About Bagata Tribe: 

• The Bagatas cite the historic origin of their community name as the devoted warriors (Bhaktas) of the then rulers.
• They are also called Bagatha, Bagat, Bagodi, Bogad or Bhakta.
• Location: They live in the state of Odisha and also in the state of Andhra Pradesh.
• Festivals: Dhimsa is one of the dances and Bagata tribes of all ages enjoy energetic dancing, and all ages take part. The dances of the Bagata are called Sankidi Kelbar.
• Family life: Nuclear families are commonly found in their society. They prefer cross-cousin marriage and consider marriage by negotiation as the ideal type of matrimony.
• Language: They speak with one another in a form of the Oriya language. One of their main languages is Telugu. Their local dialect is Adivasi Oriya.
• The Bagata tribes have undertaken the profession of farming in order to sustain the requirements of their day-to-day living. 
• They worship Hindu gods and goddesses in addition to their family and tribal gods.

Q1: Who are called as ‘tribe’ in India? 

According to the Imperial Gazetteer of India, a tribe is a collection of families bearing a common name, speaking a common dialect, and occupying or professing to occupy a common territory. India is known as a Melting pot of tribes and races.

Source: In dark shadow of a powerhouse: tribes who built A.P power project live in darkness

About Ol Doinyo Lengai Volcano: 

• Location: It is located in northern Tanzania, at the southern end of Lake Natron.
• It is known to the local Maasai people as the “Mountain of God.
• It is an active stratovolcano with unique geological characteristics.
• It rises to an elevation of 9,442 feet (2,878 metres) and is one of the many volcanoes situated along the East African Rift System.
• It contains basalts rich in sodium and potassium, and is so alkaline that its lavas resemble washing soda.
• The volcano has more than one active centre and most of the recent eruptions were from its northern crater. 
• Why is it a rare volcano? This volcano is the only one existing on Earth which has an actively erupting and extremely runny carbonatite magma. The magma is saturated with alkali elements, like calcium and sodium and is poor in silica.

Details of the study

• As per the new study, the crater's upper slopes have started sinking since 2013 and the likely cause for this sinking volcano was the deflating magma reservoir, which is located 3,300 feet (1,000 m) under the volcano.

Q1: What is a Stratovolcano?

The stratovolcano is a tall, steep, and cone-shaped type of volcano. Unlike flat shield volcanoes like in Hawaii, they have higher peaks. At the peak, stratovolcanoes usually have a small crater.

Source: This volcano, with continuous eruption of magma, is sinking inside Earth. Here's why

About Astra Missile:

• Astra is a beyond-visual-range (BVR) air-to-air missile designed to be mounted on fighter aircraft. 
• It is indigenously developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and manufactured by Bharat Dynamics Ltd. (BDL) for the Indian Air Force (IAF).
• The missile was built to engage and destroy aerial targets,which have high maneuverability and supersonic speed.
• The missile is capable of advanced air combat, which allows it to engage in multiple high-performance targets.
• It is the best in its class of weapon systems in the world in the category of air-to-air missiles.
• The missile is being developed in multiple variants to meet specific requirements.
• Features of ASTRA Mk-I:
  • Astra is 3.6 m long and with a diameter of 178 mm, weighing 154 kg. 
  • It has a range of 80 to 110 km in a head-on chase and can travel at 4.5 Mach speed (almost hypersonic).
  • The missile uses an inertial guidance system driven by a fibre optic gyroscope with terminal guidance through active radar homing.
  • It offers the pilot the option to choose between “Lock on Before Launch – LOBL” and “Lock on After Launch – LOAL” and later allows the aircraft to shoot and scoot to safety after firing the missile in the direction of the target.
  • It is based on an advanced solid-fuel ducted ramjet (SFDR) engine technology.
  • It is capable of operating under all weather conditions, both day and night, and offers high overall reliability and a very high ”Single Shot Kill Probability – SSKP”.

Q1: What is the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)?

DRDO is an agency under the Ministry of Defence. Headquartered in New Delhi, DRDO was formed in 1958 by amalgamating the Defence Science Organisation and a few technical development establishments. DRDO is India's largest research organisation. It has a network of laboratories engaged in developing defence technologies covering various fields, like aeronautics, armaments, electronics, land combat engineering, life sciences, materials, missiles, and naval systems.

Source: Air Force approves production of 200 Astra missiles

About Bent-Toed Geckos: 

• The bent-toed geckos of the genus Cyrtodactylus are diverse.
• They are commonly known as bow-fingered geckos, and forest geckos. 
• Geckos are ectothermic, meaning they rely on external sources of heat to regulate their body temperature.
• Reproduction in this gecko species typically occurs during the warm and wet seasons.
• Distribution: Bent-toed geckos have about 346 species distributed across multiple biogeographic zones in Peninsular India, Sri Lanka, the Himalayan foothills, Northeast India, Southeast Asia and the Solomon Islands.

Highlights about the new species

• Namdapha bent-toed gecko: It was documented from the Namdapha Tiger Reserve in Arunachal Pradesh and is widespread within lowland evergreen forests of the Namdapha and Kamlang Tiger Reserves.
• Siang Valley Bent-Toed Gecko (Arunachal Pradesh): It was discovered in the Siang River valley, renowned for its unique biodiversity.
• Ngengpui bent-toed gecko (Mizoram): It was discovered from the Ngengpui Wildlife Sanctuary of Lawngtlai district. The site is located in one of the easternmost protected areas of the country. 
• Manipur bent-toed gecko: It was discovered near the Lamdan Kabui village of Manipur.
• Kiphire bent-toed gecko and Barail Hill bent-toed gecko (Nagaland): These two were discovered in Nagaland.

Q1: What are endothermic species?

These are animals that generate and control its internal heat so that its body core temperature can be regulated at a level different from the ambient temperature.

Source: Scientists discover six new lineages of bent-toed geckos from the Northeast

About Glioblastoma:

• It is a type of cancer that starts as a growth of cells in the brain or spinal cord.
• Like all cancers, glioblastoma is caused by DNA mutations that result in uncontrolled cell growth. The underlying causes for these genetic cell mutations are largely unknown. 
• Glioblastoma forms from cells called astrocytes that support nerve cells.
  • Astrocytes help give your brain the nutrients it needs. 
• Glioblastoma tumors make their own blood supply, which helps them grow. It's easy for them to invade normal brain tissue.
• It grows quickly and can invade and destroy healthy tissue.
• It can happen at any age. But it tends to happen more often in older adults.
• It accounts for almost half of all cancerous brain tumors in adults.
• Symptoms:
  • Glioblastoma symptoms may include headaches that keep getting worse, nausea and vomiting, blurred or double vision, trouble speaking, altered sense of touch, and seizures.
  • There also may be trouble with balance, coordination, and moving parts of the face or body.
• Treatment:
  • There's no cure for glioblastoma. Treatments might slow cancer growth and reduce symptoms.
  • The main treatments for glioblastomas are surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. 

Q1: What are Dendritic cells (DCs)?

Dendritic cells are a type of immune cell that play a crucial role in the body's defense against pathogens. Dendritic cells are derived from bone marrow and are found in tissues that have contact with the external environment, such as the skin (where they are known as Langerhans cells), and the linings of the nose, lungs, stomach, and intestines. They are also present in blood in an immature state.The primary function of dendritic cells is to act as antigen-presenting cells (APCs). They capture antigens (foreign substances) from pathogens like bacteria and viruses and then process and present these antigens on their surface to T cells, initiating an immune response.

Source: AI reprograms glioblastoma cells into dendritic cells for cancer immunotherapy