Phytoremediation of abandoned crude oil contaminated drill sites of Assam with the aid of a hydrocarbon-degrading bacterial formulation.

Environmental deterioration due to crude oil contamination and abandoned drill sites is an ecological concern in Assam. To revive such contaminated sites, afield study was conducted to phytoremediate four crude oil abandoned drill sites of Assam (Gelakey, Amguri, Lakwa, and Borholla) with the aid of two hydrocarbon-degrading Pseudomonas strains designated N3 and N4. All the drill sites were contaminated with 15.1 to 32.8% crude oil, and the soil was alkaline in nature (pH8.0-8.7) with low moisture content, low soil conductivity and low activities of the soil enzymes phosphatase, dehydrogenase and urease. In addition, N, P, K, and C contents were below threshold limits, and the soil contained high levels of heavy metals. Bio-augmentation was achieved by applying Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains N3 and N4 followed by the introduction of screened plant species Tectona grandis, Gmelina arborea, Azadirachta indica, and Michelia champaca. The findings established the feasibility of the phytoremediation of abandoned crude oil-contaminated drill sites in Assam using microbes and native plants.

Phosphate solubilizers enhance NPK fertilizer use efficiency in rice and legume cultivation.

It has been reported that phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB) are the most promising bacteria among the plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR); which may be used as biofertilizers for plant growth and nutrient use efficiency. Moreover, these soil micro-organisms play a significant role in regulating the dynamics of organic matter decomposition and the availability of plant nutrients such as nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and other nutrients. Through this study, the management of nutrient use efficiency by the application of PSB was targeted in order to make the applied nutrients more available to the plants in the rice (Oryza sativa) and yardlong bean (Vigna unguiculata) cultivation. Results have shown that the treatments with PSB alone or in the form of consortia of compatible strains with or without the external application of chemical NPK gave more germination index (G. I.) from 2.5 to 5 in rice and 2.7 to 4.8 in bean seeds. They also showed a higher growth in both shoot and root length and a higher biomass as compared to the control. This gives us an idea about the potentiality of these PSB strains and their application in rice and yardlong bean cultivation to get a better harvest index. Their use will also possibly reduce the nutrient runoff or leaching and increase in the use efficiency of the applied fertilizers. Thus, we can conclude that the NPK uptake and management can be improved by the use of PSB in rice and yardlong bean cultivation, and their application may be much more beneficial in the agricultural field.

Bioluminescence emissions of the firefly Luciola praeusta Kiesenwetter 1874 (Coleoptera : Lampyridae : Luciolinae).

We recorded the in vivo emission and time-resolved spectra of the firefly Luciola praeusta Kiesenwetter 1874 (Coleoptera : Lampyridae : Luciolinae). The emission spectrum shows that the full width at half maximum (FWHM) value for this particular species is 55 nm, which is significantly narrower than the in vivo half-widths reported till now. The time-resolved spectrum reveals that a flash of about 100 ms duration is, in fact, composed of a number of microsecond pulses. This suggests that the speed of the enzyme-catalysed chemiluminescence reaction in the firefly for the emission of light is much faster than was previously believed.

Hepatic calcification following dengue virus-induced fulminant hepatic failure.

Hepatic calcification can be seen with various infectious and neoplastic conditions. We report a 32-year- old man who developed massive calcification in the right lobe of liver following recovery from dengue virus-associated fulminant liver failure.

New gas chromatographic method for residue determination of dithiopyr in soil, wheat grain and straw.

A gas chromatographic method has been developed for a new pyridine herbicide, dithiopyr, utilising an electron capture detector. The method makes use of a column (10 m x 0.534 mm I.D.; 1 microm film thickness) containing HP-1 with nitrogen as a carrier gas at a flow rate of 15 ml min(-1) at temperatures of 190, 210, 270 degrees C for oven, injector port and detector, respectively. Soil, wheat grain and straw samples fortified with dithiopyr were extracted with acetone-0.2 M HCl (95:5) and cleaned up by partitioning with hexane. The technique has a sensitivity of 0.05 microg ml(-1) and the recovery of dithiopyr from soil, wheat grain and straw ranged between 80 and 99%.

Dermatitis herpetiformis in association with treated coeliac disease.

The paper describes an adult patient with coeliac disease who developed classical dermatitis herpetiformis while receiving a gluten-free diet. The dermatitis is controlled by sulphapyridine but relapses when this is withdrawn, even though the patient continues with the diet, indicating that a gluten-free diet plays little or no part in controlling the skin condition.

A search for microtubular inclusions in endothelial cells in a variety of skin diseases.

An electron microscopic study of a variety of skin diseases has demonstrated microtubular 'inclusions' in vascular endothelium in bullous pemphigoid for the first time. The 'inclusions' are similar to those originally reported in lupus erythematosus by Fresco (1968) and presently being detected in an increasing number and variety of pathological processes.