Arsenicals, water treatment and water quality: can we leave out one?

Arsenic-associated human health complications are reported worldwide. Although inorganic arsenic has long been known to be toxic to humans, little is known about its metabolite, dimethylarsinic acid and its toxicity. We investigated the hepatic toxicity of dimethylarsinic acid and its interaction with iron and lipopolysaccharide in drinking water. Rats were given drinking water with dimethylarsinic acid with or without iron for three weeks. Dimethylarsinic acid alone, iron alone, and dimethylarsinic acid-plus-iron treatment did not cause hepatic damage. A single dose of lipopolysaccharide increase hepatic damage in dimethylarsinic acid-puls-iron-treated rats. We hypothesize that exposure to lipopolysaccharide increases hepatic damage in dimethylarsinic-acid-plus-iron-treated rats

Extrinsic component of resilience among the entry level medical students

The present study assesses the extrinsic component of resilience and its association with age and gender among the entry level students of the integrated MBBS program. The present study was conducted on the entry level students of the MBBS program in College of Medicine, GMU, using a self-administered questionnaire comprising two parts. The first part contained questions pertaining to socio-demographic details while the second part contained questions on the intrinsic and extrinsic components of resilience of the students. Data was analyzed using SPSS 19. Among the 58 students who participated, 24 [41.4%] were males and 34 [58.6%] females, and 70.7% were <20 years and 29.3% >/= 20years. Fourteen questions related to extrinsic factors were rated on a 5-point Likert scale. 91.7% male students and 88.2% of female students strongly agreed/ agreed with the statement "My family accepts me the way I am". 97.1% of female students and 91.7% male students strongly agreed with the statement on receiving high levels of love and support from their family. All females and 95.8% male students strongly agreed/ agreed, "My parent[s] or guardian[s] help me succeed in school." The majority of male students' [91.7%] and 73.5% female students strongly agreed about active participation in the class. No difference was observed with regard to the different resilience factors and socio-demographic factors like age and gender

Intrinsic component of resilience among the entry level medical students

To assess the intrinsic component of resilience and its association with socio-demographic factors among the entry level students of the integrated MRBS course. The present study was conducted on the entry level students of the MBBS course in Gulf Medical College, using a self administered questionnaire comprising of two parts. The first part contained questions pertaining to socio demographic details while the second part contained questions on the intrinsic and extrinsic components of resilience of the students. During the regular class hours, after explaining the purpose of the study, the questionnaire was distributed to all the students who consented to participate. The collected data was analyzed using PASW 18.0 using frequency, mean, SD and median. The present report is based on the analysis of the scores for intrinsic component of resilience and its association with the socio-demographic characteristics of the study group. Among the 58 students who participated 24 [41.4%] were males and 34 [58.6%] females, of which 70.7% were < 20 years and 29.3% >20 years. The mean score for the intrinsic component of resilience was 48.9 with a SD of 5 and the range 35-60. The median scores did not show any significant variation with age, gender, religion, nationality, family structure, education of either parent, the person they share their feelings with or the number of friends. However, minimally higher scores were noted in the median scores of students from nuclear family, western nationality and those whose parents had a university level education, who shared their feelings with people of their own generation or outside their family and who had 5-9 friends. The intrinsic component of resilience was found to be more or less uniform for the study group and the level is high. A study has to further look into its effect on coping with the stresses in the new academic program