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Sorption of Tween-80 and Pluronic F68 molecules on SWCNT and MWCNT by HRMAS-NMR and MD simulations.

A magnetic nanocomposite of GO-Fe3O4@CuO was fabricated via a simple sonochemical technique and successfully utilized for the ultrasound promoted synthesis of regioselective 1,4-disubstituted mono/bis/tris-1,2,3-triazoles (3a–k). This catalyst could be separated conveniently from the reaction mixture using an external magnet and reused up to eight consecutive runs without noticeable drop in the desired product yield. Other noteworthy features of this green protocol are negligible metal leaching from the support during reaction, high yield in lesser time, aqueous media and good results with gram scale synthesis. Representative compounds were also screened for their cytotoxic activity against PC-12 cell line using standard MTT assay and flow cytometry. Trifluoromethyl group containing triazole derivative (3f) displayed cytotoxic activity (IC50 8.3 µg/mL) comparable to the standard drug cisplatin (IC50 5.8 µg/mL).

The rate and extent of drug release under physiological conditions is a key factor influencing the therapeutic activity of a formulation. Real-time detection of drug release by conventional pharmacokinetics approaches is confounded by low sensitivity, particularly in the case of tissue-targeted novel drug delivery systems, where low concentrations of the drug reach systemic circulation. We present a novel fluorescence turn-on platform for real-time monitoring of drug release from nanoparticles based on reversible fluorescence quenching in fluorescein esters. Fluorescein-conjugated carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were esterified with methotrexate in solution and solid phase, followed by supramolecular functionalization with a chemoenhancer (suramin) or/and a stealth agent (dextran sulfate). Suramin was found to increase the cytotoxicity of methotrexate in A549 cells. On the other hand, dextran sulfate exhibited no effect on cytotoxicity or cellular uptake of CNTs by A549 cells, while a decrease in cellular uptake of CNTs and cytotoxicity of methotrexate was observed in macrophages (RAW 264.7 cells). Similar results were also obtained when CNTs were replaced with graphene. Docking studies revealed that the conjugates are not internalized by folate receptors/transporters. Further, docking and molecular dynamics studies revealed the conjugates do not exhibit affinity toward the methotrexate target, dihydrofolate reductase. Molecular dynamics studies also revealed that distinct features of dextran-CNT and suramin-CNT interactions, characterized by π-π interactions between CNTs and dextran/suramin. Our study provides a simple, cost-effective, and scalable method for the synthesis of nanoparticles conferred with the ability to monitor drug release in real-time. This method could also be extended to other drugs and other types of nanoparticles.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are an emerging drug delivery system, but their success is thwarted by potential toxicity concerns. In vitro and in vivo studies imply toxic potential of CNTs, but their pot...

This paper examines the impact of factors determining Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows of BRICS countries using annual dataset from the period 1994–2014. The paper proposes to compare the overall trends and factors impact on the FDI in the BRICS countries. The study employs Panel Data analysis and examines the selected variables like Index of Industrial Production (IIP), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Foreign Exchange Rate (FOREX), Stock Market Capitalization, Infrastructure Index, and Stock Market Turnover ratio. The empirical results are robust in general for alternative variables determining FDI flows. The policy implication of this study is that increasing interest of economic integration around the globe and interdependence of FDI between member's countries is an important feature for maintaining sustainability of growth.

The growth of mobile banking is below expectation. The functionality of mobile for banking services is limited due to the risk and vulnerability involved in mobile banking. The objective of this study is to investigate the impact of perceived risk on consumer intention to adopt m-banking. For this, 242 non-users of m-banking in Delhi were surveyed with given 26 different statements. Derived from perceived risk theory, five essential perceived risk determinants were validated, including perceived financial risk, privacy risk, performance risk, psychological risk and time risk. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were used to explore the factors. The finding of the paper suggested that perceived privacy risk is the most critical factor which acts as a barrier in the mobile banking acceptance. The findings may help the banking sector, corporate and policy makers in better understanding of perceived risk and will also help in framing the relevant strategies.

The present study examines the stock return volatility relationship of emerging economies from 2007 to 2013 which also includes the financial crisis of 2008 and its impact on emerging economies of the world. For the methodology, GARCH model is used to examine the impact of news coming from US which is affecting the returns of global index S&P 500 as well as the returns generated by the indices of the BRICS countries. The study found that BRICS stock market except Brazil and Chinese stock market has been significantly affected by the news of in US stock market. There exists a significant difference in the stock return volatility in all the countries stock markets. These findings have important implication for the investors seeking portfolio diversification. This study is important for the Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) and Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs).Since the study is confined to BRICS stock market only, effect of FIIs investment and influence of developed stock markets returns...

India is the world's largest importer of gold and imported about 830 tons of gold in 2012–13. In this paper, an attempt has been made to investigate the existence of unidirectional or bi-directiona...

Fingerprint characterstic of every human are unique and stable, therefore widely accepted for personal identification. Online and real time applications require minimum response time for the matching process. In this paper an enhanced algorithm is introduced to make the matching prcess rotational invariant.The proposed algorithm is robust to match two identical fingerprint images which are spatially aligned at different rotational angles and gives better FMR and FNMR ratio for images rotated at different angles. General Terms Minutiae, Rotation, Pattern Matching, Bifurcation, Termination.

Polymeric nanoparticles (PNPs) are a promising platform for drug, gene, and vaccine delivery. Although generally regarded as safe, the toxicity of PNPs is not well documented. The present study investigated in vitro toxicity of poly-ε-caprolactone, poly(DL-lactic acid), poly(lactide-cocaprolactone), and poly(lactide-co-glycide) NPs and possible mechanism of toxicity. The concentration-dependent effect of PNPs on cell viability was determined in a macrophage (RAW 264.7), hepatocyte (Hep G2), lung epithelial (A549), kidney epithelial (A498), and neuronal (Neuro 2A) cell lines. PNPs show toxicity at high concentrations in all cell lines. PNPs were efficiently internalized by RAW 264.7 cells and stimulated reactive oxygen species and tumor necrosis factor-alpha production. However, reactive nitrogen species and interleukin-6 production as well as lysosomal and mitochondrial stability remained unaffected. The intracellular degradation of PNPs was determined by monitoring changes in osmolality of culture medium and a novel fluorescence recovery after quenching assay. Cell death showed a good correlation with osmolality of culture medium suggesting the role of increased osmolality in cell death.

Cancer cell-selective, nuclear targeting is expected to enhance the therapeutic efficacy of a myriad of antineoplastic drugs, particularly those whose pharmacodynamic site of action is the nucleus. In this study, a steroid-macromolecular bioconjugate based on PEG-linked 17β-Estradiol (E2) was appended to intrinsically cell-penetrable multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) for intranuclear drug delivery and effective breast cancer treatment, both in vitro and in vivo. Taking Doxorubicin (DOX) as a model anticancer agent, we tried to elucidate how E2 appendage influences the cell internalization, intracellular trafficking, and antitumor efficacy of the supramolecularly complexed drug. We observed that the combination of DOX with E2-PEG-MWCNTs not only facilitated nuclear targeting through an estrogen receptor (ER)-mediated pathway but also deciphered to a synergistic anticancer response in vivo. The antitumor efficacy of DOX@E2-PEG-MWCNTs in chemically breast cancer-induced female rats was approximately 18, 17, 5, and 2 times higher compared to the groups exposed to saline, drug-deprived E2-PEG-MWCNTs, free DOX, and DOX@m-PEG-MWCNTs, respectively. While free DOX treatment induced severe cardiotoxicity in animals, animals treated with DOX@m-PEG-MWCNTs and DOX@E2-PEG-MWCNTs were devoid of any perceivable cardiotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, and nephrotoxicity. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first instance in which cancer cell-selective, intranuclear drug delivery, and, subsequently, effective in vivo breast cancer therapy has been achieved using estrogen-appended MWCNTs as the molecular transporter.

The present study reports the design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of a novel, intravenously injectable, theranostic prodrug based on multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) concomitantly decorated with a fluorochrome (Alexa-fluor, AF488/647), radionucleide (Technitium-99m), tumor-targeting module (folic acid, FA), and anticancer agent (methotrexate, MTX). Specifically, MTX was conjugated to MWCNTs via a serum-stable yet intracellularly hydrolyzable ester linkage to ensure minimum drug loss in circulation. Cell uptake studies corroborated the selective internalization of AF-FA-MTX-MWCNTs (1) by folate receptor (FR) positive human lung (A549) and breast (MCF 7) cancer cells through FR mediated endocytosis. Lysosomal trafficking of 1 enabled the conjugate to exert higher anticancer activity as compared to its nontargeted counterpart that was mainly restricted to cytoplasm. Tumor-specific accumulation of 1 in Ehlrich Ascites Tumor (EAT) xenografted mice was almost 19 and 8.6 times higher than free MTX and FA-deprived MWCNTs. Subsequently, the conjugate 1 was shown to arrest tumor growth more effectively in chemically breast tumor induced rats, when compared to either free MTX or nontargeted controls. Interestingly, the anticancer activities of the ester-linked CNT-MTX conjugates (including the one deprived of FA) were significantly higher than their amide-linked counterpart, suggesting that cleavability of linkers between drug and multifunctional nanotubes critically influence their therapeutic performance. The results were also supported by in silico docking and ligand similarity analysis. Toxicity studies in mice confirmed that all CNT-MTX conjugates were devoid of any perceivable hepatotoxicity, cardiotoxicity, and nephrotoxicity. Overall, the delivery property of MWCNTs, high tumor binding avidity of FA, optical detectability of AF fluorochromes, and radio-traceability of (99m)Tc could be successfully integrated and partitioned on a single CNT-platform to augment the therapeutic efficacy of MTX against FR overexpressing cancer cells while allowing a real-time monitoring of treatment response through multimodal imaging.

A systematic, quantitative study has been conducted to elucidate the effect of oxidation protocol and time on the size, integrity and surface characteristics of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). Pristine MWCNTs with initial lengths ranging between (i) 2–5 μm and (ii) 1–2 μm were selected for the study. Two oxidation protocols, sonication at 40 °C and reflux at 80 °C in a mixture of concentrated H2SO4 and HNO3 (3:1 v/v) were examined with each variety of MWCNTs. Time dependence of oxidative shortening could be correlated by two empirical, exponential relationships: (i) √L0 − √Lt = k log t (Eq. (1) ) and (ii) Lt/L0 = c × exp (kt) (Eq. (2) ), where L0 and Lt represented the initial and final length of the nanotubes oxidized separately for t hours under ultrasonication and reflux conditions respectively. Time and length dependence of surface carboxyl density was modeled using the following equations: (iii) COOH density (mmol/g, ultrasonication) = 3.088 + [0.353 × t(h)] – [1.185 × Lt (μm)] (Eq. (3) ) (iv) COOH density (mmol/g, reflux) = 2.412 + [0.604 × t(h)] – [0.662 × Lt (μm)] (Eq. (4) ), which suggest that oxidative shortening and carboxyl enrichment of MWCNTs is not only time-dependent but equally influenced by the oxidation protocol.

The present study reports the optimized synthesis, physicochemical characterization, and biological evaluation of a novel, multiwalled carbon nanotube-hyaluronic acid (MWCNT-HA) conjugate, complexed with an anticancer agent, Doxorubicin (DOX) via π-π stacking interaction. The therapeutic conjugate was concomitantly labeled with a near-infrared fluorescent dye, Alexa-Flour-647 (AF-647), and radiotracer Technetium-99m ((99m)Tc) to track its whereabouts both in vitro and in vivo via optical and scintigraphic imaging techniques. Covalent functionalization of MWCNTs with HA facilitated their internalization into human lung adenocarcinoma, A549 cells via hyaluronan receptors (HR) mediated endocytosis. Internalized nanotubes showed lysosomal trafficking, followed by low pH-triggered DOX release under endolysosomal conditions. Consequently, DOX-loaded HA-MWCNTs exhibited 3.2 times higher cytotoxicity and increased apoptotic activity than free DOX in equivalent concentrations. Organ distribution studies in Ehlrich ascites tumor (EAT) bearing mice model indicated that tumor specific localization of (99m)Tc-MWCNT-HA-DOX is significantly higher than both free drug and nontargeted MWCNTs. Pharmacodynamic studies in chemically breast-cancer-induced rats showed that the tumor-growth inhibitory effect of HA-MWCNT-DOX was 5 times higher than free DOX in equivalent concentration. DOX delivered through HA-MWCNTs was devoid of any detectable cardiotoxity, hepatotoxicity, or nephrotoxicity. All these promising attributes make HA-MWCNTs a "smart" platform for tumor-targeted delivery of anticancer agents.

The present study investigates the effect of functionalization density on the toxicity and cellular uptake of oxidized multiwalled carbon nanotubes (f-MWCNTs) in vitro. The toxicity of f-MWCNTs at varying degrees of carboxylation was assessed in a murine macrophage RAW 264.7 cell line, a model for liver Kupffer cells. In vitro cytotoxicity of oxidized MWCNTs was directly proportional to their functionalization density. The increased cytotoxicity was associated with a concurrent increase in the number of apoptotic cells and production of reactive nitrogen species (RNS). In contrast, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation was the highest in the case of pristine MWCNTs and decreased with increased functionalization density. Quantitative cellular uptake studies indicated that endogenous ROS production was independent of the concentration of CNTs internalized by a specific cell population and was directly proportional to their surface hydrophobicity. Mechanistic studies suggested that cellular uptake of CNTs was critically charge-dependent and mediated through scavenger receptors, albeit the involvement of nonscavenger receptor mechanisms at low CNT concentrations and their saturation at the experimental concentration cannot be ruled out. A mathematical model was established to correlate between the cellular uptake of CNTs with their length and zeta potential. In an attempt to correlate the results of in vitro toxicity experiments with those of the in vivo toxicity in the mouse model, we found that the toxicity trends in vitro and in vivo are rather opposing. The apparent anomaly was explained on the basis of different experimental conditions and doses associated with cells under in vivo and in vitro culture conditions.

The present investigation consists in the development and characterization of CoQ10 loaded PLGA nanoparticles (CoQ10-NPs, size

The present investigation reports an extensive evaluation of in vitro and in vivo anticancer efficacy of orally administered doxorubicin-loaded poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles (Dox-NPs) in a breast cancer induced animal model. Spherically shaped Dox-NPs were prepared with an entrapment efficiency and particle size of 55.40 ± 2.30% and 160.20 ± 0.99 nm, respectively, and freeze-dried with 5% trehalose using stepwise freeze-drying. Cytotoxicity, as investigated on C127I cell line, revealed insignificant differences between the IC(50) of free Dox and Dox-NPs treated cells in the first 24 h, while higher cytotoxicity was demonstrated by Dox-NPs, following 72 h of incubation. Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) imaging corroborated that nanoparticles were efficiently localized into the nuclear region of C127I cells. The cellular uptake profile of Dox-NPs revealed both time and concentration dependent increases in the Caco-2 cell uptake as compared to the free Dox solution. Further, Dox-NPs significantly suppressed the growth of breast tumor in female Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats upon oral administration. Finally, orally administered Dox-NPs showed a marked reduction in cardiotoxicity when compared with intravenously injected free Dox as also evident by the increased level of malondialdehyde (MDA), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and creatine phosphokinase (CK-MB) and reduced levels of glutathione (GSH) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). The reduced cardiotoxicity of orally administered Dox-NPs was also confirmed by the major histopathological changes in the heart tissue after the treatments of intravenously injected free Dox and orally delivered Dox-NPs.

This study attempts to investigate the causal relationship between gold price, exchange rate and current account deficit (CAD) on the basis of time series data for 14 years from 2002 to 2016. In recent days gold has attracted the attention of economists, researchers, policy-makers and common man. There is a general view that recent current account deficit (CAD) is attributed to mainly gold import only as crude oil price has fallen considerably. It is with this backdrop, this article tries to unveil any dynamic, if exist, between gold price and CAD applying augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) test and Phillips-Perron (PP) Test which are used to test the stationarity of time series data and block exogeneity Wald Test to establish the causality relationship among them. On the basis of quarterly observation for the aforesaid period, it has been found that these three variables are stationary of order one and the study further found the existence of bi-directional Granger causality between gold price and CAD, which is running from gold price to CAD and vice-versa. The findings of the study have significant implication for India's economic policy and facilitate the Government to make strategies to reduce the CAD.

Presently available methods for determining antimicrobial activity include broth dilution and disc diffusion. However, these methods can not be employed for study of vapor phase antimicrobial activity. The present study describes a new method and a new apparatus for determination of vapor phase antimicrobial activity of volatile substances against bacteria. The method can be used for assessing effect of new and existing compounds on environmental microflora.

The present investigation reports on the conditions for preparation of tamoxifen loaded PLGA nanoparticles (Tmx-NPs) for oral administration. Tmx-NPs with >85% entrapment efficiency and 165.58 ± 3.81 nm particle size were prepared and freeze dried. Freeze dried Tmx-NPs were found to be stable in various simulated GIT media (pH 1.2, pH 3.5, pH 6.8, SGF & SIF). No significant changes in characteristics of Tmx-NPs were observed after 3 months accelerated stability studies. The cell viability in C127I cells was found to be relatively lower in Tmx-NP treated cells as compared to free Tmx treated cells. CLSM imaging reveled that nanoparticles were efficiently localized into the nuclear region of C127I cells. Oral bioavailability of Tmx was increased by 3.84 and 11.19 times as compared to the free Tmx citrate and Tmx base respectively, when formulated in NPs. In vivo oral antitumor efficacy of Tmx-NPs was carried out in DMBA induced breast tumor model and tumor size was reduced up to 41.56% as compared to untreated groups which showed an increase in tumor size up to 158.66%. Finally, Tmx-NPs showed the marked reduction in hepatotoxicty when compared with free Tmx citrate as evidenced by histopathological examination of liver tissue as well as AST, ALT and MDA levels. Therefore Tmx-NPs could have the significant value for the oral chronic breast cancer therapy with reduced hepatotoxicity.

To analyze the epidemiology and characteristics of primary recurrent headaches in Indian adolescents.This cross sectional study was conducted in three urban public schools. Adolescents of 9(th) to 12(th) grades were included and they were given a questionnaire in their classrooms in the presence of at least one of the authors, who assisted them in filling it. They were asked to provide responses based on most severe recurrent headache they had experienced rather than the more frequent one. Diagnosis was based upon the information contained in questionnaire, however, where it was inadequate, those subjects were approached telephonically. Statistical analysis was done with the help of SPSS v. 11.0. Descriptive analysis, Chi-Square test, Fisher's Exact test, and independent sample't' test were run.2235 adolescents were included in the present study (boys: girls 1.6:1). 57.5% adolescents reported recurrent headaches in past one year. Migraine was the most prevalent (17.2%) headache followed by unspecified (14.9%) and tension type headache (11%). Family history of headache was more common in adolescents with headache (p0.001) compared to those without headache. Average age of headache onset was 11.33 yr (10.72 yr in girls vs. 11.75 years in boys; p0.001). 37.1% adolescents complained of progression of headache since its onset. A significantly higher proportion of girls suffered headache (p=0.018), particularly migraine, than boys. However, other characteristics of headache were not dependent upon gender. Headache was more prevalent in higher grades.Primary Recurrent headaches are prevalent in Indian adolescents and migraine is comparatively the most prevalent type of headache. Female gender and increasing age is associated with higher chances to have headache, particularly migraine. It progresses in approximately one third of sufferers and aura increases the chances of worsening of headache.

Livistona chinensis is used in traditional Chinese medicine as an anticancer agent. Experimental studies have shown the antiproliferative and antiangiogenic properties of extracts of L. chinensis fruits and seeds. In the present study, qualitative phytochemical composition of L. chinensis fruits was investigated. We hypothesized that the presence of high concentration of phenolic compounds with astringent properties may result in bacterial cell death. Hence, antibacterial activity of an aqueous extract of L. chinensis fruits was investigated against Staphylococcus aureus. The antibacterial activity was attributed to DNA, enzyme and protein denaturing properties of the phenolic compounds present in the extract. The extract also resulted in increased membrane permeability. The antibacterial, DNA and enzyme denaturing and membrane damaging activity was limited to an acid-precipitable fraction of the extract and these effects were abrogated in presence of proteins. The membrane damaging activity of phenolic compounds was also observed in leucocytes. In conclusion, this study reported the antibacterial activity of the fruits of L. chinensis due to their high content of phenolic compounds.

Context: Headache patients commonly report sleep disruption and sleep disorders. Available literature suggests that the sleep pattern of headache sufferers is different from the control group. Patients in these studies were recruited from headache clinics; they did not include tension type headache. Aims: The aim of this study is to find out whether primary headaches affect sleep patterns. Settings and Design: Community based cross sectional study Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in three high schools. Children in the 12-19 age group were allowed to participate. They were given a questionnaire in the presence of at least one of the authors, who assisted them in filling it. They were asked to provide responses based on most severe recurrent headache that they had experienced rather than the more frequent ones. The questionnaire included questions regarding demographic data and the characteristics of headache according to International Classification of Headache Disorders-2 criteria. Part B of the questionnaire contained questions regarding sleep habits. The children were asked to provide data regarding sleep habits on a normal school day. Diagnosis was based upon the information contained in the questionnaire. A telephonic interview was also done, where the information provided was found inadequate. Statistical Analysis Used: Analysis was done with the help of SPSS v. 11.0., descriptive analysis, Chi square, and one way ANOVA with post hoc analysis. Kruskall-Wallis tests were run. Results: A total of 1862 subjects were included in the study. Migraineurs and tension type headache sufferers comprised 35.7% and 13.4% of the group respectively. Migraineurs had the highest prevalence of nocturnal awakenings ( P < 0.001), abnormal movements ( P =0.001) and breathing problems during sleep ( P < 0.001). Approximately half the migraineurs felt sleepy during the day ( P < 0.001) and spent around 1.17 hours in sleep during the day ( P = 0.007). Similarly, values for frequency of nocturnal awakenings per week ( P < 0.001), wake time after sleep onset and offset ( P < 0.001 and 0.002 respectively) were the maximum in migraineurs. Only 32.8% migraineurs reported refreshing sleep ( P < 0.001). Post hoc analysis revealed that migraineurs were different from the other two groups on most of the parameters. Conclusions: Sleep disruption is more common in migraineurs than those in the tension type headache sufferers and the control group.

The celebrity endorsements have become a magic potion for all marketers today. Celebrity can be seen endorsing in almost all television advertisements making it an India’s Rs 2,000-crore celebrity endorsement market. Though there are many studies about celebrity endorsements, but it seems that there is limited research about the extent to which consumers’ purchase intention is regulated by celebrity endorsements. The purpose of this paper is to specify the impact of celebrity endorsers in advertisements on purchase intentions of students as customers. Primary data collected from 146 respondents through closed ended/structured questionnaire and statistical tools like Factor Analysis and Multiple regression method are used for this research. Factor Analysis decomposed the variables into factors like value for money, celebrity name, celebrity influence, product features and brand attractiveness and through multiple regressions the impact (percentage) of celebrity endorsements has been calculated. It was found that value of money, celebrity influence and celebrity name are the main important factors which influence the buying behavior of today’s youth.

The online service providers are endeavouring to harness the power of word of mouth technique by giving customers incentives to refer their friends and family by way of their referrals programs. The present paper seeks to explore the antecedents influencing consumer behaviour towards referrals. It further studies the attitude and perception of the clusters found: pragmatic, learned referrers, calculative and exhibitionist. Factor analysis using principle component analysis was employed on 133 respondents from Delhi-NCR region and further customer's behaviour was examined on the basis of difference in perceptions of the referral marketing dimensions by using cluster analysis. Seven dimensions were identified and six out of them were found influencing the characteristic of these customers' clusters. The paper suggests awareness, building partners through WOM, connect like family and devote attention (ABCD) are the four prudent strategies that can be adopted for the four clusters respectively, by the marketers to tap the customers proficiently.

Different types of nanomaterials possess excellent physical and chemical properties. Nanoparticles (NPs) have been implicated for use in drug and gene delivery. Several in vitro and in vivo studies suggest the cytotoxic and proinflammatory potential of NPs. Further, parenteral administration of NPs results in their accumulation in several tissues. The possible mechanism of toxicity appears to be production of free radicals, mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) activation and translocation of transcription factors from cytoplasm to nucleus. This leads to induction of apoptosis, growth arrest, and cell death. Further, factors like nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) lead to production of proinflammatory cytokines. The present review focuses on the cytotoxicity, biodistribution, and mechanism of NPs toxicity with special emphasis on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) toxicity.

Stock exchanges are the backbone of the financial markets in any country. The stock exchanges act as institutions for resources mobilization for companies and implement the policy agenda of the government through mandatory disclosures. The website is the apparent face of the stock exchanges through which they communicate with the investors, analyst and researchers. The Internet revolutions and electronic dissemination of corporate information has dramatically increased the role stock exchanges and their websites multifold. The recent crisis in one or other form is an indication of the importance of information to the astute investors.We attempt in this paper a cross examination of the informational content and disclosures of the websites of six prominent stock exchanges including NSE. We also examine the website efficiency on various technical parameters. Our study indicates NSE website as the most efficient on selected parameters. We suggest a framework how the information efficiency can be further improved for these websites in order to be more meaningful to the investors.

Nanoparticles (NPs) are thermodynamically unstable system and tend to aggregate to reduce free energy. The aggregation property of NPs results in inhomogeneous exposure of cells to NPs resulting in variable cellular responses. Several types of surfactants are used to stabilize NP dispersions and obtain homogenous dispersions. However, the effects of these surfactants, per se, on cellular responses are not completely known. The present study investigated the application of Pluronic F68 (PF68) for obtaining stable dispersion of NPs using carbon nanotubes as model NPs. PF68-stabilized NP suspensions are stable for long durations and do not show signs of aggregation or settling during storage or after autoclaving. The polyethylene oxide blocks in PF68 provide steric hindrance between adjacent NPs leading to stable NP dispersions. Further, PF68 is biocompatible in nature and does not affect integrity of mitochondria, lysosomes, DNA, and nuclei. Also, PF68 neither induce free radical or cytokine production nor does it interfere with cellular uptake mechanisms. The results of the present study suggest that PF68-assisted dispersion of NPs produced suspensions, which are stable after autoclaving. Further, PF68 does not interfere with normal physiological functions suggesting its application in nanomedicine and nanotoxicity evaluation.

The paper attempts to establish the linkages and relationship among the returns of these developed stock exchanges and examines the effect of the stock index of one country on the stock index of other country. The daily index returns of all the five stock exchanges are taken from 2007 to 2016. Long-term relationship has been tested by Johansen co-integration test to show long run association among developed stock exchange indices. ADF, unit root test and Granger causality have been applied to find out the cause and effect relationship among the nifty index and leading stock exchanges indices. There is a unidirectional causality relationship with Japanese, UK and Hong Kong stock markets, Indian stock market influence the Japanese and Hong Kong markets but Indian stock market is influenced by both the USA and UK stock markets. However long run association was not found among nifty and rest of the stock indices.

This paper studies the dynamic relationship between the stock returns volatility in the emerging financial markets, i.e., BRICS stock markets. The paper examined the volatility of each individual BRICS stock market returns during and after the 2008 US subprime crisis. The time series data of closing stock prices for four years was collected on daily basis from 1st January, 2007 to 31st December, 2010. For the methodology generalised auto regressive conditional hetroscedasticity (GARCH) model has been used to examine the difference in the stock return volatility of the respective BRICS stock indices during and after US subprime crisis of 2008 on individual basis. The study found that BRICS stock market except Russian stock market has been significantly affected by the news of recession in US stock market and stock returns volatility has significantly changed during the crisis and recovery periods but these changes are not uniform and depend upon the individual markets. This study is important for the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and domestic institutional investors (DIIs) seeking portfolio diversification.

In the present scenario of the world financial market, there seems to be stock exchange in almost every country expressing the financial health of the respective economy. This study investigates the nature of relationship between nifty index and key macro economic variable. In spite of this tremendous expansion of world trading, the basics of the market have remained more or less the same. Stock exchange index like any other index follows a cycle or set pattern of flow. This economic cycle have been analyzed with the help of the leading and lagging indicators with respect to the trends in the financial markets. In this study a comprehensive analysis has been done to qualitatively compare the S&P CNX Nifty with major macro economic variable like GDP, inflation, Exchange rate, industrial production, foreign institutional investment, unemployment, crude oil, gold price. Thus the entire variable contains some significant information for the prediction of the index. The study reveals the volatility of stock index is not only the result of the behaviour of key macro economic variable but also one of the causes of the movement in other macro aspect in the economy.

Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) are used in consumer products and wound dressings due to their antimicrobial properties. However, in addition to toxic effects on microbes, Ag NPs can also induce stress responses as well as cytotoxicity in mammalian cells. We observed that Ag NPs are efficiently internalized via scavenger receptor-mediated phagocytosis in murine macrophages. Confocal and electron microscopy analysis revealed that internalized Ag NPs localize in the cytoplasm. Ag NPs cause mitochondrial damage, induce apoptosis and cell death. These effects were abrogated in presence of Ag ion-reactive, thiol-containing compounds suggesting the central of Ag ions in Ag NP toxicity. Quantitative image analysis revealed that intracellular dissolution of Ag NPs occurs about 50 times faster than in water. In conclusion, we demonstrate for the first time that Ag NPs are internalized by scavenger receptors, trafficked to cytoplasm and induce toxicity by releasing Ag ions.

The immunomodulatory effects of opioids are known in various infections. However, little is known about the effects of opioids in tuberculosis (TB). In the present study, we report the effects of morphine in Mycobacterium smegmatis infection in mice and macrophages. Morphine exerted a dose-dependent suppression of infection in vivo: 50 and 100 mg/kg morphine exerted significant (P

Presently, in vitro and in vivo screening of anti-tubercular drugs is a time-consuming exercise. Therefore, it is important to develop faster methods.Towards this end, conventional plating and radiometric BACTEC methods of anti-tubercular screening were compared to determine the efficacy of anti-tubercular drugs (isoniazid and rifampicin) and morphine in Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv-infected mice and macrophages.A linear correlation (R2 = 0.95) was observed between number of colony forming units (CFUs) and growth index (GI) values. BACTEC method was found to be faster and sensitive as compared to plating method. Further, BACTEC method, being a closed system, appeared to be less susceptible to microbial contamination and poses less biohazard.We conclude that BACTEC method can be employed for easy, precise, and rapid screening of anti-tubercular compounds and morphine in mice and macrophage models.

The objective of the paper is to study the cause and effect relationship between net investments made by foreign institutional investor's (FIIs) and nifty index return in India. This paper further aims to examine the long term association between the two in pre sub prime crisis and post sub prime crisis period. The cause and effect relationship has been investigated applying augmented Dickey Fuller (ADF) unit root test, Granger causality test, Johansen co-integration test and variance decomposition. The study shows that there is a moderate positive correlation between foreign institutional investment inflows and nifty index. There is an evidence of unidirectional causality between foreign institutional investment net inflows and nifty index return. There has been strong evidence of long run association during the total period as well as in pre and post sub prime crisis periods.

The effects of opiates in various infections are well known; however, very little is known about tuberculosis infection. Therefore, in the present study, we report for the first time, the effects of morphine during murine tuberculosis. Mice were infected intravenously with Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv, administered morphine (0.1-100 mg/kg subcutaneously on day 0 and day +15) and sacrificed on day +30 for CFU enumeration in lungs and spleen. Morphine exerted maximum suppression of infection at 5 mg/kg, and sometimes completes elimination of infection; naloxone, silica and aminoguanidine blocked the protective effect of morphine. In vitro, morphine lacked direct antimycobacterial activity up to 1x10(-4) M concentration, as assessed by radiometric BACTEC method. In macrophage model of infection, morphine showed maximal killing at 1x10(-7) M concentration, the activity was blocked by naloxone and aminoguanidine. These observations suggest that morphine exerts a dose-dependent effect in murine tuberculosis, the protective effect being naloxone-reversible and may involve macrophage-mediated protective mechanisms. These results may be helpful in developing new opioid-like chemical entities against tuberculosis infection.

The present work demonstrates a novel strategy to synthesize orthogonally bio-engineered magnetonanohybrids (MNPs) through the design of versatile, biocompatible linkers whose structure includes: (i) a robust anchor to bind with metal-oxide surfaces; (ii) tailored surface groups to act as spacers and (iii) a general method to implement orthogonal functionalizations of the substrate via “click chemistry”. Ligands that possess the synthetic generality of features (i)–(iii) are categorized as “universal ligands”. Herein, we report the synthesis of a novel, azido-terminated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) silane that can easily self-assemble on MNPs through hetero-condensation between surface hydroxyl groups and the silane end of the ligand, and simultaneously provide multiple clickable sites for high density, chemoselective bio-conjugation. To establish the universal-ligand-strategy, we clicked alkyl-functionalized folate onto the surface of PEGylated MNPs. By further integrating a near-infrared fluorescent (NIRF) marker (Alexa-Fluor 647) with MNPs, we demonstrated their folate-receptor mediated internalization inside cancer cells and subsequent translocation into lysosomes and mitochondria. Ex vivo NIRF imaging established that the azido-PEG-silane developed in course of the study can effectively reduce the sequestration of MNPs by macrophage organs (viz. liver and spleen). These folate–PEG-MNPs were not only stealth and noncytotoxic but their dual optical and magnetic properties aided in tracking their whereabouts through combined magnetic resonance and optical imaging. Together, these results provided a strong motivation for the future use of the “universal ligand” strategy towards development of “smart” nanohybrids for theragnostic applications.