Nazim Hussain

In vitro shoot regeneration of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) using different cytokinins

Although the delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) skin reaction to tuberculin is used worldwide for tuberculosis (TB) detection, it has poor diagnostic specificity due to the presence of common antigens in tuberculin shared by many mycobacterial species. The problem is noticed, especially in countries where the Bacillus Calmette-Gue´rin (BCG) vaccination is widely practiced. Thus, a new skin test antigen specific for the diagnosis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) infection is urgently needed. CFP-10, a mycobacterial secretary protein that is absent in Mycobacterium bovis BCG and most other mycobacterial species including Mycobacterium avium, Mycobacterium intracellulare, has been shown to elicit cellular immune responses in MTB infected individuals and can be a good candidate for MTB specific diagnosis. We prepared recombinant MTB CFP-10, rCFP-10, and its utility as specific antigen for TB diagnosis was evaluated by skin testing in guinea pigs sensitized with M . tuberculosis, M. bovis, and M. bovis BCG. Our results show that the purified MTB rCFP-10 antigen elicits a positive skin response only in the guinea pigs sensitized with M. tuberculosis and M. bovis , and not in the animals sensitized with M. bovis BCG vaccine. The data presented in this study supports further testing of the use rCFP-10 as the specific antigen in the skin test for the diagnosis of MTB infection in humans. Key words : Recombinant CFP-10 protein, skin test, delayed-type hypersensitivity, tuberculosis infection, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycobacterium bovis, Bacillus Calmette-Gue´rin.

Study of correlation among yield related traits and path coefficient analysis in rice (Oryza sativa L.)

In order to determine the associations among yield components and their direct and indirect influence on grain yield of rice, an experiment was conducted. For this purpose, 30 genotypes collected from different sources were tested in a randomized complete block design. The phenotypic correlations among the yield traits and their path coefficient were estimated. Grain yield was significantly correlated with its component characters; number of productive tillers per plant, number of grains per panicle and flag leaf area. Path analysis revealed that days to maturity had the highest direct effect (0.751) on grain yield per plant. In addition, the yield components had positive direct effect on grain yield except the days to heading (-0.834). The order of yield components was the number of productive tillers per plant, flag leaf area and 1000 grain weight. The improvement in grain yield will be efficient if the selection is based on biological yield components, number of productive tillers per plant and flag leaf area. These traits may also be utilized in pure line selection. Keywords : Rice ( Oryza sativa ), path coefficient, phenotypic correlation, yield components