High Asymptomatic Cases of Babesiosis in Dogs and Comparison of Diagnostic Performance of Conventional PCR vs Blood Smears.

Purpose: Babesiosis is one of the most important globally extended and quickly spreading tick-borne infections of dogs. Diagnosis of babesiosis in Sri Lanka is based on clinical signs followed by thin blood smears which could be error-prone due to undetected early infections, absence of clinical signs or low parasitemia. The present study investigated the prevalence of babesiosis in dogs presented to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital (VTH) at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of Peradeniya, for treatments, vaccinations, and regular check-ups, and compared the diagnosis methods of microscopy and molecular analysis.

Photosynthetic Phenomics of Field- and Greenhouse-Grown Amaranths vs. Sensory and Species Delimits.

Consumers hesitate to purchase field-grown shoot-tops of amaranths in Sri Lanka, citing the low-cleanliness making growers focus on greenhouse farming. However, the photosynthetic and growth variations in relation to the organoleptic preference of the greenhouse-grown amaranths in comparison to field-grown counterparts have not been studied. Also, the species delimits of the amaranths in Sri Lanka have not been identified, limiting our ability to interpret species-specific production characteristics.

Application of Pedimap: a pedigree visualization tool to facilitate the decisioning of rice breeding in Sri Lanka.

The development of rice cultivars with desirable traits is essential. The decision-making is a crucial step in rice breeding programs. Breeders can make efficient and pragmatic decisions if an organized pedigree visualization platform is available for the accessions and cultivars in rice breeding germplasm.

Assessment of the elite accessions of bael [Aegle marmelos (L.) Corr.] in Sri Lanka based on morphometric, organoleptic, and elemental properties of the fruits and phylogenetic relationships.

Aegle marmelos L. (Bael) is a native tree fruit species in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Bael is a popular fruit because of its significant nutritional and medicinal properties.

Assessment of the applicability of wood anatomy and DNA barcoding to detect the timber adulterations in Sri Lanka.

The wood adulteration is a common problem and under-studied aspect in the timber industry of Sri Lanka. Hence we conducted a survey to assess the status of timber adulteration and check the applicability of morphometric parameters and DNA barcoding to detect the adulterated timber sources. We interviewed the stakeholders of the timber industry to collect information regarding timber adulterations.