Development of early maturing salt-tolerant rice variety KKL(R) 3 using a combination of conventional and molecular breeding approaches

Introduction: Soil salinity poses a severe threat to rice production, resulting in stunted growth, leaf damage, and substantial yield losses. This study focuses on developing an early maturing seedling stage salinity tolerant rice variety by integrating conventional breeding methods with marker assisted breeding (MAB) approaches.Methods: Seedling-stage salinity tolerance Quantitative Trait Locus (QTL) “Saltol” from the salt-tolerant parent FL478 was introduced into the high-yielding but salt-sensitive rice variety ADT 45. This was achieved through a combination of conventional breeding and MAB. The breeding process involved rigorous selection, screening, and physiological parameter assessments.Results: KKL(R) 3 (KR 15066) identified as the top performing Recombinant Inbred Line (RIL), consistently demonstrating maximum mean grain yields under both salinity (3435.6 kg/ha) and normal (6421.8 kg/ha) conditions. In comparison to the early maturing, salt-tolerant national check variety CSR 10, KKL(R) 3 exhibited a substantial yield increase over 50%.Discussion: The notable improvement observed in KKL(R) 3 positions it as a promising variety for release, offering a reliable solution to maximize yields, ensure food security, and promote agricultural sustainability in both saline and non-saline environments. The study highlights the effectiveness of MAB in developing salt-tolerant rice varieties and emphasizes the significance of the Saltol QTL in enhancing seedling stage salinity tolerance. The potential release of KKL(R) 3 has the capacity to revolutionize rice production in salt affected regions, providing farmers with a reliable solution to maximize yields and contribute to food security while ensuring agricultural sustainability

Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

Isolation, structural elucidation and antiplasmodial activity of fucosterol compound from brown seaweed<i>, Sargassum linearifolium</i> against malarial parasite <i>Plasmodium falciparum</i>

<p>The brown seaweed, <i>Sargassum linearifolium</i> (Turner) C. Agardh, 1820 is commonly available along the south-east coast of India. Its compound fucosterol was isolated and confirmed through spectral characterisation and chemical transformation methods. The antiplasmodial effect of the isolated fucosterol was investigated against the 3D7 chloroquine sensitive <i>Plasmodium falciparum</i> strain, parasitaemia percentage was determined at 48 h and morphological change was studied through microscopic examination after Giemsa staining. A perceptible antiplasmodial effect was produced by fucosterol compound against the <i>P. falciparum</i> and positive control, chloroquine with the IC₅₀ values (μg/mL) of 7.48 and 12.81, respectively. Fucosterol showed higher antiplasmodial activity as compared to chloroquine. It is inferred that both the fucosterol and chloroquine could have inhibited the schizont stage of the parasite during the intra-erythrocyte asexual development. The findings underline the usefulness of the seaweed-based fucosterol and further studies are warranted.</p

One-Pot Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles Derived from Aqueous Leaf Extract of <i>Ageratum conyzoides</i> and Their Biological Efficacy

The main objective of the present research work is to assess the biological properties of the aqueous plant extract (ACAE) synthesised silver nanoparticles from the herbal plant Ageratum conyzoides, and their biological applications. The silver nanoparticle syntheses from Ageratum conyzoides (Ac-AgNPs) were optimised with different parameters, such as pH (2, 4, 6, 8 and 10) and varied silver nitrate concentration (1 mM and 5 mM). Based on the UV–vis spectroscopy analysis of the synthesised silver nanoparticles, the concentration of 5 mM with the pH at 8 was recorded as the peak reduction at 400 nm; and these conditions were optimized were used for further studies. The results of the FE-SEM analysis recorded the size ranges (~30–90 nm), and irregular spherical and triangular shapes of the AC-AgNPs were captured. The characterization reports of the HR-TEM investigation of AC-AgNPs were also in line with the FE-SEM studies. The antibacterial efficacies of AC-AgNPs have revealed the maximum zone of inhibition against S. typhi to be within 20 mm. The in vitro antiplasmodial activity of AC-AgNPs is shown to have an effective antiplasmodial property (IC50:17.65 μg/mL), whereas AgNO3 has shown a minimum level of IC50: value 68.03 μg/mL, and the Ac-AE showed >100 μg/mL at 24 h of parasitaemia suppression. The α-amylase inhibitory properties of AC-AgNPs have revealed a maximum inhibition similar to the control Acarbose (IC50: 10.87 μg/mL). The antioxidant activity of the AC-AgNPs have revealed a better property (87.86% ± 0.56, 85.95% ± 1.02 and 90.11 ± 0.29%) when compared with the Ac-AE and standard in all the three different tests, such as DPPH, FRAP and H2O2 scavenging assay, respectively. The current research work might be a baseline for the future drug expansion process in the area of nano-drug design, and its applications also has a lot of economic viability and is a safer method in synthesising or producing silver nanoparticles