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Biomedical subjects

S Rai

Publications and source records attributed to S Rai.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Sorption of cadmium and zinc from aqueous solutions by water hyacinth (Eichchornia crassipes).

The water hyacinth (Eichchornia crassipes) has been successfully utilized for the removal of Zn(II) and Cd(II) as well as their admixture from samples of aqueous solutions. The growth of the plant after 16 days of exposure to the metal ions showed an increasing trend up to 2.5 ppm of Cd(II) and 6.0 ppm of Zn(II) concentrations, however, the growth became nondetectable or inhibited above these concentrations. The overall metal uptake by the plant was dependent upon the concentration of the metal and the duration of the exposure time. The metal uptake from a mixture of Cd(II) and Zn(II) was reflected by a rate constant quite different from those solutions containing only one metal ion. An analysis of metal in roots and tops of the plants showed that more Zn(II) was accumulated in the root when compared to Cd(II). However, the accumulation factor for the tops and the roots for Cd(II) and Zn(II) was higher than those obtained admixture of Zn(II) and Cd(II). The rate of metal mobility in the root was slower than that in the top of the plant for Zn(II) and Cd(II). A water hyacinth based system can be used to remove Cd(II) and Zn(II) from water/wastewater.

Adsorption↗
PubMed2006

A fatal pulmonary infection by Nocardia brasiliensis.

The reported case is of primary pulmonary nocardiosis, caused by Nocardia brasiliensis, in a immunocompromised patient, which ended fatally despite appropriate treatment. The partially acid fast filamentous bacterium was predominant on direct examination of the sputum. It was cultured on blood agar, MacConkey agar and by paraffin baiting technique. The bacterium was resistant to cotrimoxazole, the drug of choice for nocardiosis.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Urogenital myiasis due to Chrysomyia bezziana.

Genitourinary myiasis, associated with ulcerating lesions and poor hygiene of the local site, has been infrequently reported. We report a case of 45 year-old urinary incontinent female suffering from carcinoma cervix, who presented with genitourinary myiasis. The larva was identified as of Chrysomyia bezziana Villeneuve (C. bezziana).

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Iron deficiency anaemia--useful diagnostic tool for right sided colon cancers?

OBJECTIVE: Diagnosis of right-sided colon cancers requires total colonic imaging. The decision as to when a symptomatic patient should undergo a complete colonic imaging is difficult. It has been suggested that the presence of iron deficiency anaemia in such patients can be a useful tool in making that decision, as the vast majority of proximal colon cancers are anaemic. Our study aimed to evaluate the relation between proximal colon cancers and anaemia. METHODS: A list of 194 patients who underwent a right hemicolectomy for colon cancer was extracted from our hospital cancer database. The haemoglobin levels of each of these patients at the time of their referral were identified. The proportion of these patients, who had anaemia as per locally agreed guidelines, was determined. RESULTS: Only 44% of the men and 57% of women with proximal colon cancer were found to be anaemic. Even after using higher cut-off levels for 'low' haemoglobin, a significant proportion of patients were not anaemic. CONCLUSIONS: Anaemia is a poor predictor of right-sided colon cancers and cannot be used as an effective investigative tool in symptomatic patients.

Anemia, Iron-Deficiency↗
PubMed2003

Pineal control of immune status and hematological changes in blood and bone marrow of male squirrels (Funambulus pennanti) during their reproductively active phase.

In addition to pineal control of reproduction in seasonal breeders, melatonin is also known to influence various immune parameters. In the present experiment, we assessed the effect of exogenous melatonin treatment on different hematological parameters of peripheral blood and bone marrow cells, together with histological observations of spleen and thymus blastogenic response and stimulation ratio, and hormonal assays (melatonin and testosterone) of Indian palm squirrel (Funambulus pennanti) during their reproductively active phase when endogenous melatonin levels are low. Daily subcutaneous injection of melatonin (25 microg/100 g body mass.) at 17.30-18.00 h to adult male squirrels for 60 consecutive days during May-June significantly increased the lymphocyte count of blood and bone marrow and the blastogenic response/percent stimulation ratio of spleen and thymus. Histological observation showed densely packed thymocytes and splenocytes. During this period, peripheral testosterone level was high and melatonin was low establishing an inverse relationship as noted earlier for this squirrel. In pinealectomized squirrels, decreased total leukocyte count and percent lymphocyte count in peripheral blood and bone marrow, along with a decreased cell density in spleen and thymus was observed histologically. Further, melatonin treatment of pinealectomized squirrels resulted in restoration of the immune parameters in line with a normal control level. We suggest that during the reproductively active period of male Indian palm squirrels the lymphoid organs were sensitive to melatonin; hence, the exogenous melatonin treatment had an immuno-enhancing effect.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Serodiagnosis of Japanese encephalitis among Nepalese patients by the particle agglutination assay.

Japanese encephalitis (JE) is a serious health problem in the southwestern region of Nepal. Serological diagnostic kits for routine diagnostic use in this region have not been available. This study was performed to examine if the particle agglutination (PA) assay for Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) IgM could be applicable to the samples collected in Nepal and also to evaluate the accuracy of clinical diagnosis of JE. One hundred and ninety-three blood samples were collected from the patients clinically diagnosed with JE or other infectious diseases in the JE-endemic, southwestern region of Nepal, in 2000. The PA assay was performed on these 193 serum samples and the results were compared with those by IgM-capture ELISA. Eighty-six samples were IgM-positive by the PA assay, and 71 of 86 were also positive by IgM-capture ELISA (sensitivity, 99%; specificity, 88%; positive predictive value, 0.82; negative predictive value, 0.99). These results suggest that the PA assay is a simple, reliable and useful diagnostic test to support clinical diagnosis in rural hospitals of Asia including Nepal.

Agglutination Tests↗
PubMed2003

Diagnosis of abdominal tuberculosis: the importance of laparoscopy.

Abdominal tuberculosis (TB) tends to present with non-specific features and can be hard to diagnose. In the University Hospitals of Leicester, which serve a large immigrant population, 36 patients had this diagnosis between 1995 and 2001. We examined their records to identify features, including history, clinical presentation, investigations and diagnostic procedures, that might help with diagnosis of future cases. 32 of the patients were of Asian origin, predominantly from the Indian subcontinent. The most common presenting complaints were abdominal pain and weight loss. On clinical examination the findings were non-specific. Only 2 patients were found to have concurrent pulmonary TB. The most consistent laboratory finding (>90%) was a low haemoglobin with a raised C-reactive protein. The tuberculin test (Mantoux) was positive in only 7 patients (22%), and Ziehl-Neelsen staining of ascitic fluid was negative in all 11 patients in whom it was examined. An ultrasound scan of the abdomen revealed findings consistent with TB in 9/28 patients and a CT scan was helpful in 6/11. Laparoscopy, although usually performed as a last resort, proved the most effective investigation, yielding the diagnosis in 23 (92%) of the 25 patients in whom it was performed. In patients with the relevant background and clinical history, laparoscopy is the investigation of choice.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2000

Improvement in macular function after retinal translocation surgery in a patient with age-related macular degeneration.

PURPOSE: To assess focal electroretinographic findings before and after retinal translocation surgery in a patient with age-related macular degeneration. METHOD: Case report. A 79-year-old man with a well-defined subfoveal choroidal neovascular membrane from age-related macular degeneration underwent preoperative and postoperative focal electroretinography. RESULTS: After retinal translocation surgery, best-corrected Snellen visual acuity improved from 9/200 to 20/60. A significant increase in mean foveal amplitude, from 0.08 microV to 0.16 microV (P = 0.008) was recorded. CONCLUSION: Age-related macular degenerative changes in visual acuity and foveal electroretinogram amplitude may be reversible after retinal translocation surgery.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

Impact of the integrated child development services (ICDS) on maternal nutrition and birth weight in rural Varanasi.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact of ICDS on maternal nutrition and birth weight. SETTING: 28 ICDS and 21 non-ICDS villages in two adjoining blocks of Varanasi. METHODS: 5289 pregnancies were registered during 1987-1993 in these two blocks. In the ICDS block 916 and 1453 nutrition supplemented and unsupplemented, respectively and 1748 of the non-ICDS live births with weight recorded within 48 h formed the study subjects. RESULTS: The ICDS supplemented mothers gained 100g more in pregnancy and birth weight was higher by 58 g (p < 0.05) as compared to unsupplemented ICDS mothers. Birth weight in unsupplemented ICDS areas was 25g higher as compared to non ICDS area. ICDS supplemented women had a significantly smaller proportion of low birth weight babies (14.4%) compared to ICDS unsupplemented (20.4%) and non-ICDS women (26.3%). The corresponding prevalence of preterm births was 2.0, 2.4 and 4.3%, respectively (P < 0.001). Multiple regression analysis showed that increased wight gain in pregnancy, length of gestation, caloric intake and term hemoglobin were significantly associated with birth weight. However, the length of gestation was not influenced by factors improving the birth weight. CONCLUSION: Undernourished pregnant women are benefitted by late pregnancy nutrition supplement

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Cortical motor overactivation in parkinsonian patients with L-dopa-induced peak-dose dyskinesia.

We have studied the regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) changes induced by the execution of a finger-to-thumb opposition motor task in the supplementary and primary motor cortex of two groups of parkinsonian patients on L-dopa medication, the first one without L-dopa induced dyskinesia (n = 23) and the other with moderate peak-dose dyskinesia (n = 15), and of a group of 14 normal subjects. Single photon emission tomography with i.v. 133Xe was used to measure the rCBF changes. The dyskinetic parkinsonian patients exhibited a pattern of response which was markedly different from those of the normal subjects and non-dyskinetic parkinsonian patients, with a significant overactivation in the supplementary motor area and the ipsi- and contralateral primary motor areas. These results are compatible with the hypothesis that an hyperkinetic abnormal involuntary movement, like L-dopa-induced peak dose dyskinesia, is due to a disinhibition of the primary and associated motor cortex secondary to an excessive outflow of the pallidothalamocortical motor loop.

Aged↗