If you’re going through a stressful period in your life, it can have a huge impact on both your mental and physical health. Being stressed can lower your immunity, making you more susceptible to bacteria and viruses.
What’s chronic stress?
If you’ve been stressed for a long period of time, you have what’s known as chronic stress. As well as affecting your immune system it can lead to depression, anxiety, high blood pressure, sleep problems and increase your chances of suffering from a heart attack or stroke.
Stress and your immune system
Having chronic stress can result in you developing inflammatory and autoimmune disorders. When stressed, your body produces more of the hormone cortisol which can cause your body to struggle to regulate its inflammatory response and attack itself.
Your immune system will be further impaired by your body not producing enough lymphocytes (white blood cells). They are a vital part of your immune system as they fight off bacteria and viruses. Digestion is also impaired whilst you’re stressed and this can lead to gastric ulcers.
How to reduce your stress levels
There are lots of reasons why you might be feeling stressed. It could be that you’ve got a stressful job, you’re the main carer for a sick relative, you’ve got money problems or you’ve been simply doing too much. It’s important to recognise what’s causing you stress and try to tackle it if you can. You might benefit from taking a relaxation course, getting advice from a professional or finding a friend you can confide in. For the sake of your health, you need to take action.
What the Research Shows
Stressed out? Lonely or depressed? Don’t be surprised if you come down with something. Psychologists in the field of “psychoneuroimmunology” have shown that state of mind affects one’s state of health.
In the early 1980s, psychologist Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, PhD, and immunologist Ronald Glaser, PhD, of the Ohio State University College of Medicine, were intrigued by animal studies that linked stress and infection. From 1982 through 1992, these pioneer researchers studied medical students. Among other things, they found that the students’ immunity went down every year under the simple stress of the three-day exam period. Test takers had fewer natural killer cells, which fight tumors and viral infections. They almost stopped producing immunity-boosting gamma interferon and infection-fighting T-cells responded only weakly to test-tube stimulation.
Those findings opened the floodgates of research. By 2004, Suzanne Segerstrom, PhD, of the University of Kentucky, and Gregory Miller, PhD, of the University of British Columbia, had nearly 300 studies on stress and health to review. Their meta-analysis discerned intriguing patterns. Lab studies that stressed people for a few minutes found a burst of one type of “first responder” activity mixed with other signs of weakening. For stress of any significant duration – from a few days to a few months or years, as happens in real life – all aspects of immunity went downhill. Thus long-term or chronic stress, through too much wear and tear, can ravage the immune system.
The meta-analysis also revealed that people who are older or already sick are more prone to stress-related immune changes. For example, a 2002 study by Lyanne McGuire, PhD, of John Hopkins School of Medicine with Kiecolt-Glaser and Glaser reported that even chronic, sub-clinical mild depression may suppress an older person’s immune system. Participants in the study were in their early 70s and caring for someone with Alzheimer’s disease. Those with chronic mild depression had weaker lymphocyte-T cell responses to two mitogens, which model how the body responds to viruses and bacteria. The immune response was down even 18 months later, and immunity declined with age. In line with the 2004 meta-analysis, it appeared that the key immune factor was duration, not severity, of depression. And in the case of the older caregivers, their depression and age meant a double-whammy for immunity.
The researchers noted that lack of social support has been reported in the research as a risk factor for depression, an insight amplified in a 2005 study of college students. Health psychologists Sarah Pressman, PhD, Sheldon Cohen, PhD, and fellow researchers at Carnegie Mellon University’s Laboratory for the Study of Stress, Immunity and Disease, found that social isolation and feelings of loneliness each independently weakened first-year students’ immunity.
In the study, students got flu shots at the university health center, described their social networks, and kept track of their day-to-day feelings using a handheld computer (a new technique called “momentary ecological awareness”). They also provided saliva samples for measuring levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Small networks and loneliness each independently weakened immunity to a core vaccine component. Immune response was most weakened by the combination of loneliness and small social networks, an obvious health stress facing shy new students who have yet to build their friendship circles.
What the Research Means
Emerging evidence is tracing the pathways of the mind-body interaction. For example, as seen with the college students, chronic feelings of loneliness can help to predict health status — perhaps because lonely people have more psychological stress or experience it more intensely and that stress in turn tamps down immunity. It’s also no surprise that depression hurts immunity; it’s also linked to other physical problems such as heart disease. At the same time, depression may both reflect a lack of social support and/or cause someone to withdraw from social ties. Both can be stressful and hurt the body’s ability to fight infection.
All of these findings extend what we know about how stress management and interpersonal relationships can benefit day-to-day health, doing everything from helping us combat the common cold to speeding healing after surgery. The research is in synch with anecdotal reports of how people get sick in stressful times, but understanding exactly howpsychology affects biology helps scientists to recommend the best ways we can build up immunity.
How We Use the Research
Managing stress, especially chronic or long-term stress (even if it’s not intense), may help people to fight germs. When burdened with long-term stressors, such as caring for an elderly parent or spouse with dementia, health can benefit from conscientious stress management.
Kiecolt-Glaser and Glaser confirmed this hopeful option by comparing the immune function of exam-stressed medical students given hypnosis and relaxation training with that of students without training. At first, the immune responses of the two groups appeared to both go down. However, closer inspection revealed that some students took this exercise more seriously than others. Those who didn’t take relaxation training seriously didn’t fare so well; those who practiced conscientiously did actually have significantly better immune function during exams than students who practiced erratically or not at all.
Finally, the newest findings on social stress underscore the value of good friends; even just a few close friends can help someone feel connected and stay strong. Social ties may indirectly strengthen immunity because friends – at least health-minded friends — can encourage good health behaviors such as eating, sleeping and exercising well. Good friends also help to buffer the stress of negative events.
For long, women were not supposed to have as much share in property as men had. Property rights of women in India remained largely an ignored and unaddressed issue. Till about twelve years ago –specifically, year 2005 -women stood to lose on account of their being daughters/wives/daughters-in-law. In September 2005, the courts declared that Indian women would have a right to a share in property just like a man of the family did.
While it is tough to put in brief the minute details of how property rights of women in India effectively stand, below is an attempt to give a glimpse of the same. The status of a woman in terms of relationships has been further analysed in terms of the major law categories.
Daughters
Hindu Law,
The daughters now have equal right of inheritance to their father’s estate as sons.
The daughters have a right to receive a share in mother’s property.
The Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 removes discriminatory gender that was in the provisions of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 and now it gives the various rights to the daughters that are as follows:
In the context of coparcener, the daughter will
have same rights as the son
have to bear the same liability in the property as the son
be allotted the same share as to the son
The married daughter does not have the right to ask for maintenance or to shelter in her parent’s home
But if the married daughter is deserted, widowed or divorced she has the right of residence
A female has all the rights on any property that she has been gifted or has earned it, or that has been willed to her, that too if she has achieved a majority. She can dispose of the property by selling, gifting or willing to others as she deems fit.
Muslim Law,
The daughters have right of inheritance equal to one-half of the son’s share to their father’s estate.
She has full control over her share of property and has the legal right to control, manage and dispose of her share as per her wishes in life or after death.
The daughter can receive gifts from those whom she may inherit property, but it doesn’t take away her claim as per the inheritance laws.
The daughter has the right of residence in her parent’s home and to ask for support until she gets married.
If the married daughter gets divorced, the maintenance charges fall on her parents after the iddat period which is approximately three months but if she has kids who can support her then it is their duty to do so.
Christian Law,
The daughters inherit equally with any brothers in her father’s or mother’s estate.
The daughter has the right to shelter and maintenance till she gets married from her parents, but she cannot ask for it after her marriage.
She has all rights to her personal property, upon accomplishing majority. Until this happens, her father is her natural guardian.
Wives
Hindu Law,
A married woman has full right over her property and is the sole owner whether it is gifted, inherited or earned by her.
She has the right to gift it to anyone whether in parts or as a whole.
The married woman has the right to maintenance and shelter from her husband.
If the husband is a part of a joint family, she has the right to shelter and maintenance from the family.
In the case of partition of a joint family property (between her husband and his sons), the wife has the right to a share equal to as any other person.
When her husband dies, she has the right to an equal share of his part, jointly with her children and his mother.
Muslim Law,
The wife has the right to maintenance as any other wife, if any, and to take action against her husband if he discriminates against her.
She has the right to maintain her control over her personal property and goods.
The wife in case of divorce has the right that the husband makes fair and reasonable provision for her future which includes her maintenance.
The wife has the right to mehr’ as per terms of contract accepted at the time of the wedding.
She has the right to inheritance to the extent of one-fourth when there are no kids and if there are kids then to the extent of one-eighth.
Christian Law,
The wife has the right to receive maintenance from her husband, and if he doesn’t do so, she has the right to ask for the divorce.
The wife upon the death of her husband has the right to receive a one-third share of his estate, and the rest is divided among his children equally.
Mothers
Hindu Law,
The mother has the right to receive maintenance from her children who can support her. She is a part of Class I heir of Inheritance Law.
In the case of Joint Family, the widowed mother has the right to take the share equal to the share of her son.
She has the right to dispose of her property by sale, gift or will as she may choose.
If the mother dies intestate, her estate will be distributed among her children equally despite their sex.
Muslim Law,
If the mother is widowed or she gets divorced, she has the right to receive maintenance from her children.
She has the right to inherit a one-sixth share of her deceased child’s property.
The mother’s property will be divided as per the rules of Muslim law.
Christian Law,
The mother doesn’t have the right to receive maintenance from her children.
She may inherit one-fourth of her children’s property if her kids die without a spouse or any living child.
Experts advise traders to keep a stop below 10,600 for all long Nifty positions.
The Nifty rallied 6.2 percent in April after falling 8 percent in February and March which resulted in a strong bull candle on Monday’s daily candlestick chart. Formation of a strong bullish candle suggests that momentum is strong and there is a higher possibility now for the index to hit levels closer to 10,900, experts suggest.The index has been forming higher highs and higher lows on the daily chart for the last three trading sessions which indicates that the supports are gradually shifting higher.
However, owing to relentless strength displayed by the bulls in the last five weeks a pause or minor correction can’t be ruled out going forward. Experts advise traders to keep a stop below 10,600 for all long positions.
The Nifty which opened at 10,705.75 on Monday slipped marginally to hit an intraday low of 10,704.60. It hit an intraday high of 10,759 before closing 47 points higher at 10,739.35.
“The Nifty has successfully closed the gap zone between 10,736-10,702 levels registered on February 5 as it signed off the April 30 session with a small bullish candle,” Mazhar Mohammad, Chief Strategist – Technical Research & Trading Advisory, Chartviewindia.in said.
“However, on the monthly charts, it has registered a robust bullish candle which has erased all panic losses witnessed in March. If the index continues to trade above this gap area, then it could take the index to 10,928 levels,” he said.
Mohammad said investors should use corrections as a buying opportunity as long as the Nifty sustains above 10,600 levels. “We are advising traders to remain long with a stop below 10,600 on a closing basis.”
India VIX rose 2.85 percent to 12.36 on Monday. Lower volatility suggests that bulls are holding a tight grip on the market. Volatility has been falling for the last four consecutive weeks.
We have collated top 15 data points to help you spot a profitable trade:
Key support and resistance levels for the Nifty
The Nifty closed at 10,739.3 on Monday. According to pivot charts, its key support level is placed at 10,709.6, followed by 10,679.9. If the index starts moving upwards, the key resistance levels to watch out are 10,764.0 and 10,788.7.
Nifty Bank
The Nifty Bank index closed at 25,531.6. The important pivot levels, which will act as crucial support, are placed at 25,458.43, followed by 25,385.27. On the upside, the key resistance levels are placed at 25,611.13, followed by 25,690.67.
Call options data
In terms of open interest, the 11,000 call option has seen the most call writing so far at 56.89 lakh contracts. This could act as a crucial resistance level for the index in the May series.
The second-highest build-up has taken place in the 10,800 call option, which has seen 34.29 lakh contracts getting added so far. The 10,900 call option has accumulated 26.11 lakh contracts.
Call writing was seen at the strike price of 11,000, which added 5.77 lakh contracts, followed by 10,800, which added 3.3 lakh contracts and 11,200, which added 2.35 lakh contracts. Hardly any call unwinding has been seen.
Put options data
Maximum open interest in put options was seen at a strike price of 10,500, which added 38.68 lakh contracts till date. This could be a crucial resistance level for the index in May series.
The 10,600 put option 31.89 lakh contracts so far and the 10,400 put option has now accumulated 31.37 lakh contracts. Put writing was seen at the strike price of 10,600, which added 6.56 lakh contracts, followed by 10,700, which added 6.47 lakh contracts and 10,800, which added 2.8 lakh contracts.
Put unwinding was seen at the strike price of 10,300, which shed 1.42 lakh contracts, followed by 10,200, which shed 1.14 lakh contracts.
FII and DII data
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 385.47 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth Rs 261.98 crore in the Indian equity market, as per provisional data available on the NSE.
Fund flow picture
Stocks with higher delivery percentage
High delivery percentage suggests that investors are accepting delivery of a stock which indicates investor bullishness.
81 stocks saw long build-up
68 stocks saw short covering
A decrease in open interest along with an increase in price mostly indicates short covering.
40 stocks saw build-up of shorts
An increase in open interest along with a decrease in price mostly indicates build-up of short positions.
20 stocks saw long unwinding
Bulk Deals: PC Jeweller: Multiple block deals were seen in this counter, but two of them stood out for their sheer size. Alphagrep Commodities traded 67.59 lakh shares at Rs 171 apiece. QE Securities traded over 44 lakh shares at Rs 168 apiece.
Sumeet Industries: Niraj Modi bought 10 lakh shares at Rs 15.90 apiece.
(For more bulk deals click here)
Analyst or board meet/briefings: Axis Bank: The company had an investor conference on April 30.
Godrej Properties: An investor and analysts conference will be held on May 4.
Yes Bank: Multiple investors met the management recently.
Stocks in news Bombay Burmah: The CFO of the firm has resigned with effect April 30.
Ceat: The company’s Q4 net profit rose over 16 percent YoY to Rs 77 crore.
Hindustan Zinc: Q4 net profit has fallen 18 percent YoY to Rs 2,505 crore.
HCL Technologies: Keki Mistry resigns as Non-Executive Independent Director with effect from April 30
Rolta India: VL Ganesh resigns as CFO with effect from April 30
M&M: Total sales in April rose 22 percent YoY to 48,097 units.
Maruti Suzuki‘s April sales at 1.73 lakh units, up 14.4% YoY.
Tata Motors April domestic sales up 86% YoY to 53,511 units.
IHH Health, Munjal-Burmans raise bids for Fortis Healthcare by 7-9% on the last day of receipt of bids.
Larsen & Toubro: The firm has sold its electrical & automation business to Schneider Electric for Rs 14,000 crore.
One stock under ban period on the NSESecurity in ban period for next day’s trade under the F&O segment includes companies in which the security has crossed 95 percent of the market-wide position limit. For May 2, PC Jeweller is present in this list.
Researchers think the molecule might be better at keeping up with evolving bacteria.
MRSA Researchers at IBM are working on a synthetic molecule to fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria. One of which is MRSA, pictured above. -CDC
When Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928, the finding was key for two reasons: First, obviously, doctors finally had a way to treat illnesses like pneumonia, gonorrhea, and rheumatic fever. Until then, the approach was to watch, wait, and hope the patient’s immune system cleared the infection; that often didn’t work out. And second, the discovery introduced the idea that we could use molecules found in bacteria and fungi to kill other bacteria—ones that cause infection and illness.
Since then, researchers have been on the hunt to find novel molecules, similar to penicillin, to treat the various bacteria and fungi that infect us. And, from the beginning, it’s been a race against time. Bacteria evolve quickly, and while our goal is to annihilate all of them, their goal is precisely the opposite: To survive at all costs. Research shows that in this tug-of-war effort, humans are being gradually draggedcloser and closer to a bacterial victory. In May 2016 the Review on Antimicrobial Resistance, a research group funded by the UK Department of Health, estimated that 700,000 people die each year from antibiotic resistant infections (these are bacteria that no currently available antibiotics are able to kill). By 2050, an estimated 10 million people could die from this resistance if researchers don’t find a way to keep up with ever-evolving bacteria.
Scientists are employing countless approaches to avoid this outcome. And while most involve finding new molecules or protein in bacteria or fungi, similar to the way Fleming found penicillin, researchers at IBM are taking a different approach: They’ve created a synthetic molecule that works in a novel way to kill each bacterium from the inside out.
The researchers set out to address the scariest of antibiotic resistance scenarios: When a resistant strain of bacteria becomes systemic, spreading through the blood to every organ system in the body. They designed molecules to fight against five of the most drug-resistant strains commonly acquired in hospitals, which often become systemic and lead to organ failure.
Researchers have been working on creating synthetic molecules for some time now, but it’s been difficult. The synthetic molecule needs to be able to biodegrade—it can’t remain inside the body forever—and it also needs to effectively fight bacteria in a way that doesn’t negatively affect other organ systems in the body. Existing drugs that kill highly resistant bacteria typically do so in exchange for toxicity to the liver and other organs.
“We are trying to emulate the exact way that our innate immune system works,” says James Hedrick, a researcher at IBM. He and his team published their findings in a paper out this week in the journal Nature Communications. Our immune systems target a microbe and lyse its membrane, he says—we destroy cellular invaders by breaking down their protective barriers. “When you get an infection, right away your body secretes antimicrobial peptides, which is simply a fancy word for a polymer.” (A polymer, by the way, is also just a fancy word for a big molecule.) In recent years, many scientists have focused on creating these big molecules in the lab.
The problem with using that exact method when you have a systemic infection, Hedrick says, is that when you explode a bacterial cell in the body, it releases its toxins into the bloodstream. That wouldn’t be a terrible thing in isolation. But when you have millions of these dangerous little guys, toxins start to add up.
In the past, Hedrick says, synthetic polymers employed a similar method, where they would essentially explode each bacterium; obliterate it. But instead of causing the bacteria to explode, the new synthetic polymers kill each bacterium from the inside out.
On top of that, Hedrick and his team also think these types of antibiotics will lead to less antibiotic resistance. The polymer works through electrostatic interactions—a positive and negative charge are attracted to one another. But it attracts itself to multiple locations on the bacteria’s surface. This means that even if the bacteria evolves, it’s still highly likely that the bacteria-fighting polymers will remain attracted to one area of the bacteria.
The IBM team has found that the polymer is completely biodegradable and works extremely fast. “What makes this new class of materials so beautiful is that after three days, it degrades completely. It basically just comes in, kills the bacteria, degrades, and leaves.”
So far, all of their studies have been done in mice, but Hendrick says his team is ready to move to human clinical trials. For IBM, that means partnering with a pharmaceutical company to bring the polymer into clinical trials and, potentially, develop it into a drug.
This is all very promising. But the research still has a long way to go before it reaches a doctor’s prescription pad. Even though they’ve showed good results in mice, those same positive effects may not translate to humans, at least not with such efficacy. Most crucial is that the molecules biodegrade as well in humans as they do in mice. Concerns over the long term build-up of such antibiotic polymers in the body has hindered previous development attempts.
There’s also the concern of cost. A lab-engineered polymer will likely be far more expensive to manufacture than traditional antibiotics, and thus potentially more costly for pharmaceutical companies and consumers.
Even if the new treatment proves successful, this is by no means a reason to give up on other efforts to identify post-antibiotic options—as well as those to slow the progress of antibiotic resistance. Things like reducing the number of unnecessary cesarean sections, avoiding using antibiotics for infections that don’t respond to them (like the common cold or the flu) or that a person’s immune system will likely clear without help, and cutting down on their use in meat production will all help to stave off the increasing number of antibiotic resistant bacteria infecting us.
And while the drug may be able to stave off bacterial resistance for some time (Hendrick says it’s hard to predict for how long, exactly), that doesn’t mean it will work forever. “These are really clever bacteria. I am certain that over decades, they will figure out a way to elude the therapy,” says Hedrick. “That’s why this is a never ending kind of fight.”
Mindtree | DLF | ABG Shipyard | Ashok Leyland | Magma Fincorp |Container Corp | Jain Irrigation | Infibeam | Dynamatic Technologies and NMDC are the stocks which are in new today.
Here are stocks that are in news today:
Results today: TCS, IndusInd Bank, Mahindra CIE, Reliance Power, Cyient
Mindtree Q4 QoQ – Net profit up 28.8 percent at Rs 182.2 crore, revenue up 6.3 percent at Rs 1,464 crore
ACC Q1CY18 YoY – Consolidated revenue up 14.2 percent at Rs 3,624.6 crore; profit up 18.6 percent at Rs 250.4 crore
DLF: The company has sought to allay concerns about slow pace of monetization of land assets, Bloomberg reported.
Bharat Dynamics signed licensing agreement with Defence Research Development Organisation (DROO) for ASTRA MK-1 Weapon System
Sun Pharma: One of the owned company’s subsidiary increased stake in Ranbaxy Malaysia Sdn Bhd via purchase of 4.93 percenet stake; current holding increased to 95.67 percent.
Mark Builders: SEBI has banned the firm and its directors from market
ABG Shipyard: Fresh bids are invited for the company under insolvency law.
Trigyn Techno: Company received technology support staffing contract by Baltimore county public schools for 5 years
Sadbhav Infrastructure: Investment committee meeting on April 23 to approve NCD of Rs 170 crore
Ashok Leyland: The company has drawn up Rs 1,000 crore plan for 2018-19.
Magma Fincorp – ICRA upgraded credit rating to AA-/stable for bonds and bank facilities; raises Rs 500 crore through QIP route, per share price is Rs 155
Container Corp: Company to consider stock split on April 30
Ambuja Cement/ACC – Board of Directors approved limiting the period of the master supply agreement with ACC for 3 years
Jain Irrigation: Board approves plan to raise Rs 260 crore loan from World Bank arm
Kirloskar Oil Engine – Blackstone emerges as front runner to buy the Company: ET
Tata Steel may acquire 75 percent in Bhushan Steel: Media Report
Amtek Auto – Subsidiary gets two binding bids by Liberty, Deccan Value: Media Report
Infosys clarified that company has not received any alleged anonymous whistleblower complaint
Mastek declared dividend of Rs 4 per equity share of Rs 5 each
Jubilant Foodworks clarified on allegations about some products of Domino’s Pizza via video that co assure that they use real cheese in their products
Workhardt board meeting on May 4 to approve raising of fund via non-convertible debentures (NCD)
Infibeam: Company receives online marketplace contract from NSDC.
ICICI Bank chairman meets MF heads over succession plan, if Chanda Kochhar quits: BS
IFCI invites bids for sale of stake in NSE
ABG Shipyard – Fresh bids invited for the company
Lemon Tree Hotels signs 3 management contracts for hotel in Uttarakhand
As announced earlier Great Eastern Shipping takes delivery of very large gas carrier of about 81,617cbm
In a bull case scenario, Morgan Stanley see the index touching 41,500 (bull case scenario), in the base case scenario it sees Sensex to touch 35,700, and in the bear case scenario, it sees Sensex slipping towards 25,000 by December 2018.
Volatility gripped markets across the globe after US President Donald Trump along with UK and France fired over 100 missiles on Syrian chemical establishments over the weekend.
Equity markets, in general, do not likely uncertainty and events like these usually trigger risk-off sentiment. Things could turn ugly for markets across the globe if Russia starts to retaliate. In this scenario, what should investors do?
Market experts said that Indian markets have always managed to surmount the wall of worries in the past and this time too it will be no different. The Nifty is trading above its crucial short and long-term moving averages. The Sensex did reclaim Mount 34,000 in April which suggests ongoing strength on D-Street.
Morgan Stanley in its report released earlier this month highlighted that Indian markets can outperform emerging markets (EMs). In a bull case scenario, the brokerage see the index touching 41,500. In a base case scenario, it sees Sensex touching 35,700, and in a bear case scenario, it sees the Sensex slipping towards 25,000 levels by December 2018.
“Returns are moderating in 2018, especially down the capitalisation curve. Largecap valuations look reasonable and better than midcaps. Hence, we remain more constructive on largecaps relative to midcaps,” it said.
Top 20 stocks in its focus list include Bajaj Auto, M&M, Maruti Suzuki, ITC, Bharat Financial, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, M&M Financial, ZEE Entertainment, IndusInd Bank, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, Havells India, JSW Steel among others.
Although most global brokerage firms did tweak their targets with respect to the Sensex and Nifty, there is general consensus that investors should focus on individual stocks.
Market experts said the focus will now shift to individual stocks in 2018 from benchmark indices. “The crucial factors will be earnings which will chart a direction for Indian markets in the near future.”
The Indian market has digested a rise in rates, domestic political news, bank scandals, rise in equity supply, protectionist waves, global market volatility, rise in Fed rates, higher oil prices and a reduction in portfolio weightage by FPIs.
Another global brokerage, Citigroup expects a 10 percent YoY growth in Q4 earnings of stocks in its coverage universe, led by strength in commodities (oil & gas and steel) and domestic autos (excluding JLR).
“With FY18 likely to be another year of tepid earnings growth (single-digit growth expected), we would watch out for downgrade risks to our FY19 estimates. We expect 2018 to be a volatile year for Indian markets and have our December 2018 Sensex target to 35,700, factoring in downward earnings revisions,” it said.
Its top picks from the mid and largecap space include Apollo Hospitals, DB Corp, Emami, Exide Industries, Federal Bank, Gujarat State Petronet (GSPL), L&T Finance, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services, Petronet LNG and Voltas.
In the largecap space, it is positive on Ambuja Cements, Aurobindo Pharma, Bharat Electronics, Cipla, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, M&M, Tata Motors, and IOC.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on moneycontrol.com are their own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com and blogger advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
The Nifty50 is expected to open flat on Tuesday following muted trend seen in SGX Nifty. But, positive handover from Wall Street and stable Asian markets may push the index higher. The Nifty closed 47 points higher at 10,528.35 on Monday.
Trends on SGX Nifty indicate a flat opening for the broader index in India, a fall of 3 points. Nifty futures were trading around 10,544-level on the Singapore Stock Exchange.
US stocks closed higher on Monday, with the biggest boosts from technology and healthcare sectors as investors were optimistic about earnings season and appeared less worried about US-led missile attacks in Syria, Reuters reported.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 212.9 points, or 0.87 percent, to 24,573.04, the S&P 500 gained 21.54 points, or 0.81 percent, to 2,677.84 and the Nasdaq Composite added 49.64 points, or 0.7 percent, to 7,156.29.
Asia stocks edged higher on Tuesday, tracking Wall Street gains as the focus shifted to corporate earnings and looming economic data from China amid signs Western-led strikes on Syria weren’t likely to escalate, a Reuters report said.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on moneycontrol.com are their own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com and blogger advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
“Nifty is likely to retest 10,650-10,670 levels on upside i.e. Inner Trendline which might work as immediate hurdle zone,” says Rajesh Agarwal of AUM Capital.
Benchmark indices managed to close in the positive zone for the eighth straight session on Monday on positive economic data that revived overall investors’ sentiment despite mixed global cues. Shares of India’s second-largest IT services company, Infosys, tumbled nearly three percent after the management forecast FY19 operating margin between 22 percent and 24 percent. Credit Suisse said this was 100 basis points below expectations and slightly lower than its previous year’s 24.3 percent.
Meanwhile, in economic data, March wholesale price inflation (WPI) came in at 2.47 percent on Monday versus 2.48 percent month-on month.
Broader weakness in Asian markets also weighed on sentiment amid tensions between the United States and Russia over Syria.
The Nifty opened with a gap down around its 50 EMA and rebounded from Monday’s low to close higher at 10,528.35, up 0.46 percent. The index has formed a ‘Bullish Engulfing’ candlestick pattern. This candle indicates the change in sentiment from a bearish gap down in the morning, to a large bullish real body candle that closes at the highs of the day. It is likely to retest 10,650-10,670 levels on the upside: Inner Trendline which might work as an immediate hurdle zone.
Bank Nifty
Nifty Bank is consolidating within its two major moving averages of 200 and 100 SMA for five consecutive days. It has formed a ‘Bullish Candle’ after multiple bearish reversal candles, thereby negating a bearish set up. Now the Nifty Bank has to cross 25,420 decisively for a further upmove.
If the index fails to cross this level and sustains below it, Nifty Bank may correct till 24,700. On the hourly scale, the index is trading around overbought zone with a negative divergence on RSI.
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The Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru has come up with many useful innovations in science, technology and healthcare. These have made detecting heart conditions and malaria, purifying water, and fixing cataract not just easy, but also affordable.
In the last decade, Indian Institute of Science, in Bengaluru, has churned out a lot of innovations, with the focus being on producing indigenous research and making them available to the country and the world at an affordable rate. From detecting heart conditions to making lenses affordable for cataracts patients, innovations in water purifying and discoveries in cancer drug treatments, here are eight additions to the future of science and technology in India:
Water Purification at a Nanoscale Level
In 2015, Dr. Suryasarathi Bose, Assistant Professor of Department of Materials Engineering and a team invented a water purifying system that could even eliminate harmful bacteria at a nanoscale level. The filter consisted of a porous membrane made of two polymers, along with minute quantities of silver, titanium dioxide and carbon nanotubes. The pores filter out the micron-sized bacteria, while the silver-titanium-carbon mixture kills the bacteria.
A Solar Water Purifier
Another twist to the water purifier, this innovation by Professor Vasant Natarajan, from the Department of Physics is low cost and does not require membranes or electricity. According to Natarajan, this device could purify all kinds of water – sea, bore well, ponds, even rain water – into drinkable water, and produce 1.5 litres out of 3 litres of impure water. Explaining how the device works, he said that first the water is evaporated using solar energy, and then the vapours are condensed on a cold surface. What’s left behind is all the impure substances such as bacteria, arsenic, and fluoride.
A Non-hazardous Stain for Scientists
Researchers in labs often work with a number of chemicals and hazardous materials that could affect their health. Acid stains are used to test a number of chemicals that is probably carcogenic. In March 2016, J Fathima Benazirdeveloped a stain that, if replaced with acid stains, could help researchers reduce their exposure to harmful chemicals. The new stain called Tinto Rang is made from plants, and is even safe for consumption. This indigenous invention could also be the safest in the world, according to Benazir.
Non-invasive Heart Condition Detector
A non-invasive device that can measure heart and lung, called the Fibre Bragg Grating Heart Beat Device, was invented by S Asokan, Professor at Department of Instrumentation and Applied Physics and his team. The device simply needs to be wrapped around a person’s chest, while the sensors detect cardiac activities, measure blood pressure, count blood glucose levels, and monitor respiration. Made of an optical fibre sensor, this device can easily help detect heart conditions early.
A Vaccine to Combat Hepatitis C
In India, 20% chronic liver disease has one cause: hepatitis C virus, which spreads through blood contact, and affects 12 million people. It causes severe liver problems, sometimes even ending up in cancer. In February this year, a team of scientists led by Professor Saumitra Das developed a vaccine that could produce the antibodies to fight the virus. Right now, the vaccine is still being tested on animals, but the results are promising, according to Das.
Smartphone-Turned-Malaria-Detector
Ever thought one could detect malaria through a smart phone? Dr Sai Siva Gorthi, from the department of Instrumental and Applied Physics and her team did so. They converted a smartphone into a powerful microscopic device that eliminates the various stages of blood testing to detect malaria. The team replaced the phone camera with high resolution optics of a microscope. The smartphone also has software that studies the images captured through the microscope and tells even a layman whether it has the malaria virus or not. It requires a tiny amount of blood as a sample.
A Revolutionary Cancer Molecule Inhibitor
In 2012, Sathees C Raghavan, associate professor with IISc’s biochemistry department and his team developed a molecule inhibitor, SCR7, which could revolutionise cancer treatment. In 2014, scientists at MIT tested the molecule and discovered its efficiency and potential in becoming an integral part of anti-cancer drugs. The molecule inhibitor binds with the cancer cells to block its DNA from repair, thereby killing the cancer cells. While the drugs are still under research, the fact remains that an Indian team was vital in creating an anti-cancer drug.
Affordable Lens to Give Vision to Cataract Patients
In a life-saving innovation by Professor G. Mohan Rao at the Department of Instrumentation in 2015, many people who suffer from cataract are now able to see. The team developed economical intraocular lenses (IOLs) in their labs that could be affordable for even poor patients. They succeeded, after months of trials, in creating a thin film of ‘tetraflouroethane’ coating on IOL. This IOL replaces the natural lens in the eyes of a cataract patient. So far, IOLs developed abroad were expensive and inaccessible to most Indians. This, however, changed when Rao and his team succeeded in their tests and transferred the technology to AUROLAB, which now produces these lenses.
Stem cells can be coaxed to self-assemble into structures resembling human embryos.
Two years ago, Shao, a mechanical engineer with a flair for biology, was working with embryonic stem cells, the kind derived from human embryos able to form any cell type. As he experimented with ways of getting cells to form more organized three-dimensional structures by growing them in scaffolds of soft gel, he was looking for signs of primitive neural tissue.
What drew his attention was that the cells seemed to change much faster than expected—they arranged themselves rapidly over a few days into a lopsided circle.
What was it? Shao startled Googling to see if he could identify the structure. That’s when he landed on a website called The Virtual Human Embryo and found some microscope photos of ten-day old human embryos shortly after implantation, fused to the uterine wall. There was the beginning of the amniotic sac and, inside it, the embryonic disc, or future body. They matched what he was seeing.
In this microscope movie, filmed over four days, stem cells self-organize in ways that mimic a human embryo.
COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
Shao informed his coworkers, a mixed team of biologists and engineers, at the University of Michigan. “When I showed the image to the team, everyone said, “Wow, we need to figure out what to do,” says Shao. Had they somehow made a real human embryo from stem cells? “At that point, we started to be more cautious.”
The embryo-like structures, the team soon determined, are not complete and couldn’t become a person. They lack the cell types needed to make a placenta, a heart, or a brain. Even so, the Michigan “embryoids” are realistic enough that the lab has been destroying them using a bath of detergent or formaldehyde to make sure they don’t develop any further.
The work in Michigan is part of a larger boom in organoid research—scientists are using stem cells to create clumps of cells that increasingly resemble bits of brain, lungs, or intestine (see “10 Breakthrough Technologies: Brain Organoids”). Now some like Shao are finding it’s possible to mimic the embryo itself. This year, for example, researchers in Cambridge, U.K., built a convincing replica of a six-day-old mouse embryo by combining two types of stem cells. That group is now trying to do the same with human cells, as are a few others, including one at Rockefeller University in New York. What’s emerging, say scientists, is a new technology, which they call “synthetic embryology,” and which they believe may let them probe the fascinating opening chapters of human development in detail for the first time.
That’s been difficult to do because normal embryos don’t keep growing more than about a week in a lab. Key events after that are largely inaccessible to science: they occur in the darkness of the human uterus even before most women know they’re pregnant.
A microfluidic device used at the University of Michigan to cultivate organoids made from embryonic cells. About 10 organoids can fit inside each of the small blue channels.
COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
What’s more, research on real human embryos is dogged by abortion politics, restricted by funding laws, and limited to supplies from IVF clinics. Now, by growing embryoids instead, scientists see a way around such limits. They are already unleashing the full suite of modern laboratory tools—gene editing, optogenetics, high-speed microscopes—in ways that let them repeat an experiment hundreds of times or, with genetic wizardry, ask a thousand questions at once.
One result already from the Michigan team: dramatic close-up video of stem cells self-organizing into structures that mimic embryos.
“It’s amazing that [stem cells] have this capability,” says Jianping Fu, the University of Michigan professor in whose engineering lab Shao was a student. He says the emergence of something with an embryo’s shape, and some of its features, was “a complete surprise; I still can’t believe it. But it shows these cells remember what they are supposed to do.”
Scientists at Michigan now have plans to manufacture embryoids by the hundreds. These could be used to screen drugs to see which cause birth defects, find others to increase the chance of pregnancy, or to create starting material for lab-generated organs. But ethical and political quarrels may not be far behind. “This is a hot new frontier in both science and bioethics. And it seems likely to remain contested for the coming years,” says Jonathan Kimmelman, a member of the bioethics unit at McGill University, in Montreal, and a leader of an international organization of stem-cell scientists.
What’s really growing in the dish? There no easy answer to that. In fact, no one is even sure what to call these new entities. In March, a team from Harvard University offered the catch-all “synthetic human entities with embryo-like features,” or SHEEFS, in a paper cautioning that “many new varieties” are on the horizon, including realistic mini-brains.
Shao, who is continuing his training at MIT, dug into the ethics question and came to his own conclusions. “Very early on in our research we started to pay attention to why are we doing this? Is it really necessary? We decided yes, we are trying to grow a structure similar to part of the human early embryo that is hard otherwise to study,” says Shao. “But we are not going to generate a complete human embryo. I can’t just consider my feelings. I have to think about society.”
Other scientists, however, are determined to see just how far the science leads, up to and including forging the first complete human embryo from stem cells. That’s the case of Ali Brivanlou, an embryologist who leads a lab at Rockefeller University, in New York City. “My goal is to maximize the modeling, in vitro, of human development,” Brivanlou wrote in an e-mail. “Therefore, we would like to be as accurate as possible and as complete as possible.”
Taking shape
Embryonic stem cells were first isolated from spare, days-old IVF embryos in 1998 by scientists in Wisconsin. Early on, in its first few days, an embryo is little more than a mass of these identical, blank-slate, cells. Their specialty: making any other type of cell in the body. With an eye toward eventual medical treatments, companies have used them to produce neurons and beta cells that respond to insulin. Left alone in a dish, they’ll spontaneously turn into heart muscle and start beating.
Scientists have started seeking ways to coax stem cells to form more complicated, organized tissues, called organoids. These mini-organs aren’t the real thing. Instead, they’re far smaller—the size of sand grains—and often less sophisticated. But they can still have basic aspects of, say, the branching airways and wavy cilia of a lung. Last year, researchers used brain organoids to show how the Zika virus can infect brain cells.
By 2014, such efforts started yielding evidence that stem cells might, if given the right cues, directly reenact early events in an embryo. Brivanlou’s lab had the idea of corralling stem cells within tiny dots on a micro-patterned surface. Containing the cells helped lead to a surprising effect. They developed an organized “primitive streak”—a feature of a two-week-old human embryo when cells lay down the first hint of a body plan, deciding which side is left which is right.
Those embryoids were not natural. They were thin, grown as a flat sheet, and their streaks were circles, not lines as in a true embryo. “But it worked better than we thought,” says Aryeh Warmflash, a Rice University professor who ran the experiment while working at Rockefeller. “What we have increasingly realized is that the cells are programmed to make an embryo. That is what they want to do. If cells are in the right shape, at the right density, and you give them the right signal, the cells just take over from there, they talk to each other.”
At Michigan, Fu says his lab, working with Michigan biologist Deborah Gumicio, hit on its own method for making embryoids almost by accident while studying whether mechanical signals, like growing cells in a gel that is soft or sticky, could enhance their ability to form certain tissues.
One experiment involved encouraging gut cells to form a lumen, or hollow cyst. As a control experiment, they also cultivated embryonic stem cells in the same way. That is when “serendipity hit,” says Fu. The stem cells polarized into spheres that bore similarity to the start of an amniotic cavity. “[After] that is when we saw all the fascinating self-organizing features,” says Fu.
Ethical questions
Further tests demonstrated that the embryoids represented only a part of the embryo. While they had the beginnings of an amniotic sac, they lacked an entire lineage of cells, called trophoblast, whose role is to make the placenta. And inside the clump of cells that constitutes an embryo proper, the researchers detected only one of three key types needed to make a complete body.
When the team published its findings in early August, they went mostly unnoticed. That is perhaps because the scientists carefully picked their words, straining to avoid comparisons to embryos. Shao even took to using the term “asymmetric cyst” to describe the entities that had so surprised the team. “We have to be careful using the term synthetic human embryo, because some people are not happy about it,” says Fu.
An “embryoid” created from stem cells shares key features with a real human embryo, like an amniotic sac, but lacks other elements.
COURTESY OF YUE SHAO, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
Currently, scientists in the U.S. and U.K. working with natural human embryos observe a limit on their work called the “14-day rule.” No human embryo is studied beyond two weeks, or past when the primitive streak forms, whichever comes first. Before then, no one thinks they have any kind of sentience and are “incapable of feeling pain” according to the 1984 Warnock Report that enshrined the rule.
For decades, that rule has offered a convenient and clear line in the sand. And the same limits are being applied to embryoids, at least for now. Following guidelines promulgated last year by Kimmelman’s international stem-cell society, Fu’s team destroys the cells just five days after they’re made. This prevents the structures from developing what bioethicists term “features of concern”—such as a primitive nervous system.
But scientists are prepared to argue that their structures aren’t real embryos, and that they should be able to stretch the limit. Some experts are calling for an end to the rule altogether, saying it is outdated. John Aach, a scientist at Harvard Medical School, thinks entirely new ethical measuring sticks will be needed to help guide tests of organoids. For instance, could a mini-brain grown in the lab somehow feel suffering? And can our definition of an embryo withstand evidence that labs can make new sorts never before seen? “All great scientific advances have a way of exposing the imprecision of common concepts and forcing people to rethink them,” says Aach.
Even before his paper came out, Shao was buttonholing ethics experts, including Insoo Hyun, a professor at Case Western University, at a conference this year in Boston. Hyun felt the young researcher was on safe ground because his structure didn’t contain every part of an embryo. “I think that they should design experiments to focus on specific questions, and not model everything,” says Hyun. “My proposal is, just don’t make the whole thing. One team can make the engine, another the wheels. The less ambiguous morally the thing is that you are making, the more likely you can do your research unimpeded.”
There’s yet another reason to be cautious. The U.S. currently bars federal funding for any study of embryos, no matter how they are made, under a law called the Dickey-Wicker Amendment.
While today’s embryoids don’t appear to be covered by the legal restriction, they might be if scientists make them realistic enough. In response to written questions, the science policy office of the National Institutes of Health, the $33-billion-a-year funding agency, says it has an internal process it uses to analyze grants and to determine if “proposed research would create an organism that meets the statutory definition of a human embryo.”
The Michigan scientists, whose project used funds from two NIH grants, say agency officials haven’t raised any objections so far. For now, the embryoids live and die in boxes made of lucite and metal and are fed with culture medium. “Because of the really heavy engineering component to these entities, I think you will be able to argue these are not organisms,” says Hyun. That’s a point that Shao has sought to emphasize, too. When Shao presented the group’s work this year, he added to his slides an ethics statement outlined in a bright yellow box, saying the embryoids “do not have human organismal form or potential.”
Scientists are trying to manufacture eggs and sperm in the laboratory. Will it end reproduction as we know it?
But such definitions could be a moving target. The whole point of the structures is the surprising, self-directed, even organismal way they develop. Robert Cork is the head of the Virtual Embryo Project, which maintains the images the Michigan team used to identify their structures. When I asked him about Shao’s paper, Cork told me that the embryoids could go on to make some of the parts they’re currently missing, if the experiments were allowed to progress. “This would suggest that if they can keep the cysts viable for longer they might go ahead and start to develop into something more ‘embryo-like,’” says Cork.
High-throughput
Jianping Fu is a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan.
COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
Fu says the next step in his Ann Arbor laboratory is to perfect procedures for making embryoids with specific characteristics, and in larger numbers. Initially, of every 100 “cysts” the Michigan scientists grew, only five ended up with the asymmetric shape reminiscent of the amniotic sac. But the they have already learned how to make that shape emerge every time. The production of embryoids will become “programmable and scalable,” Fu predicts.
Drugs could be tested on the embryoids, for instance to flag any that have toxic effects and cause birth defects. Fu’s hope is that synthetic embryology might eventually help engineers grow complete human organs. “I am not talking about a human body without a brain. But what is a true possibility is you could develop a mini-gut or a mini-liver, since the embryo develops them, too. And if you have the primitive organs, they could grow into a functional one,” Fu predicts. The lab has started growing embryoids on a chip about the size of a credit card. Etched into it are six microchannels, each accommodating 10 of the entities, which are suspended in hydrogels and fed nutrients held in miniature buckets. Fu calls it “high-throughput manufacturing.”
This way, he says, “everything can be triggered and under control.”
