To enable students to-
Brief outline on discovery of viruses, nomenclature and classification of viruses : distinctive properties of viruses; morphology & ultra structure; capsids & their arrangements; types of envelops and their composition-viral genome, their types and structures; virus related agents (viroids, prions)
Cultivation of viruses in embryonated eggs, experimental animals , cell cultures; Primary & secondary cell cultures; suspension cell cultures and monolayer cell cultures; cell lines and transgenic systems; serological methods - heamagglutination & HAU; compliment fixation ;immunofluorescenemethods, ELISA and Radioimmunoassay; assay of viruses physical and chemical methods (Protein, nucleic acid, radioactivity, trackers, electron microscopy)-Infectivity assay (plaque method, end point method)- Infectivity of plant viruses.
An overview of replicative cycle of animal viruses
Plant viruses: Effect of viruses on plants, Appearance of plants; histology, physiology and cytology of plants; common virus disease of plants eg. paddy (Rice Tungro, Rice Hozablanca), tomato(Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl, Tomato Mottle) and sugarcane (Sugarcane Mosaic); Transmission of plant virus with vectors (insects, nematodes, fungi) and without vectors (contact, seed and pollens), Prevention of crop loss due to virus infection- virus free planting material; vector control.
An Introduction to fungi-History, general features of fungi, Classification of fungi, according to Aiasworth and Sussman (1974) as per UGC classification with the general aspects of Major division of fungi Nutrition of fungi, Vitamin requirements, Homothallism, Heterothallism, Heterokaryosis, The Parasexual cycle, Sex Hormones in Fungi. Fungi as insect symbiont. Mycotoxins and Mycotoxicoses. Attack on fungi by other microbes, yeasts, moulds and viruses.
An introduction to Algae, General features and classification of algae. Occurrence, thallus organization and reproduction in chlorophyceae euglenophyceae, phaeophyceae, pyrrophyceae and diatoms.
Algal ecology & biotechnology. Economic importance of algae. Lichen, ascolichen, basidiolichen, deuterolichen