Chalcogenide glass planar MIR couplers for future chip based Bracewell interferometers

Photonic integrated circuits are established as the technique of choice for a number of astronomical processing functions due to their compactness, high level of integration, low losses, and stability. Temperature control, mechanical vibration and acoustic noise become controllable for such a device enabling much more complex processing than can realistically be considered with bulk optics. To date the benefits have mainly been at wavelengths around 1550 nm but in the important Mid-Infrared region, standard photonic chips absorb light strongly. Chalcogenide glasses are well known for their transparency to beyond 10000 nm, and the first results from coupler devices intended for use in an interferometric nuller for exoplanetary observation in the Mid-Infrared L band (3800-4200 nm) are presented here showing that suitable performance can be obtained both theoretically and experimentally for the first fabricated devices operating at 4000 nm.Comment: in Proc. SPIE 9907, Optical and Infrared Interferometry and Imaging V, 990730 (August 4, 2016

CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Mutation in XSP10 and SlSAMT Genes Impart Genetic Tolerance to Fusarium Wilt Disease of Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.)

Fusarium wilt is a major devastating fungal disease of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici (Fol) which reduces the yield and production. Xylem sap protein 10 (XSP10) and Salicylic acid methyl transferase (SlSAMT) are two putative negative regulatory genes associated with Fusarium wilt of tomato. Fusarium wilt tolerance in tomato can be developed by targeting these susceptible (S) genes. Due to its efficiency, high target specificity, and versatility, CRISPR/Cas9 has emerged as one of the most promising techniques for knocking out disease susceptibility genes in a variety of model and agricultural plants to increase tolerance/resistance to various plant diseases in recent years. Though alternative methods, like RNAi, have been attempted to knock down these two S genes in order to confer resistance in tomato against Fusarium wilt, there has been no report of employing the CRISPR/Cas9 system for this specific intent. In this study, we provide a comprehensive downstream analysis of the two S genes via CRISPR/Cas9-mediated editing of single (XSP10 and SlSAMT individually) and dual-gene (XSP10 and SlSAMT simultaneously). Prior to directly advancing on to the generation of stable lines, the editing efficacy of the sgRNA-Cas9 complex was first validated using single cell (protoplast) transformation. In the transient leaf disc assay, the dual-gene editing showed strong phenotypic tolerance to Fusarium wilt disease with INDEL mutations than single-gene editing. In stable genetic transformation of tomato at the GE1 generation, dual-gene CRISPR transformants of XSP10 and SlSAMT primarily exhibited INDEL mutations than single-gene-edited lines. The dual-gene CRISPR-edited lines (CRELs) of XSP10 and SlSAMT at GE1 generation conferred a strong phenotypic tolerance to Fusarium wilt disease compared to single-gene-edited lines. Taken together, the reverse genetic studies in transient and stable lines of tomato revealed that, XSP10 and SlSAMT function together as negative regulators in conferring genetic tolerance to Fusariumwilt disease

Influence of Integrated Nutrient Management on Growth and Yield of Mustard (Brassica juncea L.)

The experiment was conducted during the Rabi season, 2021-22 at Crop Research Farm, Department of Agronomy, Naini Agriculture Institute, Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture Technology And Sciences, Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, to study “Influence of Integrated Nutrient Management on Growth and Yield of Mustard (Brassica juncea L.).” The treatments consist of different levels of Nitrogen through urea (100%, 75%, 50%, 25%), Nitrogen through Vermicompost (100%, 75%, 50%, 25%), Nitrogen through FYM (100%, 75%,50%, 25%). The result reported that treatment 9 [75% Nitrogen through vermicompost + 25% Nitrogen through urea] significantly influenced higher plant height (199.96 cm), maximum number of branches (12.27), number of siliquae/plant (272.42), number of seeds/siliqua (14.24) dry weight (28.40 g). It is alsoobservedthat thehigherseed yield (2.19t/ha) and higher stover yield (3.34t/ha) was obtained with the application of 75% Nitrogen through vermicompost + 25% Nitrogen through urea. Higher Gross return (119619.5), Net return (86,674), Benefit cost ratio (2.63) was obtained under the use of 75% Nitrogen through vermicompost + 25% Nitrogen through urea

Bragg-mirror-like circular dichroism in bio-inspired quadruple-gyroid 4srs nanostructures

The smooth and tailorable spectral response of Bragg mirrors has driven their pervasive use in optical systems requiring customizable spectral control of beam propagation. However, the simple nature of Bragg mirror reflection prevents their application to the control of important polarization states such as circular polarization. While helical and gyroid-based nanostructures exhibiting circular dichroism have been developed extensively to address this limitation, they are often restricted by the spectral inconsistency of their optical response. Here we present the fabrication and characterization of quadruple-gyroid 4srs nanostructures exhibiting bio-inspired Bragg-mirror-like circular dichroism: a smooth and uniform band of circular dichroism reminiscent of the spectrum of a simple multilayer Bragg-mirror. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the circular dichroism produced by 4srs nanostructures are robust to changes in incident angle and beam collimation, providing a new platform to create and engineer circular dichroism for functional circular polarization manipulation

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Not AvailableNot Available acillus thuringiensis (Bt) is an ubiquitous entomopathogenic bacterium present in almost all environments and predominantly in soils. It produces secretory toxins during its vegetative growth phase, in addition to other virulent factors. Among these secretory proteins, the Vip3 proteins have been reported to be effective against major lepidopteran pests of several agricultural crops, thus spurring identification of Bt isolates which produce Vip proteins in different laboratories world over. Therefore, screening of Bt isolates recovered from various soil habitats in India was carried out in this study to analyze the effect of type of soil on the distribution of vip3 genes. We have observed heterogeneous distribution (20%-100%) of vip3-type genes in Bt isolates, which may be due to ecological, topographical and nutritional conditions of soil. The overall frequency of occurrence of vip3-type genes was not significantly different in Bt isolates recovered from soil samples of cropped and non-cropped areas. However, isolates recovered from forest soil were the least abundant in vip3-type genes. We have found that our collection from various soil habitats is a rich source of vip3-type genes, which can be further explored for isolation of full length unique vip3-type genes having toxicity against agriculturally important lepidopteran insects for deployment in insect pest controlNot Availabl

Management Regimes, Soil Properties and Carbon Stock in Community Managed Forests

The study was carried out to understand the management strategies, soil nutrient properties and carbon sock of community managed forests practiced by Jamatia community of Tripura, Northeast India. It revealed that Jamatia people of Tripura are actively involved in conservation and management of the forests under their control. The concept of creating forest and follow an institutional setup for management of forest resources are being noted in this ethnic community. In community forests, maximum numbers of individuals of tree species were represented from the lower girth class while individuals from higher girthclass contributed larger biomass and carbon. Anogeissus acuminata was the most preferred species in the community forest as it is the source of timber and fuel wood and also contributing high biomass among other species. The total biomass and carbon stock in the community managed forest was found as 40.66 Tha-1 and 20.33 Tha-1 respectively. The soil of community forests are very fertile and found acidic in nature. The mean SOC is 1.38%, whereas available nitrogen and phosphorus content are 210.79 Kg ha-1 and 8.36 Kg ha-1 respectively. However, a positive and significant correlation of available phosphorus was observed with physical properties like soil temperature, pH and also with total nitrogen content. These forests have potential for future carbon sequestration and to mitigate climate change for longer run as it is managed sustainably by the community.Keywords: biodiversity, biomass, conservation, institution, Jamatia community, traditio

“Influence of Micro Nutrients and Naphthalene Acetic Acid on Growth, Yield and Economics of Summer Greengram (Vigna radiata L.)”

A field experiment was conducted during Zaid 2022 at Crop Research Farm, Department of Agronomy, SHUATS, Prayagraj (U.P) to determine the “Influence of micronutrients and naphthalene acetic acid on growth, yield and economics of summer greengram (Vigna radiata L.)”. To study treatments consisting of three Micronutrients viz. Zn @ 100 ppm, Boron @ 100 ppm and Mn @ 50 ppm and three levels of Naphthalene acetic acid viz. 30, 40 and 50 ppm. There were 10 treatments, each of which was replicated three times and laid out in a random block design. The results showed that treatment 3 [Zinc (100ppm) + NAA (50ppm)] recorded significantly higher plant height (47.6 cm), higher number of branches/plant (9.00), higher number of leaves/plant (13.60), higher dry weight (7.40g), higher number of nodules/plant (7.6). Whereas, maximum number of pods/plant (29.00), maximum number of seeds/pod (10.27), higher test weight (29.40 g), higher seed yield (1.24t/ha), higher stover yield (2.73 t/ha) and higher harvest index (30.30 %) was recorded in treatment 3 [Zinc (100ppm) + NAA (50ppm)]. Similarly, maximum gross return (86,085.00 INR/ha), higher net return (58,674.00 INR/ha) and highest benefit cost ratio (2.14) was also recorded in treatment 3 [Zinc (100ppm) + NAA (50ppm)] as compared to other treatments