IMPACT OF LEISURE ACTIVITIES ON WELL-BEING IN COVID-19 PANDEMIC SITUATION, A CROSS SECTIONAL SURVEY

Aims Of Study: During COVID-19 people were forced to stay home and this increased the risk of limiting their PA and adaptation of sedentary behaviour hence our objective is to measure the impact of leisure activities on well-being during COVID-19. Methodology: 366 participants were selected, using Non-probability convenient sampling from UOL and PGC. PA and well-being were assessed using IPAQ-short form and WHO-5 well-being questionnaire. Results: IPAQ-short form with well-being Pearson Chi square was 638.012, Spearman correlation was 0.956 and p-value Asymptotic significance (2 sided) was .000 which means there is positive strong correlation between variables. Limitations and Future Implication: Adults having ages 18-40yrs volunteered due to short time period and since our study limited to only 2 settings so to generalize our outcomes for mass population was not feasible. During lockdown gaining past medical history in data collection was impacted, it is suggested to include the role of Physiotherapist in improving health status by PA, create awareness among common population about role of PA and their relation with well-being also including diversity in age groups, ethnicity and localities is suggested. Originality: Strong positive correlation between PA and well-being. Conclusion: This study shows that during Covid-19 pandemic, those individuals who remained physically active had good impact on their health. Being physically active not only improves an individual’s physical fitness level but also helps to cope with psychological problems degrading one’s mental health so our study found out direct relation between physical activity levels and health status.

Evaluation of Rhizobacterial Isolates Against Pythium and Phytophthora Spp. Associated With Chilli and Tomato Crops

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum Mill.) and chilli (Capsicum annuum L.) crops are of significant importance regarding their nutritional and economic concerns. The yield of the produce is relatively low as compared to the other countries of the world due to pre and post-harvest losses caused by various biotic and abiotic limiting factors. Pythium and Phytophthora spp. are notorious fungal-like pathogenic oomycetes associated with damping off, seed rot and late blight diseases in chilli and tomato crops. Synthetic agrochemicals are extensively used to control these pathogens and can be toxic and can pollute the environment. Moreover, this method of disease control is not much effective due to the soil-borne nature and rapid multiplication ability of these pathogens. The present study was conducted to explore the antagonistic potential of naturally occurring rhizobacteria against these pathogens. For this purpose, an extensive survey was conducted during 2015 - 2016 cropping year in major tomato and chilli growing areas in various districts of Punjab province viz., Attock, Chakwal, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Jhelum, Okara, Rawalpindi, and Sialkot. The survey revealed maximum disease incidence 45.5 % and 41.6 % from chilli fields in Okara and Sialkot districts respectively while from tomato fields, 40.1 % and 39.15 % disease incidence was recorded from Sialkot and Okara districts respectively. From Phytophthora spp. infected tomato fields, maximum disease incidence was recorded at 66.3 % and 55.6 % from Okara and Sialkot districts respectively. Rhizobacteria are rhizospheric beneficial agents which colonize plant roots, aid in disease suppression and plant growth enhancement. A total of 130 rhizobacterial isolates were recovered from soil. Out of the total, 10 isolates were found highly effective antagonists against Pythium and xxix Phytophthora spp. Based on their morphological, biochemical and molecular analysis these rhizobacterial isolates were identified as Pseudomonas koreensis, P. asaccharolticum, Serratia marcscens, S. marcscens, P. putida, P. putida, P. libanensis, P. aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis, B. megaterium, B. cereus, B. cereus and Burkholderia spp. All these rhizobacteria were compatible with each other and showed significant antibiotic resistance against Ampicillin and Penicillin G while B. subtilis showed resistance against all the tested antibiotics except Streptomycin and Rifampicin at highest concentration of 500 ppm. Rhizobacteria with high antagonistic potential viz., B. subtilis, B. cereus, P. putida and P. fluorescens were mass cultured on four (4) carrier materials viz, Sugarcane straw, wheat straw, wheat porridge and peat soil. All these rhizobacteria showed maximum viability on sugarcane baggas followed by wheat straw at 4 °C up to eighty (80) days. Seed treatment with rhizobacteria + sugarcane baggas (B. subtilis + SB) resulted into maximum seed germination (98 %), minimum seedling mortality (3.25 %) and improvement in plant growth characters viz, shoot and root length, fresh shoot weight, root weight and vigor index. Out of the ten (10) potential antagonists, nine (9) are first time reported against oomycetes from Pakistan that could be further tested for their antagonistic ability against other phytopathogens.