Bifurcation of rotating liquid drops: Results from USML-1 experiments in space

Experiments on rotational bifurcation of liquid drops, in which the drops were levitated and spun using acoustic fields in a low-gravity environment, were conducted during the first United States Microgravity Laboratory (USML-1) Space Shuttle flight. The experiments have successfully resolved the discrepancies existing between the previous experimental results and the theoretical predictions. In the case of a spherical drop, for which theory exists, the results agree well with the predictions. In the case of flattened drops, the experiments have extablished a family of curves, with the spherical drop as the limiting case

Evaluation of Anti-Inflammatory Properties of Isoorientin Isolated from Tubers of Pueraria tuberosa

Inflammation is the major causative factor of different diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and cancer. Anti-inflammatory drugs are often the first step of treatment in many of these diseases. The present study is aimed at evaluating the anti-inflammatory properties of isoorientin, a selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor isolated from the tubers of Pueraria tuberosa, in vitro on mouse macrophage cell line (RAW 264.7) and in vivo on mouse paw edema and air pouch models of inflammation. Isoorientin reduced inflammation in RAW 264.7 cell line in vitro and carrageenan induced inflammatory animal model systems in vivo. Cellular infiltration into pouch tissue was reduced in isoorientin treated mice compared to carrageenan treated mice. Isoorientin treated RAW 264.7 cells and animals showed reduced expression of inflammatory proteins like COX-2, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX), and interleukin 1-β (IL-1-β) both in vitro and in vivo. The antioxidant enzyme levels of catalase and GST were markedly increased in isoorientin treated mice compared to carrageenan treated mice. These results suggest that isoorientin, a selective inhibitor of COX-2, not only exerts anti-inflammatory effects in LPS induced RAW cells and carrageenan induced inflammatory model systems but also exhibits potent antioxidant properties

Critical marine habitat restoration programme - initiative on mangrove restoration in Kerala, India

Mangroves are unique habitats which function as nursery ground for several valuable species of finfishes and shellfishes and they play a vital role in supporting marine food chains, protecting coastal areas and in improving water quality. Mangroves in general have relatively high productivity and tend to create highly organic soil and also export organic matter to nearby marine environments. They are effective in stabilizing soils in intertidal areas. Some species of mangroves have been planted in the coastal areas as bio-protection shields to guard coastal households from wind and wave action. They provide shelter to several avian fauna which feed on its fruits and nest in the branches. Rare or endangered species of birds have also been documented in the mangroves

Assessing physical activity in people with mental illness: 23-country reliability and validity of the simple physical activity questionnaire (SIMPAQ)

Background: Physical inactivity is a key contributor to the global burden of disease and disproportionately impacts the wellbeing of people experiencing mental illness. Increases in physical activity are associated with improvements in symptoms of mental illness and reduction in cardiometabolic risk. Reliable and valid clinical tools that assess physical activity would improve evaluation of intervention studies that aim to increase physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour in people living with mental illness.Methods: The five-item Simple Physical Activity Questionnaire (SIMPAQ) was developed by a multidisciplinary, international working group as a clinical tool to assess physical activity and sedentary behaviour in people living with mental illness. Patients with a DSM or ICD mental illness diagnoses were recruited and completed the SIMPAQ on two occasions, one week apart. Participants wore an Actigraph accelerometer and completed brief cognitive and clinical assessments.Results: Evidence of SIMPAQ validity was assessed against accelerometer-derived measures of physical activity. Data were obtained from 1010 participants. The SIMPAQ had good test-retest reliability. Correlations for moderate-vigorous physical activity was comparable to studies conducted in general population samples. Evidence of validity for the sedentary behaviour item was poor. An alternative method to calculate sedentary behaviour had stronger evidence of validity. This alternative method is recommended for use in future studies employing the SIMPAQ.Conclusions: The SIMPAQ is a brief measure of physical activity and sedentary behaviour that can be reliably and validly administered by health professionals

Oyster farm management advisory: spacing between farms

The edible oyster Crassostrea madrasensis commonly known as the backwater oyster is farmed in the estuarine regions of Kerala by setting up wooden rack farms from which rens are suspended. Proximity to the homesteads is one of the reasons for this technology to become popular among women self help groups. The farming season is from November/December to June, but may extend to July also depending on the onset of monsoon. At present, the farm structures are near to the shore line in a linear manner, providing space for navigation in the inner part of the estuarine channels. Initially when commercial farming started in Sattar Island in the year 2002, there were only few farms, hence, spacing of farms was not a problem

Water quality indexing of coastal waters off Cochin

Water Quality Index (WQI) condenses the information from numerous water quality parameters into a simpler version which can be used to appraise and compare water quality data from number of sites as well as to look at trends of water quality over a period of time from a single site. WQI is means for simplifying the reporting detailed water quality assessment and providing meaningful summaries of overall water quality and its trends. It also creates an output that is easy understand for managers and non-technical public

Inter-annual variations of selected oceanographic parameters and its relation to fishery of small pelagics off Kochi, southwest coast of India

The availability as well as abundance of selected small pelagics along Kerala coast (south west coast of India) was highly variable during the past three decades. During the period 1980-2012 there have been several periods of abundance as well as population crashes in the oil sardine fishery. The present study revealed that the occurrence of low sea level during the month of May implies either early wind driven upwelling or early intensification of equator-ward coastal current and consequent upsloping of isopycnals. The occurrence of low sea level (6857) as early as in May and upwelled water in August with low dissolved oxygen (0.68 ml l-1) with low sea water temperature (24˚C) at the bottom at 10 m depth, off Kochi was found to affect the sardine fishery in the year 1994, when the landing at Kochi was only 15 t. Mean sea level was found to be a sign of upwelling and the real time observations of dissolved oxygen indicated wide variations during the upwelling period

Beyond the marrow:insights from comprehensive next-generation sequencing of extramedullary multiple myeloma tumors

Extramedullary multiple myeloma (EMM) is an aggressive form of multiple myeloma (MM). This study represents the most comprehensive next-generation sequencing analysis of EMM tumors (N = 14) to date, uncovering key molecular features and describing the tumor microenvironment. We observed the co-occurrence of 1q21 gain/amplification and MAPK pathway mutations in 79% of EMM samples, suggesting that these are crucial mutational events in EMM development. We also demonstrated that patients with mutated KRAS and 1q21 gain/amplification at the time of diagnosis have a significantly higher risk of EMM development (HR = 2.4, p = 0.011) using data from a large CoMMpass dataset. We identified downregulation of CXCR4 and enhanced cell proliferation, along with reduced expression of therapeutic targets (CD38, SLAMF7, GPRC5D, FCRH5), potentially explaining diminished efficacy of immunotherapy. Conversely, we identified significantly upregulated EZH2 and CD70 as potential future therapeutic options. For the first time, we report on the tumor microenvironment of EMM, revealing CD8+ T cells and NK cells as predominant immune effector cells using single-cell sequencing. Finally, this is the first longitudinal study in EMM revealing the molecular changes from the time of diagnosis to EMM relapse.</p