Columns

Sharm El-Sheikh, Nov 16 (IANS) Senior officials from several governments, the UN Environment Program (UNEP) and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) launched a new five-year work programme at the COP27 to promote climate technology solutions in developing countries.

The Technology Executive Committee (TEC) and Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN), the two bodies of the Technology Mechanism under the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement, launched their joint work programme to accelerate the deployment of transformative climate technologies that are urgently required to tackle climate change.

"The launch of this joint work programme is an important opportunity for us to step up rapidly efforts to deploy technology to address through mitigation and adaptation," said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP.

The new joint work programme of the Technology Mechanism, launched on Tuesday, covers work from 2023-2027.

It foresees specific joint activities to be implemented by the TEC and CTCN, including technology roadmaps, work on gender and technology, technology and NDCs and digitalization, and common areas of work for the two bodies, including national systems of innovation, industry, and the water-energy-food nexus.

"Time is running out to achieve the key goals of the Paris Agreement. The rapid scaling up and effective transfer of climate technologies is imperative to limit the global average temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius and to build resilience to climate change. A reinvigorated Technology Mechanism is needed to unlock appropriate climate technologies everywhere in the world, and that is what this new work programme is designed to achieve," said Simon Stiell, UNFCCC Executive Secretary.

The IPCC's Sixth Assessment Report (IPCC AR6) and the contributions from Working Group III (IPCC WG III) on Mitigation of Climate Change spotlight technology as an enabler to accelerate mitigation and to drive effective adaptation solutions.

The assessment also highlights that limiting global warming will require significant transitions in primary sectors and areas, including energy, cities, pointing to several key areas with high potential for emission reductions such as: cities, urban areas, industry, agriculture, forestry, and land use change.

This joint work programme is a significant milestone for the Technology Mechanism and signals a new era of work for climate technology under the Convention and the Paris Agreement.

It is guided by science, aligned with the long-term goals of the Paris Agreement, and focused on high-potential sectors and high-impact actions.

The US announced a contribution of $3 million to support the implementation of the Joint Work Programme.

US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry said: "The UNFCCC Technology Mechanism is galvanizing action in this decisive decade through smart technology solutions for climate resilience and mitigation. With this contribution, the US is supporting a new, strategic approach to cooperation on technology and innovation in developing countries and fulfilling a key pledge made at COP26.

"The US helped lead the development of this first joint work programme for the Technology Mechanism in support of the Paris Agreement Technology Framework. We are committed to ensuring that the Parties cooperate effectively to accelerate action at the scale and pace needed through research, development, demonstration, and deployment of climate technologies."

Executive Vice President of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans said: "Technology transfer is crucial for the success of the global green transition. Whether it's in energy, infrastructure, mobility or food: we need to make sure that knowledge is shared to help build up industrial capacity and support developing countries to tackle the climate crisis.

"The new joint programme for the UNFCCC Technology Mechanism opens up new possibilities for innovation and targeted action. The European Commission will continue its support in years to come by providing a new 2 million euro contribution to the Climate and Technology Centre and Network."

In addition, the Canadian government has confirmed a C$6 million grant to the CTCN.

Canada's Natural Resources Minister, Jonathan Wilkinson stated: "While technology itself is not a climate plan, any serious approach must include thoughtful consideration of how to develop and deploy critical clean technologies. This new Joint Work Programme will help governments and other actors around the world collaborate to do just that."

As a longstanding donor, Japan has committed to continue its current level of funding for the CTCN.

The CTCN is pleased to strengthen its collaboration with South Korea through the recent establishment of its Partnership and Liaison Office in Songdo.

--IANS
vg/ksk/

Itanagar, Nov 16 (IANS) Arunachal Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein said that research scholars are re-writing the history of the state and these would be included in the school syllabus so that the future generation would able to know the state's history at the school level.

Addressing the 'Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas', commemorating the 147th birth anniversary of Bhagwan Veer Birsa Munda, the Deputy Chief Minister announced on Tuesday that the coming Statehood Day (February 20) celebration would be dedicated to the unsung heroes in order to give them a befitting tribute.

The names of "unsung heroes" have already been uploaded on a dedicated government portal by the Central government while few more names are in the process of uploading. A statue of Bhagwaan Veer Birsa Munda was unveiled on the occasion by the Chief Minister Pema Khandu and other dignitaries.

Khandu said that Arunachal Pradesh too has its share of freedom fighters but expressed concern that they were not properly documented and were lost in history. "They fought for the nation's freedom and most of them died in the battle for Independence. But their stories have remained unknown and their contributions unrecognised...," he said.

He told the gathering that the state government, under a committee headed by Deputy Chief Minister Mein, has documented stories of 157 "unsung heroes" and submitted a list of 60 of them so far to the Centre seeking recognition of their contribution to the freedom struggle.

The list includes MatmurJamoh, who had killed British officer Williamson at Komsing village while his followers killed Dr Gregorson at Pangi, both in East Siang district on March 31, 1911. However, he (MatmurJamoh) died in obscurity and very few records are available about his last days at Cellular jail, where he was along with others.

"Not only the Adis of the central Arunachal belt, the Idu Mishmis, Wanchos, Singphos and the Khamptis in the East and Akas in the West had also resisted the British and fought wars with them," he said.

--IANS
sc/sha

New Delhi, Nov 15 (IANS) The National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) and Science Museum Group, London have joined hands to tell the story of the global effort to develop vaccines through an exhibition 'Vaccines Injecting Hope'.

Minister of State for Culture and Parliamentary Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal inaugurated the exhibition "Vaccines Injecting Hope" at National Science Centre here on Tuesday in presence of Alex Ellis, High Commissioner, British High Commission in India, Scott McDonald, Chief Executive, British Council and others.

The exhibition will showcase an art installation commissioned by the British Council as part of the India-UK Together Season of Culture.

A Mobile Science Exhibition, another version of the exhibit, is set to travel to rural areas across northern India. In the meanwhile, the primary exhibition will be open in Delhi till June 2023, after which it will travel to Nagpur, Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata.

The exhibition has sections on 'The Arrival of New Virus', 'Designing a New Vaccine', 'Trials, Results and Approvals', 'Scaling Up and Mass Production', 'Vaccine Rollout', 'Living with COVID' and tells the story of the global effort to find new ways to develop vaccines at pandemic speed and look at vaccinations more broadly with a historical and contemporary view.

Scott McDonald, Chief Executive, British Council, said: "Our India/ UK Together Season of Culture demonstrates our commitment to emerging India and UK artists, enabling them to connect and create engaging work. This ground-breaking exhibition provides a brilliant artistic interpretation of how India and the UK addressed one of our greatest collective challenges -- the pandemic - through the vaccine partnership."

The exhibition showcases 'Through the Lens', an artwork commissioned by British Council and created through collaboration between Indian sculptor based in Delhi, Sushank Kumar, and a playwright in London, Nigel Townsend.

Arijit Dutta Choudhury, Director General of the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM), India said: "After the grand success of the exhibition 'Superbugs: The End of Antibiotics?' This is another project where we have collaborated with the SMG group, London for raising awareness among masses about the importance of vaccines in our lives.

"This time we have added one Mobile Science Exhibition (MSE) Bus to travel to the nearby areas of each location. The MSE Bus will mainly communicate the messages of the exhibition in rural areas. At the same time, I hope, the project will further strengthen the bond between the two leading Science Museums network in India & UK."

The exhibition has been developed by the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) in collaboration with Science Museum, London and with support from Wellcome, UK; ICMR, India; NIV, Pune, Serum Institute of India, CSIR, AIIMS and various other research and scientific organisations.

--IANS
avr/pgh

New Delhi, Nov 15 (IANS) The presence of Indian students in American Universities has increased by 19 per cent compared to the last year, and nearly 21 per cent of over one million foreign students are Indian students, a US government report said.

In 2021-22, 1,99,182 students with India as their place of origin were pursuing higher education in the US, as against 1,67,582 in 2020-21, according to the Open Doors Report, an annual survey on international students released Monday. In 2012-13, there were 96,654 Indian students in higher education in the US.

The rise in Indian students moving to the US is likely to overtake China in 2022-23, with 82,000 visas issued between June and August - the highest number among all countries.

The year 2021-22 saw 62,000 student visas being issued, said Don Heflin, Minister Counsellor for Consular Affairs at the US embassy in New Delhi.

In contrast, China fell behind India as strict quarantine norms and travel restrictions due to Covid made it harder for Chinese students to acquire visas. Heflin said that around 110,000-120,000 visas are issued to Chinese students, which fell to around 50,000.

In 2021-22, China and India collectively accounted for 52 per cent of all international students in the US, the report, which is sponsored by the US Department of State and implemented by the non-profit Institute of International Education (IIE), said.

China showed a drop of nine per cent in the latest round, with the number of Chinese students pursuing higher education in the US going down from 3,17,299 in 2020-21 to 2,90,086 in 2021-22.

A decade ago, there were 2,35,597 Chinese higher education students in the US. The rise in Indian numbers came after the slump caused by pandemic years.

Between 2018-19 and 2019-20, as well as 2019-20 and 2020-21, the number of Indian students enrolled in US universities had fallen by 4.4 per cent and 13.2 per cent respectively.

The 19 per cent increase in Indian students studying in America was largely driven by graduate students, Heflin said. A majority of Indian students chose Math and Computer Science, Engineering and Business, and Management, according to a US embassy official.

Overall, the total number of international students pursuing higher education in the US went up from 9.14 lakh in 2020-21 to 9.48 lakh in 2021-22.

"It is clear that Indian students and their parents recognize the value of US education, one that prepares them to leverage their newly gained know-how to tackle the world's challenges and readies them for future opportunities, whether that's in Artificial Intelligence, emerging technologies or entrepreneurship and innovation," Gloria Berbena, minister counselor for Public Diplomacy, said.

--IANS
mi/sha

By Sandeep Bamzai
Protected by British power, the rulers of princely states neglected their subjects; they not only collected rent, but also various illegal levies and subjected people to forced labour while squandering away a major part of their states' revenues for the upkeep of their luxurious lifestyles, denying the masses their democratic rights. This infuriated Nehru.


In 1927, the All India States' Peoples Conference was born to coordinate the people's movements in various princely states. At first the Congress hesitated to take up the cause of people's movements on legal and practical grounds, but Nehru was at the vanguard of change.

In the end the Fabian Socialist triumphed, bringing different instrumentalities to bear against all those who opposed him in his endeavour to create a united and unified India. To stampede the princes, he used Lord Mountbatten; to corall them he used the combination of Patel and Menon; to overturn the Dickie Bird Plan for Independence, he used Edwina Mountbatten, who in turn chose to pack V.P. Menon off to Simla to offer his version instead and got it approved by both Mountbatten and Nehru, who, as luck would have it, were both present in the Queen of the Hills recouping.

The India that one sees is the India envisioned by Nehru, brick by brick.

The Haripura Congress session of 1938 is considered seminal for many reasons, not the least for Subhas Chandra Bose's whiplash-inducing speech as the new party president.

At the same session, the Indian States' Peoples Resolution provided the basis for one of the most pivotal debates of the Congress session. In relation to the proposed Federation under the new Constitution, this question was considered to be of utmost importance and occupied the Subjects Committee for five hours in a heated discussion.

Ben Bradley wrote: "The concern of the delegates was not merely actuated by the importance of the Indian states in relation to the Federation, but at the Calcutta session last October of the All-India Congress Committee, a resolution was adopted condemning the repression in Mysore state and supporting the heroic struggle of the people in that state."

This was a crucial time for the Congress itself and Jawaharlal Nehru's stalking horse strategy of using the All India States' People's Conference (AISPC) to make deeper inroads into the autocratic princely states, which required radical democratisation to free the populace of serfdom and penury. The starter pistol had truly gone off and the process of a new India began to be fashioned.

Bradley writes that subsequently doubt was raised as to the validity of this resolution. There was opposition in the All-India Congress Committee to the resolution and certain Congress leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi, stated that the Congress had no right to interfere in the affairs of Indian states, and were of the opinion that this resolution constituted an interference.

It was to clear this up that the question was discussed at Haripura. Gandhi believed in the concept of trusteeship and how the princes represented this concept in their states vis-a-vis their attitude towards their subjects. Nehru opposed this and finally, the breakthrough benefit came at Haripura, not just with this resolution but with new president Bose's vehement support to Nehru's vision of an India where the provinces and the princely states would coalesce.

Bradley goes on to provide a perspective on the actual happenings: "The delegates representing various Congress committees from the Indian states felt and spoke very strongly for the closer relationship between the people struggling in Indian states and those struggling in British India. The Left Wing and the Socialist section of the Congress delegates were of the opinion that the mass struggle, in order to win basic civil liberties and responsible government, was growing in the states.

"Further close cooperation was essential between the states' people and the people of British India in order to fight the Federation. It was also the duty of the Congress not merely to sympathise with the struggle of the states' people, but to fraternise with them and give active assistance in the fight against the autocracy of the Princes."

The original resolution moved by Abul Kalam Azad sought to relieve the Congress of responsibility in connection with the present struggle of the Indian states' people. This was covered by the following point in the resolution:

"The Congress, therefore, directs for the present that no Congress committee be established in Indian states and that internal struggles of the people of the states be not undertaken in the name of the Congress."

Jawaharlal Nehru, batted for the resolution, saying it did not renege on the Congress attitude towards the states' people, and added: "But the question that had become vital was that they had to face realities and march independently towards their common goal."

Speeches were made by all sections of the delegates strongly condemning this resolution. From the delegates coming themselves from Indian states, a fervent appeal was made to the Congress not to refuse help to the states' people in their hard fight against feudal lords and despotic rulers.

One Congress delegate, Jayanarian Vyas from Ajmer-Merwara, asked the Congress high command: "Would you take away from us what even autocratic rulers or bureaucratic imperialism has not dared to take away, namely, our right to be in the Congress?"

Pattabhi Sitaramayya, in a fighting speech, exposed the dangers of the Congress adopting the policy which must follow from the resolution of isolating Indian states, and was allowed to move an agreed amendment accepted by Abul Kalam Azad. The amendment deleted the clause opposing the formation of Congress committees in Indian states, and instead stated:

"The Congress, therefore, directs that the present Congress committees in states shall function only under the direction and control of the working committee, and shall not engage in direct action in the name or under the auspices of the Congress, nor undertake internal struggles of the peoples of the state in the name of the Congress. For this purpose, independent organisations should be started and continued where they exist already within the states."

Pattabhi suggested that on the basis of this formula, all other amendments should be withdrawn. On this proposition, 11 out of 13 amendments were withdrawn.

The motion on relations between the Congress and Indian states' people was then put to vote and carried.

This resolution represented a retrogressive step; particularly at this juncture, when British Imperialism was drawing up its final plans to introduce the Federal side of the new Constitution, under which one-third of the total seats in the Federal government were to be reserved for the despotic Princes, while democratic rights were being denied to the states' subjects.

It is at this stage that full support had to be been given to the struggle of the people in the Indian states for democratic rights and civil liberties, and to carry this through effectively, ways and means of strengthening Congress organisations in the states had be to be planned.

The 70 million people in the Indian states had to be drawn into the Congress as allies of the Indian people in a common struggle for liberation against British imperialism and its allies, the despotic princes.

Nehru's silent opposition to Gandhi's concept of trusteeship found new thrust and kinetic energy as both the AISPC and the Congress went full tilt to emasculate the arrogant princes by enlarging the scope of democratisation.

(The writer is a published author who was a Visiting Fellow at ORF when he wrote a Special Report titled 'Nehru - The Mapmaker'.)

--IANS
sb/srb/

New Delhi, Nov 11 (IANS) The sob stories of those who lost jobs at Meta are now out on social media and several from India, impacted in the mega layoffs that included 11,000 employees worldwide, are now asking for jobs on professional networking platform LinkedIn.

Unlike Twitter which laid off nearly 90 per cent of India staff, Meta has not fired many in India as its business is doing good in the country at the moment.

Pragya Singh, a technical source for Meta in Gurugram who had joined the company only six months ago, has been hit by the mass layoffs.

She wrote 'Impacted by recent layoff' on her LinkedIn bio.

Some other fired employees from India also posted their ordeal on LinkedIn, who joined the company just days or some months ago.

IIT-Kharagpur graduate Himanshu V, who relocated to Canada to join Meta, lost his job just two days later.

"I relocated to Canada to join #Meta and 2 days after joining, my journey came to an end as I am impacted by the massive layoff," he posted on LinkedIn.

"What's next for me? Honestly, I have no idea! I'm looking forward to whatever comes next," Himanshu said, adding that "Let me know if you know of any position or hiring for a software engineer (Canada or India)".

Sasikala Satheesh, also impacted by Meta layoffs, posted: "Unlike every other day, today I woke up with shocking news that me and my team is impacted among 11K Metamates who got laid off."

The worst lay-off in the global tech industry by Meta hit India teams across verticals. Meta had about 400 employees in the country.

According to business intelligence platform Tofler, net profit of Facebook India Online Services, the registered entity of Meta, jumped to Rs 297 crore in FY22 in comparison to Rs 128 crore in FY21, while its revenues grew 56 per cent to Rs 2,324 crore in FY22 from Rs 1,485 crore in FY21.

Meta Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg had said that as a severance measure, the company will pay 16 weeks of base pay, along with two additional weeks for every year of service, "with no cap".

"Outside the US, support will be similar, and we'll follow up soon with separate processes that take into account local employment laws," he added.

--IANS
na/ksk/

New Delhi, Nov 7 (IANS) Supreme Court judge Dinesh Maheshwari -- while upholding the constitutional validity of the 103rd Constitution amendment providing 10 per cent reservation to economically weaker sections (EWS) persons in admissions and government jobs -- said EWS reservation does not cause any damage to the basic structure of the Constitution on account of breach of the ceiling limit of 50 per cent for reservation.

Justice Maheshwari said reservation for economically weaker sections of citizens up to 10 per cent in addition to the existing reservations does not result in violation of any essential feature of the Constitution and does not cause any damage to the basic structure of the Constitution on account of breach of the ceiling limit of 50 per cent. "Because, that ceiling limit itself is not inflexible and in any case, applies only to the reservations envisaged by Articles 15(4), 15(5) and 16(4) of the Constitution," he added.

Justice Maheshwari said this ceiling limit, though held attached to the constitutional requirements, has not been held to be inflexible and inviolable for all times to come.

"Reasons for this are not far... to seek reservation by affirmative action is not having trappings of any such essential feature of the Constitution, collectively enumerated by Kesavananda (case) and successive decisions, that its modulation with reference to any particular compelling reason or requirement could damage the basic structure of the Constitution," he said.

Justice Maheshwari said the prescription of ceiling limit of 50 per cent, being apparently for the benefit of general merit candidates, does not provide any justified cause to the candidates standing in the bracket of already available reservation to raise any grievance about extra 10 per cent reservation for the benefit of another section of society in need of affirmative action.

"In any case, there is no question of violation of any such basic feature of the Constitution that the entire structure of equality of opportunity in Article 16 would collapse by this EWS reservation," he added.

He further added that if at all the cap of 50 per cent is the final and inviolable rule, the classes already standing in the enabled bracket of 50 per cent cannot justifiably claim their share in the extra 10 per cent, which is meant for a separate class and section, i.e., economically weaker section.

He noted that in Indra Sawhney (case), Justice Jeevan Reddy, speaking for the majority, though made it clear that reservation contemplated by Article 16(4) should not exceed 50 per cent, yet left that small window open where some relaxation to the strict rule may become imperative in view of the extraordinary situations inherent in the great diversity of our country.

"As an example, it was pointed out that the population inhabiting farflung and remote areas might, on account of their being out of the mainstream of national life and in view of the conditions peculiar to them, need to be treated in a different way," Justice Maheshwari said.

He added that the argument regarding the cap of 50 per cent is based on all those decisions by this court which were rendered with reference to the reservations existing before the advent of the amendment in question. "The 50 per cent ceiling proposition would obviously be applied only to those reservations which were in place before the amendment in question. No decision of this court could be read to mean that even if the Parliament finds the necessity of another affirmative action by the State in the form of reservation for a section or class in need, it could never be provided," he said.

He added against the above backdrop, the relevant decisions of this court in regard to this 50 per cent ceiling limit could be referred but, while reiterating that these decisions are applicable essentially to the class/classes who are to avail the benefits envisaged by Articles 15(4), 15(5) and 16(4) of the Constitution.

--IANS
ss/vd

Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 7 (IANS) With the deadline ending at 5 p.m on Monday, all the 10 Vice Chancellors, who were asked by the Chancellor, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, to explain why they action should not be taken against them, have sent their replies.

Now, Khan, who has returned to his official residence in the state capital after a north Indian tour, will go through the replies and then take his decision.

The Governor had last week said he will only be glad to meet any VC, if they wish to do so.

This situation rose, soon after the Supreme Court, last month, set aside the appointment of the Vice Chancellor of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technological University, located in the state capital.

A bench of Justices M.R. Shah and C.T. Ravikumar had found that the search committee formed to pick the VC was not properly constituted and also that only one name was sent to the Governor as opposed to a list of names as is required as per the UGC regulations.

Latching on to it, Khan asked the Vice Chancellors of ten state Universities to reply why action should not be taken against them.

With this, the angry Pinarayi Vijayan government strongly backed these VCs and gave the nod to them to approach the Kerala High Court.

Seeing the gravity of the issue, the High Court also played their responsibility well and heard their plea on Diwali day.

After hearing the plea it held that the letter issued by the Governor, directing the VCs of all universities in Kerala to resign was no longer valid since the Governor himself later issued show cause notices to them, asking them to reply.

The court, therefore, ruled that the VCs can continue in their posts till the Governor passes a final order after following the procedure under law.

Now all eyes are on Khan on his decision, which in all likelihood will be booting out all the 10 VCs, as even the Kerala High Court ruled that the apex court guidelines will have to be followed.

--IANS
sg/vd

New Delhi, Nov 3 (IANS) A thick layer of pollutants covered Delhi and the adjoining cities on Thursday morning as pollution levels slipped to 'severe' category. The experts have warned that prolonged exposure to this toxic air which could lead to serious multiple problems.

The air quality of the national capital on Thursday morning turned 'severe' as the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of the city stood at 418, according to data from the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR).

However by the evening, the overall Air Quality Index further deteriorated and surged to 458, as per the SAFAR data.

The PM 2.5 and PM 10 concentration stood at 458 and 433, respectively, both under the same 'Severe' category, according to the SAFAR data. The AQI between zero and 50 is considered 'good'; from 51 to 100 'satisfactory'; 101- 200 'moderate'; 201-300 'poor'; 301-400 'very poor'; and 401-500 'severe'.

Commenting on deteriorating air quality of capital city, Dr Harshal Salve, Additional Professor, Centre for Community medicine at Delhi AIIMS, said that the prolonged exposure to such toxic air could lead to serious multiple problems apart from the respiratory issues.

"Those persons suffering with COPD and other respiratory disease must use the N95 mask while going outside," said Dr Salve. Emphasising the outdoor activities should immediately be stopped, he said that everyone should avoid going outside from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. in morning as the concentration level of pollutants remain on peak during the period.

"Even the indoor activities must keep at low levels for those suffering with sensitive issues," Dr Salve said.

Dr. Payal Chaudhary, Senior Consultant Obstretics and Gynaecologist at Madhukar Rainbow Children's Hospital said that last few days have seen a drastic deterioration in Air Quality with AQI going down and reaching very poor and sometimes to hazardous levels.


"There have been studies which shows that exposure to environmental pollutants can lead to adverse pregnancy outcomes. It increases the risks of spontaneous abortions, pre-term labour and when exposed in third trimester, might increase the risk of Still Birth. Exposure to PM 2.5 and PM 10 as well as Carbon Monoxide and Cooking Smoke are the major implicants of pregnancy loss due to air pollution," Dr. Payal Chaudhary said.

Meanwhile, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights on Wednesday urged Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to shut schools till air quality improves.

--IANS
avr/uk

New Delhi, Nov 3 (IANS) Scientists have documented an exceptional case of a person who has survived 12 tumours, at least five of them malignant, and all aggressive cancers disappeared relatively easily -- opening up new avenues for early diagnosis and immunotherapy in cancer.

Featured in the study published in the journal Science Advances, the person (whose name has been withheld) first developed a tumour when almost still a baby, followed by others every few years.

In less than 40 years of life, the individual developed 12 tumours, at least five of them malignant, and each with a different type and in a different part of the body.

The person also has skin spots, microcephaly and other alterations.

According to Marcos Malumbres, head of the Cell Division and Cancer Group at the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO), "we still don't understand how this individual could have developed during the embryonic stage, nor could have overcome all these pathologies."

Scientists discovered that 12 tumours are due to the fact that the patient inherited mutations in a gene essential for life from both parents.

The patient's immune system naturally generates a strong anti-inflammatory response that fights the tumours.

The study also showed how a novel technique -- single-cell analysis -- can detect tumours at very early stages, or a predisposition to developing them.

According to Malumbres, the study of this unique case opens up "a way to detect cells with tumour potential well in advance of clinical tests and diagnostic imaging. It also provides a novel way to stimulate the immune response to a cancerous process."

The researchers analysed the individual's entire genome and found mutations in a gene called aMAD1L1'. This gene is essential in the process of cell division and proliferation.

One of the facts that most intrigued the research team was that the five aggressive cancers developed by the patient disappeared relatively easily.

Their hypothesis is that "the constant production of altered cells has generated a chronic defensive response in the patient against these cells, and that helps the tumours to disappear. We think that boosting the immune response of other patients would help them to halt the tumoural development", explains Malumbres.

The discovery that the immune system is capable of unleashing a defensive response against cells with the wrong number of chromosomes is, according to this CNIO researcher, "one of the most important aspects of this study, which may open up new therapeutic options in the future".

The single-cell analysis revealed -- among other anomalies -- that the blood sample contained several hundred chromosomally identical lymphocytes, thus coming from a single, rapidly proliferating cell.

The researchers said that single-cell analysis can be used to identify cells with tumour potential long before the appearance of clinical symptoms or markers observable in analytical tests.

--IANS
na/svn/