Volume 3 (2024), Issue 1

Plant defensins (Pdfs) represent a subset of cationic antimicrobial peptides characterized by a distinct tertiary structure. Similar to their counterparts in insects and mammals, they play a pivotal role in the innate immunity of plants, exhibiting broad-spectrum antifungal activity. This study focused on a comprehensive genome-wide survey to identify Pdfs genes within eight distinct legume crops. This study revealed the presence of Pdfs genes in eight leguminous plants such as 13 in P. sativum, 6 in P. vulgaris, 16 in M. trunculata and 4 in C. cajon, 6 in G. max, 5 in A. hypogea, 5 in C. arietinum, and 4 in V. angularis. Utilizing various bioinformatic analyses including phylogeny, motif, and gene structure analysis, identified Pdfs genes were categorized into two distinct groups i.e., group A (comprising subgroups A1, A2, A3, A4, A5) and group B 2 (B1 and B2). This clustering was based on protein sequences, where the presence of a proline-rich domain at the N-terminal and a linker DNA domain at the C-terminal facilitated differentiation. Gene structural analysis uncovered a variable range of 1 to 3 introns within Pdfs genes. Moreover, promoter analysis highlighted the abundance of cis-regulatory elements upstream of Pdfs genes, responsive to a diverse spectrum of biotic and abiotic stress stimuli. Expression analysis underlined the crucial role of Pdfs protein in defense responses in leguminous plants against both pathogenic and environmental stressors. These findings underscore the involvement of Pdfs in strengthening the defense mechanisms of legumes and provide fundamental insights essential for prospective investigations into Pdfs.

Citrus cultivation is a vital component of the agricultural sector, offering significant nutritional and economic benefits. However, citrus plants face numerous disorders, including Huanglongbing (HLB), also known as citrus greening disease. HLB is a devastating disease caused by the bacterial species Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (Las), primarily transmitted by the citrus psyllid and grafting. Investigating the distribution and molecular characterization of HLB in various citrus varieties and psyllid populations is crucial. Molecular techniques and iodine starch staining have been used to detect HLB symptoms. Several studies have been designed to determine the incidence and severity of HLB symptoms in different citrus varieties and locations and estimate the psyllid population density in different citrus varieties. Furthermore, these studies established a correlation between the population of psyllids and the incidence and severity of HLB in different locations and these findings suggest a potential link between psyllid infestation and the prevalence of HLB. This study highlights the prevalence of HLB in various locations and varieties, providing insights into the distribution, severity, and correlation between psyllid populations and HLB incidence. The reliability of PCR testing for Las infection confirms its effectiveness. Such findings suggest implementing integrated pest management strategies, including monitoring and controlling psyllid populations, removing infected plants, and using certified disease-free planting materials to prevent HLB spread.

Plasmodiophora brassica is a causal agent of brassica clubroot, and synthetic and bio fungicides showed actions against P. brassica. Under controlled-environment conditions, the mechanism of suppression of P. brassica by bio fungicides was antibiosis and mediated host resistance. To promote the delivery of bio fungicides, various formulations like granular and seed treatment were produced, so neither bio fungicides nor chemical fungicides were sufficiently compelling to reduce the population of resting spore P. brassica. Resistant cultivars substantially decreased clubroot intensity and canola yield losses. P. brassica resistance is the most consistent and economically appropriate management approach, but some studies indicate that clubroot resistance may not be robust. To build and deploy a different source of resistance constantly. The bait plants and soil modifications are not commercially practical. Crop data manipulation, soil fumigation, chemical fungicide application, and bio fungicides have much more ability to control P. brassica. The combinations of strategies that can minimize the pressure of disease in infested areas and enhance the resilience and number of the resistant gene versus P. brassica still need to be identified.

Heat shock proteins, HSPs, are essential for plants to develop defense systems against various abiotic challenges. Vigna species are widely grown cash crops in the world. However, some unfavorable environmental conditions hinder the growth and production of these crops. It is therefore essential to investigate the factors influencing their growth, development, and tolerance to abiotic stress to develop stress-tolerant varieties. Consequently, a comprehensive genome-wide identification study was conducted to identify the Heat Shock Factor (HSF) genes in three Vigna species genomes employing computational tools. In the current study, 43 non-redundant HSP proteins were identified in three Vigna species including 17 in Vigna angularis, 22 in Vigna radiata, and 4 non-redundant in V. ungucuilata. Moreover, subcellular locations were predicted, and all HSPs were found in the nucleus. The theoretical isoelectric point predicted that most of the HSP proteins were acidic. The aliphatic index of the HSP proteins demonstrated that all proteins are highly thermostable. Moreover, the instability index revealed two proteins VangHSP_9 and VradHSP_9, considered stable while the rest of the HSP proteins were unstable. The phylogenetic analysis categorized HSP genes into two major clusters and gene structure analysis displayed that all HSP genes were intronless. This study gives novel insight into the functional characterization of HSPs in Vigna species for plant breeding programs.

Sessile plants confront the fluctuating harsh environmental conditions and react to alterations in biotic and abiotic components of environments by symbiotic association between plant and biosphere. The origins of stresses are the vicinal environment, which is composed of biotic and abiotic agents. A wide range of molecular mechanisms are opted by the plants for their self-defense. The plant faces harsh conditions due to its molecular battery. Signaling molecules engineer the plants to tolerate the stresses. Transposable elements become active due to living and nonliving agents. Physical and chemical agents cause induction in mutation. These changes are the first driving step in the evolution of plants. During evolution, environmental changes force the plants to adapt or succumb to stress. The plants respond to the ecological conditions by modulating the gene programmer.

Mushrooms are highly nutritious dietary items that are rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and high-quality protein. Oyster and button mushrooms are highly significant species, cultivated in diverse farms and locations. Various fungal contaminants, including Trichoderma sp. hindered the mycelium growth of button mushroom, hence reduces its yield. In this study, bio-management of Trichoderma horzianum which is a major causative agent of mushroom mold was investigated by using different essential oils viz., cinnamon, coconut, neem and rose oil with increasing concentration of 4%, 8%, 12% and 16% against Trichoderma sp. All of the essential oils showed significant impact, but rose oil with concentration of 16% demonstrated the highest efficacy in controlling Trichoderma sp against mushroom mold. Thus, it is suggested that increasing concentration of rose oil would be more effective under in-vitro conditions in controlling Trichoderma horzianum.

Heat stress during the post-anthesis phase significantly impacts wheat cultivation. To evaluate the tolerance of advanced wheat lines to heat stress, stress tolerance indices were used under both normal and post-anthesis heat stress conditions. The results showed a decrease in the average yield of advanced lines under both conditions, indicating the negative impact of heat stress on wheat cultivation. The analysis using PCs, biplot, and ranked clusters revealed that line V-21448 had below-average values for RHSI and %YDR, while V-21243 had values close to the average and all other lines had above-average values. Additionally, under normal conditions, V-19532 had the highest values for RHSI and HYT 100-47 had the lowest values for %YDR. In heat stress conditions, HYT 100-47 had the lowest values for both indices. HYT 100-74 and HYT 100-76 had the highest average values for MNP and YDI and were highly stable in the heat environment. Under normal settings, YDI, RHSI, and % YDR showed a positive correlation, while under heat stress conditions, the same traits showed a negative correlation. MNP had a high positive correlation with Yp and Ys, while YDSI had a negative correlation with Yp but a positive correlation with Ys. These results suggest that these traits are useful for identifying advanced lines with increased yield under both conditions.

Barley is an important field crop. The present study was designed to identify the efficient seed dressing synthetic fungicide against Ustilago hordei causing covered smut of barley. The treatments included three seed dressing fungicides (Bayton 10 DS, Topsin-M, Dividend-Star 36 F.S) and 4th treatment was set as control to compare their efficacy against the disease. The findings of the treatment indicated that crop stand, seedling mortality, smut infected grains and yield characters of barley were found significantly (P<0.05) controlled with treatment of seed inoculation/ seed dressing with treated fungicides. Fungicide Topsin-M ranked first and sowing of barley with Topsin inoculated seed resulted in 198.67 seed germination m-2, 0.70% seedling mortality, 1.34 grains infected by covered smut, 2.08 percent infected grain, 413.33 spikes m-2, 38.16 grains spike-1, 10.75cm spike length and 3220.70kg ha-1 grain yield. The fungicide Bayton 10 DS ranked second and sowing of barley with Bayton inoculated seed resulted in 182.67 seed germination m-2, 1.11% seedling mortality, 2.14 grains infected by covered smut, 3.05 percent infected grain, 395.67 spikes m-2, 36.50 grains spike-1, 10.43cm spike length and 3037.70kg ha-1 grain yield. The seed dressing fungicide Dividend-Star 36 FS ranked third and sowing of barley with Dividend inoculated seed resulted in 171.67 seed germination m-2, 1.69% seedling mortality, 2.51 grains infected by covered smut, 4.85 percent infected grain, 380.67 spikes m-2, 34.61 grains spike-1, 10.30cm spike length and 2980.70kg ha-1 grain yield. The control plots, where the barley was sown without seed inoculation ranked least (4th) and resulted in 159 seed germination m-2, 3.68% seedling mortality, 3.81 grains infected by covered smut, 10.63 percent infected grain, 333.33 spikes m-2, 34.67 grains spike-1, 10.03cm spike length and 2591kg ha-1 yield of the grain. Concluded findings showed that all the treatments showed effective results as compare to control and minimized the covered smut disease in barley crop; however, among all treated seed dressing fungicides, Topsin-M fungicide was identified with better findings to minimize the disease as compared other above captioned fungicides.

Capsicum annuum, commonly known as chili pepper, is a significant spice crop worldwide, and its yield and fruit quality are important factors affecting economic returns for growers. However, these can be impacted by various abiotic and biotic stresses, including environmental conditions, nutrient deficiencies, pests, and diseases. Utilizing growth regulators for plants, such NAA, has emerged as a viable strategy to enhance growth, improve yield, and mitigate stress effects in chili production. To ascertain the impact of the plant growth regulator (NAA) on the development and yield of chilies, a field experiment was carried out. Plant pathogens pose a significant threat to agricultural productivity worldwide. The main challenge in this scenario is that the plant pathogens are dynamic organisms that adapt to changing environmental conditions and agricultural methods. Examples of this kind of evolution include the appearance and spread of novel diseases or more aggressive pathogens that are resistant to fungicides. Using three replications and seven treatments, randomized complete block design (RCBD) was used to perform the experiment. Control (applying no naphthalene acetic acid), 25 ppm, 50 ppm, 75 ppm, 100 ppm, 125 ppm, and 150 ppm applications of naphthalene acetic acid. The result shows that chili crop treated with application of NAA @ 125 ppm exhibited significantly maximum resulted with 80.95 cm plant height, 15.13 quantity of branches plant-1, 84.24 days to flowering, 100.02 days to fruit set, 8.65 cm fruit length, 42.89 g fruit weight, 36.72 quantity of fruits plant-1 and 0.43 kg yield plant-1. In contrast, chili treated under control exhibited the lowest performance, 53.98 cm plant height, 10.49 quantity of branches plant-1, 82.46 days to flowering, 90.77 days to fruit set, 5.66 cm fruit length, 22.54 g fruit weight, 20.39 quantity of fruits plant-1 and 0.02 kg yield plant-1. Among the chili variety, Hot chilies yielded the best results, with 69.31 cm plant height, 13.15 quantity of branches plant-1, 83.52 days to flowering, 96.05 days to fruit set, 7.39 cm fruit length, 34.07 g fruit weight, 29.71 quantity of fruits plant-1 and 0.25 kg yield plant-1. On the other hand, the variety SKY Cross showed the lowest performance, with 65.41 cm plant height, 12.49 quantity of branches plant-1, 83.24 days to flowering, 94.73 days to fruit set, 6.96 cm fruit length, 31.17 g fruit weight, 27.36 quantity of fruits plant-1 and 0.19 kg yield plant-1. After going through the findings of the present research, it was concluded that the application of NAA at 125 ppm showed superior results in terms of plant height, quantity of branches, days to flowering and fruit set, fruit length, fruit weight, quantity of fruits per plant, and overall yield per plant compared to other concentrations of NAA and the control group. The research findings show that that NAA at 125 ppm can be an effective growth regulator for chili crops, leading to improved growth and increased yields.

Gummosis syndrome is a serious disease of apricot trees in Gilgit Baltistan (GB), Pakistan. The symptoms of gummosis syndrome on branches, twigs, and the trunk of apricot trees include oozing of a gummy or resinous material, lesions or cankers, bark discoloration, and the disintegration of bark integrity. The disease can weaken branches and twigs, making them more susceptible to breakage. In severe cases, affected branches can die back. In this study, we investigated the fungal species associated with gummosis syndrome in apricots across four districts in GB: Nagar, Hunza, Gilgit, and Ghizer. We recovered a total of 40 isolates from different locations of above four districts, and the most frequently isolated fungal species was Botryodiplodia theobromae. Fusarium solani was also isolated from several locations, and Neoscytalidium spp. were isolated from a few locations in Nagar and Hunza. The spatial distribution of gummosis syndrome in apricots in GB is not uniform. The disease is more prevalent in the northern and western parts of GB, and in areas with higher elevations and cooler temperatures. The Nagar district is the most affected by gummosis syndrome, followed by Ghizer District. Our findings suggest that Botryodiplodia theobromae is the major fungal pathogen associated with gummosis syndrome in apricots in GB. Fusarium solani and Neoscytalidium spp. may also play a role in the disease. The spatial distribution of gummosis syndrome in GB suggests that environmental factors, such as elevation and temperature, may contribute to the disease. Further research is needed to develop effective control measures for gummosis syndrome in apricots in GB. This research should focus on identifying resistant apricot varieties, developing new and more effective fungicides, and developing integrated pest management (IPM) programs.