Exposure to Human and Bovine Noroviruses in a Birth Cohort in Southern India from 2002 to 2006

Human and bovine norovirus virus-like particles were used to evaluate antibodies in Indian children at ages 6 and 36 months and their mothers. Antibodies to genogroup II viruses were acquired early and were more prevalent than antibodies to genogroup I. Low levels of IgG antibodies against bovine noroviruses indicate possible zoonotic transmission.     

Updates in therapeutic drug monitoring in inflammatory bowel disease

Biologics and immunomodulators (IMM) are generally considered the most effective therapies for the treatment of ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. However, despite the efficacy of these therapies, many patients either have a primary lack of response or a secondary loss of response to these medications. Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) is a systematic approach to managing such patients. In this review, we summarize the latest data on TDM, including reactive and proactive TDM, in patients with inflammatory bowel disease on biologics and/or IMM.     

Prophylactic Amnioinfusion During Labour Complicated by Meconium

EDITORIAL COMMENT: This study of amnioinfusion during labour complicated by the known passage of meconium shows that the technique seems clinically worthwhile, even in a centre without facilities for electronic fetal heart monitoring or scalp blood pH and blood gas analysis. The series is small and more data from larger studies is required to test the conclusions reported by the authors.
Summary: A prospective study to see the safety and efficacy of transcervical amnioinfusion in labour complicated by meconium-stained amniotic fluid (MSAF) was carried out in a teaching hospital with limited resources. Fifty patients in labour with meconium-stained amniotic fluid and fulfilling the inclusion criteria (vertex presentation, gestational age of 36 weeks or more, no medical or obstetrical complications and normal fetal heart rate at time of inclusion) were taken for the study; 25 patients received amnioinfusion. The control group received only supportive therapy. Labour outcome was compared in the 2 groups. The incidence of Caesarean section was seen to be decreased but neonatal parameters showed no significant difference in the amnioinfusion group.     

Current Zinc Intake and Risk of Diabetes and Coronary Artery Disease and Factors Associated with Insulin Resistance in Rural and Urban Populations of North India

Objective: To determine the association between current zinc intake and prevalence of coronary artery disease (CAD) and diabetes as well as factors associated with insulin resistance.

Design, Subjects and Methods: In this cross sectional survey, 3575 subjects, aged 25 to 64 years, including 1769 rural (894 men, 875 women) and 1806 urban (904 men, 902 women) subjects were studied. The survey methods included questionnaires for 7-day food intake record, physical examination, and electrocardiography using World Health Organization criteria.

Results: The prevalence of CAD, diabetes and glucose intolerance was significantly higher among subjects consuming lower intakes of dietary zinc. There was a higher prevalence of hypertension, hypertriglyceridemia and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels which showed significant upward trend with lower zinc intakes. Serum lipoprotein (a) and 2-hour plasma insulin levels also were associated with low zinc intake. Multivariate logistic regression analysis after adjustment for age showed that zinc intake and CAD were inversely associated. Serum zinc (odds ratio:men 0.77, women 0.57), serum triglycerides (men 0.86, women 0.81), blood pressure (0.83 men, women 0.76), diabetes mellitus (men 0.90, women 0.85), central obesity (men 0.88, women 0.87), glucose intolerance (men 0.66, women 0.57) and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (men 0.72, women 0.70) were significant risk factors for CAD (explained by tertiles of zinc status) in urban subjects. These associations were not observed in rural subjects.

Conclusion: Lower consumption of dietary zinc and low serum zinc levels were associated with an increased prevalence of CAD and diabetes and several of their associated risk factors including hypertension, hypertriglyceridemia and other factors suggestive of mild insulin resistance in urban subjects.     

An integrative feminist model: the evolving feminist perspective on intimate partner violence

The feminist perspective on intimate partner violence is a predominant model in the field, although not immune to criticism. In this research, frontline workers in the violence against women movement responded to critiques of the feminist model. The project used a focus group and a modified grounded theory analysis. Participants agreed with some criticisms, including an overreliance on a punitive criminal justice system, but reported skepticism toward proposed alternatives. Findings led to the development of the Integrative Feminist Model, which expands the feminist perspective in response to critiques, new research, and alternative theories while retaining a gendered analysis of violence.     

Distribution and Analysis of Milk Fat Globule and Crescent in Murrah Buffalo and Crossbred Cow

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, India Section B: Biological Sciences - India is the largest producer of buffalo milk in the world. Buffalo milk is rich in minerals like calcium and...     

High-pressure superconducting phase diagram of 6Li: Isotope effects in dense lithium

We measured the superconducting transition temperature of ⁶Li between 16 and 26 GPa, and report the lightest system to exhibit superconductivity to date. The superconducting phase diagram of ⁶Li is compared with that of ⁷Li through simultaneous measurement in a diamond anvil cell (DAC). Below 21 GPa, Li exhibits a direct (the superconducting coefficient, α, T_c ∝ M^?α,  is positive), but unusually large isotope effect, whereas between 21 and 26 GPa, lithium shows an inverse superconducting isotope effect. The unusual dependence of the superconducting phase diagram of lithium on its atomic mass opens up the question of whether the lattice quantum dynamic effects dominate the low-temperature properties of dense lithium.Light elements (low Z) and their compounds have been the subject of many recent studies for their potential as high-temperature superconductors (e.g., refs. 1–5). Due to their low mass, the physical properties of the low-Z compounds can be strongly influenced by zero-point effects (lattice quantum dynamics) (6), and mass-related isotope effects may be present in their thermodynamics of vibrational degrees of freedom. Such effects will influence the superconducting properties of these materials. Dependence of superconductivity on isotopic variations of low-Z compounds can be used to probe and determine the magnitude of mass-related effects. This in turn allows better development of models to determine their superconducting properties.Under ambient pressure, lithium is the lightest elemental metallic and superconducting system, and it exhibits one of the highest superconducting transition temperatures of any elemental superconductor under compression (7–11). Despite the large mass difference between the stable isotopes of lithium (∼15%), isotope effects in superconductivity of lithium have not been studied before.In systems with long-range attractive potential, the ratio of lattice zero-point displacements to interatomic distances may increase under compression (increase to the Lindemann ratio at high densities), provided they retain their long-range interactions (12, 13). (This is opposed to systems with short-range interactions, e.g., helium, in which the lattice becomes more classical under compression.) In these systems, more deviations from the static lattice behavior are expected at higher densities. At sufficiently low temperatures, where thermal energy is small, lattice quantum dynamics can play a more dominant role in the bulk properties. Sound velocity measurements on stable isotopes of lithium at 77 K and up to 1.6 GPa show that quantum solid effects in lithium, at least in the pressure range studied, do not decrease as a function of pressure (14). Raman spectroscopy studies between 40 and 123 GPa and at 177 K report a reduced isotope effect in high-frequency vibrational modes of Li, which may be related to quantum solid behavior (15). Up to this point, no experiments have reported a comparison of any physical properties of lithium isotopes at low temperatures and high pressures concurrently. Because the superconducting transition of lithium occurs in a relatively low temperature range (16–18), studying its superconducting isotope effect provides excellent conditions to search for zero-point lattice effects and their evolution as a function of pressure.In the present study, we have measured the superconducting isotope effects in the stable isotopes of lithium under pressure. Lithium is a simple metallic system that is expected to exhibit conventional phonon-mediated superconductivity and a well-defined superconducting isotope effect with nominal pressure dependence of the relative T_c values (19) [according to the model by Treyeva and Trapezina (19), using theoretical values of Coulomb coupling constant, μ*(P) (20) by Christensen and Novikov and equation of state (EOS) of lithium (21) by Hanfland et al., assuming similar structures for the two isotopes, α should not vary by more than 10% for 15?GPa < P < 25?GPa]. Because phonon-mediated superconductivity depends on lattice and electronic properties of a material, any unusual isotopic mass dependence of the superconducting phase diagram can be indicative of the effects of large lattice dynamics on electronic and/or structural properties.     

How the human brain goes virtual: distinct cortical regions of the person-processing network are involved in self-identification with virtual agents

Millions of people worldwide engage in online role-playing with their avatar, a virtual agent that represents the self. Previous behavioral studies have indicated that many gamers identify more strongly with their avatar than with their biological self. Through their avatar, gamers develop social networks and learn new social-cognitive skills. The cognitive neurosciences have yet to identify the neural processes that underlie self-identification with these virtual agents. We applied functional neuroimaging to 22 long-term online gamers and 21 nongaming controls, while they rated personality traits of self, avatar, and familiar others. Strikingly, neuroimaging data revealed greater avatar-referential cortical activity in the left inferior parietal lobe, a region associated with self-identification from a third-person perspective. The magnitude of this brain activity correlated positively with the propensity to incorporate external body enhancements into one's bodily identity. Avatar-referencing furthermore recruited greater activity in the rostral anterior cingulate gyrus, suggesting relatively greater emotional self-involvement with one's avatar. Post-scanning behavioral data revealed superior recognition memory for avatar relative to others. Interestingly, memory for avatar positively covaried with play duration. These findings significantly advance our knowledge about the brain's plasticity to self-identify with virtual agents and the human cognitive-affective potential to live and learn in virtual worlds.