Biotechnology

A series of 6-tosyl-4,5,6,7-tetrahydrothieno[2,3-c]pyridine-3-carboxamide analogues are synthesized by conventional techniques and characterized by elemental analysis, IR, MS, (1)H, and (13)C NMR. These are tested for their antibacterial activity against Bacillus subtilis (abbreviated as BS), Staphylococcus aureus (abbreviated as SA), and Escherichia coli (abbreviated as EC). The synthesized compounds are able to inhibit the growth of the SA and EC. None of the compounds are effective against BS. All valence molecular orbital (abbreviated as MO) calculations with PM6 have been carried out for the molecules for which bioactivity data are available. Ciprofloxacin is taken as the standard antibiotics to compare activity with the molecules synthesized. It has been attempted to correlate the activity of the molecules with their electronic structure.

Based on our study, we conclude that because of its long, spreading awns and small and soft grains, the land race Tank is not preferred by the monkeys. The wisdom and experience of hill farmers were used and 'Tank' land race was reg-istered with the National Bureau of Plant ...

ABSTRACT The genus Ulva, commonly known as sea lettuce, is one of the economically impor-tant seaweeds originally described by Linnaeus (1753), with widespread distri-bution in tropical waters 1 . Besides its popular use in food preparations recently, it has been reported to have therapeutic potentials for combating neurodegenera-tive diseases associated with neuroin-flammation 2 . The genus Ulva has been well studied in the Indian subcontinent 3–6 and there are reports of the occurrence of sixteen species from Indian waters alone 7,8 . Among these, Ulva beytensis, U. cove-longensis and U. quilonensis are ende-mic 9 . During our recent visit to Malvan (73.27°E and 16.03°N), central-west coast of India in August 2006 for seaweed collection, we came across a new species of Ulva. Critical observations on mor-phology and anatomy of the plants were similar to those described for U. taeniata (Setchell) Setchell et Gardner – a seaweed taxon rather common in America and hitherto unreported from Indian waters. This species has shown a history of taxonomic ambiguity. In 1909 Setchell

ABSTRACT Cultivation of Kappaphycus alvarezii was carried out at Okha, northwest coast of India, from August 2004 to April 2006, using the raft and net bag methods. Seawater temperature, salinity, nitrate, and phosphate varied seasonally, with average values of 26.51 ± 1.72 °C, 34.23 ± 1.79 ‰, 17.46 ± 8.77 μM L−1, and 1.32 ± 0.78 μM L−1, respectively. After 15, 30, and 45 days of growth, average daily growth rates (DGRs) were 6.87 ± 0.27, 5.99 ± 0.18, and 4.97 ± 0.08 % with corresponding biomass of 292.43 ± 12.06, 629.58 ± 32.56, and 977.98 ± 36.59 g FW plant−1, respectively, for the raft cultivation. In the net bag method, after 15, 30, and 45 days of growth, the mean DGRs were 7.88 ± 0.38, 5.83 ± 0.10, and 4.42 ± 0.14 % with biomass values of 348.98 ± 19.48, 623.28 ± 29.95, and 813.73 ± 52.64 g FW plant−1, respectively. This study confirmed the feasibility of cultivating K. alvarezii on the northwest coast of India.

This book is first of its kind from India and describes a total of 198 species of marine macroalgae representing all three major groups of Chlorophyta, Phaeophyta and Rhodophyta collected from the Gujarat coast which is well known for its algal abundance and diversity. All species described in this book are based on primary collections exclusively made for this purpose and truly reflect the current status of seaweed biodiversity of Gujarat coast. For easy identification, high resolution colour pictures of each species in its natural habitat together with well spread habit of thallus with cross sections showing characteristic features of respective specimens have been provided. Further, the taxonomical descriptions along with distribution and GPS data, abundance, ecology, economic importance etc. have also been included. The contents of this book are user friendly and provide most reliable baseline data on seaweed biodiversity for monitoring and evaluating the impact of any coastal d...

BLAD is autosomal recessive genetic disease that affects Holstein breed world wide. It is a disease characterized by reduced expression of the adhesion molecules on neutrophils. The disease is caused by a mutation which replaces adenine at 383 with Guanine that changes amino acid, Aspartic acid to Glycine, leading to the expression of a wrong protein (CD18) that is impaired in function. Blood samples were collected from 42 HF and HF crossbred phenotypically normal bulls maintained at different sperm stations of Gujarat. PCR-RFLP was performed to detect point mutation in CD18, surface molecules of neutrophils. Results indicate that out of 42 bulls, 2 bulls appear to be carriers for BLAD. The condition is alarming and needs regular screening of HF and its crossbreds to avoid risk of spreading BLAD in breedable population of India.

A series of eight compounds diethyl-3-methyl-5-(6-methyl-2-thioxo-4-phenyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydropyrimidine-5-carboxamido) thiophene-2,4-dicarboxilate (KM10-17) analogues have been prepared by conventional methods and characterized by IR, Mass, NMR and elemental analysis. In silico docking studies on Human topoisomerase IIbeta (PDB Id: 3QX3) have been performed for all molecules (KM10-17) synthesized. The compounds were tested for in vitro anti-proliferative activity on VERO and 786-O cell lines. Out of all the synthesized compounds, KM11 &KM16 showed moderate activity on both cell lines. In vitro anti-microbial activity was also checked against Bacillus subtilis (BS), Staphylococcus aurous (SA), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA), Escherichia coli (EC) and Candida albicans (CA) by well diffusion method. The compound KM11 was found to have highest zone of inhibition against BS, SA, PA and EC. The molecules KM13 and KM16 exhibited good activity against CA. The compounds KM14 and KM16 indicated good zone of inhibition against BS.