Economic efficiency of mechanised fishing in Tamil Nadu – a case study in Chennai

A study was conducted to analyse the economic efficiency of mechanised fishing in Chennai in Tamil Nadu along the east coast of India. The craft and gear combinations over the years witnessed dramatic changes on account of the huge cost of fishing, duration and depth of operations and maintenance. The mechanised gillnetters showed tremendous increase among the fishing fleet in Chennai mainly due to their assured returns and consistent marketing margin. The present study specifically compares the economic efficiency of mechanised gillnet units and trawlers operating from Chennai. Average operating cost and net income per day for the multiday (MD) gillnetters were `17,757 and 6,613 whereas in the case of multiday trawlers, the operating cost and net income per day were `18,095 and `3,219, respectively. Targeted tuna fishing and better price realisation in the value chain have contributed to better performance of gillnet units. The higher fuel requirement observed for MD trawlers as compared to MD gillnetters is attributed to long distance travelling and the use of mechanical power for propulsion as well as for fishing. The study found that efficiency measures in terms of labour, capital and fuel have established the supremacy of mechanised gillnetters

Eruptive Spitz nevus, a striking example of benign metastasis.

Metastasis is generally considered a characteristic of malignant tumors. Herein, we describe a patient with more than one hundred discrete Spitz nevi scattered all over her skin. Molecular analysis from three of the lesions identified a ROS1 fusion oncogene with identical genomic breakpoints, indicating that the nevi arose from a single transformed melanocyte and then disseminated throughout the integument. The demonstration of widespread distribution of a benign tumor with limited proliferative capability indicates that metastatic dissemination is not contingent on full malignant transformation. Thus, eruptive Spitz nevus is a striking example of benign metastasis, demonstrating that metastasis can occur before malignant transformation

Eruptive Spitz nevus, a striking example of benign metastasis.

Metastasis is generally considered a characteristic of malignant tumors. Herein, we describe a patient with more than one hundred discrete Spitz nevi scattered all over her skin. Molecular analysis from three of the lesions identified a ROS1 fusion oncogene with identical genomic breakpoints, indicating that the nevi arose from a single transformed melanocyte and then disseminated throughout the integument. The demonstration of widespread distribution of a benign tumor with limited proliferative capability indicates that metastatic dissemination is not contingent on full malignant transformation. Thus, eruptive Spitz nevus is a striking example of benign metastasis, demonstrating that metastasis can occur before malignant transformation

Not Available

Not AvailableA study was conducted to analyse the economic efficiency of mechanised fishing in Chennai in Tamil Nadu along the east coast of India. The craft and gear combinations over the years witnessed dramatic changes on account of the huge cost of fishing, duration and depth of operations and maintenance. The mechanised gillnetters showed tremendous increase among the fishing fleet in Chennai mainly due to their assured returns and consistent marketing margin. The present study specifically compares the economic efficiency of mechanised gillnet units and trawlers operating from Chennai. Average operating cost and net income per day for the multiday (MD) gillnetters were `17,757 and 6,613 whereas in the case of multiday trawlers, the operating cost and net income per day were `18,095 and `3,219, respectively. Targeted tuna fishing and better price realisation in the value chain have contributed to better performance of gillnet units. The higher fuel requirement observed for MD trawlers as compared to MD gillnetters is attributed to long distance travelling and the use of mechanical power for propulsion as well as for fishing. The study found that efficiency measures in terms of labour, capital and fuel have established the supremacy of mechanised gillnetters.Not Availabl

Spitz melanoma is a distinct subset of spitzoid melanoma.

Melanomas that have histopathologic features that overlap with those of Spitz nevus are referred to as spitzoid melanomas. However, the diagnostic concept is used inconsistently and genomic analyses suggest it is a heterogeneous category. Spitz tumors, the spectrum of melanocytic neoplasms extending from Spitz nevi to their malignant counterpart Spitz melanoma, are defined in the 2018 WHO classification of skin tumors by the presence of specific genetic alterations, such as kinase fusions or HRAS mutations. It is unclear what fraction of "spitzoid melanomas" defined solely by their histopathologic features belong to the category of Spitz melanoma or to other melanoma subtypes. We assembled a cohort of 25 spitzoid melanomas diagnosed at a single institution over an 8-year period and performed high-coverage DNA sequencing of 480 cancer related genes. Transcriptome wide RNA sequencing was performed for select cases. Only nine cases (36%) had genetic alterations characteristic of Spitz melanoma, including HRAS mutation or fusion involving BRAF, ALK, NTRK1, or MAP3K8. The remaining cases were divided into those with an MAPK activating mutation and those without an MAPK activating mutation. Both Spitz melanoma and spitzoid melanomas in which an MAPK-activating mutation could not be identified tended to occur in younger patients on skin with little solar elastosis, infrequently harbored TERT promoter mutations, and had a lower burden of pathogenic mutations than spitzoid melanomas with non-Spitz MAPK-activating mutations. The MAPK-activating mutations identified affected non-V600 residues of BRAF as well as NRAS, MAP2K1/2, NF1, and KIT, while BRAF V600 mutations, the most common mutations in melanomas of the WHO low-CSD category, were entirely absent. While the "spitzoid melanomas" comprising our cohort were enriched for bona fide Spitz melanomas, the majority of melanomas fell outside of the genetically defined category of Spitz melanomas, indicating that histomorphology is an unreliable predictor of Spitz lineage

Spitz melanoma is a distinct subset of spitzoid melanoma

Melanomas that have histopathologic features that overlap with those of Spitz nevus are referred to as spitzoid melanomas. However, the diagnostic concept is used inconsistently and genomic analyses suggest it is a heterogeneous category. Spitz tumors, the spectrum of melanocytic neoplasms extending from Spitz nevi to their malignant counterpart Spitz melanoma, are defined in the 2018 WHO classification of skin tumors by the presence of specific genetic alterations, such as kinase fusions or HRAS mutations. It is unclear what fraction of "spitzoid melanomas" defined solely by their histopathologic features belong to the category of Spitz melanoma or to other melanoma subtypes. We assembled a cohort of 25 spitzoid melanomas diagnosed at a single institution over an 8-year period and performed high-coverage DNA sequencing of 480 cancer related genes. Transcriptome wide RNA sequencing was performed for select cases. Only nine cases (36%) had genetic alterations characteristic of Spitz melanoma, including HRAS mutation or fusion involving BRAF, ALK, NTRK1, or MAP3K8. The remaining cases were divided into those with an MAPK activating mutation and those without an MAPK activating mutation. Both Spitz melanoma and spitzoid melanomas in which an MAPK-activating mutation could not be identified tended to occur in younger patients on skin with little solar elastosis, infrequently harbored TERT promoter mutations, and had a lower burden of pathogenic mutations than spitzoid melanomas with non-Spitz MAPK-activating mutations. The MAPK-activating mutations identified affected non-V600 residues of BRAF as well as NRAS, MAP2K1/2, NF1, and KIT, while BRAF V600 mutations, the most common mutations in melanomas of the WHO low-CSD category, were entirely absent. While the "spitzoid melanomas" comprising our cohort were enriched for bona fide Spitz melanomas, the majority of melanomas fell outside of the genetically defined category of Spitz melanomas, indicating that histomorphology is an unreliable predictor of Spitz lineage