|
Bt Cotton
Bt cotton is a genetically modified pest resistant plant cotton variety, which produces an insecticide to combat bollworm. Description Strains of the bacterium '' Bacillus thuringiensis'' produce over 200 different Bt toxins, each harmful to different insects. Most notably, Bt toxins are insecticidal to the larvae of moths and butterflies, beetles, cotton bollworms and flies but are harmless to other forms of life. The gene coding for Bt toxin has been inserted into cotton as a transgene, causing it to produce this natural insecticide in its tissues. In many regions, the main pests in commercial cotton are lepidopteran larvae, which are killed by the Bt protein in the genetically modified cotton they eat. This eliminates the need to use large amounts of broad-spectrum insecticides to kill lepidopteran pests (some of which have developed pyrethroid resistance). This spares natural insect predators in the farm ecology and further contributes to noninsecticide pest management. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Genetically Modified Organism
A genetically modified organism (GMO) is any organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. The exact definition of a genetically modified organism and what constitutes genetic engineering varies, with the most common being an organism altered in a way that "does not occur naturally by mating and/or natural recombination". A wide variety of organisms have been genetically modified (GM), from animals to plants and microorganisms. Genes have been transferred within the same species, across species (creating transgenic organisms), and even across kingdoms. New genes can be introduced, or endogenous genes can be enhanced, altered, or knocked out. Creating a genetically modified organism is a multi-step process. Genetic engineers must isolate the gene they wish to insert into the host organism and combine it with other genetic elements, including a promoter and terminator region and often a selectable marker. A number of techniques are a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aphid
Aphids are small sap-sucking insects and members of the superfamily Aphidoidea. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white woolly aphids. A typical life cycle involves flightless females giving live birth to female nymphs—who may also be already pregnant, an adaptation scientists call telescoping generations—without the involvement of males. Maturing rapidly, females breed profusely so that the number of these insects multiplies quickly. Winged females may develop later in the season, allowing the insects to colonize new plants. In temperate regions, a phase of sexual reproduction occurs in the autumn, with the insects often overwintering as eggs. The life cycle of some species involves an alternation between two species of host plants, for example between an annual crop and a woody plant. Some species feed on only one type of plant, while others are generalists, coloni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indian Express
''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split between the family members. The southern editions took the name ''The New Indian Express'', while the northern editions, based in Mumbai, retained the original ''Indian Express'' name with ''"The"'' prefixed to the title. History In 1932, the ''Indian Express'' was started by an Ayurvedic doctor, P. Varadarajulu Naidu, at Chennai, being published by his "Tamil Nadu" press. Soon under financial difficulties, he sold the newspaper to Swaminathan Sadanand, the founder of ''The Free Press Journal'', a national news agency. In 1933, the ''Indian Express'' opened its second office in Madurai, launching the Tamil edition, '' Dinamani''. Sadanand introduced several innovations and reduced the price of the newspaper. Faced with financial difficultie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union territories of India by population, second-most populous state in India and the second-most populous country subdivision globally. It was formed on 1 May 1960 by splitting the bilingual Bombay State, which had existed since 1956, into majority Marathi language, Marathi-speaking Maharashtra and Gujarati language, Gujarati-speaking Gujarat. Maharashtra is home to the Marathi people, the predominant ethno-linguistic group, who speak the Marathi language, Marathi language, the official language of the state. The state is divided into 6 Divisions of Maharashtra, divisions and 36 List of districts of Maharashtra, districts, with the state capital being Mumbai, the List of million-plus urban agglomerations in India, most populous urban area in India ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Environmental Protection Agency
A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale from microscopic to global in extent. It can also be subdivided according to its attributes. Examples include the marine environment, the atmospheric environment and the terrestrial environment. The number of biophysical environments is countless, given that each living organism has its own environment. The term ''environment'' can refer to a singular global environment in relation to humanity, or a local biophysical environment, e.g. the UK's Environment Agency. Life-environment interaction All life that has survived must have adapted to the conditions of its environment. Temperature, light, humidity, soil nutrients, etc., all influence the species within an environment. However, life in turn modifies, in various forms, its conditions. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mirid Bugs
The Miridae are a large and diverse insect family at one time known by the taxonomic synonym Capsidae. Species in the family may be referred to as capsid bugs or "mirid bugs". Common names include plant bugs, leaf bugs, and grass bugs. It is the largest family of true bugs belonging to the suborder Heteroptera; it includes over 10,000 known species, and new ones are being described constantly. Most widely known mirids are species that are notorious agricultural pests that pierce plant tissues, feed on the sap, and sometimes transmit viral plant diseases. Some species however, are predatory. Description Miridae are small, terrestrial insects, usually oval-shaped or elongate and measuring less than in length. Many of them have a hunched look, because of the shape of the prothorax, which carries the head bent down. Some are brightly coloured and attractively patterned, others drab or dark, most being inconspicuous. Some genera are ant mimics at certain stages of life. The Mirida ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pesticide Poisoning
A pesticide poisoning occurs when pesticides, chemicals intended to control a pest, affect non-target organisms such as humans, wildlife, plant, or bees. There are three types of pesticide poisoning. The first of the three is a single and short-term very high level of exposure which can be experienced by individuals who commit suicide, as well as pesticide formulators. The second type of poisoning is long-term high-level exposure, which can occur in pesticide formulators and manufacturers. The third type of poisoning is a long-term low-level exposure, which individuals are exposed to from sources such as pesticide residues in food as well as contact with pesticide residues in the air, water, soil, sediment, food materials, plants and animals. In developing countries, such as Sri Lanka, pesticide poisonings from short-term very high level of exposure (acute poisoning) is the most worrisome type of poisoning. However, in developed countries, such as Canada, it is the complete oppos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biological Pest Control
Biological control or biocontrol is a method of controlling pests, such as insects, mites, weeds, and plant diseases, using other organisms. It relies on predation, parasitism, herbivory, or other natural mechanisms, but typically also involves an active human management role. It can be an important component of integrated pest management (IPM) programs. There are three basic strategies for biological pest control: classical (importation), where a natural enemy of a pest is introduced in the hope of achieving control; inductive (augmentation), in which a large population of natural enemies are administered for quick pest control; and inoculative (conservation), in which measures are taken to maintain natural enemies through regular reestablishment. Natural enemies of insect pests, also known as biological control agents, include predators, parasitoids, pathogens, and competitors. Biological control agents of plant diseases are most often referred to as antagonists. Biologic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Integrated Pest Management
Integrated pest management (IPM), also known as integrated pest control (IPC) is a broad-based approach that integrates both chemical and non-chemical practices for economic control of pests. IPM aims to suppress pest populations below the economic injury level (EIL). The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization defines IPM as "the careful consideration of all available pest control techniques and subsequent integration of appropriate measures that discourage the development of pest populations and keep pesticides and other interventions to levels that are economically justified and reduce or minimize risks to human health and the environment. IPM emphasizes the growth of a healthy crop with the least possible disruption to agro-ecosystems and encourages natural pest control mechanisms." Entomologists and ecologists have urged the adoption of IPM pest control since the 1970s. IPM allows for safer pest control. The introduction and spread of invasive species can also be managed wit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Economic Research Service
The Economic Research Service (ERS) is a component of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and a principal agency of the Federal Statistical System of the United States. It provides information and research on agriculture and economics. History The first USDA agency formally tasked with data collection was the Division of Statistics, created in 1863, one year after the USDA itself was created.Panel to Study the Research Program of the Economic Research Service, Sowing Seeds of Change: Informing Public Policy in the Economic Research Service of USDA', Committee on National Statistics, Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, National Research Council (John F. Gewek et al., eds. 1999). By 1902, a Division of Foreign Markets had been created, and the following year, that division was merged with the Division of Statistics to form the Bureau of Statistics. In 1914, the bureau was renamed the Bureau of Crop Estimates, and in 1921 this bureau merged with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mahyco
Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Co. (Mahyco) is an agricultural company based in India. It is one of the country's major producers of seed. As of 2015, the company was also active in Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines and Bangladesh, and planned expansion to Africa. The company produces seeds for cotton, wheat, rice, sorghum, pearl millet, maize oilseeds and vegetables crops. Through a joint venture with Monsanto named Mahyco Monsanto Biotech, Mahyco sublicenses Bt cotton technology in India. The Indian government has maintained price controls on Bt cotton seeds since at least 2011. Mahyco has 21 notified research varieties and production of 115 products across 30 crop species. Mahyco has six research centres in India focusing on molecular breeding, applied genomics, crop transformation, plant virus interaction, molecular microbiology, abiotic stress tolerance and molecular entomology. The company has a research and development center at Dawalwadi near Jalna in Maharashtra, with an ongoing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Delta Endotoxin
Delta endotoxins (δ-endotoxins) are pore-forming toxins produced by ''Bacillus thuringiensis'' species of bacteria. They are useful for their insecticidal action and are the primary toxin produced by Bt maize/corn. During spore formation the bacteria produce crystals of such proteins (hence the name Cry toxins) that are also known as parasporal bodies, next to the endospores; as a result some members are known as a parasporin. The Cyt (cytolytic) toxin group is a group of delta-endotoxins different from the Cry group. Mechanism of action When an insect ingests these proteins, they are activated by proteolytic cleavage. The N-terminus is cleaved in all of the proteins and a C-terminal extension is cleaved in some members. Once activated, the endotoxin binds to the gut epithelium and causes cell lysis by the formation of cation-selective channels, which leads to death. For many years there was no clarity as to the relationship between aminopeptidase N and Bt toxins. Althou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Mirid Bugs")
