GC-MS ANALYSIS OF ESSENTIAL OIL OF SOME HIGH DRUG YIELDING GENOTYPES OF TURMERIC (CURCUMA LONGA L.)

Objective: The aim of this investigation was to carry out the qualitative evaluation of selected high drug yielding elite genotypes of turmeric to add to their eliteness.Methods: 131 turmeric genotypes collected from 10 different agroclimatic zones were analysed for curcumin content. Leaves and rhizomes of these plants were collected for extraction of essential oil. Curcumin percentage of the sample was estimated according to the ASTA method. Essential oil was extracted by hydro-distillation of fresh leaves and rhizomes following the method of Guenther (1972). Initial screening of elite genotypes was done on the basis of curcumin content (≥5%), rhizome oil content (≥1.5%) and leaf oil content (≥0.5%). Selected elite genotypes were subjected to qualitative evaluation of essential oil through GC-MS analysis.Results: The five high rhizome oil yielding genotypes, TR1, TR2, TR3 and TR5 containing high rhizome oil yield of 2.1%, 1.7%, 1.6% and 1.5% respectively were considered to be elite clones containing tumerone as the major constituent of rhizome essential oil along with all desirable constituents. On the basis of leaf oil yield, genotypes TL1 and TL2 with 1.9% and 1.1% leaf oil were proved as elite clones with α–phellandrene as the major constituent along with other desirable constituents. GC-MS analysis of 3 selected high curcumin yielding genotypes TC1, TC2 and TC3 with curcumin content 7.3, 7.2 and 7.0% respectively revealed TC1 and TC2 as elite genotypes containing high quality rhizome and leaf oil.Conclusion: The present investigation reveals that eight genotypes of turmeric selected with high drug yield and high quality essential oil would have enough significance for boosting the production and export of value added products in the national and international market.Â

IndEcho study: cohort study investigating birth size, childhood growth and young adult cardiovascular risk factors as predictors of midlife myocardial structure and function in South Asians.

INTRODUCTION: South Asians have high rates of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and its risk factors (hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidaemia and central obesity). Left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy and dysfunction are features of these disorders and important predictors of CVD mortality. Lower birth and infant weight and greater childhood weight gain are associated with increased adult CVD mortality, but there are few data on their relationship to LV function. The IndEcho study will examine associations of birth size, growth during infancy, childhood and adolescence and CVD risk factors in young adulthood with midlife cardiac structure and function in South Asian Indians. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We propose to study approximately 3000 men and women aged 43-50 years from two birth cohorts established in 1969-1973: the New Delhi Birth Cohort (n=1508) and Vellore Birth Cohort (n=2156). They had serial measurements of weight and height from birth to early adulthood. CVD risk markers (body composition, blood pressure, glucose tolerance and lipids) and lifestyle characteristics (tobacco and alcohol consumption, physical activity, socioeconomic status) were assessed at age ~30 years. Clinical measurements in IndEcho will include anthropometry, blood pressure, biochemistry (glucose, fasting insulin and lipids, urinary albumin/creatinine ratio) and body composition by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry and bioelectrical impedance. Outcomes are LV mass and indices of LV systolic and diastolic function assessed by two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography, carotid intimal-media thickness and ECG indicators of ischaemia. Regression and conditional growth models, adjusted for potential confounders, will be used to study associations of childhood and young adult exposures with these cardiovascular outcomes. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The study has been approved by the Health Ministry Steering Committee, Government of India and institutional ethics committees of participating centres in India and the University of Southampton, UK. Results will be disseminated through scientific meetings and peer-reviewed journals. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN13432279; Pre-results

Infants with Congenital Diseases Identified through Newborn Screening—United States, 2018–2020

Newborn screening (NBS) is a state or territory-based public health system that screens newborns for congenital diseases that typically do not present with clinical symptoms at birth but can cause significant mortality and morbidity if not detected or treated quickly. NBS continues to be one of the most successful public health interventions in the US, providing early detection and intervention to all infants. The increase in overall birth prevalence of core Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (RUSP) diseases detected via dried blood spot (DBS) specimens from 2015–2017 (17.50–18.31 per 10,000) to 2018–2020 (20.07 per 10,000), as reported into the APHL NewSTEPs database, affirms the importance and impact of NBS programs. This report presents aggregate numbers and birth prevalence of diseases detected by DBS on the RUSP from 2018–2020, including data from fifty US states and two territories

Evaluation of yield, quality and antioxidant activity of essential oil of in vitro propagated Kaempferia galanga Linn.

Objective: To determine chemical constituents and antioxidant properties of essential oil from rhizome of the medicinal plant, Kaempferia galanga (K. galanga) Linn. (Zingiberaceae) in conventionally propagated (CP) and in vitro propagated (IVP) plants. Methods: In vitro (micro) propagation of K. galanga was done by inoculating explants on to Murashige and Skoog agar medium, supplemented with suitable combinations of phytohormones; the regenerants were transferred to soil for further growth. Essential oil preparations of both CP and IVP rhizomes grown in soil, obtained by the hydro-distillation method were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Antioxidant activities of essential oil samples were monitored. Results: Maximum numbers of regenerated shoots were found in the medium supplemented with 1 mg/L benzyl adenine and 0.5 mg/L indole-3-acetic acid. A total of 6 compounds were identified from rhizomes from CP and IVP plants that yielded 96.9% and 97.81% of the total oil contents, respectively. The major compound of rhizome oil identified from CP and IVP rhizomes was ethyl p-methoxy cinnamate in quantities, 82.01% and 71.77%, respectively, without any compositional variation. Antioxidant properties of essential oil preparations were assessed by the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and hydrogen peroxide radical scavenging assays. Moreover, antioxidant activities of rhizome-oil from IVP plants were better than that of CP oil samples. Conclusions: As IVP rhizomes had better oil yield, those could be used for a large scale commercial propagation for sustainable use of essential oil. The principal chemical in the essential oil, ethyl p-methoxy cinnamate could help apothecary, for several ailments

Implementation of Newborn Screening for Conditions in the United States First Recommended during 2010–2018

The Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (RUSP) is the list of conditions recommended by the US Secretary of Health and Human Services for inclusion in state newborn screening (NBS). During 2010–2022, seven conditions were added to the RUSP: severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) (2010), critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) (2011), glycogen storage disease, type II (Pompe) (2015), mucopolysaccharidosis, type I (MPS I) (2016), X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) (2016), spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) (2018), and mucopolysaccharidosis, type II (MPS II) (2022). The adoption of SCID and CCHD newborn screening by programs in all 50 states and three territories (Washington, D.C.; Guam; and Puerto Rico) took 8.6 and 6.8 years, respectively. As of December 2022, 37 programs screen for Pompe, 34 for MPS I, 32 for X-ALD, and 48 for SMA. The pace of implementation based on the average additional number of NBS programs per year was most rapid for SMA (11.3), followed by CCHD (7.8), SCID (6.2), MPS I (5.4), Pompe (4.9), and X-ALD (4.7)

Weight-for-height is associated with an overestimation of thinness burden in comparison to BMI-for-age in under-5 populations with high stunting prevalence

Background: thinness at <5 years of age, also known as wasting, is used to assess the nutritional status of populations for programmatic purposes. Thinness may be defined when either weight-for-height or body-mass-index-for-age (BMI-for-age) are below –2 SD of the respective World Health Organization standards. These definitions were compared for quantifying the burden of thinness. Methods: theoretical consequences of ignoring age were evaluated by comparing, at varying height-for-age z-scores, the age- and sex-specific cut-offs of BMI that would define thinness with these two metrics. Thinness prevalence was then compared in simulated populations (short, intermediate and tall) and real-life data sets from research and the National Family Health Survey-4 (NFHS-4) in India. Results: in short (–2 SD) children, the BMI cut-offs with weight-for-height criteria were higher in comparison to BMI-for-age after 1 year of age but lower at earlier ages. In Indian research and NFHS-4 data sets (short populations), thinness prevalence with weight-for-height was lower from 0.5 to 1 years but higher at subsequent ages. The absolute difference (weight-for-height – BMI-for-age) for 0.5–5 years was 4.6% (15.9–11.3%) and 2.2% (19.2–17.0%), respectively; this attenuated in the 0–5 years age group. The discrepancy was higher in boys and maximal for stunted children, reducing with increasing stature. In simulated data sets from intermediate and tall populations, there were no meaningful differences. Conclusions: the two definitions produce cut-offs, and hence estimates of thinness, that differ with the age, sex and height of children. The relative invariance, with age and stature, of the BMI-for-age thinness definition favours its use as the preferred index for programmatic purposes

Analyzing Patterns in NewSTEPs Site Review Recommendations: Practical Applications for Newborn Screening Programs

The Newborn Screening Technical assistance and Evaluation Program (NewSTEPs) conducts non-regulatory site reviews of state newborn screening programs in the US with the goal of providing comprehensive reports and recommendations to support quality improvements within the system. A detailed coding and qualitative analysis of data extracted from reports of seven programs visited between 2012 and 2017, of thirteen pre-site visit surveys completed by state newborn screening programs, and of information from interviews conducted with three site review experts revealed four common themes that exist across states within the national newborn screening system. These themes include opportunities to implement improvements in: (1) communications inside and outside of the state newborn screening program, (2) education, (3) information technology, and (4) operations. The cross-cutting recommendations provided by NewSTEPs within the comprehensive site review reports may prove valuable for all state programs to consider and to incorporate as quality improvement measures in the absence of a full site review. The analysis of the site review process and recommendations identified important opportunities for improvement, many of which were previously unknown to be common across programs, and also provided affirmation of known challenges