New Delhi, July 6 (IANS) A first-of-its-kind mice model with a fully functional human immune system and a human-like gut microbiome has shown promise of mounting specific antibody responses.

To date, researchers have not developed a fully functional human immune system, but only those with a brief lifespan that do not mount efficient immune responses, making them unsuitable for the development of in vivo human immunotherapies, human disease modelling, or human vaccine development.

Developed by scientists at The University of Texas in the US, the new model will overcome limitations of currently available in vivo human models and is a breakthrough for biomedical research and promises new insight into immunotherapy development and disease modelling.

Detailed in the journal Nature Immunology, the new humanised mice, called TruHuX (for truly human, or THX), possess a fully developed and fully functional human immune system, including lymph nodes, germinal centres, thymus human epithelial cells, human T and B lymphocytes, memory B lymphocytes, and plasma cells making highly specific antibody and autoantibodies identical to those of humans.

THX mice mount mature neutralising antibody responses to Salmonella Typhimurium and SARS-CoV-2 virus Spike S1 RBD after vaccination with Salmonella flagellin and the Pfizer Covid-19 mRNA vaccine, respectively.

It is also amenable to developing full-fledged systemic lupus autoimmunity after an injection of pristane — an oil that triggers an inflammatory response.

“THX mice provide a platform for human immune system studies, development of human vaccines, and testing of therapeutics,” said Paolo Casali, Professor at the University of Texas School of Medicine in San Antonio, US.

They do this “by critically leveraging oestrogen activity to support human stem cell and human immune cell differentiation and antibody responses”, he added.

–IANS

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New Delhi, July 6 (IANS) Atal Innovation Mission’s (AIM) Community Innovator Fellows (CIFs) programme is empowering innovators in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, said Dr. Chintan Vaishnav, Mission Director at AIM.

He said this while delivering a keynote address at NITI Aayog marking the celebration of the graduation of its second batch of CIFs on Friday.

Dr. Chintan underscored the programme’s pivotal role in advancing solutions across healthcare, education, agriculture, and financial services, resonating deeply with the ethos of sustainable development.

“We have now established robust institutions that seamlessly integrate business incubation with academia. This well-designed project aspires to be a model of excellence,” Dr. Vaishnav said.

He noted that the Community Innovator initiative “captures the aspirations of youth eager to go beyond traditional boundaries in innovation and startups. It embodies both rigour and relevance, truly inspiring in its mission and impact.”

AIM, through its Atal Community Innovation Centres (ACIC) programme has envisaged serving the unserved/underserved areas of the country, providing support to every grassroots innovator, and working towards accelerating the pathway to reach SDGs 2030.

“These innovators serve as role models not only for their communities but also for society at large. I’m delighted to witness each business prospering — it’s like shaping raw gold into a precious jewel,” said Anurag Pratap Singh, Vice President & CSR Leader at Capgemini India.

Dr. Suresh Reddy, Lead CSR & Director at SRF Foundation, reflected on the impact of social entrepreneurship in addressing community challenges.

–IANS

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New Delhi, July 6 (IANS) Global Capability Centres (GCCs) and startups have emerged as major players in creating jobs in India.

Together, these created about eight crore new jobs in the last five years, said Sumita Dawra, Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment.

Dawra said this at an event held in the national Capital by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Employers’ Federation of India (EFI), citing the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS).

She also revealed the reforms such as decriminalisation of labour laws, and increasing female workforce participation, undertaken by the ministry for ease of doing business.

She noted that reforms such as social security and labour welfare are expected to drive inclusive growth in India.

In addition, “29 labour laws had been codified into four labour laws. A national career service portal is active and data from the Skills Ministry is being integrated”, Dawra said.

Further, she added that India “has about 1 crore gig workers and the gig economy is expected to give employment to about 2.4 crore people by 2030.”

Meanwhile, the government has also constituted a task force to study the impact of Artificial Intelligence on the future of work, the senior official said, calling for more research.

–IANS

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New Delhi, July 6 (IANS) The government has responded to misleading claims regarding recent mobile services tariff hike, saying with three private and one public sector player, the current mobile services market operates through the market forces of demand and supply.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said the rates of telecommunication services are decided by market forces, within the regulatory framework notified by the independent regulator.

“The government does not intervene in the free market decisions as the functionality is under the domain of TRAI and tariffs are under forbearance,” said the regulator.

The TRAI said the telecom service providers (TSPs) have increased the prices of mobile services after more than two years.

“In the last two years, some of the TSPs have invested heavily in rolling out the 5G services across the country. This has resulted into a significant increase in median mobile speed to the level of 100 Mbps and jump in India’s international rank from 111, in October 2022, to 15 today,” the TRAI explained.

While protecting the interests of subscribers, for the orderly growth of the telecommunication sector, which includes investments in latest technologies like 5G, 6G, IoT/ M2M for Industry 4.0 etc., “the financial viability of the sector is important,” said the TRAI.

Before last 10 years, the telecommunication sector was mired in controversies, lack of transparency and therefore, growth of mobile services was stagnant.

“During the last 10 years, due to progressive policies of the government, the rates of telecommunication services be it voice or data, have fallen exponentially,” said the telecom regulatory body.

—IANS

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Chandigarh, July 5 (IANS) To revolutionise education through technology and elevate learning outcomes for children, the Haryana government has decided to introduce smart classrooms in an additional 1,000 government primary schools under the SAMPARK programme, Chief Secretary T.V.S.N. Prasad said on Friday.

In a virtual conference with all the Deputy Commissioners, he said over 6,600 primary schools in Haryana currently benefit from smart classrooms, and this expansion aims to further integrate innovative educational technologies into the primary education system.

Prasad expressed enthusiasm for the initiative, emphasising the state’s commitment to enhancing foundational learning. He highlighted the introduction of smart classrooms marks a significant stride towards providing students with a better education experience.

He also underscored the collaborative effort with the SAMPARK Foundation to achieve a technologically advanced and inclusive education system, directing all Deputy Commissioners to oversee the effective implementation of the SAMPARK programme in their respective districts.

Additional Chief Secretary, School Education, Vineet Garg said the introduction of smart classrooms has already led to a 35 to 40 per cent increase in learning outcomes and micro competencies among students in primary schools. He highlighted the SAMPARK Foundation’s role in providing extensive training to teachers, equipping them with the necessary skills to effectively utilize new technologies.

SAMPARK Foundation President K. Rajeshwar Rao lauded Haryana for becoming the first state in the country in the effective implementation of the NIPUN Bharat Programme. The foundation currently covers 1.25 lakh government schools across eight states.

–IANS

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