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Contaminated agricultural water has been a source of pathogenic Escherichia coli in recent produce-related outbreaks. The purpose of this study was to characterize E. coli isolates from agricultural water sources by using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) to better understand contamination routes. Groundwater and surface water samples were collected quarterly from five farms in Missouri and Kansas over a 1-year period. Samples were tested for generic E. coli by using U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Method 1603, and presumptive E. coli colonies were isolated. In total, 570 isolates were analyzed by PCR, with 191 of these isolates confirmed as E. coli. WGS was completed using an Illumina MiSeq system. The de novo genome assemblies were obtained with Shovill pipeline version 0.9. The NCBI Pathogen Detection system was used to identify antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes. The prevalence of E. coli was higher during spring and summer than winter. A diverse serotype pool was observed where more than 53% of isolates could be linked to a bovine source as the potential animal host. An AMR analysis showed that 100% of isolates carried at least two antimicrobial resistance genes. Recognizing the diversity of E. coli may help guide agricultural water assessments as proposed in the new agricultural water rule Food Safety Modernization Act Produce Safety Rule. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses Paddy straw mulch effect on microclimate, growth and yield of wheat under zero till sowing in North-West India. It mentions use of paddy straw as crop mulch in zero till wheat helps in countering the effect of climate change; and also mentions benefits on soil-water conservation, reduces evapo-transpiration by decreasing evaporation.

An experiment was directed to assess the effect of integrated weed management practices on weed density and dry biomass in rose cv. Gruss-en-Tepltiz by using treatments paddy straw mulch 0.6 kg/m², paddy straw mulch 1.2 kg/m², oxyfluorfen 0.025 g/m², oxyfluorfen 0.025 g/m² + paddy straw mulch 0.6 kg/m², oxyfluorfen 0.025 g/m² + paddy straw mulch 1.2 kg/m², hand weeding (at monthly interval) and unweeded control. The least value of weed count of diverse species was recorded in hand weeding closely followed by oxyfluorfen 0.025 g/m² + paddy straw mulch 1.2 kg/m². Dry biomass of weeds and weed control efficiency was also marked to be lowest in hand weeding followed by oxyfluorfen 0.025 g/m² + paddy straw mulch 1.2 kg/m². Since hand weeding is costly, tedious, laborious, and if not done legitimately, harms the plant and root system, the result of the study advocated using oxyfluorfen in combination with paddy straw mulch at a rate of 1.2 kg/m² for effectively reducing weed growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Labour scarcity, increasing labour costs and declining ground water table have forced farmers in Indian Punjab to find an alternative to resource intensive puddled transplanted rice (PTR). Dry-seeded rice (DSR) was introduced in 2009-10 to address these problems. The impact analysis of this new technology was undertaken by using a comprehensive questionnaire during 2013 through a field survey of farmers who had adopted DSR during 2009 to 2012 in 21 villages in three districts (Bathinda, Faridkot, Sri Muktsar Sahib). The number of farmers who had adopted DSR increased from 10 in 2009 to 211 in 2012; over this time, 11% of these farmers had shifted completely to DSR. The adoption rate of DSR was higher for coarse rice than basmati rice, and adoption was the highest among farmers with medium and large landholding. DSR saved 14 person-days/ha and 18 to 20% irrigation water compared to PTR. To begin with DSR had 2 to 5% yield penalty as compared to PTR. However, as farmers became knowledgeable about DSR especially in sowing and weed control techniques, yield penalty was overcome within one to two years. The productivity of succeeding wheat crop was 5% higher when it was sequenced with DSR than after PTR, thereby increasing higher net returns. The total net returns from DSR-wheat system exceeded PTR-wheat system by INR 5050 to 8100/ha. The results of this survey are consistent with experimental data. Further improvements in planting machinery, weed management practices, and enhancement of grower skills through training programs were identified as the key areas for accelerating the adoption of this new production technology at scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study was planned to evaluate effectiveness of new pre-mix herbicide metsulfuron methyl+chlorimuron ethyl for management of sedges and broadleaf weeds in transplanted rice at research farm of Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana for three years. The treatments comprised of metsulfuron methyl+chlorimuron ethyl 3, 4 and 5g/ha, azimsulfuron 20g/ha and metsulfuron 4 g/ha as post emergence and unsprayed control, replicated four times. The results indicated that the density and biomass of sedges and broadleaf weeds was significantly less in metsulfuron methyl+chlorimuron ethyl 4 and 5g/ha than 3g/ha, azimsulfuron 20g/ha, metsulfuron 4g/ha and unsprayed control. Application of metsulfuron methyl+chlorimuron ethyl 4g/ha applied in rice recorded significantly highest average grain yield of 7.31t/ha. There was a negative linear relationship between weed biomass and grain yield (r=-24.08). Correlation matrix revealed that all the yield attributes showed higher correlation with metsulfuron methyl+chlorimuron ethyl 4g/ha. Post emergence application of metsulfuron methyl+chlorimuron ethyl at 4g/ha resulted in effective control of broadleaf weeds and sedges in transplanted rice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dental malocclusion can be due to underlying skeletal discrepancies or dentoalveolar discrepancies. When the malocclusions are secondary to abnormal skeletal development the approach in treating such malocclusions changes from being an orthodontic one. Such malocclusions in growing patients can be treated with functional appliance therapy or orthopaedic appliance therapy. The decision whether to treat the patient with functional appliance or an orthopaedic appliance depends upon the cause of malocclusion. Functional appliances are mostly used in cases where the malocclusion is due to restricted growth of the jaws. In case of class II malocclusion it can be used to facilitate the growth of mandible and help achieve a balance in maxillomandibular relations.the functional appliance therapy aims to improve the functional relationship of dentofacial structures by eliminating unfavourable developmental factors and improving the muscle environment. The aim of this paper is to provide an insight into the mechanism of action, design and treatment steps of the most commonly used functional appliance, the twin block appliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nutrient uptake by direct seeded rice and associated weeds was studied in a field experiment during kharif 2008. Twenty four treatment combinations viz. six sowing dates (direct seeding on 0 (June 5), 7, 14, 21 and 28 days after nursery sowing (DANS); transplanting 28 DANS); two varieties (short duration PR 115 and medium duration PAU 201) and two weed control treatments (3 hand weedings at 20, 40, 60 days and pendimethalin 0.75 kg ha-1 pre-emergence followed by bispyribacsodium 0.030 kg ha-1 as post emergence) were evaluated in a split plot design with three replications. Among sowing dates and establishment methods, rice grains in manual transplanting utilized significantly higher amount of nitrogen and phosphorus than all the direct seeding dates 0, 7, 14, 21 and 28 DANS; potassium uptake was at par to direct seeding on 0 DANS. The rice straw utilized the highest amount of potassium in transplanted treatment and was at par to direct seeding 0 DANS; nitrogen and phosphorous uptake did not show any specific trend. The nitrogen and potassium removal by the weeds was the lowest in transplanted check which was at par to direct seeding on 0- 7 DANS and for phosphorous removal it was at par to 0-14 DANS. Nitrogen and potassium uptake by rice grain and straw did not vary among varieties, however, phosphorous uptake by grain and straw was significantly higher in case of PR 115 than PAU 201; weeds also removed significantly higher amount of potassium in PR 115 as compared to PAU 201. Among weed control treatments, rice grains in the three hand weeding treatment utilized significantly higher amount of nitrogen as compared to sequential application of herbicides; nitrogen uptake by straw was non-significant. The weeds in herbicidal plot removed significantly higher amount of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium as compared to three hand weedings. The nutrient uptake by crop was directly related to crop dry matter accumulation and grain yield while nutrient removal by weeds was directly related to the weed dry matter accumulation under different treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effect of planting methods and weed control on productivity and oil quality of Japanese mint (Mentha arvensis L.) were evaluated in a field trial at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, India, during 2009 and 2010. Three planting methods (flat, bed and ridge planting) and six weed control treatments (oxyfluorfen at 0.20 kg/ha was applied as pre-emergence, post-emergence at 10, 15 and 20 days after planting; two hand hoeings and unweeded control) were evaluated. Planting methods did not influence weed dynamics and Japanese mint herb yield. Oxyflourfen as preemergence recorded the lowest density and dry matter of grass and broadleaf weeds and gave the highest Japanese mint herb yield during both the years. Oxyflourfen applied at 10 days was at par to its pre-emergence application with respect to weed control and Japanese mint herb yield. Further delay in oxyflourfen application recorded poor weed control and herb yield was significantly reduced. Mint oil and menthol content did not vary among planting methods and weed control treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluated the efficacy of five commercially available sanitizers to reduce Salmonella (sessile and biofilm forms) count on experimentally inoculated materials representative of harvesting bins and picking bags in the fresh produce industry. Sessile Salmonella cells were grown onto tryptic soy agar to create a bacterial lawn, while multistrain Salmonella biofilms were grown in a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reactor at 22 ± 2 °C for 96 h. Samples were exposed to 500 ppm free chlorine, 500 ppm peroxyacetic acid (PAA), 75 psi steam, and 5% silver dihydrogen citrate (SDC) for 30 sec, 1, or 2 min or 100 ppm chlorine dioxide gas for 24 h. Sanitizer, surface type, and application time significantly affected the viability of Salmonella in both sessile and biofilm forms (P < 0.05). All treatments resulted in a significant reduction of Salmonella when compared to the control (P < 0.05). Chlorine dioxide gas was the most effective treatment in both sessile and biofilm forms regardless of the type of surface, and it achieved a 5-log reduction. PAA at 500 ppm applied for 2 min was the only liquid sanitizer that resulted in a greater than 3-log reduction in all surfaces. Scanning electronic microscopy demonstrated the porous surface nature of nylon and wood, compared to HDPE, impacted sanitizer antimicrobial activity. Understanding the efficacy of sanitizers to control Salmonella on harvesting bins and picking bags may improve the safety of fresh produce by increasing available sanitizing treatment., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Experimental exploration of new materials relies heavily on a laborious trial-and-error approach. In addition to substantial time and resource requirements, traditional experiments and computational modelling are typically limited in finding target materials within the enormous chemical space. Therefore, creating innovative techniques to expedite material discovery becomes essential. Recently, machine learning (ML) has emerged as a valuable tool for material discovery, garnering significant attention due to its remarkable advancements in prediction accuracy and time efficiency. This rapidly developing computational technique accelerates the search and optimization process and enables the prediction of material properties at a minimal computational cost, thereby facilitating the discovery of novel materials. We provide a comprehensive overview of recent studies on discovering new materials by predicting materials and their properties using ML techniques. Beginning with an introduction of the fundamental principles of ML methods, we subsequently examine the current research landscape on the applications of ML in predicting material properties that lead to the discovery of novel materials. Finally, we discuss challenges in employing ML within materials science, propose potential solutions, and outline future research directions., (Creative Commons Attribution license.)