Effect of green and UVA spectra, and pre-harvest treatments on biomass and metabolite yields of indoor cultivated stevia rebaudiana.

Stevia rebaudiana is a high-value crop due to the strong commercial demand for its metabolites (steviol glycosides, SG) as an organic low-caloric sweetener with up to 300 times the sweetness of conventional sugar. Two experiments were conducted in this study. In the first experiment, treatments with varying green (GR1 & GR2), UVA (UV1 & UV2) and treatments that had both (UVGR1, UVGR2) were used.

Modulation of Plant Transcription Factors and Priming of Stress Tolerance by Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria: A Systematic Review.

Background: Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) have been shown to improve plant growth and stress tolerance through mechanisms including improved access to nutrients and biotic competition with pathogens. As such, the use of PGPB can help to address challenges to crop productivity, however, information on interactions between PGPB and their plant hosts, especially at the level of gene regulation, is distributed across diverse studies involving several different plants and PGPB.

Scope: For this review, we analysed recent research publications reporting specifically on plant transcription factor (TF) expression in association with PGPB, to determine if there are any common findings and to identify gaps that offer opportunities for focused future research.

Adding value to banana farming: Antibody production in post-harvest leaves.

Banana, a globally popular fruit, is widely cultivated in tropical and sub-tropical regions. After fruit harvest, remaining banana plant materials are low-value byproducts, mostly composted or used as fibre or for food packaging. As an aim to potentially increase farmer income, this study explored underutilised banana biomass as a novel plant tissue for production of a high-value product.

A review of , a promising functional food and source of health-related phytochemicals.

is an edible herb, that is also used for traditional medical purposes. It is high in antioxidants, phenols, and flavonoids. However, there is limited information on the nutritional composition and the mechanisms by which nutritional and functional constituents of affect human metabolism.

Recent Progress on Nanocarriers for Topical-Mediated RNAi Strategies for Crop Protection-A Review.

To fulfil the growing needs of the global population, sustainability in food production must be ensured. Insect pests and pathogens are primarily responsible for one-third of food losses and harmful synthetic pesticides have been applied to protect crops from these pests and other pathogens such as viruses and fungi. An alternative pathogen control mechanism that is more "friendly" to the environment can be developed by externally applying double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) to suppress gene expression.

A wideband hybrid combiner design for ITER ion cyclotron radio frequency source.

The high-power radio frequency source for ion cyclotron heating and current drive of ITER tokamak consists of two identical 1.5 MW amplifier chains. These two chains will be combined using a wideband hybrid combiner with adequate coupling flatness, phase balance, return loss, and isolation response to generate 2.

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Symbiosis: A Strategy for Mitigating the Impacts of Climate Change on Tropical Legume Crops.

Climate change is likely to have severe impacts on food security in the topics as these regions of the world have both the highest human populations and narrower climatic niches, which reduce the diversity of suitable crops. Legume crops are of particular importance to food security, supplying dietary protein for humans both directly and in their use for feed and forage. Other than the rhizobia associated with legumes, soil microbes, in particular arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), can mitigate the effects of biotic and abiotic stresses, offering an important complementary measure to protect crop yields.

Halotolerant rhizobacteria isolated from a mangrove forest alleviate saline stress in Musa acuminata cv. Berangan.

Saline soils resulting from anthropogenic activity and climate change present a challenge to future food security. Towards addressing this, we isolated and characterized halotolerant bacteria from a Malaysian mangrove forest, and explored their effect on morpho-physiological and biochemical parameters of banana plantlets under salt stress. A total of 88 rhizobacterial and 16 endophytic bacterial isolates collected from the roots and rhizosphere of Rhizophora apiculata, Avicennia alba and Sonneratia alba, were found to tolerate up to 400 mM of sea salt.

DhMYB22 and DhMYB60 regulate pigment intensity and floral organ shape in Dendrobium hybrid.

Background: Flower pigment and shape are determined by the coordinated expression of a set of structural genes during flower development. R2R3-MYB transcription factors are known regulators of structural gene expression. The current study focused on two members of this large family of transcription factors that were predicted to have roles in pigment biosynthesis and organ shape development in orchids.

Genome Assembly and Analysis of the Flavonoid and Phenylpropanoid Biosynthetic Pathways in Fingerroot Ginger ().

(Zingiberaceae), is a high-value culinary and ethno-medicinal plant of Southeast Asia. The rhizomes of this herb have a high flavanone and chalcone content. Here we report the genome analysis of together with a complete genome sequence as a hybrid assembly.

A Reappraisal of Polyploidy Events in Grasses (Poaceae) in a Rapidly Changing World.

Around 80% of megaflora species became extinct at the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) boundary. Subsequent polyploidy events drove the survival of thousands of plant species and played a significant historical role in the development of the most successful modern cereal crops. However, current and rapid global temperature change poses an urgent threat to food crops worldwide, including the world's big three cereals: rice, wheat, and maize, which are members of the grass family, Poaceae.

Beyond the PAR spectra: impact of light quality on the germination, flowering, and metabolite content of Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni).

Background: Stevia rebaudiana is a high value crop due to the strong commercial demand for its metabolites (steviol glycosides) but has limited geographical cultivation range. In non-native environments with different daylength and light quality, Stevia has low germination rates and early flowering resulting in lower biomass and poor yield of the desired metabolites. In this study, artificial lighting with light-emitting diodes (LEDs) was used to determine if different light quality within and outside of the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) range can be used to improve germination rates and yields for production of steviol glycosides for the herbal supplement and food industry.

Circadian Rhythms in Legumes: What Do We Know and What Else Should We Explore?

The natural timing devices of organisms, commonly known as biological clocks, are composed of specific complex folding molecules that interact to regulate the circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythms, the changes or processes that follow a 24-h light-dark cycle, while endogenously programmed, are also influenced by environmental factors, especially in sessile organisms such as plants, which can impact ecosystems and crop productivity. Current knowledge of plant clocks emanates primarily from research on Arabidopsis, which identified the main components of the circadian gene regulation network.

Genome-Wide Novel Genic Microsatellite Marker Resource Development and Validation for Genetic Diversity and Population Structure Analysis of Banana.

Trait tagging through molecular markers is an important molecular breeding tool for crop improvement. SSR markers encoded by functionally relevant parts of a genome are well suited for this task because they may be directly related to traits. However, a limited number of these markers are known for spp.

Identification and characterization of Ageratum yellow vein Malaysia virus (AYVMV) and an associated betasatellite among begomoviruses infecting Solanum lycopersicum in Malaysia.

The study describes results of a survey of tomato fields for the presence of begomoviruses from different regions of Peninsular Malaysia. An ORF-based (C2 and C3) study was performed to determine the distribution of begomoviruses associated with a severe leaf curl disease in tomato-growing areas of Peninsular Malaysia. Viral DNA was isolated from symptomatic tomato plants, and begomovirus association was confirmed by PCR using DNA-A degenerate primers.

Performance optimization of test facility for coaxial transmission line components based on traveling wave resonator.

As part of development program for a high power co-axial transmission line component test facility, an existing traveling wave resonator based test stand is modified to improve power gain and ring return loss. The 10 dB directional coupler in the earlier test stand is replaced with a 14 dB directional coupler to couple radio frequency power with the ring. To achieve an improved isolation and return loss, the 14 dB directional coupler design is equipped with two broadside strip-lines with a tunable gap between them.

Serum procalcitonin as a biomarker of bloodstream infection & focal bacterial infection in febrile patients.

Background & Objectives: Bacteraemia is a serious form of infection in patients presenting with fever, thus, there is a necessity for a biomarker for rapid diagnosis of bacteraemia in such patients to make better therapeutic decisions. This study was conducted to measure the serum procalcitonin (PCT) levels at the time of initial presentation as a biomarker for identifying bacteraemia and as a predictor of mortality in patients admitted with acute fever.

Methods: Four hundred and eighty patients, who presented with acute fever requiring admission to a tertiary care teaching hospital in south India, were prospectively studied.

Pulse Crop Genetics for a Sustainable Future: Where We Are Now and Where We Should Be Heading.

The last decade has witnessed dramatic changes in global food consumption patterns mainly because of population growth and economic development. Food substitutions for healthier eating, such as swapping regular servings of meat for protein-rich crops, is an emerging diet trend that may shape the future of food systems and the environment worldwide. To meet the erratic consumer demand in a rapidly changing world where resources become increasingly scarce due largely to anthropogenic activity, the need to develop crops that benefit both human health and the environment has become urgent.

Transcriptional Sequencing and Gene Expression Analysis of Various Genes in Fruit Development of Three Different Black Pepper ( L.) Varieties.

Black pepper () is a vital spice crop with uses ranging from culinary to pharmacological applications. However, limited genetic information has constrained the understanding of the molecular regulation of flower and fruit development in black pepper. In this study, a comparison among three different black pepper varieties, Semengok Aman (SA), Kuching (KC), and Semengok 1 (S1), with varying fruit characteristics was used to provide insight on the genetic regulation of flower and fruit development.

Epigenetic changes and their relationship to somaclonal variation: a need to monitor the micropropagation of plantation crops.

Chromatin modulation plays important roles in gene expression regulation and genome activities. In plants, epigenetic changes, including variations in histone modification and DNA methylation, are linked to alterations in gene expression. Despite the significance and potential of in vitro cell and tissue culture systems in fundamental research and marketable applications, these systems threaten the genetic and epigenetic networks of intact plant organs and tissues.

Poisoning.

Mohan A, Harikrishna J. Poisoning. Indian J Crit Care Med 2019;23(Suppl 4):S256-S259.

Evaluation of banana germplasm and genetic analysis of an F population for resistance to f. sp. race 1.

Fusarium wilt of bananas ( spp.), caused by f. sp.

Hormonal and transcriptional analyses of fruit development and ripening in different varieties of black pepper (Piper nigrum).

Black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) is one of the most popular and oldest spices in the world with culinary uses and various pharmacological properties. In order to satisfy the growing worldwide demand for black pepper, improved productivity of pepper is highly desirable.

Author Correction: De novo assembly of transcriptomes, mining, and development of novel EST-SSR markers in Curcuma alismatifolia (Zingiberaceae family) through Illumina sequencing.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.