The Lok Sabha has passed the spending authorization Finance bill for the financial year 2024-25

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On Monday, the Lok Sabha approved expenditure demands of around ₹140 lakh crore from various ministries. This important step completes two-thirds of the legislative approvals required for the full budget for fiscal year 2024-25.

Key Acceptances

The Lower House has passed the Appropriation (No. 2) Bill 2024 with demands for grants. The Bill empowers the Government to draw a specified amount from the Consolidated Fund of India to cover services for the ensuing financial year.

The guillotine proposal was used

The approval process has been expedited by implementing the guillotine proposal after discussing the demands for grants for the four ministries. This procedural step allowed the necessary approvals to be passed quickly, ensuring that the legislative process for the budget could proceed efficiently.

A gene that regulates blood pressure in racehorses may also help human athletes

Horse racing has been a beloved hobby for centuries. Recently, researchers have found that it can help us understand how blood pressure is regulated during exercise.

Major genetic findings

On June 17, researchers at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences discovered a DNA sequence in horses that enhances racing performance. This sequence affects the levels of two proteins that regulate blood pressure. Their findings were published in PLoS Genetics.

Implications for health

The research sheds light on the mechanism of blood pressure modulation, which provides information about heart health. The sequence identified also affects other physiological processes affected by hormone signaling.

Research development

Previously, researchers knew that horses with this genomic region ran faster but could not link it to any physical trait. Now they have linked it to better racing performance and lower blood pressure during exercise.

This gene, shared between trotters and standardbreds, is associated with better athletic performance in both horses and humans, underscoring its widespread importance.