Microbial Biomass and Activity in a Laterite Soil Amended with Municipal Solid Waste Compost

The dynamics of soil quality indicators, such as microbial biomass-C, soil respiration, and urease and acid phosphatase activities, in a laterite soil (Typic Haplustalf ) amended with different doses of Calcutta municipal solid waste compost (MSWC) were studied over 120 days of incubation at 30 °C under 60 % soil water holding capacity. The parameters were found to increase with the increase in doses of MSWC. Soil microbial biomass-C (MBC) and soil respiration activity reached peak values at 30 days of incubation and then gradually decreased up to 120 days of incubation. Urease and acid phosphatase activities showed peak values at 60 and 90 days of incubation, respectively. The increase in soil enzyme activities with the fall in MBC suggested that the release of enzymes was associated with lysis of microbial cells at the end of their life cycle. There was no indication of any detrimental effect on soil quality indicators of application of MSWC to soil.     

Effect of Climatic Variation on Yield of Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) at Different Dates of Sowing

Although experiments have previously been carried out to determine the optimum sowing time of sesame, very few attempts have been made to determine the effects of macro and micro climatic variation on yield. Thus a field experiment was conducted at the University Research Farm, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Kalyani, India on an Entisol (alluvial, sandy loam) in the summer seasons of 1996 and 1997 to assess the effects of macro and micro climatic variations on yield of sesame for various dates of sowing. The number of seeds per capsule of sesame was highest in the crop sown on 19 February, although up to the 18 April sowing there was no significant variation. There was no appreciable variation in thousand-seed weight with date of sowing. Crops sown on 19 February and 1 March produced statistically similar yields. The average reduction in yield of sesame was 78.5 and 213 %, respectively, for crops sown on 10 February and 28 April, compared with the crop sown on 19 February. The cultivar Rama produced higher yields than B-67 and Kanke-1. Ambient temperature above 30 °C up to 100 % flowering had a direct positive effect on sesame yield. Crop exposure to 60–70, 70–80 and  80 % relative humidity up to 100 % flowering had a direct negative effect. Temperature profile at 50 days after emergence (DAE), relative humidity at 60 DAE, and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) at 30 and 40 DAE within the crop canopy had direct positive effects on yield. Regression models suggested that temperature profile and PAR within the crop canopy produced 72 and 35 % variation in yield, respectively.     

Poor maternal nutrition inhibits muscle development in ovine offspring

Background:Maternal over and restricted nutrition has negative consequences on the muscle of offspring by reducing muscle fiber number and altering regulators of muscle growth.To determine if over and restricted maternal nutrition affected muscle growth and gene and protein expression in offspring,36 pregnant ewes were fed 60%,100%or 140%of National Research Council requirements from d 31 ± 1.3 of gestation until parturition.Lambs from control-fed(CON),restricted-fed(RES) or over-fed(OVER) ewes were necropsied within 1 d of birth(n = 18) or maintained on a control diet for 3 mo(n = 15).Semitendinosus muscle was collected for immunohistochemistry,and protein and gene expression analysis.Results:Compared with CON,muscle fiber cross-sectional area(CSA) increased in RES(58%) and OVER(47%)lambs at 1 d of age(P 0.01);however at 3 mo,CSA decreased 15%and 17%compared with CON,respectively(P 0.01).Compared with CON,muscle lipid content was increased in OVER(212.4%) and RES(92.5%) at d 1(P 0.0001).Muscle lipid content was increased 36.1%in OVER and decreased 23.6%in RES compared with CON at 3mo(P 0.0001).At d 1,myostatin mRNA abundance in whole muscle tended to be greater in OVER(P = 0.07) than CON.Follistatin mRNA abundance increased in OVER(P = 0.04) and tended to increase in RES(P = 0.06) compared with CON at d 1.However,there was no difference in myostatin or follistatin protein expression(P 0.3).Phosphorylated Akt(ser473) was increased in RES at 3 mo compared with CON(P = 0.006).Conclusions:In conclusion,maternal over and restricted nutrient intake alters muscle lipid content and growth of offspring,possibly through altered gene and protein expression.     

Improved model for studying hydrological process in the field-to-field irrigation system

Paddy and Water Environment - One of the common irrigation systems in the paddy fields is field-to-field irrigation. The management of these irrigation systems is difficult and essential because of...     

Toxico-kinetics, recovery, and metabolism of napropamide in goats following a single high-dose oral administration

Toxicokinetic behavior, recovery and metabolism of napropamide (a pre-emergent herbicide) and its effect on Cytochrome P(450) of liver microsomal pellet were studied following a single high-dose oral administration of 2.5 g kg(-1) and continuous (7 days) oral administration of 500 mg kg(-1) in black Bengal goat. Napropamide was detected in blood at 15 min and the maximum quantity was recovered at 3 h after administration. The absorption rate constant (Ka) value was low indicating poor absorption from the gastrointestinal tract. High elimination half-life (t(1/2) beta) and low body clearance (Cl(B)) values coupled with higher transfer of compound from tissue to central compartment (K(21)) suggest that napropamide persisted in the blood for a long time, i.e., after 72 h of oral administration. The recovery percentage of napropamide, including metabolites, from goats varied from 75.94 to 80.08 and excretion of the parent compound through feces varied from 18.86 to 21.59%, indicating that a major portion of the orally administered napropamide was absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract of goat. Napropamide significantly increased the Cytochrome P(450) content of liver microsomal pellet. The recovery of metabolites from feces, urine, and tissues ranged from 4.2--6.2, 40.81--49.42, and 2.7--11.6%, respectively, during a 4--7 day period. The material balance of napropamide (including metabolites) following a single high-dose oral administration at 2.5 g kg(-1) during 4--7 days after dosing was found to be in the range of 75--80%.     

Acellular Dermal Matrix for Surgical Repair of Ventral Hernia in Horses

The aim of the present study was to evaluate acellular dermal matrix (ADM) of rat origin for the repair of ventral hernia in horses. The skin from rats, to be used as a graft, was de-epithelialized using hypertonic solution and further decellularized with 0.5% sodium dodecyl sulfate and 0.25% tri-(n-butyl)-phosphate. Under general anesthesia, the hernial ring was exposed and repaired with the ADM graft using inlay graft technique. Blood samples were collected at postimplantation days 0, 15, and 30 and were used for sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis to assess the serum protein concentration of the animals, as well as for gelatin zymography for the identification of matrix metalloproteinases. All animals had an uneventful recovery without clinical signs of wound dehiscence, infection, or recurrence of hernias during 6-month follow-up period. Sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis of concentration of the serum proteins revealed that this was increased at day 15 and had decreased again at day 30. Gelatin zymography showed only one major band of 92 kDa in the serum of all the horses with the implant, but the relative amount of 92 kDa was higher at day 15 as compared with day 0 and day 30. It may be concluded that ADM of rat origin can be used safely in horses for repair of ventral hernia.     

Potentiality for value-added technical use of Indian sisal

India is one of the major exporters of sisal ropes and cordages but the raw fibres are imported from Africa and some other places. Import of sisal fibre in India is increasing at the rate of 25% per year for last few years. Sisal is grown in randomly distributed pockets all over Indian sub-continent mainly for some other purpose without giving any attention to the selective variety or species of Agave family. It is commonly stated that quality of Indian sisal fibre is not up to the mark of making standard quality of ropes, binder, twines, etc. The paper reports the textile related structure and properties (viz. tensile behavior, bending rigidity, thickness, coefficient of friction, moisture, thickness, surface appearance, transversal structure) of Indian variety of sisal fibres grown in two different agro-climatic regions in India to find out its suitability for producing standard quality products. The properties of Indian sisal fibres have also been compared to the imported one to explore the potentiality of the Indian fibres for making standard international quality products. The present work reveals that it is possible to grow sisal fibre of specified variety/species (Agave sisalana) having much balanced property parameters for producing international quality products (viz., ropes, cordages agricultural binders). Agave sisalana grown in certain agro-climatic regions (viz., Orissa) in India showed much comparable property parameters, even sometimes better, to the fibres imported from Tanzania.     

Anti-Inflammatory Concentrate Enriched with Substituted Oligofucans Derived from Brown Seaweed Turbinaria conoides (J. Agardh) Kützing and Its Safety Assessment on Wistar Rats

ABSTRACT

Aqueous extract of the seaweed Turbinaria conoides was purified to obtain an oligofucan-enriched seaweed concentrate (OESC). Oligofucans isolated were characterized as two types with (→1)-fucose-(2,3-diSO₃^?)-(1→4)-fucose-(2-SO₃^?)-(1→3)-fucose-(2,3-diSO₃^?)-(1→4)-fucose-(2-SO₃^?, 3-OAc)-(4→) and (→1)-fucose-(3-SO₃^?)-(1→4)-fucose-(2-SO₃^?)-(1→4)-fucose-(3-SO₃^?)-(1→4)-fucose-(2-SO₃^?)-(4→) motifs. A 90-day accelerated shelf-life study (50°C) showed that OESC maintained its antioxidant properties (free radical scavenging, reducing, lipid peroxidation inhibition, and chelating activities) even after 30 days. In vitro COX-2 and 5-LOX inhibitory properties of OESC (67.2 and 95.2%, respectively) showed no significant variation even at the 30th day. OESC significantly mitigated the carrageenan-induced inflammation in rats at 0–2 h (59.7–70.3% inhibition), which were greater compared to the synthetic NSAID aspirin. The safety of OESC has been assessed by acute (14 days) and subchronic (90 days) oral toxicity studies, which showed no toxicity-related significant changes in renal or hepatic function, hematological indices, and serum biochemical parameters in the OESC-treated Wistar rats. No histopathological alterations were observed in the vital organs of rats treated with OESC. LD₅₀ and sub-chronic no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for this concentrate were found to be > 5,000 and 2,000?mg/kg BW, respectively. Hence, oligofucan-enriched seaweed concentrate is safe to consume without any adverse effects in the body.     

Antioxidative Status of a Nutrient Enriched Formulation of Perna viridis in a Time Series Shelf-Life Study

ABSTRACT

The freeze-dried concentrate of green mussel, Perna viridis, was added with naturally derived antioxidative oleoresins of rosemary and turmeric along with trace amounts of other natural additives to prepare different treatments and was subjected to accelerated shelf life study (50°C) to evaluate its oxidative stability. The total oxyradical scavenging activities of samples with higher concentrations of turmeric over rosemary demonstrated the prominent role of the turmeric extracts to arrest free radical chain reactions. Time dependent antioxidative status in relation to the nutritional compositions was evaluated to identify the oxidative changes for different treatments. The addition of natural additives with polyphenolic moieties in the treatments shielded the mussel’s unsaturated fatty acids against oxidation as evident by higher polyunsaturated fatty acids in the two treatments as compared to control after 90 days of accelerated shelf-life study. Higher n-3/n-6 ratios after 90 days’ storage were also observed in these treatments. A threshold level of combined turmeric (0.8 g/100 g) and rosemary (0.4 g/100 g) was sufficient for optimum antioxidant activity and to maintain nutritional composition of the green mussel extract at desired levels.