L. is an endangered Dipterocarp, sparsely confined to the west-coastal regions of the Kerala and Karnataka part of the Western Ghats, especially in the sacred groves and the agro-ecosystems. The ...current population structure and distribution of the species in the Western Ghats region is poorly studied. Hence, the study attempts to assess the status of the existing populations and their potential distribution by using the Ecological Niche Modeling (ENM). The results indicated that the populations of
were present outside the forest areas, with a very scattered distribution. Three large populations were identified in the Malabar region, especially in the sacred groves of poyilkavu, muchukunukavu and in the premises of the parappanangadi railway station. The poyilkavu sacred grove showed a higher density (68) compared to the other two sites. The potential distribution prediction, using the ENM, showed a higher probability in the central part of the Western Ghats and a moderate one in the northern part of the Western Ghats region. Furthermore, the high habitat specificity, the restricted distribution along with the anthropogenic intervention (construction of roads and railway lines) has significantly reduced the existing populations of
. Therefore, urgent interventions are required to restore the populations of this endangered species. As part of initiating the restoration activity we have identified the potential niches and also raised sufficient seedlings for the restoration.
Introduction and Objectives
OSAKA regimen is a novel bladder preservation therapy involving balloon-occluded selective arterial infusion of radio-sensitizing chemotherapeutic agent with concurrent ...hemodialysis (HD), followed by radiation therapy. Objectives are to study the feasibility of this novel regimen in patients with advanced cancer bladder (Ca Bladder).
Methods
Two patients having advanced Ca Bladder with cisplatin ineligibility and poor performance status were managed with OSAKA regimen. Patients undergo super selective catheterisation of the anterior division of the internal iliac artery, followed by concurrent instillation of cisplatin (100 mg) via microcatheters and hemodialysis. Within 72 h, definitive radiation therapy is given. Image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) with Helical Tomo using an Accuracy Radixact Tomography machine was used. 60 Gray/30 fractions is given to the bladder and nodes (50 Gray to bladder and nodes plus margin, with a boost of 10 Gray to bladder plus margin). Response is monitored by 3 monthly fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) imaging.
Results
Our first patient tolerated the procedure well and showed a complete response at 3 months of FDG PET imaging, but unfortunately, 1 year of FDG PET showed bony metastases, and the patient was managed accordingly. Our second patient also tolerated the regimen well, showed a complete response at 3 and 12 months of FDG PET imaging, and is under follow-up.
Conclusions
The OSAKA regimen, as a bladder preservation strategy, is feasible and safe in selective advanced Ca Bladder patients.
Reeds are a tall, thin, shrubby, highly productive grass of the Poaceae family, and have a worldwide distribution except for in Antarctica. Temperate reed species include Phragmites australis (Cav.) ...Trin. ex Steud., Arundo donax L., Phalaris arundinacea L. Tropical reeds include bamboo genus Ochlandra and are endemic to the Western Ghats of India as well as to Sri Lanka. Reeds are an important component of the forest ecosystem, providing numerous ecosystem services which help to maintain forest stability. They are a keystone species and serve as an important food source for many animals. Reed biomass is widely used for solid biofuel production and for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. They are an excellent sink for carbon sequestration and the absorption of point-source pollution from the waterbeds. Reed bamboos have been considered as the most important non-timber forest product (NTFPs) for the subsistence and support of the economically weaker strata of the society. Owing to ever increasing demand, coupled with unscientific management practices, there has been a gradual depletion of reed resources over the years. The reed bamboo biomass of the Western Ghats, in particular, has been severely depleted, and there is an urgent need for effective conservation and proper scientific management to ensure its viability and long-term survival. This review summarizes the versatility and importance of reeds in terms of ecological benefits, carbon sequestration ability, soil and water management potential and ecosystem services, with particular reference to the endemic reed bamboo resources of the Western Ghats of India.
Taxonomic complexities, like environmental plasticity and homoplasy, make precise identification challenging in
Calamus
, the genus of spiny climbing palms of the subfamily Calamoideae (Arecaceae). ...In the present study, the species discriminatory power of twelve potential DNA barcode regions (
rbc
L,
mat
K,
psb
A-
trn
H,
rpo
C
, rpo
B
, psb
K-
psb
I
, atp
F-
atp
H,
psb
Z-
trnf
M, ITS1, ITS2, PRK, and RPB2) were evaluated in 21 species of
Calamus
from the Western Ghats region of India, using distance, tree, and similarity based statistical methods. Except for the low copy nuclear region, RPB2, none of the tested plastid loci or nuclear loci ITS, either singly or in combinations, could discriminate all the species of
Calamus
due to low substitution rate of plastid regions and multiple copies of ITS respectively. The RPB2 locus showed highest species resolution with 96% accuracy in similarity based analysis, indicating its potential and efficiency as a barcode locus for the genus. The putative “
Calamus gamblei
complex” based on overlapping morphology was successfully resolved as six distinct, though closely related, species. The analysis also indicates that
C. delessertianus
is a morphological variant of
C. dransfieldii.
In spite of being a low copy nuclear gene region, RPB2 provided an efficient barcode to delineate
Calamus
species and has the potential to further extend its use as a prospective barcode to other Palm genera.
Abstract Despite the significant progress in Zn−air batteries (ZABs), their widespread use in the rechargeable sector is hindered due to the scarcity of efficient bifunctional oxygen catalysts that ...can catalyze both the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). To address this, an ORR/OER bifunctional electrocatalyst is designed with ultrafine alloyed FeNi nanoparticles encapsulated in a 3D interconnected N‐ doped carbon network structure, featuring a carbon nitride backbone enclosed in graphitic carbon. The FeNi electrocatalyst (3DFeNiPDC) showed good bifunctional activity toward both ORR and OER in the basic medium with a low overpotential value of 30 mV for ORR and 6 mV for OER compared to its state‐of‐the‐art counterparts Pt/C, and RuO 2 , respectively. Utilizing 3DFeNiPDC in a rechargeable Zn‐air battery (RZAB) yields an open circuit voltage (OCV) of 1.35 V, a maximum power density of 232 mW cm −2 , and an energy density of 707 W h kg −1 . Additionally, a flexible RZAB employing 3DFeNiPDC demonstrates an OCV of 1.4 V with various bending angles. These finding suggest 3DFeNiPDC as a viable alternative to noble metal‐based RZABs, offering superior bifunctional electrocatalytic activity and stability, particularly with its enhanced air‐breathing properties facilitating improved operability under practical conditions.
The work reported here deals with the development of an efficient non-platinum electrocatalyst for electrochemical oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) through a sequential pathway involving hydrothermal ...treatment followed by freeze-drying to build the desired structural architecture of the catalyst. The designed catalyst (Co3O4/ nitrogen-doped entangled porous 3D graphene (NEGF)), which contains Co3O4 nanorods anchored on the surface of three-dimensional (3D)-structured N-doped graphene, was found to display higher ORR activity during single-electrode testing and demonstrate a Zn–air battery (ZAB) system. Under the hydrothermal treatment at 180 °C, in the presence of ammonia, nitrogen was doped into the carbon framework of graphene, which subsequently formed a self-assembled entangled 3D structure of graphene after freeze-drying. The hydrothermal treatment and freeze-drying processes were found to play vital roles in tuning the morphological and structural features of the catalyst. The doped nitrogen, apart from its favorable contribution toward ORR, helped facilitate efficient dispersion of oxide nanorods on graphene. Co3O4/NEGF displayed remarkable ORR activity in 0.1 M KOH solution, as evident from the 60 mV onset potential shift compared to the state-of-the-art Pt/C catalyst and the Tafel slope value of 74 mV dec–1 vs 68 mV dec–1 for Pt/C. The ZAB fabricated by employing Co3O4/NEGF as the cathode catalyst was found to be an efficient competitor for the system based on the Pt/C cathode. This high performance has been credited to the controlled interplay of the governing factors such as the interfacial interactions leading to the efficient dispersion of metal oxide nanorods, increased catalyst surface area, the cooperative effect arising from the defects present in the N-doped porous 3D graphene, and the synergetic interactions operating in the system.
Solid-state rechargeable zinc–air batteries (ZABs) are gaining interest as a class of portable clean energy technology due to their advantages such as high theoretical energy density, intrinsic ...safety, and low cost. It is expected that an appropriately triple-phase boundary (TPB) engineered, bifunctional oxygen reaction (OER and ORR) electrocatalyst at the air–electrode of ZABs can redefine the performance characteristics of these systems. To explore this possibility, an electrode material consisting of manganese–cobalt-based bimetallic spinel oxide (MnCo2O4)-supported nitrogen-doped entangled graphene (MnCo2O4/NEGF) with multiple active sites responsible for facilitating both OER and ORR has been prepared. The porous 3D graphitic support significantly affects the bifunctional oxygen reaction kinetics and helps the system display a remarkable catalytic performance. The air electrode consisting of the MnCo2O4/NEGF catalyst coated over the gas diffusion layer (GDL) ensures the effective TPB, and this feature works in favor of the rechargeable ZAB system under the charging and discharging modes. As an important structural and functional attribute of the electrocatalyst, the porosity and nitrogen doping in the 3D conducting support play a decisive aspect in controlling the surface wettability (hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity) of the air electrode. The fabricated solid-state rechargeable ZAB device with the developed electrode displayed a maximum peak power density of 202 mW cm–2, which is significantly improved as compared to the one based on the Pt/C + RuO2 standard catalyst pair (124 mW cm–2). The solid-state device which displayed an initial charge–discharge voltage gap of only 0.7 V at 10 mA cm–2 showed only a small increment of 86 mV after 50 h.
A new concept of water-in-acid gel polymer electrolytes (GPEs) is introduced. The simple and scalable UV-light-assisted synthesis of a copolymer matrix possessing polyelectrolyte behavior, followed ...by swelling in minimally diluted H3PO4 (15.1 M/88 wt % aqueous solution), effects formation of a high proton-conducting, self-standing, and mechanically stable polyelectrolyte GPE (PGPE). Retention of high mechanical stability despite the presence of a large amount of liquid species makes it a promising candidate for replacing conventional GPEs. The high proton conductivity (9.8 × 10–2 S cm–1) of the PGPE at an ambient temperature of 303 K is attributed to the high concentration of the conducting species present in the polymer matrix. The PGPE-based polyaniline (PANI) supercapacitor device (PANI-1) with a mass loading of 1 mg cm–2 exhibits a high specific gravimetric capacitance of 385 F g–1 at a current density of 0.25 mA cm–2. At the same current density, the PANI-5 device retains high gravimetric and areal capacitance values of 258 F g–1 and 1288 mF cm–2, respectively. The low equivalent series resistance value of 0.78 Ω (for the PANI-5 device) further proves the excellent electrode–electrolyte interface formed by the water-in-acid GPE. A 100% capacitance retention even after 9000 continuous charge–discharge cycles strongly indicates the feasibility of adopting water-in-acid GPEs in future supercapacitors.
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