Bharat Biotechs intranasal Covid Vaccine approved by govt. to be available on COWIN soon (GS Paper 3, Science and Tech)
Why in news?
- Bharat Biotech's intranasal Covid vaccine has been approved by the Union Health Ministry as a booster dose for those above 18 years of age.
iNCOVACC:
Vaccination status:
- The approval for the vaccine comes amid a spurt in Covid cases in China and some other countries.
- So far, over 220 crore vaccines have been administered to those aged 12 and above in India.
- Though 90% of the population has got two doses, only 27% have taken a third dose. Of those above 60 years, 60% are yet to get a third (precaution) dose.
What’s next?
- The needle-free vaccine will be available at private centres. It will be introduced on the Co-WIN platform soon.
- It is likely to be rolled out in the national Covid vaccination programme soon.
Bomb cyclone, the winter storm threatening United States
(GS Paper 1, Geography)
Why in news?
- The recent winter storm in United States is expected to worsen into a rare phenomenon known as a bomb cyclone as it gains strength.
- An arctic blast is bringing extreme cold, heavy snow and intense wind across much of the US.
What is bomb cyclone?
How it is formed?
- A bomb cyclone is formed when the air of different air masses (cold, dry) comes together.
- As the warm air rises, it creates a cloud system lowering air pressure and forming into a storm circulating counterclockwise around the low-pressure area.
- The bomb cyclone will be characterised by cold winds, which are also expected to pick up, and wind chill temperatures could drop to dangerous lows far below zero, enough to cause frostbite within minutes.
What’s next?
- The dangerous storm is expected to hit everyone east of the Rockies, around two-thirds of the country. Though much of the West Coast will be shielded from the cold, the Arctic front is expected to pass east and south all the way through Florida.
Secret of how frogs turn transparent revealed
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
Context:
- While lizards change colour based on their surroundings, some frog species have a unique ability to turn their appearance on and off. These species found in South and Central America use their ability to become transparent as a form of camouflage during the day.
- Researchers have now observed that these frogs are able to maintain a high level of transparency because a large proportion of their red blood cells are “hidden” in the liver. Researchers said that this allows the frogs to attain transparency when they are the most vulnerable.
Defence mechanism:
- The frogs use their transparency as a form of security against external dangers.
- Their delicate, greenish transparent forms don’t cast shadows, rendering them almost invisible to birds and other predators passing overhead or underneath.
- However, when northern glass frogs wake up and hop around in search of insects and mates, they take on an opaque reddish-brown colour.
- Transparency in animals is a complex form of camouflage involving mechanisms that reduce light scattering and absorption throughout the organism. In vertebrates, attaining transparency is difficult because their circulatory system is full of red blood cells (RBCs) that strongly attenuate light.
Other Findings:
- While asleep, the frogs concentrate, or “hide,” nearly 90% of their red blood cells in their liver. Because they have transparent skin and other tissues, it’s the blood circulating through their bodies that would otherwise give them away.
- The frogs also shrink and pack together most of their internal organs.
Way Forward:
- Understanding this liver-packing process may inform our understanding of hemodynamics more broadly.
- Further research on the species could provide useful clues for the development of anti-blood clotting medications.
