Poultry farming in India has emerged as a fast-growing livestock sector that supports rural livelihoods by generating income, employment, and nutritional security. Rapid growth in egg and meat production reflects rising demand, technological advancements, and its importance for small and marginal farmers. The present study was undertaken to analyse the economic status of backyard poultry farmers in Hamirpur district of Uttar Pradesh, a region of Bundelkhand where agriculture is the mainstay of rural households but is often constrained by limited irrigation and climatic challenges. A multistage sampling technique was employed to select four tehsils and twelve progressive villages, from which 180 respondents rearing at least 15–20 poultry birds were randomly chosen. Data were collected through personal interviews using a pre-tested, structured interview schedule and analysed using frequency, percentage, cost–return analysis, and ranking techniques. The results revealed that the average annual household income was Rs. 1,43,171.60, of which agriculture contributed the highest share (43.67%), followed by wage labour (31.14%), animal husbandry including poultry (22.32%), and business (2.88%). In backyard poultry farming, the average annual expenditure per household was ₹10,380.00, while the average income from the sale of eggs and birds was ₹20,135.00, resulting in a benefit–cost ratio of 1:1.94, indicating high profitability. Households consumed about 25% of eggs and 28% of birds produced, ensuring nutritional security alongside cash income. The study concludes that backyard poultry farming is a viable and profitable enterprise that supplements agricultural income, provides employment opportunities, and enhances household food security in resource-constrained areas.

Climate change poses significant challenges to global livestock systems, necessitating a deeper understanding of how sheep adapt to diverse environmental conditions. This study aimed to identify genomic regions associated with hot and cold climate adaptation in 3066 sheep from 90 breeds worldwide using medium-density SNP data. The breeds were categorized into hot and cold-adapted groups based on their environmental origins. Through pcadapt, 132 genomic regions were identified under selection across all breeds, with distinct signatures observed in hot (53 regions) and cold (49 regions) adapted groups. These regions encompassed genes crucial for thermoregulation (DNAJB5, SYCP2, TCF7, TSHR, NPR1, and MSRB3), coat colour (MITF, DCTN2) and immune response (CCL26, CDH1, TCF7, and TNFSF12). Functional enrichment analysis revealed biological processes and pathways associated with climate adaptation, including keratin filament organization and cytokine receptor binding in hot climate breeds, and calcium ion binding in cold climate breeds. Protein-protein interaction networks highlighted key hub genes like TP53 and S100A16, implicating their roles in adaptation mechanisms. The findings contribute to the understanding of sheep resilience to climate change and provide genetic markers for future breeding strategies aimed at enhancing livestock sustainability and productivity under changing climatic conditions.

Goat rearing is basic for poverty alleviation and an integral part of the livelihood security of rural families in India, especially in arid, semi-arid, hilly and tribal areas where maintainability of the other livestock species is questionable. The current study was carried out in Mahoba district, which is the least developed with respect to livestock and specially goats and aims to know the problem faced by goat keepers in feeding, health and marketing. Information was obtained from 120 respondents in four villages with the application of a structured interview schedule; analyzed by frequency and percentage procedures. Price fluctuating feed and fodder (81.66%), shrinkage of grazing land (79.16%) and non-availability of dry fodder (73.33%) were the major feeding constraints identified. Regarding the health constraints, non-availability of breeding stock (80.00%) was identified as the most serious problem followed by predator menace (78.33%), poor vaccination coverage (76.66%) and absence of health services (74.16%). Market Constraints: the dominant source of marketing constraint was collusive trade practices (84.16%), followed by price fluctuation (80.00%) and lack of access to market price information (78.33%). These results indicate that there are major constraints in the input supply, veterinary health services and the marketing channels faced by the goat rearers of Mahoba district. These issues can be ameliorated through sustainable interventions, including feed subsidy schemes, grazing land conservation, strengthening of veterinary services, introduction of vaccination programs, promotion of cooperative marketing, as well as market regulation, so as to effectively increase goat production, develop farmer income and livelihood security in the region.

Phytogenic feed additives have become an important component in animal nutrition. Fenugreek seeds, known for its medicinal properties, are also classified as potential galactogogues. Therefore, the present research investigated the potential of fenugreek seeds supplementation on milk production in Patanwadi ewes. Twenty-four lactating ewes with similar milk yield were randomly allocated to 3 equal groups. Group I (Control) was maintained on basal diet without supplementation of fenugreek seeds, whereas Group II (Treatment 1) and Group III (Treatment 2) were supplemented with 2.5 and 5% fenugreek seeds of the basal diet, respectively. Feeding behavior of ewes were recorded on weekly basis for initial five weeks, which included sniff bout, paw bout, snuff bout and feed intake time. Milk yield was recorded at weekly intervals for 13 weeks, while milk composition and blood sample were analyzed during the 1st, 5th, 9th and 13th week. Fenugreek seed supplementation exhibited positive effect on milk production in lactating ewes. Milk yield was higher (p<0.05) in T2 compared to control. The milk composition was also influenced, with the mean fat percentage significantly lower and SNF significantly higher in treatment groups compared to the control. Feeding behaviors (paw bout, sniff bout, snuff bout) were comparable in treatment but were significantly different from the control. A higher economic return was also observed in treatment groups compared to control.

Over the period 1950-2025, the Indian sheep sector has undergone substantial structural transformation in its production orientation, technological base and market integration. Although the national sheep population increased moderately from 39.1 million in 1951 to 74.26 million, output growth has been markedly higher. Mutton production expanded nearly tenfold, reaching 1.185 million tonnes in 2024-25, whereas wool production stabilized at 34.57 million kg, indicating a progressive shift from fibre-dominated systems to meat-oriented production. This transformation has been shaped by genetic improvement programmes, development of synthetic breeds, regionspecific nutritional strategies, advances in reproductive and animal health management, and evolving policy support. India currently ranks second globally in sheep population, underscoring its strategic importance in the small ruminant economy. Despite the growing dominance of mutton in sectoral value, wool continues to hold regional livelihood significance in arid and hill ecosystems. This review synthesizes long-term trends in population and production dynamics, breed development, technological interventions and emerging market drivers. It also analyses persistent constraints, including shrinking grazing resources, limited genetic gain, suboptimal technology adoption, disease burden, market inefficiencies and climate stress. A strategic pathway is proposed to enhance productivity, resilience, value addition and value-chain efficiency while safeguarding the livelihoods of small and marginal sheep farmers across diverse agro-ecological regions.

Poultry farming serves as a reliable source of income and employment, particularly for women and unemployed youth in rural areas. The present study was conducted in the Lalitpur district of the Bundelkhand region, Uttar Pradesh, during the year 2024-2025 to examine the marketing practices of commercial and backyard poultry farmers. A total of 100 respondents, comprising 50 commercial and 50 backyard poultry farmers, were selected randomly from 20 villages across four tehsils of the district. Primary data were collected through a pre-tested interview schedule and analysed using simple percentage analysis. The findings revealed that the majority of farmers (69.00%) preferred to sell poultry products in the evening, while backyard farmers showed a relatively balanced preference between morning (52.00%) and evening (48.00%). In terms of selling points, backyard farmers mainly sold their products at their own door (54.00%), whereas commercial farmers largely depended on middlemen (78.00%). Overall, middlemen were the most common marketing channel (46.00%). The study further indicated that financial need was the sole reason for selling poultry products among all respondents. Backyard farmers showed moderate levels of egg and bird sales, whereas commercial farmers operated on a much larger scale with higher sales volumes. Additionally, backyard farmers tended to sell birds at a younger age, while commercial farmers preferred selling at older ages. The study highlights clear differences in marketing practices between commercial and backyard poultry farmers and emphasises the need for improved market access and support systems to enhance farmers’ income and efficiency.

Traumatic hemorrhagic shock (T/HS) is clinically associated with hematopoietic failure (HF). HF in T/HS patients is characterized by an increase in the levels of norepinephrine, cytokines, granulocyte-colony stimulating factor and peripheral blood hematopoietic progenitor cells, as well as a decrease in the expression of erythropoietin receptors. Reducing cytokines, vascular dysfunction, tissue damage, apoptosis and HF may be possible with cell-based therapy. Regulatory T cells, mesenchymal stem cells, bone marrow mononuclear cells and induced pluripotent stem cell-derived hematopoietic progenitor cells are all cell-based treatments that have shown promise in improving the prognosis of patients with T/HS by ameliorating bone marrow malfunction or HF. Here, we discuss the latest cell-based therapy approaches for treating HF in T/HS patients.

Livestock plays a vital role in the Indian rural economy by contributing to household income, employment, and nutritional security. However, adoption of scientific livestock management practices remains inconsistent across different regions. The study was conducted in the Hamirpur district of Uttar Pradesh to assess the adoption of scientific livestock management practices. From the Sarila block, Indarpura village was purposively selected, and 80 livestock owners were randomly chosen. Primary data for 2024–25 were collected through personal interviews and analysed using frequency and percentage methods. Results showed that (65.00%) of respondents practised regular washing of animals and (55.00%) washed the udder before milking. Preventive health measures were less consistent: (62.50%) adopted vaccination, but only 31.25% practiced deworming, while 60.00% controlled ectoparasites. In breeding management, bellowing (35.00%) and mucus discharge (28.75%) were the most recognised signs of heat. Most farmers (62.50%) mated animals within 12 hours of heat observation. Natural service (58.75%) remained more common than artificial insemination (41.25%). Overall, the study highlights the presence of technological and knowledge gaps in scientific livestock management. It underscores the need for strengthened extension services, improved access to veterinary inputs such as vaccines and dewormers, and enhanced infrastructure for artificial insemination. Promoting clean milk production, preventive health practices, and scientific breeding methods is essential for improving livestock productivity, increasing farmer income, and ensuring sustainable development of the livestock sector.

Prolificacy is a key economic trait in goats, influenced by multiple genetic and environmental factors. This study aims to investigate polymorphisms in five prolificacy-related genes (FSHβ, GDF9, BMP15, KITLG, and POU1F1), and their association with litter size and litter weight in Indian Beetal crossbred goats. A PCR–RFLP approach was employed to genotype five SNPs: g.2645A > G (FSHβ), g.4135G > A (GDF9), g.718C˃T (BMP15), g.12654G > A (KITLG), and c.682G > T (POU1F1). The g.2645A > G mutation in FSHβ, g.718C˃T in BMP15, and c.682G > T in POU1F1 were found to be monomorphic, with only the wild-type genotypes observed. At the g.4135G > A locus of the GDF9 gene, all three genotypes (AA, AG, and GG) differed significantly (p ≤ 0.01) in litter size, particularly in the second parity, third parity, and across parities. The GG genotype exhibited superior phenotypic characteristics, influencing both litter size and litter weight significantly. In the KITLG promoter region, genotyping at the g.12654G > A locus using BsaI revealed three genotypes CC, CT, and TT with allele frequencies of 0.58 (C) and 0.42 (T). The locus significantly deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (p < 0.05), although no significant association with litter traits was observed. These results offer valuable insights into the genetic architecture of prolificacy in Indian Beetal crossbred goats and further investigations with additional breeds and animals is needed to strengthen these observations and better explain the genetic basis of reproductive traits.

INTRODUCTION:Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is a multifactorial endocrine disorder affecting 8-13% of reproductive-aged women, often accompanied by comorbidities such as insulin resistance, cardiovascular disease, and infertility. Current pharmacological therapies primarily manage symptoms and usually cause adverse effects, highlighting the need for safer, multi-target treatments. MATERIALS AND METHODS:This study employs a multi-omics systems-level approach, combining differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and exosomal microRNAs (miRNAs) of PCOS to explore the therapeutic potential of Bauhinia variegata towards PCOS and its comorbidities. A comprehensive phytochemical dataset of Bauhinia variegata (BVPCs) (n=111) was compiled from publicly available databases and subjected to target prediction, ADMET screening, chemical clustering, drug-similarity analysis, molecular interaction, and multilayered network analysis. RESULTS:Transcriptomic profiling identified 571 DEGs and exosomal miRNAs, revealing 92 key BVPCs, including hesperidin, apigenin, naringenin, and podophyllotoxin derivatives, as regulatory bridges linking miRNA dysregulation and gene expression. Toxicity and drug-similarity analysis confirmed that most BVPCs have low predicted toxicity and possess structural similarities to 50 FDA-approved drugs. Protein-protein interaction, network pathway enrichment, and molecular docking revealed strong interactions of BVPCs, viz., hesperidin, Bauhiniastansin, and bauhinols, with the neprilysin enzyme, a key PCOS-related comorbid protein. Their therapeutic effects may be attributed to their ability to modulate inflammation, insulin resistance, neuroendocrine imbalance, and oxidative stress. DISCUSSION:The binding affinities of BVPCs (range -5.4 to -9.6kcal/mol) with PCOS and its comorbid protein targets, indicating a potential role in PCOS metabolic regulation, like Diabetes and Cancer. Moreover, Bauhinia- specific phytochemicals have shown potential as bioactive scaffolds for PCOS targets, which may raise their nutraceutical hope, as they are present in flowers and buds consumed in traditional diets. CONCLUSION:The results identify BVPCs as promising multi-target agents for PCOS and its associated comorbidities, offering new insights into Bauhinia's therapeutic journey.

Weeds are one of the most important biotic factors that cause significant loss in crop productivity. Of the total loss caused by various pests in agriculture, weeds account for 37% followed by insects 29%, diseases 22% and others 12 %. Weed competes with crops for various resources, resulting in severe yield loss, although it largely depends on the management strategies adopted. For the effective management of weeds, various management strategies are adopted viz; cultural, mechanical, chemical and biological. All these approaches are used based on their performance. Henceforth, it is imperative to evaluate the efficacy of suitable management strategies. To evaluate the performance many weed indices are being used. Understanding of these indices is still vital. Weed indices provide a standardized way to quantify the impact of weed presence on crop yield. Allowing researchers to directly compare different weed management approaches, assess their effectiveness, and identify the most efficient methods for managing weeds in a given agricultural setting.

Conservation agriculture (CA) practices have been widely promoted and recognized for their potential to enhance soil sustainability by improving soil properties. The purpose of the 2-year field experiment was to investigate the effect of diversified CA -based cropping systems on nutrient availability and soil characteristics. The study was conducted using a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four replications at each site. Six cropping system (CS) scenarios were tested: S1—rice–wheat–mungbean (R-W-SM) under conventional tillage (CT) without residue retention (R0); S2—R-W-SM under CA with residue retention (R+); S3—maize–wheat–mungbean (M-W-SM) under CT (R0); S4—M-W-SM under permanent bed (PB) with R+; S5—soybean–wheat- mungbean (S-W-SM) under CT (R0); and S6—S-W-SM under PB with R +. Though each annual cropping cycle spanned 1 year, the inclusion of mungbean (summer mungbean) in the same year allowed the assessment of a three-crop rotation within each year. After two cropping years (effectively covering two complete crop rotation cycles), the results indicated that S6 significantly improved the soil properties: bulk density decreased by 4.4% and infiltration rate increased by 45.6% compared with S1. Soil organic carbon and macro- and micro-nutrient availability were notably higher under CA-based systems (S2, S4, and S6). The highest microbial biomass, enzymatic activity, and basal soil respiration (BSR) were recorded in S6. In both years, dehydrogenase activity (DHA) and BSR increased by 58.5%–64.6% under S6 compared with 40.7%–41.4% in S1. Micro-nutrients like Zn, Fe, Mn, and Cu were improved by 10%, 39%, 8%, and 63%, respectively, in S6 over S1. These findings suggest that CA-based soybean–wheat –mungbean systems (S6) can substantially enhance soil health and nutrient dynamics in a short-term rotation and may guide future sustainable agriculture.

The incidence of Ampullary carcinoma (AC) has dramatically increased. Nearly 50% of patients develop recurrence indicating need for additional prognostic marker and treatment options. Emerging evidence suggests that MET genes play a role in tumorigenesis and can be a useful therapeutic target, however, its role in AC remains unexplored. In the current study we investigated methylation, mRNA and protein expression of MET in 61 AC cases and assessed its effect on survival outcomes. We also cross-examined HER2 expression from our previous study in relation to MET expression in AC. Our findings revealed unmethylation (72.13%), increased expression of MET at mRNA (67.21%) and protein (54%) level in ACs patients. Significant correlation was observed between both unmethylation and increased mRNA expression (p-0.026; p-0.000), MET mRNA and protein expression (p-0.037). Further, MET expression was higher in early stage (p-0.003) and I-type (84.21%) than PB-type Acs (61.76%) (p=0.199). Our findings also revealed a co-expression of MET and HER2 receptors in AC. (p=0.014). At a median follow-up of 34 months the mean survival was 37.3 ± 2.5 months. Molecular parameters did not influence the survival outcome. These findings underscore the importance of MET gene in onset of Ampullary cancer. It can act as a diagnostic biomarker and therapeutic target warranting further investigation into its role in disease progression and RTK inhibitor targeted therapy.

The quality and yield of wool determine the economic value of the fine-wool sheep, therefore this study aimed to estimate the (co)variance components and genetic parameters for direct and maternal influences on greasy fleece yield (GFY), staple length (SL) and fibre diameter (FD) of Inter-cross sheep maintained at North Temperate Regional Station, Garsa, Kullu (Himachal Pradesh), India. Data file consisted of first six monthly shearing records of 1084 hoggets descended from 513 ewes and 153 rams over a period of 11 years (2012-2022). Univariate analysis was carried out by average information restricted maximum likelihood (AI-REML) procedure fitting six different animal models with various combinations of direct and maternal effects. Improvement of log-likelihood values were used to evaluate the best fit models for fibre traits. Analysis revealed that year of birth was significant (P < 0.05) on all traits, while sex and types of birth on GFY and SL only. It indicates specialized care and management of lambs across significant effects to avoid production losses. Model 3, incorporating direct additive genetic, maternal additive genetic and their covariance showed the maximum Log-Likelihood estimate for all traits. The direct heritability for GFY, SL and FD were 0.11 +/- 0.06, 0.10 +/- 0.06 and 0.06 +/- 0.05 and corresponding maternal heritability for respective traits were 0.06, 0.03, and 0.08, respectively. The correlations between direct and maternal effects ranged from -0.47 +/- 0.07 (GFY) to -0.89 +/- 0.31 (FD) for wool traits, which have inflated the heritability estimate. The total heritability estimates were very low indicating very low additive genetic variance for these traits. Genetic correlations among various wool traits were low and positive. These results suggest little scope of direct selection for these traits, however care and management of lambs during critical phase of growth, that affects the wool production and quality may help in reducing wool production losses.

The objective of this investigation was to estimate the (co)variance components and genetic parameters for pre-weaning growth traits in inter-cross sheep maintained at NTRS, ICAR-CSWRI, Garsa, India. Data records of 1891 lambs for birth weight (BW) and 1763 lambs for weaning weight (WW) descending from 183 rams and 667 dams, born between 2012 and 2023, were utilised in the study. The live weight was used for the calculation of pre-weaning average daily weight gain (PDWG), pre-weaning Kleiber ratio (PKR), pre-weaning growth efficiency (PGE) and pre-weaning relative growth rate (PGR). The fixed effects used in the model were birth year, genetic group, sex, type of birth, and parity of dam. Estimation of covariance components was carried out by fitting a series of animal models using the average information restricted maximum likelihood (AIREML) algorithm. The best-fitting model was determined after testing for improvement in log-likelihood values. The overall LSM ± SE for BW, WW, PADG, PKR, PGE, and PGR were 3.29 ± 0.04 kg, 14.83 ± 0.22 kg, 127.87 ± 2.46 g, 16.78 ± 0.13, 357.53 ± 7.13, and 1.66 ± 0.02, respectively. Analysis revealed that pre-weaning traits were significantly (p < 0.05) affected by year of birth, parity of dam, type of birth and sex of the lamb. Direct heritability estimates were 0.11 ± 0.04, 0.16 ± 0.04, 0.16 ± 0.04, 0.15 ± 0.06, 0.18 ± 0.06 and 0.17 ± 0.06 for BW, WW, PADG, PKR, PGE, and PGR, respectively. The corresponding maternal heritability estimates for BW, PKR, PGE, and PGR traits were 0.19 ± 0.03, 0.11 ± 0.04, 0.13 ± 0.04, and 0.12 ± 0.04, respectively. For WW and ADWG, only direct effects were significant. The correlations of WW with efficiency-related traits and among the other traits were quite high and positive. Significant impact of maternal care for early growth traits in this breed indicates the importance of considering both direct and maternal effects for genetic evaluation. The moderate estimate of heritability for WW with high and positive genetic correlations with other traits, makes this trait a candidate for selection in the present flock. We therefore recommend the use of WW as a single trait selection criterion for the overall improvement of the growth traits in the sheep flock.

The development of biosynthesized and cost-efficient nanomedicine is a promising strategy in cancer therapeutics. Herein, we have synthesized highly potent silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using methanolic and ethanolic extracts of Citrus medica fruit, unraveling the significance of different solvents. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy confirmed the occurrence of secondary metabolites on the synthesized AgNPs’ surface. The Zetasizer analysis showed no significant particle-size differences between both solvents-based-synthesized AgNPs; however, zeta potential showed significant differences in the particle surface charge. The high-resolution transmission electron microscopy confirmed a predominantly spherical morphology of AgNPs. Notably, AgNPs synthesized from ethanolic extracts exhibited smaller sizes (5–7 nm) and a more uniform distribution compared to their methanolic counterparts. The X-ray diffraction demonstrated a polycrystalline nature with a face-centered cubic structure. Functional assays showed a significant increase in the anticancer efficacy of ethanolic extract-derived AgNPs against the breast cancer cells (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231), accompanied by extensive DNA fragmentation and enhanced induction of apoptosis. Mechanistically, both methanolic and ethanolic AgNPs induce upregulation of pro-apoptotic gene expression (e.g., TP53, BAX, and CYCS) and downregulation of anti-apoptotic gene (e.g., BCL2). The flow cytometry analysis showed a substantial increase of the ethanolic extract-based AgNPs in the late-stage apoptotic cells, which was further confirmed by morphological changes in treated MCF-7 cells. This study reveals the pivotal influence of the selection of solvent on the synthesis and anticancer potency of AgNPs, significantly impacting their ability to induce apoptosis in MCF-7 cells. Our findings introduce a novel strategy for optimizing green-synthesized AgNPs-based therapies, offering promising avenues for advancing nanoparticle-driven cancer treatments and potentially transforming future therapeutic approaches in oncology. Schematic representation of AgNPs synthesized from methanolic or ethanolic extract of Citrus medica fruit and evaluations of their anticancer efficacy against MCF-7 cell lines.