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- In a "breakthrough", scientists have developed a novel solar-powered harvesting system that absorbs moisture from the air and converts it into clean, usable water.
- The technology, described in the journal Advanced Materials, could be used in disaster situations, water crises or poverty-stricken areas and developing countries.
- It relies on hydrogels, gel-polymer hybrid materials designed to be "super sponges" that can retain large amounts of water. Researchers led by Guihua Yu from The University of Texas at Austin in the US used hydrogels that are both highly water absorbent and can release water upon heating.
- This unique combination successfully worked in humid and dry weather conditions and is crucial to enabling the production of clean, safe drinking water from the air, the researchers said
- With an estimated 50,000 cubic kilometers of water contained in the atmosphere, this new system could tap into those reserves and potentially lead to small, inexpensive and portable filtration systems.
- "We have developed a completely passive system where all you need to do is leave the hydrogel outside and it will collect water," said Fei Zhao, a postdoctoral researcher on Yu's team.
- "The collected water will remain stored in the hydrogel until you expose it to sunlight. After about five minutes under natural sunlight, the water releases," Zhao said in a statement.
- This technology builds upon a 2018 breakthrough made by the researchers in which they developed a solar-powered water purification innovation using hydrogels that cleans water from any source using only solar energy.
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- India will host the U-17 Women's World Cup in 2020, International Football Federation (FIFA) President Gianni Infantino announced.
- "We are delighted to announce that India has been confirmed as the host of the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in 2020," Infantino said after the FIFA Council meeting in Miami, USA on 15 march.
- This will be the second FIFA tournament India will be hosting, after the U-17 Men's World Cup in 2017. Confirming the development, All India Football Federation General Secretary Kushal Das said: "We are thankful to FIFA for giving the right to host the U-17 Women's World Cup. This will raise the profile of women's football in the country.
- "We have been giving a lot of emphasis on the development of women's football in the country. So we bid for the U-17 Women's World Cup and now we have got it."
- The bidding process for the tournament started last year. France had also expressed interest to host the tournament. Das said the venues to host the mega event will be decided soon. "We have four-five venues in mind and we will finalise them soon."
- As host country, India automatically qualifies for the 16-team showpiece event. The six continental qualifying tournaments are yet to begin. Besides the U-17 Women's WC, India had also expressed interest in hosting the U-20 Women's World Cup.
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- President Ram Nath Kovind conferred Padma awards upon ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan, mountaineer Bachendri Pal and folk singer Teejan Bai, among others on Saturday at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
- Trade and industry tycoon Mahashay Dharam Pal Gulati of the MDH fame was awarded the Padma Bhushan while cricketer Gautam Gambhir, footballer Sunil Chhetri were awarded the Padma Shri.
- This year, 112 personalities were selected for the Padma awards, which was announced on the eve of Republic Day.
- The first set of padma award was given on March in which President Kovind had presented one Padma Vibhushan, eight Padma Bhushan and forty-six Padma Shri Awards.
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- Regenerating damaged tissues using therapeutic cells may prove to be a promising new approach to treat chronic kidney disease, scientists said.
- Researchers from the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM) in the US found that harnessing the unique properties of human amniotic fluid-derived stem cells could potentially help recover organ function in a pre-clinical model of kidney disease.
- "Our results indicate that this type of stem cell could be used as an off the shelf universal cell source and may provide an alternative therapeutic strategy for patients suffering from this chronic and debilitating disease," said James J Yoo, a professor at WFIRM.
- Amniotic fluid-derived stem cells can be used as a universal cell source because they have the ability to become different cell types as well as the ability to be anti-inflammatory, making them a potential source for regeneration.
- Unlike pluripotent and adult stem cells, amniotic fluid-derived stem cells are not as likely to provoke an immune system response. Their use does not lead to risks of tumours or ethical concerns, as with embryonic stem cells, researchers said.
- The study, published in the journal Tissue Engineering Part A, found that amniotic fluid stem cells injected into a diseased kidney in a pre-clinical model led to improvement of kidney function based on measured waste levels after 10 weeks.
- Biopsy findings showed reduced damage to the cluster of capillaries where waste products are filtered from the blood.
- Kidney disease is a worldwide public health problem and can manifest in acute and chronic symptoms, researchers said.
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