An XYZ-axis Matrix Approach for the Integration of Neuroscience and Neuroethics

The recent, unprecedented advancement in neuroscience has led to new discoveries about the human brain and its function. Yet at the same time, it has spurred novel ethical and regulatory issues, and the field of neuroethics has emerged as an interdisciplinary endeavor to address these issues.Across the globe, extensive efforts have been underway to achieve the integration of neuroscience and Neuroethics, with active engagement not only from academia but also from the government, the public, and industry. However, in some countries, integrating neuroscience and neuroethics has proved to be a particularly challenging task. For example, in South Korea, the government has primarily driven the integration effort, and only a small group of researchers is properly trained for conducting an interdisciplinary evaluation of ethical, legal, social, and cultural implications (ELSCI) of neurotechnology. On the basis of the last few years of experience pursuing a government-funded neuroethics project in South Korea, we developed a new operational framework to provide practical guidance on ELSCI research. This framework consists of the X, Y, and Z axes; the X-axis represents a target neurotechnology, the Y-axis represents different developmental stages of the technology, and the Z-axis represents ELSCI issues that may arise from the development and use of the neurotechnology. Here we also present a step-by-step workflow to apply this matrix framework, from organizing a panel for a target neurotechnology to facilitating stakeholder discussion through public hearings. This framework will enable meaningful integration of neuroscience and neuroethics to promote responsible innovation in neuroscience and neurotechnology.

Study of technique, advantages and effectiveness of percutaneous drainage of intra-abdominal abscesses

Background: Intra-abdominal abscess remains a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in the patient population. Despite therapeutic advances, it is a perplexing diagnostic and management challenges and remains a dreaded complication of surgery. Materials and methods: Forty eight patients underwent fifty one percutaneous drainage procedures in the Barnard Institute of Radiology at the General Hospital, Chennai. There were 44 men and 7 women. The youngest of the patients was 13 years old and the oldest 56 years old. Results: Of the 51 drainage, 35 were done under CT guidance and 16 under US guidance. Successful drainage of the collection with avoidance of operation was achieved in 43 of the 48 abscesses (89.5%). If the total number of drainages were considered, the success rate was 84.3% (43 out of 51). Conclusion: Percutaneous catheter drainage is an important treatment option for management of intra-abdominal abscesses. It is especially valuable in patients at high risk for general anesthesia. It is also an effective alternative to operative drainage in other healthier patients. Computed tomography is the imaging modality of choice for percutaneous abscess drainage.

Antimicrobial activity of chitosan coatings and films against Listeria monocytogenes on black radish / Actividad antimicrobiana de coberturas y películas de quitosano contra Listeria monocytogenes en rábano negro

The antibacterial activity of chitosan coatings prepared with acetic or lactic acid, as well as of composite chitosan-gelatin films prepared with essential oils, was evaluated in fresh shredded black radish samples inoculated with Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 19115 and L. monocytogenes ATCC 19112 during seven days of storage at 4 °C. The chitosan coating prepared with acetic acid showed the most effective antibacterial activity. All tested formulations of chitosan films exhibited strong antimicrobial activity on the growth of L. monocytogenes on black radish, although a higher inhibition of pathogens was achieved at higher concentrations of chitosan. The antimicrobial effect of chitosan films was even more pronounced with the addition of essential oils. Chitosan-gelatin films with thyme essential oils showed the most effective antimicrobial activity. A reduction of 2.4 log10 CFU/g for L. monocytogenes ATCC 19115 and 2.1 log10 CFU/g for L. monocytogenes ATCC 19112 was achieved in the presence of 1% chitosan film containing 0.2% of thyme essential oil after 24 h of storage.

Se evaluó la actividad antimicrobiana de coberturas del quitosano y de películas compuestas de quitosano-gelatina en muestras frescas de rábano negro cortado inoculadas con las cepas de Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 19115 y ATCC 19112, almacenadas durante 7 días a 4 °C. Las primeras fueron preparadas con ácido acético o ácido láctico, las segundas con aceites esenciales. Las coberturas de quitosano preparadas con ácido acético mostraron la actividad antimicrobiana más eficaz. Todas las formulaciones de películas de quitosano exploradas mostraron una fuerte actividad antimicrobiana sobre el crecimiento de L. monocytogenes, aunque la mayor inhibición de estos patógenos se logró con las mayores concentraciones de quitosano. La actividad antimicrobiana de las películas de quitosano fue mayor con la adición de aceite esencial. Las películas de quitosano-gelatina con aceite esencial del tomillo fueron las que mostraron la actividad antimicrobiana más eficiente. A las 24 h de almacenamiento, la película con 1% de quitosano y 0,2% de aceite esencial de tomillo produjo una reducción de 2,4 log10 UFC/g en L. monocytogenes ATCC 19115, y de 2,1 log10 UFC/g en L. monocytogenes ATCC 19112.

Pomegranate (Punica granatum L) powder reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) level in cigarette smoke exposed rats.

Background: To analyze the effect of pomegranate (P. granatum) powder consumption for 14 days on lipid peroxidation as shown by malondialdehyde (MDA) level in cigarette smoke exposed rats. Methods: Thirty Sprague-Dawley male rats were randomly divided into three groups, i.e.: a control group and two treatment groups. The treatment groups either received 5% (R1: 0.351% flavonoids/100g) or 10% (R2: 0.566% flavonoids/100g) pomegranate extract powder, respectively. The diets in the form of pellets were freely consumed (ad libitum) and were given for 14 days. Rats were exposed to cigarette smoke three times per day. Blood samples were taken on day 0, day 8th and 15th for MDA analyses. Comparison of MDA levels was done by ANOVA’s test on normal data. Results: On day 0, the MDA levels were 0.35±0.06 nmol/mL, 0.38±0.06 nmol/mL and 0.38±0.06 nmol/mL for control, 5% and 10% pomegranate powder group, respectively (P=0.65). On day 8th, the MDA levels were 0.70±0.06 nmol/mL, 0.57±0.06 nmol/mL and 0.56±0.06 nmol/mL, and on day 15th, the MDA levels were 1.02 ±0.06 nmol/mL, 0.89±0.06 nmol/mL and 0.80±0.06 nmol/mL in control, 5% and 10% pomegranate powder group, respectively. There was a significant difference (P< 0.001) in MDA levels on day 8th and 15th between groups. The average MDA level for rats consuming control diet was the highest on day 8th and 15th. On the other hand, the lowest average MDA level on day 8th and 15th was observed in rats given 10% pomegranate extract powder. In comparison to MDA level before cigarette smoke exposure, the increases in MDA levels for rats consuming control diet, 5% and 10% pomegranate extract powder were 97%, 52% and 48% on day 8th, and 187%, 137% and 113% on day 15th, respectively. The highest increase in MDA level was observed in control group. Conclusion: The use of pomegranate powder at 5% and 10% concentration was able to prevent the occurrence of lipid peroxidation as shown by the MDA levels and the effect was dose dependent.

Nattrassia mangiferae causing fungal keratitis.

We report a case of fungal keratitis caused by the coelomycetous fungus Nattrassia mangiferae in a 70 year old gentleman, agriculturist by occupation, with a history of injury to his right eye. The scraping showed narrow septate fungal hyphae on a KOH mount, isolation of a fast growing black mould, which demonstrated hyphae and arthroconidia of varying widths typical of the Scytalidium synanamorph (S. dimidiatum). The formation of the pycnidia, which at maturity, expressed conidia. The patient was started on topical itraconazole one hourly and topical atropine thrice a day. The patient was lost to follow up hence we are not able to comment on the final outcome of the patient.

Maxillary sinusitis caused by Lasiodiplodia theobromae.

Lasiodiplodia (monotypic) comprises a very small proportion of the fungal biota. It is a common plant pathogen in tropical and subtropical regions. Clinical reports on its association with onychomycosis, corneal ulcer and phaeohyphomycosis are available. However, Lasiodiplodia theobromae causing fungal sinusitis has not been reported. We present here a case of fungal sinusitis in a 30-year-old woman, who came to the ENT OPD (out patient department) with complaints of intermittent bleeding and nasal discharge from the left side for a week. The patient complained of headache, predominantly on the left side and heaviness on and off since two months. Diagnosis was based on radiological and mycological evidence; the patient underwent endoscopic surgery and was started on antifungal treatment.

Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in HIV infected patients from Mumbai.

OBJECTIVE: Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) is believed to be rare in the developing world and no large prospective Indian series have been reported to date. The present study was conducted to study the clinical profile and outcome of PCP in patients with HIV infection. METHODS: All HIV positive patients with PCP admitted over 4 years (2000-2003) to a tertiary referral centre in Mumbai were prospectively studied. RESULTS: There were 38 patients with proven PCP from 300 HIV admissions. The patients with PCP were predominantly male (M: F = 5.4:1), with a mean age of 40.1 years. The median CD4 count of the PCP group was 96 cells/microL. Bronchoscopy was needed to make a definitive diagnosis in 17 of the 38 patients. PCP co-existed with tuberculosis in 4 of the 38 patients. The mortality of the group was high at 15.8% with all patients needing ventilatory support dying. CONCLUSIONS: PCP is not an uncommon infection in Indians with advanced HIV. Lack of recognition has probably been responsible for the absence of any large series from this country. In our series of hospitalised HIV positive patients, PCP was the second commonest pulmonary disease after tuberculosis accounting for 32% of pulmonary admissions and 13 % of all HIV positive admissions.

High incidence of oestrogen receptor negative progesterone receptor positive phenotype in Indian breast cancer: fact or fiction?

The incidence of oestrogen receptor negative and progesterone receptor positive (ER-/PR+) invasive breast carcinoma is reported to be as high as 21% in India, as compared to 3-5% in the western literature. We used automated immunohistochemistry with Biogenex antibodies to re-evaluate the ER status in 37 Indian patients with invasive breast carcinomas previously reported as ER-/PR+ by a different manual staining protocol in two city hospitals. The automated technique utilized different reagents (all US FDA approved for in vitro diagnostic use) and staining protocols from those used in the manual assays. Of the 37 previously ER-tumours, only 9 (24.3%) tumours remained ER-. Twenty-eight (75.6%) tumours were found to be ER+. Our results indicate that the high incidence of ER-/PR+ breast cancer reported from India is most likely due to the use of suboptimal manual assays, rather than true genetic differences. ER expression in breast cancer among Indian women may be much higher than previously believed. These results have important implications for the use of oestrogen modulators such as tamoxifen in developing countries such as India.

Cystic variant of embryonal sarcoma of liver.

Embryonal sarcoma of the liver is an unusual tumor. The cystic form is rare and can mimic hydatid disease. We present a case that was mistakenly treated as a hydatid cyst for 3 months. Surgery was successful in removing the mass.

Estado nutricional y maduración sexual en la adolescencia / Nutritional status and sexual maturation in adolescence

La desnutrición proteico-calórica, tema de preocupación en nuestro medio, trae como consecuencia durante la adolescencia un compromiso de estatura y atraso en la maduración sexual, pudiendo también ser consecuencia de problemas transcurridos durante la infancia. El objetivo de este estudio es analizar la relación entre el estado nutricional y la maduración sexual de las adolescentes brasileras. La población de estudio está constituída por 504 adolescentes de sexo femenino entre 10 y 20 años, residentes en el subdistrito de Butanta, San Pablo, Brasil. El 51,0 por ciento de ellas tenían renta familiar de hasta un salario mínimo mensual "per cápita" (nivel de riesgo para la aprición de desnutrición); en relación para la escolaridad del jefe de familia, el 15,9 por ciento eran analfabetos y el 51,4 por ciento tenía apenas primaria completa. Se debe resaltar que el 42,6 por ciento de jefes de familia eran mujeres. El estado nutricional fué evaluado a través del peso y la altura, siendo utilizado como patrón de referencia la Curva de Santo André Clase IV. La maduración sexual fué observada a través de auto-evaluación (presentación de tablas con criterios de Tanner) y fué comparada con la de 3.368 adolescentes de sexo femenino, que dieran origen al referencial de Santo André. La población analizada presentó un perfil nutricional inferior al de referencia (déficit de talla sin compromiso de peso), con concomitante atraso en la maduración sexual. Se observó diferencias estadísticamente significativas para los estadios M3, M4 y M5 -fase de aceleración (pico de velocidad máxima) y desaceleración de crecimiento. No hubo diferencia significativa para el inicio de la pubertad. Estos resultados corroboran la necesidad de evaluar constantemente la condición nutricional en la infancia y en la adolescencia, pues, mismo sin compromiso ponderal actual, problemas nutricionales progresivos (traducidos por déficit de estatura) pueden tener implicancias relevantes en el desarrollo puberal, retardando o alterando la estatura final

Relaçäo entre área do braço, área do músculo, área de gordura do braço e a menarca em adolescentes do município de Botucatu / Relation among arm, arm muscle, arm fat areas and menarche in adolescents in the municipality of Botucatu

Através de estudo antropométrico realizado em 717 adolescentes estudantes do Município de Botucatu, os autores apresentaram as relaçöes entre área do braço, área do músculo do braço e área de gordura do braço naquelas com ou sem o evento menarca. Destaca-se que o grupo que já havia mestruado apresenta os indicadores nutricionais significativamente superiores àqueles obtidos das adolescentes em que tal evento näo havia ocorrido. Existe incremento do tecido gorduroso e massa magra nas adolescentes que já menstruaram e as transformaçöes corporais podem ser traduzidas pelos cálculos da área do músculo e gordura do braço utilizando-se a dobra cutânea tricipital e o perímetro braquial.

Maturaçäo sexual na populaçäo brasileira: limites de idade / Sexual maturation in the Brazilian population: limit of age

Apresenta-se dados sobre a maturaçäo sexual obtidos em um estudo transversal de adolescentes brasileiros. Os dados apresentados referem-se à classe sócio-econômica mais alta incluindo 2.880 adolescentes de 10 a 19 anos de idade (1.410 do sexo feminino e 1.470 do sexo masculino). Recomenda-se que esses dados sejam usados como valores de referência para a avaliaçäo de desenvolvimento pubertário (normal, atrasado ou precoce) de adolescentes brasileiros