A reactive neural network framework for water-loaded acidic zeolites.

Under operating conditions, the dynamics of water and ions confined within protonic aluminosilicate zeolite micropores are responsible for many of their properties, including hydrothermal stability, acidity and catalytic activity. However, due to high computational cost, operando studies of acidic zeolites are currently rare and limited to specific cases and simplified models. In this work, we have developed a reactive neural network potential (NNP) attempting to cover the entire class of acidic zeolites, including the full range of experimentally relevant water concentrations and Si/Al ratios. This NNP has the potential to dramatically improve sampling, retaining the (meta)GGA DFT level accuracy, with the capacity for discovery of new chemistry, such as collective defect formation mechanisms at the zeolite surface. Furthermore, we exemplify how the NNP can be used as a basis for further extensions/improvements which include data-efficient adoption of higher-level (hybrid) references via Δ-learning and the acceleration of rare event sampling via automatic construction of collective variables. These developments represent a significant step towards accurate simulations of realistic catalysts under operando conditions.

Pharmacogenomics-assisted schizophrenia management: A hybrid type 2 effectiveness-implementation study protocol to compare the clinical utility, cost-effectiveness, and barriers.

OBJECTIVES: The response to antipsychotic therapy is highly variable. Pharmacogenomic (PGx) factors play a major role in deciding the effectiveness and safety of antipsychotic drugs. A hybrid type 2 effectiveness-implementation research will be conducted to evaluate the clinical utility (safety and efficacy), cost-effectiveness, and facilitators and barriers in implementing PGx-assisted management compared to standard of care in patients with schizophrenia attending a tertiary care hospital in eastern India. METHODS: In part 1, a randomized controlled trial will be conducted. Adult patients with schizophrenia will be randomized (2: 1) to receive PGx-assisted treatment (drug and regimen selection depending on the results of single-nucleotide polymorphisms in genes DRD2, HTR1A, HTR2C, ABCB1, CYP2D6, CYP3A5, and CYP1A2) or the standard of care. Serum drug levels will be measured. The patients will be followed up for 12 weeks. The primary endpoint is the difference in the Udvalg for Kliniske Undersøgelser Side-Effect Rating Scale score between the two arms. In part 2, the cost-effectiveness of PGx-assisted treatment will be evaluated. In part 3, the facilitators and barriers to implementing PGx-assisted treatment for schizophrenia will be explored using a qualitative design. EXPECTED OUTCOME: The study findings will help in understanding whether PGx-assisted management has a clinical utility, whether it is cost-effective, and what are the facilitators and barriers to implementing it in the management of schizophrenia. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study has been registered with the Clinical Trials Registry-India (CTRI/2023/08/056210).

Burden of mental health disorders and synthesis of community-based mental health intervention measures among adolescents during COVID-19 pandemic in low middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant lockdown could have negatively impacted adolescent mental health. The synthesised burden of mental health illness among adolescents during or after the pandemic is unknown in Low Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). The objective was to ascertain the pooled prevalence of mental health disorders among adolescents aged 10 - 19 years and to systematically review & conduct a descriptive synthesis of community-based mental health intervention measures in addressing adolescent mental health disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic in LMICs. METHODS: The literature was searched in Embase, PubMed, and Scopus and selected the relevant studies. The data was extracted from the selected studies, and its quality was assessed using adapted Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scales. Meta-analysis was performed using random effects model to pool the prevalence of mental health disorders. Statistical heterogeneity was evaluated through Cochran's Q test & I2 statistic. RESULTS: Thirty-five studies were selected out of 7955 identified studies. Most of the studies (n = 7, each) were from India and Iran. The majority of research works were community-based (n = 18), conducted in 2020 (23 articles), and participant interviews were conducted through online mode (n = 21). Varied instruments were used to measure the burden of mental health in different settings. Pooled prevalence (95% confidence intervals) of anxiety, depression and stress was found to be 43.69 (18.58-68.80)%, 47.02 (31.72-62.32)% and 39.97 (30.53-49.40)%, respectively, with high heterogeneity between the studies. No studies reported community-based mental health interventions. CONCLUSION: There has been a higher prevalence of anxiety, depression, stress, and other mental health illnesses, among adolescents in LMICs during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is important to note that no existing literature directly addresses community-based interventions for these common mental health illnesses. It is imperative to prepare the health system for early identification and management of common mental health illness among the adolescent age group in the event of any future disaster.

The Anti-hypoxia Potentials of Trans-sodium Crocetinate in Hypoxiarelated Diseases: A Review.

Crocetin is a kind of apocarotenoid carboxylic acid extracted from saffron (Crocus sativus L.), which is effective in upregulating tissue oxygenation. However, crocetin is difficult to solubilize. It was shown that the trans isomer of crocetin is effective in improving oxygen diffusivity, while its cis isomer appears not to be. Hence, the isolated trans isomer of crocetin or trans-sodium crocetinate (TSC) can be used instead of crocetin. It is shown that TSC can upregulate hypoxic tissue oxygenation and be effective in treating some hypoxia-related diseases. Moreover, experimental and clinical studies have reported no adverse effects following TSC treatment, even at high doses. The current study will discuss the potential role of TSC in hemorrhagic shock, ischemia, brain tumor radiotherapy, and others.

Regional with urban-rural variation in low birth weight and its determinants of Indian children: findings from National Family Health Survey 5 data.

BACKGROUND: Low birth weight is a key indicator for child health, especially a concern in low-middle-income countries. However, health and medically-related reforms are being actively implemented in some middle-income countries like India. Identifying low birth weight (LBW) babies with their determinants across the whole country is essential to formulate regional and area-specific interventions. The objective of this study was to find out the burden and determinants of LBW on the regional and residential (rural-urban) divisions of India. METHODS: The present study was based on the NFHS-5 dataset (2019-21), a nationally representative survey in India. A total of 209,223 births were included in this study. A newborn weighing less than 2500 g was considered as LBW. According to the objectives, we used frequency distribution, chi-square test and binary logistic regression analysis for analysing the data. RESULTS: About 18.24% of the babies were LBW in India, significantly higher in rural areas than in urban areas (18.58% vs 17.36%). Regionally prevalence was more frequent in western (20.63%) and central (20.16%) rural areas. Regarding maternal concerns, in the eastern and southern regions of India, mothers aged 25-34 were less likely to have LBW children than mothers aged 35-49 years. It was found that the risk of LBW was more likely among the children born out of unintended pregnancies in almost all regions except for eastern part. In rural India, women who delivered children at home were more likely to have LBW children in India (AOR = 1.19, CI: 1.12-1.28, p < 0.001) and its central, northern, and southern regions than those who gave birth in institutions. The study indicates that LBW coexists with lower maternal education levels and poor household wealth index across all regions. About 58% and 57% of cumulative effects of independent variables on LBW can be distinguished in urban and rural India, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Targeted-specific strategies need to be undertaken as per region and geographical variations. Then only India should be able to decline LBW as proposed by National Health Policy.

Comparative analysis of experimental and numerical investigation on multiple projectile impact of AA5083 friction stir welded targets.

This research aims to investigate the ballistic resistance of base material (BM)and "Friction Stir Welded (FSW)", AA5083 aluminum alloy. The primary objective was to build a finite element model to predict kinetic energy absorption and target deformation under single and multiple projectile impact conditions. This study employed 7.62mm Hard Steel Core (HSC) projectiles produced from Steel 4340. The target was analyzed using commercially available Abaqus Explicit software for Finite Element Analysis. It was noticed that the generation of kinetic energy and surface residual velocity increases as the number of projectile strikes increases. In addition, the experimental ballistic test was conducted to validate the numerical results. Using the analytical Recht-Ipson model, each target's experimental residual velocity was determined. It was determined that weldments perform less well (30%) as compared to BM targets. Occurrence of plastic deformation during welding causes reduction in ballistic performance of weldments. For both the computational and experimental approaches, a correlation between residual velocities was found. The plastic deformations with ductile hole formation were observed in all the cases.

Red light-activable biotinylated copper(II) complex-functionalized gold nanocomposite (Biotin-Cu@AuNP) towards targeted photodynamic therapy.

We report the synthesis and characterization of red-light activable gold nanoparticle functionalized with biotinylated copper(II) complex of general molecular formula, [Cu(L3)(L6)]-AuNPs (Biotin-Cu@AuNP), where L3 = N-(3-((E)-3,5-di-tert-butyl-2-hydroxybenzylideneamino)-4-hydroxyphenyl)-5-((3aS,4S,6aR)-2-oxo-hexahydro-1H-thieno[3,4-d]imidazol-4-yl)pentanamide, L6 = 5-(1,2-dithiolan-3-yl)-N-(1,10-phenanthrolin-5-yl)pentanamide, which was explored for their photophysical, theoretical and photo-cytotoxic potentials. The nanoconjugate exhibits differential uptake in biotin positive and biotin negative cancer cells as well as normal cells. The nanoconjugate also shows remarkable photodynamic activity against biotin positive A549 (IC50: 13 µg/mL in red light; >150 µg/mL in dark) and HaCaT (IC50: 23 µg/mL in red light; >150 µg/mL in dark) cells under red light (600-720 nm, 30 Jcm-2) irradiation, with significantly high photo-indices (PI>15). The nanoconjugate is less toxic to HEK293T (biotin negative) and HPL1D (normal) cells. Confocal microscopy confirms preferential mitochondrial and partly cytoplasmic localization of Biotin-Cu@AuNP in A549 cells. Several photo-physical and theoretical studies reveal the red light-assisted generation of singlet oxygen (1O2) (Ф (1O2) =0.68) as a reactive oxygen species (ROS) which results in remarkable oxidative stress and mitochondrial membrane damage, leading to caspase 3/7-dependent apoptosis of A549 cells. Overall, the nanocomposite (Biotin-Cu@AuNP) exhibiting red light-assisted targeted photodynamic activity has emerged as the ideal next generation PDT agents.

Efficacy and safety of lobeglitazone, a new Thiazolidinedione, as compared to the standard of care in type 2 diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

AIM: This systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and safety of lobeglitazone as compared to the standard of care (SOC) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS: Databases were searched for relevant randomized controlled trials. The primary outcome was the comparison of the glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C) level after 24 weeks. Pooled mean differences and odds ratios were calculated using random-effects models. RESULTS: Of 267 studies that were screened, four were included. Treatment with adjunct lobeglitazone showed a reduction in the HbA1C level [mean difference: -0.23% (95% CI: -0.62 to 0.16); p = 0.24; i2: 87%; moderate GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and. Evaluation) of evidence], fasting blood glucose level [mean difference: -7.12 mg/dl (95% CI: -20.09 to 5.85); p = 0.28; i2: 87%; moderate GRADE of evidence], and lipid profile as compared to those following treatment with the SOC; however, the changes were not statistically significant. The risk of hypoglycemia was significantly lower [odds ratio: 0.24 (95% CI: 0.08 to 0.70); p < 0.05; i2: 0%; moderate GRADE of evidence] without any significant difference in the risk of drug-related adverse events [odds ratio: 1.59 (95% CI: 0.87 to 2.93); p = 0.13; i2: 0%; moderate GRADE of evidence] following treatment with lobeglitazone as compared to those following treatment with the SOC. CONCLUSION: Treatment with adjunct lobeglitazone showed changes in the blood glycemic status and lipid profile similar to SOC in patients with T2DM, and the results were not statistically significant. Lobeglitazone was well tolerated; its safety profile was comparable to SOC.

Self-care practices and quality of life of filariasis patients in a gram panchayat of Paschim Burdwan district, West Bengal, India.

Background & objectives: Self-care management is one of the important components in the goal of elimination of lymphatic filariasis (LF) and Quality of Life (QoL) has become an important deliverable in the present day health care system. The objective was to assess the self-care management of the affected limb and to find out the quality of life who were suffering from lymphoedema. Methods: This was a community-based cross-sectional epidemiological study conducted during 2019-2020 in a Gourbazar gram panchayat area of Paschim Burdwan district of West Bengal, India. QoL was assessed by Lymphatic Filariasis Specific Quality of life Questionnaire (LFSQQ). Results: Total 115 LF patients were identified with a mean age of 53.9 years. About 26.1% correctly knew the management of the affected area. Out of the 33 patients having cracked skin, around 39.4% used to take care of the affected skin. Overall, median quality of life score was found to be 77.84 (65.90-89.20). Age-wise, median score gradually decreased with increase in age except in the age group of 50-60 years. Males had higher score compared to females (79.54 vs. 76.13). Activity domain score was found to be lowest followed by mobility score, while social and psychological domain score was found to be good. Interpretation & conclusion: Self-care practice is not known to the affected patients. Time has also come to integrate measures like rehabilitation, psychological intervention, social assistance in addition to self-care management to put up a holistic approach of the existing program.

Facilitators and barriers to the uptake of COVID-19 vaccine precaution dose among adult population: qualitative analysis across six different states of India.

Introduction: India launched the COVID-19 vaccination drive on 16th January 2021 by vaccinating the adult population above 18 years of age. This was followed by the introduction of an additional precaution dose. As on 18th October 2022, 1,02,66,96,808 (1.02 Billion) first dose and 94, 95, 39,516 (949 Million) second doses of COVID-19 vaccine were administered. However, when compared to the uptake of the primary doses, the precaution dose uptake lagged behind with only 21,75, 12,721 (217 million) doses administered. Even though, the uptake of the primary doses remained optimal, irrespective of different interventions by the Government of India, the uptake of the precaution dose remained poor. In this context, the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare wanted to understand the facilitators and Barriers for precaution dose uptake among adults so that future immunization campaigns could address these issues. Methods: An exploratory qualitative study was conducted to assess the facilitators and barriers for COVID-19 precaution dose uptake at community level across 6 different states in India. From each of the states, two districts with the highest and lowest rates of COVID-19 vaccine precaution dose uptake were selected. In each of these districts, 2 block Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs), one with high and one with low uptake were identified. Within these block PHCs, a PHC field area with high and low precaution dose uptakes was identified. From the identified sites a minimum of four IDIs, four FGDs were conducted among the community members. KIIs of the State Immunization Officers, District Immunisation Officers, PHC Medical Officers, healthcare workers like Accredited Social Health Activist/Auxiliary Nurse Midwife were also conducted. The data was audio recorded and it was transcribed, translated and analysed using framework approach. Results: It was observed that rise in COVID-19 cases prompted the community to take the precaution dose, this along with the cost of hospitalization and the number of productive days being lost as a result of being infected resulted in vaccine uptake. The fear of non-availability of COVID-19 vaccines latter on also prompted people for vaccine uptake. While the barriers were, poor accessibility to vaccination centers, long hours of travel, poor road connectivity and lack of transportation facilities. However, the most prominent barriers observed across all study sites was that a sense of pandemic fatigue and complacency had developed both among the providers as well as the beneficiaries. Other barriers include differences in vaccination schedules and longer duration between the primary doses of some vaccines. Media was identified to be both a barrier and facilitator for Covid-19 Precaution dose uptake. Even though media played an important role in disseminating information in the beginning of the campaign, it was soon followed by the circulation of both misinformation and disinformation. Discussion: The study identified that dissemination of accurate information and community involvement at each stage of planning and implementation are crucial for the success of any campaign. Efforts should be constantly made to address and re-invent strategies that will be most suitable for the needs of the community. Therefore, in order to ensure successful vaccination campaigns, it is crucial that along with political will it is also important to have a decentralized approach with inter-sectoral coordination with different stakeholders such as healthcare workers, community members and the different departments such as the local self-governments, education department, law & order department etc. These lessons learnt from COVID-19 vaccination campaigns must not be forgotten and must be applied in future vaccination campaigns and while framing public health policies.

Association between Polypharmacy and Cardiovascular Autonomic Function among Elderly Patients in an Urban Municipality Area of Kolkata, India: A Record-Based Cross-Sectional Study.

We assessed the association between polypharmacy and cardiovascular autonomic function among community-dwelling elderly patients having chronic diseases. Three hundred and twenty-one patients from an urban municipality area of Kolkata, India were studied in August 2022. The anticholinergic burden and cardiac autonomic function (Valsalva ratio, orthostatic hypotension, change in diastolic blood pressure after an isometric exercise, and heart rate variability during expiration and inspiration) were evaluated. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to find out the association of polypharmacy and total anticholinergic burden with cardiac autonomic neuropathy. A total of 305 patients (age, 68.9 ± 3.4; 65.9% male) were included. Of these patients, 81 (26.6%) were on polypharmacy. Out of these 81 patients, 42 patients were on ninety-eight potential inappropriate medications. The anticholinergic burden and the proportion of patients with cardiac autonomic neuropathy were significantly higher among patients who were on polypharmacy than those who were not (8.1 ± 2.3 vs. 2.3 ± 0.9; p = 0.03 and 56.8% vs. 44.6%; p = 0.01). The presence of polypharmacy and a total anticholinergic burden of > 3 was significantly associated with cardiac autonomic neuropathy (aOR, 2.66; 95% CI, 0.91−3.98 and aOR, 2.51; 95% CI, 0.99−3.52, respectively). Thus, polypharmacy was significantly associated with cardiac autonomic neuropathy among community-dwelling elderly patients.

Optimized study of the annealing effect on the electrical and structural properties of HDLC thin-films.

The plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) technique has been utilized for the facile surface deposition of hydrogenated diamond-like carbon (HDLC) thin-films onto Si(100) substrates. The as-deposited film surface is homogenous, free of pinholes, and adheres to the substrate. Annealing of the synthesized HDLC surface in a vacuum was performed in the temperature range of 200 to 1000 °C. A host of instrumental techniques, viz. FTIR spectroscopy, AFM, STM, and EC-AFM, were successfully employed to detect the morphological transformation in the HDLC films upon annealing. EC-AFM studies show irreversible biased behavior after undergoing a surface redox couple reaction and morphological change. Raman spectroscopy was carried out along with STM and EC-AFM to determine the functional nature and conductivity of the annealed surface.

Research rating: Some technicalities.

From time immemorial, the body of scientific knowledge has grown with incremental additions of research. Metrics-based research evaluation provides crucial information regarding research credibility that would be difficult to understand by means of individual expertise. h-index and its modifications give an approximate quantitative measure of research output. Furthermore, g-index, e-index, h-index and i10-index address various intricacies involving authorship. Altmetrics and Plum X metrics are newer usage metrics that put an additional weightage on the impact on social media, usage, capture and scholarly networking. Indirect evaluation of research can also be obtained from the Journal Impact Factor in which the research is published but with certain limitations. While the scientific community is still waiting for a unique one-stop solution based on a high-quality robust process to exert judgement on research, the Leiden Manifesto comprising ten principles for research assessment can act as a guiding tool for development of a comprehensive evaluation system.

Association of Conicity Index with Different Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors among Rural Elderly Women of West Bengal, India.

Introduction: In menopause, changes in body fat distribution lead to increasing risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Therefore, the prediction of cardiovascular disease (CVD) by the presence of risk factors is of importance in elderly women. Objective: To find out the conicity index (CI) and its association with different CVD risk factors among rural elderly women of West Bengal. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted among 236 rural elderly women, selected randomly from 30 villages of Amdanga block, West Bengal. Components of metabolic syndrome (MS), body fat percentage, different lipid profile fractions, CI, and body mass index (BMI) were measured. Statistical tests were calculated using SPSS software version 20.0. P ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: High CI (median 1.25 and interquartile range 1.05-1.45) was found. The proportion of participants with high CI were significantly higher among those with MS (87.95%), waist circumference having 80 cm or more (99.09%), blood pressure having ≥ 130/85 mm of Hg (75.66%), body fat percentage ≥25% (80.14%), and BMI ≥23 (93.18%). Conclusion: High prevalence of CI existed among rural elderly women. Significant correlation existed between CI and different CVD risk factors as well as some of the components of MS indicating a possible coexistence of different CVD risks.

Novel Mutations of TSPY1 Gene Associate Spermatogenic Failure Among Men.

Etiology of male infertility is intriguing owing to complex genetic regulation of human spermatogenesis and ethnic variations in genetic architecture of human populations. The present study characterizes the role of Y chromosome specific spermatogenic regulator testis-specific protein Y-encoded 1 (TSPY1) gene mutation in spermatogenic failure. This case-control study includes 163 cases of spermatogenic failure and 175 age-matched fertile men as controls. We found five novel base substitutions, namely, MT162695, MN879413, MN889982, MN889983, MN719943, two deletions MN734578 and MN734579, three novel insertions MN719941, MN719942 and MN719944 through Sanger's dideoxy sequencing of TSPY1 gene reading frame. All these mutations exhibited strong association with male infertility. In silico analyses suggest prospective disruption in splice sites and alteration in different isoforms of TSPY1 transcripts and amino acid sequence in TSPY1 protein. The study provides novel evidence in favour of implication of TSPY1 gene in male fertility. The outcome sheds light to get insight into the issue of idiopathic male infertility in Bengali population.

RETINAL PIGMENT EPITHELIAL IRREGULARITY AND ATROPHY AFTER INTERNAL MEMBRANE PEELING: A REPORT OF TWO CASES.

PURPOSE: To report two cases of widespread retinal pigment epithelial clumping, irregularity, and atrophy after uncomplicated 25-gauge pars plana vitrectomy with brilliant blue-green-assisted internal limiting membrane peeling. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of 2 eyes of 2 patients who underwent 25-gauge pars plana vitrectomy for macular diseases (macular hole with retinal detachment and vitreomacular traction) was performed. Surgical notes and video recordings were reviewed to determine the surgical procedures performed and the duration of the surgery. Multimodal imaging analysis, including fundus photography, fundus autofluorescence imaging, and optical coherence tomography were performed to determine the pathological changes in the postoperative period. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients (all females) was 78 years. In all the patients, brilliant blue-green-assisted internal limiting membrane peeling was performed without any intraoperative complications. Four weeks after an uncomplicated surgery, the patients complained of progressive central visual disturbance and metamorphopsia. Retinal imaging demonstrated retinal pigment epithelial clumps and irregularity, which appeared as hyperautofluorescent on fundus autofluorescence, and widespread retinal pigment epithelial atrophy (hypoautofluorescent on fundus autofluorescence) in the posterior pole and peripapillary region, along with retinal and choroidal thinning. CONCLUSION: In uncomplicated vitrectomy consisting of brilliant blue-green-assisted internal limiting membrane peeling, a remote risk of widespread retinal pigment epithelial damage exists even with the use of modern endoilluminators and relatively short surgical duration. Retinal phototoxicity seems to be the primary cause; however, dye-related cytotoxicity or a combination of both cannot be ruled out.

Novel variations in spermatogenic transcription regulators RFX2 and TAF7 increase risk of azoospermia.

PURPOSE: Genetic etiology of idiopathic male infertility is enigmatic owing to involvement of multiple gene regulatory networks in spermatogenesis process. Any change in optimal function of the transcription factors involved in this process owing to polymorphisms/mutations may increase the risk of infertility. We investigated polymorphisms/mutations of spermatogenic transcription regulators TAF7 and RFX2 and analysed their association with incidence of azoospermia among the men from West Bengal, India. METHODS: Genotyping was carried by Sanger's dideoxy sequencing of 130 azoospermic men who were detected negative in Y chromosome microdeletion screening and 140 healthy controls. Association study was done by suitable statistical methods. In silico analysis was performed to infer the intuitive damaging effects of detected variants at transcripts and protein level. RESULTS: We found significant association of TAF7 C16T (MW827584 G > A), RFX2 562delT (MZ560629delA), rs11547633 A > C, rs17606721 A > G, MW827583 C > T, and MZ379836 C > T variants with the incidence of azoospermia. In silico analysis predicted that the variants either alter the natural splice junctions of the transcript or cause probable damage in the structure of proteins of respective genes. CONCLUSION: Polymorphisms/mutations of TAF7 and RFX2 genes increase risk of male infertility in Bengali population. The novel variants may be used as markers for male infertility screening in ART practise.