Genetic Resources For Agriculture Research Articles

Agroecosystem-based agricultural genetic resources for balanced and diversified food, nutrition, health, business, geographical indication and environment

ABSTRACT Nepal has 15 distinct agroecosystems spread across three major agroecozones: Tarai, Mid Hill, and High Hill. These regions support a rich variety of agrobiodiversity. This paper examines the significance of native agrobiodiversity within each of these agroecosystems for diversified food, nutrition, health, business and environment. The information presented is derived from various literature sources, discussions with key experts, and the authors’ own experiences. Each of these agroecosystems has cultivated and preserved numerous unique species, landraces, and genotypes of agrobiodiversity, including crops, forages, livestock, agro-insects, agro-microorganisms, and aquatic genetic resources. This agrobiodiversity is deeply connected with local cultures, traditional knowledge, and skills. The high diversity of agricultural genetic resources (AGRs) within Nepal’s relatively small area is a crucial factor for ensuring food security, nutrition, health, business opportunities, and environmental sustainability. Many niche products, prized for their purity, quality, taste, health benefits, and nutritional value, are sold at premium prices. However, the focus on production-centric agricultural programs over the years has led to the replacement of many niche-specific varieties by more uniform and limited ones. Introducing new genotypes into a particular agroecosystem may undermine the principles of ecological agriculture. Therefore, it is essential to enhance the competitiveness of native AGRs and associated indigenous technologies within each agroecosystem.

Protection of Agricultural Genetic Resources in China

The protection of agricultural genetic resources, which represents a core element in the agricultural intellectual property (IP) system, will play an important role in realizing China's Rural Revitalization Strategy. In order to substantiate the need for improved agricultural property protection in China, the article examines existing issues in this area, including a weak understanding of IP protection on the part of rural people, imperfections in the existing legal framework, a lack of creative personnel working in the IP, inadequate support from government and other departments, as well as a lacking innovation mindset on the part of entrepreneurs. Proposed approaches for improving the legal awareness of agricultural genetic resource protection include increasing professional competencies in the aforementioned area and ensuring the participation of rural people in the protection of their agricultural genetic resources.

Conservation and Utilization of Summer Crops Biodiversity in Nepal

Nepal faces a pressing challenge with the alarming loss of around 50% of its summer crop genetic resources (SCGRs) and the endangerment of native landraces. To combat this decline, the national genebank in Nepal has developed 101 good practices for agricultural genetic resources (AGRs) conservation and utilization. Red zoning and red listing strategies aid in identifying conservation priorities. The Genebank collaborates with stakeholders to collect, characterize, and promote SCGRs, resulting in 6177 accessions representing 71 summer crop species stored in Seed Banks. Diverse conservation repositories include genebanks, tissue banks, DNA banks, community genebanks, school field genebanks, and agro-gene sanctuaries. In 2022, 724 accessions of 20 summer crops were distributed for research, while the registration of 19 landraces after genetic enhancements led to their inclusion under the National Seed Board. The free distribution of germplasm accelerates its utilization, further facilitated by online access. The genebank also promotes agro-insect field genebanks recognizing the importance of agro-insects and pollinators in biodiversity conservation. To maintain native SCGRs, value additions are emphasized, underlining the need to actively enhance genetic diversity in agricultural fields. These comprehensive measures underscore Nepal’s commitment to safeguarding agrobiodiversity, ensuring food security, and bolstering agricultural resilience to climate and other stresses.

Biodiversity Conservation in Xishuangbanna, China: Diversity Analysis of Traditional Knowledge Related to Biodiversity and Conservation Progress and Achievement Evaluation

Biodiversity plays an important role in maintaining the ecological balance of the earth. The study of traditional knowledge related to biological resources is a hot issue in the field of international biodiversity conservation. Xishuangbanna is a key area of biodiversity and a cultural hotspot of international significance. According to the Technical Regulation for Classification, Investigation, and Inventory of Traditional Knowledge Relating to Biological Diversity issued by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, we investigated and catalogued the traditional knowledge related to biodiversity of the Jino people who have lived in Xishuangbanna for generations, and collected 490 entries of traditional knowledge related to biodiversity of the Jino people. Drawing on the traditional knowledge diversity index calculation method proposed by Wang Guoping, the overall traditional knowledge α-diversity index of the Jino people is 0.63, indicating that the richness of the traditional knowledge of the Jinuo people is relatively high. The traditional culture related to biodiversity, the traditional knowledge related to agricultural genetic resources, and the traditional technology related to the sustainable utilization of biological resources are relatively rich and diverse. The diversity index is 0.86, 0.82 and 0.79, respectively. In addition, Xishuangbanna has invested a lot of energy in biodiversity protection, including the establishment of nature reserves, botanical gardens, zoos, ecological tea gardens and other species reserves, and the promulgation of laws and policies related to biodiversity protection, and has achieved remarkable results in in situ protection and ex situ protection. On the basis of analyzing the progress and achievements of biodiversity conservation in Xishuangbanna, this study points out that Xishuangbanna faces challenges such as the loss of traditional knowledge, insufficient conservation efforts, and great changes in land use, and puts forward corresponding suggestions.

Diversity, conservation and utilization of grain legumes: A potential source for food and nutritional security in Nepal

Grain legumes are precious crops of Nepal in terms of the dietary protein supplement ample concentration of micronutrients, and role in crop intensification and ameliorating soil fertility. About 11% of the cultivated area is occupied by grain legumes that include lentil, chickpea, grasspea, fieldpea, fababean, pigeonpea, soybean, blackgram, horsegram, ricebean, cowpea, and mungbean. About 100 genera and 379 species of legumes are distributed in diverse agroecological zones ranging from terai to the alpine region of Nepal, with growth habits ranging from annual to perennial shrubs. Out of the 379 species of legumes which include grain, vegetable, and forage legumes, 262 are native, and 20 species belonging to the sub-group Papilionacae are used as food legumes. Highest food legume species diversity has been recorded in Macrotyloma (34 spp.), followed by Crotalaria (18 spp.), Vigna (15 spp.), Lathyrus (7 spp.), Vicia (6 spp.), Cajanus (5 spp.), Trigonella (5 spp.) and Phaseolus (4 spp.). Other genus having 1-3 species includes Cicer (3 spp.), Mukuna (3 spp.), Glycine (2 spp.), Canavila (2 spp.), Pisum (2 spp.), Lablab (2 spp.), Pachyrrhizus (1 sp.), Psophocarpus (1 sp.), Lens (1 sp.) and Cyamopsis (1 sp.). Research on grain legumes was initiated in 1976 and a systematic collection of grain legume landraces was done in 1987 by the Grain Legumes Research Program (GLRP). Past collection missions organized in collaboration with the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), and other institutes have resulted in the collection of 1107 landraces and provided an opportunity for their inclusion in the variety improvement program. National Agricultural Genetic Resources Center (NAGRC) has conserved 2936 landraces of different legumes, 951 landraces have been kept in gene banks of ICARDA center, while GLRP Khajura has active collections of 218 landraces and 627 exotic germplasm of various legume crops. Varietal improvement programs resulted in the development of 51 varieties, while 6 varietes were registered and two varieties were de-notified in food legumes (lentil, chickpea, soybean, cowpea, black gram, mungbean, pigeon pea, rice bean, faba bean, grass pea, and kidney bean).

Phenotypical and molecular characterization of new pepper genotypes resistant to Chili pepper mild mottle virus firstly detected in Europe and other tobamoviruses

The tobamoviruses pose a recent threat to local varieties of Gernika pepper (cv. “Derio”) and Ibarra chili (cv. “Ibarroria”), causing a substantial decrease in both yield and fruit quality. Tobamoviruses such as Tomato mosaic virus (ToMV), Tobacco mild green mosaic virus (TMGMV) or Pepper mild mottle virus (PMMoV) are the viruses that cause the greatest impact in pepper crops of northern Spain. The emergence of a novel Tobamovirus, Chili pepper mild mottle virus (CPMMoV; GenBank MN164455.1), firstly identified in Europe, exacerbates these hazards. This situation has jeopardized the ongoing cultivation in some of the virus affected plots. A molecular marker-assisted backcrossing (MABC) breeding program was thus initiated to introduce the L3 and L4 resistance genes into these susceptible local varieties. MABC consisted of one crossing followed by four backcrosses and two self-fertilizations. After each crossbreeding event, the selection criteria of plants were based on plants resistance and fruits resemblance with the original sensitive varieties. This study allowed the homozygous introgression of resistance genes in the new obtained genotypes, reducing the reliance on hybrid seed production and associated costs. The resulting genotypes demonstrated robust resistance when inoculated with PMMoV 1.2, PMMoV 1.2.3, and CPMMoV. In addition, greenhouse yield trials were performed during two consecutive years to identify and select the most productive genotypes harboring the L3 or L4 gene, with the aim of registering some of them as commercial varieties. The productivity of the new selected genotypes did not display significant differences when compared to the original sensitive varieties. The introduction of genetic resistance in these local pepper varieties not only mitigates the immediate hazard posed by Tobamovirus but also fosters the preservation of local agricultural genetic resources, ensuring their continued cultivation and economic sustainability.

Anticancer effects of rutin from Fagopyrum tataricum (tartary buckwheat) against osteosarcoma cell line.

The present study is analysisof the seeds of buckwheat (Fagopyrum sp.),member of the Polygonaceae family for isolation of rutin and its anticancer property againstOsteosarcoma celllines (SAOS2). The selected plant is traditionally used for diabetes and cancer. It has several biological properties such as antibacterial, antioxidant and anti-aging. Thirty-five buckwheat cultivars were obtained from Nepal Agriculture Genetic Resources Centre (NAGRC) Khumaltar, Kathmandu, Nepal, andKumrek Sikkim. These plant varieties are scientifically evaluated their biological properties. Rutin wasfractionated from buckwheat seeds using methanol fraction and analysed for quality by HPLC method. The rutin fraction of the cultivar NGRC03731 a tartary buck wheat and standard rutin was used against Osteosarcoma cell lines (SAOS2) and human gingival fibroblast cells (hGFs) for anticancer activity. The cell viability using rutin fraction and standard rutin treated with SAOS2 cells were assessed by MTT assay. For further research, the best doses (IC-50: 20g/ml) were applied. By using AO/EtBr dual staining, the effects of Rutin fraction on SAOS2 cell death were analysed. The scratch wound healing assay was used to analyse cell migration. Real-time PCR was used to analyse the pro-/anti-apoptotic gene expression. The seeds with the highest rutin content, NGRC03731 seeds, had 433mg/100g of rutin.The rutin fraction treatment and standard rutin significantly reduced cell viability in the MTT assay, and osteosarcoma cells were observed on sensitive to the IC-50 dose at a concentration of 20g/ml after 24h.The SAOS2 cells exposed to rutin fraction at 20g/ml and standard rutin at 10g/ml exhibited significant morphological alterations, cell shrinkage and decreased cell density, which indicate apoptotic cells.Rutin-fraction treated cells stained with acridine orange/ethidium bromide (AO/EtBr) dual staining cells turned yellow, orange, and red which indicatesto measure apoptosis.The anti-migration potential of rutin fraction, results prevented the migration of SAOS2 cancer cells.Rutin-fraction significantly increased the expression of pro-apoptotic proteinsBad, using real-time PCR analysis (mRNA for Bcl-2 family proteins) resulted Bcl-2's expression is negatively regulated. Osteosarcoma (SAOS2) cell lines' proliferation, migration, and ability to proliferate were reduced markedly by rutin fraction and it also causes apoptosis of Osteosarcoma cell lines (SAOS2).

Research on Access and Benefit-Sharing Regimes for Agricultural Genetic Resources in India

India is one of the richest providers of genetic resources in the world and it advocates that the sovereignty of genetic resources belongs to the state to realize the equitable sharing of the benefits of genetic resources. The study shows that India has built a relatively complete legal system for access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing. This system revolves around three major laws and regulations, with clear management regulations for domestic and foreign access to genetic resources, a definite form and proportion of benefit-sharing, and a clear management method for the distribution of benefits after acquisition. India’s achievements in institutional construction can act as a great reference for the management of access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing in China.

Evaluation of Molecular Markers and Morphology In Identification of Local Porang Strain in Karawang District

Porang plant tubers have the potential to have high economic value, because they contain glucomannan which is good for health and can be processed into a food source to replace carbohydrates. The aim of the study was to identify Karawang Local Porang strains using molecular markers and morphological characters as an effort to conserve and utilize Karawang's local biological resources. Exploration of Local Porang Karawang was carried out at the foot of Mount Sanggabuana which is the habitat of Porang in Karawang district. Molecular identification was carried out at BBPP Biotechnology and Agricultural Genetic Resources with comparisons of Porang Sidrat., Madiun 1 and SS1 Bulukumba varieties. Morphological identification was carried out at the Basic Laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture, Winaya Mukti University. Based on the results of the DNA amplification of the Porang samples using four RAPD primers, it was found that the three primers showed differences in banding patterns between the Porang Karawang sample and the three Porang varieties for comparison (Porang Madiun 1 Sidrap and SS1 Bulukumba). This shows that there is genetic variation between Porang from Karawang and three other Porang. The results of genetic relationship analysis using four RAPD primers showed that the Porang Karawang sample was different from the Porang samples from the other two areas. The morphological identification results showed differences in characteristics with the comparison. The Karawang Local Porang variety has high quality as indicated by high glucomannan levels of 79.80%.

ПОРОДНІ ОСОБЛИВОСТІ АЛЕЛЬНОГО ПРОФІЛЮ ГЕНІВ PIT1 ТА GH УКРАЇНСЬКОЇ АБОРИГЕННОЇ ЛЕБЕДИНСЬКОЇ ПОРОДИ КОРІВ

The preservation of genetic diversity is a paramount concern in addressing global challenges today. The foundation of biological diversity hinges on its genetic components, and the loss of species and genetic variability poses a genuine threat to the biosphere. This is because the sustainability of natural ecosystems and agroecosystems depends directly on their genetic adaptability to changing environmental conditions.
 In cattle, genes associated with milk yield play a crucial role, including genes related to milk proteins and hormones. Among these, the pituitary-specific transcription factor (PIT1) and growth hormone (GH) genes are of particular significance. In this study, we investigated the polymorphism of these genes in the Lebedyn breed of cattle.
 A total of 2 gene polymorphisms, PIT1 and GH, were examined through molecular and genetic research conducted at the genetics laboratory of the Institute of Animal Breeding and Genetics named after M. V. Zubets, part of the National Academy of Agrarian Science of Ukraine. The study utilized 32 DNA samples extracted from the venous blood of Lebedyn breed cows using the 'DNA Sorb-B' kit from AmpliSens. Genotyping was carried out through polymerase chain reaction (PCR-RFLP) analysis of restriction fragment length polymorphism, employing the “Tertsyk” amplifier for PCR. The resulting DNA restriction analysis products were assessed via electrophoresis in a 2–3% agarose gel containing ethidium bromide, with DNA fragment lengths determined using the GeneRuler TM 50 bp DNA Ladder and Thermo Scientific™ GeneRuler 1 kb Plus DNA Ladder markers.
 For the PIT1 gene analysis, a 451 bp amplified fragment was treated with the enzyme HinfI, yielding the following allele frequencies: A (0.38) and B (0.62). The heterozygous AB genotype was the most prevalent (0.45), while homozygotes for the A allele constituted 0.15 of the population. In the case of the GH gene fragment (223 bp), hydrolysis was performed using the restriction enzyme AluI. Analysis of allele frequency distribution indicated a high frequency of the L allele (0.85), with no animals exhibiting the homozygous GHVV genotype, and the GHLL genotype was present in 0.7 of the population.
 These findings reveal unique features of the allelic spectrum of the PIT1 (V-0.62) and GH (L-0.85) genes specific to the Ukrainian indigenous Lebedyn breed of cows. Selectionally significant genotypes include PIT1AA (15%) and GHLL (70%), while heterozygote carriers, which contribute to genetic diversity within the population, account for 45% and 30%, respectively.
 This study’s results hold particular value due to the alarming decline in the population of local indigenous breeds and the imminent threat to the preservation of agricultural genetic resources.

Seed Borne Fungal Pathogens Associated with Finger Millet Accessions

Seed health testing to detect seed-borne pathogens is an important step in the management of crop diseases. A study on the detection and identification of seed-borne fungi was done using seeds of finger millet (Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaetrn) accessions collected from different parts of the country. The research was undertaken to determine different seed-borne fungal pathogens associated with seeds of finger millet accessions from November 27, 2020 to February 25, 2021 at National Agriculture Genetic Resources Centre, Khumaltar, Lalitpur. A total of 85 seed samples, collected from different parts of the country, were used for the research. A hundred seeds of each sample were tested for the presence of seed-borne fungi using the Deep Freeze Blotter method following the International Rules for Seed Testing Association, 2001, and identification was done based on the growth habit, and morphology of the spores observed. One or more pathogens were detected in 65 out of 85 samples. Four different pathogens, namely Bipolaris nodulosa, Alternaria spp., Cladosporium spp., and Pyricularia grisea were identified. B. nodulosa and Cladosporium spp. were predominant in most of the samples with seed infection in 42 (49.4%) and 40 (47.05%) seed accessions, respectively. Hence, it is highly recommended to undertake focused research on the economic significance of the seed-borne fungi, while considering their impact and effective management strategies in order to enhance seed health management.

The Drivers of Changes in the State of Agrobiodiversity

The diversity of agricultural genetic resources is decreasing over the years and sites across the world. With the objectives of determining the drivers and their impact on agrobiodiversity particularly in Nepal, different methods e.g., focus group discussion, transact walk, key informant survey, and literature survey were used. Among the 16 broad categories of drivers, the most 5 important drivers in terms of negative impact on agrobiodiversity were the: 1) advancements and innovations in science and technology, 2) changes in land and water use and management, 3) alternative business and information flow, 4) population growth and urbanization, and 5) markets and trade. The most important specific driver is exotic varieties and breeds among 90 specific drivers. The earthquake of 2015 was a major disaster having damaged much local agricultural diversity in more than 14 districts of Nepal. Expansion of area for agricultural production, the establishment of a new settlement and various types of developmental activities have caused a loss of many wild relatives of agricultural species and wild edible species. Threat to crop diversity is high in rice, banana, cucumber, and tomato due to replacement of old cultivars by modern varieties. Threat to rice bean, horse bean, and foxtail millet is due to low priority given by growers and consumers. Invasive alien species like Parthenium, Eupatorium spp. and Lantana camara have had a significant effect on diversity and ecosystem services. The least affected agrobiodiversity components are microbial genetic resources. The important drivers e.g., exotic genotypes, external inputs, monogenotype-based monoculture policy and climate changes, should be given due attention to control and manage for better management of agrobiodiversity.

A future EU overall strategy for agriculture and forest genetic resources management: Finding consensus through policymakers’ participation

The Genetic Resources Strategy for Europe (GRSE) is an overarching, integrated strategy for the conservation and use of plant, animal and forest genetic resources both the domesticated and wild to ensure more sustainable EU land use policies for the future. It was developed in a three-step consensus seeking iterative process involving EU, national and regional level policymakers, and umbrella organisations representatives. The GRSE provides the missing link between basic biodiversity management (genetic resources) and associated policies and strategies addressing agriculture, forestry and the environment. It also provides guidance for more effective and harmonised genetic resources management in the EU and beyond, and promotes stakeholders’ collaboration in all these areas. In this study, we use a foresight participatory approach to understand the perspectives of identified stakeholders in the adoption of the GRSE at local, national and European level. This methodology enabled researchers to discuss the role of genetic resources management in addressing geographical, economic and societal needs in Europe and beyond, and anticipate the long-term beneficial impacts. The study assessed the outlook for the adoption of the GRSE in the wider policymaking perspective. It applied a three-step Delphi methodology i) interviews, ii) survey, and iii) focus group discussion. It involved a 26-member policy makers panel representing EC and national-level policymakers, and umbrella organisations from across the European Union. Our study reveals a lack of consensus regarding the need to align policy and legal frameworks at national and European levels, but consensus was found in the need to jointly adopt national action plans across member states. Based on these results we identified three main priorities for addressing the gaps within current genetic resources management and conservation approaches: i) align fragmented policy for and develop legislation to harmonise the operational differences between European countries, ii) find funding mechanisms for improving genetic resources infrastructure, research and business development across Europe, and iii) raise awareness and collaboration to involve actors from different levels and sectors.

Policy Gaps and Practices on Genetic Diversity, The Heterogenous and Localized Evolutionary Population as well as Native Landraces in Agriculture of Nepal

Formal breeding strategies and processes focus on developing uniform and non-evolutionary populations. However, many farmers continue to cultivate heterogenous cultivars and populations. To understand the recognition of genetic diversity (heterogenous cultivars and populations) in policies and the fields, a literature survey along with field survey, interaction and field action research were carried out in 15 districts of Nepal. Existing policies demand varieties to go through DUS (distinctness, uniformity, stability) testing and be registered in National Seed Board (NSB) for commercial production and sale. This means all native landraces and other broad genetic-based genotypes cannot be marketed without registration. A formal agriculture system accelerates the cultivation of a single genotype in a large area, leading to a lack of pollinators and the loss of many genetic diversities.
 Legal agricultural systems have focused mainly on modernizing agriculture through exotic resources, giving less priority to making native landraces and technologies globally competitive. In contrast, the informal seed system deals with polymorphic and evolutionary populations. Therefore, policies should consider the strategies that favor and increase genetic diversity, evolutionary population, site-specific genotypes and staple food, self-seed production system, ecological services, insects/birds/ microorganism-friendly systems, etc. Native agricultural genetic resources (AGRs) with broad genetic bases are essential for food, nutrition, health, environment, and business security. Therefore, native landraces of all six components of agrobiodiversity (namely crops, forages, livestock, aquatic genetic resources, insects, and microorganisms) should receive priority in research, development, extension, and education. Additionally, a favorable policy for the commercialization of such native landraces and/ or their products without registration should be established. Alternatively, a registration system should be developed for broad genetic base genotypes and heterogenous and evolutionary populations.

Conservation of agricultural genetic resources as an indicator of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Indonesia

Food security and sustainable agriculture are among the priorities on the global agenda, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Indonesia adopted the SDGs and committed to implementing them at the national level. Among the priorities targeted in the implementation of SDGs in Indonesia are food security and sustainable agriculture. Indonesia’s richness in agricultural genetic resources is the potential to support the implementation of SDG 2.5.1. This paper describes the agricultural genetic resources management in Indonesia and its relevance for the implementation of SDGs 2.5.1. Data were collected from official and recommended sources. Around 20 stakeholders take a role in the management and conservation of agricultural genetic resources in Indonesia. At least 42.240 accessions of 1057 plant species including food crops, horticulture crops, estate crops, and forage were conserved ex-situ in those respective stakeholders. However, not all those conservation activities are able to support the implementation of SDG 2.5.1 due to the lack of information, less visibility, and some deficiencies in the management program. Particular efforts are required to establish better management of agricultural genetic resources at the national level, to improve their visibility, and to enable them to support SDGs 2.5.1.

Morpho-agronomic Characterization of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) Germplasm for Yield and Yield-associated Traits

Nepal possesses a rich diversity of cucumber landraces and their wild relatives. The first step towards harnessing the potential of these landraces in crop improvement programs is to identify the amount of genetic variation present among them. This research aimed to evaluate 18 cucumber accessions collected from different regions of Nepal and assess their agro-morphological variation in terms of yield and yield-associated traits under polyhouse condition. A research trial was conducted using Randomized Complete Block Design with two replicates at the National Agriculture Genetic Resources Centre (NAGRC), Khumaltar in 2019. The accessions were characterized using various qualitative and quantitative descriptors, with six focusing on traits related to the fruits of the plant and three on phenology and morphology. The results revealed significant variations among the genotypes for all studied traits. Bhaktapur Local was an excellent genotype for recording yield and associated traits, like fruit dimension, number of fruits per plant and yield per plant, making it the most promising genotype, however, Genebank accessions, such as NGRC08671, NGRC07716 and NGRC08668 could be excellent choices for yield associated traits. Correlation analysis indicated a positive relationship between yield and fruit length, fruit width, and total number of fruits per plant, while vine length was positively correlated with the total number of fruits produced per plant. This study identified several genotypes with desirable traits for yield and yield-associated characteristics, which could be valuable in the development of high-yielding cucumber varieties with superior morphological and agronomic traits in the future.
 Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 11(1): 30-36.

Aerobic-anaerobic composting in oil palm factory with bunker system

Oil palm biomass, which includes fronds of oil palm leaves, oil palm fiber and palm kernel shells, empty fruit bunches, liquid waste from oil palm, and other mill wastes, can pose significant environmental hazards. Solid waste and liquid waste have the highest potential for composting. As a result, the goal of this study is to determine the composting features of aerobic-anaerobic systems in palm oil mill bunkers. The research was conducted at PT Eastern Sumatra Indonesia, Bukit Maraja POM, Simalungun Regency, with samples evaluated at Medan's Socfindo Laboratory and Bogor's Center for Research and Development of Biotechnology and Agricultural Genetic Resources. The data acquired in Farm Manager's PLC (Process Logic Control) system was evaluated visually, as were the results of compost qualities from the aerobic-anaerobic system in bunker. Compost made from empty fruit bunches (EFB) via aerobic and anaerobic processes has varied characteristics. The major nutrients (N, P, K, Ca, Mg) and pH of anaerobic compost are greater than those produced by aerobic compost in bunker. Composting in an aerobic system may suppress the generation of Methane (CH4) gas until it is undetected, however composting in an anaerobic system can detect a high level of Methane (CH4) gas formation.
 
 Keywords: aerobic, anaerobic, bunker system, composting, oil palm

Agro Morphological Characterization and Diversity Assessment of Pea (Pisum Sativum L.) Germplasm Conserved in Genebank of Nepal

A total 122 landraces collection collection of pea (Pisum sativum L.) germplasm accessions conserved in the Gene bank of Nepal was characterized for 8 quantitative and 11 qualitative traits to assess the magnitude of prevailing genetic variability at National Agriculture Genetic Resources Centre (Genebank), Khumaltar, Nepal during 2017. Shannon and Weaver diversity index (H’) analysis revealed significant intra landrace diversity for both quantitative (0.783) and qualitative traits (0.536). The first two principle components with Eigen value >1 accounted for 66.3% of the entire variability for quantitative traits. For qualitative traits, four principle components with Eigen value >1 accounted for 61.6% of the entire variability. Four clusters were established with phenotypic similarities using Euclidean distance and average linkage methods. The landraces grouped into the cluster I were characterized by higher pod length, width and 100 seed weight. Pearson correlation analysis among seven quantitative traits showed highly significant positive correlation (r = 0.557***) between flowering days and maturity days. This variation indicated that there is a way to identify promising genotypes for pea breeding.

Comparison of Tetraploid Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) Populations Collected from Turkey and Former Soviet Countries

Tetraploid Medicago sativa L. subspecies; M. sativa subsp. sativa, M. sativa subsp. falcata and M. sativa subsp. varia form the primary gene pool of the alfalfa. The center of diversity for this subspecies is seen as the Caucasus, Northwest Iran and Northeast Turkey, and its natural range is the former Soviet Union and the southern border of North Africa as the northern border. Genetic diversity among the primary gene pool and comparisons between regions of diversity provides a good reference for breeders when utilizing genetic resources. The United States Department of Agriculture Genetic Resources Information Network (USDA-GRIN) System provides reference data from its entire natural range, including Turkey and the Former Soviet region. In this study, seven populations collected from Turkey and thirteen alfalfa populations collected from Former Soviet Countries held in the USDA GRIN System were evaluated using 20 SSR markers. Within the scope of the study, the information between the locations of the subspecies was compared to reveal the hierarchical population structure. The results obtained from the STRUCTURE and PCA analyzes show that the populations are clustered in two main groups for both countries, but there is a high similarity in hybrid genome contents in the subspecies belonging to the Former Soviet countries. In addition, it was determined by AMOVA analysis that the variance within the populations was higher than that between the populations according to the subspecies analyzed from both countries. It is thought that the results will be effective in terms of using alfalfa genetic resources of these countries in breeding programs.

Phenotypic characterization and diversity of Nepalese garlic (Allium sativum L.) landraces

A total 37 garlic landraces collection from Nepal Genebank were characterized using phenotypic trait maps or agro morphological markers at National Agriculture Genetic Resources Centre (Genebank), Khumaltar, Lalitpur, Nepal during 2017 using quantitative and qualitative traits. Shannon and Weaver diversity index (H’) analysis revealed significant intra landrace diversity for both quantitative and qualitative traits. Nine principal components contributed 100 % to the cumulative variance and the first three principle components with Eigen value >1 accounted for 69.9 % of the entire variability.The cluster analysis grouped the 37 accessions into five distinct group. The Accession CO4816 from cluster 5 were superior in terms of yield attributing characters such as number of cloves/bulb, weight of cloves and yield but found to be shorter is plant height. Pearson correlation analysis among eight quantitative traits showed highly significant positive correlation between leaf length and leaf width, leaf length and shaft length, leaf length and yield, weight of cloves and yield. The high yield is associated with leaf length, leaf width, weight of cloves and number of cloves. The frequency distribution for disease (Cercospora leafspot and Alternaria porii) occurrence were very low in 78 % of the accessions.