Piloting Upfront Xpert MTB/RIF Testing on Various Specimens under Programmatic Conditions for Diagnosis of TB & DR-TB in Paediatric Population

India accounts for one-fifth of the global TB incidence. While the exact burden of childhood TB is not known, TB remains one of the leading causes of childhood mortality in India. Bacteriological confirmation of TB in children is challenging due to difficulty in obtaining quality specimens, in the absence of which diagnosis is largely based on clinical judgement. While testing multiple specimens can potentially contribute to higher proportion of laboratory confirmed paediatric TB cases, lack of high sensitivity tests adds to the diagnostic challenge. We describe here our experiences in piloting upfront Xpert MTB/RIF testing, for diagnosis of TB in paediatric population in respiratory and extra pulmonary specimens, as recently recommended by WHO.Xpert MTB/RIF testing was offered to all paediatric (0-14 years) presumptive TB cases (both pulmonary and extra-pulmonary) seeking care at public and private health facilities in the project areas covering 4 cities of India.Under this pilot project, 8,370 paediatric presumptive TB & presumptive DR-TB cases were tested between April and-November 2014. Overall, 9,149 specimens were tested, of which 4,445 (48.6%) were non-sputum specimens. Xpert MTB/RIF gave 9,083 (99.2%, CI 99.0-99.4) valid results. Of the 8,143 presumptive TB cases enrolled, 517 (6.3%, CI 5.8-6.9) were bacteriologically confirmed. TB detection rates were two fold higher with Xpert MTB/RIF as compared to smear microscopy. Further, a total of 60 rifampicin resistant TB cases were detected, of which 38 were detected among 512 presumptive TB cases while 22 were detected amongst 227 presumptive DR-TB cases tested under the project.Xpert MTB/RIF with advantages of quick turnaround testing-time, high proportion of interpretable results and feasibility of rapid rollout, substantially improved the diagnosis of bacteriologically confirmed TB in children, while simultaneously detecting rifampicin resistance

Nanocrystalline cellulose for removal of tetracycline hydrochloride from water via biosorption: Equilibrium, kinetic and thermodynamic studies

tCrystalline nanocellulose, synthesized from green seaweed, Ulva lactuca, was investigated for the sorptionof tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) from aqueous solutions. The effects of pH, contact time, concentra-tion of TC and desorption were studied in batch mode. The kinetics of TC biosorption was very fastand reached equilibrium in almost 2 h. The kinetic data was well described by double exponentialand the pseudo-second-order kinetic models. Film diffusion is the rate-limiting step for the biosorp-tion of TC on to crystalline nanocellulose. Both Redlich–Peterson (R–P) and Polanyi–Manes (P–M)isotherm models described the equilibrium data well. The values of maximum sorption capacities(6.48–7.73 mg/g for R–P and 6.57–7.96 mg/g for P–M models) increased with temperature. A ther-modynamic study (�H◦= 22.64 kJ/mol, �S◦= 9.85 kJ/(mol/K)) demonstrated that biosorption of TC isspontaneous, endothermic and an entropy-driven process. The reusability of sorbent was achieved byHNO3(5 w/w%) with desorption efficiency of 95.20% in 4 h. The overall results have significant implica-tions for the removal of TC from aqueous solution with crystalline nanocellulose

Nanocellulose/TiO2 composites: preparation, characterization and application in the photocatalytic degradation of a potential endocrine disruptor, mefenamic acid, in aqueous media

Nanocellulose (NC)-supported TiO2 nanoparticles, termed NCTs, were prepared by an ultrasonic impregnation method. The as-synthesized NCTs were thoroughly characterized and studied for the photodegradation of mefenamic acid (MEF), an anthranilic acid derivative drug. The adsorption potential of NCTs increased with TiO2 loading and 10 wt% TiO2 NCT showed the highest sorption potential. Adsorption kinetics of MEF onto NC and NCTs indicated that the equilibrium was reached within 50 min. A pseudo-second-order model clearly represented the experimental kinetic data and demonstrated that the MEF sorption was mainly chemisorption. Equilibrium sorption analysis indicated that the adsorption followed the Langmuir model with a monolayer sorption capacity of 22.43 mg g−1 for 10 wt% TiO2 NCT. The photocatalytic degradation rates of NCTs were identical with respect to their adsorption capacities, and the apparent rate constant (kapp) values indicated that the amount of TiO2 in NCTs played a vital role in the degradation of MEF. Furthermore, 10 wt% TiO2 NCT showed excellent catalytic activity and reusability even after five cycles of photodegradation

Isolation of Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio cholerae (Non-01 and 0139) from moribund shrimp (Penaeus monodon) and experimental challenge study against post larvae and juveniles

Outbreak of Vibrio infection was reported from a shrimp farm near Chennai, south India. Both green and yel- low Vibrio were isoiated from disease outbreak of Penaeus monodon (Miine Edwards) cuiture farm and biochemically con- firmed as Vibrio parahaemoiyticus and Vibrio choierae. Randomly selected V. parahaemolyticus (VP1) and V. cholerae (VCI) were reconfirmed by partial 165 rRNA gene anaiysis. Both were tested against post larvae and juveniies of P. mon- odon by bath challenge test and intramuscular injection respectively. The study reveaied that VPl Is more virulent than VC1 isolated from same source against P. monodon post larvae and juveniles. Phylogenetic tree based on comparison of partial 165 rRNA gene analysis reveaied close relationship of VPI with other shrimp pathogens like Vibrio haweyi and Vibrio aiginoiyticus. There might be some close reiationship for disease development among ail these strains

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Not AvailableOutbreak of Vibrio infection was reported from a shrimp farm near Chennai, south India. Both green and yel- low Vibrio were isoiated from disease outbreak of Penaeus monodon (Miine Edwards) cuiture farm and biochemically con- firmed as Vibrio parahaemoiyticus and Vibrio choierae. Randomly selected V. parahaemolyticus (VP1) and V. cholerae (VCI) were reconfirmed by partial 165 rRNA gene anaiysis. Both were tested against post larvae and juveniies of P. mon- odon by bath challenge test and intramuscular injection respectively. The study reveaied that VPl Is more virulent than VC1 isolated from same source against P. monodon post larvae and juveniles. Phylogenetic tree based on comparison of partial 165 rRNA gene analysis reveaied close relationship of VPI with other shrimp pathogens like Vibrio haweyi and Vibrio aiginoiyticus. There might be some close reiationship for disease development among ail these strains.Not Availabl

Coordination driven axial chirality in a microporous solid assembled from an achiral linker via in situ C–N coupling

Metal mediated in situ C–N coupling between 4,4′-azobipyridine and disodium-trans-glutaconate at room temperature has formed a new multifunctional linker ZZ-dhpe which subsequently self-assembles with Zn(II) or Cd(II) resulting in a chiral or an achiral metal–organic framework, respectively, depending on its different coordination mode

Chronotype assessment of the Bengalese adolescents: an observational study using a Bengali version of the reduced Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (rMEQ)

Chronotype or morningness orientation is an interpersonal characteristic that influence human physiology and psychology and less is known about the chronotype of the Bengalese adolescents in India. We aimed to study the chronotype of this population by using a translated version of a previously established questionnaire. 471 Bengali-speaking adolescents (13–14 years) (boys = 268, girls = 203) of West Bengal, India were included in this study and their chronotype was assessed using an interviewer-administered Bengali version of the reduced Morningness–eveningness Questionnaire (rMEQ). The reliability of the translated instrument was assessed using Cronbach’s α. Chi-squared test was used to observe the chronotype distribution between the boys and girls. rMEQ scores of all the participants ranged between 5 and 25 with a median value of 17 (25–75th percentile: 15–20). Cronbach’s α was 0.751. Using cut off scores, we found 47% of our study participants were of morning chronotype, whereas the intermediate and evening types were of 50% and 3%, respectively. Chi-squared test demonstrated a significantly higher morningness among boys than the girls. The study describes the morningness orientation pattern of the Bengalese adolescents that may have some defined influence on their physiological and psychological characteristics including health and disease.This study was partially supported by the unrestricted internal research grant of the Allergy & Asthma Research Centre, Kolkat

Influence of low salinity stress on virulence and biofilm formation potential in

The Gujarat government has proposed a project to convert a part of the Gulf of Khambhat (GoK), located in western India, into the world’s largest man-made freshwater reservoir in the near future (http://www.kalpasar.gujarat.gov.in/mainpage.ht

Membrane biofouling by chlorine resistant <i>Bacillus</i> spp.: effect of feedwater chlorination on bacteria and membrane biofouling

<p>In this study, bacteria isolated from a lake were characterised for their chlorine resistivity and the effects of chlorination on growth, mortality, protein expression and attachment propensity towards membranes. Biofouling and membrane performance were analysed. All isolated chlorine resistant strains, characterised by 16s rRNA gene sequencing, belonged to the genus <i>Bacillus</i>. Chlorination caused limited effects on bacterial growth and mortality. <i>B. safensis</i> and <i>B. lechinoformis</i> suffered the maximum effects due to chlorination. Live-to-dead ratios immediately after chlorination were above 1.3, with some exceptions. The membrane pure water flux recovery was highly strain dependent. Irreversible membrane fouling was observed with <i>B. aquimaris</i>. Membrane flux decreased substantially during ultrafiltration of water containing chlorine resistant bacteria.</p