Influence of additives on the development, mechanical, functional characteristics and biodegradability of banana starch-based bio plastic films.

Starch-based bioplastics, due to their abundance, recyclability, and biodegradability, offer a promising alternative to conventional petrochemical-based plastics. Additives significantly influence the functionality of bioplastics. This study investigates the effects of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) at varying concentrations on banana starch-based bioplastic films, using glycerol as a plasticizer.

Reinforcement and characterization of biopolymer-rhamnolipid nanoparticles: Biocompatibility, in-vitro stability, physico-chemical, rheological and bioactive properties.

In the present study, biopolymer (chitosan and alginate)-reinforced rhamnolipid nanoparticles were prepared and represented as 'ALG-RHLP-NPs' and 'CHI-RHLP-NPs'. The sizes of the nanoparticles ranged from 150 to 300 nm. The encapsulation efficiencies of ALG-RHLP-NPs and CHI-RHLP-NPs were found to be 81.

Nanocomposite based slow release atrazine effectively controlled Striga asiatica incidence, and enhanced sugarcane yield.

Sugarcane is a major industrial crop highly susceptible to parasitic weed (Striga spp.), causing a 38% reduction in cane yield due to a longer lag phase of 20-40 days, and wider spacing. Herbicides with a longer retention and slow-release nature could allow Striga seeds to germinate and be killed before attaching to the host.

A Brief Review of the Microweiseinae (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Indian Region, Including Description of a New Species.

Indian species of Microweiseinae are reviewed, comprising eight species (five species of Blackburn, one species of Miyatake, and two species of Weise, including one new species from the southern Indian state of Kerala, sp. n.).

Utilization of banana crop ligno-cellulosic waste for sustainable development of biomaterials and nanocomposites.

Banana (Musa spp.) is a tropical fruit cultivated in over 130 countries, producing significant lignocellulosic biomass. However, much of the agro-industrial waste from banana plants is neglected, contributing to environmental pollution.

The interplay between external residue addition, and soil organic carbon dynamics and mineralization kinetics: Experiences from a 12-year old conservation agriculture.

Maintaining soil carbon is vital under changing climate. Conservation agriculture (CA) is reported to have potential to store soil organic carbon (SOC). The impact of carbon inputs on SOC dynamics and mineralization kinetics, and the priming effect of residue addition under long-term CA in subtropical regions, however, are not clear or adequately evaluated.

An evaluation of nucleic acid-based molecular methods for the detection of plant viruses: a systematic review.

Unlabelled: Precise and timely diagnosis of plant viruses is a prerequisite for the implementation of efficient management strategies, considering factors like globalization of trade and climate change facilitating the spread of viruses that lead to agriculture yield losses of billions yearly worldwide. Symptomatic diagnosis alone may not be reliable due to the diverse symptoms and confusion with plant abiotic stresses. It is crucial to detect plant viruses accurately and reliably and do so with little time.

Computational studies on rep and capsid proteins of CRESS DNA viruses.

Unlabelled: The circular rep-encoding single-stranded DNA viruses (CRESS DNA viruses) are among the smallest, with 2-6 kb ssDNA genomes that encode for a coat protein (C) and a replication protein (R). To comprehend the complexity and divergence of the C and R proteins, we have created predictive structural models of representative viruses infecting unique hosts from each family using the neural network-based method AlphaFold2 and carried out molecular dynamic simulations to assess their stability. The structural characteristics indicate that differences in loops and amino-terminus may play a significant role in facilitating adaptations to multiple hosts and vectors.

Ecological weed management and square planting influenced the weed management, and crop productivity in direct-seeded rice.

Herbicide use may pose a risk of environmental pollution or evolution of resistant weeds. As a result, an experiment was carried out to assess the influence of different non-chemical weed management tactics (one hoeing (HH) at 12 DAS followed by (fb) one hand weeding at 30 DAS, one HH at 12 DAS fb Sesbania co-culture and its mulching, one HH at 12 DAS fb rice straw mulching @ 4t ha, one HH at 12 DAS fb rice straw mulching @ 6 t ha) on weed control, crop growth and yield, and economic returns in direct-seeded rice (DSR). Experiment was conducted during kharif season in a split-plot design and replicated thrice.

Coccinellid predators of mealybugs infesting banana in South India, including a new species and a new record of Scymnus Kugelann (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), with notes on other natural enemies.

Several species of mealybugs infest various parts of bananas and plantains including foliage, fruits, rhizome and roots in all the major banana growing regions of India and cause moderate to occasionally serious damage but systematic attempts at documenting the mealybug pests of banana and their natural enemies are lacking in India. In this study, mealybugs infesting bananas and plantains in Tamil Nadu, South India, are documented along with their coccinellid predators and other natural enemies. The exotic Jack Beardsley mealybug, Pseudococcus jackbeardsleyi Gimpel & Miller, was found to be a major pest of banana bunches in all localities surveyed in Tamil Nadu and the grey pineapple mealybug, Dysmicoccus neobrevipes Beardsley, was a serious pest in some isolated pockets.

Dataset from transcriptome profiling of resistant and susceptible cultivars in response to f.sp. race1 and TR4 challenges using Illumina NovaSeq.

In this investigation, the study focused on the RNAseq data generated in response to f.sp. (Foc) race1 (Cavendish infecting strain VCG 0124), targeting both resistant (cv.

A brief review of the tribe Telsimiini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Indian subcontinent, including three new species of Telsimia Casey from South India.

Species of the tribe Telsimiini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Indian subcontinent, all belonging to a single genus, Telsimia Casey, 1899, are briefly reviewed. Three new species, Telsimia pygmaea sp. n.

An illustrated guide to the lady beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Indian Subcontinent. Part II. Tribe Chilocorini.

An illustrated guide to the lady beetles of the tribe Chilocorini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae: Coccinellinae) of the Indian region is presented. Brief diagnostic accounts of six genera and 31 species are given with supporting illustrations of the diagnostic characters, including genitalia, wherever possible. Details of distribution, host insects / plant associations, and seasonal occurrences are provided for the first time based on extensive collections, label data and published literature.

Elucidation of techno-functional, structural and rheological characteristics of pectin extracted from the peel of different banana (Musa. spp) varieties.

Pectin is a polysaccharide mainly used in food processing industries as an emulsifier, thickener, stabilizer and in pharmaceuticals as an excipient, wall material and bio adhesive for improving delivery and efficiency. Raising demand for pectin, pushes to explore unconventional plant-based sources for the extraction of pectin. This work is aimed to explore the possibility of extracting pectin from the peel of banana varieties and to decipher the chemical and techno-functional properties.

Molecular characterization of Red banana and its somaclonal variant: a comprehensive study.

Unlabelled: The prized Red banana, selected for superior qualities, demands strong genetic uniformity for successful clonal propagation and preservation. Ensuring this uniformity early in the growth of in vitro Red banana plants is essential, as gene mutations and chromosome rearrangements during tissue culture can jeopardize both cloning and germplasm conservation. In this situation, molecular markers play a pivotal role in confirming genetic stability.

A review of the tribe Noviini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Indian subcontinent.

The tribe Noviini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) is economically important as its members are mainly predators of giant scales belonging to the family Monophlebidae and occasionally, mealybugs (Pseudococcidae). At present, 17 species of the tribe, all belonging to the sole recognized genus Novius Mulsant, are known from the Indian region. An illustrated account of the Indian species of Novius is presented here with brief diagnostic accounts, illustrations of the genitalia and details on the distribution, host insects and associated host plants.

Identity of the 'true' Micraspis discolor (Fabricius) (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) with illustrated diagnostic notes on other Micraspis spp. in Indian paddy fields.

Micraspis discolor (Fabricius, 1798) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), a widely studied complex of externally similar species, is known to be distributed in all the major rice growing countries of the Oriental region. It consists of disjunct populations that have been treated as a single taxonomic entity, but these are not conspecific and show disparities in their morphology. In this paper, we establish the identity of the true M.

-A review of Platynaspini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the Indian subcontinent, including description of a new genus from north-eastern India and Bangladesh.

The tribe Platynaspini (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) of the Indian subcontinent is reviewed and ten species of Platynaspis Redtenbacher 1843 are briefly described and illustrated with notes on their distribution, biology, and hosts, wherever known. A lectotype is designated for Platynaspis flavoguttata (Gorham, 1894) (lectotype designation). Neoplatynaspis nataliae gen.

A new species of Scymnus Kugelann (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) predatory on amla aphid, Schoutedenia emblica (Patel & Kulkarni) (Hemiptera: Aphididae), from India.

Scymnus (Scymnus) hodeki sp. n. (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) is described and illustrated from Tamil Nadu, South India.