Amalaki rasayana, a traditional Indian drug enhances cardiac mitochondrial and contractile functions and improves cardiac function in rats with hypertrophy.

We evaluated the cardioprotective effect of Amalaki Rasayana (AR), a rejuvenating Ayurvedic drug prepared from Phyllanthus emblica fruits in the reversal of remodeling changes in pressure overload left ventricular cardiac hypertrophy (LVH) and age-associated cardiac dysfunction in male Wistar rats. Six groups (aging groups) of 3 months old animals were given either AR or ghee and honey (GH) orally; seventh group was untreated. Ascending aorta was constricted using titanium clips in 3 months old rats (N = 24; AC groups) and after 6 months, AR or GH was given for further 12 months to two groups; one group was untreated. Histology, gene and protein expression analysis were done in heart tissues. Chemical composition of AR was analyzed by HPLC, HPTLC and LC-MS. AR intake improved (P < 0.05) cardiac function in aging rats and decreased LVH (P < 0.05) in AC rats as well as increased (P < 0.05) fatigue time in treadmill exercise in both groups. In heart tissues of AR administered rats of both the groups, SERCA2, CaM, Myh11, antioxidant, autophagy, oxidative phosphorylation and TCA cycle proteins were up regulated. ADRB1/2 and pCREB expression were increased; pAMPK, NF-kB were decreased. AR has thus a beneficial effect on myocardial energetics, muscle contractile function and exercise tolerance capacity.

Cutaneous Sarcoidosis Misdiagnosed as Leprosy. Report of Two Cases and Review of Literature.

Cutaneous sarcoidosis may occasionally be mistaken and treated for leprosy. We present two cases of sarcoidosis of the skin which were initially treated as leprosy based on the histopathological features. Histological study in one patient showed perineural and perivascular granuloma adding on to the diagnostic confusion. It is very important for the clinicians to consider sarcoidosis as a possible diagnosis in a patient with clinical features that are not typical of leprosy. Histopathology along with appropriate in -situ techniques can help in arriving at an appropriate diagnosis.

A novel gene THSD7A is associated with obesity.

Body mass index (BMI) is a non-invasive measurement of obesity. It is commonly used for assessing adiposity and obesity-related risk prediction. Genetic differences between ethnic groups are important factors, which contribute to the variation in phenotypic effects. India inhabited by the first out-of-Africa human population and the contemporary Indian populations are admixture of two ancestral populations; ancestral north Indians (ANI) and ancestral south Indians (ASI). Although ANI are related to Europeans, ASI are not related to any group outside Indian-subcontinent. Hence, we expect novel genetic loci associated with BMI. In association analysis, we found eight genic SNPs in extreme of distribution (P⩽3.75 × 10(-5)), of which WWOX has already been reported to be associated with obesity-related traits hence excluded from further study. Interestingly, we observed rs1526538, an intronic SNP of THSD7A; a novel gene significantly associated with obesity (P=2.88 × 10(-5), 8.922 × 10(-6) and 2.504 × 10(-9) in discovery, replication and combined stages, respectively). THSD7A is neural N-glycoprotein, which promotes angiogenesis and it is well known that angiogenesis modulates obesity, adipose metabolism and insulin sensitivity, hence our result find a correlation. This information can be used for drug target, early diagnosis of obesity and treatment.

In vivo effects of traditional Ayurvedic formulations in Drosophila melanogaster model relate with therapeutic applications.

BACKGROUND: Ayurveda represents the traditional medicine system of India. Since mechanistic details of therapy in terms of current biology are not available in Ayurvedic literature, modern scientific studies are necessary to understand its major concepts and procedures. It is necessary to examine effects of the whole Ayurvedic formulations rather than their "active" components as is done in most current studies. METHODS: We tested two different categories of formulations, a Rasayana (Amalaki Rasayana or AR, an herbal derivative) and a Bhasma (Rasa-Sindoor or RS, an organo-metallic derivative of mercury), for effects on longevity, development, fecundity, stress-tolerance, and heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein (hnRNP) levels of Drosophila melanogaster using at least 200 larvae or flies for each assay. RESULTS: A 0.5% (weight/volume) supplement of AR or RS affected life-history and other physiological traits in distinct ways. While the size of salivary glands, hnRNP levels in larval tissues, and thermotolerance of larvae/adult flies improved significantly following feeding either of the two formulations, the median life span and starvation resistance improved only with AR. Feeding on AR or RS supplemented food improved fecundity differently. Feeding of larvae and adults with AR increased the fecundity while the same with RS had opposite effect. On the contrary, feeding larvae on normal food and adults on AR supplement had no effect on fecundity but a comparable regime of feeding on RS-supplemented food improved fecundity. RS feeding did not cause heavy metal toxicity. CONCLUSIONS: The present study with two Ayurvedic formulations reveals formulation-specific effects on several parameters of the fly's life, which seem to generally agree with their recommended human usages in Ayurvedic practices. Thus, Drosophila, with its very rich genetic tools and well-worked-out developmental pathways promises to be a very good model for examining the cellular and molecular bases of the effects of different Ayurvedic formulations.

Probing oxidative stress in single erythrocytes with Raman Tweezers.

Raman Tweezers have been successfully applied to characterize chemically-induced oxidative stress on optically-trapped live, single erythrocytes. There is significant enhancement in Raman peak intensities corresponding to SS and C-S stretching modes that are induced by oxidative stress. This is consistent with the formation of mixed disulphides between protein SH groups and low-molecular-mass thiols such as glutathione during oxidative damage to cells. Enhancement in glutathione level as a protective response against oxidative stress has been observed. Principal component analysis of the data yields good discrimination between spectra of normal and stress-induced red blood cells.

Conidiobolus coronata granuloma of left inferior turbinate: a rare presentation.

OBJECTIVE: To report a rare genus of a fungal family commonly affecting the sinonasal region, which presented as a fungal granuloma of the inferior turbinate in an immunocompetent host. Such a case has not previously been reported. CASE REPORT: A 49-year-old man presented with nasal conidiobolus limited to the left inferior turbinate, despite pre-operative fungal culture and tissue biopsy being negative for any fungal growth. On computed tomography scanning of the paranasal sinuses, and peri-operatively, the left inferior turbinate was seen to be enlarged and a bony, cartilaginous spur was found to impinge deep into the inferior turbinate. The spur may have caused microtrauma suitable for spore implantation, leading to fungal granuloma development. This unusual presentation highlights the fact that excision biopsy is diagnostic and therapeutic in such cases. CONCLUSION: Conidiobolus coronata of the inferior turbinate is rare. Such a fungal granuloma may be large enough to be confused with a benign or malignant lesion of the nasal cavity.

Sphenochoanal polyp with heterotopic glial tissue.

An isolated polyp arising from the sphenoid sinus is rare. Due to the presence of important structures adjacent to the sphenoid sinus, a proper pre-operative radiological and nasal endoscopic evaluation is mandatory, along with a neurological and ophthalmological assessment. We report the case of a 23-year-old man with a sphenochoanal polyp with heterotopic glial tissue in the stroma. A Medline search did not reveal any previously reported cases of glial tissue in the sphenoid sinus presenting as a sphenochoanal polyp.

Chitra heart valve: results of a multicenter clinical study.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY: The Chitra tilting disc valve was developed in India to meet the need for a low-cost cardiac valve. The valve has an integrally machined cobalt-based alloy cage, an ultra-high molecular-weight polyethylene disc, and a polyester suture ring. An important feature of this valve is its soft closing sound, by virtue of a plastic occluder. METHODS: Between December 1990 and January 1995, 306 patients underwent isolated aortic (AVR, n = 101) or mitral valve replacement (MVR, n = 205) at six institutions in India. The early mortality rate was 6.9% (seven after AVR; 14 after MVR). A total of 285 survivors was followed up until September 1998; total follow up was 1212 patient-years (pt-yr) (AVR, 445 pt-yr; MVR, 767 pt-yr). RESULTS: There were 52 late deaths (4.3%/pt-yr; AVR 2.2%/pt-yr; MVR 5.5%/pt-yr). Thirty-five deaths were valve-related (23 were due to unknown causes). One AVR patient (0.2%/pt-yr) and 12 MVR patients (1.6%/pt-yr) developed valve thrombosis, and embolic episodes occurred in 25 patients (seven after AVR, 1.6%/pt-yr; 18 after MVR, 2.4%/pt-yr). Bleeding events and infectious endocarditis occurred infrequently (AVR 0.9 and 0.7%/pt-yr; MVR 0.4 and 0.5%/pt-yr, respectively). There was no incidence of paravalvular leak or structural dysfunction of the valve. Actuarial survival rates at seven years were 82.4+/-4.0% for AVR and 65.2+/-5.0% for MVR. During the same interval, thrombus-free and embolism-free survival after AVR and MVR occurred in 98.9+/-1.1% and 94.1+/-1.9%, and 92.3+/-2.8% and 82.1+/-5.7% of patients, respectively. Freedom from all valve-related mortality and morbidity at seven years was 81.5+/-4.1% after AVR, and 64.2+/-5.1% after MVR. CONCLUSION: The Chitra valve appears to be safe and to have performance comparable with that of other currently used tilting disc valves. This valve costs substantially less than other valves, and is therefore within reach of a larger subset of Indian patients.

Infantile cartilaginous hamartoma of the rib. A case report.

BACKGROUND: Infantile cartilaginous hamartoma of the rib is a rare condition occurring in newborn infants, with an incidence of 1 in 3,000 (0.03%) among primary bone tumor cases. Reports of this condition so far have presented the clinical, radiologic and histopathologic features. To the best of our knowledge, reports of the cytopathologic features have not been documented. In the present case report, clinical, radiologic and cytopathologic features and differential diagnosis are enumerated. CASE: A 1-month-old, male infant presented with a chest wall mass with a clinical diagnosis of osteochondroma. On fine needle aspiration cytology, a diagnosis of infantile cartilaginous hamartoma of the rib was suggested; it was supplemented by the clinical history and radiologic findings. CONCLUSION: Although rare, this condition ought to be kept in mind while dealing with infantile chest wall masses to avoid an erroneous diagnosis of malignancy, owing to its ominous cytopathologic features.