Accelerated Ageing Mediated Seed Longevity Prediction and Assessment of Seed Deterioration Pattern through 2D-Gel Electrophoresis in Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.)

Background: Accelerated ageing is a method to assess seed storage performance by exposing the seeds to higher temperature and relative humidity to make seeds lose its vigour and viability quickly. The seed physiological parameters are then compared with the natural ageing to derive certain conclusions. But, the molecular pattern of seed deterioration under accelerated ageing varies compared to that of natural ageing.Methods: Chickpea, seed lots of variety JG-11 and Annigeri-1 were subjected to natural ageing in cloth bag with nine per cent initial seed moisture under ambient conditions. Simultaneously, representative sample of same seed lot were also aged at 41oC and 95±2% humidity up to 120 hours.Result: Both the ageing methods had significant negative effect on seed physiological and biochemical quality parameters. The germination potential of seeds tested after 48 hours of accelerated ageing (83.5%) was equal 10 months of natural ageing (85%) in JG-11, while also in Annigeri-1, 48 hours of accelerated ageing (78%) was nearly equal to 10 months of natural ageing (80%). The protein expression analyzed through 2D-PAGE at similar germination potential brought out by two independent ageing methods showed higher protein down regulation ratio (3.4) in accelerated ageing than in natural ageing (3.2) unveiling its rapidity in the seed deterioration process. Therefore, accelerated ageing can be used for predicting chickpea seed longevity.

An Exploratory Study of Telomere Length in the Deep-Sea Shark, Etmopterus granulosus

The history of elasmobranch ageing highlights the difficulty of age estimation in animals lacking ossified structures. Ageing techniques are numerous, yet all are limited by difficulties of validation and verification and inherent subjectivity. Sample scarcity further hinders progress as limited samples cannot be risked on exploratory techniques. This study explored the use of genetic analysis of telomeres as a method of age determination in a deep-sea shark, Etmopterus granulosus, a representative of a poorly studied taxon with regard to ageing due to sample scarcity. Telomeres were amplified in 39 individuals with qPCR, compared across samples, and were found to differ across size classes. More work is needed to determine whether telomeres consistently correlate with size class across elasmobranchs. However, telomeres offer easily obtainable data that can be combined with traditional methods to provide additional points of comparison for elasmobranch biology. Our results underscore the importance of expanding current ageing methods and highlight a necessary distinction between chronological and biological ages when describing elasmobranch populations.

Bomb radiocarbon age validation for the long-lived, unexploited Arctic fish species Coregonus clupeaformis

The growth rates of freshwater fish in the Arctic would be expected to be very low, but some previous studies of lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) have reported relatively rapid growth and longevity estimates of less than 15 years. We used bomb radiocarbon chronologies to validate an ageing method based on otolith sections for lake whitefish in both an unexploited Arctic lake (MacAlpine Lake; longevity 50 years) and a lightly exploited temperate population (Lake Simcoe; longevity 49 years). Our results confirm previous suggestions that other ageing methods can seriously underestimate lake whitefish age after ~5–8 years. A Chapman–Robson estimate of instantaneous natural mortality rate (M) of 0.12 in the unfished Arctic lake was one-quarter of that measured in other Arctic lake whitefish populations, and one-third of that predicted by Pauly’s (1980) growth–temperature equation. The high estimates of M reported in other whitefish studies and by Pauly’s equation are almost certainly due to their being based on (incorrect) scale or surface otolith ages. Radiocarbon dating confirms that any attempt at predicting sustainable production for long-lived freshwater fishes like lake whitefish will need to be based on accurate ages derived from otolith sections.

Investigation of Ageing in Bitumen Using Fluorescence Spectrum

Bitumen ageing is a very complex process and poses a threat to the performance of pavements. In the present work, a fluorescence spectrophotometer was employed to research the change rule of components and the structure of bitumen after the ageing process. The Thin Film Oven Test (TFOT) and Ultraviolet (UV) light treatment were carried out as ageing methods. The properties and components of bitumen were tested before and after aging. The 2D and 3D fluorescence spectra of bitumen were analyzed. The vector of fluorescence peak was calculated for evaluating the ageing process. The results indicated that the ideal concentration of bitumen- tetrachloromethane solution was 0.1 g/L or smaller for avoiding the fluorescence quenching. The coordinates of fluorescent peak appeared “blue-shift” after ageing due to the change of aromatics. In addition, bitumen has already occurred serious ageing when the magnitude of a vector is more than 36.

Knowledge and practice regarding diabetes and hypertension among elderly patients attending medicine out-patient department at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, Amritsar

Background: According to the WHO fact sheet 2015, non-communicable diseases kill 38 million people each year globally. This preliminary study was undertaken in order to bring about healthy ageing. Methods: It is an observational study on 100 patients above 60 years of age belonging to the rural/urban community coming to the medicine OPD on a walk-in basis in the Government Medical College, Amritsar. Results: Out of the total 100 patients, 56 were male and 44 were female. Their awareness level was recorded on a self-designed questionnaire. Although 70% of the patients had one or the other disease under study (i.e. diabetes mellitus, hypertension), yet surprisingly their knowledge was limited to the symptoms they suffered from rather than the disease per se. Conclusions: As inferred from this study, the knowledge of the geriatric group about these diseases is limited, so there is an urgent need to create awareness among the patients and their family members as prevention will be far better than the cure in the long run.