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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 8, 2014 at 5:20am

Bugs that can co-operate best with each other are most likely to be able to infect new species, including humans, a new study has found.

Scientists have discovered that bacteria co-operate with each other when causing infection, a finding that may help identify animal diseases that transmit to people such as anthrax and the superbug MRSA.

Bacteria interact by releasing molecules to help them adapt to their environment - for example, when killing competing infections in their victim. They co-ordinate these actions by releasing tiny amounts of chemicals as signals.

Bacteria that can co-operate to create an environment in which they can thrive are potentially able to infect lots of different species, including humans, researchers said.

Discovering why some diseases are better equipped to infect more species than others - and therefore could affect humans - could be valuable in predicting and managing health threats.

Most new human infections arise from diseases that transmit from animals to humans. Many of these cause serious infections and are difficult to control, such as anthrax and the superbug MRSA.

Research led by the University of Edinburgh used a combination of mathematical models and scientific analysis of genetic code in almost 200 types of bacteria.

They found that those bugs that carry lots of genes that help them to co-operate are best equipped to adapt to various environments.

"Humans have been able to colonise almost all of their planet by collectively modifying the environment to suit themselves. Our study shows bugs try to do the same - co-operation is important for the spread of bacteria to new species," Dr Luke McNally of the University of Edinburgh' School of Biological Sciences, who led the study, said.

The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 8, 2014 at 5:19am

Scientists turn a brown butterfly purple—in just six generations
Structural and pigment changes combine to turn brown into purple.
The results show that, although the individual structures are tiny and delicate, the butterfly's wing as a whole is remarkably robust and can easily undergo rearrangements that radically change its optical properties. In fact, as the authors point out, a bit of variability in these properties appears to be a normal part of the genetic background of these species. This natural variability means that evolution doesn't have to wait for a fortunate mutation to get to work.
http://arstechnica.com/science/2014/08/scientists-turn-a-brown-butt...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 8, 2014 at 5:14am

Unmanned aerial vehicles or drones will soon fly over India's forests to monitor poaching, track wildlife and even count the population of tigers.

Scientists at the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) are coming up with a series of such drones which are being customised indigenously to suit different types of forest landscape.
Under a joint collaboration with the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and international environment body WWF, they are preparing a detailed project report for introducing drone monitoring in 10 wildlife-rich areas across the country.

The primary objectives of these drones would be to track the movements of wildlife and monitor poaching.

They may also be used in counting the population of animals like tiger.
A drone can be put on autopilot mode and sent as far as 40-50 km deep into the forest where it can record images and videos and transmit them on a realtime basis. Its movement can also be controlled through a GPS-based system.

Such drones were recently tested successfully in Panna Tiger Reserve and Kaziranga.
Drones can also be used for night surveillance and tracking of many elusive and shy animals like the red panda and snow leopard, which are very rarely seen by the human eye in their natural wild habitat.

Travelling at a speed of 40 -100km per hour, the drones can be used for around 40-50 minutes.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 7, 2014 at 5:57am

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 6, 2014 at 9:21am

Elderly patients could benefit from pretreatment with imiquimod before seasonal influenza vaccination.
Scientists have found that treating elderly patients with imiquimod before immunizing them against influenza improved the protective effects of the vaccine. This study has been published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.
In a study, a team led by Professor Yuen Kwok-yung, Chair Professor of Department of Microbiology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine of The University of Hong Kong (HKU) has discovered a simple and practical way of protecting elderly patients with medical illness from seasonal influenza. By applying the Toll-like receptor 7 agonist imiquimod before intradermal injection, the protection by flu vaccine is enhanced, thus decreasing the risk of hospitalization. Imiquimod is a safe immune-stimulatory drug, which has used topically to treat skin warts for many years.
http://cid.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2014/07/20/cid.ciu582

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 6, 2014 at 9:18am

Himalayas ‘Too Seismic’ For Big Dams
Scientists have raised concerns that the ambitious dam projects planned in the Himalayan region do not adequately account for seismic activity
http://www.currentscience.ac.in/Volumes/106/12/1658.p

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 6, 2014 at 9:12am

Prof Sir Alec Jeffreys, who discovered DNA fingerprinting, win's the world’s oldest science prize
The man who discovered DNA fingerprinting has won the world's oldest science prize — Royal Society's Copley Medal.

In 1984, Prof Sir Alec Jeffreys stumbled on a method for distinguishing individuals based on their DNA. It was a discovery that went on to transform forensic science and resolve questions of identity and kinship.

He received the medal "for his pioneering work on variation and mutation in the human genome".

The Copley medal was first awarded by the Royal Society in 1731, 170 years before the first Nobel Prize. It is awarded for outstanding achievements in scientific research and has been awarded to eminent scientists such as Charles Darwin, Michael Faraday, Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking.

In 1984 Jeffreys discovered a method of showing the variation between individuals' DNA, a technique which he developed and became known as genetic fingerprinting.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 6, 2014 at 8:50am

Sunderbans mangrove trees losing capacity to absorb CO2: Study
The vast mangrove forest in the Sunderbans is fast losing its capacity to absorb carbon dioxide, one of the main greenhouse gases, from the atmosphere due to rise in the salinity of water, rampant deforestation and pollution, a study has found.

The mangrove forest, marsh grass, phytoplanktons, molluscus and other coastal vegetation in the world's largest delta are the natural absorbers of carbon dioxide (CO2), according to the study.

The stored carbon in the plants is known as "Blue Carbons". The absorption of CO2 is a process which contributes to reduction of the warming of the earth and other ill effects of climate change.
The research study, "Blue Carbon Estimation in Coastal Zone of Eastern India - Sunderbans", was financed by the Union government and headed by noted marine scientist Abhijit Mitra.

The report took three years to prepare and it was submitted to the government last year.

The scientists involved in the study have sounded an alarm bell, especially in the central Sunderbans, one of the three zones into which the forest was divided for the study, the other two being western and eastern.

"The situation is quite alarming, especially in the central part. The capacity of the mangrove forest, especially the Byne species, to absorb carbon dioxide has eroded to a large extent. This will effect the entire ecosystem of the area," Sufia Zaman, a senior marine biologist who was a part of the team.
-PTI

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 4, 2014 at 10:14am

India 's First Ocean Moored Observatory in Arctic
In a big boost to India’s scientific endeavours in the Arctic region, a team of scientists have successfully deployed IndARC, the country’s first multi-sensor moored observatory in the North Pole, which will provide for an increased understanding of the response of the Arctic to climatic variabilities and their influence on the Indian Monsoon system.

Designed and developed by scientists from the National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR) and National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), the observatory has been deployed in the Kongsfjorden fjord of the Arctic, roughly halfway between Norway and the North Pole. It was deployed from the Norwegian Polar Institute’s research vessel R V Lance.

The observatory is presently anchored about 1,100 km away from the North Pole at a depth of 192 m and has an array of ten state-of-the-art oceanographic sensors strategically positioned at discrete depths in the water column. These sensors are programmed to collect real-time data on seawater temperature, salinity, current and other vital parameters of the fjord.

According to the Ministry of Earth Sciences, the data acquired would be of vital importance to the Indian climate researchers as well as to the international fraternity. In addition to providing for an increased understanding of the response of the Arctic to climatic variabilities, the data would also provide a good handle in our understanding of the Arctic processes and their influence on the Indian monsoon system through climate modelling studies.

The Kongsfjorden is an established reference site for the Arctic marine studies and has been considered as a natural laboratory for studying the Arctic climate variability, as it receives varying climatic signals from the Arcitc/Atlantic in the course of an annual seasonal cycle. “India has been continuously monitoring the Kongsfjorden since 2010 for understanding response of the fjord to climate variability at different time scales. The temperature and salinity profiles of the fjord, water column nutrients and diversity of biota are being monitored throughout the spring-summer-fall seasons,” a statement from the ministry said.

There exists a great need to know on how the fjord system is influenced by, or responds to exchanges with the water on the shelf and in the deep sea outside during an entire annual seasonal cycle. In particular, there is a need for continuous observations of the water transport into the interior part of the fjord.

“One of the major constraints in such a study has been the difficulty in reaching the location during the harsh Arctic winter and obtaining near-surface data. The IndARC observatory is an attempt to overcome this lacuna and collect continuous data from depths very close to the water surface as well as at different discrete depths,” it said.

The statement said the deployment is a testimony to the capabilities in installing underwater observatories.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on August 4, 2014 at 10:05am

Right to Research Foundation to promote Indian researchers started by scientists

A group of scientists and academicians have started the Right to Research (R2R) Foundation to support foreign-educated and trained Indian researchers to help them find suitable jobs, upon their return to the country.

To start with, R2R Foundation has set up dry lab facilities, to engage around 25 researchers. The researchers will be engaged in research thought process across inter-disciplines, and find good avenues in India

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