys. 12, 584 (2016)]. The nonlinear mechanical response of collagen networks was shown to be quantitatively described within the framework of such mechanical critical phenomenon. Here, we provide a more quantitative characterization of critical behavior in subisostatic networks. Using finite-size scaling we demonstrate the divergence of strain fluctuations in the network at well-defined critical strain. We show that the characteristic strain corresponding to the onset of strain stiffening is distinct from but related to this critical strain in a way that depends on critical exponents. We confirm this prediction experimentally for collagen networks. Moreover, we find that the apparent critical exponents are largely independent of the spatial dimensionality. With subisostaticity as the only required condition, strain-driven criticality is expected to be a general feature of biologically relevant fibrous networks

On the optical properties of Ag^{+15} ion-beam irradiated TiO_{2} and SnO_{2} thin films

The effects of 200-MeV Ag^{+15} ion irradiation on the optical properties of TiO_{2} and SnO_{2} thin films prepared by using the RF magnetron sputtering technique were investigated. These films were characterized by using UV-vis spectroscopy, and with increasing irradiation fluence, the transmittance for the TiO_{2} films was observed to increase systematically while that for SnO_{2} was observed to decrease. Absorption spectra of the irradiated samples showed minor changes in the indirect bandgap from 3.44 to 3.59 eV with increasing irradiation fluence for TiO_{2} while significant changes in the direct bandgap from 3.92 to 3.6 eV were observed for SnO_{2}. The observed modifications in the optical properties of both the TiO_{2} and the SnO_{2} systems with irradiation can be attributed to controlled structural disorder/defects in the system.Comment: 6 pages, ICAMD-201

Intracellular delivery of protein drugs with an autonomously lysing bacterial system reduces tumor growth and metastases

Critical cancer pathways often cannot be targeted because of limited efficiency crossing cell membranes. Here we report the development of a Salmonella-based intracellular delivery system to address this challenge. We engineer genetic circuits that (1) activate the regulator flhDC to drive invasion and (2) induce lysis to release proteins into tumor cells. Released protein drugs diffuse from Salmonella containing vacuoles into the cellular cytoplasm where they interact with their therapeutic targets. Control of invasion with flhDC increases delivery over 500 times. The autonomous triggering of lysis after invasion makes the platform self-limiting and prevents drug release in healthy organs. Bacterial delivery of constitutively active caspase-3 blocks the growth of hepatocellular carcinoma and lung metastases, and increases survival in mice. This success in targeted killing of cancer cells provides critical evidence that this approach will be applicable to a wide range of protein drugs for the treatment of solid tumors

Impact of Diabetes Mellitus on the Evaluation of Stable Chest Pain Patients: Insights From the PROMISE (Prospective Multicenter Imaging Study for Evaluation of Chest Pain) Trial

Background: The impact of diabetes mellitus on the clinical presentation and noninvasive test (NIT) results among stable outpatients presenting with symptoms suggestive of coronary artery disease (CAD) has not been well described. Methods and Results: The PROMISE (Prospective Multicenter Imaging Study for Evaluation of Chest Pain) trial enrolled 10 003 patients with known diabetic status, of whom 8966 were tested as randomized and had interpretable NIT results (1908 with diabetes mellitus, 21%). Differences in symptoms and NIT results were evaluated using logistic regression. Patients with diabetes mellitus (versus without) were similar in age (median 61 versus 60 years) and sex (female 54% versus 52%), had a greater burden of cardiovascular comorbidities, and had a similar likelihood of nonchest pain symptoms (29% versus 27%). The Diamond‐Forrester/Coronary Artery Surgery Study score predicted that patients with diabetes mellitus (versus without) had similar likelihood of obstructive CAD (low 1.8% versus 2.7%; intermediate 92.3% versus 92.6%; high 5.9% versus 4.7%). Physicians estimated patients with diabetes mellitus to have a higher likelihood of obstructive CAD (low to very low: 28.3% versus 40.1%; intermediate 63.9% versus 55.9%; high to very high 7.8% versus 4.0%). Patients with diabetes mellitus (versus without) were more likely to have a positive NIT result (15% versus 11%; adjusted odds ratio, 1.23; P=0.01). Conclusions: Stable chest pain patients with and without diabetes mellitus have similar presentation and pretest likelihood of obstructive CAD; however, physicians perceive that patients with diabetes mellitus have a higher pretest likelihood of obstructive CAD, an assessment supported by increased risk of a positive NIT. Further evaluation of diabetes mellitus's influence on CAD assessment is required. Clinical Trial Registration URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01174550

Global wealth disparities drive adherence to COVID-safe pathways in head and neck cancer surgery

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