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The present study investigates the MHD electro-osmotic flow of entropy generation analysis for peristaltic movement in a nanofluid with temperature-dependent viscosity. Long wavelengths, i.e., The magnitude of a wave's energy corresponds directly to its frequency while being inversely related to its wavelength in terms of velocity, temperature, and concentration, govern and confine the flow stream in the laminar region. Ohmic heating and hall effects are also included. Graphs are used to obtain and examine numerical solutions for axial velocity, temperature, concentration, Bejan number, and entropy generation. The effects of this research can help to improve pumping and gastrointestinal movements in different engineering devices. Debye-Huckel and lubrication approximations are studied to access the Boltzmann distribution of electric potential across an electric double layer. The investigations of an existing model are important in illuminating the microfluidics machinery used at the micro level for various transport phenomena in which fluids as well as particles are transported together. The current study has many applications and can be further extended to a three-dimensional profile with appropriate modifications and assumptions. When studying entropy generation, it is essential to examine the irreversible factors, while also taking into account the velocity and thermal slip conditions at channel boundaries. Moreover, the concept of entropy generation holds significant importance in comprehending various biological phenomena. Hence, the current research holds promising implications for both industrial and medical fields. The entropy generation is minimum at left wall of the channel for negative values of Helmholtz-Smoluchowski velocity., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Modern smart coating systems are increasingly exploiting functional materials which combine multiple features including rheology, electromagnetic properties and nanotechnological capabilities and provide a range of advantages in diverse operations including medical, energy and transport designs (aerospace, marine, automotive). The simulation of the industrial synthesis of these multi-faceted coatings (including stagnation flow deposition processes) requires advanced mathematical models which can address multiple effects simultaneously. Inspired by these requests, this study investigates the interconnected magnetohydrodynamic non-Newtonian movement and thermal transfer in the Hiemenz plane's stagnation flow. Additionally, it explores the application of a transverse static magnetic field to a ternary hybrid nanofluid coating through theoretical and numerical analysis. The base fluid (polymeric) considered is engine-oil (EO) doped with graphene [Formula: see text], gold [Formula: see text] and Cobalt oxide [Formula: see text] nanoparticles. The model includes the integration of non-linear radiation, heat source, convective wall heating, and magnetic induction effects. For non-Newtonian characteristics, the Williamson model is utilized, while the Rosseland diffusion flux model is used for radiative transfer. Additionally, a non-Fourier Cattaneo-Christov heat flux model is utilized to include thermal relaxation effects. The governing partial differential conservation equations for mass, momentum, energy and magnetic induction are rendered into a system of coupled self-similar and non-linear ordinary differential equations (ODEs) with boundary restrictions using appropriate scaling transformations. The dimensionless boundary value problem that arises is solved using the bvp4c built-in function in MATLAB software, which employs the fourth-order Runge-Kutta (RK-4) method. An extensive examination is conducted to evaluate the impact of essential control parameters on the velocity [Formula: see text], induced magnetic field stream function gradient [Formula: see text] and temperature [Formula: see text] is conducted. The relative performance of ternary, hybrid binary and unitary nanofluids for all transport characteristics is evaluated. The inclusion of verification of the MATLAB solutions with prior studies is incorporated. Fluid velocity is observed to be minimized for the ternary [Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text] nanofluid whereas the velocity is maximized for the unitary cobalt oxide [Formula: see text] nanofluid with increasing magnetic parameter ([Formula: see text] Temperatures are elevated with increment in thermal radiation parameter (Rd). Streamlines are strongly modified in local regions with greater viscoelasticity i.e. higher Weissenberg number [Formula: see text]. Dimensionless skin friction is significantly greater for the ternary hybrid [Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text] nanofluid compared with binary hybrid or unitary nanofluid cases., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Moringa oleifera (family Moringaceae) also known as the 'drumstick tree' is a significant nutritious and medicinal plant that is commonly grown in India and contains a variety of vital phytochemicals. M. oleifera is used in several Indian herbal medicine formulations to treat a variety of illnesses (Kumar and Rao 2021). Typical phytoplasma symptoms of leaf yellowing and stunting were observed in M. oleifera trees up to 10% incidence at Acharya Narendra Dev University of Agriculture & Technology, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, India in November 2021 and stunting with less fruit bearings symptoms with 8% incidence in October 2021 at Jonnalakothapalle village of Mudigubba mandal of Ananthapuramu district in Andhra Pradesh, India (Fig.1a, b). To investigate the possibility of a phytoplasma association with the symptoms, total DNA was isolated from the leaf samples collected from two diseased and two healthy plants from both the locations using CTAB method. The DNAs isolated were analysed by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with universal phytoplasma primer pairs P1/P7 and R16F2n/R16R2 for the 16S rRNA gene (Deng and Hiruki 1991; Gundersen and Lee 1996) and secAfor1/sArev3 and SecAfor2/ SecArev3 for secA gene (Hodgetts et al. 2008). Amplicons of the expected size (~1.25kb from 16S rRNA gene and ~480bp from secA gene) were obtained from symptomatic plants only. The nested PCR products were cloned (pGEM-T Easy Vector, Promega), sequenced (ABA Biotech, India) and the sequences were deposited in GenBank with accession numbers OP358449, OP358450, OP358451, OP358452 for the 16SrRNA gene (~1.25 kb) and OP358443, OP358444, OP358445, OP358446 for the secA gene (~480 bp). BLASTn analysis revealed that the partial 16S rRNA gene sequences of M. oleifera phytoplasma isolate shared up to 99.9% sequence identity with the strain ' Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris' (Accession numbers MN909051, MN909047) and secA gene sequences shared up to 100% sequence identity with ' Ca. Phytoplasma asteris' (Accession numbers KJ434315, KJ462009) belonging to 16SrI group. The 16S rRNA and secA genes sequence-based phylogenetic analysis (Figure 1d,e) showed that the phytoplasma strain associated with M. oleifera leaf yellowing and stunting clustered within the 16SrI phytoplasma group closest to 16SrI-B (' Ca . P. asteris') subgroup strains. Furthermore, the virtual RFLP pattern derived from the query 16S rDNA F2nR2 fragment is identical (similarity coefficient 1.00) to the reference pattern of 16Sr group I, subgroup B (GenBank accession: AP006628). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the 16SrI-B subgroup of the phytoplasma strains with M. oleifera in the world. 'Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris' (16SrI-B subgroup) strains have been reported from several other commercial crops and weed hosts in India and efficient leafhopper vectors have been identified (Rao 2021; Reddy 2021). This indicates that the ' Ca . P. asteris'-related strains (16SrI-B) are widespread and infecting several plant species in India. The increasing incidence of the 16SrI-B strain and its wide host range in India strongly suggests further research into the epidemiology involved in the dynamic spread of the disease in order to recommend a suitable management approach.

Brown spot disease, caused by Bipolaris oryzae , is one of the several disastrous diseases affecting rice. The brown spot fungus illustrates substantial pathogenic and genetic variability. To the best of our knowledge, extensive analysis utilizing specific SSR primers for B. oryzae genome is quite inadequate for the population structure and genetic diversity of Indian B. oryzae isolates. A total of 84 brown spot isolates were collected from rice-cultivating areas across southern and eastern Indian states, viz., Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Chhattisgarh. The pathogenicity and virulence characteristics of these isolates were assessed with the susceptible cultivar CR Dhan 201. Twelve genome-specific SSR markers of B. oryzae warranted the investigation of the population structure and genetic diversity among the isolates. These isolates were categorized based on their disease grade as highly virulent isolates (4 nos.), virulent isolates (8 nos.), moderately virulent isolates (47 nos.) and less virulent isolates (25 nos.). PCR amplification and DNA sequencing confirmed the isolates to be B. oryzae. PCR amplification and DNA sequencing confirmed the isolates to be B. oryzae. The SSR markers produced a total of 35 alleles with 1 to 4 alleles per locus with a gene diversity ranging between 0.00 and 0.687 and a major allele frequency variation of 0.425-0.975. The PIC value ranged from 0.00 to 0.638 having a mean value of 0.34. Cluster analysis technique was applied to group the brown spot isolates into four distinct clusters. Principal coordinate and structure analysis identified two genetic clusters of B. oryzae isolates for individual states with some degree of distinctness complying with their virulence. Analysis of molecular variance revealed more genetic variation within populations and less among populations. The study outcome would expedite the comprehension of genetic diversity of  B. oryzae across the southern and eastern states of India. Furthermore, we anticipate its guidance in the development of more effective disease management strategies as well as in the generation of novel resistant varieties through marker-assisted breeding., Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-022-03347-4., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestAll the authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology 2022, Springer Nature or its licensor holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.)

Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

A duplex PCR assay was standardized by optimizing PCR reaction constituents and cycles for the simultaneous detection of chickpea chlorotic dwarf virus (CpCDV) and a peanut witches' broom (PnWB) phytoplasma associated with the chickpea stunt disease. Coat protein gene and tuf gene specific primers for CpCDV and phytoplasmas were used. Different concentrations of the PCR components such as Taq polymerase, primers and PCR annealing temperature were standardized for the identification of the two agents by a duplex PCR assay. Expected amplicons of 590 bp for CpCDV and 1090 bp for phytoplasmas were consistently amplified from the symptomatic chickpea tissues. That resulted in equally efficient and sensitive in detecting single or mixed infection of CpCDV and PnWB phytoplasma in 148 symptomatic chickpea stunt samples collected in two states of India. The results indicate the robustness in the detection of pathogens present in chickpea showing stunt disease and for theoretical use in epidemiological studies that would help the appropriate disease management strategies., (© King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology 2021.)

Symptoms of suspected phytoplasma infection were observed in cauliflower ( Brassica oleracea var. botrytis ) (cultivar NS60N) at Integrated Farming System Research Station, Trivandrum, Kerala, India (08o28'28"N, 76o57'47"E) in April-2021. The disease incidence was recorded up to 10% in different fields. The disease manifested as stunting, phyllody, floral malformation and flattening of stem (Fig.1A,B). Ten symptomatic and five asymptomatic plants were assayed for the presence of phytoplasma using nested PCR assays performed with P1/P7 and R16F2n/R16R2 primer pairs for 16S rRNA gene and SecAfor1/ SecArev3 and SecAfor2/ SecArev3 for secA gene (Deng and Hiruki 1991; Gundersen and Lee 1996; Hodgetts et al. 2008). The expected amplicons of ~1.25 kb and ~480 bp were consistently amplified in all the symptomatic cauliflower samples with the phytoplasma specific universal 16S rRNA and secA gene specific primers. Nested PCR products (~1.2 kb and 480 bp) amplified from cauliflower was cloned in EcoRI restriction sites of pGEM-T Easy vector (Promega, USA). The cloned nested PCR products were directly sequenced (16S rRNA gene: Acc. Nos. MZ196223, MZ196224; secA gene: MZ215721, MZ215722) in both forward and reverse directions which showed 99.77% sequence identity with Candidatus Phytoplasma cynodontis reference strain (Acc. No. AJ550984). Further analyses of the 16S rRNA and secA genes based phylogenetic tree (Fig. 2A and B) and the iPhyClassifier-based virtual RFLP analysis of 16Sr RNA gene study demonstrated that the phytoplasma-associated with cauliflower phyllody & flat stem disease (CaPP) belonged to 16SrXIV-A subgroup with a similarity coefficient of 1.0. No amplicon was observed from any of the asymptomatic cauliflower plants with the specific tested primers of both the genes. Earlier association of 16SrXV-A subgroup ( Candidatus Phytoplasma brasiliense) and 16Sr III-J subgroup in Brazil (Canale and Badendo, 2013; Rappussi et al. 2012), 16SrII-A ( Candidatus Phytoplasma aurantifolia) subgroup in China (Cai et al. 2016) and 16SrVI-A ( Candidatus Phytoplasma trifolii) subgroup in Iran (Salehi 2007) were reported in cauliflower. Another species of cabbage, Brassica oleracea var. capitata L. was reported as host of Ca . P. trifloii (16Sr VI-D subgroup) from north India (Gopala et al. 2018). To our knowledge, this is the first report of a ' Candidatus Phytoplasma cynodontis', 16SrXIV-A subgroup related phytoplasma strain associated with cauliflower phyllody and flat stem in the world. The results described in this report confirm that the 16SrXIV-A phytoplasma, a widely distributed strain associated with sugarcane, wheat, grasses, sapota and many ornamentals in India (Rao 2021), has also infected cauliflower. This is not only the first instance of cauliflower phyllody disease found in India, but also the first instance of CaPP disease caused by 16SrXIV-A subgroup phytoplasma worldwide. This report has epidemiological significance and needs immediate attention, as cauliflower is the one of the most common vegetable crop grown all over India.

An investigation was carried out to identify and characterize the phytoplasma and viruses associated with the chickpea varieties showing severe stunting, leaf reddening, yellowing and phyllody symptoms during the summer season of 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 in eight states of India. The average disease incidence was recorded from 3 to 32% in different states. The presence of chickpea chlorotic dwarf virus (CpCDV) was confirmed in thirty-seven chickpea samples by amplification of CpCDV coat protein gene and sequence comparison analysis. No record of association of luteovirus, polerovirus and cucumovirus could be detected in any of the symptomatic chickpea samples by RT-PCR assay. Brassica nigra , B. juncea, Lens culinaris , two weeds ( Heteropogan contartus, Aeschynomene virginica ) and one leafhopper ( Amarasca biguttula ) were identified as new putative hosts for CpCDV. Association of peanut witches' broom phytoplasma was confirmed in twenty-eight chickpea samples, Sesamum indicum , five weeds hosts and two leafhopper species ( Exitianus indicus, Empoasca motti ) using nested PCR assays with primer pairs P1/P7 and R16F2n/R16Rn. The results of phytoplasma association in plants and leafhopper samples were further validated by using five multilocus genes ( sec A, rp, imp, tuf and sec Y) specific primers. Sequence comparison, phylogenetic and virtual RFLP analysis of 16S rRNA gene and five multilocus genes confirmed the identity of association of 16SrII-C and 16SrII-D subgroups of phytoplasmas strain with chickpea samples collected from Andhra Pradesh (AP), Telangana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and New Delhi. Mixed infection of phytoplasma (16SrII-D) and CpCDV was also detected in symptomatic chickpea samples from AP and Telangana. The reports of association of 16SrII-C subgroup phytoplasma in chickpea and 16SrII-D subgroup phytoplasma in C. sparsiflora and C. roseus are the new host records in world and from India, respectively., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestAll authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© The Author(s) 2021.)

Reduction of fossil fuels at an alarming rate has attracted increasing attention to blending biofuels worldwide. India's energy demand is expected to grow at an annual rate of 4-5 times over the next couple of decades. With self-sufficiency levels in crude oil becoming a distant dream, there is growing interest to look out for alternative fuels and the biofuels are an important option for policy makers in India. In this context, this paper reviews the experiences in India in the last two decades with respect to biofuel cultivation and its impact on land use, environment, and the livelihoods of rural communities. The objective of this paper is to assess the economics of biofuel production using Sorghum and Pearl millet feedstocks in India using a Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) approach. Baseline study was conducted during the year 2013 in the Madhya Pradesh state of India covering five districts and 333 sample farmers to understand the farmers perception about the various issues related to the production of biofuels using Indian staple food crops Sorghum and Pearl millet. Empirical data from the multi-locational trials conducted during the years 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 in farmers' fields was used to conduct the LCA analysis. Sorghum and Pearl millet feedstocks which are rain-fed crops are considered for bioethanol production with different pretreatment methods. Net Energy Ratio (NER), Net Energy Balance (NEB), Net Carbon Balance (NCB), and % Carbon reduction were some of the key parameters used for analysis and the results are evaluated based on the environmental impacts through the Life Cycle Assessment at 5% blending. Findings reveal that, dilute alkali pretreatment process is most energy intensive due to consumption of alkali consumption. Whereas dilute acid pretreatment has higher conversion efficiency than the other pretreatment processes which is due to higher glucan and xylan conversion efficiencies.The study concludes that Sorghum feedstock is more energy intensive than Pearl millet feedstock due to higher water requirement and yield. Biofuels, either conventional or advanced, should not been couraged without a comprehensive outlook on the overall impact that will ultimately have on the society, environment, or on the countries' energy security. Efforts should be made toward encouragement of research and development in the field as well as in formulating a comprehensive and effective biofuel policy for India.

For a successful design of functional mesogens, it is paramount to understand factors that contribute to molecular organisation such as molecular shape, the non-covalent interactions of the constituent moieties as well as nanosegregation of incompatible molecular parts. In this study on four tetracatenar mesogens, we show that by a slight change in the length of the terminal chain, the molecular organization changes from lamellar to columnar phase and that the orientational order experiences profound change between the lamellar, the center rectangular columnar and the hexagonal columnar mesophases. We consider here, mesogens that exhibit lamellar and columnar mesophases with five phenyl rings in the central rod-like core which are subjected to XRD and high resolution solid state 13 C NMR investigations in their mesophases. The XRD studies indicate that the lower homologs exhibit a lamellar mesophase while the higher homologs show either a centre rectangular columnar phase or a 2D hexagonal columnar mesophase. 13 C NMR investigations reveal interesting and strikingly different molecular orientations in each of these phases. For example, values of order parameters of one of the phenyl rings in the core region of the mesogens vary from 0.75 and 0.77 for the lamellar mesogens to 0.45 and 0.17 for the centre rectangular columnar and the hexagonal columnar mesogens respectively. While these values indicate that the mesogenic molecules are oriented along the magnetic field as expected in the lamellar phases, the very low order parameter in the hexagonal columnar phase arises due to molecules distributed azimuthally in layers and undergoing motion about the columnar axis which itself is oriented orthogonal to the magnetic field. Such cutting edge information extracted from the combined use of XRD and 13 C NMR studies on tetracatenar mesogens is expected to be of significant use for the study of π-conjugated polycatenar systems where functional properties depend on the molecular orientation and order.

13 C nuclear magnetic resonance investigations in the nematic phase of mesogens comprising a rod-like core with three phenyl rings connected to a fourth phenyl ring via a flexible spacer are reported. The molecules are abbreviated as monomer, dimer, and trimer as they comprised one, two, and three pairs of core and spacer combinations linked to ring IV, respectively. Hot-stage optical polarizing microscopy and differential scanning calorimetry studies confirmed that all of them exhibit an enantiotropic nematic phase with additional monotropic or enantiotropic smectic mesophases. Large values of 13 C- 1 H dipolar couplings of the order of 11 kHz are observed for all the cases for the terminal carbon C1 of the core unit. These high values indicated that the corresponding CH vector is collinear with the long axis of the molecule, which itself is aligned parallel to the magnetic field. In contrast, the terminal carbon of the ring IV (C19/C17) exhibits a relatively smaller value in the range of 2.0-2.5 kHz, reflecting the divergent local dynamics at different sections of the mesogens. The orientational order parameters of the phenyl rings computed from the 13 C- 1 H dipolar couplings have been used to obtain the conformation of the mesogens in the nematic phase. It is concluded that the dimer and trimer exhibit C 2 and C 3 symmetry with the ring IV connected by spacers tilted away from the symmetry axis by 35.9 and 90 ° for the two cases, respectively. This leads to the interesting tripod-like molecular shape for the trimer in the nematic phase rather than the planar representation of the λ shape.

During the growing season of 2015 and 2016, leaf yellowing, stunting, and declining symptoms were observed on elephant foot yam in three states of India.The 1.3 kb 16S rDNA fragments were amplified from genomic DNA extracted from all the symptomatic elephant foot yam samples in nested PCR assays using primer pairs, P1/P7 followed by 3F/3R. Pair wise sequence comparison, virtual RFLP and phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences confirmed association of ' Candidatus Phytoplasma trifolii' (16SrVI-D) and ' Candidatus Phytoplasma oryzae' (16SrXI-B) related strains in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Tripura states, respectively. To our knowledge, this is the first report of association of ' Ca . P. trifolii ' and ' Ca . P. oryzae ' related strains in elephant foot yam in world. In the present study, we also reported Datura stramonium showing witches' broom as a natural weed host for ' Ca . P. trifolii ' phytoplasma in Gorakhpur and Kushinagar districts of Uttar Pradesh state, India., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestAll authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology 2020.)

A variant of the protein tyrosine phosphatase nonreceptor type 22 (PTPN22) gene is known to be associated with susceptibility to autoimmune diseases and bacterial infections as it acts as an important regulator of T-cell activation. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether PTPN22-C1858T polymorphism is associated with the resistance to pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB). Single-nucleotide polymorphism of PTPN22-C1858T (rs2476601) was genotyped in 124 patients with PTB and 130 healthy controls from India using restriction fragment length polymorphism and direct sequencing of the amplified DNA. The frequencies of genotypes CC, CT, and TT were 100%, 0%, and 0%, respectively, in PTB; and 99.2%, 0.8% and 0%, respectively, in healthy control individuals. These values did not differ significantly between the patients and controls. The mutant allele C1858T was found to be a rare allele in Indian population., (Copyright © 2016 Asian-African Society for Mycobacteriology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Alcohol abuse causes 79,000 deaths stemming from severe organ damage in the United States every year. Clinical manifestations of long-term alcohol abuse on the cardiac muscle include defective contractility with the development of dilated cardiomyopathy and low-output heart failure; which has poor prognosis with less than 25% survival for more than three years. In contrast, low alcohol consumption has been associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, however the mechanism of this phenomenon remains elusive. The aim of this study was to determine the significance of apoptosis as a mediating factor in cardiac function following chronic high alcohol versus low alcohol exposure. Adult rats were provided 5 mM (low alcohol), 100 mM (high alcohol) or pair-fed non-alcohol controls for 4-5 months. The hearts were dissected, sectioned and stained with cresyl violet or immunohistochemically for caspase-3, a putative marker for apoptosis. Cardiomyocytes were isolated to determine the effects of alcohol exposure on cell contraction and relaxation. High alcohol animals displayed a marked thinning of the left ventricular wall combined with elevated caspase-3 activity and decreased contractility. In contrast, low alcohol was associated with increased contractility and decreased apoptosis suggesting an overall protective mechanism induced by low levels of alcohol exposure.

Background: To assess the success of the uptake of bone graft in cleft alveolus of the cleft lip and palate patients, quantitatively through computed tomography (CT) scan 6 months postoperative. To assess the successful eruption of permanent lateral incisor or canine in the bone grafted area., Materials and Methods: The children age group of 9-21 years with unilateral cleft lip and palate came to the hospital, needing secondary alveolar bone grafting. A detailed history and clinical examination of the patient was taken. A 3D CT scan was taken and the volume of the cleft was measured pre-operatively. After ambulatory period, 3D CT scan of the alveolar cleft region was taken and volume of the bone grafted was measured and patient was discharged from the hospital. After 6 months, patient was recalled and again 3D CT scan was taken and the volume of remaining bone was measured., Results: The mean volume of the defect pre-operatively is 0.80 cm(3) with a standard deviation of 0.36 cm(3) with minimum volume of the defect 0.44 cm(3) and maximum volume of the defect 1.60 cm(3). The mean volume of the bone post-operative immediately after grafting is 1.01 cm(3) with a standard deviation of 0.52 cm(3) with minimum of bone volume is 0.48 cm(3) and maximum of 2.06 cm(3). The mean volume of the bone after 6 months after bone grafting is 0.54 cm(3) with a standard deviation of 0.33 cm(3), minimum bone volume of 0.22 cm(3) and maximum bone volume of 1.42 cm(3)., Conclusion: The CT scan is a valuable radiographic imaging modality to assess and follow the clinical outcome of secondary alveolar bone grafting.

Background: Since petrol is combustible and smoking is banned at the petrol pumps, it may be predicted that use of smokeless tobacco is more prevalent among the petrol fillers. Also, smokeless tobacco is a major risk factor for developing oral potentially malignant disorders. The present study was conducted to determine the tobacco use, body mass index (BMI), and potentially malignant disorders among a cohort of petrol fillers and also to evaluate the interaction of tobacco use and BMI with the presence of potentially malignant disorders., Settings and Design: The study was conducted at 45 petrol stations located at Pimpri-Pune, India. A descriptive study design was used., Materials and Method: Four hundred and ten petrol fillers aged 17-64 years participated in the study. General information and tobacco history was obtained by interview. Height and weight were recorded to obtain BMI. Oral examination was conducted to identify the potentially malignant disorders., Statistical Analysis: Chi-square test, Z test, and logistic regression were used. The level of significance was fixed at 5%., Results and Conclusions: It was found that 242 (59.02%) used tobacco in different forms. 77.68% were tobacco chewers, and 8.26% were smokers. Leukoplakia was prevalent among 68.47%, oral submucous fibrosis among 27.45%, and 5.08% had erythroplakia. Age (χ(2) = 11.46, P < 0.05), duration (χ(2) = 17.46, P < 0.05), and frequency of tobacco chewing (χ(2) = 14.16, P < 0.05) were significantly associated with potentially malignant disorders. Tobacco chewing was more prevalent as compared to smoking. It can be concluded that the petrol fillers are at a high risk for developing oral potentially malignant disorders.

Purpose: This study reports a case of bilateral rifabutin-associated uveitis in a child with a history of acute myeloid leukemia., Methods: We utilized a clinical case description and brief discussion., Results: A 17-year-old girl presented with acute bilateral anterior uveitis, a hypopyon in the left eye, and moderate bilateral vitritis. She had a history of acute myeloid leukemia status post-allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant 5 years earlier. She was receiving rifabutin for a biopsy-proven Mycobacterium avium complex pulmonary infection. Work up for infectious and neoplastic etiologies was negative. The uveitis initially responded to topical corticosteroids, but recurred when the drops were tapered. Fluorescein angiography demonstrated diffuse vasculitis of small retinal vessels and cystoid macular edema. After rifabutin was discontinued, the uveitis and vasculitis slowly resolved., Conclusion: Fluorescein angiography demonstrated widespread retinal vasculitis which is a rare manifestation of rifabutin-associated uveitis.

Objective: To analyze the pattern of changes in GSTs in cancerous and adjacent non-cancerous tissues obtained from breast cancer patients undergoing surgery., Design and Methods: Cytosolic GST purification, assay of GST, protein expression levels, and GST-synaptotagmin association were analyzed using standard biochemical techniques like GSH-affinity purification, spectrophotometry, SDS-PAGE, Western blots, and matrix-assisted laser desorption and ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF)., Results: GST activity in cancerous tissues (0.26 U/mg protein) was significantly higher (P < 0.05) as compared to those from adjacent non-cancerous tissues (0.14 U/mg protein) of breast cancer patients. Further analysis of GST subunits on SDS-PAGE and Western blots using class-specific GST antibodies revealed significant elevation in GST-pi levels in cancer tissues with no appreciable changes in GST-alpha and GST-mu. Along with the elevation of GST-pi levels, high molecular weight proteins (approximately 70 kDa) cross reacting with GST antibodies were detected only in surgically resected tumor biopsies but not in the non-cancerous tissues adjacent to the tumor. Based on MALDI-TOF analysis, the high molecular weight band was identified as synaptotagmin V bound to GST-M1 with 47% sequence coverage after processing on an MS-FIT search engine., Conclusions: Our results suggest a novel putative functional role for the GST-synaptotagmin complex in human breast cancers. As this association of GST M1-synaptotagmin was not seen in adjacent non-cancerous tissues, this can be used as a marker for breast cancers.

We compared the effects of background light on the sensitivities of two components of the human electroretinogram, the cornea-negative scotopic threshold response (STR) and the cornea-positive PII (beta wave), as well as on the psychophysical sensitivity in a ganzfeld. The background illuminance necessary to reduce the STR (an inner retinal signal) measurably was approximately five times greater than that needed to raise the psychophysical threshold. A background illuminance at least 1 log unit greater still was needed to reduce PII (a signal-reflecting activity of bipolar cells). These findings suggest (1) that the weakest backgrounds that reduce retinal sensitivity have their effect at a site that is proximal to the bipolar cells, a site that involves amacrine or ganglion cells, and (2) that very weak backgrounds have their effect on visual sensitivity at a site more proximal than the scotopic threshold response generator and perhaps more central than the retina.

For the first time, Co(II), Ni(II) and Zn(II) complexes have been synthesized involving an intermediate Schiff base, indane-1,3-dione-2-imine-N-acetic acid the condensed product of ninhydrin and glycine. These coloured complexes were characterised by elemental analysis, molar conductivity, thermogravimetric analyses/differential thermal analysis, infrared, magnetic susceptibility, NMR and electronic spectral studies. Mechanisms for their formation have been proposed. The experimental studies reveal that the complexes possess octahedral stereochemistry whereas the Schiff base behaves as a monobasic tridentate ligand. A molecular structure for the metal complexes is also proposed. A comparative study of the antimicrobial activity of ninhydrin and the corresponding metal complexes against Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis, Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus faecalis has been undertaken and the results are discussed.