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Year 2012 , Volume  44, Issue 5
Move your mouse curser on the title to view the abstract of the paper
S.No. Title Authors Pages Download
1
OSGSK3 IS A NOVEL GSK3/SHAGGY-LIKE GENE FROM ORYZA SATIVA L., INVOLVED IN ABIOTIC STRESS SIGNALING
XIAN-GUANG YANG1, WEI-HONG LIANG1, FEN LI1 AND WEN-SHI MA2*

OSGSK3 IS A NOVEL GSK3/SHAGGY-LIKE GENE FROM ORYZA SATIVA L., INVOLVED IN ABIOTIC STRESS SIGNALING
ABSTRACT:
Plant glycogen synthase kinase3/shaggy-like (GSK-3-like) kinases are produced by a multigene family. Here, a novel full-length cDNA encoding rice glycogen synthase kinase3/shaggy-like (GSK-3-like) kinase was cloned for the first time using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). In order to investigate the genomic organization of OsGSK3, southern hybridization was done using OsGSK3 cDNA as the probe, and genome DNA were digested by EcoR I and HindIII restriction enzyme separately. Results illustrated that there was only one copy of OsGSK3 in the rice genome. Studies evaluating changes in the plants over time showed that the accumulation of OsGSK3 in the rice cultivars Nipponbare (Oryza sativa L.subsp. japonica) was increased by salt stress (170 mM NaCl), mechanical injury, ABA hormone, cold (4°C) and drought. These results suggest that cell accumulate more OsGSK3 mRNA response to those abiotic stresses. This suggests that enhanced OsGSK3 expression may be related to abiotic stress response, and may play an important role in the stress signal transduction. In this way, OsGSK3 was shown to be a positive regulator and to have some part in rice tolerance to salt, mechanical injury, ABA hormone, cold, and drought.

1491-1496 Download
2
MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION AND PROKARYOTIC EXPRESSION OF ORF507 STERILITY-ASSOCIATED GENE IN CHILLI PEPPER (CAPSICUM ANNUM L.) CYTOPLASMIC MALE STERILITY
MING-HUA DENG1,2†, JIN-FEN WEN3†, JIN-LONG HUO4†, HAI-SHAN ZHU2, PEI WANG4, XIONG-ZE DAI1, ZHU-QING ZHANG1, HUI ZHOU2 AND XUE-XIAO ZOU1*

MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION AND PROKARYOTIC EXPRESSION OF ORF507 STERILITY-ASSOCIATED GENE IN CHILLI PEPPER (CAPSICUM ANNUM L.) CYTOPLASMIC MALE STERILITY
ABSTRACT:
9704A is a cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) of chilli pepper (Capsicum annuum L) that has been commercially used in chilli pepper hybrid production in China. However, little is known about the CMS-associated gene in chilli pepper 9704A.In this study, according to the sequence of relative references, a fragment of 593 bp including a 507-bp single-coding exon, Orf507 (GenBank accession No. GU357841) was cloned from leaves of chilli pepper CMS-9704A. Results revealed that the orf456-2 had one nucleotide deleted in codon 150 (nt450delC) and consists of a 507-bp single-coding exon which encodes 168 amino acid compared with the original sequence data of orf456. RT-PCR results showed that the Orf507 was transcribed in buds and leaves at all developmental stages of CMS-9704A and a hybrid F1, while no band was detected in the maintainer line. The nuclear restorer gene may restore fertility by post-transcriptional processing or translational/post-translational modification, but did not interfere with transcription of Orf507 directly. The entire coding region of the Orf507 was inserted into an expression vector pET32a(+) and transformed into Escherichia coli Rosetta. Expression of the fusion protein was successfully induced by isopropyl-β-D-thiogalactopyranoside. This study could establish a basis for understanding the molecular mechanism of chilli pepper CMS.

1497-1502 Download
3
BIOCHEMICAL AND MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF SOMACLONAL VARIANTS AND INDUCED MUTANTS OF POTATO (SOLANUM TUBEROSUM L.) CV. DESIREE
HUMERA AFRASIAB¹* AND JAVED IQBAL²

BIOCHEMICAL AND MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF SOMACLONAL VARIANTS AND INDUCED MUTANTS OF POTATO (SOLANUM TUBEROSUM L.) CV. DESIREE
ABSTRACT:
In the present study, tissue culture and mutagenic techniques were applied to induce variations in potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivar, Desiree. For obtaining somaclonal variants, internode-derived calli were incubated for 14-20 weeks in callus inducing medium. For mutation induction, ten week old, well proliferating calli were exposed to 5-50 Gy of gamma irradiation. Three variant lines (SV1, SV2 and SV3) and 6 gamma mutant lines (GM1, GM2, GM3, GM4 GM5 and GM6) were selected for further biochemical and molecular studies. In general an increase in total peroxidase activity in all the selected variants and mutants was observed. Same results were obtained when qualitative study was conducted on PAGE (polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis).Variation at isozymes and random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) were used to detect variability and a total of 24 arbitrary sequence primers were evaluated. The RAPD primers produced 123 bands (88 polymorphic), whereas isozymes peroxidase produced 6 bands (5 polymorphic) showing genetic variation as compared to control. The current study demonstrates the production of useful variants both by tissue culture and gamma irradiation in potato and the use of isozymes and RAPD for assessing the genetic diversity among the variants and mutants.

1503-1508 Download
4
CHARACTERIZATION OF WHEAT GENOTYPES USING RANDOMLY AMPLIFIED POLYMORPHIC DNA MARKERS
KHATIBA BIBI1, INAMULLAH1, HABIB AHMAD1*, SIRAJUD DIN3, FIDA MUHAMMAD2 AND MUHAMMAD SAJJAD IQBAL1

CHARACTERIZATION OF WHEAT GENOTYPES USING RANDOMLY AMPLIFIED POLYMORPHIC DNA MARKERS
ABSTRACT:
Genomic DNA from the genotypes Khyber-87, Saleem 2000, Suleman-96, Pir Sabak-2004, Pir Sabak-2005, NRL-0320, NRL–0517, RAS-II, Tatara, RAS-I, Bathoor, Fakhare Sarhad, Bakhtawar-94, Inqilab-91, Haider-2002, Noshera-96, and Auqab-2000 was amplified using RAPD primers. Loci of 100-1400 bp sizes were amplified and on average 3.51 loci per genotype were amplified. Average genetic diversity using the twelve RAPD primers ranged from 30-90%. Phylogenetic relationship among the wheat genotypes was carried out using dendrogram analysis. The seventeen genotypes were clustered in five groups. It was found that the genotypes Pirsabak 2004 and Ras 1 were most distantly related to Khyber-87. It is suggested that these two genotypes be crossed with Khyber 87 for creating maximum genetic variations.

1509-1512 Download
5
THE EFFECT OF SALT STRESS ON GROWTH, CHLOROPHYLL CONTENT, PROLINE AND NUTRIENT ACCUMULATION, AND K/NA RATIO IN WALNUT
YAŞAR AKÇA* AND ESRA SAMSUNLU

THE EFFECT OF SALT STRESS ON GROWTH, CHLOROPHYLL CONTENT, PROLINE AND NUTRIENT ACCUMULATION, AND K/NA RATIO IN WALNUT
ABSTRACT:
The effects of irrigation water salinity on growth, chlorophyll contents, proline and nutrients accumulation and K/Na ratio in three walnut cultivars was investigated. Three irrigation water salinity levels with electrical conductivities of 1,5, 3, and 5.0 dS/m and tap water as a control treatment were used in a randomized design with four replications. Irrigation practices were realized by considering the weight of each pot. Sodium, clor, prolin, K/Na and Ca/Na ratio of leaf were increased under salinity conditions. But growth of plant and chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b content were decreased under saline condition. There were significant differences between in irrigation water salinity levels in proline and chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, Na content. But there were not any significant differences in LRWC (%). Results showed that, regarding fresh shoot weight, dry shoot and root weight, there were significant differences between cultivars, but chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll, proline accumulation and leaf relative water content (LRWC) there weren’t any significant differences between cultivars. Kaman 1 and Bilecik walnut cultivars showed higher accumulation of proline than Kaman 5 but was not observed significant difference between them.

1513-1520 Download
6
THE LEVELS OF NITRITE AND NITRATE, PROLINE AND PROTEIN PROFILES IN TOMATO PLANTS INFECTED WITH PSEUDOMONAS SYRINGAE
İSMET BERBER1,* AND HARUN ÖNLÜ2

THE LEVELS OF NITRITE AND NITRATE, PROLINE AND PROTEIN PROFILES IN TOMATO PLANTS INFECTED WITH PSEUDOMONAS SYRINGAE
ABSTRACT:
In this study, the contents of nitrite-nitrate and free L-proline, and pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins in tomato plants following inoculation with Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato strain were examined. The results of the nitrite and nitrate indicated that there was a reduction in the levels of nitrate in the infected tomato plants through 1-8 study days, compared with the healthy plants. On the other hands, when the nitrite amounts increased in the first and second days, the nitrite concentrations reduced in infected plants at subsequent time periods, compared with uninfected plants. The accumulation of free proline increased in the infected plants, according to control plants. The whole-cell protein profiles displayed that the levels of the protein bands of molecular masses 204.6 kDa and 69.9 kDa significantly increased in infected and uninfected plants during 2-10 study days. In additionally, in the quantities of the protein bands of molecular weights 90.3 and 79.4 kDa were observed an increase in the infected and healthy plants after the fourth day. However, the protein band of molecular weight 54.3 kDa was visible only in uninfected plants for the fourth and eighth days.

1521-1526 Download
7
APPRAISAL OF GENETIC DIVERSITY OF DIFFERENT PEACH CULTIVARS AND GENOTYPES THROUGH RAPD MARKERS
JEHAN BAKHT1*, NAZMA JAMAL1 AND MOHAMMAD SHAFI2

APPRAISAL OF GENETIC DIVERSITY OF DIFFERENT PEACH CULTIVARS AND GENOTYPES THROUGH RAPD MARKERS
ABSTRACT:
The present study was amid to investigate the genetic diversity of twenty peach cultivars and genotypes by RAPD primers at the Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, KPK Agricultural University Peshawar. The result indicated that fifteen primers (GLCO9, GLC20, GLA20, GLA13, GLB10, GLB20, GLB06, GLB19, GLA19, GLB19, GLD16, GLB15, GLA15, GLB12, GLB11) gave genetic distance among the peach cultivars and genotypes under study by PCR amplification. Average genetic diversity (estimated as genetic distance) ranged between 12 and 58%. The molecular size of most of the bands were from 150bp to 1000bp. Based on dandrogram analysis, Khyber 1 and Khyber 2 was grouped in cluster A, and Tex-A6-69 and BY-8-135 in cluster B, Candan and 6A were most closely related cultivars and genotypes among the 20 peach cultivars and genotypes while Lering, Flam crest, Tex x-9, early grand and Floradaking were distinctly grouped when compared with the rest of population.

1527-1532 Download
8
DETECTING DIFFERENCES IN WHEAT FOR SALT TOLERANCE THROUGH MULTI PARAMETERS EVALUATION-II: PHYSIOLOGICAL PARAMETERS
MOHAMMAD AKRAM1, SHAFQAT FAROOQ2, MUHAMMAD ASHRAF3, RUBINA ARSHAD1, MOHAMMAD AFZAAL1 AND FAROOQ-AZAM4

DETECTING DIFFERENCES IN WHEAT FOR SALT TOLERANCE THROUGH MULTI PARAMETERS EVALUATION-II: PHYSIOLOGICAL PARAMETERS
ABSTRACT:
A pot experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design using 3 wheat genotypes comprising salt sensitive cultivar Inqlab (V1), a known salt tolerant line N-1073 (V2), a newly developed wheat genotype N-9760 (V3) and 4 salinity levels of 1.5 (control), 5

1533-1541 Download
9
EFFECT OF ENCAPSULATED CALCIUM CARBIDE APPLICATION AT DIFFERENT GROWTH STAGES ON POTATO (SOLANUM TUBEROSUM L.) GROWTH, YIELD AND TUBER QUALITY
NADEEM AKHTAR ABBASI*, MUHAMMAD ZAHOOR, HAMMAD AZIZ KHAN AND ABDUL AHAD QURESHI

EFFECT OF ENCAPSULATED CALCIUM CARBIDE APPLICATION AT DIFFERENT GROWTH STAGES ON POTATO (SOLANUM TUBEROSUM L.) GROWTH, YIELD AND TUBER QUALITY
ABSTRACT:
Plant growth substances play a vital role in growth and development of plants and have been implicated intensively and extensively in the vegetable production. In recent years, calcium carbide (CaC2) has proved to be a good source of acetylene (nitrification inhibitor) and ethylene (plant hormone). The experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of encapsulated calcium carbide (ECC) on the growth, yield and tuber quality of potato. ECC was applied @ 60 kg/ha for each treatment except control at different growth stages of potato (sprout development, vegetative growth, tuber initiation, tuber bulking) and their combinations. The results of this work revealed significant effects of ECC application on number of days to sprouting, number of leaves and stems, plant height, tuber size, yield, weight loss %, shrivillage % and reducing sugars of potato while sprouting percentage, disease incidence %, specific gravity, TSS, total starch, non-reducing sugars and total sugars could not demonstrate significant effects of ECC application. Moreover, it was concluded that different growth stages responded differently against ECC, however, vegetative growth stage showed remarkable effects on potato growth, yield and tuber quality compared to all other stages and their combinations. The enhanced growth, yield and quality of potato indicated the possible role of acetylene and ethylene at active growth stages.

1543-1550 Download
10
EFFECT OF IRRIGATION AND NITROGEN LEVEL ON YIELD, YIELD COMPONENTS AND SOME MORPHOLOGICAL TRAITS OF SUNFLOWER
MOHAMAD JAVAD SEGHATOLESLAMI*1, REZA BRADARAN2, ELHAM ANSARINIA3, SEYED GHOLAMREZA MOUSAVI2

EFFECT OF IRRIGATION AND NITROGEN LEVEL ON YIELD, YIELD COMPONENTS AND SOME MORPHOLOGICAL TRAITS OF SUNFLOWER
ABSTRACT:
To study the effect of water deficit and N fertilizer on some morphological traits, yield and yield components of sunflower cv. Progress, a study was carried out as a split plot experiment based on a Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications in research field of Islamic Azad University, Birjand Branch, Iran in 2009. In this study, the irrigation was the main plot at three levels including supplying 100, 67 and 33% of plant water requirement (PWR) and N fertilizer was the sub-plot at four levels of 0, 60, 90 and 120 kg N/ha. The results of analysis of variance showed that irrigation significantly affected plant height, stem diameter, head diameter, seed number per head

1551-1555 Download
11
CADMIUM UPTAKE BY AND TRANSLOCATION WITHIN RICE (ORYZA SATIVA L.) SEEDLINGS AS AFFECTED BY IRON PLAQUE AND FE2O3
YAN LAI1*Φ, BO XU1,2Φ, LI HE3, MING LIN4, LEI CAO5, YANG WU3, SHAOLIANG MOU1 AND SHUILIN HE6

CADMIUM UPTAKE BY AND TRANSLOCATION WITHIN RICE (ORYZA SATIVA L.) SEEDLINGS AS AFFECTED BY IRON PLAQUE AND FE2O3
ABSTRACT:
A hydroponics culture experiment was carried out to investigate the effect of iron plaque and/or Fe2O3 on Cadmium (Cd) uptake by and translocation within rice seedlings. Uniform rice seedlings grown in nutrient solution for two weeks were selected and transferred to nutrient solution containing ferrous iron (Fe2+) (30 mg/L) for 24 h to induce the formation of iron plaque on the root surface. Then rice seedlings were exposed to different level of Cd (1.0 mg/L and 0.1 mg/L), and simultaneously Fe2O3 was added into hydroponic system for three days. At harvest Cd content in dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate (DCB) extracts, roots and shoots were determined. The results of this study showed that iron plaque could sequester more Cd on root surfaces of rice seedlings, however, Fe2O3 reduced Cd adsorbed on root surfaces. Both of iron plaque and/or Fe2O3did not block Cd uptake by and translocation within rice seedlings. Although iron plaque could alleviate Cd toxicity to rice seedlings under low concentration of Cd (0.1 mg/L), the root tissue played more important role in reducing Cd translocation into shoot. And the long period experiment of hydroponic and soil culture was still needed to verify the potential effect of iron plaque and/or Fe2O3 on alleviating Cd toxicity to rice seedlings.

1557-1561 Download
12
RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE SELENIUM CONTENT IN FLUE-CURED TOBACCO LEAVES AND THE SELENIUM CONTENT IN SOIL IN ENSHI, CHINA TOBACCO-GROWING AREA
ZICHENG XU*, HUIFANG SHAO, SU LI AND CONG ZHENG

RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE SELENIUM CONTENT IN FLUE-CURED TOBACCO LEAVES AND THE SELENIUM CONTENT IN SOIL IN ENSHI, CHINA TOBACCO-GROWING AREA
ABSTRACT:
Relationships between the selenium content in flue-cured tobacco leaves and the selenium content in soil in Enshi tobacco-growing area were analyzed. The results indicated that:

1563-1568 Download
13
EFFECT OF CADMIUM ON SEED GERMINATION AND SEEDLING GROWTH OF FOUR WHEAT (TRITICUM AESTIVUM L.) CULTIVARS
IFTIKHAR AHMAD1*, MUHAMMAD JAVED AKHTAR1, ZAHIR AHMAD ZAHIR1 AND AMER JAMIL2

EFFECT OF CADMIUM ON SEED GERMINATION AND SEEDLING GROWTH OF FOUR WHEAT (TRITICUM AESTIVUM L.) CULTIVARS
ABSTRACT:
Cadmium (Cd) is extremely toxic metal and reduces plant growth. Therefore, study was conducted to evaluate the effect of various Cd levels 0, 5

1568-1574 Download
14
EFFECT OF GAMMA IRRADIATION ON ASPERGILLUS NIGER FOR ENHANCED PRODUCTION OF GLUCOSE OXIDASE
MUHAMMAD ANJUM ZIA1,*, SAMREEN RASUL1 AND TEHREEMA IFTIKHAR2,3

EFFECT OF GAMMA IRRADIATION ON ASPERGILLUS NIGER FOR ENHANCED PRODUCTION OF GLUCOSE OXIDASE
ABSTRACT:
Developing countries have a high prevalence of diabetes and their populations are suffering from associated adverse factors. Such a frequency requires more effective diagnosis, mostly achieved by glucose diagnostic kits. Although high priced kits are available in market but local production of such kits can be highly cost effective and may confer the decline in incidence of the disease. Glucose oxidase is the key enzyme for the determination of glucose in such analytical tools. Enhanced production of glucose oxidase was performed by mutagenesis of Aspergillus niger by gamma irradiation. A dose of 80krad was found as optimum for derivation of positive mutant strains. Following the screening by triton X-100 and 2-deoxy-D-glucose, the selected strains A. niger G-80-A, A. niger G-80-B and A. niger G-80-C showed 27.5

1575-1580 Download
15
COMPARISON OF CYTOGENETIC ANTAGONISM BETWEEN ABSCISIC ACID AND PLANT GROWTH REGULATORS
SELMA TABUR AND SİĞNEM ÖNEY

COMPARISON OF CYTOGENETIC ANTAGONISM BETWEEN ABSCISIC ACID AND PLANT GROWTH REGULATORS
ABSTRACT:
In the present work, antagonistic effect of abscisic acid (ABA) and various plant growth regulators on cytogenetic activity in root meristem cells of barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv. Bülbül 89) was compared. The seeds germinated in medium with ABA alone (25µM, micromolar), mitotic phases and mitotic aberrations were mounted on an Olympus CX41 microscope and photographed (100X) with a digital camera (Olympus C-5060). The results showed that mitotic index (MI) significantly decreased while chromosomal aberrations increased by approximately 70% as compared to control. However, all of the plant growth regulators (PGRs) studied [gibberellic acid- GA3, Kinetin- KIN, benzyladenine- BA, ethylene- E

1581-1586 Download
16
NTEGRATED EFFECT OF DEPLETED URANIUM AND SOIL PROPERTIES ON MAIZE (ZEA MAYS L.) GROWTH
RIZWAN AHMAD1, MUHAMMAD KHALID2*, D.L. JONES3 AND M. MAHMOOD-UL-HASSAN1

NTEGRATED EFFECT OF DEPLETED URANIUM AND SOIL PROPERTIES ON MAIZE (ZEA MAYS L.) GROWTH
ABSTRACT:
Depleted Uranium (DU) is primarily composed of the isotope uranium-238 (238U). It has been identified as an emerging pollutant with the advancement of nuclear science, especially in the regions where nuclear weapons had been used in the recent past. Effect of DU on maize growth was studied by using 2 soils of contrasting characteristics (cambisol and podzol) in a growth chamber study. Both soils were amended with increasing concentrations (0, 0.5

1587-1592 Download
17
MICROBIAL ASSISTED PHYTOEXTRACTION OF METALS AND GROWTH OF SOYBEAN (GLYCINE MAX L. MERRILL) ON INDUSTRIAL WASTE WATER CONTAMINATED SOIL
IRFAN ALI1, FAZAL HADI2* AND ASGHARI BANO1

MICROBIAL ASSISTED PHYTOEXTRACTION OF METALS AND GROWTH OF SOYBEAN (GLYCINE MAX L. MERRILL) ON INDUSTRIAL WASTE WATER CONTAMINATED SOIL
ABSTRACT:
Pots experiments were made to investigate the role of effective microorganisms (EM) in improving phytoextraction of metals (Cd+2 and Mn+2) and growth of soybean plant in industrial waste water polluted soil. Waste water applications to soil were made in four different dilutions (i.e. 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%). Effective microorganisms were added into waste water prior to application. Effect of treatments on growth parameters was studied. The Cd+2 and Mn+2 concentrations in different parts of plant were measured by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. Plant height significantly increased at all treatments except at 25% waste water treatment. Plant dry biomass and oil contents in seed significantly increased with all treatments compared to control but were higher at low concentration of waste water. Waste water treatments significantly increased the Cd and Mn accumulation in plant while inoculation of EM further enhanced the metals accumulation. The maximum accumulation of Cd and Mn found in plant treated with 100% waste water in combination with effective microorganisms. At harvest, the Cd+2 concentration decreased in leaves but increased in roots followed by stem > seeds, while, Mn+2 accumulation increased in leaves followed by roots > stem > seeds. Conclusively, EM enhanced the phytoextraction of Cd and Mn and also increased the oil contents in soybean on polluted soil. These findings suggest further investigation to find out a suitable concentration of industrial waste water in combination with EM for better growth of soybean and improving phytoextraction of metals.

1593-1599 Download
18
ROLE OF ENDOPHYTE CHAETOMIUM GLOBOSUM LK4 IN GROWTH OF CAPSICUM ANNUUM BY PRODUCION OF GIBBERELLINS AND INDOLE ACETIC ACID
ABDUL LATIF KHAN1,2, ZABTA KHAN SHINWARI3, YOON-HA KIM1, MUHAMMAD WAQAS1, MUHAMMAD HAMAYUN4, MUHAMMAD KAMRAN1 AND IN-JUNG LEE1*

ROLE OF ENDOPHYTE CHAETOMIUM GLOBOSUM LK4 IN GROWTH OF CAPSICUM ANNUUM BY PRODUCION OF GIBBERELLINS AND INDOLE ACETIC ACID
ABSTRACT:
Endophytic fungi represent a trove of unexplored natural source of plant hormones like gibberellins (GAs) and indole-acetic acid (IAA). In present study, we isolated eight endophytes from the roots of drought stressed pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) plants. To assess phytohormones secreting potential, culture filtrates (CF) of endophytes were screened on GAs biosynthesis mutant Waito-C rice. Endophyte CAC-1G significantly promoted the shoot growth, chlorophyll content and biomass of Waito-C rice seedlings as compared with CF of Fusarium fujikuroi and distilled water. CAC-1G was identified as strain of Chaetomium globosum LK4 by sequencing internal transcribed spacer regions and phylogenetic analysis of similar sequences. The CF analysis of C. globosum showed the presence of GAs (GA1 0.67±0.13 ng/ml; GA4 21.8±1.2 ng/ml; GA9 0.51±0.11 ng/ml; GA1213.4±0.41 ng/ml; GA20 1.11±0.2 ng/ml) and IAA (16.71+1.42 µg/ml). The CF of C. globosum had higher GA4, GA12 and GA20 than the CF of F. fujikuroi. The CF containing propagules of C. globosum was applied to the host-pepper plants. The results revealed significantly higher shoot growth, chlorophyll content, plant biomass and leaf area as compared to fungal-free medium and water applied plants. The present results of C. globosum can be reciprocated for improved plant growth and yield at field levels.

1601-607 Download
19
SCREENING OF INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE OF HERBAL REMEDIES FOR SKIN DISEASES AMONG LOCAL COMMUNITIES OF NORTH WEST PUNJAB, PAKISTAN
FARAH GUL, ZABTA KHAN SHINWARI* AND IMRAN AFZAL

SCREENING OF INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE OF HERBAL REMEDIES FOR SKIN DISEASES AMONG LOCAL COMMUNITIES OF NORTH WEST PUNJAB, PAKISTAN
ABSTRACT:
The aim of this study was to conduct an ethnobotanical survey of North Western Punjab to identify medicinal plants traditionally used to treat skin infections and to determine their antimicrobial potential against skin-infecting pathogens. Methanolic extracts of selected plants were screened against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans using the well diffusion method. Some plants are traditionally used in combination with other plants and chemicals like vinegar and olive oil. Therefore, antimicrobial screening was also done for these combinations in different proportions. Results showed that out of 12 studied plants, six showed inhibitory effect against Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans. Azadirachta indica and Mentha arvensis showed high antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus with similar minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values of 2.5 and 5mg/ml, respectively. Azadirachta indica, Cassia angustifolia, Phoenix dactylifera and Lawsonia inermis were found to be effective against the fungus Candida albicans, with MIC values of 0.625

1609-1616 Download
20
THE ECOLOGY AND DYNAMICS OF JUNIPERUS EXCELSA FOREST IN BALOCHISTAN-PAKISTAN
ATTA MOHAMMAD SARANGZAI1*, MOINUDDIN AHMED², ALIA AHMED1, LUBNA TAREEN1 AND SYED UMER JAN3

THE ECOLOGY AND DYNAMICS OF JUNIPERUS EXCELSA FOREST IN BALOCHISTAN-PAKISTAN
ABSTRACT:
The ecology and dynamics of Ziarat Juniper forests, was analyzed, fifteen stands were sampled during summer 2010. The main results of this research indicate the floristic composition, density ha־¹ and basal area m² ha־¹, physical condition, sex distribution; age and growth rates, and soil analysis. On the basis of mean relative frequency values, herbs were accounted (55.02%), followed by (29.45%) while grasses accounted only (15.52%) across all the stands. Density of juniper trees (>6 cm dbh) ranged from 29 to 268 stems haˉ¹ with a mean 176±77 individuals ha-¹. Highest stand density 268 stem/ha was recorded from Ziarat Prospectus point at elevation 2785 meters from west facing slopes while the lowest stand density 29 stem/ha was from Sasnamana Khawas Neikh on an elevation 2858 meters from north east facing slopes. The over all mean density recorded for juniper trees were 176 ha-¹ with an average basal area 91±41 m²ha-¹.. Juniper density and basal area were not significantly correlated (r= 0.59). Density of seedlings (< 6 m) also varied considerably and ranged from 3676 to 9222 inds/ha with a mean 6450±382 inds/ha. In the present condition Juniperus. excelsa exhibits an adequate recruitment and does not confront any immediate danger, however, if grazing stops in the future. A large number of individuals were recorded alive (62%) as compared with standing dead trees (11%) and recently logged stumps (3%). Trees in the best condition were generally healthy (32%) with living foliage, followed by over mature (14%), while unhealthy juniper (12%) and cut stumps were accounted (12%) respectively. Sex ratio showed predominance of male with a mean value of 100±43 ha-¹ (57%), followed by female 66±29 ha-¹ (38%) while bisexual were very rare (4%) in the population. The combine data show a balanced size class structure. Cross section of ten trees was used to determine age and growth rate. Number of rings in trees with 26 to 69 cm dbh ranged from 113 to 788 years (Mean 301±45). Diameter and age was not related. Highest overall radial growth rate was estimated as 15±18 years/cm. Soil variables were basic in reaction, free from salinity, calcareous in nature. No significant correlation was recorded between juniper tree density/ seedlings density and some of the soil variables. It is observed that the present degraded stage of the juniper forests in the study area might be due to anthropogenic disturbances, drought, poor soil conditions, mistletoe and fungal infections and effects of climatic change. It is also suggested that the present study will provide information to understand the current status, dynamics and the future trends of these forests.

1617-1625 Download
21
EFFECT OF COMMON COCKLEBUR DENSITY ON BIOLOGICAL YIELD OF MAIZE AT VARYING POPULATIONS
ZAHID HUSSAIN*, KHAN BAHADAR MARWAT, BAKHTIAR GUL, MUHAMMAD SAEED AND SHAHIDA BIBI

EFFECT OF COMMON COCKLEBUR DENSITY ON BIOLOGICAL YIELD OF MAIZE AT VARYING POPULATIONS
ABSTRACT:
Experiments were conducted in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Peshawar, Pakistan during 2006 and 2007 to evaluate the impact of common cocklebur densities on leaf area, leaf area index, plant height and biological yield of maize using an open pollinated variety “Azam”. Seven cocklebur densities (0

1627-1632 Download
22
POPULATION ECOLOGY OF CLEOME VISCOSA L., A DESERT SUMMER ANNUAL
SEEMI AZIZ* AND SYED SHAHID SHAUKAT

POPULATION ECOLOGY OF CLEOME VISCOSA L., A DESERT SUMMER ANNUAL
ABSTRACT:
The present study was designed to investigate the demographic patterns of Cleome viscosa L., which is the common summer annual of Sindh desert. Demographic studies were carried out at two site named as site ‘A’ and site ‘B’. Plants exhibited Deveey type I survivorship curves, characteristic of annuals. Populations of C. viscosa were found to be highly dynamic on spatial scale. Soil moisture content, competition and grazing were some of the factors responsible for the considerable variations in the plant density and growth of plants. Plants inhabiting site ‘B; exhibited better vegetative and reproductive growth due to greater amounts of soil nutrients and high water holding capacity of the soil (thereby providing better soil moisture regime). C. viscosa at both the sites possessed persistent seed bank. The below ground seed bank was much diverse than the above ground vegetation. C. viscosa produced light weighted seeds in large numbers. Wind is the predominant agent for the dispersal of seeds. Seeds traveled grater distances mainly due to their lighter weights and taller mother plants.

1633-1638 Download
23
TRADE-OFF BETWEEN SHRUB PLANTATION AND WIND-BREAKING IN THE ARID SANDY LANDS OF NINGXIA, CHINA
QIANG CUI1, ZESHEN FENG1#, MICHAEL PFIZ2, MAIK VESTE2,3, MANFRED KUPPERS2, KANGNING HE1 AND JIARONG GAO1*

TRADE-OFF BETWEEN SHRUB PLANTATION AND WIND-BREAKING IN THE ARID SANDY LANDS OF NINGXIA, CHINA
ABSTRACT:
The effect and cost-benefit relationships of planted shelterbelts on reducing wind velocity and sand transportation rate (benefit) in relation to shrub height and density (cost) were studied in the Yanchi sandy land in NW China. The species-specific morphology of Salix psammophila C. Wang & Ch.Y. Yang was more effective in wind-breaking than Caragana microphylla Lam. while Tamarix cf. chinensis was least effective. Wind-breaking and reduction of sand transportation increased with shrub height, higher planting density, number of parallel rows in a shelterbelt but was always the greatest near ground. It declined with increasing distance from the lee-side of the belt. Shelterbelts composed of 1.5m tall C. microphylla at 1.5m planting distance in 3 rows per belt exhibited best effects on wind-breaking and sand fixation. In a modelling approach these effects could be generally expressed as manifolds of shrub height rather than absolute distances, and they were correlated to a cost (investment) factor given by shrub height and planting density. The highest benefit-cost relationship is now yielded by planting smallest shrubs in 1 to 2 rows per belt at a larger (optimal) distance between rows and belts. Obviously, the trade-off is more sensitive to costs than to benefits favouring many small shrubs with smaller individual effects rather than fewer larger shrubs with stronger effects. This implies the potential for an appropriate, controlled wood harvesting from these shelterbelts as long as near-ground re-sprouting is not affected, and the use of grasses when planting these belts.

1639-1649 Download
24
STRUCTURE AND DYNAMIC OF POPULUS EUPHRATICA POPULATION ALONG TARIM RIVER
WU JUNXIA1,2, ZHANG XIMING1, DENG CHAOZHOU1,2 AND LIU GUOJUN1*

STRUCTURE AND DYNAMIC OF POPULUS EUPHRATICA POPULATION ALONG TARIM RIVER
ABSTRACT:
Populus euphratica Oliv. is a common tree species found along the Tarim River and is important for the development of the local economy. We did our study in the upper and lower reaches of the Tarim River during 2.5 months, from September to November. We used the static life table and survivor curve for our investigations, and population dynamics were predicted by time sequence model. According to our results, young individuals were dominant in the upper reaches of the P.euphratica population, with the survivor curve belonging to the Deevey C type category. The time sequence model demonstrated that the number of mid-aged individuals in the upper reaches of the river will increase in population over the next 20, 30, to 40 years, when there will be continuous development. In contrast, in the lower reaches, young individuals were rare, and mid-aged individuals comprised the largest proportion of the population. The time sequence model for this population demonstrated that the number of old individuals will increase and young individuals will decrease during the next 20, 30, to 40 years. The main cause of this difference between the upper and lower reaches of the Tarim River is connected mostly to the level of ground water, which played an important role in the determination of age structure. Therefore, the crucial factors for the natural regeneration and restoration of P.euphratica were the rising ground water level and improvement in their habitat.

1651-1656 Download
25
MICROPROPAGATION AND GREENHOUSE CULTIVATION OF SCROPHULARIA TAKESIMENSIS NAKAI, A RARE ENDEMIC MEDICINAL PLANT
IYYAKKANNU SIVANESAN1Ѱ, MI YOUNG LIM2Ѱ AND BYOUNG RYONG JEONG1,2,3*

MICROPROPAGATION AND GREENHOUSE CULTIVATION OF SCROPHULARIA TAKESIMENSIS NAKAI, A RARE ENDEMIC MEDICINAL PLANT
ABSTRACT:
A protocol was developed for direct shoot regeneration of Scrophularia takesimensis using shoot tip explants. The explants were excised from mature field grown plants and cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium with different concentrations of 2-isopentyl adenine (2-iP), 6-benzyl adenine (BA) or thidiazuron (TDZ). Among the three cytokinins studied, BA was found to be the most effective cytokinin for multiple shoot induction. Addition of auxin to the shoot regeneration medium significantly enhanced the percentage of shoot induction and number of shoots per explant. The greatest percentage of shoot induction was achieved when shoot tip explants were cultured on MS medium supplemented with 3.0 mg L-1 BA and 1.0 mg L-1 indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) with an average of 13 shoots per explant. The regenerated shoots were transferred to modified MS medium supplemented with 3% (w/v) sucrose

1657-1662 Download
26
MORPHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF LESPEDEZA BICOLOR TURCZ, FROM KATLANG REGION DISTRICT MARDAN, PAKISTAN
SAMIULLAH, ASGHARI BANO* AND RIZWANA ALEEM QURESHI

MORPHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF LESPEDEZA BICOLOR TURCZ, FROM KATLANG REGION DISTRICT MARDAN, PAKISTAN
ABSTRACT:
Lespedeza bicolor Turcz commonly called bicolor, bush clover or bicolor lespedeza of the family Papilionaceae has been collected from high saline field of Ditrict Mardan, Pakistan (34° 05’ to 34° 32’ north latitudes and 71" 48’ to 72° 25’ east longitudes). Field capacity of bulk soil was reported 14-16.5%, with EC: 4.1dS/m and pH: 8.5-9.2. Present research reveals bioremediation method to be the most environmentally sustainable method in dealing with soil salinity. According to the plant assessment for mineral uptake and heavy metal accumulation in root, stem and leaves of Lespedeza bicolor, Na+, Ca+2 and Mg+2 were much accumulated whereas, K+ ion accumulation was reported least whereas, among the micro minerals Fe+2, Cu+3 and Mn+2 were found higher than Zn+2, Cr+3, Co+3, Pb+4, Ni+3 and Cd+2. Chlorophyll a content of Lespedeza bicolor leaves was 2-fold higher than chlorophyll b content whereas, high sugar and carotenoid content was reported in Lespedeza bicolor leaves at vegetative stages. Lespedeza bicolor appears to use proline and sugar as osmolyte for osmotic adjustment. Among the enzymes study Peroxidase (POD) and Catalase (CAT) activities were found higher in leaves of Lespedeza bicolor as compared to superoxide dismutase (SOD) and ascorbate peroxidase (APOX). The production of abscisic acid (ABA) was significantly higher as compared to indole acetic acid (IAA) in the selected plant.

1663-1668 Download
27
IN VITRO MASS PROPAGATION OF HERMAPHRODITIC CARICA PAPAYA CV. MEIZHONGHONG
KUNLIN WU, SONGJUN ZENG*, ZHILIN CHEN AND JUN DUAN

IN VITRO MASS PROPAGATION OF HERMAPHRODITIC CARICA PAPAYA CV. MEIZHONGHONG
ABSTRACT:
An efficient In vitro regeneration system was developed for rapid clonal propagation of hermaphroditic Carica papaya cv. Meizhonghong using shoot buds from seedlings and axillary buds from greenhouse and field fruit-bearing plants. Explants from seedlings were more easily disinfected and initiated, and had higher multiplication rates and rooting percentages than explants from mature plants. The highest percentage of contamination-free explants from seedlings was 81.7% using AgNO3 treatment after conventional disinfection, which was higher than the antibiotic treatments. Shoot initiation was achieved in Murashige & Skoog (MS) medium with 0.5 mg l–1 6-benzyladenine (BA) and 40 g l–1 sucrose. An average of 6.7 fold proliferation rate per subculture was obtained on MS medium containing 0.25 mg l–1 BA and 40 g l–1 sucrose after five subcultures. Shoot elongation was induced in MS medium supplemented with 0.25 mg l–1 BA and 1.0 mg l–1 GA3 and 40 g l–1 sucrose. Cultures were maintained for 20 months (22 subcultures) without any loss in multiplication rate or change in growth habit. The 3/2 MS medium (i.e. with 1.5 times the macro-elements of MS) with 500 mg l–1 activated charcoal and 5 g l–1 sucrose was optimum for root development. In the greenhouse, bags with sand (1/3 v) over a mixture of sieved peat and vermiculite (1:1 v/v) were used and 87% of plants survived. About 100,000 plantlets were produced successfully for field growth within three years. Compared to mother plants, the In vitro raised plants were all hermaphrodites and showed no distinct phenotypic variation. This regeneration system is suitable for mass multiplication of cv. Meizhonghong.

1669-1676 Download
28
IN VITRO ANTIMICROBIAL AND PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF CARDIOSPERMUM HALICACABUM L.
HUMA SHAREEF*, GHAZALA. H. RIZWANI, SHAUKAT MAHMOOD, RAHEELA KHURSHEED AND HINA ZAHID

IN VITRO ANTIMICROBIAL AND PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF CARDIOSPERMUM HALICACABUM L.
ABSTRACT:
The present studies designed as In vitro antimicrobial and phytochemical activity of whole plant of Cardiospermum halicacabum. The extracts and seed oil exhibited antibacterial activities with zones of inhibition ranging from 7mm to14mm for ethanolic, ethylacetate extracts and seed oil, 7mm to 10mm for butanolic and 7mm to 9mm for aqueous extracts against the gram positive and gram negative bacterial strains. Crude ethanol, aqueous extracts and seed oil exhibited appreciable fungal activity against, Candida albicans while Aspergillus niger was only active against ethanolic extract with significant zone of inhibition 18mm. phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of tannins, saponins terpenes and sugar in the crude extract.

1677-1680 Download
29
EFFECT OF FLUORESCENT LIGHT ON SELECTED ANTIOXIDANT COMPOUNDS AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY DURING STORAGE OF FRESH-CUT CARAMBOLA (AVERRHOA CARAMBOLA L.) FRUIT
MOHD ASRAF MOHD ZAINUDIN1, AZIZAH ABDUL HAMID1,2*, FAROOQ ANWAR3, NORSHAHIDA MOHAMAD SHOFIAN1 AND MOHD SABRI PAK DEK1

EFFECT OF FLUORESCENT LIGHT ON SELECTED ANTIOXIDANT COMPOUNDS AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY DURING STORAGE OF FRESH-CUT CARAMBOLA (AVERRHOA CARAMBOLA L.) FRUIT
ABSTRACT:
The effects of fluorescent light on the availability of selected antioxidant compounds and antioxidant activity during storage of fresh-cut carambola (Averrhoa carambola L.) fruit were investigated. The samples of fresh-cut fruit, stored at 5 ± 1°C, were exposed to fluorescent light (157 Lux) for 12 days. Total phenolic compounds (TPC) and ascorbic acid (AA) content of the processed fruit were analyzed using Folin-Ciocalteu reagent and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), respectively. Antioxidant activity of the fruit was assessed following 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging capacity and ferric–reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. The results of the present study showed that light exposure did not exert any significant effect, while storage period significantly reduced the AA content of the fruits tested. On the other hand, with few exceptions, there were notable random changes, recorded in the TPC and antioxidant activity of the fruit as function of storage period and light exposure.

1681-1688 Download
30
PHOTOSYNTHETIC CHARACTERISTICS OF CAROB TREE (CERATONIA SILIQUA L.) AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF ITS FRUIT ON DIURNAL AND SEASONAL BASIS
G. OUZOUNIDOU1*, S. VEKIARI1, M. ASFI1, M.G. GORK2, M.S. SAKCALI3 AND M. OZTURK4

PHOTOSYNTHETIC CHARACTERISTICS OF CAROB TREE (CERATONIA SILIQUA L.) AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF ITS FRUIT ON DIURNAL AND SEASONAL BASIS
ABSTRACT:
The photosynthetic capacity of carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua L.) and the quality indices of the fruits growing under natural conditions, at Athens and Rethymno in Greece, were measured on diurnal and seasonal basis. The highest photosynthesis is observed during May compared to June and October, which is correlated well with the high developmental rates, the optimal temperatures and water availability. C. siliqua growing at Athens site attained higher photosynthesis parameters than trees growing in Rethymno. The decline of CO2 assimilation rate during the hot and dry season was rather a non-stomatal effect, since it is not accompanied by low stomatal conductance. Photoinhibition damage during June with concomitant reduction in electron transport rate in Photosystem 2 and Photosystem 1 may occur. Despite the low soil water and the extremely high air temperatures during the June, carob showed an important capacity to control water loss (A/gs). The total sugar content significantly increases with seasonal changes and reaches its highest value in October when pods are fully ripe, while polyphenols and proteins gradually decrease. The climatic conditions prevailing in the Mediterranean basin do not threaten the survival of C. siliqua.

1689-1695 Download
31
PURIFICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ALKALINE PROTEASE PRODUCED BY A MUTANT STRAIN OF BACILLUS SUBTILIS
HAMID MUKHTAR AND IKRAM-UL-HAQ*

PURIFICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ALKALINE PROTEASE PRODUCED BY A MUTANT STRAIN OF BACILLUS SUBTILIS
ABSTRACT:
The present study describes the production, purification and characterization of alkaline protease from mutant strain of Bacillus subtilis EMS-8. The enzyme was purified using ammonium sulphate precipitation which gave 2.64 fold purification with 81.5% yield at 70% saturation. The molecular weight of the enzyme was determined using SDS-PAGE and it was found to be 25 KDa. The optimum pH of enzyme activity was 8.5; however the enzyme remained stable up to pH 10 after 24 hrs of incubation. Similarly, the optimum temperature for enzyme activity was 40ºC, whereas it remained stable up to 90ºC with greatly reduced activity. Alkaline protease showed highest specificity towards casein. Among different inhibitors, Phenylmethylsulphonyl fluoride (PMSF) completely inhibited the enzyme activity indicating the serine nature of protease. Similarly, the protease activity was greatly reduced in the presence of MnCl2, whereas MgCl2 enhanced its activity. The shelf life of the protease was also determined and it was found that the activity of the enzyme came to an end after second week, when the enzyme was stored at room temperature.

1697-1704 Download
32
STABILITY ANALYSIS OF YIELD AND YIELD COMPONENTS IN CHICKPEA (CICER ARIETINUM L.) GENOTYPES ACROSS THREE RAINFED LOCATIONS OF PAKISTAN
ADEEL SHAFI1, GHULAM SHABBIR1*, ZAHID AKRAM1, TALAT MAHMOOD1, AHMAD BAKHSH2 AND IJAZ RASOOL NOORKA3

STABILITY ANALYSIS OF YIELD AND YIELD COMPONENTS IN CHICKPEA (CICER ARIETINUM L.) GENOTYPES ACROSS THREE RAINFED LOCATIONS OF PAKISTAN
ABSTRACT:
One approach to improve the chickpea yield is to identify stable genotypes that perform consistently better under diverse environments. Fifteen genotypes of chickpea were evaluated for stability of different yield parameters under three diverse environments (Bhakkar, Chakwal and Rawalpindi) in the Punjab province of Pakistan. Variance due to genotypes, environments, genotype x environment and environment (linear) was highly significant for days to flowering, plant height, number of pods per plant

1705-1709 Download
33
PROXIMATE ANALYSIS AND MINERAL PROFILE OF THREE ELITE CULTIVARS OF ROSA HYBRIDA FLOWERS
M.I. JILANI1, M.I. AHMAD1, R. HANIF1, R. NADEEM1*, M.A. HANIF1,2 , M.A. KHAN2, I. AHMAD2 AND T. IQBAL1

PROXIMATE ANALYSIS AND MINERAL PROFILE OF THREE ELITE CULTIVARS OF ROSA HYBRIDA FLOWERS
ABSTRACT:
In this study proximate and mineral composition of Rosa hybrida (cvs. Kardinal, Anjleeq and Maria shever) flowers were investigated. Minerals such as Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Pb, Ca, Cr, Ni, Mg, and Co were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS) whereas Na, K and Li were analyzed by Flame Emission Spectrometry. All varieties contained high amount of Na, K, Li, Cu, Ca, and Ni while Fe, Mn, Zn, Pb, Mg, and Co were found in low concentrations. All these metals were also analyzed in soil. The amount of metals present in the plant materials and soil were found strongly linked. All materials were high in moisture (21.42-23.42%), crude lipid (30.56-36.10%), carbohydrate (35.63-40.30%) and tannin (6.3-17.89 g/100g) contents while low in ash (5.9-6.6%) and crude protein (0.12-0.31%). This work attempts to contribute to knowledge of the nutritional properties of these flowers.

1711-1714 Download
34
USING MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS FOR SELECTING DESIRABLE HYBRIDS IN SUNFLOWER (HELIANTHUS ANNUUS L.)
RAHEELA REHMAN1, M. ARSHAD2*, M. AYUB KHAN2, AKBAR S. MOHMAND2, G. SHABBIR1 AND M. KAUSAR NAWAZ SHAH1

USING MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS FOR SELECTING DESIRABLE HYBRIDS IN SUNFLOWER (HELIANTHUS ANNUUS L.)
ABSTRACT:
Eighteen sunflower hybrids of diverse origin were evaluated for nine agronomic characters under field conditions at NARC, Islamabad. Data were recorded on days to flower initiation & completion and days to maturity were recorded on plot basis while Plant height (cm), Stem girth (mm) and Head diameter (cm) were recorded on 10 randomly selected plants in central two rows. Seed yield per plot in grams (Fresh weight). Seed yield per plot in grams (dry weight), Seed yield per plot on dry weight basis and then converted into kg ha-1. The objectives were to estimate the genetic parameters, genetic diversity, correlation coefficient and path analysis. The highest seed yield 3409 kg ha-1 was produced by the hybrid “FSS 50” followed by FH-385 and Barracuda. All the characters had positive correlations with seed yield and 100 seed weight except head diameter where it was negatively correlated. Oil contents (-0.058) also had negative genotypic correlation. Therefore, it is suggested to break this negative correlation through conventional or novel breeding techniques to breed high yielding hybrids with higher oil contents. Positive direct effect was also observed with days to flower initiation, plant height, head diameter and oil contents on seed yield. Maximum positive direct effect (38.944) was observed with days to flower initiation followed by plant height (11.771). Cluster diagram based on Euclidean dissimilarity revealed 3 clusters at 50% linkage distance. Cluster-I had 9 genotypes, cluster-II had 6 and three in cluster-III had three genotypes. Hybrids in cluster-I had tall plants and were high yielding. Hybrids in cluster-II are desirable for large scale cultivation because plants of these were medium with larger heads, high yielder and late in maturity. These hybrids were also high in oil contents can be more desirable for large scale cultivation on the basis of high oil yield. The hybrids in cluster-III were earlier in maturity, shorter in stature, had more 100 seed weight but lower in seed yield.

1715-1720 Download
35
CHEMICAL CONTROL OF PARTHENIUM HYSTEROPHORUS L. AT DIFFERENT GROWTH STAGES IN NON-CROPPED AREA
HAROON KHAN, KHAN BAHADAR MARWAT, GUL HASSAN AND MUHAMMAD AZIM KHAN*

CHEMICAL CONTROL OF PARTHENIUM HYSTEROPHORUS L. AT DIFFERENT GROWTH STAGES IN NON-CROPPED AREA
ABSTRACT:
Parthenium hysterophorus L., is a noxious annual weed rapidly spreading across the non-cropped areas of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province and elsewhere in Pakistan. Parthenium weed has attained the status of most frequently and densely occurring weed in Swabi, Mardan and Charsadda districts while it is present in Peshawar district in isolated infestations. Parthenium weed has become a major threat to grazing land, roadside, wasteland, wetland, as well as cultivated land in KP province. Field experiments were conducted to evaluate the efficacy of different herbicides against parthenium weed at different growth stages in non-cropped area of Charsadda District, KP-Pakistan during summer 2009 and 2010. The experiments were laid out in RCBD, replicated four times separately for each growth stage with ten treatments. Herbicides used in the experiments were Aatrax (atrazine) @ 1.0, Buctril Super 60 EC (bromoxynil+MCPA) @ 0.80, Round Up (glyphosate) @ 4.0, Dual Gold 960 EC (S-metolachlor) @ 1.92

1721-1726 Download
36
EVALUATION OF WHEAT UNDER NORMAL AND LATE SOWING CONDITIONS
MOHAMMAD SAFDAR BALOCH1*, MUHAMMAD AMJAD NADIM1, MUHAMMAD ZUBAIR2, INAYAT ULLAH AWAN3, EJAZ AHMAD KHAN3 AND SAJID ALI3

EVALUATION OF WHEAT UNDER NORMAL AND LATE SOWING CONDITIONS
ABSTRACT:
The effect of planting time (October-20, October-30, November-10, November-20, November-30-10-20 and December-30) on wheat (var. Zam-04, Gomal-8, Hashim-8, candidate lines DN-62 and DN-76) was assessed on number of tillers m-2, number of days to heading, spike length (cm), number of grains spike-1

1727-1732 Download
37
EFFECTS OF ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS ON SOME INDIGENOUS PLANT SPECIES–III. CAPPARACEAE AND CHENOPODIACEAE
SAHAR ZAIDI1*, SURAYYA KHATOON2 AND S. SHAHID SHAUKAT3

EFFECTS OF ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS ON SOME INDIGENOUS PLANT SPECIES–III. CAPPARACEAE AND CHENOPODIACEAE
ABSTRACT:
To investigate the effects of electromagnetic fields of high tension wires 30 specimens of 11 species in two angiosperm families, Capparaceae and Chenopodiaceae were examined. The plants were collected under high tension wires of 132 kV

1733-1739 Download
38
CONTRIBUTION TO THE RED LIST OF THE PLANTS OF PAKISTAN: A CASE STUDY OF A NARROW ENDEMIC ASTRAGALUS CHITRALENSIS ALI (FABACEAE-PAPILIONOIDEAE)
HAIDAR ALI1* AND M. QAISER2

CONTRIBUTION TO THE RED LIST OF THE PLANTS OF PAKISTAN: A CASE STUDY OF A NARROW ENDEMIC ASTRAGALUS CHITRALENSIS ALI (FABACEAE-PAPILIONOIDEAE)
ABSTRACT:
Narrow endemic plants are more prone to the process of extinction; this is due to their narrow ecological amplitude and habitat specificity as compared to the sufficively rare or widely distributed endemic taxa. In this paper the conservation status of Astragalus chitralensis Ali (Fabaceae-Papilionoideae) is given according to IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria. It is a narrow endemic plant of district Chitral Pakistan. This taxon was previously reported from one locality i.e. Birmoghlasht-Chitral. Whereas, during our 3 years of field excursions in Chitral we have collected it from 6 more localities. On the basis of the data of population size (174 mature individuals), extent of occurrence (780.49 km2) and area of occupancy (24 km2) this taxon is categorized as Critically Endangered. Furthermore, a continuing decline in number of mature individual plants was also observed with fluctuation in the AOO in all the subpopulations. Whereas, the total number of mature individual plants in each subpopulation was less than 50. These results of low population size with continuing decline and extreme fluctuation collectively suggest the category of Critically Endangered (CR). Grazing and habitat destruction are the main causes of depletion of this taxon. Early conservation measures are extremely necessary in order to protect the taxon from extinction.

1741-1744 Download
39
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY OF CONVOLVULUS GLOMERATUS CHOISY FROM PAKISTAN
RUBINA ABID AND NOUREEN SARWAR

REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY OF CONVOLVULUS GLOMERATUS CHOISY FROM PAKISTAN
ABSTRACT:
Convolvulus glomeratus Choisy is a facultative autogamous taxon and favours both direct and insect mediated selfing or crossing. Flower opening and closing times are fairly regulated by light and temperature. Pollen and nectar were the main rewards to attract the various kinds of insects including flies, bees and butterflies. However, butterflies are regarded as opportunist as they get nectar without performing the function of pollination.

1745-1748 Download
40
PREVALENCE AND DISTRIBUTION OF CUCUMBER MOSAIC VIRUS (CMV) IN MAJOR CHILLI GROWING AREAS OF PAKISTAN
SHOMAILA IQBAL1, MUHAMMAD ASHFAQ1*, HUSSAIN SHAH2, M. INAM-UL-HAQ1 AND AZIZ-UD- DIN2

PREVALENCE AND DISTRIBUTION OF CUCUMBER MOSAIC VIRUS (CMV) IN MAJOR CHILLI GROWING AREAS OF PAKISTAN
ABSTRACT:
In order to monitor and determine the incidence of Cucumber mosaic virus chilli pepper. Surveys were conducted in 73 fields throughout the Pakistan during 2006-07. Total 706 samples (Sindh 191, Punjab 257, KPK 51 and Balouchistan 207) were collected and tested through Direct Antigen Coating Enzyme Linked Immuno-sorbent Assay (DAC-ELISA). ELISA results indicated that CMV prevails throughout the Pakistan with a relative incidence of 44.7%. Maximum incidence of CMV was recorded in Sindh (51.8%) and Balochistan (17.47%) followed by Punjab (8.5%) and KPK (7.8%). No district was found free from CMV infection in Sindh and Balochistan. Among the weed flora of chilli pepper field, Trianthema pentandra (itsit), Cyprus rotundus (Deela) and Portulaca olercea (Kulfa) were found to be infected among the samples collected from the Sindh province.

1749-1754 Download
41
IDENTIFICATION AND QUANTIFICATION OF AIRBORNE POLLEN FROM HYDERABAD: TANDO-JAM, SINDH
ANJUM PARVEEN*, MUNEEBA KHAN AND SHAISTA ZEB

IDENTIFICATION AND QUANTIFICATION OF AIRBORNE POLLEN FROM HYDERABAD: TANDO-JAM, SINDH
ABSTRACT:
An investigation of airborne pollen grains from Hyderabad: Tando-Jam, Sindh has been carried out by Burkard’s Seven Day Recording Volumetric Spore Trap. From August 2008 to July 2009. A total of 4665 pollen grains/m3 have been recorded. In this survey about 27 pollen grain types are recognized. These pollen types are Acacia/Albizia, Amaranthaceae, Asteraceae, Azadirachta indica, Brassica campestris, Callistemon citrinus, Cyperus, Daucus carota, Delonix regia, Ephedra ciliata¸ Eucalyptus globulus, Gramineae, Guaiacum officinale, Leucaena leucocephala, Mangifera indica, Moringa oleifera, Morus alba/Casuarina equisetifolia, Parkinsonia aculeata, Prosopis juliflora, Ricinus communis, Rumex dentatus, Syzygium cumini, Tamarix, Thuja and Typha angustifolia. The highest concentration of pollen grains were contributed by Grasses i.e. 1304 pollen grains/m3 followed by Amaranthaceae/Chenopodiaceae754 pollen grains/m3, Cyperus 408 pollen grains/m3, Eucalyptus 379 pollen grains/m3, Typha angustifolia 257 pollen grains/m3, Guaiacum officinale 229 pollen grains/m3, Brassica compestris 154 pollen grains/ and Leucaena leucocephala 105 pollen grains/m3. Maximum pollen concentration was abserved in the month of April-2009 i.e., 969 pollen grains/m3. The second highest peak value of pollen count was observed in the month of October-2008 i.e. 862 pollen grains/m3. The lowest concentration of pollen grains was found in January i.e., 82 pollen grains/m3.

1755-1762 Download
42
ASSESSMENT OF LITTER PRODUCTION IN SEMI-ARID MANGROVES FORESTS NEAR ACTIVE INDUS RIVER MOUTH (HAJAMBRO CREEK) AND KARACHI BACKWATERS, PAKISTAN
ZAFAR FAROOQUI, SEEMA SHAFIQUE, KHAWER LATIF KHAN, AMJAD ALI, PERVAIZ IQBAL AND PIRZADA J.A. SIDDIQUI*

ASSESSMENT OF LITTER PRODUCTION IN SEMI-ARID MANGROVES FORESTS NEAR ACTIVE INDUS RIVER MOUTH (HAJAMBRO CREEK) AND KARACHI BACKWATERS, PAKISTAN
ABSTRACT:
Litter produced in mangrove forest includes vegetative and reproductive part of the plants, which forms a primary source of organic biomass available as food to a wide variety of commercially important detritus feeding organisms inhabiting the mangrove forests. Litter production studies in Pakistan have previously been carried only at Sandspit backwaters. The present study constitutes a report of litter production from Hajambro creek (HC), Indus delta located near active Indus river mouth and Sandspit backwaters (SB), Karachi coast. A distinct seasonal pattern in total litter fall was observed at both locations. The total litter production was 4.57 tones ha-1y-1. Extrapolating the data for the whole mangrove covered area in the Indus delta, the figure comes to about 1.2 x 106 tones y-1. The lowest value was observed in January (HC) and February (SB), being the driest season, while the maximum value for litter fall was observed in June (HC) and September (SB), southwest monsoon season. The percent contribution of different components of the litter varies, with leaf-litter being the most dominant component (57% at SB and 50 % at HC) of the total litter biomass. Low values of leaf-litter were observed during flowering and fruiting seasons (from July to September at SB and from May to June at HC). The twigs, flowers, fruits and other unidentified components contribute about 12.1%

1763-1768 Download
43
INCIDENCE AND CHEMICAL CONTROL OF OKRA LEAF SPOT DISEASE
A. R. ARAIN1*, M. MITHAL JISKANI2, K.H. WAGAN2, S.N. KHUHRO1 AND M.I. KHASKHELI2

INCIDENCE AND CHEMICAL CONTROL OF OKRA LEAF SPOT DISEASE
ABSTRACT:
Studies were carried out in Sindh (Pakistan) for survey, identification, incidence and chemical control of leaf spot disease in okra. The disease incidence percent ranged between 53.5- 61.5% at different locations. The maximum incidence (61.5%) was recorded at Hyderabad, followed by Tando Muhammad Khan (58.4%), Tando Allah Yar (55.1%) and Matyari (53.5%). The fungus, Alternaria alternata was isolated and identified as cause of okra leaf spot disease. Severity of leaf spot was significantly reduced in plants sprayed with Ridomil MZ, Dolomile, Topsin-M, Diesomil, protest and Tahfuz as compare to control plants sprayed with water. The results also showed that the mean infected leaves ranged from 4.7-5.9 when the data was recorded before application of fungicides while it was between 2.0-6.4 after two application of tested fungicides. However, significant maximum reduction % in severity of leaf spot disease was recorded in case of Ridomil MZ (2.8), followed by Dolomile (1.9), Topsin-M (1.7), Diesomil (1.6), protest and Tahfuz (1.5). Okra plants infected with leaf spot and sprayed with water (control) showed highly significant reduction in plant height (61.53cm) whereas, the tall plants (95.10) were recorded from plot sprayed with Ridomil M Z followed by Dolomile (91.25 cm), Topsin-M (86.60 cm), Diesomil (78.40 cm), Protest (72.75 cm) and Tahfuz (68.38 cm). Significantly lowest number of fruits per plant of okra (10.50) was recorded in control (sprayed with water), while, highest number of fruits per plant (14.90) were obtained from plot treated with Ridomil M Z, followed by Dolomile (13.90), Topsin -M (13.20), Diesomil (12.70), Protest (12.20), and Tahfuz (11.50). The data also showed highly significant difference between treatments for fruit yield of okra infected with leaf spot. The maximum fruit yield (955 kg per acre) was observed in plot treated with Ridomil MZ, followed by Dolomile (845 kg), Topsin-M (790 kg), Diesomil (738 kg), Tahfuz (594 kg) and Protest (681 kg); whereas minimum fruit yield (495 kg) per acre was recorded in plants not sprayed with fungicides.

1769-1774 Download
44
IN-VITRO EVALUATION OF FUNGICIDES, PLANT EXTRACTS AND BIO-CONTROLAGENTS AGAINST RICE BLAST PATHOGEN MAGNAPORTHE ORYZAE COUCH.
JAMAL-U-DDIN HAJANO, A. MUBEEN LODHI*, MUMTAZ A. PATHAN, M. ALI KHANZADA AND G. SERWAR SHAH

IN-VITRO EVALUATION OF FUNGICIDES, PLANT EXTRACTS AND BIO-CONTROLAGENTS AGAINST RICE BLAST PATHOGEN MAGNAPORTHE ORYZAE COUCH.
ABSTRACT:
Among 5 fungicides viz., Thiophanate-methyl, Carbendazim, Fosetyl-aluminium, Mancozeb and Copper oxychloride, used against the Magnaporthe oryzae, only Mancozeb appeared as the highly effective fungicide that completely inhibited the mycelial growth of the fungus. All other fungicides showed little effect at higher concentrations. The extracts of garlic (Allium sativum L.), neem (Azadirachta indica L.) and calatropis (Calotropis procera L.) when used against M. oryzae by food poisoning method, only higher dose of garlic completely inhibited the mycelial growth of the test fungus. Six bio-control agents viz., Trichoderma harzianum, Trichoderma polysporum, Trichoderma pseudokoningii, Gliocladium virens, Paecilomyces variotii and Paecilomyces lilacinus were used. Maximum mycelial inhibition of M. oryzae was provided by P. lilacinus followed by Trichoderma spp.

1775-1778 Download
45
GENETIC DIVERSITY AMONG UPLAND COTTON GENOTYPES FOR DIFFERENT ECONOMIC TRAITS AND RESPONSE TO COTTON LEAF CURL VIRUS (CLCV) DISEASE
SAJJAD HAIDAR, MUHAMMAD ASLAM, MAHMOOD-UL-HASSAN, HAFIZ MUMTAZ HASSAN AND ALLAH DITTA

GENETIC DIVERSITY AMONG UPLAND COTTON GENOTYPES FOR DIFFERENT ECONOMIC TRAITS AND RESPONSE TO COTTON LEAF CURL VIRUS (CLCV) DISEASE
ABSTRACT:
Genetic diversity was studied among 13 locally developed elite cotton genotypes and two exotic lines using metroglyph analysis. Different morphological, yield and yield contributing traits and intensity of cotton leaf curl virus disease were recorded. Index scores were allotted to each character of the fifteen cotton genotypes, which indicated the worth of the genotype regarding the character. The performance of genotypes was indicated by total index scores of genotype, which was the sum of the index values with regards to all the characters. Metroglyph scatter diagram indicated the possible occurrence of 6 groups of cotton genotypes. On the basis of this grouping it was concluded that hybridization between genotypes of different groups instead of between genotypes belonging to the same group may be expected to give better cotton recombinants for different economic traits and resistance/tolerance to cotton leaf curl virus disease. The genotypes FH-1000, CIM-443, NIBGE-3, NIBGE-115, NIBGE-160 and NIBGE-253 formed distinct groups and had better tolerance to CLCV. The information generated hence may be utilized for hybridization between distinct genotypes for the creation of genetic variability in cotton.

1779-1784 Download
46
PHYTOPLANKTON ASSEMBLAGES IN THE COASTAL ZONE OF THE GULF OF İSKENDERUN - NORTH EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN
AYŞE NESLİHAN ÖZMAN-SAY1 AND NESLİHAN BALKIS2*

PHYTOPLANKTON ASSEMBLAGES IN THE COASTAL ZONE OF THE GULF OF İSKENDERUN - NORTH EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN
ABSTRACT:
In order to determine the phytoplankton species in the Gulf of İskenderun and the environmental factors that affect the distributions of the species, samples were collected horizontally with a plankton net at 9 stations in November 2005 and June 2006. As a result of the examination of the samples, 95 phytoplankton species belonging to 3 classes were identified. 12 species were new records for the Gulf of İskenderun, one (Navicula transitans Cleve

1785-1798 Download
47
EVALUATION OF BIOCHEMICAL COMPONENT AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF SOME SEAWEEEDS OCCURRING AT KARACHI COAST
AMBREEN1, HIRA, K.1 AMNA TARIQ2, RUQQIA1, VIQAR SULTANA1 AND JEHAN ARA2

EVALUATION OF BIOCHEMICAL COMPONENT AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF SOME SEAWEEEDS OCCURRING AT KARACHI COAST
ABSTRACT:
Nutritionally valuable seaweeds are being used as fresh or dried vegetables or as ingredients in wide variety of prepared foods. Interest in seaweeds has increased markedly through out the world due to their value in nutrition and in medicine. In this study 16 seaweed species collected from Karachi coast were examined for the estimation of ascorbic acid (vitamin C), calcium and 9 for protein, carbohydrate and lipid contents. Lipid content was found less as compared to carbohydrate and protein in most of the brown and red seaweeds. All the seaweeds showed the presence of calcium at varying concentrations, while ascorbic acid was found in fourteen seaweeds in considerable amount. Intake of edible seaweeds having ascorbic acid and calcium may protect the human from the diseases related to deficiency of calcium and vitamin C. Microbes and microbial infection remains a threat to human life. In this study, ethanol extract of 5 seaweeds were screened for antibacterial activity, while 9 tested against root rotting fungi. Most of the brown species had shown potent antimicrobial activity followed by red algal species. The highest antibacterial activity was found in ethanol extract of brown seaweed species Dictyota dichotoma var intricata and D.indica against Salmonella typhimurium followed by D. indica and Halimeda tuna against Bacillus subtilis with a zone of inhibition of 15

1799-1803 Download
48
TAXONOMIC STUDY OF BACILLARIOPHYTA FROM KALLAR KAHAR LAKE CHAKWAL, PUNJAB, PAKISTAN
MUBASHRAH MUNIR1, RAHMATULLAH QURESHI1,* MUHAMMAD ARSHAD1, ABDUL KHALIQ CHAUDHRY2 AND M.K. LAGHARI3

TAXONOMIC STUDY OF BACILLARIOPHYTA FROM KALLAR KAHAR LAKE CHAKWAL, PUNJAB, PAKISTAN
ABSTRACT:
The present paper reports taxonomic enumeration of Bacillariophyta, a diatomic group from Kallar Kahar Lake, Salt Range, Pakistan. A total of 35 species distributed in two orders, 7 families and 15 genera have been reported for the first time from the study area. Of them

1805-1814 Download
49
STUDIES ON THE PHYCOCHEMISTRY AND BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY OF SPIROGYRA RHIZOIDES (CHLOROPHYCOTA)
M.N. KHALID1* AND MUSTAFA SHAMEEL2

STUDIES ON THE PHYCOCHEMISTRY AND BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY OF SPIROGYRA RHIZOIDES (CHLOROPHYCOTA)
ABSTRACT:
The unbranched filaments of a grass green macroalga, Spirogyra rhizoides Randhawa were collected from freshwater habitats at Nai Baran in the Sindh Province of Pakistan and extracted in methanol. The extract revealed the presence of 22 different fatty acids, including 11 saturated and 11 unsaturated acids by GLC and GC-MS. The former acids were slightly larger in proportion (52.48%) than latter ones (47.49%). Margaric (10.33%), parinaric (11.34%) and oleic (12.86%) acids were found in highest proportion, while palmitic acid occurred in small proportion (4.84%). Furthermore, two sterols (isodecortinol & dinosterol), one monoterpene (9-hydroxygeraniol), one sesquiterpene (isoafracinol), one triterpene (30-nor-cyclopterospermone) and a polysaccharide (xylasmacin) were also obtained from the extract by (EI, FAB, FD & HR)-MS and (1H & 13C)-NMR spectroscopic techniques. The extract showed strong antimicrobial activity against 14 bacterial and 20 fungal species, including 7 human-, 5 plant- pathogens and 8 saprophytes.

1815-1820 Download
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