Seasonal variability in plankton food web composition in Tuticorin coastal waters, south east coast of India.

To understand the impact of seasonal variability on plankton food web composition in tropical coastal waters, samples were collected from three locations along Tuticorin coastal waters during postmonsoon, summer, and northeast (NE) monsoon seasons. During the NE monsoon, the total suspended matter (TSM) and nutrient concentrations were relatively higher, whereas salinity and plankton (phytoplankton and zooplankton) abundances were lower. Cluster analysis also revealed that the NE monsoon formed into a separate cluster because of the lower phytoplankton abundance caused by higher loads of TSM; this arrests light penetration, thereby resulting in a decrease in plankton abundance. The increase in zooplankton biomass coincided with the decrease in diatoms (p < 0.05), and the increase in cyanobacteria may reflect that grazers food choice has a significant impact on the base of the food web composition. The present study states that the phytoplankton biomass was greatly influenced by seasonality and associated changes rather than the huge supply of nutrient loads.

Assessment of perioperative difficult airway among undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnoea patients undergoing elective surgery: A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is largely undiagnosed in surgical population. Airway-related complication account for 35% of anaesthesia-related deaths and OSA patients have higher occurrence of difficult intubation (DIT). The aim of the study is to estimate the occurrence and compare utility of OSA screening parameters in predicting difficult mask ventilation (DMV) and DIT in patients with undiagnosed OSA. METHODS: A prospective observational study was conducted in a tertiary care centre in patients undergoing elective surgery. STOP-BANG questionnaire was administered preoperatively along with collection of demographic data and airway assessment. Population was divided in to OSA and non-OSA groups based on STOP-BANG score >3. Occurrence of DMV, laryngoscopy (DL), and DIT were compared between both groups using DMV score, Cormack-Lehane grading, and intubation difficulty scale score, respectively. RESULTS: A total of 54 patients in OSA and 46 patients in non-OSA group were studied. A total of 49 cases of DMV, 14 cases of DIT, and 25 cases of DL were encountered. In the OSA group, there was 77.7% DMV, 22.2% DIT, and 33.3% DL. History of snoring had the highest sensitivity and negative predictive value while history of apnea, body mass index >35, sleep apnoea clinical score had the highest specificity in determining occurrence of difficult airway. Multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated STOP-BANG score as the single most important predictor of DMV (odds ratio 3.15, 95% confidence interval, 2.06-4.8). CONCLUSION: Positive screening test for OSA is associated with difficult airway management.

Determination of DPPH free radical scavenging activity by reversed-phase HPLC: a sensitive screening method for polyherbal formulations.

The colorimetric method of evaluation of antioxidant activity by scavenging 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical is with certain shortcomings like failure to indicate antioxidant activity of certain drugs and interference from color pigments of natural products. A specific HPLC method was developed for evaluating the DPPH free radical scavenging activity of commercial polyherbal formulations using a LiChrospher 100 RP-18e column (250 mm x 4 mm, 5 microM). The mobile phase was a mixture of methanol and water (80:20, v/v) pumped at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. The DPPH peaks were monitored at 517 nm. The method was standardized using known antioxidants such as ascorbic acid, 6-hydroxy-2,5,7,8-tetramethylchroman-2-carboxylic acid (trolox), probucol and alpha-tocopherol. The 50% radical scavenging activity (IC50) determined by the HPLC method correlated well with that of colorimetry. This HPLC method was applied for the estimation of free radical scavenging activity of Silymarin and a few commercial hepatoprotective polyherbal formulations. While the colorimetric method failed to estimate the free radical scavenging activity of polyherbal formulations, HPLC method was free from interferences and was specific. The HPLC method is sensitive and can be used as a quality control tool for the rapid determination of free radical scavenging activity of variety of products including plant extracts, foods, drugs and polyherbal formulations.

Development and validation of a reversed-phase HPLC method for the determination of ezetimibe in pharmaceutical dosage forms.

Ezetimibe belongs to a group of selective and very effective 2-azetidione cholesterol absorption inhibitors that act on the level of cholesterol entry into enterocytes. A rapid, specific reversed-phase HPLC method has been developed for assaying ezetimibe in pharmaceutical dosage forms. The assay involved an isocratic elution of ezetimibe in a Kromasil 100 C18 column using a mobile phase composition of water (pH 6.8, 0.05%, w/v 1-heptane sulfonic acid) and acetonitrile (30:70, v/v). The flow rate was 0.5 ml/min and the analyte monitored at 232 nm. The assay method was found to be linear from 0.5 to 50 microg/ml. All the validation parameters were within the acceptance range. The developed method was successfully applied to estimate the amount of ezetimibe in tablets.

Salubrious effect of vitamin E supplementation on renal stone forming risk factors in urogenital tuberculosis patients.

The incidence of renal calculi has been evaluated to be 25% in urogenital tuberculosis patients. The stone could be caused due to the host, the pathogenic organism, or possibly by the treatment. Studies were carried out to find out the efficacy of vitamin E supplementation in reducing the risk of stone formation in renal tuberculosis patients. The study constituted four groups, Group I with 30 normal volunteers, the second group comprised of 36 renal tuberculosis patients (GuTb) a day before treatment. Third group comprised of 24 patients with regular anti tuberculosis drug regimen for sixty days. In the fourth group, 12 patients were treated with anti tuberculosis drug regimen along with supplementation of antioxidant vitamin E (200 mg/day) for sixty days. Hyperuricosuria and hypercalciuria were observed in group II and group III patients, along with increased excretion of oxalate and creatinine, accompanied by decreased excretion of inhibitors such as citrate and glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). Renal damage was evident with increased leakage of Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and gamma-Glutamyl transferase (gamma-GT) in renal tuberculosis patients. From the results of the above study, it is obvious that increased urinary oxalate levels leads to cellular damage in GuTb patients, which is a prerequisite for crystal retention as revealed by the elevated urinary marker enzymes. Antioxidant therapy prevents membrane injury thereby reducing the risk of stone formation. Hence vitamin E supplementation has a salubrious effect in preventing stone forming tendency with routine anti tuberculosis drug regimen.

New lamellarin alkaloids from the Indian ascidian Didemnum obscurum and their antioxidant properties.

Three new lamellarin alkaloids, lamellarins gamma (1), alpha (2), and epsilon (3), along with eight known lamellarin alkaloids, lamellarins M (4), K (5), K-diacetate (6), K-triacetate (7), U (8), I (9), C-diacetate (10), and X-triacetate (11), have been isolated from the Indian ascidian Didemnum obscurum. The structures of 1-11 were established using standard spectroscopic techniques. The structure of lamellarin K-triacetate (7) was further confirmed by X-ray crystallographic analysis. The antioxidant properties of lamellarin gamma, lamellarin gamma-monoacetate, lamellarins K, U, and I, and lamellarin C-diacetate were evaluated.

Bilateral testicular pain due to masturbation interruptus.

A case is reported of a young man with apparent idiopathic pain in the testicles, inguinal regions, and perineum. An unusual cause and mechanism were found. A personality of antisex attitudes with a sense of guilt and sex-suppressive tendencies was observed. These were the underlying but indirect factors in the causation of pain exposed only on inquiry into his personal habits; otherwise the pain most likely would have been labelled as "functional" or psychologic.

[Is the improvement of survival in advanced bladder cancer possible?]. / L'amélioration de la survie dans les cancers avancés de la vessie est-elle possible?

A retrospective study included 41 cases of bladder cancer, with deep invasion of the muscles (C) or perivesicular cellular tissue (D), but without detectable metastases, treated curatively by total cystectomy. Comparison was made between a first group of 19 patients not treated by cellulolymphadenectomy and another group of 22 patients in whom curettage was performed to remove cells and nodes and who also received 2 concentrated radiations of 7-5 Gy of telecobalt to the bladder during the immediate pre-operative period. Only 10 patients in the latter group were given routine postoperative chemotherapy. Postoperative mortality was unaltered (10,5% in the first group and 9% in the second), but postoperative survival was markedly affected: 10,5% after 5 years in the first group as against 41% in the second. Five-year life expectancy was therefore increased by a factor of 4 in spite of 9 N+ cancers. In the 2nd group of 19 patients operated upon and regularly followed up 3 years and more 7 are alive. True 5 year survival rate in the 2nd group was therefore 35% as against 10% in the first group. Note that 2 of the 9 N+ patients are alive after 3 years. Aggressive therapy in the 2nd group also drastically reduced pelvic recurrence rate, which dropped from 8 (42,1%) in the first group to 1 (4,5%) in the second. In contrast, the major cause of death (7 cases = 31,8%) in the 2nd series was the development of metastases, without evidence of any pelvic recurrence. The effect of routine chemotherapy is being investigated.

[Value of surgery in metastatic cancer of the kidney]. / Intérêt de la chirurgie dans les cancers du rein métastatiques.

The authors analyse a series of 186 patients with renal cell carcinoma in which 33 patients of Stage IV, with metastases, underwent Nephrectomy and 3 had also operative removal of metastases appearing in early post nephrectomy follow up. The survival periods have been disappointing (none at 5 years). With a review of literature they discuss about the extent of nephrectomy, whether done with purely palliative aim, or along with attempted curative excision simultaneously of the associated metastases. Even if the spontaneous regressions are exceptional and the improvement of survival duration less frequent, metastases are not always a reason not to remove Renal Cell Carcinoma.

Creation of caverno-glandular shunt for treatment of priapism.

Caverno-glandular shunt was performed in 8 patients with priapism during the past 3 years. Complete and sustained detumescence was achieved immediately in all patients. Only one case developed a complication, viz. cavernositis which responded to antibiotic administration systemically as well as locally. This procedure was performed under local anaesthesia in 5 patients. The technical details and advantages of this procedure over conventional operations for priapism are discussed.