Kimura Disease Masquerading as Vascular Malformation - An Interesting Report.

Kimura disease is a chronic inflammatory disorder which is rare, cause is unknown and primarily seen in young Asian males. The disease is characterized by painless subcutaneous swelling in head and neck, blood and tissue eosinophilia and raised IgE levels. The etiology is thought to be manifestation of an aberrant allergic response. The main modalities of treatment are corticosteroids/ surgery or both. Here we report a case of 16 years old male who presented to our hospital with fluctuant swelling over the post auricular region of 06 months duration. Imaging suggested vascular malformation, however the final diagnosis was found to be Kimura disease.

RNA Interference and CRISPR/Cas Gene Editing for Crop Improvement: Paradigm Shift towards Sustainable Agriculture.

With the rapid population growth, there is an urgent need for innovative crop improvement approaches to meet the increasing demand for food. Classical crop improvement approaches involve, however, a backbreaking process that cannot equipoise with increasing crop demand. RNA-based approaches i.e., RNAi-mediated gene regulation and the site-specific nuclease-based CRISPR/Cas9 system for gene editing has made advances in the efficient targeted modification in many crops for the higher yield and resistance to diseases and different stresses. In functional genomics, RNA interference (RNAi) is a propitious gene regulatory approach that plays a significant role in crop improvement by permitting the downregulation of gene expression by small molecules of interfering RNA without affecting the expression of other genes. Gene editing technologies viz. the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein (CRISPR/Cas) have appeared prominently as a powerful tool for precise targeted modification of nearly all crops' genome sequences to generate variation and accelerate breeding efforts. In this regard, the review highlights the diverse roles and applications of RNAi and CRISPR/Cas9 system as powerful technologies to improve agronomically important plants to enhance crop yields and increase tolerance to environmental stress (biotic or abiotic). Ultimately, these technologies can prove to be important in view of global food security and sustainable agriculture.

Association of maternal hemoglobin and iron stores with neonatal hemoglobin and iron stores.

BACKGROUND: One of the commonest causes of anemia in pregnancy is iron deficiency. This study aims at understanding and exploring the association between fetal and maternal iron status. Predelivery maternal hemoglobin (Hb) and iron stores, serum iron, ferritin, and soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR), were assessed and compared to the cord blood Hb and iron stores with an attempt to identify the level of maternal Hb and ferritin at which the fetal iron stores reduce, helping to identify the neonates who will require earlier iron supplementation. METHOD: Four hundred eight participants were enrolled, and maternal and cord blood was collected at the time of delivery and tested for Hb and iron parameters. The results were statistically analyzed. RESULTS: Of all mothers, 27.2% mothers were anemic (Hb less than 11 g/dl). Of all newborns, 15.4% newborns had Hb less than 14 g/dl. There was a significant association between the maternal and cord blood iron, ferritin, sTfR and sTfR/log ferritin index. Eighty-five percent of the babies with cord blood Hb <14 g/dl had maternal serum ferritin (SF) <50 µg/L. Maternal SF <10 µg/l was associated with a significant number of babies with cord blood SF <75 µg/l (77.7%). One hundred sixty six neonates had sTfR 2 µg/ml or more. Of these, 80.7% had maternal SF <50 µg/l. Of the 115 newborns with a high sTfR/log ferritin index (>1.5), 56.5% had raised maternal sTfR (>2µg/ml). CONCLUSION: In view of a significant association between maternal and neonatal Hb and iron stores, newborns of mothers with iron deficiency anemia (IDA) during pregnancy should be monitored and followed up after birth for development of IDA and early iron supplementation.

Chemoenzymatic Production and Engineering of Chitooligosaccharides and N-acetyl Glucosamine for Refining Biological Activities.

Chitooligosaccharides (COS) and N-acetyl glucosamine (GlcNAc) are currently of enormous relevance to pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, cosmetics, food, and agriculture industries due to their wide range of biological activities, which include antimicrobial, antitumor, antioxidant, anticoagulant, wound healing, immunoregulatory, and hypocholesterolemic effects. A range of methods have been developed for the synthesis of COS with a specific degree of polymerization along with high production titres. In this respect, chemical, enzymatic, and microbial means, along with modern genetic manipulation techniques, have been extensively explored; however no method has been able to competently produce defined COS and GlcNAc in a mono-system approach. Henceforth, the chitin research has turned toward increased exploration of chemoenzymatic processes for COS and GlcNAc generation. Recent developments in the area of green chemicals, mainly ionic liquids, proved vital for the specified COS and GlcNAc synthesis with better yield and purity. Moreover, engineering of COS and GlcNAc to generate novel derivatives viz. carboxylated, sulfated, phenolic acid conjugated, amino derived COS, etc., further improved their biological activities. Consequently, chemoenzymatic synthesis and engineering of COS and GlcNAc emerged as a useful approach to lead the biologically-active compound-based biomedical research to an advanced prospect in the forthcoming era.