XVI Agricultural Science Congress 2023: Transformation of Agri-Food Systems for Achieving Sustainable Development Goals

The XVI Agricultural Science Congress being jointly organized by the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS) and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) during 10-13 October 2023, at hotel Le Meridien, Kochi, is a mega event echoing the theme “Transformation of Agri-Food Systems for achieving Sustainable Development Goals”. ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute takes great pride in hosting the XVI ASC, which will be the perfect point of convergence of academicians, researchers, students, farmers, fishers, traders, entrepreneurs, and other stakeholders involved in agri-production systems that ensure food and nutritional security for a burgeoning population. With impeding challenges like growing urbanization, increasing unemployment, growing population, increasing food demands, degradation of natural resources through human interference, climate change impacts and natural calamities, the challenges ahead for India to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set out by the United Nations are many. The XVI ASC will provide an interface for dissemination of useful information across all sectors of stakeholders invested in developing India’s agri-food systems, not only to meet the SDGs, but also to ensure a stable structure on par with agri-food systems around the world. It is an honour to present this Book of Abstracts which is a compilation of a total of 668 abstracts that convey the results of R&D programs being done in India. The abstracts have been categorized under 10 major Themes – 1. Ensuring Food & Nutritional Security: Production, Consumption and Value addition; 2. Climate Action for Sustainable Agri-Food Systems; 3. Frontier Science and emerging Genetic Technologies: Genome, Breeding, Gene Editing; 4. Livestock-based Transformation of Food Systems; 5. Horticulture-based Transformation of Food Systems; 6. Aquaculture & Fisheries-based Transformation of Food Systems; 7. Nature-based Solutions for Sustainable AgriFood Systems; 8. Next Generation Technologies: Digital Agriculture, Precision Farming and AI-based Systems; 9. Policies and Institutions for Transforming Agri-Food Systems; 10. International Partnership for Research, Education and Development. This Book of Abstracts sets the stage for the mega event itself, which will see a flow of knowledge emanating from a zeal to transform and push India’s Agri-Food Systems to perform par excellence and achieve not only the SDGs of the UN but also to rise as a world leader in the sector. I thank and congratulate all the participants who have submitted abstracts for this mega event, and I also applaud the team that has strived hard to publish this Book of Abstracts ahead of the event. I wish all the delegates and participants a very vibrant and memorable time at the XVI ASC

High prevalence of Aeromonas and Pseudomonas infections among cage cultured Pangas catfish from the reservoirs of Maharashtra, India

Cage farming of Pangas catfish (Pangasionodon hypophthalmus) in small reservoirs is primarily profitable. Still, sustainability in terms of disease and environmental impact issues remains unsolved. In the present study, Pangas catfish from selected farms were screened for bacteria and parasites from 2017-18. In the present study, several Gram-negative bacterial species, including Edwardsiella tarda, Aeromonas hydrophila, A. veronii, Pseudomonas putida, Enterobacter cloacae, and Plesiomonas shigelloides, were isolated. A high prevalence of Aeromonas and Pseudomonas infections was noticed in cage farms. The most prevalent isolate was A. veronii (9 isolates), followed by P. aeruginosa and P. putida, revealing the presence of biotic stress. Furthermore, potential human pathogenic bacteria, particularly Klebsiella pneumoniae, P. aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii, Citrobacter freundii, and Morganella morganii, were isolated. Histopathological analysis of the vital organs concluded the extent of damage caused due to the biotic stress in the cage culture system. The antibiotic sensitivity test implied resistance of bacteria for Sulphamethoxazole and Tetracycline. Some of them were resistant to multiple drugs, the risk for public health. Water temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, Aeromonas, Pseudomonas, and Plesiomonas were identified by principal component analysis as significant abiotic and biotic stress factors. This information helps design predictive disease models

Antibacterial Activity of Spirulina (Arthospira platensis Geitler) against Bacterial Pathogens in Aquaculture

Abstract The antibacterial activity of seven crude extracts of a cyanobacterium, Arthospira platensis (previously called Spirulina platensis), was evaluated against seven bacterial fish pathogens. The antibacterial activity of the acetone soluble fraction of the A. platensis was considerable against all seven pathogens and equaled the antibacterial activity of the positive control (chloramphenicol) against Aeromonas hydrophila. Edwardsiella tarda was the most susceptible pathogen to this fraction. The minimum inhibitory and minimum bactericidal concentrations were lowest for the acetone soluble fraction. Atomic force microscopy of A. hydrophila cells showed that cell walls were considerably damaged after one hour of exposure to the acetone soluble fraction, i.e., pores, holes, and grooves had formed on the cell envelope. After two hours of exposure, the cells had became permeabilized and collapsed due to disintegration of the cell wall. The IJA appears exclusively as a peer-reviewed on-line open-access journal at http://www.siamb.org.il. To read papers free of charge, please register online at registration form. Sale of IJA papers is strictly forbidden. Sale of IJA papers is strictly forbidden. 2 Bhuvaneswari et al