Lowered Antioxidant Status of Red Blood Cells in Post-Parturient Haemoglobinuria of Buffaloes

The antioxidant status of the red blood cells of buffaloes (n = 20) suffering from post-parturient haemoglobinuria (PPH) was assessed by comparing their tocopherol (vitamin E) and reduced glutathione contents with those of red blood cells from apparently healthy buffaloes (n = 20). The red cell tocopherol content of the diseased buffaloes (1.76±0.11 g/ml) was significantly (p<0.01) lower than that of healthy buffaloes (2.45±0.14 g/ml). This may be the first report comparing the concentration of tocopherol in the red blood cells of buffaloes suffering from PPH and apparently healthy buffaloes.There was a drastic reduction in the reduced glutathione content in the red cells of haemoglobinuric buffaloes (23.74±2.86 mg%) compared to the healthy control buffaloes (73.71±3.87 mg%). The diseased buffaloes also exhibited severe hypophosphataemia. These findings suggest that an impaired or insufficient antioxidant potential of the red blood cells in this disease in buffaloes is associated with the phosphorus deficiency.     

Detection of R-plasmids in Salmonella isolated from clams and marine waters of Kuwait

A total of 24 strains of Salmonella isolated from clams and marine waters of Kuwait were speciated and investigated for drug resistance. Six of these were resistant to antibiotics. Their resistance patterns were ACT (4 isolates) and ACKST (2 isolates). These were examined for the transferability of their resistance. They had autotransferable R-plasmids and 25% of the transconjugants had an enbloc transfer at high frequency. The co-relation between Salmonella isolates from marine environment and clinical cases was established.     

The use of clams as bioindicator of fecal pollution in seawater

The coastal waters of Kuwait are widely used for bathing during the long summer season. In order to assess the water quality along the beaches, a new approach was developed. It involves the use of clam, Circenita callipyga, as a bioindicator for seawater pollution by fecal coliform bacteria (FC), antibotic resistant fecal coliform (ABR-FC) and Salmonella spp. These organisms were detected in clam and water samples and the efficiency of clam in concentrating Salmonella was confirmed. The number of FC and ABR-FC in clam and water samples were compared and a higher number was detected in clams than in water. Five isolates of Salmonella from clams were also multidrug resistant. The data suggests that clam can be used as a bioindicator of seawater pollution and is preferable to direct testing of water. The resistance to antibiotics in E. coli isolated from water and clams collected at the same time and site was of similar pattern and was determined by R-plasmid.     

Micropropagation of orchids: A review on the potential of different explants

Orchids are among the most diverse of the flowering plant families, with over 800 described genera and 25,000 species. Orchids are prized for their beautiful long lasting flowers exhibiting an incredible range of diversity in size, shape and colour. Today growing orchids is more than just a hobby, it is an international business covering around 8% of the world floriculture trade and has the potential to alter the economic landscape of a country. Large-scale multiplication of exquisite and rare hybrids using tissue culture techniques has helped orchids occupy a position as one of the top ten cut flowers. As orchids are outbreeders, their propagation using seeds leads to the production of heterozygous plants. Hence, protocols providing regeneration from various vegetative parts of the plants are needed. Though orchid micropropagation has shown spectacular development in the recent years, the wide spread use of micropropagation is believed to be still limited due to problems like exudation of phenolics from explants, transplantation to field, somaclonal variation etc. We endeavour to include the major investigations on explant-based orchid tissue culture starting from the pioneering works of Rotor [Rotor, G., 1949. A method of vegetative propagation of Phalaenopsis species and hybrids. Am. Orchid Soc. Bull. 18, 738–739] followed by Morel [Morel, G., 1960. Producing virus-free cymbidiums. Am. Orchid Soc. Bull. 29, 495–497] and Wimber [Wimber, D.E., 1963. Clonal multiplication of cymbidiums through tissue culture of the shoot meristem. Am. Orchid Soc. Bull. 32, 105–107] to date.