Pro-poor intervention strategies in irrigated agriculture in Asia: poverty in irrigated agriculture: issues and options: India

Irrigated farming / Poverty / Institutions / Irrigation programs / Performance evaluation / Irrigation management / Water distribution / Water rates / Cost recovery / India

Correlation of Serum Zinc Level with Hyperbilirubinemia in Neonates- A Case-Control Study

Introduction: Neonatal jaundice is the common cause of hospitalisation in the first month of life. Factors that affect the severity of neonatal jaundice includes maternal, pre-natal, and neonatal factors as well as environmental factors. Zinc (Zn) is one of the factors that affect the severity of neonatal jaundice as it prevents the lipid depolarization of the cell membranes. Hypozincemia may alter the erythrocyte membrane resulting in deficient synthesis of enzymes which play a key role in bilirubin metabolism. Aim: To correlate the serum Zinc level with bilirubin level in neonates with hyperbilirubinemia and also to compare with healthy controls. Materials and Methods: This case-control study was done in Clinical Biochemistry Laboratory of Father Muller Medical College and Hospital, Mangalore, Karnataka, India, from April 2018 to June 2018. Total 60 subjects were included in the study, which was divided into two groups: Neonates with clinically diagnosed hyperbilirubinemia (Group I) and normal healthy neonates as controls (Group II). Serum levels of zinc, total bilirubin, conjugated and unconjugated bilirubin were compared among groups. Correlation among the biochemical parameters was analysed by Karl Pearson’s Correlation Analysis. Results: In present study, 30 subjects were males and 30 females with mean age of 4.90±1.06 days among Group I and 2.50±1.61 days among Group II. This study observed significantly decreased mean levels of serum Zinc (171.24±19.82 μg/dL) in Group I patients when compared to mean levels of serum Zinc (189.23±17.90 μg/dL) in Group II controls. There was statistically significant positive correlation among serum levels of Zinc and total bilirubin in Group I patients (p<0.05) when compared to Group II. Conclusion: There was statistically significant positive correlation was found among serum levels of Zinc and total bilirubin in cases when compared to healthy controls. Current results showed, zinc may have a protective effect in the incidence of neonatal jaundice

New frontiers in type I diabetes treatment: the impact of mesenchymal stromal cells on long-term complications

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is not only a disorder of insulin production from beta cell destruction, but also a progressive condition that brings about life-threatening complications such as diabetic nephropathy, impaired wound recovery, and cardiovascular disease. Mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) use has recently become an encouraging new way to treat these complications and can result in better health outcomes for T1D patients. Some research has shown that MSC injections into mice and rat models have resulted in reduced mesangial cell thickening, inflammatory mediator recruitment, proteinuria, and fibrosis normally seen in diabetic nephropathy. Other studies have demonstrated that MSCs aid wound healing by increasing anti-inflammatory M2 macrophage differentiation, stimulating angiogenesis and collagen synthesis, and signaling the proliferation and migration of dermal fibroblasts toward injury sites. Additionally, there is evidence that MSCs are capable of activating the PI3K pathway and exhibiting antioxidant effects in murine models experiencing diabetic-related heart disease. However, given these efforts, further research is needed to establish the prolonged safety and efficacy of MSC use in humans to treat T1D

Correlation of Serum Zinc Level with Hyperbilirubinemia in NeonatesA Case-Control Study

Introduction: Neonatal jaundice is the common cause of hospitalisation in the first month of life. Factors that affect the severity of neonatal jaundice includes maternal, pre-natal, and neonatal factors as well as environmental factors. Zinc (Zn) is one of the factors that affect the severity of neonatal jaundice as it prevents the lipid depolarization of the cell membranes. Hypozincemia may alter the erythrocyte membrane resulting in deficient synthesis of enzymes which play a key role in bilirubin metabolism. Aim: To correlate the serum Zinc level with bilirubin level in neonates with hyperbilirubinemia and also to compare with healthy controls. Materials and Methods: This case-control study was done in Clinical Biochemistry Laboratory of Father Muller Medical College and Hospital, Mangalore, Karnataka, India, from April 2018 to June 2018. Total 60 subjects were included in the study, which was divided into two groups: Neonates with clinically diagnosed hyperbilirubinemia (Group I) and normal healthy neonates as controls (Group II). Serum levels of zinc, total bilirubin, conjugated and unconjugated bilirubin were compared among groups. Correlation among the biochemical parameters was analysed by Karl Pearson’s Correlation Analysis. Results: In present study, 30 subjects were males and 30 females with mean age of 4.90±1.06 days among Group I and 2.50±1.61 days among Group II. This study observed significantly decreased mean levels of serum Zinc (171.24±19.82 μg/dL) in Group I patients when compared to mean levels of serum Zinc (189.23±17.90 μg/ dL) in Group II controls. There was statistically significant positive correlation among serum levels of Zinc and total bilirubin in Group I patients (p&lt;0.05) when compared to Group II. Conclusion: There was statistically significant positive correlation was found among serum levels of Zinc and total bilirubin in cases when compared to healthy controls. Current results showed, zinc may have a protective effect in the incidence of neonatal jaundice.</jats:p

Regenerated Interneurons Integrate Into Locomotor Circuitry Following Spinal Cord Injury

AbstractWhereas humans and other adult mammals lack the ability to regain locomotor function after spinal cord injury, zebrafish are able to recover swimming behavior even after complete spinal cord transection. We have previously shown that zebrafish larvae regenerate lost neurons within 9 days post-injury (dpi), but the functional contribution of these neurons to motor recovery is unknown. Here we show that multiple interneuron subtypes known to play a role in locomotor circuitry are regenerated in injured spinal cord segments during the period of functional recovery. Further, we show that one subtype of newly-generated interneurons receives excitatory input and fires synchronously with motor output by 9 dpi. Taken together, our data show that regenerative neurogenesis in the zebrafish spinal cord produces interneurons with the physiological capacity to participate in the recovery of locomotor function.</jats:p