Magnetic and Magnetostrictive Properties of Sol-Gel-Synthesized Chromium-Substituted Cobalt Ferrite.

Chromium (Cr)-doped cobalt ferrite nanoparticles were synthesized using a sol-gel autocombustion method, with the chemical formula CoCrxFe2xO4. The value of x ranged from 0.00 to 0.5 in 0.1 increments. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the development of highly crystalline cubic spinel structures for all samples, with an average crystallite size of approximately 40 to 45 nm determined using the Scherrer equation. Pellets were prepared using a traditional ceramic method. The magnetic and magnetostrictive properties of the samples were tested using strain gauge and VSM (vibrating sample magnetometer) techniques. The results of the magnetic and magnetostrictive tests showed that the chromium-substituted cobalt ferrites exhibited higher strain derivative magnitudes than pure cobalt ferrite. These findings indicated that the introduction of chromium into the cobalt ferrite structure led to changes in the material's magnetic properties. These changes were attributed to anisotropic contributions, resulting from an increased presence of Co2+ ions at B-sites due to the chromium substitutions. In summary, this study concluded that introducing chromium into the cobalt ferrite structure caused alterations in the material's magnetic properties, which were explained by changes in the cationic arrangement within the crystal lattice. This study successfully explained these alterations using magnetization and coercivity data and the probable cationic dispersion.

Role of regional diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)-derived tensor metrics in the evaluation of intracranial gliomas and its histopathological correlation.

Background: The imaging of brain tumours has significantly improved with the use of advanced magnetic resonance (MR) techniques like diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). This study was conducted to analyse the utility of DTI-derived tensor metrics in the evaluation of intracranial gliomas with histopathological correlation and further adoption of these image-data analyses in clinical setting. Methods: A total of 50 patients with suspected diagnosis of intracranial gliomas underwent DTI along with conventional MR examination. The study correlated various DTI parameters in the enhancing part of the tumour and the peritumoral region with the histopathological grades of the intracranial gliomas. Results: The study revealed higher values of Cl (linear anisotropy), Cp (planar anisotropy), AD (axial diffusivity), FA (fractional anisotropy) and RA (relative anisotropy) and lower values of Cs (spherical anisotropy), MD (mean diffusivity) and RD (radial diffusivity) in the enhancing part of the tumour in case of high-grade gliomas. However, in the peritumoral region, the values of Cl, Cp, AD, FA and RA were less whereas values of Cs, MD and RD were more in high-grade gliomas than in the low-grade gliomas. The various cutoff values of these DTI-derived tensor metrics were found to be statistically significant. Conclusion: DTI-derived tensor metrics can be a valuable tool in differentiation between high-grade and low-grade gliomas which might be accepted in clinical practice in near future.

The role of three-dimensional printed cardiac models in the management of complex congenital heart diseases.

BACKGROUND: Three-dimensional printing is a process enabling computer-assisted conversion of imaging data from patients into physical "printed" replicas. This has been extrapolated to reconstructing patient-specific cardiac models in congenital heart diseases. The aim of this study was to analyze the impact of three-dimensional printing in surgical decision making in selected cases of complex congenital heart disease by creating patient-specific printed models. METHODS: Patients with complex congenital heart diseases with unresolved management decisions after evaluation by echocardiography, cardiac catheterization, and cardiac computed tomography were included with intent to aid in surgical decision making. Three-dimensional models were created from computed tomographic images by an outsourced firm using computer applications. All cases were reviewed by the same team before and after the cardiac models were prepared. The management decisions were grouped as either "corrective surgery" or "no surgery or palliation" The impact of the surgical decision pre and post three-dimensional cardiac model was analyzed by applying Cohen's kappa test of agreement. RESULTS: Ten patients were included, of which five were of increased pulmonary blood flow, and five were of decreased pulmonary flow. The commonest indication for three-dimensional printed models was to establish the routability of the aorta and pulmonary artery to their respective ventricles (in five patients). The nonagreement between the decision taken before and after the cardiac model was 80%, with kappa -0.37 and P value 0.98. CONCLUSIONS: Three-dimensional printed cardiac models contribute to better decision making in complex congenital heart diseases enabling safer execution of any complex congenital heart surgery.

Baseline assessment of water quality and ecological indicators in Penaeus vannamei farm wastewater along the Southeast coast of India.

The present study aimed to investigate the water quality characteristics and the ecological indicators of wastewater of white legged shrimp Penaeus vannamei ponds along the Southeast coast of India. The wastewater samples were collected from 15 shrimp farms covering 11 districts located along the coastal line of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, India. By adopting standard methods, the collected samples were subjected to analyses of physico-chemical and biological characteristics, especially the microbial load and metal and plankton composition. The nitrate-nitrogen, ammonia-nitrogen, THB, TCB, and Cu concentrations of the samples were found to exceed the permissible limit as recommended by WHO, USEPA, CPCB, and CAA. Principal component analysis and canonical correspondence analysis have suggested that the phosphate, nitrate, silicate, ammonia, and total phosphorus are the important chemical factors. The generated data would be of interest to farmers for their shrimp crop management vis-à-vis culture pond wastewater treatment.

Comparative study of Episure™ AutoDetect™ syringe versus glass syringe for identification of epidural space in lower thoracic epidural.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Episure™ AutoDetect™ syringe (EAS), a spring-loaded syringe, is a new loss-of-resistance syringe used to identify epidural space. It has an advantage of subjective and objective confirmation in identifying epidural space over glass syringe (GS) for beginners. We compared the performance of EAS with that of GS for identifying epidural space in lower thoracic epidurals. METHODS: A total of 120 American Society of Anesthesiolgists I-II patients aged 18-60 years requiring lower thoracic epidural analgesia for surgery were randomised into Group I (EAS): Epidural identified using EAS and Group II (GS) epidural identified with GS. Patient demographic data, depth to epidural space (cm), number of attempts, time to locate epidural space (s), inadvertent dural puncture and failed epidural analgesia were the parameters noted. RESULTS: There were no differences in patient demographics or depth to the epidural space between the two groups. There were five failed blocks in the GS group and none in the EAS group (P = 0.0287). Similarly, there were five inadvertent dural punctures in the GS group and none in the EAS group (P = 0.0287). When epidural was identified in fewer attempts, the time needed to identify epidural space was quicker with EAS (P = 0.0012). CONCLUSION: Using EAS allowed reliable and quick identification of the epidural space in lower thoracic epidural technique as compared to use of glass syringe. There was no incidence of inadvertent dural puncture or failed blocks with the EAS.

Effect of organic-ligands on the toxicity profiles of CdS nanoparticles and functional properties.

CdS nanoparticles are one among the most promising agents for fluorescent imaging. Hence, it is essential to develop new strategies to overcome the cytotoxicity of these nanoparticles. Surface modification is one of the simplest and effective techniques. This paper assesses the effect of surface modification on toxicity of the CdS nanoparticles. Unmodified CdS and surface-modified CdS nanoparticles were synthesized in an aqueous medium using a wet chemical route at room temperature. The surface modification of the CdS nanoparticles with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and cysteine was confirmed using infrared absorption studies. The diameters of unmodified CdS, PVP-modified CdS, and cysteine-modified CdS nanoparticles were determined using HRTEM. They exhibited luminescence in the range from 500 to 800 nm. The cytotoxic effects of these CdS nanoparticles were investigated in cultures of Vero cells. The results indicated that Vero cell viability was higher for the surface-modified CdS nanoparticles than for the unmodified CdS nanoparticles. The reduction in the toxicity was related to the nature of the capping agents used for the surface modification, and the particle size.

Rationale, design & preliminary findings of the Indian Atherosclerosis Research Study.

AIMS & OBJECTIVES: Cardiovascular disease is highly prevalent among Asian Indians. The objective of the Indian Atherosclerosis Research Study (IARS) is to understand the molecular basis of Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) in this population. METHODS & RESULTS: Over 12,500 subjects from 2500 families and 2500 healthy matched controls will be enrolled by year 2010 in the IARS. Selection of participants will be based on stringent inclusion/exclusion criteria. Blood samples will be analyzed for various genes and biomarkers implicated in CAD by employing commercial or in-house developed assays as for indices of early vascular changes. To date, over 6053 individuals from 1644 families with associated demographics, clinical information and bio specimen have been enrolled and comprise of 2131 CAD patients with mean age, 55.02 +/- 0.19 years and 3901 unaffected relatives with mean age, 40.15 +/- 0.22 years. Over 70% of the CAD patients were males. There was significant association of diabetes, hypertension and smoking with CAD status (OR 2.43-4.75; 95% CI 2.01-5.59). Subjects with metabolic syndrome (MS) showed 3 times higher risk of CAD than the non MS group (OR 3.04; 95% CI 2.71-3.41). Preliminary analyses on various atherothrombotic genes relating to lipids, inflammation and growth have identified novel variants as well as unique haplotypes associated with CAD. Proteomic studies revealed strong heritability for plasma TG, IL6, hsCRP and HDL-c levels (h2 46%-86%; p < 0.01). Baseline levels of pro-inflammatory like CRP, sPLA2 and sTWEAK were significantly higher in patients with recurrent or new coronary event. Affected subjects had higher serum antibody titers to CMV, H. pylori and C Pneumoniae infections. Early results from non-invasive assessment of endothelial dysfunction using Periscope suggest that this method is a sensitive tool for delineation of sub clinical atherosclerosis. CONCLUSION: The clinical and molecular data will be systematically integrated to develop a refined algorithm for risk prediction in the Asian Indian population.