Source and mode of sulphur application on groundnut productivity

The effectiveness of 20 kg/ha sulphur (S) of the S‐containing compounds iron sulphate (FeSO₄), gypsum, phosphogypsum, elemental S, and pyrite on groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) productivity was determined for plants grown on calcareous soil in the field. Plants grown with S compared to those without S had increased plant height, number of flowers, nodule numbers and weight, higher dry matter, seed, haulm (leaves and stems), and oil yields; higher tissue concentrations of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), S, iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn); and higher total uptake of mineral nutrients. Elemental S, pyrite, and FeSO₄ were more effective than gypsum and phosphogypsum, with FeSO₄ being the most effective source of S for improving plant growth traits, yield, and nutrient uptake. The most effective method of FeSO₄ application was half to the soil at planting time (basal) followed by the remainder in three equal foliar sprays at 30,50, and 70 days after plant emergence (DAE). Pyrite and elemental S were most effective when applied to the soil only, half as a basal soil dressing, and the remainder in two equal doses at 25 and 50 DAE. Plant concentrations of S, P, and potassium (K) were similar for each source of S, but elemental S, pyrite, and FeSO₄ enhanced N, Fe, manganese (Mn), and Zn uptake. Gypsum and phosphogypsum enhanced calcium (Ca) uptake. Elemental S and FeSCM provided similar results when half was applied to the soil followed by three equal foliar sprays. The best results from pyrite, gypsum, and phosphogypsum were obtained when soil applied.     

Effect of foliar and soil applications of zinc sulphate on zinc uptake,tree size,yield, and fruit quality of mango

To compare the effect of methods (foliar and soil) and rate of application of zinc sulphate on zinc and phosphorus uptake, tree size, yield and fruit quality of mango (Mangifera indica L.) cv. Dusheri, zinc sulphate was applied as a foliar spray application (0.25, 0.50, 1.0%) and soil (0.5, 1.0, 2.0 kg tree^‐1) treatments during the second week of October (during flower bud differentiation period). All the zinc sulphate treatments of soil and foliar spray were effective in increasing the leaf zinc concentrations above recommended adequate level of (>20 mg kg^‐1) whereas control trees maintained low leaf zinc concentrations (13.8 to 13.3 mg kg^‐1). The uptake of foliar‐applied zinc was more rapid than that of soil applied zinc. All the treatments of zinc sulphate except the foliar spray treatment of zinc sulphate (0.25%) significantly increased zinc concentrations in the fruit pulp as compared with those in the control trees. The percent increase in the stem girth of trees was highest with the soil application of zinc sulphate (0.5 kg tree¹) followed by foliar application of zinc sulphate (1.0%) as compared with all other treatments. The percent increase in the tree canopy volume was highest with the foliar application of zinc sulphate (1.0%) followed by soil application of zinc sulphate (1.0 kg tree¹) as compared with control and all other treatments. There was no significant (P<0.05) increase in yield, fruit size and weight, pulp or stone weight with any treatment of zinc sulphate. Total soluble solid (TSS) in the fruit was significantly higher (18.6%) with the treatment of soil application of zinc sulphate (0.5 kg tree¹) as compared with all other treatments of zinc sulphate and the control. Acid and sugar content of the fruit was not significantly affected by the foliar or soil application of zinc sulphate.     

Supercritical fluid extraction of lycopene from tomato processing byproducts

Tomato seeds and skins acquired from the byproduct of a local tomato processing facility were studied for supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) of phytochemicals. The extracts were analyzed for lycopene, beta-carotene, alpha-carotene, alpha-tocopherol, gamma-tocopherol, and delta-tocopherol content using high-performance liquid chromatography-electrochemical detection and compared to a chemically extracted control. SFEs were carried out using CO(2) at seven temperatures (32-86 degrees C) and six pressures (13.78-48.26 MPa). The effect of CO(2) flow rate and volume also was investigated. The results indicated that the percentage of lycopene extracted increased with elevated temperature and pressure until a maximum recovery of 38.8% was reached at 86 degrees C and 34.47 MPa, after which the amount of lycopene extracted decreased. Conditions for the optimum extraction of lycopene from 3 g of raw material were determined to be 86 degrees C, 34.47 MPa, and 500 mL of CO(2) at a flow rate of 2.5 mL/min. These conditions resulted in the extraction of 61.0% of the lycopene (7.19 microg lycopene/g).     

Insect antifeedant activity of tetranortriterpenoids from the Rutales. A perusal of structural relations

Structure-related insect antifeedant relationship of 56 limonoids (both natural and modified) from the plants belonging to the order Rutales was attempted considering substitution patterns, oxidation states, and hydrophobicity, as well as distant geometry derived through conformational analysis on molecular modeling. Orientation of the furan and hydroxylation at specific carbon sites have been shown to influence the antifeedancy against the fall armyworm, Spodoptera litura.     

Sorption behavior of triazole fungicides in Indian soils and its correlation with soil properties

Adsorption-desorption of triazole fungicides, hexaconazole [2-(2,4-dichlorophenyl)-1-(1H-1,2,4,-triazol-1-yl) hexan-2-ol], triadimefon [1-(4-chlorophenoxy)-3,3-dimethyl-1-(1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-yl) butan-2-one], and penconazole[1-(2,4-dichloro-beta-propyl phenethyl)-1H-1,2,4-triazole] was studied in five Indian soils using batch method. The adsorption isotherms fitted very well to the Freundlich equation. Adsorption of various triazole fungicides increased in this order: triadimefon > hexaconazole > penconazole. The product of the Freundlich adsorption constants, K(f)(1/n), showed good correlation with the soil organic carbon (OC) content, suggesting that soil OC is the main controlling factor for triazoles adsorption. Clay and silt content of the soil also affected the adsorption constants. Adsorption of hexaconazole and triadimefon was nearly reversible in two low OC soils (soil 3, soil 5) where 90-100% of the sorbed fungicides was released in a single washing step. Otherwise, desorption of triazole fungicides showed hysteresis, and 30-60% of the triazole fungicides were retained by the soil after single washing. IR spectra showed that H-bonds and charge-transfer bonds between humic acid and fungicides probably operated as mechanisms of adsorption.     

Detection of Sprouted and Midge‐Damaged Wheat Kernels Using Near‐Infrared Hyperspectral Imaging

Sprout damage which results in poor breadmaking quality due to enzymatic activity of α‐amylase is one of the important grading factors of wheat in Canada. Potential of near‐infrared (NIR) hyperspectral imaging was investigated to detect sprouting of wheat kernels. Artificially sprouted, midge‐damaged, and healthy wheat kernels were scanned using NIR hyperspectral imaging system in the range of 1000–1600 nm at 60 evenly distributed wavelengths. Multivariate image analysis (MVI) technique based on principal components analysis (PCA) was applied to reduce the dimensionality of the hyperspectral data. Three wavelengths 1101.7, 1132.2, and 1305.1 nm were identified as significant and used in analysis. Statistical discriminant classifiers (linear, quadratic, and Mahalanobis) were used to classify sprouted, midge‐damaged, and healthy wheat kernels. The discriminant classifiers gave maximum accuracy of 98.3 and 100% for classifying healthy and damaged kernels, respectively.     

Conformation of Napin (Brassica juncea) in salts and monohydric alcohols: contribution of electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions

Napin from mustard (Brassica juncea L.) is a seed storage protein consisting of two subunits linked through disulfide bonds and is predominantly helical in nature. Resistance to trypsin digestion and allergenicity limit its food applications. The role of disulfide linkages, electrostatic as well as hydrophobic interactions, in napin stability have been investigated through spectroscopic methods, employing different fluorescent probes and additives. The subunits are hydrophilic in nature and possess extended structure. With the addition of 0.5 M NaCl, the surface hydrophobicity of napin decreases, whereas the helical content increases by 25%. In the presence of NaCl, emission maximum shifts toward shorter wavelength and the Stern-Volmer constant decreases from 6.5 to 3.4 M-1, indicating compaction of napin. Na2SO4 has no significant effect on the structure due to the lack of a hydrophobic core. In the presence of monohydric alcohols and trifluoroethanol, there is an increase in ordered structure. These studies indicate that the structure of napin, which is hydrophilic in nature, is stabilized by electrostatic interactions, in addition to disulfide linkages.     

Carnein, a serine protease from noxious plant weed Ipomoea carnea (morning glory)

A new serine protease from the latex of Ipomoea carnea spp. fistulosa (Morning glory), belonging to the Convolvulaceae family, was purified to homogeneity by ammonium sulfate fractionation followed by cation exchange chromatography. The enzyme, named carnein, has a molecular mass of 80.24 kDa (matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight) and an isoelectric point of pH 5.6. The pH and temperature optima for proteolytic activity were 6.5 and 65 degrees C, respectively. The extinction coefficient (epsilon2801%) of the enzyme was estimated as 37.12, and the protein molecule consists of 35 tryptophan, 76 tyrosine, and seven cysteine residues. The effect of several inhibitors such as iodoacetic acid, diisopropylfluorophosphate, phenyl-methanesulfonyl fluoride, chymostatin, soybean trypsin inhibitor, HgCl2, 3S-3-(N-{(S)-1-[N-(4-guanidinobutyl)carbamoyl]3-ethylbutyl}carbamoyl)oxirane-2-carboxylic acid, N-ethyl maleimide, ethylene glycol-bis(alpha-amino ethyl ether)tetraacetic acid, ethylenediamminetetraacetic acid, and o-phenonthroline indicates that carnein belongs to the family of serine proteases. The enzyme is not prone to autolysis even at very low concentrations. The N-terminal sequence of carnein (T-T-H-S-P-E-F-L-G-L-A-E-S-S-G-L-X-P-N-S) exhibited considerable similarity to those of other plant serine proteases; the highest similarity was with alnus AG12, one of the subtilase family endopepetidases.     

Manganese uptake and Mn efficiency of wheat cultivars are related to Mn‐uptake kinetics and root growth

Wheat cultivars differ widely in manganese (Mn) efficiency. To investigate the reasons for different Mn efficiencies, a pot experiment with soil, a solution‐culture experiment, and model calculations were carried out. The pot experiment was conducted with wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cvs. PBW 373, PBW 154, PBW 343, PBW 138, and Triticum durum L. cvs. PBW 34 and PDW 233) grown in a screen house in India. The soil was a loamy sand with pH 8.1, DTPA‐extractable Mn 1.62 mg (kg soil)^–1, and initial soil solution Mn concentration (C_Li) of 0.19 μM. When fertilized with 50 mg Mn (kg soil)^–1, C_Li increased to 0.32 μM. At C_Li 0.19 μM, wheat cv. PBW 373 produced 74% of its maximum shoot dry weight (SDW) with 64% of its maximum root length (RL), while cv. PDW 233 produced only 25% of its maximum SDW with 11% of its maximum RL. The other wheat cultivars were between these extremes. Manganese deficiency caused a reduction in shoot growth, but more strongly reduced root growth. The low Mn efficiency of T. durum cv. PDW 233 was related to a strong depression of its root growth. Manganese influx was similar for all cultivars. In solution culture below 1 μM Mn, under controlled climate‐chamber conditions, Mn influx was linearly related to Mn concentration. Both the efficient cv. PBW 343 and the inefficient cv. PDW 233 had a similar influx. Uptake kinetic parameters from the solution experiment together with soil and plant parameters from the pot experiment were used in a mechanistic nutrient‐uptake model. Calculated values of Mn influx for wheat grown in soil were 55% to 74% of measured values. A sensitivity analysis showed that increasing C_Li or the slope of the uptake isotherm by about 30% would be enough to reach the observed influx. The results of this research indicate that an increase of Mn solubility by microbial or chemical mobilization would increase Mn uptake. But on the other hand, no chemical mobilization would be required to increase Mn uptake if the plant improved its uptake kinetics. Low Mn efficiency of some wheat cultivars was related to their reduced root growth at low soil Mn supply.     

Separation of Fiber from Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS) Using Sieving and Elutriation

A process was developed to separate fiber from distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) in a dry‐grind corn process. Separation of fiber from DDGS would provide two valuable coproducts: 1) DDGS with reduced fiber, increased fat, and increased protein contents; and 2) fiber. The process, called elusieve process, used two separation methods, sieving and elutriation, to separate the fiber. Material carried by air to the top of the elutriation column was called the lighter fraction and material that settled to the bottom of the column was called the heavier fraction. We evaluated the compositions of fractions produced from sieving and elutriation. Two commercial samples of DDGS were obtained from two dry‐grind corn plants. Sieving over four screens (869, 582, 447, and 234 μm openings) created five size categories. The two smallest size categories contained >40% (w/w) of the original DDGS and had reduced fiber and increased protein and fat contents relative to the original DDGS. Elutriation of the remaining three size categories increased protein and fat contents and reduced fiber contents in the heavier fractions. Elutriation at air velocities of 1.59–5.24 m/sec increased the protein content of the heavier fraction by 13–41% and increased the fat content of the heavier fraction by 4–127% compared with the bulk fractions of each size category. This process was effective in separating fiber from both DDGS samples evaluated. Elusieve process does not require changes in the existing dry‐grind process and can be implemented at the end of the dry‐grind process.