Possible mechanism of antifungal phenazine-1-carboxamide from Pseudomonas sp. against dimorphic fungi Benjaminiella poitrasii and human pathogen Candida albicans.

AIM: Investigation of antifungal mechanism of phenazine 1-carboxamide (PC) produced by a Pseudomonas strain MCC2142. METHODS AND RESULTS: An antifungal metabolite produced by a Pseudomonas was purified and identified as PC. Human pathogenic fungi such as Candida albicans, Candida glabrata, Cryptococcus neoformans, Fusarium oxysporum, Aspergillus fumigatus and Aspergillus niger were found to be inhibited by PC (MIC90 32-64 µg ml(-1)). Addition of PC (20 µg ml(-1)) during yeast (Y)-hypha (H) transitions inhibited germ tube formation by >90% and >99% in C. albicans National Collection of Industrial Microorganisms (NCIM) 3471 and nonpathogenic model Benjaminiella poitrasii, respectively. After exposure to PC (20 µg ml(-1)), 75-80% yeast cells of B. poitrasii and C. albicans NCIM 3471 showed rhodamine 123 fluorescence indicating high intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. ROS further led to hyperpolarization of mitochondrial membrane, subsequently induction of apoptosis as evident by externalization of phosphatidylserine, DNA fragmentation, chromatin condensation and finally death in B. poitrasii. In C. albicans NCIM 3471, PC (20 µg ml(-1)) induced apoptosis. CONCLUSIONS: The antifungal effect of PC in B. poitrasii and C. albicans may be due to ROS-mediated apoptotic death. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Inhibition of Y-H transition of B. poitrasii and C. albicans by PC indicates that it may prove useful in the control of dimorphic human pathogens.

Role of cancer antigen-125 from pleural & ascitic fluid samples in non malignant conditions.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE: CA-125, an ovarian tumor marker is known to increase in non malignant conditions such as tubercular and non tubercular pleuritis and ascites. We undertook this study to evaluate non-specific rise in CA-125 levels in conditions associated with pleural effusion and ascites and also to understand the mechanism of its secretion. METHODS: CA-125 levels in 38 pleural and 46 ascitic fluid samples from non malignant cases and 10 blood samples from pulmonary tuberculosis cases were estimated by ELISA. The ascitic fluid samples were collected from cases of bacterial peritonitis, tuberculosis, hepatitis, cirrhosis of other aetiology and pleural fluid samples were from cases of tubercular, pyogenic, cardiomegaly and other conditions. RESULTS: Both ascitic and pleural fluid samples (transudative and exudative) showed elevated CA- 125 levels. The CA-125 levels were significantly higher in ascitic fluid samples than in pleural fluid samples. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSION: Our findings showed that elevated levels of CA-125 in pleural and ascitic fluid could be because of varied aetiologies which need to be ruled out before considering malignancy. Peritoneum has a greater capacity to secrete CA-125 than the pleural epithelium and the secretion occurs following inflammation or mechanical distress. Pulmonary tuberculosis as a closed lesion without involvement of pleural epithelium does not evoke high CA-125 release.

Use of DNA markers in prediction of hybrid performance and heterosis for a three-line hybrid system in rice.

Two Cytoplasmic Male Sterile lines were crossed with fourteen restorer lines of rice widely grown in the western regions of Maharashtra, India, to produce 28 F1 hybrids which were evaluated for eight agronomically important traits, contributing to yield potential, in replicated field trials. The hybrid performance was recorded along with heterosis and heterobeltiosis. All the rice lines under investigation were subjected to marker-based variability analysis. An attempt was made to correlate genetic distance based on specific markers for each trait individually, as well as average genetic distance based on all specific markers, with hybrid performance and heterosis, by regression analysis. Specific markers could cluster the parental lines in different groups and showed significant correlation with hybrid performance. The data also supports the proposition that epistasis is the basis of heterosis. The analysis, however, revealed a lack of significant predictive values for field application.

Sesquiterpenoids and phenolics from Crepis mollis.

From the roots of Crepis mollis, one new and two known guaianolides were isolated together with eight known guaianolide glycosides, one known germacranolide glycoside and two known phenylpropanoids. The structure and relative configuration of the new compound were established as 9alpha-hydroxy-4beta, 15, 11beta, 13-tetrahydro-dehydrozaluzanin C by spectral methods.

'In vitro' antiviral activity of neem (Azadirachta indica. A. Juss) leaf extract against group B coxsackieviruses.

The antiviral and virucidal effect of methanolic extract fraction of leaves of neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss) (NCL-11) was studied regarding its activity and possible mechanism of action against Coxsackie B group of viruses. NCL-11 inhibited plaque formation in 6 antigenic types of Coxsackie virus B at a concentration of 1000 micrograms/ml at 96 hrs. 'in vitro'. Additionally virus inactivation, yield reduction and effect of time of addition assays suggested that NCL-11 was most effective against coxsackie virus B-4 as a virucidal agent besides interfering at an early event of its replicative cycle. The evidence suggested that presence of a battery of compounds besides flavonoids, triterpenoids and their glycosides in NCL-11 have antiviral action for coxsackie B group of viruses 'in vitro.' The minimal inhibitory concentrations were not toxic to Vero (African green monkey kidney), cells; subtoxic concentration was 8,000 micrograms/ml and cytotoxic concentration 10,000 micrograms/ml, which was confirmed by trypan blue dye exclusion test.

Lipid abnormalities in chronic renal failure.

Lipid abnormalities remain to be a major cause of early mortality in patients with chronic renal failure (CRF). In present study, 114 (one hundred fourteen) CRF patients without any additional cause of dyslipidemia were divided into groups on the basis of etiologies of CRF. Blood samples from each group were analyzed for total cholesterol, triglyceride and HDL cholesterol along with blood urea nitrogen and serum creatinine. 25 healthy individuals without any obvious disease were taken as control. Patients from all the groups showed a marked hypertriglyceridemia of 232 (SD±77) mg/dl (P<0.001) as compared to control. Levels of HDL cholesterol were found to be significantly low 20 (±11) mg/dl (p<0.001) in all the groups. LDL cholesterol showed an increase 104 (±30) mg/dl as compared to control group which is not statistically significant. Present study reveals that, CRF patients show an uniform dyslipidemia irrespective of etiologies leading to CRF. This dyslipidemia is also independent of serum creatinine levels. Although, these lipid abnormalities may not solely cause mortality in CRF patients, they may act as modulators in accelerating atherogenesis which in turn cause early mortality in CRF patients.

Laparoscopic sterilization by bipolar cautery and division.

Laparoscopic sterilization with bipolar cautery and division was found to be a safe, effective and acceptable alternative to silastic band application. The main advantages were less tubal damage, applicability in edematous tubes, ease of tackling bleeding complications. Failure occurred in 0.2% of cases and ectopic pregnancy occurred in none. There was no mortality and no cases of bowel injury. Total number of complications was 3.94%.

Experience with penile venous surgery.

Venogenic impotence was detected in 37 out of 141 patients who attended our clinic with a complaint of erectile dysfunction. Eighteen patients presented with primary impotence and the rest had progressive secondary impotence. All 37 patients have shown partial or poor response to 60 mg of intracavernosal papaverine. The corporovenous leak (CVL) was diagnosed on the careful workup of dynamic pharmacocavernosometry and cavernosography. Concomitant arterial cause was noted in 10% cases on the basis of penile duplex Doppler ultrasound study. 24 patients in the age group of 23-60 years underwent the penile venous surgery. The CVL was noted in the deep dorsal vein (23 cases), cavernous vein (16) and in the crural vein (2). The operation consisted of deep dorsal vein (DDV) ligation and excision with all tributaries (8 cases) or DDV ligation and excision+cavernous vein ligation (13 cases), through an infrapubic curvilinear incision. One patient had crural vein ligation and corporoplasty through a perineal incision, one had direct corporeal revascularization for associated arteriogenic impotence with venous leak and another had distal spongiolysis and closure of a corporospongiosal shunt. The results were excellent in 11 cases, improved in 6 and 7 had failures. Surgical intervention is effective in CVL in selected cases but limiting factors in the form of increasing age, concomitant arteriogenic cause, significant crural leak, missing tributaries, recurrent venous leak and unknown factors may also be present to prevent total cure.

Anterior urethroplasty--changing concepts.

The management of complex anterior urethral strictures, not amendable to dilatation or internal urethromotomy, is difficult. Our experience of treating long strictures of anterior urethra with one-stage urethroplasty in 16 cases and two-stage Johanson's in 12 cases are reviewed here. The strictures had varied etiology and many were associated with fistula, diverticulum, etc. Three cases had concomitant posterior urethral strictures and were managed by one-stage anterior and posterior urethroplasty simultaneously. The one-stage repair was done using vascularized flap of longitudinal ventral penile skin in most cases. Transverse scrotal flap and Duckket's transverse preputial flap were utilized in 2 cases each. In one-stage repair success was 100% and in two-stage repair it was 75%. Our preference is now for one-stage repair irrespective of length and number of strictures.