Genetic and genomic interventions in crop biofortification: Examples in millets.

Micronutrient malnutrition is a serious threat to the developing world's human population, which largely relies on a cereal-based diet that lacks diversity and micronutrients. Besides major cereals, millets represent the key sources of energy, protein, vitamins, and minerals for people residing in the dryland tropics and drought-prone areas of South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Millets serve as multi-purpose crops with several salient traits including tolerance to abiotic stresses, adaptation to diverse agro-ecologies, higher productivity in nutrient-poor soils, and rich nutritional characteristics.

Studies on the Cloning and Expression of Bbchit1 Gene of Beauveria bassiana NCIM 1216.

Beauveria bassiana is a biocontrol agent which shows entomopathogenecity on insect pests especially the Lepidopterons invading the agriculturally important crops. The mode of infection is through the cuticle by degrading the chitin present on it which is enabled by the exochitinase enzyme of Bbchit1 gene. A good quality genomic DNA was isolated from Beauveria bassiana NCIM 1216 and amplified with specific primers to isolate the gene corresponding to Bbchit1 which codes for the exochitinase enzyme that is responsible for pathogenesis.

Molecular identification of Mango, Mangifera indica L.var. totupura.

Unlabelled: Mango (>Mangifera indica) belonging to Anacardiaceae family is a fruit that grows in tropical regions. It is considered as the King of fruits. The present work was taken up to identify a tool in identifying the mango species at the molecular level.