Gastroprotective effect of Berberis vulgaris on ethanol-induced gastric mucosal injury: Histopathological evaluations.

OBJECTIVE: Modern treatment of peptic ulcers includes antibacterial and gastroprotective medications. However, current anti-ulcer drugs possess severe side effects. Therefore, all attempts to find new effective medications free from side effects are justified. Though Berberis vulgaris is a medicinal plant commonly used for the treatment of numerous disorders, gastroprotective effect of its leaf extract was not investigated before. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Gastric ulcer was modelled in Sprague-Dawley rats after treatment with B. vulgaris leaf extract containing 0.07% of alkaloids, 0.48% of flavonoids and 8.05% of tanning substances, 10 or 50 mg of dry extract/kg, changes in the stomach mucosa were assessed semi-quantitatively, and the gastric wall was evaluated for prostaglandin E2 level using ELISA and assessed histologically by calculation of the lesion index. RESULTS: B. vulgaris leaf extract at the dose of 50 mg/kg reduced the macroscopic ulcer score and the microscopic lesion index, increased prostaglandin E2 concentration in the gastric wall significantly higher than atropine and B. vulgaris leaf extract 10 mg/kg. CONCLUSION: The gastroprotective effect of the high dose of B. vulgaris leaf extract may be due to stimulation of prostaglandin E2 secretion in the stomach, and anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties of polyphenolic complex of flavonoids and tannins present in the leaves of this plant.

Setting the stage for strengthened annual monitoring of family planning program performance at the state/national level in Myanmar.

Background: Although Myanmar has made good progress in family planning by increased contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) from 41% in 2007 to 52.2% in 2016, it remains lower than the target of 60% by 2020. There are also huge disparities sub-nationally, ranging from 25% to 60%. While there is a strong need to monitor the progress of family planning program regularly at the national and sub-national level, Myanmar has limited surveys, data quality and methodological issues in its Health Management Information System (HMIS), and a scattered rollout of the Logistic Management Information System (LMIS). Methods: To identify viable options for annual monitoring, four data sources: modelled contraceptive prevalence rate for modern methods (mCPR) estimates from Track20's  Family Planning Estimation Tool (FPET); method-specific prevalence from the  2015-16 Myanmar Demographic and Health Survey (DHS); mCPR estimates and method prevalence from  HMIS and estimates of modern method use (EMU) based on commodity consumption data from LMIS, were compared for the years 2015-2017. Estimates of mCPR from HMIS were tested for accuracy based on whether they fell within the 95% confidence interval of mCPR estimates from the FPET for the corresponding years. EMU from LMIS was also tested for those years and states/regions where available. Results: For annual tracking of mCPR, direct estimates of HMIS were considered carefully, as they were much higher than those of the DHS survey and were not matched by FPET results, except in Chin and Kayin. To monitor the method mix, HMIS data can be used as these are similar pattern with DHS in both national and State/Regional level except Chin and Kayin. LMIS could be used in annual tracking when there are high reporting rates and valid information of consumption. Conclusions: Track20's FPET is the method of choice to get valid information for annual monitoring of family planning program.

Influenza A Viral Infection with Septic Shock in Pregnancy.

The influenza virus is RNA virus and is classified into four subtypes, influenza A, influenza B, influenza C, and influenza D. One of the subtypes of influenza A, the H1N1 strain, also known as swine flu, is especially of high risk for development of complications in pregnant women. The influenza A virus infection is difficult to diagnose clinically because its presenting symptoms are similar to those of the common cold but are more severe, last longer, and can be potentially life-threatening. This case also presented with common cold symptoms but her condition worsened later. Fortunately, obstetric health providers were vigilant enough to address the developing infection and its related complications. It was the cooperative effort of multidisciplinary team care which resulted in a favourable outcome in both mother and baby.

Understanding the Relationship between Atherogenic Index of Plasma and Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors among Staff of an University in Malaysia.

BACKGROUND: Atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) was found to be one of the strongest markers in predicting the cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. This study was to determine the AIP and its relationship with other CVD risk factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study was done among 349 staff of a public university in Sarawak. Data were collected using questionnaire, blood sampling, and anthropometric and blood pressure measurement. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 20. RESULTS: A total of 349 respondents participated with majority females (66.8%), aged 38.5 ± 7.82 years. Nearly 80% of the respondents were overweight and obese, 87.1% with high and very high body fat, and 46.9% with abnormal visceral fat. For AIP category, 8.9% were found to be in intermediate and 16.4% were at high risk. Elevated lipid profile showed that total cholesterol (TC) is 15.5%, low density lipoprotein (LDL) is 16.1%, and triglyceride (TG) is 10.6%. AIP was significantly correlated with body mass index (r=0.25), visceral fat (r=0.37), TC (r=0.22), LDL (0.24), HDL (r=-0.72), TG (r=0.84), glucose (r=0.32), systolic blood pressure (r=0.22), and diastolic blood pressure (r=0.28). CONCLUSION: It indicated that AIP is associated with other CVD risk factors. Modification of lifestyle is strongly recommended.

Caecal Perforation from Primary Intestinal Tuberculosis in Pregnancy.

The incidence of tuberculosis (TB) is rising worldwide, despite the efficacy of the BCG vaccination. Populations at greatest risk of contracting TB are migrant communities, as well as immunocompromised individuals. The diagnosis of extrapulmonary TB (EPTB) can often present as a diagnostic conundrum, due to its nonspecific and varied presentation, often mimicking inflammatory bowel disease or malignancy. We present a case of caecal TB in pregnancy, which resulted in caecal perforation, a right hemicolectomy, and severe preterm delivery. The aim of this case report is to discuss the diagnosis of extrapulmonary TB, as well as its subsequent management in pregnancy.

Cluster-based analysis for personalized stress evaluation using physiological signals.

Technology development in wearable sensors and biosignal processing has made it possible to detect human stress from the physiological features. However, the intersubject difference in stress responses presents a major challenge for reliable and accurate stress estimation. This research proposes a novel cluster-based analysis method to measure perceived stress using physiological signals, which accounts for the intersubject differences. The physiological data are collected when human subjects undergo a series of task-rest cycles, incurring varying levels of stress that is indicated by an index of the State Trait Anxiety Inventory. Next, a quantitative measurement of stress is developed by analyzing the physiological features in two steps: 1) a k -means clustering process to divide subjects into different categories (clusters), and 2) cluster-wise stress evaluation using the general regression neural network. Experimental results show a significant improvement in evaluation accuracy as compared to traditional methods without clustering. The proposed method is useful in developing intelligent, personalized products for human stress management.

The evolution of sensory divergence in the context of limited gene flow in the bumblebee bat.

The sensory drive theory of speciation predicts that populations of the same species inhabiting different environments can differ in sensory traits, and that this sensory difference can ultimately drive speciation. However, even in the best-known examples of sensory ecology driven speciation, it is uncertain whether the variation in sensory traits is the cause or the consequence of a reduction in levels of gene flow. Here we show strong genetic differentiation, no gene flow and large echolocation differences between the allopatric Myanmar and Thai populations of the world's smallest mammal, Craseonycteris thonglongyai, and suggest that geographic isolation most likely preceded sensory divergence. Within the geographically continuous Thai population, we show that geographic distance has a primary role in limiting gene flow rather than echolocation divergence. In line with sensory-driven speciation models, we suggest that in C. thonglongyai, limited gene flow creates the suitable conditions that favour the evolution of sensory divergence via local adaptation.