Re-enterant efficiency of phototaxis in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cells

Phototaxis is one of the most fundamental stimulus-response behaviors in biology wherein motile micro-organisms sense light gradients to swim towards the light source. Apart from single cell survival and growth, it plays a major role at the global scale of aquatic ecosystem and bio-reactors. We study photoaxis of single celled algae Chalmydomonas reinhardtii as a function of cell number density and light stimulus using high spatio-temporal video microscopy. Surprisingly, the phototactic efficiency has a minimum at a well-defined number density, for a given light gradient, above which the phototaxis behaviour of collection of cells can even exceed the performance obtainable from single isolated cells. We show that the origin of enhancement of performance above the critical concentration lies in the slowing down of the cells which enables them to sense light more effectively. We also show that this steady state phenomenology is well captured by a modelling the phototactic response as a density dependent torque acting on an active Brownian particle

Previous two lower segment caesarean section with placenta previa and placenta accreta woman with COVID-19 suspect: case report

A pregnant woman with gravida 3, para 2, living 2 and gestational age of 37 weeks and 3 days was referred to a zonal hospital as previous two lower segment caesarean section (LSCS) term pregnancy with placenta previa for safe confinement with complaints of dry cough. She was admitted with a diagnosis of COVID-19 suspect. During her hospitalization, oxygen (O2) saturation was normal. On investigations her counts were normal. Patient was planned for elective LSCS. COVID-19 test i.e. real time-polymerase chain reaction (RTPCR) report was suspect and asked for repeat sampling. During elective LSCS, delivered single live female baby with intra operative findings of placenta previa with adherent placenta and permpartum hysterectomy was done for same. Uterus with placenta was sent for histopathological examination (HPE). During the surgery her oxygen concentration was normal. Her postoperative recovery was uneventful

Studies on Mre11-ku interaction and its modulation by ionizing radiations

The Mre11-Rad50-Nbs1 (MRN) protein complex is a well known sensor of DNA damage, functioning in signaling pathways that activate cell cycle checkpoints. The function of Mre11 is also known to be important for homologous recombination repair (HRR), and recent studies have shown that this protein may function both in HRR, as well as in the classical pathway of non homologous end joining that utilizes in addition to DNA-PK (D-NHEJ) also Ku and the Ligase IV/XRCC4 complex. Indeed, in yeast, in addition to Ku and Ligase IV homologs, also the MRN homologs are implicated in NHEJ. The Ku70/80 heterodimer is among the first proteins that recognize and bind to DNA ends. The crystal structure of Ku reveals an asymmetric ring conformation allowing the threading of the DNA and possibly facilitating rejoining. After completion of end joining, however, the protein will remain trapped on the DNA. This mode of action generates the question as to how trapped Ku is released from the DNA, and as to whether trapped protein serves somehow to the development of a full-blown DNA damage response. Hitherto, only one report suggests a ubiquitin-dependent removal and degradation of Ku80 from DNA, which is independent of the completion of NHEJ. There are no reports published to date investigating a functional role for the trapped Ku protein in the ensuing DNA damage response (DDR) signalling. The present thesis tests the hypothesis that trapped Ku contributes to DDR signalling by somehow facilitating the recruitment of the MRN complex to the site of the DSB. In support of this hypothesis, we demonstrate here that the constitutive interaction between Mre11 and Ku is enhanced after exposure to IR and that this enhancement is dose dependent. The interaction between Mre11 and Ku is studied by immunoprecipitation (IP) from nuclear extracts using an anti-Ku70 antibody while detecting Mre11 by Western blotting. IP studies are carried out using a human alveolar basal epithelium carcinoma cell line (A549), as well as CHO cells and a Ku80 deficient mutant (xrs6). As expected, Ku deficient cells show no detectable interaction between Mre11 and Ku70 and validate thus the specificity of the assay. An interaction between Mre11 and Ku is clearly visible in A549 cells and is markedly enhanced after exposure to 2 and 4Gy of X-rays. The interaction is resistant to EtBr and RNAase suggesting that it is not mediated by DNA or RNA. Rad50 and Nbs1 are also co-precipitated with Mre11, suggesting that the entire MRN complex is involved in the interaction. Notably, in addition to MRN, other DN

How (not) to clap, cheer or “check the box” on diversity in the film classroom: Some notes on teaching diverse documentary media

In this paper, I share approaches I use to develop a critical engagement with diversity in documentary media education. I discuss the inclusion and curation of diverse documentary media and interdisciplinary theoretical materials through which cinema can be recognised as a space of competing discourse formations and aesthetics. My classes on documentary media combine documentary and film studies, postcolonial and feminist thought and ethnography to equip students in developing a historically contextualised understanding of media texts. Through contextualisation, students are equipped to appreciate the sociohistorical worlds that documentaries depict/represent and the specific history of film aesthetics as they develop in dialectical relationship to the wider politico-cultural and economic frameworks within which films get made and circulate. I share a range of exercises students undertake that facilitate them in contextualising their own reactions to documentaries as tied to their subject positions and that alert them to the differences in the histories and social formations of the subjects they see on screen. This facilitates students in appreciating film texts on specific terms, for the work they do in the contexts of their production and reception. The paper uses specific examples of materials and approaches from courses I teach

Breaking the Cycle of Homelessness

With funding from Department of Health and Human Services secured by United Power for Action and Justice, CURL partnered with United Power for  Chicago Health Outreach, Deborah's Place and Lakefront SRO to evaluate their systems integration demonstration project. The overall goal of the demonstration project was to break the cycle of homelessness by providing services in a coordinated fashion.

Comparing difference in mean total protein, albumin and globulin based on severity of rhesus isoimmunization: a prospective study

Background: Maternal RBC alloimmunization results from exposure and response to a foreign RBC antigen. Transplacental fetal to maternal hemorrhage is the most common cause of alloimmunization. Rh incompatibility can lead to either fetuses with hydropic features or non-hydropic. The precise mechanism leading to the development of hydrops is uncertain. Biochemical markers have the potential to be used to assess the severity of problem. But of the mechanisms proposed none have been able to totally explain the phenomenon or predict the prognosis. Objective of this study wads to compare the difference in mean total protein, albumin and globulin bases on severity of isoimmunization and comparing it with normal controls.Methods: A Total of 40 pregnant patients were enrolled which included 10 hydropic fetuses of Rh isoimmunised mothers, 10 non hydropic fetuses of Rh isoimmunized mothers. Control group included 18 Rh positive women without any fetal complication and 2 fetuses in women undergoing cordocentesis. Blood sampling was done at time of intrauterine transfusion and sent for estimation of total proteins, albumin, globulin in fetal blood. Pregnancies were followed up till delivery and fetal outcome noted.Results: Mean total protein, albumin and globulin between hydropic, non hydropic group and control group (3.25, 2.17 and 1.18 g/dl) in hydropic, (4.14, 2.70 and 1.44 g/dl) in non hydropic and (4.42, 2.95 and 1.47 g/dl) in control group respectively. Mean total protein, albumin and globulin between mild hydropic (3.43, 2.30 and 2.10 g/dl) and severe hydropic group (2.59, 1.6 and 1.3 g/dl) respectively.Conclusions: There was significantly lower levels of serum total proteins, albumin and globulin in hydropic fetuses as compared to non hydropic fetuses. Thus, hypoproteinemia can be considered a strong marker for development of hydrops in Rh isoimmunized fetuses

LINK BETWEEN EXECUTIVE STOCK OWNERSHIP AND CORPORATE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE

This study examined the relationship between executive stock ownership and the financial performance of firms in the hospitality industry. The study sample included 30 public hospitality companies listed on NASDAQ, all of which had 14 years of complete financial data. The study used the Pearson correlation and linear regression analysis to test the relationship in the hotel segment, the restaurant segment, and the combined hospitality segment. The results show there is no statistically significant positive relationship between executive stock ownership and firm profit in the hotel segment, whereas in the restaurant segment, there is a negative linear relationship. Furthermore, the combined 30 hospitality companies show a slight negative linear relationship. The findings neither support the “Agency Theory,” nor reveal a clear correlation between executive stock ownership and the profit performance of firms in the hospitality group

A prospective randomized controlled trial to study the effect of prenatal yoga on maternal weight gain and psychological stress in pregnancy and its association with pregnancy outcomes

Background: Objective of study was to evaluate the effect of prenatal yoga on maternal gestational weight gain (GWG) and psychological stress in pregnancy (PSS) and to evaluate the effect of prenatal yoga on labour outcomes. Methods: Prospective randomized controlled trial conducted at AIIMS, New Delhi between May 2020-December 2021. Sixty women each were recruited in the yoga and control group. Women in the yoga group attended 60 minutes supervised yoga sessions followed by self-sessions. Women in the control group received routine antenatal care along with 30 minutes per day of walking and dietary counselling. The assessment was done for the weight(WT), dietary intake (D) and perceived stress score (PSS) at the time of recruitment (WT1, D1, PSS1), 28 weeks (WT2, D2, PSS2) and 36 weeks (WT3, D3, PSS3) and the results were then compared. Results: At recruitment all the parameters in both groups were comparable. The difference in mean and difference in percentage in terms of gestational weight gain (GWG) at recruitment and at 36 weeks was statistically significant (p-value=0.027). The per cent weight gain in the Yoga group was significantly low (p value=0.048). The control group experienced more amount of stress both at 28 weeks (p-value = 0.021) and 36 weeks (p-value <0.0001). The difference in mean and difference in percentage in terms of PSS1 and PSS2 (p-value=0.011), PSS2 and PSS3 (p-value=0.0001) PSS1 and PSS 3 (p-value=0.0001). Labour outcomes were comparable between both groups. Conclusions: Yoga helps in controlling excessive GWG and helps prevent many adverse feto-maternal outcomes associated with obesity

Mcm10 proteolysis initiates before the onset of M-phase

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Mcm10 protein is essential for initiation and elongation phases of replication. Human cells proteolyze Mcm10 during mitosis, presumably to ensure a single round of replication. It has been proposed that anaphase promoting complex ubiquitinates Mcm10 in late M and early G₁phases.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In contrast to the previous work, we report that the degradation of Mcm10 is initiated at the onset of mitosis. Immunoblotting and immunofluorescence assays display that Mcm10 levels are low in all phases of mitosis. We report that Mcm10 degradation is not dependent on anaphase promoting complex. Further, the proteolysis in M-phase can be independently mediated by non-overlapping regions of Mcm10, apparently employing a redundant mechanism to ensure downregulation.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>It is believed that the proteolysis of Mcm10 during mitosis is a vital mechanism to prevent aberrant initiation of replication and the present study describes the regulation of Mcm10 during this phase of the cell-cycle.</p

Assessment of the customized birth weight formula in a low risk Indian population

Background: Birth weight is probably the single most important factor that affects neonatal mortality, infant and childhood morbidity in both developed and developing countries. Objective of the study was to formulate a model for prediction of fetal weight at term based on individualized fetal growth parameters.Methods: 131 participant low risk gravidas were enrolled into the study. The participants underwent an ultrasound 7 days prior to delivery. All fetal variables of growth of a random 100 participants were incorporated in an equation derived using multiple regressions to predict birth weight at term. The new equation was then prospectively applied to another 31 pregnant women for validation. The diagnostic performance of the new regression formula was then compared to the Hadlock formula.Results: The customised birth weight formula predicted a higher accuracy with MPE±SD of 0.790±9. compared to the Hadlock formula with MPE±SD - 4.42±8.73. The new formula also explained a greater variance in birth weight of 56% compared to the Hadlock formula of 49%.Conclusions: The new model based on individualized fetal growth parameters recognizes the capacity to modulate an accurate final birth weight, thus emphasizing the need for customized population specific birth weight formulas