First transplanted womb baby born
In a world's first, a woman has successfully given birth to a baby from a transplanted womb.
The donated womb came from the woman's own mother, making it the first baby in the world born to a woman using the same womb from which she was herself born. The 36-year-old Swedish woman delivered a healthy baby boy weighing 1775g in September, 2014. The unidentified woman, who has a genetic condition that means she was born without a womb, was one of nine Swedish women who received a uterus transplant from a live donor in 2013.
The transplanted womb was donated by her 61-year-old mother who had gone through the menopause seven years before the surgery.
In a world's first, a woman has successfully given birth to a baby from a transplanted womb.
The donated womb came from the woman's own mother, making it the first baby in the world born to a woman using the same womb from which she was herself born. The 36-year-old Swedish woman delivered a healthy baby boy weighing 1775g in September, 2014. The unidentified woman, who has a genetic condition that means she was born without a womb, was one of nine Swedish women who received a uterus transplant from a live donor in 2013.
The transplanted womb was donated by her 61-year-old mother who had gone through the menopause seven years before the surgery.
New snake discovered in Odisha
A group of amateur herpetologists from Odisha on 28th September claimed to have discovered a non-venomous snake in the State. After months of research, these researchers have established clarity around the snake species, which were discovered in Ganjam district. The new snake species was rescued by Snake Helpline and subsequently studied in depth by a group of amateur herpetologists and scholars from Odisha.
The scientific name of this new snake has been conferred as Lycodon Odishi,” Subhendu Mallik . The common name of the snake has been given as Subhendu’s Wolf Snake by the team who studied the snake. “The Lycodon Odishi is a nocturnal and non-venomous species of snake and feeds mostly on skinks and geckos.
A group of amateur herpetologists from Odisha on 28th September claimed to have discovered a non-venomous snake in the State. After months of research, these researchers have established clarity around the snake species, which were discovered in Ganjam district. The new snake species was rescued by Snake Helpline and subsequently studied in depth by a group of amateur herpetologists and scholars from Odisha.
The scientific name of this new snake has been conferred as Lycodon Odishi,” Subhendu Mallik . The common name of the snake has been given as Subhendu’s Wolf Snake by the team who studied the snake. “The Lycodon Odishi is a nocturnal and non-venomous species of snake and feeds mostly on skinks and geckos.
Global wildlife populations down by half since
1970: WWF
Over half of the world's animals have disappeared since 1970. A shocking report from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has found that 52% of the world's animals have vanished in 40 years.
Between 1970 and 2010, populations of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish around the globe dropped 52%, says the 2014 Living Planet Report. Examples of wildlife that are suffering serious population collapse include elephants in Africa which could become extinct within our lifetime.
Marine turtles have seen an 80% drop in numbers. In addition to the precipitous decline in wildlife populations the report's data point to other warning signs about the overall health of the planet. The amount of carbon in our atmosphere has risen to levels not seen in more than a million years, triggering climate change that is already destabilizing ecosystems. High concentrations of reactive nitrogen are degrading lands, rivers and oceans. Stress on already scarce water supplies is increasing. And more than 60% of the essential services provided by nature, from our forests to our seas, are in decline.
The Living Planet Report measured trends in three major areas - populations of more than 10,000 vertebrate species, human ecological footprint - a measure of consumption of goods, greenhouse gas emissions and existing biocapacity - the amount of natural resources for producing food, freshwater, and sequestering carbon.
While high-income countries show a 10% increase in biodiversity, the rest of the world is seeing dramatic declines. Middle-income countries show 18% declines, and low-income countries show 58% declines.
Over half of the world's animals have disappeared since 1970. A shocking report from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has found that 52% of the world's animals have vanished in 40 years.
Between 1970 and 2010, populations of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish around the globe dropped 52%, says the 2014 Living Planet Report. Examples of wildlife that are suffering serious population collapse include elephants in Africa which could become extinct within our lifetime.
Marine turtles have seen an 80% drop in numbers. In addition to the precipitous decline in wildlife populations the report's data point to other warning signs about the overall health of the planet. The amount of carbon in our atmosphere has risen to levels not seen in more than a million years, triggering climate change that is already destabilizing ecosystems. High concentrations of reactive nitrogen are degrading lands, rivers and oceans. Stress on already scarce water supplies is increasing. And more than 60% of the essential services provided by nature, from our forests to our seas, are in decline.
The Living Planet Report measured trends in three major areas - populations of more than 10,000 vertebrate species, human ecological footprint - a measure of consumption of goods, greenhouse gas emissions and existing biocapacity - the amount of natural resources for producing food, freshwater, and sequestering carbon.
While high-income countries show a 10% increase in biodiversity, the rest of the world is seeing dramatic declines. Middle-income countries show 18% declines, and low-income countries show 58% declines.
India set to enter global nuclear club
India has completed all the requirements for membership to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the US told the Indian side during the discussions between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Barack Obama.
This brings India much closer to becoming part of the global nuclear system, and essential if India has to access nuclear and dual-use technologies in fields as diverse as pharmaceuticals and space. India has been negotiating for membership to NSG, MTCR, Wassenaar Arrangement and Australia Group for the past few years.
The two sides will wrestle through a couple of big issues. On the US side, the administrative arrangements on the civil nuclear deal with India involves the thorny aspect of their insistence that they have the right to track nuclear fuel through the entire nuclear process. India will not agree. But a resolution on this is imperative because on this hinges the fate of two other nuclear agreements - with Japan and Australia.
On the Indian side, the effort will be to convince the US that the liability law is not a constraint. The Indian government is in the process of drawing up a detailed list of components, specifying the amount of liability and its timespan. Its supposed to define precisely the scope of the liability law, but so far even Indian companies are not impressed.
What is Nuclear Suppliers Group?
Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is a multinational body concerned with reducing nuclear proliferation by controlling the export and re-transfer of materials that may be applicable to nuclear weapon development and by improving safeguards and protection on existing materials
The NSG was founded in response to the Indian nuclear test in May 1974 and first met in November 1975. The test demonstrated that certain non-weapons specific nuclear technology could be readily turned to weapons development. Nations already signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) saw the need to further limit the export of nuclear equipment, materials or technology. Another benefit was that non-NPT and non-Zangger Committee nations, then specifically France, could be brought in.
A series of meetings in London from 1975 to 1978 resulted in agreements on the guidelines for export, these were published as INFCIRC/254 (essentially the Zangger "Trigger List") by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Listed items could only be exported to non-nuclear states if certain International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards were agreed to or if exceptional circumstances relating to safety existed.
The name of the "London Club" was due to the series of meetings in London. It has also been referred to as the London Group, or the London Suppliers Group.
The NSG did not meet again until 1991. The "Trigger List" remained unchanged until 1991, although the Zangger list was regularly updated. The revelations about the Iraqi weapons program following the first Gulf War led to a tightening of the export of so-called dual-use equipment. At the first meeting since 1978, held at the Hague in March 1991, the twenty-six participating governments agreed to the changes, which were published as the "Dual-use List" in 1992, and also to the extension of the original list to more closely match the up-to-date Zangger list. A regular series of plenary meetings was also arranged as was the regular updating of the two key lists
India has completed all the requirements for membership to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the US told the Indian side during the discussions between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Barack Obama.
This brings India much closer to becoming part of the global nuclear system, and essential if India has to access nuclear and dual-use technologies in fields as diverse as pharmaceuticals and space. India has been negotiating for membership to NSG, MTCR, Wassenaar Arrangement and Australia Group for the past few years.
The two sides will wrestle through a couple of big issues. On the US side, the administrative arrangements on the civil nuclear deal with India involves the thorny aspect of their insistence that they have the right to track nuclear fuel through the entire nuclear process. India will not agree. But a resolution on this is imperative because on this hinges the fate of two other nuclear agreements - with Japan and Australia.
On the Indian side, the effort will be to convince the US that the liability law is not a constraint. The Indian government is in the process of drawing up a detailed list of components, specifying the amount of liability and its timespan. Its supposed to define precisely the scope of the liability law, but so far even Indian companies are not impressed.
What is Nuclear Suppliers Group?
Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is a multinational body concerned with reducing nuclear proliferation by controlling the export and re-transfer of materials that may be applicable to nuclear weapon development and by improving safeguards and protection on existing materials
The NSG was founded in response to the Indian nuclear test in May 1974 and first met in November 1975. The test demonstrated that certain non-weapons specific nuclear technology could be readily turned to weapons development. Nations already signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) saw the need to further limit the export of nuclear equipment, materials or technology. Another benefit was that non-NPT and non-Zangger Committee nations, then specifically France, could be brought in.
A series of meetings in London from 1975 to 1978 resulted in agreements on the guidelines for export, these were published as INFCIRC/254 (essentially the Zangger "Trigger List") by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Listed items could only be exported to non-nuclear states if certain International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards were agreed to or if exceptional circumstances relating to safety existed.
The name of the "London Club" was due to the series of meetings in London. It has also been referred to as the London Group, or the London Suppliers Group.
The NSG did not meet again until 1991. The "Trigger List" remained unchanged until 1991, although the Zangger list was regularly updated. The revelations about the Iraqi weapons program following the first Gulf War led to a tightening of the export of so-called dual-use equipment. At the first meeting since 1978, held at the Hague in March 1991, the twenty-six participating governments agreed to the changes, which were published as the "Dual-use List" in 1992, and also to the extension of the original list to more closely match the up-to-date Zangger list. A regular series of plenary meetings was also arranged as was the regular updating of the two key lists
Ebola virus can become airborne: UN
There is a ‘nightmare’ chance that the Ebola virus could become airborne if the epidemic is not brought under control fast enough, the chief of the UN’s Ebola mission has warned. Anthony Banbury, the Secretary General’s Special Representative, said that aid workers are racing against time to bring the epidemic under control, in case the Ebola virus mutates and becomes even harder to deal with.
The number of people infected with Ebola is doubling every 20 to 30 days, and the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention has forecast that there could be as many as 1.4m cases of Ebola by January, in the worst case scenario. More than 3,300 people have been killed by the disease this year.
However, he added that the UN now has the “political will” and most of the materials it needs to bring the epidemic under control.
The UN team will need to spend the first 30 days getting emergency infrastructure and training in place, ensuring that aid workers and medical supplies are ready to be deployed wherever there is a new Ebola outbreak. They aim to control the disease as far as possible within those communities.
About Ebola:
Ebola hemorrhagic fever is a disease caused by one of five different Ebola viruses. Four of the strains can cause severe illness in humans and animals. The fifth, Reston virus, has caused illness in some animals, but not in humans.
The first human outbreaks occurred in 1976, one in northern Zaire (now Democratic Republic of the Congo) in Central Africa: and the other, in southern Sudan (now South Sudan). The virus is named after the Ebola River, where the virus was first recognized in 1976,according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Ebola is extremely infectious but not extremely contagious. It is infectious, because an infinitesimally small amount can cause illness. Laboratory experiments on nonhuman primates suggest that even a single virus may be enough to trigger a fatal infection.
Instead, Ebola could be considered moderately contagious, because the virus is not transmitted through the air. The most contagious diseases, such as measles or influenza, virus particles are airborne.
Humans can be infected by other humans if they come in contact with body fluids from an infected person or contaminated objects from infected persons. Humans can also be exposed to the virus, for example, by butchering infected animals.
While the exact reservoir of Ebola viruses is still unknown, researchers believe the most likely natural hosts are fruit bats.
Symptoms of Ebola typically include: weakness, fever, aches, diarrhea, vomiting and stomach pain. Additional experiences include rash, red eyes, chest pain, throat soreness, difficulty breathing or swallowing and bleeding (including internal).
Typically, symptoms appear 8-10 days after exposure to the virus, but the incubation period can span two to 21 days. Unprotected health care workers are susceptible to infection because of their close contact with patients during treatment.
Ebola is not transmissible if someone is asymptomatic or once someone has recovered from it. However, the virus has been found in semen for up to three months.
Deadly human Ebola outbreaks have been confirmed in the following countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Gabon, South Sudan, Ivory Coast, Uganda, and Republic of the Congo (ROC), Guinea and Liberia.
According to the World Health Organization, "there is no specific treatment or vaccine," and the fatality rate can be up to 90%. Patients are given supportive care, which includes providing fluids and electrolytes and food.
There are five subspecies of the Ebola virus: Zaire ebolavirus (EBOV), Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDBV), Sudan ebolavirus (SUDV), Taï Forest ebolavirus (TAFV) and Reston ebolavirus (RESTV)
There is a ‘nightmare’ chance that the Ebola virus could become airborne if the epidemic is not brought under control fast enough, the chief of the UN’s Ebola mission has warned. Anthony Banbury, the Secretary General’s Special Representative, said that aid workers are racing against time to bring the epidemic under control, in case the Ebola virus mutates and becomes even harder to deal with.
The number of people infected with Ebola is doubling every 20 to 30 days, and the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention has forecast that there could be as many as 1.4m cases of Ebola by January, in the worst case scenario. More than 3,300 people have been killed by the disease this year.
However, he added that the UN now has the “political will” and most of the materials it needs to bring the epidemic under control.
The UN team will need to spend the first 30 days getting emergency infrastructure and training in place, ensuring that aid workers and medical supplies are ready to be deployed wherever there is a new Ebola outbreak. They aim to control the disease as far as possible within those communities.
About Ebola:
Ebola hemorrhagic fever is a disease caused by one of five different Ebola viruses. Four of the strains can cause severe illness in humans and animals. The fifth, Reston virus, has caused illness in some animals, but not in humans.
The first human outbreaks occurred in 1976, one in northern Zaire (now Democratic Republic of the Congo) in Central Africa: and the other, in southern Sudan (now South Sudan). The virus is named after the Ebola River, where the virus was first recognized in 1976,according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Ebola is extremely infectious but not extremely contagious. It is infectious, because an infinitesimally small amount can cause illness. Laboratory experiments on nonhuman primates suggest that even a single virus may be enough to trigger a fatal infection.
Instead, Ebola could be considered moderately contagious, because the virus is not transmitted through the air. The most contagious diseases, such as measles or influenza, virus particles are airborne.
Humans can be infected by other humans if they come in contact with body fluids from an infected person or contaminated objects from infected persons. Humans can also be exposed to the virus, for example, by butchering infected animals.
While the exact reservoir of Ebola viruses is still unknown, researchers believe the most likely natural hosts are fruit bats.
Symptoms of Ebola typically include: weakness, fever, aches, diarrhea, vomiting and stomach pain. Additional experiences include rash, red eyes, chest pain, throat soreness, difficulty breathing or swallowing and bleeding (including internal).
Typically, symptoms appear 8-10 days after exposure to the virus, but the incubation period can span two to 21 days. Unprotected health care workers are susceptible to infection because of their close contact with patients during treatment.
Ebola is not transmissible if someone is asymptomatic or once someone has recovered from it. However, the virus has been found in semen for up to three months.
Deadly human Ebola outbreaks have been confirmed in the following countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Gabon, South Sudan, Ivory Coast, Uganda, and Republic of the Congo (ROC), Guinea and Liberia.
According to the World Health Organization, "there is no specific treatment or vaccine," and the fatality rate can be up to 90%. Patients are given supportive care, which includes providing fluids and electrolytes and food.
There are five subspecies of the Ebola virus: Zaire ebolavirus (EBOV), Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDBV), Sudan ebolavirus (SUDV), Taï Forest ebolavirus (TAFV) and Reston ebolavirus (RESTV)
China tests new long-range missile
China has test fired a new variant of its 10,000 km range missile, sharpening its nuclear deterrent in the wake of the ‘Pivot to Asia’ doctrine of the United States, which aims to bolter force levels around China’s periphery. The long range missile, Dongfeng-31B was launched on September 25, ahead of China’s national day
China has already tested Dongfeng-31A, which also has a 10,000 km reach, capable of targeting Europe and the West Coast of the United States.
But the latest version may carry additional nuclear punch because it may be capable of mounting multiple warheads, unlike its earlier variant which can strike with only three warheads.
China has test fired a new variant of its 10,000 km range missile, sharpening its nuclear deterrent in the wake of the ‘Pivot to Asia’ doctrine of the United States, which aims to bolter force levels around China’s periphery. The long range missile, Dongfeng-31B was launched on September 25, ahead of China’s national day
China has already tested Dongfeng-31A, which also has a 10,000 km reach, capable of targeting Europe and the West Coast of the United States.
But the latest version may carry additional nuclear punch because it may be capable of mounting multiple warheads, unlike its earlier variant which can strike with only three warheads.
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