Study of allozyme diversity in guar [Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub.] germplasm

Guar [Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub.] is an important commercial crop of India, mainly cultivated in the northwestern part and neighboring areas of Pakistan. High morphological diversity is reported in guar. The present study attempts to analyze the genetic diversity in cultivated guar using allozyme polymorphism and compare it with reported morphological diversity. Accessions for the study were selected from a set of guar germplasm conserved at the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi. The morphological data of 108 selected accessions was subjected to UPGMA clustering. Fifty-five accessions were then picked randomly from the clusters generated. Tris-borate system (pH 8.3) was found to be most effective for detection of allozyme polymorphism in guar. Ten enzymes were selected for the study out of 18 systems tried, namely, malate dehydrogenase, malic enzyme, phosphogluco isomerase, glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase, esterase, peroxidase, alcohol dehydrogenase, glutamate dehydrogenase, glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase and shikimate dehydrogenase. A total of 20 loci were detected with 34 alleles. The number of polymorphic loci in different accessions was observed to be highly variable (0–9). An average of 1.27 allozyme per polymorphic locus was observed. The allele frequency data of the 55 accessions was used to determine genetic diversity parameters. The dendrogram generated on genetic distance showed three clusters in the distance range of 0–0.28. Most of the accessions were in the first clusters in a narrow distance range of 0–0.08. The second cluster consisted of improved varieties and accession from Pakistan. The third cluster of accessions was genetically more distant but there was no definite segregation of accessions according to the place of collection. The accessions from south west Rajasthan were scattered in all the three clusters showing higher variability in this region, also supported by higher morphological variation. The genetic distance was low among accessions of guar, indicating low diversity in India.     

Effect of ageing on quality of jojoba oil from Indian locations

Jojoba oil is a source of specialty chemicals and its uses for industrial application are gaining in adaptability and importance. For prolong use of jojoba oil, the details of its storage behaviour are required. This information is scarce for the products obtained from Indian locations. In this study, the ageing effect on the quality of oils was studied for oils from five locations of Rajasthan (India). The oils were extracted/expelled from the seeds that contained 2.5–3.9 wt.% moisture and 42–50 wt.% oil.Physico-chemical properties were determined by standard analytical test methods. Effect of storage time on quality of solvent extracted oil samples with respect to acid value, iodine value, saponification value and peroxide value were determined. The samples were stored for 18 months in the laboratory under climatic condition prevailing in Dehradun (India) during study period. The analysis of samples was done at an interval of 3 months. The properties of jojoba oils compare well with the International Jojoba Expert Council (IJEC) specifications. During storage, acid values, iodine values and peroxide values of the oil increase with time while saponification values remain almost unchanged.     

Antifungal properties of wheat histones (H1-H4) and purified wheat histone H1

Wheat ( Triticum spp.) histones H1, H2, H3, and H4 were extracted, and H1 was further purified. The effect of these histones on specific fungi that may or may not be pathogenic to wheat was determined. These fungi included Aspergillus flavus , Aspergillus fumigatus , Aspergillus niger , Fusarium oxysporum , Fusarium verticillioides , Fusarium solani , Fusarium graminearum , Penicillium digitatum , Penicillium italicum , and Greeneria uvicola . Non-germinated and germinating conidia of these fungi were bioassayed separately. The non-germinated and germinating conidia of all Fusarium species were highly susceptible to the mixture (H1-H4) as well as pure H1, with viability losses of 99-100% found to be significant (p < 0.001) at ≤10 μM or less for the histone mixture and pure H1. F. graminearum was the most sensitive to histone activity. The histones were inactive against all of the non-germinated Penicillium spp. conidia. However, they significantly reduced the viability of the germinating conidia of the Penicillium spp. conidia, with 95% loss at 2.5 μM. Non-germinated and germinating conidia viability of the Aspergillus spp. and G. uvicola were unaffected when exposed to histones up to 10 μM. Results indicate that Fusarium spp. pathogenic to wheat are susceptible to wheat histones, indicating that these proteins may be a resistance mechanism in wheat against fungal infection.     

Isolation and biochemical diagnosis of cell lines of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L) selected on glyphosate†

Three cell lines of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L), an important oilseed legume, were selected on glyphosate using in-vitro culture techniques. The cell lines isolated through single as well as stepwise selection procedures showed c 20-fold increase in glyphosate tolerance as compared to the unselected control cell line. Studies on the biochemical mechanism of glyphosate tolerance in these cell lines showed a significant increase in the total extractable activity of the target enzyme, 5-enolpyruvyl shikimate-3-phosphate (EPSP) synthase (EC 2.5.1.19), which was further confirmed with immunological data. The over-expressed EPSP synthase activity was, however, subject to inhibition by glyphosate in vitro. Two other key regulated enzymes of the shikimic acid pathway, 3-deoxy-D -arabino heptulosonate 7-phosphate (DAHP) synthase (EC 4.1.2.15) and chorismate mutase (CM) (EC 5.4.99.5) did not show any change in specific activity in the selected cell lines. The enhanced activity of EPSP synthase in the tolerant cell lines was found to be stably inherited in the absence of selection pressure. © 1999 Society of Chemical Industry     

Metabolic fate of [14C]photodieldrin in goldfish

Goldfish (Carassius auratus) exposed to 20 parts per billion [¹⁴C]photodieldrin in a static system absorbed 80% of the radioactivity within 20 hr. The absorbed radioactivity was eliminated slowly with a half-life of 3 weeks. Photodieldrin and a ketone derivative were the major form of the radiocarbon eliminated in water, accounting for, respectively, 59 and 10.4% of the eliminated radioactivity. The ketone derivative was characterized by cochromatography (thin-layer and gas chromatography, gc) and gc-mass spectrometry. Approximately, 15 other polar and nonpolar metabolites were detected in the aqueous medium. The radioactivity in the fish consisted of 13 metabolites along with photodieldrin. Photodieldrin and the ketone derivative were the most abundant residues in the fish, accounting for 77 and 5.4% of the radioactivity, respectively.     

Age related changes and osteochondrosis in swine articular and epiphyseal cartilage: light ane electron microscopy.

Age related changes and osteochondrosis in swine were studied using light microscopy and electron microscopy in articular cartilage and light microscopy and epiphyseal cartilage of swine from three days to 30 weeks of age. Thickness, cellularity and vascularity of both the epiphyseal and articular cartilage, decreased as the swine aged. Osteochondrotic changes included formation of "plugs" of cartilage indicating localized failure of ossification and separation and space formation in epiphyseal cartilage. Eosinophilic streaks and space formation in epiphyseal cartilage was observed in relation to epiphyseal separation. Electron microscopy showed a continuous fibrillar layer on the surface of the cartilage corresponding to the lamina splendens of light microscopy. This layer increased in the thickness and showed accumulation of amorphous material between the fibrils with aging. In the matrix, the orientation and distribution of the collagen fibers changed with growth and thicker fibers with clear sub banding were more common in older age groups. Also, necrotic cells, glycogen containing bodies and cellular debris were noticed in the matrix of normal cartilage in old animals. Chondrocytes in the younger cartilage showed accumulation of organelles responsible for protein synthesis; while Golgi bodies, vesicles, lysosomes, well developed foot processes and other inclusions were noticed in older cartilage. Cartilage erosions had a clumped and disrupted lamina splendens on the surface and electron lucent patches in the ground substances of the matrix and chondrocyte cytoplasm.     

Moisture-dependent physical properties of Karanja (Pongamia pinnata) kernel

The moisture-dependent physical properties are important to design post harvest equipments of the product. The physical properties of Karanja kernel were evaluated as a function of moisture content in the range of 8.56–22.22% d.b. The average length, width, thickness and 1000 kernel mass were 25.29 mm, 15.58 mm, 7.88 mm and 1036.45 g, respectively, at moisture content of 8.56% d.b. The geometric mean diameter and sphericity increased from 14.55 to 15.97 mm and 0.57 to 0.6 as moisture content increased from 8.56 to 22.22% d.b., respectively. In the same moisture range, the bulk density decreased from 663 to 616 kg/m³, whereas the corresponding true density and porosity increased from 967 to 1081 kg/m³ and 31.44 to 43.02%, respectively. As the moisture content increased from 8.56 to 22.22% d.b., the angle of repose and surface areas were found to increase from 27.69 to 37.33° and 665.74 to 801.63 mm², respectively. The static coefficient of friction of Karanja kernel increased linearly against the surfaces of three structural materials, namely plywood (28.72%), mild steel sheet (29.88%) and aluminium (18.86%) as the moisture content increased from 8.56 to 22.22% d.b.