Biotransformation: A Novel Approach of Modulating and Synthesizing Compounds

Transformation of potential compounds into utilizable and beneficial forms is often cost involving and time consuming. Chemical transformation though was an existing opportunity catering our needs but due to environmental impacts and cost- benefit ratio analysis it proved futile and a new branch of transformation came into existence termed as biotransformation. Biotransformation is an excellent opportunity of tailoring compounds to cater our needs in a simple and is an eco-friendly approach. Biotransformation allows conversion of one component to another compound by application of biological systems. Fermentation based biotransformation of plant extract is a well-established world-wide standard technique used to maximize shelf-life, nutritional and organoleptic properties and to eliminate harmful substances from primary food substrates. Biotransformation by microbes has grown greatly from a small involvement in highly active fields of green chemistry, including the preparation of pharmaceutical drugs, in recent years. In addition fermentation processes have been targeted and optimized to enhance the production of active microbial metabolites using sufficient or suitable nutrients and with the correct microbial target for functional benefits. At present, significant attention has been given to biotransformation technology worldwide to develop medicines through the processing and enrichment of additional medicinally essential bioactive metabolites including terpenes, alkaloids, phenols, flavonoids and saponins. Biotransformation utilizing various biological systems can be used to modulate and in the enhancement of bioactive compounds in an environment promising way. Biotransformation is assumed to play a key role in green chemistry in future because of its sustainable approach. This review represents an overview of biotransformation techniques and its applications in a nutshell

Immunomodulators in the treatment of psoriasis

The efficacy of cyclosporine and related drugs in the treatment of psoriasis was the key to the development of the concept that psoriasis is an immune mediated disorder. These therapies demonstrably reduce the number of activated T-lymphocytes, which correlates with clinical remission. Monoclonal antibodies directed against key components of the inflammatory process have been studied in an attempt to produce safer, more effective and selective immunosuppressive agents. This review summarizes the information available on cyclosporine and related drugs, and cytokine therapy, including monoclonal antibodies directed against T-cell mediated inflammation. It should be realized that biologic therapies for psoriasis are very new and that efficacy and safety information from clinical trials is just becoming available

Adverse cutaneous drug reactions: Clinical pattern and causative agents in a tertiary care center in South India

Background: Adverse cutaneous drug reactions (ACDRs) are caused by a wide variety of agents. Aims: Our objective was to ascertain the clinical spectrum of ACDRs and the causative drugs in this part of India and to find any risk factors. Methods: Ninety patients with adverse cutaneous drug reactions were recruited for this study during 2001-2003. Hematological and biochemical investigations were done in all of them. The VDRL and HIV (ELISA) tests were performed where the underlying risk factors were present. Patch testing, intradermal testing and oral provocation tests were done wherever feasible. Results: The mean age of the patients with cutaneous drug eruptions was 37.06 years. Most of them (52.2%) were in the age group of 20-39 years. The male to female ratio was 0.87: 1. The most common eruptions observed were fixed drug eruption (31.1%) and maculopapular rash (12.2%), and the most common causes were co-trimoxazole (22.2%) and dapsone (17.7%). Conclusion: The pattern of ACDRs and the drugs causing them is remarkably different in our population. Knowledge of these drug eruptions, the causative drugs and the prognostic indicators is essential for the clinician

Primary Pulmonary MALT Lymphoma Presenting as Non-Resolving Pneumonia

Primary lung lymphoma (PLL) is a rare unilateral or bilateral lung disorder that is challenging to diagnose solely based on clinical and radiological presentation. PLL may be misdiagnosed as pneumonia or a lung tumor due to non-specific findings. PLL is most frequently a mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma, a type of extranodal low-grade B-cell lymphoma most commonly discovered in the gastrointestinal tract. PLL should be considered in the differential diagnosis of non-resolving pneumonias. Herein we present a case of an 84-year-old patient discovered to have a primary pulmonary MALT lymphoma presenting as a non-resolving pneumonia causing a clinical challenge

Study - High seroprevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 in STD clinic attendees and non-high risk controls: A case control study at a referral hospital in South India

BACKGROUND: In Asia, HSV seroprevalence studies are sparse and they have recorded lower prevalence of HSV infection, especially HSV-2. AIMS: To ascertain the seroprevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 in patients attending a STD clinic in a referral hospital in south India and to compare it with a control group. METHODS: The study included 135 consecutive STD cases having history of ulcerative or non-ulcerative STD in the present or in the past 5 years and 135 age and sex-matched controls. Diagnostic serology was done for HSV-1 and HSV-2 using type specific IgG by indirect immunoassay using ELISA. The results were analyzed utilizing Chi- square test. RESULTS: Amongst 135 STD clinic cases, 106 cases were males and 29 cases were females with male to female ratio of 3.65:1. The mean age was 32.2 years (range 16-65 years). Among study group cases, 112 (82.9%) cases were co-infected with HSV-1 and HSV-2, 11 (8.1%) cases were seropositive for HSV-1 alone and 3 (2.2%) cases were seropositive for HSV-2 alone. In the control group, 112 (82.9%) cases were co-infected with HSV-1 and 2, 12 (9.6%) for HSV-1 alone and 1(0.8%) for HSV-2 alone. Correlation of HSV-1 and HSV-2 serology with various demographic and behavioral factors was statistically insignificant. CONCLUSIONS: Seroprevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 in STD clinic cases and control group is high, similar to that recorded in sub-Saharan Africa. Thus, serological studies for HSV-1 and HSV-2 cannot be taken as a marker of sexual behavior in our set of population

The Story of Demand and Supply of Resources

Description Farm Food Produce The control over resources like money, commodity and information can lead to a drastic socio-economic inequality and mindless consumerism has led to climate change. Our project is a systemic exploration of the most basic physiological need for food and highly influential control means called markets. As the market system has alienated the producer from the consumer and vice versa, it has bred apathy in our society and when a call for collective action is raised it becomes an echo chamber and is almost impossible to come to any conclusive actions. Our project is an attempt to fight and end problems like socio-economic inequality and climate change catastrophe through better usage, awareness and control of resources which cater to the material needs of the human beings and help build the community, through economic, social and ecological consciousness. Systems thinking helped provide us with a perspective of a much larger scale and intricacies of interconnectedness between the different elements in the said system and the problems identified from this point of view seem to be at the very core of the wicked problem at hand. We approached to intervene in the system to either overthrow it or change it or subvert it. Reading the map The gigamap can be accessed from ReManthan: Gigamap and is divided into five parts: Introduction – Setting the basic premise for the project. A resource point of view – Here we have deconstructed resources into its 3 main aspects, i.e., usage (what and why use it?), control (who and how do they control?) and the problems that usage and control have brought upon (climate change and socio-economic inequality). Focus area: Farm food market system – Since the realm of resources is massive we had to focus on something workable and we chose to work on the most basic physiological need (food) of human beings and chose to study the most important means of control (market) in the modern globalised world while keeping the problems associated to resources in mind. Contextual system mapping – Essentially took the learnings from the previous section and contextualised it to the state of affairs of India. Interventions – Three major ways we intervened the existing system to solve it was to – overthrow, change or subvert and each of which is explained in the map along with the proposed solutions