IN VITRO PROPAGATION OF ANGIOPTERIS EVECTA USING SPORES

Techniques of establishing Angiopleris evecta plants  in vitro were studied. Soaking of A. evecta spores in water for 24 hours markedly reduced spore contamination. Soaking of the spores in 1 -2 % of sodium hypochlorite for  less  than 5 minutes allowed satisfactory disinfestation without affecting spore viability. Lower concentration of minerals (1/4 MS), presence of charcoal in the medium and exposure of the spores to light were crucial for spore germination and gainetophytc development of A. evecta. Keywords:   Angiopleris evecta I King fern / spore / MS medium / bleach / light / tissue culture / sporophyte / gamctophyt

Automatic video censoring system using deep learning

Due to the extensive use of video-sharing platforms and services, the amount of such all kinds of content on the web has become massive. This abundance of information is a problem controlling the kind of content that may be present in such a video. More than telling if the content is suitable for children and sensitive people or not, figuring it out is also important what parts of it contains such content, for preserving parts that would be discarded in a simple broad analysis. To tackle this problem, a comparison was done for popular image deep learning models: MobileNetV2, Xception model, InceptionV3, VGG16, VGG19, ResNet101 and ResNet50 to seek the one that is most suitable for the required application. Also, a system is developed that would automatically censor inappropriate content such as violent scenes with the help of deep learning. The system uses a transfer learning mechanism using the VGG16 model. The experiments suggested that the model showed excellent performance for the automatic censoring application that could also be used in other similar applications

In Vitro Propagation of Angiopteris Evecta Using Spores

Techniques of establishing Angiopleris evecta plants in vitro were studied. Soaking of A. evecta spores in water for 24 hours markedly reduced spore contamination. Soaking of the spores in 1 -2 % of sodium hypochlorite for less than 5 minutes allowed satisfactory disinfestation without affecting spore viability. Lower concentration of minerals (1/4 MS), presence of charcoal in the medium and exposure of the spores to light were crucial for spore germination and gainetophytc development of A. evecta

A rare case of ruptured caesarean scar pregnancy

Caesarean scar pregnancy (CSP) is a rare form of ectopic pregnancy. The incidence is approximately 1:2000 pregnancies and has potentially life-threatening complications. Ours is a rare case of scar ectopic pregnancy who had taken medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) kit while being unaware of her pregnancy location and presented with uterine rupture and hemoperitoneum. A 24-year-old female, P2L2A1, with previous two caesarean section (CS), presented with the complaint of bleeding per vaginum with acute pain abdomen and history of MTP kit intake at 7 weeks’ period of gestation (POG). She received symptomatic treatment at local hospital without any diagnosis being made but brought an ultrasound showing anterior myometrium defect with scar site hematoma and free fluid. She presented with moderate pallor, tachycardia and suprapubic tenderness. She was subsequently taken up for laparotomy in view of probable ruptured CSP. Intra-operatively, actively bleeding scar ectopic was seen with hemoperitoneum. The contents were scooped out and repair done with bilateral tubal ligation. She was resuscitated with adequate blood products. Embryo implantation in the region of a previous CS scar is rare and a delay in either diagnosis or treatment can have catastrophic complications like haemorrhage, rupture and significant maternal morbidity as seen in our case. Therefore, we should have a high index of suspicion of scar pregnancy especially in cases of previous CS so that timely intervention can be done preventing maternal morbidity. Unwarranted use of misoprostol can be deleterious when site of implantation is unknown, particularly in CSP

In silico targeting enterotoxin from Staphylococcus aureus with selected flavonoids: Hope for the discovery of natural anti-mastitis agents

Staphylococcus aureus is a facultative anaerobe and catalase-positive bacterium responsible for various skin infections and life-threatening problems, including bacteremia and pneumonia. This bacterium produces a bunch of superantigens in the blood called enterotoxin. This toxin is responsible for food poisoning and toxic shock syndrome. Moreover, Bovine mastitis is also associated with S. aureus. Further, S. aureus related to drug resistance makes the infection more dreadful. Now a day, various natural compounds such as phytochemicals are gaining importance as they are effective against many diseases, including S. aureus infections. The present study used molecular docking of three ligands, i.e., Kaempferol, Apigenin, and Quercetin, with enterotoxin A from S. aureus. The docking study revealed that the binding energy of ligands with receptors was -6.6 to -6.9 Kcal/mol. Kaempferol had the highest binding affinity of -6.9 Kcal/mol, suggesting it has a potential against S. aureus. Therefore, in the current research, we have tried to identify occurring compounds that might be used to develop an effective anti-S.aureus agent. The findings are encouraging and will aid researchers in creating new mastitis-fighting medications based on natural phytochemicals

In silico targeting of osmoporin protein of Salmonella to identify anti-Salmonellosis phyto-compounds

Salmonella enterica serotype typhi is a gram-negative, rod-shaped bacterium, and has flagella with the human body as its only reservoir. Typhoid fever was found to cause 21.7 million illnesses and 216,000 fatalities worldwide in 2000, and the International Vaccine Institute estimated 11.9 million cases and 129,000 deaths in low- and middle-income countries in 2010. More than 10 million patients were infected with S. typhi each year and the mortality rate is associated with more than 0.1 million patients. Moreover, it is also associated with drug resistance globally which makes the disease more dreadful. Other than antibiotics, various flavonoids showed medicinal effects against many diseases including S. typhi infection. Flavonoids are a type of plant bioactive metabolite that have potential medicinal efficacy. The goal of this study was to see if certain flavonoids (ellagic acid, eriodictyol, and naringenin) could interact with the outer membrane of osmoporin (PDB ID: 3uu2) receptor in Salmonella and helps in inhibiting its growth. To look for probable ligand-receptor binding relationships, we used Pyrxmolecular docking software. The molecular docking results were analyzed using the Biovia discovery studio visualizer. The current study discovered that selected plant-based compounds interacted with an outer membrane of the osmoporin receptor, resulting in minimization of energy in the range of-6.6 to -7.8 Kcal/mol

In Silico Targeting of influenza virus haemagglutinin receptor protein using Diosmetin, Tangeritin, and Anthocyanidins as potential drugs

Influenza viruses cause acute respiratory illnesses in birds, humans, and other mammals, and are a major public health concern around the world. Pandemic flu could be caused by an unforeseen human adaptation of an influenza subtype or strain rather than currently circulating influenza viruses. The need for plant metabolites-based new anti-influenza drugs appears to be urgent. Blocking Haemeagglutinin (HA) protein is one of the most appealing drug targets to halt the growth of the virus. The influenza virus can acquire resistance to currently existing therapies, therefore necessitating the development of new medications. The plant's bioactive metabolites, flavanoids are having potential medicinal efficacy. The current study aimed to identify certain flavonoids (Diosmetin, Tangeritin, and Anthocyanidins) that might interact with the HA protein of the influenza virus and help in inhibiting its growth. We used PyRx v0.8 for virtual screening and docking studies. The highest binding affinity docked structures were analyzed using PyMOL and Discovery Studio Visualizer. The present study revealed that these naturally occurring compounds interacted with HA protein, resulting in the minimization of energy in the range of -5.2 to -7.0 kcal/mol. Diosmetin showed the best binding affinity of -7.0Kcal/mol. The molecular binding studies revealed that Diosmetin, Tangeritin, and Anthocyanidins are potential compounds to test against HA protein and can be used to develop effective anti-influenza agents

The viral capsid as novel nanomaterials for drug delivery

The purpose of this review is to highlight recent scientific developments and provide an overview of virus self-assembly and viral particle dynamics. Viruses are organized supramolecular structures with distinct yet related features and functions. Plant viruses are extensively used in biotechnology, and virus-like particulate matter is generated by genetic modification. Both provide a material-based means for selective distribution and delivery of drug molecules. Through surface engineering of their capsids, virus-derived nanomaterials facilitate various potential applications for selective drug delivery. Viruses have significant implications in chemotherapy, gene transfer, vaccine production, immunotherapy and molecular imaging

Regeneration, micropropagation and somatic embryogenesis in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.)

"This PhD thesis embodies research carried out to develop procedures for direct shoot regeneration, micropropagation and somatic embryogenesis with a view to assisting both para-sexual procedures of cultivar improvement for large-scale production of the tomato cultivar Red Coat. " -- abstract. Tomato is a major vegetable crop that has achieved tremendous popularity over the last century. Tomato is normally grown from hybrid seeds. Hybrid seeds are expensive to produce due to their reliance on manual labour. Alternative methods are therefore needed to minimise the cost of production of seedlings. Tissue culture techniques have the potential to meet these requirements. However, these techniques have not been exploited in tomato propagation programmes due to genotypic specificity oftomato for PGRs and other factors. This PhD thesis embodies research carried out to develop procedures for direct shoot regeneration, micropropagation and somatic embryogenesis with the view to assisting both para-sexual procedures of cultivar improvement and for large-scale production of the tomato cultivar Red Coat. A series of experiments has been performed to optimise explant related and physical and chemical factors that affect adventitious shoot regeneration in tomato. The role of chemical factors, such as the type and concentration of plant growth regulators, sugar concentration, mineral nutrients, medium pH, ascorbic acid, activated charcoal and casein hydrolysate on shoot regeneration was studied. Exogenous application of cytokinin was found essential for induction of shoot regeneration; zeatin at 15 JlM was found to be the most suitable cytokinin for shoot regeneration from cotyledonary explants. Tomato tissues were also tolerant to a wide range of medium pH, as most of the traits studied were unaffected by the medium pH. The addition of activated charcoal, ascorbic acid and casein hydrolysate had little effect on shoot organogenesis. Amongst the explant related factors, the type, orientation (placement of explants on the media) and the effect of wounding on the regeneration response were also examined. Amongst the three types of explants studied, cotyledons produced the best shoot response followed by hypocotyl and leaf explants. The explant orientation also affected shoot regeneration. Cotyledons placed in abaxial (lower surface facing down) orientation consistently produced better shoot regeneration response, with a greater number of shoots and taller shoots compared to those inoculated in adaxial (upper surface facing down) orientation. Wounding of cotyledonary explants increased shoot induction and shoot number. However, the shoots obtained from wounded cotyledons were abnormal. Light was not absolutely essential for shoot regeneration in tomato. Furthermore, the shoots that were regenerated in the dark were not etiolated. A maximum shoot regeneration response occurred in the explants exposed to light/dark cycles of 16/8 h compared to 24 h dark and 24 h light. The efficiency of the regeneration protocol that was established for the cultivar Red Coat was tested for nine other commercially important cultivars (Big Beef, Grosse Lisse, Improved Apollo, Pinnacle, Roma VF, Small Fry, Super Sweet, Sweet Bite, Tiny Tim). Marked genotypic variation was observed for shoot regeneration response, shoot number and shoot height. Additional experiments were performed to establish multiplication and rooting protocol for the regenerated shoots of the cultivar Red Coat. In the absence of cytokinin, the explants failed to develop lateral shoots. The cultures raised on the media containing kinetin showed better multiplication rate than those grown on the medium containing zeatin or BA. The genetic fidelity of the regenerated shoots was also established using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP). The results confirmed similarity between the regenerated and seed-grown plants at the molecular level. Tissue cultured plants were compared with those raised from the seed for morphological, physiological and fruit yield and quality related characteristics. The results suggested similarities between the two types of plants except for density of glandular trichomes on the surface of regenerated shoots. Histological studies were undertaken to elucidate the ongm of shoots from cotyledonary explants. Centres of cell division occurred in pockets through the subepidermal and mesophyll regions of the cotyledon. Meristematic centres in the subepidermal regions became dominant, giving rise to shoot meristems. Development of a micropropagation protocol -another pathway of regeneration, was also investigated using the shoot apex of F1 seedlings of the cultivar Red Coat. The results indicated that the tomato shoot apex could initiate shoots with or without the presence of plant growth regulators, but the highest concentration (5 JlM) of NAA markedly reduced shoot initiation. At the initiation stage, the number of shoots produced per explant was highly dependent on a specific combination of cytokinin x auxin. At the multiplication stage, maximum multiplication (four fold) was achieved in the MS medium containing 15 JlM kinetin and 5 JlM IAA. Maximum root induction (100%) occurred in the MS medium containing 2.5 JlM IBA. The VI successful hardening of the regenerated seedlings also demonstrated the potential for application ofthis protocol in commercial propagation of tomato. The effects of light and BA on somatic embryogenesis of five commercially important hybrid cultivars of tomato cultivars (Big Beef, King Kong, Red Coat, Super Sweet, Sweet Bite) were also investigated. The presence of BA was absolutely necessary for somatic embryogenesis, and the exposure to light improved induction of somatic embryos in these cultivars. The studies presented in the thesis make a significant contribution to the understanding of the role of various factors on shoot regeneration and somatic embryogenesis in tomato. Histological studies helped reveal the origin of shoots, and molecular tests assisted in determining genetic fidelity of tissue cultured plants. Furthermore, a robust micropropagation protocol using axillary branching and somatic embryogenesis has been developed. The effectiveness of these protocols on commercial hybrid cultivars demonstrates a clear feasibility of producing high quality micro plants from a few hybrid seedlings of tomato

Regeneration, micropropagation and somatic embryogenesis in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.)

"This PhD thesis embodies research carried out to develop procedures for direct shoot regeneration, micropropagation and somatic embryogenesis with a view to assisting both para-sexual procedures of cultivar improvement for large-scale production of the tomato cultivar Red Coat. " -- abstract. Tomato is a major vegetable crop that has achieved tremendous popularity over the last century. Tomato is normally grown from hybrid seeds. Hybrid seeds are expensive to produce due to their reliance on manual labour. Alternative methods are therefore needed to minimise the cost of production of seedlings. Tissue culture techniques have the potential to meet these requirements. However, these techniques have not been exploited in tomato propagation programmes due to genotypic specificity oftomato for PGRs and other factors. This PhD thesis embodies research carried out to develop procedures for direct shoot regeneration, micropropagation and somatic embryogenesis with the view to assisting both para-sexual procedures of cultivar improvement and for large-scale production of the tomato cultivar Red Coat. A series of experiments has been performed to optimise explant related and physical and chemical factors that affect adventitious shoot regeneration in tomato. The role of chemical factors, such as the type and concentration of plant growth regulators, sugar concentration, mineral nutrients, medium pH, ascorbic acid, activated charcoal and casein hydrolysate on shoot regeneration was studied. Exogenous application of cytokinin was found essential for induction of shoot regeneration; zeatin at 15 JlM was found to be the most suitable cytokinin for shoot regeneration from cotyledonary explants. Tomato tissues were also tolerant to a wide range of medium pH, as most of the traits studied were unaffected by the medium pH. The addition of activated charcoal, ascorbic acid and casein hydrolysate had little effect on shoot organogenesis. Amongst the explant related factors, the type, orientation (placement of explants on the media) and the effect of wounding on the regeneration response were also examined. Amongst the three types of explants studied, cotyledons produced the best shoot response followed by hypocotyl and leaf explants. The explant orientation also affected shoot regeneration. Cotyledons placed in abaxial (lower surface facing down) orientation consistently produced better shoot regeneration response, with a greater number of shoots and taller shoots compared to those inoculated in adaxial (upper surface facing down) orientation. Wounding of cotyledonary explants increased shoot induction and shoot number. However, the shoots obtained from wounded cotyledons were abnormal. Light was not absolutely essential for shoot regeneration in tomato. Furthermore, the shoots that were regenerated in the dark were not etiolated. A maximum shoot regeneration response occurred in the explants exposed to light/dark cycles of 16/8 h compared to 24 h dark and 24 h light. The efficiency of the regeneration protocol that was established for the cultivar Red Coat was tested for nine other commercially important cultivars (Big Beef, Grosse Lisse, Improved Apollo, Pinnacle, Roma VF, Small Fry, Super Sweet, Sweet Bite, Tiny Tim). Marked genotypic variation was observed for shoot regeneration response, shoot number and shoot height. Additional experiments were performed to establish multiplication and rooting protocol for the regenerated shoots of the cultivar Red Coat. In the absence of cytokinin, the explants failed to develop lateral shoots. The cultures raised on the media containing kinetin showed better multiplication rate than those grown on the medium containing zeatin or BA. The genetic fidelity of the regenerated shoots was also established using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP). The results confirmed similarity between the regenerated and seed-grown plants at the molecular level. Tissue cultured plants were compared with those raised from the seed for morphological, physiological and fruit yield and quality related characteristics. The results suggested similarities between the two types of plants except for density of glandular trichomes on the surface of regenerated shoots. Histological studies were undertaken to elucidate the ongm of shoots from cotyledonary explants. Centres of cell division occurred in pockets through the subepidermal and mesophyll regions of the cotyledon. Meristematic centres in the subepidermal regions became dominant, giving rise to shoot meristems. Development of a micropropagation protocol -another pathway of regeneration, was also investigated using the shoot apex of F1 seedlings of the cultivar Red Coat. The results indicated that the tomato shoot apex could initiate shoots with or without the presence of plant growth regulators, but the highest concentration (5 JlM) of NAA markedly reduced shoot initiation. At the initiation stage, the number of shoots produced per explant was highly dependent on a specific combination of cytokinin x auxin. At the multiplication stage, maximum multiplication (four fold) was achieved in the MS medium containing 15 JlM kinetin and 5 JlM IAA. Maximum root induction (100%) occurred in the MS medium containing 2.5 JlM IBA. The VI successful hardening of the regenerated seedlings also demonstrated the potential for application ofthis protocol in commercial propagation of tomato. The effects of light and BA on somatic embryogenesis of five commercially important hybrid cultivars of tomato cultivars (Big Beef, King Kong, Red Coat, Super Sweet, Sweet Bite) were also investigated. The presence of BA was absolutely necessary for somatic embryogenesis, and the exposure to light improved induction of somatic embryos in these cultivars. The studies presented in the thesis make a significant contribution to the understanding of the role of various factors on shoot regeneration and somatic embryogenesis in tomato. Histological studies helped reveal the origin of shoots, and molecular tests assisted in determining genetic fidelity of tissue cultured plants. Furthermore, a robust micropropagation protocol using axillary branching and somatic embryogenesis has been developed. The effectiveness of these protocols on commercial hybrid cultivars demonstrates a clear feasibility of producing high quality micro plants from a few hybrid seedlings of tomato