Phytochemical screening, cytotoxicity and antibacterial activities of two Bangladeshi medicinal plants

The objectives of the present study were to investigate phytochemical screening and to assay cytotoxicity and antibacterial activities of ethanolic extracts of leaves of two medicinal plants, Aglaonema hookerianum Schott (Family: Araceae) and Lannea grandis Engl. (Family: Anacardiaceae) available in Bangladesh. The brine shrimp lethality bioassay showed that the ethanolic extracts of Aglaonema hookerianum and Lannea grandis possessed cytotoxic activities with LC50 5.25 (microg mL(-1)) and 5.75 (microg mL(-1)) and LC90 10.47 (microg mL(-1)) and 9.55 (microg mL(-1)), respectively. Two extracts obtained from leaves were examined for their antibacterial activities against some gram positive bacteria such as Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus megaterium and Staphylococcus aureus, also gram negative strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Shigella dysenteriae, Salmonella typhi, Salmonella paratyphi and Vibrio cholerae. Agar disc diffusion method was applied to observe the antibacterial efficacy of the extracts. Results indicated that both plant extracts (500 microg disc(-1)) displayed antibacterial activity against all of the tested microorganisms. These results were also compared with the zones of inhibition produced by commercially available standard antibiotic, Amoxicillin at concentration of 10 microg disc(-1). Observed antibacterial properties of the ethanolic extract of Aglaonema hookerianum Schott and Lannea grandis Engl. showed that both plants might be useful sources for the development of new potent antibacterial agents.     

Recycling of isabgol (Plantago ovata Forsk.) straw biomass and mineral powder with bio-inoculants as an effective soil amendment for isabgol cultivation

Efficient utilization of isabgol (Plantgo ovata Forsk.) straw biomass through preparation of bio-active organic fertilizer in a natural composting process has not been studied. In this study, phosphate rock and silicate mineral (mica) powder were used as natural sources of phosphorus (P) and potassium (K), respectively. Cow dung slurry as a natural decomposer was mixed with the straw biomass at a 10:1 (weight/weight) ratio along with mineral powder. Then, nutrient-mobilizing bio-inoculants were used in the composting process after attaining thermal stabilization. The agronomic effectiveness of the resulting bio-active compost (BAC) as a bio-organic fertilizer was compared with that of conventional organics (farmyard manure and vermicompost) and chemical fertilizer (CF) by growing isabgol under field conditions. Composting with the natural sources of P and K along with the bio-inoculants increased the total nitrogen (13.6 g kg^-1), P (38.7 g kg^-1), and K (31.2 g kg^-1) contents in the final product (i.e., BAC) compared with composting without the mineral powder and bio-inoculants. Application of BAC remarkably improved the seed yield (2.5%) and husk quality of isabgol in comparison with conventional organics and CF. Compared with CF, BAC significantly boosted the economic yield of isabgol by improving the husk recovery (2.5%) and mucilage yield (4.12%). Furthermore, BAC significantly improved the soil quality by increasing organic carbon (C), available nutrients, and microbial biomass C contents, as well as enzyme activity. The positive correlation between soil and plant parameters also highlighted the benefits of BAC for isabgol production through soil quality improvement. Therefore, it can be considered as a zero-waste technology, whereby a large quantity of straw biomass generated from isabgol cultivation, which contains essential nutrients, can be recycled back to the soil. Furthermore, BAC can be effectively used as a bio-active organic fertilizer, particularly in systems where chemical inputs are restricted, such as organic agriculture.     

Can Kalmia angustifolia interference to black spruce (Picea mariana) be explained by allelopathy?

Allelopathic interference of Kalmia angustifolia (Ericaceae) to the growth and establishment of black spruce (Picea mariana) has been suggested by several authors. The greenhouse studies suggested that Kalmia has potential for nutrient interference. However, these studies do not eliminate probable involvement of allelopathy. Field studies indicate that soils associated with Kalmia were nutrient-poor particularly for nitrogen, phosphorus, iron, and manganese, and support the hypothesis that Kalmia has dominated microsites that were nutrient-poor prior to its colonization. The questions addressed in this paper are (i) Is Kalmia interference to black spruce growth explained by allelopathy? (ii) Can Kalmia–black spruce allelochemical interactions be better explained by ecosystem-level approach to allelochemicals rather than disturbance-related regeneration ecology of Kalmia? At present, we do not have compelling direct evidence to support allelopathy as a mechanism of Kalmia interference to black spruce. However, organic molecules released from Kalmia into the environment may influence soil mineralization, mycorrhizae, nutrient dynamics, and soil microbial ecology. We hypothesize that synergistic interaction of ecological factors may better explain the interference mechanism of Kalmia.     

Non-escaping frost tolerant QTL linked genetic loci at reproductive stage in six wheat DH populations

Reproductive stage frost poses a major constraint for wheat production in countries such as Australia.However,little progress has been made in identifying key genes to overcome the constraint.In the present study,a severe frost event hit two large-scale field trials consisting of six doubled haploid(DH)wheat populations at reproductive stage(young microspore stage)in Western Australia,leading to the identification of 30 robust frost QTL on 17 chromosomes.The major 18 QTL with the phenotype variation over 9.5%were located on 13 chromosomes including 2 A,2 B,2 D,3 A,4 A,4 B,4 D,5 A,5 D,6 D,7 A,7 B and7 D.Most frost QTL were closely linked to the QTL of anthesis,maturity,Zadok stages as well as linked to anthesis related genes.Out of those,six QTL were repetitively detected on the homologous regions on 2 B,4 B,4 D,5 A,5 D,7 A in more than two populations.Results showed that the frost damage is associated with alleles of Vrn-A1 a,Vrn-D1 a,Rht-B1 b,Rht-D1 b,and the high copy number of Ppd-B1.However,anthesis QTL and anthesis related genes of Vrn-B1 a and Ta FT3-1 B on chromosomes 5 B and 1 B did not lead to frost damage,indicating that these early-flowering phenotype related genes are compatible with frost tolerance and thus can be utilised in breeding.Our results also indicate that wild-type alleles Rht-B1 a and Rht-D1 a can be used when breeding for frost-tolerant varieties without delaying flowering time.     

Thin section studies of Calluna heathland soils subject to prescribed burning

Abstract. Soil microstructures and biological activity were studied in thin sections of Culluna heathland soils subject to periodic burning. Freely drained Brown Podzolic soils from a species-rich heath at Dinnet Muir, Aberdeenshire, Scotland were compared with shallow Humo-ferric Podzols with a thick humus layer (5–10 cm) supporting a species-poor heath at Balmenach, Aberdeenshire.
Structures with greater porosity occurred in all Dinnet soils and the most recently burned Balmenach soil. Burning led to an increase in soil porosity which gradually disappeared after a period of 2–3 years. Soils of the recently burned site had more enchytraeid worms than those burned ten years previously. Most of the Dinnet soil samples were dominated by extremely fine granular structure which could have been produced by flocculation of well decomposed organic matter or by enchytraeid worms. In recently burned sites the increase in soil macro- and microbial activities may lead to the formation of composite structures.
Regular burning every 10–15 years has been the land management practice in Scottish heathlands to ensure the production of fresh browse of nutritious heather shoots for herbivores. The near-ground microclimate and regeneration mechanisms of heathland plants are well adjusted to the periodic disturbance by fire. We found that the gradual decrease in surface soil porosity over time can be restored by prescribed burning. Soil structure and the distribution and continuity of pores in the soil profile directly affect soil water movement and retention. These factors have important ecological implications for post-fire vegetation recovery.     

Uptake of nutrients by banana at the 8th- and 19th-leaf stage

Uniform 2-leaved suckers of dwarf banana ‘Cavendish’ (Musa cavendishii) were treated with 2 doses and 2 frequencies of irrigation as main treatments, and 5 combinations of NPK as sub-treatments. Observations of the plants' response to these treatments were made at the 8th- and 19th-leaf stage. Irrigation at fortnightly or monthly intervals in combination with applications of NPK improved plant morphology. P uptake increased with frequent high irrigation and a high level of P application. With low but frequent irrigation, K and Ca uptake increased with high K application and balanced NPK application, respectively. N uptake with a high application of NPK or N increased at the 8th-leaf stage with frequent irrigation at both levels, and increased at the 19th-leaf stage at low level, less frequent irrigation. The leaves contained the highest quantity of N, followed by the petiole.     

Inheritance of faecal nematode egg count in Barbari goats following natural Haemonchus contortus infection

Genetic parameters for faecal nematode egg count were estimated in naturally infected Barbari goats maintained at the Central Institute for Research on Goats, Makhdoom, Mathura, India, over a period of 5 years (1999 through 2003). Faecal egg count (FEC) data on 891 records of Barbari goats descended from 69 bucks and 241 does were used in this study. Analyses were carried out by restricted maximum likelihood (REML), fitting an animal model and ignoring or including maternal genetic or permanent environmental effects. Three different animal models were fitted. Direct heritability estimates were inflated substantially for this trait when maternal effects were ignored. The direct heritability estimates for the trait ranged from 0.05 to 0.13 depending on the model used. Low (0.04) maternal heritability estimate was observed for this trait in our study. Moderate estimate of the fraction of variance due to maternal permanent environmental effects (c(2)) for faecal egg count (c(2)=0.10) was also observed. Results suggest that direct and permanent environmental maternal effects were important for this trait, however, maternal additive effects had less impact on this trait.     

Evaluation of bacterial strains isolated from oil-contaminated soil for production of polyhydroxyalkanoic acids (PHA)

Samples of eight geographically distinct soils contaminated with crude oil were screened for polyhydroxyalkanoic acid (PHA) producing bacterial strains. Twenty three bacterial strains were able to accumulate PHA when sodium gluconate or sodium octanoate was used as the sole carbon source. Biochemical tests and 16S rRNA sequencing identified bacteria of the genera Pseudomonas, Acinetobacter, Sphingobacterium, Brochothrix, Caulobacter, Ralstonia, Burkholderia and Yokenella. Three of the bacterial strains have never been reported to produce PHA. The phylogenetic analysis of the PHA synthase (phaC) gene of these bacteria showed a close homology with the phaC gene of different Pseudomonas species.This study indicates that stressed environments like oil-contaminated sites can be potential sources of medium-chain-length PHA producers.     

Identification of RAPD‐SCAR marker linked to white spot syndrome virus resistance in populations of giant black tiger shrimp,Penaeus monodon Fabricius

White spot disease (WSD) caused by white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) creates severe epizootics in shrimp aquaculture industry worldwide. Despite several efforts, no such permanent remedy was yet developed. Selective breeding using DNA markers would be a cost‐effective strategy for long‐term solution of this problem. In the present investigation, out of 30 random primers, only one primer produced a statistically significant (P < 0.01) randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) marker of 502 bp, which provided a good discrimination between disease resistant and disease susceptible populations of Penaeus monodon from three geographical locations along the East coast of India. Because RAPD markers are dominant, a sequence characterized amplified region (SCAR) marker was developed by cloning and sequencing of 502 bp RAPD fragment, which generates a single 457 bp DNA fragment after PCR amplification only in the disease resistant shrimps. Challenge experiment was also conducted to validate this 457 bp SCAR marker, and the results suggested that the WSSV loads were 2.25 × 10³ fold higher in disease susceptible than that in disease resistant shrimps using real‐time PCR. Therefore, this 457 bp DNA SCAR marker will be very valuable towards the development of disease‐free shrimp aquaculture industry.