India's new Israel policy: how the decline of the Palestinian issue and economic reorientation accelerate Indo-Israeli cooperation

In January 2019, about two weeks before India's Republic Day, Israel's National Security Advisor, Meir Ben-Shabbat, flew to New Delhi and met Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi. While such consultations have been routine for the past two decades, the Israeli official chose the direct Air India flight from Tel Aviv - a new flight connection that could only be established due to an unprecedented permit for Israel-bound flights to fly over Saudi airspace. The small incident highlights the distance that India and Israel have traveled since the normalization of diplomatic relations in 1992. Today, the two states share an ever-growing cooperation, especially in the areas of security and eco­nomic development. This rapprochement with Israel is embedded in India's broader Middle East strategy, in which especially the Gulf Arab states are important partners. Thus, India-Israel relations have also been catalyzed by the improvement in ties be­tween Israel and the Gulf States as well as the diminishing role played by the Palestin­ian issue. This, in turn, has led India, especially under Modi, not only to strengthen its ties with Israel, but also to de-hyphenate those ties from the Israeli-Palestinian con­flict, leading to a marginalization of the Palestinian question in Indian foreign policy. (Autorenreferat

Analysis of C-shape slotted MSPA for 5G sub band applications on three different substrates

A comparative analysis of a compact planar Squarepatch Microstrip Multiband antenna on three different substratesis proposed. The proposed design has a C-shaped slot etched on thesquare radiating part and the antenna is energized usingmicrostrip feed line. RT Duroid

Catalogue of Types and of Sponges, Corals, Polychaetes, Crabs and Echinoderms in the Reference Collections of the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute

The Reference collections of the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute at Mandapam Camp have steadily grown in the past two decades since its inception. Although it was originally intended to have these collections primarily with a view to representing economically important groups from the marine habitats, in recent years, with a number of Research Scholars specializing in varied zoological groups out of taxonomic and academic interests, the collections of the Institute have increased substantially. In the present Bulletin are listed 46 Type species representing different phyla, 152 species of sponges,160 species of corals, 200 species of crabs and hermit-crabs and 185 species of echinoderms. Some of the species listed are new records from the seas around India or even from the Indian Ocean as reported by the research workers of this institute. For types, references are given followed by type category, registered number, locality and other particulars. For reference collections the name of the species is followed by registered number and localities of occurrence

Review on cephalopod resources, biology and stock assessment in Indian seas

Cephalopods are fished from the seas around India from very early times and at present contribute one of the most important exploited marine fishery resources oj the country (between 4 and 5% of the all India production). The production, which remained at very low level up to the early seventies, has shown a remarkable increase crossing the 1,00,000 tonne mark in 1994. The taxonomy, biology and stock assessment of the various exploited species have been studied since the early seventies by the CMFRI. Studies indicate that uplo 1994 tlie exploitation has remained within rational limits in almost all maritime states. The recent rapid increase in production warrants close monitoring of this short-lived resource from the viewpoint of Judicious management

EFFECT OF GEMCITABINE ON FEMALE FERTILTY – AN ANIMAL MODEL STUDY

Background and objectives: Advances in cancer chemotherapy have led to improved survival rates and poses greater emphasis on preserving quality of life post-treatment. Gonadotoxicity is a well-recognized side effect of many cancer chemotherapeutic agents. This study was designed to evaluate the effects of gemcitabine, an antimetabolite anticancer drug, on oogenesis in Swiss albino mice and its reversibility. Methods: Thirty six inbred female Swiss albino mice in diestrous phase were selected and divided into three groups of twelve each. Groups were labelled as A, B and Control. Groups A and B received 40 mg/kg and 80 mg/kg of gemcitabine intraperitoneally. The control group received saline intraperitoneally. At the end of two weeks 6 mice were sacrificed from each group and the rest at the end of 2 months.  Ovaries were studied histologically. Results: After 2 weeks, the ovaries of experimental group mice showed more number of atretic follicles as compared to control group (p<0.01). The diameter of corpus lutea was more, though a reduction in number was recorded in experimental group (p<0.05).  Whereas after 2 months, both the experimental groups showed no difference in terms of atretic follicles, diameter and number of corpus lutea (p>0.05). Conclusions: These findings suggest that administration of gemcitabine may have profound effects on oogenesis and hence female fertility. This study also suggests that the effects are reversible. Keywords: Gemcitabine; Oogenesis; Swiss albino mice; atretic follicles; corpus luteum

Impact of Zn substitution on phase formation and superconductivity of Bi1.6Pb0.4 Sr2Ca2Cu3-xZnxO10 with x = 0.0, 0.015, 0.03, 0.06, 0.09 and 0.12

Samples of series Bi1.6Pb0.4Sr2Ca2Cu3-xZnxO10 with x = 0.0, 0.015, 0.03, 0.06, 0.09 and 0.12 are synthesized by solid-state reaction route. All the samples crystallize in tetragonal structure with majority (> 90%) of Bi-2223 (Bi2Sr2Ca2Cu3O10) phase (c-lattice parameter ~ 36 A0). The proportion of Bi-2223 phase decreases slightly with an increase in x. The lattice parameters a and c of main phase (Bi-2223) do not change significantly with increasing x. Superconducting critical transition temperature (Tc) decreases with x as evidenced by both resistivity [(T)] and AC magnetic susceptibility [(T)] measurements. Interestingly the decrement of Tc is not monotonic and the same saturates at around 96 K for x > 0.06. In fact Tc decreases fast (~10K/at%) for x = 0.015 and 0.03 samples and later nearly saturates for higher x values. Present results of Zn doping in Bi-2223 system are compared with Zn doped other HTSC (High temperature superconducting) systems, namely the RE-123 (REBa2Cu3O7) and La-214 ((La,Sr)2CuO4).Comment: 12, pages of text and Figs. TO APPEAR IN Mod. Phys. Lett. B (2005)

Multi-Ancestry Genome-Wide Association Study Accounting for Gene-Psychosocial Factor Interactions Identifies Novel Loci for Blood Pressure Traits

Psychological and social factors are known to influence blood pressure (BP) and risk of hypertension and associated cardiovascular diseases. To identify novel BP loci, we carried out genome-wide association meta-analyses of systolic, diastolic, pulse, and mean arterial BP, taking into account the interaction effects of genetic variants with three psychosocial factors: depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and social support. Analyses were performed using a two-stage design in a sample of up to 128,894 adults from five ancestry groups. In the combined meta-analyses of stages 1 and 2, we identified 59 loci (p value \u3c 5e−8), including nine novel BP loci. The novel associations were observed mostly with pulse pressure, with fewer observed with mean arterial pressure. Five novel loci were identified in African ancestry, and all but one showed patterns of interaction with at least one psychosocial factor. Functional annotation of the novel loci supports a major role for genes implicated in the immune response (PLCL2), synaptic function and neurotransmission (LIN7A and PFIA2), as well as genes previously implicated in neuropsychiatric or stress-related disorders (FSTL5 and CHODL). These findings underscore the importance of considering psychological and social factors in gene discovery for BP, especially in non-European populations

Mechanism of the Very Efficient Quenching of Tryptophan Fluorescence in Human γD- and γS-Crystallins: The γ-Crystallin Fold May Have Evolved To Protect Tryptophan Residues from Ultraviolet Photodamage†

Proteins exposed to UV radiation are subject to irreversible photodamage through covalent modification of tryptophans (Trps) and other UV-absorbing amino acids. Crystallins, the major protein components of the vertebrate eye lens that maintain lens transparency, are exposed to ambient UV radiation throughout life. The duplicated β-sheet Greek key domains of β- and γ-crystallins in humans and all other vertebrates each have two conserved buried Trps. Experiments and computation showed that the fluorescence of these Trps in human γD-crystallin is very efficiently quenched in the native state by electrostatically enabled electron transfer to a backbone amide [Chen et al. (2006) Biochemistry 45, 11552−11563]. This dispersal of the excited state energy would be expected to minimize protein damage from covalent scission of the excited Trp ring. We report here both experiments and computation showing that the same fast electron transfer mechanism is operating in a different crystallin, human γS-crystallin. Examination of solved structures of other crystallins reveals that the Trp conformation, as well as favorably oriented bound waters, and the proximity of the backbone carbonyl oxygen of the n − 3 residues before the quenched Trps (residue n), are conserved in most crystallins. These results indicate that fast charge transfer quenching is an evolved property of this protein fold, probably protecting it from UV-induced photodamage. This UV resistance may have contributed to the selection of the Greek key fold as the major lens protein in all vertebrates.National Eye Institute (Grant EY 015834

Osteo-Chondroprogenitor–Specific Deletion of the Selenocysteine tRNA Gene, Trsp, Leads to Chondronecrosis and Abnormal Skeletal Development: A Putative Model for Kashin-Beck Disease

Kashin-Beck disease, a syndrome characterized by short stature, skeletal deformities, and arthropathy of multiple joints, is highly prevalent in specific regions of Asia. The disease has been postulated to result from a combination of different environmental factors, including contamination of barley by mold mycotoxins, iodine deficiency, presence of humic substances in drinking water, and, importantly, deficiency of selenium. This multifunctional trace element, in the form of selenocysteine, is essential for normal selenoprotein function, including attenuation of excessive oxidative stress, and for the control of redox-sensitive molecules involved in cell growth and differentiation. To investigate the effects of skeletal selenoprotein deficiency, a Cre recombinase transgenic mouse line was used to trigger Trsp gene deletions in osteo-chondroprogenitors. Trsp encodes selenocysteine tRNA[Ser]Sec, required for the incorporation of selenocysteine residues into selenoproteins. The mutant mice exhibited growth retardation, epiphyseal growth plate abnormalities, and delayed skeletal ossification, as well as marked chondronecrosis of articular, auricular, and tracheal cartilages. Phenotypically, the mice thus replicated a number of the pathological features of Kashin-Beck disease, supporting the notion that selenium deficiency is important to the development of this syndrome