MnCO3 Cuboids from Spent LIBs: A New Age Displacement Anode to Build High-Performance Li-Ion Capacitors.

The advantage of hybridizing battery and supercapacitor electrodes has succeeded recently in designing hybrid charge storage systems such as lithium-ion capacitors (LICs) with the benefits of higher energy than supercapacitors and more power density than batteries. However, sluggish Li-ion diffusion of battery anode is one of the main barriers and hampers the development of high-performance LICs. Herein, is introduced a new conversion/displacement type anode, MnCO3 , via effectively recycling spent Li-ion batteries cathodes for LICs applications. The MnCO3  cuboids are regenerated from the spent LiMn2 O4  cathodes by organic acid lixiviation process, and hydrothermal treatment displays excellent reversibility of 535  mAh g-1  after 50  cycles with a Coulombic efficiency of >99%. Later, LIC is assembled with the regenerated MnCO3  cubes in pre-lithiated form (Mn0  + Li2 CO3 ) as anode and commercial activated carbon (AC) as the cathode, delivering a maximum energy density of 169.4 Wh kg-1  at 25 °C with ultra-long durability of 15,000 cycles. Even at various atmospheres like -5 and 50 °C, this LIC can offer a energy densities of 53.8 and 119.5 Wh kg-1 , respectively. Remarkably, the constructed AC/Mn0  + Li2 CO3 -based LIC exhibits a good cycling performance for a continuous 1000 cycles with >91% retention invariably for all temperature conditions.

Highly Perforated V2 O5 Cathode with Restricted Lithiation toward Building "Rocking-Chair" Type Cell with Graphite Anode Recovered from Spent Li-Ion Batteries.

Current research motivation on fabricating next-generation lithium-ion batteries by averting the growing demand for battery raw materials brings enormous interest on the V2 O5 cathode again as a result of its abundance, ease synthesis, and tunable Li-intercalation properties. So far, the research activities are mainly focused on V2 O5 to attain a maximum capacity (>300 mAh g-1 ) for more than 1 mol. Li-intercalation which results in poor structural stability. Keeping this issue in mind, here, the full-cell assembly by limiting 1 mol is proposed and constructed. Li-insertion in V2 O5 as a cathode and LiC6 as an anode for the first time. Prior to the full-cell assembly, hydrothermally prepared rod-like V2 O5 reveals the specific capacity of 143 mAh g-1 in half-cell configuration with good cycling stability. The full-cell, V2 O5 /LiC6, offers a specific capacity of ≈236 mAh g-1 with a maximum energy density of ≈197.1 Wh kg-1 . Furthermore, the practical feasibility of the cell has been examined at different temperatures that divulged a maximum energy density of 136 Wh kg-1 at 50 °C. Also, the obtained results encourage V2 O5 as a strong contender for the commercial LiFePO4 /C system andpave the new directions for advanced battery technology.

Focus on Spinel Li4 Ti5 O12 as Insertion Type Anode for High-Performance Na-Ion Batteries.

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) toward large-scale energy storage applications has fascinated researchers in recent years owing to the low cost, environmental friendliness, and inestimable abundance. The similar chemical and electrochemical properties of sodium and lithium make sodium an easy substitute for lithium in lithium-ion batteries. However, the main issues of limited cycle life, low energy density, and poor power density hamper the commercialization process. In the last few years, the development of electrode materials for SIBs has been dedicated to improving sodium storage capacities, high energy density, and long cycle life. The insertion type spinel Li4 Ti5 O12 (LTO) possesses "zero-strain" behavior that offers the best cycle life performance among all reported oxide-based anodes, displaying a capacity of 155 mAh g-1 via a three-phase separation mechanism, and competing for future topmost high energy anode for SIBs. Recent reports offer improvement of overall electrode performance through carbon coating, doping, composites with metal oxides, and surface modification techniques, etc. Further, LTO anode with its structure and properties for SIBs is described and effective methods to improve the LTO performance are discussed in both half-cell and practical configuration, i.e., full-cell, along with future perspectives and solutions to promote its use.

Recent advances based on the synergetic effect of adsorption for removal of dyes from waste water using photocatalytic process.

The problem of textile dye pollution has been addressed by various methods, mainly physical, chemical, biological, and acoustical. These methods mainly separate and/or remove the dye present in water. Recently, advanced oxidation processes (AOP) have been focused for removal of dye from waste water due to their advantages such as ecofriendly, economic and capable to degrade many dyes or organic pollutant present in water. Photocatalysis is one of the advance oxidation processes, mainly carried out under irradiation of light and suitable photocatalytic materials. The photocatalytic activity of the photocatalytic materials mainly depends on the band gap, surface area, and generation of electron-hole pair for degradation dyes present in water. It has been observed that the surface area plays a major role in photocatalytic degradation of dyes, by providing higher surface area, which leads to the higher adsorption of dye molecule on the surface of photocatalyst and enhances the photocatalytic activity. This present review discusses the synergic effect of adsorption of dyes on the photocatalytic efficiency of various nanostructured high surface area photocatalysts. In addition, it also provides the properties of the water polluting dyes, their mechanism and various photocatalytic materials; and their morphology used for the dye degradation under irradiation of light along with the future prospects of highly adsorptive photocatalytic material and their application in photocatalytic removal of dye from waste water.

Open-label Non-blinded Cohort study on Anti-Histaminic Resistant Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria in Western India.

Introduction: Chronic idiopathic urticaria (CIU) is a chronic relapsing disease with hives for a period of six weeks or more. It has a significant impact on the physical and mental well-being of patients. Aims and Objectives: Open-label non-blinded study of over 600 patients diagnosed with CIU was done. The aim of the study was to observe the following: 1. Characteristics of patients of anti-histaminic resistant CIU, 2. Efficacy of cyclosporin and any adverse events in the study population and 3. Prognosis and relapse rates of these patients at the end of one year. Methods: Detailed history taking and guided clinical evaluation were done to include chronic resistant urticarias in the study and their clinical characteristics and prognosis were studied. Results: A total of 610 patients were diagnosed with CIU over a period of four years. Of these, 47 patients (7.7%) were diagnosed with anti-histaminic resistant urticaria. Of these, 30 patients (4.9%) who took treatment with cyclosporin at the above dosages were included in group 1. Rest 17 patients were in group 2 that were continued on anti-histaminics. Patients in cyclosporin group 1 showed a significant reduction in symptom scores as compared with group 2 at the end of six months. A lower need for corticosteroid therapy was noted in the cyclosporin group. Conclusion: Cyclosporin in low doses is very useful in anti-histaminic resistant urticaria with the duration of therapy being six months. It is cost-effective in low and medium-income countries and easily available.

Systematic Review of Excess Mortality in India during the Covid-19 Pandemic with Differentiation between Model-Based and Data-Based Mortality Estimates.

Background: COVID-19 has proven to be the worst pandemic in the history of mankind. While the pandemic still continues to perplex scientists globally, attempts are being made to quantify the mortality caused by the pandemic. Official COVID-19 figures in India grossly understate the true scale of the pandemic in the country. Fatality rates help us understand the severity of a disease, identify at risk populations, and evaluate quality of healthcare. Official COVID-19 mortality figures in India grossly understate the true scale of the pandemic in the country. A COVID-19 death is defined for surveillance purposes as a death resulting from a clinically compatible illness in a probable or confirmed COVID-19 case, unless there is a clear alternative cause of death that cannot be related to COVID-19 disease (e.g., trauma) and excess mortality is defined as the difference in the total number of deaths in a crisis compared to those expected under normal conditions. Materials and Methods: We did a systematic review of multiple papers on PubMed, Medline, Embase, MedRxiV pre print on excess mortality. Differentiation between model based estimated excess mortality and data based excess mortality was studied. Results: All the studies showed that the excess mortality was to the tune of almost three times the official figures. The model based excess mortality assumptions showed higher deaths as compared to the data based one. However, there were a lot of discrepancies in the data provided by various states along with variations observed between the two waves as well. Health survey data suggested higher mortality rate as compared to data compiled from the civil registration system. Additionally, in the second wave, a small but a significant number of deaths occurred due to non availability of oxygen and beds in the hospitals. Conclusions: Official COVID-19 deaths have entirely failed to capture the scale of pandemic excess mortality in India. If most excess deaths were, indeed, from COVID-19 then under ascertainment of COVID-19 deaths has been high, with around 8-10 excess deaths for every recorded COVID-19 death.

Effective regeneration of mixed composition of spent lithium-ion batteries electrodes towards building supercapacitor.

Recycling of different manufacturers of spent lithium-ion batteries cathode and anode via a simple regeneration process has an opportunity to fabricate new energy devices. In this study, the different manufacturers of spent LIB cathode pieces were subjected to lixiviation process and found the best-optimized conditions such as tartaric acid concentration (2.5 M), H2O2 concentration (7.5 vol%), solid-liquid ratio (80 g/L), temperature (80 °C), and lixiviation time (80 min) for maximum ~ 99% extraction efficiency of metals. Further, 3D-MnCo2O4 (MCO) spheres were regenerated from the cathode lixivium containing metal ions via hydrothermal technique. Besides, anode graphite and Al foils after cathode lixiviation were exploited to prepare reduced graphene oxide (RGO) at room temperature in a simple method. The electrochemical performance of both regenerated electrodes from spent LIBs was explored in the half-cell configuration using the 1 M Na2SO4 electrolyte. Additionally, the constructed MCO//RGO asymmetric supercapacitor device offers an operational voltage of 1.8 V and displays a high energy density of ~ 23.9 Wh kg-1 at 450 W kg-1 with 8000 cycles. This alternative recycling method proposes the possibility to construct high-energy storage devices from different compositions of spent LIBs.

Activated carbon derived from cherry flower biowaste with a self-doped heteroatom and large specific surface area for supercapacitor and sodium-ion battery applications.

Herein, cherry flower waste-derived activated carbon (CFAC) with self-doped nitrogen is synthesized as a viable energy storage material for green and sustainable energy solutions. The activated carbon derived in this way is examined as an electric double-layer capacitance (EDLC)-type electrode material and sodium-ion battery (NIB) electrode material, and commendable performance is demonstrated for both of these energy storage applications. The specific surface area (SSA) and nitrogen content are observed to play a very delicate role in determining the charge storage ability of the CFAC, and the performance is optimized only by carefully balancing both of these properties. The optimized CFAC electrode supplied an excellent performance with a specific capacitance of 333.8 F g-1 and capacity is maintained to more than 96% even after 38,000 charge-discharge cycles as an EDLC-type supercapacitor electrode material. Likewise, the CFAC/NIB also yielded remarkable performance with an average specific capacity of 150 mAh g-1 and capacity retention of more than 84% after 200 charge-discharge cycles. Furthermore, an electrokinetic study was performed for both supercapacitor and NIB applications to identify the contribution from surface and diffusion type charge storage phenomena, consequently highlighting the role of the SSA and nitrogen content in the CFAC matrix.

Highly Reversible Na-Intercalation into Graphite Recovered from Spent Li-Ion Batteries for High-Energy Na-Ion Capacitor.

High-performance Na-ion capacitor (NIC) was constructed with graphite recovered from spent Li-ion batteries (LIBs) as battery-type negative electrode and high-surface-area activated carbon as a supercapacitor component. Unlike Li-insertion into graphite, Na-insertion into graphite is extremely limited; hence, a "solvent-co-intercalation" mechanism was proposed for high reversibility using ether family solvents. First, the Na-insertion properties were assessed in the half-cell assembly with 0.5 m NaPF6 in tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether as an electrolyte solution and compared with the commercial graphite. The NIC comprised pre-sodiated graphite as a negative electrode and commercial activated carbon as a cathode. This fascinating NIC configuration displayed the maximum energy density of 59.93 Wh kg-1 with exceptional cyclability of 5000 cycles at ambient temperature with approximately 98 % retention. Interestingly, the electrode aging process in the presence of electrolyte resulted in approximately 19 % higher energy density than the routine electrode heat treatment. Further, the electrochemical activity of the NIC at various temperatures was studied, and it was found that the graphite recovered from spent LIBs could be effectively reused towards the construction of high-performance charge storage devices with exceptional performance.

Synthesis and Characterization of Magnetic Superadsorbent Fe3O4-PEG-Mg-Al-LDH Nanocomposites for Ultrahigh Removal of Organic Dyes.

Considering the huge demands for economical and reliable eco-remediation applications, the goal of the present work is to synthesize cost-effective and functionally efficient magnetic layered nanocomposite adsorbents for the effective adsorption of dyes followed by easy separation from wastewater. This would ensure good reusability of adsorbents without altering its adsorption capacity in a relatively short time manner. To achieve this, different molecular weights of polyethylene glycol (PEG)-modified Fe3O4 combined with Mg-Al-layered double hydroxides (MAN-LDH) were synthesized and characterized using powder X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, differential thermal analysis, energy-dispersive X-ray, and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy. The efficacy of various adsorption parameters for the removal of methyl orange (MO) from water using Fe3O4-PEG-Mg-Al-LDH (FPL) adsorbents with different molecular weights of PEG (2FPL, 4FPL, and 6FPL) were investigated, and the results were compared. The maximum adsorption capacities of 2FPL, 4FPL, and 6FPL for MO were found to be 775.19, 826.44, and 833.33 mg/g, respectively. Detailed adsorption studies confirm that the higher adsorption capacity of 6FPL is due to the fast exchange of anions (NO3 -) by MO in the interlayers of MAN-LDH, larger surface area, hydrogen bonding, and electrostatic interaction between adsorbate and adsorbent. The thermodynamic data indicate that the adsorption behavior is spontaneous and endothermic in nature. The reusability of all FPL adsorbents is observed to be excellent. The MAN-LDH recoated after the 31st-cycle nanocomposites show a recovery of 100% adsorption efficiency, similar to the freshly prepared 6FPL. Such systematic studies greatly help in advancing the applications of newly functionalized nanomaterials toward eco-remediation approaches.

Biomass-Derived Carbon Materials as Prospective Electrodes for High-Energy Lithium- and Sodium-Ion Capacitors.

Biomass-derived carbon materials have received special attention as efficient, low-cost, active materials for charge-storage devices, regardless of the power system, such as supercapacitors and rechargeable batteries. In this Minireview, we discuss the influence of biomass-derived carbonaceous materials as positive or negative electrodes (or both) in high-energy hybrid lithium-ion configurations with an organic electrolyte. In such hybrid configurations, the electrochemical activity is completely different to conventional electrical double-layer capacitors; that is, one of the electrodes undergoes a Faradaic reaction, whilst the counter electrode undergoes a non-Faradaic reaction, to achieve high energy density. The use of a variety of biomass precursors with different properties, such as surface functionality, the presence of inherent heteroatoms, tailored meso-/microporosity, high specific surface area, various degrees of crystallization, calcination temperature, and atmosphere, are described in detail. Sodium-ion capacitors are also discussed, because they are an important alternative to lithium-ion capacitors, owing to the low abundance and high cost of lithium. The electrochemical performance of carbonaceous electrodes in supercapacitors and rechargeable batteries are not discussed.

Biomass-Derived Carbon: A Value-Added Journey Towards Constructing High-Energy Supercapacitors in an Asymmetric Fashion.

Currently, asymmetric supercapacitors (ASCs) produced from supercapacitors (SCs) offer more benefits for energy-storage applications because they display a high operational voltage in aqueous-based electrolytes that may enhance grid storage and zero-power transportation with high energy density in the future. At the same time, the realization of low-cost energy devices through the construction of cheap electrode materials deserves a permanent place in the market once the goals of high energy, extra power, and long cycling stability are achieved. Biomass-derived carbon retrieved from sources such as plants has attracted considerable attention because of the rich abundance, low cost, and environmentally friendliness. In addition, the utilization of porous hierarchical structures has achieved enhanced electrochemical performance with excellent capacitance, outstanding stability, and praiseworthy rate capability. However, issues still persist in procedures used to obtain biomass-derived carbon materials with a high yield and a high degree of carbonization/graphitization, surface functionality, and porous characteristics, wherein the materials are used as electrodes in ASC devices. The present review briefly addresses the need for biomass-derived carbon materials in ASCs, comprehensively categorizes SCs in the context of their historical background, and elucidates the SC mechanism. In addition, influencing factors, such as the pore size distribution, role of surface functional groups, surface area, active-material loading, heteroatom doping, and activation techniques used in the preparation of biomass-derived carbon, have been discussed in detail. Moreover, this review assesses other nanostructured carbon electrodes used in ASCs and advances made in the fabrication of ASCs by using biomass-derived carbon in aqueous electrolytes. Finally, existing challenges and mandatory solutions toward developing cost-effective and high-performance ASCs by using environmentally friendly biomass-derived carbon materials are discussed in detail.

Crystal growth and structure of L-methionine L-methioninium hydrogen maleate-a new NLO material.

A new organic nonlinear optical (NLO) crystal from the amino acid family, viz., L-methionine L-methioninium hydrogen maleate (LMMM), has been grown by slow evaporation method from aqueous solution. Bulk crystals were grown using submerged seed solution method. The structure was elucidated using the single crystal x-ray diffraction data. The compound crystallized in the space group P21 and the unit cell contains a protonated L-methioninium cation and a zwitterionic methionine residue plus a maleate anion. The backbone conformation angles Ψ1 and Ψ2 are in cis and trans configurations for both the methionine and methioninium residues, respectively. Amino and carboxyl groups of the methioninium and methionine residues are connected through N-H…O hydrogen bonds leading to a ring R22(10) motif.

Recovery of value-added products from cathode and anode material of spent lithium-ion batteries.

Herein we report a low cost and eco-friendly approach for the recovery of metals from cathode and anode materials of mobile phone spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Li-based metal oxide and graphite were efficiently separated from their respective foils and used for lixiviation. Acetic acid (CH3COOH) and water were used as lixiviants for the recovery of metals from cathode and anode materials respectively. It was found that with 3 M Acetic acid and 7.5 vol% H2O2 as reducing agent 99.9% Li, 98.7% Co, and 99.5% Mn were leached out from cathode material in 40 min at 70 °C and a pulp density of 20 g/L. Besides the cathode leaching, Li was also extracted from anodic material graphite using water as a solvent and further recovered as solid Li2CO3 (99.7% Li). The kinetic evaluation of the cathode lixiviate process was studied using three different shrinking-core kinetic Models and established that the reaction follows the product layer diffusion controlled mechanism. From the cathode leach liquor, 99% Co was recovered as metal sulfide by controlled sulfide precipitation with 99.2% purity, and subsequently, MnCO3 and Li2CO3 were obtained with the purity of 98.7% and 99.4%, respectively. The purity of the salts revealed that these products recovered from spent LIBs might be utilized in the electrochemical energy-storage applications. In addition, this recycling process would promote the sustainable development of the battery industry.

Recovered spinel MnCo2O4 from spent lithium-ion batteries for enhanced electrocatalytic oxygen evolution in alkaline medium.

A facile way of recovering 3d transition metals of industrial importance from spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) without using any surfactants has been developed. Mn- and Co-rich spent LIBs were chosen as sustainable sources for recovering the oxides of the respective elements. The physical dismantling of Li-ion batteries, chemical leaching with 2 M acetic acid, precipitation with ammonium carbonate, hydrothermal conditioning and calcination at 650 °C led to the facile formation of spherical spinel MnCo2O4 with very high morphological selectivity. The obtained spherical MnCo2O4 was identified by various advanced characterization techniques. Detailed electrochemical characterization revealed that the recovered spheres of spinel MnCo2O4 were effective in catalyzing the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in 1 M KOH and required an overpotential of 358 and 400 mV to generate a current density of 5 and 10 mA cm-2, respectively, with a relatively low catalyst loading (0.001025 g cm-2). Comparative electrocatalytic studies carried out with recovered LiCoO2, recovered LiXMnOX+1 and commercially available catalysts such as RuO2 (c-RuO2), Co3O4 (c-Co3O4) and MnO2 (c-MnO2) revealed that the recovered spheres of spinel MnCo2O4 were more effective OER catalysts than the recovered LiCoO2, recovered LiXMnOX+1, c-Co3O4 and c-MnO2 and exhibited comparable activity to that of c-RuO2 with very little difference in overpotential (∼50 mV) at current densities of 5 and 10 mA cm-2. With such a low catalyst loading, the observed electrocatalytic performance in water oxidation of a material recovered from waste is highly significant and will surely attain greater industrial importance when the recycling of spent LIBs from electronic wastes is considered.

Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: A Study of 46 Patients from Western India: Clinical Presentations and Survival.

OBJECTIVES: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is the most common form of interstitial lung disease (ILD) diagnosed all over the world as well as in India. The objective was to study the clinical presentations, treatment options, and survival of patients diagnosed with IPF. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a 6-year retrospective observational study. All patients diagnosed with ILD underwent a comprehensive evaluation to confirm the diagnosis of IPF and were subsequently included in the study. Clinical data and laboratory data were recorded. Patients were treated as per current guidelines. RESULTS: Out of the total number of patients (n=123) diagnosed with ILD, 46 (37.4%) patients were included in the study [Males, n=19 (41%) and females, n=27 (59%)]. Sixty-seven percent (n=31) of the patients were in the age group of 61-80 years. The mean age of males and females was 68.36 and 66.25 years, respectively. Clubbing was observed in 67% (n=29) of the patients. The mean forced vital capacity (FVC) was 52%. High-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) of the chest showed a definite usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) pattern of honeycombing in 60% (n=28) of the patients. Desaturation on a 6 min walk distance was noted in 60% (n=28) of the patients. Ten patients wrongly received-anti tuberculosis treatment (21%) before they were diagnosed with IPF. The median delay in diagnosis was 20 months. The 5-year survival rate was 25%; the average survival was 39 months. Patients receiving pirfenidone showed a survival benefit compared with those having received triple therapy. Survival in IPF was significantly low compared with that in other ILDs. Twenty-four (52%) patients died during the study. CONCLUSION: IPF is a disease which affects the fourth to seventh decade of the Indian population with low survival.

Laparoscopic sigmoid colectomy after acute diverticulitis: when to operate?

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic sigmoid colectomy has become an acceptable method of surgical treatment for diverticulitis. However, an optimal waiting period before attempting elective laparoscopic colectomy has not been established. We sought to evaluate the relationship between the time interval from an acute episode of diverticulitis to laparoscopic colectomy and surgical outcomes. METHODS: All patients undergoing laparoscopic colectomy during a period of 10 years in a single institution were studied. Retrospectively collected data included patient demographics, American Society of Anesthesiologists score, prior episodes of diverticulitis, interval between last attack and operation, operative time, complications, conversion, and recovery period. RESULTS: A total of 120 patients were included; 89 had a primary diagnosis of diverticulitis. Mean interval from acute diverticulitis to operation was 64 days (range, 1 to 240). Median number of episodes of diverticulitis before colectomy was 3 (range, 1 to 10). Ten patients (11%) required conversion from laparoscopic to open colectomy. Neither interval from acute attack to operation nor number of prior episodes of diverticulitis was associated with any significantly increased rate of conversion to open colectomy, complication rate, operative time, or recovery period (P=not significant). CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed no direct relationship between surgical timing after acute diverticulitis and complication or conversion rates after elective laparoscopic sigmoid colectomy.

Allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis: A clinical review of 24 patients: Are we right in frequent serologic monitoring?

BACKGROUND: Allergic Broncho Pulmonary Aspergillosis (ABPA) is a rare disease characterized by an allergic inflammatory response to the colonization by aspergillus or other fungi in the airways. The aim was to study the clinical, radiological, and serological characteristics of patients of ABPA. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective observational study of patients with breathlessness, chronic cough, blood eosinophilia, and infiltrates on chest X-ray were evaluated with serologic and allergic skin fungal tests using 15 common fungal antigens. Total of 24 patients were diagnosed as ABPA. RESULTS: Total 24 patients, 15 males (62%), 9 females (38%). Age range: 14-70 years, mean 49.13, standard deviation (SD) 14.12. Central bronchiectasis - sixteen patients, bronchocoele - one patient, consolidation - five patients, collapse with mucous plugging with areas of consolidation - three patients, one patient had bronchiectasis, consolidation with hemorrhagic pleural effusion. Fifty-eight percent of patients had received anti-tuberculosis medications prior to diagnosis. Serum total IgE varied from 340 to 18100 IU/mL. Two patients had IgE levels below 1,000 IU/mL. The mean decrease in Serum total IgE levels at the end of 1 month was 26.1% (range: 0.7-71.9%) and at the end of 2 months was 58.9% (range: 11.11-93.26%) (P value of 0.004). Two patients had skin sensitivity to fungal antigens other than aspergillus species. CONCLUSION: ABPA is a disease with varied clinical, radiological, and serological patterns. Serum IgE monitoring may be done at the end of 2 and 6 months. Further studies are required to simplify the diagnosis and treatment algorithms in resource-limited countries.

Bronchiectasis in western India: clinical presentations and socio-economic burden.

Bronchiectasis is an abnormal permanent dilatation distortion and destruction of the airways with both pulmonary and extrapulmonary side-effects. The aim of the study was to find out the presenting features, aetiologies and socioeconomic factors in patients of bronchiectasis. It is a prospective observational study comprising 53 patients over aperiod of two years. Aetiologies were determined using Kuppuswamy's socioeconomic scale. Number of exacerbations and mortality were noted. The age ranged from 14 to 80 years (mean: 43.33 ± 16.37 years). There were 35 males (66%) and 18 females (34%). Clubbing was seen in 58% cases (n = 31); 11% patients (n = 6) had haemoptysis. Bilateral involvement was seen in 64% cases (n = 34). Allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis and post-tuberculous sequelae were the commonest causes (n = 12, 23% each). The range of household medical expenditure in these patients varied from 6% to 47%. Lower the Kuppuswamy scale poorer the follow-up (p-value < 0.05). Multiple exacerbations were seen in all classes of patients (p-value 0.09). Death occurred in 4 patients. It is concluded that bronchiectasis is a chronic illness with significant morbidity and socioeconomic implications. Lower the socio-economic scale, poorer the compliance of therapy.

Structural and spectral characterization of a new non-centrosymmetric organic thiosulfate.

Aqueous reaction of ammonium thiosulfate with ethylenediamine (en) results in the formation of the title compound (enH(2))[S(2)O(3)] (1) (enH(2)=ethylenediammonium) in good yields. Compound 1 was characterized by analytical data, IR, Raman and NMR spectra, X-ray powder pattern and its crystal structure was determined. The structure of 1 which crystallizes in the non-centrosymmetric orthorhombic space group P2(1)2(1)2(1), consists of two crystallographically independent (enH(2))(2+) dications and two unique thiosulfate anions, which are interlinked by three varieties of H-bonding interactions, namely N-H⋯O, N-H⋯S, and C-H⋯O. (1)H and (13)C NMR spectra reveal the purity of 1 while its transparent nature can be evidenced from the UV-Vis-NIR spectral data. In compound 1 which exhibits SHG property, the infrared and Raman spectra confirm the presence of the organic dication and the thiosulfate anion.