Optimization of Ozonation Process for the Reduction of Excess Sludge Production from Activated Sludge Process of Sago Industry Wastewater Using Central Composite Design

Sago industries effluent containing large amounts of organic content produced excess sludge which is a serious problem in wastewater treatment. In this study ozonation has been employed for the reduction of excess sludge production in activated sludge process. Central composite design is used to study the effect of ozone treatment for the reduction of excess sludge production in sago effluent and to optimise the variables such as pH, ozonation time, and retention time. ANOVA showed that the coefficient determination value (R2) of VSS and COD reduction were 0.9689 and 0.8838, respectively. VSS reduction (81%) was achieved at acidic pH 6.9, 12 minutes ozonation, and retention time of 10 days. COD reduction (87%) was achieved at acidic pH 6.7, 8 minutes of ozonation time, and retention time of 6 days. Low ozonation time and high retention time influence maximum sludge reduction, whereas low ozonation time with low retention time was effective for COD reduction

An Investigation of the Impact of Occupational Stress on Mental health of remote working women IT Professionals in Urban Bangalore, India

The COVID-19 pandemic has influenced various aspects of our lives and triggered many long-term consequences. The actual well-being of women IT employees is in danger due to the prolonged period of work from home as the pandemic has influenced individuals differently across the world. Physical distancing, dread, vulnerability, and a continued period of remote working has prompted an enormous number of women in the IT sector to experience challenges to emotional well-being. Work-related pressure is one of the major sources of stress in the modern working environment. Stress and unfavorable working conditions have been connected to low efficiency, truancy, and increasing rates of mishaps in and out of work. This is largely due to ailments, substance abuse, and family issues experienced by a large number of work-from-home women software company employees. Extended period of work from home can disturb women and their mental health as they try to strike a work-life balance. The purpose of this research is to examine the impact of occupational stress factors on the mental health of the women software professionals working remotely in urban Bangalore during the COVID-19 pandemic. The exploratory factor analysis identifies that Workload, Job Insecurity, Poor Work Environment, Personal Problems, and Lack of Structure as the main five factors of occupational stress while working from home for women IT employees in urban Bangalore. Multiple regression analysis undertaken in the study indicates that the relationship between the five factors of Occupational Stress and Mental Health is negatively significant with an inverse relationship

Translating medical evidence into practice: Working with communities and providers to promote active management of the third stage of labour

Although postpartum hemorrhage is a leading cause of death in India, and despite the fact that active management of the third stage of labor (AMTSL) has been established as a best practice, efforts to promote it have been limited. This paper documents the experiences of a project that aimed to enable the translation of available evidence regarding AMTSL into practice through two strategies, at community and provider levels respectively. Community-level activities included efforts to build awareness regarding safe delivery practices, sensitize individuals regarding the rights perspective and their entitlement to safe services, and facilitate the translation of this awareness into a demand for AMTSL. Provider-level activities included working with both public and private sector providers to build their knowledge and skills about AMTSL and to translate this awareness and these skills into practice. The report presents several lessons that emerge from the experience of the project in translating evidence-based practices into reality at the ground level

SODIUM ALGINATE/GELATIN MICROBEADS-INTERCALATED WITH KAOLIN NANOCLAY FOR EMERGING DRUG DELIVERY IN WILSON’S DISEASE

Objective: The aim of the present study was to fabricate and evaluate the drug release studies using Sodium Alginate (SA) and Gelatin (GE) microbeads intercalated with Kaolin (KA) nanoclay for sustained release of D-Penicillamine (D-PA). Methods: Sodium alginate/gelatin/Kaolin blend microbeads were prepared by an extrusion method by using glutaraldehyde (GA) as a crosslinker. The obtained microbeads were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X–ray diffraction (XRD). Drug release kinetics of the microbeads was investigated in simulated intestinal fluid (pH 7.4) at 37 °C. Results: Microbeads formation was confirmed by FTIR spectroscopy. X-RD reveals that the KA should be intercalated with the drug and also it confirms the molecular level dispersion of D-Penicillamine into microbeads. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) studies reveal that the beads were in spherical shape with some wrinkled depressions on the surface. The in vitro release study indicates the D-Penicillamine released in a controlled manner. The in vitro release kinetics was assessed by Korsmeyer-Peppas equation and the ‘n’ value lies in between 0.557-0.693 indicates Non-Fickian diffusion process. Conclusion: The results suggest that the developed KA intercalated microbeads are good potential drug carrier for the controlled release of D-PA

Synthesis, Characterization and Drug delivery of Verapamil Hydrochloride loaded Montmorillonite Nanocomposite Beads

In the present research programme, Verapamil Hydrochloride loaded Sodium Alginate/Polyethylene oxide/Montmorillonite nanocomposite beads were prepared by using gelation method.   Sodium alginate (SA) and  Poly ethylene oxide (PEO) with different ratios were blended with different weight ratios of MMT solution. The nanocomposite beads were characterized Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (X-RD). FTIR was used to understand the hydrogen bonding between SA, PEO, MMT and drug. The X-RD studies were performed to understand the crystalline nature of drug after encapsulation into the beads. SEM was used to study the surface morphology of nanocomposite beads. In vitro studies were carried out in buffer media by using UV-vis spectroscopy(λmax-263nm) at pH 7.4. The Controlled drug release studies were observed upto 12hrs. Keywords: Sodium Alginate (SA), Poly ethylene oxide (PEO), Montmorillonite (MMT), Verapamil Hydrochloride (VPHCl), Nanocomposite beads  and Drug Deliver

Change and Exchange: Economies of Literature and Knowledge in Early Modern Europe

The introductory essay outlines the way in which Change and Exchange places literature, and, in a wider sense, imaginative practice, at the centre of early modern economic knowledge. Probing the affinity between economic and metaphorical experience in terms of the transactional processes of change and exchange, it sets up the parameters within which the essays in the volume collectively forge a language to grasp early modern economic phenomena and their epistemic dimensions. It prepares the reader for the stimulating combination of materials that the book presents: the range of generic contexts engendered by emergent economic practices, structures of feeling and modes of knowing made available by new economic relations, and economies of transformation in discursive domains that are distinct from ‘economics’ as we understand it but cognate in their intuition of change and exchange as shaping agents

Correlating electroconvulsive therapy response to electroencephalographic markers: Study protocol

INTRODUCTION: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is an effective intervention for patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Despite longstanding use, the underlying mechanisms of ECT are unknown, and there are no objective prognostic biomarkers that are routinely used for ECT response. Two electroencephalographic (EEG) markers, sleep slow waves and sleep spindles, could address these needs. Both sleep microstructure EEG markers are associated with synaptic plasticity, implicated in memory consolidation, and have reduced expression in depressed individuals. We hypothesize that ECT alleviates depression through enhanced expression of sleep slow waves and sleep spindles, thereby facilitating synaptic reconfiguration in pathologic neural circuits. METHODS: Correlating ECT Response to EEG Markers (CET-REM) is a single-center, prospective, observational investigation. Wireless wearable headbands with dry EEG electrodes will be utilized for at-home unattended sleep studies to allow calculation of quantitative measures of sleep slow waves (EEG SWA, 0.5-4 Hz power) and sleep spindles (density in number/minute). High-density EEG data will be acquired during ECT to quantify seizure markers. DISCUSSION: This innovative study focuses on the longitudinal relationships of sleep microstructure and ECT seizure markers over the treatment course. We anticipate that the results from this study will improve our understanding of ECT

Evolving narratives on signal functions for monitoring maternal and newborn health services: A meta-narrative inspired review

Emergency obstetric care (EmOC) signal functions are a shortlist of key clinical interventions capable of averting deaths from the five main direct causes of maternal mortality; they have been used since 1997 as a part of an EmOC monitoring framework to track the availability of EmOC services in low- and middle-income settings. Their widespread use and proposed adaptation to include other types of care, such as care for newborns, is testimony to their legacy as part of the measurement architecture within reproductive health. Yet, much has changed in the landscape of maternal and newborn health (MNH) since the initial introduction of EmOC signal functions. As part of a project to revise the EmOC monitoring framework, we carried out a meta-narrative inspired review to reflect on how signal functions have been developed and conceptualised over the past two decades, and how different narratives, which have emerged alongside the evolving MNH landscape, have played a role in the conceptualisation of the signal function measurement. We identified three overarching narrative traditions: 1) clinical 2) health systems and 3) human rights, that dominated the discourse and critique around the use of signal functions. Through an iterative synthesis process including 19 final articles selected for the review, we explored patterns of conciliation and areas of contradiction between the three narrative traditions. We summarised five meta-themes around the use of signal functions: i) framing the boundaries; ii) moving beyond clinical capability; iii) capturing the woods versus the trees; iv) grouping signal functions and v) measurement challenges. We intend for this review to contribute to a better understanding of the discourses around signal functions, and to provide insight for the future roles of this monitoring approach for emergency obstetric and newborn care

Indexed left ventricular mass to QRS voltage ratio is associated with heart failure hospitalizations in patients with cardiac amyloidosis

In cardiac amyloidosis (CA), amyloid infiltration results in increased left ventricular (LV) mass disproportionate to electrocardiographic (EKG) voltage. We assessed the relationship between LV mass-voltage ratio with subsequent heart failure hospitalization (HHF) and mortality in CA. Patients with confirmed CA and comprehensive cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) and EKG exams were included. CMR-derived LV mass was indexed to body surface area. EKG voltage was assessed using Sokolow, Cornell, and Limb-voltage criteria. The optimal LV mass-voltage ratio for predicting outcomes was determined using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. The relationship between LV mass-voltage ratio and HHF was assessed using Cox proportional hazards analysis adjusting for significant covariates. A total of 85 patients (mean 69 ± 11 years, 22% female) were included, 42 with transthyretin and 43 with light chain CA. At a median of 3.4-year follow-up, 49% of patients experienced HHF and 60% had died. In unadjusted analysis, Cornell LV mass-voltage ratio was significantly associated with HHF (HR, 1.05; 95% CI 1.02-1.09, p = 0.001) and mortality (HR, 1.05; 95% CI 1.02-1.07, p = 0.001). Using ROC curve analysis, the optimal cutoff value for Cornell LV mass-voltage ratio to predict HHF was 6.7 gm/m2/mV. After adjusting for age, NYHA class, BNP, ECV, and LVEF, a Cornell LV mass-voltage ratio > 6.7 gm/m2/mV was significantly associated with HHF (HR 2.25, 95% CI 1.09-4.61; p = 0.03) but not mortality. Indexed LV mass-voltage ratio is associated with subsequent HHF and may be a useful prognostic marker in cardiac amyloidosis