Trace elements in glucometabolic disorders: an update

Many trace elements, among which metals, are indispensable for proper functioning of a myriad of biochemical reactions, more particularly as enzyme cofactors. This is particularly true for the vast set of processes involved in regulation of glucose homeostasis, being it in glucose metabolism itself or in hormonal control, especially insulin. The role and importance of trace elements such as chromium, zinc, selenium, lithium and vanadium are much less evident and subjected to chronic debate. This review updates our actual knowledge concerning these five trace elements. A careful survey of the literature shows that while theoretical postulates from some key roles of these elements had led to real hopes for therapy of insulin resistance and diabetes, the limited experience based on available data indicates that beneficial effects and use of most of them are subjected to caution, given the narrow window between safe and unsafe doses. Clear therapeutic benefit in these pathologies is presently doubtful but some data indicate that these metals may have a clinical interest in patients presenting deficiencies in individual metal levels. The same holds true for an association of some trace elements such as chromium or zinc with oral antidiabetics. However, this area is essentially unexplored in adequate clinical trials, which are worth being performed

Insights into Insect Resistance in Pulse Crops: Problems and Preventions

Globally, insect pests cause considerable damage to pulse crops. Hence developing broad-spectrum resistance against insect pests has been a major challenge to pulse growers and scientists. Traditionally, cultural practices and synthetic insecticides are being utilized for effective control of insect pests since ages. Apart from these, other strategies such as host plant resistance, insect-resistant transgenic crops, and IPM are also being used to manage the infestation in pulse crops. Though screening of genetic resources for insect resistance has been promising in some pulse crops, fertility barriers and linkage drag minimize the effective utilization of identified resistance in commercially viable crop breeding programs. In parallel, insect-resistant transgenic plants have been developed using various insecticidal proteins from various sources including Bacillus thuringiensis endotoxin, plant protease inhibitors, chitinases, alpha-amylase inhibitors, secondary metabolites, and vegetative insecticidal proteins (VIPs). Deploying transgenic plants with high levels of toxin expression by gene pyramiding is another practical option to delay the resistance development in insects. Nevertheless, the success achieved so far in managing insect pests is limited mainly due to the complex mechanisms underlying the defense strategies together with the lack of precision in screening techniques. Here, we discuss the recent progress and current status of studies toward developing resistance to the most common insect pests of pulses. This chapter points the lack of detailed molecular studies exploring the insect resistance that can advance our knowledge on plant resistance mechanisms and the genes involved. Therefore, a step forward now will be on exploiting natural variations with novel technologies in combination of eco-safe management practices to develop durable insect-resistant pulse crops. Despite technical and regulatory difficulties, developing insect resistance should be the major priority area for future breeding and genetic engineering studies aiming at pulse crop improvement