CYTOLOGY

• Microtomy
• Plasmids

PHOTO GALLERY

For more photos visit - http://www.flickr.com/photos/girish_chandra

ROSES

DAHALIAS

 FLOWERS

INSECTS

  Arthropod vectors of diseases

The following vectors are described. Click on the vector name to open the detailed account.

• Mosquitoes
• Sucking Lice
• House fly
• Sand fly
• Fleas
• Tsetse fly
• Tabanus
• Stomoxys
• Ticks & Mites 

       Details of the following diseases are given in this section. Click on the title to open.

Dengue

Japanese Encephalitis

Rabies

Epidemic Typhus

Tuberculosis

Amoebiasis

Yellow fever

Kala Azar

Filariasis

Small pox

Plague

Malaria

Cholera

AIDS 

PRELIMINARY SYLLABUS

INDIAN CIVIL SERVICES EXAMINATIONS

(UPSC)

 (With effect from 2011, the pattern of preliminary exam. is going to change. There will no optional subject, which will be replaced by a paper on intellectual abilites and problem solving) 

ZOOLOGY

Cell Structure and function

(a) Prokaryote and eukaryote.

(b) Structure of animal cell, structure and functions of cell organelles.

(c) Cell cycle—mitosis, meiosis.

(d) Structure and contents of nucleus, including nuclear membrane, structure of chromosome and gene, chemistry of genetic components.    

(e) Mendel’s laws of inheritance, linkage and genetic recombination; cytoplasmic inheritance.

(f) Function of gene: replication, transcription and translation; mutations (spontaneous and artificial); Recombinant DNA: principle and application.

(g) Sex determination in Drosophila and man; sex linkage in man.

 Systematics

(a) Classification of non-chordates (up to sub-classes) and chordates (up to orders) giving general features and evolutionary relationship of the following phyla:

Protozoa, Porifera, Coelenterata, Platyhelminthes, Nematheliminthes, Annelida, Arthropoda, Mollusca, Echinodermata, Minor Phyla (Bryozoa, Phoronida and Chaetognatha) and Hemichordata.

(b) Structure reproduction and life history of the following types:

Amoeba, Monocystis, Plasmodium, Paramaecium, Sycon, Hydra, Obelia, Fasciola, Taenia, Ascaris, Neanthes, Pheretima, Hirudinia, Palaemon, Buthus, Periplaneta, Lamellidens, Pila, Asterias and Balanoglossus.

(c) Classification of chordates (up to orders), giving general features and evolutionary relationship of the following:

Protochordata; Agnatha; Gnathostomata—Pisces, Amphibia, Reptilia, Aves and Mammalia.

(d) Comparative functional anatomy of the following based on type animals (Scoliodon, Rana, Calotes, Columba and Oryctolagus): Integrument and its derivatives, endoskeleton, digestive system, respiratory system, circulatory system, including heart and aortic arches, urinogenital system; brain and sense organs (eye and ear); endocrine glands and other hormone producing structures (Pituitary, thyroid,   parathyroid, adrenal, pancreas, gonads), their function.

 Vertebrate Physiology and Biochemistry

(a) Chemical composition of protoplasm; nature and function of enzymes; vitamins, their sources and role; colloids and hydrogen ion concentration; biological oxidation, electron transport and role of ATP, energetics, glycolysis, citric acid cycle; vertebrate hormones: their type, sources and functions; pheromones and their role.

(b) Neuron and nerve impulse—conduction and transmission across synapses; neurotransmitters and their role, including acetyl cholinesterase activity.

(c) Homeostasis; osmoregulation; active transport and ion pump.

(d) Composition of carbohydrates, fats, lipids and proteins; steroids.

 Embryology

(a) Gametogenesis, fertilization, cleavage; gastrulation in frog and chick

(b) Metamorphosis in frog and retrogressive metamorphosis in ascidian; extra embryonic membranes in chick and mammal; placentation in mammals; Biogenetic law.

 Evolution

(a) Origin of life; principles, theories and evidences of evolution; species concept.

(b) Zoogeographical realms, insular fauna; geological eras.

(c) Evolution of man; evolutionary status of man.

Ecology, Wildlife and Ethology

 (a) Abiotic and biotic factors; concept of ecosystem, food chain and energy flow; adaptation of aquatic, terrestrial and aerial fauna; intra- and inter-specific animal relationships; environmental pollution: Types, sources, causes, control and prevention.

(b) Wildlife of India; endangered species of India; sanctuaries and national parks of India.

(c) Biological rhythms.

Economic Zoology

(a)    Beneficial and harmful insects, including insect vectors of human diseases.

(b)   Industrial fish, prawn and mollusks of India.

(c)     Non-poisonous and poisonous snakes of India.

(d)    Venomous animals—centipede, wasp, honey bee.

(e)     Diseases caused by aberrant chromosomes/genes in man; genetic counselling;        DNA as a tool for forensic investigation.

MAINS SYLLABUS

INDIAN CIVIL SERVICES EXAMINATION

(UPSC)

ZOOLOGY

PAPER – I

Section – A

Non-chordata and Chordata

(a) Classification and relationship of various phyla up to subclasses; Acoelomate and Coelomate; Protostomes and Deuterostomes, Bilateralia and Radiata; Status of Protista, Parazoa, Onychophora and Hemichordata; Symmetry.

(b) Protozoa: Locomotion, nutrition, reproduction; evolution of sex; general

features and life history of Paramaecium, Monocystis, Plasmodium and Leishsmania.

(c) Porifera: Skeleton, canal system and reproduction.

(d) Cnidaria: Polymorphism, defensive structures and their mechanism; coral reefs and their formation; metagenesis; general features and life history of Obelia and Aurelia.

(e) Platyhelminthes: Parasitic adaptation; general features and life history of Fasciola and Taenia and their pathogenic symptoms.

(f) Nemathelminthes: General features, life history and parasitic adaptation of Ascaris and Wuchereria.

(g) Annelida: Coelom and metamerism; modes of life in polychaetes; general features and life history of Nereis, earthworm and leach.

(h) Arthropoda: Larval forms and parasitism in Crustacea; vision and respiration in arthropods (prawn, cockroach and scorpion); modification of mouth parts in insects (cockroach, mosquito, housefly, honey bee and butterfly); metamorphosis in insects and its hormonal regulation; social behaviour of Apis and termites.

(i) Mollusca: Feeding, respiration, locomotion, general features and life history of Lamellidens, Pila and Sepia, torsion and detorsion in gastropods.

j) Echinodermata: Feeding respiration, locomotion, larval forms; general features and life history of Asterias.

(k) Protochordata: Origin of chordates; general features and life history of Banchiostoma and Herdamania.

(l) Pisces: Respiration, locomotion and migration.

(m) Amphibia: Origin of tetrapods; parental care, paedomorphosis.

(n) Reptilia: Origin of reptiles; skull types; status of Sphenodon and crocodiles.

(o) Aves: Origin of birds; flight adaptation, migration.

(p) Mammalia: Origin of mammals; dentition; general features of egg laying mammals,  pouched-mammals, aquatic mammals and primates; endocrine glands (pituitary, thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal, pancreas, gonads) and their interrelationships.

(q) Comparative functional anatomy of various systems of vertebrates (integument and its derivatives, endoskeleton, locomotory organs, digestive system, respiratory system, circulatory system, including heart and aortic arches; urino-genital system, brain and sense organs (eye and ear).

Section – B

 Ecology

(a) Biosphere: Concept of biosphere; biomes, Biogeochemical cycles, Human induced changes in atmosphere including green house effect, ecological succession, biomes and ecotones, community ecology.

(b) Concept of ecosystem; structure and function of ecosystem, types of ecosystem, ecological succession, ecological adaptation.

(c) Population, characteristics, population dynamics, population stabilization.

(d) Biodiversity and diversity conservation of natural resources.

(e) Wildlife of India.

(f) Remote sensing for sustainable development.

(g) Environmental biodegradation; pollution and its impact on biosphere and its prevention.

 Ethology

 (a) Behaviour: Sensory filtering, responsiveness, sign stimuli, learning and memory, instinct, habituation, conditioning, imprinting.

(b) Role of hormones in drive; role of pheromones in alarm spreading; crypsis, predator detection, predator tactics, social hierarchies in primates, social organization in insects.

(c) Orientation, navigation, homing; biological rhythms; biological clock, tidal, seasonal and circadian rhythms.

(d) Methods of studying animal behaviour including sexual conflict, selfishness, kinship and altruism.

 Economic Zoology

(a) Apiculture, sericulture, lac culture, carp culture, pearl culture, prawn culture, vermiculture.

(b) Major infectious and communicable diseases (malaria, filaria, tuberculosis, cholera and AIDS) their vectors, pathogens and prevention.

(c) Cattle and livestock diseases, their pathogens (helminthes) and vectors (ticks, mites, Tabanus, Stomoxys).

d) Pests of sugar cane (Pyrilla perpusilla), oil seed (Achaea janata) and rice (Sitophilus oryzae).

(e) Transgenic animals.

(f) Medical biotechnology, human genetic disease and genetic counselling, gene therapy.

(g) Forensic biotechnology.

 Biostatistics  

Designing of experiments; null hypothesis; correlation, regression, distribution and measure of central tendency, chi square, student t-test, F-test (one-way & two-way F-test).

 Instrumental methods

(a) Spectrophotometer, phase contrast and fluorescence microscopy, radioactive tracer, ultra centrifuge, gel electrophoresis, PCR, ELISA, FISH and chromosome painting.

(b) Electron microscopy (TEM, SEM).

PAPER – II

Section – A

Cell Biology

(a) Structure and function of cell and its organelles (nucleus, plasma membrane, mitochondria, Golgi bodies, endoplasmic reticulum, ribosomes and lysosomes), cell division (mitosis and meiosis), mitotic spindle and mitotic apparatus, chromosome movement, chromosome type polytene and lampbrush, organization of chromatin, heterochromatin, cell cycle regulation.

(b) Nucleic acid topology, DNA motif, DNA replication, transcription, RNA processing, translation, protein foldings and transport.

Genetics

(a)  Modern concept of gene, split gene, genetic regulation, genetic code.

(b) Sex chromosomes and their evolution, sex determination in Drosophilla and man.

(c) Mendel’s laws of inheritance, recombination, linkage, multiple alleles, genetics of blood groups, pedigree analysis, hereditary diseases in man.

(d) Mutations and mutagenesis.

(e) Recombinant DNA technology; plasmid, cosmid, artificial chromosomes as vectors, transgenics, DNA cloning and whole animal cloning (Principles and methods).

(f) Gene regulation and expression in prokaryotes and eukaryotes.

(g) Signal molecules; cell death, defects in signalling pathway and consequences.

(h) RFLP, RAPD and AFLP and application of RFLP in DNA finger printing, ribozyme technologies, human genome project, genomics and protomics.

Evolution

(a) Theories of origin of life.

(b) Theories of evolution; Natural selection, role of mutation in evolution, evolutionary patterns; molecular drive, mimicry, variation, isolation and speciation.

(c) Evolution of horse, elephant and man using fossil data.

(d) Hardy-Weinberg law.

(e) Continental drift and distribution of animals.

Systematics

Zoological nomenclature; international code; cladistics, molecular taxonomy and biodiversity.

Section – B

Biochemistry

(a) Structure and role of carbohydrates, fats, fatty acids and cholesterol, proteins and amino acids, nucleic acids. Bioenergetics.

(b) Glycolysis and Krebs cycle, oxidation and reduction, oxidative phosphorylation; energy conservation and release, ATP cycle, cyclic AMP – its structure and role.

(c) Hormone classification (steroid and peptide hormones), biosynthesis and function.

(d) Enzymes: types and mechanisms of action.

(e) Vitamins and co-enzymes.

(f) Immunoglobulin and immunity.

Physiology (with special reference to mammals).

(a) Composition and constituents of blood; blood groups and Rh factor in man; factors and mechanism of coagulation; iron metabolism, acid-base balance, thermo- regulation, anticoagulants.

(b) Haemoglobin: Composition, types and role in transport of oxygen and carbon dioxide.

(c) Digestion and absorption: Role of salivary glands, liver, pancreas and intestinal glands.

(d) Excretion: nephron and regulation of urine formation; osmoregulation and excretory product.

(e) Muscles: Types, mechanism of contraction of skeletal muscles, effects of exercise on muscles.

(f) Neuron: nerve impulse—its conduction and synaptic transmission; neurotransmitters.

(g) Vision, hearing and olfaction in man.

(h) Physiology of reproduction, puberty and menopause in human.

 Developmental Biology

(a) Gametogenesis; spermatogenesis, composition of semen, in vitro and in vivo capacitation of mammalian sperm, oogenesis, totipotency; fertilization, morphogenesis and morphogen, blastogenesis, establishment of body axes formation, fate map, gastrulation in frog and chick; genes in development in chick, homeotic genes, development of eye and heart; placenta in mammals.

 (b) Cell lineage; cell to cell interaction, Genetic and induced teratogenesis, role of thyroxine in control of metamorphosis in amphibia, Paedogenesis and neoteny, cell death, aging.

(c) Developmental genes in man, in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer, cloning.

(d) Stem cells: Sources, types and their use in human welfare.

(e) Biogenetic law.

INDIAN FOREST SERVICE EXAMINATION 

             The competitive examination for the Indian Forest Service comprises two parts, namely, the written examination and the personality test through an interview.

Written Examination 

            The written examination consists of the following papers:

Paper I             General English 300 marks

Paper II           General Knowledge    300 marks

Paper III and IV— Optional subject no. 1 from the list given below.   

Paper V and VI— Optional subject no. 2 from the list given below.                       

                                Optional subjects carry 200 marks each.

  Interview or Personality Test

            This test is meant for those candidates who pass the written test and are short-listed for the interview.  It carries 300 marks.

  List of Optional Subjects

i)     Agriculture

ii)    Agricultural Engineering

iii)   Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science

iv)   Botany

v)   Chemistry

vi)  Chemical Engineering

vii)  Civil Engineering

viii)  Forestry

ix)   Geology

x)    Mathematics

xi)   Mechanical Engineering

xii)  Physics

xiii) Statistics

xiv) Zoology

 The candidates will not be allowed to offer the following combination of subjects:  

(a) Agriculture and Agricultural Engineering

(b) Agriculture and Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science

(c) Chemistry and Chemical Engineering

(d) Mathematics and Statistics

(e) Of the Engineering subjects viz. Agricultural Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering and Mechanical Engineering, not more than one subject is allowed.

  Note: The standard and syllabi of the subjects mentioned above are same as for the Indian Civil Services Examinations. 

General 

1. All the question papers for the examination will be of conventional (essay) type.

2. ALL QUESTION PAPERS MUST BE ANSWERED IN ENGLISH. QUESTION            PAPERS WILL BE SET IN ENGLISH ONLY.

3. The duration of each of the papers    referred to above will be three hours.

4. Candidates must write the papers in their own hand. In no circumstances, will they be  allowed the help of a scribe to write the answers for them.

5. The Commission has discretion to fix the qualifying marks in any or all the subjects of             examination.

6. If a candidate’s handwriting is not easily legible, a deduction will be made on this account from the total marks otherwise accruing to him.

7.  Marks will not be allotted for mere superficial knowledge.

8. Credit will be given for orderly, effective and exact expression, combined with due     economy of words in all subjects of the examination.

9. In the question papers, wherever required. SI units will be used.

10. Candidates should use only international form of Indian numerals (i.e. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 etc.) while answering question papers.

11. Candidates will be allowed the use of scientific (Non-Programmable type) calculators at the conventional type examination of UPSC. Programmable type calculators   will, however, not be allowed and the use of such calculators shall tantamount to malpractice.

INSECT VECTORS

     Many insects transmit diseases in humans or suck blood or cause nuisance and irritation and hence are undesirable and need eradication. The following insects are included in this section.

    Click on the title to open.

• Bed bugs
• Fleas
• House flies
• Sucking lice
• Mosquitoes
• Sand flies 

PESTS OF TREES

     The following insects attack large trees in forests and orchards.

    Click on the pest to open.

• Termites
• Locusts

     When harvested produce is stored in houses, godowns and warehouses, it is attacked by a variety of insects that specialise in thriving under enclosed conditions. Although moisture, fungus, rodents and birds also cause damage to the stored grains, insects are considered to be the chief destroyers of harvested grains.  The following insect pests are included in this section.

   Click on the pest to open.

• Sitophilus oryzae
• Trogoderma granarium
• Callosobruchus chinensis
• Corcyra cephalonica
• Ephestia cautella

 

EVOLUTION 

       Biological phenomena are so complex that they can be logically explained only in the light of evolution. Evolution therefore has to be brought into picture while studying any aspect of zoology, namely, anatomy, embryology, cytology or physiology. The fact that animals and plants change and do not remain static during the course of time is the backbone of evolutionary reasoning.

            The following chapters are included in this section.  Click on the title to open.

• Origin of life

• Evidences of evolution

• Natural selection

• Types of selection

• Hardy-Weinberg’s Law

• Sewall-Wright Effect

• Variations

• Isolation

• Speciation

• Fossils and fossilization

• Evolution of horse

• Evolution of elephant

• Evolution of Man

• Geological Eras

• Charles Darwin

• Anagenesis & Cladogenesis

• Balanced Polymorphism

• Books on Evolution

• Evolutionary thoughts

• Darwinian Fitness

• Kin Selection

• Micro- Macro- & Megaevolution

• Molecular Evolution

• Parallel Evolution

• Selection Coefficient

• Character Displacement

• Evolutionary Rates

• Speed of Evolution

• The Riddle of Human Origin

• The mystery of mass extinctions

   

GENERAL ENTOMOLOGY    

         Entomology is the science of studying insects that constitute about 75% of the animal kingdom as far as the number of species is concerned. They are ubiquitous and highly diversified creatures and hence are an interesting subject of study.

            The following topics appear in this section. Click on the title to open.

•  Books on Entomology
• Classification of insects
• Apterygota
• Exopterygota
• Endopterygota
• Methods of collecting & preservation of insects
• Insect rearing techniques
• Amazing ways of Insects
•