Biodegradation of Organophosphorus Insecticides by Bacillus Species Isolated From Soil.

This study investigates the biodegradation of methyl parathion, an organophosphate pesticide used in paddy fields. Microbial degradation transforms toxic pesticides into less harmful compounds, influenced by the microbial community in the soil. To isolate different microbial colonies, soil samples from an organophosphorus-treated groundnut field were plated on nutrient agar and MSM with 1% glucose and 0.

Detection of Wuchereria bancrofti infection in mosquitoes in areas co-endemic with Brugia malayi in Balasore district, Odisha, India.

Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is a crippling and disfiguring parasitic condition. India accounts for 55% of the world's LF burden. The filarial parasite Wuchereria bancrofti is known to cause 99.

Detection of Wuchereria bancrofti DNA in wild caught vector and non-vector mosquitoes: implications for elimination of lymphatic filariasis.

Background: Transmission Assessment Survey (TAS) is the WHO recommended method used for decision-making to stop or continue the MDA in lymphatic filariasis (LF) elimination programme. The WHO has also recommended Molecular Xenomonitoring (MX) of LF infection in vectors as an adjunct tool in settings under post-MDA or validation period. Screening of non-vectors by MX in post-MDA / validation settings could be useful to prevent a resurgence of LF infection, as there might be low abundance of vectors, especially in some seasons.

Antiviral Activity of Potential Medicinal Plant Extracts Against Dengue and Chikungunya Viruses.

Dengue and chikungunya are two important mosquito-borne infections which are known to occur extensively in tropical and subtropical areas. Presently, there is no treatment for these viral diseases. antiviral screening of 25 extracts prepared from the plants of , , , , , , , and using different solvents and four purified compounds (anacardic acid, chloroquinone, glaucarubinone, and methyl gallate) were carried out for their anti-dengue virus (DENV) and anti-chikungunya virus (CHIKV) activities.

Multi-centric evaluation of a stage-specific reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction assay as a xenomonitoring tool for the detection of infective (L) stage in vectors.

Background & Objectives: An infective stage specific reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay utilizing the abundant larval transcript-3 (Alt-3) gene of Wuchereria bancrofti was developed at ICMR-VCRC, Puducherry and found to be stage specific, and sensitive upon validation in the laboratory. This study was aimed at independently evaluating this assay for its utility as a monitoring/surveillance tool in the operational programme for elimination of lymphatic filariasis (LF) by four national research laboratories.

Methods: Evaluation of the assay was carried out in a multi-centric mode in three phases.

Piperlongumine induces ROS mediated cell death and synergizes paclitaxel in human intestinal cancer cells.

Piperlongumine (PL), a herbal drug extracted from long pepper (Piper longum L), is known for its anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. Although, its anti-cancer potential has been evaluated in cancer models like breast, pancreatic, gastric, hepatocellular and lung carcinoma, there is no report on its bio-activity evaluation in intestinal cancers. Here, we report the anti-neoplastic potential of PL against human intestinal carcinoma in-vitro and its possible mechanisms of action.

Evaluation of loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay for detection of scrub typhus in patients with acute febrile illness presenting to a Tertiary Care Center in Puducherry, India.

Purpose: Scrub typhus an acute febrile illness has diverse clinical manifestations, which overlap with other febrile illnesses. Due to this reason, it is misdiagnosed, leading to inappropriate treatment, sometimes resulting in fatality. Thus, accurate diagnosis of scrub typhus is important for appropriate treatment.

Improving the Diagnosis of Scrub Typhus by Combining Based Polymerase Chain Reaction and IgM ELISA.

Introduction: Scrub typhus, an acute febrile illness, caused by , is an important cause of pyrexia of unknown origin in regions of endemicity. This disease is mostly underdiagnosed or misdiagnosed, the reasons for this being a combination of factors which include clinical manifestations that can mimic other infections, lack of easy and reliable diagnostic methods and variation among strains in endemic areas. Hence, easy and reliable methods of diagnosis will contribute to rapid identification and treatment of the infection.

Glaucarubinone sensitizes KB cells to paclitaxel by inhibiting ABC transporters via ROS-dependent and p53-mediated activation of apoptotic signaling pathways.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is considered to be the major contributor to failure of chemotherapy in oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). This study was aimed to explore the effects and mechanisms of glaucarubinone (GLU), one of the major quassinoids from Simarouba glauca DC, in potentiating cytotoxicity of paclitaxel (PTX), an anticancer drug in KB cells. Our data showed that the administration of GLU pre-treatment significantly enhanced PTX anti-proliferative effect in ABCB1 over-expressing KB cells.

Resveratrol loaded gelatin nanoparticles synergistically inhibits cell cycle progression and constitutive NF-kappaB activation, and induces apoptosis in non-small cell lung cancer cells.

Purpose: Previously, we reported that the prepared resveratrol (RSV) loaded gelatin nanoparticles (GNPs) possessed enhanced anticancer effect than free RSV in non-small cell lung carcinoma cells and Swiss albino mice. The present study aims to explore the relevant mechanism of cell death induced by the combination of RSV-GNPs in NCI-H460 cells.

Methods And Results: To increase its bioavailability and anticancer efficacy, we have encapsulated RSV-GNPs by Coacervation method.

Development of Fourth Generation ABC Inhibitors from Natural Products: A Novel Approach to Overcome Cancer Multidrug Resistance.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) in cancer caused due to overexpression of ABC drug transporters is a major problem in modern chemotherapy. Molecular investigations on MDR have revealed that the resistance is due to various transport proteins of the ABC superfamily which include Phosphoglycoprotein (P-gp/MDR1/ ABCB1), multidrug resistance-associated protein-1 (MRP1), and the breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP). They have been characterized functionally and are considered as major players in the development of MDR in cancer cells.

Functional analysis of a highly conserved abundant larval transcript-2 (alt-2) intron 2 repeat region of lymphatic filarial parasites.

The filarial-specific protein abundant larval transcript-2 (ALT-2) is expressed exclusively in the infective larval stage (L3) and is a crucial protein for establishing immunopathogenesis in human hosts. The alt-2 gene has a conserved minisatellite repeat (29 or 27bp) in intron 2 (IR2) whose significance within lymphatic filarial species is unknown. Here, we report the role of IR2 in the regulation of alt-2 gene expression using an in vitro model.

Functional analysis of genetic polymorphism in Wuchereria bancrofti glutathione S-transferase antioxidant gene: impact on protein structure and enzyme catalysis.

Wuchereria bancrofti glutathione S-transferase (Wb-GST) is referred as a promising chemotherapeutic target for lymphatic filariasis. GST represents the major class of detoxifying enzymes of the tissue dwelling parasitic helminths. Though many inhibition studies were carried out for Wb-GST, understanding its genetic distribution in parasite population is necessary to develop ideal inhibitor.

Optimisation of an asymmetric polymerase chain reaction assay for the amplification of single-stranded DNA from Wuchereria bancrofti for electrochemical detection.

Single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) is a prerequisite for electrochemical sensor-based detection of parasite DNA and other diagnostic applications. To achieve this detection, an asymmetric polymerase chain reaction method was optimised. This method facilitates amplification of ssDNA from the human lymphatic filarial parasite Wuchereria bancrofti.

Lymphatic filarial species differentiation using evolutionarily modified tandem repeats: generation of new genetic markers.

Polymerase chain reaction based methods are promising tools for the monitoring and evaluation of the Global Program for the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis. The currently available PCR methods do not differentiate the DNA of Wuchereria bancrofti or Brugia malayi by a single PCR and hence are cumbersome. Therefore, we designed a single step PCR strategy for differentiating Bancroftian infection from Brugian infection based on a newly identified gene from the W.