Life Cycle of Tetranychus macfarlanei Baker and Pritchard (Acari: Tetranychidae): A New Pest of Medicinal Plants in West Bengal

The life cycle of Tetranychus macfarlanei Baker and Pritchard was studied on two different medicinal plants, Clitoria ternatea L. and Justicia adhatoda L. Nees, in BOD at 32.5 °C and 75 % RH during April 2007 to May 2007. Observations towards duration of different stages like egg, larva, protonymph, deutonymph, adult, total life cycle, preoviposition, oviposition, postoviposition periods, longevity of female and male, and fecundity, sex ratio were recorded. Total developmental period of T. macfarlanei from egg to adult was 6.4 ± 0.37 (Mean ± SE) and 10.6 ± 0.56 days on C. ternatea and J. adhatoda, respectively. On C. ternatea, the fecundity in case of fertilized and unfertilized female were 91.6 ± 11.61 and 80 ± 21.64 eggs, respectively and longevity of fertilized and unfertilized female was 16.4 ± 1.44 and 8.6 ± 2.32 days, respectively. The corresponding figure on J. adhatoda for fecundity in case of fertilized and unfertilized female were 39 ± 2.85 and 19.8 ± 3.90 eggs, respectively and for longevity was 16 ± 0.37 and 11 ± 086 days, respectively. Among the two hosts, C. ternatea appears to be more preferred to J. adhatoda because life cycle was completed in shorter time and fecundity and female longevity were for longer duration.     

Reproductive justice: Non-interference or non-domination?

The reproductive justice movement started by black women’s rights activists made its way into the academic literature as an intersectional approach to women’s reproductive autonomy. While there are many scholars who now employ the term ‘reproductive justice’ in their research, few have taken up the task of explaining what ‘justice’ entails in reproductive justice. In this paper I take up part of this work and attempt to clarify the relevant kind of freedom an adequate theory of reproductive justice would postulate. To do so, I compare two approaches to reproductive freedom: an approach based on freedom as non-interference and an approach based on freedom as non-domination. I then argue that the non-domination approach better fits the ideals of the reproductive justice movement as set forth by its founders and should be treated as one of the necessary conditions in any non-ideal account of reproductive justice. Towards the end, I single out epistemic non-domination as crucial in shaping the narrative around reproductive justice.     

Elastomechanical characterization of brain tissues.

The fluid-induced changes in the intracranial pressure which have important clinical implications are believed to be largely determined by the elastomechanical properties of the brain tissues. To define and evaluate the elastomechanical characteristics of the brain tissues a nonlinear hyperelastic hollow spherical shell has been employed to model the craniospinal complex for its fluid-induced intracranial pressure volume changes. The strain energy function proposed by Hart-Smith has been used to derive the constitutive equations. In 10 dogs, fluid has been infused in the lateral ventricle of the brain. The resulting changes in the ventricular fluid pressure (VFP) and the epidural pressure (EDP) have been recorded. The plot of pressure as a function of volume increases first, reaches a maximum, decreases, reaches a minimum and increases monotonously. The values of maximum and minimum pressures (pv max and pv min) due to fluid infusion are found to be, respectively, 42.4 +/- 15.4 mmHg and 33.1 +/- 12.2 mmHg. The pressure achieved the maximum and minimum values with infusion of 0.19 +/- 0.09 ml and 0.51 +/- 0.15 ml of fluid, respectively. The elastomechanical parameters of the Hart-Smith function that characterize the brain tissues have been evaluated by matching the experimentally obtained pressure-volume curves with the corresponding model generated curves. It is found that the agreement between the experimentally obtained pressure-volume curves and the corresponding Hart-Smith profile is satisfactory at a high inflation level but less so at the lower inflation level.     

Bistable dynamics of cardiac cell models coupled by dynamic gap junctions linked to Cardiac Memory

In an earlier study, we suggested that adaptive gap junctions (GJs) might be a basis of cardiac memory, a phenomenon which refers to persistent electrophysiological response of the heart to external pacing. Later, it was also shown that the proposed mechanism of adaptation of GJs is consistent with known electrophysiology of GJs. In the present article, we show that a pair of cardiac cell models coupled by dynamic, voltage-sensitive GJs exhibits bistable behavior under certain conditions. Three kinds of cell pairs are considered: (1) a Noble–Noble cell pair that represents adjacent cells in Purkinje network, (2) a pair of DiFranceso–Noble cells that represents adjacent SA nodal cells, and (3) a model of Noble cell coupled to Luo–Rudy cell model, which represents an interacting pair of a Purkinje fiber and a ventricular myocyte. Bistability is demonstrated in all the three cases. We suggest that this bistability might be an underlying factor behind cardiac memory. Focused analysis of a pair of Noble cell models showed that bistability is obtained only when the properties of GJs “match” with the properties of the pair of cells that is coupled by the GJs. This novel notion of match between GJs and cardiac cell types might give an insight into specialized distributions of various connexin proteins in cardiac tissue.     

Immunotherapy approach with recombinant survivin adjuvanted with alum and MIP suppresses tumor growth in murine model of breast cancer

Survivin has received attention as a potential target for cancer immunotherapy because of its crucial role in oncogenesis. We undertook this study to evaluate the immunotherapeutic potential of combination of recombinant survivin along with adjuvant alum and immune modulator Mycobacterium indicus pranii (MIP). In vivo efficacy of the combination was studied in an invasive murine breast cancer model. Recombinant survivin protein was purified from Escherichia coli based expression system and characterized by western blotting. Purified survivin protein was combined with alum and MIP and was used for immunization of Balb/c mice. Antigen-primed animals were then challenged with syngeneic mammary tumor cells known as 4T-1. Balb/c mice spontaneously develop tumor when inoculated with 4T-1 cells. Antigen and adjuvant combination was immunogenic and significantly suppressed tumor growth in mice immunized with combination of recombinant survivin (10?µg), alum, and MIP. This is the first report that describes a combination immunotherapy approach using recombinant survivin, alum, and MIP in highly metastatic murine breast cancer model and holds promise for development of new biotherapeutics for cancer.     

siRNA as a tool to delineate pathway channelization in H2O2 induced apoptosis of primary Leydig cells in vitro

Using siRNA as a tool, the channelization of pathway in H₂O₂ induced apoptosis of primary Leydig cells was investigated in vitro. Exposure (4?h) to H₂O₂ (250?μM) induced maximum apoptosis but affected Leydig cell viability significantly. Therefore, expression of apoptotic marker genes, caspase-8, -9, -3 and polyadenosine ribose polymerase was subsequently investigated using the same concentration post 1?h exposure. Incubation with siRNA (20?nM) either for caspase-8 or -9, inhibited their individual expressions by 55–60?% and activity, 50–55?%. The inhibition efficiency using siRNA was comparable with post- or pre-H₂O₂ treatment of cells. Like siRNA, Eugenia jambolana (100?μg/ml) plant extract too, effectively countered over-expression of all apoptotic marker proteins. Silencing expressions of caspase 8 but not 9 through siRNA leads to a profound inhibition of caspase 3 implying that H₂O₂ induced Leydig cell apoptosis is preferably channeled through extrinsic and later extending to other pathways.