Shola habitats on sky islands: status of research on montane forests and grasslands in southern India

The Shola habitat on the high elevation sky islands of the Western Ghats in southern India is a unique habitat. Although this habitat hosts a disproportionately high level of endemism and is threatened by anthropogenic modifications, it has received little research attention. We compiled publications of research conducted in this habitat from scientific databases and the grey literature to examine trends in publication. For a quantitative summary, all publications were classified according to the taxa of research and the broad topic of research. We identified 279 publications from 1964 and found an almost threefold increase in the number of publications and diversity of research topics studied over the last decade. Studies on flora, birds and mammals have been numerous (62% of the studies examined), but certain taxa like fish (1%) have been ignored. Most studies (65%) are descriptive, focusing on diversity, distribution trends and management suggestions, while surprisingly few have concentrated on climate change, ecological restoration and invasive species, all major threats to this landscape. We have identified some key gaps in research and conservation focus that future studies could address. We also suggest that initiatives like edited volumes and special journal sections, along with the use of creative commons licensed data-sharing portals, can be used to usher unpublished work into the public domain

Management of an endo-perio lesion in an immature tooth using autologous platelet-rich fibrin: A case report

Treatment of an endo-perio lesion involving a non-vital young permanent tooth is a highly challenging task to Pediatric Dentists. There is a quest for the newer biological approach to management of these lesions as traditional methods have various disadvantages. Recently, platelet-rich fibrin (PRF), a second-generation platelet concentrate, is rich in growth factors have been used in the periodontal regeneration procedure. The purpose of this paper is to describe the efficacy of PRF in the treatment of a deep intra bony defect associated with an endo-perio lesion in an immature right mandibular first premolar of 12-year-old female patient. A freshly prepared autologous PRF membrane was placed in the bony defect following debridement. Clinical and radiographic follow-up were performed at regular intervals that revealed absence of pain, gain in clinical attachment level, reduction in probing depth, and excellent bone regeneration indicating successful outcome

Induction of induced systemic resistance in capsicum chilli against Colletotrichum truncatum through fungal biocontrol agents

To induce the systemic resistance in capsicum against Colletotrichum truncatum an experiment was conducted with two biocontrol agents viz., Trichoderma harzianum and Trichoderma asperellum in pot culture. The induced resistance was monitored by increase in activities of five defense related enzymes viz., peroxidase (PO), polyphenol oxidase (PPO) phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), catalase (CAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) and the accumulation of phenols and β -1,3-glucanase were also noticed in capsicum upon challenge inoculation with C. truncatum, the causal agent for anthracnose or fruit rot in capsicum. The activities of defense enzymes reached a peak at eight days after inoculation (DAI) with the pathogen. Native PAGE analysis revealed the expression of an additional isoforms of PO and PPO were observed in biocontrol agents treated seedlings due to induced systemic resistance (ISR) introduction. Prior treatment of capsicum seedlings with biocontrol agents triggered the plant defense mechanism in response to infection by C. capsici. Hence, it is speculated that among the various direct antagonistic tools, ISR is also the one indirect tool by which the tested biocontrol agents afforded resistance to capsicum against the pathogen

Perceptions of priority issues in the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems in India

We report on the results of a country-wide survey of people’s perceptions of issues relating to the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems in India. Our survey, mainly conducted online, yielded 572 respondents, mostly among educated, urban and sub-urban citizens interested in ecological and environmental issues. 3160 ‘‘raw’’ questions generated by the survey were iteratively processed by a group of ecologists, environmental and conservation scientists to produce the primary result of this study: a summarized list of 152 priority questions for the conservation of India’s biodiversity and ecosystems, which range across 17 broad thematic classes. Of these, three thematic classes—‘‘Policy and Governance’’, ‘‘Biodiversity and Endangered Species’’ and ‘‘Protection and Conservation’’—accounted for the largest number of questions. A comparative analysis of the results of this study with those from similar studies in other regions brought out interesting regional differences in the thematic classes of questions that were emphasized and suggest that local context plays a large role in determining emergent themes. We believe that the ready list of priority issues generated by this study can be a useful guiding framework for conservation practitioners, researchers, citizens, policy makers and funders to focus their resources and efforts in India’s conservation research, action and funding landscape