Pterygium - a study which was done on a rural based population.

INTRODUCTION: Pterygium is a fibrous growth seen in bulber conjunctiva.It is a non malignant growth which may cause visual impairment. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Pterygium study was done on rural population in out patient department of NIMS Hospital and medical college, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India.Two hundred patients with 300 eyes which had Pterygium who attended the Eye OPD during 01/06/2011 to 01/03/2012 were taken for study. A detailed history, Visual Acuity, Refractive Status, Size of Pterygium and duration of the work which was done outdoors were recorded. All other physical illness were ruled out. The aim of the study is to find the incidence of Pterygium, male/female ratio, Comparison of size of Pterygium with duration of working hours in the outfield. CONCLUSION: The maximum number of patients of pterygium were seen in the age group 20-60 years and there is no difference in male/female ratio.The size of pterygium depends on their duration of working hours in outfield.

Indirect immunofluorescence colony staining method for detecting bacterial pathogens of tomato.

An indirect immunofluorescence colony staining method was developed for the detection of important seed-borne bacterial pathogens of tomato. The method involves the use of specific antiserum for initial binding of target bacteria and visualization of positive colonies with a commercially available secondary antiserum conjugated with FITC and observed under a fluorescence microscope. The indirect method is especially suitable for laboratories, seed companies, and quarantine stations which have no facilities for conjugation of primary antiserum. It is more economical and overcomes the problems generally encountered with variable conjugate quality in new batches of conjugates prepared from the same stock of primary antiserum. The assay is easy to perform and results can be easily assessed by visual scoring or image analyser. Results are available in 4-5 days as compared to 30-45 days in traditional methods. The resulting bacterial culture can be tested by PCR or host infectivity and a culture can be stored for future reference. Used in combination with highly specific antibodies (commercially available monoclonal and recombinant antibodies) it can be used as a very sensitive detection tool and has application potential in localization studies as well. Choosing the right secondary conjugate is however necessary to get best results in the assay.

First Report on the Occurrence of Bacterial Stripe Organism Acidovorax avenae subsp. avenae in Rice Seeds from Burkina Faso.

Breeder rice seeds from Burkina Faso harvesteds in 1999 were tested for Acidovorax avenae subsp. avenae. This pathogen affects rice, maize, sorghum, and other Gramineae. Ten samples of 200 seeds in each sample were tested by the cassette holder method for detection of this bacterium (1). Seedlings were evaluated for symptom development after 14 days at 27 to 30°C and 100% relative humidity under fluorescent light (12 h photoperiod). Bacterial stripe symptoms were observed in seedlings raised from 9 of 10 seed samples tested, and incidence ranged from 5 to 20%. Diseased seedlings showed water-soaked areas on coleoptiles and brown stripes on leaf sheaths and mid-ribs. Twenty-six strains obtained from diseased seedlings were characterized using several criteria. Colonies were small, whitish-grey, raised, entire and translucent on nutrient agar and cream-tan, raised, entire, and did not produce fluorescent pigment on King's medium B. They were Gram negative, oxidase positive and nitrate positive. Variable reactions were recorded for starch hydrolysis; 22 strains reacted positively and 4 negatively. All 26 strains reacted positively in ELISA performed with antiserum against A. avenae subsp. avenae. Results using Biolog GN MicroPlates (Biolog Inc., Hayward, CA computer identification system, Release 4.0) showed all strains to be A. avenae subsp. avenae (sim. 0.709 to 0.802). Hypersensitive reactions on leaves of 2-month-old tobacco plants infiltrated with bacterial suspensions were recorded within 24 h. Strains were tested for pathogenicity by injecting stems of 21-day-old rice plants with bacterial suspensions (approximately 108 CFU/ml). Inoculated seedlings were incubated for 4 to 7 days under humid conditions at 28°C. Inoculated rice plants showed brown stripes and non-inoculated control seedlings remained symptomless. Based on biochemical, serological, and biological characteristics, strains were identified as A. avenae subsp. avenae. This is the first report of A. avenae subsp. avenae, causal agent of bacterial stripe of rice, in Burkina Faso. The common presence of A. avenae subsp. avenae in breeder rice seeds emphasizes the need for control measures to limit further spread to unaffected rice-growing areas and other cereal crops. Reference: (1) D. D. Shakya et al. Phytopathol. Z. 114:256-259, 1985.