Kerala, a humid tropical southern state, is the third largest producer of Tamarind (Tamarindus indica L.) in India. This tree spice is an important livelihood option for the rural society, especially in Palakkad district which is the lead producer of tamarind in the state with a few accepted primitive cultivars, viz. ‘valanpuli’, ‘madhurapuli’ and ‘thenpuli’. A survey was conducted to identify the fruit variability and document the sweet tamarind types of Palakkad. This study revealed the variability and weight of 30 fruits was seen to be the most indicative variable of tamarind in Kerala. The pod length varied from 5.28 to 23.41 cm and fruit weight from 4.83 to 43.40 g. Hierarchical clustering on principal component analysis resulted in six clusters. The clusters I, IV and V represented collections with fruit weight more than 20 g. Box plot diagrams revealed the high real pulp value in sample KTJ 162 (9.57) and high fruit length in KTJ 44 (21.68 cm). Among 113 collections, 18 samples were collected as perceived sweet types based on local enquiry. In the scatter plot between total soluble solids and ratio between total soluble solids and total titrable acidity, two samples were spotted as sweet types with acidity below 8%. Further molecular characterization and systematic crop improvement programmes are required for conserving the eroding gene pool of tamarind in Kerala and to develop sweet types for commercial production.

Background: Some patients do poorly despite small infarcts after endovascular therapy(EVT) whilst others with large infarcts do well. We validated exploratory findings from the ESCAPE trial regarding factors associated with such discrepancies, in the ESCAPE-NA1 trial(NCT02930018). Methods: We identified “discrepant cases” with modified Rankin Scale(mRS)≥3 despite small follow-up infarct volume(FIV≤25th-percentile) on 24-hour CT/MRI or mRS≤2 despite large FIV(volume≥75th-percentile). We compared area-under-the-curve(AUC) of pre-specified logistic models containing (a)pre-treatment factors(age/cancer/vascular risk-factors) and (b)treatment-related/post-treatment factors(serious adverse events/SAEs) in identifying small-FIV/mRS≥3 and large-FIV/mRS≤2, with stepwise regression-derived models. Results: Among 1,091 patients, 42/287(14.6%) with FIV≤7mL(25th-percentile) had mRS≥3; 65/275(23.6%) with FIV≥92mL(75th-percentile) had mRS≤2. Pre-specified pre-treatment factors(age/cancer/vascular risk-factors) were associated with FIV≤7mL/mRS≥3; stepwise models selected similar variables(similar AUCs:0.92-0.93,p=0.42). SAEs(infarct-in-new-territory/recurrent stroke/pneumonia/heart failure) were strongly associated with FIV≤7mL/mRS≥3; stepwise models also identified onset-to-needle time and hemoglobin(24-hours) as treatment-related/post-treatment factors(similar AUCs:0.92-0.94,p=0.14). Younger age was associated with FIV≥92mL/mRS≤2; stepwise models also selected diabetes absence and baseline hemoglobin(similar AUCs:0.76-0.77,p=0.82). Absence of SAEs(stroke progression/pneumonia/intracerebral hemorrhage) was strongly associated with FIV≥92mL/mRS≤2; stepwise models also identified 24-hour hemoglobin, glucose, and BP(similar AUCs:0.79-0.80,p=0.030). Conclusions: FIV-mRS discrepancies are associated with pre-treatment factors like age/comorbidities; and post-treatment complications related to stroke evolution, secondary prevention, and post-acute care quality. Optimizing thrombolysis speed, BP, glucose, and hemoglobin are modifiable factors meriting further study.

Nipah virus (NiV) outbreak occurred in Kozhikode district, Kerala, India in 2018 with a case fatality rate of 91% (21/23). In 2019, a single case with full recovery occurred in Ernakulam district. We described the response and control measures by the Indian Council of Medical Research and Kerala State Government for the 2019 NiV outbreak. The establishment of Point of Care assays and monoclonal antibodies administration facility for early diagnosis, response and treatment, intensified contact tracing activities, bio-risk management and hospital infection control training of healthcare workers contributed to effective control and containment of NiV outbreak in Ernakulam.

The few studies evaluating data on resource utilisation following the Fontan operation specifically are outdated. We sought to evaluate resource utilisation and factors associated with increased resource use after the Fontan operation in a contemporary, large, multi-institutional cohort. This retrospective cohort study of children who had the Fontan between January, 2004 and June, 2013 used the Pediatric Health Information Systems Database. Generalised linear regression analyses evaluated factors associated with resource use. Of 2187 Fontan patients included in the study, 62% were males. The median age at Fontan was 3.2 years (inter-quartile range (IQR): 2.6–3.8). The median length of stay following the Fontan was 9 days (IQR: 7–14). The median costs and charges in 2012 dollars for the Fontan operation were $93,900 (IQR: $67,800–$136,100) and $156,000 (IQR: $112,080–$225,607), respectively. Postoperative Fontan mortality (30 days) was 1% (n=21). Factors associated with increased resource utilisation included baseline and demographic factors such as region, race, and renal anomaly, factors at the bidirectional Glenn such as seizures, valvuloplasty, and surgical volume, number of admissions between the bidirectional Glenn and the Fontan, and factors at the Fontan such as surgical volume and age at Fontan. The most strongly associated factors for both increased Fontan length of stay and increased Fontan charges were number of bidirectional Glenn to Fontan admissions (p<0.001) and Fontan surgical volume per year (p<0.001). As patient characteristics and healthcare-related delivery variables accounted for most of the factors predicting increased resource utilisation, changes should target healthcare delivery factors to reduce costs in this resource-intensive population.

Recent Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) have identified four low-penetrance ovarian cancer susceptibility loci. We hypothesized that further moderate- or low-penetrance variants exist among the subset of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) not well tagged by the genotyping arrays used in the previous studies, which would account for some of the remaining risk. We therefore conducted a time- and cost-effective stage 1 GWAS on 342 invasive serous cases and 643 controls genotyped on pooled DNA using the high-density Illumina 1M-Duo array. We followed up 20 of the most significantly associated SNPs, which are not well tagged by the lower density arrays used by the published GWAS, and genotyping them on individual DNA. Most of the top 20 SNPs were clearly validated by individually genotyping the samples used in the pools. However, none of the 20 SNPs replicated when tested for association in a much larger stage 2 set of 4,651 cases and 6,966 controls from the Ovarian Cancer Association Consortium. Given that most of the top 20 SNPs from pooling were validated in the same samples by individual genotyping, the lack of replication is likely to be due to the relatively small sample size in our stage 1 GWAS rather than due to problems with the pooling approach. We conclude that there are unlikely to be any moderate or large effects on ovarian cancer risk untagged by less dense arrays. However, our study lacked power to make clear statements on the existence of hitherto untagged small-effect variants.

Quantum dots play a promising role in the development of novel optical and biosensing devices. In this study, we investigated steady state and time-dependent luminescence properties of InGaP/ZnS core/shell colloidal quantum dots in a solution phase at room temperature. The steady state experiments exhibited an emission maximum at 650 nm with full width at half maximum of ~ 85 nm, and strong first-excitonic absorption peak at 600 nm. The time-resolved luminescence measurements depicted a bi-exponential decay profile with lifetimes of τ1 ~ 47 ns and τ2 ~ 142 ns at the emission maximum. Additionally, luminescence quenching and lifetime reduction due to resonance energy transfer between the quantum dot and an absorber are demonstrated. Our results support the plausibility of using these InGaP quantum dots as an effective alternative to highly toxic conventional Cd or Pb based colloidal quantum dots for biological applications.

We model the ejection of tungsten atoms from a hot filament by a binomial distribution. A normal approximation is made and the lamp is supposed to fail if the undecayed atomic fraction drops below a critical value. The resulting formula for the lamp survival probability has no free parameter and is shown to be in excellent agreement with the experimental mortality curve.

Concerns about life support equipment accompanying the critically ill patient have to date made magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies of this patient group the exception. We present here a series of tests performed on an IVAC P3000 infusion pump to investigate its suitability for the magnetic resonance imaging environment. We investigate safety, pump performance and image quality issues. The pump was housed at the end of the patient couch to prevent motion towards the scanner. Gravimetric tests found the pump to work within acceptable parameters at a static field of 10 mT. Image interference issues were addressed.

The physics and chemistry of drying of nano-size materials (porous solids or particles with characteristic dimensions less than 100 nm) is considered. Approaches for reducing capillary pressure and surface passivation in an effort to avoid shrinkage are presented. In addition, the effect of key variables on drying costs (both capital and operating/energy) is presented.

Consider the number Xm of comparisons made in a sequence of comparisons between two opponents, which terminates as soon as one opponent wins m comparisons. The convergence of Xm to the normal variable is completely characterized. The normal approximations to the probability function and to the distribution function of Xm are obtained for any sufficiently large m, together with estimates of the errors in these approximations. Similar results are obtained for the negative binomial distribution as well. Finally, some simple estimates of the mean, variance and the incomplete beta function with equal arguments are constructed.

In this note we present a very simple proof of the upcrossings inequality (see [6], and the note at the end) for martingale sequences—one of the basic results in the theory of martingales—which does not make use of the notion of optional random variable, as is done in the usual proofs of the inequality.

Let E r denote the rth elementary symmetric function on α1 α2,…,αm which is defined by

1

E0 = 1 and Er=0(r>m).

We define the rth symmetric mean by

2

where denote the binomial coefficient. If α1 α2,…,αm are positive reals then

we have two well-known inequalities

3

and

4

In this paper we consider a generalization of these inequalities. The inequality (4) is known as Newton's inequality which contains the arithmetic and geometric mean inequality.

Let X 1, X 2, …, be a sequence of independent and identically distributed random variables, with the common distribution function F(x). The sequence is said to be normally attracted to a stable law V with characteristic exponent α, if for some an (converges in distribution to V). Necessary and sufficient conditions for normal attraction are known (cf [1, p. 181]).

Let R m denote a m dimensional Euclidean space. When x ∊ R m will write x = (x 1, x 2,..., x m ). Let R + m ={x: x ∊ R m , x i < 0 for all i} and R - m ={x: x ∊ R m , x i < 0 for all i}. In this paper we consider a class of functions which consists of mappings, E r (K) and H r (K) of R m into R which are indexed by K ∊ R + m and K ∊ R - m respectively, and defined at any point α ∊ R m by

1.1