Soil microorganisms interact with plants in diversified manner ranging from mobilising nutrients and enhancing their growth, to inducing diseases. They also produce allelochemicals directly or indirectly through conversion from other compounds. In order to hamper plant growth, allelochemicals must accumulate and persist at phytotoxic levels in the rhizosphere soil. However, after their entry into environment, persistence, availability and biological activities of allelochemicals are influenced by microorganisms. Transformation of allelochemicals by soil microbes may result into the compounds with modified biological properties. Such bio-transformations affect the overall allelopathic capability of the producer plant in a direct manner. Several reports describe the allelopathic significance of microbial metabolism products. For instance, a bacterium Actinetobacter calcoaceticus, can convert 2(3H)-benzoxazolinone (BOA) to 2,2´-oxo-l,l´-azobenzene (AZOB) which is more inhibitory to some plants. On the contrary, bacterium Pseudomonas putida catabolises juglone in soils beneath walnut trees; otherwise, juglone accumulates at phytotoxic levels. This review article describes the nature of microbially produced allelochemicals, and the ways to mediate microbial degradation of putative allelochemicals. The given information develops an understanding of persistence, fate and phytotoxicity of allelochemicals in the natural environment, and also points out the possible solution of the problems due to microbial interventions in the soil.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

In this paper, a highly sensitive gas sensor based on the microstructure core and cladding photonic crystal fiber (PCF) is presented over the wavelength range from 1.3 to 2.2 μm, which is advantageous for sensor fabrication. The guiding properties of the proposed structure are dependent on geometrical parameters and wavelengths, which are numerically investigated by using a finite element method (FEM). Introducing the microstructure core makes it possible to obtain higher relative sensitivity and achieves low confinement loss. Moreover, it can be shown that increasing the diameter of the air holes in the microstructure core and decreasing the size of hole to hole space (pitch), the relative sensitivity is enhanced. In addition, the confinement loss is reduced by increasing the value of the diameter of the air holes in the cladding. Simulation results reveal that for the optimum design of the proposed PCF it is possible to obtain the highest relative sensitivity of about 42.27% at the wavelength λ=1.33  μm for the absorption line of methane (CH₄) and hydrogen fluoride (HF) gases. In this case, the confinement loss of the fiber is 4.78345×10^-6 dB/m.

No abstract

This experiment was undertaken to explore the effect of salicylic acid (SA) at different concentrations on regulating fruit senescence of Huang Kum pear. Through dipping fruits and fruit discs for a series of hours in SA solution, enzyme activities and physiological characteristics of Huang Kum pear were determined. The results revealed that SA enhanced the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) enzymes at 0.02 mmol/L and at 0.002 mmol/L with the treatment of dipping fruit discs for 4 h and 12 h, respectively. The malondialdehyde (MDA) contents were reduced at 0.002 mmol/L for 12 h, and water loss ratio was decreased at 0.5 mmol/L after 48 h of treatment. It was concluded that SA at lower concentrations could delay the senescence of Huang Kum pear fruit.

No abstract