Co-inoculation with Rhizobium and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) for inducing salinity tolerance in mung bean under field condition of semi arid climate

Salinity stress severely affects the growth, nodulation and yield of mung bean (Vigna radiata L.). However, its growth can be improved under salinity stress by inoculation/co-inoculation with rhizobia and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) containing 1-Aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase enzyme. ACC-deaminase containing bacteria regulate the stress induced ethylene production by hydrolyzing the ACC (immediate precursor of ethylene) into ammonia and ketobutyric acid, thus improve plant growth by lowering the ethylene level. A study was conducted under salt affected field conditions where pre-isolated strains of Rhizobium and PGPR were used alone as well as in combination for mitigating the salinity stress on growth, nodulation and yield of mung bean by following the randomized complete block design (RCBD). The data were recorded and analyzed statistically to see the difference among treatments

Analysis of Ketamine, a Rave Drug in Pakistan, using Gas Chromatography Coupled with Mass Spectrometer and Flame Ionization Detector: A Case Study

Ketamine is an arylcycloalkylamine, classified as cyclidine and chemically related to phencyclidine (PCP). Ketamine can be identified using modified Scott’s Test and Alkaline Gold Bromide test. This case study involved the analysis of a Ketamine sample. The sample was analyzed qualitatively by chemical spot tests, FT-IR and GC-MS without derivatization. Furthermore, a developed and validated method was used for the quantitative analysis of Ketamine using Gas Chromatography with a Flame Ionization Detector (FID). The certified reference standard of Ketamine in the range of 10- 100μg/mL was used for developing linear correlation with regression coefficient (R2 = 0.9997) for the method. The method produced percentage of sample as 90.27%. The above mentioned techniques and methods provide comparable qualitative and quantitative analytical results helping law enforcement agencies and the forensic community in screening and quantification of ketamine using GCMS coupled with FID

Effect of rock phosphate based compost and biofertilizer on uptake of nutrients, nutrient use efficiency and yield of cotton

Phosphorus deficiency in alkaline and calcareous soils is a worldwide burning issue. The use of mineral phosphatic fertilizers is quite popular throughout the world to cope with this deficiency. However, efficient use of these phosphatic fertilizers is still questionable. A study was conducted to improve the efficiency of these mineral phosphatic fertilizers using phosphorus-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) and phosphorus enriched compost (PEC) in cotton. Results showed that integrated use of PSB and PEC in different combinations improved nutrient use efficiency, growth and seed-cotton yield compared to alone application of single super phosphate (SSP). Significant improvement in morphological characteristics of cotton were recorded due to combinations of PSB and PEC with SSP

Compost enriched with ZnO and Zn-solubilising bacteria improves yield and Zn-fortification in flooded rice

Zinc (Zn) is an essential element for humans, animals and plants, however, its deficiency has been widely reported around the world especially in flooded rice. Adequate amount of Zn is considered essential for optimum growth and development of rice. We hypothesised that management practices like Zn-mineral fertiliser, -compost, and -solubilising bacteria would improve Zn availability and uptake in flooded rice. A series of studies were conducted to find out the comparative efficacy of Zn-enriched composts (Zn-ECs) with Zn solubilising bacteria (ZnSB) vs. ZnSO4 for improved growth, yield and Zn accumulation in rice. There were six treatments viz. control, ZnSB, ZnO (80% Zn), ZnSO4 (33% Zn), Zn-EC80:20 and Zn-EC60:40. In all the treatments, Zn was applied at the rate of 5 kg ha–1 except the control. The treatment Zn-EC60:40 resulted in the maximum Zn release in soil as compared to ZnSO4 and all other treatments during incubation study. The treatment Zn-EC60:40 significantly improved root dry weight, grain yield and 100-grain weight of rice by 15, 22 and 28%, respectively as compared to ZnSO4. The same treatment resulted in the maximum increase in photosynthetic rate (11%), transpiration rate (21%), stomatal conductance (17%), chlorophyll contents (8%) and carbonic anhydrase activity (10%) while a decrease of 27% in electrolyte leakage was observed in comparison with ZnSO4 application. Moreover, the maximum increase in grain quality parameters and Zn bioaccumulation was observed with the application of Zn-EC60:40 in comparison with ZnSO4 application and all other treatments. We conclude that Zn-EC60:40 are not only an effective strategy to improve growth, physiology and yield parameters of rice, but also to improve the grain quality and Zn-bioaccumulation in rice compared to ZnSO4

Corrosion behavior of copper, aluminium, and stainless steel 316L in chicken fat oil based biodiesel-diesel blends

This study investigates the corrosion behavior of automotive materials in bio-based fuels. The Response Surface Methodology is employed to evaluate the corrosion rates of materials such as copper, aluminium, and stainless steel when they are exposed to chicken fat-based biodiesel. Copper, aluminium, and stainless steel showed minimum corrosion rate at a blend percentage of 5.86 % when they were immersed for 920 h and maximum corrosion rate at blend percentage 34.14 % when these were immersed for 920 h. Meanwhile, the maximum corrosion rate was observed at a blend percentage of 34.14 % corresponding to the same immersion period. Optimum values indicated by RSM for copper and aluminium were noted at a blend percentage of 10 % and an immersion period of 720 h. Similarly, for stainless steel 316 l, these were 10.91 % and 754.44 h, respectively. Additionally, trials using the B100 for 920 h were conducted on copper, aluminium, and stainless steel 316 l, and the results showed considerably higher corrosion rates than those previously found. The surface morphology of the materials was investigated by X-ray Diffraction and Scanning Electron Microscopy, and it was revealed that copper was the most corrosive material in chicken fat oil-based biodiesel followed by aluminium and stainless steel 316 l

Influence of polymer ratio and surfactants on controlled drug release from cellulosic microsponges

Microsponge refers to a highly cross-linked particle system with a capacity to adsorb (like a dry sponge) pharmaceutical materials. There are various methods available to prepare microsponge formulations, in this study we used quasi emulsion-solvent diffusion method with a combination of hydrophobic (ethyl cellulose) and hydrophilic polymers (hydroxypropyl methylcellulose) mediated via Tween 80 and polyvinyl alcohol. Various ratios and amounts of the polymers and surfactants were used to prepare microsponge formulations using ketoprofen as a model drug and extensively characterised. Our results, for the first time, indicate successful and optimised formulation with desired pharmaceutical characteristics using a combination of hydrophobic and hydrophilic polymers

Forensic toxicological analysis of hair: a review

Abstract Analysis of hair provides useful information regarding drug addiction history or drug toxicity. Keeping in view some important applications of hair analysis, a lot of work done in the past few decades has been reviewed in this article. When compared with other biological samples, hair provides a larger window for drug detection. Drugs get deposited in hair through blood circulation by various mechanisms, after its administration. The deposited drug is much stable and can be detected after a longer period of time as compared with other biological samples, e.g., saliva, blood, and urine. Moreover, segmental analysis can depict multiple or single drug administration by using sensitive analytical techniques. Complex methods for drug extraction and the high cost of analysis are some drawbacks of hair analysis. LC-MS and GC-MS are the prominent among other techniques of choice due to high sensitivity. In this review, detailed knowledge about the drug deposition, extraction, analysis, and application of results in forensic and clinical cases have been discussed

Comparative efficacy of KCl blended composts and sole application of KCl or K2SO4 in improving K nutrition, photosynthetic capacity and growth of maize

Under arid and semiarid climate conditions, application of muriate of potash (KCl) results in salinity problem due to its higher chloride (Cl-) contents. In order to combat this problem, KCl was blended with different sources of compost (fruits and vegetables, poultry, press mud and cow dung) in order to get a dilution effect of composts. A pot experiment was conducted to evaluate the comparative efficacy of KCl blended composts and KCl or K2SO4 alone on growth, physiology and K nutrition of maize. Different composts applied @ 500 kg ha-1 were blended with KCl in such a way that each combination received the same amount of K as in case of recommended KCl and K2SO4 alone. Muriate of potash blended poultry compost significantly improved various growth parameters like plant height (19%), root length (60%), root (100%) and shoot fresh weight (64%), root (88%) and shoot dry weight (81%) and chlorophyll contents (29%) compared to KCl alone. However, the maximum physiological parameters were observed with KCl blended press mud compost. Similarly, KCl blended poultry compost significantly increased K concentration and uptake in shoot (26 and 122%) and root (39 and 133%) compared to KCl alone. Post-harvest soil analysis showed an increase of about 2 folds in K contents in KCl blended poultry compost compared to KCl alone. Based on the above results, KCl blended composts proved better in improving various growth, physiological and K nutrition of maize compared to the application of KCl and K2SO4 alone

Systematic Investigation of Structural, Morphological, Thermal, Optoelectronic, and Magnetic Properties of High-Purity Hematite/Magnetite Nanoparticles for Optoelectronics

Iron oxide nanoparticles, especially hematite (α-Fe2O3) and magnetite (Fe3O4) have attained substantial research interest in various applications of green and sustainable energy harnessing owing to their exceptional opto-magneto-electrical characteristics and non-toxicity. In this study, we synthesized high-purity hematite and magnetite nanoparticles from a facile top-down approach by employing a high-energy ball mill followed by ultrasonication. A systematic investigation was then carried out to explore the structural, morphological, thermal, optoelectrical, and magnetic properties of the synthesized samples. The experimental results from scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction corroborated the formation of highly crystalline hematite and magnetite nanoparticles with average sizes of ~80 nm and ~50 nm, respectively. Thermogravimetric analysis revealed remarkable results on the thermal stability of the newly synthesized samples. The optical studies confirmed the formation of a single-phase compound with the bandgaps dependent on the size of the nanoparticles. The electrochemical studies that utilized cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy techniques verified these iron oxide nanoparticles as electroactive species which can enhance the charge transfer process with high mobility. The hysteresis curves of the samples revealed the paramagnetic behavior of the samples with high values of coercivity. Thus, these optimized materials can be recommended for use in future optoelectronic devices and can prove to be potential candidates in the advanced research of new optoelectronic materials for improved energy devices