A nematode as a model to investigate Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases: Potential of C. elegans unlocked?

The research work was partly supported by RFBR grant 18-29-12129mk

Acceptability of different oral dosage forms in paediatric patients in hospital setting

Objective The understanding of acceptability of existing dosage forms is limited in most of the world and hinders the development of acceptable, age‐appropriate medicines. The attributes of paediatric medicine acceptability may differ from country to country based on culture, healthcare infrastructure and health policies. This study was designed to map the acceptability of oral medicines in paediatric patients treated in hospital in India. Methods An observational, cross-sectional study was conducted in patients aged below 18 years and taking any form of oral medication. Acceptability scores were obtained using CAST–ClinSearch Acceptability Score Test tool. Findings 490 patients were recruited and 193 evaluations of different pharmaceutical products available in 20 dosage forms and 7 routes of administration were studied. Oral liquids (50%) and tablets (35%) were the most commonly prescribed and administered forms. Regardless of the therapeutic class and age, the oral liquids were ‘positively accepted’ in infants and toddlers. Acceptability of tablets improved with age and appeared to be generally good from the age of 6. Conclusion This study indicates the limited progress towards adoption of age-appropriate dosage forms in India and thus impact on the acceptability of existing oral dosage forms. The key challenges posed by the adoption of age-appropriate formulations in India are (1) awareness of importance of appropriate administration and acceptability of medicines to children in India, (2) availability of age-appropriate dosage forms and (3) lack of child-appropriate medicine policies

Impact of Potential Technologies for Post-Rainy Season Sorghum (in Maharashtra) and Pearl Millet (in Gujarat, Haryana, and Rajasthan) in India

In  India,  sorghum  is  cultivated  during  rainy  and  post‐rainy  season  in  central  and  western  Maharashtra,  Northern  Karnataka,  Andhra  Pradesh  and  Tamil  Nadu.  Sorghum  is  cultivated  in  Maharashtra  both  for  grain  and  fodder  during  kharif  (on  13.84  lakh  ha)  and  rabi  season  (on  31.12 lakh ha). The rabi sorghum occupied 64 % of sorghum area. In Marathwada rabi sorghum  is cultivated in 10.48 lakh ha, and in Western Maharashtra in 20.14   lakh ha.  HOPE  project  aims  at  increasing  productivity  in  the  target  areas  from  35‐40  %  in  four  years.  Under  this  project  six  clusters  and  12  villages  are  covered   in  Marathwada  and  Western  Maharashtra.    Besides  targeting  improved  varieties,  targeting  on  the  key  recommended  technologies,  management  practices  like  drilling  of  fertilizer  along  with  seed,  seed  treatment,  deep  sowing,  wide  row  spacing,  optimum  plant  population,  Integrated  Pest  Management  (IPM)  and  Integrated Nutrient Management (INM) are crucial. In addition, moisture use efficiency  towards  reducing drought risk is vital.

Ex-ante Impacts of Rabi Sorghum Technologies in India

The  major  technologies  in  rabi  sorghum  are  classified  as  1.  Crop  Improvement  2.  Crop  Management  and  3.  Markets  and  prices.  The  choice  of  any  combination  depends  on  the  resource  endowments  of  farmers,  access  and  availability  of  quality  inputs  at  the  right  time  and  place  and  the  market  forces.  The  ex‐ante  analysis  of  technologies  considering  different  interventions,  likely  rate  of  adoption  and  costs  and  benefits  of  different  technologies  is  done.

Crop Credit Flow in Maharashtra, India, with Special Reference to Postrainy Season Sorghum

Agriculture is being increasingly recognized as a commercial activity. Modern farm technology is, to a great extent, capital intensive. Production requires modern inputs of good quality, and it needs expenses to be allocated for mechanization and related costs. The farming community thus requires agriculture credit for various activities such as land development, minor irrigation, farm mechanization and for the purchase of inputs to cultivate annual and perennial crop

Postrainy Season Sorghum Marketing in India: Constraints and Opportunities

Indian agricultural marketing systems function relatively well although a number of critical issues impinge on their efficient functioning. For example, markets in the hinterland are generally thin, localized and segmented - smallholders dominate the agricultural system and this leads to low marketed surplus. The process of price discovery is often non-transparent; markets are ‘multi-level’ with many intermediaries, leading to high transaction/marketing costs, so, to sell their produce, farmers are dependent on intermediaries to avail of credit facilities in interlinked markets (credit/ input and output markets). Lack of grading and storage facilities and lack of information on market intelligence...

Post-rainy season sorghum consumption in Maharashtra and opportunities for demand enhancement

For majority of the households living across Semi-Arid Tropics (SAT) (~f'Il1dia sorghum is an important staple in the consumption basket oJllOllseholds besides providingjeed and income security. By and large sorghum and particlllar~y post rain)' season sorghum is grown as subsistence crop under Itrw yield regimes. Hence, to address the issue of low yield\' a project on Harnessing Opportunitiesjbr Productivity Enhancement (HOPE) is envisioned to improve productivity o/post rain,V season sorghum and associatedfactors o/teclmology adoption and improve market access by International Crops Research Instilute Semi-Arid Tropics (IeR/SAT) and its partners. Improving market access requires carejid understanding of consumer choices, end-user preferences, processing options to improve product qllali~v and reduce householdfood processing time. In this context a detailed survey 011 sorghum consumption, its demand for variolls uses, consumer preferences, perception am:! price and non-price factors that determine the demandfor sorghum in human diets is carried out in Afaharashtra, (TH2stern and lvfarathwada regions) ojIl1dia, lvhich is predomillant~rsorghum growing and consuming region. Evidencefrom the stll{~V indicates that post rainy seaSon sorghum is a staplefhr consumption irrespective of household income but urban consumers are less frequent COllsumers as compared to their rllral counte/parts, Though urban hOllseholdr; perceive the importance (~lC0l1S11mptiol1 (~ll1l1triellt rich millets like sorghum, lack of time Jar cooking sorghum bread as both men and women are employed ill urbanlocatiolls; skill sels requiredfhr preparation; easy availability (~ldiversified ready to eat productsfram rice and lvheat; l1f>n-availability oJ diversified react" 10 eat products of sorghum have contributed to decline in its consumption, flidue addition (grading and cleaning) and development of divers~fied reiUtv to use value added products of sorghum (flow; rawa, flakes etc) are jbzmd to stimulate consumption demand. Sale of cleaned sorghum grain in small packs 1:\' desired by many urban consumers, Unlike barle;~finger millet and maize, private sector participation for development (~f value added products in sorghum is [OlV. Hence, development qf diversified read,.v to use products 'with private sector participation will enable in enhancing the demand for sorghum, product choice and l1utriceutical benefits for consumers and improve market access to farmer

Outcomes of treatment of unresectable esophageal carcinoma treated with chemoradiotherapy and oral metronomic chemotherapy: An experience from a rural cancer center

Introduction: Esophageal carcinoma is the eight most common cancer in the world. The management of locally advancedcarcinoma esophagus is mainly palliative with chemoradiotherapy. The outcome data of such a modality along with oralmetronomic chemotherapy after treatment completion are sparse. Here, we present the outcomes of treatment of locally advancedunresectable esophageal cancer after palliative chemoradiotherapy and oral metronomic therapy from a rural setting in India.Methods: Retrospective analysis of all patients of locally advanced unresectable nonmetastatic esophageal carcinoma treatedwith short course of induction chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy/chemoradiotherapy and oral metronomic chemotherapywas performed. The primary aim was estimation of progression free-survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Results: A total of45 patients were analyzed. Mean age was 55 years (30-85 years). A total of 32 patients had tumors in upper and middle esophagus,with the most common histology being squamous cell carcinoma (N-41). The estimated 2 year PFS is 47.2% and the estimated2 years OS is 57.8%. Conclusion: Combined modality therapy with adjuvant oral metronomic therapy shows promising results inthe management and should be the basis of further trials

Baseline Scenario of Postrainy Season Sorghum Economy in Western Maharashtra. Working Paper Series No. 39

Postrainy season sorghum is one of the major dietary staple cereal crops in the western Maharashtra region suppo

Understanding Trait Preferences of Farmers for Post-Rainy Sorghum and Pearl Millet in India - A Conjoint Analysis

A study was carried out on two important dryland crops, i.e., post-rainy season sorghum and pearl millet which are staples in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Gujarat states of India. Both post-rainy (rabi) season sorghum and pearl millet are mainly grown under low rainfall regimes as they are drought tolerant and are prized for grain quality and fodder. The present study is undertaken to quantify the varietal attributes preferred by the formers for post- rainy sorghum and pearl millet using conjoint analysis technique. With this knowledge, researchers can focus on the most important features of seeds and design a variety that is most likely to gain acceptance of the target buyers. Further the utility attributes derived from the analysis are used to simulate preferences for new improved cultivars for both the crops that will identify the most preferred variety. The study would thus help in screening new improved cultivars of these crops for preferred attributes and overall preference