A comparative study to establish the effect of homoeopathic Echinacea purpurea and conventional Nystatin on the growth of Candida albicans in vitro

M.Tech.(Homoeopathy)Please refer to full text to view abstrac

Resistance of two cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivars to Pythium ultimum Trow

Two commercial cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivars were tested for their relative susceptibility to the fungal seedling blight pathogen, Pythium ultimum Trow. Cotton plants grew in sterilized sand for eight days, and then were inoculated with the pathogen. The seedlings were incubated at 18 C, and after a seven day period disease severity was rated. \u27Dixie King 3\u27 was consistently more resistant to P. ultimum than \u27Delcot 277\u27. Nutrient status of the fungus affected its pathogenicity.Disease severity on cotton seedlings was greater when the fungus grew on potato dextrose agar (PDA) than when it grew on dilutePDA or water agar. Since the epidermal cell wall is the first physical barrier to invasion by a fungal pathogen, the two cultivars were compared for differences in cell wall thickness. There was no significant difference between the cultivars. Pythium ultimum was cultured on various substrates to test linear growth responses. No differences in growth rates were found when the fungus was cultured on water agar mixed with ground hypocotyl tissue of each cultivar. Gossypol, a terpenoid aldehyde, catechin, a polyphenol, and catechol, all previously implicated in plant resistance to other pathogens, were incorporated into culture media. Growth inhibition of P. ultimum occurred on such media containing catechol at 10 ppm and gossypol at 1,000 ppm. Catechin did not inhibit growth at1,000 ppm, the highest concentration tested. Cotton hypocotyl tissue was extracted and gossypol and catechin equivalents were measured with a spectrophotometer. Gossypol concentrations decreased in both cultivars after infection by P. ultimum . Concentrations of catechin equivalents increased threefold in thePythium-tolerant cultivar \u27Dixie King 3\u27 following infection, but decreased in the susceptible cultivar \u27Delcot 277\u27. This phytoalexin-like response in the resistant cultivar may be involved in cotton resistance to infection by Pythium ultimum

A study of the nature and origin of the minialbumins to be found in cadmium-poisoned animals

Cadmium, one of the trace metals, has, in the last two to three decades, become increasingly important in both industrial and biological fields. The recognition of cadmium as a serious health hazard has led to a closer examination of its properties and biochemical effects. Cadmium, an element of ata:nic number 48, atomic weight 112.41 and valency 2, is a soft 'White lustrous metal belonging to the second sub-group of the Periodic Table. It has a boiling point of 768°c, melting point of 321°0, is remarkably volatile for a heavy metal, and exists naturaly as a mixture of eight isotopes, constituting 2 x 10-5% of the earth's crust. Extraction of cadmium is by distillation from zinc ores. The electron configuration of cadmium is 4d105s2, and it forms simple bipositive cations only. There are no ligand field stabilization effects in cadmium ions, and the stereochemistry is, therefore, determined solely by size and electrostatic and covalent bonding forces.s Cadmium chloride shows octahedral co-ordination

Targeting cyclin-dependent kinase 1 (CDK1) but not CDK4/6 or CDK2 is selectively lethal to MYC-dependent human breast cancer cells

Background Although MYC is an attractive therapeutic target for breast cancer treatment, it has proven challenging to inhibit MYC directly, and clinically effective pharmaceutical agents targeting MYC are not yet available. An alternative approach is to identify genes that are synthetically lethal in MYC-dependent cancer. Recent studies have identified several cell cycle kinases as MYC synthetic-lethal genes. We therefore investigated the therapeutic potential of specific cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibition in MYC-driven breast cancer. Methods Using small interfering RNA (siRNA), MYC expression was depleted in 26 human breast cancer cell lines and cell proliferation evaluated by BrdU incorporation. MYC-dependent and MYC-independent cell lines were classified based on their sensitivity to siRNA-mediated MYC knockdown. We then inhibited CDKs including CDK4/6, CDK2 and CDK1 individually using either RNAi or small molecule inhibitors, and compared sensitivity to CDK inhibition with MYC dependence in breast cancer cells. Results Breast cancer cells displayed a wide range of sensitivity to siRNA-mediated MYC knockdown. The sensitivity was correlated with MYC protein expression and MYC phosphorylation level. Sensitivity to siRNA-mediated MYC knockdown did not parallel sensitivity to the CDK4/6 inhibitor PD0332991; instead MYC-independent cell lines were generally sensitive to PD0332991. Cell cycle arrest induced by MYC knockdown was accompanied by a decrease in CDK2 activity, but inactivation of CDK2 did not selectively affect the viability of MYC-dependent breast cancer cells. In contrast, CDK1 inactivation significantly induced apoptosis and reduced viability of MYC-dependent cells but not MYC- independent cells. This selective induction of apoptosis by CDK1 inhibitors was associated with up-regulation of the pro-apoptotic molecule BIM and was p53-independent. Conclusions Overall, these results suggest that further investigation of CDK1 inhibition as a potential therapy for MYC-dependent breast cancer is warranted.</p

The nature and origin of the minialbumin found in cadmium-poisoned animals

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Going Global: GIS Day(s) 2020

GIS Day, a traditional drop-in and interactive event to promote and celebrate geospatial technology, is recognized by most if not all OCUL institutions. This year, the event went digital, thanks to Western University Library and several OCUL institututions, organizations, and over 30 volunteers, and 47 presenters.&nbsp; This article summarizes the planning, delivery and execution of this event.&nbsp; &nbsp

A biochemical study of the minialbumin to be found in the urine of men and animals poisoned by cadmium

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Contraceptive Behavior in the Western Chitwan Valley of Nepal: Effects of Season, Natural Resource Responsibility, Women's Status, and Accessibility of Family Planning Services

The main objective of this study was to examine the potential for a host of contextual factors at multiple levels (including season, natural resource responsibility, women's status, and service accessibility) to affect contraceptive behavior and fertility in the Western Chitwan Valley of Nepal. This question was addressed using data from the Chitwan Valley Family Study, a long running and data intensive data collection effort based at the Population Studies Center at the University of Michigan. This dissertation found evidence to support the hypothesis that unmet need for contraception and past contraceptive discontinuation are both significantly related to and interact to affect future fertility and contraceptive behavior. It was also found that there were seasonal patterns in contraceptive use in the Western Chitwan Valley, suggesting that the monsoon was a particularly vulnerable time for potential and actual contraceptive users. Finally this research concludes that women's status, natural resource responsibility, and accessibility of services have the potential to interact to affect contraceptive behavior. Overall it can be concluded from this dissertation research that contextual factors directly affect and interact to affect contraceptive behavior. This research demonstrates that multiple factors have the potential to interact both within (such as individual unmet need and contraceptive histories) and across (such as season and natural resource responsibility) levels of contextual hierarchies to influence contraceptive use dynamics. This more thorough contextual understanding of contraceptive behavior in Nepal provides insights into some of the barriers to contraceptive use in this setting, such as seasonal disruption in contraceptive use, which have never before been examined. This dissertation also represents a wider and more unique line of inquiry into the broader contextual influences on behavior than is currently represented in the literature on contraceptive use dynamics