Physical Activity as a Clinical Tool in the Assessment of Malnutrition.

Objective: To measure physical activity in children with wasting and to look for association between poor physical activity and wasting. Methods: Physical activity was measured in 56 children with wasting, using Children’s Activity Rating Scale, and compared with age- and sex-matched controls. Results: A significant association was found between poor physical activity and malnutrition as determined by weight-for-height Z Score <-2 (P=0.001) and midupper- arm circumference (P=0.002). Conclusion: Physical activity can be used as clinical parameter to assess malnutrition.

Exclusive Breast-feeding: Is Motivation the Only Issue.

Objectives: The aim of the study was: (1) To know the frequency of suboptimal infant breastfeeding behavior (SIBB), delayed onset of lactation (DOL) and excess neonatal weight loss (EWL) in mother-infant pairs with a high motivation to breastfeed; (2) to see if SIBB influenced lactational problems represented by: a] DOL, b] EWL; (3) in addition, we have tried to assess the risk factors for SIBB and other risk factors for DOL and EWL. Material and methods: A longitudinal hospital-based observational study. Infant breastfeeding behavior was assessed by IBFAT score, DOL was measured by maternal perception of breast fullness and maternal motivation by an initial interview based on breastfeeding self-efficacy scale. Results: Frequency of SIBB was 13.3% on Day 0, 6.6% on Day 3 and 2.9% on Day 7. DOL occurred in 11.8% of mothers and excess weight loss in 17.7% of infants. Prolonged labor, medications given during labor, inadequacy of sleep during peripartum and use of supplementary feeds were found to be significantly associated with SIBB. Infants with SIBB on Day 0 were 17 times more likely to have SIBB on Day 3 and they were also four times more likely to have excess weight loss. Failure of exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) occurred in 8.1% and showed a significant association with SIBB, but at two weeks all were breastfeeding exclusively. Conclusion: Infant behavior plays an important role in the success of early breastfeeding and if suboptimal, contributes to failure of EBF. Both infant behavior and onset of lactation constitute significant predictors of excessive weight loss and short-term failure of exclusive breastfeeding and help in determining the need for intensive lactation counseling in high-risk cases.

Homeotic-like modification of stamens to petals is associated with aberrant mitochondrial gene expression in cytoplasmic male sterile Ogura Brassica juncea.

We have previously reported correction of severe leaf chlorosis in the cytoplasmic male sterile Ogura (also called Ogu) Brassica juncea line carrying Ogura cytoplasm by plastid substitution via protoplast fusion. Two cybrids obtained from the fusion experiment, Og1 and Og2, were green and carried the plastid genome of B. juncea cv. RLM198. While Og1 displayed normal flower morphology comparable to that of its euplasmic B. juncea counterpart except for sterile anthers, Og2 retained homeotic-like floral modification of stamens to petal-like structures and several other floral deformities observed in the chlorotic (Ogu) B. juncea cv. RLM198 (or OgRLM). With respect to the mitochondrial genome, Og1 showed 81% genetic similarity to the fertile cultivar RLM while Og2 showed 93% similarity to OgRLM. In spite of recombination and rearrangements in the mitochondrial genomes in the cybrids, expression patterns of 10 out of 11 mitochondrial genes were similar in all the three CMS lines; the only exception was atp6, whose expression was altered. While Og1 showed normal atp6 transcript similar to that in RLM, in Og2 and OgRLM weak expression of a longer transcript was detected. These results suggest that the homeotic-like changes in floral patterning leading to petaloid stamens in Og2 and OgRLM may be associated with aberrant mitochondrial gene expression.