Adaptive Neuro Fuzzy Inference System control of active suspension system with actuator dynamics

A hybrid intelligent control technique based on combination of neural network and fuzzy logic will be proposed for hydraulic actuated active suspension system. A half car model will be used for design of Adaptive Neuro Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) controller for hydraulic actuated active suspension. The nonlinear behavior of hydraulic system and uncertain parameters in active suspension has increased the difficulty of creating mathematical model for active suspension system. The performance of most of the classical controller depends on nature of mathematical model of system. Hence it is very difficult to create classical controller without mathematical model of a system. Fuzzy logic controller has ability to predict the behavior of system without the need of mathematical model of a system. In this paper, ANFIS controller proposed for active suspension due to its ability to handle actuator dynamics and parameter uncertainty in hydraulic actuator. The simulation carried out for sinusoidal road profile in order to measure the performance of proposed controller. The result of simulation indicates performance of the ANFIS controller for active suspension with actuator dynamics

Rice insect pests and their natural enemies complex in direct seeded and transplanted rice (Oryza sativa) of Chidambaram areas of Cuddalore, India

Rice is the cereal grain that feeds half the planet. Rice fields are economically important as well as ecologically valuable. Rice fields are one of the biggest ecosystems that can be found in the tropics, including diverse insect pests and their natural enemies. In this view, rice varieties were sown in experimental plots of Faculty of Agriculture, Annamalai University, Chidambaram. The values are found significant at 5% level. To monitor the pest and natural enemies by using net sweeping and yellow pan trap method was used. The results showed that the maximum number of yellow stem borer was observed in the direct-seeded rice variety of CR Dhan 209 (7.33) and the leaf folder population was maximum in the direct-seeded rice variety of CR Dhan 204 (7.33). The peak population of grasshopper and green leafhopper was recorded in the transplanted rice variety of CR Dhan200 (11.33), CR Dhan 209 (8.00). The values were found significant at 5% level. The maximum number of Braconidae was observed in direct-seeded rice variety of CR Dhan 205 (3.66), and Ichneumonidae was recorded the highest number of direct-seeded and transplanted rice in the variety of CR Dhan 202 (3.00). The peak population of Trichogrammatidae was recorded in direct-seeded rice of CR Dhan 207 (3.66). The presence of Platygastridae was high in the transplanted rice variety of CR Dhan 201 (8.66), respectively. Among the rice ecosystems, more insect pests and crop damage were noticed in direct-seeded rice more than the transplanted rice

Rewiring carotenoid biosynthesis in plants using a viral vector

[EN] Plants can be engineered to sustainably produce compounds of nutritional, industrial or pharmaceutical relevance. This is, however, a challenging task as extensive regulation of biosynthetic pathways often hampers major metabolic changes. Here we describe the use of a viral vector derived from Tobacco etch virus to express a whole heterologous metabolic pathway that produces the health-promoting carotenoid lycopene in tobacco tissues. The pathway consisted in three enzymes from the soil bacteria Pantoea ananatis. Lycopene is present at undetectable levels in chloroplasts of non-infected leaves. In tissues infected with the viral vector, however, lycopene comprised approximately 10% of the total carotenoid content. Our research further showed that plant viruses that express P. ananatis phytoene synthase (crtB), one of the three enzymes of the heterologous pathway, trigger an accumulation of endogenous carotenoids, which together with a reduction in chlorophylls eventually result in a bright yellow pigmentation of infected tissues in various host-virus combinations. So, besides illustrating the potential of viral vectors for engineering complex metabolic pathways, we also show a yellow carotenoid-based reporter that can be used to visually track infection dynamics of plant viruses either alone or in combination with other visual markers.We thank Veronica Aragones and M. Rosa Rodriguez-Goberna for excellent technical assistance. This research was supported by Spanish Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (MINECO) grants BIO2014-54269-R to J.-A.D., and BIO2014-59092-P and BIO2015-71703-REDT to M. R.-C. Financial support from the Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEOII/2014/021), the Programa Iberoamericano de Ciencia y Tecnologia para el Desarrollo (Ibercarot 112RT0445), and the Generalitat de Catalunya (2014SGR-1434) is also acknowledged. E.M. is the recipient of a pre-doctoral fellowship (AP2012-3751) from the Spanish Ministerio de Educacion, Cultura y Deporte. B.L. is supported by a postdoctoral fellowship (FPDI-2013-018882) from MINECO.Majer, E.; Llorente, B.; Rodríguez-Concepción, M.; Daros Arnau, JA. (2017). Rewiring carotenoid biosynthesis in plants using a viral vector. Scientific Reports. 7. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep41645S7O’Connor, S. E. Engineering of secondary metabolism. Annu. Rev. Genet. 49, 71–94 (2015).Sainsbury, F. & Lomonossoff, G. P. Transient expressions of synthetic biology in plants. Curr. Opin. Plant Biol. 19, 1–7 (2014).Gleba, Y. Y., Tusé, D. & Giritch, A. Plant viral vectors for delivery by Agrobacterium. Curr. Top. Microbiol. 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Transient Expression of Hemagglutinin Antigen from Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza A (H7N7) in Nicotiana benthamiana

The influenza A virus is of global concern for the poultry industry, especially the H5 and H7 subtypes as they have the potential to become highly pathogenic for poultry. In this study, the hemagglutinin (HA) of a low pathogenic avian influenza virus of the H7N7 subtype isolated from a Swedish mallard Anas platyrhynchos was sequenced, characterized and transiently expressed in Nicotiana benthamiana. Recently, plant expression systems have gained interest as an alternative for the production of vaccine antigens. To examine the possibility of expressing the HA protein in N. benthamiana, a cDNA fragment encoding the HA gene was synthesized de novo, modified with a Kozak sequence, a PR1a signal peptide, a C-terminal hexahistidine (6×His) tag, and an endoplasmic retention signal (SEKDEL). The construct was cloned into a Cowpea mosaic virus (CPMV)-based vector (pEAQ-HT) and the resulting pEAQ-HT-HA plasmid, along with a vector (pJL3:p19) containing the viral gene-silencing suppressor p19 from Tomato bushy stunt virus, was agro-infiltrated into N. benthamiana. The highest gene expression of recombinant plant-produced, uncleaved HA (rHA0), as measured by quantitative real-time PCR was detected at 6 days post infiltration (dpi). Guided by the gene expression profile, rHA0 protein was extracted at 6 dpi and subsequently purified utilizing the 6×His tag and immobilized metal ion adsorption chromatography. The yield was 0.2 g purified protein per kg fresh weight of leaves. Further molecular characterizations showed that the purified rHA0 protein was N-glycosylated and its identity confirmed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. In addition, the purified rHA0 exhibited hemagglutination and hemagglutination inhibition activity indicating that the rHA0 shares structural and functional properties with native HA protein of H7 influenza virus. Our results indicate that rHA0 maintained its native antigenicity and specificity, providing a good source of vaccine antigen to induce immune response in poultry species

POTENTIAL USE OF SOME PLANT EXTRACTS AND ESSENTIAL OILS TO CONTROL GREATER WAX MOTH, Galleria mellonella LINNAEUS AND ITS SELECTIVITY IN RELATION TO HONEY BEES

The use of synthetic insecticides is one of the most widely used strategies to control wax moth infestations. However, toxicity to bees and contamination of their products have been considered to be consequences of insecticide residues, increasing the risk of hazards to human health and environment. Here, we evaluated the application of plant extracts and essential oil would be selective against the honey bees Apis cerana indica L. without compromising the control of the wax moths Galleria mellonella. In that, peppermint oil (1.25%) and Azadirachta indica (3%) caused 53.33% and 40.00% mortality. Whereas, eucalyptus oil (1.25%), Ocimum tenuiflorum (3%) extract caused 33% wax moth mortality. But in contact toxicity, peppermint oil and eucalyptus oil (5%) caused highest larval mortality 80% and 72.38%, O. tenuiflorum at 10% concentration recorded 56.19% mortality. In repellence bioassay, peppermint oil (1.25%) and A. indica (3%) caused 100% repellence. Whereas, at 10% concentration only O. tenuiflorum caused 100% repellence. Furthermore, O. tenuiflorum (10%), A. indica (10%), peppermint oil (2.5%) and eucalyptus oils (2.5%) did not kill honeybee but did exhibit insecticidal and repellent activities against the larvae and adults of wax moth. By exhibiting desirable levels of selectivity against A. cerana indica and providing relevant control levels against wax moths, the application of O. tenuiflorum leaf extracts and pepper mint essential oil represents a desirable tool to replace the use of synthetic insecticides against wax moths in weak honey bee colonies as well as in stored honey bee combs

Physical Screening of Resistance on Selected Rice Accessions against Rice Leaf Folder – Cnaphalocrocis medinalis Guenee (Pyralidae: Lepidoptera) under Screen House Condition

The experiment was carried out at screen house III, Department of Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Annamalai University, Chidambaram. India. Total 13 numbers of rice accessions were concerned along with one susceptible check (TN-1) to picked up to quantify the most prominent resistant accessions on different selected rice genotypes by showing their resistance characters against the rice leaf folder, Cnaphalocrocis medinalis during Kharif 2022. Among which, based on the morphological traits viz., plant height, length and width of flag leaves, productive tiller numbers, peduncle length, panicle length and trichome density, only one accession (BA-207) was recorded as highly resistant and five (BA-18, BA-31, BA-187, BA-193 and BA-266) of them were reported as resistant accessions. The observations were made at 60 days after transplanting. All the results are given based on the standard evaluation system (SES) build up by International Rice Research Institute. Three of accessions exhibit moderate resistance viz., BA-30, BA-116 and BA-243. Three numbers of accessions were noted as moderately susceptible, which are BA-5, BA-80 and BA-91. At the same time, TN-1 was noticed as highly susceptible. A detailed report given in this research article is based on 13 rice accessions that were tested under screen house conditions. In the farmers point of view, susceptible varieties should replaced with resistant accessions to decrease the pest incidence and enhance the grain productions

Adaptation of TSFOIL for univac 1100/60H computer at NAL, Bangalore

TSFOIL code lias been adapted for operation xA9;a the13; Univac 1100/60-H computer at NAL, Bangalore. The code has been validated for the 'Free-Air' case, for the Korn airfoil, for which results are available. Also, three additional cases for which data is available, have been analysed using this code

Multiple Honey Harvesting Strategy - migratory Beekeeping in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, India

Commercial beekeeping in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry depends on Indian bee, Apis cerana indica. The State had occupied first position in honey production in the country until 1990’s. In commercial beekeeping, migration has assumed really important dimensions. Our results demonstrated that total brood area reached the highest area of 1286.86 cm2 at January II at Puducherry site and lowest brood area at May II (527.38 cm2) at Chidambaram sites. Similarly, a significant difference was noticed in the mean total brood area, pollen area and queen prolificacy between the different migratory sites. Pollen area (cm2) was 155.22±7.88 to 272.56±9.61 cm2. The largest fortnightly mean pollen area was in February I (272.56±9.61 cm2) at Puducherry site, while the lowest was in June II (165.46±7.30 cm2) Chidambaram site. Egg laying area peaked in January II (297.81±4.75 cm2) at Puducherry site and rapidly declining through February, March, and April to reach its lowest point in May II (122.05±4.26 cm2) at Chidambaram site. In contrast, a non-significant difference was observed in nectar area and honey yield at different migratory sites (P>0.05). Current findings add to our understanding the honey yield was high in all the migratory sites without any differences by the way multiple honey harvest was possible in migratory beekeeping practices