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Plant growth regulators (PGRs) control signaling networks and developmental processes involved in plant responses to various biotic and abiotic stresses, making it crucial to study PGRs in vitro . The protocol for micropropagation of Solanum lycopersicum L., following callus induction and regeneration through explants such as internodal segments, leaves, and nodal segments, was established during the present study. Explants were inoculated on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with different plant growth regulators like BA (6-benzylaminopurine), 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid), BA + 2,4-D, IAA (Indoleacetic acid), IBA (Indolebutyric acid), and NAA (Naphthaleneacetic acid). It was observed that among all explants, the nodal segment showed maximum callus induction (83.33%) and multiplication (86.67%) at 0.25 mg/l of 2,4-D; the highest shoot number (3.33) at 0.5 mg/l of IAA + 0.5 mg/l of BA; the greatest shoot length (7.57 cm) at 0.75 mg/l of BA; root induction (80.95%), root number (21.88), and root length (10.62 cm) at 1 mg/l of IAA. Additionally, the maximum fresh weight (2.448 g) was observed at 0.5 mg/l of BA, while the highest dry weight (0.172 g) and dry matter content (14.25%) were noted at 1 mg/l of BA + 1 mg/l of 2,4-D for the internodal segment. Results of the present study revealed that among different explants, the best response was given by nodal segments, followed by internodal segments. Among the different PGRs, 2,4-D resulted in the highest callus induction and multiplication percentage.

Abstract In the present study functional yogurt was prepared by addition of guar gum (0.5% and 1.5%) and fortification by phytochemical extract of haritaki (Terminalia chebula) extracted using supercritical CO2 and freeze dried encapsulates of the extracts. The results indicated that the addition of guar gum led to a concentration‐dependent reduction in pH, with yogurt containing 1.5% guar gum exhibiting the highest acidity. During a 24‐day storage period at 4°C, all samples displayed a decrease in pH and an increase in acidity. Notably, all variations exhibited sporadic syneresis patterns, with higher syneresis observed on the 1st day, followed by a decline on the 12th day and a subsequent rise on the 24th day of storage. The color of haritaki encapsulated yogurt appeared greener and more yellowish compared to the control samples on the 1st day, with noticeable changes in L*, a*, and b* values during storage. Texture analysis revealed that encapsulation significantly affected textural characteristics, with reduced firmness but comparable adhesiveness in some cases. The firmness of plain yogurt ranged from 0.69 to 0.72 N, while its adhesiveness was between 6.14 × 10−2 and 8.51 × 10−2 N.s. The stiffness of the samples made with encapsulates (E1–E6) ranged from 0.38 to 0.70 N, while their adhesiveness was 5.74 × 10−2 to 8.78 × 10−2 N.s. The findings demonstrate that encapsulation significantly affected the textural characteristics. However, the samples' firmness (F1–F3) was less than the control, ranging from 0.36 to 0.54 N. Encapsulated haritaki extract outperformed nonencapsulated haritaki extract in terms of phenolic and antioxidant activities, making it a preferred option for yogurt fortification. Furthermore, yogurt enriched with up to 0.5% guar gum exhibited sensory qualities similar to or even better than the control sample.

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic caused disruptions in global health and economic stability. In Nepal, before the pandemic, more than 50% of healthcare costs were out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE). This study aimed to assess the OOPE for maternity care during before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in nine hospitals in Nepal.Method We conducted a before-and-after study between March 2019 and December 2020 with 13 months of prepandemic period and 9 months of pandemic period. OOPE was assessed using a semistructured interview with 53 864 women. Bivariate (unadjusted) and multivariate (adjusted) linear regression modelling was conducted to assess the change in OOPE in US dollar between the periods. Adjustment in linear regression model was done for population characteristics different between the periods.Result The OOPE for childbirth increased by 28.1% during pandemic, with an increase of OOPE from US$19.2 to S$23.9 (adjusted-β coefficient 5.4; 95% CI 4.5 to 5.7; p

Abstract Nephrotoxicity is a significant concern during the development of new drugs or when assessing the safety of chemicals in consumer products. Traditional methods for testing nephrotoxicity involve animal models or 2D in vitro cell cultures, the latter of which lack the complexity and functionality of the human kidney. 3D in vitro models are created by culturing human primary kidney cells derived from urine in a 3D microenvironment that mimics the fluid shear stresses of the kidney. Thus, 3D in vitro models provide more accurate and reliable predictions of human nephrotoxicity compared to existing 2D models. In this review, we focus on precision nephrotoxicity testing using 3D in vitro models with human autologous urine-derived kidney cells as a promising approach for evaluating drug safety.

Determinants of health-seeking behavior among people living with HIV (PLHIV) are important. This study aims to develop and assess the content validity of an instrument that measures health-seeking behavior for tuberculosis among PLHIV in India. An instrument was developed using deductive methods and the Modified Andersen’s Behavioral Model of Health Services (BMHS). We identified three domains using the BMHS. Ten subject experts validated the tool between June 2022 and August 2022. Lawshe’s Content Validity Ratios (CVRs) and Scale Content Validity Indices (CVIs) were computed. The items with CVR and CVI values ≥0.62 were considered for the final tool. The health-seeking behavior among PLHIV, based on the BMHS, identified knowledge regarding TB (domain 1), healthcare accessibility and factors leading to delay in treatment-seeking behavior (domain 2), and client satisfaction regarding diagnostic and treatment-seeking behavior (domain 3). Content Validity Ratios (CVRs) of all the items related to domains 1 and 2 were ≥0.62. The Scale Content Validity Indices (for relevance), i.e., S-CVI (average) and S-CVI (proportional relevance), were ≥0.62 for all domains. The items with CVR and CVI values ≥0.62 in the domains were accepted in the final tool, which contained 69 items.

Heuristic algorithms are practical, easy to implement, and work fast to provide short-term, feasible solutions for any kind of problem within economical budgets as compared to other meta-heuristic algorithms. This paper presents a novel heuristic algorithm named the Dahiya-Garg Heuristic Algorithm (DG-Alg) to find the optimal solution for constrained reliability redundancy allocation optimization problems. The cornerstone of the novel DG-Alg is its novel selection factor, which is a mathematical formula that helps the heuristic algorithm search for optimal subsystems for reliability optimization. A novel formulated selection factor in DG-Alg has increased its effectiveness and efficiency. To analyze the performance of the proposed heuristic algorithm and the other three existing heuristic algorithms, they are applied to a problem taken from a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant named Yaris Pharmaceuticals. During the application of the heuristic algorithms, it was ensured that redundancy allocation was done within stipulated cost constraints. Further, a comparative analysis of the obtained results has been done to judge the performance of the proposed heuristic algorithm. It is deduced that the proposed heuristic algorithm gives optimized and computationally efficient results in comparison to the other existing heuristic algorithms.

Abstract Medicinal plants are an integral element of human society's effort to battle illness. Terminalia chebula Retz. (Haritaki) is known in China as the “King of Medicine” and is usually at the top of the list of “Ayurvedic Material Medica” due to its incredible healing potential. The whole plant has great medicinal potential and has traditionally been used to cure a variety of human diseases. The global need for herbal medicines is continuously growing. For the most part, the Indian medical system relies on herbal remedies to treat illnesses. A significant number of pharmacological research on diverse medicinal plants have been done widely across the world where haritaki has been the subject of a lot of research in recent years. In addition, more research is needed to fully utilize its therapeutic potential in other medical conditions. More studies of this medication's bioactivity, mechanism of action, pharmacotherapeutics, toxicity, standardization, preclinical investigations, and clinical trials are needed for its global safe usage. In the present effort, chemical constituents, and bioactive properties of haritaki have been reviewed in detail with a brief description of extraction methods of bioactive compounds and applications.

Abstract Concentrative nucleoside transporters (CNTs) are active nucleoside influx systems, but their in vivo roles are poorly defined. By generating CNT1 knockout (KO) mice, here we identify a role of CNT1 in the renal reabsorption of nucleosides. Deletion of CNT1 in mice increases the urinary excretion of endogenous pyrimidine nucleosides with compensatory alterations in purine nucleoside metabolism. In addition, CNT1 KO mice exhibits high urinary excretion of the nucleoside analog gemcitabine (dFdC), which results in poor tumor growth control in CNT1 KO mice harboring syngeneic pancreatic tumors. Interestingly, increasing the dFdC dose to attain an area under the concentration-time curve level equivalent to that achieved by wild-type (WT) mice rescues antitumor efficacy. The findings provide new insights into how CNT1 regulates reabsorption of endogenous and synthetic nucleosides in murine kidneys and suggest that the functional status of CNTs may account for the optimal action of pyrimidine nucleoside analog therapeutics in humans.

In this report, the catalytic potential of chalcogen-stabilized iron carbonyl clusters [Fe3E2(CO)9 (E = S, Se, Te)] for the photolytic hydration of alkynes has been explored. The iron chalcogenide clusters bring excellent transformations of terminal and internal alkynes to their respective keto products in just 25 min photolysis at −5 °C in inert free and aqueous conditions. After the completion of the reaction, the product can be extracted from organic solvent, and due to the lower solubility of the catalyst in water, it can also be isolated and further reused several times prior to any activation. The catalyst was also found to be active in thermal conditions and bring about the desired transformations with average to good catalytic efficiency. Moreover, during the thermal reaction, the catalyst decomposed and formed the nanoparticles of iron selenides, which worked as a single-source precursor for FeSe nanomaterials. The presented photolysis methodology was found to be most feasible, economical, instantly produce the desired product, and work for a wide range of internal and terminal alkynes; hence, all these features made this method superior to the other reported ones. This report also serves as the first catalytic report of chalcogen-stabilized iron carbonyl clusters for alkyne hydrations.