Niyantrita Madhumeha Bharata 2017, Methodology for a Nationwide Diabetes Prevalence Estimate: Part 1.

BACKGROUND: Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) poses an ever-increasing threat to people's health worldwide. India has reported high rates of incidence of T2DM. The dangers make accurate assessment of its burden and intervention of lifestyle change, an urgent necessity. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to estimate the nationwide prevalence of prediabetes and diabetes, followed by a translational lifestyle trial. METHODOLOGY: The Indian Yoga Association was commissioned in 2016-2017 by the Government of India to conduct this study which was undertaken in two phases: Phase 1 was to estimate the prevalence of prediabetes and diabetes across the country, and Phase 2 was to conduct a randomized controlled trial using a validated yoga lifestyle protocol. This paper highlights the unique methodology of Phase 1 of the study. The first stage was screening (February to April 2017) for adults (>20 years) with high risk for diabetes on Indian diabetes risk score (IDRS) on mobile app, using a random cluster sampling survey method. All households in the rural (4 villages with about 500 adult population/village) and urban (2 census enumeration blocks [CEBs] of about 1000 adult population/block) sectors of 65 districts (one per ten districts in the entire country) from 29 out of 35 states of India were approached. In the second stage, detailed assessments (sociodemographic, clinical details, A1c, lipid profile, body mass index, stress, and tobacco) were carried out on those with high risk on IDRS and on all self-reported diabetes individuals. RESULTS: In the first stage of door-to-door visit, 240,968 adults in all households of the selected clusters of villages and CEBs were approached. Of these, 162,330 responded. The respondents in the second stage for detailed assessments in the selected cohort were 50,199 (48% rural and 52% urban) adults. Of these, 7472 were self-reported known diabetes adults and the remaining were 42,737. Prevalence estimates for the country will follow in the future publications. CONCLUSION: This rapid survey completed within 3 months in the entire country using trained volunteers offers the methodology to obtain a quick estimate of diabetes and high-risk population to implement any lifestyle program.

Morphological and functional seed traits of the wild medicinal plant Dioscorea strydomiana, the most threatened yam in the world.

Morphological and functional seed traits have important roles in characterising the species regeneration niche and help to understand the reproductive biology of rare and threatened plants, which can thus support appropriate plant conservation measures. Seed morphometric and dispersal kinetics of the critically endangered Dioscorea strydomiana were measured and compared with those of four other Dioscorea species, and seed germination response under constant temperatures (5-35 °C) was compared with that of the congeneric and widespread D. sylvatica. Seed mass of D. strydomiana (ca. 14 mg) was twice that of D. sylvatica, but similar to or smaller than the other species examined. Seeds of D. strydomiana have the lowest speed of descent and lowest variability in most of the morphological traits considered, suggesting lower phenotypic plasticity but higher variance in the wing-loading value. Seeds of D. strydomiana reached maximum germination at 15 °C (ca. 47%), which decreased slightly to ca. 37% at 25 °C and was completely inhibited at 35 °C. D. sylvatica seeds started to germinate at 10 °C (ca. 3%), reached 75-80% germination at 15-20 °C and maximum (ca. 90%) at 25-30 °C. Base temperatures for germination (Tb ) were 9.3 and 5.7 °C, for D. strydomiana and D. sylvatica, respectively. Due to the higher germination percentages of D. sylvatica, ceiling and optimum temperatures could also be modelled for this species, suggesting higher sensitivity to high temperature for seeds of D. strydomiana. The detected poor seed lot quality of D. strydomiana suggests difficulties in reproduction from seed, highlighting the need for further investigation and conservation actions for this threatened yam species.

Ayurvedic physiology and etiology: Ayurvedo Amritanaam. The doshas and their functioning in terms of contemporary biology and physical chemistry.

The three doshas of Ayurveda and their five respective subdoshas are related to the modern scientific framework of systems theory, phase transitions, and irreversible thermodynamics. These empirically well-established concepts of Ayurveda then appear to be far more general biologic concepts than the neuroendocrinology of their functioning might imply. They express universal concepts applicable across living organisms-control structures governing living systems. The hypothesis that the 15 subdoshas can themselves be considered as 5 triplets implies that on the level of the whole organism, these secondary structures of control appeared at specific stages in the evolution of life, yielding new insights into their development and evolution. The description of varying states of health and disease given in Ayurvedic etiology is related to the format of phase transitions in irreversible thermodynamics.

Screening for tuberculosis infection among secondary school students in Minneapolis-St. Paul: policy implications.

Three students in the St. Paul Public Schools were diagnosed with active tuberculosis (TB) in late 1991 and early 1992. To define the prevalence of TB infection in St. Paul and Minneapolis, we conducted school-based screening projects in the St. Paul and Minneapolis public schools during 1992 and 1993. In St. Paul, 7,596 (74.8%) students in grades six through 12 received Mantoux tests; 268 (3.5%) were reactive. Infection rates varied significantly by country of birth, with students born outside the United States more likely to be Mantoux reactors than U.S.-born students (RR = 20.2; 95% CI = 14.9-27.3; p < 0.001). In Minneapolis, 752 (47.2%) eighth-grade students received Mantoux tests; 23 (3.1%) were reactive. As in St. Paul, infection rates varied by country of birth; students born outside the United States were more likely to have reactive Mantoux tests than students born in this country (RR = 13.2; 95% CI = 5.6-31.4; p < 0.001). We conclude that routine TB screening of school students is not warranted in Minnesota, although school-based screening targeted at the highest risk students, particularly those born outside the United States, may be a beneficial prevention strategy.