Effect of surface treatment of jute fibers on the interfacial adhesion in poly(lactic acid)/jute fiber biocomposites

Jute fibers have immense potential to be used as natural fillers in polymeric matrices to prepare biocomposites. In the present study jute fibers were surface treated using two methods: i) alkali (NaOH) and ii) alkali followed by silane (NaOH+Silane) separately. Effects of surface treatments on jute fibers surface were characterized using fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses. Further, the effects of surface treatments on jute fibers properties such as crystallinity index, thermal stability, and tensile properties were analyzed by X-ray diffraction method (XRD), thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA), and single fiber tensile test respectively. The effects of surface treatment of jute fibers on interphase adhesion between of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and jute fibers were analyzed by performing single fiber pull-out test and was examined in terms of interfacial shear strength (IFSS) and critical fiber length.     

Shredded Hard Stems of Pruning Litters Supported the Growth of Young Tea Plants by Supplementing Nitrogen in Soil: Evaluating Suitable Combination of Urea and Prunings

Tea is an evergreen shrub, and tea bushes (plants) are periodically pruned at 3-year intervals. This practice generates tons of pruning litters (leaves and stems) in tea gardens. In spite of availability, the hard nature and slow decomposition rate limit the use of pruning litters as soil amendments. In this study, an attempt was made to cycle pruning litters in shredded form to evaluate their effect on young tea plants under greenhouse condition. It was observed that shredded prunings were decomposed in soil within study duration and enhanced nitrate-N content in the soil. The study revealed that different parameters like plant height, biomass weight, and N uptake were enhanced due to the application of suitable combinations of pruning litter and urea in the soil. Based on this study, it could be concluded that application of shredded prunings had potential to replace up to 15% of recommended urea during tea cultivation.     

Ploidy distinction in male and female plants of betelvine (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Piper betle</Emphasis> L.): a study by flow cytometry

Piper betle L. (betelvine) is a dioecious species which is a native of Central and South East Asia and it is cultivated in an area of about 50,000 ha in India. The basic chromosome number of this species is x?=?13. Only fragmented work has so far been reported on chromosome numbers and ploidy status. The extremely small size and high number of chromosomes, interclonal variability and very dense cytoplasmic contents make critical analysis difficult. In India, a large number of germplasm has been collected and assembled in All India Co-ordinated Research Project on Betelvine centers by sustained efforts of betelvine workers over a period of two and half decades. Hybridization work was also initiated and a few hybrids have been developed in India. But hybrid depression was noticed in most of the hybrids. Hence a study was undertaken to determine compatible ploidy level of available male and female germplasm using flow cytometry. Cytological studies conducted in a selected male cultivar revealed 2n?=?3x?=?39 and female cultivar it was 2n?=?4x?=?52 chromosomes and these cultivars were used as control samples in the flow cytometry analysis. Flow cytometric study showed that all male accessions were grouped within the same ploidy level (triploid) while all females were grouped in another ploidy group (tetraploid). The present study also gave explanation for the observed hybrid depression due to the possibility of aneuploid hybrid formation by the fusion of unbalanced gametes developed from the triploid male parents. Flow cytometry could thus be utilized for the rapid screening and earlier detection of the aneuploids in hybrid seedlings in the species. Separation of sexes by ploidy difference is also a new report in P. betle.     

Genetic variation in wood specific gravity among half-sib families of chir pine (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pinus roxburghii</Emphasis> sargent)

Chir pine (Pinus roxburghii) is an important tree species that grows all along the Himalayas. Wood specific gravity of chir pine before and after removal of extractives from wood increment cores was assessed from a 22-years-old progeny test in Himachal Pradesh, India. These values averaged 0.433 and 0.425, respectively. A large amount of genetic variation among the 58 half-sib families was found as indicated by range of values, additive coefficient of variation, variance estimates and narrow-sense heritability values for these traits. Moisture and extractive content averaged 86.259% of oven-dry weight and 2.003% of extractive-free oven-dry weight, respectively. Wood extractive content was highly variable and the family differences were highly heritable (h _f² = 0.5831). There was wide variability in moisture content, but a large portion of it was due to environmental or non-additive component of genetic variation. Heritability on family mean basis was found to be lower than that on individual tree basis for each trait. Estimated gain in specific gravity resulting from 30 to 50% family selection ranged from 0.0080 to 0.0127. Growth data and specific gravity were not significantly correlated implying that selection for higher growth rate would not necessarily result in reduction in wood specific gravity in chir pine.     

Acellular and glutaraldehyde-preserved tendon allografts for reconstruction of superficial digital flexor tendon in bovines: Part II--Gross, microscopic and scanning electron microscopic observations

Sixteen tenorrhaphies were performed at mid-metatarsal region in eight buffalo calves. A 2-cm long gap was created in the superficial digital flexor (SDF) tendon in all animals. The gap was immediately repaired with acellular grafts in animals of group I, 1% glutaraldehyde-preserved tendon allografts in group II, and in group III the defect was repaired with autografts (control group). The contralateral limb in each animal was operated after an interval of 60 days and the animals underwent the same procedure according to the designed groups. Gross observation revealed filling of host tendon-graft junction with fibrous connective tissue. Increased vascularity was seen in group I when compared with group II and III. Graft was resorbed in animals of group I and III, whereas partial absorption of graft was seen in group II. Histological observations on day 30 revealed restoration of cellularity in acellular graft and fragmentation and resorption of glutaraldehyde-preserved graft. Graft was replaced by newly formed fibrous connective tissue. Tissue reaction around polygalactin suture consisted of plasma cells, lymphocytes and macrophages. On day 90, most of the acellular graft was replaced by newly formed fibrous connective tissue. In group II the majority of graft portion remained at the site and was in a state of resorption. In the control group it was difficult to distinguish between the host tendon and the graft. Scanning electron microscopical observation showed densely packed neoformed tissue at host tendon-graft junction. Hydrolysis and invasion of connective tissue between polygalactin suture filaments, resorption of graft with cavity formation and dissolution of ground substance were observed.     

Cost-Benefit Analysis of a Community Forest in Nepal

Community forestry is an approach for mitigating deforestation and forest degradation by managing the forest resources for benefitting neighboring communities. Monetary benefits and costs are associated in a community forest during conservation and management of a forest. For sustainable forest management, the benefit should be more than cost which is a contesting issue of research. So, this study was conducted in a community forest of the central part of Nepal with the help of 80 household surveys and a focus group discussion. The firsthand information collected at the site is complimented by forest product harvest and cost-related secondary information. It was observed that the total annual harvest of timber was 60 cubic feet, pole was 8 cubic feet, firewood was 1,110 Bhari,¹ fodder was 4,388 Bhari, and leaf litter was 590 Bhari. To manage a forest, people were involved in fencing, thinning, and meetings. Management cost was six times higher than administration cost. The benefit from firewood and fodder was more due to the dependency of people in a forest for enhancing their livelihood. The higher value of benefit cost ratio indicates that the Community Forest User Group benefited from community forest management.     

Psidium guajava (L.)—a Bioeconomic Plant for Restoration of Industrial Solid Waste Dump: a Green and Sustainable Approach

Water, Air, & Soil Pollution - Air pollution, especially heavy metals in PM2.5, has gradually become one of the most serious environmental problems in cities, which might cause various...     

Inactivation of bacterial fish pathogens by medium-chain lipid molecules (caprylic acid, monocaprylin and sodium caprylate)

The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of caprylic acid (CA), monocaprylin (MC, monoglyceride ester of CA) and sodium caprylate (SC) on Edwardsiella ictaluri, E. tarda, Streptococcus iniae and Yersinia ruckeri in Mueller Hinton broth (MHB) were investigated. In addition, the bactericidal kinetics of CA and MC on the aforementioned pathogens in MHB, and that of SC in water, were determined. The MIC of CA and SC on E. ictaluri, E. tarda, S. iniae and Y. ruckeri were 7.5 and 50 mM, 7.5 and 50 mM, 10 and 25 mM, and 7.5 and 25 mM respectively. For MC, the MIC was in between 2.5 and 5 mM for all the pathogens. The MBC of CA, MC and SC on E. ictaluri, E. tarda, S. iniae and Y. ruckeri were 10, 5 and 100 mM; 10, 5 and 100 mM; 15, 5 and 75 mM; and 10, 5 and 75 mM respectively. The three lipid molecules exerted a substantial antimicrobial effect on the fish pathogens studied. The results indicate that CA and its derivatives could potentially be used for treating and controlling bacterial fish diseases, but extensive validation studies in fish are needed before recommending their usage.     

Outcrossing and isolation requirement in kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.)

Summary To find the isolation distance in Hibiscus cannabinus L. (kenaf), experiments were conducted for three years with two planting designs. The extent of cross pollination irrespective of the planting designs was inversely related with the distance. At a distance beyond 10.0 m, the contamination was found to be absent. Directions had no influence on the contamination. The amount of contamination varied considerably between the years.     

Outcrossing and isolation requirement in jute (Corchorus olitorius L.)

Summary To find out an effective isolation distance in olitorius jute experiments were conducted for three years in two planting designs; in one the cultivar with the dominant marker allele was planted at the centre and the cultivarcarrying the recessive marker allele was planted around and in the other the planting arrangement was just the reverse of the former. A total of nearly 20 lac seedlings were counted. Irrespective of the planting designs, at the minimum distance from the pollen source outcrossing was found to be at its maximum which, however, decreased with the distance. Directions had no influence on cross pollination in this species. At a distance beyond 9.0 metres outcrossing was found to be absent.