Serum Insulin, Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1, Testosterone and Lipid Profile Levels in Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia and Prostate Cancer at Diagnosis.

Background And Objectives: Prostate cancer is the second most frequently diagnosed cancer in men aged 65 years and older globally. The association of prostate cancer with deranged lipid profile and insulin levels is inconsistent and not well understood. This study aimed to analyze the serum levels of lipids, insulin, insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and testosterone and to identify their association with the risk of benign prostatic hyperplasia, prostate cancer and its grading.

Synergistic Anticancer Efficacy of Curcumin and Doxorubicin Combination Treatment Inducing S-phase Cell Cycle Arrest in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Cells: An In Vitro Study.

Background: Curcumin (Cur) is a polyphenol phyto-compound found in turmeric () that inhibits tumorigenesis by introducing apoptosis and restricting cell survival and proliferation. This in vitro research article focuses on the pharmacodynamic interactions of Cur combined with the commercial drug doxorubicin (Doxo) to enhance the cytotoxicity of Doxo at lower doses against triple-negative breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) with the chemo-protective effect against normal HEK293 cells. In this study, we observed the dose-dependent cytotoxicity, increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and increased chromatin condensation in combination doses compared to single doses.

Exploring PDK3 inhibition in lung cancer through drug repurposing for potential therapeutic interventions.

The pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase-3 (PDK3) plays an important role in the regulation of a variety of cancers, including lung, by inhibiting the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDC), shifting energy production towards glycolysis necessary for cancer metabolism. In this study, we aimed to identify potential PDK3 inhibitors using a computer-based drug design approach. Virtual screening of the FDA-approved library of 3839 compounds was carried out, from which Bagrosin and Dehydrocholic acid appeared best due to their strong binding affinity, specific interactions, and potential biological characteristics, and thus were selected for further investigations.

Development of a robust parallel and multi-composite machine learning model for improved diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease: correlation with dementia-associated drug usage and AT(N) protein biomarkers.

Introduction: Machine learning (ML) algorithms and statistical modeling offer a potential solution to offset the challenge of diagnosing early Alzheimer's disease (AD) by leveraging multiple data sources and combining information on neuropsychological, genetic, and biomarker indicators. Among others, statistical models are a promising tool to enhance the clinical detection of early AD. In the present study, early AD was diagnosed by taking into account characteristics related to whether or not a patient was taking specific drugs and a significant protein as a predictor of Amyloid-Beta (Aβ), tau, and ptau [AT(N)] levels among participants.

The combination of Curcumin and Doxorubicin on targeting PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway: an in vitro and molecular docking study for inhibiting the survival of MDA-MB-231.

Unlabelled: The process of tumorigenesis is highly associated with the disruption of cell-cycle regulators and derangement of various signaling pathways, which end up with the inhibition of apoptosis and hyper-activation of survival pathways. The PI3K medicated AKT/mTOR pathway is the widely explained mechanism for cancer cell survival which causes the overexpression of MDM2 and downregulates the p53-BAX mediated apoptotic pathway. Curcumin (CUR), the phyto-compound, derived from is currently being focused on for its anticancer activities against breast cancer cells, MDA-MB-231, not only because of its minimal cytotoxicity against healthy cells (HEK293) but also because it synergistically sensitizes the activity of Doxorubicin (DOXO) in lower doses, which can be a promising source for complementary drug development.

Clinico-Hematological Profile and Management of Children With Non-Transfusion Dependent Thalassemia (NTDT) at a Pediatric Center in Northern India.

Objective: To study the clinico-hematological profile, complications, and management of children with non-transfusion dependent thalassemia (NTDT) in northern India.

Method: We retrieved and analyzed the data of 69 children with NTDT diagnosed between January, 2006 to December, 2018, aged under 18 years from our unit's records.

Results: The participants mean (SD) age was 4.

Nano-drug delivery system: a promising approach against breast cancer.

Breast cancer (BC) is among the most frequent malignancies women face around the globe. Nanotherapeutics are constantly evolving to overcome the limitations of conventional diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. Nanotechnology-based nanocarriers have a higher entrapment efficiency, low cytotoxicity, greater stability and improved half-life than conventional therapy.

Fecal Iron Measurement in Studies of the Human Intestinal Microbiome.

Iron is an essential micronutrient for humans and their intestinal microbiota. Host intestinal cells and iron-dependent bacteria compete for intraluminal iron, so the composition and functions of the gut microbiota may influence iron availability. Studies of the effects of the microbiota or probiotic interventions on host iron absorption may be particularly relevant to settings with high burdens of iron deficiency and gastrointestinal infections, since inflammation reduces iron bioavailability and unabsorbed intraluminal iron may modify the composition of the microbiota.

CRISPR/Cas9 encouraged CAR-T cell immunotherapy reporting efficient and safe clinical results towards cancer.

CRISPR is a customized genome-editing tool that snips DNA in a simpler, cheaper and more precise way than any other gene editing tool. In recent years CRISPR/Cas has completely transformed an existing discipline of genetic engineering. This 'review' focuses on the generations and modifications in CAR-T as an advanced cancer therapeutic tool and CAR-T-approved products.

Prediction of QcrB Inhibition as a Measure of Antitubercular Activity with Machine Learning Protocols.

It has always been a challenge to develop interventional therapies for . Over the years, several attempts at developing such therapies have hit a dead-end owing to rapid mutation rates of the tubercular bacilli and their ability to lay dormant for years. Recently, cytochrome complex (QcrB) has shown some promise as a novel target against the tubercular bacilli, with Q203 being the first molecule acting on this target.

Prognostic Nutritional Index Prior to Rectal Cancer Resection Predicts Overall Survival.

Prognostic nutritional index (PNI) correlates with postoperative complications and survival in colorectal cancers. Separate studies for rectal cancers are not available where the majority have preoperative radiation, operated by minimally invasive approaches and have diverting ostomies.Consecutive rectal resections between October 2014 and December 2017 from a single center were included.

Personal and household PM and black carbon exposure measures and respiratory symptoms in 8 low- and middle-income countries.

Background: Household air pollution (HAP) from cooking with solid fuels has been associated with adverse respiratory effects, but most studies use surveys of fuel use to define HAP exposure, rather than on actual air pollution exposure measurements.

Objective: To examine associations between household and personal fine particulate matter (PM) and black carbon (BC) measures and respiratory symptoms.

Methods: As part of the Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiology Air Pollution study, we analyzed 48-h household and personal PM and BC measurements for 870 individuals using different cooking fuels from 62 communities in 8 countries (Bangladesh, Chile, China, Colombia, India, Pakistan, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe).

Atypical presentation of acquired tracheo-oesophageal fistula in an adolescent girl with pulmonary tuberculosis.

We report a case of an adolescent girl presenting with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) requiring mechanical ventilation. Initial presentation during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic was compatible with multisystem inflammatory response in children associated with COVID-19 (MIS-C). Subsequently a diagnosis of tuberculosis was made.

Multinational prediction of household and personal exposure to fine particulate matter (PM) in the PURE cohort study.

Introduction: Use of polluting cooking fuels generates household air pollution (HAP) containing health-damaging levels of fine particulate matter (PM). Many global epidemiological studies rely on categorical HAP exposure indicators, which are poor surrogates of measured PM levels. To quantitatively characterize HAP levels on a large scale, a multinational measurement campaign was leveraged to develop household and personal PM exposure models.

Measuring and predicting personal and household Black Carbon levels from 88 communities in eight countries.

Black Carbon (BC) is an important component of household air pollution (HAP) in low- and middle- income countries (LMICs), but levels and drivers of exposure are poorly understood. As part of the Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiological (PURE) study, we analyzed 48-hour BC measurements for 1187 individual and 2242 household samples from 88 communities in 8 LMICs (Bangladesh, Chile, China, Colombia, India, Pakistan, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe). Light absorbance (10 m) of collected PM filters, a proxy for BC concentrations, was calculated via an image-based reflectance method.

Next Generation Sequencing and Cytogenetic Based Evaluation of Indian Pierre Robin Sequence Families Reveals CNV Regions of Modest Effect and a Novel Mutation.

Background: Pierre Robin Sequence (PRS) affects approximately 1 per 8500 to 14000 new-borns worldwide. Although the clinical entity is well defined, the pathogenesis of PRS is debated. The present study aims to understand the contribution of genomic imbalances and genetic variants in patients clinically diagnosed of PRS.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Childhood Immunization in a Tertiary Health-Care Center.

Background: After the emergence of COVID-19 pandemic, health facilities nationwide became the battleground for COVID-19. Many hospitals are designated as COVID-19 hospitals and various measures taken by the government to contain the spread of infection have disrupted the provision of routine health-care services including immunization. The aim of this study is to describe the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on immunization in a tertiary level health-care facility.

Clinical Spectrum of Neurological Manifestations in Pediatric COVID-19 Illness: A Case Series.

We describe a cohort of three patients with variable neurological presentations by SARS-COV-2 infection. It includes one case each of acute cerebellitis, acute encephalomyelitis and arterial ischemic stroke. To the best of our knowledge, we report the first pediatric case of acute cerebellitis due to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Erratic journey of CRISPR/Cas9 in oncology from bench-work to successful-clinical therapy.

CRISPR is a customized molecular scissor, comprising genetic guide made of RNA and an enzyme, Cas9 which snips DNA in simpler, cheaper and more precise way than any other gene editing tools. In recent years CRISPR/Cas has taken the research world by storm being go-to genome editor for potential gene therapy to fix cancer as well as several hereditary disorders. This review explores the literature around the mechanism of Nobel winning CRISPR/Cas9 and its journey from its discovery to various pre-clinical and clinical trials in oncology, focusing mostly on PD-1 knockout CAR-T cell therapy.

Design, synthesis and SAR of antitubercular benzylpiperazine ureas.

N-furfuryl piperazine ureas disclosed by scientists at GSK Tres Cantos were chosen as antimycobacterial hits from a phenotypic whole-cell screen. Bioisosteric replacement of the furan ring in the GSK Tres Cantos molecules with a phenyl ring led to molecule (I) with an MIC of 1 μM against Mtb H37Rv, low cellular toxicity (HepG2 IC ~ 80 μM), good DMPK properties and specificity for Mtb. With the aim of delineating the SAR associated with (I), fifty-five analogs were synthesized and screened against Mtb.

Household and personal air pollution exposure measurements from 120 communities in eight countries: results from the PURE-AIR study.

Background: Approximately 2·8 billion people are exposed to household air pollution from cooking with polluting fuels. Few monitoring studies have systematically measured health-damaging air pollutant (ie, fine particulate matter [PM] and black carbon) concentrations from a wide range of cooking fuels across diverse populations. This multinational study aimed to assess the magnitude of kitchen concentrations and personal exposures to PM and black carbon in rural communities with a wide range of cooking environments.

Newborn micronutrient status biomarkers in a cluster-randomized trial of antenatal multiple micronutrient compared with iron folic acid supplementation in rural Bangladesh.

Background: Daily antenatal multiple micronutrient (MM) compared with iron folic acid (IFA) supplementation from early pregnancy improved birth outcomes and maternal micronutrient status in rural Bangladesh, but effects on newborn status are unknown.

Objective: We examined cord blood micronutrient biomarkers in relation to antenatal MM and IFA supplementation and maternal gestational micronutrient status in rural Bangladeshi newborns.

Design: In a double-blinded, cluster-randomized trial of antenatal IFA or MM (with the same IFA content), we analyzed cord blood plasma from 333 singleton births, and corresponding maternal plasma at 32.

A Comparative Study of Non-descent Vaginal Hysterectomy and Laparoscopic Hysterectomy.

Objective: To compare intra- and post-op complications between non-descent vaginal hysterectomy and laparoscopic hysterectomy and establish the better method for hysterectomy in non-descent uterus.

Methods: A prospective comparative study of 80 hysterectomies was done over a period of January 2017-Dec 2017, with 40 cases each in one group of non-descent vaginal hysterectomy (NDVH) and other group of total laparoscopic hysterectomy (TLH). Demographic characteristics, co-morbid conditions, indications for surgery, operative time, intra-operative blood loss, post-operative analgesia requirements, post-operative hospital stay and post-operative complications were compared between both groups.

Household, Community, Sub-National and Country-level Predictors of Primary Cooking Fuel Switching in Nine Countries from the PURE Study.

Introduction: Switching from polluting (e.g. wood, crop waste, coal) to clean cooking fuels (e.