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Biomedical subjects

N Verma

Publications and source records attributed to N Verma.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Changes in region- and cell type-specific expression patterns of neutral amino acid transporter 1 (ASCT-1) in the anterior cingulate cortex and hippocampus in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression.

Although, the pathogenetic mechanisms of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression are not clearly understood, various neurotransmitter systems are reported to have altered expression patterns of their receptor and transporter proteins. Changes in the expression of the neutral amino acid transporter 1 (ASCT-1) protein in the anterior cingulate gyrus and the hippocampus were investigated using immunohistochemistry and western blotting. A significant decrease in ASCT-1 immunoreactivity in neurons in the cingulate cortex as well as astrocytes of the white matter was seen in schizophrenia. In bipolar disorder and major depression, similar results were seen for neurons. In the hippocampus, there was a striking loss of immunoreactivity on astrocytes, neurons and interneurons in multiple regions in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, while only minor changes were seen in major depression. The altered expression of ASCT-1 in neurons and astrocytes reflects profound changes in glutamatergic neurotransmission and highlights a significant role of astrocytes in the pathophysiology of neurotransmission in these major psychiatric disorders.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Antifungal anthraquinones from Saprosma fragrans.

A new 3,4-dihydroxy-1-methoxy anthraquinone-2-corboxaldehyde (1) together with a known anthraquinone, damnacanthal (2), were isolated from the chloroform fraction of the aerial part (whole plant without root) of Saprosma fragrans. The isolated anthraquinones (1) and (2) were found to exhibit antifungal activity against Trichophyton mentagrophytes and Sporitrichum schenckii. Their structures were established by chemical and spectral analysis.

Anthraquinones↗
PubMed2005

Visceral leishmaniasis (kala-azar)--the Bihar (India) perspective.

From a hospital-based surveillance carried out in Rajendra Memorial Research Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna, Bihar, India, the socio-economic, demographic and treatment response information of 737 patients admitted with visceral leishmaniasis (VL) during January 2001-December 2003, were analysed. The disease was two times higher in males than in females because of several factors including clothing pattern, sleeping habits and occupation. In Bihar, the second poorest state in India, poverty plays a major role in perpetuation of the disease, contributing to malnutrition, illiteracy (60%), and poor housing (82%). Further, presences of peri-domestic animal shelters around houses (63%) and vegetations (77%) facilitate breeding of sand fly vector. Clinical and laboratory characteristics were similar in the age groups <12 years and >12 years. The increasing unresponsiveness of VL patients to conventional anti-leishmanial drugs, e.g. sodium antimony gluconate (SAG) and pentamidine, has definitely posed a major therapeutic challenge in combating the disease. Amphotericin B, though costly, is highly effective. Miltefosine is a highly promising new oral drug for VL.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Separation of 9-methoxycamptothecin and camptothecin from Nothapodytes foetida by semipreparative HPLC.

The present work describes the isolation of camptothecin and 9-methoxycamptothecin from the aerial parts of Nothapodytes foetida by semipreparative high-performance liquid chromatography because the separation of compounds by conventional procedures is tedious and cumbersome. The purity of the isolates is determined by physicochemical data and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Camptothecin↗
PubMed2005

Usefulness of the direct agglutination test in the early detection of subclinical Leishmania donovani infection: a community-based study.

The value of a direct agglutination test (DAT) in the detection of subclinical infections with Leishmania donovani has recently been investigated in the Indian state of Bihar, after the sensitivity and specificity of the test had been determined. When used to screen sera from 108 parasitologically confirmed cases of visceral leishmaniasis, 50 patients with active, non-leishmanial infection, and 641 healthy controls living close to, or distant from, an endemic area, the test was found to be 91.7% sensitive and 100% specific if a titre of 1:800 was used as the threshold for seropositivity. During a longitudinal clinical study in a rural, VL-endemic area of the Indian state of Bihar, the test was used, with 1:800 set as the threshold titre, to determine the baseline prevalence of infection with L. donovani among villagers who, though showing no symptoms of VL, had recently been febrile for at least 2 weeks. The 234 subjects of this study were either VL-case contacts [i.e. members of households in which there were active or cured VL cases (N=78)] or the members of control households with no cases or history of the disease (N=156). The results of DAT at the start of the study indicated that 49 (20.9%) of the subjects--29 (37.2%) of the VL-case contacts and 20 (12.8%) of the other subjects--were seropositive and therefore probably had subclinical infections with L. donovani. During the subsequent 9 months of follow-up, however, only eight of the subjects found seropositive at the start of the study--seven (24.1%) of the seropositive case contacts but only one (5.0%) of the other seropositives--developed symptomatic VL, all by month 6 of the follow-up. Compared with their neighbours, therefore, individuals who shared households with active or cured cases of VL appeared at greater risk not only of L. donovani infection (indicating focal transmission) but also of developing symptomatic disease once infected. Curiously, among the seropositive case contacts, those from the households that harboured active cases of VL at the baseline survey were less likely to develop symptomatic VL during the 9 months of follow-up than those from households that harboured only cured cases (18.8% v. 30.8%). The wide-spread use of DAT could allow the detection and early treatment of latent L. donovani infections and so contribute to the elimination of VL, at least as a public-health problem, from India.

Agglutination Tests↗
PubMed2003

Cutaneous sporotrichosis: an unusual clinico-pathologic and therapeutic presentation.

This report presents a number of unusual clinico-histopathologic and therapeutic features in a culture proven case of cutaneous sporotrichosis. These include lymphocutaneous sporotrichosis involving face; its dissemination in an otherwise healthy patient; its histology mimicking cutaneous cryptococcosis; two episodes of severe purulent inflammatory reaction bordering the lesion during therapy with saturated solution of potassium iodide; no therapeutic response to potassium iodide therapy and rapid healing of lesion with high-dose of fluconazole.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

A simple and reliable semipreparative high-performance liquid chromatography technique for the isolation of marker-grade hyperforin from Hypericum perforatum L extract.

The present work describes isolation of bioactive lipophilic constituent [namely, hyperforin from St. John's wort (Hypericum perforatum L.)], of approximately 98% purity by semipreparative high-performance liquid chromatography (LC). The extraction, isolation, and analysis of the collected compound is performed without the use of antioxidants and inert gas atmospheres at all the stages. Hyperforin, separated isocratically on a 12microm semiprep column, is obtained in high purity, lyophilized after the removal of the organic phase, and preserved at a low temperature. The purity of the collected marker compound is estimated by the use of LC-mass spectrometry and spectroscopic techniques.

Bridged Bicyclo Compounds↗
PubMed2002

Bioactivities of the leaf essential oil of Curcuma longa (var. ch-66) on three species of stored-product beetles (Coleoptera).

Essential oil extracted from the leaves of turmeric, Curcuma longa L., was investigated for contact and fumigant toxicity and its effect on progeny production in three stored-product beetles, Rhyzopertha dominica F. (lesser grain borer), Sitophilus oryzae L. (rice weevil), and Tribolium castaneum Herbst (red flour beetle). Oviposition-deterrent and ovicidal actions of C. longa leaf oil were also evaluated against T. castaneum. The oil was insecticidal in both contact and fumigant toxicity assays. The adults of R. dominica were highly susceptible to contact action of C. longa leaf oil, with LD50 value of 36.71 microg/mg weight of insect, whereas in the fumigant assay, adults of S. oryzae were highly susceptible with LC50 value of 11.36 mg/liter air. Further, in T. castaneum, the C. longa oil reduced oviposition and egg hatching by 72 and 80%, respectively at the concentration of 5.2 mg/cm2. At the concentration of 40.5 mg/g food, the oil totally suppressed progeny production of all the three test insects. Nutritional indices indicate >81% antifeedant action of the oil against R. dominica, S. oryzae and T castaneum at the highest concentration tested.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Acute interstitial nephritis secondary to infectious mononucleosis.

Renal involvement in infectious mononucleosis (IM) is infrequent. In most cases it is self-limited and is rarely associated with loss of renal function. The purpose of this case report is to document a case of acute interstitial nephritis (AIN) leading to acute renal failure (ARF) in a patient with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection and to review literature of EBV infection and its renal manifestation. The patient was managed with hemodialysis and steroids and made an uneventful recovery. Renal involvement in IM may be more common than generally appreciated and may occasionally lead to ARF. Therapy with corticosteroids may have role in the management of IM-induced ARF and may shorten the duration of renal failure.

Acute Kidney Injury↗
PubMed2001

Improving access to specialist care for remote Aboriginal communities: evaluation of a specialist outreach service.

OBJECTIVE: To identify barriers faced by Aboriginal people from remote communities in the Northern Territory (NT) when accessing hospital-based specialist medical services, and to evaluate the impact of the Specialist Outreach Service (SOS) on these barriers. DESIGN: Combined quantitative and qualitative study. SETTING: Remote Aboriginal communities in the "Top End" of the NT, 1993-1999 (spanning the introduction of the SOS in 1997). PARTICIPANTS: 25 remote health practitioners, patients and SOS specialists. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Numbers of consultations with specialists; average cost per consultation; perceived barriers to accessing hospital-based outpatient care; and perceived impact of specialist outreach on these barriers. RESULTS: Perceived barriers included geographic remoteness, poor doctor-patient communication, poverty, cultural differences, and the structure of the health service. Between 1993 and 1999, there were 5,184 SOS and non-SOS outreach consultations in surgical specialties. Intensive outreach practice (as in gynaecology and ophthalmology) increased total consultations by up to 441% and significantly reduced the number of transfers to hospital outpatient clinics (P< 0.001). Average cost per consultation was $277 for SOS consultations, compared with $450 at Royal Darwin Hospital and $357 at the closest regional hospital. Outreach has reduced barriers relating to distance, communication and cultural differences, and potentially bolsters existing primary healthcare services. CONCLUSIONS: When compared with hospital-based outpatient services alone, outreach is a more accessible, appropriate and efficient method of providing specialist medical services to remote Aboriginal communities in the NT.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed2001

Modulation of radiation-induced protein kinase C activity by phenolics.

Natural phenolic compounds were tested in vitro for their effect on the activity of protein kinase C (PKC) isolated from the liver cytosol and the particulate fraction of unirradiated mice and mice irradiated at 5 Gy. Following irradiation, the PKC activity was found to be increased in both cytosolic and particulate fractions. Curcumin, ellagic acid and quercetin were effective in inhibiting radiation-induced PKC activity. Curcumin and ellagic acid were found to be more inhibitory towards radiation-induced PKC activity, while quercetin was the least effective. Curcumin was found to inhibit the activated cytosolic and particulate PKC at very low concentrations. Activation of PKC is one of the means of conferring radioresistance on a tumour cell. Suppression of PKC activity by phenolics may be one of the means of preventing the development of radioresistance following radiotherapy.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Injury severity and sensitivity to treatment after controlled cortical impact in rats.

We sought to determine sensitivity of the cortical impact injury model of traumatic brain injury (TBI) to severity of injury and to treatment. We examined the pattern of motor and cognitive deficits and recovery following TBI over a range of injury severities, and examined the efficacy of surface-induced moderate hypothermia at three disparate injury levels. In experiment I, Sprague-Dawley rats were injured at one of eight injury severity levels from 0 mm (sham) to 2.5 mm depth of penetration. On postinjury day 1, balance beam, rotorod performance, and posture reflexes were evaluated. Motor outcome was increasingly impaired with increasing injury levels, with the pattern of deficits showing a step-like function. Cognitive deficits, assessed using water maze on day 7, were more severe for the 2.5-mm group than for the 1.6-mm injury group, while the 1.0-mm group did not differ from the sham controls. In experiments II-IV, hypothermia, 30 degrees C for 3-h duration or normothermia was applied to three injury levels: 1.0 mm, the least cortical deformation; 2.5 mm, the most deformation; and 1.6 mm, representing a level in-between. Neurologic outcome was assessed relative to shams on postinjury days 1, 3, and 5. The 1.0-mm group exhibited small deficits that recovered completely by day 3; the 1.6-mm group recovered to the level of shams by day 5, and the 2.5-mm group did not show significant recovery during the testing period. Hypothermia effectively attenuated behavioral deficits for the 1.6-mm group, but had no effect on the other two groups. These three observations--that increasing injury severity is associated with increasing motor and cognitive deficits, that injury severity is related to recovery time, and that hypothermia treatment is selectively effective--have each been reported in the human TBI population; thus, moderate cortical impact injury in rats may be a model with clinical predictability for evaluating neuroprotective therapies.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

A randomized clinical trial of low dosage combination of pentamidine and allopurinol in the treatment of antimony unresponsive cases of visceral leishmaniasis.

OBJECTIVES: A randomized clinical trial of low dosage combination of pentamidine and allopurinol was carried out with objectives to assess the efficacy and toxicity as compared to full dosage of pentamidine in antimony unresponsive visceral leishmaniasis (VL) patients. METHODS: Using a randomized control clinical trial, a total of 158 antimony unresponsive patients of VL were randomly allocated into two treatment groups. Patients in one group (n=80) received half the dosage of pentamidine i.e. 2 mg/kg body weight by IM route on alternate day and allopurinol in dose of 15 mg/kg body weight in three divided dosages for 30 days; patients in the second group (n=78) received pentamidine in dose of 4 mg/kg body weight by IM route on alternate day for 15 injections in 30 days. The efficacy and safety of the two regimens were compared. RESULTS: Apparent cure i.e. clinical and pathological cure at the end of therapy, in 78 (97.5%) and 67 (86%), and ultimate cure i.e. clinical and parasitological cure at the end of follow-up of six months, in 73 (91.25%) and 58 (74.35%) patients was observed in the combination regimen and single regimen group respectively. The difference of the ultimate cure between two groups of the patients was statistically significant (p < 0.01). In single regimen group, 11 (14%) patients showed primary unresponsiveness (with no response during treatment) and nine (13%) relapse (after six months of follow-up) respectively, where as in combination regimen group, two (2.5%) patients showed primary unresponsiveness and five (6.4%) relapse respectively. By the end of the treatment, the incidence of injection-related toxicity, such as rigor and fever, was same in both groups. No hyperglycemia was observed in combination therapy probably due to reduced dose of pentamidine and three patients in single regimen developed hyperglycemia and one of them developed irreversible hyperglycemia. CONCLUSIONS: The study showed that the combination of pentamidine (half dose) and allopurinol is more effective in achieving ultimate cure with an added advantage of reduced toxicity in unresponsive cases as compared to full pentamidine dose.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Leishmania donovani in blood smears of asymptomatic persons.

Leishmania amastigotes have been detected in the peripheral blood smears of Indian kala-azar patients mostly during night. It was, therefore, thought worthwhile to find out whether such amastigotes could be shown in healthy subjects who did not have any symptoms by history or signs on clinical examination. Leishmania-stained blood smears of 450 asymptomatic healthy individuals residing in an endemic village in Bihar (India) were examined by oil-immersion microscopy for the detection of amastigote, six people (1.3%) showed the presence of Leishmania amastigotes. Given the low sensitivity of a single smear examination it is likely that a much greater proportion of asymptomatic persons had parasitemia than the observed 1.3%. This finding is important from the point of view of transmission of disease, as also for modifying the current control measures.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Screening sandflies for natural infection with Leishmania donovani, using a non-radioactive probe based on the total DNA of the parasite.

Digoxigenin-labelled total, Leishmania donovani DNA was used as a probe to detect the parasite in Indian Phlebotomus argentipes. The probe was quite sensitive, detecting as little as 0.3 pg parasite DNA, equivalent to approximately 100 parasites. Positive signals could be detected in 12 (32%) of the 38 small (two- to 30-fly) pools of the wild-caught P. argentipes investigated and in a pool of 10 laboratory-bred P. argentipes fed on a patient with post-kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis. None of the wild-caught P. papatasi, P. sergenti or Sergentomyia sp. or of the newly emerged, laboratory-bred P. argentipes investigated were positive by this probe. The results indicate that such a probe may be very useful in screening sandflies for L. donovani, and so detecting the main vectors and transmission pathways of this parasite, in India and elsewhere.

Animals↗