Influence of Biofertilizers, Vermicompost and Chemical Fertilizrs on Growth, Nodulation, Nutrient Uptake, Seed Yield and Economics of Black Gram.

The experiment was conducted during rabi season in medium black soil at College Farm, College of Agriculture, Rajendranagar, ANGRAU, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh to study the influence of biofertilizers, vermicompost and chemical fertilizers on growth, nodulation, nutrient uptake, seed yield and economics of Black gram. From the data, it was observed that 50%RDF + Vermicompost + Rhizobium + Pseudomonas significantly increased the plant height, root length, leaf area index and leaf chlorophyll content at 25 and 50 DAS over the other treatments including control. The same treatment recorded highest seed yield (707 kg ha-1) and haulm yield (7067 kg ha-1) as compared to the control. Nutrient uptake recorded significantly highest in the treatment supplied with biofertilizers along with Vermicompost and 50%RDF. Treatment supplied with 50%RDF + Vermicompost + Rhizobium + Pseudomonas recorded highest net return (17784 Rs ha-1) but highest B: C ratio (2.11) was recorded in the treatment supplied with 50%RDF + Rhizobium + Pseudomonas.

Amniotic Fluid Lamellar Body Count as a Predictor of Fetal Lung Maturity.

Assessment of fetal lung maturity can be done with various biochemical tests on amniotic fluid. In the present study, lamellar body count (LBC) was compared with the traditional shake bubble test (SBT), as LBC is a simple, reliable and cost-effective method to predict fetal lung maturity. This was a prospective study conducted on 50 patients with known last menstrual period (LMP), gestational age >28 weeks presenting in active phase of labor with intact membranes. Amniotic fluid was collected either through vaginal route or through amniocentesis and SBT and LBC were conducted on all samples. Newborns were watched for signs of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). Fourteen babies developed RDS. i.e., one out of 34 babies with positive SBT, seven out of 10 with intermediate SBT, all six with negative SBT developed RDS. The LBC varied between 3,000-28,000/ml among the 14 babies with RDS. i.e., all cases with RDS had LBC <30,000/ml. This study showed that LBC with cut-off value of 30,000/ml to predict fetal lung maturity is superior to all other tests in terms of technique and cost-effectiveness.