Sustainability of Medicinal Plants in Kerala Economic Considerations in Domestication and Conservation of Forest Resources

The present study on the sustainability of medicinal plants in Kerala economic considerations in domestication and conservation of forest resources. There is worldwide consensus on the fact that medicinal plants are important not only in the local health support systems but in rural income and foreign exchange earnings. Sustainability of medicinal plants is important for the survival of forest dwellers, the forest ecosystem, conserving a heritage of human knowledge and overall development through linkages. More equitable sharing of the benefits from commercial utilization of the medicinal plants was found essential for the sustainability of the plants. Cultivation is very crucial for the sustainability of the sector. Through a direct tie-up with the industry, the societies can earn more income and repatriate better collection charges to its members. Cultivation should be carried out in wastelands, tiger reserves and in plantation forests. In short, the various players in the in the sector could find solution to their specific problems through co-operation and networking among them. They should rely on self-help rather than urging the government to take care of their needs. As far as the government is concerned, the forest department through checking over- exploitation of wild plants and the Agriculture Dept. through encouraging cultivation could contribute to the sustainable development of the medicinal plant sector.

Marine Actinomycetes as Source of Antiviral Agents and as Probionts for Penaeus monodon Culture Systems

The present study revealed the importance of marine actinomycetes as a potent source of bio active secondary metabolites. The selected isolates were capable of protecting Peaneus monodon against WSSV infection. They also proved to be inhibitory to vibrios and is a rich pool of hydrolytic enzymes. Their capacity to proliferate in saline environments and their property of non-pathogenicity to prawns makes them good candidates to be applied as probionts in penaeid shrimp aquaculture. They also enhanced the immune status of shrimps challenged with WSSV and act as a good source of antioxidants. Exploitation of the potential for the prophylactic and therapeutic measures in aquatic animal health management would be highly rewarding. This work is a preliminary study targeting marine actinomycetes as a source of antiviral compounds and as probionts in Penaeus monodon culture systems. More work is needed to understand the nature and mode of action of the bioactive compound, the various aspects of immune and antioxidant responses under challenge and when exposed to pro active treatments, and the dose and frequency of application of such compounds under rearing conditions.

Cellular and humoral factors involved in defense mechanisms of Fenneropenaeus indicus (H. Milne Edwards, 1837)

The present investigation revealed three types of circulating haemocytes in the haemolymph of F. indicus: hyalinocytes, small-granule haemocytes, and large-granule haemocytes. Intermediate stages indicate the maturing process of a single cell. The presence of enzymes such as peroxidase, phenoloxidase and acid phosphatase in the haemocytes, and the substantial production of oxygen radicals during phagocytosis show that the haemocytes are capable of mounting a fme cellular defense mechanism. The enzyme activities of the serum and the presence of agglutinins in the serum, which may act as opsonins, agglutinate foreign particles and augment phagocytosis, confirm the presence of a superior humoral immune system in F. indicus.Bacterial infection caused considerable variations in the cellular and humoral factors, such as the number of circulating cells and haemagglutinating activity, especially in the initial hours of infection. The total haemocyte count, haemagglutination titer and phenoloxidase enzyme showed significant reductions on bacterial presence and could be used as indicators of bacterial infection.The number of circulating cells showed drastic fluctuation on exposure to pollutants. Nuvan at low concentrations was able to produce changes in the haemolymph factors and in the tissue organization, which implies that the animal is under stress and is easily prone to infections. Exposure to nuvan resulted in significant variation in all of the cellular and humoral factors, especially, the total haemocyte count, percentage of small granule haemocytes, phagocytic activity and the haemagglutinating activity, which might be good indicators of pesticide pollution. Heavy metal exposure caused significant increase in total haemocyte count and reduction in phenoloxidase enzyme activity Even changes in the physio-chemical parameters, such as salinity caused fluctuations in the defense factors, indicating stress in this euryhaline species. The dietary incorporation of a commercial immunostimulant containing P-l,3 glucan resulted in stimulation of some of the humoral defense factors of F indicus, but was time dependent. The modulations, on exposure to various external factors, in the cellular and humoral factors, especially, total haemocyte count, phagocytic activity, haemagglutinating activity and the phenoloxidase and acid phosphatase enzymes suggest that these parameters could be used as indicators of the health status of F indicus, which assist in better monitoring and effective health management of this important cultured species.

Molecular Approaches For Characterization And Determination Of Pathogenicity Of Vibrios With Special Reference To Vibrio Harveyi From Penaeus Monodon Larval Production Systems

The present study focuses on vibrios especially Vibrio harveyi isolated from shrimp (P. monodon) larval production systems from both east and west coasts during times of mortality. A comprehensive approach has been made to work out their systematics through numerical taxonomy and group them based on RAPD profiling and to segregate the virulent from non- virulent isolates based on the presence of virulent genes as well as their phenotypic expression. The information gathered has helped to develop a simple scheme of identification based on phenotypic characters and segregate the virulent from non virulent strains of V. harveyi.

Diversity and antimicrobial activity of Lactic Acid Bacteria from the gut of marine fish Rastrelliger kanagurta against fish, shrimp and human pathogens

Emergence of antibiotic resistance among aquaculture pathogens has made it necessary to look into environment friendly, effective and sustainable methods such as probiotic and immunostimulants among others.. In the present study, LAB were isolated from the gut of fish species namely Rastrelliger kanagurta and analyzed for their antibacterial activity against various fish, shrimp and human pathogens. Different LAB species such as Lactobacillus plantarum, L. bulgaricus, L. brevis and L. viridiscens were encountered in the gut of R. kanagurta. Several strains showed good activity against fish, shrimp and human pathogens. LAB from the gut of such marine species may be developed as possible probiont for environment friendly health management of fresh water, estuarine and marine species currently exploited in aquaculture

Dose/frequency: A critical factor in the administration of glucan as immunostimulant to Indian white shrimp Fenneropenaeus indicus

The immunostimulatory effect of an alkali insoluble glucan extracted from marine yeast isolate Candida sake S165 was tested in Fenneropenaeus indicus. Post larvae (PL) of F. indicus, fed glucan incorporated diet at varying concentrations (0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4 g glucan/100 g feed) for 21 days were challenged orally with white spot syndrome virus (WSSV). Maximum survival was observed in PL fed the 0.2% glucan incorporated diet. Subsequently the feed incorporated with 0.2% glucan was fed to F. indicus post larvae at different feeding intervals, i.e. daily, once every two days, once every five days, once every seven days and once every ten days. After 40 days, the prawns were challenged orally with WSSV and post challenge survival was recorded. Shrimp feed containing 0.2% glucan when administered once every seven days gave maximum survival. This was supported by haematological data obtained from adult F. indicus, i.e. total haemocyte count, phenoloxidase activity and nitroblue tetrazolium reduction (NBT). The present observation confirms the importance of dose and frequency of administration of immunostimulants in shrimp health management

Two isoforms of anti-lipopolysaccharide factors identified and characterized from the hemocytes of portunid crabs, Portunus pelagicus and Scylla tranquebarica

Anti-lipopolysaccharide factors (ALFs), a type of cationic antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), and their derivatives are becoming predominant candidates for potential drugs in viral and bacterial diseases. This study reports the first ALF from the mud crab Scylla tranquebarica (StALF, JQ899453) and the second ALF isoform from the blue swimmer crab Portunus pelagicus (PpALF2, JQ899452). Both sequences encoded for precursor molecules, starting with a signal peptide containing 26 amino acid residues, followed by a highly cationic mature peptide, containing two conserved cysteine residues flanking a putative lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-binding domain. BLAST analysis revealed that both PpALF2 and StALF exhibited significant similarity with crustacean ALF sequences. The predicted molecular mass of the mature ALFs was 11.2 kDa with an estimated pI of 10.0. PpALF2 and StALF also showed the typical pattern of alternating hydrophobic and hydrophilic residues in their putative disulphide loop, suggesting that they comprise the same functional domain. Phylogenetic analysis showed that PpALF2 and StALF have similar evolutionary status and they were phylogenetically ancient immune effector molecules which may play an essential role in the host defense mechanism. The spatial structures of PpALF2 and StALF possessed four beta-strands and two alpha-helices. The results indicated that there were more than one ALF involved in crab immunity against various pathogens. ALFs would provide candidate promising therapeutic or prophylactic agents in health management and diseases control in crustacean aquaculture

Marketing Channels in Ornamental Fish Trade in West Bengal

A lucrative export market and high domestic demand has made ornamental fish industry in West Bengal a potential source for income generation. The study aimed to identify: (i) the commercially important size groups of main ornamental fish varieties available in the state; (ii) the existing supply chain; (iii) major constraints for development of the industry; (iv) and to anlayse price spread of commercially important varieties; and (v) to evaluate the profitability of operation at different stakeholder levels in the marketing chain. Export market of ornamental fishes in the state followed a single supply channel while three different distribution channels existed in the domestic market. High electricity charges was the major problem faced by breeders (producers/rearers) whereas lack of technical knowledge regarding transportation was the major constraint for wholesalers. Lack of knowledge on proper health management inhibited the growth of retail industry. The fresh water catfish, angel, molly, arowana, gold fish, tetras, and gouramis showed comparatively higher breeders’ share in consumers’ rupee. Wholesalers were earning comparatively higher annual profit than the other stakeholders due to moderate initial investment and also due to the comparatively lower risk involved.

Molecular genetic profiling of functional genes of pearl oyster, Pinctada fucata

There are a number of genes involved in the regulation of functional process in marine bivalves. In the case of pearl oyster, some of these genes have major role in the immune/defence function and biomineralization process involved in the pearl formation in them. As secondary filter feeders, pearl oysters are exposed to various kinds of stressors like bacteria, viruses, pesticides, industrial wastes, toxic metals and petroleum derivatives, making susceptible to diseases. Environmental changes and ambient stress also affect non-specific immunity, making the organisms vulnerable to infections. These stressors can trigger various cellular responses in the animals in their efforts to counteract the ill effects of the stress on them. These include the expression of defence related genes which encode factors such as antioxidant genes, pattern recognition receptor proteins etc. One of the strategies to combat these problems is to get insight into the disease resistance genes, and use them for disease control and health management. Similarly, although it is known that formation of pearl in molluscs is mediated by specialized proteins which are in turn regulated by specific genes encoding them, there is a paucity of sufficient information on these genes.In view of the above facts, studies on the defence related and pearl forming genes of the pearl oyster assumes importance from the point of view of both sustainable fishery management and aquaculture. At present, there is total lack of sufficient knowledge on the functional genes and their expressions in the Indian pearl oyster Pinctada fucata. Hence this work was taken up to identify and characterize the defence related and pearl forming genes, and study their expression through molecular means, in the Indian pearl oyster Pinctada fucata which are economically important for aquaculture at the southeast coast of India. The present study has successfully carried out the molecular identification, characterization and expression analysis of defence related antioxidant enzyme genes and pattern recognition proteins genes which play vital role in the defence against biotic and abiotic stressors. Antioxidant enzyme genes viz., Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn SOD), glutathione peroxidise (GPX) and glutathione-S-transferase (GST) were studied. Concerted approaches using the various molecular tools like polymerase chain reaction (PCR), random amplification of cDNA ends (RACE), molecular cloning and sequencing have resulted in the identification and characterization of full length sequences (924 bp) of the Cu/Zn SOD, most important antioxidant enzyme gene. BLAST search in NCBI confirmed the identity of the gene as Cu/Zn SOD. The presence of the characteristic amino acid sequences such as copper/zinc binding residues, family signature sequences and signal peptides were found out. Multiple sequence alignment comparison and phylogenetic analysis of the nucleotide and amino acid sequences using bioinformatics tools like BioEdit,MEGA etc revealed that the sequences were found to contain regions of diversity as well as homogeneity. Close evolutionary relationship between P. fucata and other aquatic invertebrates was revealed from the phylogenetic tree constructed using SOD amino acid sequence of P. fucata and other invertebrates as well as vertebrates