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Detection of incorrect and malign data transfers in the Internet of Things (IoT) network is important for IoT safety to observe an eye on and prevent unwelcomed traffic flow to the network of IoT. For it, Machine Learning (ML) strategic methods are produced by several researchers to prevent malign data flows through the network of IoT. Nonetheless, because of the wrong choice of feature, a few malign Machine Learning models differentiate especially the movement of malign traffic. Still, what matters is the problem that needs to be deliberated in-depth to select the best features for better malign traffic acquisition in the network of IoT. Dealing with the challenge, a new process was proposed. 1st, the metric method of selecting a novel feature called the proposed CorrAUC, and hinged on CorrAUC, a new highlight for choosing the Corrauc algorithm name is also being developed, designed hinged on the system folding filter features precisely and select the active features of the choose ML method using AUC metric. After that, we apply a combined application Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution Using Shannon Entropy (TOPSIS) built on a bijective set which is soft to verify selected features for identification of malign 1traffic in IoT network. We test our method using data set of Bot-IoT and 4 dissimilar ML classifiers. Practical outcomeanalysis showed that our proposed approach works as well and can achieve greater than 96% results on average. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surfing the internet has become an integral part of our day-to-day life. This has become the potential source of intruder attacks. Hazard is cybercriminal posed threat, the simple example for the same is creating malicious URL to pose phishing attack and to gain access to user's personal information. The consequences include identity theft, other types of frauds like malware injection onto the computing devices. Malicious URL is a link that redirects the user to a fraudulent web page. Recognition of such malicious URLs is a prolonging problem since machine learning (ML) has evolved. There have been ML classifier like random forest (RF) and deep learning (DL) classifiers such as Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), Back Propagation Neural Networks (BPNN) and Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) which may address this classification problem of segregating URLs into malicious and normal. Still these techniques are not sufficient to protect the internet users and requires a robust model that will distinguish between the normal and malicious web pages. This paper introduces a comparative study about ML and DL techniques in classification of URLs as malicious and normal in the given dataset. Among the implemented techniques BPNN gave an optimal accuracy of 96.86%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rickettsial diseases (RD) are widely reported all over the world. Scrub typhus (ST) is a major tropical infection which is well documented all over India. Therefore, the index of suspicion of scrub typhus is high among physicians with regard to patients presenting with acute febrile illness (AFI) and acute undifferentiated febrile illness (AUFI) in India. Rickettsial diseases other than ST (non-ST RDs), which include spotted fever group (SFG) rickettsioses and typhus group (TG) rickettsioses are not uncommon in India, but the index of suspicion is not as high as ST unless there is a history of the presence of fever with rashes and/or recent arthropod bites. This review aims to look into the Indian scenario on the epidemiology of non-ST RDs, especially the SFG and TG rickettsioses based on various investigations, spectrum of clinical presentation, challenges and gaps in knowledge to suspect and diagnose these infections.

Purpose: Hand hygiene (HH), the core element in infection prevention in healthcare, especially for multidrug resistant organism's transmission. The role of HH audits and HH adherence rates in the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in resource limited settings, are yet to be established., Methods: A nationwide multicenter study was conducted in India, involving public, private, teaching and non-teaching COVID healthcare facilities (COVID-HCFs) using the IBhar mobile application based on WHO's hand hygiene audit tool. The HH adherence rates (HHAR) such as complete HHAR (HHCAR), total HHAR (HHTAR), profession specific HHAR, WHO's 5 HH moment specific HHAR and associated variables were measured over 6 month duration (June-December 2021)., Results: A total of 2,01,829 HH opportunities were available and the HHCAR and HHTAR were 27.3% and 59.7%. The HHTAR was significantly higher in the west zone (72.2%), private institutes (65.6%), non-teaching institutes (67.7%), nurses (61.6%), HH moments 2 (71.8%) and 3 (72.1%), and morning shift (61.4%). The HHTAR was better in non-COVID HCFs (65.4%) than COVID-HCFs (57.8%) as well as non-COVID ICUs (68.1%) than COVID ICUs (58.7%). The HHTAR was increased from month 1 to month 6 except a small decrease in the month of December., Conclusions: The hand hygiene adherence is comparable with adherence rate during COVID-19 pandemic in western countries as well as the resource limited settings. The use of gloves during the pandemic and simplified HH techniques and their influence over the HH adherence to be studied further. The sustainable adherence rate over long duration needs to be ensured by continuing the HH audit using multimodal interventions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None., (Copyright © 2022 Indian Association of Medical Microbiologists. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

ZnO/graphene nanocomposites were prepared using a facile approach. Graphene nanosheets were prepared by ultrasonication-based liquid phase exfoliation of graphite powder in a low boiling point organic solvent, 1,2-Dichloroethane, for the preparation of ZnO/graphene nanocomposites. Structural properties of the synthesized ZnO/graphene nanocomposites were studied through powder XRD and micro-Raman analysis. The characteristic Raman active modes of ZnO and graphene present in the micro-Raman spectra ensured the formation of ZnO/graphene nanocomposite and it is inferred that the graphene sheets in the composites were few layers in nature. Increasing the concentration of graphene influenced the surface morphology of the ZnO nanoparticles and a flower shape ZnO was formed on the graphene nanosheets of the composite with high graphene concentration. The efficiencies of the samples for the photocatalytic degradation of Methylene Blue dye under sunlight irradiation were investigated and 97% degradation efficiency was observed. The stability of the nanocomposites was evaluated by performing five cycles, and 92% degradation efficiency was maintained. The observed results were compared with that of ZnO/graphene composite derived from other methods.

Background: Transfer of embryos at the blastocyst stage is one of the best approaches for achieving a higher success rate in In vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment as it demonstrates an improved uterine and embryonic synchrony at implantation. Despite novel biochemical and genetic markers proposed for the prediction of embryo viability in recent years, the conventional morphological grading of blastocysts remains the classical way of selection in routine practice. This study aims to investigate the association between the morphological features of blastocysts and pregnancy outcomes., Methods: This prospective study included women undergoing single or double frozen blastocyst transfers following their autologous cycles in a period between October 2020 and September 2021. The morphological grades (A-good, B-average, and C-poor) of inner cell mass (ICM) and trophectoderm (TE) of blastocysts with known implantation were compared to assess their predictive potential of pregnancy outcome. It was further explored by measuring the relationship between the two variables using logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis., Results: A total of 1,972 women underwent frozen embryo transfer (FET) cycles with a total of 3,786 blastocysts. Known implantation data (KID) from 2,060 blastocysts of 1,153 patients were subjected to statistical analysis, the rest were excluded. Implantation rates (IR) from transfer of ICM/TE grades AA, AB, BA, BB were observed as 48.5%, 39.4%, 23.4% and 25% respectively. There was a significantly higher IR observed in blastocysts with ICM grade A ( p  < 0.001) than those with B irrespective of their TE scores. The analysis of the interaction between the two characteristics confirmed the superiority of ICM over TE as a predictor of the outcome. The rank biserial correlation value for ICM was also greater compared to that of TE (0.11 vs 0.05)., Conclusion: This study confirms that the morphology of ICM of the blastocyst is a stronger predictor of implantation and clinical pregnancy than that of TE and can be utilized as a biomarker of viability., Competing Interests: The authors declare there are no competing interests., (©2022 Sivanantham et al.)

Purpose: Free-living amoebae (FLA) exist in various environmental sources and are the causative agents of many serious human diseases. We surveyed various natural and artificial water bodies in areas of north India to detect the presence of FLA species., Materials and Methods: Surface water samples were collected from 29 water bodies and subjected to microscopy, non-nutrient agar (NNA) culture, and various polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays for the detection of FLA., Results: FLA were found in 62.1% (18/29) of the natural and artificial water bodies by NNA culture. Based on PCR based detection, Acanthamoeba spp. was identified in 41.4% (12/29), Vannella spp./Vahlkampfia ovis in 17.2% (5/29) and Naegleria spp. in 20.7% (6/29) of the samples from different locations. PCR-sequencing of Naegleria positive samples identified them as Naegleria australiensis and Naegleria species., Conclusions: The present study reports widespread occurrence of medically important FLA species in various natural and artificial water bodies, and highlights the need for regular molecular surveillance of FLA in the environment for better control and prevention of the diseases caused by FLA., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None., (Copyright © 2022 Indian Association of Medical Microbiologists. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The genus Eucalyptus with over 747 species occurs in wide ecological range and is preferred for bioenergy plantations due to their short rotation, rapid growth and superior wood properties. They are planted in 22 million ha area and India is third largest planter of Eucalyptus. In the present study, the bacterial endophyte community in leaves of six Eucalyptus clones belonging to E. tereticornis and E. camaldulensis was assessed by sequencing the V3-V4 region of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene. The clones were selected based on their response to progressive water stress. A total of 4947 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were obtained and the dominant phyla were Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes. Escherichia coli was enriched in all samples at species level. Comparison of endophyte diversity was conducted between the two species and across the water stress tolerant and susceptible clones. The alpha-diversity analysis revealed that species richness and diversity was high in E. camaldulensis and water stress susceptible clones. LefSe analysis predicted 69 and 54 significantly enriched taxonomic biomarkers between species and stress response groups respectively. A maximum of 49 taxonomic biomarkers were recorded in susceptible group and the significantly enriched species were Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron and Turicibacter sanguinis, while the tolerant group documented 5 biomarkers including oscillibacter sp. The presence of functional biomarkers was also assessed in both the groups. The findings of the present study provides an insight into the diversity of bacterial endophyte in Eucalyptus leaves and to our knowledge this is the first report on documenting the endophyte abundance in water stress responsive Eucalyptus clones., (Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier GmbH.)

Unique black coatings were observed in the inner wall of pottery shreds excavated from Keeladi, Tamilnadu, India. Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to understand the nature of the coating. The analysis revealed the presence of single, multi-walled carbon nanotubes and layered sheets in the coating. The average diameter of single-walled carbon nanotube found to be about 0.6 ± 0.05 nm. This is the lowest among the single-walled carbon nanotubes reported from artefacts so far and close to the theoretically predicted value (0.4 nm). These nanomaterials were coated in the pottery's that date backs to sixth century BC, and still retain its stability and adhesion. The findings of nano materials in the pre-historic artifacts, its significance and impact are discussed in this article.

Semivolatile organic compounds (SVOCs) in air can react with hydroxyl radicals (OH), nitrate radicals (NO 3 ) and ozone (O 3 ). Two questions regarding SVOC reactivity with OH, NO 3 and O 3 in the gas and particle phases remain to be addressed: according to the existing measurements in the literature, which are the most reactive SVOCs in air, and how can the SVOC reactivity in the gas and particle phases be predicted? In the present study, a literature review of the second-order rate constant (k) was carried out to determine the SVOC reactivity with OH, NO 3 and O 3 in the gas and particle phases in ambient and indoor air at room temperature. Measured k values were available in the literature for 90 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organophosphates, dioxins, di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) and pesticides including pyrifenox, carbamates and terbuthylazine. PAHs and organophosphates were found to be more reactive than dioxins and PCBs. Based on the obtained data, quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) models were developed to predict the k value using quantum chemical, molecular, physical property and environmental descriptors. Eight linear and nonlinear statistical models were employed, including regression models, bagging, random forest and gradient boosting. QSAR models were developed for SVOC/OH reactions in the gas and particle phases and SVOC/O 3 reactions in the particle phase. Models for SVOC/NO 3 and SVOC/O 3 reactions in the gas phase could not be developed due to the lack of measured k values for model training. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression and random forest models were identified as the most effective models for SVOC reactivity prediction according to a comparison of model performance metrics., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Rickettsial diseases (RDs) are major under-diagnosed causes of arthropod borne acute febrile illness (AFI) presenting with a range of symptoms from mild self-limiting fever to fatal sepsis. The spotted fever group (SFG) and typhus group (TG) are major RDs, which are commonly caused by Rickettsia conorii and Rickettsia typhi , respectively. The limited availability and role of serological tests in the acute phase of illness warrants rapid reliable molecular methods for diagnosis and epidemiological studies. Two hundred patients with AFI in whom the routine fever diagnostics were negative, were enrolled over a period of two months (April 2019 to May 2019). DNA was extracted and in-house nested PCR using primers specific for both SPG and TG pathogens was used. The positive amplified products were sequenced for species identification and phylogenetic analysis was performed using MEGA 7.0.14 software (iGEM, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA). The demographic details of the RD cases were documented. The prevalence of RD among AFI cases was 7% (14/200); SFG and TG were identified as the cause in 4% and 3% of AFI cases, respectively. The median age of the RD cases was 22 years (range 2-65). The median duration of fever was 3 days (range 1-12). The RD cases presented with respiratory symptoms or signs (44.44%), jaundice (22.22%), abdominal pain (22.22%), diarrhea (22.22), vesicular rash (11.11%), vomiting (11.11%), loss of appetite (11.11%), headache (11.11%), leukocytosis (88.88% with mean count 22,750/mm 3 ), and thrombocytopenia (33.33%). The cases were treated empirically with piperacillin-tazobactam (66.66%), clindamycin (44.44%), cefotaxime (33.33%), meropenem (33.33%), metronidazole (33.33%), doxycycline (22.22%), azithromycin (22.22%), ceftriaxone (11.11%), and amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (11.11%). The mortality among the RD cases was 11.11%. The present pilot study shows that RD is not an uncommon cause of AFI in north India. The febrile episodes are usually transient, not severe and associated with heterogenous clinical presentation without documented history of tick exposure in the hospitalized patients. The transient, non-severe, febrile illness could be due to transient rickettsemia resulting from empirical antimicrobial therapy as the rickettsial organisms are expected to be more susceptible to higher doses of β-lactam antibiotics. The study emphasizes the molecular method as a useful tool to identify rickettsial etiology in AFI.

We have synthesized a range of zwitterionic amphiphilic diblock copolymers with the same hydrophilic block (carboxybetaine) but with different hydrophobic blocks ( n -butylmethacrylate ( n -BMA) or 2-ethylhexylacrylate (EHA)) by the reversible addition⁻fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization method. Herein, we systematically examined the role of hydrophobicity and salt concentration dependency of surface activity and micellization behaviour of block copolymer. Transition from surface active to non-surface active occurred with increasing hydrophobicity of the hydrophobic block of block copolymer (i.e., replacing P( n -BMA) by PEHA). Foam formation of block copolymer slightly decreased with the similar variation of the hydrophobic block of block copolymer. Block copolymer with higher hydrophobicity preferred micelle formation rather than adsorption at the air⁻water interface. Dynamic light scattering studies showed that block copolymer having P( n -BMA) produced near-monodisperse micelles, whereas block copolymer composed of PEHA produced polydisperse micelles. Zimm plot results revealed that the value of the second virial coefficient ( A ₂) changed from positive to negative when the hydrophobic block of block copolymer was changed from P( n -BMA) to PEHA. This indicates that the solubility of block copolymer having P( n -BMA) in water may be higher than that of block copolymer having PEHA in water. Unlike ionic amphiphilic block copolymer micelles, the micellar shape of zwitterionic amphiphilic block copolymer micelles is not affected by addition of salt, with a value of packing parameters of block copolymer micelles of less than 0.3., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) are widespread, lipophilic environmental pollutants which have been identified as contaminants in almost every component of the global ecosystem including fish, wildlife, and human adipose tissue, breast milk, and serum. Several studies have shown that PCBs can cause oxidative damage to biomolecules, in the form of lipid peroxidation, modulation of antioxidant enzymes, and oxidative stress. In the present study, we have sought to investigate the effects of alpha-tocopherol (vitamin E) on antioxidant status of PCB-induced toxicity in male Wistar rats. The protective effect of alpha-tocopherol (50mg/kg body weight/day) was tested in PCB-induced toxicity in rat liver, lung, and kidney. We report here that the oral supplementation of alpha-tocopherol was found to maintain the cellular redox status by maintaining the activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase accompanied with glutathione and vitamin E levels and down regulation in the levels of lipid peroxides, hydroxyl radical and hydrogen peroxides generation in PCB treated rats. Therefore, our present study demonstrates the PCB-induced deficits in antioxidant enzyme activities and increase in reactive oxygen species and lipid peroxidation levels in liver, kidney, and lung which can be overcome through simultaneous supplementation with alpha-tocopherol.