Unraveling the elongating bovine conceptus microenvironment: identification of gene transcripts and proteins along the conceptus-maternal interface in cattle.

The bovine conceptus elongates near Day 16 of development and releases interferon-tau (IFNT), disrupting the endometrial luteolytic mechanism to sustain luteal P4 and pregnancy. Conceptus factors other than IFNT modify local endometrial activities to support pregnancy; however, the microenvironment is largely uncharacterized. We utilized a bovine conceptus-endometrial culture system to elucidate the microenvironment in the form of RNA and protein.

Sex-bias metabolism of fetal organs, and their relationship to the regulation of fetal brain-placental axis.

Introduction: The placenta plays influential role in the fetal development of mammals. But how the metabolic need of the fetal organs is related to that of the placenta, and whether this relationship is influenced by the sex of the fetus remain poorly understood.

Objectives: This study used pigs to investigate metabolomic signatures of male and female fetal organs, and determine the relevance of gene expression of the placenta and brain to the metabolism of peripheral organs.

Hexagonal Boron Nitride Quantum Simulator: Prelude to Spin and Photonic Qubits.

The quest for qubit operation at room temperature is accelerating the field of quantum information science and technology. Solid state quantum defects with spin-optical properties are promising spin- and photonic qubit candidates for room temperature operations. In this regard, a single boron vacancy within hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) lattice such as defect has coherent quantum interfaces for spin and photonic qubits owing to the large band gap of h-BN (6 eV) that can shield a computational subspace from environmental noise.

Lower Hemoglobin Levels as a Risk Factor for the Development of Retinopathy of Prematurity.

Background: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is an important cause of visual morbidity among preterm infants. The objective of the study was to assess the relationship between the initial hematological parameters of the complete blood count (CBC) and ROP development in preterm neonates.

Method: This retrospective cohort study was conducted in a neonatal intensive care unit in Odisha.

Relevance of the regulation of the brain-placental axis to the nocturnal bottleneck of mammals.

Introduction: Evolutionary theory suggests that the ancestors of all placental animals were nocturnal. Visual perceptive function of mammalian brain has evolved extensively, but nearly 70 % of today's mammals are still nocturnal. While placental influence on brain development is known, if placenta plays a role in the visual perceptive function of mammalian brain remains untested.

Molecular Regulation of Fetal Brain Development in Inbred and Congenic Mouse Strains Differing in Longevity.

The objective of this study was to investigate gene regulation of the developing fetal brain from congenic or inbred mice strains that differed in longevity. Gene expression and alternative splice variants were analyzed in a genome-wide manner in the fetal brain of C57BL/6J mice (long-lived) in comparison to B6.Cg-/J (congenic, short-lived) and AKR/J (inbred, short-lived) mice on day(d) 12, 15, and 17 of gestation.

Single-Cell Transcriptional Response of the Placenta to the Ablation of Caveolin-1: Insights into the Adaptive Regulation of Brain-Placental Axis in Mice.

Caveolin-1 () is a major plasma membrane protein that plays important functions in cellular metabolism, proliferation, and senescence. Mice lacking show abnormal gene expression in the fetal brain. Though evidence for placental influence on brain development is emerging, whether the ablation of affects the regulation of the brain-placental axis remains unexamined.

Sperm exposure to accessory gland secretions alters the transcriptomic response of the endometrium in cattle.

In cattle, mating to intact, but not vasectomised, bulls has been shown to modify the endometrial transcriptome, suggesting an important role of sperm in the modulation of the uterine environment in this species. However, it is not clear whether these changes are driven by intrinsic sperm factors, or by factors of accessory gland (AG) origin that bind to sperm at ejaculation. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to determine whether ejaculated sperm, which are suspended in the secretions of the AGs, elicit a different endometrial transcriptomic response than epididymal sperm, which have never been exposed to AG factors.

Role of paralogs in the sex-bias transcriptional and metabolic regulation of the brain-placental axis in mice.

Introduction: Duplicated genes or paralogs play important roles in the adaptive function of eukaryotic genomes. Animal studies have shown evidence for the functional role of paralogs in pregnancy, but our knowledge about the role of paralogs in the fetoplacental regulation remains limited. In particular, if fetoplacental metabolic regulation is modulated by differential expression of paralogs remains unexamined.

Ablation of placental REST deregulates fetal brain metabolism and impacts gene expression of the offspring brain at the postnatal and adult stages.

In this study, the transcriptional repressor REST (Repressor Element 1 Silencing Transcription factor) was ablated in the mouse placenta to investigate molecular and cellular impacts on the offspring brain at different life stages. Ablation of placental REST deregulated several brain metabolites, including glucose and lactate that fuel brain energy, vitamin C (ascorbic acid) that functions in the epigenetic programming of the brain during postnatal development, and glutamate and creatine that help the brain to respond to stress conditions during adult life. Bulk RNA-seq analysis showed that a lack of placental REST persistently altered multiple transport genes, including those related to oxygen transportation in the offspring brain.

Screening and Management of Congenital Hypothyroidism - Guidelines by American Academy of Pediatrics, 2023.

Guidelines for screening and management of congenital hypothyroidism in neonates have been recently updated by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). This article compares new AAP guideline with the Indian Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Endocrinology (ISPAE) Guidelines, 2018 and lists the changes in screening, diagnosis, and management of congenital hypothyroidism suggested in the new guidelines, along with clinical utilization in the Indian scenario.

Role of caveolin-1 in metabolic programming of fetal brain.

Mice lacking caveolin-1 (), a key protein of plasma membrane, exhibit brain aging at an early adult stage. Here, integrative analyses of metabolomics, transcriptomics, epigenetics, and single-cell data were performed to test the hypothesis that metabolic deregulation of fetal brain due to the ablation of is linked to brain aging in these mice. The results of this study show that lack of caused deregulation in the lipid and amino acid metabolism in the fetal brain, and genes associated with these deregulated metabolites were significantly altered in the brain upon aging.

Does DNA methylation in the fetal brain leave an epigenetic memory in the blood?

Epigenetic memory is an emerging concept that refers to the process in which epigenetic changes occurring early-in life can lead to long-term programs of gene regulation in time and space. By leveraging neural network regression modeling of DNA methylation data in pigs, we show that specific methylations in the adult blood can reliably predict methylation changes that occurred in the fetal brain. Genes associated with these methylations represented known markers of specific cell types of blood including bone marrow hematopoietic progenitor cells, and ependymal and oligodendrocyte cells of brain.

Comparison of the IHC Markers CD138 and CD43 in Oral Leukoplakia: An Original Research.

Background: In the clinical practice, one of the most common suspicious lesions that may be potentially malignant is oral leukoplakia. Globally, the rate at which it turns malignant varies. This study examines the levels of markers CD138 and 43 in oral leukoplakia.

Probing anharmonic phonons in WS van der Waals crystal by Raman spectroscopy and machine learning.

Understanding the optothermal physics of quantum materials will enable the efficient design of next-generation photonic and superconducting circuits. Anharmonic phonon dynamics is central to strongly interacting optothermal physics. This is because the pressure of a gas of anharmonic phonons is temperature dependent.

Comparison between Phenobarbitone and Levetiracetam as the initial anticonvulsant in preterm neonatal seizures - a pilot randomized control trial in developing country setup.

This study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of intravenous Levetiracetam and Phenobarbitone in the treatment of seizures in preterm neonates. It was an open-labeled, parallel randomized controlled trial conducted in a tertiary Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, India. Total 48 preterm neonates (28-36 weeks) with clinical seizures were randomized to receive either Levetiracetam (LEV; 40 mg/kg, then 20 mg/kg) or Phenobarbitone (PB; 15 mg/kg, then 10 mg/kg) intravenously as first loading dose in ratio 1:1; second loading was given for persistent seizure.

Comparison between oral melatonin and 24% sucrose for pain management during retinopathy of prematurity screening: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Preterm neonates perceive multiple painful procedures during Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) stay, having long term neurobehavioral effects. This study aims to compare the analgesic efficacy of oral melatonin with 24% sucrose in neonates during retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) screening.

Methods: A prospective, non-blinded, randomized controlled trial was conducted in a tertiary care NICU.

Accuracy to detect neonatal hyperglycaemia using real-time continuous glucose monitoring during postoperative period.

Unlabelled: Identifying hyperglycaemia during postoperative period is essential for neonates. The objective of the study was to analyse the accuracy and reliability of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) device for detecting hyperglycaemia during postoperative period in neonates. In this prospective study, hourly glucose recordings by CGM device and six hourly by glucometer glucose (GG-reference test for patient management) were collected in ten surgical neonates during first three postoperative days.

Comparative evaluation of immunohistochemical expression of MCM2 and Ki67 in oral epithelial dysplasia and oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Aim And Objectives: The aim and objective of the study were to evaluate the immunohistochemical expression of proliferative markers, Ki67, and MCM2 in oral epithelial dysplasia (OED) and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), to compare the relationship of their staining patterns, and to look for correlation between them, if any.

Materials And Methods: Thirty archival paraffin-embedded tissue blocks of previously diagnosed cases of OED, OSCC each, and 10 normal oral mucosa were used in the study. Immunohistochemical staining for MCM2 and Ki67 markers was done and the slides were individually evaluated for MCM2 and Ki67 expression, with immunopositivity determined on the basis of dark brown staining of the nucleus.

Epigenetic regulation of fetal brain development in pig.

How fetal brain development is regulated at the molecular level is not well understood. Due to ethical challenges associated with research on the human fetus, large animals particularly pigs are increasingly used to study development and disorders of fetal brain. The pig fetal brain grows rapidly during the last ∼ 50 days before birth which is around day 60 (d60) of pig gestation.

Comparison of Continuous Real Time Blood Glucose Measurement With Venous Laboratory Blood Glucose Level in Neonates During Perioperative Period.

Objectives: To compare the continuous real time blood glucose (CG) measurement with venous laboratory blood glucose (LG) level in neonates during perioperative period.

Methods: Glucose levels were measured simultaneously by CG, glucometer glucose (GG) and LG at 40 time points in ten neonates during perioperative period. Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland Altman analysis were used for comparison.

Manual Method vs Breast Pump for Breast Milk Expression in Mothers of Preterm Babies During First Postnatal Week: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objectives: To compare breast milk volume between manual method and breast pump expression in mothers of preterm infants at different time point of first week.

Design: Randomized controlled trial.

Setting: Postpartum ward of Obstetrics department and tertiary level neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in a single institution in Orissa between October, 2020 and May, 2021.

Fetal origin of sex-bias brain aging.

DNA methylation plays crucial roles during fetal development as well as aging. Whether the aging of the brain is programmed at the fetal stage remains untested. To test this hypothesis, mouse epigenetic clock (epiclock) was profiled in fetal (gestation day 15), postnatal (day 5), and aging (week 70) brain of male and female C57BL/6J inbred mice.