Microbial contamination of cosmetics and the pharmaceutical products, and their preservation strategies: A comprehensive review

A brief discussion of the numerous types of microbial contamination of the pharmaceutical and cosmetic items and their corresponding effects is attempted in this study. The pharmaceutical and cosmetic products are particularly vulnerable to microbial contamination, because they contain chemical compounds that encourage the microbial development. Contamination can potentially happen during production; storage, and/ or usage. These contaminants can cause a variety of unfavorable effects, including alteration of the consistency and appearance; phase separation, alteration or loss of activity, and even the emergence of toxicity in the contaminated items. Organizations such as the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) actively regulate the consumer safety by frequently recalling the potentially dangerous or contaminated products from the market. Therefore, to prevent microbial contamination and increase the shelf life of a product, a variety of preservatives are added to the final formulation. However, some of these preservatives may be toxic to the consumer as well. In this context, we have also reviewed the mechanisms of action of some of the most commonly used antimicrobial preservatives, including the organic acids; parabens, phenol, organomercurials, ethanol, chlorobutanol, benzalkonium chloride, chlorocresol, sodium benzoate, isothiazolinones, sodium sulfite, and sodium metabisulfite, in addition to the potential toxicity caused by them to the consumers

Consolidation of Concepts in the Visually Challenged and the Sighted Individuals with Special Reference to Onomatopoeic Words

AbstractConcept formation is fundamental to human cognition as we understand object, people and events through concepts. It turns out that many properties of concepts are found in word meaning and use, suggesting that meanings are psychologically represented through the conceptual system. How words are interpreted by other speakers play an important role in language acquisition and communication. Language acquisition and interpretation of utterances also involve coordination of visual stimuli such as gesture and facial expressions. In this paper we have explored how meanings are assigned to onomatopoeic words by the adolescents having different degrees of visual impairment

Singular Propositions and their Negations in Diagrams

Abstract — This paper deals with the visual representation of negation involving particular propositions. The underlying consideration depends on the three basic desirable aspects of visual representation viz. simplicity, visual clarity and expressiveness [9]. For incorporation of constants in diagrams we discuss Venn-i (2004), Swoboda’s diagrams (2005) and Spider diagrams with constants (2005). We also discuss representation of negation in these diagrams. To depict negation in Venn-i the concept of absence is brought in from the conceptual schema of Indian philosophy. The advantage of Venn-i over spider diagram is discussed. The notion of absence naturally calls for the concept of an open universe. A brief discussion on open universe is presented at the end. Keywords- singular propositions, negation, absence, simplicity, open universe I

Molecular characterization and expression analysis of interferon γ (IFN-γ) gene in Labeo rohita (Ham.)

Genes coding for interferon γ (IFN-γ) has been cloned and studied for functional analysis in many species. Labeo rohita commonly known as rohu, is a commercially important and widely cultured fish in South-East Asia. IFN-γ of rohu was amplified with primers based on conserved regions of other related species. 5′ and 3′ end were amplified using RACE PCR. The PCR products were cloned and sequenced. The sequence analysis of IFN-γ revealed that the genomic sequence consists of 1803 bp with 3 introns and 4 exons. An ORF of 552 nucleotides encodes for a protein of 183 amino acids. Matured IFN-γ protein has 157 amino acids with a signal peptide of 26 amino acids. Mature protein has a molecular weight of 18.7 kDa. Four RNA instability regions (ATTA) and one polyadenylation signal (AATAAA) were seen in 3′ UTR region. IFN-γ signature sequence, one glycosylation site and nuclear localisation region were also observed. Intron splicing motif (ag/gt) was observed in genomic DNA. The gene sequence shows high similarity with that of Cyprinus carpio. The expression analysis for IFN-γ in kidney, spleen, liver and gill was done by Real Time PCR. Expression of IFN-γ was more in spleen compared to gill, liver and kidney. Cultured kidney cells were induced with poly I:C and samples were collected at 2, 8, 24 and 48 h post-induction to study the effect on poly I:C of expression of IFN-γ. IFN-γ expression increased 30 fold at 2 h post- induction and increased further till 24 h

Measurement of the branching fractions for Cabibbo-suppressed decays D+→K+K−π+π0D^{+}\to K^{+} K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0} and D(s)+→K+π−π+π0D_{(s)}^{+}\to K^{+}\pi^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0} at Belle

International audienceWe present measurements of the branching fractions for the singly Cabibbo-suppressed decays $D^+\to K^{+}K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0}$ and $D_s^{+}\to K^{+}\pi^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0}$, and the doubly Cabibbo-suppressed decay $D^{+}\to K^{+}\pi^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0}$, based on 980 ${\rm fb}^{-1}$ of data recorded by the Belle experiment at the KEKB $e^{+}e^{-}$ collider. We measure these modes relative to the Cabibbo-favored modes $D^{+}\to K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{+}\pi^{0}$ and $D_s^{+}\to K^{+}K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0}$. Our results for the ratios of branching fractions are $B(D^{+}\to K^{+}K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0})/B(D^{+}\to K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{+}\pi^{0}) = (11.32 \pm 0.13 \pm 0.26)\%$, $B(D^{+}\to K^{+}\pi^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0})/B(D^{+}\to K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{+}\pi^{0}) = (1.68 \pm 0.11\pm 0.03)\%$, and $B(D_s^{+}\to K^{+}\pi^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0})/B(D_s^{+}\to K^{+}K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0}) = (17.13 \pm 0.62 \pm 0.51)\%$, where the uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively. The second value corresponds to $(5.83\pm 0.42)\times\tan^4\theta_C$, where $\theta_C$ is the Cabibbo angle; this value is larger than other measured ratios of branching fractions for a doubly Cabibbo-suppressed charm decay to a Cabibbo-favored decay. Multiplying these results by world average values for $B(D^{+}\to K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{+}\pi^{0})$ and $B(D_s^{+}\to K^{+}K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0})$ yields $B(D^{+}\to K^{+}K^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0})= (7.08\pm 0.08\pm 0.16\pm 0.20)\times10^{-3}$, $B(D^{+}\to K^{+}\pi^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0})= (1.05\pm 0.07\pm 0.02\pm 0.03)\times10^{-3}$, and $B(D_s^{+}\to K^{+}\pi^{-}\pi^{+}\pi^{0}) = (9.44\pm 0.34\pm 0.28\pm 0.32)\times10^{-3}$, where the third uncertainty is due to the branching fraction of the normalization mode. The first two results are consistent with, but more precise than, the current world averages. The last result is the first measurement of this branching fraction