scholarly journals Challenges and Perspectives in Homology-Directed Gene Targeting in Monocot Plants

Rice ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tien Van Vu ◽  
Yeon Woo Sung ◽  
Jihae Kim ◽  
Duong Thi Hai Doan ◽  
Mil Thi Tran ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Targeting ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Green Revolution ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Site Directed Mutagenesis ◽  
Crop Varieties ◽  
Long Time

AbstractContinuing crop domestication/redomestication and modification is a key determinant of the adaptation and fulfillment of the food requirements of an exploding global population under increasingly challenging conditions such as climate change and the reduction in arable lands. Monocotyledonous crops are not only responsible for approximately 70% of total global crop production, indicating their important roles in human life, but also the first crops to be challenged with the abovementioned hurdles; hence, monocot crops should be the first to be engineered and/or de novo domesticated/redomesticated. A long time has passed since the first green revolution; the world is again facing the challenge of feeding a predicted 9.7 billion people in 2050, since the decline in world hunger was reversed in 2015. One of the major lessons learned from the first green revolution is the importance of novel and advanced trait-carrying crop varieties that are ideally adapted to new agricultural practices. New plant breeding techniques (NPBTs), such as genome editing, could help us succeed in this mission to create novel and advanced crops. Considering the importance of NPBTs in crop genetic improvement, we attempt to summarize and discuss the latest progress with major approaches, such as site-directed mutagenesis using molecular scissors, base editors and especially homology-directed gene targeting (HGT), a very challenging but potentially highly precise genome modification approach in plants. We therefore suggest potential approaches for the improvement of practical HGT, focusing on monocots, and discuss a potential approach for the regulation of genome-edited products.

scholarly journals Exploring the Major Climate-smart Agricultural Practices for Dry Season Crop Production in Salinity Affected Fallow Land in the Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

2021 ◽  
pp. 185-192
Author(s):  
Md. Abdul Awal
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Conservation Agriculture ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Coastal Areas ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Fallow Land ◽  
Short Life Span ◽  
Crop Varieties ◽  
Study Results

The landmasses of the coastal areas of Bangladesh still remains under-utilized, thus cropping intensity is much less than the national average. Most areas remain fallow during dry (rabi) season from December to May due to presence of higher concentration of salts in soil and water, and scarcity of suitable irrigation water. Available adaptation options or technologies are not capable to solve these problems at all. Nevertheless, the areas receive a lot of water from monsoon rain, most of that rainwater is drain-out as surface runoff. The present study results suggest that the use of harvested rainwater and conservation agriculture either in combination or alone could mitigate the problem for bringing huge areas under crop cultivation. The public social safety net programmes such as cash-for-work, food-for-work etc. can be deployed for excavating or re-excavating the abandoned coastal ponds, ditches or canals for storing rainwater. Salt-, drought- and/or heat-tolerant crop varieties with short life span can also be cultivated to get the better results. Early plantation or growing crops with early-maturing varieties can ensure safer harvest in ahead of stress arrives. The avenues have immense potential as climate-smart practices for growing crops preferably non-rice crops during dry season in vast fallow land that will not only ensure food security for coastal people but could turn the entire southern Bangladesh as a food surplus zone. The findings refer the broad recommendation, therefore, specific research works based on the locations and resources available are necessary.

Germplasm Conservation and the Green Revolution

1991 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 145-160
Author(s):  
Carl E. Brunner ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Green Revolution ◽  
Germplasm Conservation ◽  
Food Crop ◽  
Crop Varieties ◽  
Adequate Food ◽  
High Yielding Varieties ◽  
The Third World ◽  
Crop Germplasm

As a result of the Green Revolution, modem agriculture in the industrialized world has developed into a monocultural system. Through intensive breeding practices, most food crops grown in the developed nations have a narrow genetic base and are increasingly susceptible to disease and environmental changes. The genetic sources of eroded genes are found in the traditional crop varieties of the Third World However, these traditional, home-grown varieties have been abandoned in favor of the high yielding varieties of the Green Revolution. Analysis of world cereal and food crop production data reveals that the world is food crop interdependent. The essay concludes that in order to assure adequate food supplies, food crop germplasm needs to be conserved.

TO THE QUESTION OF RESPONSIBILITY FOR TORTURE IN THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-106
Author(s):  
ASTEMIR ZHURTOV ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Russian Federation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Human Life ◽  
International Standards ◽  
World Community ◽  
The World ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Protection Of Human Rights ◽  
The Russian Federation

Cruel and inhumane acts that harm human life and health, as well as humiliate the dignity, are prohibited in most countries of the world, and Russia is no exception in this issue. The article presents an analysis of the institution of responsibility for torture in the Russian Federation. The author comes to the conclusion that the current criminal law of Russia superficially and fragmentally regulates liability for torture, in connection with which the author formulated the proposals to define such act as an independent crime. In the frame of modern globalization, the world community pays special attention to the protection of human rights, in connection with which large-scale international standards have been created a long time ago. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international acts enshrine prohibitions of cruel and inhumane acts that harm human life and health, as well as degrade the dignity.Considering the historical experience of the past, these standards focus on the prohibition of any kind of torture, regardless of the purpose of their implementation.

Comparative Advantage of Using Biopesticides in Ukrainian Agroecosystems

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hasrat Arjjumend ◽  
Konstantia Koutouki ◽  
Olga Donets
Keyword(s):  
Shelf Life ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Crop Productivity ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Soil Biology ◽  
Chemical Contamination ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Irreversible Damage

The use of unsustainable levels of chemical fertilizers and plant protection chemicals has resulted in a steady decline in soil and crop productivity the world over. Soil biology has undergone irreversible damage, coupled with a high concentration of toxic chemical residues in plant tissues and human bodies. Agricultural practices must evolve to sustainably meet the growing global demand for food without irreversibly damaging soil. Microbial biocontrol agents have tremendous potential to bring sustainability to agriculture in a way that is safe for the environment. Biopesticides do not kill non-target insects, and biosafety is ensured because biopesticides act as antidotes and do not lead to chemical contamination in the soil. This article is part of a larger study conducted in Ukraine by researchers at the Université de Montréal with the support of Mitacs and Earth Alive Clean Technologies. The responses of farmers who use biofertilizers (“user farmers”) and those who do not (“non-user farmers”), along with the responses of manufacturers or suppliers of biofertilizers, and research and development (R&D) scientists are captured to demonstrate the advantages of applying microbial biopesticides to field crops. Participants reported a 15-30% increase in yields and crop production after the application of biopesticides. With the use of biopesticides, farmers cultivated better quality fruits, grains, and tubers with a longer shelf life. Moreover, while the risk of crop loss remains high (60-70%) with chemically grown crops, this risk is reduced to 33% on average if crops are grown using biopesticides. The findings indicate that a large proportion of farmers would prefer to use biopesticides if they are effective and high quality products. In this context, the quality and effectiveness of products is therefore very important. Despite their benefits to soil, human health, and ecosystems, biopesticides face significant challenges and competition vis-à-vis synthetic pesticides for a variety of reasons. Therefore, the development of biopesticides must overcome the problems of poor quality products, short shelf life, delayed action, high market costs, and legal/registration issues.

نظام التوثيق وأثره في إدارة الأصول الوقفية في دولة الإمارات العربية المتحدة: نماذج من إمارة الشارقة (Documentation System and its Impact on Endowment Managements in United Arabic Emirates: The Study of Emirate of Sharjah)

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 166-193
Author(s):  
مها بنت منصور الصائغ
Keyword(s):  
Human Life ◽  
Documentation System ◽  
The People ◽  
Endowment Management ◽  
Long Time ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Law

شهد تاريخ الأمة الإسلامية حضارة ونهضة عالمية في جميع مجالات الحياة الإنسانية، ومما كان له كبير الأثر في ذلك هو الأوقاف التي بدأت مع سيد البشرية محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم واستمرت بتنوع وشمولية إلى عصرنا الحالي؛ ولكن ما تعرضت إليه الأوقاف من إهمال وإقصاء وضياع يرجع لأسباب عديدة من أهمها غياب التوثيق الوقفي. تقوم الدراسة على تتبع مفهوم الوقف والتوثيق، والوقف في الإمارات العربية المتحدة ول سيما في إمارة الشارقة. توصلت الدراسة إلى نتائج منها: أن الأوقاف قائمة منذ زمن بعيد، وأن رغبة الواقف بالوقف وإقدامه عليها لم ينقصها سوى وثيقة، وأنه لا وثائق لها ولا مستندات، كما أن العرض الموجز لنشأة دائرة الأوقاف بالشارقة وسعيها لإحياء سنة الوقف ونشر ثقافته نراه يتضح شيئاً فشيئاً من خلال تفعيل مواد القانون والبحث حول الأنسب والأصح لحماية الأوقاف، ولم يكن هذا الاهتمام بالوقف إلا انعكاساً لتوجه الواقفين وتماشياً لرؤية الحكام وامتثالاً لنهج خير الأنام ورغبة في تكافل الأرواح وحباً للسلام. الكلمات المفتاحيّة: الوقف، التوثيق، المقارنة، الشارقة. Abstract The history of Islamic nation has witnessed a global civilization and it has had a great impact in all areas of human life, including the endowments that began with the master of humankind; Muhammad S.A.W. and it was continuing in diversity and comprehensively until our epoch. However, there are some problems related to endowment management such as negligence, exclusion and loss that due to many reasons. Among the most important reasons is the absence of endowment documentations. Therefore, the study aims to discuss the concept of endowment and documentation, as well as the endowment in United Arabic Emirates, especially in the Emirate of Sharjah. The study concluded that the practice of endowment has been existed for a long time, yet there are in need of endowment documentations. This study also found that the information related to the establishment of institution of endowment in Sharjah and its role has   spread widely to the people through the enforcement of the law and the implementation of the research related to the practice of endowment in order to sustain them in a good way. This documentation system was only a reflection of what has  stated in Shariah laws regarding the practice of endowment among the donors, so that it will be in line with the approach of good intentions and love of peace. Keywords: Endowment, Documentation, Comparison, Sharjah.   

Structural Transformation of Punjab Agriculture and its Environmental Implications

2020 ◽  
pp. 533-546
Keyword(s):  
Structural Transformation ◽  
Diversity Index ◽  
Green Revolution ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Cropping Pattern ◽  
Environmental Implications ◽  
Question Mark ◽  
Sustainability Issue ◽  
Economic Survey

As per Economic Survey of Punjab, (2019-20), Punjab alone contributed more than 1/4 and 1/3 of the central pool of rice and th rd wheat respectively in 2018-19 and accordingly named as bread-basket of India. However, such a huge contribution was due to the structural transformation of agriculture in Punjab under the Green Revolution. Such transformation leads to intensive use of natural resources with mono-culture of wheat-paddy till today, which put a big question mark on the sustainability issue of agriculture in Punjab. The present study was exclusively based on secondary data, covering the period of 1965-66 to 2018-2019, almost 55 years. Hirschman Herfindhal index and Simpson Diversity index were used to determine the extent of concentration and diversification in the cropping pattern of Punjab agriculture. The results highlight the facts that level of diversification was declining and the level of concentration was increasing. Moreover, Compound Growth Rate (CGR) of yield was either stagnating or declining over the years. Not only this, based on the index of agriculture production, the trend values were negative since the 21 century. Accordingly, st intensive agricultural practices should be stopped, and diversification should get priority in such a way that food security is not jeopardized.

scholarly journals Microbial Biocontrol as an Alternative to Synthetic Fungicides: Boundaries between Pre- and Postharvest Applications on Vegetables and Fruits

Fermentation ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Vincenzo Michele Sellitto ◽  
Severino Zara ◽  
Fabio Fracchetti ◽  
Vittorio Capozzi ◽  
Tiziana Nardi
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Fruits And Vegetables ◽  
Control Plant ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Plant Diseases ◽  
Postharvest Quality ◽  
Crucial Point ◽  
Production Chain ◽  
Vegetables And Fruits ◽  
And Storage

From a ‘farm to fork’ perspective, there are several phases in the production chain of fruits and vegetables in which undesired microbial contaminations can attack foodstuff. In managing these diseases, harvest is a crucial point for shifting the intervention criteria. While in preharvest, pest management consists of tailored agricultural practices, in postharvest, the contaminations are treated using specific (bio)technological approaches (physical, chemical, biological). Some issues connect the ‘pre’ and ‘post’, aligning some problems and possible solution. The colonisation of undesired microorganisms in preharvest can affect the postharvest quality, influencing crop production, yield and storage. Postharvest practices can ‘amplify’ the contamination, favouring microbial spread and provoking injures of the product, which can sustain microbial growth. In this context, microbial biocontrol is a biological strategy receiving increasing interest as sustainable innovation. Microbial-based biotools can find application both to control plant diseases and to reduce contaminations on the product, and therefore, can be considered biocontrol solutions in preharvest or in postharvest. Numerous microbial antagonists (fungi, yeasts and bacteria) can be used in the field and during storage, as reported by laboratory and industrial-scale studies. This review aims to examine the main microbial-based tools potentially representing sustainable bioprotective biotechnologies, focusing on the biotools that overtake the boundaries between pre- and postharvest applications protecting quality against microbial decay.

scholarly journals Sexuality and Affection in the Time of Technological Innovation: Artificial Partners in the Japanese Context

Religions ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 296
Author(s):  
Beatriz Yumi Aoki ◽  
Takeshi Kimura
Keyword(s):  
18Th Century ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Human Sexuality ◽  
Sexual Intimacy ◽  
Ancient History ◽  
Human Relationships ◽  
Living Things ◽  
Long Time ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Impact

Recent years have witnessed an increase in the number of academic studies on the impact of technological advancements on human life, including possible transformations and changes in human sexuality following the development of sex-related devices, such as sex robots. In this context, terms such as posthuman sexuality, digisexuality, and techno-sexuality have emerged, signaling possible new understandings of sexual, intimacy, and emotional practices. It is important to note that ancient history shows that humankind has for a long time been fascinated with their relationship to non-living things, mostly human-like figures, such as dolls. The Ningyo (人形, the Japanese term for doll) has a long history of usage, and has deep religious and animistic significance in the Japanese context—there are records of sexual use as early as the 18th century. With this context in mind, this paper focuses on three Japanese examples, aiming to shine a light on beyond-human relationships, which include a Japanese man’s marriage to a digital character, sex dolls, and communicative robots, from both a sexual and emotional perspective. In a new horizon of sexual and romantic possibilities, how will humans respond, and what can emerge from these interactions?

Biochemical characterization of Plasmodium falciparum CTP:phosphoethanolamine cytidylyltransferase shows that only one of the two cytidylyltransferase domains is active

2013 ◽  
Vol 450 (1) ◽  
pp. 159-167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sweta Maheshwari ◽  
Marina Lavigne ◽  
Alicia Contet ◽  
Blandine Alberge ◽  
Emilie Pihan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plasmodium Falciparum ◽  
Cellular Localization ◽  
Biochemical Characterization ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Membrane Lipids ◽  
Polyclonal Antibodies ◽  
Homology Modelling ◽  
Site Directed Mutagenesis ◽  
Recombinant Enzymes ◽  
Parasite Life Cycle

The intra-erythrocytic proliferation of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum requires massive synthesis of PE (phosphatidylethanolamine) that together with phosphatidylcholine constitute the bulk of the malaria membrane lipids. PE is mainly synthesized de novo by the CDP:ethanolamine-dependent Kennedy pathway. We previously showed that inhibition of PE biosynthesis led to parasite death. In the present study we characterized PfECT [P. falciparum CTP:phosphoethanolamine CT (cytidylyltransferase)], which we identified as the rate-limiting step of the PE metabolic pathway in the parasite. The cellular localization and expression of PfECT along the parasite life cycle were studied using polyclonal antibodies. Biochemical analyses showed that the enzyme activity follows Michaelis–Menten kinetics. PfECT is composed of two CT domains separated by a linker region. Activity assays on recombinant enzymes upon site-directed mutagenesis revealed that the N-terminal CT domain was the only catalytically active domain of PfECT. Concordantly, three-dimensional homology modelling of PfECT showed critical amino acid differences between the substrate-binding sites of the two CT domains. PfECT was predicted to fold as an intramolecular dimer suggesting that the inactive C-terminal domain is important for dimer stabilization. Given the absence of PE synthesis in red blood cells, PfECT represents a potential antimalarial target opening the way for a rational conception of bioactive compounds.

scholarly journals Repression of the pyr Operon in Lactobacillus plantarum Prevents Its Ability To Grow at Low Carbon Dioxide Levels

2005 ◽  
Vol 187 (6) ◽  
pp. 2093-2104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hervé Nicoloff ◽  
Aram Elagöz ◽  
Florence Arsène-Ploetze ◽  
Benoît Kammerer ◽  
Jan Martinussen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Lactobacillus Plantarum ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Site Directed Mutagenesis ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Carbamoyl Phosphate ◽  
Phosphoribosyl Pyrophosphate ◽  
Pyrimidine Nucleotides ◽  
Transcription Attenuation

ABSTRACT Carbamoyl phosphate is a precursor for both arginine and pyrimidine biosynthesis. In Lactobacillus plantarum, carbamoyl phosphate is synthesized from glutamine, ATP, and carbon dioxide by two sets of identified genes encoding carbamoyl phosphate synthase (CPS). The expression of the carAB operon (encoding CPS-A) responds to arginine availability, whereas pyrAaAb (encoding CPS-P) is part of the pyrR1BCAaAbDFE operon coding for the de novo pyrimidine pathway repressed by exogenous uracil. The pyr operon is regulated by transcription attenuation mediated by a trans-acting repressor that binds to the pyr mRNA attenuation site in response to intracellular UMP/phosphoribosyl pyrophosphate pools. Intracellular pyrimidine triphosphate nucleoside pools were lower in mutant FB335 (carAB deletion) harboring only CPS-P than in the wild-type strain harboring both CPS-A and CPS-P. Thus, CPS-P activity is the limiting step in pyrimidine synthesis. FB335 is unable to grow in the presence of uracil due to a lack of sufficient carbamoyl phosphate required for arginine biosynthesis. Forty independent spontaneous FB335-derived mutants that have lost regulation of the pyr operon were readily obtained by their ability to grow in the presence of uracil and absence of arginine; 26 harbored mutations in the pyrR1-pyrB loci. One was a prototroph with a deletion of both pyrR1 and the transcription attenuation site that resulted in large amounts of excreted pyrimidine nucleotides and increased intracellular UTP and CTP pools compared to wild-type levels. Low pyrimidine-independent expression of the pyr operon was obtained by antiterminator site-directed mutagenesis. The resulting AE1023 strain had reduced UTP and CTP pools and had the phenotype of a high-CO2-requiring auxotroph, since it was able to synthesize sufficient arginine and pyrimidines only in CO2-enriched air. Therefore, growth inhibition without CO2 enrichment may be due to low carbamoyl phosphate pools from lack of CPS activity.

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