Fractal Dimension and Radiomorphometric analysis of Orthopanoramic radiographs in patients with tobacco and areca nut associated oral mucosal lesions: A pilot in-vivo study in a North Indian cohort.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the fractal dimension (FD) and radiomorphometric indices (RMIs) in the mandible from orthopantomographic radiographs in patients with oral lesions associated with smokeless/smoking tobacco (SLT/ST) and areca nut habits in a North Indian cohort. STUDY DESIGN: A prospective, cross-sectional, observational pilot study was conducted of 120 subjects, including controls and 3 study groups of 30 patients each with oral submucous fibrosis, tobacco pouch keratosis, and oral leukoplakia (OL). Two observers calculated FD and the RMIs of mandibular cortical thickness (MCT), panoramic mandibular index (PMI), and mandibular cortical index (MCI). RESULTS: Mean FD was significantly reduced compared to controls with all oral lesions (P < .05) and with all habits in 3 of 4 regions of interest (P < .05). MCT was significantly reduced with OL (P < .005) and in ST users (P < .05). PMI did not differ regarding lesion status or habits. Compared to the controls, MCI C2 type was significantly more common in all oral lesions (P ≤ .005) and all types of habit (P < .005). Inter- and intraobserver agreement was strong to excellent. CONCLUSIONS: FD and RMI values were significantly altered compared to controls in oral lesions associated with tobacco and areca nut habits and in the dominant type of habit.

Nucleotide sequence analysis of VP7 gene of Indian isolates of bluetongue virus vis-à-vis other serotypes from different parts of the world.

Bluetongue virus (BTV), a member of genus Orbivirus, a family Reoviridae, is a non-enveloped with double shelled structure and ten segmented double stranded (ds) RNA genome. The RNA segment S7 encodes an inner capsid serogroup specific viral protein VP7. To amplify coding region of VP7 gene of BTV, new primers, forward primer (18-38 bp) and reverse primer (1156-1136 bp), were designed using VP7 gene sequences available in GenBank. This primer pair successfully amplified cell culture adapted Indian isolates of BTV belonging to two different serotypes 1 and 18. The coding sequences of two Indian isolates of BTV (BTV-1H and BTV-18B) were cloned into pPCR Script-Amp SK (+) plasmid vector and transformed into XL10-Gold Kan ultracompetent E. coli cells. The positive clones selected by blue-white screening and colony touch PCR were sequenced. The sequence analysis revealed that there was 93-97% nucleotide sequence identity in VP7 gene of three different Indian serotypes of BTV. The VP7 gene sequences of Indian isolates have comparatively less sequence homology (< 80%) with American (US), and French isolates compared to South African (SA), Australian (AUS) and Chinese (PRC) isolates. In silico restriction enzyme profile analysis of VP7 gene sequences revealed that Indian isolates of BTV-1 can be differentiated from other BTV-1 isolates reported from SA, AUS and PRC using TaqI. Similarly the Indian isolates of BTV belonging to three different serotypes can be differentiated using EcoRI, Hae III and TaqI restriction enzymes.

Fowl adenovirus serotype 4 associated with outbreaks of infectious hydropericardium in Haryana, India.

During 1998, hydropericardium syndrome was observed among 3-to-6-wk-old broilers in 45 different flocks of Haryana, India, with mortality ranging between 10% and 30%. Fowl adenovirus (FAV) was isolated from one of the affected flocks by chicken embryo liver cell culture. Serum neutralization test and polymerase chain reaction assay coupled with restriction enzyme analysis confirmed that the isolated virus belonged to FAV serotype 4. The disease was reproduced in 28-day-old broilers by subcutaneous and oral inoculation of isolated FAV4 alone. Typical hydropericardium and basophilic intranuclear inclusions in hepatocytes were observed in experimental birds by day 4 postinoculation.