Om Prakash

Bread wheat is the second most important cereal globally, fulfilling 20% of human daily calorie and protein intake. Among biotic stresses, leaf rust, caused by Puccinia triticina, reduces crop yields by 20–25% globally. Breeding for genetic disease resistance is the most effective and economical strategy to minimise these losses. However, the dynamic nature of the pathogen renders many of the deployed genes ineffective in a short span, prompting the search for novel seedling/all stage and adult plant resistance (APR) genes. Identifying and mapping novel disease resistance genes requires parents with contrasting phenotypes. The mapping of seedling/all stage resistance is well standardised through bi-parental mapping populations. However, mapping APR genes is challenging due to the need for precise phenotyping and the presence of additional minor genes in commonly used susceptible parents. In the present study, a subset of 20 leaf rust susceptible landraces was selected from a panel of 4575 bread wheat landraces used in the mission mode gene discovery program. These 20 susceptible lines along with checks, HI1500 as a resistant line and Agra Local (AL) a susceptible control, were evaluated at the seedling and the adult plant stage for two consecutive seasons. Fourteen of 20 lines showed an extremely susceptible seedling response (IT-3 to 33+) against all of the tested sixteen different pathotypes of the leaf rust pathogen. Field evaluation under timely and late sown conditions for two years characterised these susceptible lines with higher final disease severity (60–100 S), a very high AUDPC score (560–1330), and a high ACI value (75–100). The chances of duplicity among these accessions were eliminated by comparing the SNP data as per the homozygous genotyping difference based on identity by state on the G-DIRT Software, indicating unique identity of each accession. The super-susceptible lines identified through this study could be effectively used as contrasting susceptible parents, a basic requirement in mapping the component traits of APR genes. Additionally, these can also efficiently serve as rust spreader lines in the disease screening nursery.

Dimethoate remains widely sold in India even as at least 31 countries have banned it. The dispute has sharpened questions over pesticide regulation, food safety and industry pressure.

Government records show carbofuran remains in Indian farming despite bans abroad and a proposed crackdown at home. The exception for its dominant 3% granular form has kept questions alive over risks to bees, wildlife and public health.

Carbendazim remains legal in India even after bans or restrictions across 29 developed countries. The case highlights a policy reversal despite official warnings on reproductive and health risks.

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Objectives To assess the linear growth in patients with idiopathic nephrotic syndrome receiving corticosteroid therapy. Methods Two hundred forty-five cases, aged 1–18 y of both gender [53 – first episode nephrotic syndrome (FENS), 50 – infrequent relapsing (IRNS), 68 – frequent relapsing (FRNS), 46 – steroid dependent (SDNS) and 28 – steroid resistant (SRNS)] were included. Height Z-score, cumulative dose of prednisolone and steroid-related side-effects were recorded. Results Median age at onset of disease was 3.8 y [interquartile range (IQR) 3–7] and median duration of follow-up was 4 mo (IQR 3, 10). Overall, 97 cases (39.5%) showed short stature (height Z-score <-2) after therapy; 27 had short stature before and 70 (28.5%) new cases (20 IRNS + 31 FRNS + 17 SDNS + 2 SRNS) developed after treatment. Median height Z-score showed significant reduction (-1.9 vs. -2.3, P <0.001) after therapy. Cumulative steroid dose (mg/m2) significantly decreased the height velocity in 50 cases (31 FRNS + 17 SDNS + 2 SRNS), who received steroid over prolonged period (r = -0.322, p = 0.023). Age at onset of disease (r = -0.328, p = 0.020) and duration of steroid therapy (r = -0.338, p = 0.016) significantly correlated with change in height Z-scores. Conclusions Younger age of onset of disease and duration of steroid therapy had significant relationship with linear growth.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a major cause of irreversible vision impairment in elderly individuals worldwide. It is a chronic retinal disorder that primarily affects the macula, the region responsible for central and high-resolution vision. With the continuous increase in the aging population, the prevalence of AMD is also rising, making early diagnosis essential, as the resulting vision loss is permanent and cannot be restored. The conventional approaches often lack detailed structural information, which can limit diagnostic accuracy. Although Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) enables high-resolution imaging of retinal layers and structures, accurate automated detection and large-scale AMD screening remain challenging due to the complex characteristics of OCT images and the limited feature extraction capability of existing methods. To address these limitations, this study proposes a novel Deep Kronecker Convolutional eXtreme Gradient Boosting (DKConvXGB) network for AMD detection using OCT images. The proposed model integrates a Deep Kronecker Network (DKN) with Convolutional eXtreme Gradient Boosting (ConvXGB) to enhance feature representation through structured learning and improve classification robustness. Initially, an OCT image is obtained as input from the database. Next, the Kalman filter (KF) is employed to remove noise from the considered OCT image. Afterward, Multiloss-Psi-Net is employed to perform layer segmentation. Then, augmentation techniques, namely shifting and rotation, are applied for augmenting the segmented image. Thereafter, image augmentation, reflectivity, curvature, thickness, statistical features, and texture features are extracted. Lastly, AMD is detected utilizing DKConvXGB and attains a maximal value of accuracy of about 91.888%, specificity of about 90.363%, sensitivity of about 90.448%, and an F1-score of 90.443%, indicating its effectiveness for reliable and early AMD detection. In terms of comparative performance, the proposed method shows improvements of 12.628%, 10.826%, 9.925%, 9.352%, 7.011%, and 4.616% over existing state-of-the-art methods used for evaluation, indicating its superior effectiveness for reliable and early AMD detection.

India continues to allow Atrazine for farm use despite a 2020 draft move to ban it. The dispute has sharpened questions over groundwater safety, food residues and pesticide regulation.

How chat, voice, and agentic AI are rewriting the first principles of UX design

A Chittorgarh family has accused Daksh Hospital of leaving a surgical mop inside a woman during a Caesarean section. The allegation, denied by the hospital, has sparked demands for an inquiry after multiple surgeries.