Probability of the emergence of helical precipitation patterns in the wake of reaction-diffusion fronts

Helical and helicoidal precipitation patterns emerging in the wake of reaction-diffusion fronts are studied. In our experiments, these chiral structures arise with well-defined probabilities P_H controlled by conditions such as e.g., the initial concentration of the reagents. We develop a model which describes the observed experimental trends. The results suggest that P_H is determined by a delicate interplay among the time and length scales related to the front and to the unstable precipitation modes and, furthermore, the noise amplitude also plays a quantifiable role.Comment: 7 pages, 5 composite figure

A prospective study on antibiotic resistance pattern in patients with urinary tract infection

Background: Antibiotics are a blessing to the mankind in the realm of medical treatment. Quite contrary to that fact, they may cause risks in medical treatments of patients if these antibiotics are not taken under medical guidelines. In the current scenario it is a huge challenge for selecting appropriate antibacterial agents for the treatment of UTI. This study aims to evaluate the prescription & resistance pattern of antibiotics in patients with urinary tract infection. Methods: A prospective observational study was carried out for a period of 1 year. Data on 100 research participants' reports and the results of their tests for antibiotic resistance were taken from the microbiology department's records, evaluated, and represented as percentages. Observations were made and meticulously recorded. Results: Out of 100 study participants, Escherichia coli was the most common pathogen with a total of (35%) followed by Klebsiella (17%), Enterococcus with (16%). E. coli were highly resistant to Ampicillin (88.6%) and Cefazolin (88.6%), Ceftraixone (85.3%). Klebsiella were highly resistant to Ampicillin (100%) Cefazolin (93.3%), Cefuroxime (85.7%). Enterococcus were highly resistant to Tetracycline (92.9%) Ciprofloxacin (85.7%), Levofloxacin (81.8%). Where, E. coli were highly sensitive to Amikacin, Imipenem, Ertapenam. Klebsiella were highly sensitive to Meropenem, Cefoperazone/Sulbactam, Amikacin. Enterococcus was highly sensitive to Linezolid, Teicoplanin, Vancomycin. Conclusions: Most of the identified bacteria were resistant to several of the popular antibiotics used in clinical settings. Consequently, it is vital to prescribe antibiotics rationally both before and after culture reports

Pulmonary tuberculosis in HIV individuals: Preliminary report on clinical features and response to treatment

Objectives: To study the clinical, radiological and immunological profile of pulmonary tuberculosis in HIV infected patients and assess the response to short-course chemotherapy regimens. Methods: Seventy eight patients (68 males and 10 females) with HIV infection and having symptoms suggestive of tuberculosis attending the Government Hospital for Thoracic Medicine, Tambaram or the Tuberculosis Research Centre, Chennai were studied. The diagnosis of tuberculosis was based on clinical evaluation, bacteriological examination including sputum smear and culture and chest skiagram. HIV diagnosis was based on two tests (rapid/ELISA), detecting different antigens. CD4+ T cell counts were done on all patients initially and at the end of treatment. Blood tests and skiagrams were repeated at 2 months and at the end of treatment. All the patients were treated with standard (RNTCP) short course regimens. Patients were given all the doses under supervision during the initial intensive phase and through community DOTS providers in the continuation phase. Results: Sixty five patients had culture confirmed pulmonary tuberculosis, of whom 54 had smear positive disease, initially. The radiological manifestations were varied, with 11 subjects having miliary tuberculosis, 54 with non-homogeneous opacities and 10 with cavitation. The mean CD4 cell count at intake was 192 ± 172 cells/cumm. Patients showed good initial response to treatment with significant weight gain. At the end of 2 months of treatment, 91% of patients had sputum cultures negative for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. However, the CD4 % fell significantly by the sixth month. The study is being continued to assess the long-term response to SCC of patients with HIV and tuberculosis. Conclusions: Tuberculosis has a varied clinical presentation in patients with HIV infection. The spectrum of radiographic features ranges from normal to a miliary pattern. Inspite of clinical and bacteriological improvement during treatment, immunologic deterioration may continue

Evaluation of β-blockers dosage regimen rationality in heart failure patients

Background: β-Blockers are often associated with further cardiac function deterioration, ledding to them being often underused/underdosed by certain physicians in heart failure treatment, although they were seen to be beneficial in decreasing the rates of mortality and morbidity, duration of hospitalization in HFrEF patients, but data on their benefits in HFmEF and HFpEF patients is limited. Objective was to evaluate rationality of β-blockers’ dosage regimen and its effectiveness in HF patients. Methods: 43 HF patients have been enrolled. Data were collected from the medication chart (dose, route, frequency); dosage regimen was evaluated and compared to that of ESC guidelines for HF treatment. Heart rates pre/post drug treatments, ejection fraction (at admission & post-discharge) were recorded; effectiveness was evaluated through heart rate control, reduction in: duration of hospitalization, rehospitalization and mortality rate. Post-discharge updates of the patients were obtained through out-patient consultation reports. Results: In All 43 patients dosage regimen of selected β-Blockers was found to be rational and following the ESC guideline for HF treatment. 65% of patients spent not more than 5 days in the hospital, 16% Re-hospitalized for cardiovascular diseases, and death rate was 4%. Conclusions: The dosage regimen of selected β-Blockers was found to be as per that of ESC-guidelines HF treatment. β-Blockers have also been found to have reduced: hospitalization stay, frequency of rehospitalization, and death rate among patients under study.

Oligodendrocytes contribute to motor neuron death in ALS via SOD1 dependent mechanism

Oligodendrocytes have recently been implicated in the pathophysiology of ALS. Here we show that, in vitro, mutant SOD1 mouse oligodendrocytes induce wild-type motor neuron hyperexcitability and death. Moreover, we efficiently derived human oligodendrocytes from a large number of controls, sporadic and familial ALS patients using two different reprogramming methods. All ALS oligodendrocyte lines induced motor neuron death through conditioned medium and in co-culture. Conditioned medium-mediated motor neuron death was associated with decreased lactate production and release, while toxicity in co-culture was lactate independent, demonstrating that motor neuron survival is not only mediated by soluble factors. Remarkably, human SOD1 shRNA treatment resulted in motor neuron rescue in both mouse and human cultures when knockdown was achieved in progenitor cells, while it was ineffective in differentiated oligodendrocytes. Early SOD1 knockdown, in fact, rescued lactate impairment and cell toxicity in all lines tested with exclusion of samples carrying C9orf72 repeat expansions. These did not respond to SOD1 knockdown nor showed lactate release impairment. Our data indicate that SOD1 is directly or indirectly involved in ALS oligodendrocyte pathology and suggest that in this cell type some damage might be irreversible. In addition, we demonstrate that C9ORF72 patients represent an independent patient group that might not respond to the same treatment

Family-led rehabilitation after stroke in India (ATTEND): a randomised controlled trial

Background Most people with stroke in India have no access to organised rehabilitation services. The effectiveness of training family members to provide stroke rehabilitation is uncertain. Our primary objective was to determine whether family-led stroke rehabilitation, initiated in hospital and continued at home, would be superior to usual care in a low-resource setting. Methods The Family-led Rehabilitation after Stroke in India (ATTEND) trial was a prospectively randomised open trial with blinded endpoint done across 14 hospitals in India. Patients aged 18 years or older who had had a stroke within the past month, had residual disability and reasonable expectation of survival, and who had an informal family-nominated caregiver were randomly assigned to intervention or usual care by site coordinators using a secure web-based system with minimisation by site and stroke severity. The family members of participants in the intervention group received additional structured rehabilitation training—including information provision, joint goal setting, carer training, and task-specific training—that was started in hospital and continued at home for up to 2 months. The primary outcome was death or dependency at 6 months, defined by scores 3–6 on the modified Rankin scale (range, 0 [no symptoms] to 6 [death]) as assessed by masked observers. Analyses were by intention to treat. This trial is registered with Clinical Trials Registry-India (CTRI/2013/04/003557), Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12613000078752), and Universal Trial Number (U1111-1138-6707). Findings Between Jan 13, 2014, and Feb 12, 2016, 1250 patients were randomly assigned to intervention (n=623) or control (n=627) groups. 33 patients were lost to follow-up (14 intervention, 19 control) and five patients withdrew (two intervention, three control). At 6 months, 285 (47%) of 607 patients in the intervention group and 287 (47%) of 605 controls were dead or dependent (odds ratio 0·98, 95% CI 0·78–1·23, p=0·87). 72 (12%) patients in the intervention group and 86 (14%) in the control group died (p=0·27), and we observed no difference in rehospitalisation (89 [14%]patients in the intervention group vs 82 [13%] in the control group; p=0·56). We also found no difference in total non-fatal events (112 events in 82 [13%] intervention patients vs 110 events in 79 [13%] control patients; p=0·80). Interpretation Although task shifting is an attractive solution for health-care sustainability, our results do not support investment in new stroke rehabilitation services that shift tasks to family caregivers, unless new evidence emerges. A future avenue of research should be to investigate the effects of task shifting to health-care assistants or team-based community care

Trends in MBA research topics

MBA - WBSThere is a growing demand for Masters in Business Administration (MBA) postgraduates generally. This need for business leadership is greater in South Africa and throughout the continent of Africa. MBA in South Africa is completed typically with a research report in the final year. This research identifies trends in MBA research topics and research methodologies applied while doing a research. The research methodology used for this study was quantitative analysis, in order to identify any potential trends. Research records done by MBA students were analysed to identify the topics chosen for their research. Further study was conducted to identify the research methodology used within each research record in order to study trends in this area. One of the key findings from the research was that research topics selected by MBA students are based on the topical issues highlighted in the business world. Of the topics selected, there is a shift in topic choice towards softer skills of business. The other substantial finding is the area of management research and research techniques. The finding indicates that researchers are moving from quantitative research techniques to other types of research methodologies. A variety of recommendations are made, based on the findings in this research, to management education institutions, MBA curriculum setters and MBA researchers. A key point is that trends from this research can be used to influence and address skills taught in MBA programme

Helices in the wake of precipitation fronts

A theoretical study of the emergence of helices in the wake of precipitation fronts is presented. The precipitation dynamics is described by the Cahn-Hilliard equation and the fronts are obtained by quenching the system into a linearly unstable state. Confining the process onto the surface of a cylinder and using the pulled-front formalism, our analytical calculations show that there are front solutions that propagate into the unstable state and leave behind a helical structure. We find that helical patterns emerge only if the radius of the cylinder R is larger than a critical value R > Rc, in agreement with recent experiments