MODELING & FORECASTING OF MACRO-ECONOMIC VARIABLES OF INDIA: BEFORE, DURING & AFTER RECESSION

This paper examines the state of the Indian economy pre, during and post-recession by analysing various macro-economic factors such as GDP, exchange rate, inflation, capital markets and fiscal deficit. We forecast some of the major economic variables using ARIMA modelling and present a picture of the Indian economy in the coming years. The findings indicate that Indian economy is reviving after a slowdown during the period of global recession. It is forecasted that GDP, foreign investments, fiscal deficit and capital markets will rise in 2010-11. Furthermore, the rupee-dollar exchange rates will not change much during the same period.ARIMA, Box-Jenkins, Indian economy, forecasting

Reappraising the Role of Eplerenone in the Management of Heart Failure

Background: In India, the prevalence of heart failure (HF) is increasing at 1.2/1,000 people according to a study in northern India, and the mortality rate at 1 year (INTERnational Congestive Heart Failure [INTER-CHF]) is 37%. Due to the diverse phenotypes of HF, nonadherence to guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT), resistance to uptitration of medication and underuse of mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs), such as eplerenone, a uniform management approach may not be feasible. This review is aimed at assessing the burden of HF, reasons for underutilization of MRAs in treatment, evaluating the evidence and reappraising the disease-modifying role of eplerenone in HF management. Methods: An electronic database search was performed to identify relevant literature. Results: The review details various studies that demonstrate the role of MRA eplerenone as a disease-modifying agent in patients with mild-to-moderate hypertension and those with acute myocardial infarction (MI) complicated by left ventricular dysfunction and HF. It also outlines different patient profiles for eplerenone use and ways to handle minor side-effects. Conclusions: Eplerenone shows a promising effect in selectively blocking aldosterone receptors to suppress fibrosis and reverse cardiac remodeling

Modeling & Forecasting of Macro-Economic Variables of India: Before, During & After Recession

This paper examines the state of the Indian economy pre, during and post recession by analyzing various macro economic factors such as GDP, exchange rate, inflation, capital markets and fiscal deficit. We forecast some of the major economic variables using ARIMA modeling and present a picture of the Indian economy in the coming years. The findings indicate that Indian economy is reviving after a slowdown during the period of global recession. It is forecasted that GDP, foreign investments, fiscal deficit and capital markets will rise in 2010-11. Furthermore, the rupee-dollar exchange rate will not change much during the same period

Modeling & Forecasting of Macro-Economic Variables of India: Before, During & After Recession

This paper examines the state of the Indian economy pre, during and post recession by analyzing various macro economic factors such as GDP, exchange rate, inflation, capital markets and fiscal deficit. We forecast some of the major economic variables using ARIMA modeling and present a picture of the Indian economy in the coming years. The findings indicate that Indian economy is reviving after a slowdown during the period of global recession. It is forecasted that GDP, foreign investments, fiscal deficit and capital markets will rise in 2010-11. Furthermore, the rupee-dollar exchange rate will not change much during the same period

Association of serum lipids and coronary artery disease with polymorphisms in the Apolipoprotein AI-CIII-AIV gene cluster

Genetic variants are considered as one of the main determinants of the concentration of serum lipids and coronary artery disease (CAD). Polymorphisms in the Apolipoprotein (Apo) AI-CIII-AIV gene cluster has been known to affect the concentrations of various lipid sub-fractions and the risk of CAD. The present study assessed associations between polymorphisms of the Apo AI-CIII-AIV gene cluster, [ApoA-I,-75G > A, (rs1799837); ApoC-III 3238C > G, (SstI), (rs5128) and ApoA-IV, Thr347Ser(347A > T), (rs675)] with serum lipids and their contributions to CAD in North Indian population. We recruited age, sex matched, 200 CAD patients and 200 healthy controls and tested them for fasting levels of serum lipids. We genotyped selected polymorphisms using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. There were no statistically significant association of selected polymorphisms (or their combinations) with CAD even after employing additive, dominant and recessive models. However there was significant association of selected polymorphisms with various lipid traits amongst the control cohort (p < 0.05). Mean levels of high density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides were found to be significantly higher among controls carrying at least one mutant allele at ApoA1- 75G > A (p = 0.019) and ApoCIII SstI (p < 0.001) polymorphism respectively. Our study observed that the selected polymorphisms in the ApoAI-CIII-AIV gene cluster although significantly affect various lipid traits but this affect does not seem to translate into association with CAD, at least among North Indian population

Genetic association of pro-inflammatory cytokine gene polymorphisms with coronary artery disease (CAD) in a North Indian population

Background: Cytokines regulate the expression of inflammatory molecules which destabilize the atheromatic plaques. This study focuses on studying the association of inflammatory cytokine polymorphisms like TNF-α -308 (G/A), TNF-β +252 (A/G), IL-6 -174 (G/C) and IL-6 -597 (G/A), and IFN-ɣ +874 (T/A) with coronary artery disease (CAD) among north Indian patients. Materials and methods: 143 CAD and 137 normal healthy controls were recruited in this study. DNA extraction was carried out by high salting out method. TNF-α -308 (G/A) (rs1800797), TNF-β +252 (A/G) (rs909253), IL-6 -174 (G/C) (rs1800795), IL6 -597 (G/A) (rs1800797), and IFN-ɣ +874 (T/A) (rs2430561) SNPs were genotyped by TaqMan®SNP genotyping assays. Different statistical analyses were performed using SPSS v 22.0 and SNPStats. p≤0.05 was considered significant. Results: Significant risk association with CAD was found for TNF-α -308 (G/A) “A” allele (OR =5.6, CI 1.8-17.4, p=0.001) and TNF-β +252 (A/G) “G” allele (OR=3.4, CI=1.9-6.0, p<0.001). However, no statistical significance was found for IL-6 -174 (G/C) or IL6 -597 (G/A), with CAD. TNF-α -308 (G/A), and TNF-β +252 (A/G) haplotype “GG” “AG” increased CAD risk significantly (GG haplotype, adjusted OR = 2.6, CI 1.4-5.0, p=0.003 and AG haplotype OR =8.5, CI 2.2-33.35, p=0.002) after adjustments for age, sex, TC, TG, HDL, APOB, smoking and diet. Discussion: The present study found significant risk association for TNF-α -308 (G/A), and TNF-β +252 (A/G) genotypes, alleles and haplotypes, with CAD in a North Indian Population