A study was carried out to evaluate the potential of exogenously applied potassium nitrate [1.0 g·dm−3(K1), 2.5 g·dm−3(K2) and 5 g·dm−3(K3)] plus gibberellic acid (GA3) [0.005 g·dm−3(G1), 0.01 g·dm−3(G2) and 0.015 g·dm−3(G3)] on the growth and development of the cucumber (Cucumis sativusL.) ‘Seven Star F1’ during various growth stages (40, 55 and 70 days after sowing). Treatment of plants with K plus GA3stimulated growth shortened the fruit maturation period and increased quality compared with non-sprayed control. The combination G2K2resulted in maximum total yield, plant height, and total chlorophyll, phosphorus and nitrogen content in the leaves compared with other treatments. Fruit matured significantly earlier in plants sprayed with G2K2. Total yield and fruit quality dry matter, total suspended solids and antioxidant activity percentages were significantly higher in sprayed plants compared with controls. Potassium content in leaves and fruits reached the maximum level with G3K3treatment. The results clearly showed that the foliar application of G2K2proved to be the best choice for growing cucumber in terms of quantity and quality of yield.
Collagen and collagen-based materials have extensive application in biomedical devices and tissue engineering. The current paper pertains to the application of frog (Rana tigerina Daudin) skin collagen as a novel substrate in cell culture. The study deals with the behavior, morphology, and physiology of keratinocytes and fibroblasts over dry and reconstituted collagen substratum, which are the key cells involved in wound repair. The advantage of using frog skin collagen as a substratum lies in the ease with which the reconstituted gel can be formed. Further, frog skin collagen is highly hydrophilic, which may be attributed to the fact that amphibians, as the first vertebrates connecting water and land, must have evolved certain physiologic specializations. These studies also contribute to the hypothesis that part of the healing efficacy of frog skin may be due to the collagen since proliferation, migration, and differentiation of epithelial cells are prime requisites for a normal healing mechanism.
Fresh bitter gourd was procured from the local market were subjected to microwave and microwave assisted hot air drying. During microwave drying, power levels were kept as 160, 320 and 480W. Samples were dried in hot air dryer at 60•C and 1m/s air velocity. The drying time ranged between 25 to 40 minutes for all power levels. The drying time for unblanched sample was 25% less than the blanched sample. Drying rate of bitter gourd increased with increase in power from 160 W to 480 W. In hot air drying of bitter gourd drying was faster for the blanched samples. In microwave assisted hot air drying, a sudden increase in drying rate was observed when samples partially dried in hot air dryer were subjected to microwave drying. The microwave dried bitter gourd slices exhibit lower rehydration capacity than the other two drying methods because of case hardening which does not allow further absorption of moisture from the sample. Of all the experimental drying methods, the rehydration capacity of the sample dried in microwave assisted hot air drying method had the highest value. The rehydration capacity was more for blanched sample (666.67%) as compared to unblanched sample (352.27%) during microwave assisted hot air drying at 160 W.
An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of different concentration and combination of potassium [1.0 g/l (K 1), 2.5 g/l (K 2) and 5.0 g/l (K 3)] and gibberellic acid [0.005 g/l (G 1), 0.01 g/l (G 2) and 0.015 g/l (G 3)] foliar application on growth characteristics, quality and yield of F1hybrid cucumber (cv. KUK-9).The results showed that the highest amounts for growth, biochemical attributes, fruit maturity, quality belonged to K 2 (2.5 g/l) plus G 2 (0.01 g/l) combination treatment. Plant height as well as chlorophyll content attained their greatest quantities under G 2 K 2 treatment. Dry matter, TSS % and antioxidant activity showed significant differences compared with control, G 1 K 1 and G 2 K 2 treatment showed the greatest sum of data. Fruit mineral content were also significantly affected by different treatments. Higher fruit potassium was recorded with G 3 K 3 treatment.
The experiment was conducted in anti-insect net house for three consecutive years (2013–2016) with the goal of improving the growth and biochemical contents in two F1 cultivars of cucumber, ‘Sevenstar’ and ‘KUK 9’. Treatment was given in the form of foliar spray containing different concentrations of gibberellic acid (GA3) [0.005 g·dm−3 (G1), 0.01 g·dm−3 (G2), and 0.015 g·dm−3 (G3)] and potassium [1.0 g·dm−3 (K1), 2.5 g·dm−3 (K2), and 5.0 g·dm−3 (K3)] alone and as combinations. All the treatments significantly enhanced plant growth and yield over control. The combination K2G2 showed a marked increase in growth parameters (leaf area, flower number, total dry matter production, growth rate, net assimilation rate) and biochemical attributes (total sugar content, starch, protein). The cultivar ‘KUK 9’ had more increased parameter values than the ‘Sevenstar’. This study provides a direct evidence of the beneficial role of the application of potassium and gibberellic acid on growth, biochemical attributes, and yield of cucumber.
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