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KNOW A SCIENTIST
Dr. Jonas Salk was an American physician and medical researcher. In 1955 Salk's years of research paid off. Human trials of the polio vaccine effectively protected the subject from the polio virus. When news of the discovery was made public on April 12, 1955, Salk was hailed as a miracle worker. He further endeared himself to the public by refusing to patent the vaccine. He had no desire to profit personally from the discovery, but merely wished to see the vaccine disseminated as widely as possible. Salk's vaccine was composed of "killed" polio virus, which retained the ability to immunize without running the risk of infecting the patient. A few years later, a vaccine made from live polio virus was developed, which could be administered orally, while Salk's vaccine required injection.
Dr. Salk's last years were spent searching for a vaccine against AIDS. Jonas Salk died on June 23, 1995. He was 80 years old. The 100th anniversary of his birth in 2014 was the occasion for renewed appreciation and celebration of Dr. Salk's contribution to humanity.
Researchers connect climate change to food safety
Climate change can affect our food safety in a number of ways. In a European study, researchers at Wageningen University and Ghent University (Belgium) state that there is often a relationship between long-term changes in temperature and rainfall and vegetable and fruit contamination. For example, flooding may result in increased concentrations of harmful bacteria that can be quickly broken down again by UV light. Similarly, in one region fungi that produce toxins may increase due to global warming, while they decrease in other regions. The researchers have published their findings in a special issue of the scientific journal Food Research International that they edited.
In the future, in a changing climate, will we be able to continue eating safe vegetables and fruit or will this come under pressure? This is the question asked by the Ghent and Wageningen researchers. They have brought together the latest information and scientific findings on the impact of climate change on food safety in the special issue. The special issue was initiated by researchers and includes several papers from the Veg-i-Trade project financed by the European Union.
These are the first studies into the relationship between climate change and food safety. The researchers find that there is every reason to expand this research. They believe that more scenario analyses, which have been used for years in climate study in general, should also be included in food safety research. One of the first scenario analyses was included in the Veg-i-Trade study.
Field studies and statistical analyses within the Veg-i-Trade project show that there is in fact often a relationship between vegetable and fruit contamination and climate variables such as temperature and rainfall. A preliminary study into toxic substances from fungi shows, for example, that an increased risk of contamination of tomatoes may be expected at the end of the 21st century in Poland. In Spain, however, it will be too hot then for this kind of fungi, so the risk of contamination will be lower. Another study shows that in a flooded lettuce field the likelihood of flooding is increased by climate change, resulting in higher concentrations of harmful bacteria. UV light will then cause these concentrations to decrease again rapidly.
One of the conclusions from a study into possible forms of adaptation to climate change is that adaptation to future climate change will have to be very different for different countries, sectors and companies. According to this research the focus here will have to be on increasing the adaptive capacity.
Veg-i-Trade The Ghent-Wageningen overview research forms parts of the European project Veg-i-Trade. From May 2010 to April 2014, 22 partners (universities, research centres, SMEs and major industrial partners) from ten countries carried out research into viruses such as the norovirus, bacteria such as Salmonella and E. coli, and fungal and pesticide residues on fresh vegetables and fruit. Veg-i-Trade studies the possible effects of globalisation and climate change on the food safety of these fresh products.
Source: www.sciencedaily.com
Release of Newsletter in Vernacular Language (TAMIL)
by
Shri. M. Kannan, IES, Economic Advisor, MoEF, New Delhi.
 DURING EVALUATION WORKSHOP HELD AT IFGTB, COIMBATORE.jpg)
Regional Evaluation & Training Workshop (Southern region) held at Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding (IFGTB), Coimbatore | 05 - 06, February, 2015.ENVIS Co-ordinator Dr. N. Munuswamy is seen at the extreme right.
Facts About Swine Flu
H1N1 or swine flu can be very dangerous to get a hold of. While the normal flu season usually happens during the winter months as well as early spring, this type of flu can be spread during much warmer temperatures. It is still unknown as to whether or not the colder weather will make this flu much more prevalent. Research for a suitable vaccination is still ongoing. If you want to know more about swine flu, take a look at these interesting facts.
Three strains of swine flu
At present, there are three different strains of the swine flu. It can affect humans, birds and pigs equally. Pigs had the predecessor to the swine flu over ten years ago. The genetic makeup has now gotten the genes that make it very dangerous to humans. It can cross species from pig to human and back.
Occurrence of swine flu
According to the CDC, the occurrences of Swine Flu in a human being are less than one percent every one to two years. However, as of March 26th, 2011 the total pediatric deaths from this were reported at four. One hundred fourteen cases were reported as positive, which is 21.7 percent of the positive specimens during week twelve.
Symptoms of swine flu
Symptoms of this type of flu closely mimic those of regular flu such as coughing, lethargy, nausea, vomiting, fever, runny nose and sore throat. It takes a doctor to truly diagnose someone with the swine flu. This can be spread one of two ways, human to human contact or pig to human contact.
Treatments for swine flu
At present, there are four different medications that can help with a swine flu infection and those are of the antiviral category namely Zanamivir, Amantadine, Oseltamivir and Rimantadine. However, two of those are resistant to the human strain of the virus and those are Rimantadine and Amantadine. The other two are recommended for use in persons having the swine flu. This is the official advice from CDC when it comes to treating swine flu.
Source: fun.yukozimo.com/facts-about-swine-flu
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