Assessment of genetic diversity in quality protein maize (QPM) lines using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers

Maize is a primary source of energy supplement and can contribute up to 30% protein, 60% energy and 90% starch in an animal’s diet. In the present investigation, 48 microsatellite markers, spread across the maize genome were used for analyzing genetic diversity among the sixty three quality protein maize (QPM) lines, including lines developed in India and CIMMYT, Mexico. Polymorphic profiles for 37 simple sequence repeat (SSR) loci aided in differentiating the QPM inbred lines. Using SSR procedures, the number of alleles per locus ranged from two to six, giving a total of 151 alleles for the 37 SSR loci. The genotypes were grouped into different clusters using NTSYSpc2.11 programme. The polymorphic information content (PIC) value was found to be highest for the primers bnlg1401, bnlg2136, bnlg1633 and umc 1357 (0.96) while the lowest value was for the primer umc 1656 (0.75) with the mean value of 0.48. From this study, the inbred line CML 142(w) is to give better combinations with CML 172, CM 161, CML 163, CLQRCYQ 281, CML 121, HQPM 5, HQPM 7, CML165 and CML 161 × CML 165 for the development of hybrids suitable for India.Key words: QPM, SSR, cluster analysis

Viable mass production method for cotton pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders)

AbstractCotton seed based artificial diet has been standardized for continuous rearing of pink bollworm Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) at the Central Institute for Cotton Research, Regional Station, Coimbatore. The ingredients of the diet are easily available and are cost effective. Basic ingredients of the diet are cotton seed flour (processed) and chick pea flour, Carbohydrate, Protein, Fat sources, multi vitamin, antimicrobial agents and agar as thickening agent are used as other ingredients. Micro centrifuge tubes with lid were used as rearing containers. Individual neonate larvae were released on each piece of the diet inside the micro centrifuge tube and the lids were closed. This prevented larval escape, retaining them inside the tubes and also prevented diet dehydration. The recovery of insect reared on diet was recorded as 95.56%. Egg hatchability and adult emergence were 100% while pupal malformation was nil. Eggs, larval and pupal periods were recorded as 4.8±0.632, 25.10±0.994 and 7.9±0.88days, respectively. Larval and pupal weights were recorded as 21.40mg±3.63, 18.00mg±2.73, respectively

Relative toxicity of insecticides against cotton mealybug Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley (Hemiptera:Pseudococcidae) and its fortuous parasitod Aenasius bambawalei Hayat (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae)

Nineteen insecticidal formulations from 10 groups of insecticides were evaluated for their relative toxicity against cotton mealybug Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley and its fortuous parasitoid Aenasius bambawalei Hayat. Insects were exposed to cotton leaves dipped in insecticidal solutions and their mortality was recorded at 24-h intervals. Within 24 h of exposure, Quinalphos, Chlorpyriphos, Thiamethoxam and Profenophos have detrimental effect on both P. solenospis and A. bambawalei recorded more than 70% mortality. Thiodicarb was extremely toxic to P. solenopsis and least toxic to A. bambawalei where as Spinosad was less toxic to P. solenopsis and extremely toxic to A. bambawalei. Profenophos, Thiamethoxam and Chlorpyriphos results into > 90% mortality of P. solenospsis while 100% kill of A. bambawalei with Spinosad, Acephate and Chlorpyriphos up to 48 hours. More than 80% mortality of P. solenopsis with Chlorpyriphos, Profenophos, Monocrotophos, Thiamethoxam, Spinosad and of A. bambawalei with Profenophos, Monocrotophos, Flonicamid, Buprofezin, Imidacloprid, Thiamethoxam, Chlorantraniliprole, Flonicamid and Indoxacarb recorded 72 hours after exposure. While at 96 hours, cent per cent mortality of P. solenopsis was recorded with Monocrotophos which was equivalent to Acephate and Spinosad. Least LT50 values were found with Thiodicarb, Quinalphos and Thiamethoxam for P. solenopsis and higher in case of Thiodicarb for A. bambawalei. Spinosad, Chlorpyriphos and Quinalphos were found to be extremely toxic to A. bambawalei. Among the tested insecticides Thiodicarb was found effective against P. solenopsis and relatively safer to A. bambawalei may be used judiciously to manage P. solenopsis that have least implications on the environment

Perspective Chapter: Current Situation of Insecticide Residues in Food Commodities and Possible Strategies for Management of Residues

Pesticides have evolved into a crucial instrument in agriculture’s evolution as a plant protection agent for increasing food output. Moreover, pesticides contribute significantly by preventing a number of terrible diseases. However, both occupational and environmental pesticide exposure can lead to a number of health issues in people. It has been noted that pesticide exposures are becoming more and more associated with immune system suppression, hormone disruption, lowered intellect, abnormalities in reproduction, and cancer. Because of the great demand for farm produce and their lack of awareness of the hazardous consequences of pesticide residues in food, some farmers do not wait long enough for the residues to wash off after spraying before harvesting. As a result, residues in food products have appeared as a result of increased pesticide use in agriculture. Some of the primary tactics for reducing human exposure to pesticides are pesticide safety, regulation of pesticide usage, appropriate application technology, and integrated pest management

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uploaded by Dr. M. sabeshIntegrated Management of Pink Bollworm in CottonNot Availabl

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Not AvailableMicrobial insecticides or entomopathogens are effective and eco-friendly insect pest management options. But slow mode of action and lack of a visual pest control, as expected by a farmer, mostly limits their wide commercial usage. The present day regular and high incidences of insect pests, due to intensive monocultures, warrant inevitable use of high doses of chemical pesticides. However, their judicious application depends on the diverse environmental threats associated. So, deployment of both entomopathogenic microbes and chemical pesticides together is considered to reduce the risk to the environment. Various studies also reported more efficient synergistic interactions in combined use than for independent applications. Synergism has the ability to reduce the pesticide doses. Most importantly, the combined application due to synergism can effectively tackles the pest problem and also helps in establishment of an entomopathogen in a given ecosystem. Once established, the entomopathogens can effectively manage the pest population build up in an eco-friendly manner, and over the years they can evade the use of pesticides or, if not so, reduce their dosage. The present chapter critically discusses possible synergism between entomopathogens and chemical pesticides and the present status of pest management achieved through this approach, in the context of latest research findings.Not Availabl

Molecular profiling of resistance alleles in Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) collected from different locations

Abstract Background After the commercialization of insect-resistant transgenic Bt cotton Bollgard I & II, India ranks first in the world in cotton production. Cotton insecticide consumption was drastically reduced as nearly 95% of the cotton area was replaced with Bollgard II. However, the benefits of transgenic cotton appear to have been diminished as the pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) developed field resistance to Cry1Ac expressing Bt cotton in India in 2008. In 2015, there was an unusual survival of P. gossypiella on Bollgard II cotton in some parts of Gujarat and Maharashtra, which is a cause for concern. Results In the present study, PCR analysis and gel visualization of BGII resistant field population of P. gossypiella showed that the presence of r1, r2, r3, r1s, r2s, r3s, and ss mutated cadherin alleles, which produced amplicon sizes of 750 bp, 700 bp, 730 bp, 12,700 bp, 750 bp, 980 bp, 600 bp and 1600 bp, respectively, when seven different types of cadherin allele(s) specific primers were used. The r1 mutant allele was detected in Amaravati, Wardha, Yavatmal, and Nagpur, but not in Akola and Buldhana, using primers r1disfor and Int-540. The r2 mutant allele was detected in Akola, Wardha, and Nagpur, but not in Buldhana, Amaravati, and Yavatmal, using primers r2disback and Cad2366. The r3 mutant allele was detected in all locations using primers r3disback and Cad3221. Amplicons of sizes 750 bp, 700 bp and 730 bp were obtained for r1, r2, and r3 mutant alleles, respectively. The sizes of the amplicons were 1270 bp for r1s, 750 bp for r2s, and 980 bp for r3s.The absence of bands for r1, r2, and r3 cadherin alleles in individuals indicated the possibility of having the ss allele, which was confirmed using primers Cad3324 and Int-651. The presence of ss mutant allele was observed in field-collected P. gossypiella populations from BG II cotton in various locations, with a 600 bp and 1600 bp size amplicons produced using the same primers. Conclusions PCR analysis revealed the presence of r1, r2, r3, r1s, r2s, r3s, and ss mutated cadherin alleles in field-collected populations of Vidarbha which provide evidence to field-evolved resistance of P. gossypiella to BGII cotton

Population genetic structure of cotton pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) using mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (COI) gene sequences from India

Pink bollworm (PBW), Pectinophora gossypiella is one of the most destructive pest’s globally inflicting huge economic losses in cotton even during later stages of crop growth. In the present investigation, the population genetic structure, distribution, and genetic diversity of P. gossypiella in cotton growing zones of India using partial mitochondrial DNA cytochrome oxidase-I (COI) gene was addressed. The overall haplotype (Hd), number of nucleotide differences (K), and nucleotide diversity (π) were 0.3028, 0.327, and 0.00047, respectively which suggest that entire population exhibited low level of genetic diversity. Zone-wise clustering of population revealed that central zone recorded low level of Hd (0.2730) as compared to north (0.3619) and south (0.3028) zones. The most common haplotype (H1) reported in all 19 locations could be proposed as ancestral/original haplotype. This haplotype with one mutational step formed star-like phylogeny connected with 11 other haplotypes. The phylogenetic relationship studies revealed that most haplotypes of populations are closely related to each other. Haplotype 5 was exclusively present in Dharwad (South zone) shared with populations of Hanumangarh and Bathinda (North zone). The result indicated that there is no isolation by distance effect among the Indian populations of PBW. The present study reports a low genetic diversity among PBW populations of India and H1, as ancestral haplotype from which other haplotypes have evolved suggests that the migration and dispersal over long distance and invasiveness are major factors