Complete genome sequence analysis of multi-drug resistant THK strain isolated from aquaculture farm in Kerala, India.

The emergence of microorganisms with resistance toward antibiotics has been widely recognized as a growing hazard to public health. Here, we report the whole genome sequence of strain THK which was isolated from an aquaculture farm in Kerala, India. Standard disc diffusion and strip methods were used for antibiotic susceptibility testing and minimum inhibitory concentration detection.

Green Chemistry to Valorize Seafood Side Streams: An Ecofriendly Roadmap toward Sustainability.

A major challenge facing sustainable seafood production is the voluminous amounts of nutrient-rich seafood side streams consisting of by-catch, processing discards, and process effluents. There is a lack of a comprehensive model for optimal valorization of the side streams. Upcoming green chemistry-based processing has the potential to recover diverse valuable compounds from seafood side streams in an ecofriendly manner.

Co-exposure of microplastics and heavy metals in the marine environment and remediation techniques: a comprehensive review.

Microplastics (MPs) and heavy metals are significant pollutants in the marine environment, necessitating effective remediation strategies to prevent their release into the sea through sewage and industrial effluent. This comprehensive review explores the current understanding of the co-exposure of MPs and heavy metal-enriched MPs, highlighting the need for effective remediation methods. Various mechanisms, including surface ion complexation, hydrogen bonding, and electrostatic forces, contribute to the adsorption of heavy metals onto MPs, with factors like surface area and environmental exposure duration playing crucial roles.

Biogeography and evolutionary history of Puntius sensu lato (Teleostei: Cyprinidae) in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka's biota is derived largely from Southeast Asian lineages which immigrated via India following its early-Eocene contact with Laurasia. The island is now separated from southeastern India by the 30 km wide Palk Strait which, during sea-level low-stands, was bridged by the 140 km-wide Palk Isthmus. Consequently, biotic ingress and egress were mediated largely by the climate of the isthmus.

Trophic functioning of a small, anthropogenically disturbed, tropical estuary.

A trophic model was constructed for the Poonthura Estuary, a small, anthropogenically impacted estuary along the south-western coast of India. An Ecopath with Ecosim based trophic modelling approach, based on observations made between 2016 and 2020, revealed that the Poonthura Estuary had a low total system throughput (3044.2 t km year), low ascendancy (15%), high Finn's cycling index (17.

Mangrove-associated endomycota: diversity and functional significance as a source of novel drug leads.

Endophytic fungi are known for their unprecedented ability to produce novel lead compounds of clinical and pharmaceutical importance. This review focuses on the unexplored fungal diversity associated with mangroves, emphasizing their biodiversity, distribution, and methodological approaches targeting isolation, and identification. Also highlights the bioactive compounds reported from the mangrove fungal endophytes.

Fish diversity, composition, and guild structure influenced by the environmental drivers in a small temporarily closed tropical estuary from the western coast of India.

Globally, small temporarily closed estuaries are the least considered for fisheries assessment and management due to a low scientific priority and regional importance. However, these ecosystems are highly exposed to anthropogenic pressures and may deteriorate without assessing its aquatic resources. In this study, fish diversity and guild structure of Chettuva-a temporarily closed tropical estuary in the western coast of India-was investigated.

SUNLIGHT-INDUCED decontamination of water from emerging pharmaceutical pollutants using ZnO nanoparticles.

A new class of environmental pollutants that have become a significant concern for the entire world's population over the last few decades are pharmaceutical contaminants due to the potential risks they pose to the environment and human health. An investigation on the photocatalytic degradation of four different model pharmaceutical contaminants: Tetracycline (TCT), Sulfamethoxazole (SMX), Chloroquine (CLQ), and Diclofenac (DCF) has been carried out using ZnO nanoparticles as the photocatalyst, and sunlight as the source of energy in a batch photocatalytic reactor. This process resulted in the degradation of about 51% for TCT, 65% for SMX, 61% for CLQ, and 55% for DCF within 30 min of solar irradiation.

Regulatory effects of potassium channel blockers on potassium channel genes upon nervous necrosis virus infection in sevenband grouper Hyporthodus septumfasciatus.

Ion channels in fishes regulate the flow of important ions that play an active role in the excitation and transmission of impulses through neuronal cells. Specific housekeeping genes translates into proteins and selectively permeabilize and facilitate ion crossover transmissions. Potassium (K) channels play a crucial role in a wide range of functions such as cell volume regulation, hormone secretion, synaptic transmission and muscle contraction.

Effect of chitosan-based bio coating on mechanical, structural and physical characteristics of microfiber based paper packaging: An alternative to wood pulp/plastic packaging.

Limnocharis flava is a noxious aquatic weed that poses a threat to paddy cultivation. The high cellulose and low lignin contents in this plant make it a potential raw material for papermaking. Against this backdrop, this study was taken up to develop Limnocharis flava (LF) based sheets containing natural fibres from Banana (B), Pineapple (P), and Rice Straw (RS) as reinforcing agents.

Mitochondrial phylogeny of fusilier fishes (family Caesionidae) from the Laccadive archipelago reveals a new species and two new records from the Central Indian Ocean.

Fusiliers of the family Caesionidae comprise a group of Indo-Pacific reef fishes important in the live bait and artisanal fisheries in many parts of its range, particularly in the Indian Ocean region. Using newly generated mitochondrial COI sequences of 10 species of caesionid fishes from the Laccadive archipelago, we carried out a molecular phylogenetic analysis, which has helped improve our understanding of the diversity, distribution, and systematics of this poorly known group of fishes. The two speciose genera within Caesionidae, Caesio and Pterocaesio, were revealed to be paraphyletic, and as a result, four names earlier considered as subgenera within Caesionidae (Flavicaesio, Odontonectes, Pisinnicaesio, and Squamosicaesio) were elevated to the status of distinct genera.

An integrated groundwater resource management approach for sustainable development in a tropical river basin, southern India.

Evaluation of aquifer potential is essential, as the potable water demand has increased globally over the last few decades. The present study delineated different zones of groundwater potential and groundwater quality of the Kallada River basin (KRB) in southern India, using geo-environmental and hydrogeochemical parameters, respectively. Geo-environmental variables considered include relative relief, land use/land cover, drainage density, slope angle, geomorphology, and geology, while hydrogeochemical parameters include pH, electrical conductivity (EC), Cl, Fe, and Al concentrations.

Land use change in rapidly developing economies-a case study on land use intensification and land fallowing in Kochi, Kerala, India.

The land use/land cover change is a local driver of environmental change having cascading impacts and implications at the global level, and therefore requires appreciable consideration when perceived from sustainability perspectives. Kerala, the southernmost state of India, has undergone a dramatic transition from a traditional agrarian economy to a modern thriving economy involving the irrational exploitation of natural resources, precisely, land and its components. The present study addresses how land is being changed along an urbanization gradient in the most agglomerative city in the state, Kochi, during the last one and half decades.

Carbon stock in biomass pool of fragmented mangrove habitats of Kochi, Southern India.

Even though, the blue carbon ecosystems are gaining keen research interest around the globe, the carbon stock of South-West coast of India was poorly reported, and this study is a pioneer attempt and will be an important document for filling the gaps in uncertainties in global carbon stock assessment and also will increase knowledge on biomass variability among mangrove species and mangrove habitats. The study also highlighted the vital role of biomass carbon pool for long-term soil carbon burial. We estimated the above and below-ground biomass carbon stock of 13 mangrove species using two common allometric equations and species-specific equations and reported a very high mean total living biomass carbon stock of Kochi mangroves at 237.

Trophic fingerprinting of a pristine but rapidly deteriorating downstream region of a Western Ghats River.

Chalakudy River is renowned for its pristine waters and rich ichthyofaunal biodiversity. The downstream area of the river is confronting a series of risks, including pollution, saline water ingression, sand mining, illegal and intensified fishing practices, and invasion of exotic and alien species. A mass balanced ecosystem model was constructed for the downstream region of Chalakudy River (DCR) using Ecopath with Ecosim (EWE), incorporating 12 functional groups to delineate the food web and network flow indices for the period 2020 to 2021.

Whole-cell synthesis of 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid from pineapple waste under various fermentation strategies.

2,5-Furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) is one of the platform chemicals and monomers used in plastic industries, currently synthesized by carcinogenic and toxic chemical processes with high pressure and temperature. The aim of this study was to develop a bioprocess for the production of FDCA. 5-(Hydroxymethyl)furfural (HMF) was synthesized (22.

Development of active packaging film based on poly (lactic acid) incorporated with Piper betel leaf ethanolic extract and its application in the shelf-life extension of tuna meat.

Active packaging films based on poly (lactic acid) (PLA) were developed by adding different concentrations (5 wt% and 10 wt%) of betel leaf (Piper betel) ethanolic extract (BLEE). The extract showed excellent antioxidant (80.2 %) and antimicrobial properties (18.

Sub-chronic exposure of Oreochromis niloticus to environmentally relevant concentrations of smaller microplastics: Accumulation and toxico-physiological responses.

This study assesses the accumulation and toxic effects of environmentally relevant concentrations (0.01, 0.1 and 1 mg/L) of polystyrene MPs (1 µm) in Oreochromis niloticus (Nile tilapia) for 14 days.

Characterization and qualitative evaluation of cassava starch-chitosan edible food wrap enriched with culinary leaf powders for eco-friendly food packaging applications.

Cassava starch-based edible food wraps were prepared by incorporating leaf powder from Indian curry leaf and Malabar bay leaf, reinforced with different (0.2, 0.4, 0.

Isolation and identification of Streptococcus agalactiae in cage-cultured green chromide Etroplus suratensis in Kerala, India.

Streptococcus agalactiae is one of the main aetiological agents in large-scale mortalities of tilapia, having caused major economic losses to the aquaculture industry in recent years. This study describes the isolation and identification of the bacteria from cage-cultured Etroplus suratensis that experienced moderate to severe mortalities in Kerala, India. Gram-positive, catalase-negative S.

Spatio-temporal evaluation and risk assessment of microplastics in nearshore surface waters post-2018 Kerala deluge along the southwest coast of India.

Spatial and temporal distribution of microplastics along the nearshore surface waters of Kerala after the floods of 2018 was studied. Results indicated a seven-fold increase in its mean concentration (7.14 ± 3.

A new species of spiny eel of the genus Notacanthus Bloch 1788 (Notacanthiformes: Notacanthidae) from the Indian Ocean.

The deep-sea spiny eels of the genus Notacanthus Bloch 1788 are currently represented by six valid species, of which only one, Notacanthus indicus, has been described so far from the Arabian Sea, part of the Western Indian Ocean. This paper reports the discovery of a new species, described herein as Notacanthus laccadiviensis, from the outer reef drop-off, off the Kavaratti Island, Lakshadweep Archipelago, Arabian Sea. The new species differs from its congeners in the shape of the head; morphology of dorsal, pectoral and anal fins; number of gill rakers; number of vertebrae; and body colour, and specifically from N.