The Art of Knowledge Exchange: A Results-Focused Planning Guide for Development Practitioners

Designing and implementing knowledge exchange initiatives can be a big undertaking. This guide takes the guesswork out of the process by breaking it down into simple steps and providing tools to help you play a more effective role as knowledge connector and learning facilitator

(SI10-083) Approximate Controllability of Infinite-delayed Second-order Stochastic Differential Inclusions Involving Non-instantaneous Impulses

This manuscript investigates a broad class of second-order stochastic differential inclusions consisting of infinite delay and non-instantaneous impulses in a Hilbert space setting. We first formulate a new collection of sufficient conditions that ensure the approximate controllability of the considered system. Next, to investigate our main findings, we utilize stochastic analysis, the fundamental solution, resolvent condition, and Dhage’s fixed point theorem for multi-valued maps. Finally, an application is presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the obtained results

Assessment of Metabolic Parameters For Autism Spectrum Disorders

Autism is a brain development disorder that first appears during infancy or childhood, and generally follows a steady course without remission. Impairments result from maturation-related changes in various systems of the brain. Autism is one of the five pervasive developmental disorders (PDD), which are characterized by widespread abnormalities of social interactions and communication, and severely restricted interests and highly repetitive behavior. The reported incidence of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) has increased markedly over the past decade. The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has recently estimated the prevalence of ASDs in the United States at approximately 5.6 per 1000 (1 of 155 to 1 of 160) children. Several metabolic defects, such as phenylketonuria, are associated with autistic symptoms. In deciding upon the appropriate evaluation scheme a clinician must consider a host of different factors. The guidelines in this article have been developed to assist the clinician in the consideration of these factors

Acute toxicity and behavioural responses of a freshwater mussel Lamellidens marginalis (Lamarck) to dimethoate exposure

Dimethoate is a commonly used organophosphate pesticide (OP) in agricultural practices, from where they reach into natural freshwater bodies through surface run-off, affecting the life of non-target aquatic organisms. Molluscs accumulate contaminants in their body tissues and thus are used as bio-indicator for evaluating water quality and habitat degradation. The mussels have great economic value, since they are consumed as food and have therapeutic significance. In this study 96h static acute toxicity test was carried out for dimethoate in freshwater mussel, Lamellidens marginalis. The mussels were exposed to 8 different concentrations of dimethoate (35.00, 37.00, 39.00, 41.00, 43.00, 45.00, 47.00, and 49.00 mg L-1) and control (00.00 mg L-1). The mortality data were subjected to EPA Probit analysis (version 1.5) statistical software based on Finney’s method. The 24, 48, 72 and 96h LC50 values of dimethoate for freshwater mussel were determined as 45.09, 40.52, 38.71 and 36.35 mg L-1 respectively. Mussels show behavioural responses during exposure by exhibiting increase in duration for shell closure, increase in mucus secretion and decrease in oxygen consumption

Clastogenicity of sugar factory effluent using Allium assay

In the current study, an attempt was made to assess the physicochemical parameters of distillery effluent and its cytotoxic effects on root tip cells of onion (Allium cepa L.). The Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) and Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) were found to be very high in the effluent. The onion bulbs were treated with different concentrations of the distillery effluent (25, 50, 75 and 100%) at room temperature. The percentage mitotic index and relative division rate were found to be decreased significantly as the concentration of the effluent increased. On the other hand, mitotic inhibition percentage and relative abnormality rate were found to increase as the effluent concentration increased. The chromosomal abnormalities were found to be increased as the concentration of the effluent increased when compared to the control. The observed chromosomal abnormalities include sticky metaphase, disturbed chromosome, sticky telophase, multipolar chromosome, laggards, fragmented metaphase, fragmented anaphase, scattered anaphase and chromosomal bridge. From the present study, it can be concluded that higher concentrations of the effluent inhibit cell division when compared to the control.Â

Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis mimicking late CNS relapse of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia: case report

BACKGROUND: Acute encephalomyelopathy occurring after an allogeneic bone marrow transplant for leukaemia is a diagnostic emergency. The diagnosis can be challenging since there is a wide set of alternative diagnoses, including opportunistic infections and relapse of the leukaemia. CASE PRESENTATION: A 13-year old girl presented with a severe acute myelopathy and encephalopathy. She was in prolonged remission from a central nervous system and bone marrow relapse of an acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, treated with allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. Neuroimaging showed multifocal grey and white matter lesions of demyelinating appearance in the brain and entire spine. Immunophenotyping and cytogenetic investigations of the girl's cerebrospinal fluid lymphocytosis excluded a late central nervous system relapse of her leukaemia. The diagnosis was acute disseminated encephalomyelitis. With standard immunosuppressive therapy, the girl had early cerebral recovery but a prolonged period of recovery from her myelopathy. CONCLUSION: Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of acute encephalomyelopathy after bone marrow transplantation for leukaemia. Demyelinating syndromes such as acute disseminated encephalomyelitis may be late sequelae of bone marrow transplantation

A Zone Based Approach for Classification and Recognition Of Telugu Handwritten Characters

Realization of high accuracies and efficiencies in South Indian character recognition systems is one of the principle goals to be attempted time after time so as to promote the usage of optical character recognition (OCR) for South Indian languages like Telugu. The process of character recognition comprises pre-processing, segmentation, feature extraction, classification and recognition. The feature extraction stage is meant for uniquely recognizing each character image for the purpose of classifying it. The selection of a feature extraction algorithm is very critical and important for any image processing application and mostly of the times it is directly proportional to the type of the image objects that we have to identify. For optical technologies like South Indian OCR, the feature extraction technique plays a very vital role in accuracy of recognition due to the huge character sets. In this work we mainly focus on evaluating the performance of various feature extraction techniques with respect to Telugu character recognition systems and analyze its efficiencies and accuracies in recognition of Telugu character set

Behavioral problems in children with steroid-sensitive nephrotic syndrome: An ignored aspect!

Background: Nephrotic syndrome (NS) is a common chronic renal disorder in children. Oral glucocorticoids are required in high doses for prolonged periods adding to various comorbidities including psychosocial issues and behavioral problems. Objectives: This study was done to analyze the behavioral profile of children with steroid-sensitive NS (SSNS), also its association with other factors such as mothers’ education, socioeconomic status, and age distribution. Materials and Methods: This was a questionnaire (child behavior checklist)-based cross-sectional study conducted at a tertiary care center. Children from 6 to 15 years with diagnosis of SSNS for the duration of 1 year or more were included in the study. Cases were divided into two groups: Infrequent and frequent relapsing NS (IFRNS)/steroid-dependent NS (SDNS). Equal number of children in 6–15 years age group attending outpatient clinic was taken as controls. Results: Children with SSNS (n=161) had behavioral problems in significant percentage (39.13%) compared to the control group (8.75%). It was observed more in boys (73.02%) who had more hyperactive, aggressive behavior, and externalizing problems. Internalizing problems (anxious/depressed, withdrawn/depressed, and somatic complaints) were significantly more in the study group (17.39%) as compared to none in the control group. Children with FRNS/SDNS course had more significant problems compared to relapse IFRNS group. Age distribution, socioeconomic status, and mother’s education had no significant effect on its occurrence. Conclusion: Significant behavioral problems are observed in children with SSNS and are related to the type of SSNS

COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF THE EFFICACY OF THREE ANTI-OXIDANTS VS NAOCL AND EDTA: USED FOR ROOT CANAL IRRIGATION IN SMEAR LAYER REMOVAL–SEM STUDY

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of 3 Anti-Oxidants versus NaOCl and EDTA: used for root canal irrigation in smear layer removal by SEM analysis.Methods: Root canal treatment was performed on 100 single rooted teeth and the smear layer removing abilities of Neem, Triphala, Amla EDTA and Saline were checked by using them as the last irrigant.Results: EDTA and Amla showed the best smear layer removing ability followed by Neem and Triphala. Conclusion: Neem, Triphala and Amla showed the potential to remove the smear layer. EDTA showed the maximum efficacy in removing the smear layer.Â