Spheres of Influence Media as Public Sphere

Having a vibrant media scene is a necessary prerequisite to human development and good governance. But, the time has come for us, media practitioners and support organisations, to accept and recognise that this is too complex to bring about on our own. It would be prudent to recognise the limitations of our sector, and create appropriate evaluation and impact assessment tools. The existing tools and methodologies are devised to give a macro picture of the overall environments but fail to clearly demarcate the roles played by various actors: State, Judiciary, Executive, Civil Society and Media. Media is just one contributing factor, albeit an important one at that. Hence, it is imperative to track the spheres of influence wielded by the sector so that support organisations are not misled into tracking and measuring overall environments while attempting to quantify the impact that media support organisations have in the process of change

From Books to Bytes - The Instructor Toolkit

"This guide will provide the steps to collaborate with a librarian, access Books to Bytes learning modules, and utilize instructional strategies and assessment techniques to best present the content in this learning series. The learning modules in the Books to Bytes series have been created with accessibility and inclusive teaching principles in mind.

Oxidative intramolecular cyclization reactions of Cinnamayl ethers mediated by cerium (IV) ammonium nitrate (CAN): a stereoselective synthesis of 3,4-trans-disubstitutedtetrahydrofuran derivatives

Various alkoxy-cinnamyl cinnamyl ethers and an alkoxy-cinnamyl prenyl ether underwent stereoselective oxidative cyclizations on treatment with a methanolic solution of cerium(IV) ammonium nitrate to afford 3,4-trans- disubstituted tetrahydrofuran derivatives. Different products were obtained under aerobic and anaerobic conditions

DISCOSOMES: A FUTURISTIC UPHEAVAL IN VESICULAR DRUG DELIVERY

The formulation system employed to convey pharmaceutical drugs compound in the body to attain the desired therapeutic effect at a predetermined rate depending on pharmacological aspects, drug profile, and physiological conditions can be referred to as a novel drug delivery system (NDDS). Due to the intricately sensitive anatomy and physiology of the eye pharmacologist find the ocular delivery system to be more involuted than other routes. Pre-corneal, static and dynamic is the 3 types of ophthalmic barriers, which along with the inflow and outflow of lacrimal fluids, nasolacrimal drainage, are some of the germane factors that affect bioavailability. Unlike conventional dosage forms, where the distribution of drugs in non-targeted body fluids and tissues transcends the quantity of required drug in targeted tissues and causes repercussions, these modified drug delivery systems surpass the ocular barriers and adverse reactions, emphasizing on less invasive, prolonged action. It also promotes sustained release formulation that subjugates the drug loss or degradation to treat many ocular diseases effectively. The current review recapitulates the fundamentals of discosomes, a type of vesicular drug delivery system that acts as a vehicle for the drug delivery of both hydrophilic and lipophilic drugs. Discosomes are giant, disc-shaped structures modified from niosomes by arresting the vesicles at the discosome phase. Due to their idiosyncratic size, it provides all due benefits compared to other ocular drug delivery systems. From the review, it can be culminated that discosomes are a potential subject of opposition and opportunities in the arena of safe and effective ocular drug delivery

Antiproliferative effects of total alkaloid extract of roots of Chassalia curviflora (Wall.) Thwaites on cancer cell lines

389-395Chassalia curviflora is used in folklore medicines for treating several ailments and infections owing to its anti-inflammatory properties. Though the plant has been reported to possess anti-inflammatory antihepatotoxic and analgesic activities, its anticancer potential has not been studied so far. In the present study, we investigated the antiproliferative effects of the total alkaloids isolated from the roots of C. curviflora. The total alkaloid was validated by MTT assay in three cancer cell lines, such as liver cancer cell line-A549, breast cancer cell line-MCF-7 and ovarian cancer cell line -HeLa. Significant antiproliferative effect (IC50 value 3.59±0.14*** µg/mL) was observed in A549 cells, and was taken for further studies. Cell cycle analysis showed that the cells got arrested in sub G0 phase and annexin V-FITC assay revealed that 27.4% cells were in early apoptosis and 7% cells in late apoptosis. The study revealed that the total alkaloids of Chassalia curviflora roots possess significant antiproliferative and apoptotic activity

FORMULATION AND EVALUATION OF LORAZEPAM ENCAPSULATED COLLAGEN/PECTIN BUCCAL PATCH

Objective: To formulate and characterize Lorazepam loaded buccal patches using mucoadhesive, biodegradable, natural polymers-pectin (hydrophilic) and collagen (lipophilic) for treating epileptic seizures. Methods: Lorazepam loaded buccal patches were prepared by solvent casting method and were subjected to various Physico-chemical evaluation parameters to find the optimized buccal patch. The in vitro drug release study and ex vivo permeation study was carried out. The stability study and histopathological study of optimized Lorazepam loaded buccal patch was also carried out. Results: From in vitro drug release study, it was found that Lorazepam loaded buccal patch (B4) exhibited maximum drug release of 96.16 %±0.07 than other formulations at the end of 4 h, indicating an initial burst release followed by sustained release with release kinetics as Higuchi diffusion model. Based on the in vitro drug release, % drug content, % swelling index, folding endurance, B4 formulation was considered as optimised formulation and was further characterized. Ex vivo permeation study revealed that the cumulative amount of drug permeated from optimised Lorazepam loaded buccal patch (B4) was higher (3831.4±0.21µg/cm2) than marketed Midazolam buccal solution (1724±0.12 µg/cm2) and control drug solution (895.42±0.07 µg/cm2) with an enhancement ratio of 4.8. B4 formulation also showed a higher flux value (12.52±0.02µg/cm2/hr) compared to marketed formulation (5.732±0.01 µg/cm2) and control drug solution (2.563±0.03 µg/cm2) of P<0.05. The histopathological study using bovine buccal mucosa revealed that the B4 formulation is safe for buccal application. The stability study confirmed that B4 formulation is stable in both room and refrigeration conditions. Hence the formulated Lorazepam loaded buccal patch seems to be a promising carrier for the enhanced buccal delivery of Lorazepam in treating epileptic seizures. Conclusion: The formulated Lorazepam loaded collagen/pectin buccal patch was found to be an efficient and stable route for the buccal delivery of Lorazepam in treating acute epileptic seizures which could be further explored scientifically

CRYPTOSOMES: A REVOLUTIONARY BREAKTHROUGH IN NOVEL DRUG DELIVERY

The vesicular drug delivery systems are promising approaches to overthrown the problems of drugs having lesser bioavailability and rapid elimination from the body. The four type of lipid based drug delivery systems are: solid-lipid particulate system, emulsion based system, solid lipid tablet and vesicular system. Cryptosomes, a novel emerging vesicular drug delivery system which can overcome the disadvantages associated with conventional drug delivery systems like high stability, increased bioavailability, sustained release, decreased elimination of rapidly metabolizable drugs etc. The word Cryptosome was orginated from Greek word ‘’Crypto’’ means hidden and ‘’Soma’’ means body. It is formed from the mixture of phospholipids like distearoyl phosphatidyl ethanolamine-polyethylene glycol (DSPE-PEG) with distearoylphosphatidylcholine. These entire information regarding its origin and formation is explained in Dinesh Kumar et al. Vesicular systems symbolizes the use of vesicles in the different fields as carrier system or additives. This review disclose various vesicular drug delivery system and point out the advancement of cryptosome in the world of drug delivery. This review would help researchers involved in the field of vesicular drug delivery

PORPHYSOMES-A PARADIGM SHIFT IN TARGETED DRUG DELIVERY

A novel drug delivery system is the one that ensures optimum dose at the right time, at the right location. Porphysomes are among those drug delivery systems. Porphysomes are a means of vesicular drug delivery systems. They are liposome-like structures composed completely of porphyrin lipid. The porphysomes encapsulates the active medicament in vesicular structure. They are having an aqueous core which can be loaded with the medicament. They have the capacity to destroy the disease tissues. They absorb the heat in the near infrared region and release this heat to destroy the diseased tissues. Porphysomes are having immense applications in the field of positron-electron therapy (PET), photoacoustic imaging, photothermal therapy etc. This review article discusses regarding the Porphysome-the drug delivery system, its advantages and disadvantages, composition, method of preparation, applications and various aspects related to the porphysomal drug delivery

Status of marine fish stock assessment in India and development of a sustainability index

India has a coastline of 8129 km. Landings by commercial fishing vessels takes place at 1332 centres during day and night by 58,911 mechanized craft, 75,591 motorized (with outboard engine) and 104,270 traditional craft (CMFRI, 2006). Marine fisheries are an important source of food, employment and foreign exchange. About one million people work directly in this sector, producing 3 million tonnes annually valued at about 3 billion US $at production level (CMFRI, 2007). India earns 1.6 billion US$ by exporting fish and fishery products. India is among the top ten fish producing countries of the world, contributing 3.5% to the total world marine fish production. Concerned about the status of marine fish stocks in the Indian EEZ, the country has put in place appropriate institutional mechanisms to monitor and forecast fishery yields for the last 25 year

Report of Xanthid crab Lophozozymous incisus (H. Mille Edwards, 1834) from the gut of Humpback red snapper Lutjanus gibbus

Two specimens of Lophozozymous incisus were collected from the gut of Humpback red snapper Lutjanus gibbus caught in hooks and lines off Cochin. L. incisus belongs to Family Xanthidae, the largest family of brachyuran crabs. The crab has only been reported from Angrias Bank, Maharashtra and Orissa coast. This is the first report from the southern waters