Atmospheric gaseous mercury and associated health risk assessment in the economic capital of India.

Mercury cycling in coastal metropolitan areas on the west coast of India becomes complex due to the combined effects of both intensive domestic anthropogenic emissions and marine air masses. The present study is based on yearlong data of continuous measurements of gaseous elemental mercury (GEM) concentration concurrent with meteorological parameters and some air pollutants at a coastal urban site in Mumbai, on the west coast of India, for the first time. The concentration of GEM was found in a range between 2.

On the varied emission fingerprints of particulate matter over typical locations of NCR (Delhi) - A perspective for mitigation plans.

Source apportionment study of PM using positive matrix factorization was performed to identify the emission characteristic from different sectors (sub-urban residential, industrial and rapidly urbanizing) of Delhi during winter. Chemical characterization of PM included metals (Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb and Zn), water soluble ionic compounds (WSICs) (Cl, NO, SO and NH) and Carbon partitions (OC, EC). Particulates (PM) were collected on filter twice daily for stable and unstable atmospheric conditions, at the locations with specific characteristics, viz.

Synthesis of 2-aryl-5-(arylsulfonyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazoles as potent antibacterial and antioxidant agents.

Ten novel 2-aryl-5-(arylsulfonyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazoles were produced and assessed for their antibacterial and antioxidant activities. Diverse spectroscopic methods like H NMR, C NMR, IR, and LCMS were used for the characterization of the prepared samples and all the data was in good agreement with the anticipated structures. The prepared compounds were screened for their in vitro antibacterial activity against bacterial strains , , (gram-positive), and , , (gram-negative).

On modelling growing menace of household emissions under COVID-19 in Indian metros.

While local anthropogenic emission sources contribute largely to deteriorate metro air quality, long range transport can also play a significant role in influencing levels of pollutants, particularly carbon monoxide (CO) that has a relatively long life span. A nationwide lockdown of two months imposed across India amid COVID-19 led to a dramatic decline in major sources of emissions except for household, mainly from cooking. This initially led to declined levels of CO in two of the largest megacities of India, Delhi and Mumbai under stable weather conditions, followed by a distinctly different variability under the influence of prevailing mesoscale circulation.

COVID-19 and environmental -weather markers: Unfolding baseline levels and veracity of linkages in tropical India.

The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is rapidly spreading across the globe due to its contagion nature. We hereby report the baseline permanent levels of two most toxic air pollutants in top ranked mega cities of India. This could be made possible for the first time due to the unprecedented COVID-19 lockdown emission scenario.

Objective evaluation of stubble emission of North India and quantifying its impact on air quality of Delhi.

Crop residue burning during post monsoon season in the neighboring provinces leads to frequent episodes of extreme pollution events, associated with premature morbidity and mortality. A synergistic use of multiple satellite measurements in conjunction with actual field incidences data at the ground led us to develop the realistic high-resolution emission inventory of the hazardous pollutant PM2.5 due to stubble burning.

Response of heterogeneous vegetation to aerosol radiative forcing over a northeast Indian station.

Importance of atmospheric aerosols through direct and indirect effects on hydrological cycle is highlighted through multiple studies. This study tries to find how much the aerosols can affect evapo-transpiration (ET), a key component of the hydrological cycle over high NDVI (normalized difference vegetation index)/dense canopy, over Dibrugarh, known for vast tea plantation. The radiative effects of aerosols are calculated using satellite (Terra-MODIS) and reanalysis data on daily and monthly scales.

Is blood agar an alternative to sabouraud dextrose agar for the isolation of fungi in patients with mycotic keratitis.

To compare the blood agar (BA), sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA) and chocolate agar (CA) for the isolation of fungi in patients with mycotic keratitis. Corneal Scrapings of 229 patients with clinically diagnosed microbial keratitis were inoculated on BA, SDA, CA. The culture media were evaluated for the rate and time taken for the fungal growth.

Evaluation of effect of three different dental unit waterline antimicrobials on the shear bond strength to dentin - An ex vivo study.

Background: In restorative treatment dental unit water is used while irrigating the cavity and also in the use of composite restorations to flush away the etchant to place bonding agent. These antimicrobials may influence the bond strength of the dentine bonding agent to the dentine.

Aim And Objective: To evaluate the effect of three different dental units waterline antimicrobials on the shear bond strength of dentin.

Response of Cassava canopy to mid-day pseudo sunrise induced by solar eclipse.

Variations in CO(2) concentration over a cassava canopy were measured during a solar eclipse at Thiruvananthapuram, India. The analysis presented attempts to differentiate between the eclipse effect and the possible effect of thick clouds, taking CO(2) as a proxy for photosynthesis. CO(2) and water vapor were measured at a rate of 10 Hz, and radiation at 1 Hz, together with other meteorological parameters.

Prenatal diagnosis of fetal syndromes.

A syndrome is a pattern of multiple anomalies arising due to a single known causative factor. Ultrasonography has enabled us to recognize many fetal anomalies and dysmorphic features. Recognition of the anomaly pattern leads to the diagnosis of a particular syndrome.

Prenatal diagnosis of right pulmonary artery to left atrium communication.

We report a case of right pulmonary artery to left atrium communication in a fetus at 24 weeks' gestation. Fetal echocardiography showed dilatation of the left atrium and main and right pulmonary arteries. The right pulmonary artery was seen to communicate with the left atrium.

Characterization of novel DNA-binding proteins expressed in snake oocyte cDNA library.

DNA-binding proteins play pivotal roles in transcription, DNA-replication, recombination/repair and determine cell-fate in all physiological conditions of differentiation, development and disease. As they are present in extremely small amounts in cells, their isolation/identification, particularly from scarce tissues is impracticable. We cloned the cDNA pool of snake (Ptyas mucosus) oocytes (a scarce tissue) in bacteria, overexpressed total library, purified and identified DNA-binding proteins expressed in the library.

A GATA-binding protein expressed predominantly in the pupal ovary of the silkworm, Bombyx mori.

Preferential localization of Bkm (Banded krait minor-satellite) DNA sequences on Y/W chromosomes of higher eukaryotes, which remain highly condensed in somatic cells but undergo extensive decondensation in the germ cells during early stages of development, led to the postulation for the existence of a sex- and tissue-specific Bkm-binding protein (BBP). Accordingly, we purified and characterized a BmBBP expressed predominantly in pupal ovary of the silkworm (Bombyx mori). 2D-PAGE revealed BmBBP as moderately basic (pI 7.

Functional genomic studies of aldo-keto reductases.

Aldose reductase (AR) is considered a potential mediator of diabetic complications and is a drug target for inhibitors of diabetic retinopathy and neuropathy in clinical trials. However, the physiological role of this enzyme still has not been established. Since effective inhibition of diabetic complications will require early intervention, it is important to delineate whether AR fulfills a physiological role that cannot be compensated by an alternate aldo-keto reductase.

Effects of protein RNase inhibitor and substrate on the quaternary structures of bovine seminal RNase.

The effect of the protein RNase inhibitor (PRI) on the activity of bovine seminal RNase (BS-RNase) was investigated using the isolated quaternary forms, MxM and M=M, of the enzyme reported earlier [Piccoli, R., et al., (1992) Proc.

External fixation in unstable intertrochanteric fractures of femur.

Forty elderly patients aged 50-94 years old with unstable intertrochanteric fractures were treated by external fixation at The Central Institute of Orthopaedics, Safdarjang Hospital, New Delhi, India from June 1993 to January 1995. Fracture union was achieved by an average time of 14 weeks in all the patients. Postoperative varus was increased in nine and deep pin-track infection was found in three cases.

Detection and spectrophotometric determination of copper(III) with p-anisidine.

Copper(III) solutions are found to give an instantaneous stable pink-coloured product with 0.2% aqueous p-anisidine in the presence of 0.03N acetic acid.

Keratins as markers in odontogenesis--an immunocytochemical experimental study in rats.

The expression and distribution of keratins within different layers of enamel organs of embryonic and neonatal rats studied by using indirect immunoperoxidase and immunofluorescent techniques in paraffin-embedded tissues employing specific antibodies revealed Keratin positivity in odontoblastic layer, oral epithelium and dental lamina in primitive stages; other odontogenic tissues showed negative reaction.

Nutritional evaluation of silage made from the toxic weed Parthenium hysterophorus in animals.

After ensilation, the toxic Compositae weed Parthenium hysterophorus was devoid of the toxic principle parthenin. Laboratory-scale ensilation indicated that no parthenin was detectable after 5 wk of anaerobic fermentation. For animal feeding studies, silage was made on a large scale from Parthenium mixed with maize or from Parthenium alone.

Sensitivity of monomeric and dimeric forms of bovine seminal ribonuclease to human placental ribonuclease inhibitor.

We have studied the inhibition of bovine pancreatic RNAase (RNAase A) and bovine seminal RNAase in its native dimeric form (RNAase BS-1) and in monomeric carboxymethylated form (MCM RNAase BS-1) by human placental RNAase inhibitor (RNAase inhibitor) in order to understand the effect of enzyme structure on its response to the inhibitor. Study of the inhibition as a function of inhibitor concentration revealed that RNAase A and MCM RNAase BS-1 were inhibited fully and the inhibitor-sensitivities of the two were comparable. But under identical inhibitor concentrations RNAase BS-1 was found to be virtually insensitive to the inhibitor; at higher (3-10-fold) inhibitor concentrations marginal inhibition of the native enzyme could be observed.

A smoking survey of college students in India: implications for designing an antismoking policy.

A survey of 599 college students was conducted in Andhra Pradesh, India, to formulate an anti-smoking policy for youth. There were 64.6% boys and 35.