Development of Corrugated Fiber Board Cartons for Long Distance Transport of Tomato in India

Tomato growers of Gujarat , north-west India , traditionally send produce to wholesale market in Ahmedabad city for auction. Growing areas lie about 250-300 km from the city. Growers were constrained to sell there even if the prices were not attractive which the case usually as season advanced was. Lack of sturdy packaging deterred them from sending produce to more distant markets such as Bombay ( 600 km ) , Delhi ( 900 km) or Bangalore ( 2000) . Peti, the box used presently, made of strips of wood nailed together does not protect the produce adequately. Although, there are many large packaging firms in the region producing boxes for various consumer products, problem of tomato growers was not recognized. Their view was that tomato being a low-value commodity, growers will not buy better packaging. Being mostly small, growers were not organized enough to raise funds to sponsor research at public R&D institutions in the area. That task was therefore taken up. Boxes that protected the produce better on long journey and were affordable were designed and introduced successfully in the region. This paper describes the development.

Optimizing planting geometries in eucalyptus-based food production systems for enhanced yield and carbon sequestration

The integration of trees into diverse land-use systems holds potential for India to meet nationally determined contribution (NDC) targets under the Paris Climate Agreement. With a target of sequestering 2.5–3 billion tons of CO2 equivalent by 2030, the study focused on the widespread and economically viable eucalyptus-based agroforestry, practiced widely in various planting geometries tailored to meet industrial end-use requirements. In this context, a detailed study was conducted to quantify the influence of five planting geometries [3 m × 3 m, 6 × 1.5 m, 17 × 1 × 1 m (paired row) and two boundary plantations (east–west and north–south directions) at 2 m away from tree to tree] of eucalyptus on intercrops [dhaincha (Sesbania aculeata)—barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) rotation] biomass, soil properties, and carbon stock of the system during 2009–2016. Results revealed that biomass accumulation of different tree components was 62.50%–74.09% in stem; 6.59%–9.14% in branch; 3.18%–5.73% in leaves; 12.20%–20.44% in stump roots; and 1.71%–3.48% in fine roots across the planting geometries. The mean carbon content of the stem, branch, leaves, and roots was 49.00, 47.00, 43.00, and 49.00%, respectively. Over the 8-year period, geometry of 3 × 3 m performed better in terms of total biomass production (344.60 Mg ha− 1 by tree biomass and 62.53 Mg ha−1 by intercrops). The independent parameter, DBH2H (DBH: diameter at breast height and H: tree height), was found to be a very good predictor of dry weight, followed by DBH alone. Among various functions (linear, allometric, logistic, Gompertz, Chapman, and exponential), the best-fit equation was allometric, i.e., B = 300.96 × DBH2H0.93 (adjusted R2 = 0.96) for eucalyptus based on universal model adequacy and validation criteria. The carbon sequestration rate was maximum (20.79 Mg C ha−1 year−1) in 3 × 3 m followed by 17 × 1 × 1 m. The total carbon stock of eucalyptus-based system (tree + crop + soil) varied significantly under different planting geometries and sole crop rotation (dhaincha–barley). The higher carbon stock (237.27 Mg ha−1) was obtained from 3 × 3 m spacing and further partitioning carbon stock in trees—166.29 Mg ha−1, crops—25.01 Mg ha−1 and soil—45.97 Mg ha−1. The paired row spacing (17 × 1 × 1 m) yielded higher crop yield and net returns (Rs. 600,475 ha−1), underscoring wide spacing’s role in system productivity and sustainability. Tree-based systems were valuable components of agriculture, advocating for their widespread adoption to reduce CO2 emissions and generate income through carbon credits. These findings will provide crucial insights into sustainable land-use practices and advance India’s commitment toward adaptation of climate change mitigation strategies

A SINGLE-POINT CHIRAL INVERSION THAT SELFORGANIZES A RANDOMCOIL PEPTIDE - APOLAR SOLVENT CONFORMATION OF BOC-(L-BACKSLASH-D)-GLU-ALA-LEU-LYSNHME

The tetrapeptide Boc-L-Glu-Ala-Leu-LysNHMe (1) reveals a random coil conformation, based on its Glu(gamma) and Lys(epsilon) methylene proton aniosotropic shift, GluNH chemical shift, NOEs in chloroform-DMSO (6:1), and its amide proton temperature coefficients in DMSO, while on similar considerations, the diastereomer Boc-D-Glu-Ala-Leu-LysNHMe (2) is characterized as a highly ordered 3/10 type distorted protohelix with a remarkably stable intramolecular salt bridge under these solvent conditions

Configurationally guided peptide conformational motifs: Crystal structure of a (LDLDDL alpha)-D-alpha-L-beta-D-beta-D-alpha-L-beta type hexapeptide fold

A new concept in macromolecular design is described, using sequence configuration as the tool to control the topology of a compact polymer chain fold

Development of Corrugated Fiber Board Cartons for Long Distance Transport of Tomato in India

Tomotaoes which are produced in Gujarat, north west India are small, so the growers were not organized enough to raise funds to sponsor research at public R&D institutions in the area. That task was therefore taken up. Boxes that protected the produce better on long journey and were affordable were designed and introduced successfully in the region. This paper describes this development.research and development, R&D, tomatoes, farmers, gujarat, Delhi, bombay, mumbai, development, consumer, cartons, fruit damages in transit, transport, packaging for shipment, region, crops, packaging, Ahmedabad, GROWERS, VEGETABLES

Phase I Active Immunotherapy With Combination of Two Chimeric, Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2, B-Cell Epitopes Fused to a Promiscuous T-Cell Epitope in Patients With Metastatic and/or Recurrent Solid Tumors

Purpose To evaluate the maximum-tolerated dose (MTD), safety profile, and immunogenicity of two chimeric, B-cell epitopes derived from the human epidermal growth factor receptor (HER2) extracellular domain in a combination vaccine with a promiscuous T-cell epitope (ie, MVF) and nor-muramyl-dipeptide as adjuvant emulsified in SEPPIC ISA 720. Patients and Methods Eligible patients with metastatic and/or recurrent solid tumors received three inoculations on days 1, 22, and 43 at doses of total peptide that ranged from 0.5 to 3.0 mg. Immunogenicity was evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, flow cytometry, and HER2 signaling assays. Results Twenty-four patients received three inoculations at the intended dose levels, which elicited antibodies able to recognize native HER2 receptor and inhibited both the proliferation of HER2-expressing cell lines and phosphorylation of the HER2 protein. The MTD was determined to be the highest dose level of 3.0 mg of the combination vaccine. There was a significant increase from dose level 1 (0.5 mg) to dose level 4 (3.0 mg) in HER2-specific antibodies. Four patients (one each with adrenal, colon, ovarian, and squamous cell carcinoma of unknown primary) were judged to have stable disease; two patients (one each with endometrial and ovarian cancer) had partial responses; and 11 patients had progressive disease. Patients with stable disease received 6-month boosts, and one patient received a 20-month boost. Conclusion The combination vaccines were safe and effective in eliciting antibody responses in a subset of patients (62.5%) and were associated with no serious adverse events, autoimmune disease, or cardiotoxicity. There was preliminary evidence of clinical activity in several patients