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Not AvailableSoil plays a very crucial role in supporting ecosystems and human civilization. Besides being a non-renewable and valuable resource, it has high variability in its properties and behaviour all over the World.Soil survey helps to prepare inventory of different kinds of soils and extent of distribution for the prediction of their characteristics and potentialities. Such knowledge is required for making better utilization of soils in a sustainable way. Traditional soil survey techniques are time consuming, labour intensive and costly. Recent advancements in computer and information technology have brought new techniques of soil resource mapping. Remote sensing (RS), Geographical Information System (GIS)and Global Positioning System (GPS) are such techniques for analysis the different features of soils over space and time. Present paper describes the role of RS, GIS and GPS technologies for mapping and characterizing soils at various scales. The spectral behaviour of soil and its components, which is fundamental to deriving information from RS data is also discussed.Not Availabl

Ongoing soil potassium depletion under intensive cropping in India and probable mitigation strategies. A review

International audienceAbstractPotassium (K) is essential for plant growth and vital for soil health. However, despite high crop demand, K fertilization continues to be ignored or severely inadequate in Indian agriculture. Over time, this could lead to severe depletion of soil K reserve, irreversibly alter K-bearing minerals, and adversely affect soil fertility and crop productivity. Hence, we should comprehensively assess the alarming situation of soil K mining in India and come up with appropriate solutions. Keeping the above in mind, here we review the soil K pools concerning plant availability, their contents in major soil orders of India, reasons and status of soil K mining under major crops and cropping systems in India, and the impact of long-term K mining on soil K pools and clay minerals. We also address various aspects of sustainable K management in agriculture and suggest future action courses focusing on India. Our main findings are: (i) farmers in India mainly apply nitrogen and phosphorus, but little or no K; consequently, (ii) net K balance continues to be negative for most crops and cropping systems across India (e.g., - 3.29 million tonnes [Mt] in 2000–01, - 7.2 Mt in 2015–16); (iii) long-term K mining primarily depletes the exchangeable and non-exchangeable K pools in soil, and alters clay minerals to various extents; and (iv) the existing K fertilizer recommendations need an upward revision. We further enlist indigenous non-conventional alternatives of K fertilizers to meet the agricultural K demand. This is the first comprehensive review to simultaneously address the ongoing soil K mining in India, its impact, and its potential mitigation strategies. The points raised here would help reduce soil K mining, plan research work, and make policy decisions on K fertilization and residue management with the ultimate goal to prevent soil health deterioration and ensure sustainable crop production

Streaming through a case of SREAT

Abstract Background Hashimoto’s encephalopathy, also known as steroid responsive encephalopathy associated with autoimmune thyroiditis (SREAT) is an autoimmune neuroendocrine disorder marked by impaired brain function. It is a diagnosis of exclusion with variable nature of presentation and no gold standard investigation of choice. Case presentation Here, we report a case of SREAT in a 26-year-old female who presented to our Emergency Department with altered sensorium and generalised tonic clonic seizures. After thorough clinical examination and initial resuscitation, a provisional diagnosis of neuroglycopenic injury or possible encephalitis was made. Broad-spectrum antibiotics were initiated. Routine investigations and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) study were inconclusive except for neutrophilic leucocytosis. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) depicted hyper-intense signal changes around bilateral hippocampus and thalamus. Serum anti-thyroid peroxidase (anti-TPO) was strongly positive while other serum and CSF autoantibodies were within normal limits. A diagnosis of SREAT was made and she responded brilliantly to systemic corticosteroids. Incidentally, anti-SSA (anti-Ro) and anti-SSB (anti-La) were positive and a possible association between Sjogren’s syndrome and SREAT was insinuated. Conclusion There is a long list of differentials for SREAT and a proper diagnostic criteria must be followed to reach at a conclusion. It can be easily missed and remain underreported due to its overlapping nature and ambiguous presentation. Hence, clinicians must have high index of suspicion for the disease and optimal therapy should be initiated early to improve the long term mortality

National Academy Science Letters - India

Not AvailableThe effect of chemical pre-treatment on identification and semi-quantification of clay minerals by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis was studied in soils (0?15 cm) collected from four ongoing long-term (31 years) experiments located at Ludhiana (Inceptisol), Jabalpur (Vertisol), Pantnagar (Mollisol) and Ranchi (Alfisol) under five treatments with different combinations of organic and inorganic nutrient sources. From each soil, clay (with pre-treatment) and colloidal organo-mineral fraction or COMF (without pre-treatment) were isolated for XRD analyses. The identification and semi-quantification of clay minerals from pre-treated clay have already been reported (Das et al. in Sci Total Environ 684:682?693, 2019). Here, the aim was to identify the soil type(s) where such pre-treatment can be avoided without compromising accuracy of mineral identification and semi-quantification. Among the soil orders, Alfisol showed the least variation in X-ray diffractograms between clay and COMF, whereas variation was the highest in Vertisol. Irrespective of soil orders, illite and illite-rich interstratified minerals (IRM) and kaolinite and kaolinite-rich interstratified mineral (KRM) peaks were least affected by the presence of organic C and amorphous Fe oxide in COMF, whereas peaks of smectite or smectite-rich interstratified minerals (SRM) were affected the most. Chlorite peak was distorted due to chemical pre-treatment with large amounts of H2O2 for removal of organic matter from Mollisol. Overall, the results indicated that identification and semi-quantification of clay minerals by XRD can be done with reasonable accuracy even without chemical pre-treatment in Alfisol dominated by KRM and IRM. In Inceptisol, Vertisol and Mollisol, the same appeared to be less appropriate

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Not AvailableAlthough nitrogen (N) has the highest requirement for plant growth, N use efficiency (NUE) seldom exceeds 40%. NUE may be improved by integrated application of fertilizer N and enriched organic amendments. The present experiment aimed to test the extent of increase in NUE by integrated application of fertilizer N farmyard manure (FYM) and rock phosphate enriched compost (RPEC). Mineralization kinetics and N release from FYM and RPEC were studied by an incubation experiment. Results revealed that maximumpotentiallymineralizable N as well as N release (283.9, 186.7 mg kg−1 soil, respectively) were from RPEC + fertilizer N treated soils, followed by FYM + fertilizer N. Maximum yield, N uptake, and N recovery were obtained from RPEC + fertilizer N treated soils followed by FYM + fertilizer N. Soils treated with RPEC had shown significantly higher dehydrogenase activity than FYM treated soils. Thus, RPEC might increase yield as well as NUE over FYM. N uptake by plant at maximumtillering stage and flowering stage of wheat correlated positively (R2 > 0.85) with the decay rate (k and kN0) parameter of incubation experiment suggesting their relevance as indicators of plant available N.Not Availabl

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Not AvailableNitrogen (N) is the most important essential nutrient for plant growth. Intensive agriculture requires large quantities of N mainly applied through commercial fertilizers like urea. However, the N use efficiency (NUE) hardly exceeds 50% under best management practices. Use of organics as N source to increase NUE is a very promising approach. The present investigation was carried out to study the mineralization and subsequent release of N from sewage sludge for synchronization with crop demand and to evaluate its effectiveness for maximization of NUE by wheat. Sewage sludge was collected from Okhla sewage sludge treatment plant, Delhi, characterized and incubated in an Inceptisol along with fertilizer N to monitor the release pattern of N. A pot culture experiment was also conducted to evaluate the efficiency of sludge for synchronization of N supply with the demand of wheat crop. Incubation experiment revealed that the sludge amended soil released significantly higher amounts of NH4+ -N as well as NO -N than that of control. Release of NH4+ -N from the sludge treated soil was slow during the first 15 days of incubation, then it increased and reached its maxima at around 45 days, after which it decreased sharply. Release ofNO3-N was slow during the first 15 days of incubation, followed by a high release rate up to 45 days and a slow release rate beyond 45 days. Pot culture experiment revealed that maximum yield, N content and uptake by wheat was obtained when the soil was treated with sludge along with fertilizer N @ 100 mg kg-1 soil but those were statistically at par with the results obtained using sludge along with fertilizer N @ 50 mg kg-1 soil. The same treatment i.e. sludge along with fertilizer N @ 50 mg kg-1 soil, also showed the highest N recovery (50%). This treatment also showed significantly higher yield and N uptake over the solefertilizer treatment i.e. N @ 100 mg kg-1 soil along with recommended dose of P and K. Hence, with sludge amendment fertilizer N requirement could be curtailed by 50% and might be implicative for better NUE.Not Availabl

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Not AvailableIt is imperative to find suitable strategies to utilize the native soil phosphorus (P), as natural rock phosphate deposits are at a verge of depletion. We explored two such cost-effective and eco-friendly strategies for native soil P solubilization: silicon (Si)-rich agro-wastes (as Si source) and phosphate solubilizing microorganism (PSM). An incubation study was conducted in a sub-tropical Alfisol for 90 days at 25 °C under field capacity moisture. A factorial completely randomized design with 3 factors, namely: Si sources (three levels: sugarcane bagasse ash, rice husk ash, and corn cob ash), PSM (two levels: without PSM, and with PSM); and Si doses [three levels: no Si (Si0), 125 (Si125) and 250 (Si250) mg Si kg−1 soil] was followed. The PSM increased solution P and soluble Si level by ∼22.2 and 1.88%, respectively, over no PSM; whereas, Si125 and Si250 increased solution P by ∼60.4 and 77.1%, as well as soluble Si by ∼41.5 and 55.5%, respectively, over Si0. Also, interaction of PSM × Si doses was found significant (P<0.05). Activities of soil enzymes (dehydrogenase, acid phosphatase) and microbial biomass P also increased significantly both with PSM and Si application. Overall, PSM solubilized ∼4.18 mg kg−1 of inorganic P and mineralized ∼5.92 mg kg−1 of organic P; whereas, Si125 and Si250 solubilized ∼3.85 and 5.72 mg kg−1 of inorganic P, and mineralized ∼4.15 and 5.37 mg kg−1 of organic P, respectively. Path analysis revealed that inorganic P majorly contributed to total P solubilization; whereas, soluble and loosely bound, iron bound and aluminium bound P significantly influenced the inorganic P solubilization. Thus, utilization of such wastes as Si sources will not only complement the costly P fertilizers, but also address the waste disposal issue in a sustainable manner.Not Availabl

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Not AvailablePurpose Potassium (K)-fractions, thresholds of K release and fixation, quantity-intensity (Q/I) parameters of K, K-release kinetics, and K-fixation capacity were compared for their effectiveness in differentiating the effect of various nutrient management practices on K supplying capacity of an Aeric Endoaquept soil after 45 years of puddled rice cultivation. Materials and methods Soil samples (0–15 cm) were collected after the completion of 45 rice-rice cycles from an on-going longterm fertilizer experiment located in ICAR-National Rice Research Institute, Cuttack, India. The treatments involved control (unfertilized), N (nitrogen fertilizer), NP (N+ phosphorus fertilizer), NK (N+ potassium fertilizer), NPK (N + P + K fertilizer), FYM (farmyard manure), N + FYM, NP + FYM, NK + FYM, and NPK + FYM. Results and discussion Rice cultivation without K fertilizer application resulted in lower values of soil K parameters than the Kfertilized treatments. Treatment effects were most prominent on release threshold concentration (RTC), followed by cumulativeK release, K-release rate constants, and K-fixation capacity. Parameters of K-release kinetics and Q/I relationships showed better correlation with rice grain yields than soil-K fractions. Soil K thresholds were closely related with exchangeable (Kex) and nonexchangeable K (Knx), but not clay minerals. Conclusions Among the soil K parameters, RTC, cumulative K release (Kf) with 0.01MCaCl2, release rate constants (bR and bS) of parabolic diffusion equation, and K-fixation capacity were most effective in revealing the nutrient management induced variations in soil K fertility. In the studied soil, K-thresholds were significantly related to Kex and Knx.ICA

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