A bibliography of parasites and diseases of marine and freshwater fishes of India

With the increasing demand for fish as human food, aquaculture both in freshwater and salt water is rapidly developing over the world. In the developing countries, fishes are being raised as food. In many countries fish farming is a very important economic activity. The most recent branch, mariculture, has shown advances in raising fishes in brackish, estuarine and bay waters, in which marine, anadromous and catadromous fishes have successfully been grown and maintained

Quantitation of HIV-1 RNA levels in plasma and CSF of asymptomatic HIV-1 infected patients from South India using a TaqMan real time PCR assay

Background Most of the quantitation assays for HIV-1 RNA used currently are designed and optimized for HIV-1 subtype B viruses and hence may not be suitable for India, where the predominant subtype is HIV-1 subtype C. Objectives Development and standardization of HIV-1 TaqMan real time PCR assay suitable for measuring plasma and CSF viral RNA levels in HIV subtype C infected individuals. Study design A TaqMan real time PCR was developed using primers and probes selected in the gag region for detection of Indian HIV-1 subtype C strain. Plasma (n = 120) and CSF samples (n = 46) obtained from HIV infected subjects were used to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of the assay. A comparative evaluation was carried out with a commercially available quantitative HIV viral load assay (Roche Amplicor Version 1.5). Results The TaqMan assay was able to amplify all HIV-1 group M subtypes except subtype E. Viral loads could be estimated in all the plasma (n = 120) and 40/46 CSF samples obtained from HIV positive subjects. Sensitivity of this assay was found to be 180 copies/ml. Correlation with the commercially available viral load assay was very good (r = 0.885). Conclusions A TaqMan real time PCR was standardized for HIV-1 subtype C and it was more sensitive (180 copies/ml) than standard Amplicor monitor assay, Version 1.5 (400 copies/ml)

Quality of life in HIV subtype C infection among asymptomatic subjects and its association with CD4 counts and viral loads--a study from South India.

OBJECTIVE: To study the association between quality of life (QOL) domains and biological markers of disease progression of HIV infection, i.e. viral load (VL) and CD4 counts among asymptomatic subjects with HIV subtype C infection in South India. DESIGN: Quality of life was measured using the locally validated version of the WHOQOL HIV-BREF. The subjects were neurologically asymptomatic, non psychiatrically ill HIV infected men and women participating in a cohort study. RESULTS: The results indicated mixed findings, with some QOL dimensions being associated with high VLs and low CD4 counts while several others did not show any associations. Significant associations were seen between low CD4 counts and the psychological and social relationships domain, with lower mean scores in these domains being reported by subjects having CD4 counts \u3c200/mm. However, there were no significant differences between the CD4 subgroups for the domains related to physical health, level of independence, environment, and spirituality domains. Significant lower mean QOL scores were found in the highest VL subgroup compared to other groups for the following WHOQOL HIV-BREF domains: physical, psychological, level of independence, and environmental. CONCLUSIONS: In this sample of HAART naïve asymptomatic HIV infected subjects, some QOL dimensions were associated with the biological markers of disease progression i.e. VL and CD4 counts, while several were not. The associations were significant only in the high VL and low CD4 groups

Cognitive changes in asymptomatic drug-naïve human immunodeficiency virus type 1 clade C infection

Asymptomatic human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is associated with impaired cognitive functioning in both clade B and C infections. The nature of cognitive change longitudinally has not been studied in asymptomatic clade C infection. The present study evaluated changes in neuropsychological functioning over a 21/2-year period in a cohort of HIV-1 clade C-infected asymptomatic individuals from South India. Participants with CD4 counts below 250 were started on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) as per National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) guidelines and hence excluded. The sample consisted of 68 patients (30 men and 38 women), with a mean age of 29.4 years (SD = 5.6 years) and a mean education of 10.0 years (SD =2.7 years). A comprehensive neuropsychological assessment with 12 tests yielding 21 variables was used to examine cognitive functioning at baseline and subsequently at 6-monthly intervals for five follow-ups. Shift in CD4 and viral load categories measured by the McNemar’s test indicated disease progression. Latent growth curve (LGC) modeling assessed the nature of change in cognition over the 21/2-year study period. Ten variables representing attention, executive functions, and long-term memory fit the LGC model. Excepting visual working memory, the slope was nonsignificant for nine variables, indicating absence of deterioration in cognition over a 21/2-year period. However, CD4 and viral load levels worsened, indicating disease progression. Asymptomatic individuals with HIV-1 clade C infection do not show any significant decline on individual neuropsychological functions over 21/2 years despite disease progression, as evidenced by immune suppression and viral loads

Neuropsychological deficits in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 clade C-seropositive adults from South India.

Most studies of cognitive functioning in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-seropositive (HIV-1+) subjects have been done in the United States and Europe, where clade B infections predominate. However, in other parts of the world such as South India, where clade C HIV is most common, the prevalence of HIV-1 is increasing. Standardized neuropsychological tests were used to assess cognitive functioning in a sample of 119 adults infected with clade C HIV-1 who were not on antiretroviral medications. The subjects did not have neurological or psychiatric illness and were functioning adequately. Neuropsychological test performance was compared with gender-, age-, and education-matched normative data derived from a sample of 540 healthy volunteers and a matched cohort of 126 healthy, HIV-1-seronegative individuals. Among the seropositive subjects, 60.5% had mild to moderate cognitive deficits characterized by deficits in the domains of fluency, working memory, and learning and memory. None of the subjects had severe cognitive deficits. The HIV-1+ sample was classified into groups according to the level of immune suppression as defined by CD4 count (\u3c 200, 201-499, and \u3e 500 cells/mm3) and viral load (\u3c 5000, 5001-30,000, 30,001-99,999, 100,000-1,000,000, and \u3e 1,000,001 copies). Although the most immunosuppressed group (CD4 count \u3c 200 cells/mm3 or viral load \u3e 1,000,001 copies) was small, their rate of impairment in visual working memory was greater when compared to groups with better immune functioning. Mild to moderate cognitive deficits can be identified on standardized neuropsychological tests in clade C-infected HIV-1+ adults who do not have any clinically identifiable functional impairment. The prevalence of cognitive deficits is similar to that reported in antiretroviral treatment-naïve individuals infected with clade B virus in the western world