A Novel Indigenously Developed Device to Measure Bite Force.

Introduction: In stomatology, the evaluation of bite power is crucial. It is considered a significant objective approach to evaluating masticatory performance. Bite force has become a significant outcome analysis index for various therapies in dentistry research. Presently several devices being used globally have their graces and faults. They are costly and also not available easily to the general dental practitioner. Objectives: Development of a novel indigenous instrument for the measurement of human bite force. Methods: This paper describes an indigenously developed and researched instrument to measure human bite force. The sensor data (change in electronic resistance under applied force) will be read by the microprocessor and converted to force values in newton. The bite force result will be instantly displayed on the screen of the instrument and the device with which it is connected. Results: The developed instrument is handy and user-friendly and can measure bite force accurately and repeatedly. Conclusions: In this research paper, an economical, lightweight, user-friendly, accurate, and reproducible human bite force measurement device is explained, which has been developed indigenously.

A Clinical Study Comparing the Maxillary Anterior Tooth Shade and Fabricated Crown Shade of the Western Uttar Pradesh Population to Commercial Shade Guides.

Background It is essential for dentists and technicians to work together to fabricate and create restorations that are a "perfect" shade match for a particular person. Thus, the Vitapan 3D-Master tooth shade system (Vita Zahnfabrik, Germany) was created and put into use in order to improve the accuracy of shade-selection operations. The objective was to visually assess the color of the maxillary anterior teeth in male and female subjects from various age groups in Uttar Pradesh, India. Materials and methods There were 150 patients in total, and they were divided equally into three groups of 50: Group I, which included patients aged 18 to 30; Group II, which included patients aged 31 to 40; and Group III, which included patients aged 41 to 50. Ceiling-mounted fluorescent lighting fixtures with PHILIPS 65 D tubes (OSRAM GmbH, Germany) were installed. Three medical experts provided their opinions as part of this research. The maxillary central incisor was placed next to tabs of various shades, and the doctors' final assessment was based solely on the central one-third of the face. From each of the two sample sets, a total of 30 patients were selected. Once the crown had been made from the prepared tooth of the patient, it was colored according to two shade guidelines (Vita Classic and Vita 3D Master). The three clinicians matched the shade of the manufactured crown with visual shade guides. For shade matching, a modified United States Public Health Service (USPHS) standard was employed. Results The Chi-square test was used to compare categorical variables across groups. According to the Vitapan Classic shade guide, 26% of Group I participants matched the first Hue group (A1), 14% of Group II participants matched the first Hue group (A3), and 20% of Group III participants matched the second Hue group (B2). Master shade guide for Vita 3D 26% of Group I participants matched with the second value group (2M2), 18% of Group II participants matched with the third value group (3L 1.5), and 24.5% of Group III participants matched with the third value group (3M2). Eighty percent of people who were matched to Alpha scored for crowns made using the Vita 3D Master shade guide, while 94.1% of people who were matched to Charlie scored for crowns made using the Vitapan Classic shade guide in a comparison of the two shade guides. Conclusion The majority of the shades obtained from the Vita 3D master shade guide were found to be 1M1 and 2M1 in the younger patients, 2M1 and 2M2 in the second age group, and 3L 1.5, 3M2 in the older age group. In contrast, the Vitapan Classic shade guide revealed A1, A2, A3, B2, C1, D2, and D3 as the predominant shades.

Development and validation of multiplex PCR based molecular serotyping of Salmonella serovars associated with poultry in India.

Salmonella species are Gram-negative bacteria with more than 2600 serovars. Among these serovars, many are associated with various diseases in livestock and humans. White Kauffman Le-Minor (WKL) serotyping scheme applies specific serum to determine the serovars of Salmonella. Recent studies have applied molecular methods for serovar predictions. These methods include PCR, hybridization and sequence data to detect/predict serovar-specific genetic elements. Among these, PCR is a robust method if the unique genetic element is already known. Within this context, also involving novel primers, two multiplex PCR assays were standardized to detect six important Salmonella serovars viz. Typhimurium, Enteritidis, Kentucky, Infantis, Virchow and Gallinarum associated with poultry in India. The developed PCR assays showed targeted serovar specificity. Serial dilution experiments of both kit-based and crude lysate DNA preparations indicated similar applicability of both methods for testing from pure cultures. Further the developed assays were validated with 25 recent field isolates to confirm the applicability in routine diagnosis. The PCR assay could predict all the targeted serovars (17/25) with 100% specificity (CI-95%; 0.63-1). Molecular serotyping can reduce the number of serum used in comparison to the conventional serotyping which involves more random application of serum.

A study on the occurrence of Burkholderia cepacia complex in ultrasound gels used in different veterinary clinical settings in India.

Burkholderia cepacia complex (Bcc) organisms are emerging multidrug-resistant pathogens. They are opportunistic and cause severe diseases in humans that may result in fatal outcomes. They are mainly reported as nosocomial pathogens, and transmission often occurs through contaminated pharmaceutical products. From 1993 to 2019, 14 Bcc outbreaks caused by contaminated ultrasound gels (USGs) have been reported in several countries, including India. We screened a total of 63 samples of USGs from various veterinary and human clinical care centers across 17 states of India and isolated 32 Bcc strains of Burkholderia cenocepacia (46.8%), B. cepacia (31.3%), B. pseudomultivorans (18.8%) and B. contaminans (3.1%) species. Some isolates were co-existent in a single ultrasound gel sample. The isolation from unopened gel bottles revealed the intrinsic contamination from manufacturing sites. The MALDI-TOF analysis to identify the Bcc at the species level was supported by the partial sequencing of the recA gene for accurate species identification. The phylogenetic analysis revealed that isolates shared clades with human clinical isolates, which is an important situation because of the possible infections of Bcc by USGs both in humans and animals. The pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) typing identified the genetic variation among the Bcc isolates present in the USGs. The findings indicated USGs as the potential source of Bcc species.

Molecular characterization of porcine rotavirus A from India revealing zooanthroponotic transmission.

Rotaviruses A (RVA) are leading causes of diarrhea and dehydration in piglets and imply great economic loss to the pig farming community. In this study, the porcine RVA genotypes circulating in western and northern parts of India were determined by screening 214 fecal samples from diarrheic (n = 144) and non-diarrheic (n = 70) pigs. Subsequently, the structural (VP4 and VP7) and nonstructural (NSP3, and NSP4) genes were amplified, sequenced, and genetically characterized. The RVA positivity percentage was 7.94% (17/214) by RNA-PAGE and 10.28% (22/214) by RT-PCR. Higher RVA positivity was observed in samples from Uttar Pradesh (24.07%) followed by Maharashtra (6.77%) and Goa (2.38%). The sequence and automated genotyping software analysis confirmed the circulation of G4P[6] and G9P[13] RVA strains in porcine population. To note, the sequence similarity of the VP7 gene of Porcine/INDIA/RVA/PK-13 IVRI/Maharashtra/G4 and Porcine/INDIA/RVA/P-8/IVRI/U.P./G9 strain showed a relationship of 96.83 and 98.89% at the nucleotide level with human RVA strains indicating inter-species transmission. Additionally, the NSP3 (T1) and NSP4 (E1) genes (genotypes) also showed genetic relatedness with human RVA strains. Overall, the nucleotide sequences of VP7, NSP3, and NSP4 genes of porcine RVA indicate zooanthroponotic transmission. Further, we report the detection of G9P[13] RVA strain in porcine for the first time from India.HIGHLIGHTSRVA positivity was 7.94% (17/214) by RNA-PAGE and 10.28% (22/214) by RT-PCRThe RVA strain G9P[13] reported for the first time in Indian pigletsVP7, NSP3 and NSP4 genes analysis of porcine RVA showed genetic relatedness with human strains indicating evidence of zooanthroponotic transmission.

Antimicrobial Activity of Agarwood Oil Against Multiple-Drug-Resistant (MDR) Microbes of Clinical, Food and Environmental Origin.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Multiple-Drug-Resistance (MDR) among bacteria is an imminent problem and alternative therapies are seen as a future abode. Agarwood Oil (AO) is described to possess antimicrobial activity besides many other medicinal utilities. This paper discusses the antimicrobial activity of AO on MDR and non-MDR strains of microbes of 69 genera isolated from clinical and non-clinical samples. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this study sensitivity of microbes was determined for conventional antimicrobials and AO using disc diffusion assay followed by determination of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) using agar well dilution assay. A total of 18.5% (522) strains were found sensitive to AO. Carbapenem resistant bacterial strains were more often (p, ≤0.01) resistant to antibiotics with 4.2 times more odds (99% CI, 2.99-5.90) of being MDR than carbapenem sensitive strains but no difference in their AO sensitivity was observed. However, MDR strains were more often (p, <0.001) resistant to AO than non-MDR strains. Bacteria isolated from dogs were more often sensitive to AO than those from buffaloes, human, horse, and cattle. On the other hand, bacteria from pigs were more often (p, ≤0.05) resistant to AO than bacteria from human, cattle, buffaloes, dogs, wild carnivores and birds. Oxidase positive Gram positive bacteria had 4.29 (95% CI, 2.94-6.27) times more odds to be AO sensitive than oxidase negative Gram negative bacteria. Bacillus species strains were the most sensitive bacteria to AO followed by strains of Streptococcus and Staphylococcus. The MIC of AO for different bacteria ranged from 0.01 mg/mL to > 2.56 mg/mL. CONCLUSION: The study concluded that MDR and AO resistance had a similar trend and AO may not be seen as a good antimicrobial agent against MDR strains.

Effect of dietary mannanoligosaccharide supplementation on nutrient digestibility, hindgut fermentation, immune response and antioxidant indices in dogs.

BACKGROUND: Use of prebiotics in companion animal nutrition is often considered advantageous over probiotics because of the ease of handling, ability to withstand processing and storage etc. While most of the studies on prebiotic use in dogs have been done with processed food as basal diet, the response in relation to homemade diet feeding is not very well explored. METHODS: The study was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary mannanoligosaccharide (MOS) supplementation on nutrient digestibility, hindgut fermentation, immune response and antioxidant indices in dogs. Ten Spitz pups were divided into two groups: control (CON) with no supplementation, and experimental (MOS) wherein the basal diet was supplemented with MOS at 15 g/kg diet. All dogs were fed on a home-prepared diet for a period of 150 days. The study protocol included a digestion trial, periodic blood collection and analysis for lipid profile and erythrocytic antioxidants. Immune response of the animals was assessed towards the end of the feeding period. RESULTS: Results revealed no significant (P > 0.05) variations in palatability score, intake and apparent digestibility of nutrients between the groups. Faecal score, faeces voided, faecal pH, concentrations of ammonia, lactate and short-chain fatty acids were comparable (P > 0.05) between the two groups. Cell-mediated immune response, assessed as delayed-type of hypersensitivity response, was significantly higher (P < 0.05) in the MOS group. The percent of lymphocyte sub-populations CD4+ and ratio of CD4+:CD8+ were also significantly (P < 0.05) higher in MOS group. The serum IgG levels were similar (P > 0.05) in both the groups. Supplementation of MOS lowered (P < 0.05) serum total- and LDL- cholesterol levels, when compared with the control group. The erythrocytic antioxidant indices were similar (P > 0.05) between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicated that supplementation of MOS at the rate of 15 g/kg in the diet of dog augmented the cell-mediated immune response and serum lipid profile without any influences on digestibility of nutrients, hindgut fermentation and antioxidants indices.