Radio-collaring Asiatic lions
- Asiatic lions are slightly smaller than African lions.
- They used to range from Turkey, across Asia, to eastern India.
- At present Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary is the only abode of the Asiatic lion.
- They are estimated to be 523 in the wild.
- Five protected areas currently exist to protect the Asian lion:
- Gir Sanctuary,
- Gir National Park
- Pania Sanctuary together forms the “Gir Conservation Area” (GCA)
- The other two are, Mitiyala and
- Girnar protected areas within dispersal distance of the Gir Conservation Area.
- The lions face the usual threats of poaching and habitat fragmentation.
- Other threats are identified as encroachment, forest fire, natural calamities, grazing, collection of fuelwood, Non-timber forest produce (NTFP)
- However, recent death of around two dozen lions is attributed to the deadly Canine Distemper Virus (CDV) in Dalkhaniya range of Gir forest division.
- So the Gujarat Forest Department has begun Radio-collaring Asiatic lions in a bid to study their movement patterns, territories and habitat preferences.
- Radio-collars are fitted with small radio transmitter that will beam signals to the satellites at a preset frequency and the satellites, in turn, will relay the signals to a control-room in Sasan.
- The government has set up a high-tech monitoring unit at Sasan which will serve as control-room for the collars.
- This will help the forest department in monitoring of the group's movement, research, knowing the territory of the animal and other details.
- During floods and other calamities and spread of diseases, the radio collars would be a big help for forest teams.
- Collars effect on the lions:
- It changes the natural look of the collared lions
- Collaring a sub-adult poses some risk as the throat of such animal grows with age
- So the collar straps should be made adjusted accordingly.
- Listed in Schedule I of Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972
- Appendix I of CITES
- Endangered on IUCN Red List
- Asiatic Lion Conservation Project by the MoEFCC
Lunar Evacuation System Assembly
- Lunar Evacuation System Assembly, or LESA is developed by the European Space Agency (ESA)
- It is a pyramid-like structure whose purpose is to rescue an astronaut who suffers an injury on the lunar (moon) surface.
- It can be operated by a single astronaut.
- LESA can be transported like a golf caddy and placed close to the fallen astronaut to provide a lifting mechanism
- It enables an astronaut to lift their crewmate onto a mobile stretcher.
- The astronauts can then safely bring their crewmate to the lander.
- This entire process of deploying and securing their crewmate to the stretcher should take less than 10 minutes.
- This is the second version of LESA.
- An earlier prototype was tested during the NEEMO 22 mission.
- NEEMO is a NASA’s mission that sends groups of astronauts to live in Aquarius, the world's only undersea research station, for up to three weeks at a time.
- The Aquarius habitat and its surroundings provide a convincing analog for space exploration.
Superbugs - Plants to Humans
- Antibiotic-resistant infections are a threat to global public health, food safety and an economic burden.
- Chicken is considered to be at the forefront of spreading antibiotic resistance bacteria in human guts.
- However, the new research from the American Society for Microbiology have found that plant-foods also serve as vehicles for transmitting antibiotic resistance to the gut microbiome.
- The study found out that almost 20% of the two million antibiotic-resistant infections reported per year are related to green vegetables.
- The researchers developed a novel, lettuce-mouse model system.
- They feeded lettuce infected with an E.Coli superbug to mice, and analyzing the mice’s fecal matter over time.
- The antibiotic-resistant bacteria can hide in the human intestines for months or even years and later cause diseases such as a urinary infection.
- Exposure to one type of antibiotic did not increase the ability of superbugs to hide in the mouse intestines.
- Whereas a second antibiotic resulted in stable gut colonisation after ingestion.
- Ingestion of bacteria with food also changed colonisation.
- This highlight the importance of tackling foodborne antibiotic-resistance from plant-based foods.
- The World Health Organisation (WHO) has included antibiotic resistance in its ‘high priority’ list to find a solution.
Superbugs
- Strains of bacteria that are resistant to the majority of antibiotics commonly used.
- Antibiotics are medicines that are used to cure bacterial infections.
- However, when bacteria develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them, then the bacteria is called to be antibiotic resistant.
Source: The Indian Express, Science Daily
