Geographical Regions Of India Research Articles

Comparison of the reproductive biology of two stocks of Indian subcontinental Mugil cephalus (Linnaeus, 1758) with special reference to reproductive isolation and philopatry

The study of reproductive biology is a prerequisite for fishery management and conservation. The current study aimed to compile all available information on the reproductive biology of the grey mullet, Mugil cephalus from two geographical regions of India, Cochin backwaters (west coast; n = 362) and Pulicat (east coast; n = 223) southern India to decipher the possible differences in reproductive and biological attributes between the geographical groups. The LWR showed isometric growth (b = 3.08) for females on the west coast and positive allometric growth (b = 3.338) on the east coast, whereas the males showed negative allometric growth on both coasts. The sex ratio (male: female) recorded in this study was 1:1.2 on the west coast and was well balanced. On the east coast, the sex ratio was 1: 2.09 and deviated significantly from the expected 1:1 ratio. The gonadal morphology and developmental pattern were the same for both groups of M. cephalus . The length at maturity values of both males (L 50 = 349.3 mm TL on the west coast and 375.8 mm TL on the east coast) and female (L 50 = 437.6 mm TL in the west coast and 394.9 mm TL in the east coast) showed a significant difference between two groups. Seasonal distribution of GSI and maturity stages suggested that the spawning period of M. cephalus was between May and July coinciding with the onset of the southwest monsoon on the west coast while on the east coast it was between December and January months during the north-east monsoon. The reproductive isolation and philopatry in west and east coast M. cephalus groups are discussed based on the observations on the spatio-temporal distribution of fishes in the sampling areas.

Comprehensive analysis of genomic diversity of SARS-CoV-2 in different geographic regions of India: an endeavour to classify Indian SARS-CoV-2 strains on the basis of co-existing mutations.

Accumulation of mutations within the genome is the primary driving force in viral evolution within an endemic setting. This inherent feature often leads to altered virulence, infectivity and transmissibility, and antigenic shifts to escape host immunity, which might compromise the efficacy of vaccines and antiviral drugs. Therefore, we carried out a genome-wide analysis of circulating SARS-CoV-2 strains to detect the emergence of novel co-existing mutations and trace their geographical distribution within India. Comprehensive analysis of whole genome sequences of 837 Indian SARS-CoV-2 strains revealed the occurrence of 33 different mutations, 18 of which were unique to India. Novel mutations were observed in the S glycoprotein (6/33), NSP3 (5/33), RdRp/NSP12 (4/33), NSP2 (2/33), and N (1/33). Non-synonymous mutations were found to be 3.07 times more prevalent than synonymous mutations. We classified the Indian isolates into 22 groups based on their co-existing mutations. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the representative strains of each group were divided into various sub-clades within their respective clades, based on the presence of unique co-existing mutations. The A2a clade was found to be dominant in India (71.34%), followed by A3 (23.29%) and B (5.36%), but a heterogeneous distribution was observed among various geographical regions. The A2a clade was highly predominant in East India, Western India, and Central India, whereas the A2a and A3 clades were nearly equal in prevalence in South and North India. This study highlights the divergent evolution of SARS-CoV-2 strains and co-circulation of multiple clades in India. Monitoring of the emerging mutations will pave the way for vaccine formulation and the design of antiviral drugs.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00705-020-04911-0.

Effect of aging and geographical variations in the content of guggulsterones and metabolomic profiling of oleogum resins of commiphora wightii: The Indian bdellium

Background: The oleo-gum resin of Commiphora wightii has been utilized for centuries in Ayurvedic medicine for the treatment of various diseases. Ruthless exploitation of this species with negligible conservation efforts has led to its inclusion in the International Union for Conservation of Nature assemblage of endangered plant species. Objectives: In this paper, the impact of plant aging and geographical variations of guggulsterone (GS) content in oleo-gum resin collected from different geographical regions of India has been examined. Materials and Methods: The oleo-gum resin samples of different age groups and geographical regions of India (Kutch, Morena, Jodhpur, Jaipur, and Pakistan border of Kutch) were collected directly from the site and examined to check the concentration of GS-E and Z by high-performance liquid chromatography. Comprehensive metabolomic profiling of samples was done through liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. Results: The data showed that there is no significant variation was found in the concentration of GS-E and Z with the change in the age of C. wightti plant. The oleo-gum resin samples of Morena showed a high percentage range of GSs (0.88%–2.17% w/w), whereas Jaipur samples showed a lower percentage of GSs (0.56%–0.89% w/w). From metabolomics profiling, 11 high-intensity metabolites were identified in samples of all major regions of India. Conclusion: This study indicates that there is no impact of plant aging on the GS contents. The Indian regions such as Morena, Kutch, and Pakistan border near Kutch regions can be used as a potential source for mass multiplication of guggul plants to get the good quality of the oleo-gum resin.

Seroprevalence of chikungunya virus infection in India, 2017: a cross-sectional population-based serosurvey

Since its re-emergence in 2005, chikungunya virus (CHIKV) transmission has been documented in most Indian states. Information is scarce regarding the seroprevalence of CHIKV in India. We aimed to estimate the age-specific seroprevalence, force of infection (FOI), and proportion of the population susceptible to CHIKV infection. We did a nationally representative, cross-sectional serosurvey, in which we randomly selected individuals in three age groups (5-8, 9-17, and 18-45 years), covering 240 clusters from 60 selected districts of 15 Indian states spread across all five geographical regions of India (north, northeast, east, south, and west). Age was the only inclusion criterion. We tested serum samples for IgG antibodies against CHIKV. We estimated the weighted age-group-specific seroprevalence of CHIKV infection for each region using the design weight (ie, the inverse of the overall probability of selection of state, district, village or ward, census enumeration block, and individual), adjusting for non-response. We constructed catalytic models to estimate the FOI and the proportion of the population susceptible to CHIKV in each region. From June 19, 2017, to April 12, 2018, we enumerated 117 675 individuals, of whom 77 640 were in the age group of 5-45 years. Of 17 930 randomly selected individuals, 12 300 individuals participated and their samples were used for estimation of CHIKV seroprevalence. The overall prevalence of IgG antibodies against CHIKV in the study population was 18·1% (95% CI 14·2-22·6). The overall seroprevalence was 9·2% (5·4-15·1) among individuals aged 5-8 years, 14·0% (8·8-21·4) among individuals aged 9-17 years, and 21·6% (15·9-28·5) among individuals aged 18-45 years. The seroprevalence was lowest in the northeast region (0·3% [95% CI 0·1-0·8]) and highest in the southern region (43·1% [34·3-52·3]). There was a significant difference in seroprevalence between rural (11·5% [8·8-15·0]) and urban (40·2% [31·7-49·3]) areas (p<0·0001). The seroprevalence did not differ by sex (male 18·8% [95% CI 15·2-23·0] vs female 17·6% [13·2-23·1]; p=0·50). Heterogeneous FOI models suggested that the FOI was higher during 2003-07 in the southern and western region and 2013-17 in the northern region. FOI was lowest in the eastern and northeastern regions. The estimated proportion of the population susceptible to CHIKV in 2017 was lowest in the southern region (56·3%) and highest in the northeastern region (98·0%). CHIKV transmission was higher in the southern, western, and northern regions of India than in the eastern and northeastern regions. However, a higher proportion of the population susceptible to CHIKV in the eastern and northeastern regions suggests a susceptibility of these regions to outbreaks in the future. Our survey findings will be useful in identifying appropriate target age groups and sites for setting up surveillance and for future CHIKV vaccine trials. Indian Council of Medical Research.

Does myopia decrease the risk of diabetic retinopathy in both type-1 and type-2 diabetes mellitus?

Purpose:To study the relationship between the severity of myopia and the severity of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in individuals with type 1 or type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM).Methods:This retrospective study was conducted using data from electronic medical records from a multicentric eyecare network located in various geographic regions of India. Individuals with type 1 or type 2 DM were classified according to their refractive status. Severe nonproliferative DR (NPDR), PDR, or presence of clinically significant macular edema (CSME) with any type of DR was considered as vision-threatening diabetic retinopathy (VTDR).Results:A total of 472 individuals with type-1 DM (mean age 41 ± 10 years) and 9341 individuals with type-2 DM (52 ± 9 years) were enrolled. Individuals with a hyperopic refractive error had a significant positive association with the diagnosis of VTDR (odds ratio (OR) 1.26; 95%CI 1.04–1.51, P = 0.01) and moderate nonproliferative DR (OR 1.27; 95%CI 1.02–1.59, P = 0.03) in type-2 DM; however, no significant association was found in type-1 DM. After adjusting for age, gender, anisometropia, and duration of diabetes, the presence of high myopia (< - 6 D) reduced the risk of VTDR in type 2 DM (OR 0.18; 95% CI 0.04–0.77, P = 0.02), but no association was found in type 1 DM. Mild and moderate myopia had no significant association with any forms of DR in both type-1 and type-2 DM.Conclusion:Hyperopic refractive error was found to increase the risk of VTDR in persons with type 2 DM. High-myopic refractive error is protective for VTDR in type 2 DM, but not in type-1 DM.

Preference and practice of Indian physicians towards the use of vasodilator di-hydralazine in the management of resistant hypertension

Background: The treatment modalities of resistant hypertension (RH) remain a clinical challenge, often requiring secondary/add-on drugs with first-line therapy to control blood pressure (BP). This study was conducted to explore and understand the preferences and practices of Indian physicians towards the use of vasodilator (especially di-hydralazine) in the management of RH.Methods: This was a cross-sectional, observational, web-based physician survey. The study included cardiologist, nephrologist and consultant physicians from different geographical regions of India. A web-based physician survey questionnaire (PSQ) was created in google forms and the link was circulated to the physicians. Responses obtained were analysed.Results: A total of 457 physicians participated in this survey. In majority of the physicians, vasodilators were the treatment choice as secondary or add-on drugs with first line therapy to control BP in RH; especially hydralazine/di-hydralazine preferred the most. Majority of the physicians preferred to combine vasodilator with beta blocker and diuretic in patients with uncontrolled and RH. Cardiac failure, followed by chronic kidney disease (CKD), diabetes, dyslipidaemia, hypertensive emergency and angina were the common patient profile in RH in which majority physicians prescribed vasodilator (di-hydralazine). Majority of the physicians rated vasodilator di-hydralazine as “good-very good” in terms of efficacy, safety, tolerability, patient compliance and patient satisfaction in RH.Conclusions: Overall, vasodilators (hydrazinophthalazine derivatives) are preferred as add-on drugs along with first-line drugs in RH. Physician’s opinion towards the use of di-hydralazine was positive. Di-hydralazine may be preferred as an add-on therapeutic option to control BP in RH, however randomized clinical trials are needed for recommendation in cardio-renal medicine.

Epidemiology of rotavirus diarrhea among children less than 5 years hospitalized with acute gastroenteritis prior to rotavirus vaccine introduction in India

BackgroundRotavirus is an important cause of severe diarrhea requiring hospitalization, accounting for approximately 78,000 deaths annually in Indian children below 5 years of age. We present epidemiological data on severe rotavirus disease collected during hospital-based surveillance in India before the introduction of the oral rotavirus vaccine into the national immunization schedule. MethodsThe National Rotavirus Surveillance Network was created involving 28 hospital sites and 11 laboratories across the four geographical regions of India. From September 2012 to August 2016 children less than 5 years of age hospitalized for diarrhea for at least 6 h, were enrolled. After recording clinical details, a stool sample was collected from each enrolled child, which was tested for rotavirus antigen using enzyme immunoassay (EIA). Nearly 2/3rd of EIA positive samples were genotyped using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction to identify the G and P types. ResultsOf the 21,421 children enrolled during the 4 years surveillance, 36.3% were positive for rotavirus. The eastern region had the highest proportion of rotavirus associated diarrhea (39.8%), while the southern region had the lowest (33.8%). Rotavirus detection rates were the highest in children aged 6–23 months (41.8%), and 24.7% in children aged < 6 months. Although rotavirus associated diarrhea was seen throughout the year, the highest positivity was documented between December and February across all the regions. The most common rotavirus genotype was G1P[8] (52.9%), followed by G9P4 (8.7%) and G2P4 (8.4%). ConclusionsThere is high burden of rotavirus gastroenteritis among Indian children below 5 years of age hospitalized for acute diarrhea thereby highlighting the need for introduction of rotavirus vaccine into the national immunization program and also for monitoring circulating genotypes.

Prevalence and spectrum of mutations causing G6PD deficiency in Indian populations

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency is one of the most common human erythroenzymopathy affecting around 10% of the world population. India is endemic for malaria and antimalarial drugs are known to induce haemolysis in G6PD deficient individuals. Here we report the prevalence as well as the molecular diversity of G6PD deficiency in geographical regions of India. A total of 20,896 individuals (11,838 males and 9058 females) were screened by DPIP dye decolorisation method followed by quantitation of G6PD enzyme activity on the suspected samples. Molecular analysis was undertaken in a total of 350 G6PD deficient individuals by PCR-RFLP and DNA sequencing. A structural characteristic of the novel variant was deduced by using DynaMut web-server. The prevalence rate of G6PD deficiency varied between 0.8 and 6.3% with an overall prevalence of 1.9%. A total of twelve mutations were identified. Of the total deleterious alleles detected G6PD Orissa (56.5%) was found to be the most predominant variant followed by G6PD Mediterranean (23.6%). G6PD Mediterranean, G6PD Kaiping and G6PD Mahidol were found to be severely deficient variant and 14.1% of them showed undetectable activity. A novel mutation c.544C➔G (R182G) in exon 6 was identified in one tribal male where substitution of arginine by glycine, likely causes the alteration in the alpha helix leading to disruption of secondary structure of the protein. There are large differences in the distribution of G6PD causal variants between Indian states, and this may have implications for the treatment in the malaria endemic areas.

Phytochemical profiling of the stem bark of Betula utilis from different geographical regions of India using UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS.

A simple, rapid, sensitive, and reliable ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-hybrid linear ion trap triple quadrupole mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for simultaneous determination of 10 bioactive compounds in stem bark of Betula utilis grown in high altitude of Himalaya, India. The objective of the study is to develop and validate ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-hybrid linear ion trap triple quadrupole mass spectrometry for investigation of geographical variations of triterpenoids, phenolics, and flavonoids contents in stem bark of B. utilis. The validated method was successfully applied to investigate geographical variations of triterpenoids, phenolics, and flavonoids in stem bark of B. utilis. The contents of betulinic acid and oleanolic acid were detected higher among selected analytes. The present variation study reveals great importance for the application and overall assessment of B. utilis.

Identification and nomenclature of Albugo candida pathotypes of Indian origin causing white rust disease of rapeseed-mustard

The highly variable nature of Albugo candida pathogen in terms of number of races/pathotypes poses a challenge in the proper identification. Therefore, in this study characterization and identification of 33 A. candida isolates of Indian origin have been done on the basis of molecular and host differentials studies. Molecular characterization using ITS and COX2 gene yielded 1250 bp and 650 bp bands while maximum parsimony trees showed 15 and 13 clusters from 33 A. candida isolates, respectively. On the basis of pathogenicity reactions on 19 host differentials of different Brassica spp., 3 major groups have been identified as Group Ia, Ib, Ic, Id, Ie, II, and III. Group Ia was the pathotype of Brassica juncea, Ib- B. juncea cv. Cutlass, Ic- B. juncea cv. Donskaja, Id- a different B. juncea pathotype that showed disease reaction on B. oleracea, Ie- a different B. juncea pathotype that showed disease reaction on B. carinata cv. Kiran, Gropu II- B. rapa var. Toria, Group III- B. rapa pathotypes, respectively. Finally, from 33 A. candida isolates a total of 21 pathotypes have been identified on the basis of combined grouping of pathogenicity reactions on host differentials and ITS and COX2 gene sequence analysis and new nomenclature has been given as per the International standard, out of which 15 pathotypes showed more virulence to B. juncea that named as AC2–1 to AC2–15, 6 pathotypes showed virulence to B. rapa that named as AC7–1 to AC7–6. A. candida pathotypes identified from different geographical regions of India could be utilized for the identification and deployment of the resistant cultivar in major mustard growing areas.

Contribution of Modifiable Risk Factors on the Burden of Diabetes Among Women in Reproductive Age-Group in India: A Population Based Cross-Sectional Study

With the ongoing epidemiological transition, the burden of diabetes is rapidly accelerating in India, particularly in the past two decades. The study explores the burden of diabetes and the contribution of modifiable risk factors in the occurrence of diabetes among reproductive women (age group 15-49 years) across geographic regions of India. The study utilizes data from the National Family Health Survey in India 2015-16, Census of India 2011, and World Population Prospects 2015. Population Attributable Fraction was computed and the number of total and avoidable diabetic cases were estimated across regions. The prevalence of diabetic cases in India was 24.4 per 1000 women and it largely varies across geographic regions. Diabetes was found to affect around 8.2 million women in the reproductive age-group, out of which Southern region (accounted for 3.3 million diabetic cases), followed by Central (1.6 million), and Eastern region (1.3 million). Overweight, Obesity and Hypertension were important contributors to the diabetes burden, which if mitigated optimally can reduce diabetic cases by 1.6 million, 1.5 million, and 1.3 million, respectively. Inclusion of diabetes screening along with Maternal and Child Health services could help in monitoring and effective management of diabetes burden among women. An optimal level of monitoring regarding the cascades in diabetes care needs to be ensured by Government keeping women in a central place.

Justicia adhatoda reveals two morphotypes with possible functional significance.

Justicia adhatoda L. (Acanthaceae), an Old-World species of Justicia, is found in almost all geographical regions of India. Indian botanists have persistently used two accepted synonyms of J. adhatoda, namely, Adhatoda vasica and Adhatoda zeylanica, treating them as names of separate species, but without considering or making any reference to variation of forms in the species. Here, different aspects of variation-phenotypic, genotypic, and distributional-in Indian populations of J. adhatoda were studied to determine whether the two names might have been used to designate distinguishable forms of the species. We conducted field studies in different regions of India, laboratory studies of diverse phenotypic traits in experimental plots (anatomical, biochemical, reproductive, and morphometric), and a preliminary study of genetic variation using homologous cytochrome P450 gene fragments. We assessed herbarium samples from across India and the taxonomic literature for pointers indicating the presence of distinguishable forms. Population-level phenotypic and genetic variation pointed to the presence of two distinct morphotypes of the species, which separately tend to occur in dry and wet regions. Each form retains its original phenotype, either when the two forms are transplanted and cultivated together, or when found growing in regions (presumed introduced) outside its normal distributional range. Morphological studies and metabolic profiling (leaf and seed fatty acids, wax load and wax composition in leaf) suggest functional adaptation of the two forms, one to drier and the other to wetter regions. We could distinguish these forms in herbarium specimens dating back to 1821, but neither herbarium specimens nor the taxonomic literature reveal any reference to two forms. We propose that the forms be recognized as two distinct morphotypes of Justicia adhatoda.

Phenotype Based Selection in Kodo Millet (Paspalum Scrobiculatum L.) to Identify Elite Accessions

Background: Kodo millet (Paspalum scrobiculatum L) is an annual hardy crop grown in India from Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the south, to Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal in the north. It is known to have high drought tolerance and, for its potential to sustain in marginally less fertile soil. The grain has high nutritional properties thus possess medicinal values. Owing to multiple utility factors and sustainable growth rate amidst climate change, makes it an ideal crop for cultivation. In the present study accessions of Kodo millet ((Paspalum scrobiculatum L) from twelve different geographical regions of India were evaluated for quantitative and qualitative traits to determine its growth conditions under varied climatic conditions. Methods: Total of 96 indigenous germplasm were collected across the country and were sown in a breeding farm to grow selectively healthy crops in a randomized block design manner during kharif 2012 and 2013. Observations of quantitative traits were recorded on five arbitrarily selected plants in each replication for different physiological traits. Results: The statistical data revealed significant differences among all the studied accessions. Mainly IC482729 and IC404789 from Tamil Nadu had high biomass, straw yield, and yield per plant. IC396004 from Chhattisgarh showed advantageous performance in earliness with medium plant height. Therefore, the present findings helped in identifying elite germplasm accessions and could be effectively used in the Kodo millet enhancement program.

Trends of Hypertension and Neurological Diseases in India: A Nationwide Survey Reporting the Distribution Across Geographical Areas.

Background:Hypertension has remained an imperative risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, increasing the national burden of premature deaths over the decades.Purpose:There is limited data on the prevalence of hypertension and its distribution across all geographic regions in India. This nationwide survey was conducted in 2017 to assess the prevalence of hypertension and prehypertension among the Indian adults.Methods:A multilevel stratified cluster sampling technique, with a random selection among the urban and rural populations, was adopted to achieve a sample of 70,031 adults from 24 states and 4 union territories. Blood pressure was measured twice using automated oscillometric machines with a minimum of 3-min gap, and the average was recorded. This was later categorized into prehypertension (elevated blood pressure) and hypertension subgroups as defined by the new 2017 American Heart Association guidelines.Results:The prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension in our study population across all ages was found to be 18.2% and 24%, respectively. Prehypertension was common at a younger age, whereas the prevalence of hypertension was higher in the older age groups. The urban population (24.4%) and males (24.7%) were positively associated with prehypertension and hypertension. The western zone had the highest prevalence of hypertension, whereas the eastern population had the lowest.Conclusion:Our study revealed an alarmingly high prevalence of hypertension, accounting up to one hypertensive in every four adults in India. There is a need for more robust national strategies for identifying and treating hypertension to reduce the national and the global burden of hypertension by 25% before 2025.

Detection and molecular characterization of porcine enterovirus G15 and teschovirus from India

Porcine enterovirus G (EV-G) and teschovirus (PTV) generally cause asymptomatic infections. Although both viruses have been reported from various countries, they are rarely detected from India. To detect these viruses in Western India, fecal samples (n=26) of diarrheic piglets aged below three months from private pig farms near Pune (Maharashtra) were collected. The samples were screened by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction using conserved enterovirus specific primers from 5' untranslated region. For genetic characterization of detected EV-G strain, nearly complete genome, and for PTV, partial VP1 gene were sequenced. EV-G strain showed the highest identity in a VP1 gene at nucleotide (78.61%) and amino acid (88.65%) level with EV-G15, prototype strain. However, its complete genome was homologous with the nucleotide (78.38% identity) and amino acid (91.24% identity) level to Ishi-Ka2 strain (LC316832), unassigned EV-G genotype detected from Japan. The nearly complete genome of EV-G15 consisted of 7398 nucleotides excluding the poly(A) tail and has an open reading frame that encodes a 2170 amino acid polyprotein. Genetic analysis of the partial VP1 gene of teschovirus identified porcine teschovirus 4 (PTV-4) and putative PTV-17 genotype. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on nearly full genome characterization of EV-G15, and detection of PTV-4 and putative PTV-17 genotypes from India. Further, detection and characterization of porcine enteroviruses are needed for a comprehensive understanding of their genetic diversity and their association with symptomatic infections from other geographical regions of India.

Iconography of Sage Narada in Indian Sculptural Art: Regional Variations

Narada is one of the most admired characters in ancient Indian literature and mythology. He has been associated with numerous aspects of Indian life like music, architecture, art, law, justice, storytelling, agriculture and devotion. This versatile and adroit nature of Narada made him very popular among different ethnic, linguistic, religious groups and geographical regions of India. This paper is an attempt to document the sculptural depictions of Narada across the country and to identify and designate its iconographical features. The authors have tried to understand the regional varieties among the sculptural illustrations of Narada. This paper also looks into the symbolism behind the attributes and icons of Narada in view of the regional variations in legends and mythologies.

Estimation of genetic diversity and population structure in Tinospora cordifolia using SSR markers.

Thirty polymorphic SSRs, derived from RNA sequencing of Tinospora cordifolia (willd.), were utilized for genetic diversity and population structure evaluation among 96 accessions collected from ten different geographical regions of India. A total of 7611 SSRs were identified from 268149 transcripts. Of all SSR loci, 69.07% of them were tri-nucleotide repeat motifs, followed by di-nucleotide repeat motifs (12.82%). A total of 230 alleles were generated by 30 SSRs with an average of 7.67 alleles per locus with comparatively higher polymorphic information content (average 0.68). The expected (He) and observed (Ho) heterozygosity means were 0.71 and 0.12, respectively. All the loci showed significant deviation from Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE). The neighbor joining clustering based on jaccard's coefficient grouped all the 96 accessions into three major cluster which was also in congruence with model-based structure plot. The result of molecular variance (AMOVA) revealed higher genetic variance within populations than among populations. The result reflects an existence of high level of genetic diversity in the collected accessions of T. cordifolia. The accessions Tc131, Tc31, Tc129, Tc38, Tc16, Tc59, Tc60, Tc17, Tc106 and Tc130 was found to be potential and diverse in nature and the SSRs TCSSR-18, TCSSR-37, TCTSSR-59, TCTSSR-92, TCTSSR-123 and TCTSSR-126 as potential markers. These accessions and newly developed SSR markers provide valuable resource and could be strategically utilized for further genetic improvement of T. cordifolia.

Development of New Index-Based Methodology for Extraction of Built-Up Area From Landsat7 Imagery: Comparison of Performance With SVM, ANN, and Existing Indices

By studying the spectral reflectance features of different land cover types and leveraging information of primarily “BLUE” band along with “RED” and “NIR” bands, this article seeks to introduce a new built-up index such as powered B1 builtup index (PB1BI). The proposed index, while being conceptually simple and computationally inexpensive, can extract the built-up areas from Landsat7 satellite images efficiently. For Landsat7 satellite imagery, classification performances of the proposed index along with support vector machine (SVM), artificial neural network (ANN), and three existing built-up indices have been examined for three study sites of 10 Latitude × 10 Longitude (≈12 100 sq · km) area from three diverse geographical regions in India. The computed value of the M-Statistics for PB1BI is consistently greater than 1.80, indicating a better spectral separability between built-up and nonbuilt-up classes by the index. In order to improve the performance of the built-up indices, this article has suggested a bootstrapping method for threshold estimation in addition to the existing Otsu's method for the same. It has been found that using bootstrapping method instead of Otsu's method for threshold estimation has helped to improve the classification performance of built-up indices up to 17.75% and 40.49% in terms of overall accuracy and kappa (κ) coefficient, respectively. It has been observed that for the validation set, average overall accuracy (97.45%) and kappa (κ) coefficient (0.907) of PB1BI for considered study sites are not only significantly higher than existing indices but also comparable with the same of SVM (99.10% and 0.942) and ANN (87.24% and 0.450). This article has also shown that the proposed index provides a stable performance for multitemporal analysis of the study sites and is able to capture growth in built-up region in time horizon. The classification performance of PB1BI has also been verified for Landsat8 imagery across 11 study sites from different continents around the globe, and the results show overall accuracy and κ to be consistently more than 90% and 0.75, respectively. For considered study sites, the reported values of average accuracy and κ of PB1BI for built-up classification using Landsat8 satellite data are 95.7151% and 0.8843, respectively.

Evaluation of spatial and temporal heterogeneity of black carbon aerosol mass concentration over India using three year measurements from IMD BC observation network

Extensive measurements of equivalent black carbon (EBC) aerosol mass concentration at fifteen stations of India Meteorological Department (IMD) BC observation network during the period 2016–2018 are used to study the spatial and temporal heterogeneity over India. The sampling sites represent different geographical region of India. Spatial distribution shows higher values of EBC over stations of north India and IGP. Highest annual mean EBC mass concentration during study period was reported at two mega cities New Delhi (13,575 ± 8401 ng/m3) followed by Kolkata (12,082 ± 6850 ng/m3) whereas lowest mean concentration was at Ranichauri (1737 ± 884 ng/m3) followed by Bhuj (2021 ± 1471 ng/m3). Stations located in coastal region of south India reported low concentration of EBC. In order to find out the quantitative contribution of biomass burning (EBCBB) and fossil fuel (EBCFF) in total mass concentration of EBC, source apportionment study has been carried out using Aethalometer model. The EBCFF is the dominant contributor to EBC mass concentration at all the sites in every season, while the highest seasonal biomass burning mass contribution (37%) was observed in the winter at a background site Ranichauri. Maximum concentration of EBCBB was observed at Srinagar (2671 ng/m3) where as EBCFF was maximum in Delhi (11,074 ng/m3). Seasonal and diurnal variation studies have also been carried out for all the stations. The EBC mass concentrations exhibited strong seasonality, with the highest values occurring in postmonsoon/winter and the lowest in monsoon season. The higher EBC concentration in postmonsoon/winter seasons was attributed to the increased use of fuel in seasonal emission sources, domestic heating and stagnant meteorological conditions, whereas the low levels in monsoon season were related to the precipitation scavenging. Maximum concentration of EBC (22,409 ± 10,510 ng/m3) was observed in winter season over Kolkata. Our study finds high spatial heterogeneity in EBC concentrations across the study area.

Circulation of orf viruses containing the NZ7-like vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF-E) gene type in India

Orf, a poxviral skin infection of small ruminants is caused by orf virus (ORFV) of the genus Parapoxvirus of the Poxviridae family. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is an important virulence factor that is responsible for proliferative lesions in parapoxviral infections. VEGF gene shows high intra- and inter-species variability. Two variants of VEGF have been described globally in ORFV, viz. NZ2- and NZ7-like. In the present study, ORFV isolates of different geographic regions of India were analysed on the basis of the VEGF gene. Indian ORFV isolates showed 95.7–100 % nucleotide (nt) and 78.4–99.3 % amino acid (aa) identity with each other, except ORFV-Assam/LK/14 and ORFV-Meghalaya/03 which shared 85.1–88.35 % and 79.1–81.8 % identity, at nt and aa levels, respectively with other Indian ORFV isolates. All Indian ORFVs under the study demonstrated 83.5–99.1 % nt and 80.5–97.9 % aa identity with NZ7-like VEGF as compared to 41.2–44.8 % nt and 30.7–38.4 % aa identity with NZ2-like VEGF on comparison with global ORFV strains. Phylogenetic analysis based on the VEGF gene showed two clusters of ORFV in which the Indian ORFVs clustered with NZ7-like VEGF from global ORFV strains, mostly from China. Despite the considerable variation, VEGF protein from Indian ORFV strains showed conserved VEGF homology domain with eight cysteine residues. Homology modeling of Indian ORFV strains predicted the presence of extended Loop 3 similar to NZ7-like VEGF. Therefore, the present study showed the circulation of ORFV strains with comparatively less variable NZ7-like VEGF in India which implicates its importance in the epidemiology of ORFV infections in the country.