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With rapid growth and changes in daily life, air pollution is also increasing at a high rate. Air pollution threats are not only restricted to urban areas but harm rural areas also. Apart from being harmful to human beings; air pollution possesses a negative impact on bird species also. This study was carried out to find out the adverse impact of air pollution on the diversity of the avian community. The study was executed at five different locations in Bilaspur city during the summer season (2022). Vehicular emissions, burning of fossil fuels, constructions etc. are the major source of pollution in the city. The point count and checklist method was adopted for the observation of bird species. The air quality and pollution monitoring had been carried out through the ‘Smiledrive Air Quality Monitor Pollution Meter’ which detects the concentration and level of PM 2.5, PM 10, TVOC and HCHO in the air. The diversity of bird species was calculated through total species richness and the Shannon-Wiener diversity index. It was observed that the site having minimum pollution levels have a large bird population with maximum diversity and the sites having high pollution levels have the least diversity of birds. It is the reason that many bird species avoid areas with high pollution concentrations. The study also revealed the remarkably high population of birds of the ‘Sturnidae’ and ‘Columbidae families in polluted sites which validates that the birds of these families have adapted themselves well in the sites with high pollution levels.

Most immunoassays quantify cytokines with pg/mL sensitivity, which is insufficient to detect those present at low levels. MSD’s next-generation S-PLEXSM assay format was developed to quantify cytokines with fg/mL sensitivity. Here we describe measuring IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, and IL-17A levels in normal sera and the supernatants of model cell lines using S-PLEX assays. The assays demonstrated a dynamic range of approximately four orders of magnitude. Standard intra-plate coefficients of variation (CVs) ranged from 3%-15% and inter-plate CVs ranged from 8%–18%. The lower limit of detection (LLOD) was <1 fg/mL for all assays except IL-17A (11 fg/mL). IL-2, IL-6, IL-10, and IL-17A were detectable in 100% of normal sera samples (n=36–75) and IL-4 was detectable in 40% of normal sera samples (n=75). The average concentrations were <1 pg/mL for normal samples. To confirm the sensitivity of these assays and their ability to detect native analytes, we characterized a panel of 23 cell lines that are models for cytokine secretion. As an example, the MOLT-4 cell line derived from acute lymphoblastic leukemia natively expressed detectable levels of IL-2 (1,031 fg/mL), IL-4 (221 fg/mL), IL-10 (60 fg/mL), and IL-17A (30 fg/mL). The expression profiles of these cell lines confirmed the sensitivity of the S-PLEX assays. S-PLEX cytokine assays provide a 100 to 1,000-fold lower LOD than standard ELISAs, allowing the determination of baseline cytokine levels in many sample types.

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Measuring low-abundance cytokines in CSF may be useful when studying brain and nervous system disorders. We recently developed novel immunoassays with fg/mL and sub-fg/mL detection limits that enable quantitation of low-abundance biomarkers in CSF. S-PLEXSM assays, utilizing MSD’s MULTI-ARRAY® electrochemiluminescence technology, were developed and analytically characterized and the concentrations of cytokines in CSF were measured using these assays. Assays for the following cytokines were used: IL-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-10, IL-17A, IL-21, IFN-γ, GM-CSF, TSLP, and TNF-α. The lower limits of detection achieved for S-PLEX assays for these analytes ranged from ~0.2 fg/mL to ~50 fg/mL. Spike recovery and dilution linearity were between 80% and 120%. Depletion experiments demonstrated specificity for each analyte. Cytokine levels in the majority of apparently healthy CSF samples were measurable for 8 out of the 12 analytes tested. We have developed a next-generation assay format that is 100 to 1,000 times more sensitive than the current limits of standard ELISA technology. This increased sensitivity enables accurate quantitation of cytokine levels in the CSF of apparently healthy donors. These assays will allow for a better understanding of the role these cytokines play in brain and nervous system disorders.