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India bears a considerable global burden, hosting over 37 million hepatitis B virus (HBV) carriers, primarily transmitted through the perinatal route. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the prevalence of HBV infection among pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic at a tertiary care hospital. Aims: This study sought to assess the seroprevalence of HBV infection in pregnant women, analyze the serological markers of HBV infection, and ascertain the viral load of HBV DNA. Settings and Design: The study was conducted at the Department of Microbiology and Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India. It adopted a hospital-based cross-sectional design. Subjects and Methods: The study spanned from January 2021 to June 2022. HBV infection among pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic of a tertiary care hospital was identified by screening their sera using hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) ELISA. For samples testing positive for HBsAg ELISA, additional tests were administered, including HBeAg, HBeAb, hepatitis B core immunoglobulin M, and total hepatitis B core antibody (immunoglobulin [Ig] M + IgG) by ELISA. In addition, a quantitative assessment of HBV DNA was conducted using real‑time reverse transcription‑polymerase chain reaction. Statistical Analysis Used: All data underwent coding and entry into an MS Excel spreadsheet, with analysis executed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21.0. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Ethics Committee, Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital. Informed consent was obtained from all pregnant women participating in the study. Results: Among the 1519 pregnant women screened for HBsAg, 15 tested positive, resulting in a seroprevalence of 1% (15/1519). Subsequent examination revealed two women with acute HBV/chronic hepatitis B‑acute exacerbation infections (high infectivity) and 13 women with chronic HBV infections (low infectivity). Furthermore, only HBeAg‑positive women exhibited HBV DNA levels surpassing 2000 IU/mL. Conclusions: The 1% seroprevalence of HBV among pregnant women implies an approximate count of 4 million infected women of reproductive age, posing a risk of vertical transmission to nearly 4 million newborns annually. With HBeAg‑positive mothers, the risk of neonatal transmission ranges from 70% to 90%. Timely interventions for all pregnant women are imperative to mitigate HBV vertical transmission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The initial stage in the cascade of care for Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) infection involves the identification of infected individuals, which enables the initiation of the care sequence. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of HCV infection and estimate its burden. Study design: This retrospective study was conducted in a hospital setting. Materials and Methods: All consecutive samples received by the Microbiology department between February 2019 and December 2022 were subjected to HCV infection testing using ELISA to detect Ag/Ab, and were included in the study. Results: Out of the 82,614 samples tested for HCV infection, 1,580 were found positive, resulting in a seroprevalence rate of 1.9%. More than half of the seropositive individuals fell within the 19-40-year age group. Conclusion: The implementation of widespread HCV infection screening programs in the community, coupled with awareness initiatives on HCV transmission and prevention, is crucial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The manoeuvre of a small satellite in a defined orbit at an accurate position with payload complexity and mass constraint is very challenging. Small satellites are highly prone to circumferential disturbances in space. Mathematical modelling of satellite dynamics is studied in detail. Stability regions are analysed with phase portrait. Feedback linearisation implemented with Uncertainty and Disturbance Estimation (UDE) based controller-observer is designed. The novelty of the research is to robustify the satellite by estimating the overall uncertainties and disturbances. The resultant controller requires the angular positions and angular rates of the spacecraft. The observer provides the angular rate. The closed-loop stability of the overall system has been established. The efficacy of the proposed design is demonstrated on a three-axis nanosatellite. Comparison of proposed strategy is made with other control methods through simulation in Matlab platform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To estimate the seroprevalence of enteric transmitted hepatitis A virus (HAV) and hepatitis E virus (HEV) in patients presented with acute viral hepatitis in a tertiary care hospital, Delhi. Methods: It was a retrospective study from February 2019 to December 2020 conducted in a tertiary care hospital, Delhi. Serum samples from clinically suspected hepatitis patients sent for HAV and HEV testing were included in the study. The samples were tested for HAV and HEV Immunoglobulin (Ig)M antibody by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Data collected in Excel sheet were analyzed using SPSS software version 21. Chi-square and Fischer exact test were used wherever necessary. Results: Viral etiology (HAV or HEV) was found in 122 (18%) patients. IgM HAV was detected in 75 (11%) patients whereas IgM HEV in 47 (7%) patients. The coinfection of HAV and HEV was not observed. HAV infection was significantly more common in pediatric age group 32.8% (59/180; P < 0.001) whereas HEV was significantly more common in adolescent and adult age group 8.6% (42/491; P < 0.001). Conclusions: Periodic surveillance of enteric transmitted viruses causing hepatitis needs to be conducted at hospital as well as community level to ascertain the true burden of the disease and changing epidemiology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.