Temperature dependent structural properties of Mn1.90M0.10O3(M = Cr and Fe).

The polycrystalline samples of Mn1.90Cr0.10O3(MCO) and Mn1.90Fe0.10O3(MFO) have been investigated for their temperature dependent magnetic and structural properties. The Cr and Fe substitutions have significant effect on the magnetic and structural properties of Mn2O3. Like pristine Mn2O3, the Cr and Fe substituted samples MCO and MFO also exhibit two antiferromagnetic transitions; one at ∼77 K, ∼80 K, respectively and another at ∼40 K. Our room temperature synchrotron x-ray powder diffraction (SXRD) results confirm that both the MCO and MFO samples crystallize in cubic symmetry. The temperature dependent SXRD results demonstrate the cubic to orthorhombic structural transition for the studied samples. The pristine Mn2O3shows cubic to orthorhombic transition around 310 K, whereas this structural transition shifted towards lower temperature side with these substitutions i.e. around 240 K for MCO and 260 K for MFO. Interestingly, the centrosymmetricPcabto non-centrosymmetricPca21change in symmetry is also resolved at the ferroelectric ordering temperature for MCO.

Image facilitated assessment of intra-spike variation in grain size in wheat under high temperature and drought stress.

In wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), the grain size varies according to position within the spike. Exposure to drought and high temperature stress during grain development in wheat reduces grain size, and this reduction also varies across the length of the spike. We developed the phenomics approach involving image-based tools to assess the intra-spike variation in grain size. The grains were arranged corresponding to the spikelet position and the camera of smart phone was used to acquire 333 images. The open-source software ImageJ was used to analyze features of each grain and the image-derived parameters were used to calculate intra-spike variation as standard deviation (ISVAD). The effect of genotype and environment were highly significant on the ISVAD of grain area. Sunstar and Raj 4079 contrasted in the ISVAD of grain area under late sown environment, and RNA sequencing of the spike was done at 25 days after anthesis. The genes for carbohydrate transport and stress response were upregulated in Sunstar as compared to Raj 4079, suggesting that these play a role in intra-spike assimilate distribution. The phenomics method developed may be useful for grain phenotyping and identifying germplasm with low intra-spike variation in grain size for their further validation as parental material in breeding.

Quantitative impact assessment of temperature on the economics of a rooftop solar photovoltaic system.

This paper analyzes the economics of a grid-interactive rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) system and the impact of the temperature on it. The analysis related to energy metrics, lifecycle costing, and environmental economics was performed considering the PV system's life as 30 years. The system economics is also compared at different conditions like theoretical, temperature-corrected, and real electricity generation data. The parameters like energy payback time (EPBT), energy return on energy invested (EROI), and lifecycle conversion efficiency are determined as 5.95 years, 5.04, and 0.078, respectively, based on actual generation. The unit electricity cost of the rooftop PV system was estimated as INR 5.37 at the 5% interest rate. The electricity cost varies with the interest rate variation and operation system life. The results show a reduction in overall economic performance on the increase in module temperature. The effect of temperature on the economics of the system is presented in terms of the per degree rise of module temperature. One degree increase of module temperature 8.5 days in EPBT of the PV system increases, and INR 0.021 increases in the unit cost of electricity considering a reference temperature 25 °C. A PV system has environmental benefits by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, which are also affected by the rise of module temperature. The system lost INR 355.93 in carbon credits at an increase of one-degree module temperature.

Design of a CH3NH3PbI3/CsPbI3-based bilayer solar cell using device simulation.

With lead-based light harvesters, perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have an efficiency of approximately 25.5%, making them a viable photovoltaic technology. The selection of the absorber materials for PSC in this work are (i) Cesium lead iodide (CsPbI3) with a 1.73eV bandgap as the first absorber layer, this halide imparts higher stability to perovskite solar cells (ii) CH3NH3PbI3 (MAPbI3) with a bandgap of 1.55eV is selected as the second absorber layer as this material provides better efficiency to the perovskite solar cells. SCAPS-1D simulation software is used to perform an efficiency analysis of perovskite-perovskite CsPbI3/MAPbI3 bilayer solar cell. For efficiency optimization of the perovskite-perovskite bilayer solar cell, we have tried to calibrate seven parameters of the cell. These parameters are (i & ii) selection of the electron and hole transport material (iii, iv & v) variation in the: defect density of bulk material, doping concentration and the thickness of absorber layers, (vi) variation in work function of front electrode (vii) varying interface defect density. After optimization, the efficiency (η) of bilayer PSC is estimated to be 33.54%. The other PV parameters observed in optimal efficiency condition are open-circuit voltage (VOC) = 1.34V, short-circuit current density (JSC) = 27.45 mA/cm2 and fill factor (FF) = 90.49%. The CsPbI3/MAPbI3 bilayer perovskite solar cell efficiency is roughly double the efficiency of single junction CsPbI3 or MAPbI3 PSC. Our analysis observed that the variation in the doping and defect density of narrow bandgap material profoundly impacts the efficiency of perovskite-perovskite bilayer solar cells compared to the wide bandgap material.

Effect of Early Continuous Veno-Venous Haemofiltration in Severe Acute Pancreatitis for the Prevention of Local Pancreatic Complications.

Objective: To compare the conventional treatment and continuous veno-venous haemofiltration (CVVH) in severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) for the prevention of pseudocyst and walled-off necrosis. Patients and Methods. Forty-two patients were divided into two treatment groups: conventional treatment group contained 24 patients and CVVH had 18. Conventional treatment group patients were treated symptomatically and according to the causes. CVVH group patients were treated symptomatically, and CVVH was done within 2 hours of admission. Results: In both groups, there was a decrease in amylase, lipase, CRP, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha, Ranson score, Balthazar score, and APACHE-II score after 72 hours, but the decrease was significantly greater in CVVH patients. There were no any local pancreatic complications in CVVH patients, but 1 patient had an acute peripancreatic fluid collection, 2 patients had pseudocyst, and 2 patients had walled-off necrosis (WON), and a mortality one was seen in the conventional treatment group. Conclusion: The present study shows that early CVVH may be able to prevent the formation of pseudocyst and win in SAP patients.

Genetic diversity and population structure in onion (Allium cepa L.) accessions based on morphological and molecular approaches.

Bulb onion is cultivated throughout the world for consumption as vegetable and processed products. Although having high global demand and economic significance, information about genetic diversity and genomic resources is limited. This study investigated the variability of 96 accessions representing seventeen countries. Out of 145 SSR markers, 62 SSRs amplified and 15 SSRs gave consistent polymorphic bands. Fifty three alleles were detected with an average of 3.533 alleles per locus. PIC value ranged from 0.219 (ACM463) to 0.715 (ACM091). Structure and cluster analysis grouped the onion accessions into two clusters. Discriminant analysis of principal components, a tool that maximizes variation between groups while minimizing that within groups, assorted accessions into five clusters. Analysis of molecular variance revealed maximum variation within the populations than among the populations. Highest genetic differentiation (FST = 0.11045; p < 0.001) was observed between Europe and Japan populations whereas the lowest genetic differentiation (FST = 0.05714; p < 0.001) was recorded between India and Japan. Principal component analysis of morphological traits suggested two principal components cumulatively accounting for 74.4% of the total variance. First component (PC1) was positively and strongly correlated with bulbing whereas second component (PC2) had leaf colour with the highest coefficient. Clustering was not on the basis of bulb colour, bulb formation, or flowering but on the basis of geographical origin. Based on clustering, crossing of distantly related accessions can provide an insight about the hybrid vigour of these diverse accessions. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12298-021-01101-3.

Simultaneous determination of 79 pesticides in pigeonpea grains using GC-MS/MS and LC-MS/MS.

Pigeonpea grains are important sources of vegetarian proteins. It is the paramount importance to check the pesticide residues due to their frequent use during production. The LC-MS/MS and GC-MS/MS analytical method was developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of 79 pesticide residues in pigeonpea. The LOD and LOQ of the analytical method were in the range of 0.53 to 3.97 and 1.60 to 10.05 µg kg-1, respectively, with a correlation coefficient of more than 0.997. Average recoveries were in the range of 80 to 118.8%, with the RSD of less than 15%. Measurement uncertainty (Ux) for pesticides was in the range of 3.42 to 12.76 µg kg-1 evaluated at 50 µg kg-1. The method was applied to analyze the sample collected from the farmer's field. This method could be useful for routine analysis of selected pesticide residue for monitoring purposes.

Challenges in Laboratory Diagnosis of Malaria in a Low-Resource Country at Tertiary Care in Eastern Nepal: A Comparative Study of Conventional vs. Molecular Methodologies.

For ongoing malaria elimination programmes, available methods such as microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) cannot detect all malaria cases in acute febrile illness. These methods are entirely dependent on the course of infection, parasite load, and skilled technical resources. Our study objectives were to estimate the performance of light microscopy and a RDT as well as real-time PCR for the detection of the Plasmodium parasite. Altogether, 52 blood samples collected from patients with acute febrile illness were tested by microscopy, RDT, and real-time PCR. The results were compared in terms of sensitivity and specificity. Microscopy detected the malaria parasite in 5.8% of the blood samples whereas 13.5% were detected by the RDT and 27% by real-time PCR. Considering real-time PCR as the gold standard method, microscopy had a sensitivity of 21.4% and a specificity of 100%, and the RDT had a sensitivity of 28.6% and a specificity of 92.1%. Microscopy together with the RDT successfully detected malaria positive cases in blood samples of Ct value below 20, but both were unable to detect malaria cases between 26-40 Ct value ranges amplified by real-time PCR. Despite various diagnostic tools being available, microscopy still remains the method of choice for diagnosis, while the RDT is user-friendly when applied at the point of care. However, our preliminary results emphasize the need to implement the test with higher sensitivity and specificity in the context of a malaria elimination programme. Such programmes can be a crucial opportunity to understand the species prevalent in a low-endemic region. However, these results should be further verified with a large cohort study to document the submicroscopic infection.

Structural correlations in the enhancement of ferroelectric property of Sr doped BaTiO3.

The effect of Sr doping in BaTiO3 (BTO) with nominal compositions Ba0.80Sr0.20TiO3 (BSTO) have been explored on its structural, lattice vibration, dielectric, ferroelectric and electrocaloric properties. The temperature dependent dielectric results elucidate the enhancement in dielectric constant and exhibit three frequency independent transitions around 335, 250 and 185 K, which are related to different structural transitions. All these transitions occur at lower temperature as compared with pristine BTO, however; remnant electric polarization (P r) of BSTO is much higher than in BTO. The value of P r is ∼5 µC cm-2 at room temperature and the maximum P r ∼ 8 µC cm-2 is observed at tetragonal to orthorhombic and orthorhombic to rhombohedral transitions. The electro-caloric effect shows the maximum adiabatic change in temperature ΔT ∼ 0.24 K at cubic to tetragonal transition. The temperature dependent synchrotron x-ray diffraction and Raman results show correlations between P r, crystal structure and lattice vibrations. Our results demonstrate the enhancement in ferroelectric properties of BTO with Sr doping. The origin of the enhancement in ferroelectric property is also discussed in correlations with the appearance of superlattice peak around room temperature due to TiO6 octahedral distortion. These enhanced properties would be useful to design lead free high quality ferroelectric and piezoelectric materials.

Enhancement of magnetoelectric coupling in Cr doped Mn2O3.

The effect of Cr doping has been undertaken to investigate its effect on the structural, magnetic, dielectric and magnetoelectric properties of newly discovered multiferroics material α-Mn2O3. The Cr doping modifies the room temperature crystal symmetry i.e. transforms from orthorhombic to cubic symmetry. Similar to α-Mn2O3, two magnetic transitions have been observed in all Cr doped samples. The effect of Cr doping manifested on the low temperature transition. The lower magnetic transition shifted toward higher temperature (25 K for pristine to 40 K for Cr = 10%) whereas the high temperature transition decreases slightly with increasing Cr content. A clear frequency independent transition is observed in temperature dependent complex dielectric measurements for Mn2-x Cr x O3 (0 ⩽ x ⩽ 0.10) samples around high temperature magnetic ordering ∼80 K which corroborate the magnetoelectric coupling in these samples. Interestingly, the magnetodielectric value enhanced significantly with Cr doping and a maximum increase of ∼21% is observed for 10% Cr doped sample at 5 K around 70 kOe magnetic field.

Expanding Avenue of Fast Neutron Mediated Mutagenesis for Crop Improvement.

: Fast neutron (FN) radiation mediated mutagenesis is a unique approach among the several induced mutagenesis methods being used in plant science in terms of impacted mutations. The FN mutagenesis usually creates deletions from few bases to several million bases (Mb). A library of random deletion generated using FN mutagenesis lines can provide indispensable resources for the reverse genetic approaches. In this review, information from several efforts made using FN mutagenesis has been compiled to understand the type of induced mutations, frequency, and genetic stability. Concerns regarding the utilization of FN mutagenesis technique for a plant with different level of ploidy and genome complexity are discussed. We have highlighted the utility of next-generation sequencing techniques that can be efficiently utilized for the characterization of mutant lines as well as for the mapping of causal mutations. Pros and cons of mapping by mutation (MutMap), mutant chromosome sequencing (MutChromSeq), exon capture, whole genome sequencing, MutRen-Seq, and different tilling approaches that can be used for the detection of FN-induced mutation has also been discussed. Genomic resources developed using the FN mutagenesis have been catalogued wooing to meaningful utilization of the available resources. The information provided here will be helpful for the efficient exploration for the crop improvement programs and for better understanding of genetic regulations.

Mutation Breeding in Tomato: Advances, Applicability and Challenges.

Induced mutagenesis is one of the most effective strategies for trait improvement without altering the well-optimized genetic background of the cultivars. In this review, several currently accessible methods such as physical, chemical and insertional mutagenesis have been discussed concerning their efficient exploration for the tomato crop improvement. Similarly, challenges for the adaptation of genome-editing, a newly developed technique providing an opportunity to induce precise mutation, have been addressed. Several efforts of genome-editing have been demonstrated in tomato and other crops, exploring its effectiveness and convenience for crop improvement. Descriptive data compiled here from such efforts will be helpful for the efficient exploration of technological advances. However, uncertainty about the regulation of genome-edited crops is still a significant concern, particularly when timely trait improvement in tomato cultivars is needed. In this regard, random approaches of induced mutagenesis are still promising if efficiently explored in breeding applications. Precise identification of casual mutation is a prerequisite for the molecular understanding of the trait development as well as its utilization for the breeding program. Recent advances in sequencing techniques provide an opportunity for the precise detection of mutagenesis-induced sequence variations at a large scale in the genome. Here, we reviewed several novel next-generation sequencing based mutation mapping approaches including Mutmap, MutChromeSeq, and whole-genome sequencing-based mapping which has enormous potential to accelerate the mutation breeding in tomato. The proper utilization of the existing well-characterized tomato mutant resources combined with novel mapping approaches would inevitably lead to rapid enhancement of tomato quality and yield. This article provides an overview of the principles and applications of mutagenesis approaches in tomato and discusses the current progress and challenges involved in tomato mutagenesis research.

Osteopetrosis in two siblings: two case reports.

BACKGROUND: Osteopetrosis is a rare inherited metabolic bone disorder characterized by extensive sclerosis of skeletons, visual and hearing impairment, hepatosplenomegaly and anemia. It has two major clinical forms: the autosomal dominant adult (benign) form is associated with milder symptoms often appearing in later childhood and adulthood whereas the autosomal recessive infantile (malignant) form has severe presentations appearing in very early childhood, if untreated, is typically fatal during infancy or early childhood. A rare autosomal recessive (intermediate) form is present during childhood with some signs and symptoms of malignant osteopetrosis. Diagnosis is mainly based on clinical and typical generalized increase in bone density. CASE PRESENTATION: The two siblings of Indo-Aryan ethnicity, aged five and 8 years, were admitted with irregular low grade fever and gradually increasing abdominal mass for last 3 years. They also had history of hearing loss. On examination, the patients were found pale with poor nutritional status, short stature, frontal bossing and splenomegaly. We made a clinical diagnosis of hemolytic anemia and investigated accordingly. Peripheral Blood Smear was suggestive of leucoerythroblastic picture in both the siblings. We extended our investigations and radiological survey revealed generalized increase in bone density which was consistent with osteopetrosis. CONCLUSION: Osteopetrosis is a rare disease transmitted by autosomal dominant or recessive inheritance having variable penetrance. We report here milder form of disease in the two siblings having typical clinical features in the form of anemia, hepatosplenomegaly and hearing loss. Diagnosis was confirmed by typical generalized increase in bone density in both the patients.

NRAS mutations in de novo acute leukemia: prevalence and clinical significance.

The activating mutations of the Ras gene or other abnormalities in Ras signaling pathway lead to uncontrolled growth factor-independent proliferation of hematopoietic progenitors. Oncogenic mutations in NRAS gene have been observed with variable prevalence in hematopoietic malignancies. In the present study, NRAS mutations were detected using bidirectional sequencing in 264 acute leukemia cases--129 acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) and 135 acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and 245 age- and gender-matched controls. Missense mutation was observed only in the 12th codon of NRAS gene in 4.7% of AML and 3.16% of ALL cases. The presence of NRAS mutation did not significantly influence blast % and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels in AML patients. When the data were analyzed with respect to clinical variables, the total leukocyte count was elevated for mutation positive group, compared to negative group. In AML patients with NRAS mutations, 60% failed to achieve complete remission (CR), as compared to 34.8% in mutation negative group. These results indicated that NRAS mutations might confer poor drug response. In AML, disease free survival (DFS) in NRAS mutation positive group was lesser, compared to mutation negative group (9.5 months vs. 11.68 months). In ALL patients, DFS of NRAS mutation positive group was lesser than mutation negative group (9.2 months vs. 27.5 months). The CR rate was also lower for mutation-positive patients group, compared to mutation-negative group. In conclusion, these results suggested that presence of NRAS mutation at 12th codon was associated with poor response and poorer DFS in both ALL and AML.

A study of prevalence of intestinal parasites and associated risk factors among the school children of Itahari, Eastern Region of Nepal.

INTRODUCTION: Intestinal parasitic infestation is a major public health problem in children of developing countries Because of poor socio-economic conditions and lack of good hygienic living. The aims of this study were to measure the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infestations and to identify risk factors associated with parasitic infestations among the school children of Itahari Municipality. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted in Grade VI, VII and VIII in Government and private schools of Itahari Municipality. Stratified random sampling method was applied to choose the schools and the study subjects. Semi-structured questionnaire was administered to the study subjects and microscopic examination of stool was done. The Chi-square test was used to measure the association of risk factors and parasitic infestation. RESULTS: Overall intestinal parasitic infestation was found to be 31.5%. Around 13% of the study population was found to be infested with helminthes and 18.5% of the study population was protozoa infected. Not using soap after defecation, not wearing sandals, habit of nail biting and thumb sucking were found to be significantly associated with parasitic infection. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of intestinal parasitic infestation was found to be high in school children of Itahari. Poor sanitary condition, lack of clean drinking water supply and education is supposed to play an important role in establishing intestinal parasitic infections.

Intronic SNPs of TP53 gene in chronic myeloid leukemia: Impact on drug response.

BACKGROUND: TP53, located on chromosome 17p13, is one of the most mutated genes affecting many types of human cancers. Thus, we aimed at investigating the association of SNPs in TP53 gene with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 236 CML and 157 control samples were analysed for mutations in TP53 gene using polymerase chain reaction followed by direct sequencing. RESULTS: Sequencing analysis for mutations in exons 7-9 of the TP53 gene revealed four SNPs, three in intron 7 (C14181T, T14201G, and C14310T) and one SNP in intron 6 (A13463G) of TP53 gene. The mutation C14181T is located at position 72 base pairs downstream of the 3'-end of exon 7 of the P53 gene. This mutation is in complete linkage disequilibrium with a T14201G mutation, 20 base pairs further downstream occurring at position 14201. This mutation occurred only in the presence of C14181T mutation and these mutations showed association with advanced phase and cytogenetic poor response. Another two novel mutations, C14310T in intron 7 and A13463G in intron 6 were also found to be associated with cytogenetic poor response. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that TP53 intronic SNPs might have a strong influence on disease progression and poor response in CML patients.

Immunomorphological assessment of regional lymph nodes for predicting metastases in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Oral squamous cell carcinoma is the most common neoplasm and comprises of approximately 80% of the cancers occurring in the oral cavity. The role of the host response to this neoplasm has been recognized, and for many years the regional lymph node in tumor-bearing hosts has been considered as an anatomic barrier to the systematic dissemination of tumor cells. Morphological evaluation of the regional nodes has aided in understanding the immune response. AIM: The current study was carried out to observe the morphological changes occurring in the regional lymph nodes and to evaluate whether these features could be helpful in assessing the immunological status of the patient, and thereby, the prognosis of the patient. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was based on lymph nodes from 63 patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma, who underwent radical neck dissection or modified neck dissection. In the lymph node, four morphological patterns were observed that included lymphocyte predominance, germinal center predominance, mixed pattern (sinus Histiocytosis), and an unstimulated pattern. The cases were then divided into four groups according to the predominant immunoreactivity pattern based on the World Health Organization (WHO) standardized system for reporting human lymph node morphology. RESULTS: Revealed that risk of metastases to cervical lymph nodes in patients with lymphocyte predominance was less (28.6%) when compared to the high risk of metastases with germinal center predominance (68%), and these results were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Patients with a mixed pattern showed less risk of metastases (45.4%), while those with an unstimulated pattern had increased risk of metastases (66.6%), but the results were not statistically significant. It was also found that in the positive nodes, germinal center hyperplasia (50.2%) was the predominant pattern. CONCLUSION: The present study revealed that patients with lymphocyte predominance had less risk of metastases and patients with germinal center predominance had a high risk of metastases to the lymph node.

Fms like tyrosine kinase (FLT3) and nucleophosmin 1 (NPM1) mutations in de novo normal karyotype acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

Mutations in FLT3 and NPM1 are important prognostic factors in AML, influencing outcome in normal karyotype cases. We here analysed incidences of FLT3/ITD, D 835 and NPM1 mutations in patients with de novo normal karyotype AML using PCR and gene sequencing, along with laboratory parameters and treatment outcomes. There were 128 patients with a median age of 45 years (range, 19-65). FLT3/ITD mutations were detected in 26 (20.3%), FLT3/D835 in 8 (6.2%) and NPM1 in 22 (17.1%). The incidence of FLT3/ITD was higher in those with elevated lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and peripheral blasts (p=< 0.002, < 0.001) while NPM1 mutations or both NPM1 and FLT3/ITD was more common in elevated total leukocyte counts (TLC), LDH and peripheral blasts (p=<0.0001). Complete response and disease free survival were lower in those with FLT3/ITD mutations (p=0.04, 0.03). The incidence of FLT3 and NPM1 mutations was found to be low in Indian patients with normal karyotype AML.