Wide Crossing Technology for Pigeonpea Improvement

Pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan Millsp,) has ample genetic and genomic information now. It is endowed with rich germplasm in different gene pools. One of the easiest material to use in those are in the primary gene pool, which are closely related to cultivated pigeonpea. It is observed that species placed beyond the primary gene pool are a rich source of genetic variation. They contribute beneficial traits to pigeonpea such as pest or disease resistance, resistance to abiotic stresses, cytoplasmic male sterile systems (CMS) leading to yield improvement, and some novel traits such as homozygous pigeonpea lines. To effectively utilize the immense variation present in the secondary, tertiary, and quaternary gene pool of pigeonpea, a thorough knowledge of crossability and concerted effort is essential

Pigeonpea

Pigeonpea was labeled as an orphan crop but is now a trendy and pacesetter, with ample genetic and genomic information becoming available in recent times. It is now possible to cross wild relatives not only from the Cajanus group placed in the secondary and tertiary gene pool but also the related genera placed in the quaternary gene pool. This is no small achievement for a legume which is an important crop of Asia and Africa and plays a major role in the diet of majority of the people of this region. The need of the hour is further committed research on wide crosses in pigeonpea

A seismotectonic study of the 21 May 2014 Bay of Bengal intraplate earthquake: evidence of onshore-offshore tectonic linkage and fracture zone reactivation in the northern Bay of Bengal

The earthquake of 21 May 2014 (Mw 6.0) in the northern Bay of Bengal (BOB) highlights the importance of studies on intraplate earthquakes in the oceanic regime for understanding the stress state of the oceanic lithosphere. The epicenter of the earthquake is located at a water depth of 2.5 km where the sediment thickness is nearly 12 km, and it occurs at a depth of similar to 50 km within the upper mantle. Its location on the seismotectonic map of the region shows that the epicenter is far from the seismically active zone of the Burmese Arc in the east and low-to-moderately active seismic region of the east coast of India in the west. The fault plane solution of this earthquake indicates that it was a strike-slip event with a right-lateral sense of motion on a NW-oriented nodal plane, and it occurred on one of the NW-SE-trending fracture zones previously mapped in the BOB. Based on a compilation of long-term (1900-2011) intraplate earthquakes along with available focal mechanisms in the BOB and the adjoining east coast of India, we conclude the following: (1) the Precambrian structural trends, basin-scale faults and minor lineaments on the east coast of India are favorably reactivated in their offshore extensions up to the shelf-slope areas of the margin; (2) earthquake occurrences in the BOB region can be correlated with the fracture zone trends in the central BOB and along the Ninetyeast ridge or at the intersections of fracture zones with the subsurface trace of the 85A degrees E ridge. The 21 May 2014 earthquake is the result of reactivation of such a NW-SE-trending fracture zone lying in the lithosphere of > 100 Ma in age. Further evaluation of this event in light of the global occurrence of oceanic intraplate earthquakes in the older lithosphere (> 80 Ma) suggests that such reactivation is possible in the high ambient stress state

Crustal structure and rift tectonics across the Cauvery-Palar basin, Eastern Continental Margin of India based on seismic and potential field modelling

The Cauvery-Palar basin is a major peri-cratonic rift basin located along the Eastern Continental Margin of India (ECMI) that had formed during the rift-drift events associated with the breakup of eastern Gondwanaland (mainly India-Sri Lanka-East Antarctica). In the present study, we carry out an integrated analysis of the potential field data across the basin to understand the crustal structure and the associated rift tectonics. The composite-magnetic anomaly map of the basin clearly shows the onshore-to-offshore structural continuity, and presence of several high-low trends related to either intrusive rocks or the faults. The Curie depth estimated from the spectral analysis of offshore magnetic anomaly data gave rise to 23 km in the offshore Cauvery-Palar basin. The 2D gravity and magnetic crustal models indicate several crustal blocks separated by major structures or faults, and the rift-related volcanic intrusive rocks that characterize the basin. The crustal models further reveal that the crust below southeast Indian shield margin is similar to 36 km thick and thins down to as much as 13-16 km in the Ocean Continent Transition (OCT) region and increases to around 19-21 km towards deep oceanic areas of the basin. The faulted Moho geometry with maximum stretching in the Cauvery basin indicates shearing or low angle rifting at the time of breakup between India-Sri Lanka and the East Antarctica. However, the additional stretching observed in the Cauvery basin region could be ascribed to the subsequent rifting of Sri Lanka from India. The abnormal thinning of crust at the OCT is interpreted as the probable zone of emplaced Proto-Oceanic Crust (POC) rocks during the breakup. The derived crustal structure along with other geophysical data further reiterates sheared nature of the southern part of the ECMI

Phytosynthesis of eco-friendly silver nanoparticles and biological applications –A novel concept in nanobiotechnology

Nano-biotechnology is an undoubtedly future generation technology which offers potential applications in multidisciplinary areas of science and technology. In the present day’s production, stabilization and utilization of nanoparticles is the eliminatory division in modern science receiving immense attention of scientists engaged in different fields of research. A number of metal nanoparticles have been engineered so far; however among these, silver nanoparticles gain more attention because of their unique applications in distinctive fields of biology. This review presents an overview on phytosynthesis of silver nanoparticles; role of phytochemical constituents in reduction of silver nanoparticles, factors responsible for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles and their crucial role in control of size and shape etc. The biological applications of phyto-synthesized silver nanoparticles are given in brief which will direct a path for further biological studies in future to make the study more useful for human welfare and benefits. Key words: Phytosynthesis, silver nanoparticles, phytochemicals, biological activitie