Obesity and Receipt of Clinical Preventive Services in Veterans

Although obese individuals utilize health care at higher rates than their normal weight counterparts, they may be less likely to receive certain preventive services. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of veterans with visits to 136 national Veterans Affairs (VA) outpatient clinics in the United States in the year 2000. The cohort included 1,699,219 patients: 94% men, 48% white, and 76% overweight or obese. Overweight and obese patients had higher adjusted odds of receiving each of the targeted clinical preventive services as recommended over 5 years compared with normal weight patients. The odds for receiving vaccinations increased linearly with BMI category: influenza (men: odds ratio (OR) = 1.13 for overweight to OR = 1.42 for obese class 3; women: OR = 1.15 for overweight to OR = 1.61 for obese class 3) and pneumococcus (men: OR = 1.02 for overweight to OR = 1.15 for obese class 3; women: OR = 1.08 for overweight to OR = 1.28 for obese class 3). The odds for receiving the cancer screening services typically peaked in the mild‐moderately obese categories. The highest OR for prostate cancer screening was in obese class 2 (OR = 1.29); for colorectal cancer, obese class 1 (men: OR = 1.15; women OR = 1.10); for breast cancer screening, obese class 2 (OR = 1.19); and for cervical cancer screening, obese class 2 (OR = 1.06). In a large national sample, obese patients received preventive services at higher, not lower, rates than their normal weight peers. This may be due to the VA health service coverage and performance directives, a more homogeneous patient demographic profile, and/or unmeasured factors related to service receipt.     

Identification and characterization of adsorbed serum sialoglycans on Leishmania donovani promastigotes

Sialic acids as terminal residues of oligosaccharide chains play a crucial role in several cellular recognition events. The presence of sialic acid on promastigotes of Leishmania donovani, the causative organism of Indian visceral leishmaniasis, was demonstrated by fluorimetric high-performance liquid chromatography showing Neu5Ac and, to a minor extent, Neu5,9Ac2. The presence of Neu5Ac was confirmed by GC/MS analysis. Furthermore, binding with sialic acid-binding lectins Sambucus nigra agglutinin (SNA), Maackia amurensis agglutinin (MAA), and Siglecs showed the presence of both alpha2,3- and alpha2,6-linked sialic acids. No endogenous biosynthetic machinery for Neu5Ac could be demonstrated in the parasite. Concomitant western blotting of parasite membranes and culture medium with SNA demonstrated the presence of common sialoglyconjugates (123, 90, and 70 kDa). Similarly, binding of MAA with parasite membrane and culture medium showed three analogous sialoglycans corresponding to 130, 117, and 70 kDa, indicating that alpha2,3- and alpha2,6-linked sialoglycans are adsorbed from the fetal calf serum present in the culture medium. L. donovani promastigotes also reacted with Achatinin-H, a lectin that preferentially identifies 9-O-acetylated sialic acid in alpha2-->6 GalNAc linkage. This determinant was evidenced on parasite cell surfaces by cell agglutination, ELISA, and flow cytometry, where its binding was abolished by pretreatment of cells with a recombinant 9-O-acetylesterase derived from the HE1 region of the influenza C esterase gene. Additionally, binding of CD60b, a 9-O-acetyl GD3-specific monoclonal antibody, corroborated the presence of terminal 9-O-acetylated disialoglycans. Our results indicate that sialic acids (alpha2-->6 and alpha2-->3 linked) and 9-O-acetyl derivatives constitute components of the parasite cell surface.     

Analysis of a competitive prey–predator system with a prey refuge

Gauss's competitive exclusive principle states that two competing species having analogous environment cannot usually occupy the same space at a time but in order to exploit their common environment in a different manner, they can co-exist only when they are active in different times. On the other hand, several studies on predators in various natural and laboratory situations have shown that competitive coexistence can result from predation in a way by resisting any one prey species from becoming sufficiently abundant to outcompete other species such that the predator makes the coexistence possible. It has also been shown that the use of refuges by a fraction of the prey population exerts a stabilizing effect in the interacting population dynamics. Further, the field surveys in the Sundarban mangrove ecosystem reveal that two detritivorous fishes, viz. Liza parsia and Liza tade (prey population) coexist in nature with the presence of the predator fish population, viz. Lates calcarifer by using refuges.     

Hydrogels and electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds of N-methylene phosphonic chitosan as bioinspired osteoconductive materials for bone grafting

In this work, N-methylene phosphonic chitosan (NMPC) based hydrogels and electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds are reported with objective to obtain osteoconductive and osteoinductive matrixes for bone grafting applications. NMPC, a phosphorylated derivative of chitosan, is known to mimic the function of non collagenous phosphoproteins in providing nucleation sites for biomineralization. NMPC hydrogels were prepared by crosslinking between NMPC and genipin. A detailed investigation of physicochemical properties of NMPC solutions is also carried out in order to obtain beads free nanofibers. Both NMPC gels and nanofibers were further evaluated for their biomineralization potential and biocompatibility with human osteoblast like cells. Results indicated that hydrogels and nanofibrous scaffolds NMPC are biocompatible and significantly osteoinductive compared to tissue culture plate controls. However, cells seeded on nanofibrous scaffolds exhibited greater proliferation measured by MTT assay, and higher expression of early markers for osteogenic differentiation proving the superior applicability of nanofibrous scaffolds for bone grafting applications.     

Synthesis, crystal structure and magnetic characterization of a series of four phenoxo-bridged binuclear manganese(III) Schiff base complexes

A family of four new phenoxo-bridged binuclear manganese(III) complexes of the general formula, [Mn(L)(X)]₂ where L = [N,N′-bis(salicylidene)]propane-1,2-diamine and X = salicylaldehyde anion (sal⁻) (1); NCS⁻ (2); NCO⁻ (3) and [Mn(L′)(N₃)]₂·2C₂H₅OH (4) where L′ = [N,N′-bis(2-hydroxyacetophenylidene)]propane-1,2-diamine has been prepared. The syntheses have been achieved by reacting manganese perchlorate with 1,2-diaminopropane and salicylaldehyde (or 2-hydroxyacetophenone for 4) or along with the respective pseudohalides so that the tetradentate Schiff base H₂L or H₂L′ is obtained in situ to bind the Mn(III) ion. The complexes have been characterized by IR spectroscopy, elemental analysis, crystal structure analysis and variable-temperature magnetic susceptibility measurements. The single crystal X-ray diffraction studies show that the compounds are isostructural containing dimeric Mn(III) units with bridging phenolate oxygen atoms. Low temperature magnetic studies indicate that the complexes 1-3 exhibit intradimer ferromagnetic exchange as well as single-molecule magnet (SMM) behavior while complex 4 is found to undergo an intradimer antiferromagnetic coupling.     

Excited state intramolecular proton transfer in 3-hydroxy flavone and 5-hydroxy flavone: A DFT based comparative study

Potential energy (PE) curves for the intramolecular proton transfer in the ground (GSIPT) and excited (ESIPT) states of 3-hydroxy-flavone (3HF) and 5-hydroxy-flavone (5HF) were studied using DFT/B3LYP (6-31G (d,p)) and TD-DFT/B3LYP (6-31G (d,p)) level of theory respectively. Our calculations suggest the non-viability of ground state intramolecular proton transfer for both the compounds. Calculated PE curves of 3HF for the ground and excited singlet states proton transfer process explain its four state laser diagram. Excited states PE calculations support the ESIPT process to both 5HF and 3HF. The difference in ESIPT emission process of 3HF and 5HF have been explained in terms of HOMO and LUMO electron distribution of the enol and keto tautomer of these two compounds.