Paclitaxel delivery by micro/nano encapsulation using layer-by-layer assembly

A novel formulation of paclitaxel (PTX) has been developed by providing multilayer assembly over drug loaded porous CaCO3 microparticles (CaCO3 MP) using combination of biocompatible and biodegradable polyelectrolytes (PE’s). PTX was encapsulated into the nanopores of preformed CaCO3 MP prepared by the co-precipitation method. Infrared (IR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) provides evidences that PTX has been encapsulated into nanopores of CaCO3 MP and not crystallized on the surface. PTX loaded CaCO3 MP (CaCO3-PTX) was found to be highly stabilized against thermal decomposition as evinced by thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA) indicating decomposition at 600°C and 250°C for CaCO3-PTX and PTX respectively. The multilayer assembly over CaCO3-PTX was effectuated by alternate deposition of protamine sulfate (PRM) and sodium alginate (SA) using LBL technique followed by subsequent core removal [PTX- (PRM/SA)5]. The pay load efficiency of PTX in this system was found to be 78.98±2.14%. The developed system was further evaluated for surface morphology, size and size distribution, surface charge, core removal and layer-by-layer growth due to sequential adsorption of PE’s. The release data of PTX-(PRM/SA)5 was comparable with marketed formulation of PTX (PTX-M) and CaCO3-PTX when performed in simulated intestinal fluid (SIF pH=7.4). The release profile of PTX-(PRM/SA)5 indicates that PEs based multilayer matrix is capable to provide barrier to PTX release as it has been found to follow first order matrix diffusion kinetics with 64±4.8% release within 24 hrs. The t50% of PTX-M, CaCO3-PTX and PTX-(PRM/SA)5 was found to be 70, 90 and 480 minutes respectively. This alternative delivery system of PTX disguised in the form of LBL assembly could have immense application for the treatment of metastasized mammary glands vis-à-vis existing formulation of PTX which is by and large criticized for having certain toxic excipients to be given parentrally. Moreover, the proposed system provides ample of opportunity to modify the surface for targeted application of PTX.
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Tryon's conjecture and Energy and momentum of Bianchi Type Universes

The energy and momentum of the Bianchi type $III$ universes are obtained using different prescriptions for the energy-momentum complexes in the framework of General Relativity. The energy and momentum of the Bianchi $III$ universe is found to be zero for the M\o{}ller prescription. For all other prescriptions the energy and momentum vanish when the metric parameter $h$ vanishes. In an earlier work, Tripathy et al. \cite{SKT15} have obtained the energy and momentum of Bianchi $VI_h$ metric and found that the energy of the Universe vanish only for $h=-1$. This result raised a question: why this specific choice?. We explored the Tryon's conjecture that 'the Universe must have a zero net value for all conserved quantities' to get some ideas on the specific values of this parameter for Bianchi type Universes.Comment: 17 page

Offline Signature Verification Scheme

Offline signature verification schemes are necessary to determine the authenticity and genuineness of a variety of things which require certification using signatures. Most offline verification schemes till date have required perfect alignment of the signature to the specified axes. However there are situations when the sample to be verified may not be aligned to the required axis. In that situation the current verification schemes could reject the signature even though it may be genuine. The suggested scheme aims to make the verification of signatures size and angle invariant. The invariance can be achieved by scaling and rotational manipulations on the target image. The shape of a person’s signature remains similar in all translational, scaled and rotational alignments of the sign. That is the number of crests, toughs and curves remains the same irrespective of the size and orientation of the image. The ratio between consecutive crests and troughs there by remain the same and hence can be used to determine the genuineness of a signature. The proposed scheme also proposes a novel way to store the information extracted from the image after processing. The ratios obtained for verification can be stored in a linear array, which required much less space as compared to the previously followed schemes. The success of the proposed scheme can be determined from the appreciable FARs and FAAs

An Intelligent Method Based Medical Image Compression

Compression methods are important in many medical applications to ensure fast interactivity through large sets of images (e.g. volumetric data sets, image databases), for searching context dependant images and for quantitative analysis of measured data. Medical data are increasingly represented in digital form. The limitations in transmission bandwidth and storage space on one side and the growing size of image datasets on the other side has necessitated the need for efficient methods and tools for implementation. Many techniques for achieving data compression have been introduced. Wavelet transform techniques currently provide the most promising approach to high-quality image compression, which is essential for Teleradiology. This paper presents an approach of intelligent method to design a vector quantizer for image compression. The image is compressed without any loss of information. It also provides a comparative study in the view of simplicity, storage space, robustness and transfer time of various vector quantization methods. The proposed approach presents an efficient method of vector quantization for image compression and application of SOFM

Envisioning marriage and sexuality in New-India

Marriage has been a timeless and honored institution for social affirmation of a heterosexual relationship. It also has several legal dimensions with the intent to safeguard civil and legal rights, values and cultural nuances. Sexuality although eclipsed under societal expectations is an equally complex yet important cornerstone of any relationship irrespective of age, region and religion. [1]However the day-to-day realities of any partnership has its own dimensions. The very patriarchal nature of partnership since ages is being re challenged by the evolving social and legal revolutions such as questioning gender stereotypes and roles, rights of partners and free expression of individuality. Covid-19 pandemic played a major role in breakdown of many so-calledsocial equilibrium. As a consequence, many women faced genderbased violence in their households. The whole purpose of social protection under the umbrella of marriage may not be always true [2] as evident in many cases. Hence it becomes important to debate, re-understand and remodel the institution of marriage and sexuality in context of the current social trends. This issue of the journal focuses on many important dimensions of relationship both traditional and contemporary starting from discussing sexuality, the new age relationships, embracing inclusivity for sexual minorities, dissolving strict gender roles and the safeguarding against violence

Dengue hepatic severity score: A glimmer to the clinician

Introduction: Recent studies from India and Thailand show that dengue infection was the most compelling cause of acute hepatic failure in children contributing to 18.5% and 34.3%, respectively, and till now, there is no proper dengue severity score based on the hepatic dysfunction, i.e. laboratory as well as clinical hepatic parameters. Objective: The objective of this study was to develop a new dengue hepatic severity score (DHSS) based on only hepatic dysfunction parameters. Methods: The present cross-sectional analytical study was conducted in the Department of Paediatrics, Burla, Sambalpur, Odisha, from November 2015 to October 2017 after getting the institutional ethical clearance. A total of 76 cases selected as per predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria, categorized into three groups after taking written informed consent of their legal hare. Relevant hepatic parameters (both clinical and laboratory) were collected, and data were finally analyzed using receiver operating characteristic curve to get a cutoff value for each group. Results: The cutoff value of DHSS of ≥7 between Group 1 and Group 2 evidenced by area under the curve (AUC)=99.6% with 95% confidence interval (CI) (95.6–100%), sensitivity - 100%, specificity - 94.6%, and a cutoff ≥18 between Groups 2 and 3 exhibited by AUC=100% with 95% CI (94.6–100%), sensitivity - 100%, and specificity - 94.6%. Hence, the DHSS is formulated as ≤6 (no severe hepatic dysfunction), 7–17 (severe), and ≥18 (very severe). Mean duration of hospitalization in days between three groups of hepatic dysfunction was statistically significant as evidenced by one-way ANOVA; F (2, 73)=19.83, p=0.000. Conclusion: DHSS system will help the primary health caregiver for triaging, early recognition, and prompt management to prevent additional deterioration

Microstructure and Property Co-relation of 4% Carbon Fe-C Alloy System

The suitable combination of strength and toughness makes ductile cast iron (DCI) the most preferred alloy for structural and engineering applications, among other members in the Fe-C alloy system. The property of DCI is dependent upon its microstructure that varies with dosage of alloying elements during the casting process as well as upon subjected to different heat treatment process. The microstructure of DCI consists of spheroidal graphite and either a single phase or combination of phases depending upon alloying element and heat treatment process, consequentially resulting in a combination of strength and toughness as desired for specified application. The current chapter discusses the relation between change in microstructural aspects with respect to various alloying elements as well as heat treatment processes. Emphasis is given on reveling the effect of physical characteristics with mechanical and tribological properties. The chapter is concluded by a case study on the effect of alloying elements and heat treatment processes on microstructure as well as mechanical and tribological properties of DCI