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Background: The patient’s position determines the success of the block during neuraxial anesthesia. We compare the neuraxial acoustic window in two positions namely, the hamstring stretch position (HSP) and the crossed-leg position, which are the modifications of sitting positions during spinal and epidural anesthesia. Methodology: This observational pilot study was conducted from October 2021 to November 2021 after approval from the ethics committee of our institution. Patients belonging to the age group 18–45 years were included. Forty patients were enrolled and each patient was asked to position him or herself in these two different sitting positions. Results: There was no statistically significant difference in the interlaminar distance (ILD) (P = 0.25), depth of ligamentum flavum (LF) from the skin, and intrathecal distance (P = 0.444) in these two sitting positions. The patients were more comfortable in the cross-leg position (P = 0.021). Conclusion: Both the positions, cross-leg position and HSP have no difference in ILD and depth of LF from the skin but patients were comfortable in cross-leg position. more...

Abstract Background The rising demand for food production along with the concerns regarding the injudicious use of chemicals in pest management has paved way for the alternatives that could promise sustainable pest management. Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner (Bt), a soil bacterium, is a potential biopesticide with its ability to produce crystal toxins that are insecticidal in nature. Main body This article provides an insight into the diverse Bt toxins and their applications as biopesticides in pest management. The selective action of Bt towards target organism is based on its specific interactions with the insect gut receptors. The significance of Bt in the management of lepidopteran, coleopteran, hemipteran, dipteran and nematode pests of crops and livestock through its mode of action is extensively reviewed. Conclusion Besides being a promising pest control option, the challenges faced through resistance development, variation in susceptibility across species and non-target effects of Bt are also discussed. Proactive approaches and multiple modes of action can mitigate this issue. more...

Summary: Background: Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) frequently experience multimorbidity. Cluster analysis, a machine learning method for classifying patients with similar phenotypes, has not yet been used in South Asian AF patients. Methods: The Kerala Atrial Fibrillation Registry is a prospective multicentre cohort study in Kerala, India, and the largest prospective AF registry in South Asia. Hierarchical clustering was used to identify different phenotypic clusters. Outcomes were all-cause mortality, major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), and composite bleeding events within one-year follow-up. Findings: 3348 patients were included (median age 65.0 [56.0–74.0] years; 48.8% male; median CHA2DS2-VASc 3.0 [2.0–4.0]). Five clusters were identified. Cluster 1: patients aged ≤65 years with rheumatic conditions; Cluster 2: patients aged >65 years with multi-comorbidities, suggestive of cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome; Cluster 3: patients aged ≤65 years with fewer comorbidities; Cluster 4: heart failure patients with multiple comorbidities; Cluster 5: male patients with lifestyle-related risk factors. Cluster 1, 2 and 4 had significantly higher MACE risk compared to Cluster 3 (Cluster 1: OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.08–1.71; Cluster 2: OR 1.79, 95% CI 1.42–2.25; Cluster 4: OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.31–2.36). The results for other outcomes were similar. Atrial fibrillation Better Care (ABC) pathway in the whole cohort was low (10.1%), especially in Cluster 4 (1.9%). Overall adherence to the ABC pathway was associated with reduced all-cause mortality (OR 0.26, 95% CI 0.15–0.46) and MACE (OR 0.45, 95% CI 0.31–0.46), similar trends were evident in different clusters. Interpretation: Cluster analysis identified distinct phenotypes with implications for outcomes. There was poor ABC pathway adherence overall, but adherence to such integrated care was associated with improved outcomes. Funding: Kerala Chapter of Cardiological Society of India. more...

Abstract Genome-wide association studies suggest significant overlaps in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and schizophrenia (SZ) risks, but the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. The protein-protein interaction network (‘interactome’) plays a crucial role in PD and SZ and can incorporate their spatiotemporal specificities. Therefore, to study the linked biology of PD and SZ, we compiled PD- and SZ-associated genes from the DisGeNET database, and constructed their interactomes using BioGRID and HPRD. We examined the interactomes using clustering and enrichment analyses, in conjunction with the transcriptomic data of 26 brain regions spanning foetal stages to adulthood available in the BrainSpan Atlas. PD and SZ interactomes formed four gene clusters with distinct temporal identities (Disease Gene Networks or ‘DGNs’1-4). DGN1 had unique SZ interactome genes highly expressed across developmental stages, corresponding to a neurodevelopmental SZ subtype. DGN2, containing unique SZ interactome genes expressed from early infancy to adulthood, correlated with an inflammation-driven SZ subtype and adult SZ risk. DGN3 contained unique PD interactome genes expressed in late infancy, early and late childhood, and adulthood, and involved in mitochondrial pathways. DGN4, containing prenatally-expressed genes common to both the interactomes, involved in stem cell pluripotency and overlapping with the interactome of 22q11 deletion syndrome (comorbid psychosis and Parkinsonism), potentially regulates neurodevelopmental mechanisms in PD-SZ comorbidity. Our findings suggest that disrupted neurodevelopment (regulated by DGN4) could expose risk windows in PD and SZ, later elevating disease risk through inflammation (DGN2). Alternatively, variant clustering in DGNs may produce disease subtypes, e.g., PD-SZ comorbidity with DGN4, and early/late-onset SZ with DGN1/DGN2. more...

Hydrogen chloride (HCl) is a key repository of chlorine in the interstellar medium. Accurate determinations of its abundance are critical to assessing the chlorine elemental abundance and constraining stellar nucleosynthesis models. To aid in modeling recent and future observations of HCl rovibrational spectra, we present cross sections and rate coefficients for collisions between HCl and molecular hydrogen. Transitions between rovibrational states of HCl are considered for temperatures ranging from 10 to 3000 K. Cross sections are computed using a full dimensional quantum close-coupling (CC) method and a reduced dimensionality coupled-states (CS) approach. The CS results, benchmarked against the CC results, are used with a recoupling approach to calculate hyperfine-resolved rate coefficients for rovibrational transitions of HCl induced by H _2 . The rate coefficients will allow for a better determination of the HCl abundance in the interstellar medium and an improved understanding of interstellar chlorine chemistry. We demonstrate the utility of the new rate coefficients in a nonthermodynamic equilibrium radiative transfer model applied to observations of HCl rovibrational transitions in a circumstellar shell. more...

Land, water, and food resources are essential for human survival, economic development, and social stability. Water and land are the basic resources in irrigated agricultural systems. Sustainable agricultural development entails effective management of the land-water-food nexus. The complex relationship in land-water-food nexus, with large uncertainties encompassed therein. Approaches that interconnect Land-Water-Food have grown significantly in scope and intricacy. In evaluating solutions to accomplish Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) under the contexts of rising demands, resource paucity, and climate change, nexus techniques are helpful. The nexus analysis includes the important interlinkages that could be addressed. In the water-food-land nexus system, optimization approach can increase irrigation water production and optimise the allocation of scarce resources. Model optimisation considers the uncertainties in the systems to help decision-makers devise effective strategies for allocating water and land resources effectively. Integrated modelling with efficient optimization methods aid in solving real-world nexus management issues and provides the results that could serve as the basis for effective management of land-water-food nexus and formulation of agricultural policies. more...

Abstract Mechanisms underlying anxiety disorders remain elusive despite the discovery of several associated genes. We constructed the protein–protein interaction networks (interactomes) of six anxiety disorders and noted enrichment for striatal expression among common genes in the interactomes. Five of these interactomes shared distinctive overlaps with the interactomes of genes that were differentially expressed in two striatal compartments (striosomes and matrix). Generalized anxiety disorder and social anxiety disorder interactomes showed exclusive and statistically significant overlaps with the striosome and matrix interactomes, respectively. Systematic gene expression analysis with the anxiety disorder interactomes constrained to contain only those genes that were shared with striatal compartment interactomes revealed a bifurcation among the disorders, which was influenced by the anterior cingulate cortex, nucleus accumbens, amygdala and hippocampus, and the dopaminergic signaling pathway. Our results indicate that the functionally distinct striatal pathways constituted by the striosome and the matrix may influence the etiological differentiation of various anxiety disorders. more...

A synthetic cry2AX1 gene, consisting sequence of cry2Aa and cry2Ac genes, driven by green tissue specific rbcS promoter was used to develop insect resistant marker-free transgenic rice events. The gene of interest cry2AX1 and the selectable marker gene hpt were present in two independent T-DNAs of the Agrobacterium strain, C58C1. Seventy seven hygromycin and GUS positive T0 transgenic plants were recovered. Among them, 48 were found to be co-transformed with cry2AX1. The Cry2AX1 protein expression level in T0 transgenic events ranged from 0.027 to 0.110 μg/g of fresh leaf tissue. The toxicity level of Cry2AX1 protein was assessed through in vitro bioassay against target insects. The larval mortality ranged from 46.66 to 66.67 per cent against rice leaffolder (C. medinalis) while it ranged from 60 to 100 per cent against rice yellow stem borer (S. incertulas) in T0 transgenic plants. A marker free transgenic event, which expressed 0.043 μg/g of Cry2AX1 in fresh leaf tissue exhibited 45 and 55 per cent larval mortality against rice leaffolder and rice yellow stem borer, respectively in T2 generation. more...

Studying chemical reactions near zero temperature in detail is challenging both in theory and practice. Here the authors report an explicit quantum mechanical study of the benchmark ultracold reaction between a K atom and a KRb molecule, important for future controlled chemistry experiments. more...

Quantum scattering calculations for all but low-dimensional systems at low energies must rely on approximations. All approximations introduce errors. The impact of these errors is often difficult to assess because they depend on the Hamiltonian parameters and the particular observable under study. Here, we illustrate a general, system- and approximation-independent, approach to improve the accuracy of quantum dynamics approximations. The method is based on a Bayesian machine learning (BML) algorithm that is trained by a small number of exact results and a large number of approximate calculations, resulting in ML models that can generalize exact quantum results to different dynamical processes. Thus, a ML model trained by a combination of approximate and rigorous results for a certain inelastic transition can make accurate predictions for different transitions without rigorous calculations. This opens the possibility of improving the accuracy of approximate calculations for quantum transitions that are out of reach of exact scattering theory. more...

Cluster failure time data are commonly encountered in survival analysis due to different factors such as shared environmental conditions and genetic similarity. In such cases, careful attention needs to be paid to the correlation among subjects within same clusters. In this paper, we study a frailty model based on Birnbaum–Saunders frailty distribution. We approximate the intractable integrals in the likelihood function by the use of Monte Carlo simulations and then use the piecewise constant baseline hazard function within the proportional hazards model in frailty framework. Thereafter, the maximum likelihood estimates are numerically determined. A simulation study is conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed model and the method of inference. Finally, we apply this model to a real data set to analyze the effect of sublingual nitroglycerin and oral isosorbide dinitrate on angina pectoris of coronary heart disease patients and compare our results with those based on other frailty models considered earlier in the literature. more...

The role of the geometric phase effect in chemical reaction dynamics has long been a topic of active experimental and theoretical investigations. The topic has received renewed interest in recent years in cold and ultracold chemistry where it was shown to play a decisive role in state-to-state chemical dynamics. We provide a brief review of these developments focusing on recent studies of O + OH and hydrogen exchange in the H + H 2 and D + HD reactions at cold and ultracold temperatures. Non-adiabatic effects in ultracold chemical dynamics arising from the conical intersection between two electronic potential energy surfaces are also briefly discussed. By taking the hydrogen exchange reaction as an illustrative example it is shown that the inclusion of the geometric phase effect captures the essential features of non-adiabatic dynamics at collision energies below the conical intersection. more...

Background & Objectives. The plan of this work was to study the larvicidal activity of Cassia occidentalis (Linn.) against the larvae of Culex quinquefasciatus. These larvae are the most significant vectors. They transmit the parasites and pathogens which cause a deadly disease like filariasis, dengue, yellow fever, malaria, Japanese encephalitis, chikungunya, and so forth, which are considered harmful towards the population in tropic and subtropical regions. Methods. The preliminary laboratory trail was undertaken to determine the efficacy of petroleum ether and N-butanol extract of dried whole plant of Cassia occidentalis (Linn.) belonging to the family Caesalpiniaceae at various concentrations against the late third instar larvae of Culex quinquefasciatus by following the WHO guidelines. Results. The results suggest that 100% mortality effect of petroleum ether and N-butanol extract of Cassia occidentalis (Linn.) was observed at 200 and 300 ppm (parts per million). The results obviously showed use of plants in insect control as an alternative method for minimizing the noxious effect of some pesticide compounds on the environment. Thus the extract of Cassia occidentalis (Linn.) is claimed as more selective and biodegradable agent. Conclusion. This study justified that plant Cassia occidentalis (Linn.) has a realistic mortality result for larvae of filarial vector. This is safe to individual and communities against mosquitoes. It is a natural weapon for mosquito control. more...

The Nilgiri hills and adjoining downhill areas provide favourable ecological conditions for the propagation of haematophagous arthropods owing to richness in vegetation and animal activities. A study has been undertaken during 2008–2010 on the distribution and abundance of ticks of domestic animals in seven different biotopes. A total of 3,008 domestic animals were examined in areas ranging from an altitude of 300 to 2200 meters above mean sea level (MSL) of which 1,335 (44.5%) animals were having tick infestation. A total of 6,012 adult and immature ticks belonging to 12 species (11 ixodid and one argasid) were collected. Eleven tick species were collected from Kallar area situated downhill eastern slopes of the Nilgiris followed by Burliar area (7 species) located at higher altitudes. From Masinagudi area near to dense forests and scrub jungles, five species were recorded. However, at higher elevations on the hills, Udhagamandalam area, only one species was recorded. Among various tick species recorded in the study, Boophilus microplus was distributed in almost all areas surveyed followed by Haemaphysalis spinigera and Rhipicephalus sanguineus. The factors governing their distribution and epidemiological significance in the transmission of various tick-borne diseases of public health importance are discussed. more...

The presence of outliers, skewness, kurtosis, and dependency are well-known challenges while fitting distributions to many data sets. Developing multivariate distributions that can properly accomodate all these aspects has been the aim of several researchers. In this regard, we introduce here a new multivariate skew-normal mean-variance mixture based on Birnbaum–Saunders distribution. The resulting model is a good alternative to some skewed distributions, especially the skew-t model. The proposed model is quite flexible in terms of tail behavior and skewness, and also displays good performance in the presence of outliers. For the determination of maximum likelihood estimates, a computationally efficient Expectation-Conditional-Maximization (ECM) algorithm is developed. The performance of the proposed estimation methodology is illustrated through Monte Carlo simulation studies as well as with some real life examples. more...