2017

Permanent URI for this collection

https://dl.bhu.ac.in/ir/handle/123456789/72167

Browse

Now showing 1 - 20 of 1457

Choline metabolic pathway gene polymorphisms and risk for Down syndrome: An association study in a population with folate-homocysteine metabolic impairment
(Nature Publishing Group, 2017) Jaiswal, S.K.; Sukla, K.K.; Chauhan, A.; Lakhotia, A.R.; Kumar, A.; Rai, A.K.
Background/objectives:Choline is an essential nutrient involved in one-carbon metabolism, but its role in mechanisms underlying meiotic non-disjunction is poorly known. The relationship between folate-homocysteine metabolic pathway gene polymorphism and Down syndrome (DS) risk has been widely analyzed, but there are limited reports on its correlation with choline metabolism. In the present case-control association study, we investigated the relationship of three single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (phosphatidylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PEMT) rs12325817, choline dehydrogenase (CHDH) rs12676 and homocysteine methyltransferase (BHMT) rs3733890) of choline metabolism with risk for DS.Subject/methods:Genotyping of 228 mothers of a down syndrome child (DSM) and 200 control mothers (CMs) for all SNPs was performed by PCR coupled with restriction fragment length polymorphism method.Results:A significantly increased risk for BHMT +742AA genotype with an odds ratio of 4.96 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.66-14.88, P=0.0036) was observed. For PEMT rs12325817 and CHDH rs12676, no significant difference in allelic and genotypic frequencies was observed. In genotypic combination analysis considering PEMT -744GG/CHDH +432GG/BHMT +742GG as the reference combination, PEMT -744GC/CHDH +432GG/BHMT +742GG genotypic combination was significantly higher in DSM compared with that in CMs with an odds ratio of 2.061 (95% CI: 1.10-3.86, P=0.0342). We also observed an epistatic interaction between methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) rs1801133 and choline metabolic pathway gene variants.Conclusions:Our findings indicate impaired choline metabolism showing a greater risk for DS, especially in a population associated with homocysteine-folate impairment. Further studies are required to confirm our findings. © 2017 Macmillan Publishers Limited, part of Springer Nature. All rights reserved.
Ribosomal DNA ITS1, 5.8S and ITS2 secondary structure, nuclear DNA content and phytochemical analyses reveal distinctive characteristics of four subclades of Protasparagus
(Wiley-Liss Inc., 2017) Saha, Partha Sarathi; Sengupta, Mainak; Jha, Sumita
The use of ribosomal DNA (rDNA) internal transcribed spacer (ITS) primary sequence based phylogeny is a conventional practice to estimate the evolutionary interspecies relationship. However, analysis of the functional folding patterns and higher order secondary structures of ITS regions can provide additional important information regarding species relatedness and interspecies variations. In the present study, we provide the first detailed information on the rDNA ITS secondary structure diversity in the four subclades of the subgenus Protasparagus. Several angiospermic conserved motifs were identified in each of the ITS1, 5.8S and ITS2 secondary structures of the studied taxon. Topological comparison of the ITS1 secondary structures showed variations in the helix- IV regions. Moreover, presence of unique sequence motifs and differences in the internal loop structures were found to be subclade specific. The present study suggests that comprehensive analysis of the ITS1, 5.8S and ITS2 structural elements including helices, loops and bulges can be used as an important tool for species delimitation. The present study investigated the evolution of the secondary structure of ITS marker (its phylogenetic utility), genome size, base chromosome number and phytochemicals, and identified a putative polyploid event shared by a number of Protasparagus species. The phytochemical analysis of two important active compounds, i.e., shatavarin-IV and sarsasapogenin, also reveals their presence in all the studied taxa constitutively even at the subclade level. © 2016 Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Overexpression of Withania somnifera SGTL1 gene resists the interaction of fungus Alternaria brassicicola in Arabidopsis thaliana
(Academic Press, 2017) Mishra, Manoj K.; Srivastava, M.; Singh, G.; Tiwari, S.; Niranjan, A.; Kumari, N.; Misra, P.
Heterologus transformed Arabidopsis plants improved tolerance against abiotic stress by the modulation of glycosylation of sterols and sterol glycosides. It is due to enhanced activity of WsSGTL1 enzyme in different stresses. Presently, the effect of WsSGTL1 gene was investigated, focusing on interaction of A. brassicicola fungus on transgenic lines. Overexpressed lines showed restricted lesion, less spore counts and few electrolyte leakages. Biochemical study suggested that the transgenic lines had more glycosylated sterol/phenolic compounds. Relative expression of JA biosynthesis gene and phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) showed enhanced expression. Photosynthesis and chlorophyll fluorescence imaging revealed that transgenic plants had minimum damage of photosynthetic apparatus because of minimum PSII destruction. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd
Vibrational investigations of guanine, thioguanine and their singly charged cations and anions
(Scientific Publishers, 2017) Singh, R.; Yadav, R.A.
The complete vibrational studies have been done with help of quantum mechanics for the neutral Guanine (Gua) and Thioguanine (TGua) molecules and their singly charged cations and anions employing the B3LYP/6-311++G** method. Neutral Thioguanine and cations of Guanine and Thioguanine show planar structures and belong to Cs point group symmetry while the neutral Guanine and anions of Guanine and Thioguanine possess non-planar structure with C1 point group symmetry. Vibrational studies of ionic radicals of Gua and its thio- derivative are not available in literatures. Such extensive studies have been attempted for the first time. The normal modes of all the species have been assigned on the basis using potential energy distributions (PEDs) using GAR2PED software. The PEDs have also been calculated to make a conspicuous assignment as animation available in GaussView is not a guarantee for correct normal mode assignment. Charge transfer occurs in the molecule have been shown by the calculated highest occupied molecular orbital—lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (HOMO–LUMO) energies. The mapping of electron density iso-surface with electrostatic potential, has been carried out to get the information about the size, shape, charge density distribution and site of chemical reactivity of the molecule. The electronic properties HOMO and LUMO energies have been measured. The energy gap from HOMO to LUMO of the Gua is 5.0547 eV and TGua 4.0743 eV. © 2016, Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science.
Potassium ferricyanide-incorporated branched polyethylenimine as a potential scaffold for electrocatalytic reduction and amperometric sensing of nitrite
(Springer Netherlands, 2017) Rastogi, Pankaj Kumar; Ganesan, Vellaichamy; Gupta, Rupali; Singh, Preeti; Sonkar, Piyush Kumar; Yadav, Dharmendra Kumar
Abstract: Anionic redox mediator-incorporated polymer scaffold on glassy carbon (GC) electrode has been used for the electrocatalytic determination of nitrite. The polymer based on branched polyethylenimine (BPEI) crosslinked with ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (EGDE) (BPEI-EGDE) has been employed as the potent scaffold. BPEI-EGDE film on GC electrode has been used to immobilize anionic redox mediator [Fe(CN)6]3− by ion-exchange and utilized as the scaffold for the electrochemical determination of nitrite. The voltammetric analysis confirms the confinement of the redox mediator inside the polymer film. This polymeric scaffold, GC/BPEI-EGDE/[Fe(CN)6]3− exhibits a reversible redox response for [Fe(CN)6]3−/4− and retains its redox activity and stability even in strong acidic conditions. The redox mediator confined into the polymer scaffold catalyzes the reduction of nitrite. Significant enhancement in the cathodic current associated with the concomitant decrease in the anodic current was observed in the presence of nitrite. The electrocatalytic response of the scaffold was exploited for the amperometric sensing of nitrite at the potential of 450 mV. The polymer scaffold is highly sensitive (28.5 µA mM−1 cm−2) and it could detect nitrite at micromolar levels (detection limit is 4.8 µM). The scaffold has been successfully used for the real sample analysis and high selectivity, stability, and reproducibility have been achieved. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.] © 2016, Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.
Interleukin-6 and Interleukin-8 Levels Correlate with the Severity of Aplastic Anemia in Children
(Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, 2017) Gupta, Vineeta; Kumar, Sushil; Sonowal, Rimjhim; Singh, Surya K.
Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the levels of interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-8 in patients with aplastic anemia and its correlation with severity of the disease. Materials and Methods: IL-6 and IL-8 levels were measured in 40 patients with aplastic anemia in the age group of 4 to 14 years. A total of 40 healthy children served as controls. Quantitative estimation of IL-6 and IL-8 was performed using a solid-phase sandwich ELISA kit. Results were presented as IL-6 and IL-8 concentrations in pg/mL. Patients received immunosuppressive therapy per the British Committee for Standards in Haematology Guidelines 2009. Results: Mean age of the patients was 9.78±2.74 years. IL-6 level of patients was elevated compared with controls (193.48±352.3 vs. 4.58±3.39; P<0.001). IL-8 levels were also significantly elevated in patients compared with controls (15.58±18.0 vs. 1.85±0.95; P<0.001). IL levels were also assessed in relation to severity of the disease. Levels were the highest in patients with very severe aplastic anemia (724.33±519.42), followed by severe aplastic anemia (80.51±66.28 pg/mL), and non-severe aplastic anemia (6.01±1.89). Differences were statistically significant. A similar trend was also observed for IL-8 levels, where the levels were 41.02±24.23, 11.34±8.0, and 1.67±0.71 for very severe aplastic anemia, severe aplastic anemia, and non-severe aplastic anemia, respectively. The differences were again statistically significant. IL levels were also correlated with the treatment outcome. Responders had lower levels compared with nonresponders, but the difference was not statistically significant (186.36±322.45 vs. 198.74±368.10). Levels of ILs decreased in responders, but were not comparable with that of controls 6 months after therapy. Conclusions: High levels of IL-6 and IL-8 were observed in children with aplastic anemia. Increased levels showed correlation with disease severity and therefore appear to play an important role in aplastic anemia. However, levels had no significant correlation with the treatment outcome. Copyright © 2017 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.
Semilocal Convergence Analysis of S-iteration Process of Newton–Kantorovich Like in Banach Spaces
(Springer Science and Business Media, LLC, 2017) Sahu, Daya Ram; Yao, Jen Chih; Singh, Vipin Kumar; Kumar, Satyendra
In the present article, we establish a semilocal convergence theorem for the S-iteration process of Newton–Kantorovich like in Banach space setting for solving nonlinear operator equations and discuss its semilocal convergence analysis. We apply our result to solve the Fredholm-integral equations. © 2016, Springer Science+Business Media New York.
Effects of cryptogein gene on growth, phenotype and secondary metabolite accumulation in co-transformed roots and plants of Tylophora indica
(Polish Academy of Sciences, 2017) Basu, Amrita; Roychowdhury, Dipasree; Joshi, Raj Kumar; Jha, Sumita
Tylophora indica, an indigenous medicinal plant, was transformed with the cryptogein gene to determine the effect of crypt gene on secondary metabolites in co-transformed roots and plants via Agrobacterium rhizogenes mediated transformation. The Ri crypt co-transformed roots and plants showed expression of crypt gene. Southern hybridization specifies that crypt gene has been transferred and positively integrated into the Ri crypt co-transformed plant. AFLP fingerprinting revealed high degree of genetic similarity among the Ri-transformed and Ri crypt co-transformed cultures. The expression of crypt gene stimulated phenolic compound accumulation in transformed root and plants while tylophorine content was comparable in Ri transformed and Ri crypt co-transformed root lines and plants. The Ri crypt co-transformed root lines showed significantly higher (p ≤ 0.05) phenolics production (caffeic acid, 1.8–2.9-fold; p-coumaric acid, 1.9-fold and ferulic acid, 1.5–2-fold) compared to Ri-transformed root lines. The roots of Ri crypt co-transformed plants showed a significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher content of caffeic acid (1.19-fold) and ferulic acid (1.53-fold) than Ri-transformed plants. It is suggested that crypt-transformed plants can also be used as a tool to elucidate the biochemical basis of defense responses as phenolics are known to play a role in providing defense barriers to infection by pathogen. © 2016, Franciszek Górski Institute of Plant Physiology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Kraków.
A practical protocol for the synthesis of bibenzyls: Via C(sp3)-H activation of methyl arenes under metal-free conditions
(Royal Society of Chemistry, 2017) Kumar, Promod; Guntreddi, Tirumaleswararao; Singh, Rahul; Singh, Krishna Nand
A variety of bibenzyl derivatives have been synthesized with excellent atom economy via C(sp3)-H-C(sp3)-H coupling of readily available methyl arenes using K2S2O8 under metal-free and environmentally benign conditions. © 2016 the Partner Organisations.
Exploring Indus crop processing: combining phytolith and macrobotanical analyses to consider the organisation of agriculture in northwest India c. 3200–1500 bc
(Springer New York LLC, 2017) Bates, Jennifer; Singh, Ravindra Nath; Petrie, Cameron A.
This paper presents a preliminary study combining macrobotanical and phytolith analyses to explore crop processing at archaeological sites in Haryana and Rajasthan, northwest India. Current understanding of the agricultural strategies in use by populations associated with South Asia’s Indus Civilisation (3200–1900 bc) has been derived from a small number of systematic macrobotanical studies focusing on a small number of sites, with little use of multi-proxy analysis. In this study both phytolith and macrobotanical analyses are used to explore the organisation of crop processing at five small Indus settlements with a view to understanding the impact of urban development and decline on village agriculture. The differing preservation potential of the two proxies has allowed for greater insights into the different stages of processing represented at these sites: with macrobotanical remains allowing for more species-level specific analysis, though due to poor chaff presentation the early stages of processing were missed; however these early stages of processing were evident in the less highly resolved but better preserved phytolith remains. The combined analyses suggests that crop processing aims and organisation differed according to the season of cereal growth, contrary to current models of Indus Civilisation labour organisation that suggest change over time. The study shows that the agricultural strategies of these frequently overlooked smaller sites question the simplistic models that have traditionally been assumed for the time period, and that both multi-proxy analysis and rural settlements are deserving of further exploration. © 2016, The Author(s).
Development, Validation, and Verification of a Self-Assessment Tool to Estimate Agnibala (Digestive Strength)
(SAGE Publications Ltd, 2017) Singh, Aparna; Singh, Girish; Patwardhan, Kishor; Gehlot, Sangeeta
According to Ayurveda, the traditional system of healthcare of Indian origin, Agni is the factor responsible for digestion and metabolism. Four functional states (Agnibala) of Agni have been recognized: regular, irregular, intense, and weak. The objective of the present study was to develop and validate a self-assessment tool to estimate Agnibala. The developed tool was evaluated for its reliability and validity by administering it to 300 healthy volunteers of either gender belonging to 18 to 40-year age group. Besides confirming the statistical validity and reliability, the practical utility of the newly developed tool was also evaluated by recording serum lipid parameters of all the volunteers. The results show that the lipid parameters vary significantly according to the status of Agni. The tool, therefore, may be used to screen normal population to look for possible susceptibility to certain health conditions. © 2016, © The Author(s) 2016.
Dual-polarimetric C-band SAR data for land use/land cover classification by incorporating textural information
(Springer Verlag, 2017) Mishra, Varun Narayan; Prasad, Rajendra; Kumar, Pradeep; Gupta, Dileep Kumar; Srivastava, Prashant K.
The work presented here showed a comprehensive evaluation of dual-polarimetric RISAT-1 data for land use/land cover (LULC) classification. The textural images were extracted with the help of gray-level co-occurrence matrix approach. Analysis of inter-class separability using transformed divergence method was performed to recognize the potential textural images. The best combination of textural images was also identified on the basis of standard deviation of preferred textural images and correlation coefficients. The maximum likelihood classifier-based classification results for different scenarios were compared. Furthermore, various classification algorithms, maximum likelihood classifier (MLC), artificial neural network (ANN), random forest (RF) and support vector machine (SVM), were performed on the best identified scenario in order to observe the most suitable algorithm for LULC classification. The combination of radiometric and their related textural images was found improving the overall classification accuracy than individual datasets. The highest overall classification accuracy was found using SVM (88.97%) followed by RF (88.45%), ANN (83.65%) and MLC (78.18%). © 2016, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.
Nitric oxide alleviates silver nanoparticles (AgNps)-induced phytotoxicity in Pisum sativum seedlings
(Elsevier Masson SAS, 2017) Tripathi, Durgesh Kumar; Singh, Swati; Singh, Shweta; Srivastava, Prabhat Kumar; Singh, Vijay Pratap; Singh, Samiksha; Prasad, Sheo Mohan; Singh, Prashant Kumar; Dubey, Nawal Kishore; Pandey, Avinash Chand; Chauhan, Devendra Kumar
Understanding the adverse impact of nanoparticles in crop plants has emerged as one of the most interesting fields of plant research. Therefore, this study has been conducted to investigate the impact of silver nanoparticles (AgNps) on Pisium sativum seedlings. Besides this, we have also tested whether nitric oxide (NO) is capable of reducing toxicity of AgNps or not. NO has been found as one of the most fascinating molecules, capable of enhancing plant tolerance to different environmental stresses. The results of the present study showed that AgNps treatments (1000 μM and 3000 μM) significantly declined growth parameters, photosynthetic pigments and chlorophyll fluorescence of pea seedlings, which could be correlated with increased accumulation of Ag in root and shoot of pea seedlings. In contrast, addition of SNP (100 μM; a donor of NO) successfully ameliorated AgNp-induced adverse effects on these parameters as it reduced accumulation of Ag and repaired damaged tissues. Levels of oxidative stress markers (SOR, H2O2 and MDA) were enhanced while their levels significantly reduced under SNP addition. AgNps (1000 μM and 3000 μM) significantly stimulated the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) while inhibited activities of glutathione reductase (GR) and dehydroascorbate reductase (DHAR). AgNps also considerably declined the total ascorbate and glutathione contents and severely damaged leaf and root anatomical structures. On the other hand, addition of SNP further increased the level of SOD, APX, GR and DHAR and significantly increased the decreased levels of total ascorbate and glutathione contents, and repaired anatomical structures. In conclusion, this study suggests that AgNps treatments adversely decreased growth, pigments and photosynthesis due to enhanced level of Ag and oxidative stress. However, SNP addition successfully ameliorates adverse impact of AgNps on pea seedlings by regulating the Ag uptake, antioxidant system, oxidative stress and anatomical structures of root and shoot. © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS
Wintertime characteristics of aerosols over middle Indo-Gangetic Plain: Vertical profile, transport and radiative forcing
(Elsevier Ltd, 2017) Kumar, M.; Raju, M.P.; Singh, R.K.; Singh, A.K.; Singh, R.S.; Banerjee, T.
Winter-specific characteristics of airborne particulates over middle Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) were evaluated in terms of aerosol chemical and micro-physical properties under three-dimensional domain. Emphases were made for the first time to identify intra-seasonal variations of aerosols sources, horizontal and vertical transport, effects of regional meteorology and estimating composite aerosol short-wave radiative forcing over an urban region (25°10′–25°19′N; 82°54′–83°4′E) at middle-IGP. Space-borne passive (Aqua and Terra MODIS, Aura OMI) and active sensor (CALIPSO-CALIOP) based observations were concurrently used with ground based aerosol mass measurement for entire winter and pre-summer months (December, 1, 2014 to March, 31, 2015). Exceptionally high aerosol mass loading was recorded for both PM10 (267.6 ± 107.0 μg m− 3) and PM2.5 (150.2 ± 89.4 μg m− 3) typically exceeding national standard. Aerosol type was mostly dominated by fine particulates (particulate ratio: 0.61) during pre to mid-winter episodes before being converted to mixed aerosol types (ratio: 0.41–0.53). Time series analysis of aerosols mass typically identified three dissimilar aerosol loading episodes with varying attributes, well resemble to that of previous year's observation representing its persisting nature. Black carbon (9.4 ± 3.7 μg m− 3) was found to constitute significant proportion of fine particulates (2–27%) with a strong diurnal profile. Secondary inorganic ions also accounted a fraction of particulates (PM2.5: 22.5%; PM10: 26.9%) having SO4 − 2, NO3 − and NH4 + constituting major proportion. Satellite retrieved MODIS-AOD (0.01–2.30) and fine mode fractions (FMF: 0.01–1.00) identified intra-seasonal variation with transport of aerosols from upper to middle-IGP through continental westerly. Varying statistical association of columnar and surface aerosol loading both in terms of fine (r; PM2.5: MODIS-AOD: 0.51) and coarse particulates (PM10: MODIS-AOD: 0.53) was found influenced by local meteorology (boundary layer and humidity) and aerosol vertical profile. A gradual increase in aerosol vertical profile (surface to 4.9 km) was evident with dominance of polluted continental, polluted dust and smoke at lower altitude. Presence of mineral dusts in higher altitude during later phase was linked with its transboundary transport, originating from western dry regions. Conclusively, winter-specific short-wave aerosol radiative forcing revealed an ATM warming effect (31–47 W m− 2) while cooling both at TOA (− 20 to − 32 W m− 2) and SUF (− 51 to − 80 W m− 2) with significant level of intra-seasonal variations in heating rates (0.86–1.32 K day− 1). © 2016 Elsevier B.V.
Study of morphological behavior of hydroxyapatite, EDTA hydroxyapatite and metal doped EDTA hydroxyapatite synthesized by chemical co-precipitation method via hydrothermal route
(Trans Tech Publications Ltd, 2017) Bhattacharjee, Birendra Nath; Mishra, Vijay Kumar; Rai, Shyam Bahadur; Parkash, Om; Kumar, Devendra
Hydroxyapatite Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2: (HAp) with stoichiometric composition and Ca/P (ratio) = 1.67 has attracted much attention in the context of bone transplant due to its similarity with the mineral constituent of mammals bone and teeth. It is frequently used as a filler to replace amputated bone or as a coating to promote bone in growth into prosthetic implants. Biomimetics or biomimicry is the imitation of the models, systems, and elements of nature for the purpose of solving complex human problems. Living organisms have evolved well-adapted structures and materials over geological time through natural selection. Biomimetics has given rise to new technologies inspired by biological solutions at macro and nanoscales. Nanostructure modification of dental implants has long been sought as a means to improve osseointegration through enhanced biomimicry of host structures. Several methods have been proposed and demonstrated for creating nanotopographic features. In the present investigation hydroxyapatite and metals (scandium, magnesium and neodymium) doped hydroxyapatite were successfully synthesized in laboratory by chemical precipitation using hydrothermal route and also by taking ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid as a complexing reagent. The crystal, grain, and bonding structures of resulting HAp were characterized structurally using X-ray diffraction(XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques and spectroscopically using Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) techniques. From SEM analysis it was found that the irregular structure of HAp changes to nano rods with EDTA HAp which further gets converted to dandelium structure with scandium doping, plate structure with magnesium doping and whiskers structure on doping with neodymium. © 2017 Trans Tech Publications.
A Study on Mechanical Properties and Strengthening echanisms of AA5052/ZrB2 in Situ Composites
(American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), 2017) Kumar, Narendra; Gautam, Gaurav; Gautam, Rakesh Kumar; Mohan, Anita; Mohan, Sunil
In the present study, in situ reaction technique has been employed to prepare AA5052 matrix composites reinforced with different vol. % of ZrB2 particles (i.e., 0, 4.5, and 9 vol. %). Composites have been characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) to confirm the in situ formation of ZrB2 particles in the matrix. Optical Microscopy (OM) studies reveal the refinement of aluminum-rich phase due to the presence of ZrB2 particles. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies reveal size and distribution of ZrB2 particles while transmission electron microscopy (TEM) reveals the presence of dislocations in the matrix around ZrB2 particles. Hardness and tensile testing of composites have been carried out at room temperature to evaluate the mechanical properties. The results reveal the improvement in hardness and strength with increased amount of ZrB2 particles. Strength of AA5052/ZrB2 in situ composites has been analyzed by various strengthening mechanism models. The analysis revealed that Orowan and Solid solution strengthening mechanisms are the predominant mechanism for high strength composites. Theoretical yield strength is about 6-10% higher than the experimental values due to clustering tendency of ZrB2 particles. © Copyright VC 2017 by ASME.
Spectroscopic investigation of wheat grains (Triticum aestivum) infected by wheat seed gall nematodes (Anguina tritici)
(Elsevier Ltd, 2017) Singh, Vivek Kumar; Devi, Anjana; Pathania, Surbhi; Kumar, Vinay; Tripathi, Durgesh Kumar; Sharma, Shivesh; Chauhan, Devendra Kumar; Singh, Virendra Kumar; Zorba, Vassilia
The present study was aimed at analyzing uninfected wheat grain (Triticum aestivum) and wheat seed gall nematodes (Anguina titici) by means of wave-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WD-XRF), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy to assess their elemental and molecular compositions. WD-XRF was used to detect and quantify the major and trace elements in the tested samples. The minerals detected and quantified in no-infection, low infection and high infection wheat samples were potassium (K), sulphur (S), phosphorus (P), chlorine (Cl), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), iron (Fe), silicon (Si), and zinc (Zn). Copper (Cu) was only observed in wheat samples showing no-infection and high infection. Chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), and nickel (Ni) were detected only in wheat samples of low infection and high infection, and it was completely absent in uninfected wheat samples. Sodium (Na) was only detected in low infection samples whereas aluminium (Al) was only found in high infection wheat samples. The concentrations of these elements in different wheat samples varied. FTIR spectroscopy was used to study the molecular compositions of the infected and uninfected wheat grain samples. Diffuse reflectance measurements of uninfected and infected wheat samples were used to identify spectral differences among wheat samples. In the present investigation a detailed comparison of these samples has been presented at the elemental and molecular levels. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd
Morphological and physiological alterations in the diatom Gomphonema pseudoaugur due to heavy metal stress
(Elsevier B.V., 2017) Gautam, Shristy; Pandey, Lalit Kumar; Vinayak, Vandana; Arya, Aditi
Periphytic diatom communities were analyzed from several heavy metal contaminated water bodies of Haryana, India. Among the analyzed sites, site HO3 (Saraswati Dham, Kurukshetra, Pehowa) showed significant response in the periphytic diatom community in terms of community shift (dominance of Gomphonema pseudoaugur) and lower biodiversity indices (species richness and Shannon index). Gomphonema pseudoaugur responded more specifically through induction of lipid bodies and occurrence of deformities in diatom frustules. PCA analysis showed that site HO3 is contaminated with heavy metals, especially Pb and Se. Pearson's correlation analysis showed a positive and statistically strong relationship between induction of lipid bodies and deformities with heavy metals (Pb and Se). Finally, from the present study, we concluded that heavy metal stress induces increased lipid body (LBs) size and deformities in the diatom species Gomphonema pseudoaugur, which could be a valuable indicator species for biomonitoring and a consideration in biofuel production. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd
Plant-mycorrhizal interactions mediate plant community coexistence by altering resource demand
(Ecological Society of America, 2017) Jiang, Jiang; Moore, Jessica A.M.; Priyadarshi, Anupam; Classen, Aimée T.
As the diversity of plants increases in an ecosystem, so does resource competition for soil nutrients, a process that mycorrhizal fungi can mediate. The influence of mycorrhizal fungi on plant biodiversity likely depends on the strength of the symbiosis between the plant and fungi, the differential plant growth responses to mycorrhizal inoculation, and the transfer rate of nutrients from the fungus to plant. However, our current understanding of how nutrient-plant- mycorrhizal interactions influence plant coexistence is conceptual and thus lacks a unified quantitative framework. To quantify the conditions of plant coexistence mediated by mycorrhizal fungi, we developed a mechanistic resource competition model that explicitly included plant-mycorrhizal symbioses. We found that plant-mycorrhizal interactions shape plant coexistence patterns by creating a tradeoff in resource competition. Especially, a tradeoff in resource competition was caused by differential payback in the carbon resources that plants invested in the fungal symbiosis and/or by the stoichiometric constraints on plants that required additional, less-beneficial, resources to sustain growth. Our results suggested that resource availability and the variation in plant-mycorrhizal interactions act in concert to drive plant coexistence patterns. Applying our framework, future empirical studies should investigate plant-mycorrhizal interactions under multiple levels of resource availability. © 2016 by the Ecological Society of America.
Highly sensitive electrochemical immunosensor based on graphene-wrapped copper oxide-cysteine hierarchical structure for detection of pathogenic bacteria
(Elsevier B.V., 2017) Pandey, Chandra Mouli; Tiwari, Ida; Singh, Vidya Nand; Sood, K.N.; Sumana, Gajjala; Malhotra, Bansi Dhar
We report results of the studies relating to fabrication of the graphene wrapped copper (II) assisted cysteine hierarchical structure (rGO-CysCu, 10 μm) synthesised using facile, aqueous and environmental-friendly conditions. The results of electrochemical impedance spectroscopic investigations indicate that self-assembly of rGO-CysCu molecules onto gold electrode provides a high surface area and high electron transfer rate constant (1.82 × 10−6 cm/s). Further, an ultrasensitive label-free electrochemical immunosensor for quantitative determination of Escherichia coli O157: H7 (E. coli) has been developed using rGO-CysCu as the sensing layer. Under optimal conditions, the calibration plot pertaining to sensing characteristics of the fabricated immunoelectrode for E. coli O157: H7 was approximately linear in the wide detection range of 10 CFU mL−1 to 108 CFU mL−1 with a detection limit of 3.8 CFU mL−1. Moreover, the proposed method was successfully used to differentiate the E. coli O157: H7 cells from the non-pathogenic E. coli (DH5α) and other bacterial cells in the synthetic samples. © 2016 Elsevier B.V.

Browse

Recent Submissions