The Effects of Sleep Quality and Resilience on Perceived Stress,Dietary Behaviors,and Alcohol Misuse: A Mediation-Moderation Analysis of Higher Education Students from Asia,Europe, and North America during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has increased the already high levels of stress that higher education students experience. Stress influences health behaviors, including those related to dietary behaviors, alcohol, and sleep; yet the effects of stress can be mitigated by resilience. To date, past research studying the connections between dietary behaviors, alcohol misuse, sleep, and resilience commonly investigated singular relationships between two of the constructs. The aim of the current study was to explore the relationships between these constructs in a more holistic manner using mediation and moderation analyses. Methods: Higher education students from China, Ireland, Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan, the Netherlands, and the United States were enrolled in a cross-sectional study from April to May 2020, which was during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic for most participants. An online survey, using validated tools, was distributed to assess perceived stress, dietary behaviors, alcohol misuse, sleep quality and duration, and resilience. Results: 2254 students completed the study. Results indicated that sleep quality mediated the relationship between perceived stress and dietary behaviors as well as the relationship between perceived stress and alcohol misuse. Further, increased resilience reduced the strength of the relationship between perceived stress and dietary behaviors but not alcohol misuse. Conclusion: Based on these results, higher education students are likely to benefit from sleep education and resilience training, especially during stressful events.     

Bizarre delusions and first-rank symptoms in a first-admission sample: A preliminary analysis of prevalence and correlates

This report examines the prevalence and correlates of bizarre delusions and Schneider's first-rank symptoms (FRS) in a first-admission sample with psychosis. A total of 196 patients were assessed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R (SCID) and given a consensus diagnosis. Project psychiatrists blind to the consensus diagnoses coded each delusion and hallucination in the sample for both FRS and DSM-III-R bizarreness. Interrater reliability of bizarreness was lower than that of FRS (κ = .681 v 861). The majority of symptoms (72%) were neither bizarre nor FRS, and of the remainder, bizarre delusions that were not also FRS were extremely uncommon. The prevalence of FRS was 70% in schizophrenia, 29% in psychotic bipolar disorder, and 18% in psychotic depression. For seven schizophrenic patients (7.45%), diagnosis of that disorder depended on the presence of a DSM-III-R bizarre delusion to meet criteria. There was a trend for FRS to be associated with poorer prognostic features in the schizophrenic sample. We concluded that although the constructs of bizarre delusions and FRS overlap, FRS were a more important feature in schizophrenia than bizarreness. The rarity of bizarre delusions that were not FRS, combined with the lower reliability of their assessment as compared with that of FRS, raises questions about the continued emphasis on this phenomenon in the definition of schizophrenia.     

Flow cytometric evaluation of the effect of various doses of vindesine sulphate on mouse spermatogenesis

Spermatogenesis, a rapidly proliferating cell system, is highly susceptible to damage by radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy. Vindesine, a semisynthetic vinca alkaloid, was given as a single injection to adult male Swiss albino mice to study its effects on testicular weight and male germ cell turnover pattern using flow cytometry. Testicular weight declined significantly at Day 7 to 14 and from Day 14 to 35 after administration of 1 and 2 mg/kg b wt vindesine, respectively. Flow cytometric evaluation of various testicular cell types after the administration of 2 mg/kg b wt vindesine revealed a significant increase in the relative percentage of spermatogonial cells at Day 21 and 35 posttreatment. In contrast, the relative percentage of primary spermatocytes declined significantly at Day 7 and 14 posttreatment. Similarly, a significant reduction in the relative percentage of round spermatids was observed from Day 7 to 35 posttreatment. The relative percentage of elongated spermatids declined significantly at day 35 post-treatment. These changes are reflected in the transformation ratios. While the 4C:2C ratio did not exhibit any significant change below 1 mg/kg vindesine, it declined significantly after 1 mg/kg (Day 14) and 2 mg/kg (Day 7 to 35, except Day 28 posttreatment) vindesine treatment. Treatment of male mice with 2 mg/kg vindesine resulted in a significant decline in 1C:2C ratio from 7 to 35 d post-treatment. The 4C:S-phase ratio decreased significantly at Day 7 and 14 posttreatment for all the drug doses above 0.05 mg/kg. A significant reduction in the 1C:4C ratio was observed at day 21 to 35 posttreatment as a result of 2 mg/kg vindesine administration.     

A novel computational analysis of ligand-induced conformational changes in the ATP binding sites of cyclin dependent kinases

Protein kinases in general are known to be very flexible macromolecules. In this article, the conformational plasticity of the ATP binding site in cyclin dependent kinases is analyzed. Movement of the two lysine residues lining the ATP binding site are shown to play a major role in the conformational variability of the site. Linear models are developed to identify and quantify ligand properties that maximally influence the lysine side chain conformations. A few simple properties of the ligands are shown to account for more than 70% of the variation in the lysine conformations. The results are validated using test data and molecular simulation studies. Illustrative applications of the results of this analysis to finding the appropriate crystal structure for molecular docking and binding mode predictions of novel ligands are provided. This work provides a new approach to quantify ligand-induced conformational changes in the active sites of flexible proteins and to find the appropriate crystal structure for docking novel ligands.     

Comparative analysis of influence of promoters and inhibitors on in vitro available iron using two methods

The investigation was undertaken with the objective of comparing two in vitro techniques, measuring dialyzable iron (method A) and measuring ionizable iron (method B), for iron bioavailability in a model system. The effect of the time of introduction of the additives on the available iron was also determined. FeSO4 solution was used as the reference source of iron, to which a series of enhancers (ascorbic acid, citric acid, maleic acid and tartaric acid) and inhibitors (tannic acid, calcium oxalate, oxalic acid, calcium carbonate and sodium phytate) were added individually at various concentrations, and available iron was estimated. From FeSO4 solution, 0.1% (method A) and 3.9% (method B) of iron was available. The addition of ascorbic acid, citric acid and tartaric acid increased this by 33-50%, 28-57% and 23-90%, respectively, for method A and by 15-89%, 24-78% and 24-93% for method B. Tannic acid, sodium phytate and calcium oxalate exhibited an inhibitory effect irrespective of the concentrations, while oxalic acid and calcium carbonate exhibited a dose-dependent inhibitory pattern. The iron availability analyzed by both methods showed a positive correlation with seven out of nine additives. An inverse relation was seen between the inhibitory effect of calcium carbonate and calcium oxalate and their time of introduction into the system. The overall observations showed that although absolute values varied widely, a positive correlation existed between the methods.     

Recurrent pregnancy loss

Recurrent abortions are hisheartening to the couple and also to the treating clinicians. Miscarriage is the loss of pregnancy weighing 500 g or less. Recurrent miscarriage or habitual abortion is defined as three or more consective abortions. Important factors involved in recurrent early pregnancy loss are genetic factors, endocrine factors, anatomic factors, immunologic factors, infectious factors and environmental factors. The factors are described in a nutshell in the text. Any severe infection that leads to bacteraemia orviraemia can cause sporadic miscarriage. Congenital uterine abnormalities have been associated most often with second-trimestar pregnancy loss. As regarding management of recurrent pregnancy loss the clinician has limited options. The use of aspiration in low dose (75 mg) and heparin is beneficial in APS positive patients. Multivitamins and folic acid assume importance in thrombophilic disorders. Tender live care with regular antenatal check-ups go a great way in achieving live term pregnancy.     

Contact lens compliance among a group of young,university-based lens users in South India

Purpose:

To investigate the rate of compliance with the soft contact lens care and maintenance procedures with a focus on contact lens wearing habits, cleaning and disinfecting procedures, and maintenance of lens care accessories in a group of young, university-based contact lens wearers

Methods:

Two hundred and sixteen young soft contact lens wearers with an age range of 18-22 years were selected conveniently from the student population of Manipal University, Manipal, India. After receiving informed consent from the participants, their level of compliance with contact lenses was assessed using a questionnaire.

Results:

The mean (±SD) age of the participants was 21.86±2.35 years. Out of 216 subjects, only 34% of the lens users were identified to be compliant with the least level of compliance observed in the maintenance of lens care accessories. Conventional users showed significantly (p=0.001) better level of compliance compared to disposable wearers and so did the users who acquired their lenses from clinicians (p=0.001) compared to over-the-counter lens receipt. The gender (p=0.496) and years of experience in contact lens use (p=0.142) did not show any statistically significant difference in the level of compliance.

Conclusion:

This study demonstrated that non-compliance with lens care procedures among a group of young, university-based soft contact lens wearers is common. The results indicated that all subjects had some degree of non-compliance and the least level of compliance observed in the care of lens accessories.     

Juvenile hyaline fibromatosis: a case report

Juvenile hyaline fibromatosis (JHF) is a rare, autosomal recessively inherited disorder characterized histologically by deposition of hyaline, collagen like substance aberrantly synthesized by the cells of the connective tissue and deposited within many organs, typically within the skin, gingiva, joints and bones. We report this rare case of Juvenile hyaline fibromatosis in a young boy who presented clinically with multiple papulonodular skin lesions, non tender soft tissue masses over the scalp, face, anterior chest wall, back, periarticular regions of the extremities with restricted mobility of joints and gingival hypertrophy. Calcifications were seen within the tumor shadows in the skull X-Rays. Histopathological study revealed characteristic features consistent with Juvenile hyaline fibromatosis. We report this case in view of its rarity.     

Acetaminophen-induced Hepato- and Nephrotoxicity and Amelioration by Silymarin and Terminalia chebula in Rats

Experimental study was conducted to evaluate the hepato- and renoprotective effect of silymarin and Terminalia chebula against experimentally-induced acetaminophen (APAP) toxicity in rats. Oral administration of APAP @ 500 mg/kg for 1 to 3 days to all the four groups (six rats in each) resulted in significant elevation of serum triglycerides, total cholesterol, blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine, and aspartate transaminase activity. Post-treatment with silymarin @ 25 mg/kg and T. chebula 125 mg/kg in groups 2 and 3 and their combination to group 4 from day 4 to 14 has significantly reversed the alterations of above said markers and offered better protection. The results of the study enunciated that silymarin and T. chebula exhibit good hepato- and nephro-protection against APAP toxicity.