Visualization of an evaporating binary (ethanol-water) droplet reveals presence of oscillatory internal circulation. The visualization is done by using a laser scattering technique. The oscillatory circulation possibly results from the opposing effect of solutal and thermal Marangoni convection as proposed in some earlier theoretical works. The frequency of this oscillation is measured and the variation of this frequency with the initial concentration of the volatile component (ethanol) is reported.

An optimized protocol for Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of patchouli using leaf disk explants is reported. In vitro antibacterial activity of leaf extracts of the plants revealed Agrobacterium sensitivity to the extracts. Fluorometric assay of bacterial cell viability indicated dose-dependent cytotoxic activity of callus extract against Agrobacterium cells. Addition of 0.1% Tween 20 and 2 g/l L-glutamine to Agrobacterium infection medium counteracted the bactericidal effect and significantly increased the T-DNA delivery to explants. A short preculture of explants for 2 days followed by infection with Agrobacterium in medium containing 150 μM of acetosyringone were found essential for efficient T-DNA delivery. Cocultivation for 3 days at 22 °C in conjunction with other optimized factors resulted in maximum T-DNA delivery. The Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of leaf disk explants were found significantly related to physiological age of the explants, age and origin of the of the donor plant. Leaf explants from second node of the 3-month-old in vivo plants showed highest transformation efficiency (94.3%) revealed by transient GUS expression assay. Plants selected on medium containing 20 mg/l kanamycin showed stable GUS expression in leaves and stem. The elongated shoots readily developed roots on kanamycin-free rooting medium and on transfer to soil, plants were successfully established. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and reverse-transcriptase PCR analysis in putative plants confirmed their transgenic nature. The established transformation method should provide new opportunities for the genetic improvement of patchouli for desirable trait.

Treacher Collins syndrome has been described as a syndrome involving 1st and 2nd branchial arches, affecting various organs in the craniofacial region. Affected infants report with nasal regurgitation and minimal dietary intake due to cleft palate, consequently show delayed and retarded growth. The situation is further complicated when the repair of the palatal defect is postponed due to delayed milestones. At this juncture, it is of paramount importance to intervene prosthetically and close the defect with the aid of an interim obturator. Herein we describe a simple, yet successful, chairside approach to make an impression of an infant without the aid of any kind of anesthesia.

INTRODUCTION Under treatment of pain is a recognized global issue. Opioid analgesic medication is the mainstay of treatment in cancer patients as per the World Health Organization (WHO) pain relief ladder, yet 50% of cancer patients worldwide do not receive adequate pain relief or are undertreated. AIM The aim of this study was to audit the ongoing opioid-prescribing practices in our tertiary cancer pain clinic during January-June 2010. MATERIALS #ENTITYSTARTX00026; METHODS The prescribed type of opioid, dose, dosing interval, and laxatives details were analyzed. RESULTS Five hundred pain files were reviewed and 435 were found complete for audit. Three hundred forty-eight (80%) patients were prescribed opioids. Two hundred fifty-nine (74.4%) received weak opioids while 118 (33.9%) received strong opioids. A total of 195 (45%) patients had moderate and 184 (42%) had severe pain. Ninety-three (26.7%) patients received morphine; however, only 31.5%(58 of 184) in severe pain received morphine as per the WHO pain ladder. Only 73 of 93 (78.4%) patients received an adequate dose of morphine with an adequate dosing interval and only 27 (29%) were prescribed laxatives with morphine. CONCLUSION This study shows that the under treatment of pain and under dosing of opioids coupled with improper side effect management are major issues.

A new method for obtaining transgenic cowpea was developed using positive selection based on the Escherichia coli 6-phosphomannose isomerase gene as the selectable marker and mannose as the selective agent. Only transformed cells were capable of utilizing mannose as a carbon source. Cotyledonary node explants from 4-day-old in vitro-germinated seedlings of cultivar Pusa Komal were inoculated with Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain EHA105 carrying the vector pNOV2819. Regenerating transformed shoots were selected on medium supplemented with a combination of 20 g/l mannose and 5 g/l sucrose as carbon source. The transformed shoots were rooted on medium devoid of mannose. Transformation efficiency based on PCR analysis of individual putative transformed shoots was 3.6%. Southern blot analysis on five randomly chosen PCR-positive plants confirmed the integration of the pmi transgene. Qualitative reverse transcription (qRT-PCR) analysis demonstrated the expression of pmi in T(0) transgenic plants. Chlorophenol red (CPR) assays confirmed the activity of PMI in transgenic plants, and the gene was transmitted to progeny in a Mendelian fashion. The transformation method presented here for cowpea using mannose selection is efficient and reproducible, and could be used to introduce a desirable gene(s) into cowpea for biotic and abiotic stress tolerance.

The Nairoviruses are an important group of tick-borne viruses that includes pathogens of man (Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever virus) and livestock animals (Dugbe virus, Nairobi sheep disease virus (NSDV)). NSDV is found in large parts of East Africa and the Indian subcontinent (where it is known as Ganjam virus). We have investigated the ability of NSDV to antagonise the induction and actions of interferon. Both pathogenic and apathogenic isolates could actively inhibit the induction of type 1 interferon, and also blocked the signalling pathways of both type 1 and type 2 interferons. Using transient expression of viral proteins or sections of viral proteins, these activities all mapped to the ovarian tumour-like protease domain (OTU) found in the viral RNA polymerase. Virus infection, or expression of this OTU domain in transfected cells, led to a great reduction in the incorporation of ubiquitin or ISG15 protein into host cell proteins. Point mutations in the OTU that inhibited the protease activity also prevented it from antagonising interferon induction and action. Interestingly, a mutation at a peripheral site, which had little apparent effect on the ability of the OTU to inhibit ubiquitination and ISG15ylation, removed the ability of the OTU to block the induction of type 1 and the action of type 2 interferons, but had a lesser effect on the ability to block type 1 interferon action, suggesting that targets other than ubiquitin and ISG15 may be involved in the actions of the viral OTU.

Trauma causing the fracture of a restored tooth with the extracoronal full coverage prosthesis remaining intact is a common occurrence in dental practice. Reconstruction of the damaged tooth foundation and recementation of the crown can pose quite a challenge for the restorative dentist. This case report describes an innovative interdisciplinary chairside technique for the recementation of an all-ceramic crown on a fractured maxillary central incisor. The course of care described is effective, affordable, and saves time in comparison with other treatment options for such clinical situations.

Photoactivation localization microscopy (PALM) is used to study the spatial distribution and diffusion of single copies of the protein Kaede in the cytoplasm of live Escherichia coli under moderate growth conditions (67 min doubling time). The spatial distribution of Kaede is uniform within the cytoplasm. The cytoplasmic radius of 380 ± 30 nm varies little from cell to cell. Single-particle tracking using 4 ms exposure times reveals negatively curved plots of mean-square displacement versus time. A detailed comparison with Monte Carlo simulations in a spherocylindrical volume shows that the curvature can be quantitatively understood in terms of free diffusion within a confining volume. The mean diffusion coefficient across cells is <D(Kaede)> = 7.3 ± 1.1 μm(2)·s(-1), consistent with a homotetrameric form of Kaede. The distribution of squared displacements along the long axis for individual Kaede molecules is consistent with homogeneous diffusion. However, for longer cells, a spatial map of one-step estimates of the diffusion coefficient along x suggests that diffusion is ∼20-40% faster within nucleoids than in the ribosome-rich region lying between nucleoid lobes at the cell mid-plane. Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching yielded <D(FRAP)> = 8.3 ± 1.6 μm(2)·s(-1), in agreement with the single-particle tracking results.

BACKGROUND Breast surgery is associated with frequent post-operative nausea and vomiting (PONV). Studies have suggested that hormonal status affects PONV. Estrogen has been implicated in many emetic syndromes. Estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) status in breast tissue are hormonally affected. Kakugawa et al., in 2007, found a clear trend toward higher serum level of estrone, estradiol, and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate in post menopausal women with PR-positive cancer. PURPOSE To investigate the possibility of an association between ER and/or PR status of breast tumor and incidence of PONV after breast cancer surgery. METHODS This observational study included 315 female patients undergoing major breast surgery. Relevant patient data, and intra-operative and postoperative details were noted. Incidence of PONV was noted using the PONV score. Patients were divided into two age groups: less than or equal to 50 years and more than 50 years of age. The ER and/or PR status of the patient was unknown to the investigator until the final analysis. RESULTS Use of the chi-squared test revealed no association between ER and/or PR and total PONV. Patients below 50 years had higher incidence of total PONV (p = 0.023). In patients above 50 years, the incidence of PONV was higher in the ER-positive group (p = 0.018). CONCLUSION The incidence of PONV is higher for patients below 50 years of age. The positive association between ER positivity and PONV in patients above 50 years of age could be attributed to the altered hormonal milieu in these patients and should be investigated further.

Abstract Dental implants can be rendered useless due to complications related to implant components such as the fracture of abutment screw and prosthetic retaining screw. Removal of such fractured fragments is therefore deemed necessary for the sake of prosthetic restoration. This case report presents a rare incident of healing abutment fracture and details the stepwise and probably the most conservative clinical technique utilising ultrasonic oscillations for retrieval of fractured screw fragment without affecting the internal surface of implant. The management was based on the fact that the screw being an inclined plane will unthread, when subjected to continuous vibrations.