A CRITICAL STUDY OF THE I/W-'ll/EA/6'1.-' OF GANDHIJI AND HIS TEACHING ON MODERN HINDI POETRY

Hindi

ELEMENTS OF ROMANTICISM IN THE NEW POETRY OF HINDI AND MALAYALAM

HINDI

‘Hindi Aur Konkani Saninaom Ka Aitihasik EvamTulanatmak Adhyayan’ ’ _ ‘(HISTORICAL AND COMPARATIVE STUDY oF HINDI AND KoNKANi NOUNS

Hindi

Love and Beauty in the Romantic Poetry of Hindi and Malayalam

Hindi

A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE MAIN TRENDS OF MODERN SWAGHANDATAVAD IN THE POETRY OF HINDI AND TAMIL

HINDI

Towards Realization of Magnetocaloric and Magnetoelectric Applications based on Bulk and Thin film forms of Sodium substituted Lanthanum Manganites

The present thesis work focuses on hole doped lanthanum manganites and their thin film forms. Hole doped lanthanum manganites with higher substitutions of sodium are seldom reported in literature. Such high sodium substituted lanthanum manganites are synthesized and a detailed investigation on their structural and magnetic properties is carried out. Magnetic nature of these materials near room temperature is investigated explicitly. Magneto caloric application potential of these materials are also investigated. After a thorough investigation of the bulk samples, thin films of the bulk counterparts are also investigated. A magnetoelectric composite with ferroelectric and ferromagnetic components is developed using pulsed laser deposition and the variation in the magnetic and electric properties are investigated. It is established that such a composite could be realized as a potential field effect device. The central theme of this thesis is also on manganites and is with the twin objectives of a material study leading to the demonstration of a device. This is taken up for investigation. Sincere efforts are made to synthesize phase pure compounds. Their structural evaluation, compositional verification and evaluation of ferroelectric and ferromagnetic properties are also taken up. Thus the focus of this investigation is related to the investigation of a magnetoelectric and magnetocaloric application potentials of doped lanthanum manganites with sodium substitution. Bulk samples of sodium substituted lanthanum manganites. Bulk samples of sodium substituted lanthanum manganites with Na substitution ranging from 50 percent to 90 percent were synthesized using a modified citrate gel method and were found to be orthorhombic in structure belonging to a pbnm spacegroup. The variation in lattice parameters and unit cell volume with sodium concentration were also dealt with. Magnetic measurements revealed that magnetization decreased with increase in sodium concentrations.

Adrenergic and muscarinic receptor subtypes functional regulation during diabetogenesis: Effect of curcumin and vitamin D3 pre-treatment

In the present study, the initial phase was directed to confirm the effects of curcumin and vitamin D3 in preventing or delaying diabetes onset by studying the blood glucose and insulin levels in the pre-treated and diabetic groups. Behavioural studies were conducted to evaluate the cognitive and motor function in experimental rats. The major focus of the study was to understand the cellular and neuronal mechanisms that ensure the prophylactic capability of curcumin and vitamin D3. To elucidate the mechanisms involved in conferring the antidiabetogenesis effect, we examined the DNA and protein profiles using radioactive incorporation studies for DNA synthesis, DNA methylation and protein synthesis. Furthermore the gene expression studies of Akt-1, Pax, Pdx-1, Neuro D1, insulin like growth factor-1 and NF-κB were done to monitor pancreatic beta cell proliferation and differentiation. The antioxidant and antiapoptotic actions of curcumin and vitamin D3 were examined by studying the expression of antioxidant enzymes - SOD and GPx, and apoptotic mediators like Bax, caspase 3, caspase 8 and TNF-α. In order to understand the signalling pathways involved in curcumin and vitamin D3 action, the second messengers, cAMP, cGMP and IP3 were studied along with the expression of vitamin D receptor in the pancreas. The neuronal regulation of pancreatic beta cell maintenance, proliferation and insulin release was studied by assessing the adrenergic and muscarinic receptor functional regulation in the pancreas, brain stem, hippocampus and hypothalamus. The receptor number and binding affinity of total muscarinic, muscarinic M1, muscarinic M3, total adrenergic, α adrenergic and β adrenergic receptor subtypes were studied in pancreas, brain stem and hippocampus of experimental rats. The mRNA expression of muscarinic and adrenergic receptor subtypes were determined using Real Time PCR. Immunohistochemistry studies using confocal microscope were carried out to confirm receptor density and gene expression results. Cell signalling alterations in the pancreas and brain regions associated with diabetogenesis and antidiabetogenesis were assessed by examining the gene expression profiles of vitamin D receptor, CREB, phospholipase C, insulin receptor and GLUT. This study will establish the anti-diabetogenesis activity of curcumin and vitamin D3 pre-treatment and will attempt to understand the cellular, molecular and neuronal control mechanism in the onset of diabetes.Administration of MLD-STZ to curcumin and vitamin D3 pre-treated rats induced only an incidental prediabetic condition. Curcumin and vitamin D3 pretreated groups injected with MLD-STZ exhibited improved circulating insulin levels and behavioural responses when compared to MLD-STZ induced diabetic group. Activation of beta cell compensatory response induces an increase in pancreatic insulin output and beta cell mass expansion in the pre-treated group. Cell signalling proteins that regulate pancreatic beta cell survival, insulin release, proliferation and differentiation showed a significant increase in curcumin and vitamin D3 pre-treated rats. Marked decline in α2 adrenergic receptor function in pancreas helps to relent sympathetic inhibition of insulin release. Neuronal stimulation of hyperglycemia induced beta cell compensatory response is mediated by escalated signalling through β adrenergic, muscarinic M1 and M3 receptors. Pre-treatment mediated functional regulation of adrenergic and cholinergic receptors, key cell signalling proteins and second messengers improves pancreatic glucose sensing, insulin gene expression, insulin secretion, cell survival and beta cell mass expansion in pancreas. Curcumin and vitamin D3 pre-treatment induced modulation of adrenergic and cholinergic signalling in brain stem, hippocampus and hypothalamus promotes insulin secretion, beta cell compensatory response, insulin sensitivity and energy balance to resist diabetogenesis. Pre-treatment improved second messenger levels and the gene expression of intracellular signalling molecules in brain stem, hippocampus and hypothalamus, to retain a functional neuronal response to hyperglycemia. Curcumin and vitamin D3 protect pancreas and brain regions from oxidative stress by their indigenous antioxidant properties and by their ability to stimulate cellular free radical defence system. The present study demonstrates the role of adrenergic and muscarinic receptor subtypes functional regulation in curcumin and vitamin D3 mediated anti-diabetogenesis. This will have immense clinical significance in developing effective strategies to delay or prevent the onset of diabetes.

Fish germplasm resources and exploited fisheries of the rivers of kerala and bionomics of ‘red canarese barb’, hypselobarbus thomassi (day 1874)

Cochin University of Science & Technology

Occurrence of filamentous algae and soil characteristics in the paddy fields of Kuttanad and Kole lands of Kerala

The present work is the study of filamentous algae in the paddy fields of Kuttanad and Kole lands of Kerala. This investigation was initiated by sampling of filamentous algae in Kuttanad during December 2010 to February 2011. A second phase of sampling was done from November 2011 to February 2012. The sampling periodicity corresponded to the crop growth starting from field preparation through sowing, and continued till the harvest. Sampling locations were selected from the active paddy cultivation regions of the six agronomic zones of Kuttanad. The numbers of sampling locations were proportional to the area of each zone. Algae of the Kole lands were collected during from October 2011 to January 2012. It was observed that blue-green algae dominated in both Kuttanad and Kole lands. Thirty two species of blue-green algae and eight species of green algae were identified from Kuttanad. The highest number of algal species was observed from Kayal lands in Kuttanad throughout the cropping season. Among the thirty two species of blue-green algae twenty five species are nonheterocystous and seven species are heterocystous. Twenty eight species of blue-green and six species of green algae were identified from Kole lands, and highest number of species was observed in Palakkal throughout the cropping season. Among the twenty eight species of blue-green algae collected from Kole lands twenty one species are non-heterocystous, and only seven species are heterocystous filamentous algae. Blooms of Spirogyra were observed during the second phase of sampling in Kuttanad and also in the Kole lands. The results of the germination study revealed that the extract of Spirogyra sp. inhibited seed germination and reduced seedling vigour. The growth of the treated seedlings was evaluated by pot experiments. The results clearly showed that Spirogyra sp. can negatively affect the seed germination, seedling vigour, and the yield of rice.

Development of Electrochemical and Fluorescent Sensors

Chemical sensors have growing interest in the determination of food additives, which are creating toxicity and may cause serious health concern, drugs and metal ions. A chemical sensor can be defined as a device that transforms chemical information, ranging from the concentration of a specific sample component to total composition analysis, into an analytically useful signal. The chemical information may be generated from a chemical reaction of the analyte or from a physical property of the system investigated. Two main steps involved in the functioning of a chemical sensor are recognition and transduction. Chemical sensors employ specific transduction techniques to yield analyte information. The most widely used techniques employed in chemical sensors are optical absorption, luminescence, redox potential etc. According to the operating principle of the transducer, chemical sensors may be classified as electrochemical sensors, optical sensors, mass sensitive sensors, heat sensitive sensors etc. Electrochemical sensors are devices that transform the effect of the electrochemical interaction between analyte and electrode into a useful signal. They are very widespread as they use simple instrumentation, very good sensitivity with wide linear concentration ranges, rapid analysis time and simultaneous determination of several analytes. These include voltammetric, potentiometric and amperometric sensors. Fluorescence sensing of chemical and biochemical analytes is an active area of research. Any phenomenon that results in a change of fluorescence intensity, anisotropy or lifetime can be used for sensing. The fluorophores are mixed with the analyte solution and excited at its corresponding wavelength. The change in fluorescence intensity (enhancement or quenching) is directly related to the concentration of the analyte. Fluorescence quenching refers to any process that decreases the fluorescence intensity of a sample. A variety of molecular rearrangements, energy transfer, ground-state complex formation and collisional quenching. Generally, fluorescence quenching can occur by two different mechanisms, dynamic quenching and static quenching. The thesis presents the development of voltammetric and fluorescent sensors for the analysis of pharmaceuticals, food additives metal ions. The developed sensors were successfully applied for the determination of analytes in real samples. Chemical sensors have multidisciplinary applications. The development and application of voltammetric and optical sensors continue to be an exciting and expanding area of research in analytical chemistry. The synthesis of biocompatible fluorophores and their use in clinical analysis, and the development of disposable sensors for clinical analysis is still a challenging task. The ability to make sensitive and selective measurements and the requirement of less expensive equipment make electrochemical and fluorescence based sensors attractive.

Investigations on the structural and operational changes of Ring Seine Fishing Systems of Kerala and its Life Cycle Assessment (lCA)

The study covers theFishing capture technology innovation includes the catching of aquatic animal, using any kind of gear techniques, operated from a vessel. Utilization of fishing techniques varies, depending upon the type of fisheries, and can go from a basic and little hook connected to a line to huge and complex mid water trawls or seines operated by large fishing vessels.The size and autonomy of a fishing vessel is largely determined by its ability to handle, process and store fish in good condition on board, and thus these two characteristics have been greatly influenced by the introduction and utilization of ice and refrigeration machinery. Other technological developments especially hydraulic hauling machinery, fish finding electronics and synthetic twines have also had a major impact on the efficiency and profitability of fishing vessels.A wide variety of fishing gears and practices ranging from small-scale artisanal to advanced mechanised systems are used for fish capture in Kerala. Most important among these fishing gears are trawls, seines, lines, gillnets and entangling nets and traps The modern sector was introduced in 1953 at Neendakara, Shakthikulangara region under the initiative of Indo-Norwegian project (INP). The novel facilities introduced in fishing industry by Indo- Norwegian project accordingly are mechanically operated new boats with new fishing nets. Soon after mechanization, motorization programme gained momentum in Kerala especially in Alleppey, Ernakulam and Kollam districts.

Biochemical Characterization and Bio-evaluation of Collagen and Collagen Peptides Extracted and Purified from Fish Skin: In vitro and In vivo Studies on Antiarthritic and Wound Healing Properties

In fish processing plants, there is huge amount of skin that is left as the waste. When this skin is taken and processed into fish collagen, it will save large amount of money that is used for extraction of collagen from other animal s.Fish collagen can be used as an alternative to replace mammalian collagen, especially collagen extracted from bovine, when we consider the outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) and the foot - and-mouth disease (FMD) issues. BSE and TSE are progressive neurological disorders affecting cattles caused by proteinacious infectious particles called prions.The study aims in producing collagen that has been extracted from fish skin to replace other animal collagen so as to overcome the problem of other animal collagen issues. Also the study utilized the abandoned fish waste produced by fish processing industry since bone, skin, fin and scales of fish can be a useful source of collagen.

New studies on the versatile roles of Polyaniline and its composites in polymer based optoelectronic and energy storage devices

From the early stages of the twentieth century, polyaniline (PANI), a well-known and extensively studied conducting polymer has captured the attention of scientific community owing to its interesting electrical and optical properties. Starting from its structural properties, to the currently pursued optical, electrical and electrochemical properties, extensive investigations on pure PANI and its composites are still much relevant to explore its potentialities to the maximum extent. The synthesis of highly crystalline PANI films with ordered structure and high electrical conductivity has not been pursued in depth yet. Recently, nanostructured PANI and the nanocomposites of PANI have attracted a great deal of research attention owing to the possibilities of applications in optical switching devices, optoelectronics and energy storage devices. The work presented in the thesis is centered around the realization of highly conducting and structurally ordered PANI and its composites for applications mainly in the areas of nonlinear optics and electrochemical energy storage. Out of the vast variety of application fields of PANI, these two areas are specifically selected for the present studies, because of the following observations. The non-linear optical properties and the energy storing properties of PANI depend quite sensitively on the extent of conjugation of the polymer structure, the type and concentration of the dopants added and the type and size of the nano particles selected for making the nanocomposites. The first phase of the work is devoted to the synthesis of highly ordered and conducting films of PANI doped with various dopants and the structural, morphological and electrical characterization followed by the synthesis of metal nanoparticles incorporated PANI samples and the detailed optical characterization in the linear and nonlinear regimes. The second phase of the work comprises the investigations on the prospects of PANI in realizing polymer based rechargeable lithium ion cells with the inherent structural flexibility of polymer systems and environmental safety and stability. Secondary battery systems have become an inevitable part of daily life. They can be found in most of the portable electronic gadgets and recently they have started powering automobiles, although the power generated is low. The efficient storage of electrical energy generated from solar cells is achieved by using suitable secondary battery systems. The development of rechargeable battery systems having excellent charge storage capacity, cyclability, environmental friendliness and flexibility has yet to be realized in practice. Rechargeable Li-ion cells employing cathode active materials like LiCoO2, LiMn2O4, LiFePO4 have got remarkable charge storage capacity with least charge leakage when not in use. However, material toxicity, chance of cell explosion and lack of effective cell recycling mechanism pose significant risk factors which are to be addressed seriously. These cells also lack flexibility in their design due to the structural characteristics of the electrode materials. Global research is directed towards identifying new class of electrode materials with less risk factors and better structural stability and flexibility. Polymer based electrode materials with inherent flexibility, stability and eco-friendliness can be a suitable choice. One of the prime drawbacks of polymer based cathode materials is the low electronic conductivity. Hence the real task with this class of materials is to get better electronic conductivity with good electrical storage capability. Electronic conductivity can be enhanced by using proper dopants. In the designing of rechargeable Li-ion cells with polymer based cathode active materials, the key issue is to identify the optimum lithiation of the polymer cathode which can ensure the highest electronic conductivity and specific charge capacity possible The development of conducting polymer based rechargeable Li-ion cells with high specific capacity and excellent cycling characteristics is a highly competitive area among research and development groups, worldwide. Polymer based rechargeable batteries are specifically attractive due to the environmentally benign nature and the possible constructional flexibility they offer. Among polymers having electrical transport properties suitable for rechargeable battery applications, polyaniline is the most favoured one due to its tunable electrical conducting properties and the availability of cost effective precursor materials for its synthesis. The performance of a battery depends significantly on the characteristics of its integral parts, the cathode, anode and the electrolyte, which in turn depend on the materials used. Many research groups are involved in developing new electrode and electrolyte materials to enhance the overall performance efficiency of the battery. Currently explored electrolytes for Li ion battery applications are in liquid or gel form, which makes well-defined sealing essential. The use of solid electrolytes eliminates the need for containment of liquid electrolytes, which will certainly simplify the cell design and improve the safety and durability. The other advantages of polymer electrolytes include dimensional stability, safety and the ability to prevent lithium dendrite formation. One of the ultimate aims of the present work is to realize all solid state, flexible and environment friendly Li-ion cells with high specific capacity and excellent cycling stability. Part of the present work is hence focused on identifying good polymer based solid electrolytes essential for realizing all solid state polymer based Li ion cells.The present work is an attempt to study the versatile roles of polyaniline in two different fields of technological applications like nonlinear optics and energy storage. Conducting form of doped PANI films with good extent of crystallinity have been realized using a level surface assisted casting method in addition to the generally employed technique of spin coating. Metal nanoparticles embedded PANI offers a rich source for nonlinear optical studies and hence gold and silver nanoparticles have been used for making the nanocomposites in bulk and thin film forms. These PANI nanocomposites are found to exhibit quite dominant third order optical non-linearity. The highlight of these studies is the observation of the interesting phenomenon of the switching between saturable absorption (SA) and reverse saturable absorption (RSA) in the films of Ag/PANI and Au/PANI nanocomposites, which offers prospects of applications in optical switching. The investigations on the energy storage prospects of PANI were carried out on Li enriched PANI which was used as the cathode active material for assembling rechargeable Li-ion cells. For Li enrichment or Li doping of PANI, n-Butyllithium (n-BuLi) in hexanes was used. The Li doping as well as the Li-ion cell assembling were carried out in an argon filled glove box. Coin cells were assembled with Li doped PANI with different doping concentrations, as the cathode, LiPF6 as the electrolyte and Li metal as the anode. These coin cells are found to show reasonably good specific capacity around 22mAh/g and excellent cycling stability and coulombic efficiency around 99%. To improve the specific capacity, composites of Li doped PANI with inorganic cathode active materials like LiFePO4 and LiMn2O4 were synthesized and coin cells were assembled as mentioned earlier to assess the electrochemical capability. The cells assembled using the composite cathodes are found to show significant enhancement in specific capacity to around 40mAh/g. One of the other interesting observations is the complete blocking of the adverse effects of Jahn-Teller distortion, when the composite cathode, PANI-LiMn2O4 is used for assembling the Li-ion cells. This distortion is generally observed, near room temperature, when LiMn2O4 is used as the cathode, which significantly reduces the cycling stability of the cells.

Sono, Photo and Sonophoto Catalytic Removal of Chemical and Bacterial Pollutants from Wastewater

The term ‘water pollution’ broadly refers to the contamination of water and water bodies (e.g. lakes, rivers, oceans, groundwater etc). Water pollution occurs when pollutants are discharged directly or indirectly into water bodies without adequate treatment to remove the harmful contaminants. This affects not only the plants and organisms living in these bodies of water but also the entire natural biological communities and the biodiversity.Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs) have been tested as environment-friendly techniques for the treatment of contaminated water, in view of their ability to convert pollutants into harmless end products. These techniques refer to a set of treatment procedures designed to remove organic or inorganic contaminants in wastewater by oxidation. The contaminants are oxidized by different reagents such as air, oxygen, ozone, and hydrogen peroxide which are introduced in precise, preprogrammed dosages, sequences and combinations under appropriate conditions. The procedure when combined with light in presence of catalyst is known as photocatalysis. When ultrasound (US) is used as the energy source, the process is referred as sonication. Sonication in presence of catalyst is referred as sonocatalysis. Of late, combination of light and sound as energy sources has been tested for the decontamination of wastewater in the presence of suitable catalyst. In this case, the process is referred as sonophotocatalysis. These AOPs are specially advantageous in pollution control and waste water treatment because unlike many other technologies, they do not just transfer the pollutant from one phase to another but completely degrade them into innocuous substances such as CO2 and H2O.