Spectrum of abdominal organ injury in a primary blast type

Research articl

Determination of subcarinal angle of trachea using computed tomography

Background: Change in tracheal bifurcation angle (subcarinal angle) is an indirect marker of various cardiac, pulmonary and mediastinal pathologies. Helical computed tomography (CT) allows acquisition of volumetric set of data of the chest and can be used for accurate measurements of subcarinal angle using reconstructed images on a workstation using minimum intensity projection (MinIP).The objective of this study was to estimate normal subcarinal angle (SCA) of trachea by computed tomography and to assess its relationship with gender.Methods: This was an observational study comprising a study cohort of 552 patients comprising of 312 males and 240 females who were subjected to CT chest for various indications in our department. Patients with no underlying cardiac, mediastinal or pulmonary disease were included in the study. Spiral CT scan of chest was performed on 64-slice seimens CT SOMATOM and images were reconstructed with thickness of 1.5mm and the images were viewed in coronal reformatted minimum intensity projection (MinIP) for determination of subcarinal angle using the angle measuring tool provided in the workstationResults: The mean subcarinal angle (SCA) in males was (67.60±14.55). The mean subcarinal angle (SCA) in females was (78.90±11.04). Females had a higher mean SCA compared to males with a statistically significant difference (p-value <0.05).Conclusions: The mean SCA in females was higher compared to males with a statistically significant difference between the two. This study holds practical relevance with regard to the performance of invasive trachea-bronchial procedures like bronchoscopy and tracheal/bronchial intubation

Evaluation of various patient-, lesion-, and procedure-related factors on the occurrence of pneumothorax as a complication of CT-guided percutaneous transthoracic needle biopsy

Purpose: To assess the influence of various patient-, lesion-, and procedure-related variables on the occurrence of pneumothorax as a complication of CT-guided percutaneous transthoracic needle biopsy. Material and methods: In a total of 208 patients, 215 lung/mediastinal lesions (seven patients were biopsied twice) were sampled under CT guidance using coaxial biopsy set via percutaneous transthoracic approach. Incidence of post procedure pneumothorax was seen and the influence of various patient-, lesion-, and procedure-related variables on the frequency of pneumothorax with special emphasis on procedural factors like dwell time and needle-pleural angle was analysed. Results: Pneumothorax occurred in 25.12% (54/215) of patients. Increased incidence of pneumothorax had a statistically significant correlation with age of the patient (p = 0.0020), size (p = 0.0044) and depth (p = 0.0001) of the lesion, and needle-pleural angle (p = 0.0200). Gender of the patient (p = 0.7761), emphysema (p = 0.2724), site of the lesion (p = 0.9320), needle gauge (p = 0.7250), patient position (p = 0.9839), and dwell time (p = 0.9330) had no significant impact on the pneumothorax rate. Conclusions: This study demonstrated a significant effect of the age of the patient, size and depth of the lesion, and needle-pleural angle on the incidence of post-procedural pneumothorax. Emphysema as such had no effect on pneumothorax rate, but once pneumothorax occurred, emphysematous patients were more likely to be symptomatic, necessitating chest tube placement. Gender of the patient, site of the lesion, patient position during the procedure, and dwell time had no statistically significant relation with the frequency of post-procedural pneumothorax. Surprisingly, needle gauge had no significant effect on pneumothorax frequency, but due to the small sample size, non-randomisation, and bias in needle size selection as per lesion size, further studies are required to fully elucidate the causal relationship between needle size and post-procedural pneumothorax rate. The needle should be as perpendicular as possible to the pleura (needle-pleural angle close to 90°), to minimise the possibility of pneumothorax after percutaneous transthoracic needle biopsy

In vitro CALLOGENESIS OF MEDICINALLY IMPORTANT AYURVEDIC HERB Enicostema littorale BLUME

Purpose: The practice of in vitro culturing of medicinally important plants has gained much attention in enhancing the secondary metabolite production. In this perspective, the current study was carried out to promote a rapid and standard method for in vitro callogenesis of Enicostema littorale Blume using different explants. Research Methods: In vitro callogenesis of Enicostema littorale was done on Murashige and Skoog’s media. Explants were cautiously sterilised and later put on MS medium added with variable combinations and combinations of growth regulators and were maintained in culture room at temperature of 25 ± 2ºC with photoperiods of 16 h. The cultures were observed at regular intervals for callus initiation and results were recorded regularly. Findings: Maximum callus was yielded from nodal explants when Murashige and Skoog&nbsp;medium was added with various growth promoters (6-Benzylaminopurine and Kinetin -3.0 and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid -1.5 mg each followed by Kinetin-2.0 and Naphthyl Acetic Acid -0.5 mg) per liter amount of media. Similarly, it was also revealed from the present investigation that leaf explants proved better for callogenesis on MS media added with 6-Benzylaminopurine-3.0 and Naphthyl Acetic Acid -1.0 mg/l followed by Kinetin-1.5 and NAA-0.5 mg/l. However, shoot tip explants weakly responded for callogenic induction during the present study. The present study while using combinations of growth regulators at different concentrations and combinations, all the selected explants responded distinctly. Value: The developed tissue culture protocol can be proved as rapid and reliable method for enhancing and extracting the secondary metabolite production, and as a landmark to meet the industrial need in the near future

Mechanistic insights into strigolactone biosynthesis, signaling and regulation during plant growth and development

Strigolactones (SLs) constitute a group of carotenoid-derived phytohormones with butenolide moieties. These hormones are involved in various functions, including regulation of secondary growth, shoot branching and hypocotyl elongation, and stimulation of seed germination. SLs also control hyphal branching of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi, and mediate responses to both abiotic and biotic cues. Most of these functions stem from the interplay of SLs with other hormones, enabling plants to appropriately respond to changing environmental conditions. This dynamic interplay provides opportunities for phytohormones to modulate and augment one another. In this article, we review our current mechanistic understanding of SL biosynthesis, receptors and signaling. We also highlight recent advances regarding the interaction of SLs with other hormones during developmental processes and stress conditions

Development of novel functional foods using Himalayan honey having enhanced nutraceutical and nutritional potential

This study was carried out to conduct the geographical discrimination of various types of honey, and their utilization in development of novel functional foods where in honey could be substituted in place of white sugar. Honey based apple spread and marmalade products were developed and evaluated for quality analysis. The results showed higher water activity (aw) and moisture content in Plectranthus rugosus (PR) honey based apple spread and marmalade while, TSS was highest (p &lt; 0.05) in Multifloral (MF) honey based apple spread and marmalade. Hydroxymethylfurfural was found to be in the ranged of 6.77–7.05 (mg/kg) for honey based apple spread products and 3.09–3.46 (mg/kg) for honey based apple marmalade products. The lightness (L*) value was significantly highest in MF honey based apple spread and marmalades (p &lt; 0.05). Redness (a*) and yellowness (b*) values were significantly highest in PR honey based apple spreads and marmalades and lowest in Robinia pseudo acacia (RSA) honey based apple spread and marmalades. In general, all MF honey based apple spreads and marmalades has the highest score for overall acceptability in comparison to RSA and PR honey based apple spreads. The values of gel strength (Fe), rupture force (FR), energy of penetration (E) and adhesiveness (A) in the given spread products were in the range of 1.50–1.54 N, 1.70–1.73 N, 17.00–17.05 Ns and −1.11–−1.08 Ns, respectively. The values of gel strength (Fe), rupture force (FR), energy of penetration (E) and adhesiveness (A) in the investigated marmalade products were in the range of 1.65–1.69 N, 2.08–2.13 N, 16.05–16.10 Ns and −1.14–−1.10 Ns, respectively

Chemokine-cytokine networks in the head and neck tumor microenvironment

Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) are aggressive diseases with a dismal patient prognosis. Despite significant advances in treatment modalities, the five-year survival rate in patients with HNSCC has improved marginally and therefore warrants a comprehensive understanding of the HNSCC biology. Alterations in the cellular and non-cellular components of the HNSCC tumor micro-environment (TME) play a critical role in regulating many hallmarks of cancer development including evasion of apoptosis, activation of invasion, metastasis, angiogenesis, response to therapy, immune escape mechanisms, deregulation of energetics, and therefore the development of an overall aggressive HNSCC phenotype. Cytokines and chemokines are small secretory proteins produced by neoplastic or stromal cells, controlling complex and dynamic cell–cell interactions in the TME to regulate many cancer hallmarks. This review summarizes the current understanding of the complex cytokine/chemokine networks in the HNSCC TME, their role in activating diverse signaling pathways and promoting tumor progression, metastasis, and therapeutic resistance development.This study was supported by Ramalingaswami Fellowship (Grant number: D.O.NO.BT/HRD/35/02/2006) from the Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India, New Delhi to Muzafar A. Macha. Sidra Medicine Precision Program funded this research to Mohammad Haris (5081012001, 5081012001) and Ajaz A. Bhat (5081012003)

Factors that influence a patient’s decision to engage in genetic research

IntroductionThe most challenging step in clinical research studies is patient recruitment. Many research studies do not reach their targets because of participant rejection. The purpose of this study was to assess patient as well as the community knowledge, motivation, and barriers to participate in genetic research.MethodsA cross-section study was conducted between September 2018 and February 2020 using face-to-face interviews with candidate patients from outpatient clinics at King Fahad Medical City (KFMC), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Additionally, an online survey was conducted to assess the community’s knowledge, motivation and barriers to participate in genetic research studies.ResultsIn total, 470 patients were interviewed for this study, with 341 being successfully recruited for the face to face interview, and the other patients being refused owing to time constraints. The majority percentage of the respondents were females. The respondents’ mean age was 30, and 52.6% reported having a college degree. The survey results from 388 participants illustrated that around 90% of the participants, participated voluntarily due to a good understanding of genetics studies. The majority held positive attitudes toward being part of genetic research, which exceeded the reported motivation score of &gt;75%. The survey indicated that &gt;90% of individuals were willing to participate to acquire therapeutic benefits or to receive continued aftercare. However, 54.6% of survey participants were worried about the side effects and the risks involved in genetic testing. A higher proportion (71.4%) of respondents reported that lack of knowledge about genetic research was one of the barriers to rejecting participation.ConclusionRespondents reported relatively high motivation and knowledge for participation in genetic research. However, study participants reported “do not know enough about genetic research” and “lack of time during clinic visit” as a barrier for participation in genetic research