3,503 research outputs found
Cholesterol: Biosynthesis, Functional Diversity, Homeostasis and Regulation by Natural Products
Identification and Characterization of Pastureland and Other Grazing Resources of Jammu & Kashmir Using GIS and Satellite Remote Sensing Technique
Livestock acquires special importance in mountain farming system from both ecological and socioeconomic point of view. They are an integral part of the farming system and a “bridge’’ connecting two types of land viz., forest and cultivated. In hilly regions, the arable agriculture is not very remunerative; therefore farmers of all categories rear sheep, goats, cattle etc. under sedentary, semi-migratory and migratory systems to supplement family income (Dev et al., 2014). The common property resources (CPR) and degraded pasturelands are the major feed sources. Remotely sensed satellite imagery and Geographic Information System (GIS) are being widely used for the assessment of pasturelands and estimation of forage availability as well as monitoring of the range resources (Singh et al., 2011). Since, the grazing resources are limited and natural grasslands are becoming scarcer, there is a greater need to effectively manage grasslands for optimum forage production and eco-development (Roy and Singh, 2013). Precise information on extent, condition and forage availability is essential for developmental planning. In the present study information on current status of pasturelands in Jammu and Kashmir based on remotely sensed satellite data and GIS/GPS is carried out
Variable Chaplygin Gas: Constraints from CMBR and SNe Ia
We constrain the parameters of the variable Chaplygin gas model, using the
location of peaks of the CMBR spectrum and SNe Ia ``gold '' data set. Equation
of state of the model is , where is a positive
function of the cosmological scale factor , and being constants.
The variable Chaplygin gas interpolates from dust-dominated era to quintessence
dominated era. The model is found to be compatible with current type Ia
Supernovae data and location of first peak if the values of and
lie in the interval and respectively.Comment: 9 pages,4 figure
Alcoholic Extract of Eclipta alba
As per WHO estimates, 80% of people around the world use medicinal plants for the cure and prevention of various diseases including cancer owing to their easy availability and cost effectiveness. Eclipta alba has long been used in Ayurveda to treat liver diseases, eye ailments, and hair related disorders. The promising medicinal value of E. alba prompted us to study the antioxidant, nontoxic, and anticancer potential of its alcoholic extract. In the current study, we evaluated the in vitro cytotoxic and antioxidant effect of the alcoholic extract of Eclipta alba (AEEA) in multiple cancer cell lines along with control. We have also evaluated its effect on different in vivo toxicity parameters. Here, we found that AEEA was found to be most active in most of the cancer cell lines but it significantly induced apoptosis in human breast cancer cell lines by disrupting mitochondrial membrane potential and DNA damage. Moreover, AEEA treatment inhibited migration in both MCF 7 and MDA-MB-231 cells in a dose dependent manner. Further, AEEA possesses robust in vitro antioxidant activity along with high total phenolic and flavonoid contents. In summary, our results indicate that Eclipta alba has enormous potential in complementary and alternative medicine for the treatment of cancer
Scaling-up agriculture water management interventions for building system resilience in Bundelkhand region of Central India
This case study provides evidence for combating drought, and achieving sustainable crop intensification, in rainfed areas of Bundelkhand region, Central India. The Garkundar-Dabar and Parasai-Sindh watersheds were developed as proof of concept by the Indian Council of Agriculture Research-Central Agroforestry Research Institute (ICAR-CAFRI) and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) between 2006 and 2016. This study indicates pathways for harnessing the potential of rainfed
areas by implementing various agricultural water management (AWM) interventions. Rainwater harvesting measures, especially rejuvenation of the haveli system (traditional rainwater harvesting system of the region), along with various in situ water harvesting interventions, were found promising for addressing water scarcity and strengthening
various ecosystem services. Water harvesting measures, improved agricultural practices (such as balanced fertilizer application, introduction of climate-smart crop cultivars, weed and pest management) and supplemental irrigation, enhanced crop yield by 30-50% and cropping intensity from 80
to 150%. Enhanced groundwater availability (2-2.5 m additional head) helped to reduce crop risk, through the availability of supplemental irrigation and enhanced cropping intensity, as large areas of fallow land were converted to cultivation. AWM interventions also helped to enhance base flow (35-42 days to 110-122 days), control floods, soil erosion and land degradation (by about 33%), and enhance land and water use efficiency (40-70%).
Since 2017, lessons from these model watersheds have been scaled up in all seven districts of Uttar Pradesh Bundelkhand region, by an ICRISAT-led consortium. This study explores the potential of rainfed areas that are achievable through the adoption of AWM interventions. It suggests that the role of extension, through capacity building and
exposure of various stakeholders to AWM, is key to harnessing the potential of drylands. In order to further scale up such innovations to the entire region, it is important to involve knowledge generating and knowledge dissemination institutes, along with central and federal machineries. Involvement of private and non-governmental organizations as well will help achieve system level outcomes
A study of Smad4, Smad6 and Smad7 in Surgically Resected Samples of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma and Their Correlation with Clinicopathological Parameters and Patient Survival
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Smad4 is the common mediator of the tumor suppressive functions of TGF-beta. Smad6 and Smad7 are the antagonists of the TGF-beta pathway. This study investigates the differential protein expressions of Smad4, Smad6 and Smad7 in tumor as compared to normal tissue of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and compares them with clinicopathological parameters and patient survival.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There was a significant difference in protein expressions of Smad4 (p = 0.0001), Smad6 (p = 0.0015) and Smad7 (p = 0.0005) protein in tumor as compared to paired normal samples. Loss of Smad7 expression correlated significantly with tumor size (r = 0.421, p < 0.036) and margin status (r = 0.431; p < .032). Patients with moderate to high Smad4 protein expression had a better survival (median survival = 14.600 ± 2.112 months) than patients with absent or weak Smad4 protein expression (median survival = 7.150 ± 0.662). In addition, advanced disease stage correlated significantly with poor prognosis.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Loss of Smad4 significantly correlated with poor survival of PDAC patients. In the cases where Smad4 is expressed, Smad6 inhibition is possibly a novel mechanism for Smad4 inactivation. Smad7 has a role in pathobiology of PDAC. Further investigation in the roles of Smad6 and Smad7 would help in the identification of novel therapeutic targets for PDAC.</p
Impact of participatory silvipastoral intervention and soil conservation measures for forage resource enhancement in western Himalaya
Livestock rearing is an important component of rural economy in mid-hills of Himalaya. Inspite of abundant available feed resources, total available biomass is insufficient to sustain the livestock population. Fodder trees particularly in hill ecosystem play an important role in supplementing the fodder requirement especially during the lean period. Information gathered and analysis concludes that Grewia optiva is the most important fodder tree in terms of dominance, palatability and increase in milk yield followed by Artocarpus chaplasha, Morus alba, Bauhinia variegata, Albizia lebbeck and Terminalia alata in Kangra and Mandi districts of Himachal Pradesh. The crude protein content was found highest in Grewia optiva (19.38%) followed by Albizia lebbeck (18.85%), Dendrocalamus hamiltonii (18.01%) and minimum in case of Quercus incana (9.27%). During scarcity of fodder Ficus religiosa is the only fodder tree fed throughout the year. The established silvipasture produced leaf biomass of 2.77 to 6.77 DM kg/tree (Ghanetta), 2.12 to 5.96 DM kg/tree (Jogindernagar) and 2.25 to 6.93 DM kg/tree (Dagoh). Fodder trees planted under silvipastoral system produced average biomass of 1.83 DM tonnes/ha (Ghanetta), 1.49 DM tonnes/ha (Jogindernagar) and 1.66 DM tonnes/ha (Dagoh). Rainfall events of more than 50 mm, though quite less in number (25/165, 24/192 and 17/149), contributed 47.7, 82.3 and 81.7% to the total runoff at Ghanetta, Jogindernagar and Dagoh, respectively. Among the resource conservation measures trenching in combination with vegetative barrier allowed only 8.2% of rain as runoff compared to 41.5% under control (no measure). The silvipasture systems coupled with contour staggered trenches and / or vegetative barrier can effectively arrest the environmental degradation
Building climate resilience in degraded agricultural landscapes through water management: A case study of Bundelkhand region, Central India
Rainfall variability and water scarcity continue to hamper the food and income security of smallholder farming
systems in poverty-affected regions. Innovations in soil and water management, especially in the drylands, are
critical for meeting food security and water productivity targets of Agenda 2030. This study analyzes how
rainfed agriculture can be intensified with marginal impact on the landscape water balance. The impact of
rainwater harvesting structures on landscape hydrology and associated agricultural services was analyzed in the
semi-arid Jhansi district of Bundelkhand region in central India. The Parasai-Sindh pilot watershed was subjected
to a 5-year (2012–2016) monitoring of rainfed system improvements in water availability and crop intensification
due to surface water storage (haveli system), check dams, and field infiltration structures.
Hydrological processes were monitored intensively to analyze the landscape’s water balance components.
Rainwater harvesting (RWH) structures altered the landscape’s hydrology, limiting average surface runoff from
250 mm/year to 150 mm/year over the study period. Groundwater levels increased by 2–5 m (m), alleviating
water scarcity issues of the communities in recurring dry years. Nearly 20% of fallow lands were brought under
cultivation. Crop yields increased by 10–70% and average household income increased from US 2700/year compared to that in the non-intervention landscape. The combined soil–water–vegetation efforts
strengthened water resilience and environmental systems in agricultural landscape
On measurement of top polarization as a probe of production mechanisms at the LHC
In this note we demonstrate the use of top polarization in the study of resonances at the LHC, in the possible case where the dynamics implies
a non-zero top polarization. As a probe of top polarization we construct an
asymmetry in the decay-lepton azimuthal angle distribution (corresponding to
the sign of ) in the laboratory. The asymmetry is non-vanishing
even for a symmetric collider like the LHC, where a positive axis is not
uniquely defined. The angular distribution of the leptons has the advantage of
being a faithful top-spin analyzer, unaffected by possible anomalous
couplings, to linear order. We study, for purposes of demonstration, the case
of a as might exist in the little Higgs models. We identify kinematic cuts
which ensure that our asymmetry reflects the polarization in sign and
magnitude. We investigate possibilities at the LHC with two energy options:
TeV and TeV, as well as at the Tevatron. At the
LHC the model predicts net top quark polarization of the order of a few per
cent for GeV, being as high as for a smaller mass
of the of GeV and for the largest allowed coupling in the model, the
values being higher for the TeV option. These polarizations translate to a
deviation from the standard-model value of azimuthal asymmetry of up to about
() for () TeV LHC, whereas for the Tevatron, values as high as
are attained. For the TeV LHC with an integrated luminosity of 10
fb, these numbers translate into a sensitivity over a large
part of the range GeV.Comment: 28 page, LaTeX, requires JHEP style file, 12 figures. Typos corrected
and references adde
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