Leprosy in infants--report of two cases

Two infants, one 4 months old and the other 2 months old, having histologically confirmed indeterminate leprosy are reported. The route of infection, mode of transmission, and incubation period are discussed with reference to these two cases of infantile leprosy.     

Dynamics of Mycobacterium leprae transmission in environmental context: Deciphering the role of environment as a potential reservoir

Leprosy is a disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae. Various modes of transmission have been suggested for this disease. Transmission and risk of the infection is perhaps related to presence of the infectious cases and is controlled by environmental factors. Evidence suggests that humidity may favor survival of M. leprae in the environment. Several reports show that non-human sources like ‘naturally’ infected armadillos or monkeys could act as reservoir for M. leprae. Inanimate objects or fomites like articles used by infectious patients may theoretically spread infection. However, it is only through detailed knowledge of the biodiversity and ecology that the importance of this mode of transmission can be fully assessed. Our study focuses here to decipher the role of environment in the transmission of the disease. Two hundred and seven soil samples were collected from a village in endemic area where active cases also resided at the time of sample collection. Slit skin smears were collected from 13 multibacillary (MB) leprosy patients and 12 household contacts of the patients suspected to be hidden cases. DNA and RNA of M. leprae were extracted and amplified using M. leprae specific primers. Seventy-one soil samples showed presence of M. leprae DNA whereas 16S rRNA could be detected in twenty-eight of these samples. Samples, both from the environment and the patients, exhibited the same genotype when tested by single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) typing. Genotype of M. leprae found in the soil and the patients residing in the same area could help in understanding the transmission link in leprosy.     

Respiratory Symptoms in Ispaghula-Allergic Nurses after Oral Challenge with Ispaghula Suspension

Ispaghula powder, which is used as a component in bulk laxatives, is known to induce allergic reactions when inhaled by occupationally exposed persons. We have tested whether nurses sensitized by inhalation could get allergic symptoms when challenged by eating ispaghula. Of six nurses tested, all developed symptoms from the airways, one of them even pronounced ones requiring treatment. In all cases the dose required to produce symptoms was below the single dose of ispaghula used as a laxative.     

Characterization of mycobacteria isolated from bovines by PRA-targetting hsp 65 gene region

Bovine tuberculosis caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium bovis is a major infectious disease of animals and has zoonotic importance for humans. Even though the incidence is believed to be very low in India, human tuberculosis caused by M. bovis has been increasingly recognized in many other countries of the world. As differentiation of mycobacterial species take long time, a method for the rapid identification of mycobacteria isolated from bovine samples to the species level was used, which is based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of the gene encoding for the 65-kD protein followed by restriction analysis. The method involves restriction enzyme analysis of PCR products obtained with primers common to all mycobacteria and generate M. tuberculosis complex specific pattern. PRA was performed on 33 bovine isolates of which 90.9% (30/33) isolates were identified clearly as M. tuberculosis complex, M. fortuitum, M. phlei and M. smegmatis using restriction enzyme Hae III.     

A Systematic Literature Review on Waste-to-Resource Potential of Palm Oil Clinker for Sustainable Engineering and Environmental Applications

Several agro-waste materials have been utilized for sustainable engineering and environmental application over the past decades, showing different degrees of effectiveness. However, information concerning the wider use of palm oil clinker (POC) and its performance is still lacking. Therefore, as a solid waste byproduct produced in one of the oil palm processing stages, generating a huge quantity of waste mostly dumped into the landfill, the waste-to-resource potential of POC should be thoroughly discussed in a review. Thus, this paper provides a systematic review of the current research articles on the several advances made from 2005 to 2021 regarding palm oil clinker physical properties and performances, with a particular emphasis on their commitments to cost savings during environmental and engineering applications. The review begins by identifying the potential of POC application in conventional and geopolymer structural elements such as beams, slabs, and columns made of concrete, mortar, or paste for coarse aggregates, sand, and cement replacement. Aspects such as performance of POC in wastewater treatment processes, fine aggregate and cement replacement in asphaltic and bituminous mixtures during highway construction, a bio-filler in coatings for steel manufacturing processes, and a catalyst during energy generation are also discussed. This review further describes the effectiveness of POC in soil stabilization and the effect of POC pretreatment for performance enhancement. The present review can inspire researchers to find research gaps that will aid the sustainable use of agroindustry wastes. The fundamental knowledge contained in this review can also serve as a wake-up call for researchers that will motivate them to explore the high potential of utilizing POC for greater environmental benefits associated with less cost when compared with conventional materials.     

Calcium channel blockers and the CVS reflex responses during lower body suction.

Nine normal men (mean age 27.6 yr) were exposed to continuous lower-body suction pressure (LBSP) of -20 to -50 mmHg (for 5 min at each level) on four different occasions after having consumed a single oral therapeutic dose of either diltiazem, nifedipine, verapamil, or a placebo, randomly, in a single blind manner. The suction was applied at 12.30 pm in all experiments, while the medications were administered in such a manner so that their expected peak plasma levels would have been achieved at the time of suction application. The cardiovascular reflex effects commenced at a pressure of -30 mmHg, and peaked at -50 mmHg. The increases in the heart rate for all treatments at -50 mmHg was statistically similar (about 16-20 beats/min). The systolic BP fell by about 9 mmHg for the placebo experiments, and this change was not different from the changes produced by the 3 Calcium channel blocker treatments. The diastolic BP increase was about 3 mmHg. The Cardiac index did not vary significantly. Our results suggest that the commonly used Ca++ channel blockers do not adversely affect orthostatic tolerance.     

Disseminated disease caused by Mycobacterium simiae in AIDS patients: a report of three cases

Disseminated disease caused by Mycobacterium simiae, a slowly growing nontuberculous mycobacterium, has been rarely reported in the literature. We report on three AIDS patients who were found to suffer from mycobacteraemia caused by M. simiae in a rural tertiary-care hospital in central India.     

High resolution FISH to delineate contiguous and small DNA sequences

Somatic and meiotic metaphase, and pachytene chromosomes were subjected to DNA: DNA in situ hybridization to elucidate relative resolution of FISH signals for weak/contiguous hybridization sites. Hybridization with a `350 family' rye repetitive DNA probe pSc 200 characteristically differentiated the rye chromosome 5 from the rest of the complement on account of two small terminal homologous sites in the long arm, resolution of which is substantially improved using pachytene. Higher resolution of the two weak hybridization sites; a very small distal and a small proximal, is unequivocally demonstrated in the FISH painted 5RL examined at pachytene in the 5AS/5RL wheat background. Additionally this probe exhibits a large block of distal telomeric hybridization site in 5RS, followed by a more prominent proximal site homologous to `610 family' rye repetitive probe pSc 250. Precise denaturation – hybridization incubation and post hybridization stringency washing facilitates spatial resolution of contiguous repetitive rye probes pSc 200 and pSc 250, and physical localisation of small RFLP probe xpr 115 of wheat on barley chromosomes.