Timely intervention is critical to curbing the spread of vector-borne diseases like malaria. A team of researchers from Mangaluru, Karnataka, has shown that information technology tools such as their Malaria Control System can be powerful allies in anti-malaria programs. Here is a report on how digitisation helped Mangaluru chalk its success story against malaria.

Streptophyte algae are considered the ancestors of land plants who shared habitats with primitive microbes. However, scientists have been intrigued by how the algae developed mechanisms to evolve as land plants and survive the soil conditions below the ground. In this exciting study, a team of researchers reveal the crucial role primitive microbes could have played in the evolutionary process of land plants.

As the world focused on developing coronavirus vaccines, a team of researchers from the National Brain Research Centre (NBRC), Manesar, delved into finding a therapeutic route for COVID-19. They tapped into the rich repository of Ayurvedic herbs and found Mulethi to be a promising candidate. The herb contains an active ingredient that shows potential in alleviating aggressive symptoms of COVID-19. Here is a report on their findings.

Emerging dominant strains of the coronavirus are a cause of concern as they impact the course of the pandemic, prompting scientists to track the mutation patterns of the virus closely. In this collaborative study, an analysis of the SARS-CoV-2 global genomic database revealed the trends of point-mutations occurring in the virus.

The tuberculosis bacteria is notorious for its ability to stay dormant for years within the human body, evading the immune system and always one step away from causing aggressive infection. Now, a study from researchers at Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), Faridabad, and Institute of Microbial Technology (IMTech), Chandigarh, has investigated a novel molecular pathway that helps the bacteria avoid the notice of the immune system.

Aggregation of amyloid proteins is believed to play a central role in many neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease. Now, a collaborative study by Indian researchers has explored certain key biophysical processes that are involved in the initial steps of this process, providing us with an important clue about the early stages of Parkinson's disease progression.

Our brains are quite proficient at recognizing jumbled words and reading them correctly. Researchers from the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, studied this fascinating phenomenon and came up with a computational model that uses artificial neurons to simulate the way the brain processes jumbled words.