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The AgNPs@cellulose–PEVA hybrid catalyst presented excellent catalytic efficacy for the Willgerodt–Kindler reaction, facilitating the selective formation of CS bonds.

Objectives: The application of light weight products used for automobile needs to require the use of Al metal matrix composites (MMCs). The optimized combination of process variables has been found to accomplish for better machining. Methods/statistical analysis: There is different type of machining methods used for machining of MMC but it is not so easy to machine these materials with full efficiency and desired output responses because of difficult to machine these materials as compared to other unreinforced materials like alloys and smart materials. The main reason behind hardness of aluminum MMCs is heterogeneous structure which makes its surface layer with high fatigue strength, smooth, and tough. L9 orthogonal array has been used to perform the experiments. Findings: The effect of parameters has been calculated and analyzed for response analysis. The effect of various machining parameters like wire diameter, current, voltage, pulse on time, and pulse off time is observed and analyzed on surface properties of the Al–SiC MMCs. As a result of compressive residual stress on the surface that is a plus point for material to use it for tough work, but along with this it will cause high tool wear and surface imperfections while machining, so these are some reasons for the recommendation of non-conventional machining methods to machine aluminum matrix composites. So, several new techniques were added in some past few years of research which is explained in this research article. Application/improvements: Wire electrical discharge machining (WEDM) which is an advanced machining method which is used for manufacture difficult shapes conductive work piece materials. Experimental work will be done on the WEDM of Al–SiC MMC. Keywords: Aluminium Metal Matrix Composite Al–SiC, Surface Roughness, Wire Electrical Discharge Machining (WEDM), Surface Integrity, Taguchi’s Method, Response and Regression Analysis.

Cellulose, a bio-derived polymer, is widely used in food packaging, dye removal, coatings, and solid-supported catalysis. Heterogeneous catalysts play a critical role in environmental remediation. In this context, the demand for green and cost-effective catalysts has rapidly increased. In this study, cellulose was extracted from rice straw, and a highly active solid-supported catalytic model was developed. First, cellulose was conjugated with poly(ethylene

This work is focused on the development of an efficient and green protocol for the one-pot multicomponent synthesis of a series of 4H-pyran derivatives. Herein, a protein–peptide conjugate (SS1–Cyt. c) is synthesized and characterized using Circular Dichroism (CD), UV-Visible absorption spectroscopy, and docking studies. The whole assembly is used as an efficient catalytic system by incorporating a derivatized dipeptide molecule in the hydrophobic cavities of the protein Cytochrome c (Cyt. c) that leads to the activation of Hydrogen Bond Donating (HBD) units of a urea derivative of a dipeptide (SS1). The HBD units tend to show non-covalent interactions with the reactant species responsible for triggering the occurrence of an organic transformation. Also, the stability and binding interactions of SS1–Cyt. c with the multicomponent reactants involved in the organic transformation are studied in detail using MD-simulation studies. It is a metal-free catalyst and provides higher yield in relatively short reaction times. As per green chemistry principles, the catalyst has provided us ideal Eco-scale and E factor scores of 79 and 0.089, respectively.

Biodiesel’s auto-oxidation by metal catalyzed decomposition of hydroxides (ROOH) is a major hurdle restricting the commercial viability of biodiesel. This paper investigates the oxidation stability of argemone biodiesel contaminated with transition metals such as: Fe, Ni, Mn, Cu, and Co. Pure argemone oil biodiesel (ABD) has a rancimat induction period of 2.5 h which does not satisfy the ASTM-D6751 and EN-14214 standard limits of 3 and 8 h respectively. The results show that the presence of a metal in argemone oil results in accelerating the free radical oxidation reaction. To meet the desired standards, present work experimentally investigates the effect of various antioxidants like BHT, BHA, TBHQ, PY, and PG in the range of 100–500 ppm on argemone oil biodiesel. Effectiveness order of antioxidants in pure biodiesel was observed as: PY > PG > BHA > BHT > TBHQ. The 500 ppm of most effective antioxidant pyrogallol (PY) has the potential to enhance the induction period of argemone biodiesel above 8 h which is vital by EN-14214 standard. Based on the results of most effective antioxidant PY and varying concentration of metals (Fe, Ni, Mn, Cu, and Co), several correlations have been developed to calculate the induction period of argemone oil biodiesel, as a function of antioxidant and metal concentration.

An anion-mediated preorganization approach was used to design and synthesize the benzimidazolium-based calix compound R1 ∙2ClO 4 - . X-ray crystallography analysis revealed that the hydrogen bonding interactions between the benzimidazolium cations and N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) helped R1 ∙2ClO 4 - encapsulate DMF molecule(s)A nanoreactor, with R1 ∙2ClO 4 - and L -histidine ( L -His) as the components, was fabricated using a neutralization method. The nanoreactor could detoxify paraoxon in 30 min. L -His played a vital role in this process. Paraoxonase is a well-known enzyme used for pesticide degradation. The Ellman's reagent was used to determine the percentage inhibition of the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in the presence of the nanoreactor. The results indicated that the nanoreactor inhibited AChE inhibition.

Optimization means the demonstration of detecting the optimal outcome under specific circumstances. Engineers need to take numerously specialized as well as supervisory decisions in various design phases, construction, and industrial system maintenance. The main target of every such decision is either to restrain the work necessitated or raise the profit. As the profit wanted or the work required in any situation of real world can be expressed as a specific decision variable’s function, optimization can be characterized as the way towards discovering the conditions that provide maximum or minimum function values. Complex problems of optimization while solving with traditional numerical methods had mathematical downsides. This is the reason because of which researchers had to be dependent on meta-heuristic techniques. Meta-heuristics have turned out to be amazingly usual due to its local optima avoidance, simplicity and flexibility characteristics. IGWO is a new meta-heuristic inspired by grey wolves. In this paper, the implementation of improved grey wolf optimization is done for the optimization of pressure vessel design and welded beam design that have various salient engineering applications. The comparison of achieved results with some other approaches reveals the efficacy of IGWO algorithm to solve these significant mechanical engineering design optimization problems.

Despite the adequacy of the endogenous steroid (progesterone) levels in biological functioning, elevated levels of progesterone hormone have several physiological effects that are amplified due to its direct and indirect uptake from the environment, food products, and medical therapy. So, it is much needed to evaluate the progesterone levels in environmental samples as well as for biological fluids. In this work, we focused on the development of the nano sensing probe for the selective detection of progesterone among the library of steroid hormones belonging to the class of female sex hormones. Herein, functionalization of dipeptide is carried out at N-terminal to produce N-functionalized dipeptide (SS3), and simultaneously, its self-assembly properties are explored. Furthermore, HR-TEM imaging was also performed to examine the morphology of the self-assembled architectures before and after the addition of the steroid hormone. To investigate the binding mechanism of the sensing probe, Fluorescence spectroscopy, Circular Dichroism (CD), MD-Simulation, and DFT studies were performed and studied in detail. Moreover, to check the potency of the real-time application of the developed nanoprobe, we have successfully determined the spiked concentration of progesterone levels in pharmaceutical and biological fluid samples with functional percentage recovery. Also, the stability and other competitive binding studies of the probe with the coexisting substances are performed to check the rationality of the sensing probe at physiological conditions.

Composites are the materials manufactured by combining two or more constituent materials with significantly dissimilar physical and chemical properties so as to accomplish a task that none of the constituents can achieve solely. The composite materials are of vital importance in today’s world because barely any of the material is used in a pure and unalloyed form today. The different materials are usually combined to achieve the desirable properties such as high strength and toughness, corrosion resistance etc. in the final product. This paper highlights recent trends and developments of composite materials in various novel engineering applications such as Aircraft sectors, Military applications, transportation sectors, building and construction applications, composite grid or grating applications, railway applications etc.

Organic nanoparticles (N1) were prepared by dispersing thiophene-conjugated rhodamine derivative 1 in a buffer solution (10 mM TRIS, pH 7.4, containing 1% DMSO, v/v). N1 selectively recognized Al

A benzothiazole-based azo compound was synthesized and evaluated as a probe for the selective sensing of cations and anions. The probe (PA) could detect Cu2+ ions in aqueous media selectively, without interference from other cations and with a limit of detection of 0.43 μM. The resultant complex, PA-Cu2+, could be used as a secondary probe for detecting S2− ions in aqueous media in the presence of other interfering anions through a cation displacement process.

BACKGROUND In most developing countries, sputum smear microscopy for acid-fast bacilli remains the front line and often the only diagnostic tool for the diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB), making quality assurance of smear microscopy an important activity. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the results of a pilot study, where the random blinded rechecking for the entire state of Delhi was conducted at a reference laboratory. METHODOLOGY Slides from 25 Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme designated districts (200 peripheral microscopy centres) in Delhi were re-read after proper coding by all the Senior Tuberculosis Laboratory Supervisors (STLS) at an intermediate reference laboratory under proper supervision. RESULTS Of 12,162 re-read slides, 204 discrepant results were found. Of these, 150 (73.5%) errors were attributed to the peripheral microscopy centres and 54 (26.5%) to STLS. High false-positive errors were observed at a frequency of 12/150 (8%), and high false-negative errors at a frequency of 38/150 (25%). Minor errors, i.e., low false-negative, low false-positive and quantification errors, were observed at frequencies of respectively 68/150 (45.3%), 17/150 (11.3%) and 15/150 (10.0%). CONCLUSION Greater stringency in the supervision of random blinded rechecking at the district level is essential to make smear rechecking more efficient and effective.

© 2017 American Society for Radiation Oncology Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine if the Sun Nuclear PerFRACTION electronic portal imager device dosimetry software would be able to detect setup errors in a clinical setting and would be able to correctly identify the direction in which the setup error was introduced. Methods and materials A 7-field intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) treatment plan for a centrally located tumor was developed for 1 phantom and 5 canine cadaver heads. Systematic setup errors were introduced by manually moving the treatment couch by 1, 3, and 5 mm in each translational direction to assess stereotactic radiation surgery (SRS), IMRT, and 3-dimensional (3D) treatment tolerances after the initial alignment was performed. An angular setup error of 5° yaw was also assessed. The delivered treatment fluence was automatically imported in the PerFRACTION software and compared with the baseline fluence. Results In the canine phantom, a 5-mm shift was undetected by gamma analysis, and up to a 2-cm shift had to be introduced for the gamma pass rate of 3%/3 mm to fall below a 95% pass rate criterion. The same 5-mm shift using 3% difference caused the pass rates for 2 fields to drop below the 95% tolerance. For each respective translational shift, the affected beam angles were consistent across the cadaver heads and correlated with the direction of translational shift. The best field pass rate, worst field pass rate, and average pass rate across all 7 fields was analyzed to develop clinical guidance on parameter settings for SRS, IMRT, and 3D tolerances. Conclusions PerFRACTION 2-dimensional mode successfully detected setup errors outside the systematic error tolerance for SRS, IMRT, and 3D when an appropriate analysis metric and pass/fail criteria was implemented. Our data confirm that percent difference may be more sensitive in detecting plan failure than gamma analysis.

Zaire ebolavirus, more commonly known as Ebola virus (EBOV), is one of six known species within the genus Ebolavirus. Four of the six identified ebolaviruses, including EBOV, cause a severe and often fatal hemorrhagic fever in humans and other mammals, known as Ebola virus disease (EVD). Ebola virus belonging to family Filoviridae is of mainly 5 types and has a high fatality rate in humans and nonhuman primates. Once the more virulent forms enter the human population, transmitted through contact with infected body fluids, can result in major epidemics. It is one of the most virulent pathogens among the viral haemorrhagic fevers, and has been reported up to 90% fatality rate. Mortality is the result of multi-organ failure and severe bleeding complications.

Organic nanoparticles (N1) were prepared by dispersing thiophene-conjugated rhodamine derivative 1 in a buffer solution (10 mM TRIS, pH 7.4, containing 1% DMSO, v/v). N1 selectively recognized Al3+ ions through the “OFF-ON” switching mechanism of the spirolactam ring in rhodamine. The resulting N1·Al3+ complex recognized the biologically important molecule adenosine monophosphate (AMP) through a cation displacement process with a detection limit of 2 nM. N1 was capable of determining the concentration of Al3+ ions in environmental and biological samples. Portable test strips of N1 were prepared for the recognition of Al3+ ions and AMP for practical uses. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that the N1·Al3+ complex facilitated real-time monitoring of AMP concentration in the hydrolysis of ATP and ADP.

The risk of contracting HBV by health care workers (HCW) is four-times greater than that of general adult population. Studies have demonstrated that vaccine-induced protection persists at least 11 years. High risk groups such as HCWs should be monitored and receive a booster vaccination if their anti-HBsAb levels decrease below 10 mIU/mL. In view of the above this study was undertaken to assess the HBV vaccination of the HCWs and their immunological response. Seventy-two HCWs of the Department of Microbiology, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, India, were recruited and blood sample was drawn for serological tests (HBSAg, anti-HCV, anti-HBsAb, anti-HBeAb, and anti-HBcAb). Anti-HBs titers of >10 mIU/mL were considered protective. Thirty-four (47.3%) of the participants were completely vaccinated with three doses. 25 (73.5%) of the participants with complete vaccination had protective anti-HBsAb levels as against 8 (53.3%) of those with incomplete vaccination and 9 (39.1%) of those who were not vaccinated at all. One of our participants was acutely infected while 29 participants were susceptible to infection at the time of the study. All HCWs should receive three doses of the vaccine and be monitored for their immune status after every five years. Boosters should be administered to those who become susceptible.

In machining of parts, surface quality is one of the most specified customer requirements. Major indication of surface quality on machined parts is surface roughness. There are various machining parameters which have an effect on the surface roughness, but these effects have not been adequately quantified. In order for manufacturers to maximize their gains from utilizing finish hard turning, accurate predictive models for surface roughness and tool wear must be constructed. This paper utilizes response surface methodology (RSM) for modeling to predict surface roughness and tool wear for variety of cutting conditions in finish hard turning. The experimental data obtained from performed experiments in finish turning of hardened AISI H-11 steel have been utilized. Decrease in feed rate and increase in cutting speed resulted in significant increase in surface quality. However, increase in cutting speed also produced relatively higher tool wear. Also depth of cut did not significantly affect the tool wear and surface roughness.

Hard turning is used in the manufacturing industry as an economic alternative to grinding, but the reliability of hard turning processes is often unpredictable. The main factors affecting the reliability of hard turning are surface integrity and tool wear. In the present study, an attempt has been made to investigate the effect of cutting parameters on surface roughness, tool wear, and residual stress distribution in hard turning. This article brings out the comprehensive analysis of the effects of cutting parameters on surface roughness, residual stress, and tool wear.

In the present study, an attempt has been made to model the effect of cutting parameters (cutting speed, feed, depth of cut and nose radius) on residual stresses in hard turning of AISI H11 tool steel using ceramic tools. The machining experiments were conducted based on response surface methodology and using the Box–Behnken design of experiments. Residual stresses were determined using the X-ray diffraction technique, and the experimental results were investigated using analysis of variance. The results indicated that the feed and depth of cut are the main influencing factor on residual stresses whereas cutting speed and nose radius are having mild impact on residual stresses. The results show that it is possible to produce tailor-made residual stress levels by controlling the tool geometry and cutting parameters. The aim of this paper is to introduce an original approach for the prediction of residual stresses.

Manufacturers around the world constantly strive for lower cost solutions in order to maintain their competitiveness on machined components and manufactured goods. Globally, part quality has been found to be at acceptable levels and it continues to improve, while the pressure for part piece cost is enormous and is constantly being influenced downward by competition and buyer strategies. In machining processes, it is necessary to attain the desired surface quality in order to produce parts providing the required functioning. The surface quality is influenced by various cutting parameters (cutting speed, feed, depth of cut) and sometimes some other parameters. The objective of this paper is to review the effect of cutting parameters on surface integrity (surface roughness and residual stress) in hard turning.

The nano-particles achieved the focus of the researchers in the field of refrigeration, due to its capability to change the properties of refrigerants upto a large extent. Nanofluids based on refrigerant is known as nano refrigerants and provided an improvement in thermophysical properties of various refrigerants in different terms. Different theoretical and experimental models are provided by the researchers have been used for the evaluation of different properties of refrigerant in terms of thermal conductivity, density, specific heat and viscosity of the refrigerants. In this effort, a number of models, and correlations have been used to result in the improvement in these properties of nano refrigerants. This is achieved by the addition of nanoparticles with varying volume concentration of 1% to 5 %. The analyses have been made within a temperature range of 190K- 269K at a constant pressure of 0.3 MPa. The study is elaborated to compare the various refrigerants which are R11, R12, R22, R134a and R141b with the addition of different nano-particles which are TiO2, Al2O3, ZnO and CuO at evaporator conditions. The addition of ZnO has given a good impact on the thermal conductivity of refrigerants. Effective viscosity of nano refrigerants depends upon the viscosity of refrigerants and volumetric concentration of nano-sized particles. Specific Heat shows the negative variation with the addition of nanoparticles but increased with the rise in temperature. The density of nano refrigerants depends upon the density of base refrigerant, Density of nanoparticles, volumetric concentration of nanoparticles. In future, the study can be elaborated in terms of compressor work, power consumption and overall performance of refrigeration system.

Context: Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most devastating human pathogen. The organism has a differential ability to spread and cause outbreak of infections. Characterization of these strains is important to control the spread of infection in the hospitals as well as in the community. Aim: To identify the currently existing phage groups of Staphylococcus aureus, their prevalence and resistance to antibiotics. Materials and Methods: Study was undertaken on 252 Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from clinical samples. Strains were phage typed and their resistance to antibiotics was determined following standard microbiological procedures. Statistical Analysis: Chi square test was used to compare the antibiotic susceptibility between methicillin resistant Staph. aureus (MRSA) and methicillin sensitive S. aureus (MSSA) strains. Results: Prevalence of MRSA and MSSA strains was found to be 29.36% and 70.65% respectively. Of these 17.56% of MRSA and 40.44% of MSSA strains were community acquired. All the MSSA strains belonging to phage type 81 from the community were sensitive to all the antibiotics tested including clindamycin and were resistant to penicillin. Forty five percent strains of phage group III and 39% of non-typable MRSA strains from the hospital were resistant to multiple antibiotics. Conclusion: The study revealed that predominant phage group amongst MRSA strains was phage group III and amongst MSSA from the community was phage group NA (phage type 81). MSSA strains isolated from the community differed significantly from hospital strains in their phage type and antibiotic susceptibility. A good correlation was observed between community acquired strains of phage type 81 and sensitivity to gentamycin and clindamycin.

Limited data on acute phase C-reactive protein (CRP) levels in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection exist. The relationship of CRP with HIV was assessed in 119 HIV-positive patients and correlated with CD4 counts and mortality at 1 y. CRP was negatively correlated with CD4 counts with levels of CRP being highest in the group with CD4 counts below 200 cells/microL. It was an indicator of mortality and hence may serve as a useful and inexpensive predictor of HIV disease progression.

Background Direct sputum smear microscopy is commonly used for diagnosing tuberculosis (TB). The objectives of the study were first, to determine the recovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in smear-negative sputum samples through liquid culture (using MGIT 960) and solid culture (using LJ slant) and second, to screen multidrug-resistant isolates through line probe assay and further third, to identify XDR isolates through MGIT second-line DST from these positive MDR cultures in Delhi region. Methods In this study, the sample size was 717 (sputum smear AFB negative and culture positive for M. tuberculosis complex by both solid and liquid culture methods) MDRTB suspects who were enrolled from January 2014 to December 2014 at the Intermediate Reference Laboratory in New Delhi Tuberculosis Centre, New Delhi. Rapid line probe assay was performed on all culture-positive samples, which were direct smear-negative specimens, and LPA-confirmed MDR samples were tested on MGIT 960 second-line DST for identification of XDR strains. Results An overall increase in the culture positivity (9.4%) among these smear-negative cases shows a good sign of recovery from M. tuberculosis infection in these samples. 717 (9.4%) positive cultures (MGIT + LJ) were subjected to line probe assay. Out of these 717 cultures, 9 (1.2%) were confirmed as NTM, 50 (7%) were MDR, 4 (0.6%) were mono-rifampicin resistant and 654 (91.2%) cultures were sensitive to both drugs Rif and Inh, respectively. Out of these 54 (50 MDR +4 mono-RIF resistant) cultures as screened by LPA, 1 (1.8%) was XDR, 10 (18.6%) were mono-ofloxacin resistant and 1 (1.8%) was mono-Kanamycin resistant. Sensitivity to both drugs KAN and OFX was seen in 42 (77.8%) cultures. Conclusions Since the bacterial load in direct smear-negative suspected MDR samples is less, it is important to recover mycobacteria by rapid liquid culture method in such samples. Initial screening for MDRTB is to be done in such cases by performing rapid molecular genotypic drug susceptibility test such as LPA. Baseline second-line DST is also done to rule out the XDR cases among them for rapid and better management of XDRTB patients.

Fluoroquinolones are among the most promising antibiotic drugs for Tuberculosis treatment. Although high levels of fluoroquinolone resistance have been detected among many common bacterial pathogens, little is known about the fluoroquinolone resistance of M. tuberculosis especially at the baseline. The present study was thus aimed at determining the profile of resistance against two newer generation fluoroquinolones-Moxifloxacin and Levofloxacin in MDR-TB isolates with baseline resistance to ofloxacin. A total number of 65 isolates (4 XDR and 61 pre-XDR) were subjected to susceptible testing against levofloxacin and two (higher and lower) concentrations of moxifloxacin. 72.3% in addition to being resistant to ofloxacin were also resistant to levofloxacin and lower concentration of moxifloxacin. The increasing use of FQs for the treatment of other bacterial infections has led to increasing resistance to these antimicrobials. Newer generation FQs are promising drugs in the treatment of drugresistant Tuberculosis but care should be taken regarding the rationale use of these drugs for the treatment of other diseases especially when other drugs are available.

Tuberculosis (TB) remains the major cause of mortality and morbidity throughout the world and has been cited by World Health Organisation (WHO) as the single most important fatal infection. In 2013 alone an estimated 9.0 million cases TB and 1.5 million deaths from this disease were reported. Of these 9.0 million cases, India alone accounted for 24% of the total cases [1]. In most developing countries including India, sputum smear microscopy remains the basis of diagnosis of TB.Correct reading of sputum smears is thus critical in initiating treatment in those who truly do have a disease, and to avoid unnecessary and sometimes costly treatment among those who do not. Keeping this in view, the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (IUATLD) and WHO recommend that quality control of smear microscopy be an essential part of an effective national TB control program [2,3]. In 2002 international working group recommended the lot quality assurance sampling (LQAS) for external quality assessment (EQA) of AFB microscopy which was adapted by Revised National Tuberculosis Control Program (RNTCP) of India in 2008 [4,5]. In India random blinded rechecking (RBRC) of routine smears after LQAS is done every month at district level by senior tuberculosis laboratory supervisors (STLS). Blinded rechecking of smears by STLS read at the periphery by the laboratory technicians yields a realistic view of daily routine performance of the laboratory technicians and allows identification of laboratories with problems that need to be solved. The STLS therefore plays an important role in EQA and is regarded as the controller in RBRC.The only limitation in the RNTCP EQA guidelines is that during RBRC only the performance of the laboratory technicians is assessed while the errors committed by the STLS are ignored and unreported. In order to assess the performance of STLS during RBRC we conducted a study where in RBRC of the entire Delhi state for one quarter of the year was conducted at reference laboratory instead of the districts. The study was conducted at New Delhi Tuberculosis Centre (NDTC) for the period of 3 months, i.e., from October 2014 to December 2014. NDTC serves as an intermediate reference laboratory (IRL) for Delhi state. The Centre is going through regular rounds of proficiency testing for smear microscopy and culture and drug susceptibility testing by the National reference laboratory; National Institute of Tuberculosis and respiratory diseases, New Delhi, India. A total of 12,162 slides were reread by STLS during the study period as per the EQA guidelines [6]. 204 discrepant results were obtained in this study and 54 (26.5%) of these discrepant results were attributed to STLS. Among the major errors, High false positive (HFP) errors were reported at a frequency of 8/54 (14.8%) and High False negative (HFN) errors were observed at a frequency of 10/54 (18.5%). Minor errors i.e. Low false negative (LFN), low false positive (LFP) and quantification errors (QE) were observed at a frequency of 11/54 (20.3%), 23/54 (42.59%) and 2/54 (3.7%) respectively. Significantly high number of errors committed by the STLS in this study is a major concern especially when RBRC is used as the method of choice for assessing the overall performance of the smear microscopy and STLS is the controller of the procedure. Although there seems to be no obvious reason for such high number of errors, careless work by the STLS and lack of motivation could be the possible reasons. Unfortunately no study till this date has been done to highlight the need of reporting errors committed by the STLS as RBRC is thought to be the method of assessing the performance of Laboratory technicians and not the STLS. The method for assessing the performance of STLS as per the EQA guidelines is the panel testing done once in a year during the Onsite evaluation (OSE) visit by the IRL team to the district.It is worth mentioning that panel testing is considered to be the weakest method of EQA and it gives an indication of capability rather than of true performance.STLS may score extremely well in this test because they know their work is being evaluated, but their daily work may remain unsatisfactory because of carelessness. The study therefore highlights the importance of having an in-built system to assess and monitor the performance STLS along with of the technicians of the periphery microscopy centers. The observation of the current study indicates that significant numbers of errors are committed by the controllers during RBRC and as per the existing reporting formats these errors are never reported. RBRC at a reference centre can provide a method for assessing the performance of STLS and laboratory technicians simultaneously. This however may not be possible in all the states owing to the distance between the districts and reference centre. We however do recommend that more stringency in the supervision of RBRC at district level should be made in order to make the rechecking more effective. A thought may also be given to the improvement of the current reporting format of RBRC and a column for errors committed by the STLS may be included so that necessary actions can be taken in due time.

We conducted an observational study to assess the use of total lymphocyte counts (TLC) alone and along with hemoglobin (Hb) as a predictor of CD4 count. A total of 103 antiretroviral therapy (ART)-naive HIV-1-infected patients were enrolled and divided in 2 groups (with CD4 count200 cells/mm(3) and CD4 count ≥200 cells/mm(3)). The TLC and Hb were performed by automatic full digital cell counter. CD4 count was determined by flow cytometry. Among the World Health Organization (WHO) clinical stages 2 and 3, in the cases with CD4 count200 cells/mm(3), 70.4% cases had TLC ≤1200 cells/mm( 3), whereas 63% cases had TLC ≤1200 cells/mm(3) + Hb ≤12 g/dL. In the cases with CD4 count200 cells/mm(3), 2% cases had TLC ≤1200 cells/mm(3), whereas adding Hb ≤12 g/dL with TLC ≤1200 cells/mm(3), none of the cases would require initiation of ART. TLC + Hb can be used to treat all HIV-infected patients with WHO stages 2 and 3 who have a TLC1200 cells/mm(3) + Hb ≤12 g/dL and to limit CD4 counts to patients who are symptomatic but have TLC + Hb values other than TLC1200 cells/mm(3) + Hb ≤12 g/dL.

The HIV pandemic has had a profound impact on the health and economic conditions of individuals, and people living with HIV/AIDS are faced with the task of maintaining optimal health status despite an increasing insult to their immune status. The aim of the present study was to study the profile of direct walk-in and referred patients attending the Integrated Counselling and Testing Centre (ICTC) of a tertiary care hospital, which may provide important clues to understanding the epidemiology of the disease in a particular region. The study included all the attendees of the ICTC referred from the hospital or direct walk-in from January 2007 to December 2007. Three rapid HIV tests were used and the samples showing positive results in all the three tests were declared HIV positive. The results were analysed to correlate between HIV positivity, age, sex, route of transmission and direct walk-in/referred patients. A low proportion of ICTC attendees (27%) in our study were direct walk-ins. As regards HIV positivity, 312 (8.3%) out of 2440 males and 164 (4.3%) out of 1315 females were HIV positive. Among the referred HIV-positive patients 162 were males and 62 females, whereas among the direct walk-in HIV-positive patients, 150 were males and 102 females. Integrated counselling and testing is now seen as a key entry point for HIV prevention. In addition to scaling up ICTC services, it is also important to raise awareness by aggressive health education programmes and integration of ICTC into various community organizations.

CD4 counting is the standard method for determining eligibility for antiretroviral therapy (ART) and HIV disease progression, but it is not widely available in developing countries. The aim of this study was to correlate the levels of beta-2 microglobulin and total lymphocyte count (TLC) with CD4 counts for monitoring disease progression and identify patients who require ART. The authors measured CD4 T-cell counts, TLC, and beta-2 microglobulin levels in 119 HIV seropositive patients. There was a significant negative correlation between CD4 counts and beta-2 microglobulin levels and significant positive correlation between TLC and CD4 counts. Taking a TLC cutoff ofor = 1600 and beta-2 microglobulin levelsor = 3.5 mg/l, the authors could identify 90.4% of patients with CD4 countor = 200 cells/microl. These assays may allow reduction in the annual number of CD4 cell evaluation and the cost associated with monitoring the immune status of HIV-positive patients.

Objective: GenoType MTBDR plus line probe assay (LPA) is developed for performing drug susceptibility testing (DST) for Rifampicin (RIF) and isoniazid in sputum specimens from smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) patients and revised national TB control Programme (RNTCP) has endorsed LPA for the diagnosis of multi drug resistant TB (MDR-TB). This study was conducted to assess the potential utility of LPA for MDR-TB patient management. Methods: MDR-TB suspects under RNTCP PMDT criteria C referred from different districts in Delhi state were included in the study January 2013 to December 2014. Sputum specimens found acid-fast bacilli positive by fluorescent microscopy were processed for LPA. R esults: Out of 3062 specimens, 2055 (67.1%) MDR-TB suspects were read as positive and specimens from 1007 (32.9%) suspects were read as negative in sputum smear microscopy. Out of 2019 specimens valid LPA results, 1427 were found to be pan-sensitive, 280 were MDR-TB, 40 were RIF monoresistant, 183 were Isoniazid (INH) monoresistant, and 89 specimens were found negative for Mycobacterium tuberculosis . C onclusion: Routine use of LPA can substantially reduce the time to diagnosis of RIF and/or INH-resistant TB and can hence potentially enable earlier commencement of appropriate drug therapy and thereby facilitate prevention of further transmission of drug resistant strains. Ke ywords: Multi drug resistant tuberculosis, Line probe assay, Rifampicin, Isoniazid.

Data on various etiologic agents causing diarrhea in human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) infected individuals are sparse in Delhi, India. The present study was undertaken to identify various causative agents, the role of associated risk factors and immune status. A case-control study was conducted among 75 HIV-1 infected individuals, 50 with and 25 without diarrheal infection. Fecal samples were screened for coccidian parasites, enteric protozoa, and helminthes by using various staining techniques. The CD4+ T-lymphocyte count was estimated. Enteric parasites were identified among 62.7% individuals, of which Cryptosporidium emerged as the single largest pathogen predominant among 33% of the individuals (P0.025). Other parasites diagnosed that were significantly associated with diarrhea were Giardia lamblia (13.3%), microsporidia (6.7%), and Isospora belli (2.7%). Chronic infected diarrheal cases were found to have polyparasitic infections. The mean CD4+ cell count was found to be lower among the diarrheal cases when compared with the non-diarrheal cases (mean, 141 cells/mm(3) versus 390 cells/mm(3)). Similarly, among diarrheal individuals, the chronic diarrheal cases had a comparatively lower CD4+ cell count than the acute cases (mean, 123 cells/mm(3) versus 265 cells/mm(3)). Risk factors found significant during multivariate analysis were: residence in a slum, exposure to pets and animals, use of public toilets, and practice of unsafe homosexual activity. Enteric coccidian parasites were identified as significant agents associated with diarrhea, especially among those with improper hygiene, multiple infections and a lower CD4+ cell count. Thus, this study emphasizes the need for routine screening of enteric parasites as well as education about practicing personal hygiene and taking timely and appropriate prophylactic measures.

Manufacturers around the world constantly strive for lower cost solutions in order to maintain their competitiveness on machined components and manufactured goods. Globally, part quality has been found to be at acceptable levels and it continues to improve, while the pressure for part piece cost is enormous and is constantly being influenced downward by competition and buyer strategies. In machining processes, it is necessary to attain the desired surface quality in order to produce parts providing the required functioning. The surface quality is influenced by various cutting parameters (cutting speed, feed, depth of cut) and sometimes some other parameters. The objective of this paper is to review the effect of cutting parameters on surface integrity (surface roughness and residual stress) in hard turning.