ANNUAL REPORT 2002 - 2003 National Institute of Nutrition Hyderabad - 500 007 CONTENTS Page RESEARCH STAFF i - iii HIGHLIGHTS iv - viii I. COMMUNITY STUDIES 1. Nutrition profile of Indians – A district level survey in Uttar Pradesh 1 II. NUTRITION AND INFECTION 1. Women’s work and bone health – A study in an urban slum population 4 2. Immunoglobulins in the vaginal secretions of women with vaginal infections 7 III. MICRONUTRIENTS AND TRACE ELEMENTS 1. Studies on fortification of wheat flour with iron and folic acid 9 2. Iron absorption promoters in fortification of edible salt 10 3. Iron and zinc interactions at the site of absorption in rats 11 IV. DIET AND NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES 1. Influence of long-term dietary restriction on chaperone function of alpha-crystallin and aggregation of alpha- gamma-crystallins in rat lens 13 2. Characterization of a new model substrate for investigating the molecular chaperone like function of alpha-crystallin 14 3. Effect of dietary trans fatty acids on insulin resistance, structure and function of adipocytes in rats 16 4. Biochemical and metabolic studies with sesame lignans 18 5. Effect of dietary alteration of n-6 and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on insulin resistance, structure and function of adipocytes and skeletal muscle 18 6. Effect of copper and molybdenm on development of skeletal fluorosis in rabbits 20 7. Effect of tamarind on mobilization of fluoride in fluorotic subjects 22 8. Resistin : A molecular link between type 2 diabetes and obesity 24 9. Understanding the mechanism of action of PPAR? in regulation of glucose metabolism 25 10. Etiology of endemic goitre in Northeast India : Role of environmental goitrogens 26 11. Nutrient composition (proximate and trace mineral content) of new varieties of rice 29 V. PATHOLOGY 1. Effect of vitamin restriction and supplementation of intestinal mucosal cell apoptosis 31 2. Scanning electron microscope studies on effect of copper and molybdenum on development of skeletal fluorosis in rabbits 32 3. SEM studies of vegetables and spices 33 VI. EXTENSION AND TRAINING 1. ICMR Annual Day Celebrations 34 2. Workshops and Seminars 34 3. Extension Activities 35 4. Special Events 36 5. Public Relations 37 6. Training Programmes 37 VII. FOOD AND DRUG TOXICOLOGY RESEARCH CENTRE A. Food Safety 1. Aflatoxin contamination in Walnut 39 2. Application of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) to animal products 39 B. Cancer and Xenobiotics 1. Preclinical toxicity of r-DNA anti-rabies vaccine (DRV) and combination of rabies vaccine (CRV) 40 2. Antioxidant activities of certain medicinal plants from North-East India 42 3. Development of in vivo model for genotoxicity 43 4. Modlation of xenobiotic metabolism of Zingiber officinale (ginger) 43 5. Ethno-pharmacological validation of biodynamic compounds in traditional medicine 44 VIII. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR LABORATORY ANIMAL SCIENCES (NCLAS) A. Service Activities 47 B. Research Activities 51 1. Effect of “Satiomem” an anorexigenic membrane glycoprotein in WNIN/Ob rats – A preliminary study 51 2. Study of haematological parameters and some receptors involved in lipoprotein metabolism 52 3. An experimental study to identify the source plant of “LAKSHMANA” with reference to its activity in female infertility – A preliminary study 52 INSTRUMENTATION SERVICES 54 LIBRARY AND DOCUMENTATION SERVICES 58 Ph.D. PROGRAMMES 60 PARTICIPATION OF SCIENTISTS IN INTERNATIONAL MEETINGS 63 CONFERENCES/TRAINING PROGRAMMES HELD AT THE INSTITUTE 65 SERVICES RENDERED TOWARDS INCOME GENERATION 66 SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS 67 SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY COMMITTEE 70 RESEARCH STAFF Officers-in-Charge Ghafoorunissa B.Sivakumar K.Vijayaraghavan MSc, PhD MSc, PhD MBBS, MSc (AN), M.Sc (Comm.Hlth.) NCLAS NIN/FDTRC NNMB CLINICAL DIVISION CHILD HEALTH BIOCHEMISTRY DIVISION P. Bhaskaram, MD Ghafoorunissa, MSc, PhD (Deputy Director - Sr.Gr) (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr) B.A. Ramalakshmi, MBBS, DG0 V.Vijayalakshmi, MSc, PhD R. Hemalatha, MD Arjun Khandare, MSc, PhD K. V. Radhakrishna, MBBS, DCH Ahmed Ibrahim, MSc, PhD G. Jagjeevan Babu, MBBS C. Suresh, MSc, PhD Radhika, MSc N.Saravanan, MSc MATERNAL HEALTH MOLECULAR BIOLOGY RESEARCH STAFF RESEARCH STAFF Veena Shatrugna, MD A. Vajreswari, MSc, PhD (Deputy Director) (Deputy Director) Nasreen Zafar Ehtesham, MSc, PhD P. Yashodhara, MD M. Kaladhar, MSc, PhD Bharati Kulkarni MBBS, DCH Vijaya Banu, MSc, PhD G. Amarendra Reddy, MA, Mphil Neelam, MSc, PhD Prabhavati Paranjape, BSc Ananth Samwarna Rao, MSc, PhD Jessy Metelda, MBBS S. M.Jeyakumar, MSc, M.Phil Adani Haseeb, MSc PATHOLOGY B.Aruna, MSc L. Singotamu, MSc, PhD BIOPHYSICS DIVISION (Deputy Director-Sr-Gr) B. Sesikeran, MD B. Sivakumar, MSc, PhD (Deputy Director) (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr) P. Uday Kumar, MD K. Madhavan Nair, MSc, PhD SSYH. Qadri, MVSc Y. Venkataramana, MSc, PhD E.P. Ramachandran, BSc S. Ranganathan, MSc, PhD A. Vijayalakshmi, MSc Meenakshi Subramanian, BSc i P. Ravinder, MSc, PhD K. Venkaiah, MSc B.Sreedhar T. Prasanna Krishna, MSc, PhD Komila Pareek, MSc M. Vishnuvardhan Rao, MSc,PhD FOOD CHEMISTRY DIVISION N. Balakrishna, MSc,PhD Grace Maria Antony, MSc, PGDCA T. Longvah, MSc (Deputy Director) EXTENSION & TRAINING DIVISION S. Bapu Rao, MSc, PhD P. Amrutha Rao, MBBS, DPH T.C. Raghuram, MD, PhD P. Sujata, MSc, PhD K. Bhaskarachary, MSc, PhD (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr) K.V. Rameshwar Sarma, MD, MSc (AN) P. Ramulu, MSc, PhD K.Chandu Nayak, MBBS (Deputy Director) Krishnakumari Menon, MSc ENDOCRINOLOGY & METABOLISM D. Raghunatha Rao, MSc, PhD DIVISION T. Vijaya Pushpam, MA, MPhil G. M. Subba Rao, MA, PGDJ, PGDT M. Raghunath, MSc, PhD Anilkumar Dube, MA, MCJ, DPM M. Shiva Prakash, MSc, PhD Rita Saxena, MSc R. Nageswara Rao, MSc, BJ G. Bhanu Prakash Reddy, MSc, PhD P. Suryanarayana, MSc, PhD LIBRARY C. Vijayakumar Reddy, MSc, PhD S. Chennaiah, MSc, PhD K. Sampathachary, BSc, MLISc, PhD D. Sreeramulu, MSc, PhD M. Devidas, MA, MLISc L. Venu, MSc M.Satish Kumar, MSc INSTRUMENTATION P.Anil Kumar, MSc Megha Saraswat, MSc Surendra Prasad, MSc (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr) FIELD DIVISION R. Subramanian, MSc, PhD (Deputy Director) K.Vijayaraghavan, MBBS, MSc (AN), M.Sc (Comm.Hlth.) FOOD & DRUG TOXICOLOGY RESEARCH CENTRE (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr & Officer-in-Charge, (FDTRC) NNMB) G.N.V. Brahmam, MBBS, DPH B.Sivakumar, MSc, PhD (Deputy Director) Shahnaz Vazir, MA, PhD (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr & Officer-in-Charge) A. Laxmaiah, MBBS, DPH FOOD TOXICOLOGY R. Harikumar, MBBS, DPH N.Arlappa, MBBS V. Ramesh Bhat, MSc, PhD, DPEM Ch. Gal Reddy, MA, MPhil K. Mallikharjuna Rao, MSc, PhD (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr) Sharad Kumar, MA, MPhil S. Babu, MSc, PhD M. Ravindranath, MA (Deputy Director) S. Vasanthi, MSc, PhD STATISTICS DIVISION V. Sudershan Rao, MSc, PhD J. Padmaja, MSc, PhD A. Nadamuni Naidu, MSc (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr) ii DRUG TOXICOLOGY S. Kalyanasundaram, MSc N.V. Giridharan, MSc, PhD V. Jagadeesan, MSc, PhD P. Suresh Babu, MVSc (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr) N. Hari Shanker, MSc, PhD Kalpagam Polasa, MSc, PhD, MBA A.Uma Devi, MSc Deputy Director M.P. Rajendra Prasad, MBBS, MSc(AN) ADMINISTRATION B. Dinesh Kumar, MSc, PhD T. Vijayalakshmi, MSc, PhD K.C.Sankaran Kutty V. K. Goud, MSc, PhD K.Venkateswara Rao, BCom T. Manjula, MPharm. A.V. Lakshmi, MA Prema Parthasarathy NATIONAL CENTRE FOR LABORATORY G. Krishna Reddy, B.Com ANIMAL SCIENCES (NCLAS) Alexander Verghese M.J.Radha Bai Ghafoorunissa, MSc, PhD (Deputy Director-Sr.Gr & Officer-in-Charge) MAINTENANCE S. Hariharan, MSc (Deputy Director-Sr-Gr) P. Rajamohan Rao, LCE, PGDCPEMM RESEARCH STAFF RESEARCH STAFF iii HIGHLIGHTS bone density improvement. However the stimu- lation of bone turnover during prolonged bone Nutrition related issues pertaining to loading postures in the absence of calcium different geographical regions of the country intakes might prove to be deleterious for bone were probed in detail this year. Uttar Pradesh was health. surveyed this year to assess the dietary intakes and nutritional status of rural community. North- Earlier studies showed that despite low Eastern India was also the focus of research calcium intakes standing or standing with studies as certain aspects of endemic goitre load bearing/bending postures are better for hip were investigated and also certain medicinal densities when compared to the sitting postures plants were analyzed for their antioxidant activities. at work. However, in the case of the spine, A series of studies on food fortification and trace standing and bending postures significantly minerals were carried out as part of basic reduce bone densities at the spine, but sitting studies. Also, this year, some new studies postures do not worsen the spine bone densities. were conducted in the areas of cancer- Using the WHO classification for diagnosis of xenobiotics, food safety and extension and osteoporosis, the onset of bone changes around training. In the realm of clinical studies, the 40 years of age in the low socio-economic group correlation between women’s work and bone were seen in spine (-2.27), hip (-1.7), forearm health was worked out. Here are the highlights of (-1.53) in this order. All the women from the low the research studies carried out during the year. socio-economic (LSE) group have increased osteoclastic activity (indicated by acid phos- 1. COMMUNITY STUDIES phatase), but those with spinal osteoporotic changes are worse off on all the biochemical indicators of bone loss. 1.1. Nutrition profile of Indians – A districtlevel survey in Uttar Pradesh 2.2. Effect of tamarind on mobilization of Assessment of nutrition profile of the fluoride in fluorotic subjects rural community in 63 districts of Uttar Pradesh revealed that the average intake at the State level Tamarind ingestion through diet appears of cereals & millets and pulses was satisfactory, to be helpful in mobilizing deposited fluoride from while that of milk, sugar & jaggery was less than bone, by enhancing urinary excretion of fluo- the recommended dietary allowances. The ride after urinary fluoride was stabilized by mean intake of all the nutrients except giving fluoride free water.