The North-eastern (NE) India, comprising of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura, possess diverse array of locally adapted non-Basmati aromatic germplasm. The germplasm collections from this region could serve as valuable resources in breeding for abiotic stress tolerance, grain yield and cooking/eating quality. To utilize such collections, however, breeders need information about the extent and distribution of genetic diversity present within collections. In this study, we report the result of population genetic analysis of 107 aromatic and quality rice accessions collected from different parts of NE India, as well as classified these accessions in the context of a set of structured global rice cultivars. A total of 322 alleles were amplified by 40 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers with an average of 8.03 alleles per locus. Average gene diversity was 0.67. Population structure analysis revealed that NE Indian aromatic rice can be subdivided into three genetically distinct population clusters: P1, joha rice accessions from Assam, tai rices from Mizoram and those from Sikkim; P2, chakhao rice germplasm from Manipur; and P3, aromatic rice accessions from Nagaland. Pair-wise FST between three groups varied from 0.223 (P1 vs P2) to 0.453 (P2 vs P3). With reference to the global classification of rice cultivars, two major groups (Indica and Japonica) were identified in NE Indian germplasm. The aromatic accessions from Assam, Manipur and Sikkim were assigned to the Indica group, while the accessions from Nagaland exhibited close association with Japonica. The tai accessions of Mizoram along with few chakhao accessions collected from the hill districts of Manipur were identified as admixed. The results highlight the importance of regional genetic studies for understanding diversification of aromatic rice in India. The data also suggest that there is scope for exploiting the genetic diversity of aromatic and quality rice germplasm of NE India for rice improvement.

One of the pathways of the unfolded protein response, initiated by PKR-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase (PERK), is key to neuronal homeostasis in neurodegenerative diseases. PERK pathway activation is usually accomplished by inhibiting eIF2α-P dephosphorylation, after its phosphorylation by PERK. Less tried is an approach involving direct PERK activation without compromising long-term recovery of eIF2α function by dephosphorylation. Here we show major improvement in cellular (STHdh Q111/111 ) and mouse (R6/2) Huntington's disease (HD) models using a potent small molecule PERK activator that we developed, MK-28. MK-28 showed PERK selectivity in vitro on a 391-kinase panel and rescued cells (but not PERK−/− cells) from ER stress-induced apoptosis. Cells were also rescued by the commercial PERK activator CCT020312 but MK-28 was significantly more potent. Computational docking suggested MK-28 interaction with the PERK activation loop. MK-28 exhibited remarkable pharmacokinetic properties and high BBB penetration in mice. Transient subcutaneous delivery of MK-28 significantly improved motor and executive functions and delayed death onset in R6/2 mice, showing no toxicity. Therefore, PERK activation can treat a most aggressive HD model, suggesting a possible approach for HD therapy and worth exploring for other neurodegenerative disorders.HD is a neurodegenerative disease arising from an expanded CAG repeat in the exon 1 of the huntingtin gene, which translates into a polyglutamine (polyQ) tract in the huntingtin (Htt) protein 1,2 . HD is a genetic, autosomal dominant disease with late onset and progressive motor dysfunction, cognitive decline and behavioral abnormalities. In addition to these, other systemic impairments such as weight loss, muscle wasting and glucose regulation impairment were also reported 2 . The expansion of the polyQ repeats causes mutant Htt (mHtt) to aggregate in HD tissues when it includes above 35 glutamine residues, with a consequent induction of cellular stress, toxicity and cell death especially in the brain striatum and extending later to the cortex. This reflects progressively in the deterioration of the individual's biological functions 3,4 . Although several therapeutic approaches are currently being pursued, including ongoing clinical trials for lowering mHtt levels using antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs), there is currently no effective treatment for HD 5 .One of the important consequences of the gradual accumulation of misfolded mHtt is its inhibition of ER-associated degradation (ERAD), causing endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and induction of a conserved stress response known as the unfolded protein response (UPR) 6-12 . The function of the UPR is to either re-establish cellular homeostasis or, if this fails, to trigger cell death in order to prevent further accumulation of 1 PERK modulator, with only Tun. The graphs show the average relative apoptosis rate of at least 3 independent experiments for each compound.Cell Cycle FACS analysis. Cells were washed with PBS and fixed with ...

BackgroundHill rices (Oryza sativa L.) are direct seeded rices grown on hill slopes of different gradients. These landraces have evolved under rainfed and harsh environmental conditions and may possess genes governing adaptation traits such as tolerance to cold and moisture stress. In this study, 64 hill rice landraces were collected from the state of Arunachal Pradesh of North-Eastern region of India, and assessed by agro-morphological variability and microsatellite markers polymorphism. Our aim was to use phenotypic and genetic diversity data to understand the basis of farmers’ classification of hill rice landraces into two groups: umte and tening. Another goal was to understand the genetic differentiation of hill rices into Indica or japonica subspecies.ResultsAccording to farmers’ classification, hill rices were categorized into two groups: umte (large-grained, late maturing) and tening (small-grained, early maturing). We did not find significant difference in days to 50 % flowering between the groups. Principal component analysis revealed that two groups can be distinguished on the basis of kernel length-to-width ration (KLW), kernel length (KL), grain length (GrL), grain length-to-width ration (GrLW) and plant height (Ht). Stepwise canonical discriminant analysis identified KL and Ht as the main discriminatory characters between the cultivar groups. Genetic diversity analysis with 35 SSR markers revealed considerable genetic diversity in the hill rice germplasm (gene diversity: 0.66; polymorphism information content: 0.62). Pair-wise allelic difference between umte and tening groups was not statistically significant. The model-based population structure analysis showed that the hill rices were clustered into two broad groups corresponding to Indica and Japonica. The geographic distribution and cultivars grouping of hill rices were not congruent in genetic clusters. Both distance- and model-based approaches indicated that the hill rices were predominantly japonica or admixture among the groups within the subspecies. These findings were further supported by combined analysis hill rices with 150 reference rice accessions representing major genetic groups of rice.ConclusionThis study collected a valuable set of hill rice germplasm for rice breeding and for evolutionary studies. It also generated a new set of information on genetic and phenotypic diversity of hill rice landraces in North-Eastern region of India. The collected hill rices were mostly japonica or admixture among the subpopulations of Indica or Japonica. The findings are useful for utilization and conservation of hill rice germplasm.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12863-016-0414-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The solvatochromic behavior of two newly synthesized naphthalimide derivatives (I and II) which have potential antioxidative activities in anticarcinogenic drug development treatment, has been monitored in protic and aprotic solvents of different polarity applying steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence techniques. The compounds exhibit unique photophysical response in different solvent environments. The spectral trends do not appear to originate only from changes in the solvent polarity but also indicate that hydrogen bonding interactions and intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) influence the energy of electronic excitation of the compounds. Incorporation of an amino group at C(4) position of the naphthalimide ring in II makes it behave differently from I in terms of spectral characterization and fluorescence efficacy of the systems. The nonradiative relaxation process of the compounds is governed by medium polarity. The ground state geometry, lowest energy transition, and the UV-vis absorption energy of the compounds were studied using density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) at the B3LYP/6-31G* level, which showed that the calculated outcomes were in good agreement with experimental data.

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A catalyst-free water-mediated regio- and stereospecific ring-opening reaction of nonracemic spiroaziridine oxindoles and indoles has been developed with retention of configuration. This method provides direct access to enantiopure 3,3'-mixed bisindoles with excellent yield and enantioselectivity (up to 98% ee).

The toxicity of four concentrations (1, 5, 10 and 20% w/v) of an aqueous extract from the weed, Clerodendrum viscosum Ventenat (Verbenaceae) was investigated under field conditions of the North Bengal University, Darjeeling, West Bengal, India for managing two major pests of tea, Camellia sinensis (L), namely the tea mosquito bug, Helopeltis theivora Waterhouse, (Heteroptera: Miridae) and the tea red spider mite, Oligonychus coffeae Nietner, (Acarina: Tetranychidae). Four field trials, two for red spider mite and two for tea mosquito bug, were conducted during April-May 2008 and October-November 2009 following a Randomized Block design. The aqueous extract of C. viscosum effectively and significantly reduced the mite population as well as infestation of tea mosquito bug by 68-95% and 73-86%, respectively, and their bioefficacy is comparable to synthetic and neem pesticides. No phytotoxic effect (score 0-5% and grade 1) was observed in the tea bushes sprayed with different doses of aqueous extract of C. viscosum in the field. Made tea samples were taint free. Organoleptic test revealed leaf-infusions and liquor strength as good, scoring 6.5-7.0 on a 10 point scale. Availability and distribution of this weed (C. viscosum) in and around teagrowing areas of sub Himalayan region, along with its processing for the feasibility of including C. visosum extracts in the current IPM programme is discussed.