RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN STEM BIOMASS AND VOLUME OF Pinus caribaea IN THE YAGIRALA FOREST RESERVE

The biomass is an important measurement in commercial forestry maintained to producepulp, paper, chips, fuel wood products etc. The estimation of the biomass of the tree is notan easy task and few studies were carried out so far.The present study was conducted in the 25 years old Pinus caribaea plantation in YagiralaForest Reserve, which is in the low country wet zone. According to the geographicaldifferences in the plantation, i.e., valley, slopes and ridge, stratified random sampling wascarried out and two 0.05 ha circular plots were established in each stratum. Altogether 6plots were used for the data collection.The diameter at breast height (dbh), total height were measured for all the trees in theseplots and after dividing the tree stem into several sections, the length and end and middiameters of each section was measured using the Spiegel relaskop.The volume of the stem was estimated by calculating section volumes. Smalian's andNewton's formula were used to estimate the section volumes except for the final section atthe top, which was assumed as a cone. In order to save time, one plot was measured forNewton's formula and the rest was measured for Smalian's formula. Then a relationshipwas build to estimate Newton's volume (Ne) using Smalian's volume (Sm) as theexplanatory variable (equation I). The R2value was 99.9%.Ne = 0.976 * Sm (1)Biomass of the tree was estimated by extracting core samples at the breast height and midheight of the tree. The density of the core samples were estimated using oven dry weightand the green volume of the core samples. When tested, there was no significant differenceof the density along the stem. Therefore stem biomass was estimated using the density atthe breast height, and the total stem volume. Also there was no significant densitydifferences between three sites.The regression analysis was used with the pooled data to find out the relationship betweenthe stem biomass (W) and the volume (V). Using variable of stem volume and the biomassand its tranformations developed the several models. The best model was selected bychecking the R2 value, standard residual distribution, modelling efficiency and bias. Thebest rclationshin for the hiOI1l;]SS :l1lrl YOIIl"lr ,,·:1< lhr rnll:l1;nn ') whir]' h·w 02 .... 1.. " n

RecombinantWolbachia surface protein (WSP)-induced T cell responses in Wuchereria bancrofti infections

Human lymphatic filariasis is a debilitating parasitic disease characterized by downregulation of the host’s immune response in asymptomatic carriers along with profound hyperreactivity in chronic patients apart from putatively immune endemic normals. The endosymbiont Wolbachia, a bacterium of filarial nematodes has received much attention as possible chemotherapeutic target and its involvement in disease pathogenesis. The role of recombinant Wolbachia surface protein (rWSP), one of the most abundantly expressed proteins of the endosymbiont, in modulating cell-mediated immune responses in patients harboring Wuchereria bancrofti infections was evaluated in the current study. rWSP-induced lymphoproliferation with peripheral blood mononuclear cells suggested an impaired proliferative response in asymptomatic microfilaremic (MF) and symptomatic chronic pathology (CP) patients compared to endemic normals (EN). This was further supported by a significantly diminished expression of CD69 along with elevated levels of CD127 and CD62L in filarial patients (MF and CP) compared to EN. Further, rWSP induced the expression of regulatory T cell markers CTLA-4 and CD25 along with suppressor cytokines IL-10 and TGF-β in MF and CP patients compared to EN. However, the rWSP-stimulated expression of IFN-γ was diminished significantly in filarial patients compared to endemic normals. Thus, these findings suggest that WSP may also contribute to the suppression of immune responses seen in filarial patients

Rare association of prune belly syndrome with pouch colon

M Ragavan1, U Haripriya1, PV Pradeep1, J Sarvavinothini21Department of Endocrine Surgery, 2Department of Anaesthesia, Narayana Medical College and Superspeciality Hospital, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, IndiaAbstract: Prune belly syndrome is a triad characterized by abdominal wall musculature deficiency, cryptorchidism and urinary tract abnormalities, and is often associated with other anomalies. Although associated anorectal anomalies have been reported with this syndrome, only two cases of pouch colon, a rare type of anorectal malformation, have been reported. We report a case of prune belly syndrome with pouch colon presenting with retention of urine.Keywords: prune belly, triad syndrome, pouch colon, anorectal malformatio

Nematicidal Property of Phytochemical Alpha - Terthienyl against Root Knot Nematode, Meloidogyne incognita

Aims: Documentation of the nematicidal effect of Alpha-terthienyl on Meloidogyne incognita. Study Design:  Complete randomized design (CRD). Place and Duration of Study: Department of Nematology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore between 2021-2023. Methodology: This study used a purified synthetic compound of Alpha-terthienyl (α-T).it is a plant-derived phytochemical from Marigold (Tagetes sp.). This study examines the effect of alpha-terthienyl on egg hatching and juvenile mortality under laboratory conditions. Four different concentrations of alpha-terthienyl were tested for their influence on in vitro studies. A uniform size of single egg mass of M. incognita was incubated. Observations on hatching were recorded. Juveniles of M. incognita were incubated in alpha-terthienyl were examined. Results: The result showed 100% percent inhibition at 2 ppm concentration. A similar trend was observed in Juvenile (J2) mortality also showed 100% mortality at 2 ppm. A check was maintained in tap water for comparison. Conclusion: According to the findings of this study, Alpha-terthienyl was effective against M. incognita under in vitro conditions. Hence it could be used for the management of M. incognita in vegetable crops which also increase yield

Genetic association study of exfoliation syndrome identifies a protective rare variant at LOXL1 and five new susceptibility loci

Exfoliation syndrome (XFS) is the most common known risk factor for secondary glaucoma and a major cause of blindness worldwide. Variants in two genes, LOXL1 and CACNA1A, have previously been associated with XFS. To further elucidate the genetic basis of XFS, we collected a global sample of XFS cases to refine the association at LOXL1, which previously showed inconsistent results across populations, and to identify new variants associated with XFS. We identified a rare protective allele at LOXL1 (p.Phe407, odds ratio (OR) = 25, P = 2.9 × 10-14) through deep resequencing of XFS cases and controls from nine countries. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) of XFS cases and controls from 24 countries followed by replication in 18 countries identified seven genome-wide significant loci (P < 5 × 10-8). We identified association signals at 13q12 (POMP), 11q23.3 (TMEM136), 6p21 (AGPAT1), 3p24 (RBMS3) and 5q23 (near SEMA6A). These findings provide biological insights into the pathology of XFS and highlight a potential role for naturally occurring rare LOXL1 variants in disease biology. © 2017 Nature America, Inc., part of Springer Nature. All rights reserved