Intensive measures were initiated by the state with the help of central government health authorities including the National Centre for Disease Control, National Institute of Epidemiology, Indian ...Council of Medical Research (ICMR), and experts from AIIMS, New Delhi. 9 The continued degradation and fragmentation of the natural habitats of bats has resulted in an increased overlap of bat, domestic animals, and human ecologies, which has created increased opportunities for emergence of bat-borne zoonotic diseases. Design of forest management strategies that preserve bats' roosting and foraging landscapes and prevention of viral spillover from bats to humans require a complete understanding of the ecological narrative, linking of bat habitat with human and livestock activity to explain when, where, and why a virus emerges.
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•Various types of food wastes are generated from agricultural production to consumption reviewed.•Food wastes can be valorized by recovery, recycling and reusing.•Food wastes can be ...integrated to myco-biorefinery to obtain valuable products.•Food waste bioconversion helps waste management and value addition.
Increases in population and urbanization leads to generation of a large amount of food waste (FW) and its effective waste management is a major concern. But putrescible nature and high moisture content is a major limiting factor for cost effective FW valorization. Bioconversion of FW for the production of value added products is an eco-friendly and economically viable strategy for addressing these issues. Targeting on production of multiple products will solve these issues to greater extent. This article provides an overview of bioconversion of FW to different value added products.
Background: An outbreak of Nipah virus infection was confirmed in Kerala, India in May 2018. Five out of 23 cases including the first laboratory-confirmed case were treated at Baby Memorial Hospital ...(BMH), Kozhikode. The study describes the clinical characteristics and epidemiology of the Nipah virus outbreak at Kozhikode during May 2018. Objective: To study the clinical and epidemiological profile of Nipah virus epidemic that occurred in Kerala in May 2018. Methods: A collaborative team of physicians and epidemiologists from BMH, Medical College Hospital (MCH) Kozhikode and from the Indian Medical Association (IMA) conducted this study. The clinical and exposure history and the data on outbreak response were gathered from hospital medical records and through interviewing patient relatives and health workers using questionnaires. Results: It was identified that out of the 23 patients with Nipah virus infection, 21 (91.3%) expired. Out of the 21 patients, 18 tested positive for Nipah virus by Real Time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). It has been found that only the index case was infected in the community from fruit bats. Rest of the cases were due to transmission of the virus at three public hospitals. Median age was 45 years. 65% of them were males. Median incubation period was 9.5 days. Fever (100%), altered sensorium (84.2%), tachycardia (63.1%), hypertension (36.8%), segmental myoclonus (15.7%), segmental sweating (15.7%) and shortness of breath (73.6%) were common features. Mean duration of illness was 6.4 days. Conclusion: The rapid spread of infection uncovered the miserable state of health care system in implementing infection control measures. The case fatality and the socio-economic burden warrant developing appropriate treatments, vaccines and diagnostics.
Nipah Virus (NiV) is a highly fatal emerging zoonotic virus and a potential threat to global health security. Here we describe the characteristics of the NiV outbreak that occurred in Kerala, India, ...during May-June 2018.
We used real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction analysis of throat swab, blood, urine, and cerebrospinal fluid specimens to detect NiV. Further, the viral genome was sequenced and subjected to phylogenetic analysis. We conducted an epidemiologic investigation to describe the outbreak and elucidate the dynamics of NiV transmission.
During 2-29 May 2018, 23 cases were identified, including the index case; 18 were laboratory confirmed. The lineage of the NiV responsible for this outbreak was closer to the Bangladesh lineage. The median age of cases was 45 years; the sex of 15 (65%) was male. The median incubation period was 9.5 days (range, 6-14 days). Of the 23 cases, 20 (87%) had respiratory symptoms. The case-fatality rate was 91%; 2 cases survived. Risk factors for infection included close proximity (ie, touching, feeding, or nursing a NiV-infected person), enabling exposure to droplet infection. The public health response included isolation of cases, contact tracing, and enforcement of hospital infection control practices.
This is the first recorded NiV outbreak in South India. Early laboratory confirmation and an immediate public health response contained the outbreak.
Abstract Background aims Cell therapy is promising as an exploratory cardiovascular therapy. We have recently developed an investigational new drug named Stempeucel (bone marrow–derived allogeneic ...mesenchymal stromal cells) for patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) with ST-segment elevation. A phase I/II randomized, double-blind, single-dose study was conducted to assess the safety and efficacy of intravenous administration of Stempeucel versus placebo (multiple electrolytes injection). Methods Twenty patients who had undergone percutaneous coronary intervention for AMI were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive intravenous Stempeucel or placebo and were followed for 2 years. Results The number of treatment-emergent adverse events observed were 18 and 21 in the Stempeucel and placebo groups, respectively. None of the adverse events were related to Stempeucel according to the investigators and independent data safety monitoring board. There was no serious adverse event in the Stempeucel group and there were three serious adverse events in the placebo group, of which one had a fatal outcome. Ejection fraction determined by use of echocardiography showed improvement in both Stempeucel (43.06% to 47.80%) and placebo (43.44% to 45.33%) groups at 6 months ( P = 0.26). Perfusion scores measured by use of single-photon emission tomography and infarct volume measured by use of magnetic resonance imaging showed no significant differences between the two groups at 6 months. Conclusions This study showed that Stempeucel was safe and well tolerated when administered intravenously in AMI patients 2 days after percutaneous coronary intervention. The optimal dose and route of administration needs further evaluation in larger clinical trials ( http://clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT00883727 ).
This study investigates the incorporation of swarm robotics into the control mechanism of electric vehicles (EVs), introducing an innovative intelligent control framework that utilizes the concepts ...of decentralized decision-making. The research entails a methodical inquiry that encompasses the design of system architecture, the creation of a model for swarm robotics, the modeling of electric vehicle drive, the integration of swarm robotics with EV control, the development of algorithms for intelligent control, and the execution of real-world tests. The fleet of electric cars, propelled by a collective of independent robotic entities, displayed remarkable flexibility in adjusting to fluctuating surroundings. Findings demonstrated disparities in operating duration, distance traversed, mean speed, and energy expenditure during several iterations, highlighting the system’s adeptness in promptly reacting to instantaneous inputs. Significantly, the swarm-propelled electric cars successfully attained varied operating durations, showcasing the system’s adaptability in accommodating environmental dynamics. The swarm-driven system demonstrated its navigation effectiveness by effectively covering various distances, highlighting its versatility and extensive coverage capabilities. The system’s ability to effectively balance energy economy and performance is shown by the collective regulation of average velocity. The energy consumption study demonstrated the system’s efficacy in optimizing energy use, with certain experiments showing significant savings. Percentage change studies have yielded valuable insights into the comparative enhancements or difficulties seen in each indicator, so illustrating the influence of decentralized decision-making on operational results. This study is a valuable contribution to the ever-changing field of intelligent transportation systems, providing insight into the immense potential of swarm-driven electric cars to completely transform sustainable and adaptable transportation. The results highlight the remarkable flexibility and optimization skills of swarm robotics in the management of electric vehicles, paving the way for future advancements in the quest for intelligent, energyefficient, and dynamically responsive transportation solutions.
Many regeneration contexts require the presence of regenerating nerves as a transient component of the progenitor cell niche. Here we review nerve involvement in regeneration of various structures in ...vertebrates and invertebrates. Nerves are also implicated as persistent determinants in the niche of certain stem cells in mammals, as well as in Drosophila . We consider our present understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying nerve dependence, including evidence of critical interactions with glia and non-neural cell types. The example of the salamander aneurogenic limb illustrates that developmental interactions between the limb bud and its innervation can be determinative for adult regeneration. These phenomena provide a different perspective on nerve cells to that based on chemical and electrical excitability.
India experienced its sixth Nipah virus (NiV) outbreak in September 2023 in the Kozhikode district of Kerala state. The NiV is primarily transmitted by spillover events from infected bats followed by ...human‐to‐human transmission. The clinical specimens were screened using real‐time RT‐PCR, and positive specimens were further characterized using next‐generation sequencing. We describe here an in‐depth clinical presentation and management of NiV‐confirmed cases and outbreak containment activities. The current outbreak reported a total of six cases with two deaths, with a case fatality ratio of 33.33%. The cases had a mixed presentation of acute respiratory distress syndrome and encephalitis syndrome. Fever was a persistent presentation in all the cases. The Nipah viral RNA was detected in clinical specimens until the post‐onset day of illness (POD) 14, with viral load in the range of 1.7–3.3 × 104 viral RNA copies/mL. The genomic analysis showed that the sequences from the current outbreak clustered into the Indian clade similar to the 2018 and 2019 outbreaks. This study highlights the vigilance of the health system to detect and effectively manage the clustering of cases with clinical presentations similar to NiV, which led to early detection and containment activities.
Salamanders exhibit an extraordinary ability among vertebrates to regenerate complex body parts. However, scarce genomic resources have limited our understanding of regeneration in adult salamanders. ...Here, we present the ~20 Gb genome and transcriptome of the Iberian ribbed newt Pleurodeles waltl, a tractable species suitable for laboratory research. We find that embryonic stem cell-specific miRNAs mir-93b and mir-427/430/302, as well as Harbinger DNA transposons carrying the Myb-like proto-oncogene have expanded dramatically in the Pleurodeles waltl genome and are co-expressed during limb regeneration. Moreover, we find that a family of salamander methyltransferases is expressed specifically in adult appendages. Using CRISPR/Cas9 technology to perturb transcription factors, we demonstrate that, unlike the axolotl, Pax3 is present and necessary for development and that contrary to mammals, muscle regeneration is normal without functional Pax7 gene. Our data provide a foundation for comparative genomic studies that generate models for the uneven distribution of regenerative capacities among vertebrates.
The regeneration of complex structures in adult salamanders depends on mechanisms that offer pointers for regenerative medicine. These include the plasticity of differentiated cells and the retention ...in regenerative cells of local cues such as positional identity. Limb regeneration proceeds by the local formation of a blastema, a growth zone of mesenchymal stem cells on the stump. The blastema can regenerate autonomously as a self-organizing system over variable linear dimensions. Here we consider the prospects for limb regeneration in mammals from this viewpoint.
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