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The basement in Upper Assam foreland basin exhibits a typical flexure pattern. An elongated continuous subsurface basement high has developed between Himalaya and Naga-Patkai ranges. A few prominent basement lows have developed adjacent to the foothill regions. It is noticed that the general topographic slope near the foothill regions is not only controlled by aggradation process, but also influenced by the flexured basement of the region. The basement lows have influenced the overlying topography significantly. Rivers flowing over those regions have shown unidirectional lateral migration. North bank tributaries like Subansiri, Jiadhal and Dikrang have been affected by the Subansiri basement low. Coseismic subsidence of sediments over Subansiri basement low had resulted subsidence of the North Lakhimpur-Ranga Nadi region in 1950 Assam earthquake. Some south bank tributaries like Disang and Dikhow have been affected by Nazira basement low. Topographic elevation along the Subansiri river is lower than that part of the Brahmaputra located south of Majuli. This typical topographic setting of the region makes the mouth of the Subansiri river and Majuli region highly susceptible to erosion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Satellite images are capable of displaying prominently the geometry and morphology of folds, especially when these have large spatial extent. The frontal part of the Indo-Burman fold belt, falling in parts of Bangladesh and north-east India, has developed into exemplary linear N-S oriented doubly plunging folds in late Tertiary sedimentary rock sequences and are arranged in a set of alternating ridge-forming anticlines and valley-forming synclines. Formation of these folds is attributed to E-W oriented compressional tectonics resulting out of eastward subduction of the Indian plate below the Burmese plate. Fold types present in the area appear to be simple but the present fold geometrical arrangement reveal some interesting features. The 90-m SRTM-DEM (Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission-Digital Elevation Model), remote sensing techniques, principal component analysis and resolution merging were used to understand the geometry and morphology of the folds covering a large area, through comparative assessment and enhancement of the structural features. This study includes identification of: multi-folds within a visibly single entity; the overlapping nature of folds and the interrelation between anticlines; the geometry of fold noses; fault-affected fold limbs causing bulging; and anticline bifurcation and formation of elliptical and cuspate synclines; as well as recognition of exposed eroded-out folded layers of the anticline and the effect of deformation and faulting. The doubly plunging nature of the folds and higher topography at the middle latitudes of the study area could have formed due to up-arching tectonic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the lack of biotechnological implementation in the Northeast India. It is said that India has a large number of species of plants that are used in modern medicine, and that the region has been prospering for many centuries due to its tradition of healthcare system. It is suggested that biotechnology should be applied so that the plant metabolites will be evaluated properly.

The distribution of golden langurs (Trachypithecus geei ) is limited to a small area of western Assam in northeast India and Bhutan between the rivers Manas in the east, Sankosh in the west, and Brahmaputra in the south. It is one of the most seriously endangered primate species of India. A comparative analysis based on satellite images taken in 1988 and 1998 showed a 50% loss of original golden langur habitat. Data on population dynamics collected using line transect and total count methods are presented here. An average group size of 8.2 (range 4.0–22.0) individuals was recorded. A total of 1,064 individuals were counted living in 130 groups. The sex ratio was 1.9–2.5 adult females for each adult male. A low percentage of juveniles and infants suggests that the population is unstable. Most of the groups had only one adult male. Small group sizes, isolated distribution, proportionately few infants and juveniles, and degrading habitat are all causes of concern. Demographic trends indicate a decline in the golden langur population. Am. J. Primatol. 55:15–23, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Indian tea industry workers are exposed to various exposures at their workplace. Objective: To investigate the respiratory health of Indian tea industry workers. Methods: We administered a respiratory questionnaire to and measured lung function in workers of 34 tea gardens and 46 tea factories. We used correlation matrices to test the association between their respiratory symptoms and lung functions. Results: The garden workers complained of shortness of breath 3 times higher than the factory workers. However, nasal allergy was more predominant among the factory workers compared to garden workers (69.6% vs 41.2%, p=0.02). The factory workers had higher total (median 107.3% vs 92.9%, p=0.05, as measured by R at 5 Hz) and peripheral airway resistance (143.8% vs 61.1%, p=0.005, as measured by R at 5–20 Hz) than the garden workers. Respiratory symptoms were inversely associated with airway obstruction as measured by the ratio between forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) and forced vital capacity (FVC) and positively correlated with increased overall airway reactance among the workers. Conclusion: Respiratory symptoms and increased allergen susceptibility of Indian tea industry workers due to occupational exposures warrant routine systematic surveillance of their workplace air quality and health monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study in India which analyzed the presence of the Janus Kinase 2 (JAK2) V617F mutation in patients with thrombosis with no signs of overt myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN). Blood samples were obtained from 32 patients who had portal vein thrombosis (PVT) and from 20 patients who had hepatic vein thrombosis (HVT). The study has identified JAK V617F mutation in six patients among 32 with PVT and four among the 20 patients with HVT.