Synthesis and antimicrobial activity of some newer semicarbazone analogues

On the basis of literature review Semicarbazones have been potent in activities such as antifungal, antibacterial, antituberculosis, anticancerous etc. Till date various works has been done however still there is tremendous opportunities which can be explored. So, we planned for the synthesis of Semicarbazone derivaties and checking their antimicrobial activities. Biological activity was determined for all 19 synthesized compounds against bacteria (gram positive and gram negative) by MIC(Minimum Inhibitory Concentration) method

Overview of thyroid gland characteristics in pregnancy using ultrasonography as an assessment tool

Thyroid gland is one of the most common gland affected during pregnancy as it responds to the increased physiological demands of iodine and energy during pregnancy. Any thyroid dysfunction can result in abortion, preterm labor or affects fetal neurodevelopment. Various anthropometric factors or genetic factors apart from iodine intake are known to affect the size of thyroid gland. Changes in thyroid gland morphology can be easily measured using ultrasonography as clinically the enlargement can be labelled as goiter. In this review, we aimed to evaluate the changes in thyroid gland during pregnancy and assess the different factors affecting its size across the various studies as the literature data concerning the thyroid gland enlargement during pregnancy is controversial. Various articles on thyroid volume changes during pregnancy from literature were reviewed along with a cross-sectional observation done in a government hospital setup in India, on 240 patients who were divided into 4 groups of 60 patients each which included non-pregnant females in group 1 and pregnant females in all three trimesters respectively in the rest 3 groups. Thyroid gland morphology and its characteristics such as volume, nodularity, echogenicity and vascularity were measured using high frequency ultrasonography in each group and then compared. Thyroid volume in the third trimester group (7.24±1.16 ml) was found to be significantly greater (p<0.001) than in the non-pregnant group (5.44±0.82 ml). BMI was found to be the highest in third trimester group as expected. Even in iodine sufficient areas we found thyroid gland volume to increase during pregnancy from non-pregnant group along with thyroid gland nodularity. Vascularity assessed based on CDFS pattern shows pattern I to be most common. Variation in thyroid gland characteristics between pregnant and non-pregnant controls was found

Genome wide association analysis for grain micronutrients and anti-nutritional traits in mungbean [Vigna radiata (L.) R. Wilczek] using SNP markers

Mungbean is an important food grain legume for human nutrition and nutritional food due to its nutrient-dense seed, liked palatability, and high digestibility. However, anti-nutritional factors pose a significant risk to improving nutritional quality for bio fortification. In the present study, genetic architecture of grain micronutrients (grain iron and zinc concentration) and anti-nutritional factors (grain phytic acid and tannin content) in association mapping panel of 145 diverse mungbean were evaluated. Based on all four parameters genotypes PUSA 1333 and IPM 02-19 were observed as desired genotypes as they had high grain iron and zinc concentration but low grain phytic acid and tannin content. The next generation sequencing (NGS)-based genotyping by sequencing (GBS) identified 14,447 genome-wide SNPs in a diverse selected panel of 127 mungbean genotypes. Population admixture analysis revealed the presence of four different ancestries among the genotypes and LD decay of ∼57.6 kb kb physical distance was noted in mungbean chromosomes. Association mapping analysis revealed that a total of 20 significant SNPs were shared by both GLM and Blink models associated with grain micronutrient and anti-nutritional factor traits, with Blink model identifying 35 putative SNPs. Further, this study identified the 185 putative candidate genes. Including potential candidate genes Vradi07g30190, Vradi01g09630, and Vradi09g05450 were found to be associated with grain iron concentration, Vradi10g04830 with grain zinc concentration, Vradi08g09870 and Vradi01g11110 with grain phytic acid content and Vradi04g11580 and Vradi06g15090 with grain tannin content. Moreover, two genes Vradi07g15310 and Vradi09g05480 showed significant variation in protein structure between native and mutated versions. The identified SNPs and candidate genes are potential powerful tools to provide the essential information for genetic studies and marker-assisted breeding program for nutritional improvement in mungbean

Strategies for identifying stable lentil cultivars (Lens culinaris Medik) for combating hidden hunger, malnourishment, and climate variability

Iron and zinc malnutrition is a global humanitarian concern that mostly affects newborns, children, and women in low- and middle-income countries where plant-based diets are regularly consumed. This kind of malnutrition has the potential to result in a number of immediate and long-term implications, including stunted growth, an elevated risk of infectious diseases, and poor development, all of which may ultimately cause children to not develop to the fullest extent possible. A determination of the contributions from genotype, environment, and genotype by environment interactions is necessary for the production of nutrient-dense lentil varieties that offer greater availability of iron and zinc with a high level of trait stability. Understanding the genotype and environmental parameters that affect G x E (Genotype x Environment) interactions is essential for plant breeding. We used GGE(Genotype, Genotype x Environment interactions) and AMMI (Additive Main effects and Multiplicative Interaction) models to study genetic stability and GE(Genotype x Environment interactions) for grain Fe, Zn, Al, and anti-nutritional factors like phytic acid content in sixteen commercially produced lentil cultivars over several different six geographical locations across India. Significant genetic variability was evident in the Fe and Zn levels of different genotypes of lentils. The amounts of grain iron, zinc, and phytic acid varied from 114.10 to 49.90 mg/kg, 74.62 to 21.90 mg/kg, and 0.76 to 2.84 g/100g (dw) respectively. The environment and GE (Genotype x Environment interactions) had an impact on the concentration of grain Fe, Zn, and phytic acid (PA). Heritability estimations ranged from low to high (53.18% to 99.48%). The study indicated strong correlation between the contents of Fe and Zn, a strategy for simultaneously increasing Fe and Zn in lentils may be recommended. In addition, our research revealed that the stable and ideal lentil varieties L4076 (Pusa Shivalik) for Fe concentration and L4717 (Pusa Ageti) for Zn content, which have lower phytic acid contents, will not only play an essential role as stable donors in the lentil bio-fortification but will also enable the expansion of the growing area of bio-fortified crops for the security of health and nutrition

Gaining-sharing knowledge based algorithm for solving stochastic programming problems

This paper presents a novel application of metaheuristic algorithms for solving stochastic programming problems using a recently developed gaining sharing knowledge based optimization (GSK) algorithm. The algorithm is based on human behavior in which people gain and share their knowledge with others. Different types of stochastic fractional programming problems are considered in this study. The augmented Lagrangian method (ALM) is used to handle these constrained optimization problems by converting them into unconstrained optimization problems. Three examples from the literature are considered and transformed into their deterministic form using the chance-constrained technique. The transformed problems are solved using GSK algorithm and the results are compared with eight other state-of-the-art metaheuristic algorithms. The obtained results are also compared with the optimal global solution and the results quoted in the literature. To investigate the performance of the GSK algorithm on a real-world problem, a solid stochastic fixed charge transportation problem is examined, in which the parameters of the problem are considered as random variables. The obtained results show that the GSK algorithm outperforms other algorithms in terms of convergence, robustness, computational time, and quality of obtained solutions