This study aimed to assess the current adoption level of mango production technologies among orchardists in Meerut district, Uttar Pradesh. Understanding adoption rates is crucial for promoting new and improved practices. Based on maximum area and production, researchers randomly selected 10 orchardists from each of two purposefully chosen villages with the help of progressive orchardists and village leaders. This resulted in a sample size of 80 orchardists. The study found that a majority of respondents (61.25%) had partially adopted the use of improved mango varieties. Adoption rates were lower for other practices. For instance, nearly half (45%) of orchardists partially adopted recommended land preparation practices, while over half (56.25%) did not adopt recommended plantation practices. Similarly, over half (51.25%) did not adopt the recommended fertilizer and manure application rates. However, a higher proportion (58.75%) partially adopted recommended irrigation practices.

To maintain yield stability and environmental sustainability of rice cultivation, improvement in nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) is essential. We identified rice genotypes showing high NUE in control (N120) and N deficient (N0) field conditions by analyzing different NUE parameters. Reproductive stage N assimilatory and signalling gene expression correlated to the variation in N utilization efficiency (NutE) variation. The sequence variation in N metabolism and signaling (NLP) genes was analyzed in selected genotypes (Apo (Indica) and Nerica-L-42 (Oryza glaberrima*Indica)). Significant non-synonymous SNPs were found in NPF2.2, PTR2, NGR9 (DEP1), Fd-GOGAT, NLP3, NLP4 and NLP5 genes of Apo, Nerica-L-42 and w.r.to japonica genotype Nipponbare. The significant variation in reproductive stage gene expression and changes in the amino acid sequence of NLP3, NLP4, and NLP5 among rice genotypes differing in NUtE is a new and potent genome editing target improving rice NUE. The non-synonymous SNPs identified in the study will be important genomic resources for improving rice NUE.

An essential natural resource supporting agriculture and ecosystem health, soil is home to a variety of microbial communities that are essential to the productivity and health of ecosystems.These microbes, which include viruses, bacteria, fungus, and protozoa, are essential to the breakdown of organic matter, cycling of nutrients, and preservation of soil structure.Microbial activity has a critical role in nutrients release, infection suppression, nitrogen fixation, and soil fertility as well as ecosystem resilience.However, intensive farming, pollution, and climate change pose risks to soil microbial communities, jeopardising ecosystem processes and soil health.Evaluating soil condition and production has become increasingly dependent on the profiling, characterization, including detection of soil microbial populations-the so-called soil microbiome (SM).Considerations about soil management are aided by the understanding of the interactions, composition, and roles of the microbial community that SM analysis offers.Strategies to improve soil fertility, lower chemical inputs, and advance crop health are guided by SM analysis, which identifies beneficial microorganisms and hazardous pathogens.The integration of microbiome information with precision farming technology optimises agricultural operations, leading to increased productivity and sustainability.Ecosystem dynamics are driven by the complex biological interactions among plants, soils, and microorganisms.These interactions have an impact on nutrient cycling, soil health, and plant development.In order to promote resilience to climate change and agricultural productivity, it is crucial to comprehend these interactions in order to develop sustainable management techniques.By advancing our understanding of soil microbiomes, interdisciplinary collaborations and ongoing research will provide fresh perspectives on the functioning of soil ecosystems and environmental sustainability.

Nitrogen (N) deficiency alters grain morphology and reduces yield and quality rice ( Oryza sativa L.). This study investigates the impact of nitrogen (N) deficiency on grain morphology, yield, and quality in 30 diverse rice genotypes. The genotypes were grown under field conditions during the 2019 and 2020-kharif seasons, subjected to two N regimes: N deficient (N0) and N sufficient (N120). Nitrogen deficiency resulted in reduced grain weight and protein content. Variations in grain morphology-related traits were observed among rice genotypes under different N applications, and these changes were correlated with yield. Certain genotypes, like APO, Nerica-L-42, and Kalinga-1, exhibited better performance under N0, indicating their tolerance to low N environments. Additionally, specific genotypes showed higher grain protein content under both N0 and N120 treatments. The study highlights the relationship between grain N content, grain morphology, and yield traits in rice under varying N conditions.

In the present study, 30 diverse genotypes of rice sub-species were evaluated for variations in phenology, grain protein content, grain morphology and yield under field conditions with different nitrogen (N) regimes i.e., N deficient (N=0) and N sufficient (N=120 kg ha(-1)). N deficiency decreased the leaf greenness, panicle yield, grain protein content, altered the grain morphology and grain-related parameters. Significant variations in grain morphology-related parameters such as grain length and grain width among rice genotypes were observed for different N treatments. Changes in grain morphology related parameters were correlated with yield. The study identified Sahbhagi Dhan, BAM-759, BVD-109, Pusa Sugandh-5, and Kalinga-1 that maintained higher vegetative greenness, while Sahbhagi Dhan, Vandana, Nerica-L-44, Kalinga-1 and APO that showed higher panicle yield under N0 condition. Rice genotypes APO, Nerica-L-42 and Kalinga-1 performed well under N0 with a lesser impact on crop phenology and grain morphology. Grain protein content was found higher in BAM-759, Anjali, Thurur Bhog, IR-64, Rasi, and Kalinga-1under both the treatments. Flag leaf Soil Plant Analysis Development (SPAD) and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) measurements were significantly correlated with grain yield, and grain protein content. The trait specific donors suitable for low N conditions identified in the study will pave the way forward to the research in understanding underlying mechanisms and in crop improvement programs.

Abstract To maintain yield stability and environmental sustainability of rice cultivation, improvement in nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) is essential. We identified rice genotypes showing high NUE in control (N120) and N deficient (N0) field conditions by analyzing NUE parameters and different contributing traits. In the first season, genotypes BAM-3181, BAM-4797, BAM-3154, NL-26 IR-83929-B-B-291-3-1-1 (IR-3-1-1), APO and NERICA-L-42 showed high biomass, panicle yield and N utilization efficiency (NutE) at low N field conditions. Reproductive stage N assimilatory and signaling gene expression was correlated to the variation in NUtE. The sequence variation in N metabolism and signaling (NLP) genes were analyzed in selected genotypes (APO and NERICA-L-42). Significant non-synonymous SNPs were found in NPF2.2, PTR2, NGR9 (DEP1), Fd-GOGAT, NLP3, NLP4 and NLP5 genes of APO, NERICA-L-42 and w.r.to japonica genotype Nipponbare. The significant variation in reproductive stage gene expression and changes in amino acid sequence of NLP3, NLP4, NLP5 among rice genotypes differing in NUE is an unexplored and potent genome editing target for high NUE in rice. The non-synonymous SNPs identified in the study will be important genomic resources for improving rice NUE.

The current study is done for formulating and characterizing self-emulsifying drug delivery system (SEDDS).In the current research it has been shown that the SEDDS is a tedious pharmaceutical technology which has the potential for the improvement in biopharmaceutics properties like absorption, metabolism, distribution and excretion of Cyclosporin A also opens new window for developing the procedures to enhance the solubility of low water solubilised drugs.The stability in gastrointestinal drug as well as rate of absorption of drug in SEDDS can be increased by this approach.3 types of methods were used for the formulation of Self emulsifying drug delivery system (SEDDS) containing cyclosporine: Cold homogenisation method, Hot Homogenisation method and method of injection with the use of emulsifying agent and stabilising agent.The optimisation of formulation variables were done with the use of 33 factorial design.The analysation of 3 independent formulation variables were done at the time of study which includes the concentration of surfactant (A), concentration of stabiliser (B) and lipid concentration (C).The droplet size (X) and polydispersity index (Y) were the investigated dependent variables .The complete experiment includes 27 designed points.The pattern of release of optimized formulation was almost similar to the release pattern of marketed formulation.Less nephrotoxicity and less inflammation is observed in SEDDS containing Cyclosporin A when compared with available marketed product.Hence, SEDDS containing Cyclosporin A is a system which is very important for the enhancement of solubility of drugs which have very less solubility in water.

Chest tube insertion is a vital, often life-saving procedure which may be required for any patient. A comprehensive knowledge about safe insertion, maintenance and removal of the chest tube is vital for every health-care professional. This article describes essential components of chest tube management such as type of chest tubes, drainage systems, how to perform safe insertion, connecting to the drainage system, fixation of chest tube, precautions during initial drainage, monitoring of patient, daily measurement and emptying of bottle, pain relief, chest physiotherapy, patient transport, method of collecting pleural fluid sample and steps of safe removal.

The experiment was conducted during 2020–2021 at Horticultural Research Centre of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel University of Agriculture & Technology, Meerut (U.P.). Experiment was conducted with pruning intensity i.e. control 0 Percent, 25 Percent, 50 percent, 75 percent & quality parameters were analyzed. The experiment was laid out Factorial Randomized Block Design (FRBD) in total 48 selected plants with12 number of treatmentsin each replicated 4 times where each treatment consists of one plant. The results were found maximum in all the parameters viz., TSS (15.160 0BRIX), total sugar value (7.773%), reducing sugar (6.198%) non-reducing sugar (3.668%) and Vitamin C (278.708 mg) during first week of March with 75% of pruning intensity. The minimum values were found in control pruning (0%). In general, the pruning of guava trees in first week of March with 75% of pruning intensity level was found beneficial for enhancing fruit size and quality of guava.

Dear Editor, Burkitt Lymphoma (BL) is a mature B-cell NHL with distinct morphology, consistent immunophenotype, and classic translocations between the immunoglobulin heavy chain and MYC genes. The revised WHO classification of lymphoid neoplasms introduced a new provisional entity "Burkitt Like Lymphoma with 11q Aberrations (BL-11q)" with gene expression and pathological characteristics of Burkitt Lymphoma (BL) and absence of MYC translocation, carrying 11q proximal gains and telomeric losses. The minimal region of gain (MGR) and loss (MLR) has been defined at 11q23.3 and 11q24.1-q25 respectively based on the studies by Ferreiro et al. (2015) and Salaverria et al. (2014).[1,2,3] Compared to BL, these lymphomas have more complex karyotypes, lower levels of C-MYC expression, a certain degree of cytological pleomorphism, and frequently a nodal presentation. The clinical course seems to be similar to BL but the number of cases reported is still limited. The study by Farre et al. documented 11 cases of BL-11q based on CN analysis. They suggested that BL-11q is genetically similar to DLBCL rather than BL as they lacked the typical BL mutations in ID3, TCF3, or CCND3 genes.[4] In addition, they showed that BL-11q differed clinically, morphologically, and phenotypically from conventional BL and instead showed features more similar to high-grade B-cell lymphomas (HGBCL) or DLBCL such as higher incidence in younger patients <40 years, propensity for localized lymphadenopathy, and favorable treatment outcome, although treatment needs to be validated.[5,6] The primary aim of this retrospective and prospective study was to find out the frequency of BL-11q aberrations in Indian settings and define the clinico-pathologic characteristics and prognostic outcome of the "lymphomas morphologically, immunohistochemically and ISH compatible with BL" in accordance with the revised WHO classification of lymphoid neoplasms 2017. Initially, a review of approximately three hundred and sixty Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma cases newly diagnosed in the department of Histopathology during the period of 2012–2018 was done to select the final cohort of thirty-six (~10%) lymphomas morphologically, immunohistochemically and ISH compatible with BL. It mainly comprised of intermediate-sized atypical lymphoid cells with prominent nucleoli, scant cytoplasm and brisk mitosis, negligible background T cells, starry sky pattern, and immunohistochemistry showing CD10+/CD20+/BCL-6+/BCL-2 negative/MUM-1 negative/EBER-ISH±/Ki-67 of 95–100% [Figure 1]. Both c-MYC positive (cut –off of >40% was considered positive) and c-MYC negative cases were included for further testing Relapsed/refractory patients were excluded from the study. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board and informed consent was taken from all patients in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. FISH studies were performed on paraffin blocks according to the manufacturer's protocol. Zytolight SPEC MYC Dual Color Break Apart Probe was used for detecting translocations involving the chromosomal region 8q24.21 harboring the MYC gene [Figure 2]. Zytolight SPEC 11q gain/loss Triple Color Probe was used for detecting the 11q aberrations [Figure 3].Figure 1: High power view of (a) H and E of Classical BL, (b) IHC for CD20, (c) Ki-67, (d) CD10, (e) BCL-6, and (f) C-MYCFigure 2: 100× view: In an interphase nucleus lacking a translocation involving the 8q24.21 band, two orange/green fusion signals are expected representing two normal (non-rearranged) 8q24.21 loci. A signal pattern consisting of one orange/green fusion signal, one orange signal, and a separate green signal indicates one normal 8q24.21 locus and one 8q24.21 locus affected by an 8q24.21 translocation. Alternating breakpoints observed in variant MYC translocations t(8;22) and t(2;8) might result in different signal patternsFigure 3: 100× view: The SPEC 11q gain/loss Triple Color probe is a mixture of a green fluorochrome direct labeled probe hybridizing in the MGR at 11q23.3, an orange fluorochrome direct labeled probe hybridizing in the MLR at 11q24.3, and a blue fluorochrome direct labeled CEN 11 probe specific for the alpha satellite centromeric region of chromosome 11. In a normal interphase nucleus, two green, two orange, and two blue signals are expected. In a cell with amplification at 11q23.3 and deletion at 11q24.3, multiple copies of the green signals and a reduced number of orange signals will be observedOf the thirty-six lymphomas morphologically, immunohistochemically and ISH compatible with BL, MYC rearrangement was found in 22/36 patients (61.1%). IHC for c-MYC protein was positive in 31/36 (86.1%) patients. Around 25% of patients showed discordance between c-MYC expression by IHC and MYC rearrangement. All 36 patients were negative for 11q aberrations by FISH studies. The remaining 14/36 (38.8%) dual negative patients (by FISH) were re-classified as High-Grade B Cell Lymphoma-NOS. Patients <18 years were staged as per Murphy's classification and received risk-stratified based treatment as per LMB 96 protocol. The treatment consisted of an initial cytoreductive phase - COP (cyclophosphamide, vincristine, prednisolone), followed by two induction courses-COPAD-M (cyclophosphamide, vincristine, prednisolone, adriamycin, methotrexate). An interim assessment with a PET scan was done for all patients after a single course of consolidation-CYM (Cytarabine, Methotrexate) and CYVE (Cytarabine, Etoposide) for group A, B, and group C patients respectively. In case of CR (complete remission), another course of consolidation was given and the patient received maintenance COPADM. However, if there was PR or No CR, patient's treatment group was upgraded. Patients >18 years were staged as per Ann arbors staging criterion. Patients were risk-stratified as low risk (completely resectable abdominal disease with normal LDH and mass <10 cm) or high-risk disease. Low-risk patients received R-DA-EPOCH (Rituximab – Dose Adjusted etoposide, vincristine, prednisolone, cyclophosphamide, and adriamycin) while high-risk disease patients received either CODOX-MR/IVAC (cyclophosphamide, vincristine, doxorubicin, high-dose Methotrexate, rituximab/ifosfamide, etoposide, and high-dose cytarabine) or Hyper CVAD (Cyclophosphamide, Vincristine, Adriamycin, and Dexamethasone) depending upon treating physician's discretion. An interim PET assessment was done post 2 cycles in high-risk patients and those in CR are followed up. For patients not in CR, treatment was upgraded to more intensive protocols. For patients receiving R DA EPOCH, post 3 cycles, interim assessment was done and those with responding disease received 3 more cycles. Those in CR after 6 cycles were followed up while those with residual disease were typically kept for more intensive protocols. The clinico-pathologic characteristics and treatment outcome of the thirty-six cases have been described below in [Table 1].Table 1: Clinico-pathologic characteristics and treatment outcome of Classical BL patients versus HGBCL-NOSClassical BL patients presented at a younger age, were associated with higher serum LDH levels, and showed a proclivity for renal failure. HGBCL-NOS patients were associated with higher incidences of advanced stage at presentation and chemo-resistance. No case of 11q aberrations was observed in the present study. The lack of 11q aberrations in our subset of patients despite such extensive workup makes us conclude that the Indian population may be behaving differently from the West and it may not be imperative to investigate all patients with morphologically and IHC defined Burkitt lymphomas for 11q aberrations in resource-constrained settings except in refractory cases. More comprehensive studies are required for drawing final conclusions as BL- directed therapy in BL-11q may drastically improve the treatment outcomes of such patients. Ethical approval All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Financial support and sponsorship Nil. Conflicts of interest There are no conflicts of interest.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS:Equine hepacivirus (EqHV) is phylogenetically the closest relative of HCV and shares genome organization, hepatotropism, transient or persistent infection outcome, and the ability to cause hepatitis. Thus, EqHV studies are important to understand equine liver disease and further as an outbred surrogate animal model for HCV pathogenesis and protective immune responses. Here, we aimed to characterize the course of EqHV infection and associated protective immune responses.APPROACH AND RESULTS:Seven horses were experimentally inoculated with EqHV, monitored for 6 months, and rechallenged with the same and, subsequently, a heterologous EqHV. Clearance was the primary outcome (6 of 7) and was associated with subclinical hepatitis characterized by lymphocytic infiltrate and individual hepatocyte necrosis. Seroconversion was delayed and antibody titers waned slowly. Clearance of primary infection conferred nonsterilizing immunity, resulting in shortened duration of viremia after rechallenge. Peripheral blood mononuclear cell responses in horses were minimal, although EqHV-specific T cells were identified. Additionally, an interferon-stimulated gene signature was detected in the liver during EqHV infection, similar to acute HCV in humans. EqHV, as HCV, is stimulated by direct binding of the liver-specific microRNA (miR), miR-122. Interestingly, we found that EqHV infection sequesters enough miR-122 to functionally affect gene regulation in the liver. This RNA-based mechanism thus could have consequences for pathology.CONCLUSIONS:EqHV infection in horses typically has an acute resolving course, and the protective immune response lasts for at least a year and broadly attenuates subsequent infections. This could have important implications to achieve the primary goal of an HCV vaccine; to prevent chronicity while accepting acute resolving infection after virus exposure.

Concern about elevated disease risk following disasters has been growing with the progression of global trends in urbanization and climate, in part because shifts in socioecological conditions can promote greater human contact with pathogen reservoirs in cities. Remarkably little is known, however, about the diversity and distributions of pathogens carried by commensal reservoirs across disaster-affected urban landscapes. To address this deficit, we characterized the assemblage structure of viruses in the serum of three widespread commensal rodents (Rattus norvegicus, Rattus rattus, and Mus musculus) that were trapped in New Orleans (LA, USA) following Hurricane Katrina. We assessed virus diversity and differentiation according to host species identity, co-occurrence and abundance, as well as prevailing landscape features known to shape urban rodent assemblages. We detected ≥34 viruses in total, including several pathogens of concern, through metagenomic analysis of serum taken from ≥149 individuals of each host species. We found that virus richness as well as assemblage composition and spatial differentiation differed by host species. Notably, we detected associations with host species co-occurrence and abundance, and while we found that assemblage structure varied by study area, we did not detect strong associations with landscape features known to influence rodent hosts. Evidence that virus diversity and assemblage structure reflect host identity more so than other factors indicates that biotic benchmarks might serve as prognostic indicators of post-disaster pathogen exposure risk in cities worldwide.

Identifying viruses in synanthropic animals is necessary for understanding the origin of many viruses that can infect human hosts and developing strategies to prevent new zoonotic infections. The white-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus, is one of the most abundant rodent species in the northeastern United States. We characterized the serum virome of 978 free-ranging P. leucopus mice caught in Pennsylvania. We identified many new viruses from 26 different virus families. Among these viruses was a highly divergent segmented flavivirus whose genetic relatives were recently identified in ticks, mosquitos, and vertebrates, including febrile patients. The novel flavi-like segmented virus, isolated from ticks in Pennsylvania, shares ˂70% aa identity with known viruses in the highly conserved region of the viral polymerase. Our data will enable researchers to develop molecular reagents to further characterize this virus and its relatives infecting other hosts and to curtail their spread, if necessary.

The NIN-LIKE PROTEIN (NLP) family of transcription factors were identified as nitrate-responsive cis-element (NRE)-binding proteins, which function as transcriptional activators in the nitrate-regulated expression of downstream genes. This study was aimed at genome-wide analysis of NLP gene family in rice and the expression profiling of NLPs in response to nitrogen (N) supply and deficiency in rice genotypes with contrasting N use efficiency (NUE). Based on in silico analysis, 6 NLP genes (including alternative splice forms 11 NLPs) were identified from rice. Expression of NLPs was promoted by nitrate supply as well as N deficiency (NLP1, NLP3, NLP4 and NLP5). Four rice genotypes APO (high NUE under sufficient N), IR83929-B-B-291-3-1-1 (IR-3-1-1), Nerica-L-42 (NL-42) (High NUE at low N), and Pusa Basmati 1 (PB1, low NUE) to correlate traits governing NUE and expression of NLPs. Analysis of rate of nitrate uptake and expression of N assimilatory and uptake genes established that IR-3-1-1 has high uptake and assimilation efficiency, translating into high NUE, whereas PB1 is efficient in uptake only when N availability is high. Along with the transcriptional upregulation of NLPs, genotype IR-3-1-1, displayed highest expression of OsNRT1.1B gene, the closest rice homologue of nitrate transceptor AtNRT1.1 and plays major role in nitrate uptake, translocation and signaling in rice. The results showed that high NUE rice genotypes has both high Nitrogen uptake efficiency (NUpE) and Nitrogen utilization efficiency (NUtE), resulting from the effective and coordinated signal transduction network involving the rice homologue of nitrate transceptor OsNRT1.1B, the probable primary nitrate response (PNR) regulator OsNLP1 and the master response regulator OsNLP3, a homologue of AtNLP6/7.

Identifying viruses in synanthropic animals is necessary for understanding the origin of many viruses that can infect humans and developing strategies to prevent new zoonotic infections. The white-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus, is one of the most abundant rodent species in the northeastern United States. We characterized the serum virome of 978 free-ranging P. leucopus mice caught in Pennsylvania. We identified many new viruses belonging to 26 different virus families. Among these viruses was a highly divergent segmented flavivirus whose genetic relatives were recently identified in ticks, mosquitoes, and vertebrates, including febrile humans. This novel flavi-like segmented virus was found in rodents and shares ≤70% aa identity with known viruses in the highly conserved region of the viral polymerase. Our data will enable researchers to develop molecular reagents to further characterize this virus and its relatives infecting other hosts and to curtail their spread, if necessary.

Mutation breeding is one of the most reliable techniques in improving crop plants. The study was frequency and spectrum of macro-mutations along with the mutagenic effectiveness and efficiency of different doses of gamma rays in pea variety (Arkel). The irradiated seeds were sown in the M1, M2 generations in their respective control and harvested in bulk to raise the M3 generation (2013-14) in Randomized Block Design with three replications. Screening of the M3 generation revealed that the mutagenic treatments induced morphological and physiological changes in the variety. A spectrum of mutations which included variants with respect to plant stature, maturity, pod shape, seed colour and seed shape were observed mutagenic effectiveness is measure of the frequency of mutations induced by unit mutagen doses whereas mutagenic efficiency is measure of proportion of mutation in relation to undesirable changes like lethality and sterility etc. The frequency of mutagenic efficiency and effectiveness was found to be highest at lower doses. In mutation breeding where large populations are handled, estimation of mutagenic effect for macro mutation, effectiveness and efficiency may help the breeders in identifying effective treated populations in early generation for reduction in cost of breeding and enhancing scope of selection.