Knowledge and Attitude Related to Sexually Transmitted Infections and Contraceptive Use Among Patients Attending the Venereology Outpatient Department in Thiruvallur: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Introduction Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), which contribute to a significant amount of mortality and morbidity in the reproductive life of adults, are infections that can be prevented by healthy sexual behavior and education about the same. This study aims to assess the knowledge and attitude toward STIs and contraceptive use among patients attending the Venereology Outpatient Department (OPD). Methods A hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted among patients more than 18 years of age attending the Venereology OPD, Government Medical College and Hospital, Thiruvallur, India, from March to May 2024.

Assessment of Attenuation in Pericarotid Fat among Patients with Carotid Plaque and Spontaneous Carotid Dissection.

Background And Purpose: Changes in perivascular fat density (PFD) and its association with inflammation have been topics of interest in both atherosclerotic and nonatherosclerotic vasculopathies. The objective of this study was to assess the PFD in patients with spontaneous internal carotid artery dissection (SICAD) or carotid atherosclerotic plaque, with and without intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH).

Materials And Methods: A cross-sectional retrospective bicentric analysis of 130 patients (30 with SICAD and 100 with carotid atherosclerotic plaque) who underwent CT angiography was performed.

Advances and Challenges in the Diagnosis of Leishmaniasis.

Leishmaniasis remains a significant public health challenge, particularly in endemic regions with limited resources. Traditional diagnostic methods, including microscopy, culture, and serology, though widely utilized, often suffer from limitations such as variable  sensitivity, time delays, and the need for specialized infrastructure. Some of these limitations have been addressed with the emergence of molecular diagnostic techniques.

Efficacy and Safety of F-Biotic™ in Combination With Metformin for Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Results From a Randomized, Double-Blind Clinical Trial.

Introduction: This study evaluated the effectiveness, safety, and tolerability of F-Biotic™ (Arishina Life Sciences, Karnataka, IND), a prebiotic containing 60% resistant starch derived from natural sources, in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) on stable metformin therapy.

Methods: Seventy participants with T2DM, aged 25-70 years, were randomized into two groups: one receiving F-Biotic™ and the other a placebo, both administered daily for 12 weeks. Key outcomes included fasting blood sugar (FBS), postprandial blood sugar (PPBS), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), fasting insulin, insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), GLP-1 levels, lipid profile, and quality of life.

The histological development of the fetal human inferior colliculus during the second trimester.

The inferior colliculus (IC) is an important midbrain station of the auditory pathway, as well as an important hub of multisensory integration. The adult mammalian IC can be subdivided into three nuclei, with distinct cyto- and myeloarchitectonical profiles and distinct calcium binding proteins expression patterns. Despite several studies about its structural and functional development, the knowledge about the human fetal IC is rather limited.

AS3MT Gene Variant Shows Association with Skin Lesions in an Arsenic Exposed Population of India.

AS3MT, GSTO2, and GSTP1 genes play important roles in the arsenic biotransformation pathway, while CYP2E1 gene has a prominent role in the metabolic activation of xenobiotics. Hence, polymorphisms of these genes might have an effect on arsenic biotransformation and could impact susceptibility to arsenical skin lesions in individuals of chronic arsenic toxicity. The present case-control study, comprising 148 subjects, attempted to evaluate genetic association between nine polymorphisms of AS3MT, GSTO2, GSTP1 and CYP2E1 genes and arsenical skin lesions in a West Bengal (WB) population.

A cross-sectional pilot study to estimate the frequency of minor blood group alleles and phenotypes in RhD-negative North Indian blood donors by DNA microarray analysis.

Introduction: There are scarce data on Indian blood donors with respect to blood group phenotypes using molecular diagnostic modalities. Hence, we planned to estimate frequencies of blood group alleles/phenotypes using DNA microarray analysis in the north Indian RhD-negative blood donor population. With this initial pilot study, we plan to expand it to our entire donor population.

Artificial Neural Network-Based Validation, DFT, Thermal and Biological Evaluation of 4-Aminoantipyrine-Derived Ru(III) Complexes.

New methodologies have been evaluated for validating analytical characterization with artificial neural networks (ANNs). Compared to previous machine learning models, these provide more accurate and automated results with high testing accuracy. The Schiff base ruthenium complexes used in the proposed study were synthesized using 4-aminoantipyrine derivatives.

Aerodynamic performance enhancement of centrifugal compressor using numerical techniques.

Background: Centrifugal compressors are dynamic machines utilizing a rotating impeller, efficiently accelerate incoming gases, transforming kinetic energy into pressure energy for compression. They serve a wide range of industries, including air conditioning, refrigeration, gas turbines, industrial processes, and applications such as air compression, gas transportation, and petrochemicals, demonstrating their versatility. Designing a centrifugal compressor poses challenges related to achieving high aerodynamic efficiency, surge and choke control, material selection, rotor dynamics, cavitation, erosion, and addressing environmental considerations while balancing costs.

Multi-view domain adaption based multi-scale convolutional conditional invertible discriminator for cross-subject electroencephalogram emotion recognition.

Cross subject Electroencephalogram (EEG) emotion recognition refers to the process of utilizing electroencephalogram signals to recognize and classify emotions across different individuals. It tracks neural electrical patterns, and by analyzing these signals, it's possible to infer a person's emotional state. The objective of cross-subject recognition is to create models or algorithms that can reliably detect emotions in both the same person and several other people.

In silico evaluation of bisphosphonates identifies leading candidates for SARS-CoV-2 RdRp inhibition.

The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in 777 million confirmed cases and over 7 million deaths worldwide, with insufficient treatment options. Innumerable efforts are being made around the world for faster identification of therapeutic agents to treat the deadly disease. Post Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection or COVID-19 (PASC), also called Long COVID, is still being understood and lacks treatment options as well.

Presence of Fragmented Intratumoral Thrombosed Microvasculature in the Necrotic and Peri-Necrotic Regions on SWI Differentiates IDH Wild-Type Glioblastoma From IDH Mutant Grade 4 Astrocytoma.

Background: Isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) wild-type (IDH) glioblastomas (GB) are more aggressive and have a poorer prognosis than IDH mutant (IDH) tumors, emphasizing the need for accurate preoperative differentiation. However, a distinct imaging biomarker for differentiation mostly lacking. Intratumoral thrombosis has been reported as a histopathological biomarker for GB.

Artificial intelligence as a proficient tool in detecting pulmonary tuberculosis in massive population screening programs: a case study in Chennai, India.

Objective: To evaluate the performance of Genki, a computer-aided detection (CADe) software, in detecting tuberculosis (TB) using chest radiography in a mobile TB screening program in Chennai, India.

Materials And Methods: Genki, an AI-based CADe software, was employed in four mobile diagnostic units in remote areas of Chennai, India for screening TB. Patients from remote areas of Chennai who visited the vans and registered in the screening program underwent chest radiography, and the acquired X-ray scans were analyzed using Genki, which provided an assessment of each scan as either "TB suggestive" or "TB not suggestive".

Formulation Design, Optimization, and Evaluation of Solid Lipid Nanoparticles Loaded With an Antiviral Drug Tenofovir Using Box-Behnken Design for Boosting Oral Bioavailability.

The current study aimed to improve the oral bioavailability of tenofovir (TNF), an antihuman immunodeficiency viral (HIV) drug, by integrating it into solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs), an emerging lipid formulation. The suggested SLNs were generated utilizing the microemulsion process, using Compritol 888 ATO. A Box-Behnken experimental design was attempted to analyze the impact of critical quality attributes (CQAs), such as lipid and surfactant content and homogenization duration on response metrics such as particle size (PS) and percentage entrapment.

Magnetoelectric properties and Morin type spin transitions of Na-doped GaFeO.

The effects of Na doping on the structure magnetic, electric, and magnetoelectric properties of GaFeOwere studied. Rietveld refinement of the XRD data reveals the formation of a single-phase trigonal structure with no impurity on Na doping up to 50% and a significant increase in lattice strain with doping. FTIR and Raman analysis further supported the phase purity of the samples.

Xalnesiran with or without an Immunomodulator in Chronic Hepatitis B.

Background: Xalnesiran, a small interfering RNA molecule that targets a conserved region of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) genome and silences multiple HBV transcripts, may have efficacy, with or without an immunomodulator, in patients with chronic HBV infection.

Methods: We conducted a phase 2, multicenter, randomized, controlled, adaptive, open-label platform trial that included the evaluation of 48 weeks of treatment with xalnesiran at a dose of 100 mg (group 1), xalnesiran at a dose of 200 mg (group 2), xalnesiran at a dose of 200 mg plus 150 mg of ruzotolimod (group 3), xalnesiran at a dose of 200 mg plus 180 μg of pegylated interferon alfa-2a (group 4), or a nucleoside or nucleotide analogue (NA) alone (group 5) in participants with chronic HBV infection who had virologic suppression with NA therapy. The primary efficacy end point was hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) loss (HBsAg level, <0.

Effect of Metformin on Meibomian Gland Epithelial Cells: Implications in Aging and Diabetic Dry Eye Disease.

Background: Metformin, a commonly prescribed medication for managing diabetes, has garnered increasing interest as a potential therapeutic option for combating cancer and aging.

Methods: The current study investigated the effects of metformin treatment on human meibomian gland epithelial cells (hMGECs) at morphological, molecular, and electron microscopy levels. HMGECs were stimulated in vitro with 1 mM, 5 mM, and 10 mM metformin for 24, 48, and 72 h.

Identification of ABHD6 as a lysophosphatidylserine lipase in the mammalian liver and kidneys.

Lysophosphatidylserine (lyso-PS) is a potent hormone-like signaling lysophospholipid, which regulates many facets of mammalian biology and dysregulation in its metabolism is associated with several human neurological and autoimmune diseases. Despite the physiological importance and causal relation with human pathophysiology, little is known about the metabolism of lyso-PS in tissues other than the nervous and immune systems. To address this problem, here, we attempted to identify one (or more) lipase(s) capable of degrading lyso-PS in different mammalian tissues.

Nutraceutical delivery vehicles: enhanced stability, bioavailability.

Nanotechnology has gained recognition as the next uprising technology in numerous sectors, together with food industry and agriculture. Diminution of particle size to nanoscale range enhances the surface area, eventually surface-to-volume ratio, subsequently enhances their reactivity by several times, modifying optical, electrical, and mechanical features. Nanotechnology can also modify the aqueous solubility, thermal stability, and bioavailability in oral delivery of bioactive nutraceuticals.

Conflict between sea snakes and humans on the coast of West Bengal and Odisha, India: perception, attitudes and incidents.

Background: Snakebite envenoming is a critical medical emergency and significant global public health issue, with India experiencing the highest annual snakebite deaths. Sea snakes in the Indian Ocean pose a severe threat to rural fishermen due to their potent neurotoxins.

Methods: From December 2020 to December 2021, we conducted surveys at 15 fishing ports in East Medinipur, West Bengal, and Balasore, Odisha, India (between 21.

Ensemble learning driven Kolmogorov-Arnold Networks-based Lung Cancer classification.

Early Lung Cancer (LC) detection is essential for reducing the global mortality rate. The limitations of traditional diagnostic techniques cause challenges in identifying LC using medical imaging data. In this study, we aim to develop a robust LC detection model.

Surveillance for surgical site infections developed during hospital stay & after discharge: A multicentric study.

Background & objectives Surgical site infections (SSIs) are among the most prevalent healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs). They cause significant morbidity, leading to excess health expenditures and increased length of hospital stay. Despite a high population burden, data on post-discharge SSIs is lacking from low-and middle-income countries (LMICs).