Intermittent Fasting on the Ekadashi Day and the Role of Spiritual Nutrition

Intermittent Fasting (IF) has been practiced for centuries with the belief of wellbeing getting restored. The so-called restoration of internal milieu by calorie free periods is believed in many religions. The Muslims practise the night-only-feeds of Ramzan, the Christians in a few selected days of a week and the Hindus fasting every fifteen days on the day of Ekadashi1. Ekadashi is a Sanskrit word, which literally means 'the eleventh'. It actually refers to the eleventh day of a fortnight and hence there are two such days in a lunar month. After the full calorie free day, there are certain prescribed foods and nutrients to be taken the next day of Dwadashi among which amla fruit and agathi keerai leaves are necessarily taken as a starter before actual full-fledged refeeding. There are a few specific ingredients in these foods which make them ideal to break a fasting session2. As these days are associated with the Hindu deities such nutrition can be designed as spiritual nutrition. Such additives to routine diet may help overcome the problems of refeeding. In this review we have attempted to define the scientific basis of fasting during Ekadashi and the reasoning behind the initial administration of agathi keerai leaves and amla fruits before the intake of routine diet on the following day.i.e. Dwadashi. We tried to look for scientific evidences behind such fortnightly fasting and the specialized feeds on the next day and kept them as objectives of this special review

Thirst recruits phasic dopamine signaling through subfornical organ neurons

Thirst is a highly potent drive that motivates organisms to seek out and consume balance-restoring stimuli. The detection of dehydration is well understood and involves signals of peripheral origin and the sampling of internal milieu by first order homeostatic neurons within the lamina terminalis—particularly glutamatergic neurons of the subfornical organ expressing CaMKIIa (SFOCaMKIIa). However, it remains unknown whether mesolimbic dopamine pathways that are critical for motivation and reinforcement integrate information from these “early” dehydration signals. We used in vivo fiber photometry in the ventral tegmental area and measured phasic dopamine responses to a water-predictive cue. Thirst, but not hunger, potentiated the phasic dopamine response to the water cue. In euvolemic rats, the dipsogenic hormone angiotensin II, but not the orexigenic hormone ghrelin, potentiated the dopamine response similarly to that observed in water-deprived rats. Chemogenetic manipulations of SFOCaMKIIarevealed bidirectional control of phasic dopamine signaling during cued water reward. Taking advantage of within-subject designs, we found predictive relationships between changes in cue-evoked dopamine response and changes in behavioral responses—supporting a role for dopamine in motivation induced by homeostatic need. Collectively, we reveal a putative mechanism for the invigoration of goal-directed behavior: internal milieu communicates to first order, need state-selective circuits to potentiate the mesolimbic dopamine system’s response to cues predictive of restorative stimuli.

The Microenvironment in Immobilized Enzymes: Methods of Characterization and Its Role in Determining Enzyme Performance

The liquid milieu in which enzymes operate when they are immobilized in solid materials can be quite different from the milieu in bulk solution. Important differences are in the substrate and product concentration but also in pH and ionic strength. The internal milieu for immobilized enzymes is affected by the chemical properties of the solid material and by the interplay of reaction and diffusion. Enzyme performance is influenced by the internal milieu in terms of catalytic rate (“activity”) and stability. Elucidation, through direct measurement of differences in the internal as compared to the bulk milieu is, therefore, fundamentally important in the mechanistic characterization of immobilized enzymes. The deepened understanding thus acquired is critical for the rational development of immobilized enzyme preparations with optimized properties. Herein we review approaches by opto-chemical sensing to determine the internal milieu of enzymes immobilized in porous particles. We describe analytical principles applied to immobilized enzymes and focus on the determination of pH and the O2 concentration. We show measurements of pH and [O2] with spatiotemporal resolution, using in operando analysis for immobilized preparations of industrially important enzymes. The effect of concentration gradients between solid particle and liquid bulk on enzyme performance is made evident and quantified. Besides its use in enzyme characterization, the method can be applied to the development of process control strategies.

Metabolic and Diffuse Encephalopathies: Disruption of the Internal Milieu

Chapter 5 examines the broad range of metabolic causes of unconsciousness and the specific treatments they require. The main feature distinguishing diffuse or metabolic impairment of consciousness is that it is normally not associated with focal neurological findings that would suggest a structural lesion of the brain. However, there are some features of the neurological examination of patients with metabolic encephalopathies that can help to pinpoint the cause of the disturbance. In addition, there are some findings on examination that may appear to be due to focal lesions, but which can be due to diffuse or metabolic disease. The chapter first examines the diagnostic features of metabolic encephalopathies. It then looks at the internal metabolic milieu in which the brain functions normally. It also considers specific types of metabolic and diffuse disturbances of that internal milieu that can cause encephalopathy. Finally, it considers various endogenous and exogenous toxins that produce toxic encephalopathies.

The Revenge Game: U.S Foreign Policy During Afghan-Soviet War and Afghan-Pakistan Falling Into Hell

<p>The U.S Foreign policy during the Soviets encroachment of Afghanistan at the height of Cold War has been evaluated, as well as its negative effects in Afghanistan-Pakistan (Af-Pak). During 1979, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R) landed on Afghanistan in order to secure Warm Water Ports and Persian Gulf Oil. (This was called as the “Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan”). By having this situation, The U.S government established a mission in Afghanistan which consisted on two main purposes. One of them was to stand against the invasion of Afghanistan provoked by U.S.S.R. and the second one was to provide Afghan Mujahedeen Movements with some help and be prepared for the coming situation. So, the provision of the most dangerous weapons and the need of billions of dollars were made to these fundamentalist Afghan mujahedeen. Thus, they could protect themselves and fight against the U.S.S.R invasion. As a matter of fact, the Taliban groups were founded due to U.S policy. Nevertheless, the establishment of them has become the biggest general threat to global peace, particularly for Afghanistan and Pakistan. This research consists of three parts which are going to be developed in the order as follows: The internal milieu of Afghanistan and the intervention by U.S.S.R, The U.S policy interests and the outcomes of these policies, The Afghan and Pakistan consequences which were gotten by these policies. This Research is going to be a new source of knowledge for understanding the U.S foreign policy during this War and their negative effects on Afghanistan and Pakistan such as refugee’s settlement and number of other problems. Although Americans just revenge from Soviets but this game also destroyed the Pakistan. Also as an explanation on the nowadays coming international terrorism and how the Afghan insurgents have become strong enough. </p>

The Hibernation Continuum: Physiological and Molecular Aspects of Metabolic Plasticity in Mammals

Mammals are often considered to be masters of homeostasis, with the ability to maintain a constant internal milieu, despite marked changes in the environment; however, many species exhibit striking physiological and biochemical plasticity in the face of environmental fluctuations. Here, we review metabolic depression and body temperature fluctuation in mammals, with a focus on the extreme example of hibernation in small-bodied eutherian species. Careful exploitation of the phenotypic plasticity of mammals with metabolic flexibility may provide the key to unlocking the molecular secrets of orchestrating and surviving reversible metabolic depression in less plastic species, including humans.