High Quality Seeds Research Articles

Leaf carbohydrate metabolic enzyme activities are associated with salt tolerance and yield stability in the climate-resilient crop Camelina sativa

Soil salinity is an increasingly severe problem affecting plant growth and development thus posing a threat to agricultural production worldwide. Many crops currently grown are susceptible to even moderate salt stress, and crop diversification is sought to cope with increasingly challenging environmental conditions. Camelina sativa is a versatile, underutilized, low-input Brassicaceae oilseed crop valued for its high-quality seeds and its resilience to a wide range of climate conditions. In this study, the effects of salt stress on the growth and productivity of two camelina cultivars and six landraces from different geographic regions were examined. The performance of these lines was related to adjustments in their carbohydrate metabolic enzyme activity profiles in leaves as a central physiological hub. Profiling enzyme activities and their regulation in response to salt stress revealed significant genotype × treatment (G × T) interactions and allowed the identification of specific activity signatures associated with differences in yield stability in the tested lines. Yield-stable landraces showed distinct regulation patterns contrasting those of less yield-stable lines. In particular, upregulation of specific enzyme activities was associated with yield stability under salt stress. Camelina landraces may be promising resources to improve tolerance to salinity, with plasticity in carbohydrate metabolism as a contributing mechanism. Overall, these results provide a valuable basis for enzyme activity signatures as new physiological markers for supporting breeding programmes.

Collective Action for Seed Producer Cooperatives and Their Role in Improving the Sustainable Seed Supply and Impacts: The Case of Ethiopia

Seed is an essential component in crop production. Using superior seed from improved cultivars can increase yield by as much as fifty per cent per hectare. High-quality seed also encourages using extra agricultural inputs like fertilizers and insecticides. The Ethiopian seed system development strategy recognizes the formal, intermediary, and farmer seed systems. The farmers' system is the primary seed source, with relatively little contribution from the formal system. The public sector primarily controls the formal system's breeding and seed distribution. The formal, farmers', and intermediary systems are comparable to each other. The government encourages Seed Producers Cooperatives (SPCs) to cultivate and supply seeds to the market. Cooperatives (SPCs) supply of high-quality seeds for various crops in response to local and international demand and the needs of farmers. This helps to ensure national seed security. Policymakers and development experts have recognized the significant role of SPCs in Ethiopia's seed industry, and the country's agricultural development initiatives reflect this. It is essential to reform the seed industry to have a positive impact on Ethiopian agriculture's progress. However, the seed industry in Ethiopia faces limitations due to institutional, organizational, technical, and infrastructure challenges, preventing it from meeting the increasing demand from different agro-ecologies and farming systems. Despite this, little research has been conducted to study and document SPCs' involvement in the seed industry and their contributions. Unfortunately, not much work has gone into examining and recording their contributions to increasing seed access and availability as well as their involvement in the seed industry. Concerning improving seed supply and guaranteeing seed security in Ethiopia, this review aimed to evaluate Seed Producers Cooperatives' present standing in the seed industry.

Advancements in Seed Treatment Methods and Storage Techniques of Marigold Seeds: An Overview

Floriculture plays a pivotal role in boosting national economies by driving foreign exchange revenues. However, current productivity levels in floriculture, particularly in marigold (Tagetes spp.), are insufficient to meet the escalating global demand for ornamental flowers. Marigold, being one of the most commercially significant crops in this sector, requires improved seed quality to achieve optimal performance and higher yields. Major constraints, such as the limited availability of high-quality seeds, and the rapid decline in seed viability during storage, continue to hamper productivity. Additionally, conventional seed treatment practices and storage methods often fail to sustain seed vigour and germination rates over extended periods. This review offers an in-depth analysis of the latest advancements in seed treatment technologies and storage practices to enhance germination, disease resistance, and seedling establishment. By integrating the insights from seed treatments and post-harvest storage of seeds, this review paper addresses key challenges faced by the floriculture industry and aligns with the growing global demand for high-quality floral crops.

Optimizing Basil Seed Vigor Evaluations: An Automatic Approach Using Computer Vision-Based Technique

The short cultivation cycle and high essential oil content of basil plants render them a valuable raw material source for diverse industries. However, large-scale production is hindered by the lack of specific protocols to assess seed vigor; thus, a consistent supply of high-quality seeds that meet consumer demands cannot be ensured. This study investigated the effectiveness of an automated system for seedling analysis as a tool for evaluating basil seed vigor and compared it to traditional tests. For this purpose, seeds from eight commercial lots were evaluated in two separate trials spaced six months apart using the following tests: germination, first germination count, saturated salt accelerated aging, primary root emergence, mean germination time, seedling emergence, seedling emergence speed index, and computerized seedling image analysis. The parameters provided by the system allowed us to clearly and objectively classify the basil seed lots based on vigor, and the results were strongly and significantly correlated with the findings of traditional vigor tests, particularly between the vigor index and seedling length. Digital analysis of four-day-old seedlings proved to be a fast and efficient technique for evaluating basil seed vigor and has the potential for use in automating the data collection and analysis process.

Estimation of winter barley for loose smut resistance

In order to obtain high-quality seeds and high yields of agricultural crops, it is important to preserve crops until harvesting. Ear diseases cause the greatest harm, affecting the most valuable part of the plant. The studied causative agent of loose smut Ustilago nuda (C.N. Jensen) Rostr. destroys the ear completely, leaving only a black dusty mass. Winter barley is of great demand in production throughout the country, especially in the southern regions. Breeding varieties for resistance to this pathogen is still relevant today. The current paper has presented the results of the immunological characteristics of winter barley varieties undergoing competitive and inter-station variety testing. The purpose of the study was to identify winter barley varieties that were stably tolerant and resistant to the pathogen. The study was conducted at the infection plot of the FSBSI “ARC “Donskoy” in the period 2021–2023 using forced infection during the flowering period. There have been identified the varieties and lines of the ARC that demonstrated high and practical resistance to the pathogen. There has been identified a maximum number (102 samples) under the conditions of 2023, 78 samples under the conditions of 2022, and only 71 under the conditions of 2021. There were no highly susceptible samples in the studied material. The maximum damage was 34.9 % for the variety ‘Caprice’ under the arid conditions of 2022. There has been given characteristics of the varieties that have shown high resistance over all the years of the study, such as ‘Timofey’, ‘Step’, ‘Marusya’, ‘Kvant’, ‘Foks 1’, ‘Master’, ‘Samson’, ‘Sprinter’, ‘Dostoyny’, ‘Espada’, ‘Onega’. There has been noted that the breeding lines of the ARC ‘Parallelum 2019’, ‘Nutans 2137’, ‘Parallelum 2149’, ‘Parallelum 2136’, ‘Parallelum 2110’, ‘Parallelum 2131’ have shown high resistance to the pathogen.

Farmers Preference and Willingness to Pay for Sugarcane Seed Attributes in Kenya

Over the years, Sustainable production of sugarcane has been impeded by scarcity of high-quality seeds, this has been mainly attributed by dominancy use of recycled planting materials which are often sourced from local social networks. To help reverse this trend, a number of organizations have been involved in the development of improved and clean seed cane planting material. However, a sustainable seed-system has not yet been actualized largely due to limited development of improved cane seed systems. In order to inform the improved cane seed development efforts, it is important to understand farmer’s preference toward different attributes attached to sugarcane seed varieties. It’s due to the above insistence to identify these preferences that this article has been developed, the data used was collected in Kakamega and Kisumu Counties which occupies the large sugarcane production zone. 284 sugarcane farmers and Value chain actors were interviewed. Choice experiment approach was used in assessment of farmers preferences for sugarcane seeds attributes . The findings of the study revealed that mean age of the farmers was approximately 50 years (49.96 yrs.) with average of 14 years in sugarcane production and average land size of 2 acres with most of farmers having just basic education (Primary school level). The findings indicated that, in general, sugarcane farmers mostly preferred to purchase seed cane planting material with high adaptability to the environment, high yielding, disease resistance, early maturity and Sucrose level in that respective order of importance. The marginal willingness to pay for each attribute show that adaptability had the highest WTP of 3970 followed yields (KES.1316), resistance (KES.608), maturity (KES. 379), and level of Sucrose content (KES.238)respectively. The study therefore recommends that awareness creation on improved cane seeds should be done, and an efficient distribution system for improved seed cane should be established.

Women's dietary diversity is associated with homestead production and market access: A cross-sectional study in rural Rwanda.

Dietary diversity has been widely used as a proxy indicator for micronutrient adequacy. In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), including Rwanda, women are at high risk of inadequate micronutrient intake resulting from poorly diversified diets. This study was conducted to examine the factors associated with women's dietary diversity, with emphasis on homestead production diversity and market access in the Northern Province of Rwanda. A cross-sectional design was used, involving 606 women aged 18-49 years. Linear regression analyses were performed to examine the association between various factors and women's dietary diversity. Results show that 84% of the sample households raised at least one livestock species. Seventy-one percent of the households had no agricultural land. Eighty percent of those without land had a homestead garden on which they grew food crops, mainly vegetables and fruit trees. The average crop species was 2.3. On average, women consumed 3 out of 9 food groups. The homestead production diversity score was positively associated with women's dietary diversity score (β = 0.16, p < 0.001). Women's dietary diversity score was negatively associated with distance from the household to the nearest market (β = -0.08, p = 0.027) and household food insecurity (β = -0.06, p < 0.001). Maternal education (p < 0.001), household wealth index (p < 0.05), and ownership of more than 2.5 acres compared to being without land (p < 0.05) were associated with women's dietary diversity score. The dietary diversity of women could be enhanced through interventions that promote the diversity of livestock and crop species produced through homestead production. Potential interventions to explore may include integrated farming systems that combine small livestock and crop production utilising improved livestock breeds and high-quality seeds and planting materials of high-yielding varieties of fruits and vegetables, along with rainwater harvesting to facilitate small-scale irrigation. The impact of such interventions on women's dietary diversity can be further reinforced by parallel programmes aimed at improving women's education and the socioeconomic status of households.

PURCHASE BEHAVIOUR OF PADDY FARMERS TOWARDS HYBRID PADDY SEEDS IN DHARAMPUR TALUKA OF VALSAD DISTRICT

Seed is the initial point of cropping cycle. Seeds play a vital role in agriculture and the seeds industry is rapidly growing due to the rising demand for increased food production and high quality seeds. The primary aim of this study was to explore the purchase behaviour of farmers regarding hybrid paddy seeds. To fulfill the objective descriptive research design was adopted with Multi-stage sampling method. Initially, Dharampur taluka was purposefully selected from 6 talukas in Valsad district. In the next stage, 10 villages were randomly selected within Dharampur taluka. Finally, 10 paddy farmers were conveniently selected from each village, resulting in a total sample size of 100 farmers. The structured interview schedule was used to collect the primary data from farmers. The collected data was analyzed with the help of statistical tools as simple percentage analysis, weighted average mean, rating scale, etc. The study found that most farmers (56%) were belonged to 41 to 50 year age group, primarily had secondary education (45%) and commonly combined farming with animal husbandry (58%). Most of the farmers (56%) owned small, fragmented land under 1 hectare. Hybrid paddy seed purchase was influenced by past experience and product benefits. KEY WORDS: Socio-economic profile, Purchase behaviour, Paddy farmers, Hybrid paddy seeds, Valsad district

EFFECT OF DRYING ON THE PHYSIOLOGICAL QUALITY OF THREATED AND NON-THREADED CORN SEEDS

Corn (Zea mays) is one of the main crops in Brazilian agriculture, with great representation in the economy. Processing is a set of operations that aim to improve the physical characteristics of a batch of seeds. It involves the stages of threshing, drying, cleaning, classification, treatment and packaging. The companies' quality control acts significantly so that high quality seeds are sold, justifying quality analyzes during all stages of seed production. The experiment was carried out in a Seed Processing Unit in the municipality of Patos de Minas (MG). The study was carried out with two hybrids, samples of threshed and non-threshed material were collected on the selection table, being deposited in bags for drying, which was carried out for seven days. Given the results obtained, it can be concluded that for the hybrids tested, drying the seeds on the cob is more recommended as it does not affect the germination and cold vigor of the seeds.

Implementasi Teknik Sambung Pucuk untuk Meningkatkan Produktivitas dan Keberlanjutan Tanaman Buah Lokal Duku (Lansium domesticum) di Desa Arisan Buntal, Sumatera Selatan

Arisan Buntal Village is a small village in South Sumatra's Ogan Komering Ilir district. Duku (Lansium domesticum Corr) is a highly valued commodity in Arisan Buntal. The most significant barrier to straw development in Arisan Buntal is a need for high-quality seeds. Duku are traditionally grown; therefore, they take a long time to produce fruit. As a result, more advanced stitching techniques, such as the grafting technique, are required. However, because the youth of Arisan Buntal knew nothing about it and did not practice it, they tended to abandon the attempt down the business. This activity seeks to provide instruction in the Samsung puck technique production to the Arisan Buntal youth, allowing them to get superior duke crops and encouraging the sustainability of duke crops at the activity site. The evaluation of the activities revealed that the training participants improved their knowledge of duku-related commodities and grafting techniques. The post-test findings showed that 100% of the participants were aware of Arisan Buntal Village's potential as a hub for the growth of duku farming and the clamping method for duku crops. Furthermore, as many as 94% of participants had already tried the procedure with the assistance of specialists. Furthermore, the percentage of participants who prefer to apply the grafting method to the front has increased from 76.5% to 91.7%. The observation shows that the success rate of this technique reached 80%.

Quality traits drive the enrichment of Massilia in the rhizosphere to improve soybean oil content

BackgroundSoybean seeds are rich in protein and oil. The selection of varieties that produce high-quality seeds has been one of the priorities of soybean breeding programs. However, the influence of improved seed quality on the rhizosphere microbiota and whether the microbiota is involved in determining seed quality are still unclear. Here, we analyzed the structures of the rhizospheric bacterial communities of 100 soybean varieties, including 53 landraces and 47 modern cultivars, and evaluated the interactions between seed quality traits and rhizospheric bacteria.ResultsWe found that rhizospheric bacterial structures differed between landraces and cultivars and that this difference was directly related to their oil content. Seven bacterial families (Sphingomonadaceae, Gemmatimonadaceae, Nocardioidaceae, Xanthobacteraceae, Chitinophagaceae, Oxalobacteraceae, and Streptomycetaceae) were obviously enriched in the rhizospheres of the high-oil cultivars. Among them, Oxalobacteraceae (Massilia) was assembled specifically by the root exudates of high-oil cultivars and was associated with the phenolic acids and flavonoids in plant phenylpropanoid biosynthetic pathways. Furthermore, we showed that Massilia affected auxin signaling or interfered with active oxygen-related metabolism. In addition, Massilia activated glycolysis pathway, thereby promoting seed oil accumulation.ConclusionsThese results provide a solid theoretical basis for the breeding of revolutionary soybean cultivars with desired seed quality and optimal microbiomes and the development of new cultivation strategies for increasing the oil content of seeds.7196FtKvsnPuUrhB77D9vLVideo

A seed-epidermis-feature-recognition-based lightweight peanut seed selection method for embedded systems

High-quality seeds improve the germination rate. Therefore, seed selection before sowing peanuts is crucial. Current peanut seed selection methods include color sorters and sieving machines, which are efficient but lack accuracy due to their reliance on a single indicator. Manual selection is inefficient and subject to subjective influences. Although machine vision and deep learning have performed well in crops such as corn and pepper, most existing research is based on PC or MATLAB platforms, which are not portable and are prone to interference, making them unsuitable for field applications. This study developed a lightweight model for recognizing peanut seed epidermal features. The model was based on deep learning and model quantization techniques. The transfer learning method was used to use four pre-trained models, EfficientNet_b0, EfficientNetv2-b0, MobileNet_v2_35_224, and NasNet_Mobile, as feature extraction layers, the input layer was added before the feature extraction layer, and the dropout and dense layers were added after the feature extraction layer to construct a classifier. The peanut seed selection network(PSSNet) models were constructed and named PSSNet-E, PSSNet-E2, PSSNet-M, and PSSNet-N, respectively, and trained on the Huayu 22 peanut seed dataset constructed in this study. The constructed models were compressed using model quantization technology, and four quantized models were obtained, namely PSSNet-Ef, PSSNet-E2f, PSSNet-Mf, and PSSNet-Nf. Finally, PSSNet-Mf, which had the best model evaluation, was selected as the peanut selection model for this study and deployed on a prototype for testing. Compared with the unquantized model, the size of the quantized model was reduced by two-thirds and the running speed was increased by 37%. A total of 400 Huayu 22 peanut seeds were selected as test samples, and 5 selection tests were conducted.The results showed that the average accuracy was 95.3%, which met the requirements of peanut selection at the production site.

DAMPAK PERTUMBUHAN BIBIT KELAPA SAWIT (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) TERHADAP PEMBERIAN PUPUK ANORGANIK DAN KOMPOS LIMBAH LUMPUR IPAL PABRIK KARET DI PEMBIBITAN UTAMA

Jambi Province was one of the centers of oil palm plantations in Indonesia and there was another problem likes the age of the plants which had getting older and its worried caused decrease in production. Therefore, its was necessary to replanted oil palm for produced high quality seeds. The purpose of study was to determine the response of application and discover the best single dose of inorganic fertilizer and WWTP sludge compost in the growth of oil palm seedlings in the main nursery. This research was conducted at Teaching and Research Farm, UNJA (September-November 2022). This study used Completely Randomized Design with 5 treatments, (k0 = Urea, TSP, KCl recommended dose, k1 = Urea,TSP, KCl half recommended dose + 100 g WWTP sludge compost, k2 = Urea, TSP, KCl half recommended dose + 200 g WWTP sludge compost, k3 = Urea, TSP, KCl half recommended dose + 300 g WWTP sludge compost, k4 = Urea, TSP, KCl half recommended dose + 400 g WWTP sludge compost. The results showed the application of a single inorganic fertilizer and WWTP sludge compost was able to increased growth of seedling height, root dry weight and root volume. However, its has not been able to be increase of tuber diameter, the number of leaves, shoot dry weight and root crown ratio. Doses of Urea, TSP, KCl half recommended dose + 100 g WWTP sludge compost gived the best average growth of 6-month oil palm seedlings in the main nursery.

Significance of honeybee pollination in increasing seed yield of Trifolium alexandrinum (Fabales: Fabaceae)and its impact on economic sustainability of smallholder farmers.

A major limitation to producing high seed yields in berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum L.) is failure to set seed, predominantly due to lack of pollination. Despite the importance of berseem clover as a leading forage legume, the contribution of pollinators to seed set is scarce. In Pakistan, the honeybee population is declining mainly because of the extensive use of neonicotinoid pesticides and habitat fragmentation. This, combined with the region's harsh environment and the use of inferior, locally bred genotypes, has resulted in low seed yields. Insufficient seed availability leads to limited forage supply, resulting in poor livestock nutrition, which subsequently impacts livestock health and productivity, and reduces farmers' income. The present study estimated the seed production of 3 berseem clover genotypes resulting from honeybees [Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae)] pollination in 2 growing seasons (2012-2014) in the central Punjab region of Pakistan. Experiments had 2 pollination treatments (open pollination and honeybee inclusion) and 3 seed genotypes, viz. farmer own-saved, market, and the improved variety cultivars. For both growing seasons, honeybee pollination resulted in significant increases in seed yields ranging from 35% to 67%, regardless of seed genotype. With the exception of the number of seed heads/m2, all seed yield parameters also increased significantly in response to honeybee inclusion. The combination of improved variety and honeybee inclusion resulted in the production of a maximum number of seeds per head (45.3), 1,000-seed weight (3.7g), and estimated seed yield (375.5kg/ha). In addition, the increase in estimated net income of seed ranged from PKR 82,485 Rs/ha (US$844/ha) to PKR 168,975 Rs/ha (US$1728/ha) with the use of honeybees as an insect pollinator across all the seed genotypes. Honeybee pollination has broader implications for mixed farming systems by playing a key role in preserving biodiversity and promoting sustainable agriculture. It also enhances the quality and quantity of berseem crops by increasing the production of high-quality seeds and forage leading to improved livestock productivity and family food security which strengthens the economic resilience of rural communities.

Biopriming using microbial consortia and biostimulants as a technique to increase seed quality of Solanum melongena L. by modifications in morphological and metabolic constituents

Brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) is a widely cultivated vegetable in tropical and subtropical regions. High-quality seeds are crucial for successful crop production, necessitating rapid and uniform field emergence. In the new wave of the Green Revolution, organic wastes were replaced by agrochemicals. This study was conducted from January to March 2024 to standardize biopriming techniques for brinjal using various organic inputs and microbial cultures to improve seed quality. Brinjal seeds cv. PLR 2 were treated with organic inputs (Panchagavya, Egg fermented extract, Fish fermented extract and effective microorganism solution) and liquid microbial cultures (Azospirillum and Pink Pigmented Facultative Methylotroph). The bioprimed seeds were assessed for their physiological attributes and anatomical and biochemical changes. Compared with the control, biopriming with 2% Fish fermented extract significantly improved the germination rate (19.4%), germination energy (40.9%), root length (44.4%), shoot length (24.4%) and seedling vigour index (68.1%). This increase was attributed to the nutritional and bioactive compounds in the fish by-products, which promoted root development and nutrient absorption. The biochemical parameters revealed increased ?-amylase activity, protein, and amino acid content in the bioprimed seeds. Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis revealed beneficial root volatile compounds in the roots of treated seeds. An evaluation of the plant growth-promoting activities of the biopriming agents revealed the superiority of fish-fermented extract over other bioagents. Therefore, this method promotes sustainable agriculture and improved crop productivity, providing a scientific basis for biopriming as a viable alternative to conventional seed treatments.

Oil and fat industry of the Eastern region of the Republic of Kazakhstan: growth reserves, economic potential

The aim is to study the trends and problems of development of the oil and fat industry of the East Kazakhstan region. Methods - statistical-economic in the study of phenomena and processes occurring in the oil-fat segment, calculative-constructive - to identify possible alternative directions of increasing the volume of production of the oil-fat subcomplex in the future, abstractlogical - to analyze the current situation in the oil-fat sector of the region, comparative - to compare the indicators of economic activity of this food industry by different criteria depending on the final objectives. Results - on the basis of statistical information and other official sources the questions concerning the produced agricultural products, their processing and the sphere of trade in finished goods were considered, at that, the final main product is edible and technical vegetable oils. Conclusions - detailed monitoring allowed to reveal the reasons restraining the expansion of the oil and fat industry in the region, in particular, limited provision of necessary raw materials, low percentage of utilization of production capacities of oil refineries, insufficient supply of high quality seeds. Measures to stabilize the output of oil and fat products have been proposed. These are, first of all, the use of innovative technologies in the production cycle, the formation and functioning of various integrated structures in the agro-industrial complex, which will increase the efficiency of enterprises and solve the issues of food security of the country. High-technology and equipment of advanced brands will significantly reduce the cost of processed products, and cooperation of producers with the support of service centers will make it possible to increase the sown areas of this oilseed crop. It is necessary to use innovative technologies, the implementation of which will contribute to the production of high-quality environmentally friendly food products that are in demand in domestic and foreign markets.

The effect of seed packaging materials, storage period and conditions on the physiological sorghum seedlings

Seed quality is fundamental to agricultural productivity and sustainability. Sorghum, as a versatile crop with a wide range of applications, requires high-quality seeds for optimal production. Understanding the seed storage condition, storage period and packaging materials on seed physiological quality is a basis of field crop establishment. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of packaging materials, storage conditions, and storage periods on the physiological quality of sorghum seedlings. One hundred grams of sorghum seed from 5.4 kg of cleaned sorghum seeds were packed in polyethylene bags, polypropylene bags, and aluminium foil. The seeds in packaging materials were stored at 3 different temperatures for 2, 4, and 6 months and the sample of ten grams was taken every 2 months of storage time for germination test. The data on normal seedlings, abnormal seedlings lengths, and seedling dry weight were recorded. The results showed that polyethylene bags at 10°C and 2 months of storage preserved seedling physiological quality more than aluminium foil and polypropylene bags. This may be attributed to the impervious properties of polyethylene hence preventing oxidative reactions and seed deterioration. To guarantee the successful field establishment and strong plant stand of sorghum crops, findings advise seed producers and farmers regarding appropriate seed storage procedures.

Quality of Castor the Seeds Stored in Different Environments and Type of Packaging

One of the ways to offer high quality seeds to the market is to work on better storage conditions to keep the physiological quality of the seeds high. Thus, this work aimed to evaluate the physiological quality of hybrid castor seeds during storage in different environments and packaging in the Cerrado conditions. A completely randomized design with plots subdivided over time was used, with four replications. In the plots the factorial 2x3x7 was designated, being: 2 environments (cold chamber and laboratory environment) and 3 packages (kraft paper, plastic bag and PET bottle) and in the subplots the 7 storage times (0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 months). The castor seeds used were from the hybrid cultivar AG IMA 110204 and were stored in the laboratory of the State University of Goi&amp;aacute;s, C&amp;acirc;mpus An&amp;aacute;polis. The following tests were carried out: water content, germination test, first count, electrical conductivity, length, seedling dry mass and seedling dry mass density. The data were submitted to analysis of variance, the qualitative treatments when significant were compared by the Tukey test, while the quantitative treatments were submitted to the regression analysis. It is recommended to use both a plastic bag and a PET bottle to package AG IMA 110204 hybrid castor seeds during twelve-month storage, both in cold storage and in a laboratory environment.

Molecular characterization and expression profiling of 3 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase and hydroxysteroid 17-beta dehydrogenase in response to HCG stimulation in striped murrel, Channa striata (Bloch, 1793)

Striped murrel (Channa striata) is highly valued in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia for its nutritional and medicinal benefits. However, the limited availability of high-quality seeds of murrel and the asynchronous maturation of brooders, particularly during peak spawning seasons creates problems in aquaculture. Beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (β-HSDs) are steroidogenic enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of active steroids in gametogenesis and steroidogenesis. This study aimed to clone and characterize the full-length cDNA sequences of two crucial enzymes, 3-beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (Hsd3β) and 17-beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (Hsd17β). It resulted in full-length cDNA sequences for Hsd3β and Hsd17β with 1101bp and 771bp length, respectively, encoding 366 and 256 amino acids. Signal peptide analysis indicated that both proteins are secretory, and hydropathy profiles suggested their hydrophilic nature. Notably, Rossmann-fold NAD(P)(+)-binding domains characteristic of Short-chain dehydrogenases/reductases (SDR) family genes were identified in Hsd3β (between 9-355 aa) and in Hsd17β (between 10-254 aa). Gene expression analyses were performed in testes and ovaries using qPCR at three key stages: preparatory, mature, and 16 h post human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) injection (16 hpi). Results demonstrated a significant 2-fold upregulation of Hsd17β in mature and 16 hpi testes, while Hsd3β showed a significant 10-fold upregulation in mature testes compared to premature and 16 hpi stages. Ovarian expression of Hsd3β and Hsd17β showed minimal expression upon hCG injection (P < 0.05). These findings contribute to our understanding of Beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (β-HSDs), providing insights into regulating sex steroid hormone synthesis during the gonadal development of striped murrel.

INNOVATION AND INVESTMENT PROVISION OF DEVELOPMENT OF AGRARIAN SECTOR OF ECONOMY OF UKRAINE

The article analyzes the problem of investment and innovation provision of the agrarian sector of the economy of Ukraine. Our country has a significant potential for the development of the agricultural sector due to the large areas of agricultural land and favourable natural and climatic conditions. Investments in modern technologies, high-quality seeds and agrochemicals improve and maximize this potential. The key aspects that contribute to the stimulation of investments and innovations in the country’s economy and contribute to the development of a favourable investment climate, the encouragement of innovative ideas, the study of priority areas for investments, the provision of financial support, etc. have been identified. The priority areas of investment support that will allow to ensure the development of innovation potential are highlighted and the main types of the effects from the application of innovations in the agricultural sphere are characterized. The basic components of investment support for the competitive development of the agrarian sector of the economy are defined, which indicate various sources of investment income of private, state, and international capital. The advantages and disadvantages of sources of investment income and ensuring the competitive development of branches of the agrarian sector of the economy are given. The costs of the scientific research and development by types of work and the dynamics of the number of innovatively active enterprises by types of economic activity in Ukraine were analyzed, the share of innovatively active enterprises in the total number was determined. The sources of financing innovative activity of enterprises of the agrarian sector of the economy of Ukraine are characterized. Innovation and investment mechanisms for ensuring socio-economic development, which affect the formation, development and effectiveness of the innovation and investment environment, are considered. The rating of the «Global Innovation Index» and the position of Ukraine in it, as well as the general principles of investment policy, are given. It was determined that innovative and investment support for the development of the agricultural sector of economy of Ukraine is not only relevant, but also an urgent task to ensure a sustainable and successful future.