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Biomedical subjects

A Kumar

Publications and source records attributed to A Kumar.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed2005

Hereditary coagulation factor X deficiency.

Stuart Prower factor (Factor X) deficiency is a rare hereditary autosomal recessive coagulation disorder. We have come across three cases in the course of last 20 years at our institute. These patients presented with prolonged bleeding after minor trauma, epistaxis, subcutaneous bluish black nodules and two of them presented with history of consanguinity in parents. Hematological findings in correlation with clinical manifestations revealed severe factor X deficiency.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Analysis of essential elements in Pragya-peya--a herbal drink and its constituents by neutron activation.

Ayurvedic herbal formulations are a good source of several nutrient elements essential for metabolic processes. Pragya-peya, a herbal drink and its 12 herbal constituents have been analyzed for 7 minor (Al, Ca, Cl, Mg, Na, K, P) and 15 trace (Ba, Br, Co, Cr, Cs, Fe, Hg, La, Mn, Rb, Sc, Se, Th, V, Zn) elements by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). The method involves thermal neutron irradiation in a reactor followed by counting at several intervals. Also Cd, Cu, Ni and Pb contents were determined by atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). Elemental data were validated by simultaneously analysing reference materials (RMs) such as mixed Polish herbs (INCT-MPH-2) and peach leaves (SRM-1547). Sample homogeneity was tested by analysing samples from three different batches collected at different intervals. Pragya-peya has been found to be especially rich in several nutrient elements such as Ca, K, V, Fe, Mn, Se and Zn whereas no single constituent is enriched in all the nutrient elements. Concentrations of elements are discussed vis-a-vis their medicinal/therapeutic uses. Several elements such as Na, K, P, Ca, Fe, Co, and Zn seem to be well correlated in 12 constituent herbs.

Beverages↗
PubMed2004

Unusual presentation of lupus nephritis.

We report a male patient who presented with pyrexia, generalized lymphadenopathy, hepatosplenomegaly, and pleural effusion with no cutaneous or musculoskeletal symptoms. Despite extensive investigation, no cause was detected. His initial serology was also negative for autoantibodies. The patient was placed on a trial of antitubercular treatment in view of a positive Mantoux test. His disease evolved into the full clinical picture of systemic lupus erythematosus with nephritis (World Health Organisation class IV) and strongly positive antinuclear antibody and dsDNA over a period of months. He was treated successfully with intravenous cyclophosphamide pulses along with oral prednisolone, and the disease was still in remission after 3 years of follow-up.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Tagging and mapping of a rice gall midge resistance gene, Gm8, and development of SCARs for use in marker-aided selection and gene pyramiding.

Using amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs) and random amplified polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs), we have tagged and mapped Gm8, a gene conferring resistance to the rice gall midge (Orseolia oryzae), a major insect pest of rice, onto rice chromosome 8. Using AFLPs, two fragments, AR257 and AS168, were identified that were linked to the resistant and susceptible phenotypes, respectively. Another resistant phenotype-specific marker, AP19(587), was also identified using RAPDs. SCAR primers based on the sequence of the fragments AR257 and AS168 failed to reveal polymorphism between the resistant and the susceptible parents. However, PCR using primers based on the regions flanking AR257 revealed polymorphism that was phenotype-specific. In contrast, PCR carried out using primers flanking the susceptible phenotype-associated fragment AS168 produced a monomorphic fragment. Restriction digestion of these monomorphic fragments revealed polymorphism between the susceptible and resistant parents. Nucleotide BLAST searches revealed that the three fragments show strong homology to rice PAC and BAC clones that formed a contig representing the short arm of chromosome 8. PCR amplification using the above-mentioned primers on a larger population, derived from a cross between two indica rice varieties, Jhitpiti (resistant parent) and TN1 (susceptible parent), showed that there is a tight linkage between the markers and the Gm8 locus. These markers, therefore, have potential for use in marker-aided selection and pyramiding of Gm8 along with other previously tagged gall midge resistance genes [ Gm2, Gm4(t), and Gm7].

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Early versus delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis: a prospective randomized trial.

BACKGROUND: The role of laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis is not yet clearly established. The aim of this prospective randomized study was to evaluate the safety and feasibility of laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis and to compare the results with delayed cholecystectomy. METHODS: Between January 2001 and November 2002, 40 patients with a diagnosis of acute cholecystitis were assigned randomly to early laparoscopic cholecystectomy within 24 h of admission (early group, n = 20) or to initial conservative treatment followed by delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy, 6 to 12 weeks later (delayed group, n = 20). RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the conversion rates (early, 25% vs delayed, 25%), operating times (early, 104 min vs delayed, 93 min), postoperative analgesia requirements (early, 5.3 days vs delayed, 4.8 days), or postoperative complications (early, 15% vs delayed, 20%). However, the early group had significantly more blood loss (228 vs 114 ml) and shorter hospital stay (4.1 vs 10.1 days). CONCLUSIONS: Early laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis is safe and feasible, offering the additional benefit of a shorter hospital stay. It should be offered to patients with acute cholecystitis, provided the surgery is performed within 72 to 96 h of the onset of symptoms.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed2004

Templateless room-temperature assembly of nanowire networks from nanoparticles.

We demonstrate a new, room-temperature approach to assemble two-dimensional and three-dimensional networks of gold nanowires by agitating nanoparticles in a toluene-aqueous mixture, without the use of templates. The nanowires have a uniform diameter of about 5 nm and consist of coalesced face-centered cubic nanocrystals. Toluene molecules passivate the gold surfaces during nanoparticle coalescence, rendering the nanowires hydrophobic and enabling their transfer into the toluene layer. Such templateless low-temperature assembly of mesostructures from nanoscale building blocks open up new possibilities for creating porous self-supporting nanocatalysts, nanowires for device interconnection, and low-density high-strength nanofillers for composites.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2004

Traumatic abdominal wall hernia: a reappraisal.

Traumatic abdominal wall hernia, a rare cause of hernia, has a confusing clinical picture and requires a high index of suspicion for prompt diagnosis and management. Such hernias, if missed, can result in high morbidity and may prove fatal. Distinction from a pre-existing hernia is important as well. We report our experience in two such cases, which had presented in a span of 9 months, and submit a brief analysis of 50 reviewed cases.

Abdominal Injuries↗
PubMed2004

Classification of cardiac abnormalities using heart rate signals.

The heart rate is a non-stationary signal, and its variation can contain indicators of current disease or warnings about impending cardiac diseases. The indicators can be present at all times or can occur at random, during certain intervals of the day. However, to study and pinpoint abnormalities in large quantities of data collected over several hours is strenuous and time consuming. Hence, heart rate variation measurement (instantaneous heart rate against time) has become a popular, non-invasive tool for assessing the autonomic nervous system. Computer-based analytical tools for the in-depth study and classification of data over day-long intervals can be very useful in diagnostics. The paper deals with the classification of cardiac rhythms using an artificial neural network and fuzzy relationships. The results indicate a high level of efficacy of the tools used, with an accuracy level of 80-85%.

Arrhythmias, Cardiac↗
PubMed2004

Diversity of keratinophilic mycoflora in the soil of Agra (India).

Diversity of keratinophilic mycoflora in the soil of Agra was under observation for 1 year (July 2001-June 2002) and isolation of keratinophilic fungi was followed by the hair-baiting method. The frequency of occurrence of keratinophilic fungi in 284 soil samples collected from various hospitals, cattle yards, poultry farms, crop fields and playgrounds was determined, 204 samples (72%) having been found to be positive. A total of 33 species classified into 11 genera (Acremonium, Aspergillus, Chrysosporium, Emmonsia, Geomyces, Keratinophyton, Microsporum, Myceliophthora, Penicillium, Sporotrichum, Trichophyton) were encountered from the soil samples. Sporotrichum spp. were found to be the most dominant species followed by Trichophyton simii. The parameter of keratinophilic fungi found in the samples studied ranged from 62 to 80% where playgrounds yielded the maximum number of species (80%) while the least dominating soil was hospital soil (62%). Among all the baits used maximum fungi occurred on human hairs (82%) followed by chicken feather (74%), wool (61%) and the least on horns (45%). The spectrum of keratinophilic fungi isolated from different sites differed considerably according to the frequency of use by humans.

Fungi↗
PubMed2004

Transgenic overexpression of cardiac actin in the mouse heart suggests coregulation of cardiac, skeletal and vascular actin expression.

Previous studies have shown that depletion of cardiac actin by targeted disruption is associated with increased expression of alternative actins in the mouse heart. Here we have studied the effects of transgenic overexpression of cardiac actin using the alpha-myosin heavy chain promoter. Lines carrying 7 or 8 copies of the transgene showed a 2-fold increase in cardiac actin mRNA and also displayed decreased expression of skeletal and vascular actin in their hearts. In contrast, a line with more than 250 copies of the transgene did not show a similar decrease in the expression of skeletal and vascular actin despite a 3-fold increase in cardiac actin mRNA. While the low copy number transgenic mice displayed hearts that were similar to non-transgenic controls, the high copy number transgenic line showed larger hearts with distinct atrial enlargement and cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. Further, while the low copy number transgenic mouse hearts were mildly hypocontractile when compared with non-transgenic mouse hearts, the high copy number transgenic mouse hearts were significantly so. We conclude that in the presence of a small number of copies of the cardiac actin transgene, homeostatic mechanisms involved in maintaining actin levels are active and negatively regulate skeletal and vascular actin levels in the heart in response to increased expression of cardiac actin. However, these putative mechanisms are either inoperative in the high copy number transgenic line or are countered by the enhanced expression of skeletal and vascular actin during cardiomyocyte hypertrophy.

Actins↗
PubMed2004

Autophagic vacuoles are enriched in amyloid precursor protein-secretase activities: implications for beta-amyloid peptide over-production and localization in Alzheimer's disease.

In Alzheimer's disease (AD), the neuropathologic hallmarks of beta-amyloid deposition and neurofibrillary degeneration are associated with early and progressive pathology of the endosomal-lysosomal system. Abnormalities of autophagy, a major pathway to lysosomes for protein and organelle turnover, include marked accumulations of autophagy-related vesicular compartments (autophagic vacuoles or AVs) in affected neurons. Here, we investigated the possibility that AVs contain the proteases and substrates necessary to cleave the amyloid precursor protein (APP) to A beta peptide that forms beta-amyloid, a key pathogenic factor in AD. AVs were highly purified using a well-established metrizamide gradient procedure from livers of transgenic YAC mice overexpressing wild-type human APP. By Western blot analysis, AVs contained APP, beta CTF - the beta-cleaved carboxyl-terminal domain of APP, and BACE, the protease-mediating beta-cleavage of APP. beta-Secretase activity measured against a fluorogenic peptide was significantly enriched in the AV fraction relative to whole-liver lysate. Compared to other recovered subcellular fractions, AVs exhibited the highest specific activity of gamma-secretase based on a fluorogenic assay and inhibition by a specific inhibitor of gamma-secretase, DAPT. AVs were also the most enriched subcellular fraction in levels of the gamma-secretase components presenilin and nicastrin. Immunoelectron microscopy demonstrated selective immunogold labeling of AVs with antibodies specific for the carboxyl termini of human A beta 40 and A beta 42. These data indicate that AVs are a previously unrecognized and potentially highly active compartment for A beta generation and suggest that the abnormal accumulation of AVs in affected neurons of the AD brain contributes to beta-amyloid deposition.

Alzheimer Disease↗
PubMed2004

Efficacy of various amendments for amelioration of fly-ash toxicity: growth performance and metal composition of Cassia siamea Lamk.

Plants of Cassia siamea Lamk were grown in garden soil (control), fly-ash (100%) and fly-ash amended by various ameliorants (cowdung manure, press-mud, garden soil; 1:1, w/w). The plants survived in fly-ash (100%) though their growth was less in comparison to the treatments. Fly-ash+press-mud (1:1, w/w) proved to be the best combination as growth (total biomass, leaf number, photosynthetic area, total chlorophyll and protein) was significantly high in this treatment followed by cowdung manure and garden soil. Leaves and roots accumulated significant amount of Cu, Zn, Ni and and Fe. However, the concentration of all the metals was more in roots than leaves except Ni. Although, fly-ash contains high amount of metals but the metal uptake was more in the plants grown in fly-ash+press-mud mixture. Inspite of high metal availability in fly-ash and press-mud mixture, plant growth was good. This might be attributed to the some metal detoxification mechanism active in this treatment. The present study concluded that C. siamea seems to be a suitable plant for developing a vegetation cover on fly-ash dumps.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2004

Hepatitis E in pregnancy.

OBJECTIVES: To study the spectrum and the clinical and biochemical course of viral hepatitis E during pregnancy. METHODS: In this prospective study, sera of 62 pregnant women having jaundice in the third trimester of pregnancy were analyzed for markers of hepatitis A, B, C and E viruses. The cord blood samples of hepatitis E virus (HEV)-positive pregnant women at the time of delivery were tested for IgM anti-HEV antibodies by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and HEV-RNA by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS: Of the 62 patients, 45.2% had HEV infection and nine developed fulminant hepatic failure (FHF). Eighty-one percent of FHF cases and 37.25% of acute viral hepatitis cases were caused by HEV. Approximately two-thirds of the pregnant women with HEV infection had preterm deliveries. The mortality rate among the HEV-positive pregnant women was 26.9%. Vertical transmission was observed in 33.3% of cases. CONCLUSIONS: One-third of the pregnant women with HEV infection had a severe form of hepatitis in the third trimester of pregnancy, i.e. FHF. Hepatitis E in pregnancy is associated with high rates of preterm labor and mortality.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Differential expression of CXCR4 receptor in early and term human placenta.

Chemokines and their receptors play a crucial role in regulation of T-cell migration and differentiation. Recent findings suggest that these proteins can also regulate cell functions such as angiogenesis and proliferation. Besides, CXCR4, a chemokine receptor, is one of the two major co-receptors for entry of the HIV virus during the late stages of HIV infection. We have studied the expression of CXCR4 in early (8-10 weeks) and term human placenta. Immunofluorescence staining and RT-PCR analysis revealed a differential expression of the CXCR4 receptor. Densitometric analysis revealed a two fold higher expression of the CXCR4 mRNA in early as compared to term placenta. This finding suggests that the expression of CXCR4 receptor may be developmentally regulated and its role in the early stages of pregnancy is implicated, when embryogenesis and organogenesis takes place. The fact that only 1-2 per cent of the placental transmission of the HIV virus takes place in the early placenta may also be correlated with our findings, suggesting that CXCR4 may not have a direct role in the transmission of HIV infection in the placenta.

Adult↗