Elucidating the anti-cancer potential of Cinnamomum tamala essential oil against non-small cell lung cancer: A multifaceted approach involving GC-MS profiling, network pharmacology, and molecular dynamics simulations

Cinnamomum tamala (Buch.-Ham.) T.Nees & Eberm., or Indian Bay Leaf, is a well-known traditional ayurvedic medicine used to treat various ailments. However, the molecular mechanism of action of Cinnamomum tamala essential oil (CTEO) against non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains elusive. The present study aims to decipher the molecular targets and mechanism of CTEO in treating NSCLC. GC-MS analysis detected 49 constituents; 44 successfully passed the drug-likeness screening and were identified as active compounds. A total of 3961 CTEO targets and 4588 anti-NSCLC-related targets were acquired. JUN, P53, IL6, MAPK3, HIF1A, and CASP3 were determined as hub genes, while cinnamaldehyde, ethyl cinnamate and acetophenone were identified as core compounds. Enrichment analysis revealed that targets were mainly involved in apoptosis, TNF, IL17, pathways in cancer and MAPK signalling pathways. mRNA expression, pathological stage, survival analysis, immune infiltrate correlation and genetic alteration analysis of the core hub genes were carried out. Kaplan-Meier overall survival (OS) curve revealed that HIF1A and CASP3 are linked to worse overall survival in Lung Adenocarcinoma (LUAD) cancer patients compared to normal patients. Ethyl cinnamate and cinnamaldehyde showed high binding energy with the MAPK3 and formed stable interactions with MAPK3 during the molecular dynamic simulations for 100 ns. The MM/PBSA analysis revealed that van der Waals (VdW) contributions predominantly account for a significant portion of the compound interactions within the binding pocket of MAPK3. Density functional theory analysis showed cinnamaldehyde as the most reactive and least stable compound. CTEO exhibited selective cytotoxicity by inhibiting the proliferation of A549 cells while sparing normal HEK293 cells. CTEO triggered apoptosis by arresting the cell cycle, increasing ROS accumulation, causing mitochondrial depolarisation, and elevating caspase-3, caspase-8 and caspase-9 levels in A549 cells. The above study provides insights into the pharmacological mechanisms of action of Cinnamomum tamala essential oil against non-small cell lung cancer treatment, suggesting its potential as an adjuvant therapy.

Sarcoidosis - A review article

Sarcoidosis is a granulomatous disorder of multiple organs, with lungs and lymphatic systems being the most frequently affected sites of the body. It was first reported in 1877 and has continued to engross both clinicians and scientists since that time. Because sarcoidosis being a diagnosis of exclusion, it demands the physician to rule out all the possible diagnosis. Most of the patients remain asymptomatic and this makes the disease remain unnoticed for a prolonged period. Later after years, the disease could be diagnosed after witnessing the patient being symptomatic or suffering from organ failures. It could affect middle aged people of any sexes, often its clinical features correlate with tuberculosis. On immunological and histopathological examination, it reveals noncaseating granuloma in simple terms. Glucocorticoids remain the standard drug now and then. Further research has to be done to know the exact pathogenesis, early detection and betterment in treatment plan of sarcoidosis. The current review article gives a brief knowledge about etiopathogenesis, Clinical features, upgraded diagnostic methods such as biomarkers detection and the organized treatment plan to treat sarcoidosis.

Development and validation of Vellore Assessment of Social Performance among clients with chronic mental illness

BACKGROUND

Social skills deficits are hallmark symptoms of chronic mental illness. The absence of a culturally sensitive instrument to measure social skills in the Indian population demands the need to develop and standardize such instruments.

AIM

The aim of this study was to develop and validate a context-specific, culturally relevant, and performance-based assessment scale for social performance.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

An expert committee of mental health professionals reviewed existing literature, identified standardized scales, examined items for cultural relevance, and identified possible issues for measurement. The items were categorized into 5 domains with a 7-point scale. The instrument was initially piloted on 10 participants, then among 101 consecutive clients with chronic mental illness between 18 and 60 years of age who provided written informed consent. They were assessed by two therapists to evaluate inter-rater reliability and test-retest reliability. They were also assessed on the Social Interaction and Communication Skills Checklist (SICSC) to evaluate convergent validity and on the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) to assess divergent validity. Standard statistical tests were used to study its characteristics.

RESULTS

The scale had good inter-rater reliability (0.941; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.914, 0.960) and test-retest reliability (0.928; 95% CI: 0.810, 0.965). The correlation between total score of Vellore Assessment of Social Performance (VASP) and SICSC (Pearson's correlation coefficient = 0.696; P = 0.001) suggested moderate convergent validity. The correlation between total score of VASP and GHQ-12 (Pearson's correlation coefficient = -0.046; P = 0.648) implied good divergent validity.

CONCLUSION

VASP seems to be a promising scale to assess social performance in people with mental illness.

Immunization with Salmonella Abortusequi phage lysate protects guinea pig against the virulent challenge of SAE-742

Salmonella Abortusequi causes important clinical diseases in horses possibly leading to abortion. In the present investigation, the protective efficacy of both plain and aluminum hydroxide gel adjuvanted phage lysate was evaluated in guinea pig model. Broad host range bacteriophage P_IZ-SAE-2, was characterized and used for generation of lysates. Three different lysate batches, produced through separate cycles and characterized, were pooled together for immunization study. Plain and adjuvanted phage lysate preparations elicited both humoral and cellmediated immunity. The adjuvanted lysate at a dose of 50 μl elicited the highest protective efficacy against direct challenge at 28th DPI. Thus, the present study describes a new method of bacterial inactivation for producing a new class of better & safe immunprophylactic agents. This is the first report of producing an inactivated vaccine candidate using a new approach against equine salmonellosis.

Myocardial perfusion abnormalities in patients occurring more than 1 year after successful univentricular (Fontan surgery) and biventricular repair (complete repair of tetralogy of Fallot)

The outcome of children born with cyanotic congenital heart disease has markedly improved over the years. Follow up is recommended for most post-operated cases as complications may occur over long term. One of the complications is the development of ventricular dysfunction, often seen after a successful Fontan surgery (or one of its modifications) for single ventricle. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of myocardial perfusion abnormalities in the ventricular myocardium of asymptomatic patients, older than 8 years of age, who had earlier undergone either a univentricular palliation (modified Fontan procedure) or a biventricular repair for tetralogy of Fallot, more than a year ago. All eligible patients underwent screening electrocardiogram (to rule out rhythm disturbance) and echocardiography. Patients with ventricular ejection fraction of more than 50 % by echocardiography were included. Enrolled patients were subjected to gated stress-rest myocardial perfusion imaging using Technitium-99m tetrofosmin single photon emission-computerized tomography (SPECT). Ventricular ejection fraction was also calculated from gated rest study. For the Fontan group, we also analyzed data to see if the morphology of the systemic ventricle would make a difference as far as myocardial perfusion was concerned. Twenty-six patients were enrolled (11 had undergone Fontan surgery and 15 had complete repair of tetralogy of Fallot). Seven of 11 patients in the Fontan group had myocardial perfusion defects (63.6 %) as against none in the repaired tetralogy of Fallot group (p < 0.001). The ejection fraction was within normal range in both the groups; it was statistically higher in the post tetralogy of Fallot repair group (p < 0.04). There were two subgroups in the post Fontan group depending on the morphology of systemic ventricle-left (4 patients) and non-left (7 patients). Higher number and larger size of perfusion defects were present in the non-left ventricular systemic ventricle morphology as compared with left ventricular morphology, but this difference did not reach statistical significance. Myocardial perfusion defects are common in patients who have undergone univentricular repair more than one year ago in contrast to patients who had a biventricular repair for tetralogy of Fallot. In the Fontan group, the morphology of the systemic ventricle was not predictive of prevalence of perfusion defect.