Single Trail Research Articles

Efficacy of Bio-agents and Neem Oil against Alternaria porri (Ellis) in Onion (Allium cepa L.)

Onion (Allium cepa L.) is one of the important cultivated vegetable crops and can be grown in temperate, tropical and sub-tropical climates. It is the important vegetable and spice crop and known as “Queen of the kitchen”. Area, Production and Productivity on onion in India (2020-21) was 16.54 million ha, 26.92 million Tones and 19.40 t/ha. There are many diseases and pests affecting onion. Among the diseases, majorly purple blotch, downy mildew, Stemphylium blight and basal rot attacks the onion and among the pests, onion thrips, red spider mite, onion fly attacks the onion. Among them, purple blotch of onion is one of the most severe diseases, which is caused by Alternaria porri which causes heavy losses in the onion. The treatments viz., Trichoderma viride, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Bacillus subtilis and neem oil were tested under field conditions against Alternaria porri during Zaid for their efficacy against the growth and disease parameters and an untreated plot will serve as control. At desired interval of days (45,60,75 DAT) readings were taken for growth parameters and disease intensity. Based on single trail, it was observed that among all treatments, seedling treatment with Trichoderma viride + Pseudomonas fluorescens + neem oil @ 5% showed the most significant results with maximum growth parameters and minimum disease intensity results followed by Trichoderma viride + Bacillus subtilis + neem oil @ 5% and the minimum growth parameters and maximum disease intensity was shown in untreated (control) plot.

Dynamic inverse SNR-decorrelation OCT angiography with GPU acceleration.

Dynamic OCT angiography (OCTA) is an attractive approach for monitoring stimulus-evoked hemodynamics; however, a 4D (3D space and time) dataset requires a long acquisition time and has a large data size, thereby posing a great challenge to data processing. This study proposed a GPU-based real-time data processing pipeline for dynamic inverse SNR-decorrelation OCTA (ID-OCTA), offering a measured line-process rate of 133 kHz for displaying OCT and OCTA cross-sections in real time. Real-time processing enabled automatic optimization of angiogram quality, which improved the vessel SNR, contrast-to-noise ratio, and connectivity by 14.37, 14.08, and 9.76%, respectively. Furthermore, motion-contrast 4D angiographic imaging of stimulus-evoked hemodynamics was achieved within a single trail in the mouse retina. Consequently, a flicker light stimulus evoked an apparent dilation of the retinal arterioles and venules and an elevation of the decorrelation value in the retinal plexuses. Therefore, GPU ID-OCTA enables real-time and high-quality angiographic imaging and is particularly suitable for hemodynamic studies.

Clinical Efficacy of Amroid Tablet and Amroid Ointment in the Management of Arsha (Hemorrhoids) - A Single-Arm Open-Label Clinical Trial

Arsha is very common anorectal disease presents with bleeding per rectum, pain in ano, peri anal inflammation, and itching per ano. In modern system, hemorrhoids is defined as abnormal engorgement of vascular anal cushions. Incidence of hemorrhoids increases day-by-day due to poor food habits and lifestyle. There are many medical and surgical methods available for hemorrhoids but now-a-days demand of Ayurvedic herbal preparation is increasing in the society. An open labeled single arm prospective trail were conduct to evaluate the efficacy of Amroid tablet and ointment in cases of Arsha, that is, hemorrhoids. Total 144 patients of 1st, 2nd, 3rd degree hemorrhoids were treated with two tablets of Amroid orally thrice a day and Amroid ointment applied locally at per rectal before and after defecation for 4 weeks and patients were follow for 8 weeks. Highly significant (P < 0.0001) results were found in Ano-rectal pain, inflammation, bleeding per ano, itching per ano, constipation, prolapsed of piles even after treatment of 1 week, and it sustained throughout follow-up of 8 weeks. This clinical trial concluded that Amroid tablet and Amroid ointment have been potential to cure hemorrhoid up to third degree.

Merging Architectural Structures with Forest Walkways: A Comprehensive Review of Treetop Walkways and the Fu Forest Trail of China

Treetop walkways are unique trail constructions. Their support structure suspends a walkway platform several meters from the ground, shuttling among the canopies of trees in the forest. Many countries have built canopy trails for forest recreation, tourism, and other uses. In certain cities, the treetop walkway is no longer a single building unit or forest trail in the narrow sense, and is planned as a multi-functional urban public landscape. This study reviews the development of treetop and elevated forest trails, introduces several representative cases, and provides a comprehensive reference point that fills previous research gaps. We also analyze the Fu Forest Trail, the most representative treetop walkway in China through, inter alia, its modular system, elevated structural, and design appearance. We explore the background and application of treetop trails that connect residents and the environment as a multifunctional urban public landscape in China, and related future research directions. We conclude that treetop walkways have many distinct advantages, and are becoming trendy in forest trail development; there is excellent potential to transform them creatively and innovatively into high-quality forest infrastructure or urban public landscape for public benefit.

Behavioural tagging: Effect of novelty exploration on plasticity related molecular signatures.

Learning and memory are one of those frontier areas of neurobiology which attract us to investigate the intricacy of this process. Here, we aimed to investigate the general mechanism of "Behavioural Tagging and Capture" in long term memory (LTM) formation and to find the key factors playing role in consolidation of LTM. In this study, we've shown that not only plasticity related proteins (PRPs) but neurotransmitters and immediate early genes (IEGs) also play an important role in memory formation process. It's very well evident that memory traces can last longer if close in time novelty is introduced around memory encoding. Here our results point out that this novelty exploration acts as a modulator in memory consolidation by providing PRPs such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB), enhancing neurotransmitters (Dopamine), IEGs (cFos) and some enzymes such as acetylcholinesterase (AChE), monoamine oxidase (MAO), sodium-potassium ATPase (Na+K+-ATPase). Therefore, by using a Novel Object Recognition task (NOR) in combination with novel task exposure, we evaluated the role of molecular markers in memory consolidation employing a behavioural tagging model. The purpose of the current study was first to evaluate the effect of novelty exposure around a single trail of NOR task in a critical time window on memory consolidation in rats after 24h and second to determine the expression of BDNF, CREB, c-fos, AChE, MAO, Na+K+-ATPase as potential markers in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) during memory formation. In the present study, to identify and validate the role of these molecular signatures in memory consolidation, infusion of the protein synthesis inhibitor Anisomycin (Ani) was done around the training session that causes a deficit in the formation of LTM when tested 24h after weak encoding. Altogether, here we are providing the first comprehensive set of evidences indicating that BDNF, CREB, dopamine, some enzymes and c-fos role in modulating LTM by employing behavioural tagging model.

Is hiking worth it? A contingent valuation case study of Multnomah Falls, Oregon

Multnomah Falls, a 620-ft-tall waterfall in the Columbia River Gorge, is the most visited natural site in Oregon. Its economic value is unclear, however, as the Falls are free to access. Due to a wildfire in 2017, the site was partially closed for over a year. Costly repair work was carried out along the single trail that allows visitors to hike to the top of the waterfall. In this study, we first determined the overall economic value of this iconic site. Secondly, we broke down the economic value by the different trail segments at Multnomah Falls. Using the contingent valuation method, we estimated willingness-to-pay (WTP) for the Falls (n = 1190) and counted visitors using infrared sensors along the trail and parking lot count data from June to September 2019 to obtain economic benefits across the population. We found that visitors who travelled to the top of the Falls experienced greater WTP than ones who only travelled to the bottom, with mean WTP ranging from $8.24 - $9.66 per trip. The total annual benefit provided by Multnomah Falls is estimated to be at least $11.23 m, which considerably exceeds the cost of repairing the trails after the fire (approximately $3 m).

Monitoring rhinoceroses in Namibia’s private custodianship properties

Routinely censusing rhinoceros’ populations is central to their conservation and protection from illegal killing. In Namibia, both white (Ceratotherium simum) and black (Diceros bicornis) rhinoceros occur on private land, in the latter case under a custodianship program of the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET). Black rhinoceros custodian landowners are responsible for the protection of the rhinoceroses on their land and are required to report regularly to the MET. Monitoring imposes a financial burden on custodians yet many of the techniques used involve expensive monitoring techniques that include the need for aerial support and/or animal instrumentation. During May and June 2018, WildTrack undertook a pilot study to census black and white rhinoceros on three private custodianship properties in Namibia. We tested three footprint identification methods for obtaining estimates of rhinoceros populations in an effort to provide less costly alternative monitoring options to rhinoceros custodians. The first was a full monitoring protocol with two components: (a) tracking each individual animal and matching them to their footprints, (b) identifying those individuals from the heel lines on the prints. The second method used simple visual heel line identification ex-situ, and the third method used just an objective footprint identification technique. These methods offer different options of fieldwork labour and cost and were designed to offer monitoring options to custodians that provided information about rhinoceros movement and location, with minimal disturbance to the rhinoceros, and best matched their human and economic resources. In this study, we describe the three methods and report the results of the pilot study to compare and evaluate their utility for rhinoceros monitoring. The first method successfully matched each trail photographed to a known rhinoceros at each site. When the other two methods disagreed with the first, they did so by failing to match single trails to a known rhinoceros, thereby creating fictitious identities consisting of a single trail. This failure occurred twice in one application, but otherwise at most once. We expect this failure can be eliminated through more stringent criteria for collecting photographs of footprints. We also briefly compare the use of footprint monitoring with other commonly used monitoring techniques. On this basis, landowners hosting rhinoceros can evaluate which method best suits their needs and resources.

Are tropical reptiles really declining? A six-year survey of snakes in a tropical coastal rainforest: role of prey and environment

Introduction: Even though snake declines seem to be a reality in many parts of the world, some reports are based on anecdotal evidence and there is a need of prolonged and intensive studies, especially in the tropics, for corroboration. Objective: To investigate if snake populations in Drake Bay are decreasing, and if there is a relationship with prey, time, temperature, rain and moonlight. Methods: We counted snakes seen per hour when walking along a single trail in the coastal forest of Drake Bay, Costa Rica. We walked the trail at night for a total of 842 nights (over 4 000 hours of observations), from 2012 through 2017 and recorded all the individual snakes we could see with head flashlights. We used ANOVA tests to check correlations among counts per hour with moonlight and rain; and graphic analysis for associations with diet, temperature, month and year. Results: We recorded 25 species (five families); which feed mostly on terrestrial vertebrates. Counts per hour have fallen over the years, especially for species that prey on amphibians and reptiles; Mastigodryas melanolomus has remained in similar numbers; and Siphlophis compressus has not been seen since May 2016. Temperature is relatively constant along the year in Drake, but month strongly affected the counts, which increased from August to September. Most species were seen more often in rainy nights (0.11 per hour versus only 0.03 per hour in nights without rain, ANOVA P < 0.05); we saw less Leptodeira septentrionalis on bright nights (0.12 per hour, versus 0.21 per hour in dark nights; ANOVA, P = 0.01), but all other species were unaffected by moonlight (ANOVA, P > 0.05). Conclusion: Night field counts of snakes in Drake Bay, Costa Rica, are not strongly affected by light or temperature, but are lower when there is no rain and show a strong decline from 2012 through 2017, particularly for species that feed on amphibians and reptiles. We have no reason to believe that the decline is an erroneous interpretation or that the snakes moved elsewhere, the decline of snakes in Drake seems to be real and needs attention from the conservation authorities.

DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF HUMAN COMPUTER INTERFACE USING ELECTROOCULOGRAM WITH DEEP LEARNING.

Today's life assistive devices were playing significant role in our life to communicate with others. In that modality Human Computer Interface (HCI) based Electrooculogram (EOG) playing vital part. By using this method we can able to overcome the conventional methods in terms of performance and accuracy. To overcome such problem we analyze the EOG signal from twenty subjects to design nine states EOG based HCI using five electrodes system to measure the horizontal and vertical eye movements. Signals were preprocessed to remove the artifacts and extract the valuable information from collected data by using band power and Hilbert Huang Transform (HHT) and trained with Pattern Recognition Neural Network (PRNN) to classify the tasks. The classification results of 92.17% and 91.85% were shown for band power and HHT features using PRNN architecture. Recognition accuracy was analyzed in offline to identify the possibilities of designing HCI. We compare the two feature extraction techniques with PRNN to analyze the best method for classifying the tasks and recognizing single trail tasks to design the HCI. Our experimental result confirms that for classifying as well as recognizing accuracy of the collected signals using band power with PRNN shows better accuracy compared to other network used in this study. We compared the male subjects performance with female subjects to identify the performance. Finally we compared the male as well as female subjects in age group wise to identify the performance of the system. From that we concluded that male performance was appreciable compared with female subjects as well as age group between 26 to 32 performance and recognizing accuracy were high compared with other age groups used in this study.

Signal identification system for developing rehabilitative device using deep learning algorithms.

Paralyzed patients were increasing day by day. Some of the neurodegenerative diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Brainstem Leison, Stupor and Muscular dystrophy affect the muscle movements in the body. The affected persons were unable to migrate. To overcome from their problem they need some assistive technology with the help of bio signals. Electrooculogram (EOG) based Human Computer Interaction (HCI) is one of the technique used in recent days to overcome such problem. In this paper we clearly check the possibilities of creating nine states HCI by our proposed method. Signals were captured through five electrodes placed on the subjects face around the eyes. These signals were amplified with ADT26 bio amplifier, filtered with notch filter, and processed with reference power and band power techniques to extract features to detect the eye movements and mapped with Time Delay Neural Network to classify the eye movements to generate control signal to control external hardware devices. Our experimental study reports that maximum average classification of 91.09% for reference power feature and 91.55%-for band power feature respectively. The obtained result confirms that band power features with TDNN network models shows better performance than reference features for all subjects. From this outcome we conclude that band power features with TDNN network models was more suitable for classifying the eleven difference eye movements for individual subjects. To validate the result obtained from this method we categorize the subjects in age wise to check the accuracy of the system. Single trail analysis was conducted in offline to identify the recognizing accuracy of the proposed system. The result summarize that band power features with TDNN network models exceed the reference power with TDNN network model used in this study. Through the outcome we conclude that that band power features with TDNN network was more suitable for designing EOG based HCI in offline mode.

Large Scale Calcium Imaging of the Cerebellar Vermis During Sensory Stimulus Unravels Two Response's Components That Differ in Their Spatiotemporal Properties.

The well documented precision of the cerebellar sagittal organization is commonly used to compose a comprehensive view on principles of cerebellar function. However, the physiological manifestation of this organization is either limited to information derived from single unit recordings or from imaging of a small group of closely located neurons. Here we used large scale imaging to monitor calcium concentration changes in the entire vermal area of folia V and VI in anesthetized mice. We found that the response to a strong auditory input or electrical shock to the tail area is composed of an early and a late component that differ in their spatiotemporal properties. The early component occurs throughout the scanned area whereas the late component reflects synchronous activation of Purkinje cells located along symmetric parasagittal bands that correspond well to sagittal band 2+ (Sugihara and Shinoda, 2004). Similar organization was found in the rigorously disorganized cerebellum of Cxcr4 KO mice, suggesting that the sagittal organization is determined by the climbing fiber inputs to the cerebellar cortex. The responses for both stimuli are followed by a prolonged recovery period but the rate of recovery from auditory stimulus is much longer, reflecting a different site for the adapting process. We suggest that these sensory inputs, which are commonly used to evoke startle response, activate two sets of climbing fiber inputs that differ in their spatiotemporal properties and contribute to the motor organization and habituation of the startle response.Significance Statement:The ensemble activity of neurons in the brain is one of the current challenges of neuroscience. Here we use a fast and large-scale calcium imaging system to monitor ensemble activity in the cerebellar cortex following auditory stimuli or electric shocks to the tail. The system, which enables the detection of the response to a single trail, reveals the robustness of the functional organization of the olivo-cerebellar system in sagittal bands that is preserved in genetically induced disorganized cerebellar cortex. Furthermore, the response, which represents the activation of two sets of climbing fibers inputs, is followed by a prolonged recovery process that indicates the cerebellar involvement in startle response.

Single trial classification of motor imagery electroencephalogram based on Fisher criterion

In order to realize brain-computer interface (BCI), optimal features of single trail motor imagery electroencephalogram (EEG) were extracted and classified. Mu rhythm of EEG was obtained by preprocessing, and the features were optimized by spatial filtering, which are estimated from a set of data by method of common spatial pattern. Classification decision can be made by Fisher criterion, and classification performance can be evaluated by cross validation and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Optimal feature dimension determination projected by spatial filter was discussed deeply in cross-validation way. The experimental results show that the high discriminate accuracy can be guaranteed, meanwhile the program running speed is improved. Motor imagery intention classification based on optimized EEG feature provides difference of states and simplifies the recognition processing, which offers a new method for the research of intention recognition.

More Accurate Differential Properties of LED64 and Midori64

In differential cryptanalysis, a differential is more valuable than the single trail belonging to it in general. The traditional way to compute the probability of the differential is to sum the probabilities of all trails within it. The automatic tool for the search of differentials based on Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) has been proposed and realises the task of finding multiple trails of a given differential. The problem is whether it is reliable to evaluate the probability of the differential traditionally. In this paper, we focus on two lightweight block ciphers – LED64 and Midori64 and show the more accurate estimation of differential probability considering the key schedule. Firstly, an automated tool based on Boolean Satisfiability Problem (SAT) is put forward to accomplish the automatic search of differentials for ciphers with S-boxes and is applied to LED64 and Midori64. Secondly, we provide an automatic approach to detect the right pairs following a given differential, which can be exploited to calculate the differential property. Applying this technique to the STEP function of LED64, we discover some differentials with enhanced probability. As a result, the previous attacks relying upon high probability differentials can be improved definitely. Thirdly, we present a method to compute an upper-bound of the weak-key ratio for a given differential, which is utilised to analyse 4-round differentials of Midori64. We detect two differentials whose weak-key ratios are much lower than the expected 50%. More than 78% of the keys will make these two differentials being impossible differentials. The idea of the estimation for an upper-bound of the weak-key ratio can be employed for other ciphers and allows us to launch differential attacks more reliably. Finally, we introduce how to compute the enhanced differential probability and evaluate the size of keys achieving the improved probability. Such a property may incur an efficient weak-key attack. For a 4-round differential of Midori64, we obtain an improved differential property for a portion of keys.

Comparing Automated and Manual Visitor Monitoring Methods: Integrating Parallel Datasets on Mount Fuji’s North Face

Due to their ease of installation and use, durability, and low cost, the use of passive infrared counters has increased rapidly in protected areas. This study investigated the calibration of one such beam sensor on the 8th station of Mount Fuji (3000 m) using a parallel count system at the 6th station (2390 m) as a manual control. Analysis of secondary data revealed the degree or error between 6th and 8th stations to fluctuate temporally, especially during congestion flashpoints such as Saturday and Friday nights. This suggests that current monitoring methods are underreporting the volumes of climber traffic at peak periods, but a calibration correction coefficient could be calculated by integrating the local and central government datasets. This study thus contributes to the pursuit of reliable, costeffective visitor monitoring methods by demonstrating an opportunistic and holistic combination of two pre-existing, longitudinal data sources. However, additional observational studies are still needed to supplement the findings of the continuous manual clicker data at the 6th with stratified random sampling at the 8th station for optimum integration of parallel monitoring methods. Improving the reliability of climber numbers via the generation of more accurate data is only the first step. Targeted intervention is required that actively utilizes such data to mitigate the current crop of management challenges including impacts on visitor experience (e.g., congestion) and on the natural environment (e.g., toilets, trash, trail conditions). Results provide useful pointers for park planners, site managers and decision-makers such as the Fujisan World Cultural Heritage Council. This study is one of a limited number of empirical case studies that tackle the inaccuracies of mechanical counting devices in a transparent and replicable fashion, using parallel counting systems along a single trail on Mt. Fuji’s north face to contextualize the correction coefficient based on specific site characteristics. Subscribe to JPRA

Offline Analysis for Designing Electrooculogram Based Human Computer Interface Control for Paralyzed Patients

Currently, majority of persons were immobilized and need aid from caretakers due to disability. To reduce and overcome such problem, there was a need for developing human–computer interface (HCI) with the help of biosignals. In this paper, we propose a two-channel elecctrooculograpy (EOG)-based HCI to encourage the contact ability as well as value of life for paralyzed persons who cannot speak or shift their extremity by using 20 subjects with the help of ADT26 Bio amplifier. EOG signals were collected for 11 tasks from both vertical and horizontal eye movement by using gold-platted electrodes. The extracted EOG signals were processed with convolution and Plancherel theorem to obtain the features. Layered recurrent neural network (LRNN) was implemented to analyze the extracted features and then converted into a sequence of commands to control the HCI. A graphical user interface was developed using MATLAB to help a user to convey their thoughts. This paper shows an average classification accuracy of 90.72% for convolution features and 91.28% for Plancherel features. Off-line single trail analysis was also performed to analyze the recognition accuracy of the proposed HCI system. The off-line analysis displayed that Plancherel features using LRNN were high compared to convolution features using LRNN. From this paper, we found that LRNN architecture using Plancherel features was more suitable for developing EOG-based HCI. Single trail analysis was conducted to identify the recognizing accuracy in offline. The off-line results indicated that in comparison with other EOG-based HCI systems, our system was user friendly and needs minimum training to operate.

Abstract 1295: Evaluation of the efficacy of TRAIL plus quercetin as a potential breast carcinoma therapeutic

Abstract Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women in the United States. There is a continued need for the development of selective and specific treatment options for all types of breast cancer, including hormone-dependent and triple-negative subtypes. Recombinant human Tumor Necrosis Factor-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand (rhTRAIL), the optimized form of the endogenous death ligand, shows potential as an effective anti-cancer therapeutic due to its ability to induce apoptosis in cancer independent of wild-type p53 function, while displaying minimal toxicity to normal cells. However, a majority of breast cancer cell lines exhibit resistance to TRAIL treatment due to up-regulation of pro-apoptotic proteins, down-regulation of anti-apoptotic proteins, and/or up-regulation of death receptors 4 and 5. To overcome TRAIL resistance, a cotreatment option has been explored utilizing the natural compound Quercetin (Q). Q is a flavonol found in certain fruits, vegetables, and teas. As a single agent, Q has been shown to have antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic effects on a variety of cancer cell lines. The aim of this study is to examine the capacity of Q to enhance TRAIL's pro-apoptotic and antiproliferative effects on breast cancer cells. Sulphorhodamine B (SRB) assays were performed on hormone dependent (MCF-7) and triple negative (BT-20) breast cancer cell lines to determine if the cotreatment of Q and TRAIL hinders cell growth. Growth for both MCF-7 and BT-20 cells was substantially inhibited by single agent Q treatments (12.5 μM; ∼20%, 25 μM; ∼40%, 50 μM; ∼60%) but not by single agent TRAIL treatment (100 ng/mL; <20%). Moreover, BT-20 and MCF-7 cell growth was further inhibited by cotreatment with both agents; for example, the cotreatment of 50 μM Q and 100 ng/mL TRAIL inhibited BT-20 and MCF-7 cell growth by 80% and 90%, respectively. As a single agent, Q was able to induce apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner in both breast cancer cells; thereafter, Q's ability to sensitize breast cancer cells to TRAIL-induced apoptosis was examined by western blot analysis. Compared to single agent treatments, the combination of Q and TRAIL enhanced the induction of apoptosis as indicated by increased PARP cleavage (a hallmark of apoptosis) and the activation of the executioner caspases 3 and 7. Furthermore, the cotreatment of breast cancer cells with Q and TRAIL enhanced the activation of the extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways, as assessed by the activation of caspase 8 and the release of cytochrome c from the mitochondria, respectively. Overall, these findings suggest that the cotreatment of Q and rhTRAIL possesses the potential to be an anti-breast cancer therapeutic by enhancing pro-apoptotic and anti-proliferative effects in hormone dependent and triple-negative breast cancer cells. Citation Format: Jasmine M. Manouchehri, Michael Kalafatis, Daniel Lindner. Evaluation of the efficacy of TRAIL plus quercetin as a potential breast carcinoma therapeutic. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 1295.

NEUROPROTECTIVE EFFECT OF AMORPHOPHALLUS CAMPANULATUS IN STZ INDUCED ALZHEIMER RAT MODEL.

Background:The present investigation deals with the assessment of neuroprotective effect Amorphophallus campanulatus (AC) tuber in alzheimer diseased (AD) rat and also postulates its possible mechanism of action.Material and Methods:AD was induced by administering streptozotocin i.e. STZ (3 mg/kg, ICV) day one and 3rd day after surgery. Surgery was performed on anesthetized rats by the help of stereotaxic apparatus. STZ induced AD rats were treated with petroleum ether extract of AC (100, 200 and 500 mg/kg, p.o.) for 14 days. Effect of AC tuber in AD rats were assessed by estimating the alteration in the behavior (Y maze apparatus and single trail passive avoidance), biochemical parameter in the brain tissue {Oxidative stress parameters (SOD, CAT and LPO), amyloid β peptide (Aβ) and acetylcholinesterase (AchE)} and histopathological study of brain tissue.Result:Treatment with AC shows significant (p<0.01) increased in the % of alteration in the behavior and step through latency in Y maze task and single trial passive avoidance test compared to AD rats. AC significantly (p<0.01) decreases the Aβ1-40, Aβ1-42 peptides and AchE in the brain tissue compared to AD rats. Whereas, treatment with AC significantly reduces the oxidative stress level in AD rats. Histopathological study reveals that treatment with AC extract reduces the amyloid plaque formation in the brain tissue of AD rat.Conclusion:The present study concludes the neuroprotective effect of AC extract in AD rats by reducing oxidative stress, Aβ and AchE in the brain tissue.

Effect of processing parameters on microstructure during laser-sustained plasma (LSP) nitriding of commercially-pure titanium

A nitrogen plasma can be sustained in air using a high-power CO2 laser. If nitriding of a Ti substrate is performed in the presence of such laser-sustained plasma (LSP) in open atmosphere, the following effects have been previously reported: increase in nitrogen intake, wider surface coverage, reduction in surface oxidation, and no attenuation of energy transfer to the substrate. This investigation expands on previous work by systematically studying the effects of varying process parameters on microstructure during LSP nitriding of CP-titanium. Microstructural features are reported as a function of off-focal distance, scan speed of the laser, and nitrogen:argon gas flow ratio. The top surfaces and transverse cross sections of these single trail nitriding runs were observed using optical and scanning electron microscopy. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and optical profilometry techniques were used to characterize the nitrided surface layer. The presence of LSP increased the solubility of nitrogen in liquid titanium leading to gas recombination and expulsion on the surface. This tendency decreased with increasing speed. Nitrogen dilution by argon was found to reduce crack formation. Further, nitrogen dilution reduced Marangoni convection in the melt pool. This changed the nitrogen transport mechanism in the melt pool from convection-dominated to diffusion-dominated, thus reducing nitrogen incorporation into the melt pool. Argon addition was also found to reduce surface roughness and surface oxidation. XRD and scanning electron microscopy revealed the presence of phases such as TiN, TiN0.3 and acicular martensitic titanium (α′-Ti). Future work will focus on depositing multiple overlapping nitride trails to form wide-area titanium nitride surface layers.

2-DG-Regulated RIP and c-FLIP Effect on Liver Cancer Cell Apoptosis Induced by TRAIL.

BackgroundCancer cells survival depends on glucose metabolism and ATP. Inhibiting glucose metabolism is a possible anticancer treatment. The phosphorylation of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG), which is a glycogen analogue, seriously affects the normal glycometabolism phosphorylation process, leading to ATP consumption. Studies showed that 2-DG could regulate RIP and c-FLIP. This paper aimed to investigate the effect of 2-DG on RIP and c-FLIP expression in HepG2 and Hep3B cells, further illustrating the effect and mechanism of 2-DG regulating RIP and c-FLIP expression on liver cancer cell apoptosis induced by TRAIL.Material/MethodsRIP and c-FLIP gene silencing HepG2 and Hep3B cell models were established by siRNA and detected by Western blot. Cell viability was determined by MTT and apoptosis rate was measured by flow cytometry. JC-1 fluorescent probe was used to test mitochondrial membrane potential.Results2-DG or TRAIL alone significantly reduced HepG2 and Hep3B cell survival rate and promoted apoptosis. Compared with the single TRAIL treatment group, the combination of 2-DG and TRAIL could reduce cell survival rate, increase apoptosis rate, and decease mitochondrial membrane potential, which is dependent on Caspases. 2-DG can inhibit RIP and c-FLIP expression, leading to increased TRAIL-induced HepG2 and Hep3B cells apoptosis.Conclusions2-DG can down-regulate RIP and c-FLIP expression, and change Caspases activities to increase the liver cancer cell apoptosis induced by TRAIL.

Cognitive mobile games for memory impaired older adults

Purpose – Cognitive self-rehabilitation lacks updated means and tools. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effect of cognitively simulating mobile games on the cognitive skills and recreation of older people with memory impairment. Design/methodology/approach – Mobile games that require cognitive skills were developed. The games were tested by memory-impaired older adults, average age of 90. Gaming interventions took place for three months on a daily basis. Game outcomes were automatically recorded and user feedback was collected by interviews. The progress of the testees was also evaluated by means of Trial Making Test A. Findings – Improvement in game scores was found. Other significant effects of game play were enhanced recreation and self-managed activity level. Game play did not have any effect on the traditional Trail Making Test results but the results of the Trail Making game showed improvement. The Trail Making game also showed a large variance in daily scores, which implies that performing just a single Trail Making Test might lead to misreading a person's condition. Research limitations/implications – The results are an encouragement for conducting further testing (on a larger test group, over a longer time) and continuing with game development for cognitively impaired older adults. A similar game trial will also be arranged for a younger population with better overall health condition. Practical implications – New business opportunities are also possible in game development and gaming services. Social implications – Games have the potential for self-rehabilitation and to support extending independent living at home. Originality/value – The paper provides a synopsis of novel cognitive recreation tools, an analysis of their effect and user feedback from professional staff as well as potential new ideas for game developers.