Turtle conservation activities in Tambaldeg village, Sindhudurg district, Maharashtra

Tambaldeg village in Devgad taluka is a famous tourist place in the Sindhudurg district. During a field visit to Tambaldeg beach on 24th April 2017, six carcasses of adult olive ridley turtle Lepidochelys olivacea and one of green turtle Chelonia mydas were observed in decomposed state. This beach is a turtle nesting site and the Forest department of Maharashtra with the support of local fishers is undertaking awareness programs for turtle conservation including hoardings displayed on conservation of turtles along the beach. Protection of nesting turtles and eggs is also undertaken by the local communities

Report on morphological abnormality in Scylla serrata

Morphological abnormalities most commonly reported in crabs are alterations in carapace (mainly number and shape of antero-lateral teeth), chelipeds, walking legs and shape of the abdomen. Uran, a fishing village in Raigad district of Maharashtra, supports a good fishery of Scylla serrata commonly known as giant mud crab, found in the coastal estuarine and mangrove areas

Accidental detection of clinically silent compound heterozygous Hb D Punjab/Hb Q India while analyzing HbA1c by high performance liquid chromatography

HbA1c is routinely prescribed investigations for diagnosing and monitoring diabetes and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is preferred method which is also able to identify presence of hemoglobin variant. A case was encountered where presence of variant hemoglobin was indicated. On further investigation with three different instruments, diagnosis of compound heterozygous Hb D Punjab/Hb Q India was made. The chromatogram on Bio-Rad D10 showed Hb D Punjab (ααββHbD Punjab)-29.89% at 3.96 minutes retention time (RT), Hb Q India (ααHbQ Indiaββ) -9.5% with 4.45 minutes RT, hybrid of HbQ India/Hb D Punjab (ααHbQ IndiaββHbD Punjab)-6% with 4.66 minutes RT, Hb A2 (ααδδ) was 2.5% and Hb A (ααββ) was 52.2%. Analysis done on Bio-Rad variant V-II confirmed these findings. Analysis done on Sebia capillary electrophoresis revealed major peak of 50.9% in zone 9/Z(A) constituted by Hb A, second peak of 39.8% in zone 6/Z(D) constituted by co-elution of Hb D and Hb Q India, third peak of 8.8% in zone 3-4/Z(A2-C) constituted by co-elution of Hb A2 and hybrid of Hb D Punjab/Hb Q India and a fourth peak of 0.5% in zone 1 representing Hb A2HbQ India (ααHbQ Indiaδδ). Ideally variants detected while analyzing HbA1c should be further investigated for confirmation and result of which should be shared, discussed and the patient should be encouraged for screening of available family members for relevant variant hemoglobin. Combination of cation exchange HPLC and capillary electrophoresis in this case was sufficient to arrive at conclusion

Decay modes of 250No

The Fragment Mass Analyzer at the ATLAS facility has been used to unambiguously identify the mass number associated with different decay modes of the nobelium isotopes produced via 204Pb(48Ca,xn)(252-x)No reactions. Isotopically pure (>99.7%) 204Pb targets were used to reduce background from more favored reactions on heavier lead isotopes. Two spontaneous fission half-lives (t_1/2 = 3.7+1.1-0.8 us and 43+22-15 us) were deduced from a total of 158 fission events. Both decays originate from 250No rather than from neighboring isotopes as previously suggested. The longer activity most likely corresponds to a K-isomer in this nucleus. No conclusive evidence for an alpha branch was observed, resulting in upper limits of 2.1% for the shorter lifetime and 3.4% for the longer activity.Comment: RevTex4, 10 pages, 5 figures, submitted to PR

Efficacy of different oils used for the extraction of annatto colour from the seeds of Bixa orellana L.

Annatto, a naturally obtained colour is a potential and valuable Non Wood Forest Product (NWFP). It is obtained from the seeds of plant species Bixa orellana L. The present experiment was carried out to find the efficacy of different oils used for annatto colour extraction. Experiment was started with the pretreatment of seeds of B. orellana with soaking in water at 0%, 50%, 100% and 150% (v/w) for 24 hrs at room temperature and colour extraction with castor oil at 100°C showed that maximum bixin (%) was found from the pretreated seeds with 50% (v/w) water soaking i.e., 0.46% bixin. Similarly for oil soluble annatto extraction method, the maximum extraction of bixin (0.99 %) was found with castor oil at 120°C for 1 hr and least bixin (0.03 %) was recorded with mustard oil at 60oC temperature for 1 hr. Sesame oil and ground nut oil were also showed better extractability. Out of different treatments, castor oil at 120°C for 1 hr gave better result with respect to bixin extraction as compared to others

Agronomic biofortification with zinc and iron to enhance nutrient concentrations in mango

Biofortification is a global-scale agricultural approach that can improve human nutrition. Agronomic biofortification is viewed as a quick-fix and supplemental approach. Agronomic biofortification, especially foliar application, is highly effective for zinc and iron. A field experiment on agronomic biofortification of zinc and iron micronutrients in mango cv. Kesar was carried out in 2016-2017 at the Regional Horticultural Research Station, ASPEE College of Horticulture and Forestry, Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari (Gujarat). The experiment was arranged in a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications containing 9 treatments. The results show that foliar application of ZnSO4 and FeSO4 (0.5% each) resulted in higher N (48.73 mg/100 g) and K (94.17 mg/100 g) in the pulp and P (0.056%) in the peel of mango. The iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) contents in pulp and peel were highest in treatment T9 (0.50% FeSO4 + 0.50% ZnSO4), which was on par with those in treatment T8 (0.50% FeSO4 + 0.25% ZnSO4)

Neoplasia in sawtooth barracuda

Sawtooth barracuda, Sphyraena putnamae is a common species of barracuda in the pelagic fish landings of Maharashtra. In 2015, 166 specimens of S. putnamae (301-857 mm Standard length) were collected from trawl landings at Sassoon Dock, Mumbai and examined as part of routine, specieswise biological studies on commercially important marine fishes landed in Maharashtra for developing the state's Fishery Management Plans. On 9th December 2015, a single specimen of S. putnamae measuring 685 mm in total length (TL) and weighing 1.2 kg having neoplasia was found among the sampled fishes

Energy saving of Green Building Using Solar Photovoltaic Systems

Abstract: This paper outline the solutions for the energy efficient futuristic buildings. The implementation of lastest technology in construction will lead to better building with green rating. Buildings are the greatest consumers of water, energy and materials. The idea of green buildings promotes use of renewable energy, recyclable & recycled products. Green building has to save water 36-40%, save energy 30-40% and save material 25-40% compared to conventional building. Green building is which one high thermal insulations, Rain water harvesting, terrace gardening, ventilation and energy efficient appliances

Collective oblate rotation at high spins in neutron-rich Hf180

We report on experimental evidence for collective oblate rotation becoming favored at high spins in a rigid, well-deformed, axially symmetric nucleus. Excited states established up to spin 20 in Hf180 are consistent with predictions that nucleon alignments would favor oblate over prolate shapes at high spins in neutron-rich Hf isotopes. The results highlight the influence of valence orbitals on the interplay between nucleon alignments and nuclear shapes and provide a rare example of independent particle dynamics in competing potential wells