Browsing by Author "Ahmed, Minhaz"
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Item Biochar potentially enhances maize tolerance to arsenic toxicity by improving physiological and biochemical responses to excessive arsenate(2023) Rahman, Md Mezanur (TTU); Das, Ashim Kumar; Sultana, Sharmin; Ghosh, Protik Kumar; Islam, Md Robyul; Keya, Sanjida Sultana (TTU); Ahmed, Minhaz; Nihad, Sheikh Arafat Islam; Khan, Md Arifur Rahman; Lovell, Mylea C. (TTU); Rahman, Md Abiar; Ahsan, S. M.; Anik, Touhidur Rahman (TTU); Fnu, Pallavi (TTU); Tran, Lam Son Phan (TTU); Mostofa, Mohammad GolamMetalloid pollution, including arsenic poisoning, is a serious environmental issue, plaguing plant productivity and quality of life worldwide. Biochar, a carbon-rich material, has been known to alleviate the negative effects of environmental pollutants on plants. However, the specific role of biochar in mitigating arsenic stress in maize remains relatively unexplored. Here, we elucidated the functions of biochar in improving maize growth under the elevated level of sodium arsenate (Na2AsO4, AsV). Maize plants were grown in pot-soils amended with two doses of biochar (2.5% (B1) and 5.0% (B2) biochar Kg−1 of soil) for 5 days, followed by exposure to Na2AsO4 ('B1 + AsV'and 'B2 + AsV') for 9 days. Maize plants exposed to AsV only accumulated substantial amount of arsenic in both roots and leaves, triggering severe phytotoxic effects, including stunted growth, leaf-yellowing, chlorosis, reduced photosynthesis, and nutritional imbalance, when compared with control plants. Contrariwise, biochar addition improved the phenotype and growth of AsV-stressed maize plants by reducing root-to-leaf AsV translocation (by 46.56 and 57.46% in ‘B1 + AsV’ and ‘B2 + AsV’ plants), improving gas-exchange attributes, and elevating chlorophylls and mineral levels beyond AsV-stressed plants. Biochar pretreatment also substantially counteracted AsV-induced oxidative stress by lowering reactive oxygen species accumulation, lipoxygenase activity, malondialdehyde level, and electrolyte leakage. Less oxidative stress in ‘B1 + AsV’ and ‘B2 + AsV’ plants likely supported by a strong antioxidant system powered by biochar-mediated increased activities of superoxide dismutase (by 25.12 and 46.55%), catalase (51.78 and 82.82%), and glutathione S-transferase (61.48 and 153.83%), and improved flavonoid levels (41.48 and 75.37%, respectively). Furthermore, increased levels of soluble sugars and free amino acids also correlated with improved leaf relative water content, suggesting a better osmotic acclimatization mechanism in biochar-pretreated AsV-exposed plants. Overall, our findings provided mechanistic insight into how biochar facilitates maize’s active recovery from AsV-stress, implying that biochar application may be a viable technique for mitigating negative effects of arsenic in maize, and perhaps, in other important cereal crops. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]Item Ethanol Positively Modulates Photosynthetic Traits, Antioxidant Defense and Osmoprotectant Levels to Enhance Drought Acclimatization in Soybean(2022) Rahman, Md Mezanur (TTU); Mostofa, Mohammad Golam (TTU); Das, Ashim Kumar; Anik, Touhidur Rahman; Keya, Sanjida Sultana (TTU); Ahsan, S. M.; Khan, Md Arifur Rahman; Ahmed, Minhaz; Rahman, Md Abiar; Hossain, Md Motaher; Tran, Lam Son Phan (TTU)Drought is a major environmental threat to agricultural productivity and food security across the world. Therefore, addressing the detrimental effects of drought on vital crops like soybean has a significant impact on sustainable food production. Priming plants with organic compounds is now being considered as a promising technique for alleviating the negative effects of drought on plants. In the current study, we evaluated the protective functions of ethanol in enhancing soybean drought tolerance by examining the phenotype, growth attributes, and several physiological and biochemical mechanisms. Our results showed that foliar application of ethanol (20 mM) to drought-stressed soybean plants increased biomass, leaf area per trifoliate, gas exchange features, water-use-efficiency, photosynthetic pigment contents, and leaf relative water content, all of which contributed to the improved growth performance of soybean under drought circumstances. Drought stress, on the other hand, caused significant accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), such as superoxide and hydrogen peroxide, and malondialdehyde, as well as an increase of electrolyte leakage in the leaves, underpinning the evidence of oxidative stress and membrane damage in soybean plants. By comparison, exogenous ethanol reduced the ROS-induced oxidative burden by boosting the activities of antioxidant enzymes, including peroxidase, catalase, glutathione S-transferase, and ascorbate peroxidase, and the content of total flavonoids in soybean leaves exposed to drought stress. Additionally, ethanol supplementation increased the contents of total soluble sugars and free amino acids in the leaves of drought-exposed plants, implying that ethanol likely employed these compounds for osmotic adjustment in soybean under water-shortage conditions. Together, our findings shed light on the ethanol-mediated protective mechanisms by which soybean plants coordinated different morphophysiological and biochemical responses in order to increase their drought tolerance.Item Psychological disorders among college going students: A post Covid-19 insight from Bangladesh(2024) Siddik, Md Abu Bakkar; Ali, Akher; Miah, Sumon; Hasan, Mahedi (TTU); Ahmed, Minhaz; Sunna, Tachlima ChowdhuryThe COVID-19 pandemic has been found to result in adverse effects on both the physical and mental well-being of individuals. The adolescent population emerged as one of the most susceptible cohorts affected by the ongoing pandemic. They experienced significant adversity due to various mental health conditions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the present prevalence rates of depression, anxiety, and internet addiction among college-going students in Bangladesh following the post-COVID period. The study involved a cohort of 7667 students. A cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the levels of depression, anxiety, and internet addiction among college-going adolescents. The assessment utilized the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), and Young's Internet Addiction Test (IAT) scales. The data was analyzed using the Pearson chi-square test and binary logistic regression. Participants averaged 15.3 years old and 64.3 % female. 63 % of students fulfilled the criterion for internet addiction, 37 % did not, 75 % met depression criteria, 25 % did not, and 60 % met anxiety requirements. Girls were more depressed and anxious than boys. Boys were more internet-addicted than girls. Social media usage from COVID-19, daily exercise, online courses, and financial concerns throughout the pandemic affected participants' mental health. Still, the students were suffering from internet addiction, depression, and anxiety after COVID-19. Early identification and intervention may lessen these difficulties' influence on adolescents' academic and personal lives. Colleges may provide mental health services, encourage healthy lives, and educate on mental health.