Seasonal Variations in Seminal Plasma Proteins of Buffalo

The study was designed to evaluate the influence of season on semen characteristics and seminal plasma protein profile of buffalo bull semen. Thirty‐six ejaculates were collected in three seasons (winter, summer and rainy) from six adult Bhadawari bulls, and semen characteristics were evaluated immediately after collection. The seminal plasma was harvested by centrifugation and protein profiling, and percentage protein fractions were analysed by SDS‐PAGE. The significant effect of season was observed on ejaculate volume, sperm concentration, progressive motility, percentage live spermatozoa, hypo‐osmotic swelling test (HOST) and acrosomal integrity. The electrophoretogram of seminal plasma proteins revealed 20 protein bands in winter, 23 bands in rainy and 25 bands in summer seasons, illustrating the significant effect of seasons on seminal plasma proteins. Among these protein bands, 18 bands were observed common in semen samples of all three seasons while protein bands of 46, 55, 58, 144 and 160 kDa were found in rainy and summer seasons. The protein bands of 48 and 60 kDa were observed only in winter season, whereas 184 and 200 kDa were reported in summer season only. The protein fractions (protein%) of common protein bands observed in three seasons revealed a significant effect of season on protein bands of 24.5, 66, 70, 72, 84 and 86 kDa. From the study, it was pertinent that bull seminal plasma contains specific proteins in particular season, which may be associated with some of the semen characteristics, and these proteins could be used as markers of the semen quality of buffalo bulls.     

Fecal microbial diversity and putative function in captive western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla), common chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), Hamadryas baboons (Papio hamadryas) and binturongs (Arctictis binturong)

Microbial populations in the gastrointestinal tract contribute to host health and nutrition. Although gut microbial ecology is well studied in livestock and domestic animals, little is known of the endogenous populations inhabiting primates or carnivora. We characterized microbial populations in fecal cultures from gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla), common chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), Hamadryas baboons (Papio hamadryas) and binturongs (Arctictis binturong) to compare the microbiomes associated with different gastrointestinal morphologies and different omnivorous feeding strategies. Each species was fed a distinct standardized diet for 2 weeks prior to fecal collection. All diets were formulated to reflect the species' feeding strategies in situ. Fresh fecal samples were pooled within species and used to inoculate in vitro batch cultures. Acetate, propionate, butyrate and valerate were measured after 24 h of incubation. Eubacterial DNA was extracted from individual fecal samples, pooled, and the cpn60 gene region was amplified and then sequenced to identify the major eubacterial constituents associated with each host species. Short chain fatty acids (P < 0.001) and methane (P < 0.001) were significantly different across species. Eubacterial profiles were consistent with fermentation data and suggest an increase in diversity with dietary fiber.     

Resource Availability Versus Resource Extraction in Forests: Analysis of Forest Fodder System in Forest Density Classes in Lower Himalayas,India

Particularly in developing countries, forests provide feed for livestock in the form of fodder for stall-feeding and grazing in forest areas. Extraction of fodder resources from forests often leads to forest degradation. An attempt has been made to qualify extend of biomass extraction from forests and to compare forest fodder dependence of households in a number of forest density classes in the mountainous region of Himalayas, in Uttarakhand state in India, according to livestock owners’ perspectives. Information was obtained from a survey of livestock feed and fodder collection and utilization from 316 randomly selected households distributed across four government-defined forest density classes, namely very dense forest, moderately dense forest, open forest and scrub. Households obtained feed and fodder for livestock from three sources, i.e. forest areas, non-forest areas and local markets. Daily feed consumption per adult cattle unit varied according to source, ranging from 9.85 to 14.70 kg from forest areas, 7.40 to 11.14 kg from non-forest areas, and less than 1 kg from local markets. The dependency of households on fodder for livestock differed significantly between households located in each forest density classes. The current forest fodder extraction rate is likely to be unsustainable. Measures identified to reduce the extraction rate include greater use of alternative fodder sources and managing small patches of the natural forests adjoining dependent villages for fodder production through community participation.     

Diversity and relationships of multipurpose seabuckthorn (Hippophae L.) germplasm from the Indian Himalayas as assessed by AFLP and SAMPL markers

Seabuckthorn, a non-leguminous nodule bearing dioecious shrub, is a storehouse of neutraceutical, pharmaceutical and cosmetic usage. The 348 genotypes of Hippophae rhamnoides ssp. turkestanica, H. salicifolia and H. tibetana were collected from 194 locations at 46 major sites across?~1,500?km from north-east to north-west Himalayas, harboring one of the most harsh, highly variable climatic and ecological conditions and rugged rocky terrain in the range of 3,000–5,000?m altitude. Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and selective amplification of microsatellite polymorphic loci (SAMPL) DNA markers were utilized to assess, the genetic diversity of total spectrum of Himalayan germplasm resources and interrelationships among Hippophae taxa. A total of 151, 50, and 41 AFLP loci were detected in Hippophae rhamnoides ssp. turkestanica, H. salicifolia and H. tibetana, respectively; of these, 92.6, 30.6 and 25.1% were polymorphic. For SAMPL, the number of markers and polymorphism for these species were, respectively, 77 (77.7%), 41 (41.4%), and 23 (23.2%). Nei’s genetic diversity and Shannon’s information index values revealed that populations of H. rhamnoides ssp. turkestanica in Sumur and Raling in Ladakh and Lahaul-Spiti, respectively, were the most diverse. In H. salicifolia and H. tibetana, the populations in Changu, and Takcha and Guling in Spiti valley, were the most diverse. In H. rhamnoides ssp. turkestanica, high level of interpopulation genetic diversity with the little intra-population diversity was accompanied by very low gene flow (Nm) range, estimated by AFLP (0.571–0.943) and SAMPL (0.321–0.726) markers. In H. rhamnoides ssp. turkestanica, the genotypes collected from Uttaranchal were found to be the least diverse. The exclusive characteristics of the nuclear genome in the Uttaranchal genotypes warrant new species rank more closer to H. salicifolia rather than to H. rhamnoides ssp. turkestanica. The present results also provide explicit evidence to suggest that both H. salicifolia and H. tibetana deserve species rank.     

The Effect of Substituent,Degree of Acetylation and Positioning of the Cationic Charge on the Antibacterial Activity of Quaternary Chitosan Derivatives

A series of water-soluble cationic chitosan derivatives were prepared by chemoselective functionalization at the amino group of five different parent chitosans having varying degrees of acetylation and molecular weight. The quaternary moieties were introduced at different alkyl spacer lengths from the polymer backbone (C-0, C-2 and C-6) with the aid of 3,6-di-O-tert-butyldimethylsilyl protection of the chitosan backbone, thus allowing full (100%) substitution of the free amino groups. All of the derivatives were characterized using ¹H-NMR, ¹H-¹H COSY and FT-IR spectroscopy, while molecular weight was determined by GPC. Antibacterial activity was investigated against Gram positive S. aureus and Gram negative E. coli. The relationship between structure and activity/toxicity was defined, considering the effect of the cationic group’s structure and its distance from the polymer backbone, as well as the degree of acetylation within a molecular weight range of 7–23 kDa for the final compounds. The N,N,N-trimethyl chitosan with 100% quaternization showed the highest antibacterial activity with moderate cytotoxicity, while increasing the spacer length reduced the activity. Trimethylammoniumyl quaternary ammonium moieties contributed more to activity than 1-pyridiniumyl moieties. In general, no trend in the antibacterial activity of the compounds with increasing molecular weight or degree of acetylation up to 34% was observed.     

Temporal changes in soil biochemical properties with seasons under rainfed land use systems in Shiwalik foothills of northwest India

The soil biochemical properties are sensitive to change in land use systems and seasons. The variations in soil management practices and soil moisture content affect the sustainability of the systems. To study the sustainability in lower Shiwalik, a total of 144 soil samples (0–0.15 m) were undertaken to monitor the changes in the soil biochemical properties under rainfed land use systems, i.e., agri-horticulture, agroforestry, cultivated and barren system and seasons, i.e., summer, rainy and winter. Among soil biochemical properties, soil microbial biomass carbon, soil microbial quotient, dehydrogenase activities, basal soil respiration, fluorescein diacetate and urease activities ranged from 77 to 122 μg g^?1, 0.023 to 0.027, 18.3 to 30.6 μg TPF g ^?1 h^?1, 13.2 to 22.7 μg CO₂-C g^?1 day^?1, 1.3 to 2.2 μg g^?1 and 5.83 to 6.38 μg NH₄-Ng^?1 h^?1, respectively. Among 15 soil properties, principal component analysis specified that four major soil properties, i.e., basal soil respiration, metabolic quotient, electrical conductivity and clay content contributed 73% of the soil quality index with contribution of 44, 13, 9 and 7%, respectively. Among seasons, the values for soil biochemical properties were higher in rainy season as compared to winter and summer season. In systems, agri-horticulture followed by agroforestry was the best systems in terms of sustainability in Shiwalik foothills of northwest India.

     

Remote sensing and GIS for identification of suitable sites for soil and water conservation structures

Formulation of a proper watershed management plan requires reliable and up‐to‐date information about various factors such as morphologic (size and shape of the watershed, drainage parameters, topography), soil and their characteristics, land use, and land cover, etc. that affect the behavior of a watershed. Satellite based remote sensing technology and GIS meets both the requirements of reliability and speed and are ideal tools for generating spatial information needs. In this study, a locale‐specific watershed development plan was generated for the case study area of a small agricultural watershed of Karso, Hazaribagh, India using remote sensing and GIS techniques. Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS‐1C), Linear Imaging Self Scanner (LISS‐III) satellite data along with other datasets, e.g. existing maps and field observation data have been utilized for generating a land use/land cover map and to extract information on morphological parameters (bifurcation ratio, elongation ratio, drainage density, ruggedness number, relief ratio, and circulatory ratio) and other thematic maps which are an essential prerequisites for watershed development. Morphological parameters of subwatersheds were derived to understand its usefulness for surface water development. The conceptual framework for plan and site suitability mapping for soil and water conservation structures is developed and subsequently, these parameters were integrated with other thematic information viz., land use/cover, drainage, slope, and soil in the GIS environment to arrive at a decision regarding a suitable site for having soil and water conservation structures ( nala bund , check dam, and percolation tank) in its place adopting a holistic approach. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.