Swept Source Optical Coherence Tomography Findings of Pachychoroid Spectrum of Diseases in patients with Unilateral Acute Central Serous Chorioretinopathy

INTRODUCTION: Central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR) is the fourth most common retinopathy after age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and branch retinal vein occlusion. CSCR occurs in males in the age group of 20 to 50 years. There is no underlying proven pathophysiologic mechanism for CSCR. It is thought to occur due to hyper permeable choroidal capillaries in association with retinal pigment epithelium causing serous detachment of neurosensory retina. Recurrence rate of CSCR is about 33% and some texts show the recurrence rate of about 50%. In 1866, the disease was first recognized by Albrecht Von Grafe and named as central recurrent retinitis. It has been reported under a variety of names such as idiopathic flat detachment of the macula by Walsh et al, central angiospastic retinopathy by Gifford et al, and central serous retinopathy by Straatsma et al. Gas et al, named the condition as Idiopathic central serous chorioretinopathy in 1967. AIM AND OBJECTIVE: To describe retinal and choroidal findings in both eyes of patients with unilateral acute central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR) with a focus on pachychoroid spectrum of disorders using swept source optical coherence tomography (SS OCT). METHODOLOGY: Prospective observational study on patients with unilateral acute CSCR using SS OCT presenting to Retina department, Aravind Eye Hospital, Madurai during the period of December 2017 to November 2018. All 127 patients underwent visual acuity testing, IOP, anterior & posterior segment examination and SS OCT. SS OCT findings of thinning of choriocapillaries, pachyvessels and choroidal thickness in both eyes were noted. RESULTS: Among 127 patients, choroidal thickness of ≥300μm was seen in 98.4% of affected eyes. The mean choroidal thickness in CSCR eyes were 431.6μm and normal eyes were 387.51μm showing significant difference in choroidal thickness between affected and normal eyes. Dilated vessels were seen in 25.2% of CSCR eyes and 6.3% in normal eyes.Thinning of choroidal capillaries were seen in 24.4% CSCR eyes compared to normal eyes which is 7.1%.This showed that there is an association of pachyvessel and thinning of choriocapillaries with CSCR. CONCLUSION: In this study, we observed an increase in choroidal thickness of > 300μm, dilated vessels in choroid and thinning of choriocapillaris in both eyes of patients with unilateral acute CSCR. This suggests most often CSCR is found to be a part of pachychoroid spectrum of disorders

IMPLEMENTATION OF MODEL PREDICTIVE CONTROL AND AUTO TUNING BASED PID FOR EFFECTIVE TEMPERATURE CONTROL IN CSTR

Continuous Stirrer Tank Reactor (CSTR) is an important topic in process control and offering a diverse range of researches in the area of chemical and control engineering. A simulation on mathematical model has several advantages over the experiment on a real model or system, which is used for steady state analysis and dynamic state analysis. The main objective is to control the temperature of CSTR in the presence of disturbance. Various control approaches have been applied on CSTR to control its parameters through PID control and MODEL PREDICTIVE CONTROL (MPC). Model design and simulation are done in MATLAB SIMULINK

IMPLEMENTATION OF MODEL PREDICTIVE CONTROL AND AUTO TUNING BASED PID FOR EFFECTIVE TEMPERATURE CONTROL IN CSTR

Continuous Stirrer Tank Reactor (CSTR) is an important topic in process control and offering a diverse range of researches in the area of chemical and control engineering. A simulation on mathematical model has several advantages over the experiment on a real model or system, which is used for steady state analysis and dynamic state analysis. The main objective is to control the temperature of CSTR in the presence of disturbance. Various control approaches have been applied on CSTR to control its parameters through PID control and MODEL PREDICTIVE CONTROL (MPC). Model design and simulation are done in MATLAB SIMULIN

Genome-wide identification and analysis of the ALTERNATIVE OXIDASE gene family in diploid and hexaploid wheat

A comprehensive understanding of wheat responses to environmental stress will contribute to the long-term goal of feeding the planet. ALERNATIVE OXIDASE (AOX) genes encode proteins involved in a bypass of the electron transport chain and are also known to be involved in stress tolerance in multiple species. Here, we report the identification and characterization of the AOX gene family in diploid and hexaploid wheat. Four genes each were found in the diploid ancestors Triticum urartu, and Aegilops tauschii, and three in Aegilops speltoides. In hexaploid wheat (Triticum aestivum), 20 genes were identified, some with multiple splice variants, corresponding to a total of 24 proteins for those with observed transcription and translation. These proteins were classified as AOX1a, AOX1c, AOX1e or AOX1d via phylogenetic analysis. Proteins lacking most or all signature AOX motifs were assigned to putative regulatory roles. Analysis of protein-targeting sequences suggests mixed localization to the mitochondria and other organelles. In comparison to the most studied AOX from Trypanosoma brucei, there were amino acid substitutions at critical functional domains indicating possible role divergence in wheat or grasses in general. In hexaploid wheat, AOX genes were expressed at specific developmental stages as well as in response to both biotic and abiotic stresses such as fungal pathogens, heat and drought. These AOX expression patterns suggest a highly regulated and diverse transcription and expression system. The insights gained provide a framework for the continued and expanded study of AOX genes in wheat for stress tolerance through breeding new varieties, as well as resistance to AOX-targeted herbicides, all of which can ultimately be used synergistically to improve crop yield

Bio-conjugation of antioxidant peptide on surface-modified gold nanoparticles: a novel approach to enhance the radical scavenging property in cancer cell

BACKGROUND: Functionalized gold nanoparticles are emerging as a promising nanocarrier for target specific delivery of the therapeutic molecules in a cancer cell, as a result it targeted selectively to the cancer cell and minimized the off-target effect. The functionalized nanomaterial (bio conjugate) brings novel functional properties, for example, the high payload of anticancer, antioxidant molecules and selective targeting of the cancer molecular markers. The current study reported the synthesis of multifunctional bioconjugate (GNPs-Pep-A) to target the cancer cell. METHODS: The GNPs-Pep-A conjugate was prepared by functionalization of GNPs with peptide-A (Pro-His-Cys-Lys-Arg-Met; Pep-A) using thioctic acid as a linker molecule. The GNPs-Pep-A was characterized and functional efficacy was tested using Retinoblastoma (RB) cancer model in vitro. RESULTS: The GNPs-Pep-A target the reactive oxygen species (ROS) in RB, Y79, cancer cell more effectively, and bring down the ROS up to 70 % relative to control (untreated cells) in vitro. On the other hand, Pep-A and GNPs showed 40 and 9 % reductions in ROS, respectively, compared to control. The effectiveness of bioconjugate indicates the synergistic effect, due to the coexistence of both organic (Pep-A) and inorganic phase (GNPs) in novel GNPs-Pep-A functional material. In addition to this, it modulates the mRNA expression of antioxidant genes glutathione peroxidase (GPX), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) by two-threefolds as observed. CONCLUSIONS: The effects of GNPs-Pep-A on ROS reduction and regulation of antioxidant genes confirmed that Vitis vinifera L. polyphenol-coated GNPs synergistically improve the radical scavenging properties and enhanced the apoptosis of cancer cell

Heat map of expression profiles for high-confidence <i>TaAOX</i> genes under biotic and abiotic stresses.

<p>Heat map of expression profiles for high-confidence <i>TaAOX</i> genes under biotic and abiotic stresses.</p

Features of AOX proteins in the wheat genomes.

<p>Features of AOX proteins in the wheat genomes.</p

Comparison of residues in the hydrophobic cavity of the TbAOX and wheat AOX proteins.

<p>Comparison of residues in the hydrophobic cavity of the TbAOX and wheat AOX proteins.</p

Comparison of residues at dimerization interface between the TbAOX and wheat AOX proteins.

<p>Comparison of residues at dimerization interface between the TbAOX and wheat AOX proteins.</p