Correlation between mite population (Aceria cajani) and environmental factors causing sterility mosaic disease of Pigeon pea

ABSTRACT KEYWORDS Pigeon pea Cajanus cajan (L.) Millspaugh, is one of the major pulse crops of the tropics and subtropics also popularly known as red gram, tuar or arhar is a primary source of protein for millions in India. Sterility mosaic disease (SMD) caused by mite (Aceria cajani) is a major disease limiting the pigeon pea production in the Indian subcontinent. Effect of abiotic factors like temperature, relative humidity and rainfall on mite population was observed during the experiment. Out of theses abiotic factors strong significant correlation was observed with relative humidity. Average temperature of about 20-30°C was found to be congenial for the multiplication of mite. But very high temperature is not suitable for the growth of mite. Heavy rainfall is also not suitable for the growth of mite. Wind velocity is also a very important factor responsible for spreading of disease. The effect of SMD on plant height along with their branches was also observed and can be concluded that severe mosaic affect the plant height, and branches of the pigeon pea plants. The disease severity was high in the early stage of infection causing severe mosaic disease where flower and pod formation was ceased resulting in complete crop failure

Needleless Vaccine Delivery Using Micro-Shock Waves ▿ †

Shock waves are one of the most efficient mechanisms of energy dissipation observed in nature. In this study, utilizing the instantaneous mechanical impulse generated behind a micro-shock wave during a controlled explosion, a novel nonintrusive needleless vaccine delivery system has been developed. It is well-known that antigens in the epidermis are efficiently presented by resident Langerhans cells, eliciting the requisite immune response, making them a good target for vaccine delivery. Unfortunately, needle-free devices for epidermal delivery have inherent problems from the perspective of the safety and comfort of the patient. The penetration depth of less than 100 μm in the skin can elicit higher immune response without any pain. Here we show the efficient utilization of our needleless device (that uses micro-shock waves) for vaccination. The production of liquid jet was confirmed by high-speed microscopy, and the penetration in acrylamide gel and mouse skin was observed by confocal microscopy. Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium vaccine strain pmrG-HM-D (DV-STM-07) was delivered using our device in the murine salmonellosis model, and the effectiveness of the delivery system for vaccination was compared with other routes of vaccination. Vaccination using our device elicits better protection and an IgG response even at a lower vaccine dose (10-fold less) compared to other routes of vaccination. We anticipate that our novel method can be utilized for effective, cheap, and safe vaccination in the near future