Disintegrate (DIN) Theory Enabling Precision Engineering of Proteins.

The chemical toolbox for the selective modification of proteins has witnessed immense interest in the past few years. The rapid growth of biologics and the need for precision therapeutics have fuelled this growth further. However, the broad spectrum of selectivity parameters creates a roadblock to the field's growth. Additionally, bond formation and dissociation are significantly redefined during the translation from small molecules to proteins. Understanding these principles and developing theories to deconvolute the multidimensional attributes could accelerate the area. This outlook presents a disintegrate (DIN) theory for systematically disintegrating the selectivity challenges through reversible chemical reactions. An irreversible step concludes the reaction sequence to render an integrated solution for precise protein bioconjugation. In this perspective, we highlight the key advancements, unsolved challenges, and potential opportunities.

Measurement, determinants, barriers, and interventions for exercise adherence: A scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Adherence to exercise interventions is the cornerstone of a successful rehabilitation program. However, there is limited evidence on multifaceted components of exercise adherence. Therefore, we aimed to summarize the existing literature on measurement, determinants, barriers, theoretical frameworks, and evidence-based interventions that support exercise adherence. METHODS: We conducted a scoping review based on the PRISMA extension for scoping reviews guidelines and searched the literature in PubMed, Cochrane Databases of Systematic Reviews, ScienceDirect, and Web of Science. Two reviewers independently screened articles. The included articles were subjected to data extraction and qualitative synthesis. RESULTS: A total of 72 articles were included for this review. Data synthesis showed that there are no gold standard methods of measuring exercise adherence; however, questionnaires and daily logs are commonly used tools. The determinants of adherence are personal, disease-related, therapy-related, provider-related, and health system-related. The common barriers to adherence are the absence of a caregiver, low health literacy, poor communication by healthcare providers, cost, and lack of access to health facilities. Few evidence-based interventions used for supporting adherence are behavioral strategies, improving self-efficacy, motivational therapy, and mHealth or multimedia. CONCLUSION: Non-adherence to exercises is a challenge for healthcare providers. There are no standard guidelines for the evaluation and management of non-adherence to exercises. Future studies should aim at developing objective measures of exercise adherence and investigate the long-term effects of adherence strategies in different disease populations. It is an under-researched area and requires multipronged strategies to improve adherence levels among patients.

Impact of a home-based nutritional intervention program on nutritional status of preschool children: a cluster randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Undernutrition in under-five children remains a worldwide health issue and is considered one of the leading causes of increased morbidity and mortality. This study aims to assess the impact of home-based nutritional intervention on the nutritional status of preschool children living in rural areas of South India. METHODS: A single-blinded cluster randomized controlled trial evaluated the impact of the intervention, with weight gain as the primary outcome. A cluster of 12 villages was randomized to intervention or control arms. A total of 253 underweight preschool children from 12 clusters (villages) were randomized to intervention (n = 127) and control arm (n = 126). The intervention was composed of a health-teaching program and a demonstration of nutritious food preparation in addition to the regular services provided at the Anganwadi centers. The control arm received only standard routine care provided in the Anganwadi centre. The anthropometric assessment was carried out at the baseline and every month for a year. RESULT: A significant increase in the mean weight kilograms was noted in the intervention group (11.9 ± 0.98 to 13.78 ± 0.89) compared to the control group (11.8 ± 1.03 to 12.96 ± 0.88). In the intervention group, at the baseline, 41.5% were moderately malnourished (> - 2SD-3SD), which decreased to 24% at the end of the year. Similarly, severe malnutrition decreased from 8.69 to 3.16%, while 20.5% of malnourished children achieved normal nutritional status. In the control group, undernourished children demonstrated minimal changes in nutritional status. Analysis of repeated measures of ANOVA results between the intervention and control groups on weight measurements (F (1, 251) = 15.42, p .001) and height measurements (F (2, 1258) = 1.540, p .001) revealed statistical significance. CONCLUSION: The nutritional status of preschool children is found to be improved by home-based intervention, which includes training mothers or caregivers in planning and preparing healthy nutritious diets, providing timely care, and gaining an understanding and knowledge of the nutritional status along with regular home-based diet preparation. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ctri@gov.in CTRI/2017/03/008273 [Registered on: 31/03/2017].

Research Note: Characterization of antibiotic resistant phenotypes and linked genes of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae from healthy broiler chickens, Karnataka, India.

The study was carried out to estimate the burden and pattern of antibiotic resistance and to identify antibiotic resistance genes with focus on ESBL producers, plasmid mediated quinolone resistance, and tetracycline efflux genes, in faecal bacterial isolates collected from poultry farms of coastal Southern Karnataka, India. High resistance to fluoroquinolones was observed with 94% Escherichia coli and 80% Klebsiella pneumoniae being resistant to both ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin. All the Escherichia coli strains were resistant to tetracycline (100%). qnrB (38%) was the most common gene detected followed by qnrS (27%) and qnrA (21.5%). All Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates resistant to tetracycline harbored tetA gene. Most of the isolates in our study had high MAR indices indicating rampant use of antibiotics.

Exposure to Second Hand Tobacco Smoke among 12 year old Adolescents in Mangalore, Karnataka - A Descriptive Study.

BACKGROUND: There is no safe level of exposure to second hand tobacco smoke (SHS). The World Health Organization has stressed that 100% smoke-free environments are the only effective way to protect the population from the harmful effects of exposure to SHS. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional questionnaire study was done on 1442, 12 year old, adolescents in Mangalore to determine the exposure to SHS and  adolescents' knowledge, attitude, avoidance and self-efficacy of avoidance towards SHS. RESULTS: The percentage of children exposed to SHS at home was 28.6%. A higher number of male students reported that their parent and/or sibling smoked tobacco compared to their female counterparts. About 48% of the participants reported that persons who lived with them smoked in front of children and this was found to be significantly higher among males compared to females. Atleast 46% of the participants had knowledge of second hand tobacco smoke. The avoidance behaviour of the participants was good with most of the participants reporting positive avoidance towards SHS. With respect to their self - efficacy of avoidance of SHS, most of them were confident of avoiding SHS when they were with family or friends but the confidence was less with respect to strangers. Multivariate general linear model analysis showed a significant association between gender and exposure to SHS to 14 items out of the 25 items in the four domains. Males and those not exposed to SHS showed better knowledge, positive attitude, positive avoidance behaviour and positive self efficacy of avoidance to SHS. CONCLUSION: The findings of our study indicate that better knowledge and a positive attitude and avoidance behavior are associated with reduced exposure to SHS and this reinforces the fact that a sustained health education program incorporated into the school curriculum is the need of the hour.
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Are Our Diabetic Patients Adherent to the Treatment?

AIM: To estimate the adherence to treatment among type 2 diabetic patients. BACKGROUND: Treatment adherence is a complex process that is controlled by multiple factors. Lack of treatment adherence is common with patients who suffer from type 2 diabetes and is becoming a very prevalent problem especially with the patients who suffer from non-communicable diseases (NCD) worldwide. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the adherence to treatment among type 2 diabetic patients and the perception and practice of self-management among them. METHODS: A cross-sectional study using a questionnaire was conducted amongst the patients of Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore, a coastal city of southern India. The questionnaire consisted of Medical Adherence Rating Scale (MARS) to assess how adherent the patient is to the treatment and the Diabetes Self-care Questionnaire (DSMQ) for assessing the various self-care practices employed by diabetic patients. The data obtained was entered and the analysis was done by using the Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) version 25.0. RESULTS: The study involved 95 patients and the mean age was found to be 50.71 ± 12.633 years. More than 60% of the study population were male and 78.9% were literate. Nearly half of the patients (49.5%) had been on treatment for a duration of >5 years. Eighty-two percent population (82.1%) were adherent to their medications. Adherence was found to be nearly eighty percent (79.5%) among the literates. CONCLUSION: Adherence was more among the males as compared to the females. Most patients in the study had been adherent to their medications prescribed to them. Most of them were on oral drugs only. The majority of the patients who had diabetes mellitus were found to have inadequate self-care management for diabetes mellitus.

A single amino acid Gly-tag enables metal-free protein purification.

Analytically pure proteins are indispensable for diverse applications, including therapeutics. Here, we report a methodology where a single amino acid, glycine, enables metal-free protein purification. This robust platform is enabled by a Gly-tag resin for site-specific capture, enrichment, and release through chemically triggered C-C bond dissociation by resonance-assisted electron density polarization.

Effectiveness of a School-Based 'Tobacco Free' Intervention on Adolescents' Knowledge and Exposure to Second Hand Tobacco Smoke - A Multiphase Study.

BACKGROUND: There is no safe level of exposure to second hand tobacco smoke (SHS). The World Health Organization has stressed that 100% smoke-free environments are the only effective way to protect the population from the harmful effects of exposure to SHS. DESIGN: A multiphase study with a descriptive cross-sectional questionnaire phase 1  and a phase 2 cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT), conceptualized to determine the effectiveness of a school-based 'tobacco free' health education intervention on adolescents' knowledge and attitude towards SHS. METHODS: Baseline assessment will include a questionnaire followed by estimation of salivary cotinine levels. The experimental arm will receive the 'tobacco free' intervention, which includes 40 min health education session delivered once a week for 3 consecutive weeks. Participants will also be given 'take home brochures' every week containing messages on the effects of tobacco and how to make their homes smoke-free. The sample of 250 participants, for the Phase 2 RCT, with salivary cotinine levels of > 0.1 ng/mL will be selected from the participants of the Phase 1 study. The effect of the intervention will be quantitatively assessed by estimating the salivary cotinine levels after the intervention. Participants in the control arm will receive conventional standard health education once. CONCLUSION: This research will help in assessing if there is any change in the salivary cotinine levels and the knowledge, attitude and behaviour scores after the health educational intervention and help in developing an effective school-based 'tobacco free' intervention program which could be incorporated into the school curriculum. This study has received the Public Health Research Initiative (PHRI) Research Grant of Rs. 18,99,205 and is registered with the Clinical Trial Registry of India (CTRI) with number CTRI/2018/09/015706 (Registered on 13/09/2018). Ethical approval has been obtained from The Institutional Ethics Committee (No.17021 dated 13 march 2017).

Utility of Various Bronchoscopic Modalities in Lung Cancer Diagnosis

Background: Bronchoscopy and different techniques to obtain tissue sample form the cornerstone of lung cancer diagnostics. The utility, specificity and sensitivity of various techniques are compared against each other and also in relation to the tumour type, location and morphology. Aim: To assess and compare the utility of various bronchoscopic procedures in lung malignancies. Study also compares the utility of these techniques on tumour site, morphology and cell type. Methods: One hundred and fifty six patients with suspected malignancies in whom bronchoscopy was deemed as the primary diagnostic procedure were selected. These patients underwent bronchoscopic lavage, brushings and biopsy. Samples were assessed by microbiological, cytology and histopathological analysis. Results: Bronchoscopic procedures have a high diagnostic accuracy of 81.25% in confirming lung malignancies in central tumours and also in non-accessible peripheral tumours. Bronchial brushings had the highest yield in central tumours (55.9%) and a reasonably good yield even in perpipheral tumours (40.8%). When all the modalities were compared against each other, brushings was the single most decisive technique as it alone yielded a diagnosis in a significant 33% of cases, whereas the comparative diagnosis by biopsy alone was in a minority 7.6% of cases.

Married Men's Involvement in Family Planning - A Study from Coastal Southern India.

BACKGROUND: Over the years, India has emerged as one of the most populous countries in the world, next only to China. Unregulated fertility can compromise the economic development and political stability of a country. Family planning was always thought to be a woman's prerogative, especially in a male dominant society like India. Consequently, most of the studies on family planning focused on women as the subject of interest. PURPOSE: To assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of family planning amongst men who have been married for at least five years. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out in the teaching hospitals of Kasturba Medical College (Manipal University), Mangalore; India among 156 men who had been married for at least five years. They were selected using non-random sampling method and were interviewed using a pretested semi structured validated questionnaire. Chi-square test was used for statistical analyses. RESULTS: Overall, 75.6% were aged between 26 and 34 years, 41.7% had one child, 92.3% subjects from upper and 86.9% from lower socio-economic status were aware about the male family planning services available in the market. Most husbands preferred that their spouse should be sterilized (53.8%). Family planning methods were actively practiced by 71.2 %. CONCLUSION: Most of the studies on family planning have focused mainly on females. This study throws light on the male perspective of family planning. Our study subjects were well aware about various family planning services and their attitude towards family planning was favorable, but the number of men practicing family planning was not high.

Effect of ghrelin on mortality and cardiovascular outcomes in experimental rat and mice models of heart failure: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Heart failure (HF) continues to be a challenging condition in terms of prevention and management of the disease. Studies have demonstrated various cardio-protective effects of Ghrelin. The aim of the study is to determine the effect of Ghrelin on mortality and cardiac function in experimental rats/mice models of HF. METHODS: Data sources: PUBMED, Scopus. We searched the Digital Dissertations and conference proceedings on Web of Science. Search methods: We systematically searched for all controlled trials (upto November 2014) which assessed the effects of Ghrelin (irrespective of dose, form, frequency, duration and route of administration) on mortality and cardiac function in rats/ mice models of HF. Ghrelin administration irrespective of dose, form, frequency, duration and route of administration. Data collection and analysis: Two authors independently assessed each abstract for eligibility and extracted data on characteristics of the experimental model used, intervention and outcome measures. We assessed the methodological quality by SYRCLE's risk of bias tool for all studies and the quality of evidence by GRADEpro. We performed meta-analysis using RevMan 5.3. RESULTS: A total of 325 animals (rats and mice) were analyzed across seven studies. The meta-analysis revealed that the mortality in Ghrelin group was 31.1% and in control group was 40% (RR 0.83, 95% CI 0.46 to 1.47) i.e Ghrelin group had 68 fewer deaths per 1000 (from 216 fewer to 188 more) as compared to the control group. The meta-analysis reveals that the heart rate in rats/mice on Ghrelin was higher (MD 13.11, 95% CI 1.14 to 25.08, P=0.66) while the mean arterial blood pressure (MD -1.38, 95% CI -5.16 to 2.41, P=0.48) and left ventricular end diastolic pressure (MD -2.45, 95% CI -4.46 to -0.43, P=0.02) were lower as compared to the those on placebo. There were insignificant changes in cardiac output (SMD 0.28, 95% CI -0.24 to 0.80, P=0.29) and left ventricular end systolic pressure (MD 1.48, 95% CI -3.86 to 6.82, P=0.59). CONCLUSIONS: The existing data provides evidence to suggest that Ghrelin may lower the risk of mortality and improve cardiovascular outcomes. However; the quality of evidence as assessed by GRADEpro is low to very low. Clinical judgments to administer Ghrelin to patients with HF must be made on better designed animal studies.

Morphometric analysis of cervical vertebrae morphology and correlation of cervical vertebrae morphometry, cervical spine inclination and cranial base angle to craniofacial morphology and stature in an adult skeletal class I and class II population.

OBJECTIVE: The study was carried out to compare the morphometry of the cervical column between adult Class I and Class II individuals and between gender and to analyze the correlation between the cervical column morphology, the cranial base angle, the craniocervical inclination with craniofacial morphology and stature of Angles Class I and Class II individuals. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The data for this institutional retrospective study were systematically selected according to the specified inclusion and exclusion criteria from the pretreatment cephalometric radiographs of 19 male and 30 female patients visiting the Department of Orthodontics, Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Mangalore, Manipal University, based on their ANB angle. The radiographs were traced and digitized. The reliability of the variables describing the cranial base and vertical and sagittal craniofacial dimensions was assessed. CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed that there was no statistically significant variation in the cervical vertebrae dimensions between Class I and Class II patients. There was found to be a definite sexual dimorphism, which was not statistically significant. Correlation exists between sagittal skeletal patterns, especially mandibular length and cervicovertebral morphology, but its use to classify the subjects in different sagittal classes is questionable.

Microbiological Profile and Drug Sensitivity Pattern among Community Acquired Pneumonia Patients in Tertiary Care Centre in Mangalore, Coastal Karnataka, India.

BACKGROUND: Community Acquired Pneumonia (CAP) is the most common respiratory tract infection in day to day practice. The knowledge of organism commonly causative of CAP helps in early empirical treatment initiation. AIM: To study the microbiological profile of patients with community acquired pneumonia and to study drug sensitivity pattern. METHODS: Hospital based cross sectional study among 100 patients with CAP was conducted in a tertiary care hospital of Southern India. Sputum culture showed that out of 100 patients 39 had an identifiable etiology with 12 patients having evidence of mixed infection. RESULT: Micro-organisms isolated in sputum culture were Streptococcus pneumoniae (31%) followed by, Pseudomonas pyogens (15%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (13%). AFB smear was found to be positive in 6 patients. Organisms were found to be sensitive for piperacillin plus tazobactum (41%), aminoglycocides (amikacin-46%, gentamicin-31%), third generation cephalosporins (Cefotaxim-36%, Ceftriaxone-18%) and macrolides (Erythromicin-31%, Azithromycin-18%). Sensitivity to chloramphenicol was observed in 31% sputum culture positive patients. Ciprofloxacin sensitivity was seen among 49%. CONCLUSION: Most of the organisms were found to be sensitive to monotherapy with extended spectrum beta lactamases, third generation cephalosporins, fluroquinolones, macrolides.

The Evaluation of Carotid Atherosclerosis in Patients with the HIV-1 Infection: The Role of the Antiretroviral Therapy.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The recognition and the assessment of the carotid intimal thickness helps in predicting the risk of the cardiovascular events in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infected patients who are on Antiretroviral Therapy (ART). The objective of this study was to assess and compare the carotid intimal thickness in HIV positive individuals who were on antiretroviral therapy with HIV positive individuals who were not on anti-retroviral therapy. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: All the HIV positive individuals who were 20 years old and above, who had been diagnosed by the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) guidelines were included in the study. The HIV positive individuals who were diagnosed with diabetes mellitus and hypertension were excluded from the study. The study subjects were divided into 2 groups i.e. HIV patients who were on anti-retroviral therapy and HIV patients who were not on anti-retroviral therapy. The patients had to be on anti-retroviral therapy for a minimum of 6 months for them to be included in the first group. The data was collected by using a semi structured, pre-tested proforma, which included the demographic details, the duration of the HIV infection, details of the antiretroviral treatment, a history of smoking/ alcohol consumption and details on the assessments of the metabolic syndrome. RESULTS: A total of 42 patients were included in the study. Among them, 28 were males (66.7%) and 14 were females (33.3%). Twenty six patients were on ART and the remaining patients were treatment naive. There were significant differences with regards to their age and the duration of the HIV infection, which was longer in the patients who were on ART (p= 0.049, p=0.003 respectively). The Body Mass Index (BMI), the waist: hip ratio, the mid-arm circumference, the waist circumference, the skin fold thickness and the carotid intimal-media thickness were higher in the HIV patients who were on ART as compared to those in the treatment naive patients, though the difference was statistically insignificant. CONCLUSION: The carotid intimal thickness was higher in the HIV patients who were on ART as compared to those in the treatment naïve HIV infected patients.

Evaluation of health literacy status among patients in a tertiary care hospital in coastal karnataka, India.

INTRODUCTION: People with limited health literacy are more likely to make medication errors, and they have less health knowledge, worse health status, more hospitalizations, and higher healthcare costs than people with adequate literacy. The objective of this study is to assess the health literacy status among patients who are able to read and understand English attending a tertiary care hospital by using Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine [REALM] technique and to compare the health literacy levels to educational status and other baseline characteristics. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A widely used word recognition method [REALM] was used to assess the HL status of 200 patients attending a tertiary care hospital in Southern India. The number of correctly pronounced words was used to assign a grade-equivalent reading level. Scores 0 to 44 indicate reading skills at or below the 6th grade level, scores from 45 to 60 represent skills at the 7th or 8th grade level, and scores above 60 indicate skills at the high-school level or higher. RESULTS: HL status was found below adequate level in more than 50% of the patients. Younger age group showed better HL scores compared to those aged more than 25 years. General education level or the medium of education does not truly reflect HL levels as brought out in the study. Even those with postgraduate qualification had poor HL skills. CONCLUSION: The study was carried out to find out the HL levels among patients attending a tertiary care hospital. It was assumed that the general education levels may not reflect true HL status. In view of the results of this study it can be concluded that patient's HL skills should not be taken for granted and adequate attention should be paid in educating and briefing patients whenever patients are required to interpret and understand health care related documents.