Objective: To investigate the antimicrobial activity of volatile constituents of fruit peels of Citrus reticulata Blanco on clinically isolated pathogenic microorganisms. Methods: Extraction of volatile oil was carried out by Clevenger’s apparatus. Volatile chemical components were measured by GC-MS. Antimicrobial activity was carried by Agar well diffusion assay with reference to standard fluconazole and tetracycline. Results: The chemical composition of volatile oil of the fruit peels of Citrus reticulata Blanco (Rutaceae) of Delhi Region was composed mainly monoterpenes (99.1 %) constituting l-limonene (92.4 %), γ-terpene (2.6 %) andβ-phellandrene (1.8 %). The volatile oil showed antibacterial and antifungal activities against the clinically isolated pathogenic microbial strains Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus fumigatus and Candida albicans under in vitro condition. Conclusions: The potential antimicrobial activity of volatile oil present in fruit peels of C. reticulata can be useful for treatment of skin disorder and/or in aroma. Therapy, it can be incorporated into cosmetic formulations.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of different cooking methods on the allergenicity of cockle and to identify proteins most frequently bound by IgE antibodies using a proteomics approach. Raw, boiled, fried and roasted extracts of the cockle were prepared. The protein profiles of the extracts were obtained by separation using sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE). IgE-immunoblotting was then performed with the use of individual sera from patients with cockle allergy and the major IgE-binding proteins were analyzed by mass-spectrometry. SDS-PAGE of raw extract showed 13 protein bands. Smaller numbers of protein bands were detected in the boiled, fried and roasted extracts. The 2-DE gel profile of the raw extract further separated the protein bands to ~50 protein spots with molecular masses between 13 to 180 kDa and isoelectric point (pI) values ranging from 3 to 10. Immunoblotting of raw extract exhibited 11 IgE-binding proteins with two proteins of 36 and 40 kDa as the major IgE-binding proteins, while the boiled extract revealed 3 IgE-binding proteins. Fried and roasted extracts only showed a single IgE-binding protein at 36 kDa. 2-DE immunoblotting of raw extract demonstrated 5 to 20 IgE reactive spots. Mass spectrometry analysis led to identification of 2 important allergens, tropomyosin (36 kDa) and arginine kinase (40 kDa). Heated extracts showed a reduction in the number of IgE-reactive bands compared with raw extract, which suggest that thermal treatment can be used as a tool in attempting to reduce cockle allergenicity. The degree of allergenicity of cockle was demonstrated in the order raw > boiled > fried ≈ roasted. Two important allergens reacting with more than 50% of patients’ sera identified using mass spectrometric approaches were tropomyosin and arginine kinase. Thus, allergens found in this study would help in componentbased diagnosis, management of cockle allergic patients and to the standardisation of allergenic test products as tools in molecular allergology.

Antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA) are autoantibodies directed against primary granules of neutrophils and monocytes’ lysosomes. In general, c-ANCA is strongly associated with vasculitic disorders mainly in ANCA-associated systemic vasculitis (AASV). p-ANCA have been identified in several diseases such as primary (AASV) and secondary vasculitis such as collagen vascular diseases, rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel diseases given the term ‘ANCA-associated disease.’ The objective of this study was to determine the rate of ANCA positivity by indirect immunofluorescent (IF) and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and its association with AASV and ANCA associated diseases. Serum from patients with history suspicion of systemic vasculitis were tested for ANCA by IF. Those samples positive for ANCA by IF were further tested for antibodies against myeloperoxidase (MPO) and proteinase 3 (PR3) using the ELISA. Clinical data from medical records were obtained and analyzed. Of 468 samples, a total of 110 were positive for ANCA by IF. IF results showed a p-ANCA pattern in 96 patients and c-ANCA in 14. Of 110 IF positive ANCA, 45 patients were positive by ELISA. Seventeen were positive for MPO-ANCA, 9 were PR3-ANCA positive and 19 were both MPO and PR3 positive. Only 2 patients were classified AASV ie Wegener granulomatosis and the other with microscopic polyangiitis. The remaining patients (n = 108) may be classified as ANCA associated diseases. Our study showed that p-ANCA (87.3%) was the more common ANCA pattern and 40.9% of IF positive samples were positive for PR3- and MPOANCA.

Though a relatively simple procedure, Hand Hygiene compliance rates tend to be highly variable and poor. This cross-sectional knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) study was conducted at Shri Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS) Hospital, a teaching hospital in Srinagar, India. The subjects that participated in this study included 106 nursing staff working in different departments of the Hospital. The Self-structured one plus WHO,s hand hygiene questionnaire for health care workers was used in this study. Almost 80% of the respondents skipped hand washing when in hurry. Only 12% and 28% used to hand wash before touching a patient and before doing simple procedures respectively. This study depicts the poor compliance of health workers regarding hand hygiene.

Background: Prawns and shrimp are a frequent cause of seafood allergy mediated by IgE antibodies. Penaeus monodon and Penaeus latisulcatus, commonly known as black tiger prawn and king prawn, respectively, are among the most frequently consumed prawns in Malaysia. The aim of thi s study was to identify the IgE-binding proteins of these 2 prawn species. Methods: Raw and boiled prawn extracts were prepared and then resolved by sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). IgE-immunoblotting was then performed using sera from patients with positive skin prick tests to the raw prawn extracts. Results: SDS-PAGE analysis of the raw extracts of both prawn species revealed 23 protein bands; the boiled extracts yielded fewer protein bands. The bands in the range of 40 to 100 kDa were sensitive to heat and therefore were not found in the boiled extracts. Immunoblot of raw extracts of black tiger prawns and king prawns yielded 14 and 11 IgE-binding proteins, respectively, with molecular weights of between 15 and 200 kDa. Proteins at 36, 42, and 49 kDa were detected as the major allergens in both species of prawns. A protein of 75 kDa was also identified as a major allergen in black tiger prawns. Other potential allergens were also observed at various molecular masses. Conclusion: Proteins of 36, 42, and 49 kDa were identified as the major allergens of both species of prawns. The 36 and 42 kDa proteins are hypothesised to be tropomyosin and arginine kinase, respectively. A high molecular weight protein of 75 kDa was found to be an additional major allergen in black tiger prawns.

Crab meat is a valuable source of proteins and functional lipids and it is widely consumed worldwide. However, the prevalence of crab allergy has increased over the past few years. In order to understand crab allergy better, it is necessary to identify crab allergens. The aim of the present study was to compare the IgEbinding proteins of raw and cooked extracts of mud crab (Scylla serrata). Raw and cooked extracts of the mud crab were prepared. Protein profiles and IgE reactivity patterns were identified by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) followed by immunoblotting using sera from 21 skin prick test (SPT) positive patients. In SDS-PAGE, 20 protein bands (12 to 250 kDa) were observed in the raw extract while the cooked extract demonstrated fewer bands. Protein bands between 40 to 250 kDa were sensitive to heat denaturation and no longer observed in the cooked extract. In immunoblotting experiments, raw and cooked extracts demonstrated 11 and 4 IgE-binding proteins, respectively, with molecular weights of between 23 and 250 kDa. A heat-resistant 36 kDa protein, corresponding to crab tropomyosin was identified as the major allergen of both extracts. In addition, a 41 kDa heat-sensitive protein believed to be arginine kinase was shown to be a major allergen of the raw extract. Other minor allergens were also observed at various molecular weights.
Arginine Kinase

Primary adrenal lymphomas (PAL) are rare occurrences with only less than 150 cases reported in the literature. Two-thirds of these cases were reported in the last decade due to the advancements in imaging techniques and immunohistochemistry. The non-specific signs and symptoms have resulted in a delayed onset of symptoms and diagnosis of these tumors. Reports of the results of chemotherapy are not gratifying, and most patients die within one year of the diagnosis. We report a 65-year-old male with adrenal non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL), who presented with hypercalcemia and renal failure. We reviewed all adrenal NHL cases presented with hypercalcemia and attempted to comprehend its etiology and overall survival effect.

To study the antihyperglycemic and antinociceptive activities of methanolic extract of the whole plant of Euphorbia thymifolia L., a plant used in folk medicine of Bangladesh for treatment of diabetes and pain.

Objective: To investigate the antioxidant, antibacterial, and chemical ingredients of Ardisia elliptica (A. elliptica) methanolic extracts. Methods: The plant was extracted using methanol. Antibacterial and antioxidant activ-ities were evaluated. Results: The results showed that both fruit and leaf extract of A. elliptica have significant antibacterial activities against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Fruit extracts showed higher content of phenolic (71 ± 0.03 GAE/mg extract dry weight), in com-parison to the leaf extracts (37 ± 0.05 GAE/mg extract dry weight). Flavonoid content, and Fe2+chelating activity of fruit extracts were higher than leaf extract. The percentage radical inhibition of fruit extract is found to be higher (70%) than that of leaf extract (60%). LCMS results indicated that the major compounds in the fruit extract were Gingerol, Aspidin, Kampherol, and Stercuresin, while the leaf extract contained Gingerol, Aspidin, Triangularin, and Salicyl acyl glucuronide. Furthermore, the results of GCMS indicated that fruit extract contained these major compounds:Vitamin E Tocopherol, 5-hepylresornicol, 2-Nonylmalonic acid, 5-pentadecylresornicol, and Stigmasta-7-22-dien-3-ol. However, leaf extract of A. elliptica contained these major compounds: Alpha Amyrenol, 4,4, 6, 6a, 6b, 8, 8a, 9,10, 11,12,12a, 14, 14a, 14b octadehydro-2H-picen-3-one, and Lonasterol, 4-t-Butyl-2-[4-nitrophenyl] phenol. Conclusions: The results provide evidence that fruit and leaf of A. elliptica extracts might indeed be used as a potential source of effective natural antimicrobial and anti-oxidant agents in pharmaceutical and food industries.

Spontaneous intracranial haemorrhage (ICH) is a rare complication of chronic immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) in children. We report four patients with cITP who developed ICH. The latency between onset of ITP and ICH varied from 1-8 years. All our patients were profoundly thrombocytopenic (platelet count of <10 x 109/l) at the time of their intracranial bleed. The presenting features and management are discussed. All patients survived, three had complete neurological recovery while one had a minimal residual neurological deficit. KEY WORDS: Chronic immune thrombocytopenic purpura; intracranial haemorrhage; children