International Journal of Agricultural Sciences

International Journal of Agricultural Sciences ISSN 2167-0447 Vol. 10 (6), pp. 001-010, June, 2020. © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

A screening technique for resistance to FUSARIUM  root rot of common bean

Clare M. Mukankusi^1,2*, Rob J. Melis¹, John Derera¹, Robin A. Buruchara² and D. Mark¹

¹African Centre for Crop Improvement, School of Agricultural Sciences and Agribusiness, University of KwaZulu-Natal, P. Bag X01, Scottsville 3209, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.

²International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), P. O. Box 6247, Kampala, Uganda.

Accepted 25 January, 2020

Abstract

Resistance to FUSARIUM root rot (FRR) in common bean is documented as a quantitative trait and as such is greatly influenced by several environmental factors. A reproducible disease screening technique that considers the selection environment is therefore important in selecting resistant lines. A study was conducted to evaluate soil composition and irrigation frequency on the severity of FRR, using a predominant pathogenic isolate from SW Uganda at the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) in Uganda. Five soil compositions (i) 80% lake sand:20% forest soil, ii) 50% lake sand:50% forest soil, iii) 80% swamp soil:20% forest soil, iv) 50% swamp soil:50% forest soil and v) forest soil alone), and five irrigation frequency levels (once a week, twice a week, three times a week, four times a week, and daily) were evaluated on six common bean varieties with varying levels of resistance to FRR. Forest soil and 50% swamp soil: 50% forest soil (soil composition); daily irrigation and irrigation once a week (irrigation frequency) differentiated test varieties most distinctly, according to their reaction to FRR. In conclusion, a combination of forest soil and daily watering using a pathogenic isolate FSP-3 provided adequate FRR disease levels for disease evaluation and differentiation of bean varieties and was adopted for genetic studies on FRR resistance in beans.

Key words: Common bean, Fusarium root rot, resistance, irrigation frequency, screening technique, soil composition.

International Journal of Agricultural Sciences ISSN 2167-0447 Vol. 10 (6), pp. 001-006, June, 2020. © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Correlation study of flowering performance and flowering pattern with the yield in LINUM USITATISSIMUM  L.

Rajesh Kumar Jain

Botany Department, K.N.C.W, Phagwara (Punjab), India. E-mail: [email protected].

Accepted 22 April, 2020

Abstract

Highly significant positive correlation were observed in flax among the 1000 seed weight with biological yield, economic yield and harvest index, the reproductive phase length with primary branch number, flower number per plant and capsule number per plant, the vegetative phase length with days to first bud and days to first flower, the seed number per capsule with primary branch number, the capsule number per plant with flower number per plant, the flower number per plant with single continuous flowering period, the plant height at maturity with plant height at first bud ,the days to first flower with days to first bud. The character like biological yield has maximum positive direct effect on economic yield followed by harvest index; the biological yield has highest positive direct effect on seed yield followed by harvest index and single continuous flowering period. The 1000 seed weight has highest positive indirect effect on economic yield via character like biological yield followed by harvest index, flower number per plant, capsule number per plant, reproductive phase length, secondary branch number and plant height at maturity.

Key words: Linseed, flowering-performance, flowering-pattern, correlation.

International Journal of Agricultural Sciences ISSN 2167-0447 Vol. 10 (6), pp. 001-012, June, 2020. © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Investigations on the phytochemical activities and wound healing properties of Adhatoda vasica leave in Swiss albino mice

Subhashini S.¹ and Kantha D. Arunachalam²*

¹Department of Biotechnology, School of Bioengineering, SRM University, Kattankulathur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.

²Centre for Inter Disciplinary Research, SRM University, Kattankulathur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.

Accepted 16 April, 2020

Abstract

Adhatoda vasica has been used in many ayurvedic formulations. In order to evaluate the wound healing activity of A. vasica, five different solvent extracts were prepared from the leaves of the plant. Methanol, ethanol, ethyl acetate, chloroform and hexane were used for the extraction of the active ingredients. Excision wound model on Swiss albino mice was used to assess the wound healing activity of the leaves. Remarkable wound healing activity was observed with the ointment formulation of the methanol extract at 1% concentration. Wound contraction was calculated as percentage of the reduction in wound area. A specimen sample of tissue was isolated from the healed skin of each group of mice for the histopathological examination. The results of histopathological examination also supported the outcome of excision wound models. Hematoxylin and Eosin stained sections and Van Gieson’s stained sections were checked for collagen deposition. Toluidine blue stained sections were checked for metachromatic staining of mast cells. The present study demonstrated that the aerial parts of A. vasica promote wound healing activity in mice as a preclinical study.

Key words: Adhatoda vasica, phytochemical analysis, excision wound model, wound healing activity, histopathological examination.

International Journal of Agricultural Sciences ISSN 2167-0447 Vol. 10 (6), pp. 001-008, June, 2020. © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Chemical composition and antifungal activity of volatile components from woody terminal branches and roots of Tetraclinis articulate (Vahl.) Masters growing in Tunisia

Ahlem Tekaya-Karoui¹, Naima Boughalleb²*, Saoussen Hammami¹, Hichem Ben Jannet¹ and Zine Mighri¹

¹Laboratory of Chemistry of Natural Substances and Organic Synthesis (99/UR/12-26), Faculty of Sciences, Monastir University, 5000 Monastir, Tunisia.

²Laboratory of Plant Pathology, Higher Institute of Agronomy of Chott Mariem, 4042 Sousse-Tunisia.

Accepted 08 May, 2020

Abstract

The chemical composition of the volatile fractions obtained from distilled woody terminal branches and roots of Tetraclinis articulata (Vahl.) Masters was identified by Gas Chromatography- Flame ionization detectors (GC-FID) and Gas Chromatography-Coupled with Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) . Twenty compounds represented 83.7% of the essential oil from woody terminal branches and 29.2% from the roots. Nonan-1-ol was the main constituent present in the second fraction of the essential oil from woody terminal branches with the highest percentage of 75.22. Monoterpene hydrocarbons viz: - terpinene (3.04), - carene (1.17) and -ocimene (1.09) were the main compounds. In the fourth fraction of the essential oil from roots, the major compounds detected were Bornyl acetate (16.63), Camphene (1.59) and -cadinene (2.86). This fraction was mainly rich in oxygenate compounds (20.25) and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (6.84). Furthermore, the oils were tested for their antifungal activity against five phytopathogenic fungi. These oils from woody terminal branches and roots of T. articulata (Vahl.) Masters were found to possess antifungal activity.

Key words: Antifungal activity, Cupressaceae, essential oil, Nonan-1-ol, Tetraclinis articulata (Vahl.) Masters.

International Journal of Agricultural Sciences ISSN 2167-0447 Vol. 10 (6), pp. 001-007, June, 2020. © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Studies on the asthma coughs plant Crinum jagus L. (Amaryllidaceae) in Nigeria

A. T. J. Ogunkunle* and O. Racheal Olopade

Department of Pure and Applied Biology, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, P.M.B. 4000, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria.

Accepted 15 April, 2020

Abstract

Some morphological and anatomical features of Crinum jagus L. were investigated and described. The student t-tests conducted indicated highly significant differences (P = 0.05) in the mean epidermal cell density, mean stomatal density, mean stomatal length and mean guard cell area between the adaxial and abaxial leaf surfaces. However, the investigation ‘between plants’ variations did not indicate any significant differences (P = 0.05) in all those morphological and anatomical features studied. Moreover, ethnobotanical study of the plant revealed its potency in the treatment of asthma and related coughs. A description of the preparation and application of the asthma concoction is, therefore, presented. The paper discusses the taxonomic and ecological implications of the observations, and recommends an investigation into the phytochemical compounds of C. jagus for possible utilisation in the chemical and drug industries.

Key words: Crinum jagus, anatomy, ethnobotany, herbal medicine, taxonomic description.

International Journal of Agricultural Sciences ISSN 2167-0447 Vol. 10 (6), pp. 001-009, June, 2020. © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Multivariate assessment of the agromorphological variability and yield components among sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam) landraces

Afuape S. O.¹*, Okocha P. I.² and Njoku D.¹

¹National Root Crops Research Institute, Umudike, PMB 7006, Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria.

²Department of Agronomy, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, PMB 7267, Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria.

Accepted 15 April, 2020

Abstract

Understanding the nature and magnitude of variability existing among sweetpotato genetic materials for important traits is vital for the effective utilization of such materials for breeding purposes. Eighteen landraces from diverse origins, plus three released cultivars as checks, were evaluated in two contrasting locations, using nine agronomic and eight morphological traits of the crop, to estimate the nature and magnitude of the variability among the genetic materials, to determine the relationships among the traits, and to identify the important yield-related traits among the collections using multivariate tools. The principal component analysis identified number of marketable and unmarketable roots, total number of roots, weight of marketable and unmarketable roots, total root weights, incidence and severity of root Cylas spp, length of biggest, medium and smallest marketable roots, number of branches, as well as stand count at harvest as important traits that could be used to differentiate the landraces. The canonical variate analysis showed that the observed variation among the traits occurred mostly between-groups than within-groups, and that it was largely influenced by total root weight, weight of marketable roots, number of marketable roots, and total number of roots. Generally, all the traits, except stand count at harvest, exhibited positive and significant (P<0.01 and P<0.001) correlation with total root weight (yield) . Most of the traits also exhibited significant relationships among them. However, the use of forward selection multiple regression analysis revealed weight of marketable and unmarketable roots, as well as total number of roots as the most important yield component traits that could be used to improve sweetpotato. Thus, our work identified the existence of inherent variability in the local germplasm collections, and the traits that could be used to exploit the observed variability, eliciting important relationships among the traits in the process.

Key words: Sweetpotato, genetic variability, multivariate analyses, yield components.