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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on September 23, 2017 at 11:36am

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on September 12, 2017 at 6:24am

Climate change threatens 33% of all parasites. Good news? Bad news, according to scientists! Read why...

Because parasites play an important part in our Eco-system!

The study published in the journal Science Advances was completed with the help of the U.S. National Parasite Collection, as well as specialized databases of ticks, fleas, bee mites, and feather mites. What's more, 17 researchers from eight countries spent years tracking down different parasite specimens in order to understand the species' habitat and needs.

By using climate forecasts to determine how the 457 parasite species will react to the changing climate, researchers found they are evidently among the most threatened life forms on Earth with regards to climate change, even more so than their hosts. In fact, models show that about a third of parasites could go extinct by 2070 from the effects of habitat loss alone, with the more conservative models showing instead a 5 to 10 percent loss.

Why is it bad?

Parasites don't often good reputations as they are often responsible for diseases and infections. By definition, parasites are organisms that live and thrive at the expense of its host. But did you know that they are also important members of the ecosystem?

As small as they are and despite their negative reputations, parasites actually contribute to keeping wildlife populations in check, and in providing a large percentage of food chain links. Many parasites have complex life cycles that require being passed from one host to another. Because of this, having strong populations of parasites are often indicators of a healthy ecosystem.

"It means the system has a diversity of animals in it and that conditions have been consistent long enough for these complex associations to develop," said Anna J. Phillips of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History. What's more, a wide range of parasites in an ecosystem means that they could compete with one another, therefore slowing down the spread of diseases. Without them, the ecosystem could be seriously affected.

Unfortunately, because of their bad reputation, they are often overlooked in studies regarding climate change and its impacts. It is only now that we see that they, too, are affected by the climate change. Because of the current study, scientists can look further into the implications of changing parasite populations. This is especially important as it could also lead to the thriving of other, possibly more invasive parasites as a result of the lack of competition.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on September 6, 2017 at 11:06am

Indian uranium mine becomes dark matter lab

India’s very first uranium mine, the Jaduguda mine located in the state of Jharkhand, now hosts a laboratory for conducting experiments in fundamental physics.

The Jaduguda Underground Science Laboratory 550, built in a 37-square-meter cavern buried 905 metres and formerly used for storage, will focus on the search for dark matter. It was built by the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics and it is expected to gather the country’s brightest experimental scientists interested in cutting-edge research.

Repurposing the cave in the 50-year-old mine managed by the Uranium Corporation of India required an initial investment of $32,000. Scientists considered this to be the best place to install a low-temperature cesium iodide detector because its depth would shield the device from other particles.

The site’s uranium deposits, which produce 25 per cent of the raw materials needed to fuel India’s nuclear reactors, are located some 300 metres away from the lab. Thus, physicists working there are not concerned about background radiation.

source.. mining.com

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on September 6, 2017 at 7:30am

New fluorescent dyes for advance biological imaging

Specific chemical building blocks in fluorescent molecules called rhodamines can generate nearly any color scientists desire - ROYGBIV and beyond, researchers report September 4, 2017 in the journal Nature Methods.

The work offers scientists a way to adjust the properties of existing dyes deliberately, making them bolder, brighter, and more cell-permeable too. Such an expanded palette of dyes could help researchers better illuminate the inner workings of cells.

The research team lit up cell nuclei, made larval fruit fly brains shine, and highlighted visual cortex neurons in mice that had tiny glass windows fitted into their skulls.

Jonathan B. Grimm, Anand K. Muthusamy, Yajie Liang, Timothy A. Brown, William C. Lemon, Ronak Patel, Rongwen Lu, John J. Macklin, Philip J. Keller, Na Ji, and Luke D. Lavis, "A general method to fine-tune fluorophores for live-cell and in vivo imaging," Nature Methods. Published online September 4, 2017. doi: 10.1038/nmeth.4403

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 28, 2017 at 8:58am

Updates in cancer research

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 25, 2017 at 7:31am

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 16, 2017 at 7:16am

India March for science, Hyderabad, Aug., 9th 2017

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 8, 2017 at 5:13pm

WE ARE MARCHING FOR SCIENCE ON 9th AUG., 2017. COME, JOIN US!

An appeal by scientists

India is marching for science.

Science in India is facing the danger of being eclipsed by a rising wave of unscientific beliefs and religious bigotry, and scientific research is suffering serious setback due to dwindling governmental support.

 Financial support to even premier institutions like IITs, NITs, and IISERs has been slashed. Universities are facing shortage of funds to adequately support scientific research. Research funding agencies like DST, DBT and CSIR are reportedly impacted by reduced governmental support. Scientists in government laboratories are being asked to generate a part of their salary by selling their inventions and from other sources.

We feel that the situation demands the members of scientific community to stand in defence of science and scientific attitude in an open and visible manner as done by scientists and science enthusiasts worldwide. Scientists, researchers, teachers, students, as well as all concerned citizens are participating in 'India March for Science' events throughout the country, particularly in the state capitals, on 9th August 2017, with the following demands:

• 1. Allocate at least 3% of GDP to scientific and technological research and 10% towards education

• 2. Stop propagation of unscientific, obscurantist ideas and religious intolerance, and develop scientific temper, human values and spirit of inquiry in conformance with Article 51A of the Constitution.

• 3. Ensure that the education system imparts only ideas that are supported by scientific evidence.

• 4. Enact policies based on evidence-based science.

In Hyderabad, my home city, we are marching from Press club, Basheerbagh to Nizam college. Please join us at 10.30 am.

Thank you!

 “Research should not be used for validation of prejudices and ideology.”

Thousands across India march in support of science

Protesters demand respect for research — but some scientists were told to stay away.

http://www.nature.com/news/thousands-across-india-march-in-support-...

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/bengaluru/2017/aug/09/forget...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 25, 2017 at 5:47am

Bright light at night stops or mostly controls mosquito bites

Exposing malaria-transmitting mosquitoes to light at two-hour intervals during the night or at late daytime could inhibit their biting behaviour and reducemalaria transmission, says a study.

The team behind the research, from the university of Notre Dame in the United States, note that the development of resistance to insecticides requires innovative approaches for controlling the malaria vector. 

Therefore, they explored the potential of using light to control mosquitoes’ feeding behaviour by exposing Anopheles gambiaemosquitoes — a key vector of malaria in Sub-Saharan Africa — to multiple pulses of bright light, especially in the night, when they are most likely to feed on human blood.
 
“When we subjected the mosquitoes to a series of pulses of light with a two-hour interval and presented throughout the entire night, we observed suppression of biting activity during most of the night,” says Giles Duffield, a co-author of the study published in the journal Parasites & Vectors last month (16 June).

The finding was most prominent during the early to middle of the night and at dawn, when people are least protected by the barrier of a bed net.
 
“Conversely, biting levels were significantly elevated when mosquitoes were exposed to a dark treatment during the late day, suggesting that light suppresses biting behaviour even during the late daytime,” the researchers note in the paper.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 18, 2017 at 9:04am

Indian scientists are marching for science...

Scientists and science activists will take out a 'March for Science' in several states in India on August 9. The march is being organized in protest against the Centre's move to slash funds for science and technology research institutes. The scientists are demanding that at least three percent of the country's GDP be set apart for scientific growth and for government policy to promote scientific research instead of promoting superstitious beliefs.

Ahead of the march, a reception committee of 'India March for Science' will be constituted at the Library hall of Kerala State Science and Technology Museum here on July 14, said Rajeevan P P, faculty, Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) and secretariat member of Breakthrough Science Society (BSS). The march is being organized on the lines of the previous  March for science taken out in 160 cities across the world on April 22 this year.

"Science in India is facing the danger of being eclipsed by a rising wave of unscientific beliefs and religious bigotry. Scientific research is suffering serious setback due to dwindling governmental support," Rajeevan said. This is despite the fact that scientists from India have played a commendable role in developing science.

The organizers said financial support to even premier institutions like Indian Institute of Technology (IITs), National Institute of Technology, and Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISERs) were slashed. Universities are facing shortage of funds to adequately support scientific research. Research funding agencies like DST, DBT and CSIR are reportedly impacted by reduced governmental support. Scientists in government laboratories are being asked to generate a part of their salary by commercialising their scientific output and from other sources.

IISER Kolkata faculty Soumitra Banerjee said after the march on August 9, a delegation of scientists and science faculties will submit memorandums to state governors. The governors would forward them to the Union minister for science and technology, he said.

The scientists have made an appeal for participation in the march by all who agree to four demands raised by them. They are allocation of at least 3% of GDP to scientific research and 10% towards education; stopping the propagation of unscientific, obscurantist ideas and religious intolerance and developing scientific temper, human values and spirit of inquiry in conformance with Article 51A of the Constitution; ensuring that the education system imparts only ideas that are supported by scientific evidence and enactment of policies based on evidence-based science.

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