An X-ray study of the reaction of calcium oxide and calcium chloride in the decomposition of monazite

This paper outlines a review of the structure of monazite, methods of its decomposition and results of an X-ray study of monazite before and after treatment with a mixture of calcium oxide and calcium chloride, in connection with the separation of phosphate from monazite. (Mr. K.N. Kartha, Junior Research Fellow, National Metallurgical Laboratory, Jamshedpur

Multi-omic investigation of the mechanisms underlying the pathobiology of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is an aggressive malignancy associated with molecular heterogeneity, locoregional spread, resistance to therapy and relapse after initial treatment. Increasing evidence suggests that master developmental pathways with key roles in adult tissue homeostasis, including Hippo and Wnt/β-catenin signaling, are dysregulated in the initiation and progression of HNSCC. However, a comprehensive investigation into the crosstalk between these pathways is currently lacking, and may prove crucial to the discovery of novel targets for HNSCC therapy. More recent evidence points to the tumor microenvironment, mainly comprising cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), as capable of influencing tumor cell behavior and promoting invasive HNSCC phenotypes. Nonetheless, current methods to screen for CAF markers in tumors are restricted to targeted immunostaining experiments with limited success and robustness across tissue types. The Cancer Genome Atlas network has generated multi-tiered molecular profiles for over 10,000 tumors spanning more than two dozen different cancer types, providing an unprecedented opportunity for the application and development of integrative methods aimed at the in silico interrogation of experimentally-derived signatures. These multi-omic profiles further enable one to link genomic anomalies, including somatic mutations and DNA copy number alterations, with phenotypic effects driven by pathogenic pathway activity. Effectively querying this vast amount of information to help elucidate subsets of functionally and clinically-relevant oncogenic drivers, however, remains an ongoing challenge. To address these issues, I first investigate the effects of oncogenic pathway perturbation in HNSCC using experimental models coupled with in vitro genome-wide transcriptional profiling. Next, I describe a new computational approach for the unbiased identification of CAF markers in HNSCC solely using bulk tumor RNA-sequencing information. Lastly, I have developed Candidate Driver Analysis or CaDrA - a statistical framework that allows one to query genetic and epigenetic alterations for candidate drivers of signature activity within a given disease context. Collectively, this work offers new perspectives on the molecular cues underlying HNSCC development, while simultaneously highlighting the power of integrative genomics methods capable of accelerating the discovery of novel targets for cancer diagnosis and therapy

On the comparative efficiency of trawls made of cotton, polyethylene and combination of both the materials

The merits and demerits of cotton, polyethylene and combination of the two materials ascertained on the basis of cost, wear and tear, maintenance, total catch and qualitative analysis of the catch are discussed by making comparative fishing experiments with the three trawl gears made of these materials. The study can be concluded with a suggestion for switching over to polyethylene twisted monofilaments for better, in case of bottom trawls without in any way adversely affecting the catch of shrimps and at the same time for enhanced fish catch. Even though the combination net is found to be equal in efficiency as the polyethylene net this idea cannot be conveniently adopted from the point of view of economy

Notes on the eggs and early larval stages of Hippolysmata ensirostris Kemp

Hippolysmata ensirostris which contributes to a minor extent to the crustacean fisheries of India is an ovoviviparous form. Berried females with eggs carried by the first four abdominal appendages are encountered in the shore-seine returns at Cannanore during the south-west monsoon months. The present paper gives an account of three different stages of the egg and three early larval stages reared in the laboratory

Growth rate In Lactarius lactarius (Schneider) at Karwar

The length-frequency data of the big-jawed jumper, Lactarius lactarius (Schneider), collected from the trawl catches of Karwar coast during 1965-66, 1966-67 and 1967-68 season show that the species attains a length of about 90 mm in six months. The landings from grounds more than 30 meters in depth generally contained bigger individuals, while the near-shore catches were dominated by juvenile

study of the copepods of the inshore waters of Palk Bay and Gulf of Mannar

It has been reported by Prasad (1956) that the general trends in the fluctuations of the total copepods, including copepodites, in the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay were different. According to him the fluctuations were apparently dicyclic at station G in the Gulf of Mannar, with one peak during December-March and another during September or October, as against the fluctuations at station P in Palk Bay, starting from a very low level and almost continuously increasing until it reached a maximum in September or October and then declining. In order to study the causes which bring about these differences in the population of copepods at the two stations it was suggested that a detailed analysis of the composition of population and the behaviour of the dominant species be taken up

Summer Institute in Breeding and Rearing of Marine Prawns

The Summer Institute in "Breeding and Rearing of Marine Prawns" was held at the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute at Cochin during 11 May — 9 June 1977. The Summer Institute was inaugurated by the Director, Dr E. G. Silas, at a function attended by the participants, members of faculty and other scientists of the Institute, at 11 AM on 11 May 1977. Following this, the daily schedule, consisting of lectures in the forenoon and practicals in the afternoon, commenced with an introductory lecture by the Director

Description of a bathypelagic fish, Lestidium blanci sp. nov. (Family Paralepididae) from the Arabian Sea

During a routine research cruise of R.V. Varuna on 6-8-1965 to the Cochin- Cape Comorin section of the Arabian sea, three specimens of the genus Lestidium were taken along with several other bathypelagic fishes from a bottom trawl net operated at 370 metres. This haul was made at 17.00 hours at a place (Lat. 8° 45'N, Long. 75° 50'E) about 95 km off Quilon. These specimens markedly differ from all the known species of the Genus Lestidium, and are described here as Lestidium blanci sp. nov

Coastal zone management Mudbanks of Kerala coast

THE MUDBANKS, the formation of which is a curious phenomenon reported hitherto from only the southwest coast of India, appear over restricted areas on the Kerala- south Karnataka coast during the inclement S. W. monsoon as bodies of calm water, where the wave action the coastal waters at this time abounds with is almost absent, largely due to a fine mud in a state of suspen sion. On a squally, surf-beaten coast, these areas facilitate easy fishing operations of country crafts, which otherwise idle away during this haish weather. For this reason it gained much popularity, particularly of late, among the coastal people. Reports on mudbanks date back to the early 18th century. But a serious scientific study on them was not initiated until nineteen-thirties, when Sir Robert Bristow took it up in connection with his port man agement. His study, however, stimulated further interest, and, because of its contri bution often to successful fisheries, with spectacular catches of prawns and fish, parti cularly the shoaling forms, the mudbank has attracted increasing attention from fishery scientists