Vis-NIR spectroscopy based rapid and non-destructive method to quantitate microplastics: An emerging contaminant in farm soil.

Microplastics (MPs) is the second most important environmental issue and can potentially enter into food chain through farmland contamination and other means. There are no standardized extraction methods for quantification of MPs in soil. The embedded errors and biases generated serious problems regarding the comparability of different studies and leading to erroneous estimation.

Utility of peripheral blood monocyte subsets, circulating immune complexes and serum cytokines in assessment of SLE activity: an observational, cross-sectional study.

Introduction: SLE disease measurements by current standards are less than perfect. Monocytes and their subsets are part of innate immunity, and one of our objectives was to look at their role in SLE disease activity. We also looked at the common serum cytokines and the role of circulating immune complex (CIC) estimation in the assessment of disease activity.

Health risk assessment of aerosol particles (PM and PM) during winter crop at the agricultural site of Delhi, India.

For the last few decades, air pollution in developing country like India is increasing, and it is a matter of huge concern due to its associated human health impacts. In this region, the burgeoning population, escalating urbanization and industrialization, has been cited as the major reason for such a high air pollution. The present study was carried out for health risk assessment of aerosol particles (PM and PM) and its associated heavy metals of an agriculture farm site at Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) considered to be green urban area in Delhi, India.

Lymphoepithelioma-Like Carcinoma of Urinary Bladder with Diagnostic Dilemma: Case Report of a Rare Variant of Urothelial Carcinoma.

Lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma of the urinary bladder is a rare variant of urothelial carcinoma that was first described by Zukerberg in 1991 and confirmed as a type of urothelial carcinoma by the WHO classification of the urinary system tumors. A 63-year-old man presented with the chief complaint of gross hematuria for 2 months. Sections from transurethral resection of the bladder revealed urothelial carcinoma.

FermFooDb: A database of bioactive peptides derived from fermented foods.

Globally fermented foods are in demands due to their functional and nutritional benefits. These foods are sources of probiotic organisms and bioactive peptides, various amino acids, enzymes etc. that provides numerous health benefits.

Comparison of Human Neonatal and Adult Blood Leukocyte Subset Composition Phenotypes.

The human peripheral leukocyte subset composition depends on genotype variation and pre-natal and post-natal environmental influence diversity. We quantified this composition in adults and neonates, and compared the median values and dispersal ranges of various subsets in them. We confirmed higher frequencies of monocytes and regulatory T cells (Tregs), similar frequencies of neutrophils, and lower frequencies of CD8 T cells, NKT cells, B1 B cells and gamma-delta T cells in neonatal umbilical cord blood.

Modulation of nutritional and antioxidant potential of seeds and pericarp of pea pods treated with microbial consortium.

Microbial populations have diverse roles within rhizosphere where interactions among distinct microorganisms along with the host may lead to mutualistic associations. The present study aimed to investigate the nutritional and antioxidant qualities of seeds and pericarp of pea raised from seeds treated with beneficial microbes namely Bacillus subtilis BHHU100, Trichoderma harzianum TNHU27 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa PJHU15 either singly and/or in consortia. A significant increase in total phenolic, flavonoid, ascorbic acid and protein contents, free radical scavenging activity, hydroxyl radical scavenging activity, iron chelation and reducing power were observed in the seeds and pericarp of pods treated with a consortium of microbes in comparison to control pods.

Therapeutic treatment with a novel hypoxia-inducible factor hydroxylase inhibitor (TRC160334) ameliorates murine colitis.

Background And Aim: Mucosal healing in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) can be achieved by improvement of intestinal barrier protection. Activation of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) has been identified as a critical factor for barrier protection during mucosal insult and is linked with improvement in symptoms of colitis. Although prophylactic efficacy of HIF hydroxylase inhibitors in murine colitis have been established, its therapeutic efficacy in clinically relevant therapeutic settings have not been established.

TRC210258, a novel TGR5 agonist, reduces glycemic and dyslipidemic cardiovascular risk in animal models of diabesity.

Background: Patients with diabesity have a significantly increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Therefore, therapy addressing the multiple metabolic abnormalities linked with diabesity and leading to further reduction of cardiovascular risk is highly desirable. Activation of the TGR5 receptor holds therapeutic potential for diabesity.

Treatment with a novel hypoxia-inducible factor hydroxylase inhibitor (TRC160334) ameliorates ischemic acute kidney injury.

Background: Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) transcriptional system plays a central role in cellular adaptation to low oxygen levels. Preconditional activation of HIF and/or expression of its individual target gene products leading to cytoprotection have been well established in hypoxic/ischemic renal injury. Increasing evidence indicate HIF activation is involved in hypoxic/ischemic postconditioning of heart, brain and kidney.

Impact of transgenic cotton varieties on activity of enzymes in their rhizosphere.

The impact of five Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton varieties and their respective isogenic non-Bt(NBt) isolines (ANKUR-2534, MECH-6304, RCH-317, ANKUR-651 and MECH-6301) was assessed on the key soil enzymes i.e., dehydrogenase, alkaline phosphatase and urease in their rhizosphere at four growth stages of the crop, namely vegetative, flowering, bolling and harvesting.

Bioprospecting thermophiles for cellulase production: a review.

Most of the potential bioprospecting is currently related to the study of the extremophiles and their potential use in industrial processes. Recently microbial cellulases find applications in various industries and constitute a major group of industrial enzymes. Considerable amount of work has been done on microbial cellulases, especially with resurgence of interest in biomass ethanol production employing cellulases and use of cellulases in textile and paper industry.

Bacterial and archaeal phylogenetic diversity of a cold sulfur-rich spring on the shoreline of Lake Erie, Michigan.

Studies of sulfidic springs have provided new insights into microbial metabolism, groundwater biogeochemistry, and geologic processes. We investigated Great Sulphur Spring on the western shore of Lake Erie and evaluated the phylogenetic affiliations of 189 bacterial and 77 archaeal 16S rRNA gene sequences from three habitats: the spring origin (11-m depth), bacterial-algal mats on the spring pond surface, and whitish filamentous materials from the spring drain. Water from the spring origin water was cold, pH 6.

Insular carcinoma of thyroid: A case report.

A histological distinct subset of thyroid carcinoma, which falls between well differentiated and anaplastic carcinoma with respect to cell differentiation and clinical behaviour. It has been categorized as poorly differentiated or insular carcinoma based on its characteristic cell groupings. Insular carcinoma warrants aggressive management with total thyroidectomy followed by radioactive iodine ablation of the residual deposit.

Domain truncation studies reveal that the streptokinase-plasmin activator complex utilizes long range protein-protein interactions with macromolecular substrate to maximize catalytic turnover.

To explore the interdomain co-operativity during human plasminogen (HPG) activation by streptokinase (SK), we expressed the cDNAs corresponding to each SK domain individually (alpha, beta, and gamma), and also their two-domain combinations, viz. alphabeta and betagamma in Escherichia coli. After purification, alpha and beta showed activator activities of approximately 0.