NobleBlocks

G.S. Science, Arts And Commerce College

UniversityAkola, India

Research output, citation impact, and the most-cited recent papers from G.S. Science, Arts And Commerce College (India). Aggregated across the NobleBlocks index of 300M+ scholarly works.

Total works
17.6K
Citations
111.4K
h-index
115
i10-index
2.6K
Also known as
G.S. Science, Arts And Commerce College

Top-cited papers from G.S. Science, Arts And Commerce College

Phosphate solubilizing microbes: sustainable approach for managing phosphorus deficiency in agricultural soils
Seema B. Sharma, R. Z. Sayyed, Mrugesh Trivedi, Thivakaran A. Gobi
2013· SpringerPlus2.1Kdoi:10.1186/2193-1801-2-587

Phosphorus is the second important key element after nitrogen as a mineral nutrient in terms of quantitative plant requirement. Although abundant in soils, in both organic and inorganic forms, its availability is restricted as it occurs mostly in insoluble forms. The P content in average soil is about 0.05% (w/w) but only 0.1% of the total P is available to plant because of poor solubility and its fixation in soil (Illmer and Schinner, Soil Biol Biochem 27:257-263, 1995). An adequate supply of phosphorus during early phases of plant development is important for laying down the primordia of plant reproductive parts. It plays significant role in increasing root ramification and strength thereby imparting vitality and disease resistance capacity to plant. It also helps in seed formation and in early maturation of crops like cereals and legumes. Poor availability or deficiency of phosphorus (P) markedly reduces plant size and growth. Phosphorus accounts about 0.2 - 0.8% of the plant dry weight. To satisfy crop nutritional requirements, P is usually added to soil as chemical P fertilizer, however synthesis of chemical P fertilizer is highly energy intensive processes, and has long term impacts on the environment in terms of eutrophication, soil fertilility depletion, carbon footprint. Moreover, plants can use only a small amount of this P since 75-90% of added P is precipitated by metal-cation complexes, and rapidly becomes fixed in soils. Such environmental concerns have led to the search for sustainable way of P nutrition of crops. In this regards phosphate-solubilizing microorganisms (PSM) have been seen as best eco-friendly means for P nutrition of crop. Although, several bacterial (pseudomonads and bacilli) and fungal strains (Aspergilli and Penicillium) have been identified as PSM their performance under in situ conditions is not reliable and therefore needs to be improved by using either genetically modified strains or co-inoculation techniques. This review focuses on the diversity of PSM, mechanism of P solubilization, role of various phosphatases, impact of various factors on P solubilization, the present and future scenario of their use and potential for application of this knowledge in managing a sustainable environmental system.

Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR) as Green Bioinoculants: Recent Developments, Constraints, and Prospects
Anirban Basu, Priyanka Prasad, Subha Narayan Das, Sadaf Kalam +3 more
2021· Sustainability859doi:10.3390/su13031140

The quest for enhancing agricultural yields due to increased pressure on food production has inevitably led to the indiscriminate use of chemical fertilizers and other agrochemicals. Biofertilizers are emerging as a suitable alternative to counteract the adverse environmental impacts exerted by synthetic agrochemicals. Biofertilizers facilitate the overall growth and yield of crops in an eco-friendly manner. They contain living or dormant microbes, which are applied to the soil or used for treating crop seeds. One of the foremost candidates in this respect is rhizobacteria. Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are an important cluster of beneficial, root-colonizing bacteria thriving in the plant rhizosphere and bulk soil. They exhibit synergistic and antagonistic interactions with the soil microbiota and engage in an array of activities of ecological significance. They promote plant growth by facilitating biotic and abiotic stress tolerance and support the nutrition of host plants. Due to their active growth endorsing activities, PGPRs are considered an eco-friendly alternative to hazardous chemical fertilizers. The use of PGPRs as biofertilizers is a biological approach toward the sustainable intensification of agriculture. However, their application for increasing agricultural yields has several pros and cons. Application of potential biofertilizers that perform well in the laboratory and greenhouse conditions often fails to deliver the expected effects on plant development in field settings. Here we review the different types of PGPR-based biofertilizers, discuss the challenges faced in the widespread adoption of biofertilizers, and deliberate the prospects of using biofertilizers to promote sustainable agriculture.

Recent Understanding of Soil Acidobacteria and Their Ecological Significance: A Critical Review
Sadaf Kalam, Anirban Basu, Iqbal Ahmad, R. Z. Sayyed +3 more
2020· Frontiers in Microbiology748doi:10.3389/fmicb.2020.580024

Acidobacteria represents an underrepresented soil bacterial phylum whose members are pervasive and copiously distributed across nearly all ecosystems. Acidobacterial sequences are abundant in soils and represent a significant fraction of soil microbial community. Being recalcitrant and difficult-to-cultivate under laboratory conditions, holistic, polyphasic approaches are required to study these refractive bacteria extensively. Acidobacteria possesses an inventory of genes involved in diverse metabolic pathways, as evidenced by their pan-genomic profiles. Because of their preponderance and ubiquity in the soil, speculations have been made regarding their dynamic roles in vital ecological processes viz., regulation of biogeochemical cycles, decomposition of biopolymers, exopolysaccharide secretion, and plant growth promotion. These bacteria are expected to have genes that might help in survival and competitive colonization in the rhizosphere, leading to the establishment of beneficial relationships with plants. Exploration of these genetic attributes and more in-depth insights into the belowground mechanics and dynamics would lead to a better understanding of the functions and ecological significance of this enigmatic phylum in the soil-plant environment. This review is an effort to provide a recent update into the diversity of genes in Acidobacteria useful for characterization, understanding ecological roles, and future biotechnological perspectives.

International journal of Business & Management
Rajeshkumar P. Patel
2016· IOSR Journal of Business and Management459doi:10.9790/487x-180803139142

Human activities are affecting the environment in which we all are living. At the same time environmental activities are also influencing human life. Environment pollution, deforestation, global warming, etc... are results of human activities. Society becomes more concerned for the protection or natural environment, businesses have shown concern for the same as part of its social responsibility. Terms like "Green Marketing" and "Environment Marketing" has given new directions to the business of tomorrow and became lifeblood for the businesses. Go Green, Environment Friendly, Environment protection, Protecting our Earth, save Energy' and many more have become buzz phenomenon in today's business environment. In modern era of Globalization, it has become important and challenging also to keep our natural environment safe. Green Marketing has emerged itself as conceptual and sustainable tool for industries to balance their business activities with mindset of protection of our natural environment. It's a fact that no company can ignore the importance of natural environment' Even more than that many of companies have used Green Marketing strategies as Competitive Advantage over their competitors by offering recyclable, renewable, and. reusable differentiated products to their customers. This paper aims to find out how green marketing strategies have become sustainable tool for business of tomorrow especially in Indian context. It explores how.-business firms are developing competitive advantage over their competitors by using green strategies. The paper describes the current scenario of Indian market and explores the opportunities and challenge businesses have with green marketing.

Multi-criteria land suitability analysis for agriculture in hilly zone: Remote sensing and GIS approach
Rajendra B. Zolekar, Vijay Bhagat
2015· Computers and Electronics in Agriculture332doi:10.1016/j.compag.2015.09.016

Physiographic components play a fundamental role in agriculture in hilly zone. Slope, soil depth, erosion, moisture, water holding capacities, texture and availability of nutrients have affect on agricultural production. Land suitability analysis can help to formulate the strategies for improvement in agricultural productivity. GIS based multi-criterion decision making approach using IRS P6 LISS-IV dataset was used to analyze land suitability for agriculture in hilly zone. The experts’ opinions and correlation analyses were used to decide the ranks of influencing criterion whereas pairwise comparison matrix in ‘Comparison for Super Decision Software’ used to determine the weights. The scores for sub-parameters showing internal variations within the criteria assigned based on field work and reported norms in published literature. About 17% (7326 ha) of reviewed area are classified in the class ‘highly suitable’, 29% (12,372 ha) in ‘moderately suitable’, 16% (6514 ha) in ‘marginally suitable’ and 38% (15,798 ha) in ‘not suitable’ for agriculture. The land suitability classes i.e. ‘highly suitable’ and ‘not suitable’ in suitability map are precisely estimated than the classes ‘moderately suitable’ and ‘marginally suitable’ both in producer’s and user’s point of view. The methodology, techniques and findings of the study can be useful to assess the land suitability for agriculture in hilly zones.

Bacterial Plant Biostimulants: A Sustainable Way towards Improving Growth, Productivity, and Health of Crops
Basharat Hamid, Muzafar Zaman, Shabeena Farooq, Sabah Fatima +4 more
2021· Sustainability306doi:10.3390/su13052856

This review presents a comprehensive and systematic study of the field of bacterial plant biostimulants and considers the fundamental and innovative principles underlying this technology. Plant biostimulants are an important tool for modern agriculture as part of an integrated crop management (ICM) system, helping make agriculture more sustainable and resilient. Plant biostimulants contain substance(s) and/or microorganisms whose function when applied to plants or the rhizosphere is to stimulate natural processes to enhance plant nutrient uptake, nutrient use efficiency, tolerance to abiotic stress, biocontrol, and crop quality. The use of plant biostimulants has gained substantial and significant heed worldwide as an environmentally friendly alternative to sustainable agricultural production. At present, there is an increasing curiosity in industry and researchers about microbial biostimulants, especially bacterial plant biostimulants (BPBs), to improve crop growth and productivity. The BPBs that are based on PGPR (plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria) play plausible roles to promote/stimulate crop plant growth through several mechanisms that include (i) nutrient acquisition by nitrogen (N2) fixation and solubilization of insoluble minerals (P, K, Zn), organic acids and siderophores; (ii) antimicrobial metabolites and various lytic enzymes; (iii) the action of growth regulators and stress-responsive/induced phytohormones; (iv) ameliorating abiotic stress such as drought, high soil salinity, extreme temperatures, oxidative stress, and heavy metals by using different modes of action; and (v) plant defense induction modes. Presented here is a brief review emphasizing the applicability of BPBs as an innovative exertion to fulfill the current food crisis.

Insights into the Interactions among Roots, Rhizosphere, and Rhizobacteria for Improving Plant Growth and Tolerance to Abiotic Stresses: A Review
Naeem Khan, Shahid Ali, Muhammad Adnan Shahid, Adnan Mustafa +2 more
2021· Cells292doi:10.3390/cells10061551

Abiotic stresses, such as drought, salinity, heavy metals, variations in temperature, and ultraviolet (UV) radiation, are antagonistic to plant growth and development, resulting in an overall decrease in plant yield. These stresses have direct effects on the rhizosphere, thus severely affect the root growth, and thereby affecting the overall plant growth, health, and productivity. However, the growth-promoting rhizobacteria that colonize the rhizosphere/endorhizosphere protect the roots from the adverse effects of abiotic stress and facilitate plant growth by various direct and indirect mechanisms. In the rhizosphere, plants are constantly interacting with thousands of these microorganisms, yet it is not very clear when and how these complex root, rhizosphere, and rhizobacteria interactions occur under abiotic stresses. Therefore, the present review attempts to focus on root-rhizosphere and rhizobacterial interactions under stresses, how roots respond to these interactions, and the role of rhizobacteria under these stresses. Further, the review focuses on the underlying mechanisms employed by rhizobacteria for improving root architecture and plant tolerance to abiotic stresses.

Exopolysaccharides Producing Bacteria for the Amelioration of Drought Stress in Wheat
Noshin Ilyas, Komal Mumtaz, Nosheen Akhtar, Humaira Yasmin +4 more
2020· Sustainability235doi:10.3390/su12218876

This research was designed to elucidate the role of exopolysaccharides (EPS) producing bacterial strains for the amelioration of drought stress in wheat. Bacterial strains were isolated from a farmer’s field in the arid region of Pakistan. Out of 24 isolated stains, two bacterial strains, Bacillus subtilis (Accession No. MT742976) and Azospirillum brasilense (Accession No. MT742977) were selected, based on their ability to produce EPS and withstand drought stress. Both bacterial strains produced a good amount of EPS and osmolytes and exhibited drought tolerance individually, however, a combination of these strains produced higher amounts of EPS (sugar 6976 µg/g, 731.5 µg/g protein, and 1.1 mg/g uronic acid) and osmolytes (proline 4.4 µg/mg and sugar 79 µg/mg) and significantly changed the level of stress-induced phytohormones (61%, 49% and 30% decrease in Indole Acetic Acid (IAA), Gibberellic Acid (GA), and Cytokinin (CK)) respectively under stress, but an increase of 27.3% in Abscisic acid (ABA) concentration was observed. When inoculated, the combination of these strains improved seed germination, seedling vigor index, and promptness index by 18.2%, 23.7%, and 61.5% respectively under osmotic stress (20% polyethylene glycol, PEG6000). They also promoted plant growth in a pot experiment with an increase of 42.9%, 29.8%, and 33.7% in shoot length, root length, and leaf area, respectively. Physiological attributes of plants were also improved by bacterial inoculation showing an increase of 39.8%, 61.5%, and 45% in chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and carotenoid content respectively, as compared to control. Inoculations of bacterial strains also increased the production of osmolytes such asproline, amino acid, sugar, and protein by 30%, 23%, 68%, and 21.7% respectively. Co-inoculation of these strains enhanced the production of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) by 35.1%, catalase (CAT) by 77.4%, and peroxidase (POD) by 40.7%. Findings of the present research demonstrated that EPS, osmolyte, stress hormones, and antioxidant enzyme-producing bacterial strains impart drought tolerance in wheat and improve its growth, morphological attributes, physiological parameters, osmolytes production, and increase antioxidant enzymes.

A Novel Diabetes Healthcare Disease Prediction Framework Using Machine Learning Techniques
R. Krishnamoorthi, Shubham Joshi, Hatim Z. Almarzouki, Piyush Kumar Shukla +3 more
2022· Journal of Healthcare Engineering234doi:10.1155/2022/1684017

Diabetes is a chronic disease that continues to be a significant and global concern since it affects the entire population's health. It is a metabolic disorder that leads to high blood sugar levels and many other problems such as stroke, kidney failure, and heart and nerve problems. Several researchers have attempted to construct an accurate diabetes prediction model over the years. However, this subject still faces significant open research issues due to a lack of appropriate data sets and prediction approaches, which pushes researchers to use big data analytics and machine learning (ML)-based methods. Applying four different machine learning methods, the research tries to overcome the problems and investigate healthcare predictive analytics. The study's primary goal was to see how big data analytics and machine learning-based techniques may be used in diabetes. The examination of the results shows that the suggested ML-based framework may achieve a score of 86. Health experts and other stakeholders are working to develop categorization models that will aid in the prediction of diabetes and the formulation of preventative initiatives. The authors perform a review of the literature on machine models and suggest an intelligent framework for diabetes prediction based on their findings. Machine learning models are critically examined, and an intelligent machine learning-based architecture for diabetes prediction is proposed and evaluated by the authors. In this study, the authors utilize our framework to develop and assess decision tree (DT)-based random forest (RF) and support vector machine (SVM) learning models for diabetes prediction, which are the most widely used techniques in the literature at the time of writing. It is proposed in this study that a unique intelligent diabetes mellitus prediction framework (IDMPF) is developed using machine learning. According to the framework, it was developed after conducting a rigorous review of existing prediction models in the literature and examining their applicability to diabetes. Using the framework, the authors describe the training procedures, model assessment strategies, and issues associated with diabetes prediction, as well as solutions they provide. The findings of this study may be utilized by health professionals, stakeholders, students, and researchers who are involved in diabetes prediction research and development. The proposed work gives 83% accuracy with the minimum error rate.

Preparation and characterization of SnO2 nanoparticles by hydrothermal route
G. E. Patil, Dnyaneshwar D Kajale, V. B. Gaikwad, G. H. Jain
2012· International nano letters.215doi:10.1186/2228-5326-2-17

This paper demonstrates the synthesis of SnO 2 nanoparticles using a simple hydrothermal route in the presence of the surfactant hydrazine at 100 °C for 12 h. X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were employed to characterize the as-prepared product, and optical property was studied by UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The XRD pattern of the as-prepared sample is indexed to the tetragonal structure of SnO 2 , and the calculated particle size is 22.4 nm, which is further confirmed by TEM. The selected area electron diffraction patterns showed continuous ring patterns without any additional diffraction spots and rings of secondary phases, revealing their crystalline structure. Analysis of the DRS spectrum showed the bandgap of the synthesized SnO 2 to be 3.6 eV. The anionic surfactant hydrazine plays a key role in the formation of the SnO 2 nanostructures. A probable reaction for the formation of SnO 2 nanoparticles is proposed.

Halophytes in biosaline agriculture: Mechanism, utilization, and value addition
Ganesh Chandrakant Nikalje, Ashish Kumar Srivastava, Girdhar K. Pandey, Penna Suprasanna
2017· Land Degradation and Development210doi:10.1002/ldr.2819

Abstract Land is considered as the life‐sustaining platform for food and water. However, there are contaminants such as salt, heavy metal, and industrial waste that decrease land fertility, posing serious threat to sustainable agriculture. In recent years, novel crop varieties with improved tolerance against environmental contaminants have been developed, but most of them face severe yield penalty. Alternatively, naturally tolerant plants such as extremophiles can be screened for their potential as crops. These crops should be tolerant to various abiotic stresses, perform better under extreme conditions and produce higher biomass and yield. In view of this, the present review focuses on the effects of saline soil on plants and how a class of plants termed as “halophytes” can tolerate high levels of salt. The potential applications of halophytes in phytoremediation, desalination, secondary metabolite production, medicine, food, and saline agriculture have been discussed. A concept of saline agriculture has been proposed for rehabilitation of saline and degraded lands. In this context, a potential halophyte is cultivated in salt‐contaminated soil for desalination. The harvested halophyte can have industrial value, and later on, rehabilitated soil can be utilized for agriculture purpose. Some success with halophyte cultivation has been demonstrated in environmentally degraded soils, and it is imperative that large‐scale adoption of halophytes, as potential candidates, can be accorded top priority for rehabilitating contaminated soils, which can pave way for sustainable agriculture.

Understanding the holistic approach to plant-microbe remediation technologies for removing heavy metals and radionuclides from soil
Mayur Thakare, Hemen Sarma, Shraddha Datar, Arpita Roy +4 more
2021· Current Research in Biotechnology191doi:10.1016/j.crbiot.2021.02.004

Heavy metals (HMs) and radionuclides are released through geological and anthropogenic activities and enter the environment through wastewater, soil and sediment. Large amounts of Pb (>1000 ppm), Zn (>4000 ppm) and Cd (40–400 ppm) have recently been reported in soils near Picher, USA. These inorganic pollutants cannot be degraded and cause damage to the vital human organs. Different industrial and municipal solid waste was a major source of HMs in soil, including airborne aerosols. In the same manner, nuclear waste and radioactive materials used (e.g., medical facilities) or released in different processes contribute to the environmental pollution of radionuclides. The release of such HMs ions from different sources leads to mutagenesis, carcinogenesis and poses serious risks to the living organisms. As a result, proper management of waste from these sources, as well as environmentally friendly remediation methods, is imperative. However, recent studies have shown that it is more difficult to remove HMs and radionuclides from the soil, but they can be effectively neutralized or converted into a less toxic metabolites. The combination of a unique plant-microbe system plays a key role in the remediation process. However, new bioremediation methods are now being used to eliminate HMs and radionuclides. Microbes are capable of bio-transforming, bio-sorbing and biomineralizing HMs and radionuclides through their inherent catabolic process. Enhancing phytoremediation using different strategies for the remediation of HMs and radionuclides is necessary to ensure that the land resource is safe, fertile and productive for sustainable use.

Effect of Zn substitution on magnetic properties of nanocrystalline cobalt ferrite
Santosh S. Jadhav, Sagar E. Shirsath, Sunil M. Patange, K. M. Jadhav
2010· Journal of Applied Physics188doi:10.1063/1.3499346

The Zn substituted cobalt ferrite nanoparticles having the generic formula Co1−xZnxFe2O4 (x=0.0–0.7) were prepared by wet chemical coprecipitation technique using analytical reagent (AR) grade sulphates. The prepared samples were heated at 150 °C to remove water molecules and then annealed at 725 °C for 16 h. Investigation of the structural properties were carried out using x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning electron microscopy techniques. The nanocrystalline nature of the samples is confirmed by TEM data. Substitution of the nonmagnetic Zn2+ ions considerably changes the magnetic properties. Néel’s model fails to explain the observed magnetic behavior above x=0.2. For x≥0.2 the Yafet–Kittel model can be fitted. AC susceptibility measurements confirm the decrease in Curie temperature.

The relationship between quality of work life and work-life-balance mediating role of job stress, job satisfaction and job commitment: evidence from India
Alex Aruldoss, Kellyann Berube Kowalski, Satyanarayana Parayitam
2020· Journal of Advances in Management Research186doi:10.1108/jamr-05-2020-0082

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between quality of work-life (QWL) and work-life balance (WLB). Design/methodology/approach Using a structured survey instrument, this paper gathered data from 445 respondents in cosmopolitan city in southern part of India. First psychometric properties of the instrument were tested, and then hierarchical regression was used as a statistical technique for analyzing the data. Findings The hierarchical regression results indicated that QWL is (1) negatively related to job stress, (2) positively related to job satisfaction and (3) positively related to job commitment. The results also indicated that (1) job stress is negatively related to WLB, (2) job satisfaction is positively related to WLB and (3) job commitment is positively related to WLB. The results also show partial mediation of job stress, job satisfaction, and job commitment in the relationship between QWL and WLB. Research limitations/implications Since the present research is based on self-report measures, the limitations of social desirability bias and common method bias are inherent. However, sufficient care is taken to minimize these limitations. The research has implications for human resource managers in work organizations. Practical implications This study contributes to both practicing managers and the literature on human resource management. The study suggests that employers need to be aware of the importance of quality of work-life and work-life balance in achieving organizational effectiveness. Social implications The study is expected to contribute to the welfare of the society in terms of identifying the antecedents of work-life balance. Originality/value This study provides new insights about the effects of QWL on WLB through mediating variables. This is a conceptual model developed and tested and first of its kind in India.

Phylogenetic characterization of bacteria in the gut of house flies (Musca domestica L.)
Arvind Gupta, Dana Nayduch, Pankaj Verma, Bhavin Shah +3 more
2011· FEMS Microbiology Ecology184doi:10.1111/j.1574-6941.2011.01248.x

House flies (Musca domestica L.) are cosmopolitan, ubiquitous, synanthropic insects that serve as mechanical or biological vectors for various microorganisms. To fully assess the role of house flies in the epidemiology of human diseases, it is essential to understand the diversity of microbiota harbored by natural fly populations. This study aimed to identify the diversity of house fly gut bacteria by both culture-dependent and culture-independent approaches. A total of 102 bacterial strains were isolated from the gut of 65 house flies collected from various public places including a garden, public park, garbage/dump area, public toilet, hospital, restaurant/canteen, mutton shop/market, and house/human habitation. Molecular phylogenetic analyses placed these isolates into 22 different genera. The majority of bacteria identified were known potential pathogens of the genera Klebsiella, Aeromonas, Shigella, Morganella, Providencia, and Staphylococcus. Culture-independent methods involved the construction of a 16S rRNA gene clone library, and sequence analyses supported culture recovery results. However, additional bacterial taxa not determined via culture recovery were revealed using this methodology and included members of the classes Alphaproteobacteria, Deltaproteobacteria, and the phylum Bacteroidetes. Here, we show that the house fly gut is an environmental reservoir for a vast number of bacterial species, which may have impacts on vector potential and pathogen transmission.

A mathematical model of COVID-19 using fractional derivative: outbreak in India with dynamics of transmission and control
Amjad Shaikh, Iqbal N. Shaikh, Kottakkaran Sooppy Nisar
2020· Advances in Difference Equations183doi:10.1186/s13662-020-02834-3

Since the first case of 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) detected on 30 January, 2020, in India, the number of cases rapidly increased to 3819 cases including 106 deaths as of 5 April, 2020. Taking this into account, in the present work, we have analysed a Bats-Hosts-Reservoir-People transmission fractional-order COVID-19 model for simulating the potential transmission with the thought of individual response and control measures by the government. The real data available about number of infected cases from 14 March, 2000 to 26 March, 2020 is analysed and, accordingly, various parameters of the model are estimated or fitted. The Picard successive approximation technique and Banach's fixed point theory have been used for verification of the existence and stability criteria of the model. Further, we conduct stability analysis for both disease-free and endemic equilibrium states. On the basis of sensitivity analysis and dynamics of the threshold parameter, we estimate the effectiveness of preventive measures, predicting future outbreaks and potential control strategies of the disease using the proposed model. Numerical computations are carried out utilising the iterative Laplace transform method and comparative study of different fractional differential operators is done. The impacts of various biological parameters on transmission dynamics of COVID-19 is investigated. Finally, we illustrate the obtained results graphically.

Production, Purification, and Characterization of Bacillibactin Siderophore of Bacillus subtilis and Its Application for Improvement in Plant Growth and Oil Content in Sesame
S. Nithyapriya, Lalitha Sundaram, R. Z. Sayyed, M. S. Reddy +4 more
2021· Sustainability181doi:10.3390/su13105394

Siderophores are low molecular weight secondary metabolites produced by microorganisms under low iron stress as a specific iron chelator. In the present study, a rhizospheric bacterium was isolated from the rhizosphere of sesame plants from Salem district, Tamil Nadu, India and later identified as Bacillus subtilis LSBS2. It exhibited multiple plant-growth-promoting (PGP) traits such as hydrogen cyanide (HCN), ammonia, and indole acetic acid (IAA), and solubilized phosphate. The chrome azurol sulphonate (CAS) agar plate assay was used to screen the siderophore production of LSBS2 and quantitatively the isolate produced 296 mg/L of siderophores in succinic acid medium. Further characterization of the siderophore revealed that the isolate produced catecholate siderophore bacillibactin. A pot culture experiment was used to explore the effect of LSBS2 and its siderophore in promoting iron absorption and plant growth of Sesamum indicum L. Data from the present study revealed that the multifarious Bacillus sp. LSBS2 could be exploited as a potential bioinoculant for growth and yield improvement in S. indicum.

Insight into Recent Progress and Perspectives in Improvement of Antioxidant Machinery upon PGPR Augmentation in Plants under Drought Stress: A Review
Hittanahallikoppal Gajendramurthy Gowtham, Sudarshana Brijesh Singh, Natarajamurthy Shilpa, Mohammed Aiyaz +4 more
2022· Antioxidants177doi:10.3390/antiox11091763

Agriculture has a lot of responsibility as the rise in the world's population demands more food requirements. However, more than one type of biotic and abiotic stress continually impacts agricultural productivity. Drought stress is a major abiotic stress that significantly affects agricultural productivity every year as the plants undergo several morphological, biochemical, and physiological modifications, such as repressed root and shoot growth, reduced photosynthesis and transpiration rate, excessive production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), osmotic adjustments, and modified leaf senescence regulating and stress signaling pathways. Such modifications may permanently damage the plants; therefore, mitigation strategies must be developed. The use of drought resistant crop cultivars is more expensive and labor-intensive with few advantages. However, exploiting plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) is a proven alternative with numerous direct and indirect advantages. The PGPR confers induced systemic tolerance (IST) mechanisms in plants in response to drought stress via multiple mechanisms, including the alteration of root architecture, maintenance of high relative water content, improvement of photosynthesis rate, production of phytohormones, exopolysaccharides, ACC deaminase, carotenoids and volatiles, induction of antioxidant defense system, and alteration in stress-responsive gene expression. The commercial application of PGPR as bioinoculants or biostimulants will remain contingent on more robust strain selection and performance under unfavorable environmental conditions. This review highlights the possible mechanisms of PGPR by activating the plant adaptive defense systems for enhancing drought tolerance and improving overall growth and yield.

Rietveld structure refinement, cation distribution and magnetic properties of Al3+ substituted NiFe2O4 nanoparticles
Sunil M. Patange, Sagar E. Shirsath, Ganesh Jangam, K.S. Lohar +2 more
2011· Journal of Applied Physics171doi:10.1063/1.3559266

Ferrite samples of Al3+ substituted NiFe2O4 nanoparticles were prepared by wet chemical co-precipitation method. The samples were obtained by annealing at relatively low temperature at 600 °C and characterized by x-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM), and ac susceptibility. On applying the full pattern fitting of Rietveld method using FullProf program, exact coordinates of atoms, unit cell dimensions, atom ion occupancy, degree of inversion as well as crystallite size and residual microstrain have been determined. The lattice parameter, density, particle size, lattice strain, magnetization, magneton number, and Curie temperature are seen to decrease with increasing A13+ content whereas the specific surface area, porosity, coercive force, shows an increasing trend with A13+ content. Cation distribution is obtained from XRD and Rietveld method and the variation of the cation distribution has been discussed on the basis of site preference, size and valence of the substituting cations. The variation of the magneton number with the Al3+ content is satisfactorily explained on the basis of Néel’s collinear spin ordering model. Curie temperature of all the compositions are also obtained theoretically and it agrees with observed Curie temperature.

Fungal Endophytes to Combat Biotic and Abiotic Stresses for Climate-Smart and Sustainable Agriculture
Anamika Verma, Nowsheen Shameem, Hanuman Singh Jatav, Eetela Sathyanarayana +3 more
2022· Frontiers in Plant Science168doi:10.3389/fpls.2022.953836

The agricultural sustainability concept considers higher food production combating biotic and abiotic stresses, socio-economic well-being, and environmental conservation. On the contrary, global warming-led climatic changes have appalling consequences on agriculture, generating shifting rainfall patterns, high temperature, CO 2 , drought, etc., prompting abiotic stress conditions for plants. Such stresses abandon the plants to thrive, demoting food productivity and ultimately hampering food security. Though environmental issues are natural and cannot be regulated, plants can still be enabled to endure these abnormal abiotic conditions, reinforcing the stress resilience in an eco-friendly fashion by incorporating fungal endophytes. Endophytic fungi are a group of subtle, non-pathogenic microorganisms establishing a mutualistic association with diverse plant species. Their varied association with the host plant under dynamic environments boosts the endogenic tolerance mechanism of the host plant against various stresses via overall modulations of local and systemic mechanisms accompanied by higher antioxidants secretion, ample enough to scavenge Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) hence, coping over-expression of defensive redox regulatory system of host plant as an aversion to stressed condition. They are also reported to ameliorate plants toward biotic stress mitigation and elevate phytohormone levels forging them worthy enough to be used as biocontrol agents and as biofertilizers against various pathogens, promoting crop improvement and soil improvement, respectively. This review summarizes the present-day conception of the endophytic fungi, their diversity in various crops, and the molecular mechanism behind abiotic and biotic resistance prompting climate-resilient aided sustainable agriculture.