Organizational initiatives for addressing climate change challenge -Winter School on Impact of Climate Change on Indian Marine Fisheries held at CMFRI, Cochin 18.1.2008 to 7.2.2008

Climate change, resulting from global warming, has been moving to the main stream administrative and political initiatives in the last two decades. To address humanity’s biggest test, several organisations, institutions, panels, networks, universities and non-governmental organisations have turned the spotlight on the man made problem of climate change

Non-bilaterians as Model Systems for Tissue Mechanics

In animals, epithelial tissues are barriers against the external environment, providing protection against biological, chemical, and physical damage. Depending on the animal's physiology and behavior, these tissues encounter different types of mechanical forces and need to provide a suitable adaptive response to ensure success. Therefore, understanding tissue mechanics in different contexts is an important research area. Here, we review recent tissue mechanics discoveries in a few early-divergent non-bilaterian animals -- Trichoplax adhaerens, Hydra vulgaris, and Aurelia aurita. We highlight each animal's simple body plan and biology, and unique, rapid tissue remodeling phenomena that play a crucial role in its physiology. We also discuss the emergent large-scale mechanics that arise from small-scale phenomena. Finally, we emphasize the enormous potential of these non-bilaterian animals to be model systems for further investigation in tissue mechanics.Comment: Review paper, Comments/suggestions are welcom

Ruptured rudimentary horn pregnancy: a case report

Uterine anomalies are congenital malformations arising due to embryological mal-development of mullerian ducts. The European society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) classifies these anomalies into 6 classes. Hemi-uterus is one such class of formation defect of mullerian duct with unilateral uterine development; the contralateral part could be either incompletely formed or absent. In a rare form of ectopic pregnancy, implantation can occur in the cavity of a rudimentary horn of the hemi-uterus. Authors report a case of 22-year G2P1L1 with 12 weeks gestation who presented with acute abdomen. Ultrasound showed hemoperitoneum with suspicion of ectopic pregnancy. Laparotomy confirmed the diagnosis of ruptured right rudimentary horn with fetus and placenta in the peritoneal cavity. Immediate laparotomy and excision of the horn with transfusion of blood and blood products saved the patient in the nick of time

A study on the symptoms, sleep quality and cognitive function of the women during menopause

Background: Menopause is the time that marks the end of your menstrual cycle. It is a natural biological process. But the physical symptoms, such as hot flashes, and emotional symptoms of menopause may disrupt your sleep, lower your energy or affect emotional health. The primary objective of the study was to evaluate the pattern of symptoms among women during menopause. The secondary objective was to assess the sleep quality and cognitive function of the women during menopause and to create awareness and educate rural women regarding menopause. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was carried out in and around B. G. Nagar, Nagamangala, Mandya for 6 months. Results: A total of 504 women were enrolled in the study. Out of 504, 224 (44.4%) participants come under perimenopause, 117 (23.31%) participants come under perimenopause and 163 (33.34%) participants comes under post menopause. After filling out the questionnaire it was observed that there was a decline in cognitive function of postmenopausal women along with poor sleep quality. When the age group of the participants was compared with the different symptoms of menopause a significant relation was found between the age category of the participants and the somatic symptoms. A significant relation was found between the sexual activity and with the somatic symptoms (p=0.00**), psychological symptoms (p=0.00**) and urogenital symptoms (p=0.00**) of the participants. Conclusions: As women passes from premenopausal to perimenopause to post menopause menopausal symptoms were increased. The menopausal transition and postmenopausal years are associated with significant symptoms

Pyrroloquinoline quinone supplemented diet enhances metabolism, feed intake and growth in common carp (Cyprinus carpio Linnaeus, 1758) reared at low temperature

A pilot study was conducted to delineate the potential of dietary pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) on Cyprinus carpio Linnaeus, 1758, at water temperature of 12-14oC using a recirculatory system with water flow rate of 1.8 l min-1. Six isonitrogenous (32% CP) and iso-caloric (16.7 MJ kg-1) diets were prepared with varying levels of PQQ viz. control (0 mg kg-1), T1 (0.2 mg kg-1), T2 (0.4 mg kg-1), T3 (0.6 mg kg-1), T4 (0.8 mg kg-1) and T5 (1.0 mg kg-1). Two hundred and sixteen common carp juveniles were distributed randomly into control and five treatment groups in triplicates with 12 fish per tub and fed twice daily at satiation level for 30 days. Results indicated that dietary quinone at 0.8 mg kg-1 significantly increased the feed intake and weight gain, specific growth rate (SGR), feed conversion ratio (FCR) as well as protein efficiency ratio (PER) were significantly higher (p<0.05) than non-quinone fed group. The thyroid hormone levels as well as digestive and metabolic enzyme activities were significantly higher (p<0.05) in treatments than in control. The superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in liver was significantly higher (p<0.05) in T1, T2 and T5. Catalase activity in gill was significantly higher (p<0.05) in control and lowest in T3 and T4. Therefore, quinone can be used as a feed additive for enhancing feed intake, enzymatic activities and growth during winter

VEGF Stimulates Activation of ERK5 in the Absence of C-Terminal Phosphorylation Preventing Nuclear Localization and Facilitating AKT Activation in Endothelial Cells

Extracellular-signal-regulated kinase 5 (ERK5) is critical for normal cardiovascular development. Previous studies have defined a canonical pathway for ERK5 activation, showing that ligand stimulation leads to MEK5 activation resulting in dual phosphorylation of ERK5 on Thr218/Tyr220 residues within the activation loop. ERK5 then undergoes a conformational change, facilitating phosphorylation on residues in the C-terminal domain and translocation to the nucleus where it regulates MEF2 transcriptional activity. Our previous research into the importance of ERK5 in endothelial cells highlighted its role in VEGF-mediated tubular morphogenesis and cell survival, suggesting that ERK5 played a unique role in endothelial cells. Our current data show that in contrast to EGF-stimulated HeLa cells, VEGF-mediated ERK5 activation in human dermal microvascular endothelial cells (HDMECs) does not result in C-terminal phosphorylation of ERK5 and translocation to the nucleus, but instead to a more plasma membrane/cytoplasmic localisation. Furthermore, the use of small-molecule inhibitors to MEK5 and ERK5 shows that instead of regulating MEF2 activity, VEGF-mediated ERK5 is important for regulating AKT activity. Our data define a novel pathway for ERK5 activation in endothelial cells leading to cell survival

The role of ERK5 in endothelial cell function

Extracellular-signal-regulated kinase 5 (ERK5), also termed big MAPK1 (BMK1), is the most recently discovered member of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family. It is expressed in a variety of tissues and is activated by a range of growth factors, cytokines and cellular stresses. Targeted deletion of Erk5 in mice has revealed that the ERK5 signalling cascade is critical for normal cardiovascular development and vascular integrity. In vitro studies have revealed that, in endothelial cells, ERK5 is required for preventing apoptosis, mediating shear-stress signalling and regulating tumour angiogenesis. The present review focuses on our current understanding of the role of ERK5 in regulating endothelial cell function