Prenatal diagnosis (PND) is one of the most cost effective preventive methods, but it is available only in the large cities of India. Therefore, we initiated a program that offers PND and allows us to determine the prevalence of various mutations. Pregnant females (n = 111,426) were screened for hemoglobinopathies using complete blood count (CBC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). If the female had a hemoglobinopathy, her husband was then tested. If hemoglobinopathies were seen in both partners, a genetic mutation study was performed on the couple. Fetal samples were obtained by either chorionic villus sampling (CVS) in 70.6% or amniocentesis in 29.4%. The study included 282 couples. IVS-I-5 (G > C) was the most common mutation in all castes except in the Sindhis and Lohanas, where the 619 bp deletion was the most common. Prenatal testing was informative in 97.9% of the couples. A significant number of couples (41.0%) underwent PND during their first pregnancy. Seven patients with β-thalassemia (β-thal) trait had normal Hb A2 levels. The Hb A2 and Hb F values varied significantly (p < 0.0001 and 0.0082, respectively) among mutations associated with β-thal. The IVS-I-5, 619 bp deletion, codons 41/42 (-CTTT), codons 8/9 (+G) and IVS-I-1 (G > T or G > A), were present in 81.0% of the couples tested. β-Thalassemia mutation frequency varied among the different castes, underlining the need for evolving a testing strategy that considers the caste system. Targeting antenatal clinics could also prove to be a most cost effective way of preventing hemoglobinopathies.

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The root is the primary sensing organ for potassium (K) and water availability and thus we test the hypothesis that K may influence root architecture and contribute to drought tolerance under moisture stress. Rice seedlings failed to maintained favourable root architecture with low K under water stress and more reduction was observed in root projected area, maximum width, width to depth ratio. High K helps to maintain root top and bottom angle and reduce root steepness under mild water stress, however, high K supply does not warrant higher water productivity. In severe water stress, the steepness was more regulated by water than K availability.

The word communication has its roots in the Latin word communicane, meaning 'to impart' English being a universal language, communicating fluently in English has become essential for ever yone who wishes to communicate well in the academic and professional spheres. Even though the majority of tasks performed by an engineer or scientist are of technical nature, their success depends on the effectiveness with which they assimilate or disseminate technical or formal information. So, it is important for students of science and technology to master over English for their Technical communication. Technical communication is the exchange and transfer of technical and scientific ideas, views and information from one individual or group to another [1]. It includes all the methods, media, network and systems of communication. Technical communication is a set of systems for communicating in a formal and professional manner. It is the process of gathering technical information and presenting it to a targeted audience in a clear, useful, accurate, comprehensive, grammatically correct and understandable form. The term "technical" includes scientific, mechanical, chemical, legal, economic, medical, procedural, or other specialized information [2].

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