Patterns of sedentary behaviour in adults with acute insomnia derived from actigraphy data.

BACKGROUND: Sleep disorders, such as insomnia, have been associated with extended periods of inactive, sedentary behaviour. Many factors contribute to insomnia, including stress, irregular sleep patterns, mental health issues, inadequate sleeping schedules, diseases, neurological disorders and prescription medications. OBJECTIVES: Identification of the patterns of sedentary time and its duration in adults with acute insomnia and healthy controls to determine the statistically significant sedentary bouts; comparison of the sedentary behaviour patterns in acute insomnia adults with healthy controls. METHODS: We investigate the daytime actigraphy data and identify temporal patterns of inactivity among adults with acute insomnia and healthy adults. Seven days of actigraphy data were utilised to calculate sedentary time and bouts of variable duration based on a threshold of activity counts (<100 counts per minute). Statistical analysis was applied to investigate sedentary bouts and total sedentary time during weekdays and weekend. A logistic regression model has been used to determine the significance of sedentary bouts. RESULTS: We found that individuals with acute insomnia accumulate a significant amount of their sedentary time in medium (6-30 minutes and 31-60 minutes) and longer (more than 60 minutes) duration bouts in comparison to healthy adults. Furthermore, a low p value for total sedentary time (2.54 ⋅ 10-4) association with acute insomnia supports the finding that acute insomnia individuals are significantly more engaged in sedentary activities compared to healthy controls. Also, as shown by the weekend vs weekday analysis, the physical and sedentary activity patterns of acute insomnia adults demonstrate higher variability during the weekdays in comparison to the weekend. CONCLUSION: The results of the present study demonstrate that adults with acute insomnia spend more time in low-intensity daily physical activities compared to healthy adults.

Deciphering the biochemical and functional characterization of rice straw cultivars for industrial applications.

As an agricultural state, Haryana (India) produces about six million metric tons (mt) of rice straw every year from rice cultivation. Currently, rice straw is either burned or ploughed into the field without being turned into a functional product. Burning of paddy straw release green house gases and particulate matter (2.5 and 10 µm), which leads to air pollution and considerable loss of soil property viz. nutrients, organic matter, productivity and biodiversity, and on and off-farm humans and animals' health. The biochemically and functionally specified potential for optimal alternative use of the rice straw of 13 most widely produced rice varieties from Haryana's eastern and western agro-climate zones was undertaken. Pusa-1401 variety had the highest cellulose (46.55%) and silica content (13.70%), while Pusa-1718 had hemicellulose (28.25%) and lignin (11.60%), respectively. Maximum nitrogen (0.81%), phosphorus (0.32%) and potassium (2.78%) were found in rice variety Pusa-1509, Pusa-1401 and Rice-6129. The findings seemed to be statistically significant (p < 0.05). The biochemical profiles of rice straw cultivars were classified into distinct structural groups (C-H alkalanes, O-H alcohol, C[bond, double bond]O, C-H alkanes) based on the FTIR spectrum in order to find the best alternative possibilities for bioethanol and compost production. According to the study, these rice straw varieties could be used to make lucrative industrial products.

Preidentification of high-risk pregnancies to improve triaging at the time of admission and management of complications in labour room: a quality improvement initiative.

Complications can occur anytime during pregnancy and childbirth. Pregnancies associated with high-risk factors have a higher-than-normal risk for fetomaternal complications. Bhagwan Mahavir hospital is a public sector hospital catering to low-risk and high-risk pregnant women (PW) in the labour room (LR)). The obstetrics and gynaecology team observed that at times the LR team failed to identify high-risk pregnancy (HRP) during admission in LR and to manage complications timely and efficiently. Therefore, the team started a quality improvement (QI) project in January 2019 with the aim to admit preidentified HRP in LR from existing 0% to 80% in 3 months.The QI team followed the point-of-care quality improvement methodology to conduct this improvement process. They identified HRP in the outpatient department (OPD) during their antenatal care (ANC) visits, mentioned an HRP number on their ANC cards, and did risk stratification with yellow and red stickers into moderate and severe HRP respectively. Preidentified HRP were attended, admitted and managed on priority in the LR. The team achieved its aim in the ninth week of the QI initiative and sustaining to date. The team also measured and analysed the type of HRP identified in OPD, complications occurring around the process of childbirth in LR, maternal near-miss, maternal death and PW referred out from LR. They observed a 6.5%-point reduction (68.93%) in the median complication rate of major life-threatening complications following this improvement process.This new intervention facilitated the team in early initiation of management of HRP in OPD, their triaging in LR, preparedness towards managing complications, involvement of support staff, PW and their relatives in the patient care, and redistribution of human resources according to priority area. The lessons learnt are generalisable and can be used in other facilities with similar settings.

200-mm segmented cylindrical figured crystal for von Hamos x-ray spectrometer.

A von Hamos Bragg crystal spectrometer at 1C beamline of Pohang Accelerator Laboratory for x-ray emission spectroscopy (XES) is described. Diced Si crystals of different orientations ([111], [110], [100], and [311]) are glued onto a planoconcave glass substrate having 250/500 mm radius of curvature. To enhance the spectrometer efficiency, the length of the crystal analyzer is kept 200 mm. The emission spectra of Cu foil and Fe foil and elastic scattering from Al foil are measured using the von Hamos geometry in which curved crystals disperse the x-rays. Spectrometer efficiency and energy resolution are measured at various x-ray photon energies. X-rays are incident at 6.54 keV, 9.00 keV, 9.205 keV, and 11.51 keV for Si(440), Si(444), Si(800), and Si(933) crystal analyzers, respectively. The cylindrical figured analyzer is placed near 80° with respect to the sample, which gives better energy resolution. The spectrometer efficiency of the Si(444) crystal analyzer increases by ∼2 times when the length of the analyzer is increased from 100 mm to 200 mm. Furthermore, to measure Fe Kα1, Kα2, and Kß simultaneously, we made a mixed crystal analyzer in which alternative strips of Si[111] and Si[110] are glued onto one preshaped cylindrical substrate. The enhanced efficiency and simultaneous measurement of Kα and Kß emission lines will give an edge over in situ and time-resolved x-ray emission spectroscopy studies. The information extracted with a high efficiency spectrometer from low intensity XES emission lines will be useful for the in situ elemental characterization in catalytic reactions.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of chalconyl blended triazole allied organosilatranes as giardicidal and trichomonacidal agents.

A series of chalconyl blended triazole allied silatranes (7a-g/8a-g/9a-g) were synthesized in good yields using a simple, economical and biocompatible synthetic route. The blend of three different pharmacologically active moieties into a single scaffold resulted into synergistic effect in their bio-activity. Various substitutions were tried to study the structure activity relationship (SAR) of the synthesized compounds on the basis of biological results. All the newly synthesized compounds were well characterized by IR, (1)H and (13)C NMR, low resolution mass spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The structures of 7a and 7c were authenticated by single crystal X-ray crystallography. These compounds were screened by using Molinspiration software for their physicochemical properties and all the compounds showed good oral bioavailability. The antiparasitic activity of the newly synthesized compounds was evaluated against unicellular parasites (Giardia lamblia and Trichomonas vaginalis) in comparison to standard drug (metronidazole) by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-yl)-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. All the compounds displayed significant activity against G. lamblia and T. vaginalis with IC50 values ranging from 19.58-131.2 µM to 18.24-101.26 µM respectively. The entire library of compounds was found to be more active than metronidazole except 9a, 9f and 9g. Notably, 9e and 7e were found to be most significant against G. lamblia and T. vaginalis respectively.

Effect of dexmedetomidine as an adjuvant to levobupivacaine in supraclavicular brachial plexus block: A randomized double-blind prospective study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Regional anesthesia is a recommended technique for upper and lower limb surgeries with better postoperative profile. In this, randomized, double-blind study, we evaluated the effectiveness of the addition of dexmedetomidine to varying concentration of levobupivacaine for supra clavicular brachial plexus block. MATERIAL AND METHODS: After obtaining ethical Committee approval, a double-blind, randomized prospective clinical study was conducted on 90 American Society of Anesthesiologist Grade I and II patients in the age group of 18-55 years, divided randomly into two groups: Group A received 40 ml of solution containing 30 ml 0.5% levobupivacaine and 10 ml 1% lignocaine and group B received 40 ml of solution containing 30 ml 0.25% levobupivacaine and 10 ml 1% lignocaine with dexmedetomidine 1 microg/kg for supraclavicular brachial plexus block. Besides effectiveness, other parameters observed were: duration of sensory blockade; onset and duration of motor blockade; duration of postoperative analgesia; and patient satisfaction score. RESULTS: Onset of sensory and motor blockade was 7.6 ± 1.006 min and 8.3 ± 0.877 min in group A, while it was 6.96 ± 1.077 min an 7.6 ± 1.1 min in group B, respectively. The difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). Duration of sensory block was 8.5 ± 0.77 h in group A and 8.5 ± 0.98 in group B (P > 0.05). Duration of motor block was 8.45 ± 0.75 h in group A and 5.6 ± 0.98 in group B (P < 0.05). Duration of analgesia was 8.5 ± 0.77 h in group A and 9.2 ± 1.05 in group B (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Addition of 1 microg/kg dexmedetomidine to 0.25% levobupivacaine for supraclaviclar plexus block shortens sensory, motor block onset time and motor block durations, extends sensory block, and analgesia durations. Reduction in total levobupivacaine dose also increases the safety margin of the block.

Study of optical phase conjugation in amorphous Zn(x)-S(y)-Se(100-x-y) chalcogenide thin films using degenerate four-wave mixing.

Degenerate four-wave mixing (DFWM) experiment is performed to obtain light wavefront inversion (phase conjugation) in semiconducting chalcogenide thin films. Third order nonlinearity of amorphous Zn(x)-S(y)-Se(100-x-y) chalcogenide thin films using DFWM technique is studied at second harmonic of Nd:YAG laser. Influence of total input irradiance on phase conjugate signal is deliberated using log-log plot that has a slope of three and hence implies third order nonlinearity. The dependence of phase conjugate signal on forward beam and backward beam is also studied. The period of the grating formed by interference of forward and probe beam is determined. As the temporal overlapping and sample thickness conditions are satisfied, the third order nonlinear susceptibility, figure of merit and nonlinear refractive index of amorphous films are estimated. The nonlinear behavior is analyzed in terms of decrease in band gap with increasing Zinc and decreasing Sulfur content.

Fabrication of a cytochrome c biosensor based on cytochrome oxidase/NiO-NPs/cMWCNT/PANI modified Au electrode.

An amperometric biosensor for determination of Cytochrome c (Cyt c) was fabricated by immobilizing Cytochrome c oxidase (COx) onto nickel oxide nanoparticles (NiO-NPs) decorated carboxylated multiwalled carbon nanotubes/polyaniline (NiO-NPs/cMWCNT/PANI) film electrodeposited on the surface of a gold (Au) electrode. The electrochemical characteristics of immobilized COx were investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform Infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR). Cyclic voltammetric (CV) studies of the electrode at different stages of construction of enzyme electrode demonstrated that the modified Au electrode had enhanced electrochemical oxidation of H2O2, which offers a number of attractive features to develop amperometric biosensors based on split of H2O2. There was a good linear relationship between the current (mA) and Cyt c concentration in the range 5 x 10(-12) M to 5 x 10(-7) M. The sensor had a detection limit of 5 x 10(-12) M (S/N = 3) with a high sensitivity of 3.7 mA cm(-2) nM(-1). The sensor gave accurate and satisfactory results, when employed for determination of Cyt c in different serum samples.

Sensitive measurement of optical nonlinearity in amorphous chalcogenide materials in nanosecond regime.

The present work focuses on the nonlinear optical behavior of chalcogenide As(2)S(3) film as well as on bulk material. The thin film of As(2)S(3) grown by thermal evaporation and bulk glass developed by melt-quenched technique has been characterized using nanosecond pulses of Nd:YAG (532 nm) and Nd:YVO(4) (1,064 nm) laser. Using Z-scan technique, the laser induced nonlinear optical parameters viz. nonlinear refractive index (n(2)), nonlinear absorption coefficient (ß) and third order nonlinear susceptibility (χ(3)) have been estimated. At 1,064 nm excitation, the materials exhibit stronger nonlinearity as compared to that of 532 nm laser. In case of As(2)S(3) thin film, observed nonlinearity attributes to two-photon absorption. The optical limiting response of chalcogenide film as well as bulk sample has also been reported. The study predicts that the As(2)S(3) thin film is a better optical limiting material than bulk glass due to relatively higher nonlinearity and lower limiting threshold.

Phytochemical investigation of the seeds of Althea officinalis L.

Phytochemical investigation of the seeds of Althea officinalis L. (Malvaceae) led to the isolation of three new phytoconstituents, identified as n-hexacos-2-enyl-1,5-olide (altheahexacosanyl lactone), 2beta-hydroxycalamene (altheacalamene) and 5,6-dihydroxycoumarin-5-dodecanoate-6beta-D-glucopyranoside (altheacoumarin glucoside), along with the known phytoconstituents lauric acid, beta-sitosterol and lanosterol. The structures of these compounds were established on the basis of spectral analysis and chemical reactions.

Preparation and partial characterization of collagen sheet from fish (Lates calcarifer) scales.

Fish scales, which are hitherto discarded as waste, were collected and cleaned thoroughly. The scales were hydrolyzed under controlled acidic conditions, neutralized and made in to a sheet, i.e., fish scale collagen sheet (FCS). The FCS was characterized for its infrared spectroscopy (IR), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and mechanical properties. The IR study has shown that the sheet contains both organic and inorganic phases revealing that the scales are partially deminaralized. The tensile strength of FCS is enough if it is used as a wound dressing material. The SEM studies have shown that FCS is porous and exhibited fibrous nature.