About Celiac Disease:

• It is an inherited autoimmune condition where the immune system reacts to gluten, sometimes causing damage to the small intestine.
  • Gluten is a protein found in foods containing wheat, barley, or rye.
• In celiac disease, eating gluten triggers an immune response to the gluten protein in small intestine.
• Over time, this reaction can damage small intestine's lining and prevent it from absorbing nutrients. This condition is called malabsorption.
• The intestinal damage often causes symptoms such as diarrhea, fatigue, weight loss, bloating, or anemia.
• It also can lead to serious complications if it is not managed or treated.
• In children, malabsorption can affect growth and development in addition to gastrointestinal symptoms.
• It can develop at any age after people start consuming gluten.
• It is estimated to affect 1 in 100 people worldwide.
• There's no definite cure for celiac disease. But for most people, following a strict gluten-free diet can help manage symptoms and help the intestines heal.

About Vitamin B3:

• Vitamin B3, or Niacin, is a water-soluble vitamin.
• Niacin is naturally present in many foods, added to some food products, and available as a dietary supplement.
• There are two main chemical forms of niacin:
  • nicotinic acid
  • niacinamide (sometimes called nicotinamide)
• Your body gets niacin through food, but it also makes small amounts from the amino acid tryptophan, which can be found in protein sources like turkey and other animal foods.
• Function:
  • Niacin works in the body as a coenzyme, with enzymes dependent on it for various reactions.
  • Niacin helps to convert nutrients into energy, create cholesterol and fats, create and repair DNA, and exert antioxidant effects.
• Food Sources: A niacin deficiency is rare because it is found in many foods, both from animals and plants.
  • Red meat: beef, beef liver, pork
  • Poultry
  • Fish
  • Brown rice
  • Fortified cereals and breads
  • Nuts, seeds
  • Legumes
  • Bananas
• Deficiency:
• A severe niacin deficiency leads to pellagra, a condition that causes a dark, sometimes scaly rash to develop on skin areas exposed to sunlight; bright redness of the tongue; and constipation/diarrhea.
• Other signs of severe niacin deficiency include:
  • Depression
  • Headache
  • Fatigue
  • Memory loss
  • Hallucinations

What is NAD(P)HX dehydratase (NAXD)?

• It is an essential cellular enzyme that helps repair damaged forms of key metabolic molecules, ensuring normal energy production and cell survival.
• NAXD deficiency is a rare neurometabolic disease with infantile onset marked by repeated episodes of developmental regression and progressive neurodegeneration, often triggered by febrile illnesses.
• Clinical features include lethargy, hypotonia, irritability, gait ataxia, loss of speech, movement disorders, seizures, ophthalmoplegia, and hearing loss.

About Impatiens nagorum:

• It is a new species of flowering plant.
• It was discovered in Fakim Wildlife Sanctuary in Nagaland.
• The species name “nagorum” honours the Naga tribes of Nagaland.
• Impatiens — commonly known as balsams or “touch-me-nots” — are flowering plants famous for their brightly coloured blooms and seed pods that burst open when touched.
• The Eastern Himalayas and Northeast India are among the world’s richest regions for this group of plants.
• Found in moist temperate broadleaf forests, the newly described species is currently known only from its type locality.
• The plant bears distinctive purple flowers.
• It differs from closely related species in having serrated leaves, slightly hairy lateral sepals, and a deeper lower sepal that gradually tapers into a hooked spur.

About National Science Day 2026:

• It is celebrated every year on February 28 to mark the contributions of scientists towards the development of the country.
• It commemorates the discovery of the Raman Effect by the Indian physicist, Dr. Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, on the same day in the year 1928.
  • For this discovery, he was also awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930.
• In 1986, the Government of India declared 28 February as National Science Day.
• The first National Science Day was celebrated in 1987, and since then, it is observed every year with a special theme.
• National Science Day 2026 Theme: "Women in Science: Catalysing Viksit Bharat".
• On this day, schools, colleges, coaching institutes, and research organisations across the country will come together to honour scientists, inspire students, and promote a scientific way of thinking.

What is the Raman Effect?

• It is the change in the wavelength of light that occurs when a light beam is deflected by molecules.
• When a beam of light traverses a dust-free, transparent sample of a chemical compound, a small fraction of the light emerges in directions other than that of the incident (incoming) beam.
• Most of this scattered light is of unchanged wavelength.
• A small part, however, has wavelengths different from that of the incident light; its presence is a result of the Raman effect.
• The effect demonstrated that light can be scattered, carrying valuable information about molecular vibrations.
• The phenomenon is named for Indian physicist Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, who first published observations of the effect in 1928.
• Ever since the discovery, this discovery has become an important tool in medicine, chemistry, physics, and material composition and properties.

About Smew:

• It is a small diving duck.
• Scientific Name: Mergellus albellus
• Habitat and Distribution:
  • Smews breed in the northern taiga of Europe and the Palearctic.
  • They need trees for breeding and prefer to live on fish-rich lakes and slow rivers.
  • Smews spend winters on sheltered coasts or inland lakes of the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea, northern Germany, and the Low Countries, with a small number reaching Great Britain.
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN Red List: Least Concern

About Peatlands:

• Peatlands are terrestrial wetland ecosystems in which waterlogged conditions prevent plant material from fully decomposing.
• Consequently, the production of organic matter exceeds its decomposition, which results in a net accumulation of peat.
  • Peat, formed from the accumulation of dead plant material, does not decompose in a water-logged state but when it dries, the organisms that break down plant material revive and the carbon seeps back into the atmosphere.
  • In cool climates, peatland vegetation is mostly made up of Sphagnum mosses, sedges and shrubs and are the primary builder of peat,
  • In warmer climates graminoids and woody vegetation provide most of the organic matter.
• The swamps and peatlands of the Congo Basin cover only 0.3% of the earth’s land surface, yet hold one-third of the carbon stored in its tropical peatlands.
• Distribution: The majority of the world’s peatlands occur in boreal and temperate parts of the Northern Hemisphere.
• Types:
  • Northern and temperate peatlands: Found especially, Europe, North America and Russia where they have formed under high precipitation-low temperature climatic regimes.
  • Tropical peatlands: Found in Southeast Asia, mainland East Asia, the Caribbean, Central America, South America, Africa, parts of Australasia and a few Pacific Islands.

About RAMP Programme:

• The Raising & Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) programme was launched in 2022.
• It aims at improving access to market and credit, strengthening institutions and governance at the Centre and State, improving Centre-State linkages and partnerships, addressing issues of delayed payments and greening of MSMEs.
• It is assisted by the World Bank.
• Objectives of RAMP Programme:
  • Improving access to market and credit for MSMEs
  • Strengthening institutions and governance at the central and state levels
  • Improving center-state linkages and partnerships
  • Addressing issues of delayed payments
  • Greening of MSMEs
• The National MSME Council has been set up by the Ministry to work as an administrative and functional body of the RAMP Programme.
• It is implemented by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MoMSME) over the five year period 2022-23 to 2026-27.
• It provides grants to States for preparation of Strategic Investment Plan (SIP).
• Sub schemes under RAMP:
  • MSME GIFT Scheme: MSME Green Investment and Financing for Transformation Scheme intends to help MSMEs adopt green technology with interest subvention and credit guarantee support.
  • MSE SPICE Scheme:The MSE Scheme for Promotion and Investment in Circular Economy aims to support circular economy projects which will be done through credit subsidy and will lead to realising the dream of MSME sector towards zero emissions by 2070.
  • MSE ODR Scheme: The MSE Scheme on Online Dispute Resolution for Delayed Payments is a first of its kind scheme to synergise legal support with modern IT tools and Artificial Intelligence to address the incidences of delayed payments for Micro and Small Enterprises.

About Staphylococcus aureus:

• It is a type of bacteria belongs to the family Staphylococcaceae. 
• Characteristics:
  • It stains Gram positive and is non-moving small round shaped or non-motile cocci.
  • It is found in grape-like (staphylo-) clusters.
  • It may occur commonly in the environment.
  • It affects all known mammalian species, including humans.
• Further due to its ability to affect a wide range of species, S. aureus can be readily transmitted from one species to another.
• Transmission:
  • aureus is transmitted through air droplets or aerosol. When an infected person coughs or sneezes.
  • It can also transmit through direct contact with objects that are contaminated by the bacteria or by bites from infected persons or animals. 
• It causes
  • Minor skin infections, such as pimples, impetigo etc.
  • It may cause boils (furuncles), cellulitis folliculitis, carbuncles
  • It is the cause of scalded skin syndrome and abscesses
  • It may lead to lung infections or pneumonia
• Treatment: Healthcare providers can treat most staph infections with antibiotics.

About Epstein - Barr virus:

• It is a common and highly contagious infection.
• Transmission: It spreads through bodily fluids, especially saliva.
• EBV is a type of herpesvirus called herpesvirus 4.
• It has been found to be widely present in the human population.
• Most cases of Epstein-Barr virus affect children, teenagers and young adults, but anyone can get the virus.
• It usually does not cause any harm, but the virus gets reactivated inside the body in some unusual conditions like immunological stress or immunocompetence.
• This may further lead to various complications like a type of blood cancer called Burkitt’s lymphoma, stomach cancer, multiple sclerosis.
• Symptoms: Sore throat and throat inflammation, Fatigue or feeling extremely tired, Fever, Swollen lymph nodes, Rashes on your skin, Enlarged spleen and liver.
• Treatment: There is no specific treatment for EBV. However, some things like drinking fluids to stay hydrated, getting plenty of rest can be done to help relieve symptoms.

About Employees’ State Insurance Corporation:

• It is a statutory body formed under the ESI Act 1948.
• It is functioning under the aegis of Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India.
• It manages the ESI scheme, which provides medical, maternity, and financial benefits to employees.
• Functions: ESIC provides various social security benefits like Medical Benefit, Monetary benefits to the workmen and their family working in the private and public sector.
• Composition of ESIC:
  • The Union Minister of Labour heads the ESIC as its Chairman.
  • The Central Government appoints a Director General as the Chief Executive Officerof ESIC.
  • The ESIC comprises members representing crucial interest groups, including employers, employees, the Central and State Governments, representatives of the Parliament and the medical profession.