Search

Crowd funding is the process of raising essential amounts of funds from a large number of people to launch a new business initiative. It is typically accomplished by connecting investors and entrepreneurs through social media and crowd funding platforms, with the potential to boost entrepreneurship by broadening the pool of investors outside the conventional circle of owners, relatives, and venture capitalists. Although the crowd financing market is only a few years old, it has quickly become one of the most popular ways to raise funds. This enables entrepreneurs to avoid the traditional banking system. Banks have been more reluctant to lend to small firms, particularly in the aftermath of the financial crisis. This has made it difficult for many entrepreneurs to secure the funds they require to establish or grow their firms. Crowd funding not only gives prospective entrepreneurs with the capital they need, but it also validates their ideas and helps them develop a network of early adopters and supporters. Collective contributions have enabled inventive entrepreneurs to bring their ideas to life. This research study presents an outline of crowd funding's current position and prospects as a source of financing for Indian enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The requirement for high-performance and energy-saving materials motivated the researchers to develop novel composite materials. This investigation focuses on utilizing aluminum alloy (A383) as the matrix material to produce hybrid metal matrix composites (HMMCs) incorporating boron carbide (B4C) and multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) through a cost-effective stir casting technique. The synthesis of HMMCs involved varying the weight fractions of B4C (2%, 4%, and 6%) and MWCNT (0.5%, 1%, and 1.5%). The metallographic study was carried out by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) mapped with EDS analysis. The results indicated a uniform dispersion and robust interfacial interaction between aluminum and the reinforced particles, significantly enhancing the mechanical properties. Micro-hardness and wear characteristics of the fabricated HMMCs were investigated using Vickers microhardness testing and the pin-on-disc tribometer setup. The disc is made of hardened chromium alloy EN 31 steel of hardness 62 HRC. The applied load was varied as 10N, 20N, 30N with a constant sliding speed of 1.5 m/s for different sliding distances. The micro-hardness value of composites reinforced with 1.5 wt% MWCNT and 6 wt% B4C improved by 61% compared to the base alloy. Additionally, the wear resistance of the composite material improved with increasing reinforcement content. Incorporating 1.5% CNT and 6% B4C as reinforcements results in the composite experiencing about a 40% reduction in wear loss compared to the unreinforced aluminum alloy matrix. Furthermore, the volumetric wear loss of the HMMCs was critically analyzed with respect to different applied loads and sliding distances. This research underscores the positive impact of varying the reinforcement content on the mechanical and wear properties of aluminum alloy-based hybrid metal matrix composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hypertension can lead to myocardial infarction, stroke, renal failure, and death if not detected and treated appropriately. It has also been shown that modulation of nitric oxide (NO) availability is an important determinant of ischemic stroke risk. Cerebral ischemia activates a variety of neuronal cell death mechanisms ultimately lead to cerebral infarction. One of such important mechanism is apoptosis. Objectives: To know the pattern of apoptotic cell distribution in the cerebral cortex before & after cilnidipine treatment in Nitric Oxide Synthase (NOS) inhibitor-induced hypertensive rats. Methods: Male Albino Wister rats were 24 in number & were divided into four groups. Group 1 was control , group 2 was treated with Cilnidipine, group 3 received N -nitro-L-Arginine Methyl Ester (L-NAME) (NOS-3) inhibitor & in group 4 both L-NAME and cilnidipine were administered for 28 days. Blood pressure was measured on first & on 28th day & thrice during intervention days. The rats were sacrificed. Brains were isolated quickly fixed in 10% Neutral buffer formalin (NBF) for 2weeks. On histopathology the number of apoptotic bodies were calculated. Results: L-NAME induced hypertensive rats show more apoptotic cells as compare to control. After treating with cilnidipine rat brain showed the reduced number of apoptosis index which was accounting for P-value of

Introduction: Complete Blood Cell (CBC) and differential leukocyte tests are one of the most common haematology laboratory investigations. Immature Granulocytes (IGs) form a part of extended leukocyte differential count and is considered as a promising tool for screening and early detection of bacteraemia. Differential leukocyte analysis provides information regarding the underlying pathologic process. Manual method of performing these counts is labor-intensive, time-consuming especially in leukopenic blood samples, lacks reproducibility and objectivity and therefore suffers from increased inter observer variation. Automated counts provided by the haematology analysers on the other hand are supposed to be more precise, objective and help to reduce the Turnaround Time (TAT). Aim: Comparison of Differential Leukocyte Count (DLC) and IG flagging by automated haematology analyser XN1000 with findings of manual method in leukopenic blood samples. Materials and Methods: The study included 346 patients considering the inclusion and exclusion criteria. CBC analysis was done using Sysmex XN1000. All leukopenic samples enumerated by the analyser were included and peripheral smears were made for each of them. Manual counts were correlated with cell counter counts. Statistical analysis was done using linear regression and correlation analysis. Mean counts were compared using Student's t-test. Pearson’s correlation coefficient and regression analysis was used for correlation studies. Bland-Altman plot analysis was also performed to compare the two measurement techniques. Results: Correlation coefficient for neutrophils, lymphocytes, eosinophils, monocytes and basophils proportional counts were 0.998, 0.992, 0.996, 0.771 and 0.570 respectively; and for absolute counts 0.999, 0.994, 0.996, 0.825 and 0.585 respectively. IG proportional and absolute counts correlation coefficients were 0.898 and 0.908 respectively. Sensitivity was 97.30%, specificity 91.91% and efficiency 92.49% for IG flagging. Conclusion: Strong positive correlation was observed between automated and manual neutrophil, lymphocyte, eosinophil, monocyte and IGs proportional and absolute counts. Basophil showed moderate degree of correlation for both proportional and absolute counts. IG flagging by Sysmex XN1000 showed high sensitivity, specificity and efficiency.Thus, automation seems to be a suitable, reliable and practical option for leukopenic blood samples keeping in view the results obtained by this analyser.

Background: Uremic anaemia has been the subject of several studies, since it causes serious problems. Decreased RBC production and survival seem to be due to erythropoietin deficiency combined with cell damage. Aims and Objectives: During haemodialysis, complement and leukocyte activation by contact with artificial surfaces promotes the formation of free radicals. However, the cell membrane is protected from this damaging effect by the presence of very efficient antioxidant enzyme defence mechanism. When this protective system is overwhelmed, it leads to cellular damage in the form of decreased RBC survival. It is postulated that antioxidant capacity in uremic patients is reduced, yet the exact mechanism remains unclear. In view of this data a study was undertaken to determine the activities of antioxidant enzymes to assess the oxidant damage to RBC in terms of TBARS (Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances). Materials and Methods:Blood samples were collected from patients (n=40), before and after dialysis. They were compared with age and sex matched normals (n=45), who served as controls. The activities of enzymes glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and Catalase (CAT) along with glutathione reduced (GSH) and malondialdehyde (MDA) expressed as TBARS in the RBC of patients on haemodialysis were determined. Results: The results indicated a marginal to moderate decrease in the antioxidant enzyme activities, such as CAT and GSH-Px, and increased TBARS levels before and after dialysis. Conclusion: Our results are suggestive of an increased susceptibility of the RBC to peroxidation on haemodialysis.

The present paper attempts to fabricate the functionally graded materials (FGMs) with two dissimilar metals using Gravity Die Casting (GDC) with and without an interfacing layer. AZ91D and Al7075 alloys are used in this study as base metals. The Zn layer is used as interfacing material to prepare the FGMs. The interfacial microstructures of the said FGMs reveal α-Mg, Al5Mg11Zn4, and MgZn2 compounds. The absence of a Zn interface layer revealed harmful Al-Mg intermetallics such as Al12Mg17, Al3Mg2, and Mg5Al8. The microstructural examination reveals that the presence of the Zn interface protects the diffusion of Al particles with Mg particles. Further studies on the Zn interfacing layer increased the microhardness value, whereas FGMs without interface showed increased shear and impact strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]