Time- and Temperature-Dependent Changes in Cytochrome c Oxidase Activity and Cyanide Concentration in Excised Mice Organs and Mice Cadavers

Postmortem stability of cyanide biomarkers is often disputed. We assessed the time and temperature-dependent changes in cytochrome c oxidase (CCO) activity and cyanide concentration in various organs of mice succumbing to cyanide. Immediately after death, excised mice organs and mice cadavers were stored at room temperature (35°C ± 5°C) or in frozen storage (−20°C ± 2°C). At various times after death, CCO activity and cyanide concentrations were measured in excised mice organs or organs removed from mice cadavers. The study revealed that (i) measuring both the biomarkers in mice cadavers was more reliable compared to excised mice organs, (ii) measuring temporal CCO activity and cyanide concentration in vital organs from mice cadavers (room temperature) was reliable up to 24 h, and (iii) CCO activity in the brain and lungs and cyanide concentration in organs from mice cadavers (frozen) were measurable beyond 21 days. This study will be helpful in postmortem determination of cyanide poisoning.     

Changes in U.S. hospitalization and mortality rates following smoking bans

U.S. state and local governments have increasingly adopted restrictions on smoking in public places. This paper analyzes nationally representative databases, including the Nationwide Inpatient Sample, to compare short‐term changes in mortality and hospitalization rates in smoking‐restricted regions with control regions. In contrast with smaller regional studies, we find that smoking bans are not associated with statistically significant short‐term declines in mortality or hospital admissions for myocardial infarction or other diseases. An analysis simulating smaller studies using subsamples reveals that large short‐term increases in myocardial infarction incidence following a smoking ban are as common as the large decreases reported in the published literature. © 2010 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.     

Two Obscure Sanskrit Words Related to the C��rv��ka: pa?cagupta and ku??ak��?a

Two words, pañcagupta and ku??ak???a, are found in modern Sanskrit lexicons such as the ?abdakalpadruma, the V??caspatya, the Sanskrit-Wörterbuch, and A Sanskrit English Dictionary. They are said to signify the C??rv??ka philosophy and an expert in the C??rv??ka philosophy respectively. Both the words have been taken from some twelfth-century Sanskrit ko?as but no example of actual use is available. Nor do they occur in any earlier Sanskrit ko?a, such as the Amarako?a and the Hal??yudhako?a. The inference is that the words must have appeared in some late philosophical work that was critical of the materialist C??rv??ka system of philosophy and the ko?ak??ras found them in the same source.     

Food sovereignty and agro-ecology in Karnataka: interplay of discourses,identities, and practices

Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS), a farmers’ movement, and a member of La Via Campesina, has been encouraging zero-budget natural farming in Karnataka, India, within the framework of food sovereignty and agro-ecology. Using the experiences of KRRS, this article addresses the question of the extent of pluralism within the discourse of food sovereignty. Focusing on the interplay of local and global practices, discourses and identities, the article throws light upon contradictions and negotiations between “necessary abstractions” and “particularisms”, spaces and places of resistance and implications it may have on struggles at both local and global levels.     

An Exploration of Conceptual and Temporal Fallacies in International Health Law and Promotion of Global Public Health Preparedness

In February 2007, Indonesia withheld sharing H5N1 viral samples in order to compel the World Health Organization and Member States to guarantee future access to vaccines for States disproportionately burdened by infectious diseases. This article explores conceptual and temporal fallacies in the International Health Regulations (2005) and the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health, as relates to global public health preparedness. Recommendations include adopting laws to facilitate non-pharmaceutical interventions; securing the rights of affected populations; and fostering inter-State collaborations to promote intra-State public health capacity building.