Growth and reproductive parameters of bonnet monkey (Macaca radiata)

The present paper summarizes some of the important biological and physiological data recorded over a 30-year period on the biology of bonnet monkeys in captivity. Data on sexual maturity, menstrual cyclicity, general behaviour, endocrine profile, reproductive physiology, gestation, parturition, postpartum amenorrhoea in the female, and sexual maturity, hormone profile, and seasonal variation in sperm count of the male monkeys are presented. In addition to the biological values, weights of selected organs, vertebral and dental pattern are also presented. Menarche occurred at an age of 36±4 months and the first conception in the colony occurred at an age of 54±4 months. The average menstrual cycle length was 28±4.3 days. Majority of monkeys did not cycle regularly during March-June during which the temperature reached a peak. The pregnancy index of the colony was 80% with controlled breeding. The gestation period was 166±5 days with 6-7 months postpartum amenorrhoea. Males attained sexual maturity by the age of 6-7 years and exhibited the characteristic nocturnal surge of serum testosterone at this age and sperm concentration ranged from 116-799 millions/ejaculate

Differential metabolism of alprazolam by liver and brain cytochrome (P4503A) to pharmacologically active metabolite

Cytochrome P450 (P450) is a superfamily of enzymes which mediates metabolism of xenobiotics including drugs. Alprazolam, an anti-anxiety agent, is metabolized in rat and human liver by P4503A1 and P4503A4 respectively, to 4-hydroxy alprazolam (4-OHALP, pharmacologically less active) and α-hydroxy alprazolam (α-OHALP, pharmacologically more active). We examined P450 mediated metabolism of alprazolam by rat and human brain microsomes and observed that the relative amount of α-OHALP formed in brain was higher than liver. This biotransformation was mediated by a P450 isoform belonging to P4503A subfamily, which is constitutively expressed in neuronal cells in rat and human brain. The formation of larger amounts of α-OHALP in neurons points to local modulation of pharmacological activity in brain, at the site of action of the anti-anxiety drug. Since hydroxy metabolites of alprazolam are hydrophilic and not easily cleared through blood-CSF barrier, α-OHALP would potentially have a longer half-life in brain

Biomass energy technology transfer Strategies for large-scale diffusion in India

Bioenergy technologies (BETs) have potential to meet India's energy needs in a sustainable way, particularly for the vast rural areas. India is a pioneer in research and development of certain BETs such as biogas, improved cookstoves and small scale biomass gasifiers. However, developments on more advanced BETs have taken place outside India. Unless the process of technology transfer mechanisms at various levels is promoted and managed effectively, the potential benefits of these technologies to the society and environment at large may not be fully realized. This article attempts to understand the technology transfer and diffusion process for BETs, analyzes the barriers to their transfer and diffusion and finally suggests strategies for their large-scale diffusion in India

Effect of lopping intensity on tree growth and stand productivity in Tropical Forests

Effects of various intensities of lopping on the growth of trees, production of leafy biomass (leaves + shoots) and grass biomass production were investigated in the forests of the Western Ghats, India. Frequent complete lopping of trees resulted in a rapid drain of stored reserves leading to reduction in growth of tree girth and production of leafy biomass. Relatively greater increase in girth at the breast height of trees that were subjected to partial lopping, i.e. less than 50% intensity, was considered to be mainly the result of stimulation of remaining leaves to higher rates of photosynthesis. Opening of canopy increased the grass production in lopped quadrats. In two species, Aporosa lindleyana and Terminalia paniculata, the growth rate of girth and the yearly production of leafy biomass showed positive correlation up to 75% lopping intensity indicating that these two species can withstand lopping to some extent. For managing the forests and trees on an ecologically sustainable basis, the desired option recommended is to restrict lopping to less than 50% of the crown portion. Intensive long term studies, however, are required to suggest management practices

Lyman Break Galaxies Under a Microscope: The Small Scale Dynamics and Mass of an Arc in the Cluster 1E0657-56

Using the near-infrared integral-field spectrograph SPIFFI on the VLT, we have studied the spatially-resolved dynamics in the z=3.2 strongly lensed galaxy 1E0657-56 ``arc+core''. The lensing configuration suggests that the high surface brightness ``core'' is the M=20 magnified central 1 kpc of the galaxy (seen at a spatial resolution of about 200 pc in the source plane), whereas the fainter ``arc'' is a more strongly magnified peripheral region of the same galaxy at about a half-light radius, which otherwise appears to be a typical z=3 Lyman break galaxy. The overall shape of the position-velocity diagram resembles the ``rotation curves'' of the inner few kpcs of nearby L* spiral galaxies. The projected velocities rise rapidly to 75 km/s within the core. This implies a dynamical mass of M_dyn = 10^9.3 M_sun within the central kpc, and suggests that in this system the equivalent of the mass of a present-day L* bulge at the same radius was already in place by z>=3. Approximating the circular velocity of the halo by the measured asymptotic velocity of the rotation curve, we estimate a dark matter halo mass of M_halo = 10^11.7 +/- 0.3, in good agreement with large-scale clustering studies of Lyman break galaxies. The baryonic collapse fraction is low compared to actively star-forming ``BX'' and low-redshift galaxies around z=2, perhaps implying comparatively less gas infall to small radii or efficient feedback. Even more speculatively, the high central mass density might indicate highly dissipative gas collapse in very early stages of galaxy evolution, in approximate agreement with what is expected for ``inside-out'' galaxy formation models.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa

Performance of Jatropha biodiesel production and its environmental and socio-economic impacts. Dissertation

Abstract: In India expectations have been high on production of biodiesel from the oil-crop Jatropha. Jatropha is promoted as a drought-and pest-resistant crop, with the potential to grow on degraded soil with a low amount of inputs. These characteristics encourage hope for positive environmental and socio-economic impacts from Jatropha biodiesel production. The purpose of this study was to explore the performance of Jatropha biodiesel production in Southern India, to identify motivational factors for continued Jatropha cultivation, and to assess environmental and socio-economic impacts of the Jatropha biodiesel production. 106 farmers who have or have had Jatropha plantations were visited and interviewed regarding their opinion of Jatropha cultivation. The result indicates that 85 percent of the farmers have discontinued cultivation of Jatropha. The main barriers to continued cultivation derive from ecological problems, economic losses, and problems in the development and execution of the governmental implementation of the Jatropha programme. The Jatropha characteristics were overrated, and the plantations failed to provide income to the farmer. A common factor for the farmers who continued Jatropha cultivation was that they had the economic means to maintain non-profitable plantations. As the Jatropha programme was not as successful as expected, the expected positive environmental and socio-economic impacts have not been realized

Modelling impacts of drivers on biodiversity and ecosystems

Purpose of this chapter: Explores key issues in modelling impacts of changes in direct drivers on biodiversity and ecosystems; and critically reviews major types of models for generating outputs that are either directly relevant to assessment and decision-support activities, or are required as inputs to subsequent modelling of nature’s benefits to people. Key findings: 1-Models of biodiversity and ecosystem function are critical to our capability to predict and understand responses to environmental change; 2- There is a need to match biodiversity and ecosystem function model development to stakeholder and policy needs; 3- Biodiversity and ecosystem modelling depends heavily on our understanding of ecosystem structure, function and process and on their adequate representation in models; 4- Uncertainty in ecosystem dynamics is inherent in ecosystem modelling.EEA Santa CruzFil: Brotons, Lluís. InForest jru. Creaf-Ctfc; EspañaFil: Christensen, Villy. The University of British Columbia; Canadá.Fil: Ravindranath, N. H. India Center for Sustainable Technologies. Indian Institute of Science; India.Fil: Cao, Mingchang. Keqiang Zhao; China.Fil: Chun, Jung Hwa. National Institute of Forest Science, Division of Forest Ecology; Corea del SurFil: Maury, Olivier. Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD); Francia.Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Santa Cruz; Argentina.Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; Argentina.Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina.Fil: Proença, Vânia. Instituto Superior Tecnico - UNIU Lisboa; Portugal.Fil: Salihoglu, Baris. Middle East Technical University. Institute of Marine Sciences; Turquí

Sequencing of 53,831 diverse genomes from the NHLBI TOPMed Program

The Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) programme seeks to elucidate the genetic architecture and biology of heart, lung, blood and sleep disorders, with the ultimate goal of improving diagnosis, treatment and prevention of these diseases. The initial phases of the programme focused on whole-genome sequencing of individuals with rich phenotypic data and diverse backgrounds. Here we describe the TOPMed goals and design as well as the available resources and early insights obtained from the sequence data. The resources include a variant browser, a genotype imputation server, and genomic and phenotypic data that are available through dbGaP (Database of Genotypes and Phenotypes)1. In the first 53,831 TOPMed samples, we detected more than 400 million single-nucleotide and insertion or deletion variants after alignment with the reference genome. Additional previously undescribed variants were detected through assembly of unmapped reads and customized analysis in highly variable loci. Among the more than 400 million detected variants, 97% have frequencies of less than 1% and 46% are singletons that are present in only one individual (53% among unrelated individuals). These rare variants provide insights into mutational processes and recent human evolutionary history. The extensive catalogue of genetic variation in TOPMed studies provides unique opportunities for exploring the contributions of rare and noncoding sequence variants to phenotypic variation. Furthermore, combining TOPMed haplotypes with modern imputation methods improves the power and reach of genome-wide association studies to include variants down to a frequency of approximately 0.01%