Antidiabetic potential of four species of mushrooms from Nepal.

People use mushrooms to treat diabetes mellitus. We studied the antidiabetic potential of four mushrooms using porcine pancreatic α-amylase inhibitory activity and alloxan-induced diabetic mice. Methanolic extracts of all mushrooms were effective in inhibiting α-amylase activity.

NREM sleep improves behavioral performance by desynchronizing cortical circuits.

Sleep improves cognitive performance, yet little is known about the neural mechanisms of this improvement. We performed multielectrode recording in macaque visual and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex while animals performed a visual discrimination task before and after non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. Although sleep induces synchronized fluctuations in population activity across cortical areas, the post-sleep population activity became more desynchronized relative to the pre-sleep state.

Unveiling the enigmatic connection: Belly dancer's dyskinesia as an unusual manifestation of normal pressure hydrocephalus: A case report.

Key Clinical Message: Normal pressure hydrocephalus is rarely associated with Belly dancer's dyskinesia and seizure.

Abstract: Belly dancer's dyskinesia (BDD) is characterized by bilateral, sluggish, involuntary, repetitive, and rhythmic motions of the anterior abdominal wall. We present a rare case of a 78-year-old man diagnosed with normal pressure hydrocephalus associated with BDD and seizure who presented with left-sided weakness of the body and abnormal body movements.

Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor (GIST) in a Young Adult: A Rare Presentation and a Multidisciplinary Approach.

A gastrointestinal stromal tumor is a rare gastrointestinal tumor of mesenchymal origin. We present a rare case of a 32-year-old male patient with a history of iron deficiency anemia who presented with nocturnal cramping abdominal pain, nausea, non-bloody vomiting, loss of appetite, and weight loss. The patient had no significant family history of cancer.

Production, analysis, and safety assessment of a soil and plant-based natural material with microbiome- and immune-modulatory effects.

It has been suggested that reduced contact with microbiota from the natural environment contributes to the rising incidence of immune-mediated inflammatory disorders (IMIDs) in western, highly urbanized societies. In line with this, we have previously shown that exposure to environmental microbiota in the form of a blend comprising of soil and plant-based material (biodiversity blend; BDB) enhances the diversity of human commensal microbiota and promotes immunoregulation that may be associated with a reduced risk for IMIDs. To provide a framework for future preclinical studies and clinical trials, this study describes how the preparation of BDB was standardized, its microbial content analysed and safety assessments performed.

Retinal Microstructural Changes Reflecting Treatment-Associated Cognitive Dysfunction in Patients with Lower-Grade Gliomas.

Purpose: To determine whether microstructural retinal changes, tumor features, and polymorphism are correlated with clinically detectable treatment-associated cognitive dysfunction (TACD) in patients with lower-grade gliomas.

Design: Cohort study.

Participants And Controls: Sixteen patients with lower-grade glioma at a United States academic ophthalmology department between January 2021 and November 2023.

Perceived stress, sources of stress and coping strategies among undergraduate medical students of Nepal: a cross-sectional study.

Medical students are subjected to various stressors throughout their training, which has a considerable impact on their physical and mental health. Some students have positive ways of coping, while others take to maladaptive coping measures. This study aims to assess severity, sources of stress, and coping strategies among medical students of a non-Western low-income country from South Asia.

Using patterns of shared taxa to infer bacterial dispersal in human living environment in urban and rural areas.

Unlabelled: Contact with environmental microbial communities primes the human immune system. Factors determining the distribution of microorganisms, such as dispersal, are thus important for human health. Here, we used the relative number of bacteria shared between environmental and human samples as a measure of bacterial dispersal and studied these associations with living environment and lifestyles.

Malaria reporting timeliness analysis and factors associated with delayed notification, 2018-2022, Nepal.

In order to monitor public health trends and identify disease outbreaks early, efficient and reliable notification and surveillance systems are essential. Nepal uses a 1-3-7 malaria surveillance approach. The Short Message System (SMS) -based system for timely notification has been established.

Skin exposure to soil microbiota elicits changes in cell-mediated immunity to pneumococcal vaccine.

A resilient immune system is characterized by its capacity to respond appropriately to challenges, such as infections, and it is crucial in vaccine response. Here we report a paired randomized intervention-control trial in which we evaluated the effect of microbially rich soil on immune resilience and pneumococcal vaccine response. Twenty-five age and sex matched pairs of volunteers were randomized to intervention and control groups.

Hue and orientation pinwheels in macaque area V4.

Area V4 is an intermediate-level area of the macaque visual cortical hierarchy that serves key functions in visual processing by integrating inputs from lower areas such as V1 and V2 and providing feedforward inputs to many higher cortical areas. Previous V4 imaging studies have focused on differential responses to color, orientation, disparity, and motion stimuli, but many details of the spatial organization of significant hue and orientation tuning have not been fully described. We used support vector machine (SVM) decoding of intrinsic cortical single-condition responses to generate high-resolution maps of hue and orientation tuning and to describe the organization of hue and orientation pinwheels in V4.

Nondysraphic intramedullary spinal cord lipoma: a case report.

Introduction: Intramedullary nondysraphic spinal lipomas are extremely rare among primary spinal cord tumors. These patients present with nonspecific sensory symptoms followed by deterioration of motor symptoms. As the safety margins for neurological preservation are thin, meticulously locating the extent of the tumor and choosing the resection modalities is essential.

Phenotypic and Genetic Diversity of Xanthomonads Isolated from Pepper ( spp.) in Taiwan from 1989 to 2019.

Bacterial spot caused by spp. is an economically important disease of pepper causing significant yield losses in Taiwan. Monitoring the pathogen population on a continuous basis is necessary for developing disease management strategies.

In silico analysis identified bZIP transcription factors genes responsive to abiotic stress in Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.).

Background: Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is the most cultivated forage legume around the world. Under a variety of growing conditions, forage yield in alfalfa is stymied by biotic and abiotic stresses including heat, salt, drought, and disease.

Presentation and diagnosis of neonatal tuberous sclerosis complex: A case report and literature review.

Tuberous sclerosis is an uncommon neurocutaneous syndrome characterized by hamartomatous growths with unpredictable progression. Diagnosing and managing neonatal tuberous sclerosis can be challenging. We report a rare case of a 30-day-old male born out of a non-consanguineous marriage who presented with poor suckling and persistent abnormal body movement, required prolonged intensive care, and was diagnosed with tuberous sclerosis with multisystem involvement.

Assessing intersectional gender analysis in Nepal's health management information system: a case study on tuberculosis for inclusive health systems.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major public health problem in Nepal, high in settings marked by prevalent gender and social inequities. Various social stratifiers intersect, either privileging or oppressing individuals based on their characteristics and contexts, thereby increasing risks, vulnerabilities and marganilisation associated with TB. This study aimed to assess the inclusiveness of gender and other social stratifiers in key health related national policies and the Health Management Information System (HMIS) of National Tuberculosis Programme (NTP) by conducting an intersectional analysis of TB cases recorded via HMIS.

Neglected Fungating Giant basal cell carcinoma: A case report and literature review.

Key Clinical Message: Gaint fungating BCC is rare and aggressive. Early health-seeking behavior may result in positive outcomes.

Abstract: Fungating giant basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is a rare and aggressive form of BCC infrequently reported in the literature.

Population coding of strategic variables during foraging in freely moving macaques.

Until now, it has been difficult to examine the neural bases of foraging in naturalistic environments because previous approaches have relied on restrained animals performing trial-based foraging tasks. Here we allowed unrestrained monkeys to freely interact with concurrent reward options while we wirelessly recorded population activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. The animals decided when and where to forage based on whether their prediction of reward was fulfilled or violated.

Visuo-frontal interactions during social learning in freely moving macaques.

Social interactions represent a ubiquitous aspect of our everyday life that we acquire by interpreting and responding to visual cues from conspecifics. However, despite the general acceptance of this view, how visual information is used to guide the decision to cooperate is unknown. Here, we wirelessly recorded the spiking activity of populations of neurons in the visual and prefrontal cortex in conjunction with wireless recordings of oculomotor events while freely moving macaques engaged in social cooperation.

Exploring community insights on antimicrobial resistance in Nepal: a formative qualitative study.

Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is the process by which microbes evolve mechanisms to survive the medicines designed to destroy them i.e. antimicrobials (AMs).

Child Marriage: Knowledge, Factors, Consequences and Utilization of Maternal Services among Early Married Women.

Background: In 2020, UNFPA estimated additional 13 million child marriage cases in Nepal after a decade of lockdown due to COVID-19 wherein 2020, the data of child marriage before the age of 18 reached 5 million where marriage done before the age of 15 years was 1.3 million as per UNICEF. In Nepal, the legal age for marriage is 20 years.

Biliary atresia and posterior fossa bleed: Chance or causality. A case report and review of the literature.

Key Clinical Message: A newborn with a rare form of biliary atresia had posterior fossa bleed and subarachnoid hemorrhage despite vitamin K prophylaxis, indicating biliary atresia is a causality rather than chance.

Abstract: Biliary atresia frequently causes surgical jaundice, resulting in delayed vitamin K deficiency. We report a 28-day-old newborn diagnosed with a rare form of biliary atresia presented with an unusual association of posterior fossa bleed and subarachnoid hemorrhage despite vitamin K prophylaxis.