Introduction of medium deep sea trawler for commercial trawling at Sakthikulangara, Neendakara coast

A few entrepreneurs at Sakthikulangara launched three medium deep sea trawlers in September-October, 1988, aiming offshore resources like deep-sea prawns and lobsters and other quality fishes in the sea beyond 50 metres. Among these newly introduced vessels, two are wooden and the third is steel built. The specification of both type of vessels are tabled in this report. When compared to the existing trawlers they are much bigger in size, horse power, capacity and endurance, and well equipped in all respects

An account on light-fishing for the Carangid

The article reports on an accidental adoption of light fishing for the Carangid, Selar crumenophthalmus at Trivandrum coast of Kerala. Fishes enticed by the light to the surface were caught by employing the type of hooks and line known locally as 'achil'. A modest estimate of these catches during the fortnight goes well beyond 2,000 tonnes

Stepwise Formation Constants of the Chelates of Substituted Azobenzenes with Cu(II), Ni(II), Co(II), Zn(II) & Cd(II)

154-15

Nd(III), Pr(III), Ce(III) & La(III) Complexes with 3-Formyl-4-hydroxy- & 3-Oximinomethyl-4'- nitroazobenzenes

81

Stepwise Formation Constants of La(III), Ce(III), Pr(III) & Nd(III) with 4-H'ydroxy- 3-formyl-(2'/4')-methylazobenzenes

54

Genetic variability in international provenances of Casuarina equisetifolia L.

Casuarina equisetifolia, the most commonly grown species of Casuarina in India, is mainly used for pulpwood, scaffolding, poles, fuelwood and stakes for banana crop. It is most suited for agrarian ecosystems due to many favourable characteristics like desirable stem form and fast growth. It is one among the non-leguminous nitrogen fixing tree species also. In India, tremendous variations are documented for tree species in different states. Wide variations were observed when 23 international provenances of C. equisetifolia infused from CSIRO, Australia were subjected to multi-location field testing. Among the three primary characters which contribute directly towards volume growth, diameter at breast height showed higher degree of variation than total height in all the provenances. Volume index recorded the maximum genotypic coefficient of variation followed by frustum volume in all the provenances at 3 years of age. Tree height registered the lowest value for GCV and PCV. Among the various characters studied, frustum volume recorded the maximum heritability (0.24) followed by diameter at breast height, basal diameter and volume index (0.20). The lowest value was for tree height (0.05). Mahalanobis’ D2 statistics followed by Tocher’s clustering method grouped the 23 provenances of C. equisetifolia into 9 clusters with cluster strength varying from one (clusters 8 and 9) to eight (cluster 4). Clusters 4,5,7 and 9 registered higher mean values for frustum volume and volume index. Based on the genetic variability studies, it is concluded that provenances 18141 Kenya, 18378 QLD, 18298 Thailand, 18344 Malaysia, Mixed Seedlot India, 18586 China and 18355 Benin could be the potential candidates for future breeding programmes

Concept of Saara with special reference to Twaksaara

Saara is considered to be an important concept of Ayurveda. It helps in assessing Bala and Sthiramsha of an individual. Saara Pareeksha comes under Dashavidha Pareeksha which is performed to understand the Bala of an individual. Saara is the purest form of Dhatus. The purest form of Rasa Dhatu is Rasasaara, which is known as Twaksaara. As Rasa is assessed through Twak, this Saara is considerd as Twaksaara. The physical features of Twaksaara like Snigdha, Shlakshna, Mrudu, Prasanna Sookshma, Alpa, Gambheera Loma, Saprabha of Twak, will help to analyze the present status of Rasasaara in individual.The knowledge of Saarata of a person will therefore help in understanding physiology, psychology and susceptibility to diseases of an individual. The concept of Saara is a good mirror to assess properties and function of Dhatu

Enhanced CO2 absorption kinetics in lithium silicate platelets synthesized by a sol–gel approach

Platelet-shaped lithium orthosilicate particles synthesized by a sol–gel approach employing the precursors lithium nitrate and colloidal silica displayed enhanced absorption kinetics for CO2 compared to the powders prepared by a solid-state reaction process involving Li2CO3 and silica. The sol–gel samples showed a CO2 absorption capacity of 350 mg g-1 at an absorption rate of 22.5 mg g-1 min-1, a value 70% higher than the rate of 13.2 mg g-1 min-1 measured with the solid-state samples under similar conditions. The higher sorption kinetics of CO2 by the sol–gel derived lithium orthosilicate could be attributed to the unique platelet morphology of the particles, which have a very small thickness. A porous carbon mesh coated with the sol–gel based particles exhibited CO2 absorption capacity of 150 mg g-1 at an absorption rate of 37.5 mg g-1 min-1. This supported absorbent also showed stable absorption and desorption performance for the 8 cycles examined in this study. The excellent absorption characteristics of the sol–gel prepared powders, more specifically the coated strips, provide a successful pathway for the commercialisation of these materials

CLN6 disease caused by the same mutation originating in Pakistan has varying pathology

AbstractThe neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCLs), the most common neurodegenerative diseases in children, are characterised by storage of autofluorescent material that has a characteristic ultrastructure. We report two families with variant late infantile NCL, both originating from Pakistan. Probands from both families were homozygous for the same mutation (c.316dupC) but had variable pathology to that currently thought to be typical for CLN6 disease, late infantile variant. The observed pathology of one proband resembled condensed fingerprints, previously described in late infantile CLN7 and CLN8 diseases, and pathology from the second proband was thought to be absent even after repeated skin biopsy, but observed after review. This mutation is the most common NCL mutation in families originating from Pakistan and could be prioritised for testing. Finally, this report contains the first prenatal diagnosis for late infantile CLN6 disease, initially made on the basis of EM and now confirmed by mutation analysis

Comparative Proteomic Analyses of the Parietal Lobe from Rhesus Monkeys Fed a High-Fat/Sugar Diet With and Without Resveratrol Supplementation, Relative to a Healthy Diet: Insights Into the Roles of Unhealthy Diets and Resveratrol on Function

A diet consisting of a high intake of saturated fat and refined sugars is characteristic of a Western-diet and has been shown to have a substantial negative effect on human health. Expression proteomics were used to investigate changes to the parietal lobe proteome of rhesus monkeys consuming either a high fat and sugar (HFS) diet, a HFS diet supplemented with resveratrol (HFS+RSV), or a healthy control diet for 2 years. Here we discuss the modifications in the levels of 12 specific proteins involved in various cellular systems including metabolism, neurotransmission, structural integrity, and general cellular signaling following a nutritional intervention. Our results contribute to a better understanding of the mechanisms by which resveratrol functions through the up- or down-regulation of proteins in different cellular sub-systems to affect the overall health of the brain