Functional role of iNOS-Rac2 interaction in neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) induced cytotoxicity in sepsis

BACKGROUND

Recent reports from this lab have demonstrated a higher incidence of NETs, nitrosative, as well as oxidative stress, and have a direct correlation with the severity of sepsis and organ damage. However, the mechanistic perspective of NETs induced organ damage has not been understood at the cellular and molecular level. Interaction of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) with Rac2 in regulating reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) generation and its implications in microbial killing has been reported. This study was, therefore, undertaken in neutrophils of sepsis patients to investigate the functional importance of iNOS-Rac2 interaction in ROS/ RNS, peroxynitrite generation, NETs generation, and NETs mediated cell death.

METHODS

The study was conducted on 100 patients with sepsis and 50 healthy volunteers. Interaction between iNOS and Rac2 was performed using co-immunoprecipitation and co-immunolabeling assay. Free radicals involving ROS and RNS were evaluated using cytochrome c reduction assay. NETs formation was evaluated by fluorescence microscopy. The cytotoxic effect of NETs was assessed on lung carcinoma cell line (A549) using colorimetric Alamar blue assay.

RESULTS

Enhanced interaction between iNOS and Rac2 was found in sepsis neutrophils in comparison with control. This was accompanied by an increased level of superoxide (O2.-), nitric oxide (NO), and peroxynitrite (ONOO-) which were decreased in the presence of NAC, DPI, and 1400 W, signifying the role of iNOS-Rac2 interaction. Enhanced NETs release from activated sepsis neutrophils were abrogated in the presence of DPI. NETs from sepsis neutrophils exert a cytotoxic effect on lung epithelial cells (A549) in a concentration-dependent manner.

CONCLUSION

Our findings exhibit the functional role of iNOS-Rac2 interaction in ROS/RNS, peroxynitrite generation, NETs generation, and NETs mediated cell death.

Resonant filters with concurrently tuned central wavelengths and sidebands

Tunable infrared filters are important for various optical and optoelectronic systems. Ideally, such filters should span wide spectral ranges while retaining constant performance. Here, as a fundamental approach, we theoretically treat tunable resonant filters and realize favorable spectral profiles. Implementing a chirped zero-contrast grating on wedged sublayers, we optimize the resonant tunable filter for operation in the ∼5-14µm band. To clarify the root causes of the physical processes enabling the observed performance, attendant resonance modal processes and background reflection behavior are analyzed in detail by equivalent models as well as by rigorous electromagnetic models. The key innovative contribution of this research is that it enables efficient filters with simultaneously tuned operational wavelengths and sidebands.

Partial Nephrectomy For a Presumed Single Renal Mass Revealing Multiple Tumor Histologies: A Series of 4 Patients

Introduction/Objective

Renal mass biopsy is known to have a low but unavoidable diagnostic error rate. However, the occurrence of multiple adjacent masses mimicking one mass clinically has been minimally studied.

Methods

We report a series of four patients who were radiologically presumed to have a single renal mass and treated with partial nephrectomy, yet who were found to have multiple demarcated renal cell carcinoma histologies at pathologic evaluation.

Results

All were men aged 63–70 years. Grossly, tumors were red brown with scant, bright yellow foci in one of them. Dominant tumors followed by smaller tumors were: patient 1 - clear cell renal cell carcinoma (5.0 cm), clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma (0.5 cm), and papillary adenoma (0.6 cm); patient 2 - clear cell renal cell carcinoma (1.5 cm) and clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma (0.5 cm); patient 3 - papillary renal cell carcinoma (5.0 cm) and eosinophilic variant of chromophobe renal cell carcinoma (1.0 cm); patient 4 - chromophobe renal cell carcinoma (4.0 cm) and clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma (0.6 cm). Immunohistochemical studies for cytokeratin 7, carbonic anhydrase IX, high molecular weight cytokeratin, CD10, and alpha-methyl acyl-CoA racemase (AMACR) confirmed the separate components in all.

Conclusion

This series adds to the spectrum of causes that may contribute to discordant results of renal mass biopsy and resection specimens. Secondary smaller tumors appear to be predominantly nonaggressive histologies, enriched for clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma. Pathologists and urologists should be aware of this occurrence when considering the role of renal mass biopsy and interpreting the results.

Commercially and medicinally significant aquatic macrophytes: potential for improving livelihood security of indigenous communities in northern Bihar, India

The dispersed wetlands in the Darbhanga District of northern Bihar, India, provide a diversity of niches supporting substantial floral and faunal richness.  The aquatic macrophytes of a representative range of perennial water bodies were surveyed fortnightly from June to September 2019, supported by a market survey undertaken with local stakeholders. A total of 61 species of vascular macrophytes was recorded, the majority of them Angiosperms (33 species of Dicotyledons from 21 families, and 26 Monocotyledons from 13 families) and two were Pteridophytes.  This paper highlights the distribution pattern and potential commercial and medicinal values of aquatic macrophytes found in different wetland systems in northern Bihar.  It further stresses their importance for subsistence, medicinal and economic purposes supporting the livelihoods of local people.  Current trends and risks contributing to the degradation and loss of this diverse flora and its supporting habitats are considered.  We recommend further assessment of the occurrence and values of this botanical resource, and extension of valuation to encompass the diverse additional ecosystem service benefits provided by the region’s wetland systems, as a basis for wetland conservation strategies founded on sustainable management and wise use, with particular reference to the potential for enhancing livelihood security of indigenous communities. 

Flood inundation mapping- Kerala 2018; Harnessing the power of SAR, automatic threshold detection method and Google Earth Engine

Flood inundation maps provide valuable information towards flood risk preparedness, management, communication, response, and mitigation at the time of disaster, and can be developed by harnessing the power of satellite imagery. In the present study, Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture RADAR (SAR) data and Otsu method were utilized to map flood inundation areas. Google Earth Engine (GEE) was used for implementing Otsu algorithm and processing Sentinel—1 SAR data. The results were assessed by (i) calculating a confusion matrix; (ii) comparing the submerge water areas of flooded (Aug 2018), non-flooded (Jan 2018) and previous year’s flooded season (Aug 2016, Aug 2017), and (iii) analyzing historical rainfall patterns to understand the flood event. The overall accuracy for the Sentinel-1 SAR flood inundation maps of 9th and 21st August 2018 was observed as 94.3% and 94.1% respectively. The submerged area (region under water) classified significant flooding as compared to the non-flooded (January 2018) and previous year’s same season (August 2015–2017) classified outputs. Summing up, observations from Sentinel-1 SAR data using Otsu algorithm in GEE can act as a powerful tool for mapping flood inundation areas at the time of disaster, and enhance existing efforts towards saving lives and livelihoods of communities, and safeguarding infrastructure and businesses.

Unpolarized resonant notch filters for the 8-12 µm spectral region

The long-wave infrared (LWIR) spectral region spanning ∼8-12µm is useful for many scientific and industrial applications. As traditional multilayer film components are not straightforwardly realized at these bands, we provide design, fabrication, and testing of polarization independent bandstop filters based on the guided-mode resonance (GMR) effect. Focusing on the zero-contrast grating architecture, we successfully fabricate prototype filters in the Ge-on-ZnSe materials system. Applying mask-based photolithography and dry etching, photoresist patterns form the desired Ge grating structures. The resulting devices exhibit clean transmittance nulls and acceptably high sidebands. Moreover, we verify polarization independent notch filtering by assembling two identical GMR filters with gratings oriented orthogonally. This approach to realize effective GMR elements will be useful for various fields including photonic and optoelectronic devices operating in the LWIR region.

Awake tracheostomy in a child with respiratory distress due to retropharyngeal abscess

Awake tracheostomy in a child with respiratory distress is an emergency life-saving procedure when risk of airway loss after induction of general anaesthesia is greater due to difficult anatomy. A 10-year-old boy presented three days after removal of a foreign body in the throat under general anaesthesia. Over the subsequent days, the patient had a progressively increasing visible swelling in the neck, stridor and respiratory distress. An urgent X-ray and computed tomography scan of the neck revealed a retropharyngeal abscess compressing the trachea. Due to anticipated difficulty in airway management under general anaesthesia, we decided to perform an awake tracheostomy. The child and the parents were counselled regarding steps of awake tracheostomy, as well as the benefits and possible risks associated with it. Topicalisation was achieved by administering glycopyrrolate, nebulisation with lidocaine 4%, and the skin was prepared with lidocaine 2% with 1:200,000 adrenaline. After the awake tracheostomy was successfully performed, general anaesthesia was induced and the retropharyngeal abscess was drained. Effective communication and building rapport is essential for safe awake tracheostomy in a child with respiratory distress when impending airway loss may occur at any moment.

Clinical Efficacy of Subgingivally Delivered Punica Granatum Chip and Gel in Management of Chronic Periodontitis Patients

Background Periodontitis has a multifactorial etiology, and the pathogenic bacteria that reside in the subgingival area are the primary etiologic agent. Objective The study aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy and benefits of herbal chip and gel made from extracts of Punica granatum as a subgingival adjunct to scaling and root planing (SRP). Method A randomized control clinical trial was conducted on 30 systemically healthy patient's sites having chronic periodontitis, and they were randomly allocated to into three treatment groups followed by Scaling and Root Planing in all patients. Group 1 - Ten patients received Scaling and Root Planing and Punica granatum chip at selected sites. Group 2 - Ten patients received Scaling and Root Planing and punica granatum gel at selected sites. Group 3 - Ten patients with Scaling and Root Planing alone. Clinical parameters were recorded at baseline, 21 days and at 45 days which included plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), probing pocket depth (PPD) and relative attachment level (RAL). Result Plaque Index and Gingival index showed better reduction in group I compared to group II and group III at 21st day 45th day follow up. Analysing Pocket Probing Depth the intergroup comparison revealed similar results with maximum reduction being seen in group I from baseline to 21 and baseline to 45 days (p < 0.001). On analysing Relative Attachment Loss revealed reduction in all three groups with maximum reduction in group I from baseline to 45 days and reduction in group III was not statistically significant (p < 0.090). Conclusion The study concluded that Punica granatum chip as an adjunct to Scaling and Root Planing was more effective than Punica granatum gel and scaling and root planing alone.

High burden of cardiometabolic risk factors in spouses of Indian women with hyperglycaemia in pregnancy

AIM

To evaluate the burden and association of cardiometabolic risk factors in the spouses of women with and without hyperglycaemia in pregnancy.

METHODS

Women with (n = 204) and without (n = 197) hyperglycaemia in pregnancy, along with their spouses, participated in this cross-sectional study. The hyperglycaemia in pregnancy group included women with gestational diabetes and diabetes in pregnancy. A detailed questionnaire was completed for all participants (men and women), documenting relevant personal and medical history, along with biochemical investigations (men).

RESULTS

A total of 401 couples were evaluated at the time point during the pregnancy of 24.7 ± 5.2 gestational weeks (mean ± sd). Dysglycaemia (prediabetes or diabetes), overweight/obesity (BMI ≥25 kg/m² ) and metabolic syndrome were detected in 120 (58.9%), 123 (60.3%) and 98 spouses (48.3%) of women with hyperglycaemia in pregnancy, respectively. In the fully adjusted model, an increased risk of dysglycaemia [odds ratio 1.43 (95% CI 0.95-2.17); P = 0.088], overweight/obesity [odds ratio 1.49 (95% CI 0.98-2.27); P = 0.064] and metabolic syndrome [odds ratio 2.00 (95% CI 1.30-3.07); P = 0.001] was seen in the spouses of women with hyperglycaemia in pregnancy. The prevalence of these metabolic conditions was higher in spouses of women with diabetes in pregnancy compared to spouses of women with gestational diabetes mellitus.

CONCLUSIONS

A high burden of cardiometabolic risk factors was observed in the spouses of women with hyperglycaemia in pregnancy. The opportunity provided by pregnancy could be used by the healthcare system not only to improve the health of the woman and her offspring, but also her spouse.

Scrub typhus in patients with acute febrile illness: a 5-year study from India

BACKGROUND

Scrub typhus was once thought to be a disease of rural origin and was confined to specific pockets in South Asia. Early diagnosis and treatment is extremely important as it is associated with high mortality if left untreated.

AIM

To delineate the clinical and molecular epidemiology of scrub typhus in patients presenting with acute febrile illness from various parts of India.

METHODS

During the study period of 5 years (October 2013 to October 2018), a total of 1742 patients with acute febrile illness <15 days were enrolled after taking informed consent. Patients were diagnosed using IgM Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) based on the pre-determined region specific cut offs. Patients with positive IgM ELISA were also subjected to IgM Immunofluorescence assay and nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay. The demographic and relevant clinical details of the patients were documented and analyzed.

RESULTS

A total of 210 (12.1%) patients were diagnosed with scrub typhus. Of these, nested PCR was positive in only 85 patients. Sequencing and phylogenetic analysis showed that the predominant circulating genotypes were Gilliam and Karp. On multivariate analysis, acute respiratory distress syndrome, myocarditis, encephalitis/encephalopathy, jaundice and splenomegaly were significantly more common in those patients who were diagnosed with scrub typhus. A total of 14 patients diagnosed with scrub typhus succumbed to the illness.

CONCLUSION

Patients with fever, headache, pulmonary manifestations, CNS manifestations, myocarditis, transaminitis or thrombocytopenia presenting in the monsoon and post-monsoon season should be evaluated for scrub typhus irrespective of the geographical location in India.

MR Imaging Correlates for Molecular and Mutational Analyses in Children with Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Recent advances in molecular techniques have characterized distinct subtypes of diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas. Our aim was the identification of MR imaging correlates of these subtypes.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Initial MRIs from subjects with diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas recruited for a prospective clinical trial before treatment were analyzed. Retrospective imaging analyses included FLAIR/T2 tumor volume, tumor volume enhancing, the presence of cyst and/or necrosis, median, mean, mode, skewness, kurtosis of ADC tumor volume based on FLAIR, and enhancement at baseline. Molecular subgroups based on EGFR and MGMT mutations were established. Histone mutations were also determined (H3F3A, HIST1H3B, HIST1H3C). Univariate Cox proportional hazards regression was used to test the association of imaging predictors with overall and progression-free survival. Wilcoxon rank sum, Kruskal-Wallis, and Fisher exact tests were used to compare imaging measures among groups.

RESULTS

Fifty patients had biopsy and MR imaging. The median age at trial registration was 6 years (range, 3.3-17.5 years); 52% were female. On the basis of immunohistochemical results, 48 patients were assigned to 1 of 4 subgroups: 28 in MGMT-/epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-, 14 in MGMT-/EGFR+, 3 in MGMT+/EGFR-, and 3 in MGMT+/EGFR+. Twenty-three patients had histone mutations in H3F3A, 8 in HIST1H3B, and 3 in HIST1H3C. Enhancing tumor volume was near-significantly different across molecular subgroups (P = .04), after accounting for the false discovery rate. Tumor volume enhancing, median, mode, skewness, and kurtosis ADC T2-FLAIR/T2 were significantly different (P ≤ .048) between patients with H3F3A and HIST1H3B/C mutations.

CONCLUSIONS

MR imaging features including enhancement and ADC histogram parameters are correlated with molecular subgroups and mutations in children with diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas.

Advanced-PRF: Clinical evaluation in impacted mandibular third molar sockets

OBJECTIVE

This prospective study evaluated the efficacy and healing potential of modified formulation of PRF, commonly known as Advanced PRF (A-PRF) in impacted mandibular third molar extraction sockets.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

20 patients with bilateral impacted mandibular third molars were included in this study. Surgical disimpactions were done at 3-4 weeks interval in opposing quadrants of patient. One quadrant received A-PRF while the opposing quadrant in same patient was taken as control. Comparative evaluation was done in terms of pain assessment, analgesics required, swelling, soft tissue healing and trismus on 1st, 3 and 7day follow-up. Comparative assessment of bone healing was also done on 1st, 3and 6month follow-up.

RESULTS

This study involved 12 female and 8 male patients with in age range of 18-35 years. The evaluation of pain, swelling, trismus and soft tissue healing on 3rd postoperative day revealed considerable improvement on A-PRF sites as compared to control sites. The outcomes were found to be statistically significant with p values 0.008, 0.031, 0.0001, 0.05 respectively. Even the analgesic consumption was remarkably less when A-PRF was used (P=0.004). Bone healing evaluation in A-PRF sites on 1st, 3and 6month has shown significantly improved results with P<0.05.

CONCLUSION

Our study infers that A-PRF has enhanced the healing potential of soft tissue as well as bone in extraction socket. Apart from that it has also shown promising results in relief of immediate postoperative symptoms like pain, swelling and trismus which improves the comfort and acceptability of surgical procedures by patients. Enhanced healing and patient comfort in cost effective manner are the highlighting features of A-PRF.

Society of pediatric liver transplantation: Current registry status 2011-2018

BACKGROUND

SPLIT was founded in 1995 in order to collect comprehensive prospective data on pediatric liver transplantation, including waiting list data, transplant, and early and late outcomes. Since 2011, data collection of the current registry has been refined to focus on prospective data and outcomes only after transplant to serve as a foundation for the future development of targeted clinical studies.

OBJECTIVE

To report the outcomes of the SPLIT registry from 2011 to 2018.

METHODS

This is a multicenter, cross-sectional analysis characterizing patients transplanted and enrolled in the SPLIT registry between 2011 and 2018. All patients, <18 years of age, received a first liver-only, a combined liver-kidney, or a combined liver-pancreas transplant during this study period.

RESULTS

A total of 1911 recipients from 39 participating centers in North America were registered. Indications included biliary atresia (38.5%), metabolic disease (19.1%), tumors (11.7%), and fulminant liver failure (11.5%). Greater than 50% of recipients were transplanted as either Status 1A/1B or with a MELD/PELD exception score. Incompatible transplants were performed in 4.1%. Kaplan-Meier estimates of 1-year patient and graft survival were 97.3% and 96.6%. First 30 days of surgical complications included reoperation (31.7%), hepatic artery thrombosis (6.3%), and portal vein thrombosis (3.2%). In the first 90 days, biliary tract complications were reported in 13.6%. Acute cellular rejection during first year was 34.7%. At 1 and 2 years of follow-up, 39.2% and 50.6% had normal liver tests on monotherapy (tacrolimus or sirolimus). Further surgical, survival, allograft function, and complications are detailed.

231 Novel protocol for the invitro maintenance and expansion of adult epidermal LGR5+ stem cells

Currently, the standard for treatment of full-thickness skin wounds is skin grafts or bioengineered skin substitutes; however, this method is limited by the amount of intact donor skin and lack of follicles and architecture. Thus, a protocol is needed for the expansion and differentiation of adult epidermal and hair follicle stem cells for use in scaffold mediated tissue engineering. Recently, we developed a transgenic porcine model in which H2B-GFP is under the control of the LGR5 promoter. LGR5 is an established marker of stem cells, meaning this model can be used to track the development and behaviour of these cells. The focus of this project was to create a novel culture method for the maintenance and expansion of LGR5+ epidermal adult stem cells utilising the green fluorescent protein (GFP) tag. Single cell epidermal stem cells were isolated from porcine skin using dispase II (10mgmL−1; Sigma) and trypsin (0.05%; Corning). Porcine fetal fibroblasts (PFF) or mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF) were grown to 95% confluence in a 6-well plate. Feeder layer cells were mitotically inactivated by incubation with mitomycin C (Sigma Aldrich, 10μgmL−1). Three different media were tested: basal medium [Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM), penicillin/streptomycin, Corning; Ham's F12, ThermoFisher; fetal bovine serum, Gemini Bio-Products], basal media + 5-azacytidine (Sigma Aldrich) and CHIR99021 (Tocris), or basal media + keratinocyte growth supplements (transferrin, hydrocortisone, T3, adenine, insulin, cholera toxin; Sigma Aldrich, epidermal growth factor; R&amp;D Systems). Epidermal cells were plated in each medium for both PFF and MEF feeder layers. Experiments were performed in technical duplicates and replicated 3 times. On Day 9, total numbers of colonies in each well were counted and number of GFP-positive cells were quantified using ImageJ (National Institutes of Health). Results in Table 1 show that overall, the MEF feeder layer was able to support a higher rate of growth (P&lt;0.05) and maintain the LGR5+ lineage at a higher proportion under all of the experimental conditions (P&lt;0.05). In the growth-supplemented media, MEFs had fewer colonies than PFFs, but MEF colonies were, on average, 2.5 times larger (P&lt;0.05). Conditions containing 5-aza and CHIR were the only conditions to maintain the LGR5+ lineage on the feeder layer. Statistically significant differences (P&lt;0.05) were determined using two-way ANOVA, followed by Tukey's HSD test. Next, LGR5+ cells will be plated in media containing additional growth factors to stimulate expansion, while using CHIR and 5-aza to maintain the LGR5+ lineage. This protocol could be used in scaffolds to create three-dimensional growth of skin invitro and lead to better grafts for burn victims. Table 1.Growth of LGR5+ cells in different media including 5-azacytidine (5-aza), CHIR 99021 (CHIR), and keratinocyte growth supplements Group1 Basal medium (BM) BM + 5-aza+ CHIR BM + growth supplements No. of colonies/well MEF 127.7±40.8AB 189.3±16.9A 87.3±14.6B PFF 65.0±14.1A 83.3±17.0AB 148±33.7B Average no. of GFP+ cells per frame MEF 0.5±0.8B 65.7±18.4A 1.8±1.7B PFF 0.9±1.0B 22.6±4.5A 0.3±0.6B A,BValues within rows with different superscripts differ (P ≤ 0.05). 1MEF=mouse embryonic fibroblasts; PFF=porcine fetal fibroblasts.

Efficacy of cryotherapy as first line therapy in patients with Barrett's neoplasia: a systematic review and pooled analysis

Cryotherapy has been used as salvage therapy; however, its efficacy as first line treatment in patients with Barrett's esophagus (BE) neoplasia has not been well studied. The aim of this paper was to perform a systematic review to look at the efficacy of cryotherapy as the primary treatment of BE. An electronic database search was performed (PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and Google Scholar) to search for studies with cryotherapy as the initial primary modality of ablation in patients with BE neoplasia. Studies that included patients with other prior forms of therapy were excluded. The primary outcomes were the pooled rates of complete eradication of intestinal metaplasia (CE-IM) and CE of neoplasia (CE-N). Secondary outcomes were recurrence rates of neoplasia and intestinal metaplasia (IM) and adverse events. The statistical software OpenMetaAnalyst was used for analysis with pooled estimates reported as proportions (%) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) with heterogeneity (I2) among studies. The search revealed 6 eligible studies with a total of 282 patients (91.5% male, average age 65.3 years) with 459 person years of follow-up. 69.35% [95% CI (52.1%-86.5%)] of patients achieved CE-IM and 97.9% (95% CI: 95.5%-100%) had CE-N. 7.3% of patients had persistent dysplasia with 4% progressing to cancer. The recurrence rate of neoplasia was 10.4 and that of IM was 19.1 per 100 patient years of follow-up. The overall rate of stricture formation was 4.9%. There are scarce data on the use of cryotherapy as the primary modality for the treatment of BE dysplasia. The published data demonstrate efficacy rates of 69% and 98% for complete eradication of metaplasia and neoplasia, respectively. These results need to be assessed in prospective, comparative trials with other forms of therapy.

Detection of CMB-Cluster Lensing using Polarization Data from SPTpol

We report the first detection of gravitational lensing due to galaxy clusters using only the polarization of the cosmic microwave background (CMB). The lensing signal is obtained using a new estimator that extracts the lensing dipole signature from stacked images formed by rotating the cluster-centered Stokes QU map cutouts along the direction of the locally measured background CMB polarization gradient. Using data from the SPTpol 500  deg^{2} survey at the locations of roughly 18 000 clusters with richness λ≥10 from the Dark Energy Survey (DES) Year-3 full galaxy cluster catalog, we detect lensing at 4.8σ. The mean stacked mass of the selected sample is found to be (1.43±0.40)×10^{14}M_{⊙} which is in good agreement with optical weak lensing based estimates using DES data and CMB-lensing based estimates using SPTpol temperature data. This measurement is a key first step for cluster cosmology with future low-noise CMB surveys, like CMB-S4, for which CMB polarization will be the primary channel for cluster lensing measurements.

Avitourism opportunities as a contribution to conservation and rural livelihoods in the Hindu Kush Himalaya - a field perspective

The Hindu Kush Himalaya is a biodiversity hotspot subject to multiple anthropogenic stressors, including hydropower plants, pollution, deforestation and wildlife poaching, in addition to changing climate.  Bird photography tourism, as a locally important element of avitourism, has the potential to integrate sustainable development and wildlife conservation.  We conducted field surveys around the reaches of four Indian Himalayan rivers—the Kosi, western Ramganga, Khoh, and Song—outside of protected national parks (the Corbett and Rajaji tiger reserves) to ascertain the distribution of bird species along river corridors that could be sites of avitourism. Species richness along the surveyed reaches were: Kosi (79), western Ramganga (91), Khoh (52), and Song (79). This study contributes critical data to the existing baseline information on the avifaunal species of Uttarakhand.  It further discusses the possibility of developing avitourism for knowledge generation on species distribution and innovative livelihood options for local communities in Uttarakhand, reinforcing local vested interest in bird conservation.  The findings have generic applicability worldwide.  

Avitourism opportunities as a contribution to conservation and rural livelihoods in the Hindu Kush Himalaya - a field perspective

The Hindu Kush Himalaya is a biodiversity hotspot subject to multiple anthropogenic stressors, including hydropower plants, pollution, deforestation and wildlife poaching, in addition to changing climate.  Bird photography tourism, as a locally important element of avitourism, has the potential to integrate sustainable development and wildlife conservation.  We conducted field surveys around the reaches of four Indian Himalayan rivers—the Kosi, western Ramganga, Khoh, and Song—outside of protected national parks (the Corbett and Rajaji tiger reserves) to ascertain the distribution of bird species along river corridors that could be sites of avitourism. Species richness along the surveyed reaches were: Kosi (79), western Ramganga (91), Khoh (52), and Song (79). This study contributes critical data to the existing baseline information on the avifaunal species of Uttarakhand.  It further discusses the possibility of developing avitourism for knowledge generation on species distribution and innovative livelihood options for local communities in Uttarakhand, reinforcing local vested interest in bird conservation.  The findings have generic applicability worldwide.  

Monitoring of fruit freshness using phase information in polarization reflectance spectroscopy

The control of food quality and freshness is of growing interest for both consumers and the food industry. The optical absorption and scattering properties in fruits, for example, changes with the physiological and biochemical alterations in the tissues during ripening and storage. The absorption and scattering properties are nondestructively monitored using near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. NIR has proved to be one of the most efficient and advanced tools for continuous monitoring and controlling of process and product quality in the food processing industry. However, NIR spectroscopy is costly and needs reliable calibration. The basic spectral feature of fruit reflectance in the visible region is considered in this work for the development of algorithms to nondestructively monitor the ripening and decay of apples using phase information of the reflected light. The objective is to develop simple and low-cost instruments that could revolutionize the on/inline quality monitoring of foods.

A population-based study of the association between food insecurity and potentially avoidable hospitalization among persons with diabetes using linked survey and administrative data

Background

Studies have found food insecurity to be more prevalent among persons with diabetes mellitus. Other research using areal-based measures of socioeconomic status have pointed to a social gradient in diabetes hospitalizations, but without accounting for individuals’ health status. Linking person-level data from health surveys to population-based hospital records enables profiling of the role of food insecurity with hospital morbidity, focusing on the high-risk diabetic population.

Objective

This national study aims to assess the association between income-related household food insecurity and potentially avoidable hospital admissions among community-dwelling persons living with diagnosed diabetes.

Methods

We use three cycles of the Canadian Community Health Survey (2007, 2008, and 2011) linked to multiple years of hospital records from the Discharge Abstract Database (2005/06 to 2012/13), covering 12 of Canada’s 13 provinces and territories. We apply multiple logistic regression for testing the association of household food insecurity with the risk of hospitalization for diabetes and common comorbid ambulatory care sensitive conditions among persons aged 12 and over living with diabetes.

Analysis

Data linkage allowed us to analyze inpatient hospital records among 10,260 survey respondents with diabetes; 590 respondents had been hospitalized at least once for diabetes or a common comorbid chronic physical or mental illness. The regression results indicated that the odds of experiencing a preventable hospital admission were significantly higher among persons with diabetes who were food insecure compared to their counterparts who were food secure (OR=1.66 [95%CI=1.24-2.23]), after controlling for age, sex and other characteristics.

Conclusion

We found food insecurity to significantly increase the odds of hospital admission for ambulatory care sensitive conditions among Canadians living with diabetes. These results reinforce the need to consider food insecurity in public health and clinical strategies to reduce the hospital burden of diabetes and other nutrition-related chronic diseases, from primary prevention to post-discharge care.

Abstract 831: Hypermethylation in promoter regions of CpG islands of multiple genes is associated with disease progression and molecular response in chronic myelogenous leukemia

Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) has a typical progressive course with transition from a less aggressive chronic phase to a terminal more aggressive blast crisis. The molecular mechanisms leading to CML disease progression remain to be elucidated. However, it has been proposed in many studies that alterations in the methylation status of various genes may contribute to the progression of different malignancies. Hence, in this study we tried to understand the role of aberrant methylation of six tumor suppressor genes in the disease progression and molecular response in CML.

We investigated 100 CML patients and 100 age and sex matched healthy controls for the methylation status of six tumor suppressor genes. The methylation status of these genes was evaluated by MS-PCR.

In this study, 100 CML samples and 100 controls were analyzed for the DAPK1, RASSF1A, RIZ-1, p16, p14ARF and SOCS-1 promoter methylation status. These genes, except p14ARF and SOCS-1 showed significant differences in methylation status among CML patients and healthy controls. Also DAPK1, RASSF1A, RIZ-1, p16 and p14ARF genes were observed to be hypermethylated during progression of CML disease to advanced phases. The methylation frequencies of these five genes were seen to increase progressively during CML disease progression. This increase in hypermethylation of these five genes from was statistically significant with a p-value of &lt;0.0001, 0.001, 0.009,0.002 and 0.01 respectively. Although, there was a progressive increase in the promoter methylation of SOCS1 gene during the CML disease progression (CP= 4%, AP=8% and BC=16%) but this did not reached a statistical significance (p-value 0.1).

We also assessed the molecular response of these 100 CML patients after imatinib therapy and the patients were categorized into two groups; major molecular response group and loss of molecular response group. Out of 100 CML patients on imatinib therapy 52 achieved major molecular response while 48 patients showed loss of molecular response. Out of the above studied genes RASSF1 and RIZ1 promoter hypermethylation was significantly associated with loss of molecular response in CML patients receiving imatininb therapy. Out of 48 CML patients who were in loss of molecular response, 23.0% and 16.77% showed promoter hypermethylation of RASSF1 and RIZ1 genes respectively while out of 52 patients that were in major molecular response only 9.6% and 1.92% of patients showed hypermethylation in RASSF1 and RIZ1 genes respectively.

These results suggest that hypermethylation of tumor suppressor genes plays a significant role in the progression and response in CML.

Note: This abstract was not presented at the meeting.

Citation Format: Mamta P. Sumi, Sameer A. Guru, Imtiyaz A Najar, Mariyam Zuberi, N. Gupta, Alpana Saxena. Hypermethylation in promoter regions of CpG islands of multiple genes is associated with disease progression and molecular response in chronic myelogenous leukemia [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 831.