Ramendra Das

Interaction of media, sexual activity and academic achievement in adolescents.

BACKGROUNDnAdolescence is a period when the individual is vulnerable and exposure to sexually implicit/explicit programs on television and internet can influence their sexual behaviour and make them more permissive towards premarital sex, which is known to influence their academic performance. This can be modified by parental discussion on these matters with their children. There have been only few studies from India that have explored such issues therefore this study aimed to explore the impact of television, internet and parental discussion on sexual activity and academic performance.nnnMETHODSnThis study was conducted in two co-education schools using a self reporting questionnaire administered to students of class IX-XII. This study evaluated the relation of academic performance, exposure to media such as television & internet to sexual activity & academic performance of the students and the role of parental discussion on these.nnnRESULTSnThe study sample size was 586. There is no significant association between the number of hours of watching television per day and academic performance as measured by marks in examinations. Significant positive association was found among boys between sexual contact and average score in academics & unsupervised use of internet. In both genders a significant positive association was found between those watching English serials, movies and increased chances of indulging in sexual activity while a negative relation with those watching Cartoons. There is no significant difference in occurrence of sexual contact in those who discussed sexual matters with parents and those who did not.nnnCONCLUSIONnThis being first of its kind of study from India and a cross sectional study, further prospective and detailed studies are warranted to delineate the interaction of media, parental discussion, academic performance and sexual activity.

Novel SNP identification in exon 3 of HSP90AA1 gene and their association with heat tolerance traits in Karan Fries (Bos taurus × Bos indicus) cows under tropical climatic condition

Heat shock proteins (HSPs) act as molecular chaperones those are preferentially transcribed in respose to heat stress and the polymorphism in HSP genes associated with heat tolerance traits in cows. HSP90AA1 gene has been mapped on Bos taurus autosome 21 (BTA-21) and spans nearly 5368xa0bp comprising of 11 exons out of which the first exon does not translate. The present study was done on Karan Fries (5/8 HFu2009×u20093/8 Tharparkar) cows reared in tropical climate with the objectives of identifying single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in targeted regions (exon 3) of HSP90AA1 gene and analyzing their association with heat tolerance traits in Karan Fries cows. Respiration rate (RR) and rectal temperature (RT) were recorded once daily for four consecutive days during probable extreme hours in different seasons or temperature humidity index (THI), viz., winter, spring, and summer. For detecting single-nucleotide polymorphisms, sequence data were analyzed using BioEdit software (version 7.2). Comparative sequence analysis of HSP90AA1 gene showed point mutation, viz., g.1209A>G (exon 3) as compared to Bos taurus (NCBI Ref Seq: AC_000178.1). Association analysis indicated that THI was influenced (Pu2009<u20090.01) by RR, RT, and HTC. Similarly, SNPs at locus g.1209A>G were categorized into three genotypes, i.e., AA, AG, and GG, and the least squares means (LSMEANS) of RR, RT, and HTC for GG (homozygous) genotype were significantly lower (Pu2009<u20090.01) than AA (homozygous) and AG (heterozygous) genotypes. These findings may partly suggest that cows with GG genotypes were favored for heat tolerance trait, which can be used as an aid to selection for thermo-tolerance Karan Fries cows for better adaptation in subtropical and tropical hot climate.

Transgenic animal technology: Recent advances and applications: A Review

Transgenic animal technologies are one of the fastest growing techniques in the biotechnology areas. It is used to incorporate exogenous genes into the animal genome by genetic engineering technology so that these genes can be inherited and expressed by offspring. Two fundamental determinants of the success of any transgenic exploitation of a livestock species are the transport of DNA across the plasma membrane of the recipient cell, and the transport of that DNA across the nuclear membrane to gain access to the chromosomes. A variety of transgenic technologies are available like microinjection method, chemical method mediated transgenesis, somatic cell nuclear transfer, restriction enzyme-mediated integration, retrovirus-mediated gene transfer, sperm mediated gene transfer and embryonic stem cell mediated method etc. Use of transgenic animals will provide solutions for drug research, xenotransplantation, disease resistance and tissue repair etc. This review focuses on various methods of transgenesis and its application.

Association of single nucleotide polymorphism of Hsp90ab1 gene with thermotolerance and milk yield in Sahiwal cows

Heat shock proteins play a critical role in the development of thermotolerance and protection from cellular damage associated with heat stresses. The study was undertaken to investigate the association of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of Hsp90ab1 gene with thermo-physiological parameters viz, respiration rate (RR), rectal temperature (RT), heat tolerance coefficient (HTC) and total milk yield in Sahiwal cows. The RR and RT were recorded once in different seasons, viz., winter, spring, and summer, at the probable extreme hot hours of the day. Polymorphism of Hsp90ab1 gene, evaluated by comparative sequencing revealed five SNPs, viz., T17871421C, C17871485del, C17872061T, T17872112C and T17872148G. Individuals with CT genotype recorded significantly (P≤0.01) lower RT (°C) than CC genotype in Sahiwal cows. The CT genotype animals also had better production parameter in terms of total milk yield (TMY) (P<0.01). Therefore, our results inferred that CT genotype in Sahiwal cows may be an aid to selection and breeding to enhance thermo-tolerance. n n xa0 n n Key words: Hsp90ab1, SNPs, respiration rate, rectal temperature, total milk yield, Sahiwal.

Optimization of dry period in Karan Fries cow.

Aim: The objective of this study was to optimize dry period (DP) length that can maximize the production across adjacent lactations and overall lifetime yield. Materials and Methods: Performance records with respect to DP spread over a period of 15-year in Karan Fries (KF) cattle maintained at Livestock Research Centre (National Dairy Research Institute), were collected for the study. Data of 681 KF cows were analyzed by least square technique to examine the effect of non-genetic factors on DP. Season of calving was classified into four seasons: Winter season (December-March), summer season (April-June), rainy season (July-September), and autumn season (October-November); period of calving into five periods: 1998-2000 (1-period), 2001-2003 (II-period), 2004-2006 (III-period), 2007-2009 (IV-period), and 2010-2012 (V-period), and parity into six parities, i.e., 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and >6th parities to see the effect of non-genetic factors on DP. Results: Period of calving, season of calving, and parity did not affect the DP significantly (p<0.05). The overall least square mean of DP was 67.93±2.12 days. For the optimization of DP with regard to milk productivity, analysis was carried out by class interval method. DP was classified into eight classes (<22, 23-45, 46-67, 68-89, 90-111, 112-133, 134-155, and >156 days), and optimum level was obtained at 46-67 days (3rd class) with the following respective milk yield (MY) of 305 daily MY (4016.44±43.68 kg), total MY (4704.21±61.51 kg), MY per day of lactation length (13.03±0.13 kg), and MY per day of calving interval (11.68±0.41 kg). Conclusion: From the study, it was concluded that this optimal DP length (46-67 days) is suitable for maximizing the production. Hence, one should aim to dry off pregnant cows to achieve a DP of appropriate length to enhance productivity in the next lactation, as very short and very long DP reduces the economic profitability in dairy animals.