Soil salinity is one of the constraints of crop production in Egypt. The aims of this study were to identify genomic regions associated with grain weight and its related traits along with their salinity tolerance indices and to identify the most salinity tolerant and high-yielding genotypes. Therefore, we evaluated an advanced backcross mapping population of barley in newly reclaimed soil under two salinity levels of groundwater aquifers in South of Sinai, Egypt. We detected significant QTL associated with grain weight related attributes and the salinity tolerance index (STI) distributed throughout the whole genome of barley, which can be used to enhance salinity tolerance. Moreover, the markers bPb-3739 (4H, 96.3 cM), AF043094A (5H, 156 cM), bPb-8161 (7H, 2.22 cM), and bPb-5260 (7H, 115.6 cM), were the most important identified genomic regions corresponding to vernalization, dwarfing and dehydrin genes, which are correlated with salinity tolerance. Additionally, the doubled haploid lines SI001, SI043, SI044, SI028, SI242, SI035, and SI005 had the highest STI values based on yield average. The present study demonstrated that wild and elite barley do harbor novel valuable alleles, which can enrich the genetic basis of cultivated barley and improve quantitative agronomic traits under salinity conditions.

Fertilization with high levels of phosphorus increases the risk of environmental pollution. Identification of critical values of P in soil (SOP) and in plant tissues (PiP) is essential for achieving the maximum wheat yield without P loss. The critical value is the value of P which gives the optimum yield; the response of crop yield to P fertilization above this value is not predictable or nil. Here, a 4-year field experiment was conducted to identify the SOP and PiP for achieving maximum yield of bread wheat using 11 rates of P fertilization (0, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90, 105, 120, 135, and 150 kg P₂O₅ ha⁻¹). The linear–linear and Mitscherlich exponential models were employed to estimate the PiP and SOP. The degree of phosphorus saturation (DPS) was used to assess the potential environmental risk; furthermore, phosphorus use efficiency (PUE) was also calculated under the studied fertilization levels. Phosphorus in soil and wheat plant was affected by the application rates and growing seasons. Increasing P fertilization rates led to gradual increases in soil and plant P. The SOP ranged between 21 and 32 mg kg⁻¹, while the PiP ranged between 6.40 and 7.49 g kg⁻¹. The critical values of P calculated from the Mitscherlich exponential models were 20% higher than those calculated from the linear–linear models. Adding levels of P fertilization ≥90 kg P₂O₅ ha⁻¹ leads to higher potentials of P runoff and leaching, in addition, PUE decreased sharply under high P fertilization levels. The response of wheat yield to P fertilization in sandy calcareous soil is predictable below Olsen P values of 21 mg kg⁻¹. Identification of critical P values for wheat production is of great importance to help policy makers improve P use efficiency and attain optimum wheat yield under eco-friendly environmental conditions by eliminating the accumulation of excess P fertilizers in soil and water.

Climate change and global warming have become the most significant challenges to the agricultural production worldwide, especially in arid and semiarid areas. The main purpose of plant breeding programs now is to produce a genetically wide range of genotypes that can withstand the adverse effects of climate change. Moreover, farmers have to reallocate their cultivars due to their ability to tolerate unfavorable conditions. During this study, two field experiments and climate analysis based on 150 years of data are conducted to reallocate some genotypes of bread wheat in respect to climate change based on their performance under drought stress conditions. Climatic data indicate that there is an increase in temperature over all Egyptian sites coupled with some changes in rain amount. Among the tested cultivars, cultivar Giza 160 was the perfect one, while cultivar Masr 03 was the weakest one. Susceptibility indices are a good tool for discovering the superior genotypes under unfavorable conditions and, interestingly, some of the cultivars with high performance were among the superior cultivars in more than one of the tested traits in this study. Finally, combining the climatic data and the experimental data, we can conclude that cultivars Giza 160 and Sakha 94 are suitable for growning in zones with harsh environments, such as the eastern desert and southern Egypt, while cultivars Gemmeza 11, Sahel 01, Sakha 98, Sids 12, and Sakha 93 are suitable for growning in zones with good growing conditions, such as the Nile Delta region and northern Egypt.

This work aimed to overcome the main drawbacks of some essential anticancer drugs as 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) by controlled loading with novel drug carriers. By a differential microemulsion technique, nanosized particles derived from a copolymer of poly(methyl methacrylate (MMA) and 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA)) with different monomer ratios have been synthesized and used as a drug carrier. Poly(MMA-co-HEMA)/MWCNT nanocomposite was also synthesized using an in-situ microemulsion polymerization technique and used as a 5-FU carrier. Different techniques have characterized these ground-breaking drug delivery systems such as FT-IR, XRD, TEM, TGA, zeta potential, and a particle size analyzer. The effects of monomer feed composition, 5-FU content, and MWCNTs content on morphological and structural properties, in-vitro 5-FU release, and entrapment efficiency (EE%) have been studied. It was noted that the inclusion of MWCNTs in the 5-FU-loaded polymer increases the thermal stability and raises the entrapment efficiency (EE%) to hit 99% at CNTs:5-FU ratio of 2:1. The anticancer drug release from the co-polymeric nanospheres depends on the HEMA ratio, 5-FU/copolymer ratio, CNT/5-FU ratio, and the pH of the medium. The optimized nanocomposite demonstrated higher anti-tumor activity against the cell lines CaCo-2, MCF-7, and HepG-2 and higher cytotoxicity against HepG-2 relative to CaCo-2 and MCF-7.

The current research aimed to evaluate and select bread wheat stable cultivars with high ‎productivity across diverse sowing dates. Fourteen wheat cultivars were grown in a randomized ‎complete block design with three replicates at six sowing dates during two successive seasons of ‎‎2018/2019 and 2019/2020 representing twelve environments. The cultivars were evaluated for grain ‎yield and its attributes. Highly significant differences were obtained among the wheat cultivars, ‎sowing dates, and their respective interaction for all measured traits. The highest grain yield (2.992-ton ‎fed-1) was recorded on 30th November, after this date, each day delay in sowing of wheat onward ‎decreases grain yield at the rate of 21 kg fed-1 day-1. Overall, the cultivar Gemiza 11 gave the highest ‎grain yield with an average of 2.861 ton fed-1, recorded the highest 1000-GW with an average of 47.73 g, ‎highest straw yield with an average of 8.303-ton Fed-1, and was the earliest cultivar with a mean heading ‎date of 92.9 days. According to GGE biplot results, Gemiza 11, Gemiza 9, and Sakha 94 ranked in the ‎first order as high-yielding cultivars and had greater stability level overall sowing dates under ‎Assiut conditions. The most adequate cultivars for sowing in the first half of November (1st -15th ) ‎are Misr 2, Sids 12, Sakha 95, Gemiza 9, and Gemiza 11. Also, Sakha 94, Gemiza 9, and Gemiza 11 ‎can be sown after 30th November because they produce a satisfied yield, have good stability, and ‎can be considered as late sowing tolerant.‎

In order, to assess the effects of foliar spry time by different micronutrients nanoparticles on sunflower cultivar, Sakha-53, a field experiment was organized in a randomized complete block design using strip plot arrangement with three replications during 2019 and 2020 seasons at Agronomy Department Farm, Agriculture Faculty, Assiut University, Egypt. Three different foliar spraying times of different micronutrients nanoparticles were allocated horizontally while eight treatments of spraying with different Micronutrient nanoparticles (2 gm/L) were arranged vertically. The results showed that foliar spraying twice after 30 and 50 days from sowing was significantly increased plant height, stem diameter and head diameter in both seasons. In addition, the highest mean values of seed yield (t fed.-1) and oil yield (kg fed.-1) were recorded when foliar spraying was done threes after 30,50 and 70 days from sowing. Foliar application of Iron, Manganese, and Zinc nanoparticles was superior all other treatments in this respect and registered the highest mean values of all studied yield attributes, seed yield, and oil yield in both seasons. The interaction between spraying time numbers and micronutrients nanoparticles significantly affected all sunflower yield attributes in both growing seasons. The highest mean values of seed yield and oil yield were obtained from the interaction between foliar spraying three times × spraying with Iron, Manganese and Zinc. It was concluded that foliar spray threes time using Iron, Manganese and Zinc nanoparticles could be used as a suitable method for improving seed yield and its attributes of sunflower cultivar, Sakha-53.