Stunted fingerling production ensures continuous supply of good quality seed for marine finfish farming

Application of compensatory growth pattern in finfishes for enhancing aquaculture production is an innovative method adopted by several farmers in freshwater farming systems. Stocking of stunted fishes have the primary advantages such as growth compensation, suitability for short duration farming, economic usage of feed, extended period of good quality seed availability and enhanced survival rate with better yield. An attempt has been initiated to adopt the principles of compensatory growth pattern in marine aquaculture systems and the possible interventions in these aspects is discussed. Preliminary results reveal that marine finfishes such as Snubnose pompano and Mangrove red snapper exhibits compensatory growth pattern during post- stunting rearing period in both marine and low saline condition

Farmed Marine Finfish Species in Brief

Sea cage farming has paved way for intensive and commercial-level production of finfish in the coastal areas of the country. Since its initiation in 2007 by ICAR- Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), notable strides have been made in terms of innovations in cage and mooring system design and fabrication. Demonstrations of cage farming were undertaken by ICAR-CMFRI under a participatory mode with the help of local fishermen co-operatives and entrepreneurs. Two versions of 6-meter diameter cages indigenously developed by ICAR-CMFRI and fabricated with GI and HDPE frames, have gained traction among fishermen. Comprehensive Guidelines and Good Sea Cage Farming Practices tailored for different regions in the country have also been developed by ICAR-CMFRI

Preliminary estimates of potential areas for seaweed farming along the Indian coast

India has enormous potential for seaweed mariculture; however, mass scale commercial farming of seaweeds is yet to take off successfully in the country. R&D efforts over the years have resulted in techno-scientific improvements in farming technologies such as floating rafts, net-tubes, long-lines, and cage based IMTA systems for seaweed culture. However, a few challenges remain, particular in identifying potential sites, its demarcation and developing suitable and sustainable spatial plans for seaweed farming on a country-wide, commercial perspective. In view of the emerging importance of seaweed mariculture and policy thrust by the Government of India, an all India preliminary site selection survey suitable for seaweed farming was conducted by ICAR-CMFRI along all maritime states of India. From this survey a total of 23,970 ha area were identified as potential seaweed farming along the Indian coast. In the present article, we present details of the suitable sites and its demarcation on a preliminary spatial map for facilitating the imminent expansion and effective adoption of seaweed farming in the country

Reactive lesions of oral cavity: A retrospective study of 659 cases

Objective: This study reviews, analyzes, and compares the demographic data, histopathological features and discusses the treatment and prognosis of reactive lesions (RLs). Materials and Methods: Retrospective study was performed on the departmental archives from July 2006 to July 2016 (total 5000 cases) comprising of 659 cases of RLs of the oral cavity. The recorded data included age, gender, size, site, duration, habits, etiology, histopathological diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis. Results: The most common lesion was found to be inflammatory fibrous hyperplasia (47%) followed by pyogenic granuloma (PG) (27.16%) and the least cases were of peripheral giant cell granuloma (1.6%). The mean age for the occurrence was 4th–5th decade in all the RL's exceptperipheral ossifying fibroma (POF) which presented in the third decade. Female predominance was noted in all lesions except irritational FIB. The sizes of majority of the lesions were approximately 0.5–1 cm. The common sites were anterior maxilla followed by posterior mandible and least in tongue with no associated habits (82.2%). The duration of all the lesions was seen to be <1 year. Majority of them presented with poor oral hygiene status (87.2%). Recurrences were present in 13.5% of surgically excised lesions. Conclusion: The RLs present commonly in oral cavity secondary to injury and local factors which can mimic benign to rarely malignant lesions. The clinical and histopathological examination helps to categorize the type of lesions. The complete removal of local irritants with follow-up and maintenance of oral hygiene helps to prevent the recurrences of such lesions

An audit of the results of a triplet metronomic chemotherapy regimen incorporating a tyrosine kinase inhibitor in recurrent/metastatic head and neck cancers patients

Background: Addition of erlotinib to metronomic chemotherapy (MCT) may lead to further improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival in head and neck cancers. The aim of this study was to study the PFS with MCT + erlotinib combination in our setting. Methods: A single-arm prospective observational study conducted at Malabar Cancer Center. Patients warranting palliative chemotherapy for head and neck cancers, having adequate organ function, not-affording cetuximab and not willing for intravenous chemotherapy were included in this study. Oral methotrexate (15 mg/m 2 /week), oral celecoxib (200 mg twice daily), and erlotinib (150 mg once daily) were administered till the progression of the disease or till intolerable side-effects. Patients underwent toxicity (CTCAE version 4.02) and response (RECIST version 1.1) assessment every 30 days. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 16 (IBM, New York, USA). Descriptive statistics and Kaplan-Meier analysis have been performed. Results: A total of 15 patients received MCT. The median age of these patients was 65 years (range: 48-80). The Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status was 0-1 in seven patients (46.7%), while it was 2 in eight patients (53.3%). The primary sites of tumor were predominantly oral cavity, 11 (73.4%). Prior to MCT, treatment with palliative radiation therapy was given in 11 patients and curative treatment in two patients. The best response post-MCT was complete remission in two patients, partial remission in seven patients, stable disease in four patients, and progressive disease in two patients. The median estimated PFS was 148 days (95% confidence interval 95.47-200.52 days). For a median follow-up of 181 days, there were only three deaths. Grade 3-4 toxicity was seen in six patients (40%). Dose reduction was required in four patients (26.7%). Conclusion: The addition of erlotinib to an MCT schedule of methotrexate and celecoxib resulted in a promising PFS and should be tested in future studies

Impact of starvation and re-feeding on growth and metabolic responses of Indian pompano (Trachinotus mookalee) juveniles

A 56 days feeding trial was conducted to study the impact of starvation followed by re-feeding on growth performance of Indian pompano juveniles. 450 juveniles (mean ± SE, 16.69 ± 0.22 g) were divided into 3 treatments in triplicates. Control group (C) was fed to satiation three times a day and other two experimental groups were designated as 2S (2 days starvation) and 1S (1day starvation) i.e. re-feeding for 5 and 6 days in 2S and 1S respectively. At the completion of 28 days of culture (4 feeding cycle), it is resulted that 1S and C fed group performed with similar (p > 0.05) growth performance in terms of weight gain and specific growth rate indicating that complete compensatory growth occurred. Whereas, pompano juveniles maintained in 2S and 1S showed significant (p 0.05), and lowest was observed in 2S at the end of the experiment. There was no significant difference in condition factor among all the treatments. Moisture, total lipid, ash, glycogen content of liver and muscle were significantly varied among the treatment groups (p < 0.05). The digestive enzymes activity was significantly (p < 0.05) affected during the starvation and re-feeding cycles. Lowest serum total protein, albumin and globulin were observed in 2S, followed by 1S and the highest was in C fed group (p < 0.05). It is concluded from the study that, feeding cycle with pompano juveniles starved for 1 day and re-fed for 6 days in a week (1S) resulted in complete growth compensation during the first half of the experiment (28 days), while fish starved for 2 days and re-fed for 5 days in a week (2S) showed partial compensation throughout the experimental period. Our results indicate that compensatory growth occurred in Indian pompano and the magnitude and duration of the compensatory growth depended on the length of starvation

ArcGIS Web Application-An interactive seaweed farming sites along Indan Coast

Seaweed Data -ICAR CMFRI & CSIR CSMCR