Effectiveness of "Physician Prompt Clinical Decision Criteria" in Weaning Outcome Prediction for Neurocritical Patients.

Endotracheal intubation and invasive mechanical ventilation are fundamental components for the resuscitation of neurocritically ill patients to achieve various goals which include ensuring the protection of the airway, participating in tissue oxygen delivery and indirectly modulating cerebral vascular reactivity. The neurocritical patients demand special attention to their systemic involvement regarding weaning. Physician prompt clinical decision criteria (PPC) can play a better role in weaning of such patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of 'Physician prompt clinical decision criteria' for successful weaning in neurocritical patients. This prospective observational study was conducted in the ICU, Department of Anaesthesia, Analgesia, Palliative & Intensive Care Medicine, Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH), Dhaka, Bangladesh from March 2018 to April 2020. In total 100 neurocritical patients who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were taken as samples by informed written consent. The outcome was observed as successful weaning or as failed weaning. Finally, the existence of Standard extubation criteria (SEC) was compared with Physician prompt clinical decision criteria (PPC). Weaning was succeeded in 80.0% of patients and failed in 20.0% according to the Standard extubation criteria (SEC) while weaning was succeeded in 85.7% of patients and failed in 14.28% according to the Physician prompt clinical decision criteria (PPC). There were some differences in results but no significant differences were observed statistically between the groups in predicting the weaning outcome. Physician prompt clinical decision criteria were found to be 75.0% sensitive and specificity was 50.0%. Positive predictive value for Physician prompt clinical decision criteria was 85.70% with a Positive likelihood ratio for these criteria was 1.5 times. So, according to the study findings, accuracy of Physician prompt clinical decision criteria was 70.0%. According to the findings of this current study we can conclude that Physician prompt clinical decision criteria are an effective weaning readiness predictor in neurocritical patients.

Multidisciplinary Team Effort Results in Better Outcomes in Critically Ill Obstetric Patients Admitted in ICU.

Management of critically ill obstetric patients is a great challenge for the ICU team. The safety of both mother and fetus are of real concerns. Teamwork is essential for better outcome in obstetric patients in the ICU. A 26 years old female was admitted in Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh on 18 August 2019 with 7 months pregnancy with brain tumor (later diagnosed as Gliosarcoma) and was managed surgically by left temporal craniotomy with excision of the tumor. The patient was shifted to the ICU due to repeated convulsions and need mechanical ventilator support. Later on, she was suffering from sepsis with pseudomonas in blood culture, grade IV pressure ulcer and electrolyte imbalance and needed tracheostomy for airway management. On 34th weeks of her pregnancy she developed antepartum hemorrhage with respiratory distress. Emergency LUCS was done and she delivered a LBW baby who was managed in NICU. Mother was managed in the ICU and later on both mother and child were discharge with good conditions. Multidisciplinary team work is vital for better management of critically ill obstetric patients.

Evaluation of rice wild relatives as a source of traits for adaptation to iron toxicity and enhanced grain quality.

Rice wild relatives (RWR) constitute an extended gene pool that can be tapped for the breeding of novel rice varieties adapted to abiotic stresses such as iron (Fe) toxicity. Therefore, we screened 75 Oryza genotypes including 16 domesticated O. sativa genotypes, one O. glaberrima, and 58 RWR representing 21 species, for tolerance to Fe toxicity. Plants were grown in a semi-artificial greenhouse setup, in which they were exposed either to control conditions, an Fe shock during the vegetative growth stage (acute treatment), or to a continuous moderately high Fe level (chronic treatment). In both stress treatments, foliar Fe concentrations were characteristic of Fe toxicity, and plants developed foliar stress symptoms, which were more pronounced in the chronic Fe stress especially toward the end of the growing season. Among the genotypes that produced seeds, only the chronic stress treatment significantly reduced yields due to increases in spikelet sterility. Moreover, a moderate but non-significant increase in grain Fe concentrations, and a significant increase in grain Zn concentrations were seen in chronic stress. Both domesticated rice and RWR exhibited substantial genotypic variation in their responses to Fe toxicity. Although no RWR strikingly outperformed domesticated rice in Fe toxic conditions, some genotypes scored highly in individual traits. Two O. meridionalis accessions were best in avoiding foliar symptom formation in acute Fe stress, while an O. rufipogon accession produced the highest grain yields in both chronic and acute Fe stress. In conclusion, this study provides the basis for using interspecific crosses for adapting rice to Fe toxicity.

Role of accumulated calcium in alleviating aluminum injury in wheat plants.

Aluminum (Al) sensitive wheat cultivar kalyansona was grown for 14 d in a range of Ca solution (125, 625, and 2500 µM) plus other nutrients without Al. At 14 d after Ca treatment, half of these plants were harvested (H1), and the rest of the plants were exposed to 100 µM Al for additional 6 d and harvested (H2). Severe Al injury was found only in the plants with the lowest supply of Ca before Al treatment. Aluminum concentration in the apoplastic fluid was very high at 125 µM Ca probably because the plasma membrane of some of the cells was destroyed due to the attack of 100 µM Al. Aluminum content in roots decreased with increasing supply of Ca before Al treatment. Calcium content decreased drastically at harvest (H2) in the plants with 100 µM Al. Under Al stress conditions, the plant responded to Al in different ways due to not only the different Ca supply but also the variation of Ca content in the plant tissues. Actually, the plants having the largest Ca content in the roots before Al treatment can receive less Al injury during Al treatment. To substantiate this idea, a companion study was conducted to investigate the effects of 2500 µM Ca supply during, before, and after 100 µM Al treatment on root growth. The results indicated clearly that exogenous Ca supply before Al treatment is able to alleviate Al injury but less effective than Ca supply during Al treatment.

Variation in antioxidant attributes at three ripening stages of guava (Psidium guajava L.) fruit from different geographical regions of Pakistan.

The present investigation was carried out to appraise the levels of total phenols and vitamin C as well as antioxidant potential at three different ripening stages (un-ripe, semi-ripe and fully-ripe) of guava (Psidium guajava L.) fruit collected from three different geographical regions of Pakistan (Islamabad, Faisalabad and Bhakkar). The antioxidant potential of guava fruit extracts was assessed by means of different in-vitro antioxidant assays, namely inhibition of peroxidation in linoleic acid system, reducing power and radical scavenging capability. Overall, fruit at the un-ripe stage (G1) exhibited the highest levels of TPC, TFC, reducing power and DPPH radical scavenging activity, followed by the semi-ripe (G2) and fully-ripe (G3) stages. On the other hand, vitamin C content increased as the fruit maturity progressed, with highest value seen at the fully-ripe stage (G3) followed by the semi-ripe (G2) and un-ripe stage (G1). The concentration of vitamin C in fruits varied as: Faisalabad (136.4-247.9 mg 100 g⁻¹), Islamabad (89.7-149.7 mg 100 g⁻¹) and Bhakkar (73.1-129.5 mg 100 g⁻¹). The results showed that different stages of maturation and geographical locations had profound effects on the antioxidant activity and vitamin C contents of guava fruit.

Antioxidant and antimicrobial attributes and phenolics of different solvent extracts from leaves, flowers and bark of Gold Mohar [Delonix regia (Bojer ex Hook.) Raf].

This paper describes the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities and phenolic components of different solvent (absolute methanol, absolute ethanol, absolute acetone, 80% methanol, 80% ethanol, 80% acetone and deionized water) extracts of leaves, flowers and bark of Gold Mohar [Delonix regia (Bojer ex Hook.) Raf.]. The extract yields from leaves, flowers and bark ranged from 10.19 to 36.24, 12.97 to 48.47 and 4.22 to 8.48 g/100 g dry weight (DW), respectively. Overall, 80% methanol extract produced from the leaves exhibited significantly (P < 0.05) higher antioxidant activity, with high phenolic contents (3.63 g GAE/100 g DW), total flavonoid contents (1.19 g CE/100 g DW), inhibition of peroxidation (85.54%), DPPH scavenging capacity (IC(50) value 8.89 µg/mL) and reducing power (1.87). Similarly, this 80% methanol leaves extract also showed superior antimicrobial activity. HPLC analysis of the 80% methanol extracts for individual phenolics revealed the presence of gallic, protocatechuic and salicylic acid in leaves; gallic, protocatechuic, salicylic, trans-cinnamic and chlorogenic acid in flowers, and gallic acid in bark as the main (amount > 1.50 mg/100 g DW) phenolic acids. Besides, small amounts ( < 1.50 mg/100 g DW) of some other phenolic acids such as sorbic, sinapic, p-coumaric, m-coumaric, ferulic, caffeic, 3-hydroxybenzoic, 4-hydroxycinnamic and 4-hydroxybenzoic acids were also detected. The extracts of the tested parts of Gold Mohar, especially, the leaves, might be valuable for functional food and therapeutic applications.

Effect of plastic mulch on growth and yield of chilli (Capsicum annuum L.)

In this work a field study was conducted to evaluate the effect of coloured plastic mulch on growth and yield of chilli from October 2005 to April 2006. The plastic mulches were transparent, blue, and black and bare soil was the control. Different mulches generated higher soil temperature and soil moisture under mulch over the control. Transparent and blue plastic mulches encouraged weed population which were suppressed under black plastic. Plant height, number of primary branches, stem base diameter, number of leaves and yield were better for the plants on plastic. At the mature green stage, fruits had the highest vitamin-C content on the black plastic. Mulching produced the fruits with the highest chlorophyll-a, chlorophyll-b and total chlorophyll contents and also increased the number of fruits per plant and yield. However, mulching did not affect the length and diameter of the fruits and number of seeds per fruit. Plants on black plastic mulch had the maximum number of fruits and highest yield. Thus, mulching appears to be a viable tool to increase the chilli production under tropical conditions.

Plant stature of aromatic rice genotypes in the environment of Bangladesh.

Plant stature of a rice crop is an important selection criterion. As plant height is a quantitative trait it is influenced by environmental conditions. A field experiment was conducted with 40 rice genotypes to assess the fluctuation and stability of plant height in a series of 16 environmental situations. The effects of genotype (G), environment (E) and all the components of GxE interaction were highly significant. Among the genotypes, Jamai sohagi was extremely sensitive (bi = 1.37) to environmental changes, and indicating lowest adaptability over the environments. Plant height of seven genotypes viz. Basmati PNR346, Benaful, BRRIdhan28, BRRIdhan38, BRRIdhan39, Gandho kasturi and Neimat, having the bi values between 0.59 and 0.72, showed high stability against environmental changes. The otherseven genotypes viz. Badshabhog, Basmati Tapl-90, Kamini soru, Khazar, Laljira, Sarwati and Ukni madhu expressed only nonlinear sensitivity (S2di = 90-181)) and thus unpredictable fluctuation. Twenty one genotypes indicated their average stability (bi = 0.91-1.15) over the environments.

Biomass accumulation and energy conversion efficiency in aromatic rice genotypes.

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate photosynthetic efficiency along with different growth parameters of aromatic rice genotypes. Forty genotypes including three non-aromatic checks exhibited enormous variations for leaf area index (LAI), crop growth rate (CGR), relative growth rate (RGR), net assimilation rate (NAR), grain yield, total dry matter, harvest index and photosynthetic efficiency or energy use efficiency (Emu) at panicle initiation and heading stages. Minimum LAI-value was 0.52 in Khazar at PI stage and maximum was 4.91 in Sakkor khora at heading stage. The CGR-value was in the range of 4.80-24.11 g m(-2) per day. The best yielder BR39 produced grain of 4.21 t ha(-1) and the worst yielder Khazar gave 1.42 t ha(-1). Total dry matter (TDM) yield varied from 4.04 to 12.26 t ha(-1) where genotypes proved their energy use efficiency a range between 0.58 to 1.65%. Emu showed a significant positive relation with TDM (r=0.80(**)), CGR (r=0.72(**)) and grain yield (r=0.66(**)). A negative correlation was established between TDM and harvest index and LAI and RGR. Path analysis result showed that NAR at heading stage exerted highest positive direct effect (0.70) on Emu.

Flowering response and crop duration of aromatic rices in diverse environments.

Crop duration of a rice plant, essentially dictated by flowering response, is an important selection criterion. It is determined by the interaction of genotype and environment. A field experiment was conducted with 40 rice genotypes to assess the fluctuation and/or stability of crop duration in a series of 16 environmental conditions. The effects of genotype, environment and all the components of G x E interaction were highly significant. Among the genotypes Benaful and Gandho kasturi were most sensitive to environmental changes, and indicating lower adaptability over the environments. Crop durations of 17 genotypes were comparatively stable against environmental changes. Four genotypes viz. Basmati PNR346, BR28, Neimat and Sarwati showed only nonlinear sensitivity and thus unpredictable fluctuation. Seventeen genotypes indicated average stability over the environments. The AMMI analysis identified Badshabhog, Basmati Tapl-90, Bhog ganjia, BR38, Elai, Jata katari and Radhuni pagal as most stable genotypes over the environment series. It also advocated three comparatively stable environments for all the genotypes.

Partial purification and characterization of polyphenol oxidase from banana (Musa sapientum L.) peel.

Polyphenol oxidase (EC 1.10.3.1, o-diphenol: oxygen oxidoreductase, PPO) of banana (Musa sapientum L.) peel was partially purified about 460-fold with a recovery of 2.2% using dopamine as substrate. The enzyme showed a single peak on Toyopearl HW55-S chromatography. However, two bands were detected by staining with Coomassie brilliant blue on PAGE: one was very clear, and the other was faint. Molecular weight for purified PPO was estimated to be about 41 000 by gel filtration. The enzyme quickly oxidized dopamine, and its Km value (Michaelis constant) for dopamine was 3.9 mM. Optimum pH was 6.5 and the PPO activity was quite stable in the range of pH 5-11 for 48 h. The enzyme had an optimum temperature at 30 degrees C and was stable up to 60 degrees C after heat treatment for 30 min. The enzyme activity was strongly inhibited by sodium diethyldithiocarbamate, potassium cyanide, L-ascorbic acid, and cysteine at 1 mM. Under a low buffer capacity, the enzyme was also strongly inhibited by citric acid and acetic acid at 10 mM.

Purification and characterization of polyphenol oxidase from banana (Musa sapientum L.) pulp.

Polyphenol oxidase (EC 1.10.3.1, PPO) in the pulp of banana (Musa sapientum L.) was purified to 636-fold with a recovery of 3.0%, using dopamine as substrate. The purified enzyme exhibited a clear single band on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-PAGE. The molecular weight of the enzyme was estimated to be about 41000 and 42000 by gel filtration and SDS-PAGE, respectively. The enzyme quickly oxidized dopamine, and its K(m) value for dopamine was 2.8 mM. The optimum pH was at 6.5, and the enzyme activity was stable in the range of pH 5-11 at 5 degrees C for 48 h. The enzyme had an optimum temperature of 30 degrees C and was stable even after a heat treatment at 70 degrees C for 30 min. The enzyme activity was completely inhibited by L-ascorbic acid, cysteine, sodium diethyldithiocarbamate, and potassium cyanide. Under a low buffer capacity, the enzyme was also strongly inhibited by citric acid and acetic acid at 10 mM.