Carrier Concept in Hindu Religious Scriptures and Sculpture: A Conspectus

The relationship between man and bioresources (plants and animals) based on faith, belief, and tradition concerning gods and goddesses and other such powers are very intense, vast, and multifarious. The paper has a brief account of faith related to carrier or vahana in Hindu religious scriptures and sculpture. A total of 32 animals, ten different categories of birds, and only one plant (flower) are identified, playing the role of carriers of gods and goddesses of the Hindu pantheon. It is discussed that such faith, belief, and practice have a scientific basis and are helpful for the management and preservation of biodiversity.

Identification of Sources of Resistance in Sesame Against Leaf Webber and Capsule Borer (Antigastra Catalaunalis Dup.)

The 197 entries including two checks (SI-250 Resistance check and TC-25 Susceptible check) of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) representing varied geographic and genetic diversity were tested at three diverse climatic locations of India viz., Jabalpur, Mandor and Vriddhachalam, against leaf webber and capsule. None of the screened entry was found to be free from infestation by leaf webber and capsule borer. The average plant, flower and capsule damage over the locations varied from 6.58 to 27.17, 7.80 to 23.71 and 3.33 to 15.43%, respectively. At vegetative stage, the entries SI-0018-B (6.33%) and IS-353-A (6.58%) at flowering, the entry KMR-7 (7.80%) and at capsule stage, the entries SI-0018-B (3.33%), MT-67-25 (3.65%) and RJS- 56-A (3.80%) were recorded the lowest damage. Further, the response of promising entries under artificial pest load conditions over the locations showed that the entry SI-271-B was superior to others with respect to lowest plant and flower damage while at capsule stage, the entry NIC-8510-B was superior. Under artificial pest load condition, the entries SI-271-B, NIC-9839 and MT-67-25 showed the lowest damage whereas under natural condition, the entries IS-178-C and SP-3267 were superior to others with respect to lowest damage. The feeding preference studies showed that the entries SI-271-B, IS-178-C, MT-67-25 and S-OO-17-B were least preferred by the leaf webber and capsule borer and recorded the lowest leaf area damage. Bangladesh J. Bot. 50(3): 565-575, 2021 (September)

Flower Extracts of Cage Plants (Canavalia virosa) as an Indicator of Acid Base

Cage plants (Canavalia virosa) are classified as nuts. This study aims to prove the flowers of the cage plants as acid-base indicators and determine the type of acid-base titration that is suitable for indicators of cage plants. The flowers of the cage plants were macerated with ethanol. Extras were tested as indicators in acid-base solutions, buffer solutions, and compared with phenolphthalein and methyl orange for acid-base titration, namely: strong acid with a strong base, a weak acid with a strong base, and weak base with strong acid. The results obtained in this study, namely: flower extracts of cage plants in strong red acid, in weak acid pink, in strong green bases, and weak bases in light green. In a buffer solution of pH 1 to pH 11, the flower extract of the cage plants gives 4 color groups, namely: a buffer solution with pH 1 colored red, pH 3 colored pink, pH 5 to pH 9 being light green, and pH 11 being dark blue. Cage plant flower extract can be used as an indicator of acid-base, cage plant flower extract can be used on strong-base strong acid titration, strong weak-acid base, and weak-strong base acid titration.

Morphological Characterization and Evaluation of Nineteen Gladiolus Germplasm

Nineteen gladiolus germplasms were characterized and evaluated in the Research Field of the Department of Horticulture, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Gazipur, during November 2017 to May 2018 for identifying suitable line(s) to release as a variety for commercial cultivation. The accession G8 produced the highest number of shoots (3.3) and effective shoots (3.0) per hill. The accessions that produced flower stalk within 75 days of planting included BARI gladiolus- 3 (G1, 58.7 days), G2 (62.3 days), G3 (65.7 days), BARI gladiolus- 5 (G4, 61.3 days), G5 (55.7 days), BARI gladiolus- 6 (G7, 71.3 days), G10 (74.0 days), G14 (73.3 days), G15 (75.0 days) and G19 (67.3 days). The highest rachis length was recorded in BARI gladiolus- 3 (53.7 cm) which was statistically similar with the rachis length of G6 (46.0 cm), G10 (46.3 cm), G11 (47.0 cm) and BARI gladiolus- 1 (G12, 46.3 cm) but significantly differed with other accessions. Most of the accessions in general, produced more than 10 florets per spike. Vase life of the accessions varied and G11 had the highest vase life of 9-11 days and this was close to 9-10 days in G9 and 8-9 days in BARI gladiolus- 3 (G1), G8, G10, G17, G18 and G19. The highest number of corm per hill was recorded in G8 (10.3) followed by G5 (8.7), G16 (8.3), G17 (7.7) and BARI gladiolus- 3 (6.7). Number of cormels per hill ranged from 9.0-941.7 with an average of 237.0. Based on various plant, flower colour, corm and cormel production characters, the gladiolus accessions G3, G5, G8, G9, G10, G11, G14, G16, G17, G18 and G19 may be considered for further study. Ann. Bangladesh Agric. (2019) 23(2) : 37-48

Constructing a Draft Map of the Cannabis Proteome

Recently we have seen a relaxing on the historic restrictions on the use and subsequent research on the cannabis plants, generally classified as Cannabis sativa and Cannabis indica. What research has been performed to date has centered on chemical analysis of plant flower products, namely cannabinoids and various terpenes that directly contribute to phenotypic characteristics of the female flowers. In addition, we have seen many groups recently completing genetic profiles of various plants of commercial value. To date, no comprehensive attempt has been made to profile the proteomes of these plants. In this study we present our initial findings consisting of the identification of 17,269 unique proteins identified from Cannabis plant materials, as well as 6,110 post-translational modifications identified on these proteins. The results presented demonstrate the first steps toward constructing a complete draft map of the Cannabis proteome.