An experiment was conducted in a randomized block design to compare growth and economic performance between monosex and mixed-sex culture of red mud crab (Scylla olivacea Herbst, 1796) fed with trash ¢sh at 5^10% body weight per day in the mangrove tidal £at at Burigoaliny Union of Satkhira District, Bangladesh. The experiment had three treatments in triplicate each: (a) all-male culture, (b) all-female culture and (c) mixed-sex culture. Crabs of 80^120 g in size were stocked at a density of 0.5 crab m À 2 and cultured for 100 days. Speci¢c growth rates (SGRs) by weight and internal carapace width (ICW) in the all-male culture were signi¢cantly higher than those in the all-female culture (Po0.05), while SGRs in the mixed-sex culture showed no signi¢cant di¡erences from those in the all-male and all-female culture (P40.05). No sig-ni¢cant di¡erences in ¢nal mean body weight, ICW, daily weight gain, survival rate, gross and net yields were found among all the treatments (P40.05). The area of high water level with mangroves gave signi¢cantly better results in terms of feed conversion ratio, survival rate, gross and net yields than the area of low water level (P40.05). The experiment suggests that the all-female culture in the area of high water level with mangroves could be suitable in developing commercial pen culture of red mud crabs in Bangladesh.Mean values with di¡erent superscript letters in the same row were signi¢cantly di¡erent (Po0.05).Aquaculture Research, 2009, 40, 473^485 Growth and economic performance of Scylla olivacea Mst. M. Khatun et al. r 2008 The Authors Journal Compilation r 2008 Blackwell Publishing Ltd, Aquaculture Research, 40, 473^485 Ã Depend on size and sex: F 1 (female) 200 g^5 USD kg À 1 , D2 (egg bearing female) 120 g^1.14 USD kg À 1 , SM (small male) 200 g^0.86 USD kg À 1 , M (male) 250 g^1.43 USD kg À 1 , L (large male)2 USD kg À 1 . Mean values with di¡erent superscript letters in the same row were signi¢cantly di¡erent (Po0.05). Aquaculture Research, 2009, 40, 473^485 Growth and economic performance of Scylla olivacea Mst. M. Khatun et al.

Maintenance of pluripotency in stem cells is tightly regulated among vertebrates. One of the key genes in this process is oct4, also referred to as pou5f1 in mammals and pou2 in teleosts. Pou5f1 evolved by duplication of pou2 early in the tetrapod lineage, but only monotremes and marsupials retained both genes. Either pou2 or pou5f1 was lost from the genomes of the other tetrapods that have been analyzed to date. Consequently, these two homologous genes are often designated oct4 in functional studies. In most vertebrates oct4 is expressed in pluripotent cells of the early embryo until the blastula stage, and later persist in germline stem cells until adulthood. The isolation and analysis of stem cells from embryo or adult individuals is hampered by the need for reliable markers that can identify and define the cell populations. Here, we report the faithful expression of EGFP under the control of endogenous pou2/oct4 promoters in transgenic medaka (Oryzias latipes). In vivo imaging in oct4-EGFP transgenic medaka reveals the temporal and spatial expression of pou2 in embryos and adults alike. We describe the temporal and spatial patterns of endogenous pou2 and oct4-EGFP expression in medaka with respect to germline and adult stem cells, and discuss applications of oct4-EGFP transgenic medaka in reproductive and stem cell biology.

Among the diverse array of heat shock proteins across the three domains of life, mitochondria-targeted small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) are evolved in the plant lineage. However, they remained mysterious and understudied. In this study, we reported a systematic study of a novel mitochondria-targeted nuclear sHSP from eggplant (Solanum melongena L.; SmsHSP24.1). Differential expression of SmsHSP24.1 indicated its positive role exerted during stress conditions. Escherichia coli-BL21 cell line overexpressing the SmsHSP24.1 showed excellent thermo-tolerance ability, tolerating up to 52°C. Spectrometry and electron microscopy revealed a multimeric structure of the protein which acted as a molecular chaperone at high temperatures. Overexpression of SmsHSP24.1 significantly enhanced resistance against heat, drought, and salt stresses and showed rapid germination in constitutively overexpressed eggplant lines. RNA-seq analysis reveals an apparent upregulation of a set of reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging enzymes of the glutathione (GHS) pathway and mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC). Significant upregulation was also observed in auxin biosynthesis and cell-wall remodeling transcripts in overexpressed lines. qPCR, biochemical and physiological analysis further aligned with the finding of transcriptome analysis and suggested an essential role of SmsHSP24.1 under various stress responses and positive physiological influence on the growth of eggplants. Therefore, this gene has immense potential in engineering stress-resilient crop plants.

Present state of the marketing and transportation of mud crab in Khulna region of Bangladesh was investigated through field survey from January to December 2001. Out of 9 upazillas in Khulna District mud crab business was found in 5 namely, Paikgacha, Koyra, Dumuria, Batiaghata and Dacope. The crab depots were located mostly near the highways and on the bank of rivers. The crabs landed at depots were harvested from various sources including the Sundarbans mangrove swamps, tidal rivers and canals, and black tiger shrimp ponds (ghers). Supply of mud crabs was round the year with a peak during rainy season. The total production was estimated to be 1872.28 tons in Khulna district in 2001 of which 1228.73 tons were males and 643.55 tons were females. The highest production of mud crab was found in Paikgacha (75.59% of the total production). The maximum average price was found for XL grade followed by F1 grade. The harvested crabs were transported to depots by small wooden boats. Trucks and buses were used to transport crabs at night when the ambient temperature was low in order to reduce mortality. The mortality rate during transportation was higher in summer. The domestic market of crab was poorly developed in this region because of high price, and social and religious prohibition among the Muslim. Most of the harvested crabs were marketed in the foreign country. Major importers of mud crab are China, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia, Thailand and Taiwan.