HOW GASES MOVE IN PLANTS? – RICE AS MODEL SPECIES

Rice is a semi-aquatic model crop grown widely in regions of seasonal rainfall. Therefore, submergence is one of the most common abiotic stresses that result in reduced oxygen supply for respiration at night. This in turn reduces the rate of respiration at night resulting in decreased survival of rice plants.

So rice plants adapted to use the oxygen released during underwater photosynthesis, which forms a gas film layer around these submerged leaves. This physiological adaptation is supported by the super-hydrophobic leaves that have a thicker cuticle with increased permeability. These two traits enhance oxygen exchange to submerged shoot regions at night.

In this specific study, the influence of gas film layer on the rate of oxygen transport and resistance to oxygen transport was measured against variabilities in stomatal characteristics, cuticle permeability and thickness of diffusive boundary layer (standing water or bulk water). The use of 3D simulation modelling for this study is a very novel experimental approach and highlights a turning point in plant physiological studies.

The scientists concluded from the hypothetical results that there is a 22 fold reduction in the resistance against oxygen transport rate due to the presence of gas film layers in submerged rice leaves with high cuticle permeability and fully open stomata. This model also predicted the direction of oxygen transport through open stomata to be perpendicular and through closed stomata to be oblique.

Hence these adaptations confirm that rice crop have better survival strategy in regions with seasonal inundation problem and thus can serve as the crop of choice for rotation during wet season.

Reference: VERBOVEN, P., PEDERSEN, O., HO, Q. T., NICOLAI, B. M. and COLMER, T. D. (2014), The mechanism of improved aeration due to gas films on leaves of submerged rice. Plant, Cell & Environment, 37: 2433–2452. doi: 10.1111/pce.12300

PANDA – ENTHRONED SOLITAIRE CULTURAL MASCOT OF CHINA

If I am asked, “What do you know about Panda?”, these are the words that will flash into my surface memory – China, Olympics, Endangered Species, Bamboo, Gentle Animal and Adorable Animal of the Wild. They are known to the world ever since 1869 as described by French Missionary Pere Armand David.

Giant Panda whose primary abode is in the temperate broadleaf and mixed forests of of Southwest of China has been populated to a number of 1600 in the wild as per 2004 census and thus been classified by IUCN in the Red Data Book as ENDANGERED with the main reasons being hunting and forest destruction. Currently, these Pandas are abode only in six mountainous regions of China.

SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION: 

CLASS	Mammalia
ORDER	Carnivora
FAMILY	Ursidae
GENUS	Ailuropoda
SPECIES	melanoleuca

Pandas of China are the most beloved and rarest species of the bears of the world ranging from miniature toys to big fluffy dolls. These Pandas are the symbol of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) ever since its inception in 1961. These Pandas are characterised and well-known for their striking contrasting colours of black and white with soft and smooth fur. The block patches on their body is well defined including the well-noted and distinguishing black patch near the eyes all well-adapted for camouflage on the tree tops and on the mountainous regions of China.

This gentle and kind mammalian inhabiting the thicker and deeps forests of western China usually live for nearly 14 to 20 years in the wild standing taller more than four feet. They give birth to 1 or 2 cubs during their breeding period. The Panda weighs around 70 to 125 kilograms.

They are excellent tree climbers and rely on bamboo leaves and stalks food. As these are low in nutrients and consume around 26 to 84 pounds on a daily basis which is the main task of the day next to sleeping. They also need plenty of water to drink like other bears. Some of the other food that Panda eats will include grasses, bulbs, fruits, some insects and even rodents and carrion. These Pandas stay in old, hollow logs and tee stumps with holes where they can rest in cosy comfort.

Pandas are not social animals and usually stay in isolation (solitary habitats) and for them two is a crowd attracting conflicts expect during mating and parenting season. If seen in crowd, Pandas are mating adults or mother Panda with her cubs. The only companion Pandas have is the “bleat” and other ways of communication are honks, huffs, barks, growls, croaks and squeals. CALL OF THE NATURE Other ways of communication by Pandas are through their distinctive scent glands located under the tail that leave a waxy and stinky mark on trees, rocks, bamboos and bushes. These scents are much useful at the time of courting and mating and for marking their territory.

Giant Panda is a keystone species of the Chinese temperate forests as it plays a very important role in the ecological habitat of bamboo forests where it abodes. Besides they are endemic in that region. They play a vital role in dissemination of bamboo seeds and facilitates the spread of bamboo forests in the Yangtze Basin thus paving way to ecological restoration in deforested areas. This region is blessed with species whose survival are interdependent to the survival of Pandas: golden monkey, takin and crested ibis (endangered species); and dwarf blue sheep and multi-coloured pheasants. Thus this turns out to be one of the hotspots for ecotourism.

PANDA AS OLYMPIC ANIMAL: GIANT PANDA FOR EATING!

No wonder Panda became the world’s most adorable bear ever since they became official mascot of Olympic Games at Beijing in the year 2008 standing evident as the cultural icon for China and her natural resources, the wealth of any nation. A point to be brought forward to our notice at this instance that Panda was adopted as the logo of WWF.

WHAT ARE THE THREATS TO PANDA?

Loss of habitat is the major problem as a result of deforestation for timber industry and lowland habitat by farmers for agriculture and civilisation making “search of food” difficult for Panda.

Some of the ways we can help the Pandas and make them stay with us and with our children:

1. Adopt a Panda

2. Take Action – CAMPAIGN!

3. Speak Up for Wildlife

4. Stay Informed – Keep Yourself Abreast!

5. Become Defender of Wildlife

HALLUCINATIONS - SCIENCE BEYOND YOUR IMAGINATIONS!

DEFINITION: Hallucinations are the unusual ability of the brain to sense something which is not present to be present when one is awake, in contrary to the series of incidents that one sense during sleep, which we call as dreams. This is also called illusion.

In extreme cases and in spiritual sense these could sometimes also be referred as “visions” – Christianity and “apparitions” – Hinduism.

TYPES:

There are many types of hallucinations:

1. feelings on the body sensation with no real symptoms – crawling on the skin and movement of internal organs kinesthetic hallucination.

2. Hearing sounds like music, banging windows and doors and footsteps – auditory hallucination or paracusia or paracusis.

3. Hearing voices of people whom you are familiar and them not being around or voices that give instructions to cause harm to others or to themselves, critical and complement oneself.

(you hear them like cosmic noises and sounds)

4. Seeing objects, flashes of lights or living things like a mirage or a flash of light – visual hallucination.

5. Smelling foul or pleasant odour olfactory hallucination.

6. sensing unusual taste – gustatory hallucination

7. hypnagogic hallucination is a dream-like hallucination that occurs at the onset of sleep and hypnopompic hallucination that occurs on awakening.

Hallucination like hearing voices or seeing images of grieving hearts after death of near and dear ones is acceptable and normal.

CAUSES:

The various reasons that could cause hallucinations will include:

1. Having been abused with substances like alcohol, marijuana, LSD, cocaine, PCP heroin, amphetamines and ketamines.

2. Delirium or dementia leading to visual hallucinations

3. epilepsy could lead to odor hallucination

4. Very high fever

5. mental disorders like schizoprenia.

6. Sensory disorders like blindness or deafness or even repeated infection of ears could lead to hallucinations.

7. Failure of organs like liver, kidney and brain cancer or infections could also lead to hallucination. `

8. Lack of sleep, disturbances during sleep cycles especially when entering the deep sleep cycle or waking up often over a continuous period of time besides continued stress are some of the other reasons that could lead to hallucinations.

9. Social isolation could lead to hallucination in elderly people.

In the hospital: Better not get astrayed! When you have a problem this is how the doc will usually undergo a medical examination…the doc will make queries on the number of incidents of occurrence, when this has been happening, when they occur and the kinds of drugs they have been taking at that instance.

Even otherwise healthier habits like good sleep, good and healthy food with healthier lifestyle habits like avoidance of substance abuse and good social and emotional support with happier environment are some of the best ways to treat this condition initially followed by use of medications if required in much more intense conditions.
People started asking me why I wrote this blog? Hallucinations, my doctor when I told him of seeing light flashes - he clearly told this is not related to my sclerotic neuroheadache and assured that this hardly happens to patients with even serious neural conditions. The only reason is stress and I need to eat well nutritively and good sleep. I was stressed and maybe due to the trauma of being hit by the ball that reduced automatically with the healing of the neck and muscles in the back of my head. Please do not trouble me recollecting these events again.

SPARROWS: GETTING LOST IN METROPOLITAN COMMUNITY

House sparrows are one of the most commonly seen birds in the city in house roofs, sunshades and buildings and gardens. As per IUCN list they are of Least Concern, yet is on the verge of shifting to the vulnerable category at the rate that modernisation of metropolitan cities are affecting their niche in the cities and increasing shortage of food.  I still remember when I was a kid playing with sparrows and having them building nests at home and nearby garden. I have watched them hatch eggs and feed their chicks.

They belong to the family of Passer and are cosmopolitan entertainers of the city, though predominantly feeding on seeds, grains and small insects. They are unusually cute, small, plumpy little birds that are brown in colour with grey feathers in between their wings and tail with stubby and powerful beaks. Male house sparrows are brighter brown in colour, while the female sparrows are dull and grubby. Stripes of black, brown and buff on sparrows are the striking features of male sparrows.

House sparrows are very noisy and in groups they enjoy your garden and roofs, food and water. You could find their nests holes in your house roofs, bird’s nest, bird box, roof tops, traffic signals, shop sign boards and fences. They are found more common in human acquaintances and found mostly in the city and farmstead.

With the decrease in number of sparrows and spotting them becoming a rare occasion in daily life, March 20th, of every year has been declared as “World Sparrow Day”. This has been reported at various instances that the number of sparrows are slowly disappearing in the cities of United States, in India at major cities like Bangalore, Chennai and other metropolis. What usually happens on this day is a celebration by conservationists and environmentalists to host programmes for breeding and conserving sparrows by active individuals, national and international groups. The decline in number was first noticed in the year 1990s. Citizen Sparrow is a Citizen Science Programme and Education and Public Engagement Programme; Bring Back Sparrow is an environmental campaign initiated by an individual hailing from Bangalore, working as a full-time dentist, Dr. Harish Narayan and the implementation of Project Sparrow by a few students in Chennai. There are many such similar programmes working towards the cause for saving sparrows and in the year 2010 a stamp was released by the Indian Postal Department.

What you can do near your house?

Place a bird box and a feeder outside the garden or near the window or under the sunshade.

Water bowls and bird bath are some other option to invite and attract sparrows and is a conservatory measure.

Always try to have some space for garden at your home or apartment where you will find some niche for sparrows.

SPARROWS! You Will See A Chirpy Fulfilling Happiness Entering Your Home!