Effect of salt pretreatments on physico-chemical, cooking and rehydration kinetics of instant rice.

Instant rice is well-suited for ready-to-use applications as low-moisture, light-weight military ration and emergency food for our Armed Forces, offering longer shelf life with rapid rehydration characteristics. Present investigation demonstrated the effect of different salt pretreatment during soaking as precooking operation on the physico-chemical, cooking and rehydration kinetics of instant rice. Application of salt pretreatment reduced bulk density and damaged grain percentage, while enhanced the porosity, volume expansion percent, weight gain percentage, and rehydration characteristics. The grain elongation ratio was not affected significantly by the application of salt pretreatments; however, water uptake and chemical composition were significantly affected. Soaking pretreatment with 1% calcium chloride, followed by open pan cooking and subsequently freeze-thaw-dehydrating until attainment of 5-6% moisture content was found to be the optimal processing condition for developing instant rice with less than 2 min of rehydration time by mere addition of hot water. Modelling of water absorption behaviour revealed that both Peleg (R2 0.980-0.999) and Singh and Kulshrestha (R2 0.966-0.999) models fitted well. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13197-023-05877-y.

Telephonic intervention to combat non-adherence to oral iron-folic acid supplementation in pregnancy: A randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Iron deficiency anemia is a public health problem globally attributing to high incidences of maternal and infant mortality and morbidity. Iron and folic acid supplementation (IFAS) is essential and provided free of cost by the public health sectors, however, a systematic review shows that the national-level adherence to oral Iron-Folic Acid Supplementation (IFAS) is less than half in pregnant women, and the significant obstacles to non-adherence are fear of side effects and forgetfulness. This trial was designed to mitigate the side effects and tackle forgetfulness with telephonic intervention. The objectives were to investigate the effectiveness of the telephonic intervention on oral IFAS adherence and hemoglobin and the reasons for non-adherence to oral IFAS, to find out the proportion of anemia in the study population, and to assess the effectiveness of the intervention on maternal and neonatal outcomes. Methods: Hospital-based open-label multi-centric parallel-group randomized controlled trial, used block randomization and allocated treatment in a 1:1 ratio recruited 286 anemic pregnant women between 14 and 24 weeks of gestation with hemoglobin level < 11 g/dl having smartphones at a secondary hospital and a tertiary hospital in Eastern India. The experimental group received telephonic intervention for one month via structured text reminders, WhatsApp audio messages, and phone calls. The standard course of treatment was given to the control group. Results: 286 women (n1 =143, n2 =143) were randomized, 36 had attrition leaving 250 for analysis (n1 =123, n2 =127), the experimental group experienced a 44.9 % and the control group 13.8 % increase in adherence (P < 0.001). The leading reasons for non-adherence were forgetfulness (24 %), nausea and vomiting (23.2 %), and constipation (18.8 %). Hemoglobin level increased by 0.8 g/dl (P < 0.001) in the experimental group and 0.2 g/dl (P < 0.807) in the control group. Conclusion: In addition to improving adherence to oral IFAS, telephonic intervention mitigates side effects and enhances hemoglobin in anemic pregnant women. The increase in adherence was threefold in the experimental group compared to a marginal rise in the control group. This study recommends the implementation of a telephonic intervention to promote adherence to oral IFAS among anemic pregnant women.

Swasthya Assessment Scale (SAS)-Ayurveda based health assessment tool-insights on its development and validation.

Introduction: Ayurveda has a unique way of understanding the body, health, and diseases. Various determinants, including biological, ecological, medical, psychological, sociocultural, spiritual, and metaphysical factors, which depend on each other, have their role in determining health in Ayurveda. Currently, no validated health assessment scale, based on the principles of Ayurveda is available. This article, for the first time, reports the development, validation, and reliability testing of the Swasthya assessment scale - a health assessment tool developed in Ayurveda. Materials and methods: A thorough literature search and expert consultations were done to draft the items encompassing the concept of health in Ayurveda. A group of experts assessed the content validity of the drafted items. Cognitive de-briefing and pretesting were performed to modify the language and the content again. Reliability testing was done with an inter-observer agreement in a sample of 183 individuals. Results: The content validity index for items and the scale-level content validity index (S-CVI) were calculated. S-CVI for scale was excellent, with 85% agreement. The S-CVI/universal agreement was 0.45, and S-CVI/Average was 0.95. In inter-rater reliability, the percentage agreement was 73.7%. Pearson correlation coefficient was 0.808 showing a strong correlation. Conclusion: Following appropriate validation, the scale can be widely used in clinical practice to assess the patient's health status, guide the treatment plans, and monitor the progress of the health. It can also be used as a sensitive tool in the research of Ayurveda to assess the changes in patients brought about by Ayurveda interventions.

Vimentin as a potential therapeutic target in sorafenib resistant HepG2, a HCC model cell line.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common liver cancer with high mortality rate in patients suffering from liver diseases. The drug of choice used in advanced-stage of HCC is sorafenib. However, adaptive resistance has been observed in HCC patients undergoing long-term sorafenib treatment, lowering its effectiveness. Hence, it is important to overcome drug resistance to improve overall management of HCC. Here, we have identified a candidate biomarker for sorafenib resistance in a HCC model cell line, HepG2. METHODS: Initially, comparative proteomic profiling of parental HepG2 [HepG2 (P)] and sorafenib-resistant HepG2 [HepG2 (R)] cells was performed via MALDI (matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization) which revealed the deregulation of vimentin in HepG2 (R) cells. Gene and protein level expression of vimentin was also observed through quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT PCR) and fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS), respectively. Furthermore, withaferin A was used to study regulation of vimentin expression and its significance in sorafenib resistance. RESULTS: Both gene and protein level of vimentin expression was found to be downregulated in HepG2 (R) in comparison to HepG2 (P). Interestingly, the study demonstrated that withaferin A further lowered the expression of vimentin in HepG2 (R) cells in a dose-dependent manner. Also, inhibition of vimentin lowered ABCG2 expression and decreased cell viability in parental as well as sorafenib resistant HepG2 cells. CONCLUSION: Hence, our study for the first time highlighted the probable therapeutic potential of vimentin in sorafenib resistant HepG2, a HCC model cell line.

Effect of Moola Bandha (Perineum Contraction), A Yogic Lock on Cognitive Functions of College Students: An Exploratory Study.

Academic performance and excellence of college students are mainly depending on their cognitive functions. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a yogic lock or hold, Moola bandha (perineum contraction) on cognitive functions of teacher training college students. Twenty-three healthy volunteers with the mean ± standard deviation age of 21.96 ± 1.64 years were recruited from a district institute of education and training (DIET) college, North India. All the subjects were asked to perform Moola bandha for the duration of 30 min a day (15 min in the morning and 15 min in the evening) for a period of 30 days. Assessments were taken before and after the intervention period. Results of this study showed a significant increase in the scores of d2 attention total number, digits span forward and backward test, Stroop tasks (neutral total and correct, congruent total and correct, and incongruent correct), and self-control scale along with a significant reduction in d2 attention (omission, commission, and timings), trail making text A and B duration, and positive and negative affective schedule's negative affect scores compared with its respective baseline. These results suggest that 30 min of daily practice of Moola bandha for 30 days is effective in improving the cognitive functions of teacher training college students.

Review of health-care services for older population in India and possibility of incorporating AYUSH in public health system for geriatric care.

BACKGROUND: In a developing country like India, which has 10.11% population of >60 years age and a projection of rise of the same by 300% in 2050, health care of elderly is an enormous challenge. The developed world has evolved many models for elderly care, for example, nursing home care, health insurance, etc. Indian Government has also taken multiple measures in this direction by initiating National Policy on Older Persons, 1999, the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, the Old Age Pension Scheme, Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana 2017, etc. However, there is a necessity that, India must rapidly adapt to the complex health related, social and economic challenges caused by these demographic changes. This may be an opportunity for innovation in the health system by developing a perspective for healthy and active aging, though it is a major challenge. Health care of the older people cannot be achieved unless total health, i.e., physical, social, economic, psychological, and spiritual aspects are addressed. OBJECTIVE: The objective is to study current policies regarding geriatric health care in India and to propose the possibility to develop a model to provide comprehensive and dedicated health-care services to the older population by integrating conventional and indigenous systems of medicine dwelling in the country. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Electronic search in various scientific journals for research and review articles; electronic along with hand searching of conference proceedings, brochures, government policy documents, press releases, Ayurveda classical texts, etc., regarding geriatric health care in India and model health-care facilities in other countries and regarding of AYUSH systems in geriatric health care in India. RESULTS: There is an urgent need of adaptation and modification in the National Health System to cater the actual requirements of the elderly with plans and strategies dedicated to face their health-related challenges. Adoption of inclusive health-care interventions, can improve health outcomes by making it more acceptable, accessible, and affordable. CONCLUSION: Integration of AYUSH at various levels of health-care delivery system can potentially contribute to provide unique newer dimensions to the field of geriatric care in India.