ICT, SOCIAL CAPITAL AND DEVELOPMENT: THE CASE OF A MOUNTAIN REGION IN NEPAL

While the role of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in fostering socioeconomic development is generally accepted, the process through which this may happen remain unclear. In this paper, we take a social capital perspective and propose that ICT helps to create or strengthen social capital of communities which in turn leads to development. To illustrate our proposition, we conducted a qualitative case study in the Myagdi district in the mountain region of Nepal. We studied the Nepal Wireless Networking Project (NWNP) and examined its role in building social capital, and the consequences of extended social capital on socio-economic development process. Our findings indicate that the project is enabling the villagers to create, maintain, and extend their bonding, bridging, and linking social capital. Subsequently, this social capital assists them in developing and improving their education, healthcare, communication, and generating economic activities. We also identified several challenges such as, over dependency on single actor, high illiteracy rate, poor physical infrastructure, language, and lack of participation that may impede the social capital building process

Social Capital in enabling quality healthcare: The case of a telemedicine project in Nepal

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) can play a crucial role in meeting multifaceted developmental challenges such as providing access to quality healthcare in developing countries. Initiatives such as telemedicine have been vital in bringing healthcare to marginalized groups in remote areas of such countries. While the implementation and effects of telemedicine projects have been studied in the literature, the actual mechanisms and conditions that facilitate the process has seldom been addressed. In this paper, we present an interpretive case study of a telemedicine project in a remote mountainous region of Nepal. Our findings indicate that it was the action of a group of focal actors who leveraged a supportive social capital that resulted in successfully bringing in quality healthcare to marginalized groups in these remote villages. Our findings reveal social capital as a facilitating condition through which ICT can play a crucial role in meeting developmental challenges such as quality health care

IN VIVO RADIOPROTECTIVE EFFECTS OF WHEATGRASS (TRITICUM AESTIVUM) EXTRACT AGAINST X-IRRADAITION-INDUCED OXIDATIVE STRESS AND APOPTOSIS IN PERIPHERAL BLOOD LYMPHOCYTES IN RATS

 Objectives: The present study was undertaken to investigate the possible protective potential of wheatgrass extract against radiation-induced toxicity in peripheral lymphocytes of rats exposed to a fractionated dose of X-rays.Methods: Effects of the X-irradiation with and without wheatgrass were studied on various parameters in peripheral lymphocytes including antioxidant defense system and apoptosis. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four different groups: Normal control group, X-ray-irradiated group (21 Gy over a span of 7 days), wheatgrass-treated group (80 mg/100 g bodyweight for 2 weeks), and X-rays-irradiated + wheatgrass-treated group. All the biochemical indices which included lipid peroxidation (LPO), reduced glutathione, reactive oxygen species (ROS), and activities of antioxidant enzymes were investigated in lymphocytes. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling assay was carried out to assess the apoptosis in lymphocytes following whole-body X-irradiation.Results: Whole-body X-irradiation to rats resulted in significant increase in LPO with concomitant depression of antioxidant enzymes activities, namely, superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidise (GPx) in lymphocytes. Further, the present study witnessed a significant increase in the number of apoptotic lymphocytes in the X-irradiated animals. However, wheatgrass supplementation lowered the LPO levels, restored cellular antioxidant status, and provided significant protection against radiation-induced apoptosis.Conclusions: Based on these observations, the present study suggests that wheatgrass extract has the potential to be used as an effective radioprotectant against radiation-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in peripheral lymphocytes of whole-body X-ray-exposed rats

Systemic acquired resistance in soybean is regulated by two proteins, Orthologous to Arabidopsis NPR1

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Systemic acquired resistance (SAR) is induced in non-inoculated leaves following infection with certain pathogenic strains. SAR is effective against many pathogens. Salicylic acid (SA) is a signaling molecule of the SAR pathway. The development of SAR is associated with the induction of pathogenesis related (<it>PR</it>) genes. Arabidopsis <it>non-expressor </it>of <it>PR1 </it>(<it>NPR1</it>) is a regulatory gene of the SA signal pathway <abbrgrp><abbr bid="B1">1</abbr><abbr bid="B2">2</abbr><abbr bid="B3">3</abbr></abbrgrp>. SAR in soybean was first reported following infection with <it>Colletotrichum trancatum </it>that causes anthracnose disease. We investigated if SAR in soybean is regulated by a pathway, similar to the one characterized in Arabidopsis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Pathogenesis-related gene <it>GmPR1 </it>is induced following treatment of soybean plants with the SAR inducer, 2,6-dichloroisonicotinic acid (INA) or infection with the oomycete pathogen, <it>Phytophthora sojae</it>. In <it>P. sojae</it>-infected plants, SAR was induced against the bacterial pathogen, <it>Pseudomonas syringae </it>pv. glycinea. Soybean <it>GmNPR1-1 </it>and <it>GmNPR1-2 </it>genes showed high identities to Arabidopsis <it>NPR1</it>. They showed similar expression patterns among the organs, studied in this investigation. <it>GmNPR1-1 </it>and <it>GmNPR1-2 </it>are the only soybean homologues of <it>NPR1</it>and are located in homoeologous regions. In <it>GmNPR1-1 </it>and <it>GmNPR1-2 </it>transformed Arabidopsis <it>npr1-1 </it>mutant plants, SAR markers: (i) <it>PR-1 </it>was induced following INA treatment and (ii) <it>BGL2 </it>following infection with <it>Pseudomonas syringae </it>pv. tomato (<it>Pst</it>), and SAR was induced following <it>Pst </it>infection. Of the five cysteine residues, Cys⁸², Cys¹⁵⁰, Cys¹⁵⁵, Cys¹⁶⁰, and Cys²¹⁶involved in oligomer-monomer transition in NPR1, Cys²¹⁶ in GmNPR1-1 and GmNPR1-2 proteins was substituted to Ser and Leu, respectively.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Complementation analyses in Arabidopsis <it>npr1-1 </it>mutants revealed that homoeologous <it>GmNPR1-1 </it>and <it>GmNPR1-2 </it>genes are orthologous to Arabidopsis <it>NPR1</it>. Therefore, SAR pathway in soybean is most likely regulated by <it>GmNPR1 </it>genes. Substitution of Cys²¹⁶residue, essential for oligomer-monomer transition of Arabidopsis NPR1, with Ser and Leu residues in GmNPR1-1 and GmNPR1-2, respectively, suggested that there may be differences between the regulatory mechanisms of GmNPR1 and Arabidopsis NPR proteins.</p

Potential of Some Fungal and Bacterial Species in Bioremediation of Heavy Metals

Microorganisms including fungi and bacteria have been reported to extract heavy metals from wastewater through bioaccumulation and biosorption. An attempt was, therefore, made to isolate bacteria and fungi from sites contaminated with heavy metals for higher tolerance and removal from wastewater. Bacterial and fungal isolates were obtained from the samples collected from Karnal, Ambala and Yamunanagar districts of Haryana using enrichment culture technique. Bacterial and fungal isolates with tolerant up to 100 ppm concentration of heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cr) were tested for their removal from liquid media containing 50 ppm concentration of Pb, Cd and Cr each. Five fungi (Penicillium chrysogenum, Aspegillus nidulans, Aspergillus flavus, Rhizopus arrhizus, Trichoderma viride) were also included in this study. Fungi Aspergillus nidulans, Rhizopus arrhizus and Trichoderma viride showed maximum uptake capacity of 25.67 mg/g for Pb, 13.15 mg/g for Cd and 2.55 mg/g of Cr, respectively. The maximum uptake capacity of tolerant bacterial isolates - BPb12 and BPb16, BCd5 and BCr14 were observed to be ~ 45 mg/g for Pb, 2.12 mg/g for Cd and 3.29 mg/g for Cr, respectively. This indicated the potential of these identified fungi and bacteria as biosorbent for removal of high concentration metals from wastewater and industrial effluents

Effect of reflective practices on student learning in higher education—a real life approach

Validation of ideas are of paramount importance in STEM fields. Learning and converting ideas into practical application is the main purpose of technical education. Aviation is a highly safety sensitive field where confusion and mistakes are not acceptable. This brings serious challenges for academia that provides higher education in this field. A yearlong observation of the reflective practices was done at an Australian university while teaching aviation students to analyse outcomes of reflection on teaching and learning. Reflection provides a powerful opportunity to a teacher in improving teaching qualities and to identify training needs for enhancing teaching capabilities

Immune response against M protein-conserved region peptides from prevalent group A Streptococcus in a North Indian population

BackgroundGroup A streptococci (GAS) cause infections with a high prevalence in most developing countries. A GAS vaccine under trial that is based on the amino-terminus of the M protein provides type-specific immunity, and hence seems ineffective in India because of heterogeneous emm types. However, the conserved C-terminal region of the M protein protects against multiple serotypes. In this paper, the immune response generated against the conserved C-repeat region of the M protein was checked in an Indian population to establish their vaccine candidature.MethodsWhen screened for GAS, patients with pharyngitis, rheumatic fever/rheumatic heart disease (RF/RHD), and invasive disease showed heterogeneous emm types, out of which five prevalent types (1-2, 11, 49, 75 and 112) were selected for the study. The C-terminal region of their M proteins showed conserved C1-, C2-, and C3-repeats. The C1-repeat was more diverse and had two different J14-like sequences. Peptides to these C-terminal regions (J14.1 and J14-R6) were designed. Antibodies against these peptides were analyzed using the sera of 130 GAS-infected volunteers.ResultsSerum antibodies were significantly higher in patients with acute rheumatic fever, RHD, and invasive disease than in patients with pharyngitis or the healthy controls. The serum antibodies to these peptides was higher in teenagers and adults than in children.ConclusionResults showed an association between streptococcal disease progression and the age-related development of immunity to the conserved regions. Hence, these peptides could be considered protective in impeding streptococcal infections worldwide