Effect of hydropriming and different sowing dates on growth and yield attributes of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

The present investigation was conducted to study the effects of hydropriming and different sowing dates on growth and yield attributes of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) during Rabi season of 2014-15.The experiment was conducted in Randomised Block Design with three replications. The highest germination percentage was recorded at T4 [hydropriming] 22nd Nov + 16 hrs. ( 94.04%), plant height highest was recorded at T4 (95.23cm), highest number of tillers at T4 (4.40), number of spikelet per spike highest at T4 (18.73), numbers of grains per spike highest at T4 (53.13), root length (16.07cm), test weight (43.33g), grain yield (42.79 q/ha), harvest index (63.46%) recorded similar result in same treatment. Therefore it may be concluded that 22nd Nov with 16 hrs. of hydropriming treatment can be recommended to PBW-343 wheat grower for obtaining better growth and yield

Seed yield and quality as influenced by growing conditions in hybrid seed production of bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.) cv. Pusa Hybrid-1

The present investigation was carried out under insect proof net house (IPN) and open field condition (OFC) at Centre for Protected Cultivation Technology and Seed Testing Laboratory of Division of Seed Science &Technology, IARI, New Delhi in bitter gourd cv. Pusa Hybrid-1 during summer season because under open field condition the seed yield and seed quality of bitter gourd drastically reduced due to viral diseases and fruit fly in kharif and early onset of high temperature, unseasonal rains during summer, which restricts the hybrid seed production of bitter gourd under north Indian condition. The observations on seed yield & quality characters and physical properties of seed were recorded. The quality attributes were evaluated immediately after harvest and after 8 months of ambient storage and their results were compared. The experimental results revealed that total number of seed per fruit (46.7), number of filled seed per fruit (45.3), seed yield per fruit (9.41g), seed yield per plant (27.28g), and seed yield per hectare (232kg) were significantly higher under IPN in comparison to OFC. Among the physical parameters of seed, seed width (0.81cm) & seed coat (0.79g) weight recorded significantly higher in IPN. The seed quality attributes immediately after harvest was also significantly superior under IPN compared to OFC except for germination %. The hybrid seed produced under IPN conditions could maintain their superiority for quality traits even after 8 monthsof its ambient storage. The seed yield and seed quality attributes were comparatively superior under IPN conditions. The seed crop grown under IPN overcomes the threat of insect vectors, viral diseases and unfavourable climatic conditions and helps in attaining the better seed yield and quality

Research Notes : India : Potential of an off-season soybean nursery

In India, soybean is generally sown during summer (June-October). However, due to tremendous variability in climatic conditions of the country, there is a scope for growing soybean in more than one season. The efficacy of yield improvement projects could be substantially enhanced by rapid genera-tion turnover

Pseudohypoparathyroidism Presenting as Congestive Cardiac Failure

Hypocalcaemia can have a variety of manifestations including cardiovascular changes. Hypocalcemic cardiomyopathy has been reported in hypoparathyroidism and vitamin D deficiency but association of hypocalcemic cardiomyopathy in pseudohypo-parathyroidism has been reported scarcely in literature. We describe here a case of PHP presenting as congestive cardiac failure

Bone Tumors: Types and Treatments

The tumors associated with bone are mostly of mesenchymal origin and contribute to approximately 1% of all the known tumors. These could be primary/benign tumors (that originate in the bone), secondary tumors (that originate in some other tissue/organ and metastasize to the bone), or malignant primary bone tumors (that originate in bone and metastasize to distant tissue). These tumors are majorly due to defects in the regulation of tumor suppressor genes and oncogenes and/or misregulation of signal transduction pathways. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy used for the treatment have several side effects. During the recent years, therapeutic strategies involving hormone deprivation (estrogen, androgen), hormone replacements (estrogen analogs), hormone receptor modulators (SERMs), growth factors and cytokines, small-molecule inhibitors, and gene therapy have emerged as a promising alternative to chemo- and radiotherapy. In the present chapter, we have provided an extensive account of tumors associated with the bone and various therapeutic options related to hormone deprivation, hormone replacements, hormone receptor modulators, and hormone inhibition

Effect of truss retention and pruning of berry on seed yield and quality of cherry tomato (Solanum lycopersicum var cerasiforme) grown under different polyhouse structures

Study was conducted to evaluate the effect of retention of truss per plant and pruning of berries per truss on seed yield and quality of cherry tomato (Solanum tycopersicum var cerasiforme L.) grown under three different polyhouse structures, viz. semi climate controlled polyhouse (P1), naturally ventilated polyhouse (P2) and insect proof nethouse (P3). Among the structures P1 gave higher berry weight (7.67 g), number of seeds/berry (60.66), 100 seed weight (0.1328 g), seed yield/berry (0.0912 g), germination (84.90%), vigour index-I (650.64), vigour index-II (1.47) and lower EC (0.0086 µS/g/cm), when compared to P2 and P3. The retention of 5 truss per plant (V1) recorded higher berry weight (7.37 g), number of seeds/berry (63.25), 100 seed weight (0.1319 g), seed yield/berry (0.0886 g), germination (84.68 %), vigour index-I (640.97), vigour index-II (1.43) and lower electrical conductivity (0.0083 µS/ g/cm), as compared to V2 and V3. The thinning of berry, i.e 10 per truss (B1) has given significantly higher mean berry weight (8.21 g), number of seeds/berry (61.53), 100 seed weight (0.1323 g), 100 seed weight (0.1323 g), seed yield/berry (0.0913 g), germination (86.01%), vigour index-I (651.96), vigour-II (1.46) and lower EC (0.0080 µS/g/ cm) in comparison to B2 and B3

Physiological maturity and its influence on seed yield and quality in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) under different growing environments

To study the physical and physiological changes occurred during maturation in fruit and seeds of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) (cv. Pant Shankar Khira-1) grown under naturally ventilated polyhouse, insect proof net house and open field conditions at Centre for Protected Cultivation Technology (CPCT) farm, Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi during summer and kharif seasons 2011. The fruits were harvested at 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45 days from anthesis (DFA) and seeds were extracted following fermentation. Various physical parameters, viz. fruit weight, fruit length, fruit width, number of filled seeds, number of unfilled seeds, 100 seed weight, seed yield/fruit, seed fresh weight, seed dry weight were recorded. The physiological maturity was evaluated by germinating seeds before and after drying. There were only small, non-significant difference in germinability among seed harvested at 35, 40 and 45 DFA, all of which were of higher quality than seeds which had been harvested at 25 and 30 DFA. The analysis of data showed that the seeds attained physiological maturity at 35 DFA under naturally ventilated poly house and insect proof net house, whereas at 40 DFA under open field condition

Morphological characterization of parental lines and cultivated genotypes of bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria)

Genetic diversity and relatedness were assessed among fifteen most common commercial bottle gourd [Lagenaria siceraria (Mol.) Standl.] genotypes of public sector institutes in India; the fifteen genotypes were grown in the field for two seasons under RCBD with three replications in New Delhi condition. Data were collected on morphological features of bottle gourd which include vine, leaf, flower, fruit and seed characteristics. A descriptor list with selected 32 morphological (qualitative and quantitative) characters were adopted from NBPGR guidelines and used for characterization. The data was used to calculate genetic similarity and to construct a dendrogram using the unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic average (UPGMA). Data on quantitative characters was subjected to ANOVA using SAS and effects declared significant at 5% level. The procedure PRINCOMP was then used to perform a principle component (PC) analysis using fourteen quantitative variables and genotypes plotted on two dimensions using the first two principle components (PC1 and PC2). The results of quantitative characters of Pusa Santusti, Pusa Sandesh and Arka Bahar demonstrated highly significant variation between genotypes. Results of the principle component analyses for the traits indicated that the first five PCs explained a total of 80% of the total variation. The high morphological diversity observed among public sector genotypes emphasizes the need to expand the genetic base of the cultivated bottle gourd in India

Effect of post-harvest ripening and drying methods on seed quality and storability in pumpkin cv Pusa Hybrid 1

An investigation was carried out, to study the effect of post-harvest ripening and drying methods on the seed quality in pumpkin cv Pusa Hybrid 1, during summer 2008 and 2009 at Seed Production Unit, IARI, New Delhi. After harvesting, the fruits were allowed for post-harvest ripening (PHR) of zero days (P0), 10 days (P1) and 20 days (P2) and seeds obtained from each of the PHR treatments were subjected to three methods of drying, viz. shade drying (D1), sun drying (D2) and mechanical drying (D3). The results showed that seed obtained from 20 days PHR followed by shade drying (P2D1) had given superior quality seed with respect to germination (94.33 %), seedling length (34.30 cm), vigour index - I (3236.52) and electrical conductivity (17.30 m mhos/cm/g) followed by P2D3 (20 days PHR and mechanical drying), while germination (%) was significantly lower in PoD2 during storage. In all treatments the seeds stored for 12 months showed maximum germination followed by reduction after eighteen months of storage. The germination percentage was maintained above the Indian minimum seed certification standards (IMSCS) of 60% up to eighteen months of storage in all treatments