Absract Archive
May 2010
Full length ArticleEffect of Water and Growth Regulators on Rhizome Germination of Cyperus rotundus
Abstract
Cyperus rotundus is one of the most alien weed, its rhizomes provide the major means by which the plant may colonize an area. It is recognized that tubers, rhizomes and corns are used for asexual propagation and in some species they are used as edibles. They are the key to the survival strategy of plants to unfavorable growth conditions. This study aims at determining the effect of water and major growth hormones on the rhizome of Cyperus rotundus. The biomass attained in the presence of KIN and BAP was higher and vigorous multiple shoot initiation was observed. Shoot elongation showed high affinity for water absorption, during the first one hour. On the basis of in vitro and ex vitro studies; it was concluded that cytokinins present in the rhizome and water from surrounding soil are responsible for sprouting of C. rotundus rhizome. Through this study, we discuss the possible role of cytokinins in the water absorption of C. rotundus rhizome.
Keywords: Cyperus rotundus; Cytokinin; BAP; Kinetin; Rhizome
Authors: C. Rajeshkannan, Royjohn and N. Jayabalan
Corresponding Author : Email: rajkhn.c@gmail.com
Full length Article
Evolutionary Study of β-Bungarotoxin Protein Sequences of Thailand Kraits
Abstract
Bungarus commonly referred as kraits, is a genus of venomous elapid snakes found in South and South-East Asia. β-Bungarotoxin protein sequences of the Thailand kraits –– Bungarus candidus, Bungarus fasciatus, Bungarus flaviceps, and Bungarus multicinctus are collected from the Entrez protein database available at NCBI website. Multiple sequence alignment for the retrieved sequences is carried out using Multiple Alignment Program (MAFFT). MAFFT alignment is provided as input to the Protdist program of the PHYLIP package to calculate distance matrix. Distance matrix is then provided as input to the Fitch program of the PHYLIP package in order to compute a phylogenetic tree. Evolutionary study of the β-Bungarotoxin protein sequences of the Thailand kraits using Fitch program from PHYLIP package has been done. The computed phylogenetic tree has a sum of square score value of 0.01057 and average percent standard deviation score value of 3.25056.
Keywords: Bungarus; Multiple Sequence Alignment (MAFFT); Phylogenetic Analysis; Evolutionary tree; PHYLIP; Protdist; Fitch.
Author: Uma Maheshwari
For Correspondence: Email: ugdreams@gmail.com
Full length Article
Expression and Characterization of Significant Tumor Specific Biomarker from Different Stages of Chemically Induced Murine Skin Carcinoma
Abstract
Present study was designed to evaluate the expression of tumor specific antigen in tumor tissue and the presence of auto antibodies in serum of the skin carcinoma mice, which was chemically induced by 7, 12-Dimethylbenz[a]anthracene. Mice induced with skin carcinoma at different stages of tumor development were selected for the study. Tumor specific protein was separated from the tumor tissue using SDS - PAGE and it was localized in the tumor tissue at different stages of carcinoma development using immunohistochemistry and the antibody in serum was measured using ELISA. This antigen which was localized in the pre-malignant and cancerous lesion in skin epithelium was cytoplasmic. The mean of antibodies value were significantly moderate in early stage of tumor development and the antigen distributions in tissues were low. Comparatively there were high levels of antitumor antibodies in progressive stage with high antigen distribution. During metastasis, auto antibodies were high and the undifferentiated squamous cell carcinoma showed positive staining but, there was very low levels of antibodies in late stage without metastasis and showed negative tissue staining. The two methodologies correlate well with each other and their simultaneous application confers to the better use and understanding of this tumor specific antigen as prognostic marker.
Key words: Skin carcinoma, Tumor specific antigen, Immunohistochemistry and prognostic marker.
Authors: S.Sophia and M.Krishnamoorthi
Corresponding Author : Email : sophiammu@yahoo.co.in
Full length Article
Genetic Diversity Analysis by Isoenzyme and Protein Profile among The Isolates of Sclerotium Rolfsii
Abstract
Ten isolates of Sclerotium rolfsii were screened from the collected from the different locations of tobacco fields viz, nursery beds, crop fields and vegetables garden in Andhra Pradesh. After isolation and characterization the fungal isolates viz Sclerotium rolfsii were subjectd to genetic diversity analysis by Isoenzyme and Soluble protein Profile characteristics significant Variation was observed among the ten isolates with respect to isoenzyme of Peroxidase, Esterase, Catalase, Polyphenol oxidase and protein profile patterns. Isoenzyme of Esterase showed maximum number of polymorphism. Un Wieghted pair group method on arimathmatic averages (UPGMA) method of clustering analysis showed that the 10 isolates were grouped into two main clusters. The genetic similarity (%) varied between 36 to 100%. The isolates SRT(N)SPO and SRD, showed minimum (38%) genetic similarity. Whereas the isolates SRG and SRT(N)SPO, showed maximum (100%) genetic similarity.
Key words: Sclerotium rolfsii, Isoenzymes, Soluble protein profile. Un Wieghted pair group method on arimathmatic averages ( UPGMA).
Authors: G. Sathish, P. Rajasekaran C.C.S. Rao and Siva RajuCorresponding Author : E mail :gabsatish11@rediffmail.com
Full length Article
A Study on Growth Optimization and Partial Charactrisation of Xylanase Enzyme from Streptomyces species
Abstract
The present study aims at the isolation, identification, optimization of growth conditions for the production of xylanase enzyme and characterisation of partially purified enzyme. The Streptomyces sp. was isolated from the soil sample. The enzyme activity of extracted crude enzyme was estimated and was then subjected to partial purification by ammonium sulphate purification, dialysis SDS-PAGE. The partially purified enzyme was subjected to temperature and pH stability. Thus the fundamental studies should enable more effective biotechnological exploitation of xylanases. The xylanase has a number of applications in different field. Thus the fundamental studies should enable more effective in biotechnological exploitation of xylanases.
Keywords: Xylanase; Streptomyces sp.; Optimization; Submerged fermentation.Authors: J. C. Anjana and R. K.Sumathi
Corresponding Author : Email: janad1357@yahoo.com
Full length Article
Prevalence and Detection of Hepatitis B Virus DNA in Pregnant Women using Polymerase
Chain Reaction (PCR)Abstract
Monitoring of hepatitis B virus (HBV) in serum has become the standard well of assessing the replicative activity of HBV. The purpose of the study was to detect the hepatitis B virus DNA by PCR from chronically infected serum samples. The level of hepatitis B virus DNA in serum reflects the replicative activity of HBV. The clinical importance of this method has been reported for the assessment, management and antiviral treatment of patients with chronic HBV infection .To detect serum HBV DNA, and 39 sera of patients with HBsAg positive patients were checked for the presence of HBV DNA. Among hepatitis B surface antigen positive group 54% (21/39) of the samples were positive for HBV DNA. This result represents an important breakthrough in sensitivity of detecting HBV DNA even less than 0.1 pg of HBV DNA can be achieved by PCR.
Key Words: HBsAg, HBeAg, HBeAb, HBV DNA, PCR, ELISA, Taq polymerase and Forward and Reverse Primer HBsAg.Authors: S.Paranjothi and H.Vijaya Rani
Corresponding Author : E mail : micropps2005@gmail.com
Short communication
Study of The Enzymatic Activity of The Fungal Organisms Causing Spoilage in Tomato (Lycopersicon Esculentum)Abstract
Vegetables and fruits are highly prone to the spoilage by fungi due to their high moisture content. This leads to a negative impact on the agricultural sector because the production, storage as well as transport of the vegetables and fruits become difficult. Developing countries like India where the economy largely depends upon agriculture is badly effected. Further, the spoilage of cultivated food stuffs raises question in food safety because of continuous increase in the population on one hand and increase in the diseases due to lack of nutrition on the other hand; insists to revive our studies for the pattern of the infection laid by these fungal organisms. This research was designed to study the enzymatic activity of the fungal organisms which makes tomato and related vegetables and fruits highly prone to their infection. Here the microorganisms namely Aspergillus niger, Penicillium sp. and Geotrichum candidatum were isolated from spoiled tomato samples from the market and subjected to the study of enzymatic activity. All the fungal samples showed high pectinase as well as cellulase activity along with amylase activity as well. This proves of their strong ability to succeed on a wide variety of plant products including tomato. Once infection starts, it transmits to other vegetables as well and finally an entire store can be damaged. This strong potential of fungus is further fuelled up by their ability to form spores and thus spread to considerable distances.
Keywords: Aspergillus niger; Tomato; Geotrichum; Spoilage; Agriculture.
Author: Abhinaba GhoshFor Correspondence : Email: abhinaba09@vit.ac.in
Short communication
Angiogenic Potential of Hexane Extract of Seaurchin, Temnopleurus Alexandri (Bell,1884)
Abstract
The present study elucidates that hexane extract of the sea urchin, Temnopleurus alexandri has an angiogenic activity. Chick chorioallantoic membrane assay was used to assess the activity. Various concentrations of hexane extract (10,50,100,200,300ng) were tested along with controls. VEGF was used as positive control. Highest blood vessel count (297.6±5.771) was obtained with 300ng concentration. GC-MS analysis revealed the presence of Pentadecane, Heptadecane, Eicosane, Heneicosane, Docosane as major compounds in the extract. This study shows that hexane extract is a potent angiogenic agent and needs further purification for the specific compound, which is responsible for the angiogenic activity.
Key words : Hexane extract – angiogenesis – CAM - Temnopleurus alexandri.Authors: B.Uma and R.Parvathavarthini
Corresponding Author - Email : umabwc@gmail.com
Short communication
Antibacterial Activity of Poly MethylMethacrylate / Silver Nano Composite: A Novel Approach
Abstract
Silver nano particles are known for their antimicrobial properties. They have been used in various applications – both biological and non-biological. Polymethyl Methacrylate (PMMA) bone implants have a tendency to get infected often, leading to surgical intervention. Present study aims at determination of minimum concentration of silver nano that requires to be added to PMMA bone cements, to discourage bacterial growth. The PMMA/silver nano composite was synthesized, with various concentrations of silver nano. The implants were placed in cultures of Staphylococcus aureus, E. coli, Proteus mirabilis and Pseudomonas aeroginosa. After 24 hrs, the zone of clearance was observed. From this the minimum concentration required for discouraging bacterial growth was determined. “The optimum quantity of silver nano is found to be 1000 ppm for significant antimicrobial action.”
Keywords: PMMA; Silver nano; Bone biomaterial; Osteomyelitis.Authors: R.Selvaraj, B.Jayachandran Dare, S.Jansi and R.Narasimha Raghavan
Corresponding Author - E mail : rsraj71@gmail.com
Mini Review
Recent Trends in Biodegradable Products from BiopolymersAbstract
Products which degrade upon disposal by the action of living organisms are called 'biodegradable products”. They can be broken down into their constituent natural elements and be absorbed by the environment. There has been a lot of progress in the production of biodegradable products from biopolymers such as starch, cellulose, lactic acid, glycolic acid etc. Biopolymers have a vast range of applications in the production of eco- friendly products such as bioplastics, biopots, biodegradable medical devices, biodegradable implants and drug delivery systems. Using biodegradable products is very important for making the environment “Green”. Advanced techniques in biotechnology have been used to produce genetically modified organisms. These genetically modified organisms are used in the production of biopolymers. Biopolymers help to produce biodegradable products in large quantities at a very low cost. Therefore focusing research in these areas will help to completely avoid the usage of non biodegradable products in future.
Key words: Biodegradable products, Biopolymers, Biodegradable medical devices, Implants, Drug delivery systemsAuthors: N. G. Ramesh Babu, N. Anitha and R. Hema Kalai Rani
Corresponding Author - Email: shansingri@yahoo.co.in
Mini Review
Biodiesel From Cotton: An Alternative Form of Fuel
Abstract
Approximately 95% of total energy consumption comes from fossil fuels. International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that the world energy demand will increase by more than 55% by 2030. The Indian economy with a robust growth of around 8% is likely to account for 15% of the world's oil demand by 2040. Fuel reservoir from fossils is limited. The basic aim of energy security for a nation is to ensure uninterrupted supply of energy to support its commercial and economical activities for sustained economic growth and also to reduce its dependency on imported energy sources. Geological oil, fossil fuels etc., release a green house gas which causes global warming. Therefore, it is time for India to explore options which can substitute petrol and diesel and are climate-friendly. In long-term perspective our world will be going through major changes concerning energy sources, energy production, and sustainability of energy and end-use applications. Also, global oil prices are increasing day by day. So it is necessary to get an alternative source for fuels. Fiber and cotton seed oil are the two major components obtain from cotton plant. Cotton seed contains 45% hulls, 12% linters, 55% kernels and 20 - 22% oil content are the second most important oilseed crop (source) in the world. Cotton seed oil contains sulfur and ash in a very low ratio and it has no water or any other residues in it. The density of cotton oil is near to the density of diesel. Considering it’s density, sulfur and ash content, water and residue content, corrosion tests and calorific value – cotton seed oil is a fuel of good quality. We present here a Review on different biofuels, biofuel crops and comparison between cotton seed oil and fossil fuel.
Key words: Biofuels, biodiesel, Gossypium sp, Cottonseed oil.Authors: Arunita Rakshit and *A.B.Vedamurthy
Corresponding Author - E mail vedamurthy15@yahoo.co.in