Bacteriological analysis of water samples from tsunami hit coastal areas of Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu

Water borne diseases such as cholera, enteric fever and dysentery were expected after the tsunami, which hit the coastal areas of Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu. In the present study 151 drinking water sources were collected from the tsunami affected villages and relief shelters and tested for coliforms and pathogens. Nine well water samples were also collected for specific bacteriological analysis. Presence of coliforms was detected in 56 (37%) water samples. One isolate each of Salmonella Paratyphi B and NAG Vibrio were isolated from two well water samples. There was no report of acute diarrhoeal diseases or typhoid illness during the post tsunami period monitored by a field microbiology laboratory for a month.     

Undifferentiated carcinoma of the submandibular salivary gland with fulminant clinical course: a case report

Undifferentiated carcinoma of salivary glands is too poorly differentiated to be classified as any of the specific group of carcinomas. This is a rare disease, the incidence of which is rather low-to-very low in the Indian subcontinent. The tumor can assume an aggressive clinical behavior characterized by disseminated metastases. The prognosis is rated as dismal; as evidenced by this clinical report of a tumor in the submandibular salivary gland with synchronous metastases to the skull bones and in to the intracranial fossa. The putative relationship of the tumor to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection is discussed.     

Organoiodine (III)-mediated synthesis of 3-aryl/heteroaryl-5,7-dimethyl-1,2,4-triazolo[4,3-c]pyrimidines as antibacterial agents

Synthesis of 12 new 3-aryl/heteroaryl-5,7-dimethyl-1,2,4-triazolo[4,3-c]pyrimidines (3a-l) has been accomplished by the oxidation of pyrimidinylhydrazones (2a-l) of various aryl/heteroaryl aldehydes using 1.1equiv. of iodobenzene diacetate (IBD) in dichloromethane. All the compounds 3a-l tested in vitro for their antibacterial activity against two Gram-positive bacteria namely, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus stearothermophilus and two Gram-negative bacteria Pseudomonas putida, Escherichia coli. Two compounds, namely 3-(2,4-dichlorophenyl)-5,7-dimethyl-1,2,4-triazolo [4,3-c]pyrimidine (3j) and 3-(4-hydroxy-2-methoxyphenyl)-5,7-dimethyl-1,2,4-triazolo[4,3-c]pyrimidine (3l) were found to be equipotent or more potent than the commercially available antibiotics (chloramphenicol and streptomycin).     

Generation,long-term persistence,and neuronal differentiation of cells with nuclear aberrations in the adult zebrafish brain

Zebrafish, like other teleosts, continuously produce new cells in numerous regions of the adult brain. Immunolabeling employing antisera against phosphorylated histone-H3 and 5-bromo-2′-deoxyuridine revealed that approximately 6%–7% of such cells exhibited nuclear aberrations. These aberrations, presumably the result of mitotic segregation defects, included single and multiple laggards (both during metaphase and anaphase) and anaphase bridges. Cells with such aberrations persisted long-term and comprised, when examined 7.5 months after their generation, approximately 2.5% of the total population of adult-born cells. The drop in relative frequency of aberrations in the course of further development appears to be caused by elimination of cells with nuclear aberrations, presumably by apoptotic cell death. The cells with nuclear aberrations that persisted long-term were capable of neuronal differentiation, as demonstrated by combining anti-5-bromo-2′-deoxyuridine immunohistochemistry with immunostaining against the neuronal marker protein Hu or the enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase, a marker of catecholaminergic neurons. We hypothesize that the alterations in chromosome number and/or chromosome structure caused by nuclear aberrations do not necessarily result in loss of vital functions or in tumorigenesis. Instead, cells with such aberrations are able to undergo what appears to be normal development.     

Factors Involved in Making Decisions to Prescribe Medications for Psychiatric Disorders by Psychiatrists: A Survey Study

The objective of this study is to understand psychiatrist's decisions to prescribe psychiatric medications. A survey questionnaire was prepared consisting of 15 factors. Each factor had a five-point Likert scale, rating the importance of each factor in making decisions to prescribe medications. Twenty-six psychiatrists at a state psychiatric hospital completed the questionnaire. The data analysis involved the frequencies of responses for each factor being compared using Chi square goodness-of-fit tests with null hypothesis that the response distribution will be centered around average score of three on the Likert scale. All the participants rated patient's symptom, severity, and diagnosis as the most important. This was followed by the patient's past experience with medications, then medication side effects, concurrent physical health problems, and medication interactions. Psychiatrist's experience with medications rated as more important than evidence from clinical trials. Finally, psychiatrists integrate evidence from research findings with personal experience, patient preferences, and clinical context in making decisions in prescribing medications for psychiatric disorders.     

Natural vertical transmission of dengue virus in Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) in Kerala, a southern Indian state

The natural occurrence of vertical transmission of dengue viruses in Aedes albopictus (Skuse) mosquitoes was examined in the state of Kerala in southern India. Adults and larvae of Ae. albopictus collected from Kerala were screened for dengue viruses by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with dengue-specific monoclonal antibodies. The possibility of the vertical transmission of dengue virus in Ae. albopictus was further evidenced by the detection of the virus in field-collected adult males as well as females emerged from field-collected larvae. Two pools, one pool from the adult males and one pool from the emerged females derived from field-collected larvae, were collected in the relatively hot months of June and March, respectively, and found to be positive for dengue virus antigen. Dengue serotype 2 virus was isolated from field-collected male adults in Kerala. These findings suggest that dengue virus is maintained in Ae. albopictus mosquitoes during the dry season by vertical transmission in nature.