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Worldwide industrialization and other human activities have led to a frightening stage of release of hazardous, highly persistent, toxic, insoluble, strongly adsorbed to the soil and high molecular weight ubiquitous polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soils and sediments. The various conventional remediation methods are being used to remediate PAHs with certain drawbacks. Time taking process, high expenditure, excessive quantities of sludge generation, and various chemical requirements do not only make these methods outdated but produce yet much resistant and toxic intermediate metabolites. These disadvantages may be overcome by using a microbial electrochemical system (MES), a booming technology in the field of bioremediation. MES is a green remediation approach that is regulated by electrochemically active microorganisms at the electrode in the system. The key advantage of the system over the conventional methods is it does not involve any additional chemicals, takes less time, and generates minimal sludge or waste during the remediation of PAHs in soils. However, a comprehensive review of the MES towards bioremediation of PAHs adsorbed in soil and sediment is still lacking. Therefore, the present review intended to summarize the recent information on PAHs bioremediation, application, risks, benefits, and challenges based on sediment microbial fuel cell and microbial fuel cell to remediate mount-up industrial sludge, soil, and sediment rich in PAHs. Additionally, bio-electrochemically active microbes, mechanisms, and future perspectives of MES have been discussed.

Introduction: Patient satisfaction is a psychological concept which is considered as a judgment of individuals regarding any object or event after gathering some experiences over time. It is one of the established yardsticks to measure the success of the services. Objectives: 1. To assess the level of inpatient satisfaction on hospital services. 2. To find out the determinants of inpatient satisfaction on hospital services. Method: It was a cross-sectional study conducted over a period of four months at VIMSAR, a tertiary care hospital in Odisha in eastern India. A total of 164 patients were enrolled in the study from the five most occupied indoor departments who were administered a pre-tested semi-structured standardised questionnaire by face to face interview method. Results: Majority (77.44%) of respondents were in the age group of 21-60 years. The sample consisted of 65.24 % males and 43.9% were from lower socio-economic class. Patient satisfaction level was found to be relatively low (~80%) for the service domains like housekeeping, general services and ancillary services. Fields like front desk services, medical care, nursing care and laboratory services enjoyed a better satisfaction score (~90%). Binary logistic regression analysis reflected age and socio-economic class to be the negative determinants of the level of satisfaction. Conclusion: About two thirds of the inpatients were satisfied with the services availed at the tertiary care hospital in the five specialities. There is scope of improvement in the areas like housekeeping, ancillary care and general care. Socio-demographic characteristics like age and socioeconomic class inversely related to inpatient satisfaction on hospital services.

To compare the efficacy of intravenous acetaminophen and intravenous diclofenac sodium in the management of skeletal vaso-occlusive crisis among children with sickle cell disease. Single blind randomized controlled trial. Tertiary care hospital. 104 children with sickle cell disease and skeletal vaso-occlusive crisis. Intravenous acetaminophen at 10mg/kg/dose 8 hourly and intravenous diclofenac sodium at 1mg/kg/dose 8 hourly in 1:1 ratio. Reduction in pain score (50%), number of doses needed to relieve pain after 24 hours of drug administration and decrease in pain score at 1 hour. A 50% reduction in pain score was seen in 35 (77.3%) and 10 (21.7%) children among acetaminophen and diclofenac sodium groups respectively (RR, 95% CI 3.6; 2.02–6.33, P< 0.001). The mean (SD) fall in pain score at 1 hour was significantly higher among intervention arm as compared to control arm [1.51 (0.5) and 1.06 (0.5); P

Breast Self-Examination (BSE) is a screening method used in an attempt to detect early breast cancer. The method involves the women herself looking at and feeling each breast for possible lumps, distortions or swelling. Breast Self-Examination (BSE) was once promoted heavily as a means of finding cancer at a more curable stage. So this study was aimed at assessing knowledge regarding Breast Self-Examination among Medical students in IGIMS, Patna, Bihar.

Significant efforts have been made to develop new platinum anticancer compounds since the discovery of cis-platin; however, non-specific toxicity or loss of efficacy remain some of the major challenges in this area of platinum drug discovery. Newly developed platinum compounds, structurally distinct from the current molecules, imparting efficacy at lower concentrations than the current drugs, and interacting with DNA leading to cell death, may prove beneficial. In the current study, we designed, synthesized, and characterized three phenalenyl based platinum chloride compounds (1, 2, and 3) with the goal that a labile Pt–Cl bond with the planar structure of the phenalenyl moiety would enhance their interaction with DNA, leading to improved efficacy. In addition, it is assumed that the fluorescent properties of these compounds would facilitate mechanistic investigation. The crystal structure of compound 1 demonstrates a perfectly planar structure with a single Pt–Cl bond. In vitro cell viability studies on cancer cell lines, including lung, colorectal, breast, and osteosarcoma, revealed a superior efficacy for compounds 1 and 2, relative to platinum drugs in clinical use. Localization studies utilized the strong fluorescence of compound 3 to investigate the mechanism of action, revealing its interaction with DNA, leading to cell death. This study enriches the arsenal of potential platinum-based anti-cancer therapeutics and provides an easy-to-use tool for the mechanism-of-action studies of these compounds.

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a fatal form among all forms of leishmaniasis and is caused by visceralization of the Leishmania donovani (Ld) parasite to the critical organs. Mild to severe malnutrition is common in VL patients and the deficiency of retinoic acid (RA), an important micronutrient, results in a compromised state of immune response in macrophages (mφ) leading to the increased parasite load. In the continuation of our earlier work, we observed loss of cellular cholesterol in infected mφ in the absence of RA i.e., upon inhibition of RALDH pathway. Moreover, the Leishmania utilizes host cholesterol for the establishment of infection and causes a decrease in the expressions of Niemann-Pick C2 (npc2) and Niemann-Pick C1 (npc1) genes involved in the uptake of extracellular cholesterol. This results in reduced levels of cellular cholesterol in infected mφ. Intrigued by this, as the first sign of our hypothesis, we investigated the presence of RA Response Element (RARE) sequences in the upstream of npc1 and npc2 genes. To functionally confirm this, we measured their expressions and the levels of cellular cholesterol in Ld infected mφ in the absence (i.e., using an inhibitor of RALDH pathway) and presence of RA. We found restoration of the levels of cellular cholesterol in infected mφ under the supplementation of RA resulting in the decreased parasite load. Hence, the supplementation of RA with the standard therapy and/or preventive use of RA could be potentially an advancement in the treatment and cure of VL patients.

Background:The global alliance for genomics and healthcare facilities provides innovative solutions to expedite research and clinical practices for complex and incurable health conditions. Precision oncology is an emerging field explicitly tailored to facilitate cancer diagnosis, prevention, and treatment based on patients’ genetic profiles. Advancements in “omics” techniques, next-generation sequencing, artificial intelligence, and clinical trial designs provide a platform for assessing the efficacy and safety of combination therapies and diagnostic procedures.Method:Data were collected from PubMed and Google Scholar using keywords “Precision medicine,” “precision medicine and cancer,” “anticancer agents in precision medicine,” and reviewed comprehensively.Results:Personalized therapeutics, including immunotherapy and cancer vaccines, serve as a groundbreaking solution for cancer treatment. Herein, we take a measurable view of precision therapies and novel diagnostic approaches targeting cancer treatment. The contemporary applications of precision medicine have also been described, along with various hurdles identified in the successful establishment of precision therapeutics.Conclusion:This review highlights the key breakthroughs related to immunotherapies, targeted anticancer agents, and target interventions related to cancer signaling mechanisms. The success story of this field in context to drug resistance, safety, patient survival, and improving quality of life is yet to be elucidated. We conclude that, in the near future, the field of individualized treatments may truly revolutionize the nature of cancer patient care.

This paper will help in monitoring the various parameters such as temperature, humidity, soil moisture, etc. required for the favorable growth of any particular crop. The proposed system makes use of technologies such as Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) and Internet of Things (IoT) for solving the major challenges faced in agricultural fields. The WSN includes the various sensors interfaced with Raspberry pi whereas with the help of IoT we will be able to obtain the acquired data globally. The acquired data about various parameters will be sent over to the cloud platform where it will be analyzed and processed against the required climatic conditions and the further processed data can be used for weather prediction using Machine Learning (ML) and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and further, the farmers can be informed about the same so that they can aim for increased agricultural productivity. It will also help in using the limited amount of resources available in a more effective manner.

Objectives We retrospectively compared the seventh and eighth editions of American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) TNM frameworks as disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) predictors in oral squamous carcinomas (OSCCs). Methods We restaged the 342 patients with the revised pT and pN criteria and performed survival analyses. Results The 3-year DFS (mean follow-up, 364 days; recurrences, 99) was 50%, and the 5-year OS (mean follow-up, 615 days; deaths, 69) was 42%. The eight edition pN classification was an independent multivariate survival predictor. The revised TNM criteria upstaged pT, pN, and stage groupings in 99 (38.8%), 58 (37.3%), and 101 (29.5%) patients. The latter two groups revealed significantly worse DFS and OS compared with those whose categorizations had remained unaltered. In addition, their classification/staging criteria demonstrated superior discrimination, monotonicity, and accuracy for survival estimations. Conclusions Of the competing AJCC staging criteria, the revised pN classification was the most powerful system to predict OSCC survivals.

Green synthesis has been considered as an ideal approach owing to its simplicity, cost effectiveness and minimal toxicity. Aim of the present study was to synthesize and characterize copper nanoparticle capped Tinospora cordifolia using green synthesis and further to evaluate its catalytic degradation property on different dyes. Various characterization parameters were performed such as particle size, PDI, zeta potential, microscopic study (SEM, TEM), interaction study through ATR-FTIR and DSC. Surface area of the sample was analyzed through the surface area analyzer. Catalytic degradation ability of synthesized nanoparticle was studied using various dyes such as reactive dye, direct dye, eosin yellowish and safranin.

BACKGROUND Ageing is generally defined as a process of deterioration in the functional capacity of an individual that results from structural changes, with advancement of age. Ageing is a universal process and it affects every individual, family, community and society. The present study was designed to assess the quality of life of geriatric age group population residing in field practice area of VIMSAR, Burla and to find out factors affecting their quality of life. MATERIALS AND METHODS A community based cross-sectional study was adopted for studying the health problems of elderly and their quality of life, using WHO Quality of Life-BREF questionnaire. Simple random sampling technique was used for sample collection. A total of 213 individuals ≥ 60 years of age were enrolled for study for a period of three months, out of which 150 participated in the study. RESULTS Out of 150 geriatric population, 69(46%) were male and 81(54%) female, most of them were in the age group of 60-64 yearsmale 30 (43.5%) and female 32 (39.5%). Maximum number of study subjects suffered from cataract 82 (54.7%), followed by Osteoarthritis and Hypertension 20 (13.3%) each, Diabetes 15 (10%) and psychiatric problem in 2 (1.3%). The mean QOL score for all the elderly persons when put together was in the second quartile indicating that in general, on an average, the population as a whole had moderate quality of life. CONCLUSION There is a need to highlight the medical and psychosocial problems that are being faced by the elderly people in India and strategies for bringing about an improvement in their quality of life.

Inorganic phosphate (Pi) is shown to be involved in excretion of methylglyoxal (MG) in the promastigote form ofLeishmania donovaniparasite. Absence of Pi leads to its accumulation inside the parasite. Accumulation of MG is toxic to the parasite and utilizes glyoxylase as well as excretory pathways for its detoxification. In addition, Pi is also reported to regulate activities of ectoenzymes and energy metabolism (glucose to pyruvate) etc. Thus, it is known to cumulatively affect the growth ofLeishmaniaparasite. Hence the transporters, which allow the movement of Pi across the membrane, can prove to be a crucial drug target. Therefore, we characterized two phosphate transporters inLeishmania(i) H+dependent myo-inositol transporter (LdPHO84), and (ii) Na+dependent transporter (LdPHO89), based on similar studies done previously on other lower organisms and trypanosomatids. We tried to understand the secondary structure of these two proteins and confirm modulation in their expression with the change in Pi concentration outside. Moreover, their modes of action were also measured in the presence of specific inhibitors (LiF, CCCP). Further analysis on the physiological role of these transporters in various stages of the parasite life cycle needs to be entrenched.

Background: Natural Killer (NK) cell plays an important role in the innate immune system and is known to produce IFN-γ at an early stage of infection that is essential to eliminate intracellular infection like Leishmania spp. It is already established that Leishmania parasite inhibits the activity of NK cells, avoiding the encounter with the early innate immune response. This, in turn, favors establishment and further dissemination of the infection. Methods: In the present study, we have tried to measure the frequency of different phenotypic subsets of NK cells among visceral leishmaniasis (VL) patients. Results: We have phenotyped three distinct three distinct subsets (CD56–CD161+, CD56+CD161–, and CD56+CD161+) of NK (CD3–) cell using their specific markers CD161 and CD56. Conclusion: Interestingly, we observed selective loss of CD56+CD161+ subset of circulating NK (CD3–) cells. Importantly, the other subsets (i.e., CD56−CD161+ and CD56+CD161–) of circulating NK cells remain unaffected as compare...

Methyl paraben (MP), is a widely used preservative in pharmaceutical, food and cosmetic products. Its molecular mechanism under ambient ultraviolet radiation is not well understood. We investigated photosensitizing mechanism of MP under ambient UVB (0.6 mW/cm2) intensity. MP showed dose dependent decrease in cell viability of human keratinocyte cell line (HaCaT) by MTT and NRU assays. Study showed 40% reduction in antimicrobial activity of UVB irradiated MP through E. coli culture. Photosensitized MP (25 μg/ml) significantly enhanced lipid peroxidation, intracellular ROS generation and disrupted mitochondrial membrane integrity. MP induced loss of lysosomal membrane integrity and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) mediated stress evident from Ca+2 release. Phototoxicity of MP showed nuclear fragmentation, phosphatidylserine translocation, 30% tail DNA and micronuclei formation. Study showed mitochondria mediated apoptosis via upregulation of Bax, Apaf-1, Cytochrome C and Caspase-3. Upregulation of Caspase-12 (2 folds) specifically showed role of ER in apoptosis. Specific caspase inhibitor, Z-VAD-FMK showed involvement of caspase cascade pathway in apoptosis. Results indicate that photosensitive MP leads to oxidative stress mediated DNA damage and apoptosis through mitochondria and ER. MP causes deleterious effects and its long term exposure to human skin may promote skin diseases. Therefore, MP should be replaced by other photosafe preservatives for humans.

One of the problems among Women of Reproductive Age (WRA) group has been lack of effective programs whose benefits are not reaching WRA group. Another problem is the prevalence of monotonous diet based on starchy staple food, which lacks essential micronutrients and contribute to the burden of malnutrition and micronutrient deficiency. The objectives of the study was to assess household dietary diversity and nutritional status of non-pregnant non-lactating women of reproductive age in urban field practice area in Burla as a way of comparing food security situation. It was a cross sectional study. Data were collected from urban field practice area in Burla and were analysed to assess the dietary diversity among “women of reproductive age (WRA)” group. One third (about 29%) of them was malnourished. On application of logistic regression, those aged ≥25years had better odds of having Minimum Dietary Diversity (MDD) score of 5 and above (OR=1.777). Subjects with BMI range ≥21.5 Kg/mt2 also had better odds of having MDD score of 5 and above (OR=3.371). Women of reproductive age are nutritionally more vulnerable because of pregnancy, lactation and menstruation requiring nutrient dense quality food. Monotonous diet based on starchy staple lacks essential micronutrients and contribute to the burden of malnutrition and micronutrient deficiency. Intake of diverse diet is a cost effective strategy to overcome this problem. From our survey we conclude that more than half of WRA failed to achieve MDD. Based on findings, Information Education and Communication (IEC) activities are recommended with an emphasis on locally available, low-cost nutrition diet. Keywords: Minimum Dietary Diversity, Women of Reproductive Age, Micronutrients

Infection with L. donovani affects mainly visceral organs. Importantly, the parasitic load differs in different visceral organs; therefore there is a need to understand the organ specific immune regulation, particularly in the spleen and liver. Comparative studies between these organs in Leishmania infected hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) are lacking. Our study highlights the importance of eicosanoids in the organ specific pathology of visceral leishmaniasis. Among other immune cells, macrophages (mφ) which harbor Leishmania parasite are major producers of eicosanoids. In this study, we intend to explore linkage between organ specific immune response and eicosanoids. We suggest that eicosanoids (early immune modulators) and their organ specific expressions, possibly tune the outcome of mφ differently at different sites. We have observed that liver showed better containment of parasitic load than spleen, where we have found higher expression of 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) enzyme along with IL-12 and iNOS. However, in spleen, enzymes of the PGE2 pathway i.e. PGE2 synthases (cytosolic and microsomal) along with IL-10 were predominantly higher. To further corroborate our findings, in vitro assays were carried out using purified eicosanoids (LTB4 and PGE2) and the inhibitors of these pathways. Findings establish that the 5-lipoxygenase pathway (i.e. LTB4) is anti-parasitic and its inhibition increases the parasitic load (qPCR based kDNA detection). On the contrary, PGES pathway (i.e. PGE2) supports establishment of infection in mφ. Taken together, 5-LO pathway plays a protective role in liver during L. donovani infection. However, the PGES pathway favors the parasite growth, particularly in the spleen at a later stage.

Globally, around 34 million people are living with HIV in 2010, and 35% of the pregnant women are tested for HIV in the low and middle income countries. HIV infection in pregnancy has become a complication of pregnancy in some developing countries. This has major implications for the management of pregnancy and birth. A cross sectional study was conducted from December 2018 – February 2019 in tertiary care hospital, VIMSAR Burla . The present study was conducted to assess the knowledge about HIV/AIDS and mother to child transmission issues among women seeking antenatal care and visiting ICTC. A sample of 150 pregnant females was used to accomplish the study. A pre- tested semi-structured questionnaire was used to gather information on the study variables. The questionnaire included variables related socio-demographics e.g., age, education status, occupation, residence, awareness about HIV/AIDS. The study reflected that 83.4% of the women had heard of the term HIV/AIDS which reflects a relatively high level of awareness about the term but subsequently dropping levels of awareness about the routes of transmission, laboratory diagnosis and the availability of drugs. Only 45.3% of the respondents were aware of ICTC. 42.7% were aware about mother to child transmission of HIV and only 32% were aware of anti-retro viral therapy for newborn. Keywords: HIV, ICTC, Antenatal

CD6 is a transmembrane glycoprotein, mainly expressed by all T cells and a subset of B cells. It has been shown that the human CD6 gene has six reported transcript isoforms, including full length and Δ3 isoforms. These are CD6a, CD6b, CD6c, CD6d, CD6e and CD6Δ3. In every isoform, particular exon(s) are known to be alternatively spliced out. In our findings, we observed a novel transcript isoform of CD6, where exon 9 is spliced out. Semi-qPCR and nucleotide sequencing confirmed the presence of a novel isoform of CD6 i.e. CD6f in human mononuclear cells. Quantitative expression showed significant high expression of CD6f over the full length transcript variant i.e. CD6a. Interestingly, their expressions get further increased upon polyclonal activation.