171 research outputs found
First person - Sonal
No full textFirst Person is a series of interviews with the first authors of a selection of papers published in Journal of Cell Science, helping early-career researchers promote themselves alongside their papers. Sonal is the first author on ‘Myosin-II activity generates a dynamic steady state with continuous actin turnover in a minimal actin cortex’, published in Journal of Cell Science. Sonal conducted the research in this article while a PhD student in the lab of Petra Schwille at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Martinsried, Germany, studying biological pattern formation using a bottom-up reconstitution approach
The potential of proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H MRS) in detecting early colonic inflammation and assessing the effect of various dietary fatty acids on modulation of inflammatory bowel disease in an animal model
No full textThe objectives of our study were to determine the potential of 1H MRS in detecting (1) early colonic inflammation, (2) effects of various fatty acids on normal colon and (3) their effects on IBD. Sprague dawley rat fed with 2% carrageenan was used as a model of IBD. Flaxseed oil served as ω-3, corn oil as ω-6 and beef tallow as saturated fatty acid sources. Control group animals were fed 5% corn oil, whereas, those in high-fat diet groups received an additional 7% of the respective fatty acids. After 2 weeks, 1H MRS and histology were conducted on excised colonic mucosa.
Statistical classification strategy (SCS) used for analyzing 1H MRS data achieved an accuracy of 82 % in stage 1, 90-100% in stage 2 and 96-100% in stage 3. This implies that 1H MRS is a sensitive tool to diagnose early IBD and the effects of dietary fat on IBD.May 200
Estimation of Salt Intake by 24 Hours Urinary Sodium Excretion in Normotensive Subjects of Jaipur City, Rajasthan
No full textThe prevalence of hypertension has increased dramatically in developing countries like India, where marked changes have occurred in food consumption pattern changing to more western along with traditional which also contributes rich amount of sodium in our cuisines. Given the rising burden of hypertension and high salt consumption, the priority intervention of choice for hypertension prevention and control is population-wide salt reduction. Therefore it’s imperative to determine current consumption levels so that appropriate evidence-based preventative public health action can be initiated. Such data is critical in facilitating the development and implementation of an India-specific salt reduction programme. The study was conducted on 30 subjects residing in Jaipur city. Sodium consumption of the subjects was found by using 24 hours urinary sodium excretion, “gold standard” method suggested by WHO/PAHO (2010) and 24 hours dietary recall for three days including one holiday. The findings of the study indicated that the condition is alarming in Jaipur City as subjects are found to be consuming much more of sodium (4474 mg/day in males and 4150.30 mg/day in females) than recommended by WHO, i.e. less than 2300 mg/day. There is an urge need for meaningful strategy to reduce salt intake and it must involve public education and awareness to change the consumption pattern
Estimation of salt intake of normotensive subjects of Jaipur City
No full text
Purpose
There has been a dramatic increase in hypertension in developing countries along with changes in food consumption patterns contributing to higher levels of sodium. Evidence shows that a high level of sodium intake is a major cause of high blood pressure and other heart diseases along with other associated diseases. Therefore, it is important to determine current consumption levels of sodium in a population to facilitate the development and implementation of any specific salt reduction program.
Design/methodology/approach
The study was conducted among 60 subjects (25-45 years) residing in Jaipur City. Subjects’ sodium consumption levels were assessed via assessment of 24-h urinary sodium excretion levels, the “gold standard” method advocated by WHO/PAHO (2010) and 24-h dietary recall for three days including one holiday.
Findings
The findings of the study indicated that the subjects were found to be consuming higher levels of sodium (males, 5,792 mg/d; females, 5,911 mg/d) than recommended by WHO, i.e. less than 2,300 mg/d. Completeness of urine was confirmed by fat-free mass determined by electrical bio-impedance (47.6 ± 7.6 kg) and determined by using 24-h urinary excretion of creatinine (33.7 ± 10.1 kg). Two variables were found to be significantly correlated (r = 0.52, p = 0.00). Assuming that the sodium eliminated in the urine comes from the salt only, this excretion would correspond with a dietary salt intake of 14.71 and 15.01 g/d in males and females, respectively. Dietary sodium intake was reported to be 4,133 ± 1,111 mg/day and 3,953 ± 945 mg/d in males and females, respectively. A non-significant difference was found between the two variables. Urinary sodium excretion correlated non-significantly with systolic and diastolic blood pressure figures (r = 0.09 and r = −0.02, respectively).
Research limitations/implications
The limitations of this study included the small sample size. Purposive sampling was adopted due to difficulty in obtaining urine sample and required willingness of the respondent. This may give fair robust estimate.
Originality/value
The present results will help provide new data about the baseline salt intake in young and middle-aged population of Jaipur City and will further help the concerned agencies to plan meaningful strategies to reduce salt intake, and it must involve public education and awareness to change the consumption pattern.
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Behavioral and physiological assessment of an animal model of post-traumatic stress disorder
No full textPost-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder triggered by exposure to a traumatic event. Despite recent progress, the causes and pathophysiology of PTSD remain poorly understood, partly because of ethical limitations inherent to human studies. One approach to circumvent this obstacle is to study PTSD in a valid animal model of the human syndrome. In one such model, extreme and long-lasting behavioral manifestations of anxiety develop in a subset of Lewis rats after exposure to an intense predator threat (PT) that mimics the type of life-or-death situation known to precipitate PTSD in humans. Thus, the first half of this thesis tested whether the Lewis rat model reproduces salient features of human PTSD. The results of these studies established the model’s face validity. The second half of this thesis used this model to identify alterations in the physiological properties of amygdala neurons that underlie the expression of PTSD. These studies revealed that PTSD is associated with differences in the synaptic responsiveness of central amygdala (CeA) neurons. Overall, these results suggest that the Lewis rat model of PTSD can be used to gain mechanistic insights in the pathophysiology of PTSD.Ph.D.Includes bibliographical referencesIncludes vitaby Sonal Goswam
From homeland to home: Widening Participation through the LEAP Macquarie Mentoring (Refugee Mentoring) Program
No full textMentoring is often conceptualised as a one-to-one interaction between peers, or as an academic to student interaction, with the aim of developing self-esteem, connectedness, identity, and academic attitudes within one party. While various researchers have provided support for effectiveness of mentoring in fostering the aforementioned qualities, limited studies have looked at the impacts of outreach mentoring programs. This article examines the impact of the LEAP-Macquarie Mentoring (Refugee Mentoring) program on high school students from refugee backgrounds who are mentees on the program and on the university students who are mentors on the program. A qualitative study was completed involving five focus groups, individual and semi structured interviews with 54 mentees and diary analysis of 45 mentors. Transcripts of interview and focus groups were analysed using a grounded approach. Key findings highlighted that the LEAP-Macquarie Mentoring (Refugee Mentoring) program supported both mentors and mentees in making a smooth personal, social, and academic transition from high school to university, helped them develop leadership potential, and provided them with a connection to community
Investigating the role of radixin in modulation of stereocilia length and stiffness
No full textMammalian hearing depends on deflection of stereocilia on the sensory outer hair cells of the inner ear. Previous data indicate that the stiffness of outer hair cell stereocilia are actively regulated. The molecular mechanism that regulate the deflection of stereocilia are presently less known. The aim of the study is to investigate the mechanistic pathway that underlie the stiffness modulation of outer hair cell stereocilia. Our hypothesis is that the membrane-cytoskeleton linker protein radixin, which is present at high concentration in stereocilia, could contribute to stiffness regulation. To test this hypothesis, we use the radixin blocker DX-52-1 which binds strongly and specifically to radixin. Time-resolved confocal imaging was used to visualize the sound-evoked motion of stereocilia in a semi-intact preparation of the guinea pig temporal bone. Cochlear microphonic potentials were also measured, using electrodes positioned in scala media. We found that the DX-52-1 inhibitor leads to an increase in stereocilia movements and decline in the amplitude of the cochlear microphonic potential. However, DX-52-1 caused a paradoxical increase in electromotility. These results suggest that radixin has a functionally important regulatory role in the mature inner ear.</p
Worldwide Consumption of Sodium and Its Impact on Human Health
No full textSodium intake of different populations around the world varies markedly. In the vast majority of populations, salt intake is high and well above recommended daily intakes. There is strong and consistent evidence from animal studies, clinical trials and epidemiological data both within and across populations implicating high salt intake as an important risk factor for high blood pressure among both normotensive and hypertensive individuals. High salt is also associated with increased risk of future CHD and stroke. A search strategy was developed to identify studies that reported the data base about sodium intake around the world as well as its impact on human health. Data available around the world indicates that there is a strong need to initiate the sodium reduction programme as excessive sodium consumption found to be associated with many health problems especially hypertension which may further leads to cardiovascular disease and many more
Trade-off between ordinary differential equation and Legendre polynomial methods to study guided modes in angle-ply laminate
No full textIt has been shown that the roots of guided waves in laminate plates produced by the ordinary differential equations (ODE) approach may not hold under to some computational conditions. A particular drawback of the 2D formulation of the ODE approach is the lack of reliability in the case of unidirectional laminates due to the decoupling properties between the SH and Lamb wave modes, which is caused by the unified matrix of roots. Due to this problem, the SH modes disappear from the unified roots of guided modes, then re-emerge with a separate computation of the SH and Lamb wave modes. Initially, we did not notice this computational “bug” in the event of a coupling between the SH and Lamb wave modes. In this context, the Legendre polynomial method is used to illustrate that fact. Results demonstrate how the polynomial method is pre-eminent to handle the laminate modelling over the ODE method for these specific requirements, however, a trade-off between these two methods needs to be considered to obtain stable and robust behavior of guided dispersion curves. This short study ends with conclusions and future perspectives.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Structural Integrity & Composite
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