Electronic and Band Structure Calculation of Wurtzite CdS Using GGA and GGA+U functionals

The wurtzite (wz) structure of CdS is analyzed using density functional theory within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) and Hubbard correction (GGA+U). The total energy convergence evaluation is carried out concerning energy cut-off (ecutwfc) and k-point sampling. The geometry optimization of wz-CdS is calculated using the total energy and force minimization process, which is based on the Broyden Fletcher Goldfarb Shanno (BFGS) optimization algorithm. Bulk modulus and lattice parameters are estimated to ensure accuracy of the calculations. The electronic band structure, density of states (DOS), and projected density of states (PDOS) of wz-CdS are analyzed. The band structure calculation shows CdS as direct band gap semiconductor. The electronic correlation in CdS is altered by varying U-parameters of valence orbitals of Cd and S. The alteration of electronic correlation results in convergence of the band gap to the experimental value 2.4 eV. The alteration of U-parameter affects substantially the density of states near the band edges

Molecular Detection of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) by Conventional One-step RT-PCR Coupled with Nested PCR

Aims: HCV causes both acute and chronic infections and can be easily transmitted through contaminated blood or other body fluids. The present study deals with the molecular detection of HCV with help of one-step RT-PCR assay followed by nested PCR and agarose gel electrophoresis. Study Design: RNA extracted from the confirmed positive samples of HCV was utilized for the standardization of the one-step RT-PCR assay and nested PCR assay for diagnosis of HCV. Place and Duration of Study: Centre for Biotechnology, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak Haryana, India, during period of one year (January-December 2015). Methodology: HCV positive samples were obtained from Department of Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC), New Delhi, India. Published primers from most conserved regions of HCV were taken and these primers were able to amplify all the strains of HCV. One-step RT-PCR kits, primers, extracted RNA from these positive samples were used for standardization of molecular diagnostic assays. The results were checked by 2% agarose gel electrophoresis. Results: Positive samples of HCV were detected by nested PCR. Positive samples showed sharp band of 405bp while there was no amplification in the negative control. Conclusion: Rapid tests have low sensitivity and specificity while molecular assays are rapid, sensitive and specific. Conventional one-step RT-PCR assay followed by nested PCR is rapid, specific, sensitive and it is also less costly than real-time RT-PCR. Cost of an assay is an important factor in controlling a disease in resource limited settings of developing countries

DEVELOPMENT OF BINARY AND TERNARY COMPLEX OF CEFUROXIME AXETIL WITH CYCLODEXTRIN FOR IMPROVING PHARMACEUTICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Objective: The current research objective is systematic development and characterization of binary and ternary inclusion complexes of cefuroxime axetil with β-cyclodextrin to improve its pharmaceutical characteristics by using the kneading method. Methods: Phase solubility study was carried out using Higuchi and Connors method. Based on its result, binary complexes of cefuroxime axetil with different ratio of β-cyclodextrin were developed and characterized using differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and X-ray powder diffractometry (XRD). Then, binary complexes were analyzed for in vitro dissolution testing. The ternary complexes were developed using different ratio of PVP K-30 as a ternary component and evaluated for in vitro dissolution testing and in vitro taste masking. Results: Binary complex of cefuroxime axetil with β-cyclodextrin (1:1) showed better drug release than pure drug. During the development of the ternary complex, β-cyclodextrin (1:1) and 1% w/v PVP K-30 as a ternary agent resulted in an optimized ternary complex. The DSC, FT-IR and XRD studies clearly revealed the formation of binary and ternary complexes. The ternary complex showed better drug release of>85% within 30 min. in comparison to binary complex. The in vitro taste-masking study revealed the taste masking efficiency of the ternary complex of cefuroxime with β-cyclodextrin. Conclusion: The developed binary and ternary complex of cefuroxime axetil based on β-cyclodextrin with PVP K-30 showed improved in vitro dissolution rate and taste masking in comparison to pure drug. The drug release was better in ternary complexes. The present research work successfully shows the utility of binary and ternary complexes for improving pharmaceutical characteristics of cefuroxime axetil

Krüppel-like factor 4, a novel transcription factor regulates microglial activation and subsequent neuroinflammation

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Activation of microglia, the resident macrophages of the central nervous system (CNS), is the hallmark of neuroinflammation in neurodegenerative diseases and other pathological conditions associated with CNS infection. The activation of microglia is often associated with bystander neuronal death. Nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) is one of the important transcription factors known to be associated with microglial activation which upregulates the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2) and other pro-inflammatory cytokines. Recent studies have focused on the role of Krüppel-like factor 4 (Klf4), one of the zinc-finger transcription factors, in mediating inflammation. However, these studies were limited to peripheral system and its role in CNS is not understood. Our studies focused on the possible role of Klf4 in mediating CNS inflammation.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>For <it>in vitro </it>studies, mouse microglial BV-2 cell lines were treated with 500 ng/ml <it>Salmonella enterica </it>lipopolysacchride (LPS). Brain tissues were isolated from BALB/c mice administered with 5 mg/kg body weight of LPS. Expressions of Klf4, Cox-2, iNOS and pNF-κB were evaluated using western blotting, quantitative real time PCR, and reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reactions (RT-PCRs). Klf4 knockdown was carried out using SiRNA specific for Klf4 mRNA and luciferase assays and electromobility shift assay (EMSA) were performed to study the interaction of Klf4 to iNOS promoter elements <it>in vitro</it>. Co-immunoprecipitation of Klf4 and pNF-κB was done in order to study a possible interaction between the two transcription factors.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>LPS stimulation increased Klf4 expression in microglial cells in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Knockdown of Klf4 resulted in decreased levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α, MCP-1 and IL-6, along with a significant decrease in iNOS and Cox-2 expression. NO production also decreased as a result of Klf4 knockdown. We found that Klf4 can potentially interact with pNF-κB and is important for iNOS and Cox-2 promoter activity <it>in vitro.</it></p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These studies demonstrate the role of Klf4 in microglia in mediating neuroinflammation in response to the bacterial endotoxin LPS.</p

Homogenizing Non-IID datasets via In-Distribution Knowledge Distillation for Decentralized Learning

Decentralized learning enables serverless training of deep neural networks (DNNs) in a distributed manner on multiple nodes. This allows for the use of large datasets, as well as the ability to train with a wide variety of data sources. However, one of the key challenges with decentralized learning is heterogeneity in the data distribution across the nodes. In this paper, we propose In-Distribution Knowledge Distillation (IDKD) to address the challenge of heterogeneous data distribution. The goal of IDKD is to homogenize the data distribution across the nodes. While such data homogenization can be achieved by exchanging data among the nodes sacrificing privacy, IDKD achieves the same objective using a common public dataset across nodes without breaking the privacy constraint. This public dataset is different from the training dataset and is used to distill the knowledge from each node and communicate it to its neighbors through the generated labels. With traditional knowledge distillation, the generalization of the distilled model is reduced because all the public dataset samples are used irrespective of their similarity to the local dataset. Thus, we introduce an Out-of-Distribution (OoD) detector at each node to label a subset of the public dataset that maps close to the local training data distribution. Finally, only labels corresponding to these subsets are exchanged among the nodes and with appropriate label averaging each node is finetuned on these data subsets along with its local data. Our experiments on multiple image classification datasets and graph topologies show that the proposed IDKD scheme is more effective than traditional knowledge distillation and achieves state-of-the-art generalization performance on heterogeneously distributed data with minimal communication overhead

Oxygen requirements in multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children admitted in tertiary care hospital of North India

Background: Study was aimed to describe the oxygen requirements among children admitted as multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) in Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla.Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study, from January 2021 to July 2021, in the pediatric ward of Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC), Shimla. Children admitted with a diagnosis of MIS-C were included. Data regarding socio-demographic factors and oxygen requirements were extracted and analyzed using Epi Info V7 software.Results: A total 31 children diagnosed as MIS-C were included. Tachypnea was present in 18 (58.1%) respiratory distress in 15 (48.4%). Optimal oxygen saturation (SpO2) more than 94% in 9 (25.8%), 93-94% in 8 (25.8%), 91-92% in 5 (16.1%), 86-90% in 2 (6.5%), 81-85% in 4 (12.9%), 75-80% in 1 (3.2%), 71-75% in 1 (3.2%) and <60% in 1 (3.2%). Oxygen at the rate of 2 l/min in 1 (3.2%), 3 l/min in 2 (6.5%), 4 l/min in 1 (3.2%), 5 l/min in 5 (16.1%) and 10 l/min in 9 (29.0%), was given through nasal prong in 1 (3.2%), Venturi mask in 3 (9.7%), NRM in 7 (22.6%) and mechanical ventilation in 7 (22.6%). Duration was for 2 days in 4 (12.9%), for 3 days in 7 (22.6%), for 4 days in 3 (9.7%), for 7 days in 1 (3.2%), for 10 days in 1 (3.2%), for 11 days in 1 (3.2%) and for 13 days in 1 (3.2%). Ventilatory support was given to 7 (22.6%), for 4 days in 2 (6.5%), for 7 days in 2 (6.5%), for 10 days in 1 (3.2%), for 11 days in 1 (3.2%) and for 13 days in 1 (3.2%).Conclusions: Oxygen is a crucial component of MIS-C therapy, children, observing a dip in SpO2 level should immediately start oxygen therapy

Enhancement of dissolution profile of gliclazide by solid dispersion adsorbates

This article investigates enhancement of the dissolution profile of gliclazide, an antidiabetic drug, using the combination of solid dispersions and melt adsorption techniques. Poloxamer and PEG 6000 were utilized as hydrophilic carriers for solid dispersions preparation and lactose selected on the basis of preliminary studies was utilized as an adsorbent for the preparation of solid dispersion adsorbates. The techniques of FTIR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and X-ray diffractometry (XRD) were performed to characterize the solid dispersions and to identify the physicochemical interaction between drug and carriers. Dissolution rate of gliclazide was higher in case of solid dispersion adsorbates as compared to solid dispersion alone and one of the marketed products. Thus the solid dispersion adsorbates can be successfully used for improvement of dissolution rate of gliclazide.Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aire

Interleukin-1&#946; orchestrates underlying inflammatory responses in microglia via Kruppel-like factor 4

Microglia are the resident macrophages of the CNS, which secrete several pro‐ and anti‐inflammatory cyto‐chemokines including interleukin‐1&#946; (IL‐1&#946;), in response to pathogenic stimuli. Once secreted, IL‐1&#946; binds to IL‐1 receptor present on microglia and initiates the production of inflammatory cytokines in microglia. However, the detailed information regarding the molecular mechanisms of IL‐1&#946; triggered inflammatory pathways in microglia is lacking. Our studies focused on the role of Krüppel‐like factor 4 (Klf4) in mediating the regulation of pro‐inflammatory gene expression upon IL‐1&#946; stimulation in microglia. Our studies show that stimulation of microglia with IL‐1&#946; robustly induces Klf4 via PI3K/Akt pathway which positively regulates the production of endogenous IL‐1&#946; as well as other pro‐inflammatory markers, cyclooxygenase‐2, monocyte chemoattractant protein‐1 and interleukin‐6 (IL‐6). In addition, we report that Klf4 negatively regulates the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase, thereby playing a key role in regulating the immunomodulatory activities of microglia. IL‐1&#946; is a potent pro‐inflammatory cytokine which regulates inflammation in brain via activation of microglia. In this regard, we unravelled mechanisms for IL‐1&#946; mediated regulation of downstream Cox‐2, iNOS (inducible nitric oxide synthase) as well as other cyto‐chemokines in microglia and have established a role for Klf4 in mediating microglial activation. We further report that Klf4 mediates the production of endogenous IL‐1&#946; in response to exogenous IL‐1&#946; stimulation. We hereby propose a novel transcription factor underlying IL‐1&#946; mediated modulation of inflammation in the CNS