Methanogens Harboring in Rice Rhizosphere Reduce Labile Organic Carbon Compounds to Produce Methane Gas

Submerged rice paddy soils are one of the major anthropogenic sources of methane (CH4) emission to the atmosphere. Methane is the second most important greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide. Methanogens are strictly anaerobic microorganisms and CH4 is the metabolic end product of those methanogens. Methane is produced by methanogens through multi-step enzyme-mediated process. Methanogens convert labile organic carbon compounds in CH4 and application of organic matter in submerged rice field significantly increased CH4 emission from soil to the atmosphere. The rate of methanogenesis may be determined by quantifying biomarkers namely methyl coenzyme M reductase A (mcrA) gene and coenzyme M (2-mercaptoethane sulphonate) in soil. Nickel ions are present as cofactor in enzymes involved in methanogenesis. Methane emission can be mitigated by application of EDTA at suitable rate in the soil of submerged rice field

Engraftment Syndrome: A Retrospective Analysis of the Experience at a Tertiary Care Institute

Engraftment syndrome (ES) is a clinical syndrome that occurs in the early neutrophil recovery phase following hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). Although also described for allogenic HSCT, it is basically diagnosed in the context of autologous HSCT. We retrospectively reviewed 171 consecutive HSCTs performed between January 2013 and January 2015 in our Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) unit and analyzed all cases of noninfectious fever and strong clinical features suggestive of ES in the peri-engraftment period for up to 7 days. We observed the incidence of ES to be 12.3% (16/130) in the autologous and 4.8% (2/41) in the allogeneic cohort. Among plasma cell disorders, which constitute 50% of our study population, the incidence of ES was 19.7%. Among the ES cases of autologous transplants, 81.2% (13/16) patients satisfied the Maiolino criteria (MC) and 87.5% (14/16) patients the Spitzer diagnostic criteria (SC). A total of 68.7% (11/16) patients satisfied both MC and SC, and two patients (12.5%) did not satisfy either (MC− SC−). There was no significant difference in days of hospitalization and usage of supportive care between ES and non-ES patients, and there was no mortality due to ES. On univariate analysis, female patients (p < 0.013) and those with diagnosis of a plasma cell disorder (p < 0.03) had higher risk of ES. In conclusion, the incidence of ES in our study population is consistent with that of many others, but severity evaluation needs exploration in larger cohorts with pragmatically modified diagnostic criteria

Shredded Hard Stems of Pruning Litters Supported the Growth of Young Tea Plants by Supplementing Nitrogen in Soil: Evaluating Suitable Combination of Urea and Prunings

<p>Tea is an evergreen shrub, and tea bushes (plants) are periodically pruned at 3-year intervals. This practice generates tons of pruning litters (leaves and stems) in tea gardens. In spite of availability, the hard nature and slow decomposition rate limit the use of pruning litters as soil amendments. In this study, an attempt was made to cycle pruning litters in shredded form to evaluate their effect on young tea plants under greenhouse condition. It was observed that shredded prunings were decomposed in soil within study duration and enhanced nitrate-N content in the soil. The study revealed that different parameters like plant height, biomass weight, and N uptake were enhanced due to the application of suitable combinations of pruning litter and urea in the soil. Based on this study, it could be concluded that application of shredded prunings had potential to replace up to 15% of recommended urea during tea cultivation.</p

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Not AvailableThe investigation was carried out to assess the response of various in-situ moisture conservations on growth and yield of anola under agroforestry system on sloping lands. The experiment was laid out with four treatments viz., farmer's practice of aonla planting with 0.027 m3 pit (control), Pit filled up to 0.75 m with 1 m3 pit, crescent shaped and V-shaped micro-catchment with 1 m3 pit with four replications in runoff plots of 21 m × 14 m at 2% slope. Data revealed that soil moisture techniques significantly influenced the plant growth and yield of anola. V-shaped micro-catchment recorded highest plant height, Crescent Plant treated with collar diameter, canopy spread and number of branches (4.57 m, 12.45 cm, 4.62 m and 11, respectively) followed by pit filled up to 0.75 m, shaped while minimum in farmer's practices. The percentage increase in fruit yield of aonla over farmer's practice was observed by 8, 13 and 40% with75% pits, crescent shaped and V-shaped micro-catchment, respectively. Based on present findings, V-shaped micro-catchment could be a suitable in-situ moisture conservation practice for enhancing growth and yield of aonla under agroforestry system.Not Availabl

Cattle Manure Enhances Methanogens Diversity and Methane Emissions Compared to Swine Manure under Rice Paddy

<div><p>Livestock manures are broadly used in agriculture to improve soil quality. However, manure application can increase the availability of organic carbon, thereby facilitating methane (CH₄) production. Cattle and swine manures are expected to have different CH₄ emission characteristics in rice paddy soil due to the inherent differences in composition as a result of contrasting diets and digestive physiology between the two livestock types. To compare the effect of ruminant and non-ruminant animal manure applications on CH₄ emissions and methanogenic archaeal diversity during rice cultivation (June to September, 2009), fresh cattle and swine manures were applied into experimental pots at 0, 20 and 40 Mg fresh weight (FW) ha⁻¹ in a greenhouse. Applications of manures significantly enhanced total CH₄ emissions as compared to chemical fertilization, with cattle manure leading to higher emissions than swine manure. Total organic C contents in cattle (466 g kg⁻¹) and swine (460 g kg⁻¹) manures were of comparable results. Soil organic C (SOC) contents were also similar between the two manure treatments, but dissolved organic C (DOC) was significantly higher in cattle than swine manure. The <i>mcr</i>A gene copy numbers were significantly higher in cattle than swine manure. Diverse groups of methanogens which belong to <i>Methanomicrobiaceae</i> were detected only in cattle-manured but not in swine-manured soil. Methanogens were transferred from cattle manure to rice paddy soils through fresh excrement. In conclusion, cattle manure application can significantly increase CH₄ emissions in rice paddy soil during cultivation, and its pretreatment to suppress methanogenic activity without decreasing rice productivity should be considered.</p></div

Green tea processing by pan-firing from region-specific tea (Camellia sinensis L.) cultivars - a novel approach to sustainable tea production in Dooars region of North Bengal

ABSTRACT: The black crush-tear-curl (CTC) tea constitutes the bulk tea production in Dooars region of North Bengal while green tea processing is confined to fewer tea estates, however, recent trends of the tea industry indicate gradual inclination towards green tea production. Our novel research findings on pan-fired green teas from twelve cultivated region-specific tea varieties at three flushes and data analysis of chemical and sensory quality attributes showed diversity in the leaf chlorophyll and carotenoid contents, as well as wide ranges of variation in green tea quality constituents including Polyphenols, Total Catechins, Catechin fractions, caffeine, free amino acids, Polyphenol to Amino acids ratio, Soluble Solid content and tasters’ quality scores. Most parameters differed significantly among the tea cultivars and between the three flushes within a certain cultivar. This study has highlighted the role of genetic variability of tea cultivars, processing conditions, and seasonal influence in determining green tea quality

Correlation between total CH₄ flux, soil properties and rice yield.

<p>*<i>p<0.05, **p<0.01</i> and <i>***p<0.001</i>.</p><p>Correlation between total CH₄ flux, soil properties and rice yield.</p

Analysis of methanogen community composition by <i>mcr</i>A based T-RFLP under different manure application during rice cultivation.

<p>The number indicated Shannon diversity index (<i>H</i>).</p