Seed nitrogen and fatty acids reflecting yield variation in groundnut (Arachis hypogaea)

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A controlled study of the effect of domiciliary tuberculosis chemotherapy programme in a rural community in South India

To study thc ellicttq of a domiciliary drug-therapy programme in the control of tuberculosis in a rural community, an investigation was set lip in 1958 under the auspices of the Indian Council of Medlenl I{C!IClln:h ill 12 towns with populations ranging from 6000 to 25000, all within 160 km of Madanapallc (Andhra Pradt'Sh). The prevalences of bacillary and radioloj.(ic~ll cases of pulmonary tuberculosis in adults (llgcd 15 )T or more) were estimated in .. ch town by carrying out a hase-Iine random sample survey iu 1959; also, the prevalences of tuberculous infcl'tion in all schoolchildrt,n aged 5 to 9yr wen' estimated. These thn.'t' in.dices of prevalence were used to rank the 12 towns and tben ndomlyallocate them into two l'omparable groups of 6 towns each, designated as 'Ireatment' and '~:ontmJ' tOWIlS. In treatment tOWIIS, intensi"e case finding ,,-as undertaken hy means of 2 X-ray surveys (suney I during 1960-61 and survey II during 1962-64) l'ovcring alllldults, sputum examinations by microSl'op' Hnd culture when indicated, and eriodic follow lip of all 'suspect' cases with X-ray and SPlltuDl examinations. All bacillary cases were offered domiciliary treatment for onc ~'ear with isoniazid and PAS in the J treatment IOWll~ (selected at random) a.nd with isoniazid alone in the other 3 town.·,. Of 148 2easc~ eligible for trcat-at ment in tJlC 6 treatment towns, 15 per l'en.t refused treatment nd 29 per cent discontin.ued chemotherapy prematurely. In lhe rontrol towns, 0.0 spcdal faeililies for di~gn()sis 01' calment ,vere introduced, and patients w~'re left to the routine treatment facilities aV:lilahk' locally. A tuberculosis prcntlcm:e survey (~ul'l'ey Ill) t'O\'cri~ all adults was 1.1lrried out iD 9.1112 towns during 1965-68, am! lhi:; ~:l." followed hy a random tuberculin sample survey during 1966-69. The overall results of treatment at the end of one year ,,'eJ'e.' (i) among cases initially positive hy micro~opy, 10 per' nt died, 33 per locnt rcmllincd sputum-positive IUld 51 per cent became sputum-negative in INH-PAS towns, the mrl'lsponding percentages fur INH lowns being 15, 48 and 37 per cent respectivel~'; (ii): moug cases initially positive by culture ()nJy, 6 per ent died, 26 J1er cent remained sputum-posithc and 68 per cent became sputum negative in lNH-PAS towns, tbe correspondi percentages for tile INH town~ being 1, 38 an. 55 IJer cent respectively. All the bacillary cases (treated or untrcatt'lf) were followed up and their status at the end of 5 yr was 40.4 per cent dead, 18.2 per cent sputum-positive and 41.4 pCT cent sputum-ne'~ative. Spntum status at one year had considerable prognostic value. Of 532 sputum-negative ea .. at one year, 18 per l'ent were dead, 16 per CCDt sputuDl-posithe and 66 per cent sputum-ncgath'e 5 yr aftenvards, where'd!! the corresponding percentagt'S for (JIC 319 sputum-positive cases at one year were 56, 20 llnd 24 respectively. There was an intennl of about 2l ~'r between sunc)' [ and survey [[ and ahout 4 yr between survey [J and survey 111 in the 6 treatmellt towns. The prevalence of badllary cases in these sUr\'eys was age-standardised, cousidering separately l'UseS found hy microscopy and cases found by culture only. The lJlean prevalence of cases (Wsitive hy microscopy in the 6 treatment towns was 6.81 per thousand in survey I and it decre~sed significanUy (P < 0,01) to 5.01 in survey nand 4.83 in survey Ill. Change of culture technique during the course of the investi~ation complicated the interpretation of prcva· lenl'C:l of culture-positive cases. BetwCCR the 1959 base-line survey and tbe resurvey in 1965·68, the prevalence ()f smear-positive tuberculosis decreas~d from 5.92 per thousand adults to 4.78 in the 6 treatment towns, and similarly from 5.72 to 4.21 in the 6 control towns. The prcvalenl-e of 'culture only-positive' cases was 3.85 and 2.44 per thousand adults in the treatment and control towns respectively at the base-line survey and (with the more sesnsitive culture technique) 4.92 and 4.82 per thousand adults at the resurvey in 1965·68. Lastly, tho tuberculin survey in 1966·69 did not I" .,'ell! any' significant differences between the tr t· ment and the control towns. The inability ofthe domiciliary treatment programme to make an impact on the prevalefl:lc of tuberculosis in the rural community around Madanapalle is a finding that has cOllsidera lie siJ,(nilicance in the context of the tubercUlosis control programme in fndia; the rl'asons for the failure aud its implications are discussed

Advances in breeding for basal branching and productive lines of Brassica juncea

An attempt was made to study the variability of basal and non-basal branching genotypes in F3 and F4 generations derived from nine crosses in Indian mustard (Brassica juncea) [Czem &amp; Coss (L.)]. Sixty-four F3 families were studied for yield and yield attributes. Among them thirty two were selected and F4 families of them were evaluated for yielding ability. The results revealed that there is sufficient variability available for all the plant type and yield parameters in the F3 generation. A selection towards basal branching types is suggested to enhance the seed yield in B. juncea

Genetic potential of artificially synthesized Brassica juncea for yield improvement

A study was made to compare the potential of artificially synthesized Brassica juncea strains in inter-varietal crosses for basal branching characters and seed yield. Sixty four F3 families of synthetic x synthetic, synthetic x cultivar, and cultivar x cultivar crosses were studied and from among them thirty two superior F3 families were selected and advanced to F4 generation. Artifically synthesized materials generate more useful variability than those by usual inter-varietal crosses

Climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies for sustainable crop production

Climate change is the main environmental problem facing humanity. Evidences over the past few decades show that significant changes in climate are taking place all over the world as a result of enhanced human activities through deforestation emission of various greenhouse gases and indiscriminate use of fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide (CO2) Methane and Nitrous Oxide are the major greenhouse gases. CO2 enters the atmosphere mostly through burning fossil fuels. Methane emissions also result from livestock and other agricultural practices and Nitrous Oxide is emitted during agricultural and industrial activities. Global atmospheric concentration of CO2 has increased from pre-industrial level of 280 parts per million (ppm) to 408 ppm in Feb 2018. Global projections indicate higher temperature of 1.5 to 4.5°C by the year 2050 as a result of enhanced greenhouse gases. There is medium confidence in that the Indian summer monsoon circulation weakens but this is compensated by increased atmospheric moisture content leading to more rainfall. There is medium confidence in an increase of Indian summer monsoon rainfall and its extremes throughout the 21st century under all RCP (Representative Concentration Pathways) scenarios

Genotype dependent response to Azospirillum treatment in yield and nitrogenase activity in Brassica juncea L.

Twelve advanced lines of mustard (Brassica juncea L.) were evaluated for response to treatment with Azospirillum brasilense in yield and a few components. Two lines gave yield increases with concomitant increases in nitrogenase activity and Azospirillum population. In general, there were desirable and significant correlations between plot yield, nitrogenase activity and log, (Azospirillum population). The results point to the possibility of utilizing genotype-dependent response to Azospirillum in breeding programmes and also for exploring new avenues of Azospirillum-based cultural practices in sustaining improved productivity

Studies on inter-specific hybridisation in oilseed crop Brassicas

Twelve intra- and inter-specific crosses using Brassica juncea and Brassica napus as parents were made to study the potentials of inter-specific hybridization in the improvement B. juncea. The results suggested that the F1 cross compatibility of inter-specific crosses was similar to that of intra-specific crosses. Getting adequate number of plants in the F2 of inter-specific crosses for higher productivity would not be a limitation. The individual F2 selections were ranked on the basis of stepwise multiple regression index using seed yield as dependent variable. Suggestions were made to go for inter-specific hybridizations in the improvement of B. juncea

Ideotype and relationship between morpho-physiological characters and yield in Indian mustard (Brassica juncea)

Twelve genotypes of Indian mustard [Brassica juncea (L.) Czemj. &amp; Cosson] were evaluated for various yield and morpho- physiological characters during 1990 and 1991. The genotypes were classified basal or non-basal branching type on the basis of the presence or absence of at least 1 productive primary branch within 30 cm height of the plant. A correlation analysis revealed that the traits related to basal branching were positively associated among themselves as well as with the seed yield. There were desirable and negative associations of basal branching characters with flowering time and plant height. Thus breeding for early maturing basal branching plant types with medium height and high yield is possible