Impact of Cr Doping on the Structural, Optical, and Magnetic Properties of Sol-Gel-Synthesized Bi0.80Ba0.10Pr0.10FeO3 Nanopowders.

The sol-gel route was used to synthesize a series of compounds of the system Bi0.8Ba0.10Pr0.10Fe1-x Cr x O3 within the 0 ≤ x ≤ 0.15 compositional range. To explore the impact of Cr3+ ion substitution on the structural, dielectric, optical, and magnetic properties, we introduced varying concentrations of Cr3+ while maintaining a fixed 10% atomic concentration of each Ba2+ and Pr2+ in BiFeO3. X-ray diffraction analysis revealed a structural phase transition from rhombohedral (R3c) for an undoped (i.e., without Cr) sample to two coexisting phases, i.e., a mix of rhombohedral and orthorhombic (Pbnm) phases for the Cr-doped samples. Cr3+ doping significantly changes the band gap energy from 1.84 eV (x = 0.0) to 1.93 eV (x = 0.15), which makes this material suitable for photovoltaic applications. Furthermore, each sample exhibited ferromagnetic behavior due to the disruption of the spiral spin structures and adjustments in superexchange interactions, attributed to modifications in the Fe-O and Fe-O-Fe bond lengths. A reduction in magnetization is observed at higher Cr concentrations that can be ascribed to the dilution of magnetic moments due to the increase of the orthorhombic phase percentage and the introduction of nonmagnetic Cr3+ ions. Our results show that Cr doping in the Bi0.8Ba0.10Pr0.10FeO3 system induces enhanced multiferroic properties at room temperature.

Exploitation of green synthesized chromium doped zinc oxide nanorods (NRs) mediated by flower extract of Rhododendron arboreum for highly efficient photocatalytic degradation of cationic dyes Malachite green (MG) and Fuchsin basic (FB).

In this work, green method to synthesize chromium-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods (NRs) using an aqueous flower extract from Rhododendron arboretum is explored. Herein, chromium-doped ZnO NRs were prepared with different amount of chromium doping, varied as 2-10%. The green synthesized products underwent substantial analysis through X-ray diffraction (XRD), spectroscopic such as ultraviolet spectroscopy(UV-Vis) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) methods. All samples were found to have hexagonal wurtzite ZnO, with average particle sizes of 52.41, 56.6, 54.44, 53.05, and 56.99 nm, respectively, for 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10% chromium doping in ZnO NRs. The Cr-doped ZnO NRs exhibited remarkable photocatalytic degradation activity of cationic dyes under UV-light, i.e., Malachite Green and Fuchsin Basic with degradation of 99.604 and 99.881%, respectively in 90 min. The reusability tests for these green synthesized Cr-doped ZnO NRs have also been carried out, showed 9-11 cycles with 85% of degradation efficiency. In addition, the Cr-doped ZnO NRs exhibited high selectivity for cationic dyes when experiments against mixture of dyes were performed. Photodegradation kinetics followed the pseudo-first-order model. The flower-extract-stabilized chromium-doped ZnO NRs demonstrated high photocatalytic activity toward malachite green and fuchsin basic dyes, potential material for pollution remediation.

Cr-doped ZnO NRs by green method using flower extract of Rhododendon arboretum were prepared for the first time under ambient reaction conditions.Effect of Dopant i.e. Cr on Photocatalytic activity have been exploited.Selective photocatalytic degradation of cationic dyes i.e. MG, and FB has been achieved in 60­90 minutes.Optimization of reaction condition and various parameters has also been carried out.Recyclability of Cr-doped ZnO NRs was also evaluated and were found to be reusable for 11 cycles for degradation.

A comprehensive review on the phytochemistry, pharmacological properties, and in vitro propagation of an endemic medicinal orchid, Dactylorhiza hatagirea.

Dactylorhiza hatagirea (D. Don) Soo, also known as Himalayan Marsh Orchid or Salam Panja, belongs to the Orchidaceae family. It is found in sub-alpine to alpine regions at 2500-5000 m above sea level. The present review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the botany, phytochemistry, medicinal uses, toxicity, and conservation status of D. hatagirea and to find the research gaps to promote progress in studies of this orchid. Secondary metabolites, including alkaloids, terpenoids, flavonoids, phenolics, and saponins, were reported from the aerial and underground parts of this medicinal orchid. Several phytocompounds, such as dactylorhins A, B, C, D, and E and dactylose A and B, were isolated from the dried roots of D. hatagirea. A wide range of in vitro and in vivo assays was used to assess the biological properties of D. hatagirea, such as antirheumatic, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, diuretic, neuroprotective, antioxidant, wound healing, hypoglycemic, antitumor, antimicrobial, antiviral, and anticancer activities. It was also reported to boost testosterone levels, improving sexual desire and arousal. Due to overexploitation and a restricted habitat range, this essential medicinal plant has reached the extinction stage; therefore, a conservation-friendly harvesting approach is needed for this medicinal herb. In vitro techniques such as micropropagation, synthetic seed generation, and hairy root technology can contribute to its conservation. This review provides comprehensive insights into the botanical features, traditional uses, phytochemicals, pharmacological importance, and toxicity evaluation of this medicinal orchid. This review also provides detailed information on the conservation status of D. hatagirea and strategies to overcome the exploitation of this orchid.

Impact of fermented organic formulations combined with inorganic fertilizers on broccoli (Brassica oleracea L. var. italica Plenck) cv. Palam Samridhi.

A two-year field experiment (2018-19 and 2019-20) was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with a spacing of 60 × 45 cm involving three replications with ten treatments having cow manurial amendments along with integrated nutrient management in a plot size of 3.0 m × 1.8 m. The effect of the integration of cow manurial amendments and mineral fertilizers on soil fertility, nutrient uptake, yield, and economics of broccoli was studied. The experiment was laid out during the rabi season in the mid-hills of Himachal Pradesh. T8 [90% RDN (112.5 N: 67.5 P: 46.8 K kg/ha) + 5% jeevamrit (1.5 l/m2) + 5% jeevamrit foliar spray] obtained the greatest organic carbon (20.93 g kg-1), available N (375.13 kg ha-1), P (48.46 kg ha-1), K (260.53 kg ha-1) in the soil as well as more uptake of N (60.58 kg ha-1), P (7.25 kg ha-1) and K (37.88 g ha-1) by the plants. Further, this treatment obtained the greatest value for yield (186.77 q ha-1 and 12.44 kg plot-1), net income (₹ 245840) and cost-benefit ratio (1.93). Outcomes of this investigation suggested that combined usage of cow manure, jeevamrit, beejamrit, and ghanjeevamrit with inorganic fertilizers proved to be useful for enhancing soil health, increasing nutrient uptake, and ensuring sustainable production of broccoli.

Preparation of graphene oxide-doped silica aerogel using supercritical method for efficient removal of emerging pollutants from wastewater.

Emerging pollutants and a large volume of unused dyes from the textile industry have been contaminating water bodies. This work introduces a scalable approach to purifying water by the adsorption of Acid green 25 (AG), Crystal Violet (CV), and Sulfamethoxazole (SMA) from an aqueous solution by graphene oxide (GO) doped modified silica aerogel (GO-SA) with supercritical fluid deposition (SFD) method. Characterization of GO-SA using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) adsorption isotherms revealed the improvement in the adsorbent surface area, and its textural properties. The high removal percentages observed in most of the experimental runs provide evidence of the excellent performance of the adsorbent towards the anionic and cationic dyes along with the antibiotic. The adsorption isotherm and kinetics showed that the Langmuir isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetic models could explain adsorption. The adsorbent holds a higher adsorption capacity for SMA (67.07 mg g-1) than for CV (41.46 mg g-1) and AG (20.56 mg g-1) due to the higher hydrophobicity that interacts with the hydrophobic adsorbent. The GO-SA successfully removed AG, CV, and SMA with removal percentages of 98.23%, 98.71%, and 94.46%, respectively. The parameters were optimized using Central Composite Design (RSM-CCD). The prepared aerogel showed excellent reusability with a removal efficiency of > 85% even after 5 cycles. This study shows the potential of GO-SA adsorbent in textile and other wastewater purification.

Phytochemical Analysis, In Vitro Biological Activities, and Computer-Aided Analysis of Potentilla nepalensis Hook Compounds as Potential Melanoma Inhibitors Based on Molecular Docking, MD Simulations, and ADMET.

Potentilla nepalensis Hook is a perennial Himalayan medicinal herb of the Rosaceae family. The present study aimed to evaluate biological activities such as the antioxidant, antibacterial, and anticancer activities of roots and shoots of P. nepalensis and its synergistic antibacterial activity with antibacterial drugs. Folin-Ciocalteau and aluminium chloride methods were used for the calculation of total phenolic (TPC) and flavonoid content (TFC). A DPPH radical scavenging assay and broth dilution method were used for the determination of the antioxidant and antibacterial activity of the root and shoot extracts of P. nepalensis. Cytotoxic activity was determined using a colorimetric MTT assay. Further, phytochemical characterization of the root and shoot extracts was performed using the Gas chromatography-mass spectrophotometry (GC-MS) method. The TPC and TFC were found to be higher in the methanolic root extract of P. nepalensis. The methanolic shoot extract of P. nepalensis showed good antioxidant activity, while then-hexane root extract of P. nepalensis showed strong cytotoxic activity against tested SK-MEL-28 cells. Subsequently, in silico molecular docking studies of the identified bioactive compounds predicted potential anticancer properties. This study can lead to the production of new herbal medicines for various diseases employing P. nepalensis, leading to the creation of new medications.

Energy-saving COVID-19 biomedical plastic waste treatment using the thermal - Catalytic pyrolysis.

The rate of Biomedical waste generation increases exponentially during infectious diseases, such as the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which burst in December 2019 and spread worldwide in a very short time, causing over 6 M casualties worldwide till May 2022. As per the WHO guidelines, the facemask has been used by every person to prevent the infection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and discarded as biomedical waste. In the present work, a 3-ply facemask was chosen to be treated using the solvent, which was extracted from the different types of waste plastics through the thermal-catalytic pyrolysis process using a novel catalyst. The facemask was dispersed in the solvent in a heating process, followed by dissolution and precipitation of the facemask in the solvent and by filtration of the solid facemask residue out of the solvent. The effect of peak temperature, heating rate, and type of solvent is observed experimentally, and it found that the facemask was dissolved completely with a clear supernate in the solvent extracted from the (polypropylene + poly-ethylene) plastic also saved energy, while the solvent from ABS plastic was not capable to dissolute the facemask. The potential of the presented approach on the global level is also examined.

Study to Assess Level of Preoperative Anxiety in Patients Scheduled for Surgery.

BACKGROUND: Pre-operative anxiety is unpleasant state of tension or uneasiness that results from patient doubt and fear before an operation. This study aims at assessing level of state and trait anxiety and other associated factors among preoperative patient. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was done among 195 patients above 18 years of age planned for elective surgery the following day in different departments in tertiary care center. State and Trait Anxiety Inventory and self-designed semi structured pro-forma was used to assess anxiety and patient particulars respectively. RESULTS: There were 195 patients in study among which 93(47.7%) underwent major surgery and 102 (52.3%) underwent minor surgery. The mean State Anxiety Score was 45.89±12.502. The mean Trait Anxiety Score was 43.17±9.342. State and Trait anxiety differed significantly in male and female patients. Trait Anxiety was associated with education and marital status. CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant difference in anxiety level in patient undergoing major and minor surgery. Male and female patients differed significantly in both State and Trait Anxiety.

Seasonal variations in the nutritive value of fifteen multipurpose fodder tree species: A case study of north-western Himalayan mid-hills.

Multipurpose tree species are recognized as an important fodder source for livestock, but their potential remains untapped due to dearth of knowledge about their nutritive value. Therefore, 15 MPTs, i.e., Acacia catechu, Albizia chinensis, Bauhinia variegata, Celtis australis, Ficus roxburghii, Grewia optiva, Leucaena leucocephala, Melia composita, Morus serrata, Olea glandulifera, Ougienia oojeinensis, Pittosporum floribundum, Quercus glauca, Q. leucotrichophora and Salix tetrasperma were evaluated for nutritional characteristics, relative nutritive value index (RNVI), palatability index and farmers' preference on a seasonal basis in north-western Himalayas mid-hills. Most of the nutritive and mineral content decreased as leaves matured with the exception of ether extract, calcium, copper, organic matter and carbohydrate content, while cell-wall constituents and anti-nutritional contents increased. Overall, M. serrata had the highest RNVI in spring and summer, while G. optiva during autumn and winter. Similarly, L. leucocephala had the highest palatability (97.86%), while M. composita (38.47%) had the lowest one. Additionally, G. optiva was the most favored MPT for livestock among farmers, while M. composita was the least ones. The outcome of the study will help policy makers, planners and farm managers in establishing large scale plantations of highly nutritious and palatable species, like G. optiva, L. leucocephala, B. variegata, and M. serrata for year-round supply of green leaves and as a supplement to low-quality feed.

CNN Based Multiclass Brain Tumor Detection Using Medical Imaging.

Brain tumors are the 10th leading reason for the death which is common among the adults and children. On the basis of texture, region, and shape there exists various types of tumor, and each one has the chances of survival very low. The wrong classification can lead to the worse consequences. As a result, these had to be properly divided into the many classes or grades, which is where multiclass classification comes into play. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) pictures are the most acceptable manner or method for representing the human brain for identifying the various tumors. Recent developments in image classification technology have made great strides, and the most popular and better approach that has been considered best in this area is CNN, and therefore, CNN is used for the brain tumor classification issue in this paper. The proposed model was successfully able to classify the brain image into four different classes, namely, no tumor indicating the given MRI of the brain does not have the tumor, glioma, meningioma, and pituitary tumor. This model produces an accuracy of 99%.

Embolia Cutis Medicamentosa (Nicolau Syndrome) Secondary to Intramuscular Fulvestrant Injection: A Case Report.

PURPOSE: A case of embolia cutis medicamentosa (Nicolau syndrome) in a patient receiving monthly intramuscular fulvestrant injections is presented. SUMMARY: An 85-year-old woman receiving monthly fulvestrant injections in the outpatient setting developed a necrotic lesion at the fulvestrant injection site on her right buttock. Her medical history is notable for metastatic breast cancer with bone metastases. Prior to developing the necrotic lesion, the patient was receiving monthly fulvestrant injections for 6 years. Other potential causes such as infection and pressure necrosis were ruled out clinically. After 185 days of wound care involving multiple surgical debridements, topical therapy, and frequent follow-up appointments, the patient's wound resolved with 100% epithelialization. Nicolau syndrome has been reported with other non-vesicant, injectable medications such as antibiotics and corticosteroids; however, it has not been previously reported with fulvestrant. CONCLUSION: Nicolau syndrome developed in the right buttock of a patient with metastatic breast cancer following an intramuscular fulvestrant injection. Healthcare practitioners need to be cognizant of this adverse effect with intramuscular injections in order to recognize and refer patients for wound care evaluation early in the evolution of this syndrome. Proper injection technique is recommended to reduce the risk of this idiopathic adverse effect.

Anxiety and Depression among Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease Undergoing Haemodialysis in a Tertiary Care Centre: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.

Introduction: Chronic kidney disease is a global public health problem with psychological issues and other adverse issues like renal failure, cardiovascular disease, and premature deaths. This study aimed to find out the prevalence of anxiety and depression among patients with chronic kidney disease undergoing haemodialysis in a tertiary care centre. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was done among patients with chronic kidney disease undergoing haemodialysis in the Department of Medicine, Nephrology unit of a tertiary care centre from December 2020 to June 2021. Ethical approval was taken from the Institutional Review Committee (Reference number: 1712202003). The whole sampling method was used. The diagnosis of anxiety and depression was made using the Nepali version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale with a cut-off of ≥8 scores. Results: Among 96 patients, the prevalence of anxiety was 66 (68.75%) and that of depression was 74 (77.08%) patients. Conclusions: The prevalence of anxiety and depression was similar to other studies done in similar settings. Keywords: anxiety; chronic kidney disease; depression; hemodialysis.

Effect of lockdown on mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic among individuals attending services at a tertiary care center.

BACKGROUND: Lockdown is an emergency measure or condition in which people are temporarily prevented from entering or leaving a restricted area or building during a threat or danger. Since the start of COVID-19 till date, almost one-third of the world's population is under some degree of restriction and lockdown, and the mental health effect of which is something that is being discussed widely. AIM: The study aimed to assess the effect of lockdown on mental health among individuals (patients or accompanying person) seeking services at a tertiary care center. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Kathmandu Medical College is a tertiary care center and a medical college in Kathmandu, Nepal. In this study, we enrolled every 4th individual coming to the hospital's outpatient department registration counter to seek service and giving consent, for the duration of 1 month during the ongoing lockdown period. A semi-structured questionnaire was developed and approved by the department and was used to collect sociodemographic details and to rate the stress level. The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) Nepali version was used to assess psychological well-being of the participants and a score of ≥3 by binary method was taken as positive case. RESULTS: The total number of cases enrolled in the study was 204, out of them 62.2% were male and 32.8% were female and the mean age was 32.03 years. Twenty-three percent (23.5%) had preexisting health conditions. Out of the 204 participants, 67.6% said they were stressed following the lockdown and the mean rated stress was 2.90 in a scale ranging from 1 to 7. The frequently identified stressors were fear of contamination, restricted movement, and for inadequate supplies. Twenty-seven percent said they had some psychological symptoms and the most common symptoms were palpitation and sleep disturbance. Seventy-three individuals (36.5%) were found to have psychiatric problem according to their scores in GHQ-12. Rated stress and GHQ-12 scores were found to be strongly correlated (P = 0.000). Similarly, those who stated "Yes" in psychological symptoms significantly scored higher on GHQ-12 and stress (both P = 0.000). CONCLUSION: The lockdown has caused stress in majority of cases, and a significant number of individuals have diagnosable mental health conditions. Mental health impact of the lockdown is something that needs to be addressed seriously.

Microbes involved in arsenic mobilization and respiration: a review on isolation, identification, isolates and implications.

Microorganisms play an important role in arsenic (As) cycling in the environment. Microbes mobilize As directly or indirectly, and natural/geochemical processes such as sulphate and iron reduction, oxidative sulphide mineral dissolution, arsenite (AsO33-) oxidation and arsenate (AsO43-) respiration further aid in As cycle in the environment. Arsenate serves as an electron donor for the microbes during anaerobic conditions in the sediment. The present work reviews the recent development in As contamination, various As-metabolizing microbes and their phylogenetic diversity, to understand the role of microbial communities in As respiration and mobilization. It also summarizes the contemporary understanding of the intricate biochemistry and molecular biology of natural As metabolisms. Some successful examples of engineered microbes by harnessing these natural mechanisms for effective remediation are also discussed. The study indicates that there is an exigent need to have a clear understanding of environmental aspects of As mobilization and subsequent oxidation-reduction by a suitable microbial consortium.

Podophyllin Toxicity with Systemic Manifestations in a Young Male.

Podophyllin poisoning is a rare but a fatal poisoning with a long term systemic and neurological sequela. There has been no case report reported in an adult in India. We present a 28-year-old young male with podophyllin poisoning. This report confirms the transient central neurotoxicity of podophyllin and persistent peripheral neurotoxicity of podophyllin.

Knowledge of Alzheimer's Disease Among Medical Students of a Medical College.

INTRODUCTION: Dementia is a public health concern as the prevalence is increasing worldwide with significant increase being in low-middle income countries. However these countries appear to be less prepared in handling this rise in terms of diagnosis and management. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Kathmandu medical College, from June 2017 to July 2017. Purposive sampling was done and the medical students who were in their first and final year of study were included in the study after obtaining an informed consent. RESULTS: Total 185 students were included in the study, 80 (43.24%) from first year and 105 (56.75%) from final year of medical study. The mean score of knowledge among the students was 17.44±2.46; 15.32±1.22 among first year and 19.06±1.87 among the final year students. Majority of the students said they have heard about dementia however, only 3 (3.75%) of first year and 43 (41.9%) from final year students have either attended a class or continuing medical education on dementia Conclusions: The knowledge about dementia was found to be average among medical students but better among final year medical students in comparison to first year. The knowledge was found to be better statistically among those who had either attended a class or continuing medical education on dementia or had exposure through different medias.

Assessing Caregiver Burden in Caregivers of Patients with Schizophrenia and Bipolar Affective Disorder in Kathmandu Medical College.

BACKGROUND: Schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder are chronic psychiatric illness that requires long term care. This study tends to measure psychological burden and factors associated with it among caregivers of these two illnesses. METHODS: This is a cross- sectional study that included participants by purposive sampling method. Self designed performa was used to collect the socio-demographic details of the caregivers. Modified caregiver strain index was used to assess the overall stress. Beck`s depression inventory and Beck`s anxiety inventory was used to assess depression and anxiety respectively. RESULTS: Hundred caregivers, 50 each of schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder were enrolled. Seventy-two percent of caregivers were found to have higher level of stress. Twenty-five percent had depression and 29% anxiety related problems. Stress was found to be significantly associated with being in debt, longer duration of illness, education level, marital status, subjective feeling of psychological stress and self- acknowledgement of need of professional help. Caregivers of both group experienced similar level of stress. CONCLUSIONS: Psychological burden is seen to be high in caregivers of patients of Schizophrenia and Bipolar Affective Disorder.

Discovery of novel pyrazolopyrimidinone analogs as potent inhibitors of phosphodiesterase type-5.

Cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) specific phosphodiesterase type-5 (PDE5), a clinically proven target to treat erectile dysfunction and diseases associated with lower cGMP levels in humans, is present in corpus cavernosum, heart, lung, platelets, prostate, urethra, bladder, liver, brain, and stomach. Sildenafil, vardenafil, tadalafil and avanafil are FDA approved drugs in market as PDE5 inhibitors for treating erectile dysfunction. In the present study a lead molecule 4-ethoxy-N-(6-hydroxyhexyl)-3-(1-methyl-7-oxo-3-propyl-6,7-dihydro-1H-pyrazolo[4,3-d]pyrimidin-5-yl)benzenesulfonamide, that is, compound-4a, an analog of pyrazolopyrimidinone scaffold has been identified as selective PDE5 inhibitor. A series of compounds was synthesized by replacing N-methylpiperazine moiety (ring-C) of sildenafil structure with different N-substitutions towards sulfonamide end. Compound-4a showed lower IC50 value (1.5 nM) against PDE5 than parent sildenafil (5.6 nM) in in vitro enzyme assay. The isoform selectivity of the compound-4a against other PDE isoforms was similar to that of the Sildenafil. In corroboration with the in vitro data, this molecule showed better efficacy in in vivo studies using the conscious rabbit model. Also compound-4a exhibited good physicochemical properties like solubility, caco-2 permeability, cLogP along with optimal PK profile having no significant CYP enzyme inhibitory liabilities. Discovery of these novel bioactive compounds may open a new alternative for developing novel preclinical candidates based on this drugable scaffold.

Development of a validated UPLC-qTOF-MS Method for the determination of curcuminoids and their pharmacokinetic study in mice.

BACKGROUND: A specific and sensitive UPLC-qTOF-MS/MS method has been developed for the simultaneous determination of curcuminoids. These Curcuminoids comprises of curcumin, a principal curcuminoid and other two namely, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin obtained from rhizomes of Curcuma longa an ancient Indian curry spice turmeric, family (Zingiberaceae). METHODS: These analytes were separated on a reverse phase C18 column by using a mobile phase of acetonitrile: 5% acetonitrile in water with 0.07% acetic acid (75:25 v/v), flow rate of 100 µL/min was maintained. The qTOF-MS was operated under multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode using electro-spray ionization (ESI) technique with positive ion polarity. The major product ions in the positive mode for curcuminoids were at m/z 369.1066, 339.1023 and 309.0214 respectively. The recovery of the analytes from mouse plasma was optimized using solid phase extraction technique. RESULTS: The total run time was 5 min and the peaks of the compounds, bisdemethoxycurcumin, demethoxycurcumin and curcumin occurred at 2.06, 2.23 and 2.40 min respectively. The calibration curves of bisdemethoxycurcumin, demethoxycurcumin and curcumin were linear over the concentration range of 2-1000 ng/mL (r2, 0.9951), 2-1000 ng/mL (r2, 0.9970) and 2-1000 ng/mL (r2, 0.9906) respectively.Intra-assay and inter-assay accuracy in terms of % bias for curcumin was in between -7.95to +6.21, and -7.03 to + 6.34; for demethoxycurcumin was -6.72 to +6.34, and -7.86 to +6.74 and for bisdesmetoxycurcumin was -8.23 to +6.37 and -8.47 to +7.81. The lower limit of quantitation for curcumin, demethoxycurcumin and bisdemethoxycurcumin was 2.0 ng/mL. Analytes were stable under various conditions (in autosampler, during freeze-thaw, at room temperature, and under deep-freeze conditions). This validated method was used during pharmacokinetic studies of curcumin in the mouse plasma. CONCLUSIONS: A specific, accurate and precise UPLC-qTOF-MS/MS method for the determination of curcumin, demethoxycurcumin and bisdemethoxycurcumin both individually and simultaneously was optimized.

A novel phantom model for mouse tumor dose assessment under MV beams.

In order to determine a mouse's dose accurately and prior to engaging in live mouse radiobiological research, a tissue-equivalent tumor-bearing phantom mouse was constructed and bored to accommodate detectors. Comparisons were made among four different types of radiation detectors, each inserted into the mouse phantom for radiation measurement under a 6 MV linear accelerator beam. Dose detection response from a diode, thermoluminescent dosimeters, and metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors were used and compared to that of a reference pinpoint ionization chamber. A computerized treatment planning system was also directly compared to the chamber. Each detector system demonstrated results similar to the dose computed by the treatment planning system, although some differences were noted. The average disagreement from an accelerator calibrated output dose prescription in the range of 200-400 cGy was -0.4% ± 0.5 σ for the diode, -2.4% ± 2.6 σ for the TLD, -2.9% ± 5.0 σ for the MOSFET, and +1.3% ± 1.4 σ for the treatment planning system. This phantom mouse design is unique, simple, reproducible, and therefore recommended as a standard approach to dosimetry for radiobiological mouse studies by means of any of the detectors used in this study. The authors fully advocate for treatment planning modeling when possible prior to linac-based dose delivery.