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Optimization of manganese-substituted iron oxide nanoferrites having the composition Mn

Bos indicus is a domestic cattle species with many indigenous breeds found in India and is important for dairy, draught work, and other household activities. Distinct phenotypic differences are observed among the breeds of this species; however, their whole genome sequences were not available. Therefore, in this study, we performed the whole genome sequencing using Illumina short-read technology to construct draft genome assemblies of four B. indicus breeds; Ongole, Kasargod Dwarf, Kasargod Kapila, and Vechur, of which Vechur is known as the smallest cow of the world. We also report the first de novo genome assemblies of these native B. indicus breeds. Further, we constructed the 18S rRNA marker gene sequences of these B. indicus breeds, which were not yet known. Genomic analysis helped to identify the distinct bovine phenotypic characteristics-related and other biological process-related genes in this species compared to B. taurus, and to gain comparative genomic insights between the dwarf and non-dwarf breeds of this species.

Asymptomatic infection with Rotavirus C (RVC) at 20 percent detection rate was recorded in pigs from India. Sequencing of the VP6, VP7, and NSP4 genes of RVC strains identified I7/ I10, G1 and E5 genotypes, respectively. Full genome sequencing of one of these strains revealed additional P1, R1, C1, M3, A1, N5, T5, H1 genotypes, of VP4, VP1, VP2, VP3, NSP1, NSP2, NSP3, NSP5 genes, respectively. Detection of porcine RVC strains at two different locations in India and at different time points strongly suggests their continuous circulation in the pig population through asymptomatic infections.

Four gastroenteritis viruses were responsible for 54% of the acute gastroenteritis (AGE) cases in children hospitalized between May 2017 and December 2019 in Pune city of Maharashtra state, Western India. The majority (79%) of the children were

Objectives Age estimation in forensic odontology is having a great importance in recent times because of the request by court or other government authorities so that immigrants whose real age is unknown should not suffer unfair disadvantages because of their supposed age, and so that all legal procedures to which an individual's age is relevant can be properly followed. Purpose The present study was planned to be conducted on pulp tissue and dental hard tissues derived from individuals for DNA isolation and age determination . Materials and Methods The present study was an experimental single-blinded study consisting of 30 extracted teeth categorized into three groups as follows: Group A: 10 to 20 years, Group B: 21 to 30 years, Group C: 31 to 40 years. DNA was isolated from the pulp of each tooth and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) for calculating telomere length was performed. Results With increase in age, the length of telomere gets shortened which will be helpful in analyzing the age of the person when morphological and biological remnants are not available except the tooth. Conclusion The present study found that estimation of human age based on the relative TL measured by the real-time quantitative PCR may be a useful method for age prediction, especially when there is no morphologic information in the biological sample. This is the first study to accesses the age of a person by telomere length using dental pulp.

Background: Neutrophils, the most abundant white blood cells are known to play a major role in the fundamental physiological response to tackle with microbial infections via different mechanisms. A series of assays have been developed that mimic neutrophil functions both in vivo and in vitro to look at specific deficiencies of neutrophil function. There is need to develop method to have defined normal range for these tests to differentiate between health and disease. We aim to define normal range for panel of screening assays in healthy adult Indian participants. Materials and Methods: The study included 30 male and 30 female adult healthy participants. A volume of 10 ml of blood was collected from each participant. Four different assays that included chemotaxis, phagocytosis, intracellular killing (candidacidal assay), and nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) test were performed. For defined range was established for all the assays. Simultaneously controls were set up for all the tests. Results: For NBT assay, the mean values for control and test were 13.58 and 58.90 respectively. The mean values for the control and test for phagocytosis assay were 1.77 and 4.49. Similarly, the values for candidacidal assay were 11.67% and 34.98. Finally, the values for chemotaxis test were 2.13 cm for Formyl-Methionyl-Leucyl-Phenylalanine, 0.54 cm for participant's serum and 0.48 cm for the medium. Conclusion: Based on the data generated, the values produced in the present investigation should be considered as normal range for adult population between the age group of 25–50 years for the protocols followed in the study.

Aim: The cancer stem cells (CSCs) are known to be responsible for drug resistance and cancer relapse in the treatment of cancer. Identification and isolation of CSCs and study of their properties will play a crucial role in developing an effective drug against these targets. The aim of the study was to isolate CSCs from primary cancer by the tumorspheres enrichment method, to confirm by indirect immunofluorescence and gene expression of stem cell markers by using real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique. Materials and Methods: In this in vitro study, we enriched oral CSCs through tumorsphere formation assay from seven primary cultures of OSCC patients with defined serum media. The expression and localization of the cell surface markers of CD133 and CD44 were tested by indirect immunofluorescence. Gene expression of stem cell markers such as CD44, CD133, Oct4, Sox2, and Nanog were quantified by RT-PCR technique. One-way analysis of variance was applied to analyze gene expression. Results: Tumorsphere formation has been used to isolate the CSCs from the OSCC tissue culture. Both CD133 and CD44 antibody confirmed the presence of CSCs through indirect immunofluorescence. In comparison to parental cell lines, the expression levels of CD133, CD44, Oct4, Sox2, and Nanog stem cell were significantly higher in CSC-enriched subpopulations. Conclusions: The cost-effective spheroid enrichment and the indirect immunofluorescence methods are useful for the isolation of CSCs from the primary tumor.

Porphyromonas gingivalis is a keystone pathogen and major colonizer in host tissue which plays a pivotal role in periodontitis among the other polymicrobial infections. Increasing facts demonstrate that curcumin has antibacterial activity and anti-biofilm effect against the periodontopathogens through diverse mechanisms that have a positive impact on periodontal health. The present study was aimed to elucidate the effect of curcumin on biofilm formation and virulence factor gene expression of P. gingivalis. By using gene expression studies, we exploited the mechanism of anti-biofilm effects of curcumin on P. gingivalis. The minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration of curcumin for both ATCC and clinical strains of P. gingivalis were found to be 62.5 and 125 µg ml−1 respectively. Curcumin prevented bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation in a dose-dependent manner. Further, curcumin attenuated the virulence of P. gingivalis by reducing the expression of genes coding for major virulence factors, including adhesions (fimA, hagA, and hagB) and proteinases (rgpA, rgpB, and kgp). The results indicated that curcumin has shown anti-biofilm as well as antibacterial activity against P. gingivalis. Further, curcumin because of its pleiotropic actions could be a simple and inexpensive therapeutic strategy in the treatment of periodontal disease.

Epidemiological and molecular investigation was conducted on Rotavirus C (RVC), the viral agent documented with rising prevalence rate, disease severity and cross species transmission and large outbreak potential. Fecal specimens of pigs collected from two cities of Maharashtra state, India tested for RVC showed 20.1% detection rate with majority below 3 months of age. No significant difference in detection rates was observed in the specimens collected in 2009 from Northern and in 2013 from Western parts of Maharashtra. The phylogenetic analyses showed presence of the I7 and I10 genotypes of the VP6 gene and representative strains with G1 and E5 genotypes of the VP7 and NSP4 gene respectively. Full genome characterization of a single strain showed presence of G1, P1, I7, R1, C1, M3, A1, N5, T5, E5, H1 genotypes of the VP7, VP4, VP6, VP1, VP2, VP3, NSP1, NSP2, NSP3, NSP4 and NSP5 genes respectively. This is the first evidence of detection of porcine RVC in asymptomatic pigs in India as well as with highest detection rate reported in asymptomatic pigs till date globally. Identification of porcine RVC at two time intervals and two different parts of Maharashtra state indicates the possibility of continuous circulation of RVC in pig population through asymptomatic infections.

Background and Aims:Porphyromonas gingivalis ( P. gingivalis) is considered as an important pathogen responsible for periodontal disease which is characterized by inflammation of gingiva and destruction of periodontal ligament and alveolar bone leading to loss of tooth. Along with clinical investigations, suitable microbiological analysis needs to be performed which could provide more insight into the disease severity. We aim to quantify P. gingivalis by real-time PCR (RT-PCR) and analyze its association with demographic data including clinical parameters.Materials and Methods:The study consisted of chronic periodontitis patients (CP group) and healthy subjects (H group) with 120 samples in each group. RT-PCR was carried out by the SYBR Green assay to target 16S ribosomal ribonucleic acid species-specific region of P. gingivalis. Standard strain of P. gingivalis ATCC 33277 was used as a control.Results:In the CP group, 79.16% samples were found positive for P. gingivalis, whereas 29.17% samples were positive in the H group. A significant difference was found when the prevalence was compared within males and females ( P < .001 for both). In the older age groups, we found a higher rate of detection of P. gingivalis. As analyzed by Spearman’s correlation test, the number of cells of P. gingivalis was significantly associated with probing depth ( P = .02) and clinical attachment level ( P = .01) in the CP group. The mean cell number of P. gingivalis was found to be increasing with increasing levels of probing depth and clinical attachment level ( P < .001 and P = .01, respectively).Conclusion:The present study reaffirms that the P. gingivalis microbe is significantly associated with the chronic periodontitis and that its level varies with the severity of the disease. Colonization of the bacterium is significantly associated with severe forms of the disease.

An acute gastroenteritis outbreak at Devli Karad village, Maharashtra, India with an attack rate of 22.6% affected mainly adolescent and adult population. The viral investigations conducted on fecal specimens of patients hospitalized indicated the presence of rotavirus B (RVB) using RNA polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. The samples collected from the source of drinking water also showed the presence of the only RVB. Absence of other viral agents and identification of RVB of genotype G2 as the etiological agent of the acute gastroenteritis outbreak highlights, the necessity of monitoring RVB, the viral agent known for its large outbreak potential., Highlight Acute gastroenteritis outbreak in western India with an attack rate of 22.6%.Presence of Rotavirus B (RVB) genotype G2 in all specimens as well as in source of drinking water.Absence of other viral causative agents indicated RVB as the main etiological agent.

In this paper the performance of an adaptive sectoring ad hoc on demand distance vector based routing algorithm applied for overall reliability improvement of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) with limited resources is considered. Reliable and energy efficient data transmission in WSNs to prolong their network lifetime is an important and challenging issue, which is proposed to be solved via the implementation of an energy efficient reliable data transfer scheme for WSNs named as “Adaptive Sectoring Scheme for Reliability”. In this approach, a given sensor field is divided into sectors activated one at a time by the occurrence of an event. To minimize the congestion as well as to increase the energy efficiency and maximize the packet delivery ratio, the sectoring process is adjusted dynamically according to a predefined reliability of the data transfer. Simulation experiments show that the proposed scheme leads to an improvement in reliability and energy consumption.

Periodontal disease is an oral inflammatory disease that destroys the tooth supporting periodontal tissues resulting in tooth loss. Porphyromonas gingivalis is a keystone pathogen that plays a significant role in periodontitis. In previous studies, resveratrol has shown significant results by targeting inflammatory and adhesive markers. Virulence factors of P. gingivalis play an important role in the bacterial adhesion and colonization. In this study, we aimed to demonstrate the anti-biofilm and anti-bacterial activity of resveratrol and also study the effect of resveratrol on the expression of virulence factor genes of P. gingivalis using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The anti-microbial and anti-biofilm activity of resveratrol on P. gingivalis was carried out by broth microdilution assay and biofilm adhesion reduction-crystal violet assay, respectively. We carried out the gene expression analysis by RT-PCR with the P. gingivalis treated compound to analyze the change in the expression of virulence factors: fimbriae and gingipain. Minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of resveratrol against P. gingivalis and other clinical strains are in the range of 78.12-156.25 μg/mL. Resveratrol dose-dependently prevented the biofilm formation and also attenuated the virulence of P. gingivalis by reducing the expression of virulence factor genes such as fimbriae (type II and IV) and proteinases (kgp and rgpA). Resveratrol demonstrated superior anti-bacterial and anti-biofilm activity against P. gingivalis. There was significant reduction in the expression of fimbriae and gingipain with the resveratrol-treated compound. The results suggest that resveratrol, due to its multiple actions, may become a simple and inexpensive therapeutic strategy for treating periodontal disease.

Background: Laryngeal schwannoma is a rare, slow-growing, benign neurogenic tumour usually located in the aryepiglottic folds. The aim is to report a rare case of laryngeal schwannoma and to review 50 cases of a similar entity from the literature in terms of age, sex, presenting symptoms, site, size, the nerve of origin, mode of surgery and outcome.Methods: A retrospective study was conducted at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, in a tertiary care centre along with a review of cases from the literature. A detailed description of the case of laryngeal schwannoma in a 20-year-old patient, who presented with difficulty in swallowing, dyspnoea and hoarseness in the voice to the department of otorhinolaryngology will be given. Along with the data on a comprehensive literature search on about 50 cases of laryngeal schwannomas. Results: Out of the 50 cases, 54% were females and the majority of the cases were above the age of 55 years. Aryepiglottic folds were the common site of tumours (38%). Other sites where the tumour was found included the false cords, true vocal cords, ventricle, arytenoids, epiglottis, post cricoid region, trachea, and thyroid gland. All cases were treated surgically.Conclusions: Laryngeal schwannomas are rare, nerve sheath tumours usually located in the supraglottic larynx. The surgical approach depends on the site, size and extent of the tumour. Sparing the parental nerve depends on the size of the tumour and the nerve of origin.

ObjectivesTo compare the co-administration of an Ayurvedic drug AYUSH 64 as an adjunct to standard of care (SOC) and SOC for efficacy and safety in the management of COVID-19.DesignMulticentre, parallel efficacy, randomized, controlled, open label, assessor blind, exploratory trial with a convenience sample. Patients followed to complete 12 weeks of study duration.SettingCOVID-19 dedicated non-intensive care wards at 1 government hospital, 1 medical college teaching hospital and 1 medical university teaching hospitalParticipants140 consenting, eligible, hospitalized adult patients suffering from mild and moderate symptomatic COVID-19 and confirmed by a diagnostic (SARS-CoV-2) RT-PCR assay on nasal and throat swab were randomized to SOC or SOC plus AYUSH 64. To be withdrawn if disease becomes severe.InterventionsTwo tablets of AYUSH 64, 500 mg each, twice daily after meals, and continued till study completion. SOC (symptomatic and supportive) as per national guidelines of India for mild and moderate disease.Main outcome measuresTime period to clinical recovery (CR) from randomization baseline and proportion with CR within 28 days time frame; CR defined in the protocolResults140 patients randomized (70 in each arm); 138 patients with CR qualified for analysis. Both groups were matched at baseline. The mean time to CR from randomization was significantly superior in AYUSH 64 group (95% CI -3.03 to 0.59 days); a higher proportion (69.7%) in the first week (p=0.046, Chi-square). No significant differences observed for COVID-19 related blood assays (such as D-Dimer). AYUSH 64 arm showed significant (pConclusionsAYUSH 64 hastened recovery, reduced hospitalization and improved overall health in mild and moderate COVID-19 when co-administered with SOC under medical supervision. It was safe and well tolerated. Further studies are warranted.Trial registrationThe Clinical Trials Registry India Number CTRI/2020/06/025557FundingCCRAS, Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India