Mumtaz Cheema - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Mumtaz Cheema

Agronomy, Jan 6, 2023

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

PLOS ONE

Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is one of the most important cash crops primarily grown for fiber.... more Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is one of the most important cash crops primarily grown for fiber. It is a perennial crop with indeterminate growth pattern. Nitrogen (N) is extremely important for vegetative growth as balanced N-nutrition improves photosynthesis, resulting in better vegetative growth. Excessive N-supply results in more vegetative growth, which increases the incidence of insect pest and diseases’ infestation, pollute surface and ground water, delays maturity and produces low crop yield with poor quality. The use of plant growth regulators (PGRs) is an emerging option to control excessive vegetative growth. The PGRs help in improving plant architecture, boll retention, boll opening, yield and quality by altering growth and physiological processes such as photosynthesis, assimilate partitioning and nutrients dynamic inside the plant body. Mepiquat chloride (1,1-dimethylpiperidinum chloride) is globally used PGR for canopy development and control of excessive vegetative ...

Frontiers in Forests and Global Change

Boreal forests across Canada and other geographic areas globally have vast networks or densities ... more Boreal forests across Canada and other geographic areas globally have vast networks or densities of seismic lines, pipelines, access roads, utility corridors, and multipurpose trails collectively termed “linear disturbances” or “linear features.” Additionally, large areas of disturbances attributed to resource harvesting represent a major anthropogenic impact on the global boreal forest ecosystem. Restoration of these disturbed areas is currently a significant component of global boreal forest management strategies. A key to successful restoration or re-vegetation of these disturbed sites is the availability of highly adaptive native planting materials to grow and establish on the disturbed sites, particularly in varying abiotic stressors or severe environmental conditions. Abiotic stress includes non-living environmental factors, including salinity, drought, waterlogging or extreme temperatures, adversely affecting plant growth, development, and establishment on field sites. Herein...

Microorganisms

Soil microbes play an essential role in the biodegradation of crustacean shells, which is the pro... more Soil microbes play an essential role in the biodegradation of crustacean shells, which is the process of sustainable bioconversion to chitin derivatives ultimately resulting in the promotion of plant growth properties. While a number of microorganisms with chitinolytic properties have been characterized, little is known about the microbial taxa that participate in this process either by active chitin degradation or by facilitation of this activity through nutritional cooperation and composting with the chitinolytic microorganisms. In this study, we evaluated the transformation of the soil microbiome triggered by close approximation to the green crab shell surface. Our data indicate that the microbial community associated with green crab shell matter undergoes significant specialized changes, which was reflected in a decreased fungal and bacterial Shannon diversity and evenness and in a dramatic alteration in the community composition. The relative abundance of several bacterial and ...

Plants

Chilling stress is one of the major abiotic stresses which hinder seedling emergence and growth. ... more Chilling stress is one of the major abiotic stresses which hinder seedling emergence and growth. Herein, we investigated the effects of chilling/low temperature stress on the morphological, physiological, and biochemical attributes of two silage corn genotypes during the seedling establishment phase. The experiment was conducted in a growth chamber, and silage corn seedlings of Yukon-R and A4177G-RIB were grown at optimum temperature up to V3 stage and then subjected to five temperature regimes (25 °C as control, 20 °C, 15 °C, 10 °C, and 5 °C) for 5 days. After the temperature treatment, the morphological, physiological, and biochemical parameters were recorded. Results indicated that temperatures of 15 °C and lower significantly affected seedling growth, photosynthesis system, reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation, and antioxidant enzyme activities. Changes in seedlings’ growth parameters were in the order of 25 °C > 20 °C > 15 °C > 10 °C > 5 °C, irrespective of ge...

Soybean is one of the most cultivated crops globally and a staple food for much of the world'... more Soybean is one of the most cultivated crops globally and a staple food for much of the world's population. The annual global crop losses due to infection by the Phytophthora sojae are currently estimated at approximately $2B USD, yet we have limited understanding of the role of lipid metabolism in the adaptative strategies used to limit infection and crop loss. We employed a multi-modal lipidomics approach to investigate how soybean cultivars remodel their lipid metabolism to successfully limit infection by Phytophthora sojae. Both the tolerant and susceptible soybean cultivars showed alterations in lipid metabolism in response to Phytophthora sojae infection. Relative to non-inoculated controls, induced accumulation of stigmasterol was observed in the susceptible cultivar whereas, induced accumulation of phospholipids and glycerolipids occurred in tolerant soybean cultivar. We have generated a comprehensive metabolic map of susceptible and tolerant soybean root and stem lipid m...

Soybean is one of the most cultivated crops globally and a staple food for much of the world’s po... more Soybean is one of the most cultivated crops globally and a staple food for much of the world’s population. The annual global crop losses due to infection by the Phytophthora sojae are currently estimated at approximately $2B USD, yet we have limited understanding of the role of lipid metabolism in the adaptative strategies used to limit infection and crop loss. We employed a multi-modal lipidomics approach to investigate how soybean cultivars remodel their lipid metabolism to successfully limit infection by Phytophthora sojae. Both the tolerant and susceptible soybean cultivars showed alterations in lipid metabolism in response to Phytophthora sojae infection. Relative to non-inoculated controls, induced accumulation of stigmasterol was observed in the susceptible cultivar whereas, induced accumulation of phospholipids and glycerolipids occurred in tolerant soybean cultivar. We have generated a comprehensive metabolic map of susceptible and tolerant soybean root and stem lipid metab...

Frontiers in Plant Science, 2022

Being a macronutrient, phosphorus (P) is the backbone to complete the growth cycle of plants. How... more Being a macronutrient, phosphorus (P) is the backbone to complete the growth cycle of plants. However, because of low mobility and high fixation, P becomes the least available nutrient in podzolic soils; hence, enhancing phosphorus use efficiency (PUE) can play an important role in different cropping systems/crop production practices to meet ever-increasing demands in food, fiber, and fuel. Additionally, the rapidly decreasing mineral phosphate rocks/stocks forced to explore alternative resources and methods to enhance PUE either through improved seed P reserves and their remobilization, P acquisition efficiency (PAE), or plant's internal P utilization efficiency (IPUE) or both for sustainable P management strategies. The objective of this review article is to explore and document important domains to enhance PUE in crop plants grown on Podzol in a boreal agroecosystem. We have discussed P availabilities in podzolic soils, root architecture and morphology, root exudates, phospha...

Data in Brief, 2022

This data in brief article represents the data set associated with a research article published i... more This data in brief article represents the data set associated with a research article published in Geoderma [1]. The data set represents figures showing the spatial distribution of selected macro and micronutrients, and their quantification in different crop or nutrient management systems practiced in the boreal ecosystem. Spatial distribution of nutrients was measured by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA‒ICP‒MS), using the new techniques we developed to visualize nutrient distribution in intact soil cores representative of the root rhizosphere. This data article supports the findings published in the main article [1]. This work also demonstrates that LA-ICP-MS is a valuable technique to image the spatial distribution of macro and micronutrients in intact soil cores as affected by different crop management practices.

Journal of Environmental Management, 2022

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Organic waste management in environmentally sustainable way is importan... more BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Organic waste management in environmentally sustainable way is important not only to reduce the negative impacts on ecosystems but also valorizing the waste resources. Herein we evaluated the potential of wood ash (WA) and paper sludge (PS) wastes from a pulp and paper mill as potting media and their effects on the physicochemical properties of podzolic soil. METHODS WA, PS and biochar (BC) was mixed in different combinations with a sandy loam podzolic soil. Potting media treatments included: T1-soil (negative control); T2-PromixTM (positive control); T3-50%soil+50%WA; T4-75%soil+25%WA; T5-50%soil+50%PS; T6-75%soil+25%PS; T7-75%soil+25%BC; T8-25%soil+50%WA+25%BC; T9-50%soil+25%WA+25%BC; T10-25%soil+50%PS+25%BC; T11-50%soil+25%PS+25%BC, T12- 25%soil+25%WA+25%PS+25%BC and replicated three times. RESULTS Potting media treatments expressed significant (p < 0.00) effects on pH, bulk density, total porosity, field capacity, plant available water (PAW) and water retention curves. Potting media amended with WA showed high pH range (8-12) while PS amendments exhibited pH in range where most plant nutrients are available (6.5-7.5). Results depicted significantly lower bulk density, and increased total porosity and water holding capacity of potting media amended with WA and PS. BC addition further enhanced the water retention properties compared to combinations without BC. T6, T10 and T11 produced higher amounts of PAW with desired pH compared to T1 and T2. CONCLUSION WA, PS and BC showed high potential for developing podzolic soil-based potting media, but their effects on plant growth and elemental uptake need to be investigated.

Soil Systems, 2019

Considering the increased interests in biochar (BC) as a soil amendment and a growing media subst... more Considering the increased interests in biochar (BC) as a soil amendment and a growing media substrate in agriculture, we evaluated the effect of BC incorporation on TDR (time-domain reflectometer)-based volumetric soil moisture content (VSMC) estimations in a loamy sand podzolic soil. Two commercial BC types (powdered—BCP, and granular—BCG) were mixed in different rates (w/w) with a podzolic soil. The dielectric constants measured using a TDR cable tester (MOHR CT 100) were converted to VSMC. Three commonly used models: (i) Topp’s equation, M-1; (ii) mixing model, M-2; and (iii) the forest soil model, M-3, were used. The accuracy of the estimated VSMC using these three models was statistically compared with measured VSMC. BCP at lower rates produced very similar results to the actual VSMC with M-1 and M-2 but deviated with increasing rates. The M-3 showed a non-linear relationship with measured VSMC. In BCG treatments, all models overestimated the VSMC. BCG rates higher than 15% (w/...

Industrial Crops and Products, 2018

Excessive use of insecticides, degradation of Cry1Ac protein, insect resistance and premature sen... more Excessive use of insecticides, degradation of Cry1Ac protein, insect resistance and premature senescence in cotton are serious threats to the sustainable cotton production. An experiment was conducted to manage these adversities and to determine dependence of morphological attribute on physiochemical responses. Experiments were conducted at University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan over two years (2015, 2016) and two locations. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design under factorial arrangement. Treatments were comprised of branch removal viz. R 0 = No removal of early fruit branches; R 1 = Removal of two early fruit branches (REFB) and genotypes V 1 = MNH-886 and V 2 = FH-142. Results revealed that Cry1Ac (33%) and nitrogen concentration (16%) were increased under REFB compared to no REFB over years and locations. Chlorophyll a and b contents were improved by 11 and 6% under REFB compared to no REFB over two localities and years. While, SOD, POD and CAT activities were increased by 13, 13 and 10%, respectively under REFB compared to no REFB. Nodes above white flower (5 days), nodes for first fruiting branch and seed cotton yield were enhanced by 14, 15 and 17%, respectively under REFB compared to no REFB over years and locations. Number of insect damaged bolls were decreased by 28% under REFB compared to control over years and locations. More promising responses were recorded for MNH-886 compared to FH-142 over REFB, years and locations. Conclusively, all physiochemical and agronomic attributes were improved, and senescence and insect attack were decreased in both genotypes over the spatial and temporal variations. Significant and strong correlation of physiochemical attributes with morphological attributes were recorded over years and locations.

Scientific Reports, 2019

Lipids are important biomolecules in all biological systems and serve numerous essential cellular... more Lipids are important biomolecules in all biological systems and serve numerous essential cellular functions. The global analysis of complex lipids is very challenging due to the extreme diversity in lipid structures. Variation in linkages and positions of fatty acyl chain(s) on the lipid backbone, functional group modification, occurrence of the molecular species as isomers or isobars are among some of the greatest challenges to resolve in lipidomics. In this work, we describe a routine analytical approach combining two liquid chromatography platforms: hydrophilic interaction (HILIC) and C30 reversed-phase chromatography (C30RP) coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) as complementary high throughput platforms to analyze complex lipid mixtures. Vascular plants (kale leaves and corn roots), rat brain and soil microbes were used as proxies to evaluate the efficiency of the enhanced approach to resolve traditional, as well as, modified lipids during routine lipidomics analy...

Pakistan Journal of Agricultural Research, 2017

Journal of Cleaner Production, 2016

One of the main environmental issues associated with the blue mussel processing industry is the p... more One of the main environmental issues associated with the blue mussel processing industry is the production of mussel sediments. However, this waste product can be used as a source of nutrients and soil amendment in agriculture. Sediments collected bi-weekly from the pool of a washing line of Prince Edward Aqua Farms in eastern Canada were analyzed for the consistency of macronutrient contents over time and nutrient availability using a grass and a vegetable crop. During the one-year period, macronutrient contents including nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and calcium followed different time-dependent patterns, yet levels remained high and consistent to meet crop needs. For annual ryegrass and tomato, shoot and root productions were increased with applications of mussel sediments, but not at the same extent as with synthetic fertilizers alone or mixture of mussel sediments and synthetic fertilizers. Macronutrients uptake by both test plants followed the same pattern as shoot and root production. Plant biomass production and uptake of macronutrients indicate the significant potential of this waste material in agriculture and demonstrate the feasibility of the application of mussel sediments as a source of nutrients. This is one of the first scientific works with mussel sediments as a source of nutrients and more results are expected with a range of other crops, thereby contributing to a series of studies in this field. The present study is of great importance to the blue mussel processing industry and to agriculture in Prince Edwards Islands because it contributes to the efforts of the industry to look for new and environmentally-friendly methods of refuse management. The study also provides local farmers' with scientific evidences on the nutrient-rich waste products, thereby reducing excessive mineral fertilizer use in conventional agriculture and offering an alternative source of nutrients in organic agriculture with limited access to organic nutrient sources.

Seed Science and Technology, 2003

Abstract: An experiment was carried out using an upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cv. NIAB-7... more Abstract: An experiment was carried out using an upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cv. NIAB-78 to investigate the physiological and biochemical aspects of seed deterioration during accelerated ageing. The seeds were subjected to 40-44 C and 90-95% relative ...

Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science, 2008

The optimum temperature for maize germination is between 25 and 28°C. Poor and erratic germinatio... more The optimum temperature for maize germination is between 25 and 28°C. Poor and erratic germination at suboptimal temperature is the most important hindrance in its early sowing. This study was conducted to induce chilling tolerance in hybrid maize (Zea mays L.) by seed priming with salicylic acid (SA) and to unravel the background biochemical basis. For seed priming, maize hybrid (Hycorn 8288) seeds were soaked in 50, 100 and 150 ppm (mg l)1) aerated solutions of SA for 24 h and were dried back. Treated and untreated seeds were sown at 27°C (optimal temperature) and at 15°C (chilling stress) under controlled conditions. Performance of maize seedlings was hampered under chilling stress. But seed priming with SA improved the seedling emergence, root and shoot length, seedling fresh and dry weights, and leaf and root score considerably compared with control both at optimal and chilling temperatures. However, priming in 50 mg l)1 SA solution was more effective, followed by priming in 100 mg l)1 SA solution. Seed priming with SA improved the chilling tolerance in hybrid maize mainly by the activation of antioxidants (including catalase, superoxide dismutase and ascorbate peroxidase). Moreover, maintenance of high tissue water contents and reduced membrane permeability also contributed towards chilling tolerance.