Scientists synthesize new compound to fight stomach infections

India Science Wire Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar have synthesized a new compound that may help treat stomach infections caused by common bacteria, Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). The inhibitor is based on an aromatic chemical compound, indole, and may help in treating H. pylori infection, which is a cause for gastritis, peptic ulcers and stomach cancers, according to researchers. The new inhibitor synthesized by researchers targets a gene known as Inosine-5′-monophosphate dehydrogenase (IMPDH) involved in the nucleotide synthesis of H. pylori. In initial studies, the inhibitor has…

Selenium nanoparticles may act like antibacterial agents

India Science Wire Scientists have found that nanoparticles of selenium, an essential micronutrient, can be used as an antibacterial agent. Selenium is found naturally in wheat, eggs, cheese, nuts and sea food. It is an antioxidant and immunity booster. Scientists found that selenium nanoparticles, owing to their unique structure and properties, may be more effective than antibiotics as they have a larger surface area and therefore can be more in contact with the external environment. The antibacterial effect may be due to the fact that at a particular concentration nano-selenium…

Haptics interface: helps in making gadgets, which reacts to human senses

The haptic interface is the interface in which humans interact with a machine or computer using his/her sensory receptors. It is generally used in virtual reality environment. This can help people interact with virtual objects and elements. To execute a processor command computer interprets the signal given by each human being. This is how haptic interface works. In all gaming industry and 3D creative world haptic interface works wonder. Whenever the gaming icon in any virtual or electronic game fails or hit a wrong place the reception is sent to…

New technique may help quicken production of blood cancer drug

India Science Wire Researchers at Madurai Kamaraj University have developed a technique that promises to quicken the process of production of L-asparaginase, an enzyme used in treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Human cells need steady supply of an amino acid, Asparagine, to build proteins and use an enzyme called asparagine synthetase to make it. Cancerous cells, however, rely on blood for their requirement of asparagine. L-Asparaginase therapy takes advantage of this. L-Asparaginase enzyme performs the opposite reaction to asparagine synthetase. It catalyzes conversion of L-asparagine to aspartic acid and ammonia….

Snakebite: a Public Health Problem not much talked about

India Science Wire India used to be dubbed as a country of snake charmers in jest decades ago, but few would know about the darker side of snakes – snakebites. An estimated 28 lakh cases of snakebites occur in India and about 50,000 Indians die due to snakebites every year. Yet, it remains a neglected public health problem. Many of the deaths and disabilities due to snakebites can be averted if health authorities take steps to prevent snakebites as well as improve facilities for treating those bitten by venomous snakebites….

Apple line goes topsy-turvy in the Himalayas

India Science Wire The apple line, which refers to the traditional apple growing areas in the Indian Himalayan Region, has been shifting to higher altitudes as temperature rises. Now, it seems the apple line is also coming down with farmers at lower altitudes beginning to grow varieties of apple that do not require much chilling. The changing pattern of rainfall and increase in average maximum and minimum temperature has caused significant fluctuation in crop production with traditional temperate fruit belt moving upwards. Adverse climatic factors during winters such as winter…

A 3D Robot that Sweats

Three-dimensional printing is an important and amazing application of the discipline of robotics. It gives the designer the freedom to provide new functionality to the robots they create. This also aids the user to blend there robots with new customization and functionalities according to their needs. The field of robotics is an expanding industry today because of additive manufacturing industry. The University of Tokyo has designed an advanced three dimensional printed robot named Kengoro. This robot really sweats. It is embedded with cooling process that helps it to cool down…

Pollution in Ganga harming riverbed sediments too

India Science Wire The excessive amounts of human waste and toxic effluents that find their way into the Ganga River are not only polluting the water but also causing deficit of dissolved oxygen in the riverbeds in some of the most polluted stretches of the river, a new study has found. Dissolved oxygen is an important parameter that determines health and rejuvenation capacity of any riverine ecosystem. The amount of dissolved oxygen in a river depends on atmospheric supply of oxygen, photosynthetic process, and oxygen-consuming metabolic and chemical processes. If…

New method can produce designer hydrogels

India Science Wire A team of scientists at the Bengaluru-based Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) have developed a new technique that promises to produce hydrogels that could be used for a variety of applications like cleaning of industrial wastewater.   The method involves self-assembly of tiny cubes of metal-organic compounds into hydrogels with the help of molecular binders. The makeup of the resulting hydrogel depends on the size, shape and geometry of the molecular binder.   For instance, when researchers used cationic ammonia-based molecular binder, the resulting…

Automation in Banking Sector has proved to be remarkable landmarks

Automation is the technology by which a process is performed by minimum human assistance. Automation is also known as ‘Automatic Control’ which is done by the use of different control systems. The term ‘Automation’ has been derived by the word automatic, which was widely used before 1947 when Ford established an Automation Department. Before 1980’s, Indian Banking System was completely using traditional ways of transaction and there was no involvement of technology in the customer service, book-keeping and MIS reporting the urgent need for computerization was felt in the Indian…