Bisphenol A (BPA) is leached out from plastic infant feeding bottles that are filled with warm milk/water due to high temperatures, exposing the infants to BPA. The present study aims to understand the effects of ingestion of BPA leached from plastic infant feeding bottle and delineate the underlying mechanisms in rats. In this study, adult rats of Wistar strain were divided into 3 groups. In the first group, the rats consumed normal food and tap water ad libitum. In the second group, the rats ingested BPA (20 µg/kg bodyweight/day, orally). In the third group, the rats drank water leached from plastic infant feeding bottles. After 30days, tests involving biochemical parameters, histopathological examination, and oxidative stress enzyme markers were performed, and the levels of BPA in plastic-leached water were estimated by HPLC analysis. There were significant biochemical changes in the form of increased alkaline phosphatase (ALP), creatine kinase-muscle/brain (CK-MB), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels in both treated groups as compared to control group, accompanied by structural damage to the vital organs, and lipid peroxidation, glutathione reductase, and catalase activity were also high in the treated groups. Further, the BPA concentration in plastic leached water was estimated to be 0.1 ± 0.02 µg/mL.

COVID 19 has brought several challenges for each individual, changing the world's perception of health-care professionals. People are hailing health-care professionals as heroes, worthy of praise and gratitude. However, the pandemic has overburdened the health-care system. In this situation, the undergraduate medical students are being used as a crucial part of the health-care team in various ways. Involvement of medical undergraduates in situations of natural disaster is not new. In fact, a review of history of previous natural disasters reveals that this has been normal every time health systems have been overburdened. In the present situation of COVID 19, these students have a crucial role to play in helping frontline workers combat the crisis. Though the students would like to render their services, they are in a state of dilemma, as their roles are not defined clearly and their training to combat the pandemic is inadequate, as it was in previous outbreaks. This highlights a need to introduce module-based training for medical graduates to contribute effectively in combating future outbreaks.

No abstract

Background: Plastic bottles are widely used by people to feed their infants when breastfeeding is not possible. Bisphenol A (BPA), an endocrine disruptor is widely used in the manufacturing of plastic wares and is leached out from these plastic wares on exposure to high temperature, changed pH, or cleaning the plastic wares by harsh detergents.Purpose: Feeding through plastic bottles over prolong duration is expected to expose the infants to leached BPA. Hence the present study was taken up to compare the effects of breastfeeding and plastic bottle feeding on biochemical parameters in infants and also detect for the presence of free BPA or its metabolite in the infants.Methods: Biochemical tests like lipid profile, liver function tests, creatine-kinase–MB (CK-MB), serum urea, serum electrolytes were performed on blood samples obtained from infants who were breastfed and plastic bottle fed. Further, plasma and urine samples of the infants were subjected to Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis for detecting free BPA and BPA glucuronide.Results: Biochemical changes in form of raised triglycerides, cholesterol, low-density lipoproteins, very low-density lipoproteins and increase in CK-MB, serum urea were observed in plastic bottle fed infants. BPA glucuronide was also detected in the urine of these infants. Free BPA was not detected in plasma or urine samples of the infants except in one plasma sample from bottle-fed group.Conclusion: Plastic bottle feeding may lead to toxic changes in the functioning of organs which manifest as altered biochemical parameters.