Colletotrichum gloeosporioides is the most destructive endophytic plant-pathogenic fungi causing anthracnose disease in a wide number of economically important plants throughout the world. Presently there are no existing methods for effective disease management over the outbreak of anthracnose disease and it thus leads to huge economic losses for farmers and plant tissue culture laboratories. In order to find a new and effective control over these endophytes, we synthesized and characterized bioactive bile salt sodium deoxycholate (NaDC) capped silver nanoparticles. These nanoparticles were employed to control the endophytic fungus through in vitro direct and indirect model systems with time dependant/light mediated incubation manner. In our findings we achieved fivefold synergistic effect of NaDC-capped AgNPs with their bioactive capping agent against Colletotrichum gloeosporioides upon analyzing different parameters. Moreover, it was evident that NaDC-capped AgNPs did not cause any phytotoxicity to treated plants as revealed by molecular marker studies.

Riverine systems play an important role in the global carbon cycle, and they are considered hotspots for bacterial activities such as organic matter decomposition. However, our knowledge about these processes in tropical or subtropical regions is limited. The aim of this study was to investigate anthropogenically induced changes of water quality, the distribution of selected pharmaceuticals, and the effects of pollution on greenhouse gas concentrations and bacterial community composition along the 800 km long Cauvery river, the main river serving as a potable and irrigation water supply in Southern India. We found that in situ measured pCO₂ and pCH₄ concentrations were supersaturated relative to the atmosphere and ranged from 7.9 to 168.7 μmol L⁻¹, and from 0.01 to 2.76 μmol L⁻¹, respectively. Pharmaceuticals like triclosan, carbamazepine, ibuprofen, naproxen, propylparaben, and diclofenac exceeded warning limits along the Cauvery. Proteobacteria was the major phylum in all samples, ranging between 26.1% and 82.2% relative abundance, and it coincided with the accumulation of nutrients in the flowing water. Results emphasized the impact of industrialization and increased population density on changes in water quality, riverine carbon fluxes, and bacterial community structure.

Crossandra infundibuliformis, commonly known as firecracker flower, is a common flowering plant belonging to the family Acanthaceae. It is commonly cultivated in southern India for its attractive f...

A new era has begun in which pathogens have become useful scaffolds for nanotechnology applications. In this research/study, an attempt has been made to generate an empty cargo-like architecture from a high-profile plant pathogen of Squash leaf curl China virus (SLCCNV). In this approach, SLCCNV coat protein monomers are obtained efficiently by using a yeast Pichia pastoris expression system. Further, dialysis of purified SLCCNV-CP monomers against various pH strengthenened (5–10) disassembly and assembly buffers produced a self-assembled “Nanocargo”-like architecture, which also exhibited an ability to encapsulate the magnetic nanoparticles at in vitro . Bioinformatics tools were also utilized to predict the possible self-assembly kinetics and bioconjugation sites as well. The biocompatibility of “SLCNNV-CP-Nanocargo” particles was also evaluated by in vitro cancer cells, which eventually proved the particles to be versatile material for the next generation “nanotool” capable of housing various therapeutic or imaging agents.