International Conference on Agri Biotech and Environmental Engineering September 11-12,2017 San Antonio,Texas,USA

Mr. Ebenezer Otoo is a Biotechnologist who specialized in genetic engineering. Had his bachelor’s degree in Agricultural biotechnology at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, (Kumasi-Ghana). Performed laboratory analysis to determine causes of diseases at Plant Genetic Resources Research Institute, Ghana. Currently a postgraduate research student at Hohai University, (Nanjing-China) undertaking more researches to contribute more to the society for the betterment of lives.

rnFonio millets (Digitaria exilis, D. iburua) are amongst the important indigenous cereal crops that greatly contribute to household food security in semi-arid and sub-humid drought-prone areas of West-Africa. They are crops showing high tolerance to drought, flooding and diseases. Due to their hardy nature, these traditional millets are regarded as priority crops in West-Africa, where they are essential to the diets of millions of people. rnAccording to Goodman et al., (1988), like other crop, morphological traits have been for quiet along time used to analyze genetic relationships in fonio and in the classification of various accessions. However, these descriptors are inadequate and suffer from many limitations for precise characterization (Kumari and Gadag, 2002) since the environment can affect the result of the characterization. For this reason, the potential of these crops for food and agriculture is not adequately exploited for breeding works. This research therefore aimed at determining the genetic diversities among the eight accessions of fonio millet collected from various grown areas in Ghana to contribute to our knowledge on fonio millet accessions in Ghana.rnFresh leaves were harvested for DNA extraction using the CTAB extraction method two weeks after planting seeds. Nanodrop spectrophotometer was used to check the quality of total genomic DNA extracted. Scores for presence and absence of the banding patterns in the accessions were recorded and denoted with (1) for presence and (0) for absence. Dendrogram was constructed with UPGMA from the pairwise matrix of genetic similarity among the eight accessions of fonio millet. From the dendrogram it is evident that, there is diversity among the eight accessions of fonio millet under study. With a perpendicular line drawn at 0.73 coefficient, the accessions can be grouped into five clusters. Hence the relationship among these eight accessions will be a good indicator for breeders who are interested in developing synthetic cultivars. The results obtained is relevant for conservation management and exploitation of fonio genetic resources in breeding that ultimately may boost fonio production.rn

Ali Abdulqader Mohammed Ali is Lecturer at Al_Qasim Green University – Iraq rnGood experience in Engineering teaching and research at many universitiesrnsupported by academic qualifications. In addition to good engineering experiencernacross design, manufacture and maintenance of agricultural machines and relatedrnequipment gained in industry. Seeking to progress and further advance my studiesrnand research in the field of mechanical engineering and relative subjects.rn

Plowing appearance device was designed to calculate the number of colds per area after the tillage operation. This device is mechanical-electronic equipment. This can be done by calculating tillage view using mechanical equipment through the generation of electrical impulses that are sent to an accurate control unit. That will compute the number of clods under required space and shows the results on the screen in order to see the tillage view per area. The device was designed and fabricated and then, an experiment was carried out by considering three factors: The first factor represents the forward speed of tractor at three levels (3.5, 4.5, 5.5 km/h) and the second factor represent soil moisture content at two levels (14, 20%) and the third factor denote tillage depth of three levels (10, 15, 20 cm) to the clay loam in Wasit cities in Iraq. A split-split plot design technique with three replications was used in this research. The results were shown, that significant differences in the forward speed of the tractor on tillage view for more than 10 cm clod size. The forward speed of 5.5 km/h recorded the less number of clods more 10 cm clod size, while not significant effect shown for the forward speed on the tillage view used in the traditional method of clod numbers computing. Additionally, the tillage depth of 10 cm shown at least the number of clods (Which has more than 10 cm diameter) at 6.753, 6.9633 mass/m2 by using the plowing view device and traditional method respectively, while the results recorded that the plowing at depth 20 cm shown a highest clods number at 11.000, 10.920 mass/m2 for plowing view device and calculate the number of clods using the traditional methods respectively. The overall results showed, that the device can be providing a significant difference in the results compared with the traditional methods and it will be more accurate.

Mr Mphaphathi M.L has completed his Masters degree at the age of 28 years from Tshwane University of Technology. He is the researcher, at the Agricultural Reserch Council. He has published more than 07 papers in reputed journals and has been an manuscript reviewers. He is the member of the International embryo Transfer Society (IETS).

Successful reproductive technologies such as artificial insemination (AI), superovualation, ovum pick up and embryo transfer need to be applied on a large scale in future. Other emerging animal biotechnologies such as multiple ovulation & embryo transfer (MOET), in vitro embryo production and cloning provides powerful tool for rapidly changing the animal populations, genetically. The focus will be more on technologies that manipulate the female gamete. Synchronization of cows oestrus is one of the ways to regulate the estrus signs detection and it reduces time and labour cost. The AI is the oldest animal biotechnology and it is still a vital technology for improvement of livestock. Improvements in methods to cryopreserve/freeze and store semen have made AI accessible to more livestock farmers. The MOET is a crucial tool for the implementation of genetic improvements and conservation programs of endangered livestock, it is the method of choice for germplasm control. However, its utilization is limited due to the variability that exists in predicting the quality and quantity of transferable embryos that will be recovered following administrating of FSH and flushing. The technology for in vitro oocytes maturation, fertilization and culturing requires suitable mediums and skills so that viable embryos can be produced. Thereforeproduced embryo in vitro or in vivo may then be transplanted into the recepients of cryopreserved/frozen for future use. The principles of cloning happens quite frequently naturally. This means the cloned animal is an exact duplicate in every way of its parent, it has the same exact DNA. Therefore, animal biotechnology is crucial to other interventions in the reproductive process such as, control of seasonal breeding, hormonal regulation of ovulation, estrous and pregnancy establishment etc. This advanced reproduction technologies will definitely play an important role in the future perspective and visions for efficient reproductive performance in livestock industry/ agricultural biotechnology.

Yao Xue has completed her Master Degree in Agriculture from Western Kentucky University and is currently studying in Environmental Resource and Policy doctorate program at Southern Illinois University. Her research interests include chilling requirements, frost events, climate model simulations, etc.

Temperate regions of the world are characterized by seasonal warm and cool temperature. Cool temperatures enable perennial plants to undergo physiological processes essential for flowering and fruit bearing in the following season. Failure of environments to provide chilling conditions results in deformed leaves, fruits, or barren trees. Global warming is reducing chilling conditions. Our research is aimed towards the assessment of availability of chilling hours in Kentucky environments. Weather data provided by Kentucky Mesonet system have permitted study of 50 countries over a five year period. A chilling unit is defined as a clock hour when air temperature is between 32°F and 45°F from September through April. Average chilling hours were 1556 overall, ranging from 1463-1680 for sites, and 1473-1842 for years. Accumulated chilling hours at the 50 sites reached approximately 1000 by mid-January, thereby meeting the requirements for many fruit crops. At that point, plants enter bud-break and become subject to freezing damage by alternating warming and freezing temperatures during the remainder of winter. Results indicated that chilling exceeded requirements for most Kentucky crops. This margin of excess has both negative and positive value. First, the plants become more vulnerable to freezing damage early before winter weather is completed. Second, since warming has been shown to decrease chilling production, the margin of chilling hours would provide some time for adjusting horticultural enterprises to global warming. Research is continuing to further elucidate chilling conditions. Additional understanding for relationships between environments and chilling will contribute to perennial fruit production in temperate regions.