Expression profiling of laccase and β-glucan synthase genes in Pleurotus ostreatus during different developmental stages.

Background: Pleurotus ostreatus, commonly known as the oyster mushroom, is a saprophytic fungus with many applications in biotechnology and medicine. This mushroom is a rich source of proteins, polysaccharides, and bioactive compounds that have been shown to possess anticancer, antioxidant, and immunomodulatory properties. In this study, we investigated the expression profile of laccase (POXA3) and β-glucan synthase (FKS) genes during different developmental stages in two strains of P.

Optimizing THP-1 Macrophage Culture for an Immune-Responsive Human Intestinal Model.

Previously established immune-responsive co-culture models with macrophages have limitations due to the dedifferentiation of macrophages in long-term cultures. This study is the first report of a long-term (21-day) triple co-culture of THP-1 macrophages (THP-1m) with Caco-2 intestinal epithelial cells and HT-29-methotrexate (MTX) goblet cells. We demonstrated that high-density seeded THP-1 cells treated with 100 ng/mL phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate for 48 h differentiated stably and could be cultured for up to 21 days.

Effectiveness of triennial screening with clinical breast examination: 14-years follow-up outcomes of randomized clinical trial in Trivandrum, India.

Background: This study presents the preliminary results of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) initiated in January 2006 in India to evaluate the effectiveness of clinical breast examination (CBE) in reducing breast cancer mortality as compared to a no-screening control group reported significant downstaging in the intervention group. The present manuscript reports long-term follow-up outcomes.

Methods: Women 30-69 years old from 133 intervention clusters and 141 control clusters were invited to participate.

Social media text analytics of Malayalam-English code-mixed using deep learning.

Zigzag conversational patterns of contents in social media are often perceived as noisy or informal text. Unrestricted usage of vocabulary in social media communications complicates the processing of code-mixed text. This paper accentuates two major aspects of code mixed text: Offensive Language Identification and Sentiment Analysis for Malayalam-English code-mixed data set.

Development of improved strain in species of by gamma irradiation.

The oyster mushroom ( spp.) is the second important edible mushroom in the world, with 19 per cent contribution to total mushroom production (Sharma et al, Mushroom Res 26(2):111-120, 2017). The cultivated mushrooms face the problems like loss of genetic diversity and strain degeneration (Wang et al.

DNA Replication Licensing Proteins for Early Detection of Lung Cancer.

Background: To identify and characterize malignant and premalignant cells in sputum and matched tissue samples with reference to expression of minichromosome maintenance proteins (MCM2, MCM5) and cell division cycle protein 6 (CDC 6) and to assess their potential as biomarkers of premalignant and malignant lesions of the lung and associations with clinicopathological features. Methods: Expression of MCM2, MCM5 and 6 proteins in sputum samples and corresponding tissues was assessed by immunocytochemistry, and correlated with histological findings. Results: For characterization of malignant, metaplastic or dysplastic cells, CDC6 protein had the highest sensitivity of 87.

Determinants of participation in a breast cancer screening trial in trivandrum district, India.

Background: Conspicuous differences in participation rates for breast self-examination (BSE), clinical breast examination (CBE), and referral for further investigations have been observed indicating involvement of a number of different factors. This study analysed determinants for participation in different levels of the breast cancer screening process in Indian females.

Materials And Methods: An intervention group of 52,011 women was interviewed in a breast cancer screening trial in Trivandrum district, India.

Evaluation of cytology and visual triage of human papillomavirus-positive women in cervical cancer prevention in India.

Although virtually all cervical cancers and most cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) are caused by persistent human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, only a small proportion of HPV-positive women have or will develop CIN. Triaging HPV-positive women has been suggested to reduce the false-positive rate and proportion of women referred for CIN confirmation and/or treatment. In two cross-sectional studies and one randomized trial in India, we evaluated the impact of using cytology or visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) to triage HPV-positive women on the proportion of women who would be referred for CIN confirmation and on the detection rates of high-grade CIN.

Effectiveness of cryotherapy for histologically confirmed cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grades 1 and 2 in an Indian setting.

Objective: To describe the effectiveness of cryotherapy for treating women who were histologically confirmed to have cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) in India.

Methods: Data were analyzed retrospectively from screening projects that collected data from January 2001 to May 2008 in Trivandrum, India. Women with CIN were appropriately treated with cryotherapy by a trained nurse or physician and followed up for cure, adverse events, and complications.

Long term effect of visual screening on oral cancer incidence and mortality in a randomized trial in Kerala, India.

Objectives: We studied oral cancer incidence and mortality and the impact of compliance to repeat screening rounds during a 15-year follow-up in a cluster-randomized controlled trial in Trivandrum district, Kerala, India.

Methods: Healthy individuals aged 35 and above in seven clusters randomized to the intervention arm received four rounds of oral visual inspection by trained health workers at 3-year intervals, and those in six clusters randomized to the control arm received routine care during 1996-2005 and one round of visual screening during 2006-2009. Screen-positive persons were referred for diagnosis and treatment.

Clinical breast examination: preliminary results from a cluster randomized controlled trial in India.

A cluster randomized controlled trial was initiated in the Trivandrum district (Kerala, India) on January 1, 2006, to evaluate whether three rounds of triennial clinical breast examination (CBE) can reduce the incidence rate of advanced disease incidence and breast cancer mortality. A total of 275 clusters that included 115,652 healthy women, aged 30-69 years, were randomly allocated to intervention (CBE; 133 clusters; 55,844 women) or control (no screening; 142 clusters; 59,808 women) groups. Performance characteristics (sensitivity, specificity, false-positive rate, and positive predictive value) of CBE were evaluated.

Socio-economic factors & longevity in a cohort of Kerala State, India.

Background & Objectives: Even though Kerala State is well-known for its egalitarian policies in terms of healthcare, redistributive actions and social reforms, and its health indicators close to those of high-resource countries despite a poor per-capita income, it is not clear whether socio-economic disparities in terms of life expectancy are observed. This study was therefore carried out to study the impact of socio-economic level on life expectancy in individuals living in Kerala.

Methods: A cohort of 1,67,331 participants aged 34 years and above in Thiruvananthapuram district, having completed a lifestyle questionnaire at baseline in 1995, was followed up for mortality and cause of death until 2005.

Effect of tobacco chewing, tobacco smoking and alcohol on all-cause and cancer mortality: a cohort study from Trivandrum, India.

Objective: To study the risk of all-cause, cancer and tobacco-related cancer mortality associated with tobacco chewing, tobacco smoking and alcohol use.

Design: Prospective community-based cohort study initiated in 1996.

Participants: 167343 adult subjects, aged 34 and older, living in 13 panchayaths (rural municipal administrative units) in South India, were regularly followed-up for a mean duration of 6.

Prognosis criteria of casual systolic and diastolic blood pressure values in a prospective study in India.

Background: In India, cardiovascular events are often diagnosed at lower blood pressures (BP) than in Western countries, questioning whether the actual World Health Organization cut-off points for hypertension (systolic BP (SBP) >or=140 mm Hg and/or diastolic BP (DBP) >or=90 mm Hg) are appropriate in low resource countries.

Methods: A large population-based cohort study including 167 331 adults aged 35-90 years, living in a rural area, was followed up during a 7-year mean duration for all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD) deaths. At baseline, casual BP was measured, and lifestyle was assessed through a questionnaire.

Alcohol intake and oral cavity cancer risk among men in a prospective study in Kerala, India.

Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the role of alcohol drinking and patterns of consumption in oral cancer incidence and mortality in a cohort study using data from the Trivandrum Oral Cancer Screening Study, India.

Methods: At baseline, the study participants completed a lifestyle questionnaire including items on frequency and duration of alcohol consumption. They were followed up for oral cancer incidence and mortality.

Effectiveness and safety of loop electrosurgical excision procedure in a low-resource setting.

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of the loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP) to treat cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) in a low-resource setting.

Methods: Women participating in a cervical screening study in India with histologically confirmed CIN unsuitable for cryotherapy were advised to undergo LEEP. One year after treatment the cervix was visually inspected with acetic acid, followed by colposcopy and biopsy taken from abnormal areas.

Cervical cancer: screening and therapeutic perspectives.

Cervical cancer is a major cause of mortality and premature death among women in their most productive years in low- and medium-resourced countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America, despite the fact that it is an eminently preventable cancer. While cytology screening programmes have resulted in a substantial reduction of cervical cancer mortality in developed countries, they have been shown to have a wide range of sensitivity in most routine settings including in developing countries. Although liquid-based cytology improves sample adequacy, claims on improved sensitivity remain controversial.

Body mass index, weight change and mortality risk in a prospective study in India.

Background: Although the detrimental effect of overweight and obesity has been extensively reported in Western populations, little is known on the association between body weight, weight change and mortality in Asian populations whose weight distribution and mortality differ considerably from the West.

Methods: A cohort of 75 868 subjects aged 35 years and above, participants of the Trivandrum Oral Cancer Study-a cluster-randomized controlled trial originally implemented to evaluate the efficacy of visual inspection on oral cancer, in Kerala State, South India-were followed up from 1995 to 2004. Weight and height were measured both at baseline and in 3.

Role of tobacco smoking, chewing and alcohol drinking in the risk of oral cancer in Trivandrum, India: a nested case-control design using incident cancer cases.

Oral cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world, with two-thirds of the cases occurring in developing countries. While cohort and nested case-control study designs offer various methodological strengths, the role of tobacco and alcohol consumption in the etiology of oral cancer has been assessed mainly in case-control studies. The role of tobacco chewing, smoking and alcohol drinking patterns on the risk of cancer of the oral cavity was evaluated using a nested case-control design on data from a randomized control trial conducted between 1996 and 2004 in Trivandrum, India.

Assessing the gain in diagnostic performance when two visual inspection methods are combined for cervical cancer prevention.

Objectives: The objectives of this study was to establish whether combined screening with visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) and Lugol's iodine (VILI) improves detection of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 2-3 (CIN 2-3) lesions and cancer beyond chance, compared with screening with VIA alone or VILI alone; and to estimate the extra number of false-positive (FP) results per additional disease case found with the combined test, and to estimate the additional costs involved.

Setting: Ten cross-sectional studies in Burkina Faso, Congo, Guinea, India, Mali and Niger, between 1999 and 2003.

Methods: Using a common protocol, health workers screened 56,147 women aged 25-65 years with VIA and VILI.

Effectiveness, safety and acceptability of 'see and treat' with cryotherapy by nurses in a cervical screening study in India.

We evaluated a 'see and treat' procedure involving screening, colposcopy, biopsy and cryotherapy by trained nurses in one-visit in field clinics in a cervical screening study in South India for its acceptability, safety and effectiveness in curing cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). Women positive on visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) were advised colposcopy, directed biopsies and cryotherapy if they had colposcopic impression of CIN in one visit by nurses in field clinics supervised by a doctor. Side effects and complications were assessed and cure rates were evaluated with VIA, colposcopy and biopsy if colposcopic abnormalities were suspected.