PHYTOCHEMICAL INVESTIGATION OF PLANTS Acalypha indica (L.) AND Cocculus hirsutus (L.) FROM PRAKASAM DISTRICT, ANDHRA PRADESH, INDIA

oai:ojs.mbimph.com:article/1367Objectives: The present study report the phytochemical analysis of chloroform, ethyl acetate, methanolic extracts of leaf, stem bark and root of Acalypha indica (L.) and Cocculus hirsutus (L.) plants. Methods: Plants material used were collected from Kadaparajupalle at Dornala Mandal, Prakasam district, Andhra Pradesh, India. The authentication of the plant species was done by the taxonomist. The plant part extraction was done by using soxhlet apparatus. The preliminary phytochemical screening of this extracts was conducted by following the standard methods for the presence of the alkaloids, saponins, terpenoids & steroids, flavonoids, tannins, phenolic compounds, coumarins, quinones, resins, and glycosides. Results: Results indicated the presence of alkaloids, saponins, terpenoids & steroids, tannins, anthocyanidins, phenolic compounds, coumarins, quinones, resins and glycosides in all the plant extracts and could be used for the treatment of wounds and burns. Conclusion: The presence of high alkaloids, flavonoids and terpenoids of the plant extracts suggest their antioxidant potential and justifies their therapeutic action which could be used for the drug formulation

Fusing Long Short-Term Memory and Autoencoder Models for Robust Anomaly Detection in Indoor Air Quality Time-Series Data

People spend most of their time indoors by choice or by need. Carbon dioxide (CO2) accumulation can cause various adverse health effects, including vertigo, headache, and fatigue. Therefore, monitoring indoor air quality(IAQ) is necessary for various health reasons. The market is flooded with air quality monitoring devices. However, the ordinary public does not make use of them because they are expensive and difficult to obtain. Several research studies have been carried out to monitor indoor air quality with the help of the Internet of Things(IoT), which has greatly simplified the method for monitoring IAQ. In this research, we offer an improved IoT based IAQ monitoring system with AI-powered recommendations. Our suggested system relies on the Message Queuing Telemetry Transport(MQTT) protocol for communication between IoT devices. In addition, the gathered CO2 occupancy data is used together with the deep learning approach of Long Short-Term Memory and Autoencoder (LSTM-AE) to detect anomalies or outliers in CO2 concentrations.  Due to a close connection between air quality and human health and well-being, the detection of anomalies in the data of  IAQ has emerged as an essential topic of study. Anomalies requiring the observation of correlations spanning numerous data points (i.e., often referred to as long-term dependencies) were not detectable by conventional statistical and basic machine learning (ML) related techniques in the sector of  IAQ.  Hence this research uses the LSTM-AE model to address this issue.  In comparison to previous similar models, our experimental results on a generated CO2 occupancy time series reveal a robust and powerful accuracy of 99.49%

Application of Factor Analysis to Identify Dietary Patterns and Use of Factor Scores to Study Their Relationship with Nutritional Status of Adult Rural Populations

The prevalence of chronic energy deficiency (CED) among one-third of the Indian population is attributed to inadequacy of consumption of nutrients. However, considering the complexity of diets among Indians, the relationship between a particular dietary pattern and the nutritional status of the population has not been established so far. A community-based cross-sectional study was undertaken to assess estimates, at district level, of diet and nutritional status in Orissa State, India. Factor analysis was used for exploring the existence of consumption pattern of food and nutrients and their relationship with the nutritional status of rural adult population. Data on 2,864 adult men and 3,525 adult women in Orissa state revealed that there exists six patterns among food-groups explaining 59% of the total variation and three patterns among nutrients that explain 73% of the total variation among both adult men and women. The discriminant function analysis revealed that, overall, 53% of the men were correctly classified as either with chronic energy deficiency (CED) or without CED. Similarly, overall, 54% of the women were correctly classified as either with CED or without CED. The sensitivity of the model was 65% for both men and women, and the specificity was 46% and 41% respectively for men and women. In the case of classification of overweight/obesity, the prediction of the model was about 75% among both men and women, along with high sensitivity. Using factor analysis, the dietary patterns were identified from the food and nutrient intake data. There exists a strong relationship between the dietary patterns and the nutritional status of rural adults. These results will help identify the community people with CED and help planners formulate nutritional interventions accordingly

Fundamental and Applied Studies on Chromatographic Separation of Cold Drugs and Skincare Creams and Extraction of Salvia miltiorrhiza using Subcritical Water

Subcritical water chromatography (SBWC) and subcritical water extraction (SBWE) are two green techniques that use subcritical water as the sole solvent for separations, thus eliminating the use of toxic and expensive organic solvents. This dissertation research was mainly focused on the development of SBWC through both fundamental and applied studies. Fundamental studies include the solubility of parabens and stability of preservatives and stationary phases under subcritical water conditions. Solubility of parabens increased by 11 to 36 folds with temperature raise from 25 to 150 °C, but decreased at 200 °C due to degradation. A new approximation model developed in this work successfully estimated the solubility of parabens in subcritical water. The studies on the stability of preservatives in subcritical water revealed that the preservatives were stable up to 150 °C and there was approximately 10% degradation of preservatives at 200 °C. The stationary phase evaluation indicated that the Waters XBridge C18 and phenyl columns were stable for up to 30,000 column volume at 150 °C and the ZirChrom-DB-C18 column up to 14,250 column volume at 200 °C. Applied studies of SBWC were focused on separation and analysis of pharmaceuticals from cold drugs and niacinamide, preservatives, and sunscreens present in skincare products. Our best SBWC quantification results achieved in this work are in the range of 97.4 to 103.4% recoveries and RSDs less than 1.9%. A large number of replicate chromatographic runs and the comparison with high performance liquid chromatography results indicate that our SBWC methods for niacinamide and preservatives are quite accurate and precise. The Subcritical water extraction and traditional herbal decoction (THD) of Salvia miltiorrhiza were carried out and the herbal extracts were tested for cytotoxicity on Caenorhabditis elegans. In general, the concentration of anticancer agents obtained by SBWE increased by 4 to 18 folds when the temperature was raised from 75 to 150 °C. The concentration of tanshinones, important anticancer agents, obtained by SBWE at all four temperatures was higher than that of the THD. Similarly, the cytotoxicity tests revealed that the SBWE herbal extracts were more potent than the THD extracts.Ph.D

PREVALENCE OF ANAEMIA AMONG RURAL PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN OF MAHARASHTRA, INDIA

Background: Anaemia continues to be a severe public health nutritional problem in India affecting all physiological groups, even after the National Nutritional Anaemia Prophylaxis Programme has been in operation for more than three decades. Objective: To assess the prevalence of anaemia among rural pre-school (1-5-years) children of Maharashtra. Methods: A community based cross-sectional study was carried by National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau (NNMB) covering a total of 404 (Boys-243; Girls-161) pre-school children. Information of socio-demographic particulars was obtained and the finger prick blood samples were collected for the estimation of haemoglobin levels by cyanmethmoglobin method. Results: The result shows that 59.2 % (CI: 54.4-64.0) of the rural pre-school children of Maharashtra were anaemic, and the prevalence was significantly (p<0.001) higher (76.5% with CI: 68.1-84.9) among 1-3-year children as compared to 53.6% in 4-5-year- children. Stepwise Logistic regression analysis also revealed that the risk of anaemia in 1-3-year-age group was three times higher (OR= 2.8; 95% CI: 1.6-4.7). Conclusion: Anaemia was severe public health nutritional problem (>40%) among rural pre-school children of Maharashtra. Therefore, appropriate intervention measures such as supplementary iron & folic acid, periodic deworming and health & nutrition education should be strengthened. The community needs to be encouraged to diversify their diets by consuming iron rich foods

Application of Factor Analysis to Identify Dietary Patterns and Use of Factor Scores to Study Their Relationship with Nutritional Status of Adult Rural Populations

The prevalence of chronic energy deficiency (CED) among one-third of the Indian population is attributed to inadequacy of consumption of nutrients. However, considering the complexity of diets among Indians, the relationship between a particular dietary pattern and the nutritional status of the population has not been established so far. A community-based cross-sectional study was undertaken to assess estimates, at district level, of diet and nutritional status in Orissa State, India. Factor analysis was used for exploring the existence of consumption pattern of food and nutrients and their relationship with the nutritional status of rural adult population. Data on 2,864 adult men and 3,525 adult women in Orissa state revealed that there exists six patterns among food-groups explaining 59% of the total variation and three patterns among nutrients that explain 73% of the total variation among both adult men and women. The discriminant function analysis revealed that, overall, 53% of the men were correctly classified as either with chronic energy deficiency (CED) or without CED. Similarly, overall, 54% of the women were correctly classified as either with CED or without CED. The sensitivity of the model was 65% for both men and women, and the specificity was 46% and 41% respectively for men and women. In the case of classification of overweight/ obesity, the prediction of the model was about 75% among both men and women, along with high sensitivity. Using factor analysis, the dietary patterns were identified from the food and nutrient intake data. There exists a strong relationship between the dietary patterns and the nutritional status of rural adults. These results will help identify the community people with CED and help planners formulate nutritional interventions accordingly

Subcritical Water Extraction of Salvia miltiorrhiza

In this work, a green extraction technique, subcritical water extraction (SBWE), was employed to extract active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) from an important Chinese medicinal herb, Salvia miltiorrhiza (danshen), at various temperatures. The APIs included tanshinone I, tanshinone IIA, protocatechualdehyde, caffeic acid, and ferulic acid. Traditional herbal decoction (THD) of Salvia miltiorrhiza was also carried out for comparison purposes. Reproduction assay of herbal extracts obtained by both SBWE and THD were then conducted on Caenorhabditis elegans so that SBWE conditions could be optimized for the purpose of developing efficacious herbal medicine from Salvia miltiorrhiza. The extraction efficiency was mostly enhanced with increasing extraction temperature. The quantity of tanshinone I in the herbal extract obtained by SBWE at 150 °C was 370-fold higher than that achieved by THD extraction. Reproduction evaluation revealed that the worm reproduction rate decreased and the reproduction inhibition rate increased with elevated SBWE temperatures. Most importantly, the reproduction inhibition rate of the SBWE herbal extracts obtained at all four temperatures investigated was higher than that of traditional herbal decoction extracts. The results of this work show that there are several benefits of subcritical water extraction of medicinal herbs over other existing herbal medicine preparation techniques. Compared to THD, the thousand-year-old and yet still popular herbal preparation method used in herbal medicine, subcritical water extraction is conducted in a closed system where no loss of volatile active pharmaceutical ingredients occurs, although analyte degradation may happen at higher temperatures. Temperature optimization in SBWE makes it possible to be more efficient in extracting APIs from medicinal herbs than the THD method. Compared to other industrial processes of producing herbal medicine, subcritical water extraction eliminates toxic organic solvents. Thus, subcritical water extraction is not only environmentally friendly but also produces safer herbal medicine for patients

Condom use and prevalence of syphilis and HIV among female sex workers in Andhra Pradesh, India – following a large-scale HIV prevention intervention

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Avahan, the India AIDS initiative began HIV prevention interventions in 2003 in Andhra Pradesh (AP) among high-risk groups including female sex workers (FSWs), to help contain the HIV epidemic. This manuscript describes an assessment of this intervention using the published Avahan evaluation framework and assesses the coverage, outcomes and changes in STI and HIV prevalence among FSWs.</p> <p>Methodology</p> <p>Multiple data sources were utilized including Avahan routine program monitoring data, two rounds of cross-sectional survey data (in 2006 and 2009) and STI clinical quality monitoring assessments. Bi-variate and multivariate analyses, Wald Chi-square tests and multivariate logistic regressions were used to measure changes in behavioural and biological outcomes over time and their association.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Avahan scaled up in conjunction with the Government program to operate in all districts in AP by March 2009. By March 2009, 80% of the FSWs were being contacted monthly and 21% were coming to STI services monthly. Survey data confirmed an increase in peer educator contacts with the mean number increasing from 2.9 in 2006 to 5.3 in 2009. By 2008 free and Avahan-supported socially marketed condoms were adequate to cover the estimated number of commercial sex acts, at 45 condoms/FSW/month. Consistent condom use was reported to increase with regular (63.6% to 83.4%; AOR=2.98; p<0.001) and occasional clients (70.8% to 83.7%; AOR=2.20; p<0.001). The prevalence of lifetime syphilis decreased (10.8% to 6.1%; AOR=0.39; p<0.001) and HIV prevalence decreased in all districts combined (17.7% to 13.2%; AOR 0.68; p<0.01). Prevalence of HIV among younger FSWs (aged 18 to 20 years) decreased (17.7% to 8.2%, p=0.008). A significant increase in condom use at last sex with occasional and regular clients and consistent condom use with occasional clients was observed among FSWs exposed to the Avahan program. There was no association between exposure and HIV or STIs, although numbers were small.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The absence of control groups is a limitation of this study and does not allow attribution of changes in outcomes and declines in HIV and STI to the Avahan program. However, the large scale implementation, high coverage, intermediate outcomes and association of these outcomes to the Avahan program provide plausible evidence that the declines were likely associated with Avahan. Declining HIV prevalence among the general population in Andhra Pradesh points towards a combined impact of Avahan and government interventions.</p

Impact of Chronic Drought on Nutritional Status of the Community in Drought affected areas in India

Background:&nbsp;Communities affected by chronic drought conditions face a wide variety of challenges including an adverse effect on their nutritional status. The Government of India, during the year 2002-03, declared nine States viz., Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Orissa as drought affected.&nbsp;Material and Methods:&nbsp;At the request of Department of Agriculture, Government of India, a rapid community based cross-sectional study was carried out adopting multistage random sampling procedure with the objective to assess the nutritional status of community in these nine chronic drought affected states in India.&nbsp;Results: In general, the intakes of all the nutrients were grossly deficit as against their RDAs. The nutrition intervention programmes initiated by the Government of India, in general, contributed to meet the daily requirement of staples like cereals &amp; millets in most of the States.&nbsp;Conclusion:&nbsp;In drought-affected areas, where the level of famine impact is unknown, an early rapid assessment of the nutritional status and the health needs of the population are critical to estimate the degree of impact to plan timely and appropriate interventions

Nutrition profile of under-five year rural children and correlates of undernutrition in central India

Background:&nbsp;High prevalence of undernutrition in Madhya Pradesh contributing to high mortality and morbidities among young children.&nbsp;Aims &amp; objectives: to assess prevalence of undernutrition and its co-relates among under 5 year children in Madhya Pradesh.&nbsp;Materials &amp; Methods: It was a community based cross- sectional study carried out in all the districts of Madhya Pradesh, India using systematic random sampling.&nbsp;Results:&nbsp;A total of 22,895 children (Boys:12379, Girls:10516), mean age 26.1 months, SD 15.9, were covered. The overall prevalence of underweight, stunting and wasting was about 52%, 49% and 26% respectively. The prevalence was significantly (p&lt;0.01) higher among boys as compared to girls. The risk of underweight, stunting and wasting was significantly higher among children belonging to SC+ST communities (OR: 1.36, 1.21 &amp; 1.23) as compared to others, among children of illiterate parents and landless labourers (OR: 1.27, 1.32 &amp; 1.15). The risk of stunting was significantly higher among children living in HHs without electricity (OR: 1.41) and HHs not using sanitary latrine (OR: 1.29). Similarly, the risk of wasting was significantly higher among households not having access to safe drinking water, mothers not cleaning their hands before feeding and among children with history of morbidity during preceding fortnight. Prevalence of underweight (28%), stunting (17%) and wasting (34%) was significantly (p&lt;0.01) lower among children who were exclusively breast fed up to 6 months.&nbsp;Conclusions:&nbsp;Multiple risk factors are associated with childhood undernutrition and needs multi-pronged and multi-sector approach to tackle the problem. The results will help planners to develop and implement appropriate intervention strategies, for effective control and prevention of undernutrition among under-five year children in Madhya Prades