Bandages of boiled potato peels

The use of potato peels as a dressing for burn wounds has been reported previously. A technique of preparing bandage rolls with boiled potato peels is now presented, which makes dressing of a burn wound more convenient.     

Pulmonary function in thalassaemia major and its correlation with body iron stores

This study compared pulmonary function tests (PFTs) with cardiac, pancreatic and liver iron in 76 thalassemia major (TM) patients. Restrictive lung disease was observed in 16%, hyperinflation in 32% and abnormal diffusing capacity in 3%. While no patients met Global Initiative for Chronic Lung Disease criteria for airways obstruction, there were indicators of small airways disease and air trapping. PFTs did not correlate with somatic iron burden, blood counts or haemolysis. Restrictive lung disease was associated with inflammation. We conclude that TM patients have pulmonary abnormalities consistent with small airways obstruction. Restrictive disease and impaired diffusion are less common.     

N‐hydroxy‐substituted 2‐aryl acetamide analogs: A novel class of HIV‐1 integrase inhibitors

An in silico method has been used to discover N‐hydroxy‐substituted 2‐aryl acetamide analogs as a new class of HIV‐1 integrase inhibitors. Based on the molecular requirements of the binding pocket of catalytic active site, two molecules (compounds 2 and 4b ) were designed as fragments. These were further synthesized and biologically evaluated. In vitro potency along with docking studies highlighted compound 4b as an active fragment which was further used to synthesize new leads as HIV‐1 integrase inhibitors. Finally, six promising compounds (compounds 5b , 5c , 5e, 6–2c, 6–3b, and 6–5b ) were identified by integrase inhibition assay (>50% inhibition). Based on in vitro anti‐HIV‐1 activity in a reporter gene‐based cell assay system, compounds 5d , 6s , and 6k were found as novel HIV‐1 integrase inhibitors due to its better selectivity index. Additionally, docking study revealed the importance of H‐bond as well as hydrophobic interactions with Asn155, Lys156, and Lys159 which were required for their anti‐HIV‐1 activity.     

Me3SI-promoted chemoselective deacetylation: a general and mild protocol

A Me₃SI-mediated simple and efficient protocol for the chemoselective deprotection of acetyl groups has been developed via employing KMnO₄ as an additive. This chemoselective deacetylation is amenable to a wide range of substrates, tolerating diverse and sensitive functional groups in carbohydrates, amino acids, natural products, heterocycles, and general scaffolds. The protocol is attractive because it uses an environmentally benign reagent system to perform quantitative and clean transformations under ambient conditions.

A catalytic and practical approach for the selective removal of acetyl groups using various substrates bearing orthogonal moieties has been demonstrated under ambient conditions.

The divergent protection–deprotection approach and extensive functional group manipulation continues to serve as an important chemical tool to access biologically potent molecules and complex natural products.¹ In particular, the hydroxyl moieties and their derivatives are ubiquitous in natural products and recognized as renowned scaffolds because of the overwhelming number of chemical and biological applications that they can be used in.^2,3 The selective and orthogonal protection–deprotection of free hydroxyl group(s) are significant chemical transformations and frequently employed in target-oriented synthesis (TOS).⁴ Due to the widespread use and relative ease of protection–deprotection, introduction of an O-Ac group to mask the hydroxyl-moiety has remained as a highly reliable and convenient strategy, especially in synthetic carbohydrate chemistry.^1–3 However, the chemoselective deprotection of O-Ac in the presence of analogous and sensitive O-protective groups such as benzoyl (Bz) or pivaloyl (Pv) is a notoriously challenging yet important task.^1–3Thus, considerable effort has been devoted to developing robust and selective methods for the deprotection of the acetate ester. As outlined in Scheme 1, the cleavage of O-Ac is conventionally performed under a homogeneous reagent system including: (a) Brønsted acids/Lewis acids such as HCl/MeOH,⁵ HBF₄·Et₂O,⁶ BF₃·Et₂O,⁷p-TsOH or CSA,⁸ (b) inorganic/organic basic conditions employing Zemplén hydrolysis (NaOMe/MeOH),¹ ammonia solution,⁹ hydrazine/AcOH/pyridine,¹⁰ DBU/PhH,¹¹ guanidine/EtOH/DCM,¹² Mg–metal or Mg(OMe)₂,¹³ KCN/EtOH,¹⁴ K₂CO₃/MeOH/H₂O,¹⁵ NaHCO₃/H₂O₂,¹⁶ (c) metallic compounds or oxidants such as MoO₂Cl₂,¹⁷ molecular iodine/MeOH,^18a Sm/I₂,^18b Bu₂SnO/heating,^19a Bu₃SnOMe/DCE.^19b Although, the use of heterogeneous catalysts such as CuFe₂O₄ nanoparticles²⁰ and enzymes²¹ have also been demonstrated for deacetylation with limited substrate scope. Recently, a tetranuclear zinc cluster, Zn₄(OCOCF₃)₆O has been investigated for use in trans-esterification and deacylation with discriminate selectivity.²²Open in a separate windowScheme 1Previous advances, and the Me₃SI-catalyzed chemoselective deacetylation developed in this work.Despite the synthetic challenges and demands placed on modern chemistry, advancing green chemical syntheses employing milder and environmentally benign reagent systems remains a constant motivation and is actively pursued. In this context and our continued interest²³ developing versatile and selective protocols inspired the development of a simple and chemoselective deacetylation method with remarkable and distinctive synthetic applicability. Recently the dual-reactivity of KMnO₄ for selective deacetylation and one-pot deacetylation–oxidation of benzyl-O-acetates under controlled reaction conditions was successfully investigated.^23aEmerging from these precedents, the Me₃SI-catalyzed, simple and chemoselective removal of O-acetate, an elegant and promising alternative approach for the deprotection of the acetate ester (Scheme 1d) is presented herein. Inspired by recent research,^23f an initial experiment employing Me₃SI(OAc)₂, generated in situ oxidative transfer of the acetyl groups from PhI(OAc)₂ to Me₃SI, which gave the regioselective 2-iodoglycosylation of enol ether functionality in 3,4,6-tri-O-acetyl-d-glucal (1a) with methanol together with traces of the deacetylated product 1 (23f,g Meanwhile, the reaction using 0.2 equiv. of both Me₃SI and NaIO₄ was found to suffice for obtaining the complete deacetylation of 1a after 40 min (

The efficacy of an integrated neuromuscular inhibition technique on upper trapezius trigger points in subjects with non-specific neck pain: a randomized controlled trial

Currently, large levels of practice variability exist regarding the clinical deactivation of trigger points. Manual physical therapy has been identified as a potential means of resolving active trigger points; however, to date the ideal treatment approach has yet to be elucidated. The purpose of this clinical trial was to compare the effects of two manual treatment regimens on individuals with upper trapezius trigger points. Sixty patients, 19–38 years of age with non-specific neck pain and upper trapezius trigger points, were randomized into one of two, 4 week physical therapy programs. One group received muscle energy techniques while the second group received an integrated neuromuscular inhibition technique (INIT) consisting of muscle energy techniques, ischemic compression, and strain–counterstrain (SCS). Outcomes including a visual analog pain scale (VAS), the neck disability index (NDI), and lateral cervical flexion range of motion (ROM) were collected at baseline, 2 and 4 weeks after the initiation of therapy. Results revealed large pre–post-effect sizes within the INIT group (Cohen’s d  =  0.97, 0.94 and 0.97). Additionally, significantly greater improvements in pain and neck disability and lateral cervical flexion ROM were detected in favor of the INIT group (0.29–0.57, 0.57–1.12 and 0.29–0.57) at a 95% CI respectively. The findings of this study indicate the potential benefit of an integrated approach in deactivating upper trapezius trigger points. Further research should be performed to investigate the long-term benefits of the current treatment approach.     

Bacteriology of the burn wound at the Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital for children, Mumbai, India��A 13-year study, Part I-Bacteriological profile

Aim:

To study which organisms were prevalent in our burn unit and their antibiotic sensitivity pattern in brief.

Method:

Microbiological data of 1534 patients admitted to the burns unit of the Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital for Children, Mumbai over a period of 13 years (1994-2006) was reviewed retrospectively. A total of 9333 swabs were cultured and antibiotic sensitivities to the isolated organisms determined. The age group of patients admitted to our facility ranged from one month to 15 years.

Result:

Klebsiella was the predominant organism in our set-up (33.91%), closely followed by Pseudomonas (31.84%). The antibiotic sensitivities of the isolated organisms are discussed in detail in the text.

Conclusion:

Every treatment facility has microorganisms unique to it and these change with time. It is therefore of paramount importance to have an in-depth knowledge of the resident organisms and their antibiotic sensitivity pattern so that infection-related morbidity and mortality are improved.