Production, Delivery, and Regulatory Aspects for Application of Plant-Based Anti-microbial Peptides: a Comprehensive Review.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are small, positively charged biomolecules produced by various organisms such as animals, microbes, and plants. These AMPs play a significant role in defense mechanisms and protect from adverse conditions. The emerging problem of drug resistance in microbes poses a global health challenge in treating diseases.

A shot through the heart: a case report on retained bullet causing cardiac tamponade.

Background: As a rare complication of penetrating chest trauma, one can occasionally find foreign bodies inside the pericardium. Even rarer is finding an intact bullet inside the pericardial cavity following the gunshot injury.

Case Summary: A 17-year-old male presented to the emergency department as a Level 1 trauma for multiple gunshot wounds.

CLINICAL PROFILES AND OUTCOMES OF ADMISSIONS FOLLOWING COVID-19 ADMISSIONS DURING THREE WAVES OF THE PANDEMIC: EXPERIENCE OF A TERTIARY HOSPITAL IN THE EASTERN CAPE PROVINCE OF SOUTH AFRICA.

Background: South Africa was the country worst affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in Africa. There is a paucity of data on the clinical characteristics and mortality of Covid-19 from the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. We report on the demographic and clinical characteristics as well as the mortality of patients admitted to the Covid-19 ward of Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital (NMAH), Mthatha, during three waves of the Covid-19 pandemic in South Africa.

A Comparative Evaluation of Surface Hardness and Nanomechanical Properties of Nickel-Titanium Orthodontic Wires: An In Vitro Study.

Objective: The study aimed to evaluate the influence of various surface coatings (epoxy, Teflon, and rhodium) on the surface roughness (SR) and nanomechanical characteristics of nickel-titanium (NiTi) archwires. The study compared these coated archwires to uncoated ones from a single manufacturer, which served as a control.

Materials And Methods: There were 15 rectangular samples of four distinct archwires measuring 0.

Role of Transesophageal Echocardiography in the Diagnosis of Coronary Ischemia in a Patient with History of Ross Procedure.

• Multidisciplinary management is essential for complications post–Ross procedure. • Symptomatic coronary ischemia may occur late in Ross procedure patients. • Coronary ostium narrowing is a differential for ischemia post–Ross procedure.

Improved Recovery after Vestibular Schwannoma Excision with Intratympanic Gentamicin Prehabilitation.

Objective: Translabyrinthine excision of a vestibular schwannoma is associated with acute vestibular failure. Preoperative intratympanic gentamicin (ITG) injections can improve objective balance function after surgery but its clinical benefits remain to be established.

Methods: Adult patients undergoing translabyrinthine removal of a vestibular schwannoma between January 2014 and February 2018 underwent preoperative vestibular function testing.

One-Pot Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles from : Characterisation, Antimicrobial, Antioxidant, Anti-Cancerous and Photocatalytic Applications.

Background: Methods like the bio-synthesis of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) using plant extracts have become promising due to their eco-friendly approach. The study aimed to examine the utilization of fruit phytochemicals as agents in the biosynthesis of Ag NPs, evaluation of the antimicrobial, antioxidant, and anti-cancerous properties, as well as the photocatalytic ability of bio-synthesized Ag NPs against Crystal Violet (CV), a triphenylmethane dye.

Methods: The characterization of the physical properties of the Ag NPs synthesized via the green route was done using UV-Vis spectrophotometry (UV-Vis), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrophotometry (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Zeta potential analysis, and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM).

Summarizing, Simplifying, and Synthesizing Medical Evidence Using GPT-3 (with Varying Success).

Large language models, particularly GPT-3, are able to produce high quality summaries of general domain news articles in few- and zero-shot settings However, it is unclear if such models are similarly capable in more specialized, high-stakes domains such as biomedicine. In this paper, we enlist domain experts (individuals with medical training) to evaluate summaries of biomedical articles generated by GPT-3, given zero supervision. We consider both single- and multi-document settings.

Green Synthesis of Bioinspired Nanoparticles Mediated from Plant Extracts of Family for Potential Biological Applications.

The family is one of the largest families in the plant kingdom with many of them extensively used for significant traditional and medicinal values. Being a rich source of various phytochemicals, they have found numerous applications in various biological fields and have been extensively used for therapeutic purposes. Owing to its potential phytochemicals present and biological activity, these plants have found their way into pharmaceutical industry as well as in various aspects of nanotechnology such as green synthesis of metal oxide nanoparticles.

Impact of COVID-19 on Guillain-Barre Syndrome in India: A Multicenter Ambispective Cohort Study.

Introduction/aims: Studies conducted during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have reported varied data regarding the incidence of Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS). The present study investigated demographic and clinical features, management, and outcomes of patients with GBS during a specified period of the COVID-19 pandemic, and compared these features to those of GBS in the previous year.

Methods: A multicenter, ambispective cohort study including 26 centers across India was conducted.

DNA Damage on Buccal Epithelial Cells, Personal Working in the Rubber Industry Occupationally Exposed to Carbon Disulfide (CS2).

Introduction: The most significant industrial utilization of carbon disulfide (CS2) has been in the manufacture of cellulose rayon, cellophane, and rubber industry. CS2 prompts expanded recurrence of chromosomal variations in laborers occupationally exposed to CS2.

Materials And Methods: In the current study, the DNA analysis was carried out from exfoliated buccal epithelial cells from rubber industry workers exposed to CS2 and an equal number of healthy control subjects.

Assessing engineered tissues and biomaterials using ultrasound imaging: In vitro and in vivo applications.

Quantitative assessment of the structural, functional, and mechanical properties of engineered tissues and biomaterials is fundamental to their development for regenerative medicine applications. Ultrasound (US) imaging is a non-invasive, non-destructive, and cost-effective technique capable of longitudinal and quantitative monitoring of tissue structure and function across centimeter to sub-micron length scales. Here we present the fundamentals of US to contextualize its application for the assessment of biomaterials and engineered tissues, both in vivo and in vitro.

High-frequency quantitative ultrasound for the assessment of the acoustic properties of engineered tissues in vitro.

Acoustic properties of biomaterials and engineered tissues reflect their structure and cellularity. High-frequency ultrasound (US) can non-invasively characterize and monitor these properties with sub-millimetre resolution. We present an approach to estimate the speed of sound, acoustic impedance, and acoustic attenuation of cell-laden hydrogels that accounts for frequency-dependent effects of attenuation in coupling media, hydrogel thickness, and interfacial transmission/reflection coefficients of US waves, all of which can bias attenuation estimates.

The Ominous Triad of Severe Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy.

QT prolongation is present in 26-52% of cases of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TCM). It has been postulated to result from reduced cardiac repolarization reserve and reflects the transient myocardial insult observed in TCM. Bradycardia-induced QT interval prolongation is amplified by the occurrence of TCM, a combination that potentially carries a significant risk for torsade de pointes (TdP).

Neuroanaesthesia: should volatile anaesthetics or total intravenous anaesthesia be used?

The choice of anaesthesia technique for neurosurgical procedures has always been debatable. Despite the well-known effects of volatile anaesthetics on intracranial pressure, these are still widely used. This article explores the advantages and disadvantages of using volatile or total intravenous anaesthesia in patients undergoing neurosurgery.

A Resident-driven Quality Improvement Project to Increase Primary Care Follow-up after Congestive Heart Failure Exacerbation: Use of a Quality and Safety Award.

Objectives: Congestive heart failure (CHF) is the most common cause of 30-day inpatient readmission. Studies have found that early follow-up with primary care physicians (PCP) within 7 days of discharge may improve 30-day readmission rates; however, many have used a multidisciplinary discharge coordination team, which is not a resource at all centers. Here, the authors present a resident-driven quality improvement initiative using a monthly quality and safety award to increase early PCP follow-up for veterans discharged following admissions due to a CHF exacerbation.

Unlocking the potential of biosynthesized zinc oxide nanoparticles for degradation of synthetic organic dyes as wastewater pollutants.

The azo dyes released into water from different industries are accumulating in the water bodies and bioaccumulating within living systems thereby affecting environmental health. This is a major concern in developing countries where stringent regulations are not followed for the discharge of industrial waste into water bodies. This has led to the accumulation of various pollutants including dyes.

Column tests for evaluation of the enzymatic biodegradation capacity of hydrocarbons (C-C) contaminated soil.

Though many studies pertaining to soil bioremediation have been performed to study the microbial kinetics in shake flasks, the process efficiency in column tests is seldom. In the present study, soil columns tests were carried out to study the biodegradation of soil contaminated with a high concentration of diesel (≈19.5 g/kg) petroleum hydrocarbons expressed as C-C.

Large mural thrombus in the distal arch of the aorta without atherosclerotic disease.

Aortic mural thrombus (AMT) is an uncommon cause of arterial thromboembolism. It is very rare in patients without significant cardiovascular risk factors. Many aetiologies can cause AMT, but there are no clear guidelines for the evaluation and treatment.

SARS-CoV-2 Viral Load and Myocardial Injury: Independent and Incremental Predictors of Adverse Outcome.

To evaluate the association of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) initial viral load (iVL) and the incidence of myocardial injury (MCI) in hospitalized patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection, we conducted a retrospective longitudinal study of hospitalized patients who had a nasopharyngeal swab sample on admission that returned a positive result for SARS-CoV-2 by polymerase chain reaction between April 4 and June 5, 2020. The cycle threshold (Ct) value was used as a surrogate for the iVL level, with a Ct level of 36 or less for elevated iVL and greater than 36 for low iVL. Myocardial injury was defined as an elevated high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I level that was higher than the 99th percentile upper reference limit.

An image-based flow cytometric approach to the assessment of the nucleus-to-cytoplasm ratio.

The nucleus-to-cytoplasm ratio (N:C) can be used as one metric in histology for grading certain types of tumor malignancy. Current N:C assessment techniques are time-consuming and low throughput. Thus, in high-throughput clinical contexts, there is a need for a technique that can assess cell malignancy rapidly.

Fumaric acid production using alternate fermentation mode by immobilized Rhizopus oryzae-a greener production strategy.

The current work investigates the impact of using immobilized Rhizopus oryzae NRRL 1526 for bioproduction of fumaric acid using agro-industrial residues as feedstock. This use of agro-industrial residues, a renewable feedstock, for the production of bio-based platform chemical makes the process cost-competitive as well as greener by preventing the release of assimilable organic carbon to the environment, thereby reducing the generation of greenhouse gases. Immobilization of R.