Effect of Auxins on Shoot and Root Growth in an Endangered Medicinal Plant Guggal [Commiphora wightii (Arnott.) Bhand.]

An investigation was carried out to study the effect of IBA and NAA on vegetative propagation of guggal[Commiphora wightii (Arnott.) Bhand.] through cuttings, at Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari. The experiment consists of ten treatments: IBA, NAA and their combination, each at 2000, 4000 and 6000 mg l-1along with control, replicated thrice. Ten cuttings per each treatment and per replication were planted. Planting media used were: sand, soil and vermicompost, in 2:1:1 ratio. Cuttings were dipped for five minutes in solutions of IBA, NAA and their combinations. Cuttings treated with 4000 mg l-1 IBA proved to be the best for shoot and root responses, viz., days taken to first sprouting (11.67 days), number of shoots per cutting (10.27), number of leaves in the longest shoot (44.07), length of longest shoot (51.69cm), diameter of the longest shoot (4.40mm), rooting percentage (61.19), number of primary roots per cutting (15.01), length of the longest primary root (26.36cm), and number of secondary roots (22.37) and length of the longest secondary root (21.40cm) per cutting. It was concluded that IBA @ 4000 mg l-1 was most effective for obtaining maximum shoot and root growth

A Stereochemical Study of Isomeric Cu(II) Chelates with Salicylamide

459-46

Positron lifetime measurements in chiral nematic liquid crystals

Positron lifetimes in the isotropic phases of chiral nematic liquid crystal formulations and their mixtures up to the racemic level were measured. The lifetime spectra for all liquid crystal systems were analyzed into three components. Although the individual spectra in the left- and right-handed components are identical, their racemic mixtures exhibit much larger orthopositronium lifetimes; these larger lifetimes indicate the presence of larger microvoids. This result is consistent with the reportedly higher thermodynamic stability and color play range in the racemic mixtures of chiral nematic liquid crystals