A Dust Lane in the Radio galaxy 3C270

We present broad band surface photometry of the radio galaxy 3C270 (NGC~4261). We find a distinct dust lane in the $V-R$ image of the galaxy, and determine its orientation and size. We use the major axis profile of the galaxy to estimate the optical depth of the dust lane, and discuss the significance of the lane to the shape of the galaxy.Comment: To appear in ApJ. Added a plate and minor elaboration of a procedure. 17 pages in LaTeX. 6 figures and 2 plates not included. These and the paper are available by anonymous ftp at ftp://144.16.31.6/pub/n4261 and at http://iucaa.iucaa.ernet.in/~aam/www/papers/n426

Design and Development of Site Specific Grape Vineyard Fertilizer Applicator Prototype

402-407The current fertiliser application methods for grape vines are labour intensive and lead to overuse of fertiliser. Frequent rain and vineyard orchard wash over often pollute water sources. Therefore, the right amount and placement of fertiliser can not only improve crop growth but also reduce the risk of chemicals to human health and the environment. To overcome the above problems a site specific fertiliser applicator for grape vineyard with mechanical sensing system was developed. The sensing system was designed to apply fertiliser to the root zone of the plant canopy. An experimental unit was developed to optimise design and operation parameters for fertiliser production per plant. The urea's physical and engineering qualities were determined for metering mechanism design. The average value of bulk density, angle of repose, urea grain diameter, grain weight in single flute measured were 0.759 ± 0.011 gcm−3, 26.22 ± 1.18°, 3.38 ± 0.23 mm, 1.46 ± 0.04 g, respectively. The coefficient of static friction with plywood, galvanised iron and mild steel with painted surface were observed 0.3177 ± 0.0092, 0.2868 ± 0.0077, and 0.3177 ± 0.0092, respectively. For fertiliser given per plant, the effect of exposure length was p < 0.001. The sensor device opens the delivery tube for fertiliser in 0.9–0.95s

Socio-demographic and physical factors associated with disability in adults with non-specific chronic neck pain

While socio-demographic, physical and other factors are associated with neck pain, there is scanty literature about how these factors are associated with disability in adults suffering from this condition. We aimed to determine the socio-demographic and physical (strength and range of motions) related factors of disability in adults with non-specific chronic neck pain. A total of 34 adults with neck pain, with mean age 55 (10.80) years from a physiotherapy clinic in a teaching hospital participated in this study. Socio-demographic details such as body mass index (BMI), current employment status, hours of exercise done a week were obtained. Severity of pain was evaluated using the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS). Disability level was assessed using Neck Disability Index. Cervical range of motion was measured using the Cervical Range of Motion device. A hand dynamometer was used to measure the dominant hand grip muscle strength. The data was analyzed using descriptive and stepwise linear regression analysis. More than half the participants were females, above 50 years, in the overweight group (BMI>25 kg/m2 ), currently unemployed and had severe neck pain (NRS >7). Handgrip strength was the only factor found to be significantly (p<0.05) related to neck disability. The results from our study suggest that improving general muscle conditioning and strength are important in preventing neck disability among adults with non-specific neck pain

Antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities of Barleria prionitis and Barleria grandiflora: A comparative study

Leaf juices as well as leaves of Barleria prionitis and Barleria grandiflora are being used by rural people across various regions of India in the treatment of oral ailments such as dental troubles, gum ailments, pyorrhoea, dental carries and mouth ulcers. Zone of inhibition and MIC values obtained for all the extracts suggest ethanolic extract of the herbs were more antimicrobial when compared to the aqueous extract. Results of biofilm suppression were found statistically significant (p<0.05) when compared to control. Cytotoxicity was evaluated by MTT assay on human gingival fibroblast and human dermal fibroblast cell lines for ethanolic extract of the herbs. CTC50 value was found to be more than 1,000 µg/mL for ethanolic extracts of both herbs. Chlorhexidine was found to be more cytotoxic with CTC50 value of 12.525 µg/mL. Ethanolic extract of B. prionitis and B. grandiflora found significantly cytotoxic (p<0.05) in comparison with control. Video Clip of Methodology: Cytotoxicity assay: 18 min 45 sec   Full Screen   Alternativ

Production of Potent Antimicrobial Compounds from Streptomyces cyaneofuscatus Associated with Fresh Water Sediment

The genus Streptomyces under phylum actinobacteria has been recognized as a prolific source for the production of bioactive secondary metabolites. An actinobacterial strain designated as DST103 isolated from a wetland fresh water sediment of Tamdil Lake, Mizoram, Northeast, India was identified as Streptomyces cyaneofuscatus (KY287599) using 16SrRNA gene sequencing which shares 99.87% sequence similarity with Streptomyces cyaneofuscatus NRRL B-2570T. The strain showed broad spectrum antimicrobial activities against Gram negative bacteria (Escherichia coli MTCC 739 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa MTCC 2453), Gram positive bacteria (Micrococcus luteus NCIM 2170 and Staphylococcus aureus MTCC 96) and yeast pathogen Candida albicans MTCC 3017). The methanolic extract of the strain DST103 exhibited highest antimicrobial activity against E. coli (IC50 = 2.10 μg/mL) and minimum activity against S. aureus (IC50 = 43.63 μg/mL). Five antibiotics [trimethoprim (18 μg/g), fluconazole (6 μg/g), ketoconazole (18 μg/g), nalidixic acid (135 μg/g), and rifampicin (56 μg/g)] were detected and quantified using ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC-ESI-MS/MS). Further, biosynthetic potential genes [polyketide synthases type II, non-ribosomal peptide synthetases, and aminodeoxyisochorismate synthase (phzE)] were also detected in strain DST103 which may possibly be responsible for the production of antimicrobial compounds. Additionally, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis showed the presence of four volatile compounds which might be responsible for their diverse biological activity. The present study revealed the presence of bioactive compounds in strain DST103, which may be a promising resource for the discovery of novel bioactive metabolites against wide range of pathogens

Human surfactant protein D alters oxidative stress and HMGA1 expression to induce p53 apoptotic pathway in eosinophil leukemic cell line

This article is made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund. Copyright: © 2013 Mahajan et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.Surfactant protein D (SP-D), an innate immune molecule, has an indispensable role in host defense and regulation of inflammation. Immune related functions regulated by SP-D include agglutination of pathogens, phagocytosis, oxidative burst, antigen presentation, T lymphocyte proliferation, cytokine secretion, induction of apoptosis and clearance of apoptotic cells. The present study unravels a novel ability of SP-D to reduce the viability of leukemic cells (eosinophilic leukemic cell line, AML14.3D10; acute myeloid leukemia cell line, THP-1; acute lymphoid leukemia cell lines, Jurkat, Raji; and human breast epithelial cell line, MCF-7), and explains the underlying mechanisms. SP-D and a recombinant fragment of human SP-D (rhSP-D) induced G2/M phase cell cycle arrest, and dose and timedependent apoptosis in the AML14.3D10 eosinophilic leukemia cell line. Levels of various apoptotic markers viz. activated p53, cleaved caspase-9 and PARP, along with G2/M checkpoints (p21 and Tyr15 phosphorylation of cdc2) showed significant increase in these cells. We further attempted to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of rhSP-D induced apoptosis using proteomic analysis. This approach identified large scale molecular changes initiated by SPD in a human cell for the first time. Among others, the proteomics analysis highlighted a decreased expression of survival related proteins such as HMGA1, overexpression of proteins to protect the cells from oxidative burst, while a drastic decrease in mitochondrial antioxidant defense system. rhSP-D mediated enhanced oxidative burst in AML14.3D10 cells was confirmed, while antioxidant, N-acetyl-L-cysteine, abrogated the rhSP-D induced apoptosis. The rhSP-D mediated reduced viability was specific to the cancer cell lines and viability of human PBMCs from healthy controls was not affected. The study suggests involvement of SP-D in host’s immunosurveillance and therapeutic potential of rhSP-D in the eosinophilic leukemia and cancers of other origins.Department of Biotechnology, Indi