A novel rhizobacterium Bk7 for biological control of brown sheath rot of rice caused by Pseudomonas fuscovaginae and its mode of action

The study presents the first report on biocontrol of brown sheath rot disease of rice caused by Pseudomonas fuscovaginae using rhizo-bacterial isolate Bacillus amyloliquefaciens Bk7. Four potential bioactive antagonists were selected from 120 Bacillus isolates. Results obtained from in vitro laboratory assay showed that rhizosphere bacterial strain Bk7 and its metabolites significantly suppressed the growth of Pseudomonas fuscovaginae with 93 % efficacy. In glasshouse experiments, strain Bk7 exhibited biocontrol efficacy of 76.6 % by reducing the disease incidence to 16.9 %, compared to 72.8 % observed in control treatment. In addition, the isolate Bk7 showed the growth promotion efficacy of plant height (GPE, 46.4 %) and fresh weight (GPE, 84.3 %). Characterization of isolate Bk7 revealed its strong capability for biofilm formation, inorganic phosphate solubilization and production of high amounts of Indole-3 acetic acid, siderophores and ammonia in vitro. Results obtained from multiplex PCR assay confirmed the presence of five lipopeptide biosynthetic gene markers (srfAA, fenD, bmyB, bacA and ituC) in the genome of strain Bk7. Moreover, Real-time qPCR of these genes demonstrated that surfactin, iturin and bacylisin coding genes were highly expressed in response to P. fuscovaginae exposure in vitro. Rhizosphere bacterial strain Bk7 was identified as B. amyloliquefaciens strain Bk7 based on the analysis of 16S rDNA internal transcribed spacer sequences and a fatty acid methyl ester analysis. The results obtained from this study showed the potential usefulness of Bk7 as a biocontrol agent in disease control of rice brown sheath rot.     

Tree age influences nutritional,pectin, and anatomical changes in developing ‘Kinnow’ mandarin (Citrus nobilis Lour × Citrus deliciosa Tenora) fruit

An understanding of variation in fruit quality in relation to tree age can help understand the issue of poor fruit quality in young orchards; however, limited information is available on the citrus fruit. In this study, the endogenous nutritional status in rind, rag, and leaves; pectin status in rind and rag; and anatomical fruit growth parameter in rind tissues were studied in ‘Kinnow’ mandarins fruit during their development on trees from three age (6-, 18-, and 35-year-old) groups. In older (35-year-old) trees, rind, rag, and leaf nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) concentrations were superior. In fruit from all tree age groups, total pectin and protopectin reduced; however water-soluble pectin (WSP) improved. In rind tissues harvested from young (6-year-old) trees, cell density was more while cell size was less. In all tree age groups, cell density in rind tissues correlated negatively with rind WSP.     

Species Composition,Diversity and Productivity of Homesteads in Southeastern Bangladesh

A homestead is an integrated production system where trees, crops, livestock and poultry are found in and around the household residence in Bangladesh. It is a potential production unit that provides various product, service and ecological functions. Almost all people in Bangladesh including landless households have homesteads in which they grow trees and crops even in a small piece of land. This study characterizes the species composition, diversity and productivity of the homestead production system in the Teknaf peninsula, southeastern Bangladesh. Survey data collection was from a total of 180 homesteads covering five household categories: large, medium, small, marginal and landless. Vegetable, fruit, timber, and livestock and poultry were common components in the homestead production system. Various types of plants were mainly concentrated in back yards, front yards, boundaries and corners of homesteads. The mean number of tree species per homestead was about 15. In total, 189 tree and shrub species were recorded, and were distinctly high and low in the large (363.7) and landless (55.7) household categories. Species composition, diversity and productivity of homesteads were found to be related to household categories. Richness and diversity of tree and shrub species increased with household size. Betel nut was the dominant tree species followed by mango, jackfruit and coconut. Annual income from homesteads also varied among the household categories, with a mean contribution of the homestead to annual income of about 25 %. A large portion of homestead income came from betel nut trees. There is scope to increase species diversity and income by designing homesteads with the engagement of women and other family members.     

Growth and physiology of basmati rice under conventional and water-saving production systems

Conventionally flooded rice (CFR) requires enormous water and labor inputs. Water scarcity aspires for cultivation of water-saving rice. Growth response and physiology of basmati rice genotypes under the water-saving production systems has not been reported yet. Studies were conducted for 2 years to compare the growth and physiology of three rice cultivars (Super Basmati, Basmati-2000 and Shaheen Basmati), under high (CFR), medium (alternate wetting and drying [AWD]) and low water input (aerobic rice [AR]) systems. Leaf area index, crop growth rate, leaf area duration and dry matter accumulation were higher for AR followed by AWD and CFR, respectively. Shaheen Basmati had a lower growth and relative water contents than Super Basmati and Basmati-2000, probably due to its shorter stature and shorter life cycle. Photosynthetic rate and stomatal conductance of rice cultivars in the different production were affected only at reproductive stage. Basmati-2000 grown as AR had the highest photosynthetic rate followed by the same cultivar under AWD. The results of this study provide us an idea that basmati cultivars can attain a high growth and development with low water input. This would be helpful to grow rice successfully under water-short rice-growing environments.     

Effectiveness of Zinc and Gypsum Application Against Cadmium Toxicity and Accumulation in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Cadmium (Cd) is a nonessential and toxic element because it inhibits the growth and development of plants and is dangerous for end consumer. It enters in the human food chain through food crops. Application of plant nutrients such as zinc (Zn) and gypsum is a viable and cheap strategy to minimize its accumulation in edible plant portions. Therefore, this investigation was conducted to determine the effectiveness of Zn and gypsum against Cd accumulation in wheat. The results showed that Cd toxicity considerably decreased the plant growth, physiological activities, and yield attributes and increased the Cd accumulation in root, shoot, and grain, while application of Zn and gypsum remarkably increased the growth and yield and decreased the Cd accumulation in plant parts in Cd-contaminated soil. The results also depicted that application of Zn showed better results as compared to gypsum. In conclusion, we can say that application of Zn and gypsum remarkably ameliorated the Cd toxicity and decreased its accumulation in wheat, grown in Cd-contaminated soil.     

Reconsidering betaine as a natural anti-heat stress agent in poultry industry: a review

Betaine is found ubiquitously in plants, animals, microorganisms, and rich dietary sources including seafood, spinach, and wheat bran. The chief physiological role of betaine is to function as a methyl donor and an osmolyte. Betaine also acts as an osmolyte, to maintain the avian’s cellular water and ion balance to improve the avian’s capacity against heat stress via preventing dehydration and osmotic inactivation. It helps in maintaining the protective osmolytic activity, especially in heat-stressed birds. Betaine may promote various intestinal microbes against osmotic variations and thus improve microbial fermentation activity. Previous studies showed that dietary supplementation of betaine in poultry diets could positively affect nutrients’ digestibility, reduce abdominal fat weight, and increase breast meat yield. In addition, betaine has been reported to protect internal organs and boost their performance. Its inclusion in poultry diet is sparing essential amino acids like choline and methionine. In addition, it may play an important role in lean meat production by positively affecting the lipid metabolism with increased fatty acids catabolism and thus reducing carcass fat deposition. The aim of this review article was to broaden the knowledge regarding betaine and its importance in the poultry industry to cope with the heat stress problem. Moreover, it should be added to the diet as a natural anti-stressor through different routes (water/feed) to overcome the heat stress problem. However, further studies need to be conducted at the genetic and molecular basis to elucidate the mechanism behind the betaine as a natural anti-heat agent to decrease the heat stress problem in the poultry industry.     

Signatures of adaptation to obligate biotrophy in the Hyaloperonospora arabidopsidis genome

Many oomycete and fungal plant pathogens are obligate biotrophs, which extract nutrients only from living plant tissue and cannot grow apart from their hosts. Although these pathogens cause substantial crop losses, little is known about the molecular basis or evolution of obligate biotrophy. Here, we report the genome sequence of the oomycete Hyaloperonospora arabidopsidis (Hpa), an obligate biotroph and natural pathogen of Arabidopsis thaliana. In comparison with genomes of related, hemibiotrophic Phytophthora species, the Hpa genome exhibits dramatic reductions in genes encoding (i) RXLR effectors and other secreted pathogenicity proteins, (ii) enzymes for assimilation of inorganic nitrogen and sulfur, and (iii) proteins associated with zoospore formation and motility. These attributes comprise a genomic signature of evolution toward obligate biotrophy.     

Zinc source modulates zootechnical characteristics,intestinal features,humoral response,and paraoxonase (PON1) activity in broilers

Tropical Animal Health and Production - The current experiment was performed to find the potential effect of inorganic and organic forms of zinc (Zn) on growth, intestinal histomorphology, immune...     

Root system response of selected lowland Thai rice varieties as affected by cultivation method and potassium rate under alternate wetting and drying irrigation

ABSTRACT

Root system is an important factor for crop productivity under water- and nutrient-limited environments. A pot study was conducted to evaluate root system response of three Thai rice varieties (Pathumthani 1, RD57, RD41) under three cultivation methods (dry direct seeding [DDS], wet direct seeding [WDS], transplanting [TP]) and three levels of alternate wetting and drying irrigation (–5, –15, –30 kPa). A second pot experiment examined the effect of potassium (K) rates (0, 80, 120, 160 kg ha^–1) on root system response of the same varieties under DDS and TP subjected to alternate wetting and drying at –5 kPa. Pathumthani 1 was more tolerant to moisture stress; RD57 and RD41 showed an inconsistent response to moisture-deficit conditions. Rice plant under TP was more sensitive to moisture stress; rice plant performed better under DDS even at the highest soil moisture stress of –30 kPa. K application at the rate of 120 kg ha^–1 as basal under DDS was optimum for root system development of Pathumthani 1, while RD57 and RD41 had higher actual root length at the same K rate regardless of cultivation methods. Alternate wetting and drying up to –30 kPa could be safely applied for the three tested varieties. The performance of root system of Pathumthani 1 was better under DDS method of cultivation. K fertilization at 120 kg ha^–1 can be recommended as optimum rate under water-saving cultivation techniques for the three tested varieties.     

国外农业航空静电喷雾技术研究进展与借鉴

农业航空静电喷雾技术作为中国发展精准农业航空应用技术的内容之一,对农药的有效利用和减少环境污染有积极意义。农业航空静电喷雾技术在国外发展较早也相对成熟,美国已有应用于有人机的商业化产品,并在美国、巴西等国各类粮食作物、经济作物和杂草防治作业中开展了大规模田间应用。该研究首先从基础研究、田间应用和优化工作等方面梳理了国外农业航空静电喷雾技术的研究进展,分析了农业航空静电喷雾技术在增加雾滴沉积、减少飘移和具备低施药液量等方面的优势。在此基础上结合中国植保无人机快速发展的实际对研究和应用适合中国国情的农业航空静电喷雾技术进行思考,提出了农业航空静电喷雾技术的研究路线,最后从采用接触式等非感应式充电方式、开发农业航空静电喷雾的测量技术,以及思考荷质比作为衡量指标的意义等方面探讨了可进行深入研究的方向。中国农业航空静电喷雾技术研究特别在植保无人机静电喷雾技术方面的研究与应用有很大的发展空间,可参考国外经验,围绕航空静电喷雾技术的基础性研究、田间试验、成果转化、示范推广和服务指导全方面制定发展规划,把单一强调对雾滴带电的实现转向对技术系统的整体研究。