Search

The study aimed to investigate the effect of utilization of treatment for insomnia symptoms on the prevalence of major depressive disorder among older adults in India. We used the data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI), 2017–18. The sample included 10,911 older individuals who reported insomnia symptoms. The propensity score matching (PSM) approach was used to compare the depressive disorder among those who received vs. not received treatment. Only 5.7% of older adults reporting insomnia symptoms received treatment. On average, prevalence of depressive disorder among men and women who received treatment for insomnia symptoms was lesser by 0.79 and 0.33 points, respectively, than those who did not receive treatment. In the matched sample, treatment for insomnia symptoms was significantly associated with lesser prevalence of depression for both older men (β= −0.68, p <.001) and older women (β= −0.62, p <.001). The current findings suggest that treatment for insomnia symptoms can reduce the risk of depressive disorder among older adults and the effects are higher among older men than women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies have found increasing rates of overweight and obesity in bulimia nervosa (BN). However, the relationships between body mass index (BMI) and BN symptoms and other clinically relevant constructs are unknown. Participants (N = 152 adults with BN) were assigned to three groups by BMI: group with no overweight or obesity (NOW-BN; BMI <25; N = 32), group with overweight (OW-BN; BMI ≥25 and <30; N = 66), and group with obesity (O-BN; BMI ≥30; N = 54). We compared the groups on demographics, diet and weight histories, body esteem, BN symptoms, and depression using chi square, analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, and Poisson regression models. The O-BN group was older (d = 0.57) and OW-BN and O-BN groups had greater proportions of race/ethnic minorities than NOW-BN group. The O-BN group was significantly younger at first diet (d = 0.41) and demonstrated significantly higher cognitive dietary restraint (d = 0.31). Compared to NOW-BN, O-BN participants had lower incidence of objective binge eating (incidence rate ratio [IRR] = 4.86) and driven exercise (IRR = 7.13), and greater incidence of vomiting (IRR = 9.30), laxative misuse (IRR = 4.01), and diuretic misuse (d = 2.08). O-BN participants also experienced higher shape (d = 0.41) and weight (d = 0.42) concerns than NOW-BN and OW-BN, although NOW-BN experienced higher shape (d = 0.44) and weight (d = 0.39) concerns than OW-BN. Groups did not differ on depression scores. These results were replicated when examining BMI as a continuous predictor across the full sample, with the exception of objective binge eating and driven exercise, which were not significantly associated with BMI. Individuals with BN and comorbid obesity have distinct clinical characteristics. Existing interventions may need to be adapted to meet clinical needs of these individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glasgow Coma Scale-Pupils (GCS-P) score has been found to be strongly related to in-hospital mortality in retrospective studies. We hypothesized that GCS-P would be better prognosticator than Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). In this prospective, multicentric, observational study, GCS and GCS-P scores were noted in adult TBI patients at ICU admission. Demographic variables, relevant clinical history, clinical/radiological findings and ICU complications were also noted. Extended Glasgow Outcome scale was noted at hospital discharge and at 6 months post-injury. Logistic regression analysis was carried out to estimate the odds for poor outcome adjusted for covariates. Sensitivity, specificity, area under curve (AUC) and odds ratio are reported for poor outcome at estimated cutoff point. A total of 573 patients were included in this study. The predictive power for mortality, shown by the AUC, was 0.81 [95% CI: 0.77–0.85] for GCS and 0.81 [95% CI: 0.77–0.86] for GCS-P score, both being comparable. Similarly, the predictive ability for outcome at discharge and 6 months, the AUC-ROC for both GCS and GCS-P were comparable. GCS-P is a good predictor of mortality and poor outcome. However, the predictive performance of GCS and GCS-P for in-hospital mortality and functional outcome at discharge and at 6 months remains comparable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determine the temporal and spatial characteristics of stairs versus elevator use in a university residence hall to inform future physical activity promotion efforts. All residents and visitors for a single, four-story residence hall dormitory building located on a college campus in Orange, CA. Smart mat systems capable of detecting pedestrian traffic were placed in front of the stairs and elevators on each floor plus a basement. Generalized additive mixed models (GAMMs) were used to compare stair versus elevator usage at different times of the day and on different floors. Stair versus elevator use varied much more throughout the day on floors nearest to the ground floor, with stair use most common in the morning. Overall, the elevator was used more frequently on higher floors, with less variation throughout the day. To be most effective, future stair promotion interventions should target residents on higher floors and in the morning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This investigation purports to study if gratitude interventions lead to an increase in overall wellbeing among Indian youth during the coronavirus lockdown. Second, to examine if a cumulative effect of two gratitude interventions on wellbeing is greater than a single gratitude intervention. Participants (N = 80) were randomly allocated to the experimental and control groups (n = 40 each). It was found that after administering a single gratitude intervention there was a significant increase in mental health, happiness, and gratitude and a decrease in depression, anxiety, and stress in the experimental group. Moreover, after administering two gratitude interventions together, a greater increase was seen in these variables as compared to the administration of a single gratitude intervention. There was no significant change in the control group in both cases. In summary, online gratitude interventions lead to increase in happiness and mental health and decrease in depression, anxiety, and stress even during crises such as the coronavirus pandemic. Moreover, the cumulative effect of two gratitude interventions is more than a single gratitude intervention. It is suggested that these gratitude interventions should be included in providing mental health care even when clients are not able to meet counselors in physical settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Transgender women in India face unique stressors associated with minority experiences, such as experiences of gender transition and participation in sex work. However, the relationship between sex work, transition and mental health outcomes is understudied in this population. Aims: This article aims to examine the association between gender transition status, sex work, family rejection and depressive symptoms among transgender women in India. Methods: Data comes from a cross-sectional epidemiological study with transgender women from three states of India; Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu (N = 1366). Multivariate regressions were used to examine the association between sex work status and gender transition and how gender transition, and sex work are associated with depressive symptoms. Results: 70% of the sample reported being in sex work and over 82% endorsed taking some form of gender transition service. Those who reported being in sex work were significantly more likely to have undergone breast augmentation, hormonal therapy and gender affirming surgery. Those who reported ever being married were less likely to report gender affirming surgery and were more likely to report hormonal therapy. Additionally, being in sex work, undergoing transition, leaving home because of sexual orientation, and being married were significantly associated with depressive symptoms. Discussion: Community-led organizations and other service agencies must incorporate intersectional experiences and identities, including sex work and gender transition, in their programs to further social and health justice for transgender women in India. Policy and programmatic implications are discussed. Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/26895269.2021.1939220 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Measurement of nitrate nitrogen is relatively less easy and reliable, given the complexity of analytical procedures already marred by interferences. Interfering constituents like organics are frequently integral to the nature of the samples. As a result, in practice nitrate nitrogen () concentrations often go under-/over-reported. Objective of this study was to compare three analytical procedures extensively used for determination of , namely Ultraviolet Spectrophotometric Screening (UV) Method, Nitrate Electrode Method (Ion-Electrode method) and Phenol Disulphonic Acid (PDA) Method. Usually, these methods of nitrate measurement are commonly employed based on availability of analytical facilities rather than the characteristics of the samples that carry many constituents other than nitrates also, which can limit their application in certain cases. The paper can help serve as a guide to method selection. Comparative investigation on the basis of Passing–Bablok and Bland–Altman analyses showed that when samples had no organics, the accuracy of the three methods was in the order: UV > PDA > Ion-Electrode. Ion-Electrode method was found to be affected by a positive bias of 0.799 for a confidence interval of (0.161, 1.436). For samples containing organics, all three methods were affected by proportional bias. UV method was most affected by interference, exhibiting a bias, regression intercept and slope coefficient of −1.733, −1.359 and 0.922, respectively. Interference due to organics was further analysed experimentally and accuracy with respect to rising organic concentration was found to be in the order: UV < Ion-Electrode < PDA, i.e. PDA method gave least percentage error for high organic concentrations. Multiple linear regression (MLR) models were developed for predicting more accurate readings. MLR models based on two and four explanatory variables for PDA (R2 = 92.86%, predicted R2 = 91.33%) and UV method (R2 = 99.87%, predicted R2 = 99.83%) respectively are reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to present comparative performance analysis of different machine learning algorithms for large area crop classification. Ten Indian districts with significant rabi crops viz. wheat, mustard, gram, red lentils (masoor) have been selected for the study. Most popular classical ensemble models – bagging/ARCing, random forest (RF), gradient boosting and Importance Sampled Learning Ensemble (ISLE) with traditional single model (decision tree) have been selected for comparative analysis. To incorporate dependency of large area crop in different variables viz. parent material and soil, phenology, texture, topography, soil moisture, vegetation, climate etc., 35 digital layers are prepared using different satellite data (ALOS DEM, Landsat-8, MODIS NDVI, RISAT-1, Sentinental-1A) and climatic data (precipitation, temperature). In rabi season, field survey about crop type is carried out to prepare training data. Performance is evaluated on the basis of marginal rates, F-measure and Jaccard’s coefficient of community, Classification Success Index and Agreement Coefficients. Score is calculated to rank the algorithm. RF is best performer followed by gradient boosting for crop classification. Other ensemble methods ARCing, bagging and ISLE are in decreasing order of performance. Traditional non-ensemble method decision tree scored higher than ISLE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pyrazolines derivatives are nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compound, which exhibit the broad spectrum of biological activities such as antibacterial, antifungal, antiprotozoal, and anti-inflammatory. The optimized geometry, frequency, and intensity of vibrational bands of these compounds are obtained by the density function theory (DFT) using 6–31+G(d,p) basis set. The scaled harmonic vibrational frequencies have been compared with experimental Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) values and found to be in good agreement. The electronic properties of these molecules are discussed with the help of highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO), lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO), and molecular electrostatic potential (MESP) surfaces, and a number of electronic and thermodynamic parameters are calculated, which are closely related to their chemical reactivity and reaction path. We also notice that pyrazoline derivatives show biological activity for preventing dyskinesia. This study may provide a further investigation on pyrazolines derivatives for pharmacological importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Imatinib, a phenylaminopyrimidine compound is a therapeutic drug for treatment of chronic myelogeneous leukaemia and gastrointestinal stromal tumours. It is well known that imatinib mesylate (ImM) exists in two polymorphic forms α and β. In this work, a computational study on molecular properties of ImM polymorphs is presented using density functional theory, B3LYP functional and 6-311G(d,p) as basis set. Natural bond orbital analysis is carried out to investigate the various conjugative and hyperconjugative interactions within the molecule and their second-order stabilisation energy (E(2)). The local nucleophilic reactivity descriptors such as Fukui functions (), local softness () and electrophilicity indices () analyses are carried out to determine the reactive sites within the molecule. To determine strength and nature of intra- and intermolecular interactions, topological parameters as electron density (ED) (ρBCP), Laplacian of ED (▽2ρBCP) and total electron energy density (HBCP) at bond critical points have been analysed by ‘quantum theory of atoms in molecules’ in detail. The computed first hyperpolarisability (β0) for both forms of ImM molecule (10.927 and 10.354 × 10− 30 esu) suggests that the investigated molecule is an attractive object in future for non-linear optical properties. Molecular electrostatic potential surface of ImM has been mapped to predict the inhibitory activity and binding affinity with a panel of protein tyrosine kinases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

First principle density functional approach is employed to investigate the ground-state geometries and stabilities of ReOnspecies (n= 1–5) in neutral as well as anionic forms. It is revealed that Re can bind stably with five O atoms indicating the maximum oxidation state of Re as high as +10. The electron affinities of ReOnsuggest that these species behave as superhalogens forn≥ 3 which become as large as 7.25 eV forn= 5. The interaction of ReOnsuperhalogens with appropriate alkali metals is stronger than that of halogens leading to the synthesis of more stable complex compounds. This idea is illustrated by considering the interaction of ReOnsuperhalogens with K atom, forming KReOncomplexes which are relatively more stable than KF molecule. In such complexes, ReOnunit closely mimics the behaviour of F atom when compared with KF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we develop a theory of thermoelectric transport properties in two-dimensional semiconducting quantum well structures. Calculations are performed for n-type 0.1 wt.% CuBr-doped Bi2Se3/Bi2Te3/Bi2Se3and p-type 3 wt.% Te-doped Sb2Te3/Bi2Te3/Sb2Te3quantum well systems in the temperature range 50–600 K. It is found that reducing the well thickness has a pronounced effect on enhancing the thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT). For the n-type Bi2Se3/Bi2Te3/Bi2Se3with 7 nm well width, the maximum value ofZTis estimated to be 0.97 at 350 K and for the p-type Sb2Te3/Bi2Te3/Sb2Te3with well width 10 nm the highest value of theZTis found to be 1.945 at 440 K. An explanation is provided for the resulting higherZTvalue of the p-type system compared to the n-type system. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The objective of this study was to evaluatein vitrothe insecticidal activity of pyridalyl nanosuspension in comparison to technical material and commercial formulation against larvae ofHelicoverpa armigera. Suspension of pyridalyl nanocapsules was prepared, for reducing its dose of application. Compatibility of pyridalyl with sodium alginate was ascertained and a formulation was obtained by optimizing various parameters. Average micelle size of different formulations was around 138 nm and size of pyridalyl was less than 100 nm. Spherical shape and nanosize of capsules was confirmed by Transmission electron microscopy. Zeta potential of optimized formulation was found to be about (−)20 ± 1 Mv indicating acceptable range for expressing physical stability of the nano-capsules. The pyridalyl nanosuspension insecticidal activity increased remarkably, with LC50values of 40 μg mL−1in comparison to LC50values of technical material (90 μg mL−1) and commercial product (250 μg mL−1). Bioassay results by leaf dip method showed that nanoformulation is 2.26 and 6.25 times more effective againstH. armigeraas stomach poison than the technical product and commercial formulation respectively. By topical method, the LC50values obtained were 80, 150, and 250 μg mL−1for nanoformulation, technical material, and commercial formulation, respectively, proving our hypothesis. Pyridalyl nanocapsule suspension performed effectively than technical material and commercial product against tomato fruit and shoot borer (Helicoverpa armigera), showing that insecticide load to the environment can be reduced by using nanoformulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new series of quinoline analogs have been synthesized and found active against P. falciparum in vitro and P. yoelli in vivo. Compounds 8, 10 and 11 exhibited superior in vitro activity compared to chloroquine. Selected compounds 8, 10 and 11 exhibited significant suppression of parasitaemia in vivo assay. These analogs form a complex with hematin and inhibit the β-hematin formation, suggesting that this class of compounds act on a heme polymerization target. Further this study confirms that quinoline ring nitrogen is essential for both transportation of the molecule across the membrane as well as for tight binding to hematin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

□ Nutrient deficiency in maize (Zea maysL.) was assessed through critical value methods (CVM) and the Diagnosis and Recommendation Integrated System (DRIS) to compare mean yield, foliar nutrient status, and variance of nutrients in low-and high-yielding groups. A two year (2001 and 2002) field experiment was set in Benin. Based on DRIS, the most limiting nutrients in 2001 were phosphorus (P) followed by sulfur (S), potassium (K), and zinc (Zn), whereas in 2002, it was manganese (Mn), followed by Zn and magnesium (Mg). However, based on the CVM, nitrogen (N) and S were deficient in both years. Calcium (Ca) was deficient in 2002 and adequate in 2001. Leaf P and K concentrations were adequate in 2002 both in high and low yielding populations based on DRIS and CVM. Standard nutrient levels and DRIS norms established for maize can be used to evaluate crop nutritional status and correct nutritional imbalances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Undisturbed habitats of natural vegetation near agricultural areas protect and enhance specific natural enemies and provide them with resources such as nectar, pollen, physical refuge, alternative prey, alternative hosts and mating sites. In order to reduce the pesticide-induced mortality of natural enemies and to improve natural enemy fitness and effectiveness, one such area (termed an ‘entomophage park’) was established at the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Jammu, at Chatha, India in 2007. Naturally occurring plants, weeds, cultivated crops and flowers were monitored regularly for natural enemies. Seven sampling methods were employed to compare the abundance of natural enemies in the entomophage park and adjoining crop fields. Both entomophage diversity and abundance in the park were much higher than in the adjacent agricultural fields of vegetables and cereals. A total of 61 species of natural enemies were recovered from the entomophage park, as compared to 22 and 20 species in cereal and vegetable fields, respectively. The abundance of parasitoids (ichneumonids, braconids, scelionids and chalcidoids) was significantly higher in the park as compared to surveyed agricultural fields, as was egg parasitism by scelionids (Telenomusspp.) and trichogrammatids, and parasitisation by the larval parasitoidCampoletis chlorideaeonHelicoverpa armigera. The entomophage park also significantly enhanced the fecundity and survival of the ichneumonidC. chlorideae, when compared to individuals collected from vegetable and cereal fields. Seventeen species of plants were recorded as ‘insectary plants' (one providing substantial floral resources) in the entomophage park. Such parks may play an important role in maintaining the biodiversity of natural enemies and enhancing natural pest control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand the structural significance of the linkage region of N-glycoproteins, three title sugar amides have been prepared as analogs and their molecular assembly and crystal structures have been solved to explore the effect of acetyl protection and aglycon variation on the conformation, particularly of the N-glycosidic linkage. Comparative analysis of these structures with those of free sugar amides reported earlier showed that conformation of the amido aglycon moiety is not altered significantly by the masking of hydroxyl groups in the form of acetate. The bifurcated antiparallel pattern involving N‒H…O and C‒H…O hydrogen bonds, a hallmark of the N-glycoprotein models GlcNAcβNHAc and GlcNAcβAsn, is absent in all of the fully protected title alkanamides. The asymmetric unit of the tri-O-acetylated GlcNAcβNHAc contains two different conformations, in one of which the double-pillared hydrogen bond network involving C1 and C2 acetamido groups is antiparallel, while it is parallel in the other. The co-occurrence of a molecular assembly motif—a double-pillared parallel and antiparallel hydrogen bonding pattern—is hitherto unknown in the crystal structures of N-glycoprotein linkage region models and analogs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]