Haematological screening and its correlation with sociodemographic profile among the indigenous communities in and around Puducherry.

Background: Haemoglobin disorders are unique and important health challenges for tribal populations. Hence, this study was undertaken with the aim to screen for haematological disorders, particularly anaemia and haemoglobinopathies, and to assess the sociodemographic profile in indigenous communities residing in and around Puducherry. Methods: This was a community-based cross-sectional study conducted in both urban and rural areas of Puducherry district. We included 556 participants through convenient sampling. Trained research associates visited community to enrol eligible participants and sought information on sociodemographic parameters, health status, and disease profile, using a structured questionnaire; 2-3 ml of blood was collected in ethylene diamine tetra acid anticoagulant for analysis of haematology parameters. Results: Median age of participants was 28 (17-42) years. Majority (58.8%) of the participants were female, married (52.8%). On thalassemia screening, none of the study participants had any haemoglobinopathy. The burden of anaemia among the study population was 38.7% (95% CI: 34.6-42.8%) and was higher among the female participants in both adolescent (54.5%) and adult (57.8%) age groups. The next common haematological abnormality observed was eosinophilia 21.4% (95% CI: 18-25%), more prevalent among males in the age group of 30-60 years. Conclusion: More than half of the women were anaemic. Multidimensional planning and implementation are needed to improve the socio-economic profile and overall health of this vulnerable population.

Cloning, functional characterization and screening of potential inhibitors for Chilo partellus chitin synthase A using in silico, in vitro and in vivo approaches.

Chitin synthase (CHS) is one of the crucial enzymes that play an essential role in chitin synthesis during the molting process, and it is considered to be the specific target to control insect pests. Currently, there are no potent inhibitors available in the market, which specifically target this enzyme. Pyrimidine nucleoside peptide, nikkomycin Z, binds to nucleotide-binding sites of fungal and insect CHS. But, their mode of action is still fragmentary due to the lack of a 3Dstructure of CHS. Chilo partellus is a severe pest insect of major food crops such as maize and sorghum, in an attempt to target integument expressed cuticular CpCHS. The CpChsA cDNA was cloned, and subsequently, their developmental and tissue-specific expression was studied. The 3D structure of the CHS catalytic domain was modeled, after which natural compounds were screened using a virtual screening workflow and resulted in the identification of five hit molecules. Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to investigate the dynamics and interactions of hits with CpCHS. The obtained results revealed that the compounds kasugamycin, rutin and robinin could act as potent inhibitors of CpCHS. All three molecules were observed to significantly reduce the chitin production as validated using in vitro and in vivo studies. Thus, this study aims to provide a set of novel inhibitor molecules against CpCHS for controlling the pest population. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

A Bioinformatics Resource for TWEAK-Fn14 Signaling Pathway.

TNF-related weak inducer of apoptosis (TWEAK) is a new member of the TNF superfamily. It signals through TNFRSF12A, commonly known as Fn14. The TWEAK-Fn14 interaction regulates cellular activities including proliferation, migration, differentiation, apoptosis, angiogenesis, tissue remodeling and inflammation. Although TWEAK has been reported to be associated with autoimmune diseases, cancers, stroke, and kidney-related disorders, the downstream molecular events of TWEAK-Fn14 signaling are yet not available in any signaling pathway repository. In this paper, we manually compiled from the literature, in particular those reported in human systems, the downstream reactions stimulated by TWEAK-Fn14 interactions. Our manual amassment of the TWEAK-Fn14 pathway has resulted in cataloging of 46 proteins involved in various biochemical reactions and TWEAK-Fn14 induced expression of 28 genes. We have enabled the availability of data in various standard exchange formats from NetPath, a repository for signaling pathways. We believe that this composite molecular interaction pathway will enable identification of new signaling components in TWEAK signaling pathway. This in turn may lead to the identification of potential therapeutic targets in TWEAK-associated disorders.