Category Archives: Science & Technology

Allahabad dentists to attend training in Seoul

Education, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Two dentists of the city, Dr Sandeep Singh and Dr Vaibhav Shukla has been invited to Seoul in South Korea for ‘Advance training programme in implant dentistry’.

The training is organized by a South Korean company in implant dentistry and education. The two will join five other dental surgeons from Singapore.

Foundation Day: Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR), organized a programme at Dahakudandi village of Sonabhadra district to celebrate the 85th foundation day of ICAR.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Allahabad / TNN / July 18th, 2014

Milk teeth stem cells help treat chronic diseases

Nature, Science & Technology

Allahabad :

Stem cells, which have the potential to protect from life threatening diseases, can be ‘locked’ within your family teeth. Now, dentists have introduced process to send milk teeth to Mumbai-based labs to harvest milk teeth for future use of stem cells.

Dentists claim that though only two samples have been collected by the Mumbai-based lab from the city but there has been a steep rise in the queries being raised by parents about the facility in the past three to four months.

With the discovery of stem cells in milk teeth, dentists claim that an accessible and available source of stem cells has been identified. A child’s stem cells can be preserved from the milk teeth and can even be collected from impacted third molars till the age of 22.

Dr Om Shankar of Institute of Medical Science, BHU, maintained that stem cells can be obtained from any bone of the body and it can also be obtained from pulp (milk teeth) as well as blood. He said that a large number of stem cells were found in bone marrow and the number of less stem cells were found in blood.

He claimed that stem cell taken from pulp of teeth has many advantages as it could be transformed in different cells.

Ortho dentist Dr Abha Vishnoi Kesarwani said that parents have become aware about the fact that stem cells can be obtained from the pulp of milk teeth. Parents of new born and children ask about the course of action and expenditure needed for the process.

Research involving stem cells in teeth has exploded during last four and five years and the laboratories that will bank the cells in a deep-freezer have since began operating. Experts say that dental stem cells have the potential to treat different diseases including heart disease and leukemia In the near future, dental stem cells could grow new teeth and jaw bone.

Professor and head of the department of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology, MLN Medical College, Allahabad, U S Sinha said that stem cells can be taken from milk teeth for preservation. Preserving milk teeth is highly recommended as an all-time asset that can be used for treating a person or his/her siblings anytime.”

As a Mumbai laboratory is providing special kits for preserving stem cell from milk teeth, city dentists have started harvesting milk teeth for stem cell preservation. City based dental surgeon Dr Vaibhav Shukla has collected milk teeth of two children aged about seven and nine years and sent to the Mumbai laboratory for preservation.

The deciduous tooth which has been extracted can be cut with a cryo knife to collect stem cells. This facility was not available in India till a few years back, but a medical lab at Mumbai has introduced the facility for preserving stem cell.

If experts use any other instrument instead of cryo knife, it produces heat that subsequently leads to destruction of stem cells. The stem cells contained within teeth are capable of replicating themselves and can be readily recovered at the time of a planned dental procedure.

Apart from being the most convenient stem cells to access, dental stem cells have significant medical benefits in the development of new medical therapies. Using one’s own stem cells for medical treatment means a much lower risk of rejection by the body and decreases the need for powerful drugs that weaken the immune system.

The stem cells from teeth have been observed in research studies to be among the most powerful in the human body. Stem cells from teeth replicate at a faster rate and for a longer period of time than cells harvested from other tissues of the body.

Recently, parents of a boy suffering from muscular dystrophy approached the doctors to get his stem cell preserved. After the process, his treatment was started which is showing positive results.

Dr A K Santhani said that parents may not see the benefits of dental stem cell banking immediately, but it is the best investment and gift from parents to their children. Most of the families regret when their children face some chronic disease and their stem cells are not preserved at the time of birth. But now, stem cell preservation through milk teeth is offering a new hope.

It is a costly exercise and around Rs 85,000 is required for preserving stem cell from milk teeth. Doctors said that stem cells have shown potential in treating cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, cancer, spinal cord injuries, retinal diseases, endocrinal disorders, renal disease, liver disorders, muscular dystrophy and many incurable diseases.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Allababad / TNN / July 19th, 2014

Drumsticks seed a water purifier

Science & Technology

Allahabad :

In the backdrop of the fact that the policy makers are battling out the problem of providing potable water to lakhs of countrymen, a research, undertaken by a team of Botanist from Allahabad University, has provide a cheap, indigenous yet a very effective solution to make water free from any contamination and fit to drink.

The team, led by Prof Anupam Dikshit, has found that the seeds of Moringa oliefera, commonly known as Sehjan or drumsticks, have the potential to remove impurities from contaminated water and make it safe for drinking. This interesting and useful finding is the outcome of a DST (department of science and technology) sponsored project, entitled ?Identification of some Indian plants for thedevelopment of indigenous technology for potable water treatment’.

“Growing population, increased economic activity and industrialisation have not only created an increased demand for safe drinking water but also resulted in severe misuse of natural resource. Polluted water is estimated to affect the health of over million people especially in most of the developing countries.” According to a statistical data, it was found that 2.2 million deaths occur per annum due to usage of impure water of which 90% are children under the age of five and it is in this backdrop that our finding bears significance, said Prof Dikshit.

The research team, assisted by Prof Dikshit’s students Dr Awadhesh Kumar and Madhu Pandey, screened several medicinal plants such as Moringa oliefera commonly known as Sehjan,Citrus reticulata (Orange), Mentha piperita (Peppermint), Mentha arviensis (Pudina) and made several extracts of these plants. But it was in the case of Moringa oliefera, seed paste of which showed antimicrobial and coagulating potential in water purification.

For the experiment the team members collected water samples from different places in and around Allahabad region including AU campus, Katra, Daraganj, Kydganj, Chowk, Tagore Town, Civil Lines. Among these, the sample having negative bacteria was treated with extract of aforementioned medicinal plants and the antibacterial property was tested by using molecular device i.e. spectrophotometer.

“These low molecular weight proteins worked like magnet when added to any unsafe water as it makes raw waters turbid such as silt, clay, bacteria etc which is then left to settle down or it may be removed by filtration methods”, explained Prof Dikshit. Extract of seeds of drumsticks have shown tremendous power of killing bacteria which causes several diseases such as cholera, dysentery, salmonellosis, typhoid fever , pneumonia etc, he added.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Allahabad / by Rajiv Mani, TNN / July 04th, 2014

BHU’s 24X7, free cyber library opens

Education, Science & Technology

SUMMARY
The work on the project had begun around three years ago and the first phase was completed in March 2013.
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With nearly 500 workstations and 455 compuetrs, the library will provide access to over 14,000 journals and other materials to the students.
With nearly 500 workstations and 455 compuetrs, the library will provide access to over 14,000 journals and other materials to the students.

With the completion of its second phase, the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) is now home to perhaps Asia’s largest cyber library within a university.

With nearly 500 workstations and 455 compuetrs, the library will provide access to over 14,000 journals and other materials to the students.

A brainchild of BHU Vice-Chancellor Dr Lalji Singh, the library will be accessible 24X7 with no charges.

A BHU spokesperson said the second phase of the cyber library, which marked the completion of the project, was inaugurated by the V-C on Wednesday.

“There are a total of 455 computers that will be equipped with high-speed internet connectivity. Since the premises are wi-fi enabled, those coming to the centre with their laptops can also access the cyber library,” said the spokesperson.

University librarian Dr A K Srivastava, who will also supervise the cyber library, said: “As far as we have found out, this is easily Asia’s biggest cyber library provided by a university free of cost. We would not be surprised if it turns out to be the biggest such facility in the world. It is definitely among the biggest.”

The library has been funded primarily by the Maharaja of Baroda Shivaji Rao Gaekwad and is named after him. “The building is ours while the equipment has been provided by the Maharaja. The total cost of the project is Rs 10 crore,” said Dr Srivastava. He added the BHU planned to make the cyber library a research hub across disciplines.

“The students can access around 14,500 journals and e-books. A large number of these e-books and e-journals have been already subscribed by the BHU,” he said.

The BHU V-C, who hails from Jaunpur district, had envisaged the project as a platform that could be used by the poor students, most of whom hail from backward areas of the Puravanchal region, without having to buy a laptop.
The work on the project had begun around three years ago and the first phase was completed in March 2013.

According to official statistics prepared in November 2013, there were on an average 793 users at the cyber library when only around 255 computers were installed. “Obviously the numbers will increase. But each workstation has been provided with a cubicle. So, there will be no confusion or chaos. The students can concentrate on the work without any hindrance,” said Dr Srivastava.

“There is a separate area earmarked for those using the library with their laptops. But for the rest, all they have to do is login with IDs provided to them,” said Deputy Librarian (Cyber Library), D K Singh.

While the cyber library section alone is spread over 1.5 acres, the work platform is double-storeyed. The outsiders intending to use the facility will have to come through a proper procedure of screening from the computer section, he added.

source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> Cities> Lucknow / by Prashant Pandey / Allahabad – July 04th, 2014

India’s ‘fastest train’ completes first trial

Amazing Feats, Records, All, Science & Technology, Travel

Agra :

Indian Railways successfully conducted the first trial run of the country’s fastest train on the New Delhi-Agra route on Thursday, with the train covering a distance of 200 kms in 100 minutes against the stipulated time of 90 minutes. While during the journey its average speed was 125-130 kmph, it touched a maximum speed of 160 kmph.

At present, the Bhopal Shatabdi Express is India’s fastest train with a top speed of 150 kmph.

Equipped with an electric locomotive of 5,400HP, the semi-high speed train was flagged off from platform number 6 of the New Delhi railway station at 11:15am. The train reached Agra Cantt railway station at 12:55pm on platform number 5. The train was halted at Mathura for 10 minutes for a functionality check.

Commissioner (railway safety) PK Vajpayee, divisional railway manager (DRM) of Delhi Anurag Sachan, DRM, Agra, Vijay Sehgal and other senior officials involved with the project were on board.

Addressing the media, Vajpayee said the trial run was successful and that the train service is likely to start in November this year.

Sehgal added that there are 16 speed restriction areas and curves on the Delhi-Agra route which were upgraded to improve the speed. The upgradation was for trial and further maintenance and budget will be declared in the upcoming railway budget.

It is estimated that a cost of Rs 15 crore would be incurred to make the track ready for the train. The railways placed temporary barricades in parts of the stretch to prevent obstruction and ensure speed. Later, permanent fencing will be done in the entire 200-km route.

The New Delhi-Agra train will reduce travel time between the two cities from 120 minutes to 90 minutes, and will come as a boon for tourists from Delhi looking to visit the Taj Mahal.

The project was announced by the railway board chairman, Arunendra Kumar, in March. The detailed project report (DPR) for the semi-high speed train on Delhi-Agra route was prepared by the high-speed rail corporation. Railway authorities are also planning to launch similar trains from Delhi to Kanpur, and Delhi to Chandigarh as Shatabdi trains.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Agra / by Ishita Mishra, TNN / July 03rd, 2014

Young Scientist Award for Allahabad University alumnus

Education, Records, All, Science & Technology

Allahabad :

Allahabad University alumnus Prashant Kumar Rai has bagged the prestigious Young Scientist Award from the Council of Science and Technology (CST). He was selected for the honour by an expert committee constituted for science awards – 2011-12.

The award, conferred by the UP government, includes an amount of Rs 25,000, a citation, a shawl and a memento. Rai has done his PhD from Allahabad University’s Medicinal Research Lab (MRL), department of chemistry, under the supervision of senior faculty member Geeta Watal.

The award function was organised at Sir CV Raman auditorium of CST in the state capital recently.

For his post-doctoral, Rai went to University of Johannesburg, South Africa, and is currently working in the department of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and magnetic resonance imaging at AIIMS, New Delhi.

“My work in MRL was on screening of some medicinally important plants like Tricosanthes dioica (pointed gourd or parwal), cynodon dactylon (Bermuda grass), psidium guajava (guava), emblica officinal (Indian gooseberry), ficus bengelansis (Indian banyan tree), etc, for diabetes mellitus and its associated complications. I also purified few compounds from Tricosanthes Dioica and the fraction pointed gourd was found to be active mycobacterium,” shared Rai about his work done at AU while expressing happiness over receiving the award.

With 47 research papers published in referred journals of high repute, five book chapters and two Indian patents including on oral delivery of insulin, which is in order to be granted to his credit, Rai said currently he was working at AIIMS on metabolomics or identifying the metabolites from natural products using high resolution NMR (700 MHz).

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Allahabad / TNN / June 26th, 2014

UP govt honours CSIR-IICT scientist with young scientist award

Education, Records, All, Science & Technology

Hyderabad :

Dr Surya Prakash Singh, a scientist at the Inorganic and Physical Chemistry Division of the CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), Hyderabad, has been given the prestigiouYoung Scientist Award by the government of Uttar-Pradesh. The Council of Science and Technology UP Government selects bright and young scientists below 35 years age for this award every year for the recognition of their significant contributions in their respective area of research. The award has been bestowed to Dr. SP Singh on his contributions in the area of chemical sciences particularly on solar energy research.

Dr. Singh is working as a Scientist at CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad. He studied chemistry at the University of Allahabad, India, and obtained his Ph. D in 2005. After working at Nagoya Institute of Technology, Japan, as a postdoctoral fellow (2006-2008), he joined, as an Assistant Professor at Osaka University, in 2008. He worked as a researcher at Photovoltaic Materials Unit, National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), Tsukuba, Japan (2010-2011).

He has been involved on novel C-C bond forming reactions and synthesis of New and Highly Efficient Sensitizers for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells, Organic-Thin Film Solar Cells and published over 85 papers in peer-reviewed journals and 5 patents, editor of two books and author of two book chapters. He is guest editor in chief for several international journals like Advances in Optoelectronics, Journal of Nano Energy, Current Organic Chemistry, and Power Research etc.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / by Ch. Sushil Rao, TNN / June 28th, 2014

CIMAP to lead certification system of medicinal plants and products

Agriculture, Education, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Lucknow :

The Lucknow-based Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, and institute under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research has been assigned a lead role in the Indian Ocean in introducing a system of certification of medicinal plants and their products with a view to promote marketing and utilisation of value added products in Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) region. The development comes close to the heels of another Lucknow-based CSIR laboratory, Indian Institute of Toxicology Research getting the GLP certification.

This decision to assign the current role to CIMAP was taken in the first meeting of medicinal plants focal points of IORA Regional Centre for Science and Technology Transfer (RCSTT) held at Salalah, Sultanate of Oman from June 23 to June 25. IORA is an apex organization, which includes 20 countries Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, UAE, Yemen and 6 dialogue partners including China, Japan, Egypt, France, UK and USA.

According to the Salalah declaration adopted by the participating countries, an ad hoc committee on standards and standardisation for medicinal plants and herbal medicine has been established. The committee chaired by Prof Anil Kumar Tripathi, director of CIMAP will draft a document to introduce a system of certification of each member state in order to introduce a minimum standard acceptable to all member states for commercialisation of value added products of medicinal plants and related technology in the IORA region.

Tripathi who represented India at the meeting at Salalah said that the recommendations made in the meet would help the IORA member states and other developing countries in formulating their plans to ensure cooperation for applied research, technology transfer and commercialisation of medicinal plants and herbal medicine in the IORA region.

It was also proposed that CIMAP will host a meeting of the IORA in 2015 besides organising an international training course on the processing and quality control of medicinal and aromatic plants for the member countries at CIMAP soon.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / by Arunav Sinha, TNN / June 28th, 2014

IITR bags global honour for good lab practice

Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Lucknow :

Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) certificate awarded to Lucknow-based Indian Institute of Toxicology Research has brightened prospects of those involved in micro, small and medium-scale enterprises as also cultivators of mango and betel leaves that are exported all over the world.

IITR is the first among 37 CSIR laboratories in India to receive the coveted certificate (initially for a period of three years). Speaking to media, IITR director Dr K C Gupta said “GLP is a quality system concerned with organisational process and conditions under which pre-clinical health and environmental safety studies are planned, performed, monitored, recorded, archived and reported. The national and international regulatory authorities/agencies require the safety data of all new products including industrial chemicals, pharmaceuticals, veterinary drugs, pesticides, cosmetic products, food products, feed addictives, etc prior to their launch in the market.” He added that GLP is a system evolved by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and is used for achieving such safety goals.

Dr A B Pant said “this certification states that specified studies in toxicity and mutagenicity studies conducted at CSIR-IITR are in compliance with the principles of OECD principles for GLP.”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / TNN / June 27th, 2014

Hi-tech device to clean Charbagh station

Science & Technology, Travel

Lucknow :

Both Luckow and Varanasi stations are on the priority list list of the ministry of railways, for obvious reasons. Northern Railway has not only sent a specially designed machine to clean the tracks at Lucknow and Varanasi stations, it has even made it clear that the machine has been “specially” sent for the two stations of Uttar Pradesh, as Lucknow is the constituency of Union home minister Rajnath Singh and Varanasi of PM Narendra Modi.

The dirty railway tracks at stations all over India are an eyesore. The machine that works using advanced technology and designed by Loco shed, Shakurbasti, New Delhi has been sent by GM, NR, Pradip Kumar to Lucknow division.The machine would function like a vacuum cleaner. Initially, it would be used to clean only the outer areas of the station.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / TNN / June 24th, 2014