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Background Neonatal hyperbilirubinemia is one of the common entities that lead to frequent hospital admission of newborn. There are many risk factors that, when present, can lead to increased chances of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. It is essential to identify these risk factors that are involved in the increased incidence of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia because its incidence can be decreased by modifying them. Objective To compare and determine any correlation of 25-hydroxy vitamin D levels of newborn and their mothers with the serum bilirubin level of newborn. Methodology This was a case–control study conducted in a tertiary care hospital on 100 newborn who were divided into two groups (50 in each group) on the basis of their serum bilirubin level on the 5th day of life. Newborns having serum bilirubin levels in the physiological range were included in the control group, and newborns having serum bilirubin levels out of the physiological range and who needed treatment were included in the case group. The blood samples of both newborns and their mothers were collected on the 5th day and sent to the laboratory for serum bilirubin and 25-hydroxy vitamin D estimation. Results The mean serum vitamin D level of cases was found to be lower than that of controls in both newborn and their mothers. A statistically significant difference was noted only between the vitamin D level of newborn but not in mothers when cases and controls were compared. Negative, statistically insignificant correlation was seen between vitamin D level and serum bilirubin in cases and controls. However, correlation of the vitamin D level of cases and their serum bilirubin was statistically significant, with a correlation coefficient of −0.335 and a p value of 0.0172. Conclusion Term healthy newborn having hyperbilirubinemia, with serum bilirubin levels out of the physiological range, have significantly low vitamin D levels and show a statistically negatively correlation with neonatal hyperbilirubinemia (which is out of the physiological range). Thus, decreased vitamin D can be included in the list of risk factors for neonatal jaundice.

Background:Blood sampling method is the most common but invasive method for bilirubin estimation. Transcutaneous bilirubin (TCB) estimation, on the other hand is non-invasive. Objectives: The aim was to compare neonatal bilirubin estimation by serum bilirubin and transcutaneous bilirubinometer methods both pre- and during phototherapy and establish the precision of transcutaneous bilirubinometer. Materials and Methods: This prospective hospital-based observational study was conducted on 350 term neonates over a period of 2 years. Bilirubin was estimated in all newborn by both serum bilirubin and transcutaneous method, at the time of admission in nursery (prephototherapy), at 6 h after phototherapy (while neonates were still under phototherapy treatment), and at withholding phototherapy, and a photo opaque patch of 2.5 cm was used to cover the area on midforehead and transcutaneous bilirubin was estimated from this area after removing it during phototherapy. All data were tabulated and analyzed by relevant statistical tests. Results: A total of 350 term healthy newborns with mean gestational age of 38 ± 2 weeks and mean birth weight of 2.97 ± 0.9 kg were studied. Correlation analysis revealed a significant correlation between total serum bilirubin and transcutaneous method (TCB) measurements of bilirubin. When these methods were compared at pre-phototherapy, at 6 hours after phototherapy and before withholding phototherapy, correlation coefficient(r) of 0.9571, 0.7988, and 0.9206 were seen respectively. The precision levels of transcutaneous bilirubinometer (BiliCheck™) were good because plotting of Bland–Altman graphs showed maximum (>97%) data within agreement limits at all stages of phototherapy. Conclusion: Our study revealed good correlation and precision of transcutaneous bilirubinometer both before and during phototherapy. Thus, it supports the previous studies which justify the use of transcutaneous bilirubinometer in assessing newborn jaundice during phototherapy.

Gastric cancer (GC) is a very common type of cancer. Although current treatment modalities include surgical resection and chemotherapy, many patients are either not eligible for radical resection or have a poor response to chemotherapy. Due to the complex features of the disease, there is a need for complementary therapy. In the present study, the effects of oridonin on cell proliferation, invasion and apoptosis were assessed in the HGC-27 cell line using the Cell Counting Kit-8 assay, real-time cell analysis, and an Annexin V-FITC/propidium iodide (PI) detection kit, respectively. The effect of oridonin on apoptosis, through the JNK pathway, was also investigated using western blotting. The present study demonstrated that oridonin can suppress cell viability and inhibit cell proliferation by inducing G2/M arrest. Oridonin also induced caspase-dependent apoptosis in cells by activating the phosphorylated-JNK/C-JUN pathway. These results demonstrate the potential of oridonin as a potential therapeutic compound for the treatment of GC.

Remediation of heavy metals by macrophytes in wetlands is gaining importance, particularly in the wetlands and game reserves of international importance. Hokersar wetland, a Ramsar site, is a game reserve of international importance and is facing anthropogenic disturbances over the years. Keeping in view deleterious effect of heavy metals on all the facets of contaminated ecosystems need for removal of these contaminants has received lot of attention in the recent past. It is in this backdrop, heavy metal sequestration by Typha angustata, one of the common and abundant species growing in the wetland, was explored. The study was aimed to assess sequestration of heavy metals, such as Al, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn by T. angustata in the Hokersar wetland. The EF for all the investigated heavy metals was greater than one and TF of T. angustata was greater than one for Zn, Cr and Pb thereby making the species a hyper-accumulator for these elements. In conclusion, it can be stated that T. angustata, being a hyperaccumulator of Zn, Cr and Pb and accumulator for Fe, Mn, Al, Co, Cu, Ni and Cd can be exploited for heavy metal sequestration in the wetland system.

The participation of women in STEM disciplines has remained quite dismal. Only 35% of scientists in the world are women, with a gender gap in STEM at 55%. Various socio-cultural taboos, gender stereotypes, lack of awareness of parents, and a patriarchal mindset of the society have divided the domains of STEM knowledge according to gender. It is imperative to mainstream gender at all policy making levels and embrace woman governance in the field of STEM. Reducing the gender gap in STEM will help in reducing gender gap in skills, increase employability and productivity of women, and be a tool for reducing occupational segregation which in turn will lead to faster economic growth. Concerted efforts are needed to boost the confidence of girls and hone their talent in the field. The chapter aims at examining the current state of women participation in STEM, assessing the gender gap existing in the field, identifying the reasons responsible for the least participation of women in science and technology, and working out the ways and means for engendering the field of STEM.

Background In recent decades, neoadjuvant therapy (NT) has been the standardized treatment for locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC). Approximately 8%-35% of patients with LARC who received NT were reported to have achieved a complete pathological response (pCR). If the pathological response (PR) can be accurately predicted, these patients may not need surgery. In addition, no response after NT implies that the tumor is destructive, resistant to both chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and prone to having a high metastatic potential. Therefore, developing accurate models to predict PR has great clinical significance and can help achieve individualized treatment in LARC patients. Aim To establish nomograms for predicting PR to different NT regimens based on pretreatment parameters for patients with LARC. Methods Rectal cancer patients were identified from the database of The Sixth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University from January 2012 to December 2016. Logistic regression and nomograms were developed to predict the probability of pCR and good downstaging to ypT0-2N0M0 (ypTNM 0-I), respectively, based on pretreatment parameters for all LARC patients. Nomograms were also developed for three NT regimens (capecitabine/deGramont-RT, mFOLFOX6, and mFOLFOX6-RT) to predict pCR probability. Results Four hundred and three patients were included in this study; 72 (17.9%) had pCR at the final pathology report, and 177 (43.9%) achieved good downstaging to ypT0-2N0M0 (ypTNM 0-I). The nomogram for predicting pCR probability showed that NT regimens, tumor differentiation, mesorectal fascia (MRF) status, and tumor length significantly influenced pCR probability. When predicting the probability of good downstaging, tumor differentiation, MRF status, and clinical T stage were the significant factors. Nomograms were developed based on NT regimens. For the capecitabine/de Gramont-RT group, the multivariate analysis showed that the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) was the only significant factor, thus we could not develop a nomogram for this regimen. For the mFOLFOX6-RT group, the analysis showed that the significant factors were tumor length and MRF status; and for the mFOLFOX6 group, the significant factors were tumor length and tumor differentiation. Conclusion We established accurate nomograms for predicting the PR to preoperative NT regimens based on pretreatment parameters for LARC patients.

Climate change is one of the threats in the recent century, affecting biodiversity directly and indirectly. Modeling the patterns of species distribution is one of useful tools for predicting the impacts of climate change on endangered species. Brown bear (Ursus arctos) plays an important role as a focal species in mountainous ecosystems. This study was aims to investigate the effects of future climate changes on the distribution of this species using an ensemble modeling method in R-software. For this purpose five algorithms including MAXENT, RF, MARS, GAM, GLM and BRT were used to predict the distribution of the species in the present climatic conditions as well as in the 2050s and 2070s. The results showed that temperature and precipitation were two main factors in the distribution of brown bears in Iran. Investigating the distribution of the brown bear in the future showed that suitability of its habitat will decrease in the western and central parts and increase in the northern parts. So a shift toward higher altitude will be expected for brown bear in the future. Therefore, in this condition it is imperative to upgrade the extent of protected areas for better conservation of brown bear.

Roshan Ara Ghoorun,1,* Xiao-Hua Wu,2,* Hong-Lei Chen,3 Dong-Lin Ren,1 Xiao-Bin Wu4 1Department of Colorectal Surgery, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Oncology, Longhu People’s Hospital, Shantou, Guangdong, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Endoscopy, The Eighth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Shenzhen 518033, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Eighth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Shenzhen 518033, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Xiao-Bin WuDepartment of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Eighth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, No. 3025 Shennan Middle Road, Shenzhen 518033, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail xiaobinwoo@hotmail.comDong-Lin RenDepartment of Colorectal Surgery, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, No. 26 Yuancun Er Heng Rd, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510655, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86-20-38254151Email rendl111@163.comIntroduction: Although our understanding on gastric cancer biology is better than a decade ago, its practical effect on screening and diagnosis remains limited. Moreover, there are no markers that can be accurately used in the clinic to diagnose early-stage gastric cancer or monitor the patient’s response to therapy. Herein, we investigate whether FKBP14 is involved in the progression of gastric cancer.Methods: The AGS cell line was chosen for over-expression analysis, whereas the SGC-7901 cell line was selected for knock-down analysis. AGS cells were transfected with an FKBP14 overexpression plasmid (AGS-PLV.O-FLAG). The expression pattern of FKBP14 in both cell lines was determined by Western blot and RT-PCR. Cell proliferation was assessed using Cell Counting Kit-8, whereas apoptosis was performed using flow cytometry. The expression of FKBP14 in 70 Chinese patients with gastric cancer was also investigated using tissue microarrays and compared with gastric cancer patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas.Results: FKBP14 was highly expressed in SGC7901 and had a relatively low expression in AGS cells. Upregulation of FKBP14 in AGS cells promoted migration and invasion and inhibits apoptosis. Knock-down of FKBP14 resulted in a suppression in migration and invasion and promoted apoptosis in the SGC-7901 cell line. Effectively, gastric cancer patients had a higher expression of FKBP14, with a lower survival rate (P = 0.028). Patients with a high expression of FKBP14 were significantly correlated with lymph node metastasis (P =0.016), and an advanced histologic grade (P =0.021).Conclusion: FKBP14 is often up-regulated in gastric cancer. Patients with a high expression of FKBP14 are usually associated with worse overall survival. FKBP14 is an oncogene in gastric cancer, and is a potential biomarker for GC diagnosis, invasion, and prognosis.Keywords: FKBP14, gastric cancer, in vitro, prognosis, The Cancer Genome Atlas

Background: Treatment of postoperative pain continues to be an ongoing concern. The injection of local anesthesia into the wound has been shown to reduce postoperative incisional pain in several studies. Bupivacaine is one such local anesthetic and its use merits to be explored. Objective: To compare the effect of bupivacaine versus placebo control on mean post-operative pain level after caesarean section. Methodology: This prospective cohort was conducted upon a sample of 100 women with term pregnancies scheduled to undergo elective caesarean section deliveries from January 2018 to June 2019 at a tertiary care hospital. Patients were randomized to receive an infusion of either 0.5% bupivacaine (n = 50) or normal saline solution (n = 50) into the wound for 48 hours. Postoperative pain (determined with a visual analog scale) and postoperative rescue analgesic (morphine) use were assessed at 12, 24, and 48 hours. The data obtained was recorded onto a structured questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS v.21 to apply student t-test. P value of less than 0.05 was taken to be significant. Results: The mean age of the women mothers stood at 29 (SD ± 8). The two treatment groups were treated by the same physicians and all had elective lower segment caesarean sections. There was a decrease in opioid consumption and pain on visual analog scale in the Group A that received bupivacaine, as compared with the placebo group. Conclusion: After careful consideration, it can be concluded that local administration of pre-emptive bupivacaine infiltration before closure of the skin decreased postoperative pain and need for rescue analgesia. Keywords: Caesarean Section, Post-Operative Pain, Local Analgesic, Local Anesthetic, & Bupivacaine.

Background: Bacterial vaginosis is a common condition and the associated disease burden is rising every year. As successful as the traditional antibiotic is, supplementation with modern approach may help lessen the disease burden. One such approach is oral or vaginal instillation of probiotic which stems from the observed dominance of lactobacilli in healthy vaginal microbiota and its depletion in bacterial vaginosis (BV). Objective: To determine the safety and efficacy of combined antibiotic and probiotic therapy in the management of bacterial vaginosis. Methodology: This prospective cohort was conducted upon a sample of 100 premenopausal women diagnosed with BV. The study subjects were treated with oral metronidazole (500 mg) twice daily from days 1 to 7, and randomized to receive oral probiotic (lactobacillus) or placebo twice daily from days 1 to 30. Primary outcome was cure of BV as determined by normal Nugent score, negative sialidase test and no symptoms or signs of BV at day 30. The data obtained was recorded onto a structured questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS v.21 & Microsoft Excel 2016. Results: The mean age of the women mothers stood at 33 (SD ± 6). The success (achievement of cure of BV as determined by normal Nugent score, absence of clue cells, negative sialidase test, no symptoms or signs and no discharge or odor at day 30) rate of the treatment stood at 88% for the combined treatment group and 40% for the antibiotic/placebo group (p < 0.001). Conclusion: After careful consideration, it can be concluded that combined therapy is safe and more efficacious than lone antibiotic. Thus use of probiotics should be routinely employed for the treatment of BV. Key Words: Bacterial Vaginosis, Lactobacillus, Metronidazole, Probiotic & Antimicrobial.

Heavy metals have detrimental impacts on the health of organisms including human beings. Wetlands are economical, natural alternatives for the removal of heavy metals from the environment and macrophytes play a pivotal role in this direction, though they vary in their potential to do so. Heavy metal accumulation capability of two dominant species (Ceratophyllum demersum and Potamogeton natans) in a Kashmir Himalayan Ramsar site was studied. The accumulation of the different metals in P. natans was in the order of Al > Mn > Pb > Cu > Zn > Ni > Co > Cr > Cd, while in C. demersum it was Al > Mn > Zn > Co > Cu > Pb > Cr > Ni > Cd. In C. demersum the highest bioconcentration factor (BCF) was obtained for Co (3616) and Mn (3589) while in P. natans the highest BCF corresponded to Cd (1027). Overall Potamogeton–Ceratophyllum combination may provide a useful mix for Co, Mn and Cd removal from contaminated sites. The management implications of these results are briefly discussed.

Similar to many cancers, pancreatic cancer (PDA) assumes an altered metabolic state that is designed to support the manufacture of macromolecules necessary for cell division. For example, membrane synthesis from lipid precursors is dependent on de novo fatty acid synthesis (dnFAS), a pathway that is upregulated in many cancers. The rate-limiting enzyme of dnFAS is fatty acid synthase (FASN), an enzyme that is overexpressed in cancer but found at very low levels in normal tissues. Here we demonstrate that fatty acid synthase (FASN) inhibition using novel small molecule inhibitor IPI-9119 induces apoptosis in FASN overexpressing epithelial cells of a pre-clinical pancreatic cancer mouse model (KPC). We also provide evidence that FASN inhibition insensitivity in PDA cells is due to flux through scavenging pathways, particularly macropinocytosis. We initially hypothesized that FASN overexpression is a survival strategy for PDA epithelial cells through which they acclimate to a low nutrient microenvironment. Indeed, K-ras driven metabolic reprograming has been shown to increase flux through the dnFAS pathway indicating that PDA cells should rely heavily on FASN activity. Surprisingly we found that PDA cell lines are minimally affected by FASN inhibition and rely chiefly on scavenging pathways. In vitro cells displayed a dependency on lysosomal function, determined using lysosomal inhibitor chloroquine (CQ). Dual therapy with FASN inhibitor, IPI-9119, and lysosomal inhibitor, CQ, increased apoptosis and decreased cell viability in human PDA cell lines and in bulk KPfl/flC PDA tumors. Our findings suggest that mutated epithelial tumor cells overexpress FASN and that these oncogenic cells can be specifically targeted using FASN inhibition. Our findings in regards to scavenging pathways demonstrate that PDA is reliant on lysosomal activity and may utilize both autophagy and macropinocytosis to maintain lipid levels in addition to dnFAS. Dual therapy with a FASN inhibitor and a lysosomal inhibitor induces apoptosis in PDA cell lines regardless of their sensitivity to FASN inhibition alone indicating that this therapeutic strategy, dual treatment with lysosomal inhibitors and FASN inhibitors, should be further developed. Our major conclusions from this work are: (1) that PDA is not solely dependent on FASN activity for lipid maintenance but short-term inhibition results in targeted apoptosis in FASN expressing cells, in vivo. (2) Lipid scavenging pathway macropinocytosis accounts for primary resistance to FASN inhibition in vitro, although autophagy may also contribute. (3) Dual inhibition of FASN and lysosomal function induces apoptosis and decreases proliferation in PDA cell lines and tumors.

Objective: To compare the adverse fetometernal out come in overweight and normal weight pregnant women. Methods: This comparative cohort study was conducted from 1 st October 2010 to 30 September 2012. Total 200 gravid women 100 were overweight and 100 normal weight pregnant women with gestational age for 08-40 weeks were included. Women having BMI (25 – 29.9 Kg/m 2 ) were measured overweight and included in group A and 100 women having normal BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 as controls were in-group B. Chi-square test was applied to compare the proportion of maternal and fetal outcomes. Significant P – value of < 0.05 was considered. Results: The age range was between 30 to 45 years with mean age of 30±4.1 years in both groups. Overweight pregnant women had significantly high frequency of pre-eclampsia (27% versus 9% in controls), PIH (24% versus 8% in controls), gestational diabetes mellitus (22% versus 5% in controls), prolonged labour (4% versus 6% in controls), Caesarean section (44% versus 16% in controls), Wound infection (3% versus 2% in controls) and Postpartum Hemorrhage (5% versus 2% in controls). P-value < 0.001 was considered significance. Fetal complications in overweight pregnant women compared to controls i.e. Still birth (13% versus 2%), Early neonatal death (11% versus 1%), shoulder dystocia (5% versus 1%) and NICU admission (47% versus 10%). Results were statistically significant except shoulder dystocia. Conclusion: We conclude that the result of present study indicates obesity exerts deleterious effect, both on fetal and maternal outcome.

Objective To determine knowledge levels, and attitudes and perceptions towards, menopause among highly educated Asian women in their midlife. Study design A cross-sectional survey. Setting Five teaching institutions in Hyderabad, Pakistan. Population In total, 200 out of 225 (89% response rate) teachers, lecturers and professors, aged 40–59 years, were surveyed in 2013 using a self-administered questionnaire. Results The mean age of responders was 48 years. Premenopausal and perimenopausal women attributed for 58%, whereas 42% were postmenopausal. All women had a masters degree; 15% had a PhD degree. Forty-six percent of responders thought they had sufficient knowledge about the menopause and 87% had positive perceptions about it, with 76% feeling life was easier and calmer as a result of it. Reported negative perceptions included 30% of women experiencing feelings of grumpiness, irritability, altered work capability and loss of femininity. Health professionals were an information resource. of 60% of cases, only 5% of participants knew about hormone replacement therapy and none knew about available alternative therapies. Conclusion Despite the fact that the majority of women felt well informed and exhibited a positive attitude towards menopause, a strong urge for more knowledge was expressed. Public health care systems should mobilize resources and take measures to improve women’s awareness and knowledge about menopause-related changes through a variety of educational tools and media, including the Internet. A recommendation would be for physicians to provide more information about menopausal symptoms and also therapies to alleviate these symptoms, regardless of the patient’s socioeconomic background.

Heavy metals are an important class of pollutants with both lethal and sublethal effects on organisms. Wetlands are cheap natural alternatives for removal of heavy metals from soils; however, wetland plants vary greatly in their degree of metal uptake. Hokersar wetland, a Ramsar site of Kashmir Himalaya, India is a game reserve of international importance that provides suitable habitat for resident birds and an excellent stopover point for migratory birds visiting from Palaearctic breeding grounds in Central Asia, China, N-Europe and Siberia. The toxicity of chronic dietary metal exposure in birds may have adverse reproductive effects which include decreased egg production, decreased hatchability, and increased hatchling mortality. Thus, the present study aimed to assess the heavy metal sequestration capability of one of the most common wetland plant species Phragmites australis in Hokersar wetland. The accumulation of the different elements was in order of AlMnBaZnCuPbMoCoCrCdNi. Translocation factor, i.e. ratio of shoot to root metal concentration revealed that metals were largely retained in the roots of P. australis, thus reducing the supply of metals to avifauna and preventing their bio-accumulation.

Pre-labour rupture of membranes (PROM) is associated with complications as increase in the rate of induction of labour, foetal distress, foetal and maternal infection, and caesarean section. The objective of this case series was to determine the maternal outcome of early intervention with prostaglandin E2 in women with PROM at term in a Tertiary Care Hospital. The study period was six months from 2nd July 2014 to 1st January 2015. A total of 183 women with spontaneous PROM were selected. Detailed history was taken and clinical examination was performed. Prostaglandins 3mg tablet was kept in the posterior fornix of the vagina, which was repeated 6 hours later. The average age of the patients was 27.68±1.19 years. Chorioamniotis was observed in 2.19% (4/183) women and caesarean section in 8.2% (15/183) cases. It was concluded that Vaginal PGE2 tablet was very effective for labour induction in patients with PROM at term.

Background: The objective of the present study was to investigate the predictability of pathological jaundice on cord blood albumin values.Methods: It was a prospective observation study conducted in Kurji holy family hospital on 289 healthy new-borns. Babies were divided into two groups. Group A who developed physiological jaundice and group B who developed pathological jaundice. Cord blood albumin was estimated in all new-born who were then followed up-to 5th day of life. Babies who developed jaundice requiring treatment were admitted in NICU for phototherapy. Rest where checked regularly up-to 5th day of life and value recorded on 5th day by estimation of serum albumin.Results: Incidence of pathological hyperalbuminemia in present study was 11.2%. There was statistically significant correlation between cord blood albumin and development of pathological jaundice. Gender, age, mode of delivery and birth weight has no correlation with cord albumin and the subsequent development of jaundice. Cord blood albumin 2.5mg/dl has high sensitivity (97.06%), specificity (99.22%), Positive predictive value (94.29%) and negative predictive value (99.61%) in predicting future development of pathological jaundice.Conclusions: The 87.35% negative predictive value in the present study suggests that in healthy term babies (Cord blood albumin ≤3.5mg/dl) cord serum albumin can help to identify those new-borns who are unlikely to require further evaluation and intervention. These new-borns can be discharged with assurance to parents. Babies with CBA level

Adult and mature nymphs of Schistocerca gregaria showed pronounced negative geotaxis and crawl up slopes at inclinations above 18°. Under normal conditions negative geotaxis dominates photopositive responses and the positive olfactory reaction to food. The latter response is only restored after a period of starvation of 24 hours or more. The sense organs (gravity receptors) are situated internally which are stimulated by changes in internal pressure distribution in the haemocoel. Brunner's organ serves to adjust and correct positions of the legs during crawling in response to gravity and thus helps in balancing the hoppers. Zusammenfassung Geotaxis bei der Heuschrecke Schistocerca gregaria Imagines und Nymphen von Schistocerca gregaria zeigten ausgepragte negative Geotaxis und krochen Abhange ab etwa 18°Neigung empor. Unter normalen Verhaltnissen wurde die negative Geotaxis von der positiven Beantwortung der Licht- und Duft-(Nahrungs-) Reize uberdeckt. Die Reaktion auf Duftreize dominierte lediglich nach einer 24stundigen Hungerperiode. Die Schwere-Sinnesorgane liegen im Innern des Korpers und werden durch den Druckwechsel im Haemozoel stimuliert. Das an der Korperoberflache liegende Brunnersche Organ dient zur Regulierung der Lage der Beine in Beziehung zur Schwerkraft und steht in Verbindung mit den inneren Schwere-Sinnesorganen.

In the wake of rapid industrialization, urbanization and population explosion, the basic needs of life viz. air, water and land are continuously being polluted over the period of the time. Effluent waste from Electroplating industries considerably pollutes the environment. It is of major concern as the discharged heavy metals such as Cr6+, Zn2+, Cu2+, Pb2+, Cd2+ etc. are harmful to the ecosystem. Although various techniques are used for the removal of heavy metals. Bioadsorption process is one of the mainly adopted methods to recycle and reuses the wastewater. Hence the present study focused in assessing the usage of chitosan, a marine biopolymer extracted from the locally available shells of crab Portunus pelagicus as an adsorbent. The ability of chitosan to adsorb heavy metals such as Cr6+, Zn2+, Cu2+, Pb2+, Cd2+ from the electroplating industry waste water effluents was investigated at different pH. It was found that maximum adsorption of heavy metals occurred at a pH range between 5 to 7. The study results indicate that the cost incurred towards extraction was less than that the cost incurred by the commercial treatment facilities. The -OH and –NH2 functional groups in chitosan facilitate the adsorbent function and make it an ideal adsorbent for the treatment of wastewater. This study brings to light that chitosan is function as an economically useful adsorbent for the treatment of electro plating effluent containing heavy metals.

Beliefs happen to be the most significant indicators of a person’s overall personality and provide us a window on his mental constructs. The study of the paranormal activities and phenomena has been riddled with controversy since its conception and previous researches revealed mixed and contradictory findings. The present study focuses to study correlation between Religious beliefs, paranormal beliefs and the personality factors across different religious groups, among individuals of different age groups and socio-economic status. Significant positive correlation was found between religiosity and paranormal beliefs as well as between religiosity and the traditional religious beliefs, psi and witchcraft subscales of the paranormal beliefs scale. Results also report a negative correlation between religious beliefs and the spiritualism, extraordinary-life-forms and precognition subscales of the paranormal beliefs scale. Neuroticism was found to be the only personality factor significantly predicting paranormal beliefs. Muslims scored higher on the traditional religious beliefs subscale in comparison with the Hindus. On the other hand, among the Hindus a higher degree of endorsement of witch-craft was observed. However, so far as the Christians are concerned no significant differences were observed either on global paranormal beliefs or any of the subscales of the paranormal beliefs. Socially marginal groups were found to be more susceptible to paranormal beliefs. They scored higher on psi, witchcraft, superstition, spiritualism, precognition as well as the total- paranormal beliefs scale.

Background: The aim of this study is to estimate the incidence and determine the risk factors predictive of hearing impairment in newborn by targeted hearing screening. Methods: This was a prospective, observational study conducted over a period of 1 year. We screened high-risk neonates for hearing impairment admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit using evoked otoacoustic emissions (EOAEs) and brainstem auditory evoked response (BAER). Babies who tested refer on EOAE were subjected to BAER urgently. Babies having an abnormality on BAER where confirmed as hearing impaired for this study. Results: A total of 195 high-risk babies comprising males (95 = 48.7%) and females (100 = 51.3%) were screened. Fifteen neonates (7.69%) tested refer in the initial screening procedure, i.e., EOAE, who then underwent BAER and out of these 15 (7.69%) neonates, 12 (6.15%) had abnormal BAER, i.e., hearing impairment. The significant individual risk factors in neonates with hearing impairment were stigmata and/syndrome associated with hearing loss, craniofacial anomalies, and hyperbilirubinemia and Apgar score

Aim: To investigate the risk factors of gastric remnant cancer. Methods: A search on PubMed, Embase, ISI Web of SCIENCE, Cochrane Library, CNKI, and Wanfang was performed to identify relevant literature published from January 1990 to May 2014. The effect of gastric remnant cancer was estimated by risk ratio (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for each study using a fixed effects or random effects model. Results: 28 studies with a total of 1132 patients met the inclusion criteria in our study. The risk for gastric remnant cancer was positively associated with a male gender, an initial ulcerative disease, a previous Billroth II anastomosis. Gastric remnant cancer was also more likely to be located at the site of initial anastomosis and was associated with a poorly differentiated and/or undifferentiated histology. However no significance was observed between the TNM stage and the gastric remnant cancer. Conclusion: Meta-analysis found that gastric remnant cancer is associated with gender, reason for initial surgery, type of initial surgery performed, location, histology.

Background: Classified as “diffuse” by the Lauren’s classification gastric signet ring cell carcinoma is an adenocarcinoma with distinct features which separates it from other types of gastric cancer. Affecting mainly young female patients, gastric SRC is mainly due to the loss of E-cadherin and CDH1+. In this review we look into the pathogenesis, clinical features, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of gastric SRC. Materials and Methods: We reviewed the literature published until September 2014 to identify studies of gastric SRC. Studies were identified by using the Medline and PubMed databases using the terms “gastric signet ring cell carcinoma”, “gastric signet ring cell cancer”, “signet ring cell cancer”, “signet ring cell carcinoma”. Researches on esophageal SRC, intestinal SRC were excluded in our study. Results: A down-regulation of epithelial cadherin is essential for the initiation, and progression of gastric signet ring cell cancer cells. Once gastric cells lose E-cadherin, they have an increase in motility due to epithelial-mesenchymal transition. A strong correlation in the mutation of Snail, Slug, and Twist as well as an activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase (PI3K)/AKT axis, Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, and transforming growth factor β have been found to be associated with the pathogenesis of gastric signet ring cell cancer. Diagnosis relies mainly on histological findings. While surgical treatment includes resection and lymphadenectomy with retrieval of at least 15 lymph nodes, few patients respond well to chemotherapeutic regimens. Conclusion: Despite recent advances, more patients are being diagnosed with advanced gastric SRC. Understanding the pathogenenis of gastric signet ring cell cancer is critical in the treatment and improving the prognosis of patients.