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An attempt was made to compare between easy and inexpensive qualitative method (ammonia vapour test) and analytical methods (thin layer chromatography and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) for identification of aflatoxigenic isolates of Aspergillus flavus in maize. In this comparative study the toxicity level of A. flavus isolates exhibited 100% agreement among ammonia vapour test, ELISA and TLC for highly toxigenic (>2000 ppb) and toxigenic (501-2000 ppb) isolates while 88.5% agreement observed for least toxic (<20 ppb) isolates. In ammonia vapour test 51% of A. flavus isolates showed creamish or no colour change corresponding to least toxic/atoxic (<20ppb) category estimated by ELISA. Similarly 22% highly toxic isolates exhibited plum red colour, 12% moderately toxic indicated pink colour and 10% toxic isolates showed red colour. However, 11.5% isolates were found to be false positive in cream colour category (least toxic) and 28.5% false negatives in pink colour (moderately toxic) category. The isolates from different agroclimatic zones of maize in India showed high variability for aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) production potential ranging from 0.214-8116.61 ppb. Toxigenic potential of Aspergillus flavus isolates in culture was further validated by inoculating maize grain sample with four different isolates with varied toxin producing ability. With good agreement percentage between cultural and analytical methods the study concludes the ammonia vapour test to be easy, inexpensive, reliable and time saving method that can be used for segregating or pre-screening of contaminated samples from bulk food/feed stock.

Microbes enhance crop resilience to abiotic stresses, aiding agricultural sustainability amid rising global land salinity. While microbes have proven effective via seed priming, soil amendments, and foliar sprays in diverse crops, their mechanisms remain less explored. This study explores the utilization of ACC deaminase-producing Nocardioides sp. to enhance wheat growth in saline environments and the molecular mechanisms underlying Nocardioides sp.-mediated salinity tolerance in wheat. The Nocardioides sp. inoculated seeds were grown under four salinity regimes viz. , 0 dS m −1 , 5 dS m −1 , 10 dS m −1 , and 15 dS m −1 , and vegetative growth parameters including shoot-root length, germination percentage, seedling vigor index, total biomass, and shoot-root ratio were recorded. The Nocardioides inoculated wheat plants performed well under saline conditions compared to uninoculated plants and exhibited lower shoot:root (S:R) ratio (1.52 ± 0.14 for treated plants against 1.84 ± 0.08 for untreated plants) at salinity level of 15 dS m −1 and also showed improved biomass at 5 dS m −1 and 10 dS m −1 . Furthermore, the inoculated plants also exhibited higher protein content viz. , 22.13 mg g −1 , 22.10 mg g −1 , 22.63 mg g −1 , and 23.62 mg g −1 fresh weight, respectively, at 0 dS m −1 , 5 dS m −1 , 10 dS m −1 , and 15 dS m −1 . The mechanisms were studied in terms of catalase, peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, and ascorbate peroxidase activity, free radical scavenging potential, in-situ localization of H 2 O 2 and superoxide ions, and DNA damage. The inoculated seedlings maintained higher enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant potential, which corroborated with reduced H 2 O 2 and superoxide localization within the tissue. The gene expression profiles of 18 stress-related genes involving abscisic acid signaling, salt overly sensitive (SOS response), ion transporters, stress-related transcription factors, and antioxidant enzymes were also analyzed. Higher levels of stress-responsive gene transcripts, for instance, TaABARE (~+7- and +10-fold at 10 dS m −1 and 15 dS m −1 ); TaHAk1 and hkt1 (~+4- and +8-fold at 15 dS m −1 ); antioxidant enzymes CAT , MnSOD , POD , APX , GPX , and GR (~+4, +3, +5, +4, +9, and +8 folds and), indicated actively elevated combat mechanisms in inoculated seedlings. Our findings emphasize Nocardioides sp.–mediated wheat salinity tolerance via ABA-dependent cascade and salt-responsive ion transport system. This urges additional study of methylotrophic microbes to enhance crop abiotic stress resilience.

Foliar diseases of maize cause severe economic losses in India and around the world. The increasing severity of maize leaf blight (MLB) over the past ten years necessitates rigorous identification and characterization of MLB-causing pathogens from different maize production zones to ensure the success of resistance breeding programs and the selection of appropriate disease management strategies. Although Bipolaris maydis is the primary pathogen causing MLB in India, other related genera such as Curvularia, Drechslera, and Exserohilum, and a taxonomically distant genus, Alternaria, are known to infect maize in other countries. To investigate the diversity of pathogens associated with MLB in India, 350 symptomatic leaf samples were collected between 2016 and 2018, from 20 MLB hotspots in nine states representing six ecological zones where maize is grown in India. Twenty representative fungal isolates causing MLB symptoms were characterized based on cultural, pathogenic, and molecular variability. Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GADPH) gene sequence-based phylogenies showed that the majority of isolates (13/20) were Bipolaris maydis. There were also two Curvularia papendorfii isolates, and one isolate each of Bipolaris zeicola, Curvularia siddiquii, Curvularia sporobolicola, an unknown Curvularia sp. isolate phylogenetically close to C. graminicola, and an Alternaria sp. isolate. The B. zeicola, the aforesaid four Curvularia species, and the Alternaria sp. are the first reports of these fungi causing MLB in India. Pathogenicity tests on maize plants showed that isolates identified as Curvularia spp. and Alternaria sp. generally caused more severe MLB symptoms than those identified as Bipolaris spp. The diversity of fungi causing MLB, types of lesions, and variation in disease severity by different isolates described in this study provide baseline information for further investigations on MLB disease distribution, diagnosis, and management in India.

Arid regions cover a large part of the Earth's surface and are at risk of increased agricultural activity and expected shifts in climate. Unfortunately, there is still a lack of comprehensive knowledge about the impact of land use on soil quality in these soils. Using a state factor approach, we studied the effects of different land use types on soil physico-chemical and biological characteristics in the Bhuj region of Kutch, Gujarat (India). Our analysis identified six key land uses: barren land (BL), natural forest (NF), grazing land (GL), and cultivated land under monocropping (MC), intercropping (IC), and crop rotation (CR). Our findings demonstrated significantly higher levels of soil organic carbon (SOC), calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ), plant-available nutrients (nitrogen, potassium, sodium, calcium, and magnesium), and enzyme activities in NF and GL ( P  < 0.05) than cultivated land and BL. For instance, SOC content in NF and GL exceeded that in cultivated land by 130% and 73.33%, respectively. Conversely, soil pH and plant-available phosphorus were higher in cultivated land. A strong correlation was observed between SOC and soil enzymes ( P  < 0.05), highlighting the importance of preserving SOC for optimal soil biological health in arid regions. Our study provides crucial baseline data on various soil quality indicators for an arid region, informing the development of landscape-scale models and guiding effective land management strategies. Graphical Abstract

Morchella esculenta Fr., known as Guchi in India, is an edible mushroom from the Ascomycota group. It is nutritious, economically and scientifically valuable. Traditional cultures have long used this mushroom both as food and as a remedy for various health issues. This mushroom is rich in carbohydrates, proteins, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and aromatic compounds. Its unique taste, flavor, and texture make it a popular ingredient in recipes around the world. In addition, Morchella esculenta has several medicinal properties, such as antioxidant, antitumor, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory effects, and it is used to aid digestion, act as a body tonic, soothe the skin, and help heal wounds. Research on morel cultivation spans over a century, with China leading the way in large-scale outdoor cultivation. The life cycle of the mushroom involves two main stages: the formation of sclerotia and the production of conidia. Cultivating these mushrooms involves making the spawn, introducing it to a growing medium, adding extra nutrients, managing the fruiting phase, and finally harvesting. The application of exogenous nutrition bags facilitates robust mycelial development. Naturally, Morchella esculenta thrives in cold, hilly regions and is commonly found near hardwood and coniferous trees in a saprobic or mycorrhizal association. Its peak growing season is from March to July, and it is native to the Kullu District in Himachal Pradesh, located in the western Himalayas.

Aim To study the impact of long-term application of organic amendments and fertilizer nitrogen on C sequestration and its distribution among various physical pools of soil organic matter in rice-wheat system. Method We studied the distribution of organic C among physical pools of soil organic matter separated by size and density floatation techniques in a sandy loam soil after 11 years of rice-wheat cropping with continuous application of farmyard manure (FYM), rice straw (RS), and fertilizer nitrogen (N). Laboratory incubation experiments were conducted to estimate mineralizable C in soil and relate it to various organic C pools. Result Application of FYM and RS increased soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks in the surface soil by 33.7 % over sole application of fertilizer N. Conjoint use of FYM and RS along with fertilizer N caused the greatest (83.5 %) increase in SOC stocks. Particulate organic C (POC) constituted 23–34 % of SOC with 2.8 to 11.3 % as coarse POC (cPOC) and 17.5–22.6 % as fine POC (fPOC). The cPOC responded to management to a greater extent than fPOC and may thus be considered a more labile pool of SOC. The coarse particulate organic matter (cPOM) had wider C/N ratio (11.1 to 12.7) than the fine POM (fPOM; 8.2 to 9.9). Mineral associated organic C (MinOC) represented the greatest proportion (48–68 %) of SOC followed by heavy fraction (HFOC; 21–30 %) and light fraction organic C (LFOC; 5–15 %). Addition of FYM alone or in combination with RS enlarged the LFOC pool by 263 and 383 %, and HFOC pool by 62 and 127 %, respectively with insignificant effect on MinOC. Rice straw increased LFOC by 66 %, with no effect on HFOC. The C/N ratios generally decreased as the soil organic matter (SOM) fractions became finer and followed the order LFOM > iLFOM > HFOM > MinOM. Mineralizable C in the surface soil was significantly related to SOC (R2=0.90), LFOC (R2=0.72) and HFOC (R2=0.68). Conclusions Application of organic amendments in rice-wheat system has a major influence on SOC and the relative distribution among various C pools. The LFOC is most sensitive to management, followed by sand-sized HFOC and silt- and clay-sized MinOC pool suggesting thereby that these may be considered to represent active, slow and passive pools of SOC, respectively. The conjoint use of FYM, RS and fertilizer N could maintain SOC almost at the same level as for the uncultivated soil and this practice may help in maintaining the sustainability of rice-wheat cropping systems in the Indo-Gangetic plains.

Abiotic stresses including drought and salinity have become frontier areas in agricultural research, particularly due to their damaging potential to threaten global food security in near future. Constantly increasing soil salinity has severely damaged the global production of staple food crops. The ever-increasing world population is critically strained already due to the shrinkage of existing agricultural production system. Looking at the constraints, rigorous initiatives have been taken to yield several strategies to utilize conventional and modern approaches for increasing stress tolerance and/or mitigating the stress-induced ill-effects on crop to potentially improve the productivity. Recent literature signifies prominent attempts towards devising new strategies aiming at salinity and drought smart crop cultivation. The use of halophytes and halophyte-associated microbes is among the highly promising approach from both the perspectives of salinity stress mitigation, and saline soil reclamation in the long term. The cutting-edge omics tools have provided deeper insights into the understanding of the interactions of halophytes, associated microbiomes and the soil rhizosphere habitat. We have described ample of mechanism-based evidences to establish the role of halophytic plants and associated microbial communities in establishing a strong base for their application in bio-saline agriculture.

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is most frequently found in plant substrates, which has shown the highest toxigenic potential. Based on previous studies, the IARC has classified AFB1 as a class 1A human carcinogen. Several impacts on consumers, such as loss of human and animal lives; health care and veterinary care costs; contaminated foods and feeds disposal costs; and investment in research and management of the myco-toxin problem. Fourteen maize seed samples comprising of recommended and local varieties were collected from three maize growing zones (Zone I- Almora, Kullu, Bilaspur, Dhaulakuan, Kangara, Saharanpur, Zone II- Karnal, Ludhiana, Pantnagar, New Delhi and Zone III- Begusarai, Varanasi, Sabour-1 and Sabour 2). In our studies AFB1 toxin range were noticed Zone-I (0.0294- 153.5081 ppb), Zone-II (0.1761- 161.0537 ppb ppb) and Zone-III (3.8366- 53.1256 ppb) collected seed samples.This indicate that ELISA technique could be applied to the monitoring of Aflatoxin contamination in a lot of samples in a cost, accuracy, simplicity and time effective manner.

In this study the efficacy of four fungicides, three botanicals and one bio-control agent under field conditions revealed that all the treatments gave reduction of Karnal bunt over check at significant level (P=0.05). Maximum disease control was achieved with Tilt 25EC (48.72%) followed by Bavistin 50WP (47.08 %), Vitavax 75WP (45.30%) and Raxil 2DS (37.61%). Among botanicals L. camara was adjudged best as it gave 41.88 per cent disease control. However, seed treatment of T. viride (Ecoderma) resulted in 28.21 percent disease control. In all treatments over all disease control level was ranged between 28.21 to 48.72 per cent. For effective disease management, source of primary inoculum must be destroy. Primary inoculum of Karnal bunt is present in seed. There-fore, eco-friendly seed treatment of wheat is necessary process for diseases management.

Crop productivity in canal command areas of India is declining due to waterlogging and soil salinization problems, and it is posing a big threat to livelihood security of small and marginal farmers. Subsurface drainage (SSD) technology, which restores favourable condition in the crop root zone by reclaiming waterlogged saline soils, can be one of the options to restore the crop productivity in such areas. The SSD system was installed at Mulad village in the Ukai Kakrapar canal command area, Gujarat, in the year 2012 to address the problem of drastic yield reduction of sugarcane due to twin problems of waterlogging and soil salinity in Vertisols. It was found that the SSD helped in desalination of soil profile as soil electrical conductivity was reduced to a range of 0.42 to 3.90 dS.m-1 from its initial range of 1.2 to 7.3 dS.m-1. Electrical conductivity of drained water was in the range of 1.3 to 4.4 dS.m-1. Further, there was reduction in waterlogging condition, both surface and sub-surface, as water table lowered below crop root zone depth (depth of 0.6 m) and surface water ponding duration reduced to 6-8 days from earlier 25-30 days during peak monsoon days. Overall performance of SSD system was satisfactory as average sugarcane yield in the study area increased significantly from 39.29 to 97.29 t.ha-1 as result of reduction in soil salinity and waterlogging in drainage area. Economic analysis also indicated 114% increase in benefit-cost ratio after SSD installation. Thus, large scale installation of SSD system for reclamation of waterlogged saline Vertisols is economically viable in the state of Gujarat.