Category Archives: Anatomy

Anatomy

The Anatomy of Hope – artist Rita Duffy on her new animation – RTE.ie

Trinity College Artist In Residence,Rita Duffy writes for Culture about her latest project, The Anatomy Of Hope, a stunninganimation featuring original music by Rory Pierce, and dedicatedto the late Art O'Brain- watch it above.

Back in the spring, during the early part of my residency at Trinity and through the initial shock of Covid 19, I made drawings. Images of vulnerable human hearts and lungs appeared and from somewhere the spring flowers floated in through the window to ease the mortal despair - they became memorials to people dying by cell phone.

Through the summer months, the drawings continued; a resilient brain wears a daisy chain crown, we will survive this pandemic and live to tell the tale. Lungs appear wearing west of Ireland shawls, like gossiping women.

Finally, as we approach the darkness of winter, challenged by the hardest part of our collective struggle. I've arrived at a point where the drawings are segueing one into another, hope and fear colliding. Using this concept and adding to the visual material, I began the 'animated drawing process.

I reach back to the ageless rituals of Bridgit, the cloak that gathers us in, safe in its shelter, wishing trees and holy wells and cures, dark shadowy places filled with magic and hope.

The heart is pulsing, pumping out through vessels and hedgerow tangle, colour creeps across the page, covid blackberries sprouting, lungs inhaling. Teeth clench and bare, thorny briars encroach, a talisman to keep us safe and vaccine tied to a branch as amulet. Discarded blue gloves tumble like autumn leaves, a language of fingers and spring flowers promising to carry us through, imaging ourselves better.

The robust heartfelt kindness, experienced in Irish communities reassures me, all will be well. Ourselves alone, the ghost of a memory flits through my head. Superstitious ribbons and St Bridget's red rags impaled on thorns, - suffering on, offering it up, enduring at all costs - doing the right thing. Amulets threaded with nostalgia plead for a better future, a borderless place both snug and wide open a doorway never needing to be closed.

I want to imagine not the threat of freedom or its tentative, grasping fragility, but the concrete thrill of borderlessness.

And once again I find myself inspired by the African American struggle, and the words of James Baldwin:Love takes off the masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within.'

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The Anatomy of Hope - artist Rita Duffy on her new animation - RTE.ie

Anatomy

Grey’s Anatomy: 10 Major Flaws Of The Show That Fans Chose To Ignore – Screen Rant

While there are several things that haven't aged well on the show, fans have also noticed several flaws they overlooked the first time.

Other medical dramas may come and go, but not ABCs Greys Anatomy, arguably the most successful show of its kind in tv history. There's a reason why it has become one of thelongest-running showson TVas the show has an ability to continuously present compelling stories and craft characters fans cant help but fall in love with.

RELATED: 10 Medical Dramas That Are Better Than Grey's Anatomy

Throughout its run, though, the show has also met criticism. And while some of these are relatively minor issues, fans have also discovered that there are major flaws with this medical drama that everyone has let them get away with.

The shows lead star herself, Ellen Pompeo, pointed this out in a recent interview. Specifically, she took issue with Merediths apparent desperation to cling to Derek as evidenced by one of Merediths most dramatic lines.

[...] That, Pick me, choose me, love me [line]; I was like, Why am I begging a man to love me? the actress told Variety. To me, thats not empowering. Behind the scenes, Pompeo also found herself to be earning less than Dempsey. While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, the actress revealed she tried to ask for more. They wouldn't give it to me.

Sure, it is understandable for tv dramas to raise the stakes and make us hold our breath from time to time. However, one could argue that the show took things too far when it presented the storyline involving Izzie and her patient Denny.

Granted, it was hard not to root for Denny. However, a storyline wherein a medical intern readily goes against medical ethics just comes across as far-fetched. Heigls performance may have been compelling but one cant help but question the competency and reliability of all the doctors on the show.

When fans first meet George, hes a shy and nervous medical intern who freezes up during his first surgical procedure, earning him the nickname 007. At some point, the viewers also come to realize that OMalley has a serious crush on Meredith and that hes always hoped she would feel the same way.

RELATED: Grey's Anatomy: 5 Of George's Sweetest Moments (& 5 Most Heartbreaking)

To some, this storyline may look cute. But considering all of Merediths other romances, it did feel like they were wasting George's character development. Fans always wished that the character could have had more solo storylines so he had time to shine prior to his seriously traumatic death.

Meredith and Derek have a love story that endures throughout several seasons of the show. Fans see them date. They watch them fight. And, eventually, they witness them get married. Their relationship is meant to be a compelling love story. However, in hindsight, many fans believe there are someproblematic tendencies.

For starters, the power relations between Derek and Meredith has been a topic of conversation for a while now, especially since he was her boss and she was an intern. Even Krista Vernoff believes their relationship wouldn't have lasted if their love story unfolded the way it did

In the season 10 episode entitled "Throwing It All Away," Arizona deals with a young patient with a failing liver. However, when she goes to explain the condition, Arizona mistakenly refers to it as the psoriasis of the liver. Psoriasis happens to be a skin condition characterized by bumpy red patches that are covered by white scales. It can appear on ones scalp, knees, lower back and elbows. On the other hand, cirrhosis refers to the scarring of ones liver and loss of liver function. This is, most likely, what Arizona was referring to.

Although her one true love has always been Derek, Meredith has also dated several other men over the years. Following Dereks death, the show faced the tricky situation of introducing a man into her life. For Pompeo, the timing of it all was too soon.

RELATED: Grey's Anatomy: Meredith's 5 Best Pieces Of Advice (& Her 5 Worst)

But the truth is, the ink wasn't even dry on his exit papers before they rushed in a new guy, the actress told The Hollywood Reporter. That new guy came in the form of Nathan Riggs. Their relationship was heartwarming but it was also awkward. They didnt love the storyline, so that ended.

Throughout the shows run, fans have seen a lot of characters hook up at some point and sometimes, these relationships end up taking over most of the storyline. While one understands that relationships are vital to a drama like this,the show does have a tendency to force characters unnecessarily.

For instance, a lot of fans cringed when Addison and Alex Karev hooked up. Granted, the relationship did not last but one wonders why it had to happen in the first place. Wasnt it enough that Addison was already in a tight situation because of Derek and Mark?

April Kepner is a fearless doctor who suffers from one life-threatening allergy, peanuts (see: "Unbreak My Heart"). However, in the season 14 episode entitled "Judgement Day," a whole batch of cookies with cannabis got distributed among various hospital staff.

In the end, several doctors get high, including Arizona, Avery, Maggie, Alex, Bailey and yes, April. Interestingly, Aprils world gets a little trippy, along with the rest of the affected staff. If she was allergic to peanuts though, her reaction to the cookie would be worse since they are made with peanut butter.

Over the years, fans have seen Merediths dedication to the job. She would do just about anything to save a patient. And when she encounters a young girl with cancer, her heart simply breaks, especially after learning that her immigrant father didnt have proper healthcare to support her treatment.

And so, Meredith decides to commit insurance fraud by claiming that it was her daughter that underwent the procedure instead, allowing the girls treatment to be covered. Some may see this course of action as heroic but there could have been other way to help a critical patient without jeopardizing her career.

Since, the show started, Meredith has been involved in more life-threatening incidents than anyone can count. She ended up holding a bomb inside a patients stomach to keep it from detonating. She nearly drowns after falling into the pier, she's involved in a hospital shooting and she also ends up in a plane crash. It seems that Meredith has been thrown into harms way too much and its about time that it stops.

NEXT: Grey's Anatomy: The First & Last Line For Each Character Who Has Left The Show

Next Breaking Bad & 9 Other TV Shows That Boosted Tourism For Their Locations

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Grey's Anatomy: 10 Major Flaws Of The Show That Fans Chose To Ignore - Screen Rant

Anatomy

2021 IPPE: Anatomy of an outbreak a researcher’s take on cases of H2N2 avian influenza from a live bird market – The Poultry Site

Speaking at the 2021 International Poultry Science Forum, researcher Jongseo Mo from the Southeast Poultry Research Lab explained how different poultry species at live bird markets (LBMs) could serve as reservoirs of avian influenza.

His research, which focuses on the fluctuations of bird flu viruses at these markets in the north-eastern United States, found that the viruses quickly adapted to infect different poultry species. He observed that over the course of a year, one bird flu virus, H2N2/Ck/NY/19, became more transmissible due to a single genetic mutation. Infected Guinea fowl and Pekin ducks shed significant amounts of the virus for an extended period increasing the likelihood of new bird flu infections.

Mos results showed that bird flu viruses with this mutation had the ability to adapt to a new species reservoir. The H2N2 virus could exploit the live bird markets and circulate among multiple bird species, amplifying and sustaining the infection. He stressed that animal health authorities should increase disease surveillance in live bird markets. This bird flu outbreak was low-pathogenic and produced no mortalities the next one might not.

Bird flu, like other avian diseases, can be transmitted through direct contact. For most bird flu outbreaks, a sick bird usually shares space with a healthy one and the disease quickly spreads. This is why poultry farmers are encouraged to limit their birds contact with other flocks and implement biosecurity measures.

LBMs are uniquely challenging from a biosecurity and disease management perspective. Though the birds might be caged while they are in the market setting, there is still a high probability of contact between flocks and between species. People who go to the markets will often walk through other areas or accidentally step in bird faeces before entering the market space, introducing new pathogens to the environment. According to Jongseo Mo, the markets serve as a human-made reservoir for avian diseases. They could have serious animal and public health consequences if they arent properly managed.

Mo wanted to examine the pathogenicity, infectivity and transmissibility of two strains of H2N2 bird flu that he isolated from a live market in New York in 2018 and 2019. He specifically wanted to determine if the virus was changing and if it had the ability to adapt to new species chickens, Guinea fowl, and Pekin ducks.

The two isolated viruses, H2N2 Ck/NY/18 and H2N2 Ck/NY/19, were both low-pathogenic and collected from the three different bird species. However, Mo noted that the Ck/NY/19 isolate had NA stalk deletion in its genome. He hypothesised that this deletion would increase the virus transmissibility in poultry and waterfowl since this association had been observed in other studies.

He designed an experiment with three separate inoculation doses with the isolated viruses. He exposed the three bird species to a low, medium and high virus load, and collected samples to see how the virus was shed and transmitted between the bird species.

His results showed that the H2N2 Ck/NY/18 virus could infect all three bird species if they were exposed to high doses. In terms of shedding and transmission, Guinea fowl shed more virus than chickens. Birds exposed to low and medium doses of the virus did not transmit the infection.

However, birds inoculated with the H2N2 Ck/NY/19 virus at medium and high doses showed higher infectivity and shed the virus for a longer period. This meant that the virus could be transmitted to contact birds something that was not observed in birds inoculated with the Ck/NY/18 strain. Mo noted that Guinea fowl shed the most virus, with Pekin ducks and chickens shedding less respectively.

Mos research suggests that the NA stalk deletion seen in the Ck/NY/19 strain allowed the virus to proliferate quickly, making it more infective and transmissible as a result. The deletion also allowed the virus to replicate in two new bird species, ensuring that the virus remained active in its environment.

Going forward, Mo suggests collecting routine cloacal and oropharyngeal samples from birds at LBMs. If researchers can identify the NA stalk deletion in other bird flu viruses, they could take precautionary measures to prevent the spread of disease.

The International Poultry Science Forum ran on 25 and 26 January as part of the virtual IPPE Conference. Click here for more information about the event.

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2021 IPPE: Anatomy of an outbreak a researcher's take on cases of H2N2 avian influenza from a live bird market - The Poultry Site

Anatomy

LSD Lets The Brain ‘Free Itself’ From Divisions Dictated by Anatomy, Scientists Find – ScienceAlert

Where does the mind 'meet' the brain? While there's no shortage of research into the effects of psychedelics, drugs like LSD still have much to teach us about the way the brain operates and can shine a light on the mysterious interface between consciousness and neural physiology, research suggests.

In a new study investigating the effects of LSD on volunteers, scientists found that the psychedelic enables the brain to function in a way beyond what anatomy usually dictates, by altering states of dynamic integration and segregation in the human brain.

"The psychedelic compound LSD induces a profoundly altered state of consciousness," explains first author and neuroscience researcher Andrea Luppi from the University of Cambridge.

"Combining pharmacological interventions with non-invasive brain imaging techniques such as functional MRI (fMRI) can provide insight into normal and abnormal brain function."

The new research falls within the study of dynamic functional connectivity the theory that brain phenomena demonstrate states of functional connectivity that change over time, much in the same way that our stream of consciousness is dynamic and always flowing.

As this happens, and the human brain processes information, it has to integrate that information into an amalgamated form of understanding but at the same time segregate information as well, keeping distinct sensory streams separate from one another, so that they can be handled by particular neural systems.

This distinction the dynamics of brain integration and segregation is something that gets affected by psychedelic drugs, and with the advent of brain imaging technology, we can observe what happens when our regular functional connectivity gets disrupted.

In the study, a group of 20 healthy volunteers underwent brain scans in two separate sessions, a fortnight apart. In one of the sessions, the participants took a placebo before entering the fMRI scanner, while in the other slot, they were given an active dose of LSD.

In comparing the results from the two sessions, the researchers found that LSD untethers functional connectivity from the constraints of structural connectivity, while simultaneously altering the way that the brain handles the balancing act between integration and segregation of information.

"Our main finding is that the effects of LSD on brain function and subjective experience are not uniform in time," Luppi says.

"In particular, the well-known feeling of 'ego dissolution' induced by LSD correlates with reorganisation of brain networks during a state of high global integration."

In effect, the drug's state of altered consciousness could be seen as an abnormal increase in the functional complexity of the brain with the data showing moments where the brain revealed predominantly segregated patterns of functional connectivity.

In other words, the 'ego dissolution' of a psychedelic trip might be the subjective experience of your brain cranking up its segregation dynamics, decoupling the brain's structure from its functioning meaning your capacity to integrate and amalgamate separate streams of information into a unified whole becomes diminished.

"Thus, LSD appears to induce especially complex patterns of functional connectivity (FC) by inducing additional decoupling of FC from the underlying structural connectome, precisely during those times when structural-functional coupling is already at its lowest," the authors explain in their paper.

"Due to the effects of LSD, the brain is free to explore a variety of functional connectivity patterns that go beyond those dictated by anatomy presumably resulting in the unusual beliefs and experiences reported during the psychedelic state."

The findings are reported in NeuroImage.

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LSD Lets The Brain 'Free Itself' From Divisions Dictated by Anatomy, Scientists Find - ScienceAlert

Anatomy

Are you studying human anatomy? Are you not terrified that there’s bones inside you, let alone horrified by the concept of organs? – Strand

Hello! I assume you opened this article because you fit into one or more of these categories:

If youre studying anatomy and dont fit into the last two, good on you, youre probably the bravest person in the entire world.

Okay so, first off, I have a silly little disease called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. Its silly because all my joints just go wooooo all the time. Basically, I spend a lot of time in medical settings, but still remain willfully ignorant to how anything in the body works other than joints, and even thats iffy. I just know mine are fucked up.

I dont feel like I have organs. Like, I know I do, but I dont ever think about it and if you remind me, Ill plug my ears and say, I cant hear you hahhaha. I just cannot comprehend how your organs are inside you your whole life (or, even worse, ARE YOU), but you never really have a relationship with them. Basically, Im saying like if you took my kidneys and put it in one of those police line ups with five other peoples kidneys, I wouldnt be able to choose which one is mine, which is pretty fucked up since its inside you forever, unless you get a kidney transplant. I should have picked a different organ for this analogy, but that would require me to think longer about which organs exist, and I refuse to do that.

So, I have the most issues with my neck, and have had lots of x-rays etc. before. But until the other day, I never looked at how the neck joints are actually supposed to move, so I watched this horrifying video of a skinless organ bone man, and boy was I confused. Honestly, I thought the neck joints went kind of like this:

But it looks like this???????

I guess I should have figured that out using logic and reason, but Im not Aristotle and I will not be tricked into reading something called The Organon.

Here is my interpretation of skinless organ bone man, since I dont want to get sued by sickos (people who made the skinless organ bone man videos).

Basically, I have some questions Id like you to answer for me.

Feel free to contact me at candyklaine@hotmail.com

*Yes, I did get an A in school biology, but I did it by separating it from reality using my brain (only good organ).

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Are you studying human anatomy? Are you not terrified that there's bones inside you, let alone horrified by the concept of organs? - Strand

Anatomy

‘Grey’s Anatomy’ and ‘Private Practice’ Crossovers Stemmed From This 1 Crisis Off-Screen – Showbiz Cheat Sheet

Fans who watchGreys Anatomyknow that the long-running medical drama is famous for its epic crossover events. First, the crossovers happened with characters from its first spinoff,Private Practice, but now they occur withStation 19. However, what viewers probably dont know is that these events only began because of this one real-life crisis during the filming ofGreys AnatomyandPrivate Practice in 2007.

In the early 2000s,Greys Anatomybecame a pop culture phenomenon. To capitalize on its success, ABC pursued a spinoff featuring Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh). To test out the new series, ABC aired a two-hour special,Greys Anatomy, which aired on May 3, 2007.

The backdoor pilot featured Addison leaving Seattle Grace Hospital to visit friends in Los Angeles, California. While visiting Naomi (Audra McDonald) and Sam Bennett, she ends up performing surgery. Naomi is a fertility specialist, while Sam practices internal medicine. They both own and work at the Oceanside Wellness Group. Their private practice focuses on a whole-body approach to medicine.

Addison fell in love with the small practice and the beachside life that her friends lived in LA. Instead of returning toGreys Anatomy, Addison decided she needed a change in her life. She became the new OB/GYN at Oceanside Wellness and the star of the spinoff medical series,Private Practice. The backdoor pilot episodes were part ofGreys AnatomySeason 3. They garnished so many viewers that the spinoff became part of the fall lineup on ABC in 2003.

Private Practicebegan season 1 in the fall of 2007 with nine episodes airing. However, theWriters Guild Strike of 2007/2008caused a delay in the remaining episodes for the season. The spinoff series ended with 13 episodes ordered but never produced.

The strike lasted from Nov. 5, 2007, to Feb. 12, 2008. All 12,000 film and television screenwriters of the American labor unions went on strike to demand an increase in funding for the writers.

RELATED: Greys Anatomy: Ellen Pompeo Hints at the Shows Ending Im Not Trying to Stay on the Show Forever

After the strike, ABC decided that Addison should return toGreys Anatomysince there were no furtherPrivate Practice episodesfor her to return to. She returned for only one episode, but it was so successful that the idea of a large-scale crossover event was born.

Both creative forces behindGreys AnatomyandPrivate Practicefelt that a crossover was something they wanted to do. The event was much larger than only Addison returning to the show. The crossover included stars from both shows.

Addisons brother was rushed to Seattle Grace hospital because of parasites in his brain. Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey) performed the successful procedure that saved his life. Meanwhile, Addison treats one of Dereks patients. Both Sam and Naomi were also included in the crossover storylines.

Following the crossover events success,Greys AnatomyandPrivate Practiceproduced five more similar events. WhenStation 19becameGreys Anatomysnext spinoff, they did the same thing with the new series.

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'Grey's Anatomy' and 'Private Practice' Crossovers Stemmed From This 1 Crisis Off-Screen - Showbiz Cheat Sheet

Anatomy

Katherine Heigl Kids: Does the ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Star Have Children? – Distractify

Katherine Heigl became a household name whenGreys Anatomy took over the airwaves in 2005, but after she was blacklisted in Hollywood for being "difficult" to work with, the 27 Dresses star became more infamous than famous.

Rather than try to fight it, Katherine decided to step back from the limelight and focus on herself and growing her family.

Given all the scrutiny she got in the early years of her career, Katherine decided to remain pretty private when it came to her family life. But in recent years, shes started to break her silence around her husband, two daughters, and son.

So, who are Katherine Heigl's kids? Keep reading.

Katherine met singer-songwriter Josh Kelley met in 2005 and the couple has been inseparable ever since. Katherine and Josh decided to make it official in Park City, Utah in 2007, coincidently around the time when Katherine was also filming 27 Dresses,a movie centered around weddings.

Two years later, Katherine and Josh adopted their first daughter, Naleigh, from South Korea. Katherines sister, Meg, was also adopted from Korea, and growing up, Katherine always planned on adopting as well.

I wanted my own family to resemble the one I came from, so I always knew I wanted to adopt from Korea, she told Scholastic.

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Adopting a child was so important to her that Katherine talked to Josh about her plans even before the couple got engaged. Not everybody feels the way I do about adoption, she told InStyle. Luckily, Josh did.

Soon after Naleighs arrival, the couple started looking into adopting a second child, also from Korea. Unfortunately, by that time, the laws to adopt from Korea had become a lot stricter, so Katherine and Josh looked to adopt within the U.S.

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The wait was short and in April 2012, the couple had adopted newborn Adelaide, their second daughter.

Katherine describes Adelaide as a fierce and bossy lover of animals, her sister, her cousin and her little brother. Katherine also credits Adelaide for bringing an abundance of joy, laughter, love, and purpose to her life.

After two successful adoptions, Katherine and Josh were surprised to discover that they were pregnant in 2016.

Katherine told People that although becoming pregnant was never a part of the plan, Im so grateful that I did. I think that if it hadnt been a surprise, Im not sure I would have done it.

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Although her pregnancy with baby Joshua was quite easy, two weeks before her due date Katherine and Josh found out that Joshua Jr. was breech and had to schedule a last-minute cesarean section in Dec. 2016.

Thankfully, the birth took place without any further complications. Afterward, Katherine opened up about the difference between giving birth to her biological son compared to the experience of meeting her daughters.

I actually prefer the adoption way because I wasnt subject to hormones, she said of the emotional highs and lows she experienced right after giving birth.

But she said the hormonal swings were the only difference in her raising her children. The moment you hold your child, youre wholly in love, she said. And youll do anything to protect them and shelter them.

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Katherine Heigl Kids: Does the 'Grey's Anatomy' Star Have Children? - Distractify

Anatomy

Anatomy of . . . gymnast Nia Dennis | Sport | The Sunday Times – The Times

A video of the UCLA gymnasts floor routine garnered more than 10 million views on social media last week and praise from the likes of world champion Simone Biles and Michelle Obama by Rebecca Myers

FactfileAge 21Height 5ft 1inTeam UCLA BruinsHighest score 9.975Viral video views 26 million

EarThe routine was set to a soundtrack of upbeat music by black artists and musicians, including Beyonc, Kendrick Lamar, and Missy Elliott, the latter of whom praised it on Twitter. The artists were chosen by Dennis for their impact on black culture. Last year, another of her routines also went viral, set to a medley of Beyonc songs. College gymnasts have greater freedom than Olympic athletes to express themselves and often use

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Anatomy of . . . gymnast Nia Dennis | Sport | The Sunday Times - The Times

Anatomy

Bacteria: Anatomy and Functioning – The Great Courses Daily News

By Barry C. Fox, M.D., University of WisconsinBacteria are single-cell organisms that contain the most essential components to survive and reproduce. (Image: kridipol poolket/Shutterstock)What Is Bacterium?

The term bacterium was invented in the 19th century by a German biologist, Ferdinand Cohn, based on the Greek word bakterion, meaning small rod. However, there are three shapes of bacteriarods, spirals, and spheres.

Bacteria are extremely small, usually less than two microns in size, and are found everywhere. Bacteria are single-celled organisms that contain the barest essential components for staying alive and reproducing chromosome, ribosomes, cytoplasm, and an outer membrane.

Bacteria are a simple form of life known as prokaryotes. In the center is a genetic code material known as deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, which is bundled into a central structure known as a chromosome.

The DNA encodes for a specific sequence of building blocks known as amino acids, and these amino acids are combined into proteins at the ribosomal structure. Proteins are subsequently used to control cellular function. The internal fluid, otherwise known as cytoplasm, is surrounded by an outer membrane, and prokaryotic bacteria hence resemble a water balloon filled with bacteria.

Microorganisms that are more complex than the prokaryotic bacteria contain eukaryotic cells that have a nucleus that contains multiple strands of DNA organized into multiple chromosomes. They also have more complex internal structures such as mitochondria, which produce internal energy.

Eukaryotic cells utilize more formal membrane structures, such as a nucleolar membrane, to contain DNA. The simplest one-cell eukaryote is a protozoan called a paramecium. Other examples of multicellular eukaryotes are fungi, plants, and animals.

This is a transcript from the video series An Introduction to Infectious Diseases. Watch it now on The Great Courses Plus.

Prokaryotic bacterial reproduction is under the control of the DNA in the chromosome. Bacteria multiply rapidly by a process known as binary fission, but the repeat replication of DNA is prone to errors.

As a result, it can result in genetic mutations that can either lead to a survival advantage or disadvantage. For example, a germ might develop resistance to an antibiotic that is trying to kill it, or the mutation can be unfavorable and lead to the destruction and death of the germ.

DNA replication is controlled by an important enzyme known as DNA polymerase. DNA polymerase is a prime antibiotic target since the goal is to halt DNA replication.

Some DNA may not be in the center of the cell, but located in the cytoplasm, forming circles of DNA known as plasmids. Plasmid DNA may also be transferred from one bacterium to another through various mechanisms when bacteria touch one another.

Conjugation is one of these means. When this happens, genetic characteristics among bacteria are shared. This is important in the development of bacteria that are resistant to multiple antibiotics, or for other evolutionary traits that support their survival.

Learn more about notorious diseases like bubonic plague, malaria, and polio.

The synthesis of cellular proteins such as enzymes or toxins is under the control of DNA. It acts through the ribosomes, which combine amino acid building blocks in the cytoplasm. The ribosome is also an excellent target for antibiotics because it can interfere with protein synthesis.

Enzymes play a vital role and are responsible for controlling all the ongoing work in a cell. They are chemical reaction machines, which either break molecules apart or put them together.

Another function of an enzyme is to link amino acid building blocks together to form a protein. A bacterium may have over 1000 different types of enzymes floating around in its cytoplasm at any time.

For bacteria to interact, there are special structures called fimbriae and pili on the surface that can help them attach to other bacteria or even to human cells.

These interactions can be divided into three general categories. First, some germs are good bacteria and help humans directly, such as assisting in food digestion. There are some germs that are known as commensal bacteria. They coexist with other bacteria without causing any harm to humans. And finally, some bacteria are harmful and are known as pathogenic.

Learn more about respiratory and brain infections.

Bacteria can be beneficial as well as harmful for human beings. However, there are some good bacteria that help humans directly.

One of the main jobs of the bacteria in the intestines is to break down nutrients, such as sugars and fats, which humans otherwise cannot digest. Most of these gut bacteria do not like the oxygen in the air and are known as anaerobes.

Besides aiding in digestion, gut bacteria also synthesize certain vitamins and aid the immune system. Specifically, Escherichia coli or E. coli is a common bacterium in the intestine. Unlike others, this germ happens to like oxygen, so its known as an aerobic bacterium. It synthesizes vitamin K, which is essential for normal blood clotting. W

hen patients receive antibiotics, the antibiotics can kill the good E. coli as innocent bystanders and alter clotting function.

Bacteria are a simple form of life known as prokaryotes. The term bacterium was invented in the 19th century by a German biologist, Ferdinand Cohn, based on the Greek word bakterion, meaning small rod.

Deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA is a genetic code material that is present in the center of prokaryotic bacteria, which is bundled into a central structure known as a chromosome.

One of the main jobs of the bacteria in the intestines is to break down nutrients, such as sugars and fats, which humans otherwise cannot digest.

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Bacteria: Anatomy and Functioning - The Great Courses Daily News

Anatomy

Understanding the Anatomy of India’s High Fiscal Deficit – The Wire

Extraordinary times require extraordinary policy responses. Against the backdrop of macroeconomic uncertainty in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has presented a significant fiscal deficit number which went upto 9.5% in FY21 from a position of strength. Simultaneously, commencing a fiscal consolidation path to execute an excessive deficit procedure in the Union Budget 2012-22 to bring down the excess deficit of 9.5% of GDP in FY21 to 4.5% by FY26 is inevitable. However, this narrative of deficit is good in the time of a pandemic is welcome.

The fiscal consolidation through expenditure compression rather than increased tax buoyancy affects the quality of fiscal consolidation. From that perspective, allowing the fiscal deficit to rise above the threshold level of 3% of GDP, without significant expenditure compression, is welcome. However, the anatomy of the determinants of borrowings decomposed by revenue uncertainties, economic stimulus-related spending, the narrowing of denominator GDP, lowering of rates of interest, etc. would be interesting to understand with precision which components have exactly contributed to the aggregate level of high deficits.

The cleaning up of deficit incurred from off-budget liabilities through public sector undertakings is still a matter of concern. Such borrowings do not figure in the concept of fiscal deficit. However, the Union Budget 2021-22 has not introduced the deficit termed as Public Sector Borrowing Requirement (PSBR), integrating the borrowings incurred through public sector enterprises. The details of extra borrowings are kept in an Annexure in the Union Budget document.

The new fiscal rules

The new Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (Amendment) is tabled in the parliament today. The existing fiscal rules have been amended to incorporate the revised threshold of deficit to GDP. This is the third time the FRBM has been amended in India. As per the second amendment, the revenue balance was eliminated and clauses about revenue balance were incorporated in the Financial Bill to move away from the golden (fiscal) rule of zero revenue deficits.

Also read: Snapshot: Budget 2021 and Key Sector Allocation in Seven Charts

Though there was a debate regarding the choice of deficit whether revenue deficit, fiscal deficit or primary deficit was to be the operational deficit parameter in India in the FRBM Committee Report with a dissent note from Arvind Subramanian favouring the primary deficit (fiscal deficit minus interest payments), the Union Budget 2021-22 reiterated that fiscal deficit is still the operational concept of deficit in India. However, primary deficit is useful to understand the current fiscal stance without the legacy of past interest payments (Table 1).

Table 1. Levels of Deficit

Source: Government of India (2021), Union Budget 2021-22 documents

The enhancement of budget transparency with regard to deficit numbers, presented in the 2021-22 Union Budget, is welcome. The Food Corporation of Indias borrowing from the National Small Savings Funds will be stopped to bring in budget transparency. When FY21 fiscal deficit has reached 9.5%, the government envisions to borrow another Rs 80,000 crore in the next two months. For FY22, the fiscal deficit is pegged at 6.8% of GDP. The gross market borrowing will be Rs 12 lakh crore, which is 68.9% of total borrowings. The other sources of financing like National Small Savings Fund constitutes around 26% (Table 2).

Table 2. Sources of Financing Fiscal Deficit (Rs crore)

Source: Government of India (2021), Union Budget 2021-22 documents

Mini budgets in continuum for economic stimulus

In the Union Budget, creating fiscal space for continuous support to ongoing series of economic stimulus packages was a matter of concern. In the regime of revenue uncertainties, the ambitious asset monetisation programme announced in the Union Budget to generate revenue proceeds need a supporting regulatory framework.

In the Union Budget 2021-22. the economic stimulus is announced not as a macroeconomic stimulus to revive the demand by providing huge cash transfers or a universal basic income (UBI). The concern was that if the peoples propensity to save is greater than spending in the time of a pandemic, dropping helicopter money or a UBI in the hands of the people cannot lead to required demand stimulation. The statistics shows that precautionary savings by the private sector are on the rise during COVID-19. Instead of massive cash transfers, the Union Budget has provided targeted economic stimulus, especially to capital infrastructure and the public health sector. The total size of the budget for FY21 has increased to Rs 34.50 lakh crore. In FY22, total expenditure is pegged at Rs 35 lakh crore.

The emphasis on capital infrastructure spending for economic revival by increasing the capital expenditure for FY2021-22 by 34.5% to Rs 5.5 lakh crore is welcome. The estimates of capital expenditure for FY21 have been increased to Rs 4.39 lakh crore, as against the budgeted Rs 4.12 lakh crore. However, as percentage of GDP, the capital expenditure as share of GDP is still below 2%. The financing details of the other capital infrastructure projects announced in the budget through PPP models need further clarity.

The decision on intergovernmental fiscal transfers

The finance minister has announced a new centrally sponsored scheme (CSS) for enhancing public health infrastructure the PM Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat Yojana with an outlay of Rs 64,180 crore over the next six years. This CSS will be in addition to the governments existing National Health Mission. The focus of a new CSS in the health sector will be on three areas preventive, curative and well-being.

Also read: Union Budget 2021: Election-Bound States Get Multi-Crore Infra Allocations

However, the finance minister has also announced a plausible convergence of CSS, as recommended by the Fifteenth Finance Commission report, which is tabled in the parliament today. This move will shift the composition of intergovernmental fiscal transfers from conditional grants to tax-transfer formula-based unconditional transfers (which is 41% of tax pool as recommended by the Fifteenth Finance Commission). The unconditional transfers provide flexibility to state governments to prioritise their spending, rather than designing top down programmes. However, designing a new public health infrastructure-related CSS can affect the fiscal autonomy of the states in dealing with the issues of the health sector, unless it is judiciously rolled out within the contours of cooperative federalism.

Union Budget nudging the calculus of consent

Finally, the emphasis on state-level public infrastructure investment in the Union Budget, including the states like Kerala and West Bengal, invokes the calculus of voting behaviour. Does democracy determine public expenditure decisions? The Union Budget 2021-22 can answer this in the affirmative only in the forthcoming subnational elections.

Economists globally have analysed empirically whether positive public policy decisions by the dominant party in power or the economics of ethno-fragmentation and religion matter more for a median voter to choose their government. If it is the former, that the calculus of consent favours the party in power, then the Union Budget 2021-22 could effectively signal the benefits.

Lekha Chakraborty is Professor, NIPFP and Research Associate of Levy Economics Institute of Bard College, New York.

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Understanding the Anatomy of India's High Fiscal Deficit - The Wire