Poverty in developing countries is usually linked to low agricultural productivity. Inadequate quantity and quality of food impacts human development potential, physically and mentally. Reduced immunity to disease due to poor nutrition increases the burden and kills. Current technologies (fertiliser, improved seed, irrigation, pesticides) correctly applied can sustainably and safely increase cr...

The potential for genetically modified (GM) crops to threaten biodiversity conservation and sustainable agriculture is substantial. Megadiverse countries and centers of origin and/or diversity of crop species are particularly vulnerable regions. The future of sustainable agriculture may be irreversibly jeopardized by contamination of in situ preserved genetic resources threatening a strategic r...

Modern animal breeding strategies based on population genetics, molecular tools, artificial insemination, embryo transfer and related technologies have contributed to significant increases in the performance of domestic animals, and are the basis for a regular supply of high quality animal-derived food at acceptable prices. However, the current strategy of markerassisted selection and breeding ...

About 10,000 years BC, people harvested their food from the natural biological diversity that surrounded them, and eventually domesticated crops and animals. During the process of domestication, people began to select better plant materials for propagation and animals for breeding, initially unwittingly, but ultimately with the intention of developing improved food crops and livestock. Over tho...

Hybridization produces strong evolutionary forces. In hybrid zones, selection can differentially occur on traits and selection intensities may differ among hybrid generations. Understanding these dynamics in crop-wild hybrid zones can clarify crop-like traits likely to introgress into wild populations and the particular hybrid generations through which introgression proceeds. In a field experim...

ABSTRACT The Karnal bunt pathogen, Tilletia indica, is heterothallic and depends on encounters on wheat spikes between airborne secondary sporidia of different mating types for successful infection and reproduction. This life history characteristic results in reduced reproductive success for lower population densities. Such destabilizing density dependence at low population levels has been desc...

To strengthen the depth of lightweight rowing talent, we sought to identify experienced heavyweight rowers who possessed physique traits that predisposed them to excellence as a lightweight. Identified athletes (n = 3) were monitored over 16 wk. Variables measured included performance, anthropometric indices, and selected biochemical and metabolic parameters. All athletes decreased their body m...

Background Multiple studies document specific personality traits, relatively homogeneous in the structural aspect. We attempt to extrapolate a purely psychological examination approach, applying the clinical conceptualizations of H. Akiskal. This study aims to asses the existence of statistically significant differences between the TEMPSA scale ratings of subjects serving a prison sentence and ...

Animal movement is a fundamental eco-evolutionary process yet the behaviour of juvenile animals is largely unknown for many species, especially for soaring seabirds which can range widely over the oceans at low cost. We present an unprecedented dataset of 98 juvenile albatrosses and petrels (nine species), tracked for the first three months after independence. There was a startling diversity wi...

Paithumbase is an established database for identifying the phenotypic variations of the mungbean germplasm accessions preserved in the National Pulses Research Centre, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University. This database provides information on both quantitative and qualitative traits of the mungbean germplasm. The database architecture was built with a GUI interface, developed in PHP and HTML as ...