SATURATION PERCENTAGE AS A MEASURE OF SOIL TEXTURE IN THE LOWER INDUS BASIN

The saturation percentage is related to the mechanical constituents of a soil: and is therefore a quantitative expression of soil texture. Profiles may be described in terms of the S.P.; thus Maps may be drawn showing quantitative changes in texture, and associated statements of the reliability of an S.P. estimate and the probable error of the position of a textural contour be made. Decomposition of the calcium carbonate component should be avoided in routine soil survey work.     

Genetic Characterization of Indigenous Rice Varieties in Eastern Himalayan Region of Northeast India

The eastern Himalayan region of Northeast （NE） India is home to a large number of indigenous rice varieties, which are traditionally classified as Oryza sativa subspecies indica, japonica or intermediate types. The classification based on traditional Cheng’s index is often inconclusive due to phenotypic plasticity of morphological characters, which are influenced by environmental conditions. We used molecular markers specific for indica and japonica subspecies to assess the degree of genetic relatedness of indigenous rice varieties in NE India. The results revealed that majority of upland （jum） and glutinous rice varieties, traditionally considered as japonica, were genetically close to the subspecies indica. All varieties of boro ecotype were found to be indica type, and only a few varieties cultivated in lowland and upland areas were japonica type. Some of the lowland varieties of the sali ecotype were intermediate between indica and japonica, and they showed a closer genetic affinity to O. rufipogon.     

Effects of nitrofurans on adrenal cortical tissue in chickens

In chicken adrenal glands, aspartate transaminase (AST) activity is concentrated in the adrenal cortical cells. Administration of a bolus dose of furazolidone (200 mg/kg) to the birds produced a decrease in AST activity in the adrenal glands and a general disorganization in the ultrastructure of the adrenal cortical cells. Many adrenal cortical mitochondria appeared to be moribund, being swollen, without cristae or apparently empty. These effects preceded atrophy of the adrenal cortical tissue, which was most marked in the central part of the adrenal glands. The atrophy was still present after 12 weeks, and it is therefore suggested that nitrofurans may be useful in the treatment of Cushing's disease in other animal species. When furazolidone or furaltadone was given in the diet at therapeutic levels, blebs of an electron-dense substance developed in adrenal cortical mitochondria and AST activity in the adrenal glands was reduced. These effects were found to be reversible, and the treatments did not produce atrophy of the adrenal cortical tissue.     

在含盐新成土上施加有机肥和化学改良剂对土壤性质和作物产量的影响

A field experiment was conducted for two consecutive years in a farmer‘s field at Haji Mora Village, Dera Ismail Khan (D.I. Khan) in the Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP) of Pakistan to compare various management practices, such as the effect of various organic manures and gypsum in a rice-wheat cropping system on a saline-sodic Entisol (Zindani soil series). The treatments consisted of 1) a control (rice-wheat), 2) gypsum, 3) farmyard manure (FYM), 4) berseem (Trifolium alexandrinum L.) as green manure (GM), and 5) dhancha (Sesbania sp.) as GM. All treatments increased yields of both rice and wheat significantly (P (0.01) over the control, with the green manure treatments proving more economical than the others; while they decreased pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) of the soil. Saturation percentage and available water of the soil were raised for all treatments due to an increase in organic matter content of the soil.     

阴离子对应用于红壤中的微生物量的镉毒害的影响

A laboratory incubation experiment was conducted to elucidat the effects of associated anions on toxicity of cadmium applied to microbial biomass in the red soil. Cadmium was applied at six different levels,i.e.,O(background),5,15,30,60 and 100μg g^-1 soil in the form of either cadmium acetate or cadmium chloride. Application of cadmium as cadmium acetate markedly reduced the soil microbial biomass carbon compared to cadmium applied as cadmium chlorde at all the tested levels.Similarly,organic carbon to biomass carbon ration in the soil was markedly increased by increasing the level of the cadmium in the soil as cadmium acetate,while the change wa much smaller in the case of cadmium chloride at the same cadmium levels.The results suggested that due consideration should be given to the source of cadmium while deciding the cadmium levles in experiments.