http://nopr.niscpr.res.in/handle/123456789/60409 2026-10-09T17:33:33Z http://nopr.niscpr.res.in/handle/123456789/60419 Title: Prediction of wave reflection for quarter circle breakwaters using soft computing techniques Authors: Ramesh, N; Bhaskaran, S; Rao, Subba Abstract: The modified form of the semi-circular breakwater is called Quarter-Circle Breakwater (QBW). It consists of a quartercircular surface facing incident waves, a horizontal bottom, a rear wall, and is built on a rubble mound foundation. In general, QCB may be constructed as emerged, with and without perforations that may be on one side or either side based on the coastal designer. These perforations dissipate the energy due to the formation of eddies and turbulence created inside the hollow chamber. In the present study, experimental data obtained from Binumol, 2017 are fed as input to both the models. This data is used to predict the reflection coefficient of QBW by adopting the ANN system approach. The reliability of the Artificial Neural Network (ANN) approach is done with statistical parameters, namely Model Performance Analysis (MPA) viz., Correlation Coefficient (CC), Root Mean Square Error (RMSE), Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency (NSE), and Scatter Index (SI). The results of the MPA indicate that the ANN is suited for predicting the reflection coefficient of QBW. Page(s): 511-516 2022-09-01T00:00:00Z http://nopr.niscpr.res.in/handle/123456789/60418 Title: Variation of biogenic sulphur compounds in the estuarine and coastal waters of Goa, West coast of India Authors: Borker, S G; Shenoy, D M; Bepari, K F; Kurian, S; Uskaikar, H Abstract: Dimethylsulphide (DMS) originates predominantly from dimethylsulphoniopropionate (DMSP), a metabolite produced by phytoplankton. Through its contribution to the production of new aerosols and cloud condensation nuclei, a high concentration of DMS has the potential to influence the radiation budget of the earth. Estuaries and coastal regions being dynamic may produce significantly high concentrations of DMS and DMSP. The present study aimed to investigate the spatial variation of DMS, its precursor total dimethylsulphoniopropionate (DMSPt), and its sink total dimethylsulphoxide (DMSOt) at 7 estuarine locations in 4 rivers and a coastal station in Goa during the North East Monsoon (NEM). Generally, higher concentrations of DMS and DMSPt were observed at the near mouth stations and the coastal station compared to upstream stations. Though a positive correlation was observed between salinity and DMSPt, it was not significant, indicating the involvement of other factors influencing DMSP and DMS concentrations. Diatoms were the most abundant group accounting for > 90 % of the phytoplankton. However, higher fractions of dinoflagellates, nano- and picoplankton probably contributed to the DMSPt, DMS and DMSOt production at the coastal and near mouth stations. As the wind speeds were low, DMS flux was governed by surface DMS concentrations and varied between 0.07 and 2.11 μmoles S m-2 D-1 with an average of 0.92±0.80 μmoles S m-2 D-1. In comparison to DMSPt and DMS, a relatively higher concentration of DMSOt was observed in the study area. While the high DMSOt concentration at the estuarine mouths may be attributed to the photo- or biological oxidation of DMS, those in the upper reaches point to an unknown source and warrants further investigation. Page(s): 517-528 2022-09-01T00:00:00Z http://nopr.niscpr.res.in/handle/123456789/60417 Title: Screening and molecular identification of marine sponges with cytotoxic activities, collected from Gulf of Mannar, Indian Ocean Authors: Merlin, T S; Umar, M; Dhaneesha, M; Joseph, V; Sajeevan, T P Abstract: The marine environment, a rich source of biological and chemical diversity, offers tremendous scope for discovering novel metabolites with pharmacological activities. Marine invertebrates, especially sponges, have gained more attention in drug discovery programmes since they exhibit unique metabolic and physiological capabilities and an extraordinarily symbiotic association with diverse bacterial communities. The present study focuses on screening the cytotoxic activity of the methanolic extracts of sponges against the Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) cell line, NCI-H460. In the bioactivity screening, two sponges (IOS-11 and IOS-12) were found with potent cytotoxic activity. The sponge IOS-12 showed almost complete cell growth inhibition (99 %) at 50 μg/ml and 80 % inhibition at 5 μg/ml; whereas IOS-11 showed cell growth inhibition of 96 % and 77 % at 50 μg/ml and at 5 μg/ml, respectively. Amplification of the mitochondrial cytochrome C oxidase subunit I (COI) and subsequent nucleotide analysis enabled the identification of sponge samples, IOS-11 and IOS-12, as Rhabdastrella globostellata and Halichondria sp., respectively. The study concludes that the two marine sponges, Rhabdastrella globostellata and Halichondria sp., possess excellent cytotoxic activities and could be considered good candidates for the isolation of anticancer compounds with biomedical applications. The isolation, purification and structural elucidation of the lead molecules from these sponges are ongoing studies, which might yield potential new compounds with promising cytotoxic activities. Page(s): 529-535 2022-09-01T00:00:00Z http://nopr.niscpr.res.in/handle/123456789/60416 Title: High occurrence of Jellyfish (Catostylus perezi, Ranson 1945) in proximity to industrial development, Gulf of Kutch/ Kachchh, India Authors: Behera, D P; Thirumaran, G; Sahu, B K; Das, R R Abstract: Here, the mass occurrence of Jellyfish, Catostylus perezi, Ranson 1945 is reported from the coastal waters of Gulf of Kutch/ Kachchh, Gujarat, India. Although high productivity is a possible reason the presence of man-made infrastructures like thermal power plants and ports are further highlighted. A further assessment of the effects of these structures on marine life is suggested in this article. Page(s): 536-542 2022-09-01T00:00:00Z