Spurt in fish landings along north Tamil Nadu coast

In the sudden spurt of unusually heavy fish landings a movement of deep water fishes to the inshore areas were observed and of this unusual landings along the coast during this period are presented. The heavy fish landings were observed for 15 days in landing centres adjacent of Pondicherry whereas it for 2 days in Kovalam region and in Madras. A slight drop in surface water temperature with low oxygen concentration (1.10 to 1.37ml/L) and low temperature (26.2 to 27.2°C) during this period were examined. Analysis of plankton samples showed a a bloom of Chaetoceros sp.in this period

Bioactivity in marine algae

Marine algae have been reponed to possess a wide range of bio active properties (Hashimoto 1979, Baslow 1969, Hoppe, et al. 1979, Hoppe et al. 1984, Blunden et al. 1981, Cocamese et al. 1981, Ramamurthy et al. 1967, Mc Lachan 1964, Byrkholder and Sharma 1969. Conover and Sieburth 1964, Garber et al. 1958). Quite recently, Naqvi et al. (1980) studied the bioactivities of 25 species of marine algae and sea grasses collected mainly from the North Eastern coast of India and a few from the coast of Tamil Nadu

Hydrobiology of lagoons

The hydrography, productivity, zooplankton biomass and faunistic composition of the lagoons of Lakshadweep were studied during January-March 1987 period. The surface temperature of lagoon waters off Agatti and Kalpeni reached the maximum temperature of 38"C. Even during night period the temperature was in the range of 32-33°C in the Minicoy lagoon. Salinity values of surface samples of lagoons of Kalpitti, Bangaram and Kalpeni mere in the range 36%o to 39.39%o. Low dissolved oxygen value of 1-1B ml/litre was observed in Suhelipar lagoon. In most of the lagoons the secondary production was very poor but biomass of zooplankton from the seaward side of the lagoons was slightly higher suggesting that the oceanic zooplankton might be nourished by coral reef community. Minicoy lagoon is an exception where the biomass of zooplankton was very high being 61.25 ml and the biomass of samples collected from the sea was 9.5 ml. Swarming 'of Lucifer sp, Copepods and Linglea sp. (algae) has increased the standing crop of lagoon. In most of the lagoons, decapod larvae and copepods constituted the dominant items, other zooplankter like fish eggi, chaetognaths, siphonophores and appendicularians also occurred In small numbers. In lagoon samples of Bangaram and Kavaratti fish eggs formed 8.73% and 17.38% of total biomass respectively

Trends in secondary production in the inshore waters of the seas around India

CMFRI has been monitoring the microscopic organisms which belong to the categories of phyto and zooplanktons, being a reliable tool for the identification of areas prone to industrial and natural pollution and for understanding its extent and intensity, especially in the inshore areas selected centres along the Indian coasts.These studies assist in foretelling any alarming situations developed in the living environment that may affect the commercially important resources adversely. The pattern of the occurrence and abundance of zooplankton along the Indian coasts from Bombay on the west coast upto Madras on the east coast were described.The samples were collected from Bombay, Karwar, Calicut, Vizhinjam, Tuticorin, Mandapam and Madras. In conclusion,the rate of secondary production on the west as well as on the east coasts during the 1981-82 period was comparatively lesser than during the previous year

SCH 48973: a Potent, Broad-Spectrum, Antienterovirus Compound.

SCH 48973 is a novel molecule with potent, selective, antienterovirus activity. In assays of the cytopathic effect against five picornaviruses, SCH 48973 had antiviral activity (50% inhibitory concentrations [IC50s]) of 0.02 to 0.11 microg/ml, with no detectable cytotoxicity at 50 microg/ml. SCH 48973 inhibited 80% of 154 recent human enterovirus isolates at an IC50 of 0.9 microg/ml. The antiviral activity of SCH 48973 is derived from its specific interaction with viral capsid, as confirmed by competition binding studies. The affinity constant (Ki) for SCH 48973 binding to poliovirus was 8.85 x 10(-8) M. In kinetic studies, a maximum of approximately 44 molecules of SCH 48973 were bound to poliovirus capsid. SCH 48973 demonstrated efficacy in a murine poliovirus model of enterovirus disease. SCH 48973 increased the survival of infected mice when it was administered orally at dosages of 3 to 20 mg/kg of body weight/day. Oral administration of SCH 48973 also reduced viral titers in the brains of infected mice. On the basis of its in vitro and in vivo profiles, SCH 48973 represents a potential candidate for therapeutic intervention against enterovirus infections

Incursion of brown algae and sargassum fishes into the Cochin backwaters

An incursion of sea weeds like brown algae and reef fishes like Sargassum fishes was observed in the Cochin backwaters on 6-12-1991. It appears that the habitat disturbance caused by the human interference along the southern part of the west coast brought the reef fishes along with the marine algae into the backwaters being assisted by the strong northerly current prevailing during the season

Distribution and biochemical activity of heterotrophic bacterial population off Madras coast

The quantitative distribution and biochemical activity of heterotrophic bacteria capable of multiplying in organic media of pertinacious composition from, shelf and slope waters off Madras coast between 1 lo 30' N and 14" 30' N were studied during March, 1986. The percentage of samples yielding more than 100 X 105 / ml colonies was only 12 in number in depth range 0-10 metres. Pigmented bacteria was encountered more in this depth range. Faecal coliform bacteria was not encountered throughout the observations. Total bacterial count varied from 8.6 X 105 to 3.08 X lo7/ ml in spread plate method of isolation. Pseudomonas, Vibrio, Alcaligenes, Flacvobacterium, Cytophaga, Agarobacterium and Chromobacterium formed the predominant flora isolated. Their correlation with environmental parameters like temperature, salinity, oxygen and pI 1 are discussed. The cultures were more proteolytic than amylolytic which indicated the process of organic decomposition and vigorous liberation of plant nutrients in these latitudes

Not Available

Not AvailableThis paper briefly recapitulates some of the experiments carried out by the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute at its various research centres along the east and west coasts in culturing mussels in the open sea and sheltered bays. Variations in the technology of mussel farming. principally rope culture and raft culture have been experimented under field conditions. Local fishermen ware involved under the Operational Research Project and Lab to Land Project with the main objective of developing mussel farming into an industry and to provide additional income to the fishermen. In the light of our experience, the problems involved and the constraints in the effective implementation are objectively reviewed. The possible remedial measures for overcoming some of these constraints are presented in this accountNot Availabl