In the past and present, human activities have been involved in triggering global warming, causing drought stresses that affect animals and plants. Plants are more defenseless against drought stress; and therefore, plant development and productive output are decreased. To decrease the effect of drought stress on plants, it is crucial to establish a plant feedback mechanism of resistance to drought. The drought reflex mechanisms include the physical stature physiology and biochemical, cellular, and molecular-based processes. Briefly, improving the root system, leaf structure, osmotic-balance, comparative water contents and stomatal adjustment are considered as most prominent features against drought resistance in crop plants. In addition, the signal transduction pathway and reactive clearance of oxygen are crucial mechanisms for coping with drought stress via calcium and phytohormones such as abscisic acid, salicylic acid, jasmonic acid, auxin, gibberellin, ethylene, brassinosteroids and peptide molecules. Furthermore, microorganisms, such as fungal and bacterial organisms, play a vital role in increasing resistance against drought stress in plants. The number of characteristic loci, transgenic methods and the application of exogenous substances [nitric oxide, (C28H48O6) 24-epibrassinolide, proline, and glycine betaine] are also equally important for enhancing the drought resistance of plants. In a nutshell, the current review will mainly focus on the role of phytohormones and related mechanisms involved in drought tolerance in various crop plants.

No abstract

This study is an attempt to determine the capital structure of listed firms in the chemical industry of Pakistan. The study finds that by studying a specific industry's capital structure, one can ascertain unique attributes, which are usually not apparent in the combined analysis of many sectors as done by Shah and Hijazi (2004). This study analyzed 26 of 39 firms in the chemical sector, listed at the Karachi Stack Exchange for the period 1993-2004 using pooled regression in a panel data analysis. Six regressors i.e. firm size, tangibility of assets, profitability, income variation, non-debt tax shield (NDTS) and growth were employed to examine their effects on leverage. The results show that these six independent variables explain 90% of variation in the dependent variable and, except for firm tangibility, results were found to be highly significant. The study has policy implications of importance for researchers, investors, analysts and managers.JEL Classification: C13, C23, C51, L65

This paper explores the process of sustainable entrepreneurship from the perspective of strategic corporate social responsibility (CSR). Drawing on insights from entrepreneurship studies that focus on opportunity creation and enactment, along with the extant literature on CSR, the authors propose a conceptual framework for sustainable entrepreneurship that combines an entrepreneurial approach with sustainability. The authors suggest that sustainability should be embedded in the business operations of companies and that sustainable business practices should be driven by an entrepreneurial approach in order to create shared value – that is, value for the business as well as for society. Shared value creation is the outcome of sustainable corporate entrepreneurship.

The research was conducted to evaluate in-vitro efficacy of numerous fungicides against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. capsici. In present research, six treatments (T) viz. Carbendazim, Benomyl, Topsin-M, Difenoconazole, Nativo, and Alliete along with control, various concentrations (C), days (D), and their interactions, i.e., (T × C), (T × D), (C × D), and (T × C × D) were exploited in a laboratory through food poison technique. Alliete expressed maximum colony growth (1.93 cm) as compared to all other fungicides with respect to control. Interaction between treatments and concentration (T × C) exhibited maximum colony growth of all treatments (Carbendazim, Benomyl, Topsin-M, Difenoconazole, Nativo, and Alliete), i.e., 0.87, 1.23, 1.73, 2.20, 2.53, and 2.93 cm at 300 ppm as compared to 500 and 700 ppm concentrations, respectively. Similar trend was also observed concerning interaction between (fungicides × days) and (tested concentrations × days). Results of the present study revealed that among tested fungicides, Carbendazim at 700 ppm expressed significant reduction in fungal growth.