Thermal Stability and X-ray Attenuation Studies on α-Bi2O3, ß-Bi2O3 and Bi Based Nanocomposites for Radiopaque Fabrics.

Nanocomposites containing α-Bi2O3, ß-Bi2O3 and Bi nanoparticles as nanofillers in vulcanized silicone resin as a matrix are prepared and their diagnostic X-ray attenuation property is studied. The nanocomposites are prepared using a simple solution casting technique, with nanofiller concentration varying from 2-50 wt%. Thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry are performed to study the thermal stability of the nanocomposites. The attenuation property is studied by exposing the nanocomposites containing α-Bi2O3, ß-Bi2O3 and Bi nanoparticles to X-rays of energy 30-60 keV. Nanocomposites containing ß-Bi2O3 nanoparticles are found to exhibit the highest attenuation than nanocomposites of α-Bi2O3 and Bi nanoparticles of similar concentration. Nanocomposites containing 50 wt% of ß-Bi2O3 nanoparticles exhibit an X-ray attenuation of 93, 86, 71, 45 and 10% at an X-ray photon energy of 40, 45, 50, 55 and 59 keV, respectively. Further increase in photon energy is found to saturate the flat panel detector owing to the lower thickness of the nanocomposites. Analysis of high resolution X-ray radiographs of the nanocomposites confirms the uniform distribution of nanofillers in the matrix. Thermal analysis confirms the structural integrity and thermal stability of the nanocomposites. Heat flow curves also confirm the interaction of nanofillers with the matrix, corroborated by a change in the peak position and its endothermic/exothermic nature, corresponding to the phase transition of the nanofillers. It is also interpreted from thermal analysis of nanocomposites that the nanofillers interact with the matrix either by intercalating in the bridging polymer chain of silicone resin network structure or by occupying the interchain space. Thermal analysis of X-ray exposed nanocomposites shows no significant change in heat flow rates, thus, confirming the stability of the nanocomposites. Our study shows that nanocomposites containing ß-Bi2O3 nanofiller are potential candidates for radiopaque fabrics which can find application in diagnostic X-ray shielding in mammography, dental scan, etc.

Microfluidic device for novel breast cancer screening by blood test using miRNA beacon probe.

Breast cancer is identified as the highest cause of death in women suffering from cancer. Early diagnosis is the key to increase the survival of breast cancer victims. Molecular diagnosis using biomarkers have advanced much in the recent years. The cost involved in such diagnosis is not affordable for most of the population. The concept being investigated here is to realize a simple diagnosis system for screening cancer by way of a blood test utilizing a miRNA based biomarker with a complementary molecular beacon probe. A microfluidic platform was designed and attached with a fluorescence reader, which is portable and cost effective. Experiments were performed with 51 blood samples of which 30 were healthy and 21 were positive for breast cancer, collected against institutional human ethical clearance, IHEC 16/180-7-9-2016. miRNA 21 was chosen as the biomarker because it is overexpressed 4-fold in the serum of breast cancer patients. This work involved design of an experiment to prove the concept of miRNA over expression followed by detection of miRNA 21 using the microfluidic platform attached with a fluorescence reader and validation of the results using quantitative Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR). The results obtained from the microfluidic device concurred with qRT-PCR results. The device is suitable for point-of-care application in a mass-screening programme. The study also has revealed that the stage of the cancer could be indicated by this test, which will be further useful for deciding a therapeutic regime.

Empirical evidence of effects of stringency amid Covid-19 pandemic spread.

The objective of this paper is to provide an insight on effect of stringency in Covid-19 spread in India especially in Chennai, a city were more lockdown, and restrictions was imposed to control the infection. Even though the restriction was imposed in the country by the end of March 2020, the growth reduction was seen in the mid of June as the awareness was increased. The average Covid-19 case growth was got reduce from 3.43 to 2.62% by July mid. To analysis the impact of stringency, a detailed analysis was done on Chennai city which was imposed with more repeated lockdowns to flatten the curve. We tried to fit a regression line with three difference scenario of data. The results show a promising R-squared and p value, with a right skewed distribution normal probability plot. The impact of lockdown in people's lives in different sectors were also discussed in this paper.

A novel machine learning scheme for face mask detection using pretrained convolutional neural network.

Corona virus 2019 (COVID-19) erupted toward the end of 2019, and it has continued to be a source of concern for a large number of people and organizations well into 2020. Wearing a face cover has been shown in studies to reduce the risk of viral transmission while also providing a sense of security. Be that as it may, it isn't attainable to physically follow the execution of this strategy. This proposed system is built by pretrained deep learning model, Vgg16. The proposed scheme is easy to implement and use all the layers in vgg16 model and train only the last layer called fully connected layer, which reduce the training time and effort. The proposed scheme is trained and evaluated using two Face mask datasets, one having 1484 pictures and the other with 7200. For a smaller dataset, augmented pictures were utilized to enhance accuracy. The suggested model is tested on unknown pictures, and it correctly predicts whether the image is wearing a mask or not. The proposed scheme gives accuracy 96.50% during testing in small dataset. The model gives accuracy in medium dataset is 91% during testing. By using vgg16 pretrained model and image augmentation in the dataset improves performance and gives a high accuracy.

Guided ultrasonic wave-based investigation on the transient response in an axisymmetric viscoelastic cylindrical waveguide.

The analysis of ultrasonic wave propagation in an axisymmetric viscoelastic cylindrical waveguide under time-dependent preload is presented. It requires investigation of the transient response for understanding the dynamics of a multi-wire structure for non-destructive evaluation and health monitoring applications. The purpose of this research is to establish a platform for calculating the time-transient response of waveguides for propagating acoustic emission (AE) signals using a semi-analytical finite element (SAFE) method. The time-transient response analysis is carried out in the frequency domain, which combines the Fourier transform and Cauchy residue theorem. The fundamental idea is to use the modal superposition method to calculate the frequency response at each point and then utilize the inverse Fourier transform to convert the response to the time domain. For the numerical investigation, an axisymmetric SAFE method is utilized to simulate the AE signal for propagating in an infinitely long, high-strength steel wire with a diameter of 5 mm. The time-dependent loads used in the numerical investigation for analyzing time-transient responses are narrowband and broadband excitations. A nonlinear model for transient response analysis is developed to consider the contact state and friction effects of the surrounding steel wires in the multi-wire environment. A nonlinear device consisting of contact springs and friction-type dampers is considered to account for the contact state and friction effects of the surrounding steel wires. The investigations are carried out with a single set and two sets of nonlinear devices under various stiffness values and preload conditions to understand the response characteristics. The estimated value of the contact spring stiffness is based on calculating the Hertz semi-width between the steel wires when the seven-wire steel strands are under tension. From observation, the standard nonlinear features input high-frequency fluctuation components into the original ideal linear system and cause extended high-frequency fluctuation at the tail of the waveform. The proposed nonlinear model for analyzing the preload condition in the axisymmetric viscoelastic waveguide showed a possible way for guided wave propagation-based health monitoring applications for prestressed cables.

Antibacterial effects of goat and chicken heart tissues against human pathogenic bacteria.

The crude buffer (Tris Buffer Saline-I) extracts of muscles, liver, kidney and heart of goat and chicken (White leghorn) were screened against 16 clinical isolates. Among the five tissues, the heart tissue of each animal showed significant bactericidal activities on many isolates. The acid extracted crude proteins of both heart tissues also showed significant antibacterial activities against many bacterial isolates. The crude proteins of goat heart tissues displayed strong bactericidal activities against Salmonella paratyphi 'A' and Salmonella typhimurium (MIC: 16 microg/ml) whereas thecrude proteins of chicken heart tissues displayed strong bactericidal activities against Escherichia coli ATCC and Pseudomonas aeruginosa at 16 and 63 microg/ml concentrations respectively. The peptides of low molecular weight ( <30 kDa) were also separated from the acid extracted crude proteins of goat and chicken heart tissues by SDS-PAGE after staining with silver nitrate solution.

Profile of hematological abnormalities and its correlation with absolute CD4 count and human immunodeficiency virus viral load in human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients in a tertiary care hospital.

BACKGROUND: A variety of hematological manifestations are seen at every stage of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, and they often pose a great challenge in the comprehensive management of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Anemia is the most common hematological abnormality associated with HIV infection. The severity and the incidence of cytopenia are usually correlated with the stage of the disease and underlying immune status if interpreted cautiously, especially if the patient is on regular follow-up. The primary objective of the present study was to understand the spectrum of hematological abnormalities in HIV-infected patients, whereas the secondary objective was to evaluate the correlation of hematological abnormalities with absolute CD4 count and HIV viral load. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The present cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 100 patients, aged 18 years and above, diagnosed with HIV infection and confirmed by Western blot or ELISA method. Both inpatients and outpatients at our tertiary care hospital were included in the study. RESULTS: Individuals with high viral load and low CD4 count had a higher prevalence of anemia. There was a statistically significant and directly proportionate decrease in the absolute CD4 count as the hemoglobin levels decreased (P = 0.004). In the present study, normocytic normochromic blood picture and anemia of chronic disease blood picture were more prevalent among the study participants. Individuals with high viral load and CD4 count <200 cells/mm3 had a higher rate of occurrence of coinfections. The correlation of absolute neutrophil count and thrombocytopenia with absolute CD4 count and HIV viral load was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Complete blood counts and peripheral smear observations were significantly correlated with high HIV viral load and lower absolute CD4 cell counts and therefore can be suggested as economical alternatives for the evaluation of the status of HIV disease stage and its progression.

Prevalence of mandibular fractures.

AIM: The aim of this study was to determine the etiology, dissemination of mandibular fractures among different age, gender, and to determine the frequency of anatomic distribution in patients who reported to our institution from February 2015 to September 2015. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All patients who fulfilled the selection criteria and had mandible fracture were selected for the study. The values were subjected to Z and Chi-square tests. RESULTS: Out of 50 patients, 44 were male patients (88%) and 6 were female patients (12%). We found a peak occurrence of fractures in young adults, with mean age of 36 years. In case of etiology of fracture, road traffic accident was the most common (72%) and parasymphysis was most frequently involved site (n = 13.26%). CONCLUSION: In this study, the prevalence of mandibular fracture was more prevalent in male patients, especially during the third decade of life. The most common cause was road traffic accident and the more frequently affected region was parasymphysis of the mandible.

Drug prescription pattern of outpatients in a tertiary care teaching hospital in Tamil Nadu.

PURPOSE: Drug use prescribing indicators advocated by the World Health Organization (WHO) are important tools for assessing the degree of polypharmacy, use of generic medicines, and to evaluate if there is inappropriate use of antibiotics or parenteral medications besides estimating the adherence to the essential drugs list. This study aimed to assess the WHO prescribing indicators in prescriptions given at the medical outpatient department (OPD) in a private medical college hospital in South India. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was done prospectively from patients when they presented for consultation at the medical OPD at our tertiary care center. Prescriptions were randomly chosen to be analyzed for the WHO prescribing indicators from September 2016 to April 2017. RESULTS: A total of 700 prescriptions were analyzed and the average number of drugs per prescription was 2.955 ± 1.32. 32.57% of prescriptions had fixed drug combinations and a similar value of 36% was obtained for prescriptions containing more than one drug for the same indication. Amongst the prescribing indicators, generic prescribing was appallingly low (6.42%). In contrast, antibiotic prescribing and prescription of injections showed an appreciably rational trend with 15.42% and 8.14%, respectively. Furthermore, the prescription of the drugs enlisted in the essential drugs list was determined to be 90.67%. DISCUSSION: The need for increase in generic prescribing and augmenting the adherence of prescriptions to the essential drugs list has been identified. This can be accomplished by multimodal approach that includes regulatory changes, conducting educational programs directed at attitudinal change among current doctors and imparting modifications in medical curriculum so as to inculcate the culture of abiding by the best prescription practices among budding doctors. CONCLUSION: This study has delineated the requisite for pertinent changes in current prescribing trends in a tertiary care teaching private colleges.

Facile synthesis of graphene-CeO2 nanocomposites with enhanced electrochemical properties for supercapacitors.

Graphene-ceria (CeO2G) nanocomposites were prepared by using a low-temperature solution process with different weight percentages of graphene, and their electrochemical properties were investigated. Structural properties of the nanocomposites were studied by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and FTIR spectral analyses. FE-SEM and HRTEM images revealed a "wrinkled paper"-like morphology of the prepared composites. Elemental mapping images were recorded by using the FE-EPMA technique. XPS analyses revealed the binding states of different elements present in the composites. The composite with 5% graphene displayed a specific capacitance of 110 F g(-1), according to cyclic voltammetric studies, which is higher than that observed for pure CeO2 (75 F g(-1)). The significant increase in the specific capacitance suggests that the CeO2G is a promising material for supercapacitor applications.

Fresh water fishes as indicators of Kaveri River pollution.

The survey of fish fauna in Kaveri River at polluted and unpolluted sites revealed a direct effect on the distribution of fishes in that 14 species were observed in unpolluted site and only 6 species in polluted site. Further, the haemotological parameters like RBC, WBC and haemoglobin content increased in fishes collected from polluted site whereas the organic constituents of muscle decreased in the above fishes when compared to the fishes of unpolluted site. The reason for the above changes is discussed.

Growth kinetics and immune response of chimeric foot-and-mouth disease virus serotype 'O' produced through replication competent mini genome of serotype Asia 1, 63/72, in BHK cell lines.

Regular vaccinations with potent vaccine, in endemic countries and vaccination to live in non-endemic countries are the methods available to control foot-and-mouth disease. Selection of candidate vaccine strain is not only cumbersome but the candidate should grow well for high potency vaccine preparation. Alternative strategy is to generate an infectious cDNA of a cell culture-adapted virus and use the replicon for development of tailor-made vaccines. We produced a chimeric 'O' virus in the backbone of Asia 1 and studied its characteristics. The chimeric virus showed high infectivity titre (>10(10)) in BHK 21 cell lines, revealed small plaque morphology and there was no cross reactivity with antiserum against Asia 1. The virus multiplies rapidly and reaches peak at 12h post infection. The vaccine prepared with this virus elicited high antibody titres.

Infrared thermal imaging for detection of peripheral vascular disorders.

Body temperature is a very useful parameter for diagnosing diseases. There is a definite correlation between body temperature and diseases. We have used Infrared Thermography to study noninvasive diagnosis of peripheral vascular diseases. Temperature gradients are observed in the affected regions of patients with vascular disorders, which indicate abnormal blood flow in the affected region. Thermal imaging results are well correlated with the clinical findings. Certain areas on the affected limbs show increased temperature profiles, probably due to inflammation and underlying venous flow changes. In general the temperature contrast in the affected regions is about 0.7 to 1 degrees C above the normal regions, due to sluggish blood circulation. The results suggest that the thermal imaging technique is an effective technique for detecting small temperature changes in the human body due to vascular disorders.

WaveShrink Using Modified Hyper-Shrinkage Function.

WaveShrink plays pivotal role in analysis of complex bio signals. Wavelet analysis and WaveShrink are the established techniques of statistical research which have to be blended with the analysis of bio signals to provide a high degree of correlation between the desired signal and the observed signal. The multifaceted shrinkage function will obtain lurid responses to the signal perturbed to a very high degree by intransigent noise functions. It might be impossible to efface noise but its possible to ameliorate the recovery of the desired signal. Here we have obtained computationally efficient formula for computing the exact bias, variance, mean and risk. The former is the essence of any shrinkage function but latter is the essence of our paper. The purpose of our shrinkage function is to assuage the recovered signal to uphold our procedure for signal denoising and non-parametric regression. Our shrinkage function enjoys the same asymptotic convergence rate as the rest but offers obdurate resistance to pernicious factors disturbing the desired signal of interest.

Characterization of an alpha-macroglobulin-like glycoprotein isolated from the plasma of the soft tick Ornithodoros moubata.

We report the identification of the first representative of the alpha-2-macroglobulin family identified in terrestrial invertebrates. An abundant acidic glycoprotein was isolated from the plasma of the soft tick Ornithodoros moubata. Its molecular mass is about 420 kDa in the native state, whereas in SDS/PAGE it migrates as one band of 190 kDa under nonreducing conditions and a band of 92 kDa when reduced. Chemical deglycosylation reveals that it is composed of two different subunits, designated A and B. The N-terminal amino-acid sequence of subunit A is similar to the N-terminus of invertebrate alpha-2-macroglobulin. Sequence analysis of several internal peptides confirms that the tick protein belongs to the alpha-2-macroglobulin family, and the protein is therefore referred to as tick alpha-macroglobulin (TAM). Functional analyses strengthen this assignment. TAM inhibits trypsin and thermolysin cleavage of the high-molecular-weight substrate azocoll in a manner similar to that of bovine alpha-2-macroglobulin. This effect is abolished by pre-treatment of TAM with methylamine. In the presence of TAM, trypsin is protected against active-site inhibition by soybean trypsin inhibitor. We cloned and sequenced a PCR product containing sequences from both subunits and spanning the N-terminus of subunit B and the putative 'bait region' (a segment of alpha-2-macroglobulin which serves as target for various proteases). This indicates that the two subunits are generated from a precursor polypeptide by post-translational processing.