Length‐weight relationships (LWRs) of four freshwater fish species from the Brahmaputra and Barak river basins,northeast India

The present study describes the length‐weight relationships (LWRs) were determined for four fish species, collected from the Brahmaputra and Barak river basins in northeast India using cast nets (2.5 × 1 m; 10–15 mm mesh size) and gillnets (30 × 0.9 m; 5–10 mm mesh size), from June 2016 to July 2017. The b values in LWRs were determined as 2.70 for Badis tuivaiei Vishwanath & Shanta, 2004, 2.93 for Canthophrys gongota (Hamilton, 1822), 2.62 for Glyptothorax botius (Hamilton, 1822), and 3.22 for Gogangra viridescens (Hamilton, 1822).     

Anti-tumor activities of luteolin and silibinin in glioblastoma cells: overexpression of miR-7-1-3p augmented luteolin and silibinin to inhibit autophagy and induce apoptosis in glioblastoma in vivo

Glioblastoma is the deadliest brain tumor in humans. High systemic toxicity of conventional chemotherapies prompted the search for natural compounds for controlling glioblastoma. The natural flavonoids luteolin (LUT) and silibinin (SIL) have anti-tumor activities. LUT inhibits autophagy, cell proliferation, metastasis, and angiogenesis and induces apoptosis; while SIL activates caspase-8 cascades to induce apoptosis. However, synergistic anti-tumor effects of LUT and SIL in glioblastoma remain unknown. Overexpression of tumor suppressor microRNA (miR) could enhance the anti-tumor effects of LUT and SIL. Here, we showed that 20 µM LUT and 50 µM SIL worked synergistically for inhibiting growth of two different human glioblastoma U87MG (wild-type p53) and T98G (mutant p53) cell lines and natural combination therapy was more effective than conventional chemotherapy (10 µM BCNU or 100 µM TMZ). Combination of LUT and SIL caused inhibition of growth of glioblastoma cells due to induction of significant amounts of apoptosis and complete inhibition of invasion and migration. Further, combination of LUT and SIL inhibited rapamycin (RAPA)-induced autophagy, a survival mechanism, with suppression of PKCα and promotion of apoptosis through down regulation of iNOS and significant increase in expression of the tumor suppressor miR-7-1-3p in glioblastoma cells. Our in vivo studies confirmed that overexpression of miR-7-1-3p augmented anti-tumor activities of LUT and SIL in RAPA pre-treated both U87MG and T98G tumors. In conclusion, our results clearly demonstrated that overexpression of miR-7-1-3p augmented the anti-tumor activities of LUT and SIL to inhibit autophagy and induce apoptosis for controlling growth of different human glioblastomas in vivo.     

Imputing Variants in HLA-DR Beta Genes Reveals That HLA-DRB1 Is Solely Associated with Rheumatoid Arthritis and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

The genetic association of HLA-DRB1 with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is well documented, but association with other HLA-DR beta genes (HLA-DRB3, HLA-DRB4 and HLA-DRB5) has not been thoroughly studied, despite their similar functions and chromosomal positions. We examined variants in all functional HLA-DR beta genes in RA and SLE patients and controls, down to the amino-acid level, to better understand disease association with the HLA-DR locus. To this end, we improved an existing HLA reference panel to impute variants in all protein-coding HLA-DR beta genes. Using the reference panel, HLA variants were inferred from high-density SNP data of 9,271 RA-control subjects and 5,342 SLE-control subjects. Disease association tests were performed by logistic regression and log-likelihood ratio tests. After imputation using the newly constructed HLA reference panel and statistical analysis, we observed that HLA-DRB1 variants better accounted for the association between MHC and susceptibility to RA and SLE than did the other three HLA-DRB variants. Moreover, there were no secondary effects in HLA-DRB3, HLA-DRB4, or HLA-DRB5 in RA or SLE. Of all the HLA-DR beta chain paralogs, those encoded by HLA-DRB1 solely or dominantly influence susceptibility to RA and SLE.     

Bioprospecting Micromonospora from Kaziranga National Park of India and their anti-infective potential

Large number of strains was isolated from soils of Kaziranga National Park of North-East India using selective isolation procedure. They were assigned to the genus Micromonospora on the basis of their typical colonial and pigmentation features. The taxonomic identities of the isolates were confirmed on the basis of their molecular characters (16SrDNA). A total of one hundred Micromonospora strains were isolated during the present investigation. The diagnostic cell wall sugar and amino acids were determined from these Micromonospora strains. After preliminary screening most of the isolates exhibited excellent anti-infective activity against human bacterial pathogens Staphylococcus aureas, Bacillus subtilis, Proteus vulgaris, Echerichia coli, Pseudomonas aeroginosa and fungal pathogens Aspergillus niger, Fusarium oxysporum and Candida albicans. Among these isolates one strain designated as HK-10 showed promising activity against human pathogens S. aureas, B. subtilis, P. vulgaris and P. aeroginosa.     

Protandim does not influence alveolar epithelial permeability or intrapulmonary oxidative stress in human subjects with alcohol use disorders

Alcohol use disorders (AUDs), including alcohol abuse and dependence, have been linked to the development of acute lung injury (ALI). Prior clinical investigations suggested an association between AUDs and abnormal alveolar epithelial permeability mediated through pulmonary oxidative stress that may partially explain this relationship. We sought to determine if correcting pulmonary oxidative stress in the setting of AUDs would normalize alveolar epithelial permeability in a double-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of Protandim, a nutraceutical reported to enhance antioxidant activity. We randomized 30 otherwise healthy AUD subjects to receive directly observed inpatient oral therapy with either Protandim (1,350 mg/day) or placebo. Subjects underwent bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and blood sampling before study drug administration and after 7 days of therapy; all AUD subjects completed the study protocol without adverse events. BAL total protein was measured at each timepoint as an indicator of alveolar epithelial permeability. In subjects with AUDs, before study drug initiation, BAL total protein values were not significantly higher than in 11 concurrently enrolled controls (P = 0.07). Over the 7-day study period, AUD subjects did not exhibit a significant change in BAL total protein, regardless of their randomization to Protandim {n = 14, -2% [intraquartile range (IQR), -56-146%]} or to placebo [n = 16, 77% (IQR -20-290%); P = 0.19]. Additionally, among those with AUDs, no significant changes in BAL oxidative stress indexes, epithelial growth factor, fibroblast growth factor, interleukin-1β, or interleukin-10 were observed regardless of drug type received. Plasma thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, a marker of lipid peroxidation, decreased significantly over time among AUD subjects randomized to placebo (P < 0.01). These results suggest that Protandim for 7 days in individuals with AUDs who are newly abstinent does not alter alveolar epithelial permeability. However, our work demonstrates the feasibility of safely conducting clinical trials that include serial bronchoscopies in a vulnerable population at risk for acute lung injury.