Experimental studies on Macro fouling communities on net panels at marine cage farm of Karwar, India

A study was undertaken on the fouling pattern, monthly settlement and species dominance at marine cage culture during the year 2014-2015. The net panels deployed at three different depths during December 2014 and the study was carried out for seven months. The study revealed wide variations in colonization of the bio-foulers, the density varied between 2-260/cm2. The overall density was found to be more in bottom panels (6mt) compared to the top (1mt) and middle panels (3mt). The overall dominant species were hydroids and barnacles throughout the culture period. In the top panels, hydroids were dominant (91.67%) during December, followed by barnacles and amphipods. Additionally, complete dominance of barnacles was observed in the middle panel during May. Barnacles were found dominant (93.75%) on the bottom panels during March, followed by hydroids and crabs. The study underscored that barnacles formed a major contribution of the fouling organisms throughout the culture period. Significant variation in the occurrence and abundance of fouling organisms was observed, between the depths at cage sit

A Case of Wernicke\u27s Encephalopathy in a Pregnant Woman With a History of Sleeve Gastrectomy.

Wernicke\u27s encephalopathy (WE) is a neurological complication of thiamine deficiency characterized by a triad of acute confusion, ataxia, and ophthalmoplegia. Even though it is most common in chronic alcoholism, an increase in prevalence has been reported recently due to the increased popularity of bariatric surgeries. WE is a known neurological complication after gastric bypass surgery but rarely reported after sleeve gastrectomy. We present a unique case of WE in pregnant women four months after sleeve gastrectomy

Roth Net-Assisted Endoscopic-Guided Manometry Catheter Placement.

High-resolution esophageal manometry (HRM) has become the gold standard to diagnose esophageal motility disorders. Usually, this procedure is performed by introducing the catheter, which has pressure sensors, into the esophagus and proximal stomach via the nares. Repeated coiling of the catheter and inability to pass through the gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) are common challenges encountered. Endoscopy-guided placement of the catheter can overcome these difficulties. However, sometimes even with the use of endoscopy, it is difficult to advance catheter due to anatomical variants. The extreme fragility of the catheter and sensors and the high cost of this reusable device precludes the use of biopsy forceps or snare to advance the catheter. There is no literature on using accessories during endoscopy in case of difficult placement under direct visualization. We report a unique case of using Roth Net via the suction channel to advance esophageal manometry catheter into the stomach by using endoscopy

Some observations on light fishing off Thiruvananthapuram coast

The artisanal fisheries of the Thiruvananthapuram coast axe of considerable importance in the fisheries of Kerala State due to their significant contributions to the catch of resources like tunas, anchovies, ribbonfish, caranglds, perches and cephalopods

Gastrointestinal Bleeding in Patients With Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: A National Database Analysis.

Background:The goal of our study was to determine the impact of gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB) on in-hospital outcomes among acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) patients, and subsequently determine the potential risk factors for the development of GIB. Methods:ARDS patients with and without GIB were identified using the National Inpatient Sample (2002 - 2012). Linear regression analysis was used to assess impact of GIB on in-hospital mortality, length of stay and total charges. Univariate logistic regression was used to determine associated odds ratios (OR) for causes of ARDS and common comorbid conditions. Results:We identified 149,190 ARDS patients. The incidence of GIB was the highest among patients \u3e 60 years (P \u3c 0.001). GIB was associated with longer hospitalization days (7.3 days versus 11.9 days, P \u3c 0.001), higher mortality (11% versus 27%, P \u3c 0.001) and greater economic burden ($82,812 versus$45,951, P \u3c 0.001). GIB was common in cirrhosis (OR: 8.3), peptic ulcer disease (OR: 3.7), coagulopathy disorders (OR: 3.003), thrombocytopenia (OR: 2.6), anemia (OR: 2.5) and atrial fibrillation (OR: 1.5). ARDS secondary to aspiration pneumonia (OR: 2.0), pancreatitis (OR: 2.0), sepsis (OR: 1.6) and community acquired pneumonia (OR: 0.8) was more likely to have GIB. Conclusion:Our study demonstrates that GIB in ARDS patients is associated with significant increased mortality, hospitalization and health care cost

Apocyclops cmfri sp. nov. (Cyclopoda : Cyclopoida : Cyclopidae), a new copepod species from Arabian Sea off Karwar, Karnataka, India

A new species of Apocyclops Lindberg (Cyclopoda: Cyclopoida: Cyclopidae) is described based on specimens collected from marine waters of Karwar, Karnataka, India. At present, there are 11 valid and accepted species excluding one extinct species (fossil) in this genus which are widely distributed in fresh and brackishwater areas in the tropics and subtropics. Five valid species of Apocyclops are reported from the Asian region, including two species from India. The new species is closer to the previously reported Indian species, A. royi (Lindberg) and A. dengizicus dengizicus (Lepeshkin). Apocyclops cmfri sp. nov. differs from these in the size of caudal rami, in the characteristic shape of disto-medial part of coxa and basis of first to fourth pleopods (P1-P4) and in the presence of a single broad spinous expansion with a pointed tip in between exopod and endopod in basis of P1 to P4. Only one terminal spine is present in the second segment of endopod of P1. In P2 to P4, both exopod and endopod terminate in a spine and a seta of almost equal size. Maxillule highly dentate and maxilla basis form a large dentate claw with inner serration. All these characters form distinct identification features of the new species in comparison with the 12 accepted species under the genus. A key to all the species of the genus including the newly described species is proposed here. Molecular identification of the new species was carried out by mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase 1 (CO1) gene sequencing and the sequence was submitted to NCBI, GenBank. Genetic differentiation and divergence between A. cmfri sp. nov. and species belonging to other closely related genera; Thermocyclops, Mesocyclops and Eucyclops were compared using CO1 gene sequences. The new species belonging to Apocyclops showed significant divergence from Apocyclops borneoensis with K2P value of 10.2% and from species under the genera Mesocyclops, Thermocyclops and Eucyclops with K2P values of 26.6, 27.5and 34.9% respectively

GaAs:Mn nanowires grown by molecular beam epitaxy of (Ga,Mn)As at MnAs segregation conditions

GaAs:Mn nanowires were obtained on GaAs(001) and GaAs(111)B substrates by molecular beam epitaxial growth of (Ga,Mn)As at conditions leading to MnAs phase separation. Their density is proportional to the density of catalyzing MnAs nanoislands, which can be controlled by the Mn flux and/or the substrate temperature. Being rooted in the ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga,Mn)As, the nanowires combine one-dimensional properties with the magnetic properties of (Ga,Mn)As and provide natural, self assembled structures for nanospintronics.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figure

Inference Engine Based on a Hierarchical Structure for Detecting Everyday Activities within the Home

One of the key objectives of an ambient assisted living environment is to enable elderly people to lead a healthy and independent life. These assisted environments have the capability to capture and infer activities performed by individuals, which can be useful for providing assistance and tracking functional decline among the elderly community. This paper presents an activity recognition engine based on a hierarchal structure, which allows modelling, representation and recognition of ADLs, their associated tasks, objects, relationships and dependencies. The structure of this contextual information plays a vital role in conducting accurate ADL recognition. The recognition performance of the inference engine has been validated with a series of experiments based on object usage data collected within the home environment

EP4 receptor stimulation down-regulates human eosinophil function

Accumulation of eosinophils in tissue is a hallmark of allergic inflammation. Here we observed that a selective agonist of the PGE2 receptor EP4, ONO AE1-329, potently attenuated the chemotaxis of human peripheral blood eosinophils, upregulation of the adhesion molecule CD11b and the production of reactive oxygen species. These effects were accompanied by the inhibition of cytoskeletal rearrangement and Ca2+ mobilization. The involvement of the EP4 receptor was substantiated by a selective EP4 antagonist, which reversed the inhibitory effects of PGE2 and the EP4 agonist. Selective kinase inhibitors revealed that the inhibitory effect of EP4 stimulation on eosinophil migration depended upon activation of PI 3-kinase and PKC, but not cAMP. Finally, we found that EP4 receptors are expressed by human eosinophils, and are also present on infiltrating leukocytes in inflamed human nasal mucosa. These data indicate that EP4 agonists might be a novel therapeutic option in eosinophilic diseases