Bacterial Coated Fertilizer Induced Resistance Against Wheat Stripe Rust

Wheat is the second largest consumed cereal by humans after Rice and its high yield and production is very critical for ever increasing global population. The wheat crop is grown all over Pakistan and threatened by several limiting factors. Stripe rust, caused by Puccinia striiformis, is the most destructive wheat pathogen and can reduce yield up to 70% in Pakistan. The present study aimed at exploring the role of Zabardast urea, a bacterial coated urea with zinc, in inducing resistance against wheat stripe rust. The study involved the collection and maintenance of stripe rust inoculum on Morroco cultivar which later used to inoculate seedlings of Akbar-2019 and Galaxy-2019 resistant and susceptible varieties with three different fertilizer levels viz. specialty fertilizer zabardast urea, plain urea with zinc and plain urea. The results demonstrated the positive role of bacterial coated urea with zinc and reduced the disease severity by 10% and 5% in susceptible and resistant cultivars, respectively, leaving resistant variety asymptomatic. The plain urea with zinc also decreased disease severity in susceptible variety Galaxy-2013 by 6% in comparison with plain urea treatment underlying the role of zinc in combating stripe rust. The study underlines the importance of specialty fertilizers in inducing resistance against stripe rust in wheat and needs further experimentation exploring the mechanisms involved in disease resistance under field conditions.

Light and Phages on Tackle of Infectious Diseases

There has been an important increase in the emergence of resistance in microbial population worldwide. This trajectory needs, necessarily new approaches to treat infectious diseases. The ability to detect and prevent the evolutionary trajectories of microbial resistance would be of value. Photodynamic inactivation (PDI) represents an efficient alternative treatment for diseases caused by viruses, which can cause infections well documented in various mammals. PDI can kill cells after exposure with the appropriate photosensitizer (PS), light of adequate wavelength combined with the presence of oxygen, without inducing resistance. Cytotoxic reactive species formed interaction with vital biomolecules leading to irreversible microbial inactivation. Bacteriophages can act on delivering antimicrobial agents into bacteria, which consist in a likely instrument for the treatment of infectious diseases. Non-enveloped bacteriophages are more difficult to tolerate photoinactivation than enveloped phages, which makes them an important model tool to evaluate the efficiency of PDI therapy against viruses that cause diseases in humans. Combination of photosensitizers and bacteriophage therapy can be employed to eradicate biofilms, contributing to control of infections also caused by drug-resistant bacteria.

Quaternary Ammonium Substituted Pullulan Accelerates Wound Healing and Disinfects Staphylococcus aureus Infected Wounds in Mouse Through an Atypical ‘Non-Pore Forming’ Pathway of Bacterial Membrane Disruption

Emergence of multi-drug resistant pathogens has fueled the search for alternatives to the existing line of antibiotics that can eradicate pathogens without inducing resistance development. Here, we report the accelerated...

Immune Checkpoint Targeted Therapy in Glioma: Status and Hopes

Glioma is the most malignant primary tumor of the central nervous system and is characterized by an extremely low overall survival. Recent breakthroughs in cancer therapy using immune checkpoint blockade have attracted significant attention. However, despite representing the most promising (immunotherapy) treatment for cancer, the clinical application of immune checkpoint blockade in glioma patients remains challenging due to the “cold phenotype” of glioma and multiple factors inducing resistance, both intrinsic and acquired. Therefore, comprehensive understanding of the tumor microenvironment and the unique immunological status of the brain will be critical for the application of glioma immunotherapy. More sensitive biomarkers to monitor the immune response, as well as combining multiple immunotherapy strategies, may accelerate clinical progress and enable development of effective and safe treatments for glioma patients.

Ovipositional preference of potato tuber moth and its damage to different genotypes of potato in free choice condition

Potato tuber moth is a serious pests of potato which cause qualitative as well as quantitative loss on tubers at stores. Major control mechanism is to use chemical pesticide but this pose great hazard risk to the growers and consumers. Therefore this study evaluated tubers of ten potato genotypes viz. CIP 394600.52, CIP 393371.164, Khumal Ujjawal, PRP 296667.2, CIP 393385.39, CIP 395112.32, PRP 226567.2, PRP 0165667.6, CIP 393371.159, and Khumal Upahar against potato tuber moths for their ovipositional preferences and damage potential with nine replication in the laboratory. Number of deposited eggs for four days at eye and outside the tubers on skin, number of tunnel and tunnel length was measured. Least percentage of egg laid eye was least in genotype CIP 394600.52, CIP 393371.164 and variety Khumal Ujjawal respectively. The least number of total eggs laid on eyes was on genotype CIP 394600.52 9 (2.33±1.00) followed by variety Khumal Ujjwal. Although genotype CIP 393385.39 and Khumal Ujjwal was among the most preferred (6.00±2.45) genotype for oviposition, average number of tunnels and average total tunnel length remained very low. Factors such as physical, nutritional, chemical or genetical which may be involved inducing resistance mechanism thus should also be studied and verified.

The Influence of Inducing Agents Applied by Soil Drenches on Disease Severity of Apple and Pear Scab

Apple and pear scab are foliar diseases of ornamental and fruiting apple and pear trees. Unmanaged, yield and aesthetic losses can be severe. Overreliance on synthetic fungicides means novel means of disease management are required. Field trials were conducted using apple (Malus cv. Crown Gold) and pear (Pyrus communis ‘Williams Bon Chrétien’) to assess the efficacy of a range of commercially available inducing resistance (IR) agents (harpin protein, potassium phosphite, salicylic acid derivative, and chitosan) as root drenches against both scab diseases. A synthetic fungicide (penconazole) spray program used within the UK for apple and pear scab control was included for comparison. Each IR agent was applied four times, (i) before the visible appearance of scab (April through June, i.e., preventatively) or (ii) after symptoms of scab were visibly observed (June through August, i.e., curatively). Limited efficacy as scab protectants was demonstrated when IR agents were applied curatively. Likewise, limited efficacy was recorded when IR agents were applied once or twice as a preventative measure. However, when IR agents were applied as root drenches greater or equal to three times, efficacy as scab protectants was confirmed (increased leaf chlorophyll content, increased fruit yield, reduced leaf and fruit scab severity). A synthetic fungicide penconazole spray program provided the greatest protection against apple and pear scab in all trials when sprayed preventatively rather than curatively. Results suggest application of at least three root drenches from April through June with an appropriate IR agent provides a useful addition to existing methods of apple and pear scab management under field conditions.