Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity of ethanolic extract of Bauhinia purpurea bark

The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant efficacy of ethanolic extract of Bauhinia purpurea bark (EBP) in Sprague Dawley (SD) rats. Carrageenan induced paw edema and air pouch inflammation, arachidonic acid induced ear edema and complete freund’s adjuvant (CFA) induced hematological alterations were studied in control and experimental rats. Administration of EBP (200mg, 400mg, 600 mg/kg body weight) showed a significant and dose dependent inhibition of paw edema and ear edema and also reversed the hematological alterations near to normalcy. DPPH assay and measurement of MDA levels showed potent antioxidant activity of EBP. With increase in concentration of EBP, improvement in walking scores of motility test confirmed the anti-inflammatory activity of EBP. Acute toxicity studies demonstrated non toxic nature of EBP even at higher doses. Together, our results demonstrate that EBP has potent anti-inflammatory as well as potent antioxidant properties validating the folk medicinal use of this species

Synthesis and antibacterial activity of nitro-furylvinylquinazolinones

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Long-term lowland rice and arable cropping effects on carbon and nitrogen status of some semi-arid tropical soils

Samples of surface (0–30 cm) soils were collected from eight sites in the semi-arid tropical regions of India to evaluate and compare the long-term effects of lowland rice or paddy and non-rice or arable systems on soil organic C (SOC), soil inorganic C (SIC) and total N status. The results showed that soil samples from sites under lowland rice double cropping system had greater organic C and total N content than those from soils under rice in rotation with upland crop or under other arable systems. The SOC : N ratio was wider in soil samples from sites under lowland rice compared to those under other arable systems, which had lower C : N ratios. Samples from soils under lowland rice system tended to have a narrower SIC : N ratio than those under arable systems, indicating a better pedoenvironment under paddy rice. Our results support earlier findings that sites under continuous wetland rice cropping accumulate organic matter and contain higher soil organic matter compared to the sites under other arable systems

Influence of Different Landuse Management on Soil Biological Properties and other C Fractions under Semi-Arid Benchmark Soils of India: Global Theme on Agroecosystems Report no. 41

Fifty two pedons spread over 28 benchmark spots of Vertisols and Alfisols were studied for soil biological properties and other C fractions (soil microbial biomass c, soil respiration dehydrogenase activity, soil microbial biomass N, mineralizable N, water soluble C and soluble carbohydrates, water stable aggregates, water stable aggregates C, humic and fulvic acid C, etc.) in different systems viz., agricultural, horticultural, forest and wasteland. The agricultural system represents dominant crops namely cereals, soybean and cotton. The horticultural system represents mandarins. The forest systems represent teak and sal. The selections of benchmark spots were limited to a mean annual rainfall range from 1448 to 520 mm in semi-arid tropics. The present experiment was conducted under various bio-climatic condition such as sub-humid moist (>1200 mm), sub-humid dry (1200-100 mm), semiarid dry (1000-850mm), semi-arid moist (850-550 mm) and arid (<550 mm). The active pools of SMBC comprised 3.2 to 5.6 % of SOC in Vertisols and 1.2 to 5.7 % of SOC in Alfisols. WSC comprised 0.80 to14.1 % of SOC in Vertisols and 1.5 to 4.9 % of SOC in Alfisols. WSCarbohydrates comprised 15-40.3 % of SOC in Vertisols and 10.5 to 25 % of SOC in Alfisols. In sub-humid moist regions, the SMBC content followed the order: forest (teak)> soybean-wheat>paddy-wheat>cotton (HM). In sub-humid dry regions of Vertisols, the SMBC was maximum under horticultural system (citrus), followed by intercropping (cotton + pigeonpea) and mango-orchard. In semi-arid moist regions, SMBC and SR were higher under intercropping system (soybean+ pigeon pea) compared to soybean –gram system. The soil biological activity in terms of SMBC, SMBN can be improved with concomitant increase of water-soluble carbon and carbohydrates by better management practices. Among field crops, legume-based intercropping system (soybean + pigeonpea and greengram + pigeonpea) restored higher amount of SOC, SMBC compared to double crop in rotation (soybean-wheat/paddy-paddy cropping system). Among the horticultural-based cropping systems, citrus with high management has better SOC restoration compared to mango orchard. Cotton-based cropping system either as intercropping or sequential cropping registered least improvement of SOC storage. In Vertisols, the percentage of water stable aggregates and concentration of carbon in WSA was higher than Alfisols. Water stable aggregates, carbon concentration increased with decrease in size class. By and large, the maximum concentration of SOC in the water stable aggregates was observed in <0.1 mm size aggregates. In 0-30 cm soil depth, passive fraction of HA-C was relatively higher than FA-C in surface whereas FA-C increased with soil depth. The percent variations in passive fractions among different cropping systems were not pronounced as compared to active and slow pool of C

Chemical Characterization of Selected Benchmark Spots for C Sequestration in the Semi-Arid Tropics, India. Global Theme on Agroecosystems Report no. 32

Soil organic carbon (SOC) plays an important role as a source of plant nutrients and in maintaining the soil integrity. Any land use management that increases SOC by removing CO2 from the atmosphere by storing it in the soil, is termed as carbon sequestration. This study was conducted to learn about the role of various agricultural practices on soil nutrient dynamics and its relationship with SOC in various land use systems of semi-arid tropics (SAT). The study area covered 28 SAT benchmark spots, 21 out of which were on black soils and 7 on red soils, covering areas of 15.29 m ha and 6.34 m ha, respectively. Soils were sampled from the benchmark sites/pedons during 2000–03 and processed for chemical analysis. It was observed that irrespective of bioclimatic zones, land use under horticultural and agricultural systems in general, and paddy systems in particular, had maximum content of organic carbon and total N. The soil parameter viz. clay fraction also influenced the total N and total P, and hence organic carbon in black and red soils showed significant positive correlation with total N and P. Results indicated that perennials could sequester carbon better when compared to annual crops. The nutrient stocks and soil organic C and N ratio (carbon/nitrogen C:N), and carbon/phosphorus (C:P) were computed in addition to SOC for the purpose of identifying the maintained soil quality. It was observed that the C:N ratio varied from 16:1 to 22:1 under different zones and it was highest under semi-arid (moist) zones in black soils. Similarly C:P ratio of soils under various bioclimatic zones revealed that it was highest under sub-humid (moist), followed by arid zone and lowest under semiarid zones. The C:N ratio of studied soils under various systems was wider than commonly accepted values reported for other tropical soils. The mean total N content of black soils was 0.042% and in case of red soils it was 0.052%, which corresponds to a minimum threshold level of 0.063% and 0.078% for black and red soils, respectively. Thus within the defined range of C:N ratios, those soils having SOC content of above values was considered along with minimum threshold values of total nitrogen stocks (Mg ha-1) to arrive at the better systems. The minimum values of TN stocks was calculated with the established equation and the values for the corresponding levels of SOC was found to be 1.95 Mg ha-1 for black soils and 2.30 Mg ha-1 for red soils (both the soils types having an average bulk density of 1.5 Mg m-3). Thus the soil total N stocks of systems that were found above the minimum threshold values are considered as better production systems. The nutrient stocks and nutrient ratio in addition to soil organic carbon was used as the main criteria to develop the soil C:N index. The index varied between 0.27 and 0.87 with an average of 0.57 under the various systems spread over different bioclimatic zones and soil types. The variation of soil C:N index in different soil types showed that, the fertility status of red soils in terms of SOC and soil nutrient stocks in majority of the pedons was higher as compared to black soils. The variation in the soil C: N index due to bioclimatic zones in black and red soils, showed that semiarid (moist) zone in black soils had the highest soil C: N index while the lowest was observed in sub-humid (moist) zone. As the MAR decreased from 1200 mm to 850 mm, the index increased from 0.30 to 0.38. Thus among the zones, the semi-arid moist was found to sequester more carbon. The variation in soil C:N index in different land use based systems such as horticultural (0.50) and forest systems (0.40) had better C:N index as compared to agricultural system in black soils. In red soils, forest system (0.76) had better C:N index as compared to agricultural system dominated by annual crops. Another significant observation was that permanent fallow land also had the potential to sequester carbon based on the magnitude of soil C:N index. The variation in the soil C:N index with the three major crop based systems studied showed that cereal based cropping systems sequester more carbon as compared to cotton and soybean based systems and can be promoted

Chemical Characterization of Selected Benchmark Spots for C Sequestration in the Semi-Arid Tropics, India

Soil organic carbon (SOC) plays an important role as a source of plant nutrients and in maintaining the soil integrity. Any land use management that increases SOC by removing CO2 from the atmosphere by storing it in the soil, is termed as carbon sequestration. This study was conducted to learn about the role of various agricultural practices on soil nutrient dynamics and its relationship with SOC in various land use systems of semi-arid tropics (SAT). The study area covered 28 SAT benchmark spots, 21 out of which were on black soils and 7 on red soils, covering areas of 15.29 m ha and 6.34 m ha, respectively. Soils were sampled from the benchmark sites/pedons during 2000–03 and processed for chemical analysis. It was observed that irrespective of bioclimatic zones, land use under horticultural and agricultural systems in general, and paddy systems in particular, had maximum content of organic carbon and total N. The soil parameter viz. clay fraction also influenced the total N and total P, and hence organic carbon in black and red soils showed significant positive correlation with total N and P. Results indicated that perennials could sequester carbon better when compared to annual crops. The nutrient stocks and soil organic C and N ratio (carbon/nitrogen C:N), and carbon/phosphorus (C:P) were computed in addition to SOC for the purpose of identifying the maintained soil quality. It was observed that the C:N ratio varied from 16:1 to 22:1 under different zones and it was highest under semi-arid (moist) zones in black soils. Similarly C:P ratio of soils under various bioclimatic zones revealed that it was highest under sub-humid (moist), followed by arid zone and lowest under semiarid zones. The C:N ratio of studied soils under various systems was wider than commonly accepted values reported for other tropical soils. The mean total N content of black soils was 0.042% and in case of red soils it was 0.052%, which corresponds to a minimum threshold level of 0.063% and 0.078% for black and red soils, respectively. Thus within the defined range of C:N ratios, those soils having SOC content of above values was considered along with minimum threshold values of total nitrogen stocks (Mg ha-1) to arrive at the better systems. The minimum values of TN stocks was calculated with the established equation and the values for the corresponding levels of SOC was found to be 1.95 Mg ha-1 for black soils and 2.30 Mg ha-1 for red soils (both the soils types having an average bulk density of 1.5 Mg m-3). Thus the soil total N stocks of systems that were found above the minimum threshold values are considered as better production systems. The nutrient stocks and nutrient ratio in addition to soil organic carbon was used as the main criteria to develop the soil C:N index. The index varied between 0.27 and 0.87 with an average of 0.57 under the various systems spread over different bioclimatic zones and soil types. The variation of soil C:N index in different soil types showed that, the fertility status of red soils in terms of SOC and soil nutrient stocks in majority of the pedons was higher as compared to black soils. The variation in the soil C: N index due to bioclimatic zones in black and red soils, showed that semiarid (moist) zone in black soils had the highest soil C: N index while the lowest was observed in sub-humid (moist) zone. As the MAR decreased from 1200 mm to 850 mm, the index increased from 0.30 to 0.38. Thus among the zones, the semi-arid moist was found to sequester more carbon. The variation in soil C:N index in different land use based systems such as horticultural (0.50) and forest systems (0.40) had better C:N index as compared to agricultural system in black soils. In red soils, forest system (0.76) had better C:N index as compared to agricultural system dominated by annual crops. Another significant observation was that permanent fallow land also had the potential to sequester carbon based on the magnitude of soil C:N index. The variation in the soil C:N index with the three major crop based systems studied showed that cereal based cropping systems sequester more carbon as compared to cotton and soybean based systems and can be promoted

Genetics, genomics and breeding of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.)

Groundnut is an important food and oil crop in the semiarid tropics, contributing to household food consumption and cash income. In Asia and Africa, yields are low attributed to various production constraints. This review paper highlights advances in genetics, genomics and breeding to improve the productivity of groundnut. Genetic studies concerning inheritance, genetic variability and heritability, combining ability and trait correlations have provided a better understanding of the crop's genetics to develop appropriate breeding strategies for target traits. Several improved lines and sources of variability have been identified or developed for various economically important traits through conventional breeding. Significant advances have also been made in groundnut genomics including genome sequencing, marker development and genetic and trait mapping. These advances have led to a better understanding of the groundnut genome, discovery of genes/variants for traits of interest and integration of marker‐assisted breeding for selected traits. The integration of genomic tools into the breeding process accompanied with increased precision of yield trialing and phenotyping will increase the efficiency and enhance the genetic gain for release of improved groundnut varieties

Plant-symbiotic fungi as chemical engineers: multi-genome analysis of the Clavicipitaceae reveals dynamics of alkaloid Loci

The fungal family Clavicipitaceae includes plant symbionts and parasites that produce several psychoactive and bioprotective alkaloids. The family includes grass symbionts in the epichloae clade (Epichloë and Neotyphodium species), which are extraordinarily diverse both in their host interactions and in their alkaloid profiles. Epichloae produce alkaloids of four distinct classes, all of which deter insects, and some—including the infamous ergot alkaloids—have potent effects on mammals. The exceptional chemotypic diversity of the epichloae may relate to their broad range of host interactions, whereby some are pathogenic and contagious, others are mutualistic and vertically transmitted (seed-borne), and still others vary in pathogenic or mutualistic behavior. We profiled the alkaloids and sequenced the genomes of 10 epichloae, three ergot fungi (Claviceps species), a morning-glory symbiont (Periglandula ipomoeae), and a bamboo pathogen (Aciculosporium take), and compared the gene clusters for four classes of alkaloids. Results indicated a strong tendency for alkaloid loci to have conserved cores that specify the skeleton structures and peripheral genes that determine chemical variations that are known to affect their pharmacological specificities. Generally, gene locations in cluster peripheries positioned them near to transposon-derived, AT-rich repeat blocks, which were probably involved in gene losses, duplications, and neofunctionalizations. The alkaloid loci in the epichloae had unusual structures riddled with large, complex, and dynamic repeat blocks. This feature was not reflective of overall differences in repeat contents in the genomes, nor was it characteristic of most other specialized metabolism loci. The organization and dynamics of alkaloid loci and abundant repeat blocks in the epichloae suggested that these fungi are under selection for alkaloid diversification. We suggest that such selection is related to the variable life histories of the epichloae, their protective roles as symbionts, and their associations with the highly speciose and ecologically diverse cool-season grasses

The Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development (CHILD) birth cohort study: Assessment of environmental exposures

The Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development birth cohort was designed to elucidate interactions between environment and genetics underlying development of asthma and allergy. Over 3600 pregnant mothers were recruited from the general population in four provinces with diverse environments. The child is followed to age 5 years, with prospective characterization of diverse exposures during this critical period. Key exposure domains include indoor and outdoor air pollutants, inhalation, ingestion and dermal uptake of chemicals, mold, dampness, biological allergens, pets and pests, housing structure, and living behavior, together with infections, nutrition, psychosocial environment, and medications. Assessments of early life exposures are focused on those linked to inflammatory responses driven by the acquired and innate immune systems. Mothers complete extensive environmental questionnaires including time-activity behavior at recruitment and when the child is 3, 6, 12, 24, 30, 36, 48, and 60 months old. House dust collected during a thorough home assessment at 3–4 months, and biological specimens obtained for multiple exposure-related measurements, are archived for analyses. Geo-locations of homes and daycares and land-use regression for estimating traffic-related air pollution complement time-activity-behavior data to provide comprehensive individual exposure profiles. Several analytical frameworks are proposed to address the many interacting exposure variables and potential issues of co-linearity in this complex data set