Unveiling the paradoxical nature of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS): why hypercellular marrow strongly favors accelerated apoptosis.

The pathogenesis of bone marrow failure in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) is an unresolved mystery. MDS causes peripheral blood cytopenias and increased bone marrow cellularity. This apparent paradox has been interpreted as a sign of intramedullary destruction of a substantial portion of the developing hematopoietic cells by apoptosis.

An in silico approach for understanding the molecular evolution of clinically important metallo-beta-lactamases.

Resistance to carbapenem, considered to be the drug of last resort for treating serious enterobacterial infections, is a growing problem. Metallo-beta-lactamase (MBL) mediated carbapenem resistance is considered to be clinically most important, since no traditional inhibitors work against them. Hence, we have investigated the changes in drug profile, affinity and binding stability of meropenem with clinically important MBLs viz.

Differential remodeling of cadherins and intermediate cytoskeletal filaments influence microenvironment of solid and ascitic sarcoma.

Different forms of sarcoma (solid or ascitic) often pose a critical medical situation for pediatric or adolescent group of patients. To date, predisposed genetic anomalies and related changes in protein expression are thought to be responsible for sarcoma development. However, in spite of genetic abnormality, role of tumor microenvironment is also indispensable for the evolving neoplasm.

Therapeutic efficacy of artemisinin combination therapies and prevalence of S769N mutation in PfATPase6 gene of Plasmodium falciparum in Kolkata, India.

Objective: To study the in vivo efficacy of these two ACTs in the treatment of Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum malaria) in Kolkata and to determine the prevalence of mutant S769N codon of the PfATPase6 gene among field isolates of P. falciparum collected from the study area.

Mesenchymal stem cell and regenerative medicine: regeneration versus immunomodulatory challenges.

Mesenchymal Stem cells (MSC) are now presented with the opportunities of multifunctional therapeutic approaches. Several reports are in support of their self-renewal, capacity for multipotent differentiation, and immunomodulatory properties. They are unique to contribute to the regeneration of mesenchymal tissues such as bone, cartilage, muscle, ligament, tendon, and adipose.

Phenotypic alteration of limbal niche-associated limbal epithelial stem cell deficiency by ultraviolet-B exposure-induced phototoxicity in mice.

Good vision requires a healthy cornea, and a healthy cornea needs healthy stem cells. Limbal epithelial stem cells (LESCs) are a traditional source of corneal epithelial cells and are recruited for the continuous production of epithelium without seizing throughout an animal's life, which maintains corneal transparency. Like the maintenance of other adult somatic stem cells, the maintenance of LESCs depends on the specific microenvironmental niche in which they reside.

Multidrug-Resistance and Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase Production in Uropathogenic E. Coli which were Isolated from Hospitalized Patients in Kolkata, India.

Background And Objective: Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) are mostly caused by Escherichia coli. The appropriate therapy demands a current knowledge on the antimicrobial susceptibility pattern amongst these pathogens, as an inappropriate use of antibiotics may lead to complications and treatment failure. The UTIs which are caused by multidrug resistant Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamase (ESBL) producing bacteria further pose a severe problem, as the treatment options are limited.

High prevalence of asymptomatic malaria in a tribal population in eastern India.

Asymptomatic infection by Plasmodium falciparum is an important obstacle to eliminating malaria. Asymptomatic carriers do not seek treatment for infection, and therefore they become a reservoir for the parasite. For this reason, these carriers pose a real public health risk.

In vivo therapeutic efficacy of chloroquine alone or in combination with primaquine against vivax malaria in Kolkata, West Bengal, India, and polymorphism in pvmdr1 and pvcrt-o genes.

Plasmodium vivax malaria, though benign, has now become a matter of concern due to recent reports of life-threatening severity and development of parasite resistance to different antimalarial drugs. The magnitude of the problem is still undetermined. The present study was undertaken to determine the in vivo efficacy of chloroquine (CQ) and chloroquine plus primaquine in P.

Altered canonical hedgehog-gli signalling axis in pesticide-induced bone marrow aplasia mouse model.

The mechanistic interplay between pesticide exposure and development of marrow aplasia is not yet well established but there are indices that chronic pesticide exposure in some instances causes marrow aplasia like haematopoietic degenerative condition in human beings. Canonical Hedgehog (Hh) signalling has multiple roles in a wide range of developmental processes, including haematopoiesis. The present study was designed to explore the status of four important components of the canonical Hedgehog signalling cascade, the Sonic Hedgehog (Shh), Ptch1, Smo, and Gli1, in a mouse model of chronic pesticide-induced bone marrow aplasia.

17-AAG mediated targeting of Hsp90 limits tert activity in peritoneal sarcoma related malignant ascites by downregulating cyclin D1 during cell cycle entry.

Aim: Peritoneal or retro-peritoneal sarcomatosis related malignant ascites formation is a rare but serious consequence of the locoregional metastatic event. The present work aimed to study the effect of the Hsp90 inhibitor (17-AAG), an ansamycin analog, on cell cycle and DNA replication specific chaperone-clients interaction in the event of peritoneal sarcoma related malignant ascites formation in mouse model at the late stage of malignant growth.

Methods: We administered 17-AAG, an Hsp90 inhibitor, divided doses (330 μg/kg b.

Isolation and characterization of Pseudomonas sp. STM 997 from soil sample having potentiality to degrade 3,6-dimethyl-1-keto-1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazole: a novel approach.

A pure colony of a bacterium from contaminated soil was isolated by exploiting 3,6-dimethyl-1-keto-1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazole, a novel carbazole derivative, having indole moiety as well as 3-methyl functionality both in aromatic and hydro-aromatic moiety, as a sole source of carbon and energy. Taxonomical studies, biochemical analysis, and 16S rDNA sequence analysis indicated that the isolated strain has close similarity with Pseudomonas sp. Thin-layer chromatography followed by HPLC and mass spectroscopic study indicates that the isolated Pseudomonas sp.

Novel quadruple mutations in dihydropteroate synthase genes of Plasmodium falciparum in West Bengal, India.

Objective: To evaluate the anti-folate (sulphadoxine)-resistant pattern in Kolkata, one of the malaria endemic zones of Eastern India.

Methods: At first, 107 P. falciparum suspected cases were enrolled in this study.

Cefditoren pivoxil associated rash and arthralgia in a child.

Cefditoren pivoxil is an oral antimicrobial used increasingly in pediatric bacterial infections. We report a case of rash and arthralgia following administration of cefditoren pivoxil for lower respiratory tract infection in a four-year-old female child. On discontinuation of the antibiotic, the child recovered full function of the knee joint within seven days.

Antibiotic resistance of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi in Kolkata, India, and in vitro experiments on effect of combined chemotherapy.

This communication states the changing patterns of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (S. Typhi) isolates causing enteric fever in and around Kolkata, India. Among the isolates resistance to ampicillin (A), chloramphenicol (C), cotrimoxazole (Co) and tetracycline (T) were plasmid mediated; the plasmid was unstable in S.

Oral aripiprazole-induced severe hypoglycemia.

This case report highlights a very rare adverse drug reaction caused by oral aripiprazole resulting in severe hypoglycemia. A 72-year-old-male patient suffering from Parkinson disease on prolonged carbidopa plus levodopa combination therapy (carbidopa 25 mg plus levodopa 100 mg, thrice daily) for 1.3 years was recently diagnosed with psychosis and was initiated 10 mg/day oral aripiprazole.

Clinico-epidemiological characteristics of patients presenting with organophosphorus poisoning.

Background: Organophosphorus (OP) poisoning is a major health problem all over the world, particularly in the developing countries.

Aim: The present study aims to explore the clinical and epidemiological features found in patients presenting with OP poisoning.

Materials And Methods: A 1-year cross-sectional study was conducted on patients presenting with clinical features of OP poisoning in a tertiary care medical college.

Concurrent dengue and malaria in an area in Kolkata.

Objective: To establish the nature and extent of dual dengue and malaria infections in an endemic area through a longitudinal study.

Methods: A prospective study was conducted from August 2005 to December 2010 to document the nature and extent of concurrent dengue and malaria infections in an area in central Kolkata, endemic both for dengue and malaria.

Results: Of 2 971 suspected cases of dengue fever, in 605 (20.

Comparative efficacies of artemisinin combination therapies in Plasmodium falciparum malaria and polymorphism of pfATPase6, pfcrt, pfdhfr, and pfdhps genes in tea gardens of Jalpaiguri District, India.

In India, chloroquine has been replaced by a combination of artesunate and sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (AS-SP) for uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria. Other available combinations, artemether-lumefantrine (AM-LF) and artesunate-mefloquine (AS-MQ), not included in the national program, are widely used by private practitioners.

Enhancing chloramphenicol and trimethoprim in vitro activity by Ocimum sanctum Linn. (Lamiaceae) leaf extract against Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi.

Objective: To evaluate the antibacterial activity of Ocimum sanctum (O. sanctum) leaf extract, alone, and in combination with chloramphenicol (C) and trimethoprim (Tm) against Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (S. typhi).

Comparative evaluation of T11 target structure and its deglycosylated derivative nullifies the importance of glycan moieties in immunotherapeutic efficacy.

Sheep red blood cell (SRBC), a non-specific biological response modifier that has long been used as a classical antigen, has been shown to exert an immunomodulatory and anti-tumor activities in experimental animals. The active component of SRBC, which is responsible for such effects, was found to be a cell surface acidic glycoprotein molecule, known as T11 target structure (T11TS). In the present study, T11TS was isolated and purified to homogeneity using a five-step protocol involving isolation of sheep erythrocyte membrane from packed cell volume, 20% ammonium sulfate cut of the crude membrane proteins mixture, immunoaffinity purification using mouse anti-sheep CD58 mAb (L180/1) tagged matrix, preparative gel electrophoresis, and gel electroelution process.

Benzene exposure--an experimental machinery for induction of myelodysplastic syndrome: stem cell and stem cell niche analysis in the bone marrow.

Human epidemiologic studies of highly exposed occupational cohorts have demonstrated that inhalation/exposure to benzene can cause several blood disorders, like non-lymphocytic leukemia, pre leukemic stage, aplastic anemia, and other related syndromes collectively considered as bone marrow failure syndromes. Like many other agents [e.g.

Oral itraconazole for the treatment of severe seborrhoeic dermatitis.

Background: Seborrheic dermatitis (SD) is an inflammatory skin disorder in which colonies of Malassezia furfur have been found in affected areas.

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of itraconazole in the treatment of severe SD.

Materials And Methods: Itraconazole was given to 30 patients of SD in a dose of 100 mg twice daily for 1 week followed by 200 mg/day for first 2 days of the following 2 months.