A Woman\u27s Kind of Love: Female Longing in the Tamil Alvar Poetry

In the eighth section of Andal\u27s Nacciyar Tirumoli, a woman calls to the clouds and bids them to take a message of love to her delinquent lover, Vishnu, here figured as the lord of Venkatam. In the opening verse of the decad, she begins by plaintively questioning the clouds of her beloved\u27s whereabouts only to end with a bitter complaint about her sullied womanhood -- pen-nirmai. Bracketed by her eager questions -- has the lord of Venkatam come with you -- and her bitter complaint -- how does this bring him pride -- is the landscape of her body. Her tears are waterfalls, her breasts mountains, and just as the waterfalls erode the soil from the mountain slopes, her tears erase her womanhood. The black mark against the unrepentant divine lover is not just her (implied) lost chastity, but the gradual corrosion of her very self

DIFFERENT ANALYTICAL TECHNIQUES FOR THE ANALYSIS OF ANTICANCER DRUGS-BOSUTINIB, ENCORAFENIB AND DABRAFENIB-A REVIEW

In this present situation there is an increase in the number of diseases has been observed but before this drug come to market, it must undergo several procedures. The validation and analytical methods are the important techniques that help in ensuring its purity and reliability. This process involves the use of various analytical techniques to collect data about the drug. This review includes various types of analytical techniques such as ultraviolet-visible Spectrophotometric and chromatography methods such as high-performance liquid chromatography, hyphenation techniques such as LC-MS for the estimation of selected anti-cancer drugs

An Improved Method for High Quality Metagenomics DNA Extraction from Human and Environmental Samples

To explore the natural microbial community of any ecosystems by high-resolution molecular approaches including next generation sequencing, it is extremely important to develop a sensitive and reproducible DNA extraction method that facilitate isolation of microbial DNA of sufficient purity and quantity from culturable and uncultured microbial species living in that environment. Proper lysis of heterogeneous community microbial cells without damaging their genomes is a major challenge. In this study, we have developed an improved method for extraction of community DNA from different environmental and human origin samples. We introduced a combination of physical, chemical and mechanical lysis methods for proper lysis of microbial inhabitants. The community microbial DNA was precipitated by using salt and organic solvent. Both the quality and quantity of isolated DNA was compared with the existing methodologies and the supremacy of our method was confirmed. Maximum recovery of genomic DNA in the absence of substantial amount of impurities made the method convenient for nucleic acid extraction. The nucleic acids obtained using this method are suitable for different downstream applications. This improved method has been named as the THSTI method to depict the Institute where the method was developed

Randomized Clinical Trial of High-Dose Rifampicin With or Without Levofloxacin Versus Standard of Care for Pediatric Tuberculous Meningitis: The TBM-KIDS Trial

Background. Pediatric tuberculous meningitis (TBM) commonly causes death or disability. In adults, high-dose rifampicin may reduce mortality. The role of fluoroquinolones remains unclear. There have been no antimicrobial treatment trials for pediatric TBM. Methods. TBM-KIDS was a phase 2 open-label randomized trial among children with TBM in India and Malawi. Participants received isoniazid and pyrazinamide plus: (i) high-dose rifampicin (30 mg/kg) and ethambutol (R30HZE, arm 1); (ii) high-dose rifampicin and levofloxacin (R30HZL, arm 2); or (iii) standard-dose rifampicin and ethambutol (R15HZE, arm 3) for 8 weeks, followed by 10 months of standard treatment. Functional and neurocognitive outcomes were measured longitudinally using Modified Rankin Scale (MRS) and Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL). Results. Of 2487 children prescreened, 79 were screened and 37 enrolled. Median age was 72 months; 49%, 43%, and 8% had stage I, II, and III disease, respectively. Grade 3 or higher adverse events occurred in 58%, 55%, and 36% of children in arms 1, 2, and 3, with 1 death (arm 1) and 6 early treatment discontinuations (4 in arm 1, 1 each in arms 2 and 3). By week 8, all children recovered to MRS score of 0 or 1. Average MSEL scores were significantly better in arm 1 than arm 3 in fine motor, receptive language, and expressive language domains (P < .01). Conclusions. In a pediatric TBM trial, functional outcomes were excellent overall. The trend toward higher frequency of adverse events but better neurocognitive outcomes in children receiving high-dose rifampicin requires confirmation in a larger trial. Clinical Trials Registration. NCT02958709

In Andal's Garden: Art, Ornament and Devotion in Srivilliputtur

Kotai was a 9th-century Tamil Vaishnava poet and mystic, and the author of two poems, the Tiruppavai and Nacciyar Tirumoli. Today, she is worshipped as the goddess Andal or Goda, all across southern India, and her arresting poetry finds expression in ritual, music, dance and the visual arts. Her most important temple is in Srivilliputtur, a small town in Tamil Nadu, and believed to be the place of her birth. In Andal’s Garden takes the reader to Srivilliputtur to explore Andal’s temple, her visualization in painting, sculpture, festival ritual and performance, and the history and sacred landscape of southern Tamil Nadu under the Pandyas and later Nayakas of Madurai. In combining the architectural, literary and theological, this book offers up possibilities of new, interdisciplinary ways of seeing the temple as a living, changing and dynamic space

The effect of three desensitizing agents on dentin hypersensitivity: A randomized, split-mouth clinical trial

Objectives: This randomized clinical trial tested the effect of three different desensitizing agents on reduction of pain due to hypersensitive cervical dentin lesions. Materials and Methods: Twenty-eight individuals with 84 teeth diagnosed with cervical dentin hypersensitivity (DH) in at least one tooth in any three of the four quadrants were selected. Patients exhibiting pain scores of two or more on the visual analog scale (VAS) were included in the study. Each quadrant in an individual was randomly assigned to one of the three treatment groups based on computer-generated random number. The desensitizing agents used were Profluorid Varnish (Voco: Cuxhaven Germany), Admira Protect (Voco: Cuxhaven Germany), and PRG-Barrier Coat (Shofu: japan). One operator recorded the baseline sensitivity scores after evaporative and tactile stimuli by visual analog score system. The second operator who was not aware of the baseline values applied the desensitizing agents and recorded the sensitivity scores. VAS scores for both the stimuli were noted immediately after application, 1 week, and after 1 month. The data were analyzed using repeated measure ANOVA and post hoc Tukey's multiple comparison tests (P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant). Results: There was a significant reduction in VAS scores from baseline in all the three groups at all the time intervals (P < 0.001). Admira Protect showed significant reduction of hypersensitivity scores at 1 month compared to other groups (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Admira Protect was proved to be better in reducing pain due to DH than PRG-Barrier Coat and Profluorid Varnish after 1 month of application

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Not AvailableRice is an important cereal crop of A&N Islands. The settlement of human population in these islands originating from different places in mainland states of India over time resulted in the introduction of many rice germplasm and varieties in the islands. Eventually these different types got co-evolved, adapted and found niche in the islands along with other local types. Therefore, diversity of human population got reflected in the genetic diversity of rice crop in the islands. The government organizations like ICAR-Central Island Agricultural Research Institute (CIARI), Port Blair and Department of Agriculture, A&N Administration also introduced high yielding rice varieties for raising productivity in the islands. In addition, ICAR-CIARI, Port Blair also evaluated, developed and recommended suitable high yielding varieties to the Island farmers from time to time. These efforts have undoubtedly steered the rice production enhancement in the islands. Therefore, it is important to characterize in detail these important varieties and germplasm lines not only for research purpose but also for safeguarding IPR issues of the farmers and stakeholders. We have endeavored to screen, evaluate and characterize 26 important Islands varieties and germplasm lines for the 62 Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability (DUS) traits recommended for the rice crop. All these important rice germplasm lines were evaluated in replicated trials for DUS characterization at Bloomsdale Research Farm, Port Blair. The recommended and uniform packages of practices were adopted to raise the crop. Similarly, standard methodology was followed for precise observations and data recording during the entire crop season. This bulletin encompasses the detailed characterization of important rice germplasm of A&N Islands.Not Availabl