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Current-mode control is a commonly utilized control strategy for the step-up power converters because these converters’ control-to-output transfer function contains right-half plane zeros. The main concern associated with the recent dual-loop current-mode controller (CMC) is that the integrator operates on the error term itself. Thus, integrand can assume extremely large values when error is large such as during transient response, and the controller output may saturate, especially when sufficiently large controller gains are used. If lower gain values of gains are used, the speed of response in the presence of small parameter variations could be much lower. Thus, there is a compromise between the transient response when error signal is large and speed of the response for small error signals. To address these concerns, an improved normalized-error based current-mode controller (NECC) is employed for voltage regulation in a sixth-order boost configuration. This controller’s main characteristic is that the integrator now operates on a bounded integrand which is a normalized-error. This avoids the integrator saturation and also increase the room for tuning the controller gains. The state-space averaged model of the topology is given and a detailed stability analysis is shown. The main contribution of the paper is that a detailed comparative study of the traditional CMC and an improved NECC based on some simulation and experimental waveforms is provided. Both simulation and experimental outcomes clearly prove the superiority of the proposed NECC in terms of an improved speed and less overshoot of the output voltage response.

The objective of this study was to assess the effect of electrical stimulation (ES) on breast and thigh muscles in spent hen. A total of 24 spent hens (White Leghorn) were slaughtered and split into two halves, each half was either treated with postmortem ES (150V) or was used as a non-stimulated (NS) control. Breast and thigh muscles were excised and analysed for biophysical, colour and sensory qualities after ageing for 24 h at 4 ± 1 ˚C. Biochemical parameters were recorded immediately (0h) and after 24h of ES. Biophysical parameters like water holding capacity (WHC), protein extractability, shear force value (SFV) and myofibre fragmentation index (MFI) of both types of muscles varied significantly with ES. Electrical stimulation significantly reduced the pH and glycogen content in both muscles and the thigh muscle showed a significantly higher pH and lower glycogen content than the breast muscle. No significance difference in metabolic rate (R-value) was observed between ES and NS thigh at 24 h. ES had no significant effect on colour and ES significantly improved the sensory value of both breast and thigh muscle. Canonical discriminant and Mahalanobis distance (D2) analysis of biophysical and biochemical parameters demonstrated that the effect of electrical stimulation was comparatively more in thigh muscle than breast with an ageing period of 24 h.

This study investigates the photocatalytic activity of AgNbTeO6 (ANTO) and Sn0.5NbTeO6 (SNTO), two new tellurides synthesized by ion-exchange from the primordial compound KNbTeO6 (KNTO) prepared by the sol-gel method, for the photomineralization of urban stormwater (UWS) and identified organic pollutants from the USW sample. All the materials were well characterized by various spectroscopic and microscope techniques. Both ANTO and SNTO materials mimic pristine KNTO, such as a cubic lattice with the Fd3m space group. All of the materials' UV–vis–DRS profiles were used to calculate their bandgap energies. The lower photocurrent of ANTO than that of SNTO and KNTO materials indicates that ANTO is a superior photocatalytic material due to the low rate of recombination of electron-hole pairs, which is also supported by EIS studies. The photomineralization efficiency of the ultra-stormwater (USW) and pollutants identified from USW sample mineralization with ANTO is in the range of 95–99%. Additionally, HPLC analysis of initial and final samples of USW and two major pollutants identified from USW and TOC analysis for USW were studied. Finally, through mechanistic studies, the active species for photomineralization of stormwater sewage and organic pollutants was identified. The scavenger and insitu ESR studies indicated that superoxide radicals are more highly active than other radical species. The ANTO and SNTO have shown higher photocatalytic activity compared to the parent KNTO due to their low bandgap energy and low rate of recombination of the hole-electron pair.

Abstract The magnetotelluric (MT) investigation carried out in Koyna Seismogenic Zone (KSZ), an intra-plate earthquake region in Western India, along an E–W profile brings out moderately conductive (~ 700–1000 Ωm) near vertical features within the very high resistive (> 20,000 Ωm) granite/granite-gneiss basement. Occurrences of these anomalous moderate conductors are corroborated with sensitivity analysis. The alignment of earthquake hypocenters along the resistive–conductive boundary signifies the moderate conductor as basement fault. The conversion of resistivity values to the ratio of seismic P- to S-wave velocity (v p/v s) suggests that the moderate conductivity of the fault zone (as compared to the surrounding basement) appears due to the presence of fluid in the fault zone. Geophysical evidences reveal ~ 2.5–3.6 vol% fluid in the fault zone with ~ 1.8–2.6% interconnected porosity, which migrates along the structural boundary and invades the mechanically strong basement to nucleate the brittle failure within it. The present study proposes two mechanisms for the seismicity in the Koyna region. First: the meteoric water circulation due to the loading–unloading of nearby Koyna reservoir acts as potential fluid source for this triggered seismicity, which has also been suggested by previous studies. Second: the fluid circulation due to a deep-seated source. The present MT study brings out a conductive feature below 20 km depth which is thought to be emerged due to the dehydration of amphibole bearing rocks. The fluid generated from dehydration might act as a probable source to the triggered seismicity; since the conductive feature has a linkage to the upper crust. Graphical Abstract

Angiotensin II (Ang II) is a potent vasoconstrictor of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) and is implicated in hypertension, but it's role in the regulation of endothelial function is not well known. We and others have previously shown that mechanically activated ion channel, Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) mediates flow- and/or receptor-dependent vasodilation via nitric oxide (NO) production in endothelial cells. Ang II was demonstrated to crosstalk with TRPV4 via angiotensin 1 receptor (AT1R) and β-arrestin signaling in epithelial and immortalized cells, however, the role of this crosstalk in endothelial cell function is not fully explored. Ang II treatment significantly downregulated TRPV4 protein expression and TRPV4-mediated Ca2+ influx in human EC without altering TRPV4 mRNA levels. Further, TRPV4-induced eNOS phosphorylation and NO production were significantly reduced in Ang II-treated human EC. Importantly, Ang II infusion in mice revealed that, TRPV4/p-eNOS expression and colocalization was reduced in endothelium in vivo. Finally, Ang II infusion induced vascular remodeling as evidenced by decreased lumen to wall ratio in resistant mesenteric arteries. These findings suggest that Ang II induces endothelial dysfunction and vascular remodeling via downregulation of TRPV4/eNOS pathway and may contribute to hypertension, independent of or in addition to its effect on vascular smooth muscle contraction.

In the present work, we have synthesized rare-earth ion modified Bi4−xRExTi2Fe0.7Co0.3O12−δ (RE = Dy, Sm, La) multiferroic compounds by the conventional solid-state route. Analysis of X-ray diffraction by Rietveld refinement confirmed the formation of a polycrystalline orthorhombic phase. The morphological features revealed a non-uniform, randomly oriented, plate-like grain structure. The peaks evident in the Raman spectra closely corresponded to those of orthorhombic Aurivillius phases. Dielectric studies and impedance measurements were carried out. Asymmetric complex impedance spectra suggested the relaxation of charge carriers belonging to the non-Debye type and controlled by a thermally activated process. Temperature-dependent AC conductivity data showed a change of slope in the vicinity of the phase transition temperature of both magnetic and electrical coupling natures. Based on the universal law and its exponent nature, one can suppose that the conduction process is governed by a small polaron hopping mechanism but significant distortion of TiO6 octahedral. The doping of the A-sites with rare-earth element ions and changes in the concentrations of Fe and Co ions located on the B-sites manifested themselves in saturated magnetic hysteresis loops, indicating competitive interactions between ferroelectric and canted antiferromagnetic spins. The magnetic order in the samples is attributed to pair-wise interactions between adjacent Fe3+–O–Fe3+, Co2+/3+–O–Co3+/2+, and Co2+/3+–O–Fe3+ ions or Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interactions among magnetic ions in the adjacent sub-lattices. As a result, enhanced magnetoelectric coefficients of 42.4 mV/cm-Oe, 30.3 mV/cm-Oe, and 21.6 mV/cm-Oe for Bi4−xDyxTi2Fe0.7Co0.3O12−δ (DBTFC), Bi4−xLaxTi2Fe0.7Co0.3O12−δ (LBTFC), and Bi4−xSmxTi2Fe0.7Co0.3O12−δ (SBTFC), respectively, have been obtained at lower magnetic fields (

Introdução: A infecção por S. aureus está associada a alta morbi-mortalidade. Métodos: Estudo de coorte retrospectivo descrevendo infecção grave por S.aureus em pacientes internados de 2016 a 2021. Realizada busca nos registros de microbiologia e revisão de prontuários para coleta de dados. Análise estatística com R 4.0.1 Resultados: Foram incluídos 67 pacientes, que apresentavam os seguintes sítios de infecção: 29 (43.3%) bacteremia e 38 infecções em outros sítios (lesão cutânea, pulmonar e outros). Eram homens 37 (55,2%); 69.4% negros, com idade mediana de 46 anos (IIQ = 31). As comorbidades mais frequentes em pessoas com infecção por S.aureus foram: Diabetes Mellitus (DM 17.9%), Hipertensão (13.4%), Doença Renal Crônica (DRC 11.9%), Câncer Recente (isto é, nos últimos 6 meses (CA 7.5%), Dermatopatia crônica (9%), e HTLV (9%), e pessoas vivendo com HIV/AIDS (PVHIV) 31(46,3%). Os PVHIV eram mais jovens que os não portadores do vírus (36 vs 60 anos, p < 0,001). A mediana do CD4 foi de 95 células/mm3, e 25/31 (75.8%) das PVHIV estavam em uso de terapia antirretroviral (TARV). Identificou- se que nos PVHIV, 7 (22%) já apresentavam-se colonizados por MRSA na admissão e que 20 (64%) PVHIV tinha infecção comunitária por S.aureus. Nos PVHIV afigurou- se uma prevalência de 38.7% de infecções por MRSA e destes, 100% era sensível a sulfametoxazol-trimetoprima (SXT), à doxiciclina e à linezolida; e 90% a clindamicina, mostrando-se fenotipicamente com padrão de MRSA comunitário. Internação em CTI ocorreu em 32.3% das PVHIV vs 50% (p = 0.22) dos soronegativos, e cerca de 1/3 das PVHIV e das soronegativas necessitou de suporte ventilatório de aminas e de HD. Registrou-se 25.8% de óbitos em 30 dias para os PVHIV vs 20% naqueles soronegativos para HIV (p = 0.789). Conclusão: Nosso estudo mostrou alta taxa de colonização por MRSA (38.7%) em PVHIV com infecção grave por S.aureus, maior que a descrita na população geral sem infecção por S.aureus (0.3% a 1.3%) e nos profissionais de saúde (1.3 a 2.3%). As comorbidades na população geral do estudo se assemelha àquelas descritas em outros estudos, como HIV, DM, Ca recente e condições que predispõem quebra de integridade cutânea – DRC. Observamos uma população mais jovem com S.aureus e HIV comparando com os soronegativos. Em consonância com a literatura, que coloca CD4

Teaching and learning in anaesthesia and critical care has traditionally included seminars, journal clubs and clinical teaching in the operation theatre. The aim has always been to ignite the spark of thinking and self-directed learning in the students. The process of 'dissertation preparation' introduces basic knowledge and interest in research in the postgraduate student. All this is followed by an examination at the end of the course including the theory and practical assessment in the form of long and short case discussions and table viva-voce. The National Medical Commission in 2019 introduced the competency-based medical education curriculum for anaesthesia postgraduates. This curriculum focuses on structured teaching and learning. It has specific learning objectives in theoretical knowledge, skills and attitude development. The building up of communication skills has been given due importance. Though research in anaesthesia and critical care is steadily progressing, much work needs to be done on its improvement.

Context Ocimum sanctum Linn (Labiatae) (OS), Zingiber officinale Rose (Zingiberaceae) (ZO), and Piper nigrum Linn (Piperaceae) (PN) are used in traditional medicine as immunomodulator, anti-inflammatory, and bioavailability enhancer agents. Objective Active phytoconstituents of OS, ZO, PN hydro-alcoholic extracts and their effects on gut microbiota, basal inflammation and lipid profile were investigated in rats. Materials and methods Active phytoconstituents of extracts were analysed using HPLC and GC-MS. SD rats were supplemented with individual/combined extracts (OS-850; ZO-500; PN-100 mg/kg Bw) and Fructooligosaccharide (standard prebiotic-5g/kg-Bw), orally for 30 days. Haematology, lipid profile, LPS, CRP, IL-6, insulin and histology of vital organs were analysed. Caecal bacterial levels were assessed by RT-PCR. Results High content of phenolic compounds luteolin-7-O-glucoside (430 ± 2.3 mg/100g), gallic acid (84.13 ± 1.2 mg/100 g) and flavones (88.18 ± 1.8 mg/100 g) were found in OS, ZO, and PN, respectively. Combined extract was rich in luteolin-7-O-glucoside (266.0 ± 1.80 mg/100 g). Essential oils including methyleugenol (13.96%), 6-shogaol (11.00%), piperine (18.26%), and cyclopentasiloxane (10.06%) were higher in OS, ZO, PN and combined extract. Higher levels of caecal Lactobacillus (1.7–3.4-fold), Bifidobacterium (5.89-28.4-fold), and lower levels of Firmicutes (0.04–0.91-fold), Bacteroides (0.69–0.88-fold) were noted among extracts and FOS supplemented rats. Significant (p

Green buying research in the past has been very focused on studying the behavior of individual consumers (B2C) and organizational consumers (B2B). However, there has been no attempt to compare the factors that influence the green buying of individual consumers and organizational consumers. This paper aims to review the existing literature to understand factors influencing green buying concerning individual consumers & organizational consumers and present a future research agenda. This paper reviewed 120 research articles from the field of sustainability, marketing & supply chain, business studies, etc., by using the Theory-Context-Characteristics-Methodology (TCCM) framework to explain the facets that influence green buying concerning B2C and B2B consumers. The paper categorizes price sensitivity, risk perception, ecological knowledge, emission reduction, recycling, green packaging with eco-labels, and green communication as common factors influencing B2C and B2B green buying. Factors like environmental consciousness, product benefits, health consciousness, self-identity, price, cultural dimensions, and word of mouth are categorized as specific factors influencing B2C consumers. In contrast, triple bottom line, payback, green supplier selection, supplier quality, supplier responsiveness, green compliance, green supply chains, green innovations, competitive advantage, corporate social responsibility, etc., are categorized as specific factors influencing B2B consumers toward green purchases. The paper offers academic value and originality because of the comparative character of the topic and the research method used. It explains the common and specific factors related to green buying with reference to B2C and B2B consumers. Finally, this paper proposes future research agenda for this domain.

Objectives: To assess the current knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions toward informed consent and legal conflicts among Dental professionals in the Dental colleges of South India. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out at eight dental teaching institutions of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. A structured close-ended questionnaire was used to obtain data from the dentists, including the postgraduates and teaching staff. The aim was to assess the knowledge on informed consent in the routine practice of dentistry. Results: A total of 450 professionals were approached; among them, 368 were included in the survey. Independent variables such as age, gender, clinical practice experience, and levels of designation were assessed for association with perceptions of informed consent. Majority of the study population felt the necessity of informed consent in daily dental practices. In addition, 75.2% of the professional population were aware of legal conflicts as they reported that if a doctor working in an institution does fault in providing treatment services without consent, then they will be liable before the law. There was a statistically significant association between the age of the study population and their attitude toward the necessity of consent in treating patients (P = 0.03). Similarly, there were variations in the opinions of gender toward the nature of informed consent, which was proved to be statistically significant (P = 0.027). Moreover, clinical practice experience was significantly associated with knowledge of informed consent evolution and types of consent required for a child between 7 and 17 years of age (P = 0.002 and 0.028), respectively. Conclusion: About 86% of the surveyed dentists are aware of the importance of informed consent in practical dentistry and consider it as an ethical and legal obligation. Moreover, expressed consent is the preferred means of obtaining consent from patients for the most dental procedure. Majority (89%) of them responded that the questionnaire gave them additional information about lawsuits and preferred streamlining the process of informed consent through Institutional review boards to avoid legal conflicts.

Data are crucial to the growth of e-commerce in today’s world of highly demanding hyper-personalized consumer experiences, which are collected using advanced web scraping technologies. However, core data extraction engines fail because they cannot adapt to the dynamic changes in website content. This study investigates an intelligent and adaptive web data extraction system with convolutional and Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) networks to enable automated web page detection using the You only look once (Yolo) algorithm and Tesseract LSTM to extract product details, which are detected as images from web pages. This state-of-the-art system does not need a core data extraction engine, and thus can adapt to dynamic changes in website layout. Experiments conducted on real-world retail cases demonstrate an image detection (precision) and character extraction accuracy (precision) of 97% and 99%, respectively. In addition, a mean average precision of 74%, with an input dataset of 45 objects or images, is obtained.

The exponential rise in social media via microblogging sites like Twitter has sparked curiosity in sentiment analysis that exploits user feedback towards a targeted product or service. Considering its significance in business intelligence and decision-making, numerous efforts have been made in this area. However, lack of dictionaries, unannotated data, large-scale unstructured data, and low accuracies have plagued these approaches. Also, sentiment classification through classifier ensemble has been underexplored in literature. In this article, we propose a Semantic Relational Machine Learning (SRML) model that automatically classifies the sentiment of tweets by using classifier ensemble and optimal features. The model employs the Cascaded Feature Selection (CFS) strategy, a novel statistical assessment approach based on Wilcoxon rank sum test, univariate logistic regression assisted significant predictor test and cross-correlation test. It further uses the efficacy of word2vec-based continuous bag-of-words and n-gram feature extraction in conjunction with SentiWordNet for finding optimal features for classification. We experiment on six public Twitter sentiment datasets, the STS-Gold dataset, the Obama-McCain Debate (OMD) dataset, the healthcare reform (HCR) dataset and the SemEval2017 Task 4A, 4B and 4C on a heterogeneous classifier ensemble comprising fourteen individual classifiers from different paradigms. Results from the experimental study indicate that CFS supports in attaining a higher classification accuracy with up to 50% lesser features compared to count vectorizer approach. In Intra-model performance assessment, the Artificial Neural Network-Gradient Descent (ANN-GD) classifier performs comparatively better than other individual classifiers, but the Best Trained Ensemble (BTE) strategy outperforms on all metrics. In inter-model performance assessment with existing state-of-the-art systems, the proposed model achieved higher accuracy and outperforms more accomplished models employing quantum-inspired sentiment representation (QSR), transformer-based methods like BERT, BERTweet, RoBERTa and ensemble techniques. The research thus provides critical insights into implementing similar strategy into building more generic and robust expert system for sentiment analysis that can be leveraged across industries.

In this work, we have prepared intergrowth of multiferroic compounds namely Bi4RTi3Fe0.7Co0.3O15-Bi3RTi2Fe0.7Co0.3O12−δ (BRTFCO15-BRTFCO12) (rare earth (R) = Dy, Sm, La) by solid-state reaction method. From the X-ray diffraction Rietveld refinement, the structure of the intergrowths was found to be orthorhombic in which satisfactory fittings establish the existence of three-layered (space group: b 2 c b) and four-layered compounds (space group: A21am). Analysis of magnetic measurements confirmed a larger magnetization for theSm-modified intergrowth compound (BSTFCO15-BSTFCO12) compared to Dy- and La-doped ones. The emergence of higher magnetic properties can be due to distortion in the unit cell when some Bi3+ ions are replaced with the Sm3+, bonding of Fe3+-O-Co3+ as well as a possible mixture of FexCoy-type nanoparticles that are formed generally in the synthesis of intergrowths. The changes in the magnetic state of the Aurivillius intergrowths have been reflected in the magnetoelectric (ME) coupling: higher ME coefficient (~30 mV/Cm-Oe) at lower magnetic fields and is constant up to 3 kOe. The results were corroborated by Raman spectroscopy and variation of temperature with magnetization data. The results revealed that the RE-modified intergrowth route is an effective preparative method for higher-layer Aurivillius multiferroic ceramics.

Abstract Multiferroic composites are promising candidates for magnetic field sensors, next-generation low power memory and spintronic devices, as they exhibit much higher magnetoelectric (ME) coupling and coupled ordering parameters compared to the single-phase multiferroics. Hence, the 3-0 type particulate multiferroic composites having general formula (1 − Φ)[PbFe0.5Nb0.5O3]-Φ[Co0.6Zn0.4Fe1.7Mn0.3O4] (Φ = 0.0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 1.0, (1 − Φ) PFN-ΦCZFMO) were prepared using a hybrid synthesis technique. Preliminary structural and microstructural analysis were carried out using XRD and FESEM techniques, which suggest the formation of 3-0 type particulate composite without the presence of any impurity phases. The multiferroic behaviour of the composites is studied with polarization versus electric field (P-E) and magnetization versus magnetic field (M-H) characteristics at room temperature. The nature of ME coupling was investigated elaborately by employing the Landau free energy equation along with the magneto-capacitance measurement. This investigation suggests the existence of biquadratic nature of ME coupling (P2M2). The magneto-electric coupling measurement also suggests that strain mediated domain coupling between the ferroelectric and magnetic ordering is responsible for the magneto-electric behaviour. The obtained value of direct ME coefficient 26.78 mV/cm-Oe for Φ = 0.3, found to be higher than the well-known single-phase materials and polycrystalline composites.

Background: Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is a neuroendocrine metabolic disorder characterized by an irregular menstrual cycle. Treatment for PCOS using synthetic drugs is effective. However, PCOS patients are attracted towards natural remedies due to the effective therapeutic outcomes with natural drugs and the limitations of allopathic medicines. In view of the significance of herbal remedies, herein, we discuss the role of different herbs in PCOS. Methods: By referring to the Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar, Crossref and Hinari databases, a thorough literature search was conducted and data mining was performed pertaining to the effectiveness of herbal remedies against PCOS. Results: In this review, we discuss the significance of herbal remedies in the treatment of PCOS, and the chemical composition, mechanism of action and therapeutic application of selected herbal drugs against PCOS. Conclusions: The present review will be an excellent resource for researchers working on understanding the role of herbal medicine in PCOS.

Novel samarium modified intergrowth ferroelectric ceramics, namely Bi4Ti3O12-SrBi4Ti4O15, were synthesized by conventional solid state reaction method and sintered at 1100 °C for 5 h. X-ray diffraction studies revealed the formation of a single phase with the signature of intergrowth oxide and plate like morphology was observed by scanning electron microscopic analyses. The orthorhombicity, the grain size and transition temperature were found to decrease with the increase of Sm content. The dielectric and modulus measurements were performed at different temperatures and frequency ranges. The transition temperature was found to be around 500 °C. The variations of imaginary part of modulus and dielectric constant with the temperature showed diffuse phase transition. The results are corroborated to the defect based mechanism and Curie deviation factor was evaluated by using the modified Curie-Weiss law. Polarization-electric filed curves displayed a typical narrow hysteresis loop at room temperature by applying an electric field of 70 kV/cm. However, above room temperature the hysteresis loop area was found to be increased. The overall results revealed that the complex dipoles and oxygen vacancies are playing a dominant role in the dielectric and electrical properties, and therefore the adopted intergrowth processing was found to be an effective approach to obtain potentially good ferroelectric materials.

Background Gastrointestinal route is considered for feeding in subjects who are unable to swallow, either as a temporary or permanent option. Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) is the preferred mode for long-term enteral nutrition. The aim was to study the outcome of protocol-based PEG placement in a tertiary medical center. Materials and Methods All the patients who underwent PEG placement between January 2017 and December 2019 were included in the retrospective study. Study variables were entered into a uniform structured proforma. The procedure was done by two people using Ponsky-Gauderer pull-technique. Fluoroscopy guidance was considered for placement in special situations. Post-procedure, all the patients were regularly followed as per protocol to evaluate for adverse events. Results One hundred and eighteen patients with placement of PEG were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 49.6 ± 7 years with 67.8% males. The most common indication of PEG was inability to swallow associated with head injury (43, 36.4%), followed by carcinoma esophagus (35, 29.8%) and stroke (24, 20.3%). Fluoroscopy was useful in 38 (32%) for PEG site identification. Tube dislodgement (16, 13.5%) and aspiration pneumonia (20, 16.9%) were the common adverse events. Age more than 60 years and dysphagia in neurologic disorders accounted for more than 60% of adverse events. Forty-nine (42%) of the PEG patients expired due to either primary illness or due to sepsis after a median time of 139 days (range: 32–288 days). There was no difference in the survival in patients with or without PEG-related complications (p = 0. 74). Conclusions Fluoroscopy assistance helps in accurate PEG placement in one third. Age > 60 years and dysphagia in neurologic disorders were independent risk factors associated with PEG tube complications.

Background: Toothbrush is habitually used as an oral hygiene aid to maintain good oral health. The contamination of toothbrushes leads to oral and systemic diseases. Awareness on toothbrush disinfection is essential for oral health-care professionals in order to educate people. Aim: The aim was to assess the knowledge, perceptions, and practices about toothbrush storage, contamination, and disinfection among dental professionals in Andhra Pradesh, South India. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a self-administered questionnaire among 450 oral health professionals categorized into three groups (faculty, postgraduates, and interns) in Andhra Pradesh. The statistics were computed with the Statistical Package of Social Sciences version 22. Chi-square test and analysis of variance were used for statistical analyses. P < 0.05 is considered statistically significant. Results: There was a statistically significant difference between the three groups regarding the P value denoted by (*) is considered as statistically significant, frequency of brushing, change of toothbrush, storage of toothbrush and knowledge on toothbrush disinfection (P value is 0.01), whereas knowledge on toothbrush contamination (P value is 0.04). P value denoted by (**) is considered as statistically highly significant. A highly statistical significance was noticed pertaining to the factors on type of toothpaste,reason behind change of toothbrush,contact between toothbrushes during storage and sharing of toothpaste with family members ( P value is

The prevalence of iron (Fe) deficiency and subclinical lead (Pb) toxicity is high in developing countries like India, and information on their potential additive effects on immune responses is scant. The current study assessed immune parameters in dual Pb-exposed\Fe-deficient weanling SD rats. Rats were fed a control (CD) or Fe-deficient (ID) diet for 4 weeks and then evaluated for hemoglobin (Hb) and serum Fe status. Then, half the rats in each group began to receive daily oral Pb exposure (25 mg/4 ml/kg BW; gavage) or vehicle for a further 4 weeks (while maintained on original respective diets). After the 4-weeks of dosing, rats were assessed for Hb and serum Fe, and for blood lead level (BLL) and δ-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALAD) activity. At this point, half the rats in each group (now n = 8) were then vaccinated with tetanus toxoid (TT), and then two boosters at 2-week intervals. All the time, rats stayed on their original respective diets along with exposure to Pb on alternate days. At 2 weeks after the final booster, rats were euthanized and blood collected to assess total/specific IgG and IgM levels; mucosal (intestinal) IgA levels were also determined. Spleens were taken to assess CD4+ and CD8+ cell levels and for ex vivo measures of splenocyte proliferation/TH1 and TH2 cytokine formation. The results indicated significant lowering of Hb and serum Fe levels in ID rats and increased blood Pb and decreased ALAD activity in all Pb-exposed rats. Fe-deficiency alone induced significant increases in ALAD activity, but only in an absence of Pb. While there was no impact of any regimen on total or TT-specific IgG, significant decreases in mucosal IgA and TT-specific IgM were seen in ID-fed Pb-exposed rats. CD4+ cell levels were not impacted by treatment; CD8+ levels were increased in all ID/Pb-exposed rats. Ex-vivo splenocyte proliferation was significantly higher among vaccinated rats, as well as ID-fed Pb-exposed unvaccinated rats. Cytokine formation in all cases was highly variable. The results suggest that Fe deficiency compromised cell-mediated, mucosal, and/or humoral immune response-related endpoints and that Pb exposure during the deficiency further impacted these outcomes.

Broad-band and long period magnetotelluric measurements made at 63 locations along ∼500 km long Chikmagalur-Kavali profile, that cut across the Dharwar craton (DC) and Eastern Ghat Mobile Belt (EGMB) in south India, is modelled to examine the lithosphere architecture of the cratonic domain and define tectonic boundaries. The 2-D resistivity model shows moderately conductive features that intersperse a highly resistive background of crystalline rocks and spatially connect to the exposed schist belts or granitic intrusions in the DC. These features are therefore interpreted as images of fossil pathways of the volcanic emplacements associated with the greenstone belt and granite suite formation exposed in the region. A near vertical conductive feature in the upper mantle under the Chitradurga Shear Zone represents the Archean suture between the western and eastern blocks of DC. Although thick (∼200 km) cratonic (highly resistive) lithosphere is preserved, significant part of the cratonic lithosphere below the western DC is modified due to plume-continental lithosphere interactions during the Cretaceous–Tertiary period. A west-verging moderately conductive feature imaged beneath EGMB lithosphere is interpreted as the remnant of the Proterozoic collision process between the Indian land mass and East Antarctica. Thin (∼120 km) lithosphere is seen below the EGMB, which form the exterior margin of the India shield subsequent to its separation from East Antarctica through rifting and opening of the Indian Ocean in the Cretaceous. Keywords: Magnetotelluric, Lithospheric structure, Mantle plume, Mantle suture, Dharwar craton

Current article illustrates the data of body weight, biochemical, haematological profile, and organ weights of rats and rabbits administered with recombinant human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine, along with genotoxicity effect. The data was collected from nonclinical safety/toxicity and immune response evaluations of recombinant Salmonella typhi expressing the HPV 16 and 18 L1 proteins as vaccine. The intended clinical route of vaccine administration is through oral route, whereas it is established fact that attenuated S. typhi could not colonize in laboratory animals. In view of this it is challenging to undertake the nonclinical safety/toxicity evaluations following the regulatory guidelines. Hence sub chronic safety/toxicity testing was carried out in rat and rabbits by administration of HPV vaccine through oral (intended clinical route) and innovative intranasal routes.The prophylactic dose derived from adult human clinical dose (2 × 109CFU/70 kg) was administered to SD rats (PD: 0.18 × 109CFU/kg) and New Zealand White (NZW) rabbits (PD: 0.09 × 109CFU/kg) through oral and intranasal routes. Similarly, average dose (AD:5xPD) was administered to rats (AD:0.9 × 109CFU/kg) and rabbits (AD: 0.45 × 109CFU/kg) through intranasal route only. The repeated doses were administered on 3rd and 5th days of post-exposure of 1st dose through specified routes and test compound effects in relation with time of exposure was assessed by euthanizing animals and data collection at different time points i.e. 15th (25% of animals), 29th (25% of animals) and 93rd days (50% of animals) of post-exposure of 1st dose. The retro-orbital plexus blood was collected before euthanizing animals to unveil the biochemical and haematological profile. The data on genotoxicity effect of test compound, if any, was obtained by assessing the bone-marrow micronucleus assay. The immune response and allergenicity in terms of specific IgG and IgE levels against HPV 16 and 18 L1 proteins were determined in mice. The raw data of various parameters collected at different time points were compiled and computed according to the groups. The haematological profile and organ weights data can be used as reference data for SD rats and NZW rabbits for future studies.

Background and Objective: Urethral duplication is a rare congenital anomaly having multiple anatomical variants and varied presentations. Multiple surgical techniques have been described for this anomaly, and no surgical technique is ideal. The aim of this study was to present our experience of twenty cases of urethral duplication in the management of this anomaly. Materials and Methods: Retrospectively over a period of 10 years from 2006 to 2016, records of all urethral duplications were reviewed. All available records were evaluated for clinical presentation, imaging studies (micturating cystourethrogram, retrograde urethrogram, ultrasonography, and cystourethroscopy), and classified according to the Effmann's classification. The intraoperative details, outcome, and follow-up (including cystoscopy and contrast studies) were noted. Results: There were 20 patients of urethral duplications. Age of patients ranged from 3 months to 9 years with a mean age of 4.6 years. The details of management, outcome, and follow-up were obtained. Conclusion: Management varies with the symptoms and the severity of the anomaly. Y-type urethral duplication is more complex and challenging and requires extensive urethral reconstruction. Combined use of the bladder and buccal mucosa for reconstruction gives better results than bladder mucosa alone.

Agriculture is an important regional economic industry in Asian regions. Ensuring food security and stabilizing the food supply are a priority. In response to the frequent occurrence of natural disasters caused by global warming in recent years, the Agriculture and Food Agency (AFA) in Taiwan has conducted agricultural and food surveys to address those issues. To improve the accuracy of agricultural and food surveys, AFA uses remote sensing technology to conduct surveys on the planting area of agricultural crops. Unlike optical images that are easily disturbed by rainfall and cloud cover, synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images will not be affected by climatic factors, which makes them more suitable for the forecast of crops production. This research proposes a novel spatial-temporal neural network called a convolutional long short-term memory rice field classifier (ConvLSTM-RFC) for rice field classification from Sentinel-1A SAR images of Yunlin and Chiayi counties in Taiwan. The proposed model ConvLSTM-RFC is implemented with multiple convolutional long short-term memory attentions blocks (ConvLSTM Att Block) and a bi-tempered logistic loss function (BiTLL). Moreover, a convolutional block attention module (CBAM) was added to the residual structure of the ConvLSTM Att Block to focus on rice detection in different periods on SAR images. The experimental results of the proposed model ConvLSTM-RFC have achieved the highest accuracy of 98.08% and the rice false positive is as low as 15.08%. The results indicate that the proposed ConvLSTM-RFC produces the highest area under curve (AUC) value of 88% compared with other related models.

Advancement in technology led to development of live attenuated Salmonella typhi Ty21a as enteric vector for expression of foreign proteins. Such vector platform is inevitable for development of vaccine candidate against human papilloma virus (HPV), the etiological agent of cervical cancer with high prevalence in developing nations. The high risk HPVs like type 16 and 18 contributes to 70% of cervical cancer, hence Indian Immunologicals Limited (IIL), Hyderabad, India developed a recombinant HPV vaccine by introducing HPV 16 and 18 L1 protein coding genes into attenuated S. typhi Ty21a vector. Being a genetically engineered enteric vector vaccine, it would be less expensive, with an ease of oral administration, instead of injectable that needs trained personale, is an added advantage for low socioeconomic setup compared to existing HPV vaccines.Establishing the nonclinical efficacy and safety/toxicity as per the national/international regulatory guidelines has become major constrain for such recombinant S. typhi HPV (rSt.HPV) vaccine. Since, the intended clinical mode of rSt.HPV is through oral route, whereas the live attenuated S. typhi Ty21a doesn't colonize in gut of laboratory animals to be used for nonclinical experiments. Hence, an alternate and unconventional method of ‘intranasal drug testing’, was followed for nonclinical efficacy and toxicity evaluations. An array of parameters specified by regulatory agencies were investigated in mice, rat and rabbits administered with rSt.HPV through, intra-peritoneal, intranasal and oral routes, the intended clinical route. • Current unconventional and innovative nonclinical testing procedures helps in exploring the alternate methods by pharmacologist/toxicologist. • Ultimately, such new drugs developed through technology must serve the humankind justifying the guidelines of regulatory agencies.

Background Lauric acid (LA), a common constituent of coconut oil, is used as food additives and supplements in various formulations. Despite various potential pharmacological properties, no scientific evidence on its dose-related toxicity and safety is available till date. Objective The current study was conducted to evaluate acute oral toxicity of LA on normal rats. Methods The study was conducted in accordance with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development guidelines (OECD 423) with slight modifications. LA was administered orally to female Sprague Dawley (SD) rats (n = 6/group) at a single dose of 300 and 2,000 mg/kg body weight, respectively, while normal control received vehicle only. Animals from all the three groups were monitored for any behavioural and toxicological changes and mortality for two weeks. Food and fluid consumption, body weight was monitored on daily basis. At the end (on day 15th) of the experimental period, blood was collected for haematological and biochemical analysis. Further, all the animals were euthanized, and internal organs were harvested for histopathological investigation using four different stainings; haematoxylin and eosin, Masson trichrome, Periodic Acid Schiff and Picro Sirius Red for gross pathology through microscopical observation. Results The study results showed no LA treatment-related mortality and morbidity at two different dosages. Daily food and water consumption, body weight, relative organ weight, haematological, and biochemical analysis were observed to be normal with no severe alterations to the internal tissues. Conclusion The current finding suggests that single oral administration of LA, even up to 2,000 mg/kg body weight, did not exhibit any signs of toxicity in SD rats; thus, it was safe to be used on disease models in animals.

Spontaneous duodenal perforation in neonates (SDPN) is a rare surgical emergency. Only few cases have been reported. A neonate presented with abdominal distension investigated with imaging modalities which gave suspicion of a duodenal duplication or choledochal cyst. At surgery, a duodenal perforation with local collection, was encountered simulating a duodenal duplication cyst.

Background: Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is a complex developmental defect having a multifactorial etiology; i majority of cases (~80%), the cause is not known. Survival rates for patients with CDH have increased over the past decade with early prenatal detection and better postnatal management including surgery. Clinical profile and the outcome of 83 CDH neonates were studied and analyzed over a period of 12 years in our institute. Aims and Objectives: The clinical study was to analyze the clinical profile and outcome of CDH among the neonates in a tertiary care referral neonatal and pediatric center in Karnataka, India. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective and prospective observational study conducted from January 2005 to March 2017, over a period of 12 years in a tertiary care referral neonatal and pediatric center in southern India. Clinical characteristics and risk factors of 83 neonates admitted and diagnosed with CDH were compared between survivors and nonsurvivors both preoperatively and postoperatively. Neonates with clinical and intraoperative diagnosis of diaphragmatic eventration were not included in this study. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to determine independent predictors for mortality. Results: A total of 83 neonates admitted and diagnosed with CDH were included in this study; 73 of them underwent surgical repair. The total survival rate in neonates with CDH was 70/83 (84.33%) and the overall operative mortality was 3/73 (4.1%). There was a significant difference between CDH neonates who survived 70/83 (84.33%) and those who died 13/83 (15.67%), in the age on admission, 5 min Apgar score, onset of respiratory distress, preoperative ventilation, the presence of persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN), high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV), and length of hospital stay with P < 0.05. Using multivariate logistic regression analysis, the following factors independently predicted mortality: onset of respiratory distress in hours (odds ratio: 0.5, 95% confidence interval: 0.37–0.82) and preoperative ventilation (odds ratio: 0.02; 95% confidence interval: 0.0028–0.1558). When we compared CDH neonates who survived after surgery (n = 70) with those who expired (n = 3) postoperatively, there was a significant difference in the gestational age in weeks, side of CDH, PPHN, HFOV and length of hospital stay with P < 0.05. Conclusion: CDHs are common on the left side with fairly good prognosis. Though, the right-sided CDH are rare; they do carry a good prognosis, as it was seen in our experience.

Development of lead-free BaTiO3/NiFe2O4/BaTiO3 (BTO/NFO/BTO) trilayer structure thin films is significant for the realization of eco-friendly and implantable microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)-based devices. In the present work, we report BTO/NFO/BTO trilayer structure as a representative ferroelectric/ferromagnetic/ferroelectric (FE/FM/FE) system deposited on Pt(111)/TiO2/SiO2/Si using Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) technique. We report the ferroelectric, magnetic, and ME properties of BTO/NFO/BTO trilayer nanoscale heterostructure having dimensions 140/80/140 nm, at room temperature. High room temperature dielectric constant ~2145 at 100 Hz with low dielectric loss ~0.05 at 1 MHz is observed. Further, the deposited (BTO/NFO/BTO) tri-layered thin films showed magnetoelectric, multiferroic behavior with remanent polarization of 8.63 μCcm−2 at about 0.25 MV/cm and a reasonably high saturation magnetization of ~16 emu/cm3 at ~10 kOe is witnessed at room temperature. Tri-layered films have shown interesting magnetoelectric (ME) coupling coefficient (αE) ~54.5 mV/cm Oe at room temperature.