<div style="text-align:justify">Background: Potassium and zinc are important with respect to mineral nutrition of groundnut and play a significant role in physiological and biochemical processes and thus affect productivity. To make these important minerals available to the growing plants in calcareous soil having fixation problem, the current investigation was undertaken to identify both K- and Zn-solubilizing bacteria for improving growth, nutrient uptake and yield of groundnut. 
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Methods: Soil samples were collected from groundnut rhizosphere during 2018 for the isolation of Zn- and K- solubilizing bacteria.&nbsp;Estimation for Zn- and K-solubilization was done using zinc phosphate and potassium aluminosilicate as insoluble form of Zn and K, respectively. Promising Zn and K solubilizing bacterial isolates were selected and evaluated in pots. 
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Result: Inoculation of different isolates of KSB and ZSB improved K and Zn contents of shoot and seed during summer and kharif 2019. Evaluation of KSB and ZSB isolates, in potted condition, resulted in improved pod yield upto 39.6% (KSB) and upto 37.1% (ZSB) during summer and upto 24.1% and 25.1% during kharif 2019, respectively. Therefore, uptake of Zn- and K- and yield of groundnut can be enhanced significantly by application of both potential ZSB and KSB.&nbsp;</div>

Enhancing Uptake of K and Zn and Improving Yield of Groundnut by Application of K- and Zn- Solubilizing Bacteria

<div style="text-align: justify;">Colonisation and infection of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato is governed not only by host resistance but also by its interactions with other phylloplane bacterial colonizers. In the present study, reduced disease symptoms were observed as a result of interaction between P. syringae pv. tomato and Klebsiella pneumoniae, a predominant human enteric pathogen colonising phyllosphere. Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants raised under controlled aseptic conditions were divided into 4 groups of 25 plants each and treated as follows: Group 1- inoculated with P. syringae pv. tomato; Group 2- inoculated with K. pneumoniae; Group 3- combination of P. syringae pv. tomato and K. pneumoniae (1:1); Group 4- Distilled water (control). Sampled leaves from the above groups were analysed at 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours post inoculation for the activity of cytoplasmic Peroxidase (POX), Polyphenoloxidase (PPO) and Phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL). Disease incidence was recorded in treated as well as leaves emerging after 2 weeks of inoculation. Plants treated with P. syringae pv. tomato had maximum disease incidence while no infection was observed in control and those inoculated with K. pneumoniae alone. Inoculation of plants with combination of both microbes could substantially reduce the disease severity. The results thus demonstrate that K. pneumoniae, a common HEP on plant surfaces, reduces the ability of P. syringae pv. tomato to colonise the host.</div>

Effect of Klebsiella pneumoniae on speck disease development in Solanum lycopersicum

<div>Background: Antibiotic resistance is an emerging concern in the therapy of clinical infections worldwide. Previous studies conducted in our laboratory have confirmed an increase in the prevalence of extended spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) among the Gram-negative bacterial pathogens associated with dogs, which could act as a potential source for the transfer of these resistant pathogens or their genetic determinants to human. Since carbapenems are the last resort drugs against these resistant pathogens, the study was aimed to isolate and characterise carbapenem resistance among Escherichia coli (E. coli), Klebsiella pneumoniae (K. pneumoniae) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) associated with common clinical infections in dogs. 
 
Methods: A total of 100 samples were collected from lesional skin, urine and anterior vagina of dogs presented to the Veterinary Hospitals of Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University at Mannuthy and Thrissur. The samples were cultured onto Brain Heart Infusion Agar (BHIA), Eosin Methylene Blue (EMB) and Mac Conkey (MAC) for isolation of bacteria. Identification of the isolates was performed based on cultural, morphological and biochemical characteristics. The isolates were subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility test (ABST) against the 12 commonly used beta-lactam and non&ndash;beta-lactam group of antibiotics by disc diffusion method and further subjected to screening for ESBL double disc diffusion method. Carbapenem-resistant isolates were subjected to phenotypic confirmatory test for carbapenemase production employing Imipenem-EDTA and Ertapenem-boronic acid minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) strip method. 
 
Result: Forty four Gram-negative bacterial isolates obtained were viz., E. coli (30), K. pneumonia (11) and P. aeruginosa (3) from the 100 samples. Apart from these, other isolates obtained were Staphylococcus spp. (53) and Bacillus spp. (2). All the Gram-negative isolates were subjected to ABST employing 12 common antibiotics belonging to beta-lactam and non-beta-lactam groups. Multidrug resistance (MDR) could be observed in 28 E. coli, 11 K. pneumoniae and three P. aeruginosa isolates. All the 42 MDR isolates showed positive results for ESBL production. A total of 14 isolates out of the 44 Gram-negative bacilli were found to be resistant to carbapenem either to imipenem, meropenem or ertapenem. Among the 14 Gram-negative isolates, nine turned out to be positive for metallo-beta-lactamase (MBL) and none for K. penumoniae carbapenemase (KPC) on phenotypic confirmatory test for detecting major carbapenemase enzymes. The present study documented that Gram- negative bacteria like E. coli, K. pneumoniae and P. aeruginosa isolated from dogs are showing an increase rate of resistance against carbapenems which are the last resort drugs against ESBL producers. Hence, there is an urgent need to curb the irrational and excessive use of antibiotics in veterinary sector.</div>

<div>Phenotypic Characterisation of Klebseilla pneumoniae Carbapenemase and Metallo Beta-lactamase in Carbapenem Resistant Gram-negative Bacteria</div>

<div>Background:&nbsp;Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae are two important commensals with pathogenic potentiality in animals and birds, causing intestinal and extra-intestinal infections. These are somewhat zoonotic too via different routes. So, the present study was undertaken to investigate the prevalence of these two bacteria from cloaca and environment of ducks from different districts of West Bengal, followed by detailed characterization and antibiogram. 
 
Methods: Around 197 duck and environmental samples were collected from different districts of West Bengal. E. coli and K. pneumoniae were isolated from collected samples as per standard methods followed by serotyping of the E. coli isolates. The detection of ESBL/ACBL producing isolates was done both phenotypically and genotypically by detecting the presence of antibiotic-resistant genes. Virulence property and biofilm-producing ability of these isolates were also studied. Antibiogram of the ESBL and biofilm positive isolates were done using common 12 antibiotics by disc diffusion method.&nbsp; &nbsp; 
 
Result: A total of 134(68.02%) Escherichia coli and 33(16.75%) Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates were recovered and confirmed by PCR. The prevalence of E. coli and K. pneumoniae in cloacal swabs were less in comparison to the environmental samples (72.09% and 20.93%). Approx. 79.85% E. coli and 72.73% K. pneumoniae isolates were found to be the ESBL/ACBL producers in vitro. E. coli and K. pneumoniae isolates possessed all major antibiotic-resistant genes with the blaAmpC (64.18% &amp; 48.48%) being the most prevalent one. Twenty three (17.16%) E. coli isolates were found positive for the virulence genes, of which stx1 (39.13%) was the most common one as detected by multiplex PCR. No virulence gene was found in K. pneumoniae isolates. Ninety one (67.91%) E. coli and 26(78.79%) K. pneumoniae isolates possessed the biofilm-producing genes. All the ESBL and biofilms producing E. coli and K. pneumoniae isolates showed 100% - 95.24% resistance to ampicillin. A high percentage of resistances were also seen against cefotaxime, ticarcillin/ clavulanic acid, ertapenem, ceftazidime, norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin, which may be due to several reasons. Maximum overall sensitivity was detected against chloramphenicol, co-trimoxazole and gentamicin.</div>

Detection and Characterization of &beta;​-lactamases and Biofilm-producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae from Ducks and Duck Environments in West Bengal

<div style="text-align:justify">Background: Urinary incontinence is a major problem both in man and animals particularly dogs. L-arginine, the precursor of NO, relaxes coronary artery smooth muscle by opening of KATP channels. L-arginine has beneficial circulatory effects in patients with essential and secondary hypertension. However, not much is known about the role of L-arginine on bladder physiology. In view of this, the present work investigated the functional role of L- arginine on detrusor smooth muscle of goat.&nbsp; 
 
Methods: Detrusor strips of goat, collected from local abattoir were mounted in a thermostatically controlled (37&deg; &plusmn; 0.5&deg;C) organ bath (20 ml capacity) containing physiological solution. After 1 hr of equilibrium, carbachol (CCh) (10-5 M) was used to induce sub-maximal contraction. L-arginine (10-3 M) was added at the plateau of contraction to see any observable effect in absence and presence of modulators of NO and ion channels.&nbsp; 
 
Result: L- arginine (10-3&nbsp;M) reversed the contractions induced by CCh (10-5 M) on detrusor tissues. Methylene blue (MB) (10-5 M), the non-specific guanylyl cyclase inhibitor, failed to attenuate the relaxant response of L-arginine but, the NO synthase inhibitor L-NAME (3 x 10-6 M) inhibited the relaxant response of L-arginine. The KATP channel blocker glibenclamide (10-6 M) failed to inhibit the relaxation induced by L-arginine while KCa channel blocker tetraethylammonium (TEA) (10-3 M) inhibited the relaxant response of L-arginine. The results of the present study suggest that L-arginine produces relaxation of goat detrusor muscle and the L-arginine-elicited relaxation is &nbsp;NO-dependent but guanylyl cyclase independent which activates KCa channels.</div>

<div style="text-align:justify">Relaxation of Goat Detrusor Muscle by L-arginine Involves NO-dependent but Guanylyl Cyclase Independent Activation of KCa Channels</div>

The food security is a huge problem with the increase in population of the Pakistan. Maiz (Zea mays) is one of the major cereal crop and has the capability to compete with the production as well as supporting the controlling applications. As, the modern genotypes has the good potential to resist with the potassium (K) application into the field, an experiment was conducted on K levels with 0, 30, 60 and 90 kg ha-1. Maize genotypes viz MM-50, MM-44, ZMS-52, ZMS-51, ZMS-40, ZMS-06, GV-41, Kiramat-2C, 325-PW and Babar-1C were tested into the field. Our results concluded that K levels had a significant effect on grain yield and yield components. Application of K at 60 kg ha-1 showed good yield compared to all other levels of K applications. The tested genotypes also had a significant effect on the tested traits. The genotype (MM-50) showed maximum grains yield (3924 kg ha-1) and maximum yield components to all the genotypes. Maximum grains yield (4593 kg ha-1) and 1000 grain weight (260.4 g) were obtained from genotype (MM-50) at K level of 60 kg ha -1.

Enhancing production of Zea mays genotypes by K application&nbsp;in Peshawar, Pakistan

<div style="text-align: justify;">Potassium (K) is among the essential macronutrients needed for plant growth and it&rsquo;s also an extremely dynamic ion in both soil and plant systems. K+ moves intensely in a plant system but moderately in a soil system. The average soil deposits of K generally are plentiful, but their mainstreams are not readily available for crop uptake. Many researches have dealt with the response of crops to potassium application, but few literatures have tackled that of maize to available K and its uptake. This review seeks to discuss current progress concerning the relevance of K in maize crop production and its uptake; how this physiological action transforms into growth and yield. We have reviewed available studies on the content, roles of K in the soil-plant system and factors contributing to K uptake and transportation in plant. Also, the benefits of Potassium Solubilizing Microorganisms (KSMs) as an alternative or in combination with exchangeable K+ are reviewed. Furthermore, K deficiencies in maize causing constraint in physiological activities and rendering weak resistance to pests are also discussed. The current study indicates that intensive agricultural production has led to K nutrient limitation in organic or coarse-textured soil resulting in the reduction of available K reserves. However, an optimal application of K can prevent these fertilization imbalances, which will eventually increase soil fertility.&nbsp;</div>

<div style="text-align: justify;">Maize (Zea mays L.) Response to Potassium Application and K+ Uptake in the Soil: A Review</div>

<div>Background: Respiratory diseases in calves are causing worldwide economic losses for the beef industry. This study was planned to determine the serum protein fractions and A/G ratio in calves with clinically diagnosed pneumonia, and evaluate the possibility uses of these parameters as clinical diagnostic parameters. 
 
Methods: The 34 calves with respiratory system problems and 10 healthy calves without clinical pneumonia symptoms were used as materials. The obtained serum samples were used for total protein and serum protein electrophoresis. 
 
Result: Albumin, &alpha;1-globulin percentages and A/G ratio decreased in the patient group (p&le;0.01), other globulin fractions were higher in the patient group (p&le;0.01), for % g values. According to concentration results, it was found that while albumin did not show a significant difference, &alpha;1-globulin (p&le;0.05) and A / G ratio (p&le;0.01) decreased in the patient group. In addition, other globulin fractions and total protein levels were higher in patient groups (p&le;0.01). As a result, the serum protein fractions should be evaluated as a useful biochemical blood parameter for diagnosis and follow up of lung diseases especially in calves.</div>

Determination of Blood Serum Protein Fractions of Calves with Clinically Diagnosed Pneumonia

A total of &nbsp;86 strains Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from swine were collected to analysis the molecular genetic characteristic by multilocus sequence typing (MLST). The eURST software was used to evaluate the results of MLST. The results indicated that all isolates clustered into 14 ST types(STs). ST106 (including 3 strians) and ST23 (including 2 strians) were single branch. Other 12 ST types belong to the CC258 clonal complex. This study showed that klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from swine in this region has some genetic diversity and the main types were ST258 clone complex, it may be transfered between swine and human.&nbsp;

Multilocus sequence typing analysis of Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from swine

<div>Background: Potassium is a major nutrient needed by the crops including tuber crops. It is essential for tuber initiation and bulking process. Varietal differences in potassium uptake and utilization in many crops were reported. As many varieties of sweet potato are released so far, studies on understanding the variations in potassium accumulation and its influence on tuber yield are essential.&nbsp; 
 
Methods: Field experiments were conducted during kharif and rabi seasons, 2021 with an objective to assess the seasonal influence and potassium nutrition [0 kg K2O/ha (K1), 50 kg K2O/ha (K2), 75 kg K2O/ha (K3) and 100 kg K2O/ha (K4)] on growth and tuber yield of five sweet potato varieties - four high yielding varieties (HYV) and one local variety [Bhu Krishna (V1), Sree Arun (V2), Sree Bhadra (V3), Bhu Sona (V4) and Kanjanghad Local (V5)]. There were 20 treatment combinations replicated thrice in a randomized block design. 
 
Result: Significantly higher tuber yield (17.01 t/ha) during kharif season was recorded by variety Bhu Sona. But during rabi season, Sree Arun was superior with a tuber yield of 23.92 t/ha. The potassium nutrition up to 75 kg K2O/ha increased the yield of sweet potato in rabi season. Interaction effect of two factors was also significant with respect to tuber yield, total chlorophyll content and tuber K content. Potassium Harvest Index (%) and Potassium Accumulation Value (g/plant) also significantly varied between varieties and K levels.</div>

Enhancing Uptake of K and Zn and Improving Yield of Groundnut by Application of K- and Zn- Solubilizing Bacteria

Effect of Klebsiella pneumoniae on speck disease development in Solanum lycopersicum

Phenotypic Characterisation of Klebseilla pneumoniae Carbapenemase and Metallo Beta-lactamase in Carbapenem Resistant Gram-negative Bacteria

Detection and Characterization of β-lactamases and Biofilm-producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae from Ducks and Duck Environments in West Bengal

Relaxation of Goat Detrusor Muscle by L-arginine Involves NO-dependent but Guanylyl Cyclase Independent Activation of K_Ca Channels

Enhancing production of Zea mays genotypes by K application in Peshawar, Pakistan

Maize (Zea mays L.) Response to Potassium Application and K+ Uptake in the Soil: A Review

Determination of Blood Serum Protein Fractions of Calves with Clinically Diagnosed Pneumonia

Multilocus sequence typing analysis of Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from swine

Seasonal Changes in Photosynthate Partitioning in High Yielding Sweet Potato Varieties under Varied K Nutrition Levels