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Boddu Adilakshmi,1 Obireddy Sreekanth Reddy,2– 4 Duddekunta Hemalatha,1 Kummari SV Krishna Rao,1 Wing-Fu Lai2,3 1Polymer Biomaterial Design and Synthesis Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, Yogi Vemana University, Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh, 516005, India; 2Department of Urology, Zhejiang Provincial People’s Hospital, Hangzhou Medical College, Zhejiang, 310012, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Chemistry, Sri Krishnadevaraya University, Anantapuramu, Andhra Pradesh, 515003, IndiaCorrespondence: Wing-Fu Lai; Kummari SV Krishna Rao, Email rori0610@graduate.hku.hk; ksvkr@yogivemanauniversity.ac.inPurpose: Site-specific drug delivery systems can contribute to the development and execution of effective cancer treatment. Due to its favorable features (including high biocompatibility, high hydrophilicity and ease of functionalization), poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) has been widely adopted to design drug carriers. Generating carriers for delivery of hydrophobic anticancer agents, however, is still a challenge in carrier design.Methods: In the first step, PEG is functionalized with dialdehyde to generate PEG-(CHO)2 using EDC/NHS chemistry. In the second step, Fe3O4 nanoparticles are functionalized with amino groups to generate Fe3O4-NH2. In the third step, PEG-(CHO)2, Fe3O4-NH2 and doxorubicin (DOX) react in an acidic environment to yield a drug conjugate (PEGDA-MN-DOX), which is subsequently characterized by FT-IR, 1H-NMR, SEM, TEM, DLS, TGA, and DSC.Results: The chemical functionalities of the drug conjugate are confirmed by FTIR, H-NMRand XRD analysis.The release pattern of PEGDA-MN-DOX is investigated at 25 and 37 °C at different pH values. The results indicate that the developed drug conjugate cannot only behave as a sustained-release carrier, but can also generate a significant level of reactive oxygen species (ROS), leading to a high level of toxicity against MCF-7 cells while still showing excellent biocompatibility in 3T3 cells.Conclusion: The reported conjugate shows anticancer potential, cancer-targeting ability, and ROS-generating capacity for effective drug encapsulation and sustained release in chemotherapy.Graphical Abstarct: Keywords: PEG, doxorubicin, magnetic nanoparticles, anti-cancer, biocompatibility, drug delivery

AbstractIntroduction:There are few longitudinal studies about South Asians (SAs) and little information about recruitment and retention approaches for this ethnic group.Methods:We followed 906 SAs enrolled in the Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South Asians Living in America (MASALA) cohort for 5 years. Surviving participants were invited for a second clinical exam from 2015 to 2018. A new wave of participants was recruited during 2017–2018. We assessed the yields from different methods of recruitment and retention.Results:A total of 759 (83%) completed the second clinical exam, and 258 new participants were enrolled. Providing a nearby community hospital location for the study exam, offering cab/shared ride reimbursement, and conducting home visits were the most effective methods for enhancing retention. New participant recruitment targeted women and individuals with lower socioeconomic status, and we found that participant referrals and active community engagement were most effective. Mailing invitational letters to those identified by electronic health records had very low yield.Conclusion:Recruitment and retention strategies that address transportation barriers and increase community engagement will help increase the representation of SAs in health research.

Bilateral adrenal metastases is a rare manifestation which can be seen in malignancies such as breast, lung carcinoma and melanomas. Adrenal metastases are usually detected on one side or more rarely on both sides. Molecular imaging with 18fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography often shows unilateral or bilateral adrenal metastases in various malignancies. Here, we present a case of renal cell carcinoma that presented with widespread skeletal and bilateral adrenal metastases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Burkitt's lymphoma (BL) is a highly aggressive type of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. BL commonly occurs in children of age 4-7 years and is uncommon in adults, with a worse prognosis. Patients often present with a rapidly growing mass typically involving the abdomen (liver and spleen) and head and neck (nodes, jaw, and facial bones). Pancreas involvement is very rare and very few case reports have been documented so far. Fluorine-18 positron emission tomography/ computed tomography (F-18 PET/CT) is a whole-body survey commonly used for initial staging evaluation. Here, we present an interesting case of BL in an adult female of 43 years, who presented with swelling in the left submandibular region after tooth extraction with multiorgan involvement found on F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose PET/CT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most predominant kind of disease that is normal among ladies is breast cancer. It is one of the significant reasons among ladies, regardless of huge endeavors to stay away from it through screening developers. An automatic detection system for disease helps doctors to identify and provide accurate results, thereby minimizing the death rate. Computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) has minimum intervention of humans and produces more accurate results than humans. It will be a difficult and long task that depends on the expertise of pathologists. Deep learning methods proved to give better outcomes when correlated with ML and extricate the best highlights of the images. The main objective of this paper is to propose a deep learning technique in combination with a convolution neural network (CNN) and long short-term memory (LSTM) with a random forest algorithm to diagnose breast cancer. Here, CNN is used for feature extraction, and LSTM is used for extracted feature detection. The experimental results show that the proposed system accomplishes 100% of accuracy, a sensitivity of 99%, recall of 99%, and an F1-score of 98% compared to other traditional models. As the system achieved correct results, it can help doctors to investigate breast cancer easily. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, cardiovascular deaths and diseases have increased at a fast rate worldwide. The early prediction of this disease is necessary to prevent the deaths. Detection of heart disease requires more experience and good knowledge about heart problems. To detect heart disease in medical science massive quantity of information is collected and accumulated as databases. All the accumulated information could not be worthwhile. Mostly, the datasets are assorted and dispersed in nature. So there is a need for extracting predictive information about heart diseases. Machine learning, an evolving technique that can be used to develop automated systems/frameworks to analyze the data in different domains. It performs well in health care also. There are many techniques available for analyzing and predicting the heart disease, this paper aims to develop predictive models to analyze the datasets relevant to heart disease based on random forest, SVM, J.48, Bayesian prediction and MLP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A lab-scale Hybrid Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (HUASB) reactor with a working volume of 6.5 litres has been taken for the performance analysis, in the treatability study of pulp and paper mill wastewater. In order to analyze the performance of the reactor, operational parameter like hydraulic retention time (HRT) was varied from 10, 20, 30 and 40 h. In addition to that, performance parameters like chemical oxygen demand (COD), pH, volatile fatty acids (VFA), alkalinity, gas production and VFA/alkalinity ratio are analyzed to check the reactor efficacy. The maximum COD removal efficiency of 81.3% is obtained at 40 h HRT, with gas production (methane content of 58%). Also, the obtained results are fitted to the kinetic models like the standard first order, first order and second order to evaluate the performance of the HUASB reactor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paragangliomas (PGLs) are rare tumours arising from sympathetic and parasympathetic paraganglial neural crest cells. Functional PGLs usually present with manifestations of catecholamine excess such as hypertension, flushing and diaphoresis. Non-functional PGLs are diagnosed incidentally during imaging studies and pose a significant diagnostic challenge. Here, we report the case of 42-year-old female patient with carcinoma cervix who presented with a non-fluorodeoxyglucose-avid PGL. This case report highlights the importance of considering PGL in differential diagnosis and the management of retroperitoneal tumours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: There are few longitudinal studies about South Asians (SAs) and little information about recruitment and retention approaches for this ethnic group. Methods: We followed 906 SAs enrolled in the Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South Asians Living in America (MASALA) cohort for 5 years. Surviving participants were invited for a second clinical exam from 2015 to 2018. A new wave of participants was recruited during 2017–2018. We assessed the yields from different methods of recruitment and retention. Results: A total of 759 (83%) completed the second clinical exam, and 258 new participants were enrolled. Providing a nearby community hospital location for the study exam, offering cab/shared ride reimbursement, and conducting home visits were the most effective methods for enhancing retention. New participant recruitment targeted women and individuals with lower socioeconomic status, and we found that participant referrals and active community engagement were most effective. Mailing invitational letters to those identified by electronic health records had very low yield. Conclusion: Recruitment and retention strategies that address transportation barriers and increase community engagement will help increase the representation of SAs in health research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Health care costs are rising rapidly in India. Today, the best health care involves high technologies that latest advancements in medical field facilitate. Now-a-days the medical expenditure are unbearable to the middle and lower income class people. To meet unpredictable medical expenses health insurance will be of much help to the middle and lower income group people. In this context, the present paper discusses the demand for health insurance by the various income groups and also the awareness of the people about health insurance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the adenosine pharmacological stress-induced electrocardiogram (ECG) changes and their association with stress-induced ischemic defects on myocardial perfusion scintigraphy (MPS) in the evaluation of coronary artery disease (CAD) and to evaluate event-free survival among patients with positive and negative ECG/MPS image findings., Methods: A total of 100 patients were examined using stress MPS from March 2020 to August 2021. Stress-induced ECG changes during adenosine infusion were evaluated. The summed stress score (SSS) was evaluated to identify ischemic defects in myocardium. Association of stress ECG changes and scintigraphic results was evaluated., Results: Out of 100 patients, stress ECG changes during adenosine infusion were seen among 34 patients, whereas 66 patients had normal ECG findings. Positive stress MPS findings with SSS >3 were seen in 22 patients, whereas 78 patients had SSS ≤3. There was no agreement between stress ECG changes and MPS findings with Cohen's kappa coefficient (κ) = -0.023, whereas there was mild agreement between stress ECG changes and SSS >7 with κ = 0.105. Median follow-up of 11 months showed more events among patients with positive ECG changes than negative ECG changes., Conclusion: Adenosine, pharmacological stress is safe to use, but few patients might experience some minor and transient symptoms. Adenosine may induce ECG changes in patients with or without positive MPS findings. Patients with concordant positive findings need aggressive cardiac care, whereas patients with small or no defects on MPS need close monitoring., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Indian Journal of Nuclear Medicine.)

Purpose: Site-specific drug delivery systems can contribute to the development and execution of effective cancer treatment. Due to its favorable features (including high biocompatibility, high hydrophilicity and ease of functionalization), poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) has been widely adopted to design drug carriers. Generating carriers for delivery of hydrophobic anticancer agents, however, is still a challenge in carrier design., Methods: In the first step, PEG is functionalized with dialdehyde to generate PEG-(CHO) 2 using EDC/NHS chemistry. In the second step, Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles are functionalized with amino groups to generate Fe 3 O 4 -NH 2 . In the third step, PEG-(CHO) 2 , Fe 3 O 4 -NH 2 and doxorubicin (DOX) react in an acidic environment to yield a drug conjugate (PEGDA-MN-DOX), which is subsequently characterized by FT-IR, 1 H-NMR, SEM, TEM, DLS, TGA, and DSC., Results: The chemical functionalities of the drug conjugate are confirmed by FTIR, H-NMRand XRD analysis.The release pattern of PEGDA-MN-DOX is investigated at 25 and 37 °C at different pH values. The results indicate that the developed drug conjugate cannot only behave as a sustained-release carrier, but can also generate a significant level of reactive oxygen species (ROS), leading to a high level of toxicity against MCF-7 cells while still showing excellent biocompatibility in 3T3 cells., Conclusion: The reported conjugate shows anticancer potential, cancer-targeting ability, and ROS-generating capacity for effective drug encapsulation and sustained release in chemotherapy., Competing Interests: The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work., (© 2022 Adilakshmi et al.)

Food is a cause of concern due to its effect on health and disease. Diet affects the occurrence and progress of non-communicable diseases, including hypertension, diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases (CVD), and cancers. The exact dietary composition that helps in the prevention of diseases is not known. A higher intake of processed foods, sugar-sweetened beverages, Trans and saturated fats, and a lower intake of fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains are generally considered as a poor-quality diet. Therefore, it is of interest to document the lipid profile in healthy human volunteers before and after consuming ghee. Fasting serum lipids were measured before and after the intervention. The effect of the intervention on all the subjects was analysed by comparing the post-intervention data. Data shows that TC and LDL-C are significantly decreased. However, other parameters showed insignificant change. The effect of the intervention on the normolipidaemia group was also analysed. There was no significant change. Thus, data shows that cow ghee consumption is not harmful to health., (© 2022 Biomedical Informatics.)

Natural Strychnos potatorum L. (SPL) polysaccharide-based dual-responsive semi-IPN-type (SPL-DMA) hydrogels have been fabricated using dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate by simple free radical polymerization. Furthermore, a facial and eco-friendly method has been developed for the green synthesis of silver nanoparticles on SPL-DMA hydrogel templates (SPL-DMA-Ag) using an aqueous leaf extract of Carissa spinarum (as a bioreducing agent). SPL-DMA and SPL-DMA-Ag were characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetry analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and evaluated network parameters. 5-Fluorouracil and doxorubicin were successfully encapsulated, and in vitro drug release studies were performed at pH values of 1.2 and 7.4 and at 25 and 37 °C. To understand the drug release mechanism of SPL-DMA hydrogels, various kinetic parameters were calculated. Biocompatibility and anticancer activities of SPL-DMA hydrogels were proved by an antioxidant activity study and in vitro cell viability studies against HeLa and 3T3-L1 cell lines. SPL-DMA-Ag hydrogels were used for antibacterial application., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2022 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

Ketoprofen a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) is widely used in over-the-counter to treat pain, swelling and inflammation. Due to extensive application these drugs has been detected in surface waters which may create a risk to aquatic organisms. The aim of the present study is to assess the ecotoxicity of ketoprofen at different concentrations (1, 10 and 100 μg/ml) on embryos and adult zebrafish (1, 10 and 100 μg L -1 ) under laboratory conditions. In embryos, concentration dependent developmental changes such as edema, spinal curvature, slow heartbeat, delayed hatching, and mortality rate were observed. In adult zebrafish, biochemical enzymes such as AST, ALT and LDH activities were significantly (P < 0.05) increased whereas a decrease in Na + /K + -ATPase activity was noticed in all the tested concentrations of the drug ketoprofen. Similarly, exposure of ketoprofen caused a significant decrease in antioxidant levels in liver tissue (SOD, CAT, GSH, GPx, and GST). However, lipid peroxidation (LPO) level in liver tissue was found to be increased. The histopathological studies further evidenced the impact of ketoprofen in the liver tissue of zebrafish. The present result concludes that ketoprofen could have an impact on the development and biological endpoints of the zebra fish at above concentrations. The malformation in the development of the embryo and changes in the biological end points may provide integrated evaluation of the toxic effect of ketoprofen on zebrafish in a new perspective., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The human oral metagenomic DNA cloned into plasmid pUC19 was used to construct a DNA library in Escherichia coli. Functional screening of 40,000 metagenomic clones led to identification of a clone LIP2 that exhibited halo on tributyrin agar plate. Sequence analysis of LIP2 insert DNA revealed a 939 bp ORF (omlip1) which showed homology to lipase 1 of Acinetobacter junii SH205. The omlip1 ORF was cloned and expressed in E. coli BL21 (DE3) using pET expression system. The recombinant enzyme was purified to homogeneity and the biochemical properties were studied. The purified OMLip1 hydrolyzed p-nitrophenyl esters and triacylglycerol esters of medium and long chain fatty acids, indicating the enzyme is a true lipase. The purified protein exhibited a pH and temperature optima of 7 and 37 °C respectively. The lipase was found to be stable at pH range of 6-7 and at temperatures lower than 40 °C. Importantly, the enzyme activity was unaltered, by the presence or absence of many divalent cations. The metal ion insensitivity of OMLip1offers its potential use in industrial processes.

The alpha-amylases activity was improved by random mutagenesis and screening. A region comprising residues from the position 34-281 was randomly mutated in B. licheniformis alpha-amylase (AmyL), and the library with mutations ranging from low, medium, and high frequencies was generated. The library was screened using an effective liquid-phase screening method to isolate mutants with an altered pH profile. The sequencing of improved variants indicated 2-5 amino acid changes. Among them, mutant TP8H5 showed an altered pH profile as compared with that of wild type. The sequencing of variant TP8H5 indicated 2 amino acid changes, Ile157Ser and Trp193Arg, which were located in the solvent accessible flexible loop region in domain B.

The Val289 residue in the alpha-amylase of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, which is equivalent to the Ala289 and Val286 residues in the alpha-amylases of B. stearothermophilus and B. licheniformis, respectively, was studied by site-directed mutagenesis. This residue was substituted with 10 different amino acids by random substitution of the Val codon. In these mutant alpha-amylases, Val289 was substituted with Ile, Tyr, Phe, Leu, Gly, Pro, Ser, Arg, Glu, and Asp. Compared with the wild-type alpha-amylase, the mutant alpha-amylase Val289Ile showed 20% more hydrolytic activity, whereas Val289Phe and Val289Leu showed 50% lesser activity. On the other hand, the mutant alpha-amylases Val289Gly, Val289Tyr, Val289Ser, and Val289Pro showed less than 15% activity. The substitution of Val289 with Arg, Asp, or Glu resulted in complete loss of the alpha-amylase activity. Interestingly, the mutant alpha-amylase Val289Tyr had acquired a transglycosylation activity, which resulted in the change of product profile of the reaction, giving a longer oligosaccharide.