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Abstract Background Synthetic insecticides employed in seed treatment are often phytotoxic, especially at slightest misapplications. Cowpea seed is mainly attacked by Callosobruchus maculatus. It is established that azadirachtin, myristicin and α-humulene based insecticides (botanical insecticides) are eco-friendly and have activity against C. maculatus and thus are considered ideal candidates in research efforts targeted at developing plant based options for protecting cowpea seed against C. maculatus attack. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the toxicity of selected botanical insecticides on treated cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) seed. Results Electrical conductivity of leachate obtained from cowpea seed treated with botanical insecticides was significantly (P 0.05) different from that reported for cowpea seed treated with chlorpyrifos. Less than 50% of the embryo recovered from seed treated with botanical insecticides was unstained contrary to the observation made on seed of SAMPEA 14 dressed with chlorpyrifos. Conclusion This study reveals similarity as well as variation in varietal sensitivity to phytoxicity among the various cultivars of cowpea seed studied implying that a farmer’s choice of botanical insecticides for the protection of cowpea seed against Callosobruchus maculatus would strictly depend on the cultivars involved.

Background Glioblastoma is the most aggressive and diffusely infiltrative primary brain tumor. Recurrence is almost universal even after all primary standard treatments. This article aims to review the literature and update the standard treatment strategies for patients with recurrent glioblastoma. Methods A systematic search was performed with the phrase "recurrent glioblastoma and management" as a search term in PubMed central, Medline, and Embase databases to identify all the articles published on the subject till December 2020. The review included peer-reviewed original articles, clinical trials, review articles, and keywords in title and abstract. Results Out of 513 articles searched, 73 were included in this review after screening for eligibility. On analyzing the data, most of the studies report a median overall survival (OS) of 5.9 to 11.4 months after re-surgery and 4.7 to 7.6 months without re-surgery. Re-irradiation with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (FSRT) result in a median OS of 10.2 months (range: 7.0–12 months) and 9.8 months (ranged: 7.5–11.0 months), respectively. Radiation necrosis was found in 16.6% (range: 0–24.4%) after SRS. Chemotherapeutic agents like nitrosourea (carmustine), bevacizumab, and temozolomide (TMZ) rechallenge result in a median OS in the range of 5.1 to 7.5, 6.5 to 9.2, and 5.1–13.0 months and six months progression free survival (PFS-6) in the range of 13 to 17.5%, 25 to 42.6%, and 23 to 58.3%, respectively. Use of epithelial growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors results in a median OS in the range of 2.0 to 3.0 months and PFS-6 in 13%. Conclusion Although recurrent glioblastoma remains a fatal disease with universal mortality, the literature suggests that a subset of patients may benefit from maximal treatment efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The prolonged usage of antiepileptic medicines has been linked to a reduction in bone mineral density (BMD), resulting in the risk of fracture. However, most evidence has been from western countries, predominantly in institutionalized patients. Furthermore, only a single antiepileptic drug (AED) has been evaluated. This study explores the impact of AEDs on bone health in ambulatory patients from North India. Methodology: A hospital-based observational study on sixty adult patients with epilepsy. All patients were already on AED (valproic acid [VPA], levetiracetam, and phenytoin) either as monotherapy or polytherapy. The serum levels of calcium, phosphorus, alkaline phosphatase, albumin, 25 (OH) Vitamin D, and intact parathyroid hormone were estimated. BMD was assessed at the lumbar spine and femur using a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scan. Results: The mean age of patients was 32.75 ± 5.9 years. 56.7% of subjects were female, and 43.3% were male. 40% of patients were taking VPA. Both cytochrome P450 inducing and noninducing AED resulted in a decline in T-score at the lumbar spine (P < 0.01). The BMD declined significantly as the duration of AED intake was prolonged (P < 0.001). Conclusions: In some patients, the intake of AEDs is prolonged, even lifelong. People living with epilepsy are predisposed to falls, and the adverse effects of AED on bone metabolism over time compound the risk of fractures. Thus, the physician needs to monitor all patients on AED for bone health and advise early intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This current investigation has been aimed in the estimation of the present status of physico-chemical characteristics of tube wells (TWs), shallow wells (SWs), and Helmand River water (HRW) in districts 1, 2, and 3 of Lashkar Gah city, Helmand, Afghanistan. The physico-chemical parameters like water temperature (Temp.), electrical conductivity (EC), pH, total dissolved/suspended solids (TDS/TSS), turbidity, total hardness (TH), total alkalinity (TA), nitrates, sulfate, chemical oxygen demand (COD), salinity, chlorides, magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), and ammonia were determined and statistical analysis has been performed. The analysis was performed with a (16×16) correlation matrix between water quality parameters with an intension to minimize the intricacy and understanding the large data set. The significant correlation was tested by applying the t-test. Parameters were compared with their permissible standard limit as described by the World Health Organization (WHO) and international agencies. The water quality index (WQI) revealed that water samples were in the classification of very poor, poor, and good quality. The water samples were classified ranging from very poor to good quality defined as the WQI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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