Perception of Medical Students regarding “Swachh Bharat Abhiyan” a cleanliness campaign: a qualitative study

Background: Swachh Bharat Abhiyan -A Cleanliness Campaign was launched all over India in 2014 to sensitize people to work in the direction of making India a clean country. Since youth constitute the future of the nation, their perception is very much important for the nation’s progress. Therefore, the present study was conducted among Indian medical undergraduate (IMUG) students regarding their perception about the current cleanliness drive going on in the country. Aims & Objective: To assess the perception of IMUG students about the cleanliness and innovative cleanliness practices. Study Setting & Design: A cross-sectional qualitative study was carried among IMUG students in a medical college of North India. Material & Methods: Study was conducted during the period of the Swachhata Pakhwara Abhiyan, celebrated all over the country to reinforce the cleanliness drive. IMUG students were invited to describe their perception on the topic “How can I keep My India clean”. Statistical Analysis: -Transcript was prepared and deductive coding was done and perceptions of students were categorized into four broad themes: -1. Behaviour change communication 2. Practicing cleanliness.3Interventions required for cleanliness 4. Legislation required in favour of cleanliness. Results: Majority of IMUG Students expressed that it is the behaviour change Communication and habit of practicing cleanliness everywhere, which will bring the change in cleanliness drive in the country with emphasis on innovative intervention and the role of legislation. Conclusion: -Proper direction and consistent motivation along with sound perception of cleanliness among citizens can contribute in reaching the desired goals of cleanliness.

Extracellular electrical activity from the photoreceptors of midge.

The ontogeny of photosensitivity has been studied in a holometabolous insect, the midge Chironomus ramosus. The life cycle of midges shifts from an aquatic environment to a non-aquatic environment. Extracellular electrical activity of photoreceptor organs was recorded at larval and adult stages. We found an increase in photosensitivity as the larva metamorphosed to the adult stage. This is the first report of changes in photosensitivity during the development of any insect described in an ecological context.

Study of spermatozoa and their relationship with fertility in men of Arunachal Pradesh.

172 semen samples were collected from a cross section of the infertile population of North-East India, consisting mainly of tribal people and were analysed and evaluated for different parameters. Significant negative correlations were found between sperm count and motility, sperm count and morphology and between motility and abnormal morphology in this series. The percentage of abnormal morphology was very high and prospective study on the aetiology of this factor in these tribal people is warranted.

Changes in Na and K ions in mouse liver following in vivo exposure to ultrasound.

Mouse liver was exposed in vivo to a continuous and unfocussed ultrasound of 875 KHz at 5, 10 or 15 W/cm2 for 300 sec spread over five days and excised on day 0, 1, 5 and 10 for studying the changes in Na+ and K+ reserves and Na-K-ATPase activity. At 5 and 10 W intensities the change in ionic concentrations and Na-K-ATPase activity were almost in linear. At 15 W intensity the loss of both the ions and suppression of Na-K-ATPase indicated the damage of hepatic tissue caused by high intensity ultrasound. By day 10, all the animals of three exposures showed a normal ionic concentration with an optimum Na-K-ATPase activity in liver indicating the recovery process. The results indicate that ultrasound induces permeability changes in a glandular tissue exposed in vivo.

Heat shock response in ovarian nurse cells of Anopheles stephensi.

Transcriptional and translational changes following temperature shock at 37, 39 or 41°C to ovarian cells of Anopheles stephensi were studied. Temperature shock at 39°C induced 6 puffs on polytene chromosomes in the nurse cells as revealed by [3H] uridine incorporation studies. Only the 2R-19B puff was induced at 37°C and was found to be a major temperature shock locus remaining most active at all the 3 temperatures tested. Other temperature shock loci were activated only at 39°C. There was progressive inhibi tion of general chromosomal transcription with the rise of temperature. Transcription was drastically inhibited at 41°C but all the temperature shock loci still remained relatively active. Examination of [35S]methionine labelled newly synthesized ovarian proteins using sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide slab gels revealed that all the heat shock polypeptides except the HSP 70 were synthesized in ovarian cells even at control temperature (29°C). Temperature shock induced the synthesis of HSP 70 and elevated the levels of other heat shock polypeptides (82, 30, 29, 23 and 17 KD). Present results suggest that the threshold level for induction of a complete heat shock response in mosquitos is higher (39°C) than the other dipteran insects studied and that a 41°C treatment is not lethal as in the case of Drosophila, Chironomus etc. These features reflect the adaptations of mosquitos to tropical climate and their dietary habit of warm blood meal.