Asian corn borer, Ostrinia furnacalis Guenée (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), is a major pest in corn production, and its management remains a significant challenge. Current control methods, which rely heavily on synthetic chemical pesticides, are environmentally detrimental and unsustainable, necessitating the development of eco-friendly alternatives. This study investigates the potential of the entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema carpocapsae as a biological control agent for O. furnacalis pupae, focusing on its infection efficacy and the factors influencing its performance. We conducted a series of laboratory experiments to evaluate the effects of distance, pupal developmental stage, soil depth, and light conditions on nematode attraction, pupal mortality and sublethal impacts on pupal longevity and oviposition. Results demonstrated that S. carpocapsae exhibited the highest attraction to pupae at a 3 cm distance, with infection declining significantly at greater distances. Younger pupae (<12 h old), were more attractive to nematodes than older pupae, and female pupae were preferred over males. Nematode infection was highest on the head and thorax of pupae, with a significant reduction in infection observed after 24 h. Infection caused 100% mortality in pupae within 2 cm soil depth, though efficacy was reduced under light conditions. Sublethal effects included a significant reduction in the longevity of infected adults and a decrease in the number of eggs laid by infected females compared to controls. These findings underscore the potential of S. carpocapsae as an effective biocontrol agent for sustainable pest management in corn production, offering a viable alternative to chemical pesticides.

Increased intestinal leakiness and associated systemic inflammation are potential contributors to osteoarthritis (OA) and postural imbalance in the geriatric population. To date, no successful treatment to correct postural imbalance in OA is known. We aimed to explore the effects of a multistrain probiotic upon postural imbalance in OA-affected patients. In this randomised, double-blind trial with a placebo group, 147 patients suffering from knee OA (age span = 64–75 years) were divided into placebo (n 75) and probiotics (n 72) study groups. Vivomix 112 billion, multistrain probiotic was given once a day for 12 weeks. The outcomes of study variables were determined first at baseline and later after 12 weeks of intervention. These were Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), knee flexion range of motion (ROM), pain intensity by visual analogue scale, handgrip strength (HGS), gait speed and balance control assessed in standing, semi-tandem and tandem stances. We determined plasma zonulin to determine intestinal leak along with c-reactive protein and 8-isoprostanes levels. A total of 136 OA patients taking placebo (n 71) and probiotics (n 65) were analysed. The probiotics group exhibited a reduction in pain intensity, disease severity and WOMAC scores along with improvement in balance scores, HGS and walking speed (P < 0·05 for all), no change in ROM, resting pain and 8-isoprostanes levels. The correlation analysis revealed a robust association of balance scores with plasma markers of intestinal leakiness and inflammation in probiotics but not in the placebo group. Probiotics reduce postural imbalance in OA patients partly due to a reduction in intestinal leakiness.

Quality protein maize (QPM) has protein quality of opaque 2 (>0.074% tryptopan) with endosperm modifiers which turn its kernels vitreous that is similar to normal maize. Use of QPM as a cereal can significantly improve daily intake of lysine and tryptophan for humans and livestock. However QPM cultivars have lower yields due to trait compensation. Therefore, a breeding programme was carried out to convert parental lines of Shalimar maize hybrid 5 (SMH-5) viz. IML-187 and BML-6 into QPM versions. Marker polymorphism was worked out in donors and recipients. IML-187 was crossed with DQL-2029-1 and BML-6 was crossed with DQL-779-2-9. The first and second backcross generations involving IML-187 as recurrent parent were marked as BC1F1 (A) and BC2F1 (A) respectively, whereas those involving BML-6 were designated as BC1F1 (B) and BC2F1 (B) respectively. The BC2F2 lines derived from two generation of backcrossing coupled with SSR marker and phenotypic background and foreground selection were advanced to BC2F3. Approximately 80–90% of RPG similarity was observed in BC2F2 lines. Eight lines namely IML-187 × DQL-2029-1- BC2F3:06, 07 and 23: BML-6 × DQl-779-2-9: 02,04,09,20 and 13 were identified from BC2F3 to have tryptophan higher than 0.075% and <25% opaqueness. These lines were used for trait fixing and crosses were made to produce QPM version of SMH-5. Six improved versions of SMH-5 were selected for higher grain yield and tryptophan content and are to be employed in further testing and varietal release in Northern Hill Zone (NHZ) in India.

Natural smectites bind aflatoxins from water effectively, but the complex chemical environment in the guts of mammals and other animals can limit binding of aflatoxins. Many efforts have been made to enhance the adsorption capacity and affinity of smectites for aflatoxins in the presence of biological compounds. The main objective of the present study was to modify smectite structures by pillaring and cation exchange to enhance aflatoxin B1 adsorption capacity and selectivity. Smectite was pillared with Al and Al-Fe polycations or saturated with Ca, Mg, Zn, or Li. Structural changes in smectites with or without heat treatment were determined using X-ray diffraction and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Equilibrium aflatoxin B1 adsorption to the smectites was measured in aqueous solution and in simulated gastric fluid. Pillaring with the polycations expanded smectites in the z-direction to 18.6 Å and the expansion was stable after heating at 500°C. Changes in the Al–OH–Al infrared bands in the stretching region supported the formation of pillared clays. Migration of Mg, Zn, and Li into the octahedral sites of the smectite was observed as Mg and Zn saturation yielded a d spacing of 15 Å at 200°C which collapsed to 9.6 Å at 400°C. The 14.6 Å peak of the Li-saturated smectite collapsed to 9.6 Å at 200°C while the 15 Å Ca-saturated smectite peak was stable up to 400°C. The unheated Al- and AlFe-pillared smectites adsorbed significantly more aflatoxin B1 from an aqueous suspension than did unpillared clay. In both water and simulated gastric fluid, heat treatment decreased aflatoxin B1 adsorption to pillared smectites, but heat treatment increased aflatoxin B1 adsorption to unpillared smectites. Without heat treatment, smectites saturated with divalent cations (Ca, Mg, Zn) adsorbed more aflatoxin B1 from an aqueous suspension than the smectite saturated with a monovalent cation (Li). Ca-saturated smectite showed the greatest aflatoxin B1 adsorption, 114 g kg–1, from aqueous suspension after 400°C heat treatment. The Zn-, Mg-, and Li-saturated smectites showed maximum aflatoxin adsorption of 107, 93, and 90 g kg–1, respectively, after 200°C heat treatment. From simulated gastric fluid with pepsin, the 200°C heated, Zn-saturated smectite had maximum aflatoxin B1 adsorption of 68 g kg–1. Pillared smectites effectively adsorbed aflatoxin B1 from aqueous suspension, but Ca- and Zn-saturated smectites after heat treatment might improve the selectivity of smectites for aflatoxin B1 over pepsin and enhance the efficacy of smectite as a feed additive.

Smectites are effective binders of aflatoxin in aqueous solutions. Unfortunately, their efficacy is reduced in guts because of interference by biomolecules and essential nutrients within the gut. Tunnel structures in palygorskite and sepiolite may function as molecular sieves and may, therefore, serve as alternatives or complements to smectites in binding aflatoxins but not larger biological compounds. The objective of the current work was to determine the effect of heat treatment on aflatoxin B1 (AfB1) adsorption and selectivity for biomolecules by two palygorskites (Plg_PK and Plg_CN), sepiolite (Sep), and a palygorskite-smectite mixture (Plg-Sm) in comparison with a smectite (Sm-37GR). The clays were heated at 250, 400, 500, and 600°C while phase and structural changes were characterized by X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy. Comparative AfB1 adsorption was determined in aqueous and in simulated gastric fluids. The clay structures collapsed irreversibly in Sm-37GR and folded in fibrous clays with heating at 400°C or more. Sm-37GR adsorbed more AfB1 than all of the other clays; the estimated adsorption capacity followed the trend Sm-37GR (44 g kg–1) > Plg_PK (18.12 g kg–1) > Sep (12.7 g kg–1) > Plg_CN (11.4 g kg–1) > Plg-Sm (9.0 g kg–1). This trend appeared to be correlated with the abundance of smectite in the clays. Sepiolite had greater binding strength for AfB1 than the other clays. With intact clay structures, heating induced a negligible effect on AfB1 adsorption by the fibrous clays while in Sm-37GR and Plg-Sm, adsorption increased with heating at 250°C. Tunnel folding and structural collapse that had occurred at 400°C caused an abrupt decline in AfB1 adsorption irrespective of the clay type. The sepiolite clay adsorbed the least pepsin (370 g kg–1) while smectite adsorbed the most (1430 g kg–1). Consequently, in the simulated gastric fluid, adsorption declined by 25–30% in sepiolite, 52–60% in smectite, and remained unaffected in the palygorskites. Aflatoxin B1 adsorption probably occurred through H-bonding at the surface with the silanol group in palygorskite and sepiolite. No evidence that AfB1 molecules occupied the tunnels of the natural or heated palygorskite or sepiolite was observed in the present study. Palygorskite and sepiolite had a much smaller adsorption capacity for AfB1 than the smectite but also adsorbed less pepsin; therefore, both may be effective aflatoxin binders in gastrointestinal systems.

This research paper presents an application of the integrated process and product design (IPPD) approach for selecting the best joint configuration for dissimilar material joining in the early product design phase. The proposed methodology integrates the multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) approach with quality function deployment (QFD) to identify the key criteria for joint selection, including load-carrying capacity, size, cost per joint, ease of manufacturing, time consumption and deformation. Three types of joints (rivet, weld and adhesive) and two hybrid joints (adhesive-weld and adhesive-rivet) are considered for three dissimilar material configurations: carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) aluminum, CFRP steel, and aluminum-steel. QFD is utilised to transform job requirements into design criteria, and in the second phase, the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) is employed to choose the optimal joint configuration based on the weighted criteria acquired in the previous phase. The selected joint configuration is then validated through experimental study. The findings demonstrate that the proposed IPPD approach with QFD-TOPSIS techniques is highly effective for selecting mechanical joints for dissimilar material joining in the early design phase. The study concludes that the adhesive-rivet hybrid joint is the optimal solution among all alternatives. The proposed methodology can ultimately lead to improved product reliability and performance, as well as reduced development time and cost.

The present study analysed a total of 272 saffron (Crocus sativus L.) genotypes using multivariate analysis. We carefully observed and recorded information about the floral, morphological and corm attributes. Significant variations were observed among the genotypes for all the traits, indicating a high level of variability and suggesting a great potential for saffron improvement. The phenotypic variances were found to be greater than the estimated genotypic variances. Descriptive data on various morphological traits revealed significant differences in the frequency of phenotype classes as well as a wide distribution range. The high heritability estimates were observed in average number of daughter corms per plant (ANDCPP), initial weight of corms (IWC g), no. of buds/corm (NBPC), – no. of leaves in main sprout, (NLMS), number of sprouted buds per corm (NSBpC) and total number of leaves (TNL), whereas average weight of daughter corms per plant (AWBCPP), corm diameter (CDcm), pistal length (PL) cm, style length (STYLcm), fresh weight of pistals per plant (FWOPPPmg) and stigma length (STML cm), revealed medium sense of heritability. The traits dry weight of pistals per plants (DWOPPP mg), inner tepal width (ITW cm), leaf length (LLcm), number of flowers per corm (NFpC), outer tepal length (OTLcm), parianth length with tube (PLWT cm) and weight of stigma (WSTG mg) exhibited low broad-sense heritability. Principal component analysis (PCA) divulged that the first eight component characters had an eigenvalue greater than one with a contributory cumulative variance of 66.15% to the total variance, while as rest of the 16 components contributed 33.85% of total variation in a set of 272 genotypes of saffron. The eigenvalues for yield attributing traits for significant PCs ranged from 5.48 (PC1) to 1.03(PC8). The current study has revealed that there was a sufficient variability in a set of saffron germplasm lines which forms the basis for performance-based clonal selection. Moreover, identified elite genotypes based on saffron yield and corm attributes could be used in the saffron breeding programme for the development of saffron varieties.