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Environmental sustainability encompasses various problems, including clean air, renewable energy, climate change, safe environments, and the capacity to live in a healthy community. One possible strategy for addressing these global problems is the circular bio-economy. Cleaner and lower-carbon environments may be fostered via the production of bioenergy and biomaterials, which can also help to maintain the energy-environment connection. To improve sustainability and the state of the planet, scientists are looking at renewable energy sources like ethanol. Compared to gasoline, ethanol has a reduced carbon footprint and a greater energy density, making it a viable alternative fuel. This study gives an overview of ethanol as a possible alternative fuel for flex-powered power generators in India to meet the goals of the circular bio-economy. This paper details the results of flex-fuel testing conducted on a light-duty power generator using an ethanol-gasoline mix. The findings reveal improved thermal efficiency and lower fuel consumption rates than basic fuel. The emissions of both carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons were shown to be reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author discusses issues related to the crisis in agricultural marketing in India. He believes that the crisis of agricultural marketing in the country is due to disaggregated production and lack of proper aggregation of the surplus for transportation and marketing. He emphasizes that the use of modern technology will make agriculture attractive and farmers will be inspired to seek methods to improve productivity.

Introduction: World over studies are being done by different group of workers to understand the time of deliveries conducted. Surprisingly majority of deliveries were following a pattern, seasonally. Today in this busy world, couples choose comparatively a free time for delivery and preparation for conception is done accordingly. Apart from these, it is clearly shown majority of deliveries are conducted during a particular season. We hypothesised that the change in semen quality during different seasons is responsible for this phenomenon., Materials and Methods: Present study conducted on semen quality included 12,408 semen samples collected from different laboratories of Bangalore city during 8 years (2000-2007) period of time and were analysed season wise., Results: Results showed sperm concentration was significantly lower in monsoon than in winter season. Humidity and pressure influenced sperm count. Forward moving sperms were influenced by temperature and pressure., Summary: The study concludes the change in birth rates seen during different season in a year is due to the quality of semen responsible for conception.

Background: Coronary heart disease, a leading cause of death globally, is amenable to lifestyle interventions. The family environment can affect the ability or willingness of individuals to make lifestyle changes. We aimed to investigate the efficacy of a targeted family-based intervention for reduction of total cardiovascular risk in individuals with a family history of premature coronary heart disease., Methods: We did an open-label, cluster randomised controlled trial (PROLIFIC) in the families (first-degree relatives and spouses, older than age 18 years) of individuals with coronary heart disease who had been diagnosed before age 55 years. Patients with coronary heart disease diagnosed within the past year were selected from a tertiary care speciality hospital that provides care for patients from Kerala, India. Family members of selected patients who were bedridden or terminally ill, and individuals with a history of established cardiovascular heart disease and stroke were excluded, as were families with fewer than two eligible family members. Simple randomisation with computer-generated random numbers was used to randomly assign families to intervention and usual care groups (1:1). Participants in the intervention group received a comprehensive package of interventions facilitated by non-physician health workers, consisting of: screening for cardiovascular risk factors; structured lifestyle interventions; linkage to a primary health-care facility for individuals with established chronic disease risk factors or conditions; and active follow-up for adherence. The usual care group received one-time counselling and annual screening for risk factors. We obtained data on lifestyle, clinical, and biochemical characteristics at baseline and annually during the 2-year follow-up. The primary outcome was achievement or maintenance of any three of the following: blood pressure lower than 140/90 mm Hg, fasting plasma glucose lower than 110 mg/dL, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol lower than 100 mg/dL, and abstinence from tobacco. The primary outcome was analysed in all participants available for follow-up at the relevant timepoint. This trial is registered with Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT02771873., Findings: From Jan 1, 2015, to April 30, 2017, 980 patients with coronary heart disease were assessed for eligibility and 230 were excluded primarily due to lack of evidence of coronary artery disease (n=199), or a diagnosis of coronary heart disease more than 1 year previously (n=29). Of the 750 remaining families, 368 (with 825 participants) were assigned to the intervention group and 382 (with 846 participants) were assigned to the usual care group. At the 2-year follow-up, data from 803 (97%) of 825 participants in the intervention group and 819 (97%) of 846 participants in the usual care group were available. Of the 1671 participants, 1111 (66·5%) were women, and 560 (33·5%) were men. The mean age of the study population was 40·8 years (SD 14·2). At the 2-year follow-up, the primary outcome was achieved by 514 (64%) of 803 participants in the intervention group and 379 (46%) of 819 in the usual care group. After adjustment for clustering and baseline risk factors, the odds of achieving the primary outcome at the 2-year timepoint was two times higher in the intervention group than in the usual care group (odds ratio 2·2, 95% CI 1·7-2·7; p<0·0001)., Interpretation: The reduction of total cardiovascular risk observed after the intervention could have a substantial public health impact by preventing future cardiovascular events., Funding: The Wellcome Trust and Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, and India Alliance., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests DP and PJ received research grants from the US National Heart Lung and Blood Institute for a work-site-based cardiovascular risk reduction initiative (5R01HL125442-05). PJ also received research grants from the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (1160283 and 1169766), the World Diabetes Federation (WDF-15-959), and the Indian Council of Medical Research for diabetes and hypertension risk reduction interventions. All other authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Background & Objectives: Cardiovascular risk factors clustering associated with blood pressure (BP) has not been studied in the Indian population. This study was aimed at assessing the clustering effect of cardiovascular risk factors with suboptimal BP in Indian population as also the impact of risk reduction interventions., Methods: Data from 10543 individuals collected in a nation-wide surveillance programme in India were analysed. The burden of risk factors clustering with blood pressure and coronary heart disease (CHD) was assessed. The impact of a risk reduction programmme on risk factors clustering was prospectively studied in a sub-group., Results: Mean age of participants was 40.9 ± 11.0 yr. A significant linear increase in number of risk factors with increasing blood pressure, irrespective of stratifying using different risk factor thresholds was observed. While hypertension occurred in isolation in 2.6 per cent of the total population, co-existence of hypertension and >3 risk factors was observed in 12.3 per cent population. A comprehensive risk reduction programme significantly reduced the mean number of additional risk factors in the intervention population across the blood pressure groups, while it continued to be high in the control arm without interventions (both within group and between group P<0.001). The proportion of 'low risk phenotype' increased from 13.4 to 19.9 per cent in the intervention population and it was decreased from 27.8 to 10.6 per cent in the control population (P<0.001). The proportion of individuals with hypertension and three more risk factors decreased from 10.6 to 4.7 per cent in the intervention arm while it was increased from 13.3 to 17.8 per cent in the control arm (P<0.001)., Interpretation & Conclusions: Our findings showed that cardiovascular risk factors clustered together with elevated blood pressure and a risk reduction programme significantly reduced the risk factors burden.

A commercial 2D array seven29 detector has been characterized and its performance has been evaluated. 2D array ionization chamber equipped with 729 ionization chambers uniformly arranged in a 27 × 27 matrix with an active area of 27 × 27 cm² was used for the study. An octagon-shaped phantom (Octavius Phantom) with a central cavity is used to insert the 2D ion chamber array. All measurements were done with a linear accelerator. The detector dose linearity, reproducibility, output factors, dose rate, source to surface distance (SSD), and directional dependency has been studied. The performance of the 2D array, when measuring clinical dose maps, was also investigated. For pretreatment quality assurance, 10 different RapidArc plans conforming to the clinical standards were selected. The 2D array demonstrates an excellent short-term output reproducibility. The long-term reproducibility was found to be within ±1% over a period of 5 months. Output factor measurements for the central chamber of the array showed no considerable deviation from ion chamber measurements. We found that the 2D array exhibits directional dependency for static fields. Measurement of beam profiles and wedge-modulated fields with the 2D array matched very well with the ion chamber measurements in the water phantom. The study shows that 2D array seven29 is a reliable and accurate dosimeter and a useful tool for quality assurance. The combination of the 2D array with the Octavius phantom proved to be a fast and reliable method for pretreatment verification of rotational treatments., (Copyright © 2012 American Association of Medical Dosimetrists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: The incidence of tuberculosis is high in chronic kidney disease (CKD) which needs a high index of suspicion, early diagnosis and management for gratifying outcome., Materials: The clinical, laboratory profile, management and outcome of tuberculosis in 36 patients with chronic kidney disease between 2000 and 2005 constitute the material of this study., Results: During this study period, over 900 chronic renal failure patients were evaluated in our unit and 36 of them were found to have tuberculosis, the incidence being 4%. In majority (69.4%), tuberculosis was observed in association with CKD Stage V. Age range was 25 - 77 years, male : female ratio was 33 : 3. Fever, malaise and weight loss were the commonest symptoms observed at presentation. Extrapulmonary tuberculosis (23 patients, 63.8%) predominated over pulmonary tuberculosis (10 patients, 36.1%). Tuberculin skin test was negative in 23 patients (63.8%). The diagnosis of tuberculosis was confirmed by tissue or specimen examination in 17 patients (47.2%) and in the rest it was empirical basing on clinical picture, pleural fluid analysis and radiological tests. All the patients were planned for a minimum period of 9-month antituberculous therapy (ATT). Of them, 17 patients (47.2%) were cured from tuberculosis and did not relapse, 9 patients (25%) died during treatment and 10 patients were lost for follow-up. Two patients were managed for anti-tuberculous therapy-related side effects: hepatotoxicity and psychosis., Conclusions: We observed a 4% incidence of tuberculosis in CKD. Extrapulmonary form of tuberculosis predominated over pulmonary form. Fever and malaise were important clues for suspicion of tuberculosis. Tuberculin skin test was negative in the majority. Diagnostic confirmation was possible in 47.2% of patients and in the rest it was based on clinical suspicion, pleural fluid analysis and radiological findings. Cure from tuberculosis was observed in 47.2% of patients with antituberculous therapy.