Evaluation of primary caesarean section and neonatal outcomes in a tertiary care hospital and impact on current obstetric practice.

Objective: To evaluate the rising rates of primary caesarean section, its indications and neonatal outcomes. Study design: This was a prospective observational study of 1000 deliveries after 28 weeks gestation. The 312 primary caesarean section (CS) cases were studied with respect to their antepartum and postpartum outcomes. Results: The primary caesarean section (PCS) rate was 31.2% which had risen from 17% in 2018-2019 at the institute of study. The most common indication of PCS was found to be foetal distress (34.2%). Out of all PCS 25.64% were preterm deliveries. 57.05% of PCS born babies required NICU admission after birth and 59.93% had 1 min APGAR score < 7. The most common indication for NICU admission was respiratory distress (55.13%). Conclusion: The rising trend of CS can be attributed to rising PCS rate. Also the indications should be medically justified whenever a CS is attempted as it has significant adverse maternal as well as neonatal implications and also affects the subsequent pregnancy outcomes. CS delivered babies are more prone for respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) and NICU admissions.

Over-expression of chickpea metallothionein 1 gene confers tolerance against major toxic heavy metal stress in Arabidopsis.

Heavy metals are ubiquitously present in nature, including soil, water, and thus in plants, thereby causing a potential health risk. This study has investigated the role and efficiency of the chickpea metallothionein 1 (MT1) gene against the major toxic heavy metals, i.e., As [As(III) and As(V)], Cr(VI), and Cd toxicity. MT1 over-expressing transgenic lines had reduced As(V) and Cr(VI) accumulation, whereas Cd accumulation was enhanced in the L3 line. The physiological responses (WUE, A, Gs, E, ETR, and qP) were noted to be enhanced in transgenic plants, whereas qN was decreased. Similarly, the antioxidant molecules and enzymatic activities (GSH/GSSG, Asc/DHA, APX, GPX, and GRX) were higher in the transgenic plants. The activity of antioxidant enzymes, i.e., SOD, APX, GPX, and POD, were highest in the Cd-treated lines, whereas higher CAT activity was observed in As(V)-L1 and GRX in Cr-L3 line. The stress markers TBARS, H2O2, and electrolyte leakage were lower in transgenic lines in comparison to WT, while RWC was enhanced in the transgenic lines, and the transcript of MT1 gene was accumulated in the transgenic lines. Similarly, the level of stress-responsive amino acid cysteine was higher in transgenic plants as compared to WT plants. Among all the heavy metals, MT1 over-expressing lines showed a highly increased accumulation of Cd, whereas a non-significant effect was observed with As(III) treatment. Overall, the results demonstrate that Arabidopsis thaliana transformed with the MT1 gene mitigates heavy metal stress by regulating the defense mechanisms in plants. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12298-021-01103-1.