Dietary Polyphenols, Plant Metabolites, and Allergic Disorders: A Comprehensive Review.

Given the ongoing rise in the occurrence of allergic disorders, alterations in dietary patterns have been proposed as a possible factor contributing to the emergence and progression of these conditions. Currently, there is a significant focus on the development of dietary therapies that utilize natural compounds possessing anti-allergy properties. Dietary polyphenols and plant metabolites have been intensively researched due to their well-documented anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and immunomodulatory characteristics, making them one of the most prominent natural bioactive chemicals. This study seeks to discuss the in-depth mechanisms by which these molecules may exert anti-allergic effects, namely through their capacity to diminish the allergenicity of proteins, modulate immune responses, and modify the composition of the gut microbiota. However, further investigation is required to fully understand these effects. This paper examines the existing evidence from experimental and clinical studies that supports the idea that different polyphenols, such as catechins, resveratrol, curcumin, quercetin, and others, can reduce allergic inflammation, relieve symptoms of food allergy, asthma, atopic dermatitis, and allergic rhinitis, and prevent the progression of the allergic immune response. In summary, dietary polyphenols and plant metabolites possess significant anti-allergic properties and can be utilized for developing both preventative and therapeutic strategies for targeting allergic conditions. The paper also discusses the constraints in investigating and broad usage of polyphenols, as well as potential avenues for future research.

Multi-point FLEET velocimetry in a Mach 4 Ludwieg tube using a diffractive optical element.

A diffractive optical element was paired with femtosecond laser electronic excitation tagging (FLEET) velocimetry and used to probe multiple locations in a high-speed wind tunnel. Two configurations were explored, one that uses the traditional method of viewing from a perspective orthogonal to the beam axis and another that uses a perspective parallel to the beam axis. In the latter, the FLEET emissions are viewed as points that can allow for FLEET measurements in a wall normal fashion without the laser needing to impinge upon the surface. The configurations are demonstrated in a Mach 4 Ludwieg tube, highlighting their utility in high-speed flow measurements.

Neurosarcoidosis: Frozen section rescue for a big mimicker - A case report.

Neurosarcoidosis is an uncommon but potentially serious manifestation of sarcoidosis. Diagnosis may be particularly challenging especially when neurosarcoidosis occurs in isolation or is the initial presentation of the systemic disease. The authors take this opportunity to report a case of neurosarcoidosis, presenting as the first manifestation of the disease, diagnosed on frozen section, occurring in a 43-year-old male patient with no past history or manifestation of sarcoidosis.

Human Herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) Staining: A Savior in Early Kaposi Sarcoma.

Kaposi sarcoma (KS) is a low-grade vascular neoplasm associated with human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) infection. The disease has various phases, and the morphology of the lesion may vary, especially in the early course of the disease, where the morphological features may not be even suggestive of Kaposi sarcoma. The authors take this opportunity to report a case of Kaposi sarcoma where the diagnosis was established because of HHV-8 staining rather than its histopathological features.

An Integrated Artificial Intelligence of Things Environment for River Flood Prevention.

River floods are listed among the natural disasters that can directly influence different aspects of life, ranging from human lives, to economy, infrastructure, agriculture, etc. Organizations are investing heavily in research to find more efficient approaches to prevent them. The Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) is a recent concept that combines the best of both Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things, and has already demonstrated its capabilities in different fields. In this paper, we introduce an AIoT architecture where river flood sensors, in each region, can transmit their data via the LoRaWAN to their closest local broadcast center. The latter will relay the collected data via 4G/5G to a centralized cloud server that will analyze the data, predict the status of the rivers countrywide using an efficient Artificial Intelligence approach, and thus, help prevent eventual floods. This approach has proven its efficiency at every level. On the one hand, the LoRaWAN-based communication between sensor nodes and broadcast centers has provided a lower energy consumption and a wider range. On the other hand, the Artificial Intelligence-based data analysis has provided better river flood predictions.

Pomegranate juice anthocyanidins induce cell death in human cancer cells by mobilizing intracellular copper ions and producing reactive oxygen species.

Anthocyanidins are the most abundant polyphenols in pomegranate juice. This class of molecules includes Delphinidin (Del), Cyanidin (Cya), and Pelargonidin (Pel). Using prostate, breast and pancreatic cancer cell lines PC3, MDA-MB-231, BxPC-3 and MiaPaCa-2, we show that anthocyanidins inhibit cell proliferation (measured by MTT assay) and induce apoptosis like cell death (measured by DNA/Histone ELISA). Copper chelator neocuproine and reactive oxygen species scavengers (thiourea for hydroxyl radical and superoxide dismutase for superoxide anion) significantly inhibit this reaction thus demonstrating that intracellular copper reacts with anthocyanidins in cancer cells to cause DNA damage via ROS generation. We further show that copper-supplemented media sensitizes normal breast epithelial cells (MCF-10A) to Del-mediated growth inhibition as determined by decreased cell proliferation. Copper supplementation results in increased expression of copper transporters Ctr1 and ATP7A in MCF-10A cells, which is attenuated by the addition of Del in the medium. We propose that the copper mediated, ROS-induced mechanism of selective cell death of cancer cells may in part explain the anticancer effects of anthocyanidins.

Geospatial assessment of water quality using principal components analysis (PCA) and water quality index (WQI) in Basho Valley, Gilgit Baltistan (Northern Areas of Pakistan).

Public health quality in Gilgit Baltistan (GB) is at threat due to multiple water-borne diseases. Anthropogenic activities are accelerating the burden of pollution load on the glacio-fluvial streams and surface water resources of Basho Valley in Skardu district of GB. The present research has investigated the drinking water quality of the Basho Valley that is being used for domestic purposes. The study also comprehends public health status by addressing the basis drinking water quality parameters. A total of 23 water samples were collected and then analyzed to elucidate the current status of physico-chemical, metals, and microbial parameters. Principal component analysis (PCA) was applied and three principal components were obtained accounting 53.04% of the total variance, altogether. PCA identified that metallic and microbial parameters are the major factor to influence the water quality of the valley. Meanwhile, water quality index (WQI) was also computed and it was observed that WQI of the valley is characterized as excellent in terms of physico-chemical characteristics; however, metals and microbial WQI shows most of the samples are unfit for drinking purpose. Spatial distribution is also interpolated using the Inverse distance weight (IDW) to anticipate the results of mean values of parameters and WQI scores. The study concludes that water quality is satisfactory in terms of physico-chemical characteristics; however, analysis of metals shows that the concentrations of copper (Cu) (0.40 ± 0.16 mg/L), lead (Pb) (0.24 ± 0.10 mg/L), zinc (Zn) (6.77 ± 27.1 mg/L), manganese (Mn) (0.19 ± 0.05), and molybdenum (Mo) (0.07 ± 0.02 mg/L) are exceeding the maximum permissible limit as set in the WHO guidelines for drinking water. Similarly, the results of the microbial analysis indicate that the water samples are heavily contaminated with fecal pollution (TCC, TFC, and TFS > 3 MPN/100 mL). On the basis of PCA, WQI, and IDW, the main sources of pollution are most likely to be concluded as the anthropogenic activities including incoming pollution load from upstream channels. A few underlying sources by natural process of weathering and erosion may also cause release of metals in surface and groundwater. This study recommends ensuring public health with regular monitoring and assessment of water resources in the valley.

Atypical Presentation of Acute Appendicitis with Schistosomiasis.

Schistosomiasis is a parasitic infection that is induced by different species of Schistosoma. The infection can manifest with a variety of different pathologies depending on the involved system and causative species. Schistosoma-induced appendicitis is rare in developed countries. We discuss a case of a middle-aged female who was diagnosed with acute appendicitis and underwent appendectomy. Upon histopathological examination of the resected appendix, Schistosoma infestation was identified as the underlying cause.

Simultaneous determination of anti-diabetic drugs

A novel reverse phase, isocratic HPLC method is described to separate five anti-diabetic drugs i.e., glimepiride, metformin, sitagliptin, rosiglitazone and pioglitazone. Nucleosil C18 analytical column was used as stationary phase, while mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile:phosphate buffer: methanol (40/40/20, v/v) pH 2.0. Effluent was monitored at a flow rate 1 mL/min and detected at wavelength of 240 nm. This research produced excellent chromatography over a wide concentration range of 25-10000 ng/mL. Sepprated and well resolved quantifiable peaks were obtained and test results were linear in this range. Correlation coefficient of more than 0.9990 was witnessed as well as Low %RSD values i.e., maximum 2.0% documented excellent precision of the method. Good recoveries from pharmaecutical (99-101%), urine and plasma samples (>96%) in a range of concentrtion granted very good linearity, accuracy and precision. The projected method has satisfactory applications in quality control of these molecules as well as quantification of these molecules in urine and plasma samples.

Development, Validation and Application of RP-HPLC Method: Simultaneous Determination of Antihistamine and Preservatives with Paracetamol in Liquid Formulations and Human Serum.

In this article we describe development and validation of stability indicating, accurate, specific, precise and simple Ion-pairing RP-HPLC method for simultaneous determination of paracetamol and cetirizine HCl along with preservatives i.e. propylparaben, and methylparaben in pharmaceutical dosage forms of oral solution and in serum. Acetonitrile: Buffer: Sulfuric Acid (45:55:0.3 v/v/v) was the mobile phase at flow rate 1.0 mL min(-1) using a Hibar(®) Lichrosorb(®) C18 column and monitored at wavelength of 230nm. The averages of absolute and relative recoveries were found to be 99.3%, 99.5%, 99.8% and 98.7% with correlation coefficient of 0.9977, 0.9998, 0.9984, and 0.9997 for cetirizine HCl, paracetamol, methylparaben and Propylparaben respectively. The limit of quantification and limit of detection were in range of 0.3 to 2.7 ng mL(-1) and 0.1 to 0.8 ng mL(-1) respectively. Under stress conditions of acidic, basic, oxidative, and thermal degradation, maximum degradation was observed in basic and oxidative stress where a significant impact was observed while all drugs were found almost stable in the other conditions. The developed method was validated in accordance with ICH and AOAC guidelines. The proposed method was successfully applied to quantify amount of paracetamol, cetirizine HCl and two most common microbial preservatives in bulk, dosage form and physiological fluid.

Pregabalin and tranexamic Acid evaluation by two simple and sensitive spectrophotometric methods.

This paper demonstrates colorimetric visible spectrophotometric quantification methods for amino acid, namely, tranexamic acid and pregabalin. Both drugs contain the amino group, and when they are reacted with 2,4-dinitrophenol and 2,4,6-trinitrophenol, they give rise to yellow colored complexes showing absorption maximum at 418 nm and 425 nm, respectively, based on the Lewis acid base reaction. Detailed optimization process and stoichiometric studies were conducted along with investigation of thermodynamic features, that is, association constant and standard free energy changes. The method was linear over the concentration range of 0.02-200 µgmL(-1) with correlation coefficient of more than 0.9990 in all of the cases. Limit of detection was in range from 0.0041 to 0.0094 µgmL(-1) and limit of quantification was in the range from 0.0137 to 0.0302 µgmL(-1). Excellent recovery in Placebo spiked samples indicated that there is no interference from common excipients. The analytical methods under proposal were successfully applied to determine tranexamic acid and pregabalin in commercial products. t-test and F ratio were evaluated without noticeable difference between the proposed and reference methods.

Nevus lipomatosus cutaneous superficialis with focal lipocytic pagetoid epidermal spread and secondary calcinosis cutis: a case report.

A case of nevus lipomatosus cutaneous superficialis is presented, wherein the lesion occurred as a gluteal swelling in a 6-year-old boy. On histopathology examination, it consisted of typical superficial expanses of mature adipose tissue in the papillary dermis of the polypoidal lesion. It was accompanied by 2 unusual findings, which consisted of the focal presence of lipocytes at the epidermal­dermal junction in the pagetoid manner and the prominent deposition of calcium resulting in calcinosis cutis­like lesions. Calcinosis cutis in the present case occurred as dystrophic calcification in focal fat necrosis changes of the lesion, whereas the focal pagetoid spread of fat cells is likely related to the same hamartomatous adipose tissue growth that ultimately results in the nevus lipomatosus.

Development of new method for simultaneous analysis of piracetam and levetiracetam in pharmaceuticals and biological fluids: application in stability studies.

RP-HPLC ultraviolet detection simultaneous quantification of piracetam and levetiracetam has been developed and validated. The chromatography was obtained on a Nucleosil C18 column of 25 cm×0.46 cm, 10 µm, dimension. The mobile phase was a (70:30 v/v) mixture of 0.1 g/L of triethylamine and acetonitrile. Smooth flow of mobile phase at 1 mL/min was set and 205 nm wavelength was selected. Results were evaluated through statistical parameters which qualify the method reproducibility and selectivity for the quantification of piracetam, levetiracetam, and their impurities hence proving stability-indicating properties. The proposed method is significantly important, permitting the separation of the main constituent piracetam from levetiracetam. Linear behavior was observed between 20 ng/mL and 10,000 ng/mL for both drugs. The proposed method was checked in bulk drugs, dosage formulations, physiological condition, and clinical investigations and excellent outcome was witnessed.

Fine needle aspiration cytology diagnosis of tailgut cyst: a rare entity.

BACKGROUND: Tailgut cyst is a rare tumor believed to originate from small portions of the embryonic tailgut, which normally disappear in early fetal development. It is often misdiagnosed due to the general unfamiliarity with this entity and also because of its clinical presentation similar to other more common diseases such as perianal fistulas and abscesses. CASE: The authors take this opportunity to report a case of tailgut cyst in a 21-year-old Saudi female. The patient had presented with painful low back swelling, which had been gradually increasing in size. The case was diagnosed by fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) as tailgut cyst and later confirmed by histopathology. CONCLUSION: Tailgut cysts are congenital cystic hamartomatous lesions, which are rare in occurrence. They are generally benign, but malignancy has also been reported, which is even rarer in occurrence. FNAC is an effective diagnostic tool, which if applied appropriately can be used for the early detection of rarer lesions such as tailgut cyst.

Dual Wavelength RP-HPLC Method for Simultaneous Determination of Two Antispasmodic Drugs: An Application in Pharmaceutical and Human Serum.

A reverse phase stability indicating HPLC method for simultaneous determination of two antispasmodic drugs in pharmaceutical parenteral dosage forms (injectable) and in serum has been developed and validated. Mobile phase ingredients consist of Acetonitrile : buffer : sulfuric acid 0.1 M (50 : 50 : 0.3 v/v/v), at flow rate 1.0 mL/min using a Hibar µ Bondapak ODS C18 column monitored at dual wavelength of 266 nm and 205 nm for phloroglucinol and trimethylphloroglucinol, respectively. The drugs were subjected to stress conditions of hydrolysis (oxidation, base, acid, and thermal degradation). Oxidation degraded the molecule drastically while there was not so much significant effect of other stress conditions. The calibration curve was linear with a correlation coefficient of 0.9999 and 0.9992 for PG and TMP, respectively. The drug recoveries fall in the range of 98.56% and 101.24% with 10 pg/mL and 33 pg/mL limit of detection and limit of quantification for both phloroglucinol and trimethylphloroglucinol. The method was validated in accordance with ICH guidelines and was applied successfully to quantify the amount of trimethylphloroglucinol and phloroglucinol in bulk, injectable form and physiological fluid. Forced degradation studies proved the stability indicating abilities of the method.

Fine-needle aspiration diagnosis of GIST: a diagnostic dilemma.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are the most common mesenchymal neoplasms of the gastrointestinal tract. The authors take this opportunity to report two cases of GISTs of large bowel diagnosed on cytology and confirmed by histopathology and immunohistochemistry.

Development and validation of new assay method for the simultaneous analysis of diltiazem, metformin, pioglitazone and rosiglitazone by RP-HPLC and its applications in pharmaceuticals and human serum.

Simple, sensitive, rapid, and accurate high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method is developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of diltiazem, metformin, pioglitazone, and rosiglitazone hydrochloride in raw materials, their pharmaceutical formulations, and human serum. In HPLC, all the above drugs were chromatographed using acetonitrile-methanol-water (30:20:50, v/v, pH 2.59 ± 0.02) as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min at ambient temperature. The separation is carried out on a Hiber, 250-4.6 RP-18 column, equipped with a UV-vis detector at 230 nm. All the antidiabetic drugs eluted at different retention time and each showed a good resolution from diltiazem. The method is successfully applied to pharmaceutical formulations because no chromatographic interferences from the tablet excipients are found. The method is found to be linear, accurate, and precise with apposite detection and quantification limit. Suitability of the method for the quantitative determination of the drugs is proven by validation in accordance with the requirements laid down by International Conference on Harmonization (ICH) guidelines. The validation results, together with statistical treatment of the data, demonstrated the reliability of this method.

Coexistent non-Hodgkins lymphoma and ductal carcinoma breast: diagnosis on fine needle aspiration cytology.

Synchronous occurrance of multiple neoplastic processes is not very common, and the relationship between breast cancer with lymphoproliferative diseases is unusual as well. Furthermore, breast involvement by non-Hodgkins lymphoma is a rare event and primary breast non-Hodgkins lymphoma is even rarer. The authors take this opportunity to report a case of primary B-cell non-Hodgkins lymphoma breast occurring in association with invasive ductal carcinoma in a 47-year-old female for its rare synchronous association.

The role of sediment cytology in ovarian neoplasm.

OBJECTIVE: It was our aim to study the role of sediment cytology in a diagnostic evaluation of ovarian neoplasm. METHODS: The present study was conducted in the Department of Pathology, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, AMU, Aligarh, India, over a span of 22 months. Cytological smears were prepared by centrifuging the sediment of fluid from the bottom of a container in which surgical specimens were received. Smears were fixed in 95% ethyl alcohol and then stained using hematoxylin-eosin and Papanicolaou stains. The cytological results were compared with histological diagnosis, taking the latter as gold standard. RESULTS: Out of 54 lesions studied by sediment cytology, 22 lesions were labeled as benign, 26 lesions as malignant and 6 lesions were inconclusive. Final histological diagnoses labeled 24 lesions as benign and 30 lesions as malignant. Comparing the diagnosis of the cytology smear with the histological section, 44 out of 54 cases were concordant. A sensitivity, specificity and diagnostic accuracy of 90.3, 92.3 and 90.3% was achieved, respectively. CONCLUSION: Biopsy sediment cytology is a good complementary method to histopathology in the study of ovarian biopsy material. In developing countries like ours, where the facility of frozen section is not available at many centers, this simple and cheap technique can be of much help in rapid diagnosis.