Incidence and pattern of bone metastases at presentation in Indian carcinoma breast patients.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer (BC) is the most common female cancer and frequently metastases to the bones. Breast cancer among Indian women occurs a decade earlier and more aggressive than the western population. Screening guidelines are based on western studies. The aim of our study is to assess the role of Technitium99m bone scan (TBS) in screening Indian EBC patients at presentation. We also looked at the pattern of BM in all stages of BC. METHODS: Patients with BC who had TBS at presentation from January 2012 to September 2015 were included in the study. RESULTS: Bone metastases were seen in 23.42% (241/1029). Of these, 10.06% (31/308) EBC, 25.60% (169/660) locally advanced BC (LABC) and 63.93% (39/61) of metastatic BC (MBC) patients had BM. Most common sites of BM were spine and pelvis. In long bone and sternum, proximal part was commonly involved. CONCLUSION: The incidence of BM in Indian BC patients at presentation is higher than western population. The incidence of BM per stage is similar to west. So TBS should be done in LABC and symptomatic EBC. There is high incidence of BM to spine and pelvis. In pelvis, SI joints and ilium and in long bones and sternum, proximal parts were commonly involved.

Toothbrush efficacy for plaque removal.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the effectiveness of a novel sonic toothbrush in reducing plaque and in maintenance of gingival health when compared to a standard manual brush. METHODS: This study was a block-randomized, examiner-blind, two-treatment, parallel group, single centre clinical investigation. A total of 84 subjects were enrolled and randomly assigned to receive either the Panasonic EW-DL90 or an American Dental Association-endorsed manual toothbrush. Subjects were instructed to follow a twice-daily brushing regimen without flossing. Plaque levels and gingival health were assessed at baseline and after 1 and 3 weeks of treatment using the Turesky Modification of the Quigley-Hein Plaque Index and the Papillary Bleeding Score. RESULTS: Subjects assigned to the EW-DL90 group had significantly lower plaque levels after 1 and 3 weeks of treatment than those in the manual group (P = 0.003 and 0.0035, respectively). Both groups showed a reduction in plaque levels at Week 3 relative to baseline. The EW-DL90 group had significantly lower gingival inflammation scores after 1 week of treatment (P = 0.0293), but there was no difference between groups after 3 weeks of treatment. CONCLUSION: The EW-DL90 toothbrush safely and effectively removes more plaque than a standard manual toothbrush. Improvement in gingival inflammation was observed after 1 week of treatment. There was no difference in Papillary Bleeding Score between the two groups after 3 weeks of treatment. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The newly developed sonic brush (Panasonic EW-DL90) tested in this study was found to be more effective than a manual toothbrush at plaque removal. The papillary bleeding scores were significantly lower in the sonic brush group after 1 week of product use. After 3 weeks of product use, both treatment groups had similar papillary bleeding scores almost returning to baseline values.

Environmental stress, ageing and glial cell senescence: a novel mechanistic link to Parkinson's disease?

Exposure to environmental toxins is associated with a variety of age-related diseases including cancer and neurodegeneration. For example, in Parkinson's disease (PD), chronic environmental exposure to certain toxins has been linked to the age-related development of neuropathology. Neuronal damage is believed to involve the induction of neuroinflammatory events as a consequence of glial cell activation. Cellular senescence is a potent anti-cancer mechanism that occurs in a number of proliferative cell types and causes the arrest of proliferation of cells at risk of malignant transformation following exposure to potentially oncogenic stimuli. With age, senescent cells accumulate and express a senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP; that is the robust secretion of many inflammatory cytokines, growth factors and proteases). Whereas cell senescence in peripheral tissues has been causally linked to a number of age-related pathologies, little is known about the induction of cellular senescence and the SASP in the brain. On the basis of recently reported findings, we propose that environmental stressors associated with PD may act in part by eliciting senescence and the SASP within non neuronal glial cells in the ageing brain, thus contributing to the characteristic decline in neuronal integrity that occurs in this disorder.

Biochemical and molecular evaluation of neutrophil NOS in spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Resting neutrophils generate NO, while activation leads to the production of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. Nowadays cardiovascular pathological conditions such as hypertension, cardiac ischemia, reperfusion and heart failure are associated with inflammation. This project explores the respiratory burst potential and NO generation status in the neutrophils, plasma, aorta, and kidneys from normotensive Wistar and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Total and protein associated nitrite content was quantitated using Griess reagent following cadmium reduction and mercuric chloride treatment respectively. NO and superoxide generation evaluated by Flowcytometry and peroxynitrite by spectrofluorimetric method. Expression of NOS isoforms was analyzed by RT-PCR. NO generation from SHR neutrophils was significantly augmented in comparison to normotensive counterparts. Neutrophils activated in response to arachidonic acid, PMA, fMLP or E. coli generated more superoxide radicals among SHR, and consequentially peroxynitrite. Expression of iNOS was significantly more in the SHR neutrophils, while that of nNOS remained unaffected. Results suggest that NO generated in SHR is utilized in scavenging superoxide radicals thereby limiting its bioavailability. Thus induction of NOS in neutrophils combined with augmented oxidative stress might influence its association with endothelium and contribute to inflammatory responses under hypertensive condition.

Differential metabolism of alprazolam by liver and brain cytochrome (P4503A) to pharmacologically active metabolite.

Cytochrome P450 (P450) is a superfamily of enzymes which mediates metabolism of xenobiotics including drugs. Alprazolam, an anti-anxiety agent, is metabolized in rat and human liver by P4503A1 and P4503A4 respectively, to 4-hydroxy alprazolam (4-OHALP, pharmacologically less active) and alpha-hydroxy alprazolam (alpha-OHALP, pharmacologically more active). We examined P450 mediated metabolism of alprazolam by rat and human brain microsomes and observed that the relative amount of alpha-OHALP formed in brain was higher than liver. This biotransformation was mediated by a P450 isoform belonging to P4503A subfamily, which is constitutively expressed in neuronal cells in rat and human brain. The formation of larger amounts of alpha-OHALP in neurons points to local modulation of pharmacological activity in brain, at the site of action of the anti-anxiety drug. Since hydroxy metabolites of alprazolam are hydrophilic and not easily cleared through blood-CSF barrier, alpha-OHALP would potentially have a longer half-life in brain.

Olfactory reception of potential pheromones and plant odors by tarnished plant bug,Lygus lineolaris (Hemiptera: Miridae).

Olfactory reception of potential pheromones and host-plant odors by male and female tarnished plant bugs (TPBs),Lygus lineolaris (Hemiptera: Miridae), was investigated by utilizing electroantennogram (EAG) techniques. In general, EAGs were similar between the sexes. Among 31 compounds of seven chemical groups tested, insect-produced butyrates and host-plant-containing green leaf volatiles (GLVs) were the most active. Hexyl butyrate and (E)-2-hexenyl butyrate elicited greater EAGs in males than in females. Females responded with significantly greater EAGs to alcohol and aldehyde GLVs than to their acetate derivatives. Among GLVs, sexual dimorphism was also observed in response to (E)-2-hexenol and (E)-2-hexenal. Females were more sensitive to the monoterpene geraniol than were males. While nonanal was the most stimulatory compound tested, no sexual differences in EAGs to this compound were observed. These studies reveal olfactory receptors on TPB antennae responsive to insect and host-plant volatiles that are likely to play a role in host finding and sexual attraction.