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Yellow mosaic disease (YMD) caused by several begomoviruses is one of the major constraints of over a dozen leguminous crops worldwide, particularly in Asian and Southeast Asian countries. The present study aimed to investigate the distribution, diversity and prevalence of begomoviruses associated with YMD in leguminous hosts in five agro-climatic zones of India, to assess the extent of their geographical presence and develop location and crop-specific distribution maps. One hundred and seventy-four leguminous plant samples were tested from 32 locations in India to detect YMD-causing viruses. Additionally, publicly available data were incorporated into this study to provide a comprehensive overview of their distribution in India. This resulted in 581 reports on the DNA-A component representing 119 locations, which were also utilized to depict the distribution of YMD-causing viruses on a map of India. In this study, 117 full-length DNA-A and 103 DNA-B components were successfully characterized, representing the detected mungbean yellow mosaic India virus (MYMIV), mungbean yellow mosaic virus (MYMV), and horsegram yellow mosaic virus in the collected samples. Phylogenetic analysis of isolates of these species showed no differentiation based on location in India. Diversity indices revealed the abundance (55.9%) and dominance (0.56) of MYMIV across 119 locations. These findings hold significant implications for legume researchers, offering insights into disease prevalence and geographic distribution. Furthermore, the distribution of YMD-causing viruses in different agro-climatic zones will help researchers in developing zone-specific YMD-resistant cultivars of the legume crops and would facilitate effective disease management options.

An effortless charging experience will boost electric vehicle (xEV) adoption and assure driver satisfaction. Tailoring the charging experience incorporating smart algorithms introduces an exciting set of development opportunities. The goal of a smart charging algorithm is to lay down an accurate estimation of charging power needs for each user. As recommender systems (RS) are frequently used for tailored services and products, a novel RS based approach is developed in this study. Based on a collaborative-filtering principle, an RS agent will customize charging power transient prioritizing the physical principles governing the battery system, correlated to customer preferences. However, parallel to other RS applications, a collaborative-filtering for charging power transient design may suffer from the cold-start problem. This paper thus aims to prescribe a remedy for the cold-start problem encountered in RS specifically for charging power transient design. The RS is cold-started based on multiphysical modelling, combined with customer driving styles. It is shown that using 7 fundamental charging power transients would capture about 70% of a set of representative charging power transient population. Matching a unsupervised learning based clustering pipeline for 7 possible customer driving styles, an RS agent can prescribe 7 charging power transients automatically and cold-start the RS until more data is available.

Abstract Background Virtopsy is “a virtual alternative to the traditional autopsy, conducted with scanning and imaging technology,” mainly with the use of postmortem computed tomography (PMCT). It is still in the budding stage in India. The Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, All India Institute of Medical Science, New Delhi, is the first center in the country that has established a facility for virtual autopsy. This facility aims to supplement the traditional autopsy findings and also to replace/curtail internal dissection in autopsy in the future, for which there has always been an aversion in relatives of the deceased due to emotional and religious reasons. The PMCT being a noninvasive, preservative, and objective procedure would be preferred by relatives than traditional autopsy. So, in this regard, this pilot study was conducted with the objective for comparison of PMCT vs traditional autopsy findings in fatal road traffic accidents to analyze its advantages and limitations in order to replace/augment the traditional autopsy with PMCT in the near future in road traffic accident cases. Results The authors evaluated 10 cases of road traffic accident victims. In each case, an autopsy was preceded by a PMCT examination using a 16-slice Multi-Slice CT spiral scanner. The fractures of the skull, facial bones, clavicle, scapula, and vertebra were located more precisely as compared to traditional autopsy. Interpretation of the ventricular hemorrhages of the brain is much better in PMCT. PMCT should be the investigation of choice for pneumothorax, pneumoperitoneum, pneumocephalus, and hemosiuns, while it needs further exploration to detect injuries of soft tissues as out of 14 injuries only 2 were identified by PMCT. Conclusions The procedure of whole-body PMCT followed by region-wise CT can be studied for a better PMCT acquisition to detect soft tissue injury findings more precisely. However, the PMCT in this study was able to conclude the cause of death in a more scientific way than the traditional autopsy.

Improper use of water resources in irrigation that contain a significant amount of salts, faulty agronomic practices such as improper fertilization, climate change etc. are gradually increasing soil salinity of arable lands across the globe. It is one of the major abiotic factors that inhibits overall plant growth through ionic imbalance, osmotic stress, oxidative stress, and reduced nutrient uptake. Plants have evolved with several adaptation strategies at morphological and molecular levels to withstand salinity stress. Among various approaches, harnessing the crop genetic variability across different genepools and developing salinity tolerant crop plants offer the most sustainable way of salt stress mitigation. Some important major genetic determinants controlling salinity tolerance have been uncovered using classical genetic approaches. However, its complex inheritance pattern makes breeding for salinity tolerance challenging. Subsequently, advances in sequence based breeding approaches and functional genomics have greatly assisted in underpinning novel genetic variants controlling salinity tolerance in plants at the whole genome level. This current review aims to shed light on physiological, biochemical, and molecular responses under salt stress, defense mechanisms of plants, underlying genetics of salt tolerance through bi-parental QTL mapping and Genome Wide Association Studies, and implication of Genomic Selection to breed salt tolerant lines.

The genus Vigna is pan-tropical, having more than 200 species with many desirable economically important traits. This study aimed to validate the in silico polymorphism of whole-genome-sequence-developed mungbean-specific SSR markers and their transferability among different Vigna species. The present study utilized a set of 200 SSR markers developed from the whole-genome sequence of mungbean and validated them using a diversity panel of 25 accessions that belong to 13 Vigna species. Out of 200 SSR markers, 130 markers (65%) were polymorphic across the various Vigna species, and the number of alleles amplified varied from 7 to 24. The SSR markers showed more than 90 percent transferability across the different Vigna species accessions. Utilizing allelic data, the 25 Vigna accessions were clustered into three groups using the unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA). The two integral coalitions explained 50.79 and 15.42% of the total variance. The principal coordinate analysis (PCA) biplot graph and UPGMA-based neighbor-joining clustering diagram showed a similar pattern of Vigna accession distribution. A population structure assessment grouped the cultivated and wild species accessions into two sub-populations based upon a maximum delta K value of 144.79, which drew a sharp peak at K = 2. The estimated marker parameters, such as the polymorphic information content (0.09–0.84), marker index (0.091–3.342), and effective multiplex ratio (1.0–4.0), suggested their adequacy for several genetic studies, such as parental selection, hybrid testing, genetic mapping, and marker-aided breeding programs, for the genetic enhancement of species belonging to the Vigna genus.

Mungbean is known to be susceptible to waterlogging (WL) stress. Some of the wild species have the potential to tolerate this through various physiological and molecular mechanisms. Auxin Response Factor (ARF) and Auxin/Indole Acetic Acid (AUX/IAA), an early responsive gene family, has multiple functions in growth, development, and stress tolerance. Here, we report the first comprehensive analysis of the ARF and AUX/IAA gene family in mungbean. A total of 26 ARF and 19 AUX/IAA genes were identified from the mungbean genome. The ARF and AUX/IAA candidates were clearly grouped into two major clades. Further, the subgrouping within the major clades indicated the presence of significant diversity. The gene structure, motif analysis, and protein characterization provided the clue for further fundamental research. Out of the10 selected candidate genes, VrARF-5, VrARF-11, VrARF-25, and VrAUX/IAA-9 were found to significantly multiple-fold gene expression in the hypocotyl region of WL-tolerant wild relatives (PRR 2008-2) provides new insight into a role in the induction of lateral root formation under WL stress. The analysis provides an insight into the structural diversity of ARF and AUX/IAA genes in mungbean. These results increase our understanding of ARF and AUX/IAA genes and therefore offer robust information for functional investigations, which can be taken up in the future and will form a foundation for improving tolerance against waterlogging stress.

Urdbean leaf crinkle disease (ULCD) affects mainly the urdbean or blackgram (Vigna mungo (L.) Hepper) causing distinct symptoms that often result in serious yield losses. It has been known to occur for more than five decades and is considered to be of viral etiology. The identity of the causal agent, often referred to as the urdbean leaf crinkle virus, is not unequivocally proved. There are few attempts to characterize the causal agent of ULCD; however, there is no unanimity in the results. Recent attempts to characterize the causal agent of ULCD using next-generation sequencing of the virome of ULCD-affected urdbean plants indicated the involvement of cowpea mild mottle virus; however, without conforming through Koch’s postulates, the etiology of ULCD remains inconclusive. Claims of different insect vectors involved in the transmission of ULCD make this disease even more mysterious. The information available so far indicates that either two different viruses are causing ULCD or a mixture of viruses is involved. The identity of the virus/es causing ULCD still remains to be unambiguously ascertained. In this review, we attempt to analyze information on the various aspects of ULCD.

Mungbean is an important food grain legume for human nutrition and nutritional food due to its nutrient-dense seed, liked palatability, and high digestibility. However, anti-nutritional factors pose a significant risk to improving nutritional quality for bio-fortification. In the present study, genetic architecture of grain micronutrients (grain iron and zinc concentration) and anti-nutritional factors (grain phytic acid and tannin content) in association mapping panel of 145 diverse mungbean were evaluated. Based on all four parameters genotypes PUSA 1333 and IPM 02-19 were observed as desired genotypes as they had high grain iron and zinc concentration but low grain phytic acid and tannin content. The next generation sequencing (NGS)-based genotyping by sequencing (GBS) identified 14,447 genome-wide SNPs in a diverse selected panel of 127 mungbean genotypes. Population admixture analysis revealed the presence of four different ancestries among the genotypes and LD decay of ∼57.6 kb kb physical distance was noted in mungbean chromosomes. Association mapping analysis revealed that a total of 20 significant SNPs were shared by both GLM and Blink models associated with grain micronutrient and anti-nutritional factor traits, with Blink model identifying 35 putative SNPs. Further, this study identified the 185 putative candidate genes. Including potential candidate genes Vradi07g30190, Vradi01g09630, and Vradi09g05450 were found to be associated with grain iron concentration, Vradi10g04830 with grain zinc concentration, Vradi08g09870 and Vradi01g11110 with grain phytic acid content and Vradi04g11580 and Vradi06g15090 with grain tannin content. Moreover, two genes Vradi07g15310 and Vradi09g05480 showed significant variation in protein structure between native and mutated versions. The identified SNPs and candidate genes are potential powerful tools to provide the essential information for genetic studies and marker-assisted breeding program for nutritional improvement in mungbean.

The genus Vigna is an agronomically important taxon, with many of its species inhabiting a wide range of environments and offering numerous useful genes for the improvement of the cultivated types. The present study aimed to detect the genomic regions associated with yield-attributing traits by genome-wide association mapping. A diverse panel of 98 wild and cultivated Vigna accessions (acc.) belonging to 13 different species was evaluated for yield and related traits during the kharif season of 2017 and 2018. The panel was also genotyped using 92 cross-genera and cross-species simple sequence repeat markers to study the population genetic structure and useful market-trait associations. The PCA and trait correlation established relationships amongst the traits during both seasons while 100-seed weight (HSW) had a positive correlation with pod length (PL), and days to first flowering (DFF) with days to maturity (DM). The population genetic structure analysis grouped different acc. into three genetically distinct sub-populations with SP-1 comprising 34 acc., SP-2 (24 acc.), and SP-3 (33 acc.) and one admixture group (7 acc.). Mixed linear model analysis revealed an association of 13 markers, namely, VR018, VR039, VR022, CEDG033, GMES0337, MBSSR008, CEDG220, VM27, CP1225, CP08695, CEDG100, CEDG008, and CEDG096A with nine traits. Seven of the aforementioned markers, namely, VR018 for plant height (PH) and terminal leaflet length (TLL), VR022 for HSW and pod length (PL), CEDG033 for DFF and DM, MBSSR008 for DFF and DM, CP1225 for CC at 30 days (CC30), DFF and DM, CEDG100 for PH and terminal leaflet length (TLL), and CEDG096A for CC30 and chlorophyll content at 45 days were associated with multiple traits. The marker CEDG100, associated with HSW, PH, and TLL, is co-localized in gene-encoding histone–lysine N-methyltransferase ATX5. Similarly, VR22, associated with PL and HSW, is co-located in gene-encoding SHOOT GRAVITROPISM 5 in mungbean. These associations may be highly useful for marker-assisted genetic improvement of mungbean and other related Vigna species.

Seed dormancy is the main component of domesticated traits, loss of which results into rapid and uniform germination, synchronous maturity and ease in harvesting. However, breakdown or loss of fresh seed dormancy (FSD) has made seeds vulnerable to pre-harvest sprouting (PHS). Though, seeds of Vigna species are protected by pod, these are still susceptible to PHS. Identification of donor(s) having short duration of FSD (30-45 days) has become utmost important to transfer the trait to high yielding varieties. The wild progenitors and wild relatives of the cultivated Vigna offer a source of several useful traits; therefore, the experiment was initiated to understand the level of variation in PHS and fresh seed germination (FSG) in wild accessions of Vigna species. PHS and FSG among 59 Vigna accessions ranged between 0-100%, with a mean of 55.86% and 61.19%, respectively. Five accessions (IC276983, IC349701, Trichy Local 1, LRM/13-33 and LRM/13-26) of Vigna trilobata and one accession (IC251440) of Vigna sublobata recorded no pod loss due to PHS with 0% FSG (2.5% in V. sublobata). Seed size showed a positive association with PHS, where smaller seeds (100-SW 2 g, respectively). The accessions identified, especially V. sublobata (crossing compatible) could be used as a source of PHS tolerance to transfer dormancy in Vigna species, particularly in mungbean and urdbean.

Chickpea yield is severely affected by drought stress, which is a complex quantitative trait regulated by multiple small-effect genes. Identifying genomic regions associated with drought tolerance component traits may increase our understanding of drought tolerance mechanisms and assist in the development of drought-tolerant varieties. Here, a total of 187 F8 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) developed from an interspecific cross between drought-tolerant genotype GPF 2 (Cicer arietinum) and drought-sensitive accession ILWC 292 (C. reticulatum) were evaluated to identify quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with drought tolerance component traits. A total of 21 traits, including 12 morpho-physiological traits and nine root-related traits, were studied under rainfed and irrigated conditions. Composite interval mapping identified 31 QTLs at Ludhiana and 23 QTLs at Faridkot locations for morphological and physiological traits, and seven QTLs were identified for root-related traits. QTL analysis identified eight consensus QTLs for six traits and five QTL clusters containing QTLs for multiple traits on linkage groups CaLG04 and CaLG06. The identified major QTLs and genomic regions associated with drought tolerance component traits can be introgressed into elite cultivars using genomics-assisted breeding to enhance drought tolerance in chickpea.

Pusa 391, a mega desi chickpea variety with medium maturity duration is extensively cultivated in the Central Zone of India. Of late, this variety has become susceptible to Fusarium wilt (FW), which has drastic impact on its yield. Presence of variability in the wilt causing pathogen, Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. ciceri (foc) across geographical locations necessitates the role of pyramiding for FW resistance for different races (foc 1,2,3,4 and 5). Subsequently, the introgression lines developed in Pusa 391 genetic background were subjected to foreground selection using three SSR markers (GA16, TA 27 and TA 96) while 48 SSR markers uniformly distributed on all chromosomes, were used for background selection to observe the recovery of recurrent parent genome (RPG). BC1F1 lines with 75–85% RPG recovery were used to generate BC2F1. The plants that showed more than 90% RPG recovery in BC2F1 were used for generating BC3F1. The plants that showed more than 96% RPG recovery were selected and selfed to generate BC3F3. Multi-location evaluation of advanced introgression lines (BC2F3) in six locations for grain yield (kg/ha), days to fifty percent flowering, days to maturity, 100 seed weight and disease incidence was done. In case of disease incidence, the genotype IL1 (BGM 20211) was highly resistant to FW in Junagarh, Indore, New Delhi, Badnapur and moderately resistant at Sehore and Nandyal. GGE biplot analysis revealed that IL1(BGM20211) was the most stable genotype at Junagadh, Sehore and Nandyal. GGE biplot analysis revealed that IL1(BGM 20211) and IL4(BGM 20212) were the top performers in yield and highly stable across six environments and were nominated for Advanced Varietal Trials (AVT) of AICRP (All India Coordinated Research Project on Chickpea) in 2018–19. BGM20211 and BGM 20212 recorded 29 and 28.5% average yield gain over the recurrent parent Pusa 391, in the AVT-1 and AVT-2 over five environments. Thus, BGM20211 was identified for release and notified as Pusa Manav/Pusa Chickpea 20211 for Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra, Southern Rajasthan, Bundhelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh states by the Central Sub-Committees on Crop Standards, Notification and Release of Varieties of Agricultural Crops, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, for commercial cultivation in India (Gazette notification number S.O.500 (E) dt. 29-1-2021).Such pyramided lines give resilience to multiple races of fusarium wilt with added yield advantage.

Background: Although surgical excision is the treatment of choice for lymphangiomas, recently many centers are practicing intralesional sclerotherapy as the primary modality. The purpose of this study was to review the efficacy of intralesional Bleomycin, to study the efficacy of a combination of intralesional bleomycin and doxycycline and compare the results. Materials and Methods: In this clinical observational study, all patients were evaluated clinically and color Doppler ultrasonography. Patients were grouped into Group A, in which intralesional Bleomycin alone and Group B, in which a combination of intralesional Bleomycin and Doxycycline was instilled into the cysts. The clinical response was assessed and compared between the groups. Results: Out of 52 patients in the study, the most common site of lymphangioma was cervical 28 (53%) and the most common type was macrocystic lesion 44 (84.5%). In Group A, out of 26 patients, the response was excellent in 15 (58%), satisfactory in 8 (30%), and poor in 3 (12%). In Group B, out of 26 patients, the response was excellent in 22 (85%), satisfactory in 2 (7.5%), and poor in 2 (7.5%). The postprocedure complications were observed more in Group A than Group B, of which the most common was pain/tenderness in five patients followed by redness and fever. Conclusion: Intralesional bleomycin alone and a combination of intralesional bleomycin and Doxycycline injection both can be safe and effective sclerosant formulas for primary nonsurgical management. The use of combination of Bleomycin and Doxycycline required fewer treatment sessions to obtain clinical success compared to Bleomycin alone.

There are very limited studies on the QTLs governing Ascochyta blight resistance which is a major problem in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) grown in North West Plain Zone of India in the cooler climates and world over. An interspecific mapping population consisting of 157 F2:3 lines developed by crossing a resistant parent ILWC129 (C. reticulatum) with a susceptible variety GL769 (C. arietinum L.), was evaluated (2019–20) and genotyped (2021) for genetic studies and mapping of resistance to Ascochyta rabiei (syn. Phoma rabiei), isolate 8(3968). The inheritance pattern gave 1R:2H:1S goodness of fit ratio with χ2 value of 0.4 indicating that resistance against isolate 8 of the pathogen governed by a single gene. Out of 831 SSR markers screened, 86 were found polymorphic with 10.3% polymorphism from which only 41 markers segregated in 1:2:1 ratio and could be mapped. Eight linkage groups with a cumulative distance of 1042.31 cM were formed with an average distance of 25.42 cM. This is probably the first report of inheritance studies and tagging of A. rabei race 8 (arr8) resistance gene using molecular markers in an interspecific cross with C. reticulatum.

Late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins are identified in many crops for their response and role in adaptation to various abiotic stresses, such as drought, salinity, and temperature. The LEA genes have been studied systematically in several crops but not in Vigna crops. In this study, we reported the first comprehensive analysis of the LEA gene family in three legume species, namely, mung bean (Vigna radiata), adzuki bean (Vigna angularis), and cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), and the cross-species expression of VrLEA genes in a wild tetraploid species, Vigna glabrescens. A total of 201 LEA genes from three Vigna crops were identified harboring the LEA conserved motif. Among these 55, 64, and 82 LEA genes were identified in mung bean, adzuki bean, and cowpea genomes, respectively. These LEA genes were grouped into eight different classes. Our analysis revealed that the cowpea genome comprised all eight classes of LEA genes, whereas the LEA-6 class was absent in the mung bean genome. Similarly, LEA-5 and LEA-6 were absent in the adzuki bean genome. The analysis of LEA genes provides an insight into their structural and functional diversity in the Vigna genome. The genes, such as VrLEA-2, VrLEA-40, VrLEA-47, and VrLEA-55, were significantly upregulated in the heat-tolerant genotype under stress conditions indicating the basis of heat tolerance. The successful amplification and expression of VrLEA genes in V. glabrescens indicated the utility of the developed markers in mung bean improvement. The results of this study increase our understanding of LEA genes and provide robust candidate genes for future functional investigations and a basis for improving heat stress tolerance in Vigna crops.

Ovarian granulosa cell tumor (GCT) is a rare ovarian neoplasm, which typically occurs in children and young women. More than 90% of the patients are diagnosed in Stage IA, who can be cured by unilateral oophorectomy. Meanwhile, the remaining is diagnosed in more advanced stages, wherein tumors may exhibit aggressive behavior. In this stage, surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy may be required. Isosexual precocious puberty in girls is mostly idiopathic in origin. However, this is a diagnosis of exclusion, and many differential diagnoses have to be thought of in evaluation of precocity in girls. We are presenting here a case of isosexual precocity in a 7-year-old girl due to juvenile GCT of ovary, a rare etiology of precocity.

Aim and Objective: This study aimed to finding alternative ways for centers with nonavailability of ultrasonography or fluoroscopy for nonoperative pneumatic reduction of intussusceptions. Materials and Methods: A total of 48 cases of intussusceptions were included in the study in-between October 2016 and March 2018. We tried stethoscope-guided pneumatic reduction using locally assembled equipment. The intraluminal pressure was monitored and maintained below 100 mmHg. A total of two attempts of 3 min each were allowed. We compared our results with the control group who have been performing laparotomy for every case of intussusception. Results: There were 35 males and 13 females in our study. The average age of the patients was 7.5 months. Intussusceptions were reduced in 38 (80%) patients but could not be reduced in 10 (20%) patients. Majority of the intussusceptions had symptoms of at least 2 days. There were no complications such as perforation in our study. Conclusion: Stethoscope-guided pneumatic reduction seems to be a feasible and alternative effective method for the treatment of intussusceptions in children where availability of ultrasonography and skilled radiologist with overburden of work is a great issue.

Mung bean [Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek] is an important short-duration grain legume widely known for its nutritional, soil ameliorative, and cropping system intensification properties. This study aims at evaluating genetic diversity among mung bean genotypes and detecting genomic regions associated with various yield attributing traits and yellow mosaic disease (YMD) resistance by association mapping. A panel of 80 cultivars and advanced breeding lines was evaluated for 10 yield-related and YMD resistance traits during kharif (monsoon) and summer seasons of 2018–2019 and 2019–2020. A total of 164 genome-wide simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers were initially screened, out of which 89 were found polymorphic which generated 317 polymorphic alleles with an average of 3.56 alleles per SSR locus. The number of alleles at each locus varied from 2 to 7. The population genetic structure analysis grouped different genotypes in three major clusters and three genetically distinct subpopulations (SPs) (i.e., SP-1, SP-2, and SP-3) with one admixture subpopulation (SP-4). Both cluster and population genetic structure analysis categorized the advanced mung bean genotypes in a single group/SP and the released varieties in other groups/SPs, suggesting that the studied genotypes may have common ancestral history at some level. The population genetic structure was also in agreement with the genetic diversity analysis. The estimate of the average degree of linkage disequilibrium (LD) present at the genome level in 80 mung bean genotypes unveiled significant LD blocks. Over the four seasons, 10 marker-trait associations were observed significant for YMD and four seed yield (SY)-related traits viz., days to flowering, days to maturity, plant height, and number of pods per plant using the mixed linear model (MLM) method. These associations may be useful for marker-assisted mung bean yield improvement programs and YMD resistance.

Vigna stipulacea (Lam.) Kuntz., commonly known as Minni payaru is an underutilized legume species and has a great potential to be utilized as food crop. To evaluate and select the best germplasm to be harnessed in the breeding programme, we assessed the genetic diversity of V. stipulacea (94 accessions) conserved in the Indian National Genebank, based on morphological traits and microsatellite markers. Significant variation was recorded for the morphological traits studied. Euclidean distance using UPGMA method grouped all accessions into two major clusters. Accessions were identified for key agronomic traits such as, early flowering (IC331436, IC251436, IC331437); long peduncle length (IC553518, IC550531, IC553557, IC553540, IC550532, IC553564); and more number of seeds per pod (IC553529, IC622865, IC622867, IC553528). To analyse the genetic diversity among the germplasm 33 SSR primers were used anda total of 116 alleles were detected. The number of alleles varied from two to seven, with an average of 3.52 per loci. The polymorphic information content values varied from 0.20 to 0.74, with a mean of 0.40. The high number of alleles per locus and the allelic diversity in the studied germplasm indicated a relatively wider genetic base of V. stipulacea. Phylogenetic analysis clustered accessions into seven clades. Population structure analysis grouped them into five genetic groups, which were partly supported by PCoA and phylogenetic tree. Besides, PCoA and AMOVA also decoded high genetic diversity among the V. stipulacea accessions. Thus, morphological and microsatellite markers distinguished V. stipulacea accessions and assessed their genetic diversity efficiently. The identified promising accessions can be utilized in Vigna improvement programme through introgression breeding and/or can be used for domestication and enhanced utilization of V. stipulacea.

Micronutrient malnutrition or hidden hunger is a serious challenge toward societal well-being. Vigna stipulacea (Lam.) Kuntz (known locally as Minni payaru), is an underutilized legume that has the potential to be a global food legume due to its rich nutrient profile. In the present study, 99 accessions of V. stipulacea were tested for iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), calcium (Ca), protein, and phytate concentrations over two locations for appraisal of stable nutrient-rich sources. Analysis of variance revealed significant effects of genotype for all the traits over both locations. Fe concentration ranged from 29.35–130.96 mg kg–1 whereas Zn concentration ranged from 19.44 to 74.20 mg kg–1 across both locations. The highest grain Ca concentration was 251.50 mg kg–1 whereas the highest grain protein concentration was recorded as 25.73%. In the case of grain phytate concentration, a genotype with the lowest value is desirable. IC622867 (G-99) was the lowest phytate containing accession at both locations. All the studied traits revealed highly significant genotypic variances and highly significant genotype × location interaction though less in magnitude than the genotypic variance. GGE Biplot analysis detected that, for grain Fe, Zn, and Ca concentration the ‘ideal’ genotypes were IC331457 (G-75), IC331610 (G-76), and IC553564 (G-60), respectively, whereas for grain protein concentration IC553521 (G-27) was the most “ideal type.” For phytate concentration, IC351407 (G-95) and IC550523 (G-99) were considered as ‘ideal’ and ‘desirable,’ respectively. Based on the desirability index, Location 1 (Kanpur) was identified as ideal for Fe, Zn, Ca, and phytate, and for grain protein concentration, Location 2 (New Delhi) was the ideal type. A significant positive correlation was detected between grain Fe as well as grain Zn and protein concentration considering the pooled analysis over both the locations where as a significant negative association was observed between phytate and protein concentration over the locations. This study has identified useful donors and enhanced our knowledge toward the development of biofortified Vigna cultivars. Promoting domestication of this nutrient-rich semi-domesticated, underutilized species will boost sustainable agriculture and will contribute toward alleviating hidden hunger.

Mungbean (Vigna radiata L. Wilczek) is an important short-duration grain legume of the genus Vigna that has wider adaptability across agro-climatic regions and soil types. Significant strides have been made towards the development of superior, high-yielding, and climate resilient cultivars in mungbean. A number of donors for various traits to have been deployed in introgression breeding. However, the use of common sources of resistance to different biotic stresses may lead to boom and bust cycles due to the appearance of new races or biotypes. Therefore, broadening the genetic base using wild and exotic plant genetic resources may offer a better quality of durable resistance. Many crop wild relatives (CWRs) confer a high degree of resistance against multiple diseases. Recently, several agronomically important genes have been mapped using inter-specific populations, which are being deployed for the improvement of mungbean. In such a situation, tagging, mapping, and exploiting genes of interest from cross-species donors for stress tolerance will offer novel genetic variations. This will also provide increased opportunities for the selection of desirable types. Advances in genomics and transcriptomics have further made it easy to tag the cross-compatible resistance loci and study their expression for delineating the mechanism of resistance. The comparative analysis of omics technology also helps in understanding the evolution and offers a scope for using cross-specific target genes for mungbean improvement. This review focuses on the effective utilization of cross-species cultivated and wild relatives as well as their omics resources for breeding multiple disease-resistant mungbean cultivars.

Bilious vomiting is a relevant sign in children that requires immediate evaluation and diagnosis. One of the causes is an obstruction of the intestinal tract due to duplication if located distal to the major duodenal papilla of Vater. Most of the duplications involve the jejunum, stomach, and colon. Duodenal duplications are very rare and can have an endoscopic or surgical treatment after diagnosis. We are reporting here a case of duodenal duplication in a 3-month-old male child who presented to us with bilious vomiting. Most of them are associated with other anomalies. Completely isolated duodenal duplication is very rare. Therefore, we tried to review the topic while presenting this rare case report of isolated duodenal duplication cyst.

Introduction: Pediatric surgeons dealt with cases of omphalomesenteric duct remnants, which presented with various symptomatic patterns. Meckel's diverticulum was the most common remnant in this study, which presented with different signs and symptoms. The aim is to study the various remnants of omphalomesenteric duct with their presenting symptoms and to introduce a new variant of patent vitellointestinal duct (PVID) and describe how to treat these variants of omphalomesenteric duct. Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective study conducted in 132 neonates and children (102 male and 30 female), who were operated at our institute and containing persistent omphalomesenteric duct and its derivatives. This study was conducted from January 2017 to June 2018 at our institute. This study analyzed the presenting sign and symptoms of various remnants of omphalomesenteric duct. The study analysis was based on the following parameters – age, sex, sign, symptom, investigation, operative finding, and postoperative complications. Results: In this study, male-to-female ratio was 3.4:1. Meckel's band obstruction was the most common presentation (n = 48, 36.36%), while umbilical cyst (n = 1, 0.75%) and umbilical sinus were least commonly present (n = 1, 0.75%) in all remnants of omphalomesenteric duct. We found a new variant of PVID, which presented with an intact omphalomesenteric duct, but the umbilical end was obliterated. This variant had not been included or reported in literature. Conclusion: Omphalomesenteric duct remnants are presenting with various sign and symptoms, like intestinal obstruction, umbilical discharge, umbilical swelling, pain abdomen etc. A new variant of PVID is named end- obliterated PVID reported here, may present with features of intestinal obstruction.

Food legumes are important for defeating malnutrition and sustaining agri-food systems globally. Breeding efforts in legume crops have been largely confined to the exploitation of genetic variation available within the primary genepool, resulting in narrow genetic base. Introgression as a breeding scheme has been remarkably successful for an array of inheritance and molecular studies in food legumes. Crop wild relatives (CWRs), landraces, and exotic germplasm offer great potential for introgression of novel variation not only to widen the genetic base of the elite genepool for continuous incremental gains over breeding cycles but also to discover the cryptic genetic variation hitherto unexpressed. CWRs also harbor positive quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for improving agronomic traits. However, for transferring polygenic traits, “specialized population concept” has been advocated for transferring QTLs from CWR into elite backgrounds. Recently, introgression breeding has been successful in developing improved cultivars in chickpea (Cicer arietinum), pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan), peanut (Arachis hypogaea), lentil (Lens culinaris), mungbean (Vigna radiata), urdbean (Vigna mungo), and common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris). Successful examples indicated that the usable genetic variation could be exploited by unleashing new gene recombination and hidden variability even in late filial generations. In mungbean alone, distant hybridization has been deployed to develop seven improved commercial cultivars, whereas in urdbean, three such cultivars have been reported. Similarly, in chickpea, three superior cultivars have been developed from crosses between C. arietinum and Cicer reticulatum. Pigeonpea has benefited the most where different cytoplasmic male sterility genes have been transferred from CWRs, whereas a number of disease-resistant germplasm have also been developed in Phaseolus. As vertical gene transfer has resulted in most of the useful gene introgressions of practical importance in food legumes, the horizontal gene transfer through transgenic technology, somatic hybridization, and, more recently, intragenesis also offer promise. The gains through introgression breeding are significant and underline the need of bringing it in the purview of mainstream breeding while deploying tools and techniques to increase the recombination rate in wide crosses and reduce the linkage drag. The resurgence of interest in introgression breeding needs to be capitalized for development of commercial food legume cultivars.

Mungbean (Vigna radiata L.) is an important food grain legume, but its production capacity is threatened by global warming, which can intensify plant stress and limit future production. Identifying new variation of key root traits in mungbean will provide the basis for breeding lines with effective root characteristics for improved water uptake to mitigate heat and drought stress. The AVRDC mungbean mini core collection consisting of 296 genotypes was screened under modified semi-hydroponic screening conditions to determine the variation for fourteen root-related traits. The AVRDC mungbean mini core collection displayed wide variations for the primary root length, total surface area, and total root length, and based on agglomerative hierarchical clustering eight homogeneous groups displaying different root traits could be identified. Germplasm with potentially favorable root traits has been identified for further studies to identify the donor genotypes for breeding cultivars with enhanced adaptation to water-deficit stress and other stress conditions.

Greengram is an important protein-rich food legume crop. During the reproductive stage, high temperatures cause flower drop, induce male sterility, impair anthesis, and shortens the grain-filling period. Initially, 116 genotypes were evaluated for 3 years in two locations, and based on flowering, biomass, and yield attributes, they were grouped into four major clusters. A panel of 17 contrasting genotypes was selected for their heat tolerance in high-temperature greenhouses. The seedlings of the selected genotypes were exposed to heat shock in the range 37°C–52°C and their recovery after heat shock was assessed at 30°C. The seedlings of EC 398889 turned completely green and rejuvenated, while those of LGG 460 failed to recover, therefore, EC 398889 and LGG 460 were identified as heat-tolerant and heat-sensitive genotypes, respectively. Except for EC 398889, the remaining genotypes could not survive after heat shock. Fresh seeds of EC 398889 and LGG 460 were planted in field and pollen fertility and sucrose-synthase (SuSy) activity in grains were assessed at high temperatures. The pollen germination and SuSy activity were normal even at temperatures beyond 40°C in EC 398889 and high SuSy activity enabled faster grain filling than in LGG 460. The precise phenotyping demonstrated significant differences in the light-temperature response of photosynthesis, chlorophyll fluorescence imaging of quantum yield (Fv/Fm), and electron transport rate (ETR) between heat-tolerant (EC 398889) and heat-sensitive (LGG 460) genotypes. Molecular profiling of selected accessions showed polymorphism with 11 SSR markers and the markers CEDG147, CEDG247, and CEDG044 distinguished tolerant and sensitive groups of accessions.

Aim and Objective: This study aims to report 100 pediatric patients of empyema thoracis treated by open decortication, highlighting the presentation, delay in referral, operative findings, the response to surgical intervention, and follow-up. Materials and Methods: All the children who underwent open decortication for stage III empyema thoracis during the study period January 2015–December 2016 were included. Preoperative workup included hemogram, serum protein, chest radiographs, and contrast-enhanced computed tomographic (CECT) scan of the chest. Results: One hundred (65 males, 35 females) (age 2 months–13 years, mean 4.5 years) were operated during a 2-year period. Among them, 90% patients were referred 3 weeks after the onset of disease. Intercostal chest drainage (ICD) had been inserted in (95) 95% cases. Thickened pleura, multiloculated pus, and lung involvement were invariably seen on CECT scan. Bronchopleural fistula was present in five patients. Decortication and removal of necrotic tissue were performed in all the patients. Mean duration of postoperative ICD was 4 days. Follow-up ranged from 1 month to 2 years (mean 12 months). There was no mortality. Five patients had proven tuberculosis. Only 10% presented within the early period of the disease. Conclusion: The duration of the disease had a direct relationship with the thickness of the pleura and injury to the underlying lung. Delayed referral causes irreversible changes in the lung prolonging recovery. Meticulous open surgical debridement gives gratifying results. The status of the lung at the end of surgery is a major prognostic factor.

Spindle cell rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a rare variant of embryonal RMS that has a predilection for young males and most commonly involves the paratesticular region followed by the head and neck. Histopathology reveals elongated spindle cells with fusiform to cigar-shaped nuclei and indistinct eosinophilic cytoplasm arranged in fascicles or whorls. Immunohistochemical workup demonstrates sarcomeric differentiation with reactivity for desmin, myogenin, and MyoD1 markers. Compared with other subtypes, the spindle cell variant in children is associated with a favorable outcome; however, in the adult population, there does not appear to be any prognostic advantage. We are presenting here a case of an embryonal variant of the spindle cell RMS in a 30-month-old male child.

We present a case of a perianal and perianal spindle cell variant of embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS). A 3-month-old male child presented with a firm mass in the perianal region. The mass measured 5 cm × 3 cm × 2 cm was surgically removed. Biopsy was performed; it showed embryonal RMS. Immunohistochemical (IHC) stains were performed using vimentin, myogenin, spinal muscular atrophy, and muscle-specific actin, which all showed positive results. The histological examination and IHC stains were consistent with a spindle cell variant of embryonal RMS.

Testicular tumors are rare in children but highly treatable and usually curable. Seminomas are extremely rare in prepubertal children. Among nonseminomatous germ cell tumors, the most common are teratomas and yolk sac tumors. Mixed germ cell tumor (MGCT) contains more than one germ cell component. MGCT is very rare in prepubertal age group. Here, we are presenting a case of MGCT in a newborn child with a review of literature. It is the first reported case in the world literature.

VACTERL association is sporadic and nonrandom, with co-occurrence of various congenital malformations in a single patient due to defect in structures derived from embryonic mesoderm. The VACTERL association with pulmonary agenesis is very rare; few cases have been reported only in neonates till now in the past, as most babies could not survive longer. However, we present a rare case of VACTERL association with left pulmonary agenesis in a 9-month-old infant.

We report a 2-month-old male baby who presented with yellow discoloration of skin, high-colored urine, and intermittent clay-colored stools since 15 days of life. Head size was apparently looking large with dilated veins over the scalp. The baby was diagnosed and treated as neonatal herpes simplex virus hepatitis that led to cholestatic jaundice and cerebral aqueductal stenosis with hydrocephalus. It is a very rare association and less reported earlier in the literature.

Ectopic scrotum is defined as abnormal position rather than normal position of the scrotum. Congenital scrotal anomalies are penoscrotal transposition, bifid scrotum, accessory scrotum, and ectopic scrotum. Associated anomalies with ectopic scrotum are inguinal hernia, ectopic ureter, vesical exstrophy, renal dysplasia, and agenesis. Ectopic scrotum is a rare congenital anomaly. We report a case of ectopic scrotum with undescended testis.

Drought stress is considered a severe threat to crop production. It adversely affects the morpho-physiological, biochemical and molecular functions of the plants, especially in short duration crops like mungbean. In the past few decades, significant progress has been made towards enhancing climate resilience in legumes through classical and next-generation breeding coupled with omics approaches. Various defence mechanisms have been reported as key players in crop adaptation to drought stress. Many researchers have identified potential donors, QTLs/genes and candidate genes associated to drought tolerance-related traits. However, cloning and exploitation of these loci/gene(s) in breeding programmes are still limited. To bridge the gap between theoretical research and practical breeding, we need to reveal the omics-assisted genetic variations associated with drought tolerance in mungbean to tackle this stress. Furthermore, the use of wild relatives in breeding programmes for drought tolerance is also limited and needs to be focused. Even after six years of decoding the whole genome sequence of mungbean, the genome-wide characterization and expression of various gene families and transcriptional factors are still lacking. Due to the complex nature of drought tolerance, it also requires integrating high throughput multi-omics approaches to increase breeding efficiency and genomic selection for rapid genetic gains to develop drought-tolerant mungbean cultivars. This review highlights the impact of drought stress on mungbean and mitigation strategies for breeding high-yielding drought-tolerant mungbean varieties through classical and modern omics technologies.

Pancreatoblastoma (PB) is a rare pancreatic tumor in children. Its biologic behavior is aggressive with frequent local invasion, recurrence, and metastasis, for which there has been no standard treatment regimen. Complete surgical resection has been considered for long-term survival of patients with PB. We present here a case of PB in a 3-year-old male child.

Objective: Surgical repair of hypospadias is challenging and problematic even for the most experienced specialists, and this is especially true when severe and complicated case is confronted. Many operations had been described for the management of this deformity. Materials and Methods: During the period from May 2004 to December 2015, we performed 700 cases with proximal hypospadias, at our institute in the Department of Pediatric Surgery by a single surgeon. Data were collected retrospectively and included patient's age at operation, degree of the hypospadias, degree of associated chordee, complications, and cosmetic outcome. All patients underwent 2 two-stage procedures with 9–12 months interval in between. Results: Seven hundred patients with proximal hypospadias were operated upon in a period of 11 years. Byars's 2 two-stage operation was used in all 700 cases. Neither complete disruption nor urethral diverticula occurred 2 two-stage procedures in the 700 patients. 677 (96.7%) patients had no complication. Fistula was present in 21 (3%) patients. There was no case of meatal stenosis in our study. Conclusion: Two stages procedure using the principles of Byar's technique is a versatile operation that can be used for 2 two-stage procedures the proximal hypospadias. It decreases the rate of fistula formation, disruption, and stenosis and gives a satisfactory cosmetic appearance.

Neurothekeoma (NT) is a rare, benign tumor that is derived from peripheral nerve sheath cells. There are less than 300 cases reported in the literature to date. Historically, this tumor has been subclassified as myxoid (classic), mixed, or the cellular type, depending on the amount of myxoid stroma and cellularity. Here, we present a case of NT (mixed type) of the scalp in a 3-year-old female child. The tumor was completely excised. No recurrence was detected in the past 3 months after the local excision.

Anorectal malformations (ARMs) are common congenital anomalies encountered in pediatric surgery. ARMs are often associated with other anomalies. The estimated incidences of associated anomalies are 40%–70%. We report a case of low ARM with lymphangioma neck.

Ludwig's angina (LA) is a serious, rapidly progressive cellulitis of the floor of the mouth which involves the submandibular, submaxillary, and sublingual spaces of the face; it is life-threatening if not recognized early and complications such as septicemia and asphyxia caused by expanding edema of soft tissues of the neck may occur. A literature review identified 35 pediatric cases of LA with a 14% mortality rate. It occurs predominantly in immunocompetent children with an odontogenic source of infection in a third and unknown source of infection in a third of cases. Many departments may have limited experience of the disease because of its rare occurrence. Hence, it is important to recognize LA in the earlier stages of the disease. We here present a case of huge LA in a 6-month-old male child with a very short history.

Delayed diagnosis of esophageal atresia (EA) is associated with bad prognosis. Only five cases of survival with delayed presentation in the 3rd week of life have been previously reported. We present a rare case of survival in a neonate, who presented on the 19th day of life with regurgitation of feed and respiratory distress. After preoperative optimization, primary repair was performed the next day. The use of number 10 sterile, blunt-tipped, soft-red rubber catheter to rule out EA shortly after the birth in the delivery (resuscitation) room by attending doctor or trained paramedical personnel is recommended.

Giant cell fibroblastoma (GCF) is an intermediate grade, soft-tissue tumor of childhood with a high incidence of local recurrence. GCF merits attentive interpretation as they have been misdiagnosed as sarcoma in the past leading to erroneous remedies. Here, we are reporting the case of GCF in 13-month-old boy who presented with a painless swelling over the left gluteal region for the past 3 months.

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is the most common soft-tissue sarcoma in children and frequently involves the head and neck region with 10% of the cases primarily involving the orbit. It is a highly malignant tumor which can be life-threatening. It usually produces a precipitously progressing unilateral proptosis of sudden onset. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging are important in the evaluation of this tumor. Histologically, embryonal subtype is most common in children. Complete resection followed by chemotherapy and radiotherapy is the preferred treatment of choice. We are reporting here a case of the embryonal RMS of orbit presenting with rapid proptosis of the right eye in a 14-month-old male child.

The incidence of blunt abdominal trauma has increased in recent years; however, relatively little attention has been paid to instances of its sequelae, especially in childhood. Small bowel stricture following a history of abdominal trauma is a rare cause of small bowel obstruction and there have been few reports examining its occurrence. We are presenting here a case of posttraumatic double ileal stenosis in a 4-year female child.

Mungbean [Vigna radiata (L.) R. Wilczek var. radiata] is an important food and cash legume crop in Asia. Development of short duration varieties has paved the way for the expansion of mungbean into other regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa and South America. Mungbean productivity is constrained by biotic and abiotic factors. Bruchids, whitefly, thrips, stem fly, aphids, and pod borers are the major insect-pests. The major diseases of mungbean are yellow mosaic, anthracnose, powdery mildew, Cercospora leaf spot, halo blight, bacterial leaf spot, and tan spot. Key abiotic stresses affecting mungbean production are drought, waterlogging, salinity, and heat stress. Mungbean breeding has been critical in developing varieties with resistance to biotic and abiotic factors, but there are many constraints still to address that include the precise and accurate identification of resistance source(s) for some of the traits and the traits conferred by multi genes. Latest technologies in phenotyping, genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics could be of great help to understand insect/pathogen-plant, plant-environment interactions and the key components responsible for resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses. This review discusses current biotic and abiotic constraints in mungbean production and the challenges in genetic improvement.