International Journal of Applied Sciences and Biotechnology

1-11

Authors: Pradip Dhungana, Bikram Prajapati, Sujeeta Maharjan, Jarina Joshi

In view of crude oil prices, and its environmental issues, utilization of sustainable renewable alternative energies such as biofuels is rapidly progressing in many countries. The increasing global energy demand and depleting fossils fuels sources has led to search alternative clean and renewable fuels. One of the best alternatives to the gasoline is lignocellulosic bioethanol. Recent researches on lignocellulosic bioethanol focuses on advancement of pretreatment techniques for improved sugar yields and decreased inhibitors production. Pretreatment technique with no or less use of chemicals and cost effectiveness is the main purpose of most of the researches. Biological pretreatment techniques produce less fermentation inhibitors than chemical pretreatments. In order to cope with fermentation inhibitors different strategies can be adopted during pretreatment processes. In the course of time, advancements in production process over separate hydrolysis and fermentation have been introduced. Simultaneous saccharification and co/fermentation; and consolidated bioprocessing for bioethanol production are gaining popularity among researchers.

16-20

Authors: Mamata Mohapatra

At elevated concentrations all heavy metals are potentially toxic. Effects of Mercuric Chloride on the morphological parameters such as DNA, RNA and Enzymes were analysed during investigation on 10th day in seedlings of Vigna mungo L., All parameters exhibited reduced trend with increase in HgCl2 concentrations when compared to control plants but the enzyme activities increased. This indicates that, the seedlings are in the process of increase in tolerance to HgCl2 treatment. Metal toxicity affects crop yields, soil biomass and fertility.

31-40

Authors: Dinesh Bahadur Basnet, Komal Bahadur Basnet; Prakash Acharya

A field experiment was carried out with an objective to study the effect of nitrogen levels in the growth and yield performance of French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) (PDR 14 or Uday) at Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science (IAAS), Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal from October 2008 to March 2009. The experiment of nitrogen levels was carried out with five treatments of 0, 40, 80, 120 and 160 kg/ha with three dates of sowing in three replications in split plot design. The soil of the experimental plots was sandy loam with acidic (pH 6.33) in nature. The effect of nitrogen levels on growth pattern and grain yield was found significant. Significantly higher grain yield was obtained with 120 kg N/ha (2.57 t/ha) as compared to control (1.39 t/ha), 40 (1.84 t/ha), 80 (2.04 t/ha) and 160 (2.01 t/ha) kg N/ha, respectively. The yield increased significantly with nitrogen up to 120 kg/ha and then declined at 160 kg/ha. So, in order to achieve higher productivity of French bean, 120 kg N/ha can be considered as an optimum level of nitrogen application in the humid sub-tropical condition of inner Terai, Chitwan of Nepal.

50-59

Authors: Sushan Dhakal, Tulsi Ram Gompo

The poultry industry has transformed into one of the vibrant economic activities in Nepal, contributing to almost 4% of the national GDP. We conducted a cross-sectional survey among the poultry farmers of Kathmandu valley and Chitwan district to assess their knowledge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR); their practice of antimicrobial usage and the biosecurity status of their poultry farms. The survey was done to understand the level of knowledge gap among the farmers regarding successful poultry farming with strict biosecurity protocol and minimal use of antibiotics. A semi-structured questionnaire was prepared to interview a total of 112 farmers, with 56 respondents from each study sites. Only nineteen percent (11/56) of the farmers from the Kathmandu valley and 16% (9/56) of that of Chitwan district knew about the antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Doxycycline (25.9%, 29/112) was the most used antibiotic followed by Tylosin (21.5%, 24/112), Colistin (18.75%, 21/112), Ciprofloxacin (13.4%, 15/112) and Neomycin (12.5%, 14/112) in both districts. Majority of the surveyed respondents lacked the proper awareness regarding the importance of considerate use of antimicrobial drugs, effectiveness of implementing proper biosecurity protocols in the farms, and the increasing challenge of AMR in the present world scenario. The findings and results of this survey identify the critical gaps in the knowledge of the farmers concerning the day-to-day operations in their poultry business. Immediate strategic actions and road-maps are required to solve the burgeoning problem of AMR considering the imprudent use of antibiotics in the poultry sector.

71-74

Authors: Sagar Dahal, Jaishree Sijapati, Sandeep Rijal

An insecticidal protein named Vegetative Insecticidal Protein (Vip) produced by Bacillus thuringiensis during its vegetative growth is gaining its popularity as second-generation insecticidal protein because of its lethal effect on insects of class Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, Diptera. The research was designed for the confirmation of Vip3 gene presence in soil samples collected from different geographical region of Nepal. For the purpose, 36 soil samples from different places of Nepal were collected. Primers were used for PCR amplification of DNA templates extracted and product size was observed around 1621bp.Out of total sample analyzed, 10% of sample showed the presence of Vip3 gene.