Data Mining Strategy for "Gene Prediction" with Special Reference to Cotton Genome

This paper presents an integrated approach towards solving the problem of "Gene Prediction".The "Gene Prediction" problem solving undergoes well defined stages starting with a DNA sequence as input and lab treatment and computational analysis go hands in hands throughout the process.Many bioinformatics tools are available for analysis at different stages of "Gene Prediction",but a simplified and integrated approach is needed to support and speed up the task of a life scientist.     

Reproductive biology of a hillstream catfish, Glyptothorax madraspatanum (Day), from the Garhwal, Central Himalaya, India

Abstract. This paper studies maturity and spawning tendency of a hillstream catfish, Glyptothorax madraspatanum (Day), in the Western Nayar River, Garhwal, Central Himalaya, India. The fish is a protracted spawner as it spawns only once during the limited period from July to August. Fecundity ranges from 1640 to 6830 eggs and is more closely related to ovary weight and fish weight than ovary and fish length. There was a non-significant sex ratio of 1:1·24 between males and females.     

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi for salinity stress: Anti-stress role and mechanisms

Salinity stress is considered one of the most harmful environmental plant stresses, as it reduces irrigated land crop production by over 20%worldwide.Hence, it is imperative to develop salt-tolerant crops in addition to understanding various mechanisms enabling plant growth under saline stress conditions.Recently, a novel biological approach that aims to address salinity stress has gained momentum, which involves the use of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in plant-microbe interactions. It has ...     

Utilization of lignocellulosic plant residues for compost formation and its role in improving soil fertility

Globally, urbanization and a steady increase in population generate a huge amount of wastes, which leads to a series of economic, social, and environmental changes, mainly in developing countries. There is an utmost need for efficient management strategies for the beneficial utilization of these wastes into useful products. Among these strategies, composting is gaining attention due to its benefits of solid waste management, such as proper sterilization, and economical and effective bioconversio...     

Metagenetics of fairy rings reveals complex and variable soil fungal communities

Although fairy rings are widely observed, little is known about the community processes associated with them. Here, we studied fairy rings in a natural grassland in northern Mongolia by sampling soils outside (future stage), directly under (present stage), and within (past stage) the rings, to represent different time stages during the expansion of fairy rings. Soil DNA was extracted for amplicon sequencing of the fungal ITS1 region. The present stage had reduced fungal diversity and different fungal communities toward the other stages. Most strikingly, there was an increase in the pathogenic fungus Gibberella baccata in the present stage of most rings and the saprotrophic fairy ring fungus Lepista luscina in several. However, no mushrooms of Lepista had been recorded from any of these rings during several years of observation. Known fairy ring fungi were not found in the present stage of every ring, even in some known rings to have previously displayed mushrooms of such species. It is possible that these fungi occurred or were more abundant at the unsampled leading edge of the ring. The increase in G. baccata is intriguing, but its importance, if any, is unclear. It is also unclear whether consortia of fungi or other microbes might be present in these rings. The absence or low abundance of the previously reported fairy ring fungal species suggests that their presence is transient, with rapid replacement by other fungi. No differences in soil parameters were found between the fairy ring stages, except for aluminum. There is a need for broader sampling, including analysis of non-fungal biota, to understand the functional diversity of fairy ring fungi and the consequences for plant communities.     

不同土壤层次和土壤水分对章古台樟子松固沙林土壤N矿化过程的影响

选择章古台地区三块典型樟子松(Pinus sylvestris var. Mongolica)人工固沙林为研究对象,采用实验室好氧培养法测定了不同土壤层次和在不同水分条件下的N矿化过程.结果表明:土壤0-60 cm 层N净矿化速率垂直变化范围为1.06-7.52 mg·kg-1·month-1;土壤层次和含水量及其交互作用对土壤N净矿化速率的影响均达到差异显著(P<0.05);净矿化速率随着土壤层次的加深而明显下降,0-15 cm层占总净矿化量的60.52%;半饱和与饱和含水量处理差异不显著,但均高于不加水处理.为此,在半干旱地区必须进一步加强开展调控生态系统N矿化、循环及其收支平衡影响因素的研究.     

Leaf-Litter Decomposition in an Oak-Conifer Forest in Himalaya: The Effects of Climate and Chemical Composition

The decomposition rates of certain dominant litter species inan undisturbed oak-conifer forest in the Kumaun Himalaya wereinvestigated by enclosing pre-weighed, newly senesced leavesin litter bags, placing these bags on the forest floor and determiningthe weight loss by recovering the bags at monthly intervals.Among the species examined, Daphne cannabina decomposed fastestand Cupressus torulosa decomposed most slowly. The former took6 months for complete decomposition, while Cupressus torulosadecomposed to about 72 per cent in 18 months. A linear combinationof rainfall and temperature explained 80 per cent of the variabilityin monthly weight loss. The rate of decomposition was also relatedto the initial chemical composition of the litter. Initially,several constituents showed a significant relation with decomposition;these are nitrogen, calcium, water soluble compounds, totalnonstructural carbohydrates, lignin, acid detergent cell wallcomponents and fibre. Of these, lignin and fibre contents showeda negative relation with weight loss while the others were positivelyrelated. As decomposition progressed, only nitrogen, lignin,ADCW and fibre content remained important. With further lapseof time only two constituents, nitrogen and lignin, remainedimportant. Among these the effect of nitrogen declined withtime while that of lignin increased. A linear combination ofnitrogen and lignin explained 59 per cent variability in theannual weight loss.     

Translocation of 2,4-D, asulam and amitrole in water hyacinth

In glasshouse experiments foliar application or ¹⁴C-labelled herbicides to water hyacinth plants at the 4-leaf stage indicated that amilroie transport from the treated leaf blade was faster and greater than 2.4-D. but a little less than asulam. From the treated leaf 14·2, 25·9. 39·7. 44·5 and 51·8% of the recovered ¹⁴CNamitrole was translocated at intervals of 6 h. and 1. 3. 6 and 12 day., respectively. Both xylem and phloem transport of asulam and amitrole was evident, whereas 2.4-D moved only from ‘source to sink’. Movement of the herbicides from the mother to the connected daughter plant or vice versa was dependent upon the size of the latter. Maximum transport of these herbicides in either direction took place at the 2-leaf stage of daughter plants. With any increase or decrease in the number of leaves on daughter plants, the transport of herbicides was reduced. As an exception, daughter plant to mother plant movement of amilroie was maximum at the 1-leaf stage. After extraction, fractionation and TLC separation of foliage applied ¹⁴C-2.4-D 76–4 and 72·1% of the radioactivity was detected in the chloroform phase of the leaf extract at 3 and 6 day intervals, respectively. In another pot culture experiment, it was observed that after spraying the mother plants with 2.4-D-amine at 0–75 kg/ha the connected daughter plants at 1 to 4-leaf stages werckilled if the culture solution was contaminated while spraying, or by dying leaves. When contamination was totally avoided, the connected but unsprayed daughter plants at 3 to 4-feaf stages survived.