Theatre and activism: the agit prop theatre way

Agit prop or agitational propaganda, as the very term implies, seeks to deliberately change people’s beliefs through well-planned strategies of persuasion, transformations of spectators into (spect)actors, and their subsequent mobilisation into agitating communities. Theatre is one of the channels of the agit prop. The emphasis on the deliberateness of the communication involved distinguishes this form of theatre from other forms of political theatre and from mere conversation. Many accusations have been levelled at agit prop theatre. Of these, the three primary ones are, first, that such theatre lacks artistic viability; second, that it is short-lived and works only in a certain historical context; and third, that it is only propaganda, not theatre. This paper challenges these accusations by investigating how agit prop theatre can evolve and undergo considerable artistic development to survive as good theatre and not just as good propaganda. Although agit prop does generally emerge in moments of crisis and in periods of revolutionary change, this does not imply that its value is erased once the moment passes. A good agit prop theatre company cannot, in fact, sustain itself on mere propaganda. As a case study, the paper will examine the work of the British forty-two year old Red Ladder Theatre Company. By examining in depth the specific aesthetic and dramaturgic ingredients that Red Ladder uses to achieve its aims, this article will demonstrate that artistic intent and application cannot be made subordinate to the revolutionary message, at least not for long

DEVELOPMENT OF COSMOCEUTICAL PRODUCTS FROM NANO-SIZED ACTIVE COLOUR CONSTITUENTS OF RATANJOT, SEABUCKTHORN AND ANNATTO

Objective: The objective of this research was to develop the nano-particles of natural colours from Ratanjot root, Seabuckthorn pulp, and Annatto seeds and use them in cosmetic products. Multiple herbs were used to have a good mix of active colour constituents and have a possibility to create a range of shades in the final cosmetic formulation without any side-effects. Further, with nano-sizing of the colour constituents, we aimed to obtain better activity and enhanced performance in the final product.Methods: The extraction of natural colours from herbal source was carried out under controlled conditions of temperature (max. 50 °C) and pressure (50-60 mm of Hg) to minimize the loss of actives during the process. The colour fractions separated by solvent fractionation were nano-sized by ultra-sonication using polyethylene glycol 400 as additive to distribute uniformly in the formulation. Active colour components were analyzed by HPLC and Lovibond Tintometer to maintain the colour strength in cosmetic formulation.Results: The nano-sizing of natural colour (purplish red dye from Ratanjot root, oil of Seabuckthorn pulp) has resulted in giving an excellent gloss, spreadability and prevention of skin damage due to their good anti-oxidant property. The goodness of Seabuckthorn oil has rendered a special effect of rejuvenating the skin cells to retain their elasticity.Conclusion: The promising results of these formulations have encouraged us to go for pilot trials to extend the study on animal and human subjects for the skin-penetration and kinetics of their healing power.Keywords: Bixa orellana, Arnebia nobilis, Hippophae rhamnoides, Herbal lipstick, Herbal lip balm, Body Massage oil, Cosmetics, Carotenoid

Consumers’ Preference Leading Purchase Intention toward Manipulation of Form and Transparency for Juice Packaging Design

Packaging plays a fundamental role on consumer’s intention to purchase, as it may be the first contact between the consumer and the product. The product packaging has a crucial role to attract consumer, force them to choose the product and act as a brand communication vehicle. The point of focus is how the elements of the package design affect consumer’s perceptions about products and brand. In this study, to understand the effect of package form and transparency on consumers’ pre-purchase preference of juice packaging, the participants (N=60) are asked to assess six designs against a 5-point Likert scale. The findings suggest that form and transparency in juice packaging have significant effect on consumers’ purchase intention. In addition, consumers give preference to functionality of the packaging than novelty while purchasing fruit juice product

One step Purification and Characterisation of Abrin Toxin from Abrus Precatorius Seeds

Abrin is a plant toxin obtained from Abrus precatorius seeds. It belongs to the type II ribosomal inactivating proteins (RIPs) consisting of two chains namely, catalytically active A chain and sugar binding B chain linked by a single disulphide bond.  Due to high toxicity of abrin, its exposure or consumption can lead to serious public health problems. In the present work, we have extracted and purified the abrin toxin from Abrus precatorius seeds. The toxin was purified using a single step anion exchange chromatography. The purified protein was characterized by SDS-PAGE and MALDI- TOF to confirm its purity. The toxicity of purified abrin toxin was also confirmed by injecting the toxin in mice.  The purified protein was further used to raise antibodies in mice and characterized by indirect Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay. The results of present study established the use of single step ion exchange chromatography to purify abrin toxin for further development of its detection system

STATUS OF SERUM MAGNESIUM, ZINC & COPPER IN PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM TYPE -2 DIABETES MELLITUS

Alterations in serum concentrations of several trace elements including copper, zinc, manganese, and the macroelement magnesium have been reported to occur in type-2 diabetes mellitus. This study is done to evaluate copper, zinc and magnesium status in diabetic and nondiabetic human subjects. In this comparative analysis, the serum concentration of copper, zinc and magnesium was estimated in 60 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus without complication and 40 healthy non-diabetic subjects.  The data was analyzed by students’t’ test and Pearson’s correlation coefficient test.Mean serum concentration of copper was significantly elevated in diabetic patients compared to control subjects.  Serum zinc levels were significantly low (p < 0.001) in diabetic subjects compared to controls . There were no significant differences in serum magnesium between groups. Fasting plasma glucose level has significant positive correlation with serum level of copper (r = 0.567; p < 0.001), while zinc has negative correlation (r = -0.311; p < 0.047), but there is no significant correlation of plasma glucose level with serum magnesium level. Diabetic patients have signiï¬cantly lower mean serum zinc levels and significantly higher serum copper concentration compared with healthy controls respectively. Along with antidiabetic therapy, supplementation of zinc and magnesium and chelation of copper can red

Functional Characterization of Ascorbate Peroxidase from Leishmania major

Parasites are organisms that live on other living organisms (hosts), such as animals and plants. Infections of humans caused by parasites are numerous and range from relatively innocuous to fatal. Despite advances in modern medicine parasitic diseases still constitute major human health problems throughout the world and thus have made parasite research extremely challenging. Medical parasitology traditionally has included the study of three major groups of pathogens: parasitic protozoa, parasitic helminths (worms), and those of arthropods. Protozoan parasites are unicellular organisms that cause a wide variety of diseases like malaria, trypanosomiasis, toxoplasmosis and leishmaniasis. Since the parasites generally reside within the blood or internal organs of the host, they have logistical problems in terms of infecting a new host. To overcome this, vector transmission is the strategy used by protozoan parasites (Fig. 1). This strategy involves a hematophogous (i.e., blood feeding) arthropod serving as an intermediary between successive vertebrate hosts. Table 1 lists several human diseases that are caused by parasitic protozoa and the corresponding arthropod vectors that transmits them. Figure 1: Phlebotomine sandfly. Leishmania uses the sandfly as a vector