Satellite panicum mosaic virus (SPMV) depends on its helper Panicum mosaic virus (PMV) for replication and spread in host plants. The SPMV RNA encodes a 17-kDa capsid protein (CP) that is essential for formation of its 16-nm virions. The results of this study indicate that in addition to the expression of the full-length SPMV CP from the 5'-proximal AUG start codon, SPMV RNA also expresses a 9....

It was reported that Nuclear Factor Y (NF-Y) genes were involved in abiotic stress in plants. Foxtail millet (Setaria italica), an elite stress tolerant crop, provided an impetus for the investigation of the NF-Y families in abiotic responses. In the present study, a total of 39 NF-Y genes were identified in foxtail millet. Synteny analyses suggested that foxtail millet NF-Y genes had experienc...

Calcium is an essential macronutrient for plants and animals and plays an indispensable role in structure and signaling. Low dietary intake of calcium in humans has been epidemiologically linked to various diseases which can have serious health consequences over time. Major staple food-grains are poor source of calcium, however, finger millet [Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn.], an orphan crop has...

Studies were conducted in growth chambers to characterize absorption and translocation of C-glyphosate applied alone or in mixture with MSMA in browntop millet and Palmer amaranth. MSMA antagonized activity of glyphosate in both weed species. Absorption of C-glyphosate in Palmer amaranth was rapid and increased with time from 11.1% at 0.5 h after treatment to 68.1% at 168 HAT. Absorption of C-g...

Crop growth and productivity has largely been vulnerable to various abiotic and biotic stresses that are only set to be compounded due to global climate change. Therefore developing improved varieties and designing newer approaches for crop improvement against stress tolerance have become a priority now-a-days. However, most of the crop improvement strategies are directed toward staple cereals ...

Ongoing global climate changes imply new challenges for agriculture. Whether plants and crops can adapt to such rapid changes is still a widely debated question. We previously showed adaptation in the form of earlier flowering in pearl millet at the scale of a whole country over three decades. However, this analysis did not deal with variability of year to year selection. To understand and poss...

Moringa oleifera is a nutrient rich plant that has the potential to combat malnutrition problems in Africa. This study aims to investigate the effect of fortification using Moringa oleifera flower powder on the sensory and proximate attributes of fermented yellow maize and millet blend (Ogi). The formulation was grouped into seven blends in ratio 100:0:0, 70:30:0, 70:25:5, 70:20:10, 70:15:15, 7...

The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics conserves 335 accessions of Pennisetum glaucum subsp. monodii originated in 13 countries. In the present study, the collection was evaluated and assessed for diversity and geographical gaps. A wide variation was observed in the collection for total tillers per plant (16 to 609), productive tillers per plant (12 to 368), leaf l...

By roughly 8,000 calendar years before the present (calBP), hunter-gatherers across a broad swath of north China had begun small-scale farming of broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum) and foxtail millet (Setaria italica). According to traditional wisdom, this early millet farming evolved from the intensive hunter-gatherer adaptation represented by the late Pleistocene microblade tradition of nor...

Millets are annual grasses and grow well under the marginal conditions of soil fertility and moisture, which provide staple food for millions of people. Millets have strong, deep rooting systems and short life cycles. Breeding research in millets, habitually engages different species, cultivars, and varieties. This makes an immense challenge to maintain the different varieties and their identif...