Immune profile and responses of a novel dengue DNA vaccine encoding an EDIII-NS1 consensus design based on Indo-African sequences.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic highlights the need to tackle viral variants, expand the number of antigens, and assess diverse delivery systems for vaccines against emerging viruses. In the present study, a DNA vaccine candidate was generated by combining in tandem envelope protein domain III (EDIII) of dengue virus serotypes 1-4 and a dengue virus (DENV)-2 non-structural protein 1 (NS1) protein-coding region. Each domain was designed as a serotype-specific consensus coding sequence derived from different genotypes based on the whole genome sequencing of clinical isolates in India and complemented with data from Africa.

Critical Illness in COVID-19: A Sobering Experience for the Intensivist.

Krishna B. Critical Illness in COVID-19: A Sobering Experiencefor the Intensivist. Indian J Crit Care Med 2021;25(9):965-966.

Variability of human fasted venous plasma metabolomic profiles with tourniquet induced hemostasis.

Venous plasma metabolomics is a potent and highly sensitive tool for identifying and measuring metabolites of interest in human health and disease. Accurate and reproducible insights from such metabolomic studies require extreme care in removing preanalytical confounders; one of these is the duration of tourniquet application when drawing the venous blood sample. Using an untargeted plasma metabolomics approach, we evaluated the effect of varying durations of tourniquet application on the variability in plasma metabolite concentrations in five healthy female subjects.

iPad with iPad-based Apps: An Optimal Communications Tool in the Intensive Care Unit?

Raju GM. iPad with iPad-based Apps: An Optimal Communications Tool in the Intensive Care Unit? Indian J Crit Care Med 2021;25(11):1217-1218.

Unraveling the Worth of a Clinical Pharmacist.

Krishna B. Unraveling the Worth of a Clinical Pharmacist. Indian J Crit Care Med 2021;25(11):1215-1216.

Comparison of efficacy of a 7-day versus a 14-day course of intravenous antibiotics in the treatment of uncomplicated neonatal bacterial sepsis: study protocol of a randomized controlled non-inferiority trial.

Background: Neonatal sepsis is a global public health problem. There is no consensus regarding the optimum duration of antibiotics for culture-proven neonatal sepsis. Published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing shorter versus longer courses of antibiotics provide low-quality evidence with serious risk of bias.

Sepsis-Induced Myocardial Dysfunction in Pediatric Septic Shock: Prevalence, Predictors, and Outcome-A Prospective Observational Study.

There is a paucity of literature on the prevalence, predictors, prognostic markers, and outcomes of sepsis-induced myocardial dysfunction (SMD) in pediatric septic shock. The objectives of our study were to estimate the prevalence of SMD in pediatric septic shock by point-of-care functional echocardiography (POCFE) and to study the association of SMD with severity of illness, organ dysfunctions, and outcomes. This prospective, observational study was conducted over a period of 1 year (from July 2018 to July 2019) in a 12-bed, tertiary pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of an academic and referral hospital in South India.

Characteristics of tobacco consumption among cancer patients at a tertiary cancer hospital in South India-A cross-sectional study.

Introduction: Cancer patients commonly present with antecedent addiction to tobacco consumption. Our study describes the characteristics of this substance use. Following the diagnosis of cancer, continued consumption of tobacco results in reduced tolerance to treatment, failure of treatment, tumor progression, other primary tumors, secondary cancers, and poor quality of life.

Late toxicities in locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma treated with intensity modulated radiation therapy.

Purpose: The study aims to report late toxicities in locally advanced head-and-neck squamous cell carcinoma (LAHNSCC) treated with intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT).

Materials And Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on 103 patients of LAHNSCC treated with IMRT. We analyzed the cumulative incidence of late xerostomia, dysphagia, and aspiration at an interval of 6-month, 1-year, 2-year, and 3-year from the start of IMRT.

The effect of exchange transfusion on mortality in neonatal sepsis: a meta-analysis.

Although antimicrobials are the cornerstone of neonatal sepsis management, adjunctive therapies are required to improve outcomes. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effect of exchange transfusion (ET) on mortality (primary outcome) in neonatal sepsis, as well as on immunoglobulin, complement and neutrophil levels and assess its complications (secondary outcomes). Databases searched include PubMed, NCBI, Google Scholar, CINHAL, Ovid and Scopus.

Disease Surveillance: The Bedrock for Control and Prevention.

Krishna B. Disease Surveillance: The Bedrock for Control and Prevention. Indian J Crit Care Med 2021;25(7):745-746.

Pre-Menopausal Women With Breast Cancers Having High AR/ER Ratios in the Context of Higher Circulating Testosterone Tend to Have Poorer Outcomes.

Purpose: Women with breast tumors with higher expression of AR are in general known to have better survival outcomes while a high AR/ER ratio is associated with poor outcomes in hormone receptor positive breast cancers mostly in post menopausal women. We have evaluated the AR/ER ratio in the context of circulating androgens specifically in patients younger than 50 years most of whom are pre-menopausal and hence have a high estrogenic hormonal milieu.

Methods: Tumor samples from patients 50 years or younger at first diagnosis were chosen from a larger cohort of 270 patients with median follow-up of 72 months.

Clinicopathological Correlation with Mesangial C4d Deposition in Primary Immunoglobulin A Nephropathy - A Descriptive study.

In immunoglobulin A (IgA) nephropathy, activation of lectin pathway leads to severe renal damage and more pronounced histological damage. As C4d is a marker of lectin pathway activation, the presence of mesangial C4d positivity will help in identifying those patients at risk. The study was conducted to study the prevalence of mesangial C4d positivity in patients with primary IgA nephropathy and to compare the clinical and histopathological features with C4d-positive and C4d-negative cases.

A Shot in the Dark! RAAS Inhibitors Cause Severe COVID-19 Infection.

Krishna B. A Shot in the Dark! RAAS Inhibitors Cause Severe COVID-19 Infection. Indian J Crit Care Med 2021;25(4):353-354.

Protocol for a prospective, observational, deep phenotyping study on adipose epigenetic and lipidomic determinants of metabolic homoeostasis in South Asian Indians: the Indian Diabetes and Metabolic Health (InDiMeT) study.

Introduction: We describe the rationale and broad study design of the Indian Diabetes and Metabolic Health (InDiMeT) study, a new prospective, observational study incorporating extensive epigenetic (DNA methylation) and lipidomic signatures to examine their association with the dysregulation of adipose de novo lipogenesis (DNL) in South Asian Indians. The InDiMeT study aims to use a case-control design to identify genetic and modifiable-environmental-lifestyle associated determinants of (1) epigenomic (DNA methylome) dysregulation of adipose DNL in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) adipose tissue, (2) identify correlates of epigenomic (DNA methylome) dysregulation of adipose DNL in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from T2DM subjects and (3) elucidate plasma lipidomic correlates of adipose DNL in T2DM that can be used as biomarkers of adipose tissue dysfunction.

Methods And Analysis: The InDiMeT study will involve recruitment of 176 normoglycaemic and T2DM individuals who will be undergoing laparoscopic surgery for clinical conditions.

Microarray analysis reveals distinct immune signatures in positive and negative myeloproliferative neoplasms.

Background: BCR-ABL mutation on the Philadelphia chromosome is the key driver of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) pathogenesis. However, there are certain cases of myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN) wherein no inherent driver mutation is detected resulting in clinical phenotype. It is important to identify key genes and pathways in driving the disease.

Electrocardiometry for Hemodynamic Categorization and Assessment of Fluid Responsiveness in Pediatric Septic Shock: A Pilot Observational Study.

Aim: To evaluate the utility of noninvasive electrocardiometry (ICON®) for hemodynamic categorization and assessment of fluid responsiveness in pediatric septic shock.

Materials And Methods: Pilot prospective observational study in a 12-bedded tertiary pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) in children aged between 2 months and 16 years with unresolved septic shock after a 20 mL/kg fluid bolus. Those with cardiac index (CI) <3.

Clinical Utility of Arterial Blood Gas Test in an Intensive Care Unit: An Observational Study.

Background: Arterial blood gas (ABG) analysis is a common test ordered in critically ill patients. Often, it is performed very frequently without influencing patient care. Hence, we decided to check the utility of the ABG test in our intensive care unit (ICU).

Gene expression profiling of CD34(+) cells from patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms.

Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN) are clonal disorders characterized by the increased proliferation of hematopoietic stem cell precursors and mature blood cells. Mutations of Janus kinase 2 (2), Calreticulin () and (myeloproliferative leukemia virus) are key driver mutations in MPN. However, the molecular profile of triple negative MPN has been a subject of ambiguity over the past few years.

Clinical phenotype, fibrinogen supplementation, and health-related quality of life in patients with afibrinogenemia.

Due to the low prevalence of afibrinogenemia, epidemiologic data on afibrinogenemia are limited, and no data are available on health-related quality of life (HRQoL). We conducted a cross-sectional international study to characterize the clinical features, the fibrinogen supplementation modalities, and their impact on HRQoL in patients with afibrinogenemia. A total of 204 patients (119 adults and 85 children) from 25 countries were included.

Metabolic and Energy Imbalance in Dysglycemia-Based Chronic Disease.

Metabolic flexibility is the ability to efficiently adapt metabolism based on nutrient availability and requirement that is essential to maintain homeostasis in times of either caloric excess or restriction and during the energy-demanding state. This regulation is orchestrated in multiple organ systems by the alliance of numerous metabolic pathways under the master control of the insulin-glucagon-sympathetic neuro-endocrine axis. This, in turn, regulates key metabolic enzymes and transcription factors, many of which interact closely with and culminate in the mitochondrial energy generation machinery.

Modified improvised pre-embedding method for core needle biopsies: A clinicopathologic study.

Background: An optimal core needle biopsy (CNB) is expected to balance between tissue diagnosis, the accuracy of negative sampling, and concordance with reports from resected specimens to select the appropriate treatment. Though various techniques for CNBs are available, no guidelines exist for processing CNB, with practices varying from lab to lab for transport and processing. This prospective study aims to design a cost-effective, user-friendly pre-embedding method for CNBs to yield intact cores.

Intensive insulin therapy and plasma exchange in hypertriglyceridaemic acute pancreatitis with multiple organ dysfunction.

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a common emergency in gastroenterology. After gallstone disease and alcoholism, hypertriglyceridaemia (HTG) is the next common cause for AP. The role of intensive insulin therapy (IIT) and plasma exchange (PE) in hypertriglyceridaemic acute pancreatitis (HTG-AP) is still debatable.