Molecular Characterisation using 16S rRNA and COI Gene Sequences in Hard Ticks of Gwalior, India

Tick infestation in humans and animals represents a global threat for different tick-borne diseases. In the present study, the ticks from the Gwalior region of India have been mapped to create a database of tick diversity. We explored 773 ticks collected from domestic animals and vegetation in Gwalior. Animals were screened visually, and ticks were collected manually, whereas the flag-drag method was used to collect ticks from the vegetation. The 16S rRNA and cytochrome oxidase I (COI) genes of tick samples were amplified and purified for sequencing and respective phylogenetic trees were constructed. The ticks were morphologically identified using taxonomical keys, revealing the presence of five genera in the region: Hyalomma, Haemaphysalis, Rhipicephalus, Boophilus, and Nosomma. Hyalomma spp. (Hy. annatolicum and Hy. marginatum) were the most abundant accounting for 69.598% of the total sample, followed by Rhipicephalus sanguineus (17.335%), Rhipicephalus microplus (7.115%), Haemaphysalis sp. (5.692%), and Nosomma monstrotum (0.258%). The tick sequences were submitted to the GenBank database. Phylogenetic analysis confirmed the morphological identification at the species level. The combination of molecular and morphological analyses of the ticks supported the result obtained with each method, thus providing more reliable estimates for continued surveillance studies

Monsoon prawn fishery by 'Matabala' along the Mangalore coast—a critical study

The article presents a report on a critical study about 'Matabala' also known as 'Disco net' (small version of purse seine net made of nylon), a gear used along the Mangalore coast during monsoon period. It was considered that the net was much more size specific to catch large sized prawns

Ultrastructural changes in the spermatozoa of the goldspot mullet Liza parsia (Hamilton-Buchanan) in different diluents during cryopreservation

The milt of goldspot mullet, Liza parsia (Hamilton-Buchanan) was diluted with four extenders containing 10% DMSO. Samples were collected at four critical steps of cryopreservation procedure. Percentage of intact spermatozoa and cryoinjuries at each step was recorded. Extender V2E in seawater base +lo% DMSO appeared to be the best cryodiluent as the sperms exhibited least structural changes during the cryopreservation protocol. Chao's extender+lO% DMSO was the next preferred cryodiluent. The suitability of various extenders that accorded protection to injuries was evaluated on the basis of electron microscopic images

Stock assessment of the penaeid prawn Metapenaeus monoceros Fabricius along the Indian coast

The annual average production oi Metapenaeus monoceros during 1985-89 was 10 286 tonnes, nearly 7.2% of the penaeid prawn landings in the country. Tlie west coast accounted for 71.2% and the east coast for the rest. Among the maritime states, Maharashtra ranked first in production (27.2%) followed by Kamataka (22.3%) and Andhra Pradesh (21.3 %). The estimates of von Benalanffy growth parameters, L" and K (annual) were 180 mm and 1.8 for males, and 210 mm and 1.8 for females. This prawn attained a size of 149 mm and 173 mm in males and females, respectively, at the end of 1 year. The instantaneous total mortality coefficient (Z) ranged between 4.28 and 8.05 in males, and between 4.17 and 6.33 in females. Natural mortality coefficient (M) was 1.8 in both the sexes. Yield per recruit studies indicated that for an age of 0.59 year at first capture the fishery generated a steadily increasing yield up to 10 000 tonnes for an annual effort of 1 578 000 boat trips (16 670 000 fishing hours) at which the annual fishing mortality (F) is 3.76 and the exploitation ratio (E) is 0.67. Beyond this level of exploitation the increase in yield was only marginal. Even though the average aimual yield during 1985-89 was marginally lower than the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) of 10 993 t, the catch during 1987 and 1988 exceeded MSY level. Hence the desirability of maintaining the effort at the present level to obtain sustainable yields is mentioned

Present status of exploitation of fish and shellfish resources: Prawns

The Prawn fishery of the west coast of India is reviewed with particular reference to monsoon season and related management problems based on observations at Cochin, Calicut, Mangalore and Bombay. With an estimated average annual production of about 25,000 tonnes for the period 1984-88, the monsoon season contributes only 15% to the total prawn landings of this coast. While shrimp trawling remains almost completely suspended in most of the centres during this period, it is very active at Cochin and Sakthikulangara in Kerala Coast and moderately active in Bombay Coast

i-Rheo GT: transforming from time to frequency domain without artifacts

We present a new analytical tool for educing the frequency-dependent complex shear modulus of materials from computer-aided numerical simulations of their timedependent shear relaxation modulus; without the need of preconceived models. The rheological tool is presented in the form of an open access executable named ‘i-Rheo GT’, enabling its use to a broad scientific community. Its effectiveness is corroborated by analysing the dynamics of ideal single mode Maxwell fluids, and by means of a direct comparison with both bulk-rheology measurements and coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations data transformed via a generalised Maxwell model. When adopted to transform atomistic molecular dynamics simulations data, the unbiased nature of the tool reveals new insights into the materials’ linear viscoelastic properties, especially at high frequencies, where conventional tools struggle to interpret the data and molecular dynamics simulations actually provide their most statistically accurate predictions. The wideband nature of i-Rheo GT offers the opportunity to better elucidate the link between materials’ topologies and their linear viscoelastic properties; from atomic length scales at frequencies of the order of THz, up to mesoscopic length scales of molecular diffusion phenomena occurring over time scales of hours

Membrane-Proximal Epitope Facilitates Efficient T Cell Synapse Formation by Anti-FcRH5/CD3 and Is a Requirement for Myeloma Cell Killing

The anti-FcRH5/CD3 T cell-dependent bispecific antibody (TDB) targets the B cell lineage marker FcRH5 expressed in multiple myeloma (MM) tumor cells. We demonstrate that TDBs trigger T cell receptor activation by inducing target clustering and exclusion of CD45 phosphatase from the synapse. The dimensions of the target molecule play a key role in the efficiency of the synapse formation. The anti-FcRH5/CD3 TDB kills human plasma cells and patient-derived myeloma cells at picomolar concentrations and results in complete depletion of B cells and bone marrow plasma cells in cynomolgus monkeys. These data demonstrate the potential for the anti-FcRH5/CD3 TDB, alone or in combination with inhibition of PD-1/PD-L1 signaling, in the treatment of MM and other B cell malignancies.This work was supported by a Sir Henry Dale Fellowship (J.R.J.) jointly funded by the Wellcome Trust and the Royal Society (grant number: 099966/Z/12/Z). PhD studentships (S.A.M. and M.J.H.) were funded by the Wellcome Trust (grant number: 102195/Z/13/Z)

Inference of population splits and mixtures from genome-wide allele frequency data

Many aspects of the historical relationships between populations in a species are reflected in genetic data. Inferring these relationships from genetic data, however, remains a challenging task. In this paper, we present a statistical model for inferring the patterns of population splits and mixtures in multiple populations. In this model, the sampled populations in a species are related to their common ancestor through a graph of ancestral populations. Using genome-wide allele frequency data and a Gaussian approximation to genetic drift, we infer the structure of this graph. We applied this method to a set of 55 human populations and a set of 82 dog breeds and wild canids. In both species, we show that a simple bifurcating tree does not fully describe the data; in contrast, we infer many migration events. While some of the migration events that we find have been detected previously, many have not. For example, in the human data we infer that Cambodians trace approximately 16% of their ancestry to a population ancestral to other extant East Asian populations. In the dog data, we infer that both the boxer and basenji trace a considerable fraction of their ancestry (9% and 25%, respectively) to wolves subsequent to domestication, and that East Asian toy breeds (the Shih Tzu and the Pekingese) result from admixture between modern toy breeds and "ancient" Asian breeds. Software implementing the model described here, called TreeMix, is available at http://treemix.googlecode.comComment: 28 pages, 6 figures in main text. Attached supplement is 22 pages, 15 figures. This is an updated version of the preprint available at http://precedings.nature.com/documents/6956/version/

Stock assessment of the penaeid prawn Metapenaeus dobsoni (Miers) along the Indian coast

The annual prodiction of M. dobsoni showed an increasing trend with an annual average of 22 370 t during 1985-S9. It formed 15.7% of the penaeid prawn landings in the country. West coast contributed 69.9% to the annual yield of this prawn. Kerala ranked first (51.4%) in M. dobsoni production followed b;' Tamil Nadu. Shrimp trawl alone caught 54% of the landings. L«> and K were 139 mm and 2.4 for m«les, and 145 mm and 2.76 for females respectively. The instantaneous mortality coefficient (Z) ranged lietween 16,47 and 25.29 in males, and between 16.21 and 20.97 in females. Tlie natural mortality coefficient (M) was 2.3 for both the sexes. The yield per recruit (Yw/R) increased steadily to maximum values (MSY/R) in both the sexes at Emax ranging between 0.2 and 0.4. It marginally reduced at Ihe present E between 0.8 and 0.9 suggesting that the resource is overexploited and the current effort s far higher than the effort required to harvest optimum yields. Although the average annual catch by shrimp trawls (12 189 t) is lower than MSY (13 965 t), the annual effort of 6 920 tpd or 1 488 000 bd (F= 17.8 and E = 0.89) is far beyond f^,. Considering the fact that this prawn is also exploited by other gears with an annual average of 10 180 t during 1985-89, a conservative estimate of 25 000 t as potential stock for the whole country is made