Sericulture, the practice of rearing silkworms for the production of silk, is an essential agro-based industry in several countries. However, silkworms are susceptible to a variety of diseases caused by viruses, bacteria and parasites, which may have a significant negative impact on global silk production. Traditional methods of pathogen identification, such as microscopy and laboratory culturing, have limitations in terms of accuracy and efficiency. The development of molecular techniques for pathogen identification has revolutionised the field of sericulture over the last decade. Genomic DNA and RNA-based molecular techniques allow for the rapid and accurate detection of disease-causing pathogens in silkworms. Molecular diagnosis has several advantages over traditional methods, including increased sensitivity and specificity, shorter turnaround time and the ability to detect pathogens that are difficult to culture or visualise under a microscope. Molecular techniques have been applied to detect several important pathogens of silkworms, including Nosema sp., nucleopolyhedrovirus, cypovirus, iflavirus and bidensovirus. The use of molecular diagnostics in sericulture is immensely important as the demand for high-quality silk increases globally and the assessment of emerging pathogens associated with crop loss is essential. Major advancements in the improvement and application of molecular methods for diagnosing widespread silkworm pathogens are discussed. Sericulture, the practice of rearing silkworms for the production of silk, is an essential agro-based industry in several countries. However, silkworms are susceptible to a variety of diseases. Traditional methods of pathogen identification such as microscopy and laboratory culturing have limitations in terms of accuracy and efficiency. Molecular techniques for disease diagnosis have revolutionised sericulture over the last decade. Major advancements in the improvement and application of molecular methods for diagnosing widespread silkworm pathogens are discussed.image

Aims: The present study combines morphological and molecular biology investigations to uncover the underlying causes of the non-spinning syndrome in silkworms. To understand the molecular mechanism and immune mechanism after infection of viral pathogen in silkworm Bombyx mori L. Study Design: Infected silkworm samples were collected from the field and isolated the genomic DNA and total proteins. Analyzed the samples by using genomic tools and proteomic tools. Place and Duration of Study: Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, Mysuru, Karnataka. 01.03.2023 to 31.07.2023 total 04 months. Methodology: Our findings indicate that infections of BmDNV and BmNPV are associated with abnormal growth of the silk gland, leading to the non-spinning phenotype. To confirm pathogen infection in non-spinning silkworms, we collected genomic DNA and conducted PCR analysis using specific primers for DNV and NPV. Results: Our results showed amplification of both viral infections in the isolated samples. SDS-PAGE analysis revealed differential regulation of several proteins involved in physiological and immunological processes in the hemolymph of non-spinning silkworms. MALDI-TOF/MS was used to identify an up-regulated protein of interest, which was found to be a Lepidopteran low molecular weight lipoprotein. This protein is known to play an important role in insect immune mechanisms. Conclusion: Major disease-causing agents such as BmDNV and BmNPV infections and investigate their impact on protein expression patterns in the hemolymph, shedding light on the factors contributing to non-spinning behavior in silkworms.

Papaya mealybug Paracoccus marginatus (Williams and Granara de Willink) is an economical pest of mulberry causing significant crop loss by damaging the leaves. This study was undertaken to investigate the internal structure of papaya mealybug, that was morphologically examined through a stereo-zoom microscope which includes digestive system, respiratory system, nervous system, excretory system, pseudovitellus and muscular system. The internal anatomy of papaya mealybug revealed that the digestive system is associated with fore-gut (pharynx and oesophagus), mid-gut (stomach /dilated sac), filter chamber and hind-gut (ileum and rectum). The filter chamber is enclosed with posterior extremity of oesophagus, anterior mid-gut, posterior mid-gut, anterior extremity of ileum and rectum. Either side of the oesophageal tube has a pair of fully formed salivary gland. Two malpighian tubules approximate of its body length were seen adjacent to the hind-gut. Nervous system is mainly composed of supra-oesophageal ganglion (brain) with a small lobe called sympathetic ganglion, sub-oesophageal ganglion and thoracico-abdomial ganglion. Tracheal trunks emerge from four spiracles, which were encircled by wax glands at its base. Reproductive system consists of three globular genital glands with a single translucent globular spermatheca, a pair of ovaries arranged in Y shaped structure with numerous ovarioles. The ventral longitudinal muscles protrude from diamond shaped thoracic furca and dorsal longitudinal muscles present beneath the dorsal region extends throughout the body. An oval shaped pseudo-vitellus composed of bacterio-cysts is present in the centre of the ventral region. The purpose of this study is to highlight some of the important internal anatomical features of adult female papaya mealybug Paracoccus marginatus (Williams and Granara de Willink).

Bombyx mori Densonucleosis virus (BmDV), Bombyx mori Infectious flacherie virus (BmIFV) and Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV) infection to silkworms causes major sericulture crop loss. The multi-viral diseases tolerant bivoltine silkworm double hybrid, RDIN1, developed through marker-assisted selection was field evaluated by rearing 20,000 dfls at different location and season. RDIN1, had better pupation (94.8%) compared to control, FC1 X FC2 (91.5%) at farmers’ level with 4 % significant improvement. Average Cocoon yield of RDIN1 (71.2%) was better compared to FC1 X FC2 (69.3%) in unfavourable conditions. Other parameters such as cocoon weight, shell weight, shell percentage, reelability, filament length, raw silk, denier, neatness had also significant difference between RDIN1 and FC1 x FC2. The RDIN1 is expected to reduce cocoon crop losses invariably due to viral infection and fetch more profit to sericulture farmers.

To better cope with unfavorable climatic conditions and perform optimal physiological functions, the silkworm Bombyx mori secretes some of its defensive enzymes in the hemolymph. To understand the extent of enzyme secretion in the hemolymph, we studied the profiles of defense enzymes in different silkworm breeds. We collected and analyzed the hemolymph of 5th instar larvae of 21 different bivoltine silkworm breeds with different characteristics for protein content and activities of enzymes such as catalase, peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase, amylase, and protease. The results revealed significant differences between the breeds in terms of protein and defensive enzyme activities. The activity of catalase, peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase, amylase, and protease varied between silkworm breeds, with an average activity of 8.791 U mg−1, 0.203 U mg−1, 0.42 U mg−1, 0.264 mg ml−1 min−1 mg−1 and 0.193 µg ml−1 min−1, respectively. To understand the genetic relationship between the silkworm breeds in terms of the activity of defensive enzymes, we constructed a dendrogram using Euclidean distance. The 21 silkworm breeds were grouped into five different clusters with different enzyme activities, revealing sufficient diversity between the silkworm breeds that can be used for parental selection in silkworm breeding programs. This study is highly informative in enhancing knowledge on the role of defensive enzymes in the development of new silkworm breeds that can adapt to adverse environmental conditions.

Effective utilization of microsatellite or simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers along with ongoing advanced technologies in the field of molecular biology have made great advantages. In the present study, the genomewide distribution of SSRs in Eri silkworm, Samia ricini Donovan was studied along with the in-silico transferability of SSR primers to the closely related species S. wangi and S. watsoni. We also analyzed and compared the SSRs in two closely related Samia species with the motifs identified in S. ricini genome. The overall abundance of SSR motifs was more in S. watsoni compared to S. ricini and S. wangi. The crossamplification analysis through in-silico PCR method with the 25,252 SSR primer pairs developed for S. ricini, showed that 2,978 and 1,508 primer sets were amplified in the S. wangi and in S. watsoni, respectively. The distribution of SSR motifs in S. ricini genome showed a higher proportion of SSR motifs in intergenic regions than exonic and intronic regions (41%, 30% and 29%, respectively). The gene ontology analysis of the SSR containing genes showed that a greater number of genes were associated with the biological process (889) followed by molecular function (215) and cellular components (213). The SSRs present in the coding region revealed, Alanine (Ala) as the most abundant amino acid in these loci followed by Tyrosine (Tyr) and Methionine (Met) in the coding region of the Samia ricini. To validate our in-silico analysis, we randomly selected 20 SSR primers and amplified them in different morphotypes of Eri silkworm.

Insect gut microbiomes play a fundamental role in various aspects of insect physiology, including digestion, nutrient metabolism, detoxification, immunity, growth and development. The wild Muga silkworm, Antheraea assamensis Helfer holds significant economic importance, as it produces golden silk. In the current investigation, we deciphered its intricate gut bacteriome through high-throughput 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. Further, to understand bacterial community dynamics among silkworms raised under outdoor environmental conditions, we compared its gut bacteriomes with those of the domesticated mulberry silkworm, Bombyx mori L. Most abundant bacterial phyla identified in the gut of A. assamensis were Proteobacteria (78.1

Silkworm breeding is majorly focused on balancing the progress of productive trait to generate profitability.However, with recurrent commercialization and utilization of such productive trait through heterosis may decline with drastic climatic variations. In order to achieve and generate profitability in sericulture, paradigm shift is essential through transition from balanced breeding to sustainable breeding via selection of breeding lines with better adult moth longevity which confers the benefits by coping with stressful environment. In the present investigation, CSR bivoltine silkworm breeds were screened to understand the adult moth longevity among them which have attained two decades of evolution. Differential longevity was recorded among the selected breeds. The maximum and minimum longevity was observed in CSR 51 and CSR17 respectively than other breeds. The short-listed breeds were exposed to starvation stress, wherein, interestingly, the CSR51 was highly tolerant compared to other breeds and CSR17 being short-lived was susceptible to starvation stress. The data obtained suggest that the relatively longer lifespan may be rendering more tolerance towards the starvation stress mediated lethality, as evident by the induced starvation stress assay. This would help us to focus on the generation of long-lived breeding lines with better longevity which could intrinsically determine for better abiotic and biotic stress tolerance.

Aim: To compare the remunerativeness of Mulberry, Tasar, Eri and Muga based sericulture enterprises. Methodology: An empirical analysis was undertaken to compare the economics of mulberry and non-mulberry cocoon production in India, utilizing the available data from Central Silk Board using descriptive statistics and suitable ratios. Results: The study indicated that returns per rupee of investment in Mulberry (1.66), Tasar (1.60), Eri (1.88) and Muga (2.07) were higher compared to agriculture crop enterprises (National Silk Policy-2020), besides being of short duration with frequent assured income at least for three to six times in a year. Interpretation: The Mulberry and Eri silkworm cocoon production is highly remunerative enterprise and attracts the youths, because of its domesticated nature, short duration and women friendly enterprise. Key words: Cocoon production, Economics, Eco-friendly, Mulberry, Sericulture enterprises, Vanya

Bombyx mori densonucleosis (BmDV), infectious flacherie (BmIFV) and nuclear polyhedrosis (BmNPV) viruses inflict huge losses in sericulture. The study was envisaged to develop productive bivoltine silkworm hybrid, tolerant to these viruses, employing marker-assisted breeding. One hundred and twenty diverse bivoltine silkworm breeds, B. mori L. (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) in India were screened against BmDV, BmIFV and BmNPV. Eight SSR markers were identified with distinct amplification profiles between virus-tolerant and susceptible populations. Two specific populations derived from the bivoltine silkworm breeds—HBM10 and PAM117—exhibited multi-viral tolerance (PAM117: 36–67%; HBM10: 24–65%) and these lines were designated as PAM117-MVT and HBM10-MVT. The resultant foundation cross (HBM10-MVT × PAM117-MVT) showed 37% enhanced survival (BmDV: 71–75%, BmIFV: 71–74% and BmNPV: 71–72%) over the parental stocks. A productive and multi-viral-tolerant bivoltine double hybrid (RDIN1) was developed by crossing with productive foundation cross (CSR52 × CSR27). The rearing and reeling performance of RDIN1 {(CSR52 × CSR27) × (HBM10-MVT × PAM117-MVT)} was on par with the popular bivoltine double hybrid {(CSR2 × CSR27) × (CSR6 × CSR26)} across the locations. The identified SSR markers could be utilized to develop robust and resilient silkworm hybrids for commercial exploitation.

AIM: To analyse the computed tomography (CT) findings of paraduodenal pancreatitis (PP) in patients treated at Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Clinical, laboratory, and CT findings of 30 patients with PP treated from July 2007 to December 2020 were reviewed retrospectively. RESULTS: The average age of the patients was 45.9 years (19-60 years), which included 29 (96.7%) men, and 90% had a history of alcohol abuse. The majority [22 (73.3%)] presented with recurrent abdominal pain. Serum amylase was elevated in 21 (70%) patients and serum lipase was elevated in 25 (83.3%) patients. Carbohydrate antigen (CA 19-9) was elevated in three (10%) patients. The cystic pattern was seen in three (10%), solid pattern in 13 (43.3%), and solid -cystic pattern in 14 (46.7%) patients. The pure form of the disease was seen in seven (23.3%) patients, whereas the segmental form was seen in 23 (76.7%) patients. Descending duodenal wall thickening and enhancement was seen in 25 (83.3%) and 18 (60%) patients, respectively. The gastroduodenal artery was displaced medially in 12 (40%) patients and encased in five (16.7%) patients; however, it was not occluded in any of the patients. Calcifications were seen in the groove lesion in nine (30%) patients. The pancreas showed atrophic changes in 14 (46.6%) patients and calcifications in 12 (40%) patients. Distal common bile duct strictures were seen in three (10%) patients. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of sheet-like soft-tissue thickening in the groove with diffuse duodenal thickening and intramural/paraduodenal cysts are highly suggestive of PP. Identifying characteristic imaging findings of PP may help in prospective diagnosis and lead to conservative management of most of these patients avoiding unnecessary invasive procedures. (c) 2022 The Royal College of Radiologists. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.