Long pepper (Piper longum) derived carbon dots as fluorescent sensing probe for sensitive detection of Sudan I.

In this piece of work, microwave-assisted conversion of a natural precursor in to high-valued nano-scale material was carried out by a completely greener method. The fluorescent carbon dots prepared, designated as long pepper derived carbon dots (LPCDs), have been thoroughly characterized to explore the physical and chemical properties. The system exhibits excitation dependent emission behavior and from the optimal studies the excitation and emission wavelength of the system was found to be 330 nm and 455 nm respectively. On account of the superior fluorescent behavior of the LPCDs, it was successfully employed as a fluorescent sensing probe to detect Sudan I with good level of selectivity and sensitivity. This carcinogenic dye extensively used as food adulterant can impart several health issues. Food product safety is of high concern, therefore a simple facile and economical analytical method was proposed based on the fluorescence of LPCDs for this dye detection with satisfactory statistical parameters. A linear relationship was maintained in the range of 0 to 27.27 µM Sudan I with limit of detection of 0.92 µM. The quenching mechanism was studied and finally attributed to Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) mechanism. In addition, the probe was effectively implemented for Sudan I detection in commercial chili powder samples with good level of recovery parameters.

Microwave-assisted green synthesis of carbon dots derived from wild lemon (Citrus pennivesiculata) leaves as a fluorescent probe for tetracycline sensing in water.

Herein, we report an eco-friendly biomass based completely greener microwave assisted synthesis of carbon dots from wild lemon leaves having superior photo-luminescent properties with moderately good quantum yield. The carbon dots synthesized (LLCDs) were characterized by high resolution transmission electron microscopy, fluorescent, UV-vis absorption, Fourier transform infrared and Raman spectroscopic techniques. The quenching of native fluorescence of LLCDs observed with tetracycline antibiotic was made use to make it as a fluorescent probe. Tetracycline is widely used as a drug to treat various bacterial infections and as a growth promoter in variety of farming fields like aquaculture and feedstock's. The excessive usage of this antibiotic in farming fields caused severe water pollution and micro level detection of tetracycline in water system is highly demanded for the protection of health and environment. Based on the selective interaction of tetracycline with LLCDs, a simple and cost effective analytical method was proposed to detect tetracycline in water with satisfactory parameters. The limit of detection is 0.42 µM with a linear range of 0 to 27. 27 µM. The mechanism of quenching was investigated through various experiments and finally accredited to static quenching. Furthermore, the same method has been practically applied for tetracycline detection in natural water resources with acceptable recoveries ranging from 95.56 % to 101.93 %.

Pre-hospital Hemorrhagic Control Effectiveness of Axiostat® Dressing Versus Conventional Method in Acute Hemorrhage Due to Trauma.

Accidents and trauma are one of the leading causes of death and disability throughout the world. In developing countries like India where emergency trauma care is still emerging, it accounts for almost 10% of deaths every year. Lack of adequate pre-hospital care and uncontrolled bleeding from the wound site are stated to be the prominent reasons for such deaths. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a novel chitosan-based haemostatic dressing, Axiostat® (Axio Biosolutions Private Ltd., Gujarat, India), as a hemorrhage control device in the ambulance setting. A total of 104 patients with bleeding scalp wounds were randomly allocated into two treatment groups while transporting them to the hospital. Patients in Group I were treated with Axiostat® chitosan haemostatic dressing (n = 47), while a conventional cotton gauze dressing was used in Group II (n = 57). A standard procedure was followed to apply the dressing on bleeding wounds and time to achieve haemostasis, the amount of blood loss, the number of patients with haemostasis, the occurrence of rebleeding, and other side effects were noted. The mean age of the patients was 40 years and the majority of patients were male - 73 (70%). Most of the wounds were lacerations with venous bleeding. Haemostasis time was 4.68 ± 1.04 minutes and 18.56 ± 5.04 minutes in the Axiostat® and cotton gauze groups, respectively. The use of Axiostat® significantly reduced the time to haemostasis (p < 0.0001). A significant reduction in blood loss was observed with the application of Axiostat®. Successful haemostasis was achieved in 94% of patients in the Axiostat® group and 74% patients in cotton gauze group, respectively (p < 0.05). Moreover, no side effects, such as tissue loss or rebleeding at time of removal, were seen with the use of Axiostat®, while three patients in the cotton gauze group showed some side effects. Results show that Axiostat® enables rapid haemostasis and can prevent significant blood loss during emergency trauma and accidents. Additionally, it also allows for easier removal from the wound site without leaving any residue, which helps in rendering the wound clean. In conclusion, the study successfully demonstrates the potential of Axiostat® as a first-line intervention in controlling acute haemorrhage in emergency care.

Study of menopausal symptoms, and perceptions about menopause among women at a rural community in Kerala.

BACKGROUND: Menopausal health demands priority in Indian scenario due to increase in life expectancy and growing population of menopausal women. Most are either unaware or do not pay adequate attention to these symptoms. AIMS: To find the prevalence of menopausal symptoms and perceptions regarding menopause among menopausal women of Kerala. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: A community based cross-sectional house to house survey was conducted at Anjarakandy a field practice area under Kannur Medical College, Anjarakandy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was conducted among 106 postmenopausal women staying more than 6 months at Anjarakandy with the help of pretested questionnaire administered by a trained social worker from January to October 2009. Before that a pilot study was conducted and required sample size of 100 was calculated. Random sampling of houses was done. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Data was coded, entered, and analyzed using SPSS 15. Chi-square test, proportions, and percentages were used. RESULTS: The mean age of attaining menopause was 48.26 years. Prevalence of symptoms among ladies were emotional problems (crying spells, depression, irritability) 90.7%, headache 72.9%, lethargy 65.4%, dysuria 58.9%, forgetfulness 57%, musculoskeletal problems (joint pain, muscle pain) 53.3%, sexual problems (decreased libido, dyspareunia) 31.8%, genital problems (itching, vaginal dryness) 9.3%, and changes in voice 8.4%. Only 22.4% of women knew the correct cause of menopause. CONCLUSIONS: Thus study stated that all the ladies were suffering from one or more number of menopausal symptoms. Ladies should be made aware of these symptoms, their causes and treatment respectively.

Aldol derivatives of Thioxoimidazolidinones as potential anti-prostate cancer agents.

The paper discusses the synthesis and stereochemical aspects of the anti aldol products, 3-(substituted phenyl)-5-[(substituted phenyl) hydroxy methyl]-5-methyl-4-oxo-2-thioxoimidazolidines. The stereochemistry observed in the aldol reactions with benzaldehydes was explained by transition state model of the endocyclic (E)-enolate formed from the rigid 4-oxo-2-thioxoimidazolidine skeleton. Proton NMR and ROESY spectral analyses were carried out to identify the syn and anti conformations of the aldol diastereomers. Configurations of the enantiomers of the representative anti aldol product 3-(4-chlorophenyl)-5-[(4-chlorophenyl) hydroxy methyl]-5-methyl-4-oxo-2-thioxoimidazolidine was determined by single crystal XRD studies. The compounds were screened in vitro against prostate cancer cell lines, PC-3 and LNCaP and the most potent derivatives were identified.

Engineering of ternary co-crystals based on differential binding of guest molecules by a tetraarylpyrene inclusion host.

Tetraarylpyrene host TP exhibits remarkable differential binding of guest molecules in the solid state to include aromatic and aliphatic guests in different domains to permit synthesis of ternary co-crystals in a predictable manner.

Pattern of chronic diarrhoea in children: a prospective analysis of causes, clinical features and outcome.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the pattern of chronic diarrhoea in children in Oman. STUDY DESIGN: This is a prospective study carried out over a 7 year period at the Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman. SUBJECTS: Sixty two children (37 M:25 F), aged 3 months to 13 years who presented with chronic diarrhoea, defined as diarrhoea persisting for more than 4 weeks, were studied. RESULTS: Principal identifiable causes in the study population include post-gastroenteritis syndrome in 50% of cases, enteric infections and infestations in 27%, and coeliac disease in 13%. On presentation 63% were malnourished, 27% were anaemic while 39% were dehydrated. The median duration of hospital admission was 50 days. Majority of the patients responded to conservative therapy with correction of dehydration, and careful nutritional supplementation, in addition to specific therapy where necessary. Mortality was low (1.5%) resulting from immunodeficiency and gram-negative septicaemia. CONCLUSION: Chronic diarrhoea remains an important cause of morbidity especially malnutrition in children and early and adequate nutritional rehabilitation plays a pivotal role in the management.

Acardia syndrome coexisting with gastroschisis in the co-twin.

Acardia syndrome is a rare complication affecting monozygotic twins, wherein one twin fails to develop brain and thoracic structures, while the co-twin most often develops normally. In this report we present an acardiac anencephalic monozygotic twin with an omphalocoele and a co-twin with severe intrauterine growth retardation and gastroschisis. The presence of gastroschisis in the co-twin of an acardiac foetus is rare. The embryologic basis of the twin reversed arterial perfusion (TRAP) sequence is outlined and the observed anomalies in the co-twin traced to a similar pathophysiology.

Experience with NTBC therapy in hereditary tyrosinaemia type I: an alternative to liver transplantation.

We present the clinical data of five infants with type I (hepato-renal) tyrosinaemia on NTBC therapy. All presented initially at the local hospital in the 1st year of life with progressive abdominal distension owing to hepato-splenomegaly and with radiological evidence of liver cirrhosis, except for one child who was diagnosed during screening because of an affected sibling. Age at commencement of NTBC therapy ranged from 6 to 30 months. All infants showed remarkable improvement within 2-6 months of starting NTBC treatment, except one who died 2 months after commencement of therapy from uncontrolled liver failure, severe coagulopathy and Streptococcus pneumoniae septicaemia. NTBC treatment along with a phenylalanine- and tyrosine-restricted diet has effectively reversed most clinical manifestations of this disease. To date, none of our patients has developed hepatic carcinoma and NTBC was well tolerated without side-effects. NTBC is costly but life-saving and is an obvious alternative to more hazardous liver transplantation.

Pattern of chronic liver disease in Omani children--a clinicopathological review.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the pattern of chronic liver disease in Omani children. STUDY DESIGN: Seventy six children [43M : 33F] aged 4 days to 10 years, referred to the Paediatric Gastroenterology clinic of the Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman, between 1995--2000 for evaluation of liver disease were studied. Liver biopsies were performed in all and tissues obtained processed and examined for histological lesions. RESULT: The main histological diagnoses were neonatal hepatitis (22) biliary atresia (9) biliary hypoplasia (7), cirrhosis (7) and congenital hepatic fibrosis (5). Hepatomegaly with or without jaundice was the indication for liver biopsy in the majority of patients studied. CONCLUSION: The study has provided background information on the occurrence of specific liver diseases in Omani children. Neonatal hepatitis syndrome was the most common diagnosis before the age of 2 years.

Kawasaki disease resistant to immunoglobulin G therapy.

We describe a 3-year-old boy with Kawasaki disease who, despite therapy with two doses of intravenous immunoglobulin G and high-dose aspirin, developed myocarditis in the 1st week of illness and coronary artery aneurysms in the 2nd week. He required a short course of systemic corticosteroids for remission of the illness. The myocarditis subsided and coronary aneurysms remained static and uncomplicated during 6 weeks of follow-up. The diagnosis and recent trends in management of this not uncommon vasculitic disorder are outlined.

Origin of 1,3-induction in the addition of alkyl lithium to imines bearing an N-stereogenic center.

The origin of diastereoselectivity in the addition of alkyl lithium to chiral Schiff bases has been investigated experimentally and theoretically and the formation of the major diastereomer can be explained from the energy minimized structure of the Schiff base in which the phenyl group has been found to orient in such a manner that it posed lesser steric hindrance to the incoming nucleophile as compared to the alkyl group.

Spectrum of congenital heart defects associated with Down Syndrome in high consanguineous Omani population.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the pattern of congenital heart defects (CHD) in children with Down Syndrome (DS) in an Omani population, and compare it with CHD in children without DS and with historical cohorts from populations with low prevalence of consanguinity. SETTING: Open-access Paediatric Echocardiography Clinic at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman. DESIGN: Prospective study. METHODS: All children with DS referred to the Clinic from 1995-1998 formed the subjects (Group I). Children without DS or other known associations of CHD seen at the clinic during the same period served as controls (Group II). Two-dimensional echo-Doppler studies were performed on both groups and the results compared. RESULTS: CHD were detected in 54/90 (60%) children in Group I, compared to 698/2122 (32.9%) in Group II (P<0.001). The common CHD in Group I included secundum atrial septal defect (ASD; 18/54), atrioventricular septal defect (AVSD; 15/54) and ventricular septal defect (VSD; 14/54), and in Group II included ASD (175/698), VSD (175/698), patent ductus arteriosus (123/698), pulmonary stenosis (PS; 76/698) and AVSD (35/698). AVSD was more common (P <0.001) and PS less common (P = 0.03) in Group I. Aortic stenosis, coarctation of aorta, transposition of great arteries and complex heart diseases were not detected. Compared to several studies from populations with low prevalence of consanguineous marriages, our study showed a higher frequency of CHD in DS (P <0.05). CONCLUSION: A high frequency of CHD was documented in DS-children from a population with widely prevalent consanguinity. AVSD was most frequent in DS. An interesting observation was the relative rarity of some CHD in the DS population studied.

Ansa versus spiro substitution of cyclophosphazenes: is fluorination essential for ansa to spiro transformation of cyclophosphazenes?

Fluorinated ansa substituted cyclophosphazenes endo-FcCH(2)P(S)(CH(2)O)(2)[P(F)N](2)(F(2)PN) [Fc = ferrocenyl] (1) and exo-FcCH(2)P(S)(CH(2)O)(2)[P(F)N](2)(F(2)PN) (2) readily transform to the spirocyclic compound [FcCH(2)P(S)(CH(2)O)(2)PN](F(2)PN)(2) (3) not only in the presence of CsF but also with non-fluorinated bases such as Cs(2)CO(3), K(2)CO(3), KOBu(t), Et(3)N, DABCO, DBN, and DBU. The analogous tetrachloro ansa compound exo-FcCH(2)P(S)(CH(2)O)(2)[P(Cl)N](2)(Cl(2)PN) (5), however, did not transform to the chlorinated spiro compound (6) in the presence of these bases. With excess of CsF, P-Cl bonds of 5 were found to undergo fluorination leading to the formation of 2, which transformed to spirocyclic compound 3. Time dependent (31)P NMR spectroscopy was used to monitor this transformation. Crystal structure studies on the ansa substituted compounds 4 and 5 have shown weak bonding interactions involving C-H...Cl, C-H...O, and C-H...S interactions.

Conformational control and photoenolization of pyridine-3-carboxaldehydes in the solid state: stabilization of photoenols via hydrogen bonding and electronic control.

We have investigated the solid-state photobehavior of a broad set of pyridine-3-carboxaldehydes 1-5. The introduction of a heteroatom into mesitaldehydes as in aldehydes 1 raises the question of conformational preference in the solid state. The preferred conformations have been unequivocally established from X-ray crystal structure analyses of two of the aldehydes, 1c and 2c; it is shown that intramolecular hydrogen bonding could be utilized to achieve conformational control. In contrast to mesitaldehydes, which undergo efficient photocyclization to benzocyclobutenols in the solid state, the heteroatom analogues 1b and 1c exhibit a perceptible color change (from colorless to pale yellow for 1b and yellow-orange for 1c) upon UV irradiation; the color attributed to (E)-enols is persistent for several hours. Continued irradiation leads to an intractable polymeric material. The AM1 calculations, which have been reliably applied to the thermal cyclization of xylylenols to benzocyclobutenols, reveal that the (E)-enols of 1 are more stable than those of the mesitaldehydes relative to their corresponding benzocyclobutenols. The stabilization is interpreted as arising from the possibility of engaging the heteroatom in resonance delocalization. That the contribution from such a role of the nitrogen atom is so pronounced is elegantly demonstrated by forming the fluoroborate salts; 1a-HBF(4) and 1b-HBF(4) readily exhibit highly red-shifted absorption upon exposure to UV radiation as a result of stabilization of the photoenols. Notably, such a remarkable stabilization via electronic control of the photoenols is unprecedented. All of the 2-methoxy- and 2-chloro-substituted aldehydes 2-5 exhibit photochromism. Ab initio calculations show that the methoxy group in aldehydes 2 and 3 stabilizes the (E)-enols via O[bond]H...O hydrogen bonding as compared to those of 1 by 5-6 kcal/mol relative to their corresponding benzocyclobutenols. Thus, the presence of methoxy and halo groups at position 2 serves not only to direct the formyl oxygen toward the methyl group for H-abstraction but also to stabilize the (E)-enols.

A child with supraventricular tachycardia and convulsions.

We present an 11-year-old girl, referred for management of episodes of supraventricular tachycardia followed by generalised tonic-clonic convulsions. The episodes did not respond to digoxin and propranolol, but subsided after initiation of carbamazepine therapy. Seizures following supraventricular tachycardia are uncommon in older children. The differential diagnosis and pathophysiology of arrhythmia-related seizures are discussed.

Unusual reaction of chloramine-T with araldoximes.

Reaction of araldoximes with 4 equiv of chloramine-T in refluxing methanol produces N-(p-tolyl)-N-(p-tosyl)benzamides via addition of 2 equiv of chloramine-T to the intermediate nitrile oxide followed by extrusion of sulfur dioxide.