Toxic effects of cadmium on the physiological and biochemical attributes of plants, and phytoremediation strategies: A review.

Anthropogenic activities pose a more significant threat to the environment than natural phenomena by contaminating the environment with heavy metals. Cadmium (Cd), a highly poisonous heavy metal, has a protracted biological half-life and threatens food safety. Plant roots absorb Cd due to its high bioavailability through apoplastic and symplastic pathways and translocate it to shoots through the xylem with the help of transporters and then to the edible parts via the phloem. The uptake and accumulation of Cd in plants pose deleterious effects on plant physiological and biochemical processes, which alter the morphology of vegetative and reproductive parts. In vegetative parts, Cd stunts root and shoot growth, photosynthetic activities, stomatal conductance, and overall plant biomass. Plants' male reproductive parts are more prone to Cd toxicity than female reproductive parts, ultimately affecting their grain/fruit production and survival. To alleviate/avoid/tolerate Cd toxicity, plants activate several defense mechanisms, including enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants, Cd-tolerant gene up-regulations, and phytohormonal secretion. Additionally, plants tolerate Cd through chelating and sequestering as part of the intracellular defensive mechanism with the help of phytochelatins and metallothionein proteins, which help mitigate the harmful effects of Cd. The knowledge on the impact of Cd on plant vegetative and reproductive parts and the plants' physiological and biochemical responses can help selection of the most effective Cd-mitigating/avoiding/tolerating strategy to manage Cd toxicity in plants.

Linezolid induced psychosis and hallucination: Case report and literature review.

Introduction: Various classes of antibiotics have been linked to causing a wide range of neuropsychiatric symptoms. These manifestations range from psychosis and delirium to encephalitis and intracranial hypertension. The prevalence of psychosis adverse drug reactions (ADRs) for individual antibiotics ranges from 0.3 to 3.8%. We report a rare case of linezolid-induced psychosis and hallucination. Case presentation: We report a 52-year-old Asian gentleman who presented with an altered level of consciousness and hallucinations. He was treated for third-degree burns of 31% of the body for two months. Based on clinical and laboratory investigations, linezolid-induced psychosis and hallucination were diagnosed. His Naranjo probability score was +8. The drug was stopped, and the patient recovered successfully. Conclusion: On rare occasions, toxic blood levels of linezolid can lead to neuropsychiatric manifestations. Both linezolid-induced psychosis and hallucinations are manageable by suspension of the drug. Therefore, physicians should monitor the blood levels of this antibiotic to keep their patients safe from such serious adverse effects.

Prevalence of Common Mental Disorders in South Asia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Regression Analysis.

South Asian countries report the highest prevalence of common mental disorders (CMDs) globally. This systematic review and meta-analysis report the pooled prevalence of CMDs among the South Asian countries. Database searches were conducted in eight electronic databases. Titles, abstracts, full-text screening, and extraction of data on the event rate of 17 indicators of CMDs were performed by two independent reviewers. A total of 160 studies were included and data analysis was done using the Comprehensive Meta-analysis Software (v.3). A prevalence of depressive symptoms was 26.4% among 173,449 participants, alcohol abuse was 12.9% (n = 107,893); anxiety 25.8% (n = 70,058); tobacco smoking 18.6% (n = 84,965); PTSD 17.2% (n = 42,298); mixed anxiety and depression 28.4% (n = 11,102); suicidal behaviors 6.4% (n = 25,043); misuse of opiates 0.8% (n = 37,304); tobacco chewing 21.0% (n = 10,586); use of cannabis 3% (n = 10,977); GAD 2.9% (n = 70,058); bipolar disorder 0.6% (n = 7,197); IV drug abuse 2.5% (n = 15,049); panic disorder 0.01% (n = 28,087); stimulant use 0.9% (n = 1,414); OCD 1.6% (n = 8,784) and phobic disorders 1.8% (n = 27,754). This study reported a high prevalence of CMDs in South Asian countries; necessitating further research on psychiatric epidemiology in those contexts. It informs the need for effective policymaking and implementation of culturally appropriate multilevel interventions.

Adequate supply of sulfur simultaneously enhances iron uptake and reduces cadmium accumulation in rice grown in hydroponic culture.

Cadmium (Cd) pollution poses serious risks to human health and the rice consumption is a major contribution to dietary intake of this toxic metal. In addition, Cd causes interference to iron (Fe) uptake by rice, leading to Fe deficiency, which is a common malnutrition worldwide. Sulfur (S) is essential for the rice yield and quality; however, the roles of S supply in the Cd and Fe absorption and distribution in rice have not been systematically investigated. Here, we conducted a hydroponic experiment to examine the effects of S application on the uptake and translocation of Cd and Fe in rice under Cd treatment (1.0 µM) combined with four S levels (0, 1.75, 3.5, 7.0 mM). Rice growth was suppressed by Cd but the toxicity was alleviated with S treatment, which also led to decline of Cd concentrations in rice roots, stems and leaves. In the case of low S (1.75 mM), the Fe plaque on the root surface did not decline in the presence of Cd, but it markedly decreased with the increase of S supply (3.5 and 7.0 mM). The Fe contents in rice roots and leaves consistently increased with the S provision regardless of Cd treatment. In addition, the Cd exposure and S supply significantly promoted syntheses of thiol molecules and nicotianamine (NA), but the NA levels in rice tissues decreased when the S addition reached 7.0 mM. Taken together, results of this study demonstrate that sufficient supply of S may augment Fe bioavailability and minimize Cd accumulation in rice under hydroponic conditions.

Association of psychosis with antiphospholipid antibody syndrome: A systematic review of clinical studies.

OBJECTIVE: In this systematic review, we reviewed the association between Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APS) and psychosis and focused on the prevalence, clinical presentation, immunologic and neurological workup, treatment options, and clinical outcomes. METHODOLOGY: We performed this systematic review according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA)'s guidelines. We searched eight databases for potential articles and manually searched references and relevant articles of included studies. We included all articles reporting psychotic symptoms in patients with APS. Article quality was assessed using an adapted version of the Cancer Council Australia tool for case-series. RESULTS: We included 23 articles of 454 articles found. The mean patient age at presentation was 39years and most patients were women. Delusions and hallucinations were the common clinical manifestations of APS-associated psychosis. Findings on neuroimaging were attributed to APS-associated thrombosis in most cases. Most patients had a complete resolution of psychotic symptoms. CONCLUSION: APS-associated psychosis is rare. Later age of onset for psychosis, sudden onset, female sex, and comorbid medical and psychiatric symptoms should raise the suspicions for the presence of APS. APS-associated psychosis may have a favorable prognosis. However, further studies need to validate this conclusion.

Health Care Disparities Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth: A Literature Review.

About 3.5% Americans identify themselves as lesbian, gay, or bisexual while 0.3% identify themselves as transgender. The LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community belongs to almost every race, ethnicity, religion, age, and socioeconomic group. The LGBT youth are at a higher risk for substance use, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), cancers, cardiovascular diseases, obesity, bullying, isolation, rejection, anxiety, depression, and suicide as compared to the general population. LGBT youth receive poor quality of care due to stigma, lack of healthcare providers' awareness, and insensitivity to the unique needs of this community. The main objective of this literature review is to highlight the challenges faced by the LGBT youth and to enhance the awareness among physicians about the existing disparities in order to provide a more comprehensive, evidence-based, and humane medical care to this community.

Social Support and Resilience Among Patients with Burn Injury in Lahore, Pakistan.

INTRODUCTION: Social support and ego resiliency play a great role in maintaining the physical and mental health of patients with burn injuries. The present study has been designed to compare ego resiliency levels and the degree of social support in patients with a burn injury and their healthy counterparts. METHODS: This study was conducted in two teaching hospitals in Lahore, Pakistan from May 2015 to July 2015. A total of 80 burn patients presenting in outpatient departments of general surgery, plastic surgery, and burn centers of these hospitals were surveyed conveniently, and for comparison, 80 patients presenting in outpatient departments with minor ailments, for routine checkups or follow-ups were recruited. The questionnaire comprised three sections: demographics, the Urdu versions of the Ego Resiliency Scale (ER-89), and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). All data were analyzed in SPSS v. 20 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). RESULTS: Patients with a burn injury were associated with lower scores on the social support scale as well as its subscales assessing support from the significant other, family and friends than their healthy counterparts. However, no significant differences in scores on the ego resiliency scale were reported between these two groups. CONCLUSION: Patients with a burn injury perceived low social support levels from society, which negatively affects their health outcomes. However, their resilience levels were not significantly different from their healthy counterparts.