Genetic Variability and Elite Line Selection for High Essential Oil and Nepetalactone Content in Catmint (<i>Nepeta cataria</i>L.)

Nepeta cataria L., commonly known as catmint or catnip, belongs to the family “Lamiaceae” and is indigenous to Europe and Asia. The essential oil of this species is known for the richness and diversity of nepetalactones (NPL) which are used as mosquito/insect repellents in perfumery and cosmetic industries. Reports on Indian catmint germplasm are very meager and warrants exploration of its commercial potential as a natural, non-toxic source of insect repellents. With this objective, commercial open-pollinated seeds of catmint collected from its native, temperate habitat in Himalayas were introduced in the tropical plains. Subsequent to adaptation to a new zone we were able to isolate nineteen individual plants based on plant growth. Hydrodistillation of the fresh herb yielded essential oil in the range of 0.01% to 0.2%. Gas Chromatography (GC) and GC-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) analyses of the oil revealed the dominance of monoterpene hydrocarbon, namely, 4aα,7α,7aα NPL (1) isomer (84%). The other two isomers of nepetalactone, 4aα,7α,7aβ NPL (2) and 4aα,7β,7aα NPL (3) were also present, although in very less amounts (1.0% and 1.6%, respectively). Sesquiterpenes identified were α-humulene (traces), (E)-caryophyllene (0.6%) and caryophyllene oxide (1.7%). We compared the identified Indian catmint chemotype with the other oils from temperate, sub-tropical and tropical locations based on literature search. The Indian chemotype was found to be similar to the oils from Burundi, France, Turkey, UK and USA, mainly due to more accumulation of 4aα,7α,7aα NPL (1) isomer. These oils grouped together in Principal Component Analysis. Breeding lines are presently being developed to improve yield related traits in this plant. Multidisciplinary R&D efforts along with setting up industry related guidelines are required to successfully commercialize catmint cultivation. Several species of Nepeta genus have high nepetalactone content too and their potential as a commercial source of these isomers still needs to be explored.

Responding to fire in an intensive care unit: Management and lessons learned

Healthcare institutions are vulnerable to disruptionfrom events such as earthquakes, fires, and floods, andthe damage incurred can endanger the lives of patientsin the hospital.[1] In this type of scenario hospital staffhave primary responsibility for the hospitalized patients＇safety, since patients are neither fit to respond to sucha disaster, nor do they know how to respond.[2,3] Thesituation becomes more difficult and challenging if thedisaster occurs in critical care areas such as intensivecare units （ICUs） and operating rooms.

Challenges in Retention of Patients in Continuum of HIV-Care in Delhi— Experience of a Decade &Way Ahead

Retention of the patients in HIV-care is critical for success of Anti Retroviral Treatment (ART) programme to reduce HIV-related morbidity & mortality and prevent emergence of drug resistance. In last decade in Delhi (April 2004 to March 2014), overall 24% HIV-positive patients were lost-to-follow-up (LTFU) at step-1 (testing to enrolment into HIV-care), 7.8% at step-2 (enrolment to ART eligibility), 23.7% at step-3 (eligibility to initiation of ART) and 16.6% at step-4 (initiation to lifelong ART) of retention cascade. About 2/3rd losses at step-4 were within 1st year and 80% within 2 years. The retention of the patients in pre-ART care was 3 times lower than those initiated ART. Only 27.4% patients were in active pre-ART care during 2013. The intensified LTFU tracking (ILT) undertaken during November, 2013 through March, 2014 was not successful in tracking 97% pre-ART LTFU clients due to incomplete addresses/or migration since address proof of patients on enrolment into HIV-care was not mandatory prior to 2009. Amongst patients tracked, 1.5% were alive, 0.24% had disengaged from care while 1.2% had died. After ILT overall “On ART” and “Pre-ART” LTFU rate in the last decade was 15.5% and 45.2%, respectively. The retention cascade of last year from April 2013 to March 2014 showed improvement through strategies adopted in Third Phase of National AIDS Control Programme (NACP-III;2007-2013), and “On ART” and “Pre-ART” LTFU rates declined to 9.4% and 7.4%, respectively. However, desired at least 90% retention at various steps of the cascade could not be achieved. National Policy of delivering ART services through limited number of standalone ART centers in India, despite its significant success, has limitation of leaky treatment cascade and calls for policy makers to decentralize the programme by its appropriate integration with general health services and task shifting to improve continuum of care.

Health care professional training in biomedical waste management at a tertiary care hospital in India

Dear Editor：Biomedical waste is any waste generated during the diagnosis,treatment or immunization of human beings or animals,in research activities pertaining to or in the production of or testing of biologicals,and all other categories waste generated by healthcare activities.It includes a broad range of materials from used needles and syringes,soiled dressings,body parts,diagnostic samples,blood,chemicals,pharmaceuticals,