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S. Lysozyme from buffalo milk was purified to homogeneity and its Nterminal amino acid sequence, biochemical properties and antibacterial spectrum were determined. The purification procedure, comprising ion-exchange chromatography using CM-cellulose and size-exclusion chromatography using Sephadex G-50, conferred 8622-fold purification and 39n3 % recovery of lysozyme. The purified enzyme migrated as a single band on sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and native PAGE. Immunological purity of lysozyme preparation was confirmed by immuno-electrophoresis. Molecular weight of buffalomilk lysozyme as determined by SDS-PAGE was 16 kDa and its amino acid composition was determined by reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The sequence of 23 amino acid residues at the N-terminal end showed 56n5 % homology with bovine milk lysozyme and 30n4 % with equine milk lysozyme. The specific activity of buffalo milk lysozyme was ten-times that of bovine milk lysozyme. Buffalo-milk lysozyme was active over a wide range of pH and its activity was strongly influenced by molarity of the medium. Antibacterial activity of buffalo-milk lysozyme was determined against 11 species of bacteria ; out of seven Gram-positive bacteria tested, four were inhibited, while Gram-negative bacteria were resistant.

Lysozyme activity in buffalo milk in relation to the period of lactation, parity of animal, weather conditions and udder infections was studied. Effect of storage and heat processing of milk on lysozyme activity was determined. Lysozyme activity was higher in buffalo milk than in cow milk. Buffalo colostrum showed lysozyme activity 5 times of that in mature milk. Lysozyme activity in buffalo milk was not influenced by the parity of animal and the stage of lactation, however, it increased during extreme whether conditions (winter and summer). Lysozyme in both cow and buffalo milk exhibited maximum activity at pH 7.4. Buffalo milk lysozyme was fully stable while the cow milk lysozyme was partly inactivated by pasteurization (low temperature-long time as well as high temperature-short time treatments). Lysozyme in buffalo milk was more stable than in cow milk during storage and heat treatment. A 10 to 50-fold increase in milk lysozyme activity was observed in mastitic cows. An assay of lysozyme activity in milk can be used to diagnose mastitis in cattle but not in buffaloes. Some buffaloes exhibited 1000 fold greater lysozyme activity and moderately raised somatic cell count in milk, but there was no sign of mastitis in these animals. A possible role of milk lysozyme in prevention of mastitis in buffaloes is discussed.

Context: Overweight and obesity has become a major contributor to global burden of chronic diseases and disability. Obesity among rural India is emerging as a major health problem because of change in lifestyle and food habits, thereby increases the risk of multiple morbid conditions among rural population. Aims: This study aims to find out the association of overweight/obesity with different socio-demographic factors and explore the co-morbidities among overweight and obese in a rural setting. Settings and Design: A cross-sectional study was done in a randomly selected primary health centre of Khurda district, Odisha for 4 months. Materials and Methods: This study was done among 183 patients aged >20 years with BMI >25 kg/m 2 after taking their consent. Anthropometric measurements were done and data were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. Statistical Analysis Used: Descriptive statistics such as proportion, mean and standard deviation were calculated and inferential statistics such as Chi-square test, univariate and multivariate regression was done using the SPSS version 20.0. Results: Mean age of participants was 45.7 (±13.8) years. About 93.4% were Grade II obese while 51.9% were at risk according to their waist–hip ratio. Around 53.6% of participants had multi-morbidity. Age, occupation and number of children were significantly associated with obesity. Morbidity was significantly associated with age, occupation, marital status and number of children. Increased grade in obesity the more is the probability of having morbidity. Conclusions: There is an urgent need to screen for obesity at rural health facility and early management for prevention from co-morbidities.

Background: Place of delivery has major implication on decreasing maternal morbidity and mortality. India has adopted various policies to encourage institutional births, still there are large numbers of deliveries which occur at home. Thus, it is imperative to understand the risk factors associated with home deliveries among women in India. Methods: The national representative district level household data-4 (2012-13) have been used for this analysis. A multiple logistic regression model has been used to determine the significant factors associated with home deliveries. Results: A total of 22,363 live births were selected for analysis for the year 2012. Out of which 3,602 (15.4%) are found to be home delivery births, remaining are either private or government institutional births. North-east states are found to be high prevalence of home deliveries. The potential factors viz., age of women, educational level of both husband and wife, age at first birth, higher order parity and not registered for ANC check-up, etc., are significantly associated with home delivery birth preferences among women in India. Conclusion: Our analysis demonstrates that targeting the significant predictors particularly education of family members and compulsory registration for ANC check-up will significantly reduce the preference for home delivery.