Short Variable Regions flaA Gene (SVR-flaA) Diversity and Virulence Profile of Multidrug-Resistant Campylobacter from Poultry and Poultry Meat in India.

Human gastrointestinal infections caused by Campylobacter species is the second most important foodborne illness after salmonellosis worldwide. Poultry represent one of the main sources of Campylobacter organisms. In the present study, the short variable region of flagellin gene (SVR-flaA) typing was carried out to determine the variation among the circulating strains of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli. The C. jejuni and C. coli isolated from poultry and poultry meat were screened for the presence of virulence determinants like cadF, flaA, cdtB, and wlaN gene. The screening for wlaN gene is crucial in view of the fact that most patients with Guillian Barre's (GB) syndrome with a preceding history of diarrheal illness have been found to harbor wlaN gene-positive C jejuni strains. Out of the 200 samples comprising poultry meat and cloacal swabs, 21.5% of samples were found to harbor Campylobacter spp. of which 2.5% were Campylobacter jejuni, and 19% were confirmed as Campylobacter coli. The cadF, flaA, cdtB virulence genes were detected in all the Campylobacter spp. isolated in the present study. The presence of the wlaN gene in the Campylobacter jejuni isolated in the present study may pose a public health threat with long-term human health implications. The SVR-flaA typing of twelve Campylobacter isolates obtained in the present study revealed that Campylobacter coli flaA sequence OL471375 is a new strain with a novel allele type 1,675 and peptide sequence 5 which stands deposited in pubMLST database for Campylobacter. The other flaA-SVR gene sequences identified in this study were OL471369, OL471370, OL471371, OL471372, OL471373, and OL471374. Among twelve Campylobacter spp., three distinct DdeI-RFLP patterns were observed, each varying in size from 100 to 1,000 base pairs. Antimicrobial profiling of the Campylobacter spp. isolated in the present study revealed that 50% of the strains were multidrug resistant. All the Campylobacter spp. were resistant to ciprofloxacin (CIP), ampicillin (AMP), penicillin (PEN), and nalidixic acid (NAL) whereas 57.1% of strains were resistant to tetracycline (TET) and erythromycin (ERY) 28% to amoxicillin (AMX) and enrofloxacin (ENO), 85% to amikacin (AMK). The high degree of resistance to fluoroquinolones observed in the present study is crucial in view of fluoroquinolones being drugs of choice for the treatment of human Campylobacter infections.

An Unusual Case of Recurrent Cutaneous Carcinomas Over Extragenital Multicentric Pigmented Bowen's Disease.

Bowen's disease is a slowly progressive squamous cell carcinoma (SSC) in situ with high potential for malignant transformation. In this case, we describe a patient with multicentric Bowen's disease for the past 26 years, developing growths over his left buttock. The patient had a previous history of growth developing over his right thigh, and was diagnosed with metatypical basal cell carcinoma (BCC). The points that make this case noteworthy are recurrent cutaneous carcinomas over the multicentric generalized occurrence of in situ SCC of extragenital type, the rarity of the site, and the nature of its morphological presentation in the skin of color.

Earth observation satellite data-based assessment of wetland dynamics in the Kashmir Himalaya.

Earth observation (EO) technology offers enormous opportunities to assess the magnitude and patterns of spatial variability in wetlands over time. This study aims to assess the spatial and temporal changes in the wetlands of the Kashmir valley using multiple remote sensing satellite data products, Geographic Information System (GIS), and field observations. Moreover, role of major factors operating at different time scales including regional geology, climate, and human activities in driving the wetland change is presented. The dynamics of the wetlands are illustrated in the occurrence, seasonality, and recurrence of surface water, land cover transitions and loss patterns particularly for the period from 1984 to 2021. Constituting about 3% (495 Km2) of the total area, substantial and variable patterns of seasonal and annual changes are exhibited by the wetlands. The main transitions of the water surface reveal that 2% of the area has changed from permanent to seasonal; 8% is lost; 15% is new seasonal; 0.12% is permanently lost; and 0.3% is new permanent. About 22% of the area reveals increase in the intensity of water surface occurrence, whereas 44% shows no change, and 34% exhibits decrease. Bathymetric analysis suggests that the average depth of the wetlands ranges between 0.6 and 16.6 m. In general, alpine wetlands are relatively deeper and mostly static in their structure whereas those in the floodplain are shallow, fragmented, and showing signs of depletion during the assessment period. The results of this assessment will inform the policy on conservation and sustainability of wetlands in the Kashmir Himalaya.

Fusarium flocciferum, causing wilt disease of chili (Capsicum annuum L.) in Northern Himalayas: A first report.

In August 2020 chili (Capsicum annuum L.) showing wilt symptoms were collected from different districts of the Kashmir: Pulwama, Srinagar, Baramulla, and Anantnag. From each district one location was selected for sample collection and a total of 23 chili isolates were isolated. The tissue bit technique was used to isolate fungus from the infected samples on potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium, purified using the single spore technique, maintained at 25°±1℃ and then stored at 4° C (Ferniah et al. 2014) . Initially cultural characteristics appeared as white colonies which gradually turned to pale white colored and attained a growth of 90 mm in 18 days of incubation at 25 ± 1°C. Microscopic observations revealed that mycelium was branched and cylindrical, 3.53-4.98 µm in width. Microconidia were ellipsoidal, hyaline, 0-1 septa werepresent, and 6-7 x 3-4 µm in size. Macroconidia were cylindrical, hyaline, 2-6 septa, measuring 20-60 x 40-45 µm in size. Molecular identification of the pathogens with ITS, TEF, and RPB2 was successfully carried out and the fungi was confirmed as Fusarium flocciferum infecting chili. Amplified PCR products were sequenced and were successfully submitted and accessioned in GenBank with accession number OM189458, OM441199, OR484037 for ITS, TEF, and RPB2 gene. To confirm Koch's postulates pathogenicity test was carried out using rhizosphere inoculation technique (Najar et al. 2011, Parihar et al. 2022). In total 7 replications for sand maize meal medium (potting mixture) was prepared by autoclaving 90 g of sand and 10 g of maize meal in 250 ml of erlenmeyer flask comprising 40 ml of distilled water. The spore suspension at 100 µl per pot was inoculated and was mixed with the sterilized potting mixture in a ratio of (2:1) and up to seven days pathogen was allowed to infect the soil (Davey and Papavizas 1962; Hami et al. 2021). Then chili seeds (cv. Kashmir long-1) were sown in infected potting mixture and grown for three weeks to allow the pathogen to infect the host plants. F. flocciferum took six weeks for appearance of symptoms in the infected potted plants. Control mock inoculation of the potting mixture was carried out using water droplets instead of spore suspension at 100 µl per pot. Seven replications were kept for both inoculated and un-inoculated / control mock pots. The plants developed initial symptoms from light green to yellowish discoloration of leaves followed by the drooping, shriveling, and ultimately leading to death. The collar region of the plant was cut vertically and observed that vascular bundles showed brownish spots and discoloration, indicating wilt as the cause of death. The pathogens were re-isolated and inoculated from all infected plants, then compared with their original pure culture inoculated first, which completely resembled based on morphological, cultural, and pathogenic characteristics. No symptoms were observed on control plants. A phylogenetic analysis was also carried out using ClustalW software that grouped the species identified by different genes into different clades. F. flocciferum has been reported earlier in pea, faba bean and bamboo (Kainthola et al. 2022; Sisic et al. 2020) . In solanaceous crops, this species have been explored as wilt pathogens for the first time from India, indicating diversifying nature of Fusarium flocciferum across various hosts including solanaceous crops.

Removal of an agricultural herbicide (2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid) using magnetic nanocomposite: A combined experimental and modeling studies.

This study focused on modeling the removal of one of the widely used agricultural herbicides known as 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) using polypyrrole-coated Fe2O3 nanoparticles (Fe2O3@PPy). The Fe2O3@PPy nanocomposite was synthesized by surface-coating the Tabebuia aurea leaf extract synthesized Fe2O3 nanoparticles with polypyrrole. After characterization, the adsorptive potential of the nanocomposite for removing 2,4-D from aqueous solution was examined. Central composite design (CCD) was employed for optimizing the adsorption, revealing an adsorption efficiency of 90.65% at a 2,4-D concentration of 12 ppm, a dosage of 3.8 g/L, an agitation speed of 150 rpm, and 196 min. Adsorption dataset fitted satisfactorily to Langmuir isotherm (R2: 0.984 & χ2: 0.054) and pseudo-second-order kinetics (R2: 0.929 & χ2: 0.013) whereas the exothermic and spontaneous nature were confirmed via the thermodynamic study. The predictive models, including adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS), artificial neural network (ANN), and response surface methodology (RSM), demonstrated good precision for the prediction of 2,4-D adsorption, with respective R2 of 0.9719, 0.9604, and 0.9528. Nevertheless, statistical analysis supported ANFIS as the better forecasting tool, while RSM was the least effective. The maximum adsorption capacity of 2,4-D onto the Fe2O3@PPy nanocomposite was 7.29 mg/g, significantly higher than a few reported values. Therefore, the Fe2O3@PPy nanocomposite could serve as a competent adsorbent to remove 2,4-D herbicide from aqueous streams.

Evidence of novel Treponema phylotypes implicated in contagious ovine digital dermatitis and association of treponemes with major lameness causing foot pathogens.

In this study 269 swabs collected from 254 ovine foot lesions and 15 apparently healthy ovine feet were screened by PCR for the presence of major lameness causing foot pathogens viz. Treponema species, D. nodosus, F. necrophorum and T. pyogenes with the presumption that ovine foot lesion positive for Treponema species alone or in association with other three pathogens were categorized as contagious ovine digital dermatitis (CODD). While samples positive for D. nodosus alone or its combination with F. necrophorum and T. pyogenes were considered as footrot (FR) and samples in which F. necrophorum or T. pyogenes was found either alone or in combination were considered as interdigital dermatitis (ID). The overall occurrence of Treponema sp. in ovine foot lesions was 48.0%, and ranged from 33 to 58%. In Treponema positive samples D. nodosus, F. necrophorum and T. pyogenes were present in 34 (27.4%), 66 (54.4%) and 84 (68.5%) in contrast to Treponema negative samples in which these were present in 15 (11.1%), 20 (14.12%) and 17 (12.6%) samples, respectively. The data signifies that Treponema sp. are significantly associated with these foot pathogens and their different combinations with Treponema sp. influence the severity of CODD lesion. The identification of Treponema phylotypes was done by sequencing the 16S rRNA gene fragment of ten representative samples. Out of ten sequences, four (Trep-2, Trep-4, Trep-7 and Trep-10) were identical to Treponema sp. phylotype 1 (PT1) that belongs to phylogroup T. refringens-like, one sequence (Trep-1) was genetically close (90% sequence homology) to Treponema brennaborense while five sequences (Trep-3, Trep-5, Trep-6, Trep-8 and Trep-9) matched with uncultured bacterium clones of treponemes forming separate monophyletic group in phylogenetic tree and could represent new digital dermatitis phylogroup presently containing five ovine specific phylotypes. This is the first report on the presence of Treponema phylotypes other than three digital dermatitis (DD) Treponema phylogroups viz. T. phagedenis-like, T. medium/T. vincentii-like, and T. pedis-like that are frequently detected in CODD lesions. Metagenomic analysis of two representative samples revealed the abundance of genus Treponema in CODD lesion while this genus was absent in swab collected from clinically healthy foot suggesting that it might play primary role in producing CODD. These findings may further aid in understanding the etiopathogenesis of CODD and could help to develop appropriate treatment and mitigation strategies to combat the disease.

Shifting archetype to nature's hidden gems: from sources, purification to uncover the nutritional potential of bioactive peptides.

Contemporary scientific findings revealed that our daily food stuffs are enriched by encrypted bioactive peptides (BPs), evolved by peptide linkage of amino acids or encrypted from the native protein structures. Remarkable to these BPs lies in their potential health benefiting biological activities to serve as nutraceuticals or a lead addition to the development of functional foods. The biological activities of BPs vary depending on the sequence as well as amino acid composition. Existing database records approximately 3000 peptide sequences which possess potential biological activities such as antioxidants, antihypertensive, antithrombotic, anti-adipogenics, anti-microbials, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancerous. The growing evidences suggest that BPs have very low toxicity, higher accuracy, less tissue accretion, and are easily degraded in the disposed environment. BPs are nowadays evolved as biologically active molecules with potential scope to reduce microbial contamination as well as ward off oxidation of foods, amend diverse range of human diseases to enhance the overall quality of human life. Against the clinical and health perspectives of BPs, this review aimed to elaborate current evolution of nutritional potential of BPs, studies pertaining to overcome limitations with respect to special focus on emerging extraction, protection and delivery tools of BPs. In addition, the nano-delivery mechanism of BP and its clinical significance is detailed. The aim of current review is to augment the research in the field of BPs production, identification, characterisation and to speed up the investigation of the incredible potentials of BPs as potential nutritional and functional food ingredient.

Measuring the Influence of Seedling Age and Nutrient Sources on the Performance of Sweet Corn (Zea mays L.) under Temperate Climatic Conditions.

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of the age of a seedling and sources of nutrients on the growth and yield of sweet corn at SKUAST-K during Kharif-2020. The experiment was performed under a factorial arrangement in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Factor A was the age of the seedling with three levels, viz., 12-day-old seedlings, 22-day-old seedlings, and 32-day-old seedlings. Factor B was the source of nutrients with five levels, viz., control, recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF), 1/2 RDF + 12 t ha-1 farmyard manure, 1/2 RDF + 4 t ha-1 vermicompost, and 1/2 RDF + 2 t ha-1 poultry manure. The experiment was tested using variety Sugar-75 with a spacing of 75 × 20 cm2. The findings of this study indicated that the age of the seedling and sources of nutrients extended a significant influence on growth parameters, yield attributes, and yield of sweet corn. Significantly highest values for various growth parameters of sweet corn, viz., plant height, number of functional leaves, leaf area index (LAI), and dry matter accumulation from 30 days after transplanting up to the harvest, were noted by transplanting A2 seedlings (22 day old). A similar trend was observed for yield attributes and yield with higher values with transplanting A2 seedlings (22 day old). Plots fertilized with 1/2 RDF + 2 t ha-1 poultry manure registered a significantly higher plant height, leaf area index (LAI), dry matter accumulation, and number of functional leaves, which eventually resulted in a higher green cob yield and green fodder yield under the same treatment. Overall, this study indicated that among different ages of seedlings, transplanting A2 seedlings (22 day old) outperformed other seedling ages, and plots treated with 1/2 RDF + 2 t ha-1 poultry manure outperformed other treatments; a combination of both proved superior in realizing a higher yield and profitability with a benefit-cost ratio (BCR) of 6.57 under temperate climatic conditions.

Disaster-development interface and its impact on emerging vulnerability scenario in Ladakh region of northwestern Himalayas.

The Union Territory of Ladakh, located in the northwestern Himalayan region, is highly vulnerable to natural and anthropogenic hazards like earthquakes, landslides, snow avalanches, flash floods, cloud bursts, and border conflicts. Occurrences of these disasters have significantly influenced the development and vulnerability scenario of Trans-Himalayan Ladakh. Findings reveal that despite suffering losses from natural and human-induced disasters, the region has benefited by grabbing the attention of policymakers at the national level. Consequently, long-term developments were positively impacted, reflecting infrastructural upgradation, improved transportation and communication, profoundly improving the socio-economic well-being of the people. Furthermore, post-disaster developments have managed to showcase the unique physiography and adventurous terrains of Ladakh, promoting tourism as the main economic driver in the region. The exponential growth of tourism and associated sectors have influenced the vulnerability scenario, which was quantified using the multi-criterion-based analytical hierarchical processes (AHP) method, indicating an increase in climate change-related vulnerability, followed by socio-cultural, environmental, and physical vulnerabilities. Specifically, the vulnerabilities with respect to flash floods, landslides, erratic rainfall, haphazard constructions, cultural dilution, water crisis, and changes in land use patterns have been exacerbated across the study area. The study highlights the need for effective management of these emerging vulnerabilities through proper planning to ensure long-term sustainable development goals in this environmentally fragile region.

Biochemical and proteomic insights revealed selenium priming induced phosphorus stress tolerance in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.).

BACKGROUND: Mineral stress is one of the dominating abiotic stresses, which leads to decrease in crop production. Selenium (Se) seed priming is a recent approach to mitigate the plant's mineral deficiency stress. Although not an essential element, Se has beneficial effects on the plants in terms of growth, quality, yield and plant defense system thus, enhancing plant tolerance to mineral deficiency. METHODS AND RESULTS: The present research was accomplished to find out the effect of Se priming on common bean plant (SFB-1 variety) under phosphorus (P) stress. The seeds were grown invitro on four different MGRL media which are normal MGRL media as control with non-Se primed seeds (Se- P+), non -Se primed seeds grown on P deficient MGRL media (Se- P-), Se primed seeds grown on normal MGRL media (Se+P+) and Se primed seeds grown on P deficient MGRL media (Se+P -). The various morphological and biochemical parameters such as proline content, total sugar content, polyphenols and expression of proteins were analyzed under P stress. The results showed that Se priming has significantly (p ≤ 0.05) affected the morphological as well as biochemical parameters under normal and P stress conditions. The morphological parameters-length, weight, number of nodes and leaves of Se+P+, Se+P- root and shoot tissue showed significant increase as compared to Se-P+, Se-P-. Similarly various biochemical parameters such as total chlorophyll content, proline, total sugar content and polyphenols of Se+P+, Se+P- increased significantly as compared to Se-P+, Se-P-. The differential protein expression in both Se+P+, Se+P- and Se-P+, Se-P- plants were determined using MALDI-MS/MS. The differentially expressed proteins in Se+P+, Se+P- plants were identified as caffeic acid-3-O-methyltransferase (COMT) and SecA protein (a subunit of Protein Translocan transporter), and are found responsible for lignin synthesis in root cell walls and ATP dependent movement of thylakoid proteins across the membranes in shoot respectively. The differential expression of proteins in plant tissues, validated morphological and biochemical responses such as maintaining membrane integrity, enhanced modifications in cellular metabolism, improved polyphenol activities and expression of defensive proteins against mineral deficiency. CONCLUSIONS: The study provided an understanding of Se application as a potential approach increasing tolerance and yield in crop plants against mineral deficiency.

An inexpensive phytoremediation system for treating 50,000 L/day of sewage.

The paper describes the setting up and long-term continuous operation of the first real-life, pilot scale, sewage treatment plant based on the recently patented phytoremediation technology, trademarked as SHEFROL®. The unit was about three times cheaper to install, operate and maintain than the least expensive of the other wetland-based technologies presently in vogue. Its semi-permanent version is 30 times cheaper. Monitoring of flow rates and levels of treatment intermittently over a 3 year course of continuous operation indicated the constancy and robustness of the reactor in treating total solids, suspended solids, chemical oxygen demand, biological oxygen demand, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, and soluble phosphorous to the average extents of 94, 84, 79, 70, 62 and 28% respectively. Earlier experience with bench-scale SHEFROL® units has indicated that removal of metals like Cu, Ni, Co, Zn, and Mn also takes place to the extent of 25-45% in these systems. These primary, secondary, and tertiary treatments occurred in a single unit process with no necessity of any pumping, aeration, or recycling. Models based on artificial intelligence were developed which enable forecasting the reactor performance in terms of secondary and tertiary treatment, respectively.

The paper describes the setting-up, long-term (3 years) performance evaluation at pilot scale, and modeling of a recently patented novel and unprecedented phytoremediation-based sewage treatment technology. The system is seen to be much more robust, versatile, space efficient, and economical, than existing macrophyte-based sewage treatment systems.

Assessing indigenous community's perspectives and attitudes toward tourism development impacts in the northwestern Himalayas, India.

An assessment and monitoring of tourism impacts coupled with community perception have emerged as a vital tool for ensuring the sustainability of mountain tourism destinations in recent years. The present study aims to explore the indigenous community's perspectives on tourism impacts and their participation in the process of tourism development at Doodhpathri, an emerging tourist resort in Jammu and Kashmir, India. A non-probability convenience sampling method based on 344 questionnaires has been used to accomplish the research objectives. Inferential statistics and factor analysis were employed to analyze the collected data. Our assessment reveals that in general, tourism is viewed as a development industry. Its positives are better perceived than its negatives, given that it generates employment prospects, boosts household income, improves the image of the area, and raises the indigenous community's standard of living. However, a substantial portion of the population living in the area perceives tourism activities as the cause of multiple environmental and biophysical issues, such as increased waste generation leading to pollution and water quality deterioration. On the whole, most of the residents were positive about future tourism development and optimistic about tourism management practices. However, the area has recently observed a voluminous influx of both local and foreign tourists, which necessitates the formulation of a sustainable tourism planning strategy.

Fusarium chlamydosporum, causing wilt disease of chili (Capsicum annum L.) and brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) in Northern Himalayas: a first report.

Chili (Capsicum annuum L.) and brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) are the most widely grown solanaceous crops in the world. However, their production has reduced over several years due to the attack of various fungal and bacterial pathogens and various abiotic factors. Still, the major constrain in their production are pathogens with fungal etiology, especially the fungal wilt of solanaceous crops. Fusarium oxysporum and Fusarium solani have been previously identified as the pathogens causing wilt disease in chili and brinjal. Recently, a new fungal pathogen F. equiseti has been reported as the causal agent of wilt disease infecting chili. The current study focused on identifying fungal pathogens associated with the wilted plants of chili and brinjal, collected from different parts of the Himalayan region of Kashmir valley, through morpho-cultural and molecular characterization. DNA extraction, PCR amplification, and sequencing were performed on various isolates. DNA barcoding using the internal transcribed spacer region (ITS) was used to identify the pathogen followed by the pathogenicity test. Further confirmation of the pathogen was done by sequencing of transcription elongation factor (TEF) and Calmodulin (CAL2). In current study Fusarium chlamydosporum has been reported as the wilt causing pathogen of chili and brinjal for the first time in Kashmir Himalayas.

A Comparative Study of the Efficacy of Intralesional 5 Fluorouracil vs Combination of 5 Fluorouracil with Triamcinolone Acetonide in Keloids.

Context: Keloids are defined as scars that invade the adjacent tissues and rarely regress. In recent years, antimitotic drugs have been used in the management of keloids with promising results. This study highlights the effectiveness of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in keloids. Aims: To study the efficacy of intralesional 5-FU in keloids as a solo agent and in combination with triamcinolone acetonide and to study the side effects of both the drugs. Methods and Materials: A total of 30 patients with keloids were randomly allocated into two groups. Group A received 50 mg/mL of 5-FU intralesionally. Group B patients received a combination of 40 mg/mL of intralesional triamcinolone acetonide and 50 mg/mL of 5-FU. The patients were observed for immediate and delayed complications and the treatment was continued for a total of 3 months. Statistical Analysis Used: ANOVA, Mann-Whitney test, Fisher's test, Chi-square test. Results: The patients in both groups showed a significant reduction in the size and thickness of the lesions. The reduction in the length of keloid was highly significant in both the groups but in comparison, there was no statistically significant difference in the reduction of lesions among both the groups. Hence, both modalities of treatment can be claimed to be equally efficacious. The therapeutic response was good to excellent in most patients with only one patient opting out of the therapy in the 5-FU group due to the inability to tolerate the pain. The common side effects noted were pain, itching, ulceration, burning sensation, and bulla formation. Conclusions: 5-FU, both as a single agent or in combination with steroids is equally efficacious in reducing the keloid size. The side effects are lesser with the combination group.

Land-use systems regulate carbon geochemistry in the temperate Himalayas, India.

The Himalayan ecosystem is critical for ecological security and environmental sustainability. However, continuous deforestation is posing a serious threat to Himalayan sustainability. Changing land-use systems exert a tenacious impact on soil carbon (C) dynamics and regulate C emissions from Himalayan ecosystem. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the changes in different C pools and associated soil properties under diverse land-use systems, viz. natural forest, natural grassland, maize field converted from the forest, plantation, and paddy field of temperate Himalaya in the surface (0-20 cm) and subsurface (20-40 cm) soils. The highest total organic carbon (24.24 g kg-1) and Walkley-black carbon contents (18.23 g kg-1), total organic carbon (45.88 Mg ha-1), and Walkley-black carbon stocks (34.50 Mg ha-1) were recorded in natural forest in surface soil (0-20 cm depth), while soil under paddy field had least total organic carbon (36.45 Mg ha-1) and Walkley-black carbon stocks (27.40 Mg ha-1) in surface soil (0-20 cm depth). The conversion of natural forest into paddy land results in 47.36% C losses. Among the cultivated land-use system, minimum C losses (29.0%) from different pools over natural forest system were reported under maize-filed converted from forest system. Land conversion causes more C losses (21.0%) in surface soil (0-20 cm depth) as compared to subsurface soil. Furthermore, conversion of forest land into paddy fields increased soil pH by 5.9% and reduced total nitrogen contents and microbial population by 28.0% and 7.0%, respectively. However, the intensity of total nitrogen and microbial population reduction was the lowest under maize fields converted from the forest system. The study suggested that the conversion of natural forest to agricultural land must be discouraged in the temperate Himalayan region. However, to feed the growing population, converted forest land can be brought under conservation effective maize-based systems to reduce C loss from the intensive land use and contribute to soil quality improvements and climate change mitigation.

Unravelling rutin content of tartary buckwheat of north western Himalayas and insights into nucleotide polymorphisms in PAL gene to infer the associations with rutin biosynthesis.

Buckwheat (Fagopyrum spp.) has immense nutritional and nutraceutical potential. All the plant parts of buckwheat possess various metabolites, such as rutin, quercetin, vitexin etc. The high content of rutin in this pseudo cereal crop strongly adapts it to grow under adverse environments. In the present study 50 germplasm lines of Fagopyrum tataricum were used for estimation of seed endosperm rutin content through HPLC. Furthermore, molecular analysis of PAL gene (Phenylalanine Ammonia Lyase), an upstream gene in rutin biosynthesis pathway was targeted for detection of SNPs to understand the variations in the concentrations of seed endosperm rutin content, among tartary buckwheat genotypes with highest and lowest seed endosperm rutin content. Three primer pairs were employed for amplification of PAL gene for F. tartaricum (covering whole gene) followed by sequencing. Rutin concentration in seed endosperm of F. tartaricum ranged from 194.86 to 1403.22 ppm with an average of 617.06 ppm. Highest rutin concentration was found in genotype BWZ90 and lowest in BWZ16. Significant variations were observed in the seed endosperm rutin content among the genotypes of tartary buckwheat. Furthermore, alignment of PAL gene sequences of genotypes with high seed endosperm rutin content and low seed endosperm rutin content revealed variations at 21 polymorphic sites. The amino acid sequences obtained from the nucleotide sequences were also aligned and the variations were detected at 19 positions. The putative protein structure showed conformational changes among predicted proteins from two contrasting genotypes for endosperm rutin content. We here established an inventory of seed endosperm rutin content of tartary buckwheat. This study also provided insights about role of these SNPs in rutin biosynthesis. Furthermore, this information can be used for breeding buckwheat for high metabolite contents. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-022-03218-y.

A rare presentation of pseudoepitheliomatous keratotic and micaceous balanitis with malignant transformation.

Pseudoepitheliomatous keratotic and micaceous balanitis (PKMB) is a rare nonvenereal penile condition with a risk of malignant transformation. We report a case of PKMB in a 45-year-old male who presented with multiple keratotic growths over his glans penis after circumcision for long-standing phimosis. Histopathology revealed pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia and atypical cells. He was successfully treated with wide local excision.

DNA marker based diversity across rice genotypes and advanced breeding lines bred for temperate regions of North-West India.

BACKGROUND: Characterization and evaluation of plant genetic resources play an important role for their utilization in the crop improvement programmes. METHODS AND RESULTS: This study involves the agro-morphological and cooking quality besides, molecular characterization of 51 genotypes/advance breeding lines of rice from Kashmir Himalayas. Significant variability was observed for all agro-morphological and cooking quality traits among all the studied genotypes. Cluster analysis using UPGMA method divided the genotypes into two major clusters having 15 and 36 genotypes. Thirty eight genotypes screened using 24 SSR markers detected 48 alleles with 2.0 alleles for each locus with average polymorphism information content (PIC) of 0.37. High polymorphism information content (PIC) values was observed for the primers RM263 (0.67), RM159 (0.59) and RM333 (0.50). Furthermore, out of 38 SSR markers screened on 192 temperate rice germpalsm lines, R4M17 accurately differentiated indica and temperate japonica genotypes amplifying 220 bp and 169 bp, respectively. Accordingly, 15 genotypes were reported as indica and 28 temperate japonica in addition to 149 genotypes as intermediate types. CONCLUSION: The information on marker-based diversity and performance based on cooking quality and agronomic traits helped to select the most divergent lines for crossing. Also the analysis was useful to classify the temperate germplasm into indica and temperate japonica. The classification could be helpful to devise a strategy for inter-sub species hybridization to breed for improved rice varieties.

Long-term outcomes of ablation, liver resection, and liver transplant as first-line treatment for solitary HCC of 3 cm or less using an intention-to-treat analysis: A retrospective cohort study.

Background: Curative-intent therapies for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) include radiofrequency ablation (RFA), liver resection (LR), and liver transplantation (LT). Controversy exists in treatment selection for early-stage tumours. We sought to evaluate the oncologic outcomes of patients who received either RFA, LR, or LT as first-line treatment for solitary HCC ≤ 3 cm in an intention-to-treat analysis. Materials and methods: All patients with solitary HCC ≤ 3 cm who underwent RFA, LR, or were listed for LT between Feb-2000 and Nov-2018 were analyzed. Cox regression analysis was then performed to compare intention-to-treat (ITT) survival by initial treatment allocation and disease-free survival (DFS) by treatment received in patients eligible for all three treatments. Results: A total of 119 patients were identified (RFA n = 83; LR n = 25; LT n = 11). The overall intention-to-treat survival was similar between the three groups. The overall DFS was highest for the LT group. This was significantly higher than RFA (p = 0.02), but not statistically significantly different from LR (p = 0.14). After multivariable adjustment, ITT survival was similar in the LR and LT groups relative to RFA (LR HR:1.13, 95%CI 0.33-3.82; p = 0.80; LT HR:1.39, 95%CI 0.35-5.44; p = 0.60). On multivariable DFS analysis, only LT was better relative to RFA (LR HR:0.52, 95%CI 0.26-1.02; p = 0.06; LT HR:0.15, 95%CI 0.03-0.67; p = 0.01). Compared to LR, LT was associated with a numerically lower hazard on multivariable DFS analysis, though this did not reach statistical significance (HR 0.30, 95%CI 0.06-1.43; p = 0.13). Conclusion: For treatment-naïve patients with solitary HCC ≤ 3 cm who are eligible for RFA, LR, and LT, adjusted ITT survival is equivalent amongst the treatment modalities, however, DFS is better with LR and LT, compared with RFA. Differences in recurrence between treatment modalities and equipoise in ITT survival provides support for a future prospective trial in this setting.

Evaluation of seedling age and nutrient sources on phenology, yield and agrometeorological indices for sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata L.).

The field experiment was conducted during Kharif season of 2020 at Agronomy farm of Faculty of Agriculture, Wadura, SKUAST-K to study the influence of age of seedling and sources of nutrients on phenology, yield and agrometeorological indices for sweet corn. The experiment included two factors viz. age of seedlings (12, 22 and 32 days old seedling) and sources of nutrients (control, RDF, 50 percent RDF + FYM @ 12 t ha-1, 50 percent RDF + vermi-compost @ 4 t ha-1 and 50 percent RDF + poultry manure @ 2 t ha-1) tested in RCBD with three replications. Transplanting 12 days old seedlings required maximum number of days to attain different phenological stages, thereby accumulated maximum heat units followed by 22 days old seedlings. While as transplanting 22 days old seedling recorded significantly highest HUE, HTUE, PTUE and HyTUE and consequently resulted in the highest green cob and biological yield compared to other ages of seedlings. Among various sources of nutrients, application of 50 per cent RDF + poultry manure @ 2 t ha-1 took maximum number of days to attain various phenophases thereby accumulated maximum heat units and registered highest HUE, HTUE, PTUE and HyTUE followed by application of 100 per cent RDF.