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Drought stress is considered to be a major factor responsible for reduced agricultural productivity, because it is often linked to other major abiotic stresses, such as salinity and heat stress. Understanding drought-tolerance mechanisms is important for crop improvement. Moreover, under drought conditions, it is possible that growth regulators are able to protect the plants. Brassinosteroids not only play a regulatory role in plant growth, but also organize defense mechanisms against various tresses. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of brassinolide on physio-biochemical amendment in two contrasting cultivars (drought-tolerant RH 725, and drought-sensitive RH 749) of Brassica juncea under drought stress. Two foliar sprayings with brassinolide (10 and 20 mg/L) were carried out in both cultivars (RH 725 and RH 749) at two stages—i.e., flower initiation, and 50% flowering—under stress conditions. The results clearly revealed that the activities of antioxidative enzymes and non-enzymatic antioxidants (carotenoids, ascorbic acid, and proline) increased significantly in RH 725 at 50% flowering, whereas 20 mg/L of brassinolide showed the most promising response. The different oxidative stress indicators (i.e., hydrogen peroxide, malondialdehyde, and electrolyte leakage) decreased to a significant extent at 20 mg/L of brassinolide spray in RH 725 at 50% flowering. This study indicates that brassinolide intensifies the physio-biochemical attributes by improving the antioxidant system and photosynthetic efficiency in RH 725 at 50% flowering. It is assumed that enhanced production of proline, improvement of the antioxidant system, and reduction in the amount of stress indicators impart strength to the plants to combat the stress conditions.

Now a days, farmers prefer to use Premix Formulations instead of single pesticide for the control of insects and pests. Large number of premix formulations are available in the market, Solomom OD (...

Chitosan is a cationic linear biopolymer that is produced by deacetylation of chitin by chitin deacetylase. This enzyme hydrolyses acetamido groups of N-acetyl glucosamine in chitin. Chitosan has immense potential especially in the field of agriculture, food and pharmaceuticals. In most of the countries, commercial exploitation of chitosan is predominantly done by conversion of chitin to chitosan by treating shellfish waste with alkali. The biological methods for extraction of chitosan were used as alternative for chemical methods. In the present study, 18 morphologically different fungal isolates, 17 bacteria and 3 actinomycete were isolated from soil and water samples. Out of these 38 strains, six isolates of fungi, two bacterial isolates and one actinomycete showed positive results by production of yellow color in the chitin agar media supplemented with p-nitroacetanilide as indicator.

Abstract An efficient and facile route for the synthesis of substituted imidazoles (10a-10g) has been developed by reacting substituted aldehydes (1–7), benzil (8) and ammonium acetate (9) in presence of solid supported acid catalyst viz. Rice Husk Ash.SO3H (RHA.SO3H) at room temperature. The purity of compounds was confirmed by melting point and thin layer chromatography. After the completion of reaction the crude product was recrystallized with ethylacetate to give pure samples (10a-10g) in good yield. All synthesized compounds (10a-10g) were characterized by 1HNMR and FTIR spectral techniques. The solid acid catalyst has been characterized by SEM, TEM and X-ray diffraction method. All synthesized compounds were tested in vitro herbicidal activity against Raphanus sativus L. seeds. The compounds (10a-10g) were also screened for their antifungal activity against Rhizoctonia solani and Aspergillus niger by poisoned food technique method. From bio evaluation data, it was found that compounds 10c and 10a were most active against Raphanus sativus L. seeds. Compound 4-(4,5-diphenyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl)phenol (10g) was found most active against R. solani fungus at highest concentration. Compound 2-(4,5-diphenyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl)phenol (10f) has shown maximum percentage inhibition i.e. 71.89 against A. niger at 200 µg/mL concentration.

The present study was done to assess the dissipation behavior, decontamination, and half-life time of ready-mix formulation of trifloxystrobin (25% w/w) and tebuconazole (50% w/w) in okra and soil under the crop after foliar spray at fruiting stage. Samples of okra and soil were collected periodically, i.e., zero (2 h after spray), 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 15, 20, and 25 days after third application at a 7-day interval. Residues of these fungicides were determined by gas liquid chromatography (GLC) equipped with electron capture detector (ECD) and gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GCMS-triple quadruple). The limits of quantification (LOQ) and detection (LOD) for both the fungicides were 0.01 and 0.003 mg kg-1, respectively. Washing alone with faucet water was found successful in minimizing the residues. Soil was free from residual contamination at fifth day after spraying in case of both the fungicides and at both the doses.

Rice straw, a by-product of the rice production is mainly used as a source of feed for ruminant livestock is the major forage in rice-producing areas in India. The disposal of the rice straw is a serious problem in areas where it is the major agricultural product. It is rich in polysaccharides and has a high lignin and silica content, limiting voluntary intake and reducing degradability by rumen microbes. By rice straw treatment, its quality and digestibility can be improved and enhanced the protein content. Several methods have been used to improve the utilization of rice straw by ruminants or supplemented by other ingredients to increase digestibility and nutrient value before it can be considered a suitable animal feed. In recent years, biological treatments have been investigated for improvement in nutritional value of rice straw. The use of ligninolytic fungi and their extracellular ligninolytic enzymes for treatment of rice straw results in degrading cellulose and hemicelluloses contents which improve its nutritional value. The use of fungi and enzyme treatments is expected to be a practical, cost-effective and environmental-friendly approach for enhancing the nutritive value and digestibility of rice straw. Therefore, the treated rice straw has a good potential as feed for ruminants.