Evaluation of Eclipta alba L. selections for higher biomass and bioactive compound

Evaluation of Eclipta alba L. selections for higher biomass and bioactive compound | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Evaluation of Eclipta alba L. selections for higher biomass and bioactive compound Hima Bindu K, Keshav Rao V, Shiva kumar, Anil Kumar B, Shalini R M, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5043254/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 13 Jan, 2025 Read the published version in Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution → Version 1 posted 7 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Known by several names, including Bhringaraj and False Daisy, Eclipta alba (L.) is a highly valued and well-known medicinal plant in India. It is thought to be the best liver disease medicine and is an annual herb that belongs to the Asteraceae family. This herb has a long history of use in ethnomedicine. An estimated 2000–5000 tons are traded annually. On the other hand, overexploitation of this species' wild populations is the result of strong domestic demand. In order to cultivate E. alba and lessen the strain on the wild population, the current study aims to identify elite germplasm from several places in India through an analysis of growth, yield, and content variation of primary active constituents. HPLC (High-Performance Liquid Chromatography) was used to analyze the wedelolactone content of 142 wild accessions of E. alba . Six lines of analysis showed a significant variance in wedelolactone throughout the entire plant, ranging from 0.09 to 0.53% on a dry weight basis. These lines were evaluated for two years for growth, yield, and active principle content. One elite accession (IIHR Sel EA 43) with 0.5% of the wedelolactone was identified with higher growth and yield attributes. This line is found to be suitable for large-scale commercial cultivation of E. alba. Elite Accession Wedelolactone HPLC Biomass Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 1. Introduction Eclipta alba (L.) is an annual herbaceous plant that is a member of the Asteraceae family. It is also referred to as Bhangara in Hindi, Bhringaraj in Sanskrit, and False daisy in English (Puri, 2003 ). It is extensively available in Brazil, Thailand, China, and India (Soni and Soni, 2017 ). It can also be found in the southeast, where it thrives in low-lying and high-lying regions of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Nepal, and Malaysia, as well as in clay and moist ground bunds, rice fields, water courses, and tanks.The therapeutic plant is found growing in marshes, rivers, lakes, and the foothills of the Himalayas across India. It can also be found growing up to 2000 meters above sea level in the hills. It is prevalent along roadsides, in waste areas, marshy areas, hedges, and especially in the country's tropical regions (Sharma et al , 2017). Because herbal medications have fewer negative effects, demand and usage have skyrocketed in recent years. The E. alba is widely utilized in Ayurveda and has a bitter, hot, harsh and dry flavor. The secondary metabolites found in E. alba are useful medicinally. Pharmacological activities have been reported for E. alba extracts and metabolites (Mithun et al., 2011 ). Wedelolactone and dimethyl wedelolactone are the primary active ingredients in E. alba and have anti-hepatotoxic properties (Wagner et al ., 1986 and Franca et al. , 1995). It has long been believed to be the best medication for treating liver conditions (Khare, 2007 ). It is also used to treat headaches, night blindness, and conditions affecting the growth and development of hair (Datta et al., 2009 ). E. alba has yielded a diverse array of chemical substances, such as coumestans, alkaloids, thiopenes, flavonoids, polyacetylenes, triterpenes, and their glycosides. The herb's anti-inflammatory,anti-mytotoxic, analgesic, anti-hepatotoxic, anti-oxidant,anti-bacterial, anti-hyperglycemic,anti-hemorrhagic, & immunomodulatory qualities have all been used (Leal et al., 2000 ; Kartik et al ., 2007)(Jayathirtha and Mishra, 2004 ). It is regarded as a potent rejuvenator and is well-known for its anti-aging and UV protection properties (Chan et al., 2014 ). Recent studies showed an antivenom property of bioactive compounds of E. alba (Diogo et al., 2009 ). E. alba is one of the top ten traded medicinal plants in India. The estimated annual trade is 2000–5000 tonnes ( https://nmpb.nic.in/ ). The increased demand for this herb is leading to the destruction of the natural habitat since the plant material is gathered from natural & wild settings. The indiscriminate harvesting of plants as a source of drugs is endangering these plants, hence large-scale, systematic plant cultivation is needed. For cultivation, superior and elite varieties are essential and there are no commercialvarieties in E. alba . At ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, about 142 wild collections from different parts of the country aremaintainedand evaluated for yield and bioactive compoundsto identify elite lines in E. alba for commercial cultivation. The present study's main objective was to identify elite lines of E. alba with high biomass and wedelolactone content from the selected accessions with higher content. 2. Materials & methods 2.1. Study site details The experimental farm of the ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR) in Bengaluru, which is situated 890 meters above mean sea level at 13°7' North latitude and 77° 29' East longitude, is where the current study was carried out between 2020 and 2022. The mean minimum temperature fluctuated between 13.2ºC and 21.3ºC during the course of the experiment, whereas the mean maximum temperature varied between 26.2°C and 34.9°C. The total amount of rainfall during the study ranged from 302 to 311 mm. At the experimental site, the red sandy loam soil exhibits a stable level of fertility. The pre-experimental soil characteristics showed that the pH, EC, and SOC were, respectively, 7.26, 0.24 dS m -1 , and 0.65%. 2.2. Experimental details About 142 wild collections from different parts of the country are maintained and evaluated for yield and wedelolactone content. Five lines showed a significant variance in wedelolactone throughout the entire plant, ranging from 0.09 to 0.53% on a dry weight basis. These lines were evaluated for two years for growth, yield and active principle content.The field trial was carried out with five selected lines from germplasm along with one local type as a check (IIHR EA 4). The studies were set up in a roughly 30-m 2 area using an RBD: Randomized Block Design having 4 replications. After two ploughings, raised beds measuring six meters in length and eighty meters in breadth were constructed. There was enough room between treatments and duplicates—30 cm. For planting material production of different lines, well-matured selfed seeds from selected lines were collected previously. The seeds were sown in 50 cells portrays filled with coir pith (@ approximately 2 kg/tray). The trays were irrigated immediately with a rose can and regular irrigation was given. 25–30 days old healthy and uniform seedlings were transplanted to the main field. One-month old healthy seedlings, which were raised in the nursery, were planted on raised beds at a spacing of 20 cm x 20 cm in triangular pattern in gross plot area of 1.2 m 2 area for each treatment and the net plot area with 21 plants were considered for all estimations. All treatments were produced using the same standard procedures. During the land preparation process, 15 t ha -1 of farm yard manure was applied and thoroughly mixed with the soil. The complete P & K dose was utilized as a basis, as per the recommended amount of fertilizers (30: 40: 20 kg N, P 2 O 5 , & K 2 O ha -1 ) administered. 30 days after transplanting, around 75% of the N was administered, and 50 days after transplanting, the remaining 25% of the N was applied. For N, P, and K, the fertilizers utilized were urea, single super phosphate& muriate of potash, in that order. Weeding was done on a regular basis and irrigation was provided daily through a drip system during the moisture stress period. The diseasedowny mildew caused by Plasmoparas phagneticolae was first reported in India and spraying of Dimethomorph fungicide @ 1% (Acrobat) was taken up to manage the disease. 2.3 Morphological traits Data pertaining to growth traits viz ., plant height, plant spread, internodal length, stem circumference, leaf length, leaf width, number of primary and secondary branches, flower head diameter, and pedicel length were recorded in five randomly tagged plants at harvest. Qualitative data was taken using the RHS (Royal Horticulture Society) color chart. 2.4 Biomass and yield estimation Plant samples were harvested at 90 days after planting and the fresh weight was recorded immediately after harvest in five tagged plants. The entire plant was then shade-dried, sealed in brown paper bags, and oven dried at 50ºC until its weight remained constant (ref), yielding its dry weight. The fresh & dry herbage yield per hectare was estimated based on the herbage yield per plot. The samples were broken up and kept in butter-filled paper bags so that the biologically active substances could be examined later. 2.5. Reagents & chemicals used to estimate bioactive compounds The “chemicals and reagents used for the estimation of bioactive compounds through HPLC analysis are methanol (CH 3 OH, Merck 99.9% purity), acetonitrile (C2H 3 N, Merck 99.9% purity), orthophosphoric acid (H 3 PO4, Sisco Research Laboratories, 99% purity), and” anhydrous potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KH 2 PO 4 ). The HPLC analysis uses wedelolactone (Natural remedies with 99.9% purity) as the reference standard. 2.6. Estimation of bioactive compounds The concentration of active chemicals in E. alba was estimated using standard procedures. About 250 g of the dried leaf sample from each line were crushed using a matrix mixer. After that, the powder was collected and stored in butter paper bags. 40 milliliters of HPLC-grade methanol were added to a 100-milliliter beaker that held five grams of powdered leaf sample. Following twenty minutes of constant stirring at 90ºC in a water bath, the mixture was collected in a volumetric flask to collect the supernatant. The supernatant was collected after the residue was extracted again for ten minutes with thirty milliliters of HPLC-grade methanol. After adding 20 milliliters of methanol of HPLC grade once more, the mixture was extracted for 10 minutes. Until a clear solution was reached, the same process was repeated. The material was extracted three times in total. After cooling the extract, a volumetric flask containing HPLC-grade methanol was filled to the final volume of 50 ml. For HPLC analysis, a Millipore filter was used to filter the extract with a 0.2 mm mesh size. Wedelolactone, an active molecule, was subjected to phytochemical examination using the HPLC approach (Shimadzu LC model Nexera X2 HPLC/UPLC fitted with LC-30 CE pump with SPD-M20A photodiode array detector PDA), in accordance with the earlier published protocol by Anil et al. ( 2021 ). Version 5.54 SP 5 of the Lab Solutions Chromatography software was used to process data and control the instruments. Chromatographic separation was accomplished at 40ºC using a 5 µm particle size column on a 250 mm length by 4.6 mm ID CAPCELL PAK C18 (SHISEIDO) column. The mobile phase in terms of chromatographic conditions was composed of acetonitrile (Solvent B) & buffer (1 mM KH2PO4), which were pumped at a flow rate of 1.5 ml/min. Before being injected into the system, the mobile phases were filtered via a 0.45 µm nylon membrane filter and degassed using a sonicator. To achieve ideal separation and acceptable peak shape, gradient elution was used. Since there was little to no solvent influence on the target compounds' absorbance maxima, the detector wavelength was set at 351 nm because this is the wavelength at which the target compounds showed their maximum absorbance. A prepared sample of approximately 20 microliters (µL) was injected, and a 45-minute run time was used to record the chromatogram at 351 nm for each injection. The chromatogram and calibration curve with the peaks of the reference standards visible are shown in Fig. 1. 2.7. Screening for Downy mildew disease Selected lines along with check were evaluated against downy mildew caused by Plasmoparas phagneticolae under field conditions for two consecutive years. One infected leaf was collected from each of the three plants for microscopic examination and pathogen identification. For the assessment of sporulation intensity on a leaf, a scale ranging from 0–5 is used and modified from Lebeda ( 1986a , 1987 ). 2.8. Statistical analysis Statistical software such as SPSS and Microsoft Excel was used to analyze the experimental data, and tables containing the standard error of the mean (S.Em.)—a measure of the deviation from the mean value were produced. At the 0.05 probability level, crucial difference (CD) values were used to compare the significance of the method of treatment. 3. Results & discussion 3.1. Growthperformance of different E. alba lines Table 1 displays the data on growth factors, such as plant height and plant spread, for various years. Both years saw roughly identical plant development in terms of height and dispersion along distinct lines.However, the plant height and spreadvaried significantly among different lines in both years. The plant vigor in terms of height (82.9 cm) and spread (63.85 cm in NS and 69.1 cm in EW) was significantly higher in accession IIHR EA Sel 43 in 1st yr. A comparable result was obtained in 2nd yr. IIHR EA Sel 43 registered maximum plant height and spread (74.38 cm, and 63.85 cm in NS and 65.6 cm in EW, respectively) followed by IIHR EA 58 − 1. The plant height and spread were significantly lower in controlIIHR EA-4 (30.5 cm of height, 29.25 cm spread in NS, 30.4 cm in EW). The branching pattern in terms of internodal length, stem circumference, and number of primary and secondary branches at harvest in different years(Table 2 ) indicatedsignificant variations among different accessions. The accession IIHR EA Sel 43 was significantly superior in terms of intermodal length, stem diameter, and number of secondary branches over other accessions in both years. Table 1 Plant growth in different lines of E. alba Line 2020-21 2021-22 Plant height (cm) Plant spread (cm) Plant height (cm) Plant spread (cm) NS EW NS EW IIHR EA 58 − 1 57.6 51.8 47.8 55.2 50.9 53.5 IIHR EA 59 − 2 54.6 65.0 58.9 48.1 53.8 56.9 IIHR EA-4 (C) 30.5 29.3 30.4 45.7 27.6 30.4 IIHR EA-6 32.2 30.4 29.2 41.0 28.3 38.2 IIHR EA Sel 43 82.9 63.9 69.1 74.4 63.8 65.6 S.Em± 1.43 2.42 0.92 1.17 2.14 0.93 C.D. ( P = 0.05 ) 4.40 7.44 2.82 3.61 6.59 2.87 Table 2 Branching parameters in different lines of E. alba Line 2020-21 2021-22 Internodal length (cm) Stem diameter (cm) No. of primary branches/ plant No. of secondary branches/ plant Internodal length (cm) Stem diameter (cm) No. of primary branches/ plant No. of secondary branches/ plant IIHR EA 58 − 1 5.69 3.31 1.65 15.45 5.59 3.38 1.72 15.23 IIHR EA 59 − 2 5.75 2.2 2.58 16.85 5.36 2.29 2.70 14.70 IIHR EA-4 (C) 2.95 2.71 1.49 15.1 3.64 2.84 1.58 16.10 IIHR EA-6 2.53 2.33 1.44 16.3 2.66 2.33 1.45 16.30 IIHR EA Sel 43 7.94 3.66 1.47 17.7 6.33 3.79 1.52 17.70 S.Em± 0.1 0.07 0.04 0.47 0.07 0.09 0.07 0.63 C.D. ( P = 0.05 ) 0.31 0.21 0.14 1.45 0.21 0.28 0.23 1.95 The data on leaf and flower parameters viz., leaf length, leaf width, flower head diameter, and peduncle length(Table 3 a) indicated significant variability among accessions in both years without any definite trend among identified lines. The accession IIHR EA Sel 43 was superior in leaf length and peduncle length. The accession IIHR EA-4 (control) registered minimum values for leaf and flower parameters.The erect plant habit in IIHR EA Sel 43 (Table 3 b) has an added advantage for easy harvesting and profuse flowering contributed to higher seed yield.In flowering plants, intraspecific differences in morphological features are not uncommon. Eclipta genotypes differed in morphology, as Gupta ( 1977 ) has previously reported. Since variations within a species have the same number of chromosomes, the variability can be explained by genetic factors. According to Atlaye et al . (2019), there could be a genetic makeup difference, external climate conditions, or a combination of the two reasons for the discrepancies between the accessions. Table 3 a Leaf and flower quality parameters in different lines of E. alba Line 2020-21 2021-22 Leaf length (cm) Leaf width (cm) Flower head diameter (cm) Peduncle length (cm) Leaf length (cm) Leaf width (cm) Flower head diameter (cm) Peduncle length (cm) IIHR EA 58 − 1 6.98 1.77 0.96 2.20 6.16 1.80 0.99 2.33 IIHR EA 59 − 2 4.42 1.01 0.86 1.69 4.26 0.97 0.88 1.61 IIHR EA-4 (C) 3.30 0.70 0.57 0.22 3.53 0.76 0.57 0.22 IIHR EA-6 7.30 1.39 0.63 0.23 6.70 1.48 0.68 0.24 IIHR EA Sel 43 8.03 1.55 0.86 3.05 8.08 1.59 0.84 3.03 S.Em± 0.17 0.06 0.04 0.08 0.13 0.03 0.02 0.04 C.D. ( P = 0.05 ) 0.52 0.19 0.11 0.25 0.39 0.08 0.06 0.11 Table 3 b Qualitative traitsin different lines of E. alba Lines Plant habit Leaf colour Terminal shoot colour Basal stem colour Leaf pubescence Leaf thickness Leaf margin serration No. of flowers/ plant No. of seeds/ capitulum Flowering habit IIHR EA 58 − 1 Semi-erect Green (N 137 A) Purple (N 77 A) Purple High Thick Highly serrated Moderate High Moderate IIHR EA 59 − 2 Prostrate Green (138 A) Grey brown (199 A) Greenish white Medium Thin Moderately serrated Less Moderate Moderate IIHR EA 4 Prostrate Green (137 C) Brown (200 D) Greenish white Medium Thin Moderately serrated Moderate Moderate Moderate IIHR EA 6 Semi erect Green (137 B) Grey Brown (N199 B) Brown Medium Thin Highly serrated Moderate Moderate Sparse IIHR Sel 43 Erect Yellow Green (146 A) Grey Brown (N199 A) Green Medium-high Thick Highly serrated High High Profuse 3.2.Fresh and dry biomass accumulation Accessions had a significant effect on fresh as well as dry biomass production per plant during 2020-21 and 2021-22 (Table 4 ). The accession IIHR EA Sel 43 accumulated higher fresh biomass as well as dry biomass per plant. This can be ascribed to this accession's improved growth performance in terms of height, spread, leaf length, and quantity of secondary branches.With respect to per-hectare yield levels (Table 5 ), a similar trend was observed as that of per-plant yield level. The accession IIHR EA Sel 43 produced 6.25 t ha -1 more dry biomass in the first year than the control IIHR EA-4 (2.5 t ha -1 ). Similar biomass production trends were seen in the second year in relation to the lines (6.39 t ha-1 in IIHR EA Sel 43 and 2.31 t ha -1 in IIHR EA-4). Table 4 Biomass yield as influenced by different lines in both years Line Fresh biomass (g plant -1 ) Dry biomass (g plant -1 ) 2020-21 2021-22 Pooled 2020-21 2021-22 Pooled IIHR EA58-1 198.0 208.0 203.0 32.50 34.00 33.25 IIHR EA59-2 161.0 156.3 158.6 26.00 27.50 26.75 IIHR EA-4 (C) 130.0 124.0 127.0 23.00 20.75 21.88 IIHR EA-6 180.0 185.0 182.5 29.50 30.25 29.88 IIHR EA Sel 43 268.0 275.8 271.9 56.25 57.50 56.88 S.Em± 2.82 2.57 2.35 0.98 1.52 0.92 C.D. ( P = 0.05 ) 8.79 7.92 7.26 3.03 4.7 2.84 Table 5 Dry biomass yield (t ha -1 ) as influenced by different lines Line 2020-21 2021-22 Pooled IIHR EA58-1 3.61 3.78 3.69 IIHR EA59-2 2.89 3.06 2.98 IIHR EA-4 (C ) 2.56 2.31 2.44 IIHR EA-6 3.28 3.36 3.32 IIHR EASel 43 6.25 6.39 6.32 S.Em± 0.107 0.159 0.129 C.D. ( P = 0.05 ) 0.334 0.490 0.397 The pooled data of 2-yr dry biomass yield showed that the yield increase in IIHR EA Sel 43 accession was 2.63–3.88 t ha -1 over other accessions (Table 5 ). It implies that there was a considerable yield increase in IIHR EA Sel 43 accession by 1.7 to 2.6 timesover other accessions clearly indicating its superiority over other lines. This is mainly due to higher fresh and dry biomass yield per plant in accession IIHR EA Sel43 and particularly due to superior control in terms of plant height, branch count, spread, internodal length, and breadth and length of leaves. Interactions between a genotype and the environment have a significant impact on the biomass production in medicinal plants. These findings are consistent with the reports of Ravi (2019), Rohini and Smitha ( 2022 ) on Centella asiatica ; Venugopal et al. ( 2021 ) in ashwagandha; Ibrahim et al. ( 2013 ) in Ocimum spp&Aharizadet al. ( 2012 ) in patchouli. 3.3. Bioactive compound The quantitative estimation of wedelolactone concentration by HPLC revealed significant variation in germplasm lines (Table 6 ).Wedelolactone content was significantly higher in IIHR EA Sel 43 (0.5%) followed by IIHR EA 58 − 1 (0.25%).This is the highest content reported so far. The lines IIHR EA58-1 (0.25%)and IIHR EA59-2 (0.22%) registered higher wedelolactone concentrationcompared to IIHA EA-4 (0.14%) and IIHA EA-6 (0.11%).Kaur ( 2011 ) investigated wedelolactone variation in Eclipta alba accessions and found that the mean value of the accumulated wedelolactone varied quantitatively between different accessions, ranging from as low as 0.111 mg g -1 - 1.43 mg g -1 in dry weight. EPBG2 has the highest wedelolactone concentration (0.0143%).Differences in the genetic composition of the components utilized, the cropping season, the time of harvest, and location can all contribute to variations in the content of different accessions (Sharma et al., 2009 ). Pandey and Mandal (2010) reported variability in andrographolide content in dried leaves of kalmeghcollected from five locations. Variations in active principles content among the accessions were additionally revealed by Archana et al. ( 2013 ) & Pandey et al. ( 2019 ) for andrographolide content in kalmegh; Suganthi et al. ( 2018 ) for total alkaloid content in makoi ; Gupta et al. ( 2017 ) and Othman et al. ( 2018 ) for stevia.Genotype-to-genotype variation for root yield and alkaloid content was observed in Ashwagandha by Venugopal et al. ( 2022 ). Table 6 Concentration and yield of wedelolactone as influenced by different lines Line Wedelolactone content (%) Wedelolactone yield (kg ha − 1 ) 2020-21 2021-22 Pooled 2020-21 2021-22 Pooled IIHR EA58-1 0.233 0.259 0.25 8.43 9.805 9.12 IIHR EA59-2 0.211 0.226 0.22 6.26 6.883 6.57 IIHR EA-4 (C ) 0.122 0.156 0.14 3.13 3.586 3.36 IIHR EA-6 0.090 0.133 0.11 2.94 4.476 3.71 IIHR EA Sel 43 0.530 0.501 0.52 33.14 31.980 32.56 S.Em± 0.007 0.003 0.004 0.447 0.502 0.452 C.D. ( P = 0.05 ) 0.021 0.01 0.0124 1.392 1.564 1.401 3.4. Yield of bioactive compound The yields of bioactive compounds varied significantly. Different lines of E. alba had a significant effect on wedelolactone yield (Table 6 ). The wedelolactone yield was significantly higher in IIHR EA Sel 43 during 2020-21 and 2021-22 (33.1 and 31.9 kg ha -1 , respectively) compared to control IIHA EA-4 (3.1 and 3.5 kg ha -1 , respectively). As in IIHR EA Sel 43, this is caused by increased content and biomass accumulation.In therapeutic plants, quantitative variation in a variety of phytoconstituents has frequently been observed. This diversity might be continuous or discrete, coded by many or few genes in conjunction with inputs from the environment, and result from the synthesis and accumulation of different biochemicals (Mallet, 1996 ). Owing to the fact that these accessions were cultivated in identical climatic and edaphic circumstances, the observed diversity may have a genetic basis. 3.5.Screening for downy mildew disease Microscopic observation revealed downy growth on the abaxial surface of leaveswith numeroussporangia. Themyceliumwas hyaline, aseptate, and branched, 5–15 µm in diameter. Sporangiophores were slender with monopodial branchingat right angles and with a slightly bulbous base. The sporangia were hyaline, smooth, globose to ellipsoidal with apical papilla and basal hilumon three sterigma, measuring 18–30 × 14–20 µm (Fig. 2 ). Based on these characteristics, the pathogen was identified as Plasmoparas phagneticolae (Davis et al., 2020 ; Wang et al., 2021 ). This is the firstreport of P. sphagneticolae in India and the first record of this pathogencausing downy mildew on bhringraj (Sonavane et al., 2023 ) Screening of lines for downy mildew incidence showed only IIHR EA Sel 43 exhibited resistance and IIHR EA58-1 exhibited moderate resistance in both consecutive years. The percent disease incidence (PDI) and disease reaction of the lines are given in Table 7 . This confirms the resistance reaction shown by the line IIHR EA Sel 43. Table 7 Evaluation of bhringraj germplasm against downy mildew caused by Plasmoparas phagneticolae under field conditions Lines PDI 2021 PDI 2022 Disease reaction IIHR EA 58 − 1 34.15 (35.76) 39.62 (39.01) MS IIHR EA 59 − 2 58.46 (49.90) 53.00 (46.74) S IIHR EA 4 ( C ) 86.49 (68.47) 79.33 (62.99) HS IIHR EA 6 83.14 (65.79) 75.33 (60.25) HS IIHR EA Sel 43 07.44 (15.84) 9.00 (17.47) R Figures in parenthesis are Arcsine transformed values 0 = no visible Sporulation - Immune 1 = ≤ 10% of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; Resistant 2 = ≤ 25% of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; moderately Resistant 3 = > 25 - ≤ 50% of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; Moderately Susceptible 4 = > 50 - ≤ 75% of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; Susceptible 5 = > 5 % of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; Highly Susceptible 4. Conclusion Wedelolactone yield is a critical characteristic of Eclipta alba for farmers. It is necessary, therefore, to suggest to farmers that improved cultivars with increased wedelolactone yield and adaptable to different settings. The wedelolactone yield trait includes fresh and dried leaf weight as well as growth characteristics. In IIHR, Bengaluru, we assessed the biomass yield and active content in five distinct genotypes for our study. To get a variety of origins, these genotypes were collected from several sites. The superiority of IIHR EA Sel 43 in terms of yield, bioactive chemicals, and disease resistance in both years makes it evident from the current study that it is an exceptional accession. Hence this accession can be recommended forcultivation since there were no identified/released varieties in this crop. Declarations Declarations of interest None Conflict of interests No conflicts of interest are disclosed by the writers. Funding The authors are very thankful to the financial assistanceprovided from National Medicinal Plants Board, Department ofAYUSH, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India(Project No: Z.18017/187/CSS/R&D/KR-01/2018–19-NMPB-IVAentitled ‘Collection, characterization and genetic improvement of Eclipta alba’ . Author Contribution K. Hima Bindu: Funding acquisition, Project administration, Conceptualization, design of the work , supervision, data analysis, Critical review and editingV. Keshav Rao : Methodology and analysis of bioactive compoundShivakumar: Experimentation, data acquisition , Project administrationAnil Kumar: Methodology, bioactive analysis and data acquisitionR. M. Shalini: investigation, Writing and editingPrithi Sonavane: Screening for disease reaction, data acquisition ,editing, K. S. Divya: Methodology, chemical analysis and data acquisitionS. 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Karthikumar S, Vigneswari K, Jegatheesan K(2007)Screening of antibacterial and antioxidant activities of leaves of Ecliptaprostrata (L), Scientific Research and Essay,2 (4): 101–104. Kaur R (2011) Assessment of phenotypic and genotypic diversity in Eclipta alba (L) Hassk: an important medicinal plant. Ph.Dthesis, Department of botany, Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab, India. Kavitha M, Karimulla SK, Kumar D, Vinoth Kumar S, Sathish Kumar R, Gurucharan M (2011)Hepatoprotective activity ofa poly herbal extract in carbon tetra chloride intoxicated hepatotoxicity in male albino rats. International Journal of Pharma and Bio Sciences,2 (3): 307–312. Khare CP (2007) Indian Medicinal Plants: An Illustrated Dictionary, Springer, Berlin, Germany. Leal LKAM, Ferreira AAG, Bezerra GA, Matos FJA, Viana GSB(2000)Antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory and bronchodilator activities of Brazilian medicinal plants containing coumarin: a comparative study.Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 70 (2): 151–159. Lebeda A(1986a) Bremia lactucae . In: Lebeda A (ed) Methods of testing vegetable crops for resistance to plant pathogens. VHJ Sempra, Research Institute of Vegetable Growing and Breeding, Olomouc, 105–113. Lebeda A (1987) Screening of lettuce cultivars for field resistance to downy mildew. Tests Agrochem Cult No 8 (Ann Appl Biol 110, Suppl), 146–147. Mallet T(1996) Geographical Information System for Water Management in a Cascade System: Kirindi Oya Sri Lanka. International Water Management Institute,2: 12. Mithun NM, Shashidhara S, Vivek RK(2011) Eclipta alba (L.) A review on its phytochemical and pharmacologicalprofile, Pharmacology online , 1: 345–357. Othman HS, Osman M, Zainuddin Z (2018) Genetic variabilities of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni cultivated in Malaysia as revealed by morphological, chemical and molecular characterisations. Agrivita Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 40(2): 267–283. Pandey AK, Mandal AK(2010)Variation in morphological characteristics and andrographolide content in Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) Nees of central India, Iranica Journal of Energy & Environment, 1(2):165–169. Pandey AK, Gulati S, Gupta A, Tripathi YC (2019) Variation in andrographolide content among different accessions of Andrographis paniculata . Journal of pharmceutical Innovation, 8(4): 140–144. Puri HS (2003)Rasayana: Ayurvedic herbs for longevity and rejuvenation: Volume 2 of traditional herbal medicines for modern times. Journal Alternative Complementary Medicine,2: 2–331. Ravi CS, Umesha K, Himabindu K, Shetty GR, Kumar GA (2019) Collection and morphological variability in ecotypes of Indian pennywort ( Centella asiatica L.) of hill zone of Karnataka, India. International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences,8(9): 94–1008. Rohini MR, Smitha GR (2022)Studying the effect of morphotype and harvest season on yield and quality of Indian genotypes of Centella asiatica : A potential medicinal herb cum underutilized green leafy vegetable. South African Journal of Botany, 145: 275–283. Sharma SN, Sinha RK, Sharma DK, Jha Z (2009)Assessment of Intra-specific Variability at Morphological, Molecular and Biochemical Level of Andrographis Paniculata (Kalmegh). Current Science, 96(3): 402–408. Sharma S, Richa S, Harsimran R(2017)Phytochemical and anatomical screening of Ecliptaprostrata L. an important medicinal herb from Chandigarh. Journal of Medicinal Plants Studies, 5(2): 255–258. Soni KK, Soni S(2017) Eclipta alba (L.) an ethnomedicinal herb plant, traditionally use in Ayurveda. Journal of Horticulture, 4:1–4. Sonavane P, Hima Bindu K, Venkataravanappa V, Sriram S, Shivakumar (2023)First report of Plasmoparasphagneticolae causing downy mildew on bhringraj ( Eclipta alba ) in India. New Disease Reports,48(2): 12221. https://doi.org/10.1002/ndr2.12221 Suganthi S, Rajamani K, Joel AJ, Suresh J, Renuka R (2018) Studies on genetic variability analysis in black nightshade ( Solanum nigrum L. complex). International Journal of Chemical Studies,6(3): 2551–2555. Venugopal S, Padma M, Rajkumar M, Seenivasan N, Saidaiah P, Sathish G (2021) Genetic variability studies in ashwagandha ( Withaniasomnifera L.) for yield and quality traits. Journal of Pharmaceutical Innovation,10(8):188–192. Venugopal S, Padma M, Rajkumar M, Seenivasan N, Saidaiah P, Sathish G (2022)Comparative investigation of the genetic components of Withaniasomnifera L. yield and quality traits using multivariate and associations analysis in the Deccan plateau region. Industrial crops and products, 188. Wagner H (1986)Coumestans as the main active principles of the liver drugs Eclipta alba and WedeliaCalendulaceae. Planta Medica, 5: 370–74. Wang CT, Lin LD, Yeh YW, Kirschner R (2021) First record of Plasmoparas phagneticolae (Peronosporales, Oomycota) in Taiwan. FungalScience, 36: 23–32. Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 13 Jan, 2025 Read the published version in Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 17 Dec, 2024 Reviews received at journal 17 Dec, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 11 Sep, 2024 Reviewers invited by journal 09 Sep, 2024 Editor assigned by journal 09 Sep, 2024 Submission checks completed at journal 09 Sep, 2024 First submitted to journal 06 Sep, 2024 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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K","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABEElEQVRIie3RMUvDQBTA8efidOKacCX5BIULgSyF+i2c7xC8JZVOpWOmy+IHKGTwKyiC88lbtVkFHZqlU5GAi4ODd+dghyTgJvT+y5HwfnkcAfD5/mEBHBXm0ASAgIZjiOxbvfkLSR3hg8SlwRIwRNgvwBAJS1SbT3gbjcvnR5wvUN6cY2O2TKNx0U0oEWVyDVuSPV1xXK1xdvd6yQy5SDPdTSIQKiCAJNM5wxNlSMUt0eKhj5w2KvyypN45IpNKtoOEBkJRt+XlZwuPaT68JVw1ZTpilrxzJGuZ3NJ8rjnrv0tQy22zW+JZVs/wgywmcVzJ+7ZdTqM+AvZfANt7ZG6Sdc/+kv3iYnDa5/P5DrBvNOJmuVxzf6YAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Indian Institute of Horticultural Research","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Hima","middleName":"Bindu","lastName":"K","suffix":""},{"id":391352319,"identity":"366d6c47-7af9-4539-96f5-0572b89a9b73","order_by":1,"name":"Keshav Rao V","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Indian Institute of Horticultural Research","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Keshav","middleName":"Rao","lastName":"V","suffix":""},{"id":391352320,"identity":"da69d029-e169-4128-84cc-f6fbe33af6da","order_by":2,"name":"Shiva kumar","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Indian Institute of Horticultural Research","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Shiva","middleName":"","lastName":"kumar","suffix":""},{"id":391352321,"identity":"e38187e8-c6f2-459f-9596-a4eae2db1b09","order_by":3,"name":"Anil Kumar B","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Indian Institute of Horticultural Research","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Anil","middleName":"Kumar","lastName":"B","suffix":""},{"id":391352322,"identity":"e8950306-d73c-4426-9b68-63c70872ba94","order_by":4,"name":"Shalini R M","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Indian Institute of Horticultural Research","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Shalini","middleName":"R","lastName":"M","suffix":""},{"id":391352323,"identity":"c34254aa-ed57-41b0-8c57-dd7a3e2d759c","order_by":5,"name":"Priti Sonavane","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Indian Institute of Horticultural Research","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Priti","middleName":"","lastName":"Sonavane","suffix":""},{"id":391352324,"identity":"2ae2a28c-384c-4e88-a7c4-e9da498d0978","order_by":6,"name":"Divya K S","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Indian Institute of Horticultural Research","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Divya","middleName":"K","lastName":"S","suffix":""},{"id":391352325,"identity":"86632b6b-a3c4-4d57-9445-4b89959ec962","order_by":7,"name":"Sujatha S","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Indian Institute of Horticultural Research","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Sujatha","middleName":"","lastName":"S","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2024-09-06 09:40:25","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5043254/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5043254/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[{"content":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-024-02325-4","type":"published","date":"2025-01-13T15:57:54+00:00"}],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":72176398,"identity":"8c36e7e4-45a6-4d0b-a622-803526909282","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-12-23 11:57:32","extension":"jpg","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":75676,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eCalibration curve and chromatogram for the reference standard in \u003cem\u003eEclipta alba\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"1.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-5043254/v1/a00957c91a2ea62ef682c39a.jpg"},{"id":72176397,"identity":"a2f82a25-9da9-4653-aa75-c8050c549ce9","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-12-23 11:57:32","extension":"jpg","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":101286,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eSporangia and sporangiophores of \u003cem\u003ePlasmopara sphagneticolae\u003c/em\u003e on bhringraj\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"2.jpg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-5043254/v1/6844e38df2a524837bab042c.jpg"},{"id":74284678,"identity":"3f8a8bb5-d936-4c48-bcce-f88bc6626d50","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-01-20 16:10:49","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1321765,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-5043254/v1/546627e1-302d-4e5c-ad6e-4f622c3d4bc4.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Evaluation of Eclipta alba L. selections for higher biomass and bioactive compound","fulltext":[{"header":"1. Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eEclipta alba\u003c/em\u003e (L.) is an annual herbaceous plant that is a member of the Asteraceae family. It is also referred to as Bhangara in Hindi, Bhringaraj in Sanskrit, and False daisy in English (Puri, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2003\u003c/span\u003e). It is extensively available in Brazil, Thailand, China, and India (Soni and Soni, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). It can also be found in the southeast, where it thrives in low-lying and high-lying regions of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Nepal, and Malaysia, as well as in clay and moist ground bunds, rice fields, water courses, and tanks.The therapeutic plant is found growing in marshes, rivers, lakes, and the foothills of the Himalayas across India. It can also be found growing up to 2000 meters above sea level in the hills. It is prevalent along roadsides, in waste areas, marshy areas, hedges, and especially in the country's tropical regions (Sharma \u003cem\u003eet al\u003c/em\u003e, 2017).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBecause herbal medications have fewer negative effects, demand and usage have skyrocketed in recent years. The \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e is widely utilized in Ayurveda and has a bitter, hot, harsh and dry flavor. The secondary metabolites found in \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e are useful medicinally. Pharmacological activities have been reported for \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e extracts and metabolites (Mithun et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e). Wedelolactone and dimethyl wedelolactone are the primary active ingredients in \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e and have anti-hepatotoxic properties (Wagner \u003cem\u003eet al\u003c/em\u003e., 1986 and Franca \u003cem\u003eet al.\u003c/em\u003e, 1995). It has long been believed to be the best medication for treating liver conditions (Khare, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e). It is also used to treat headaches, night blindness, and conditions affecting the growth and development of hair (Datta et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e).\u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e has yielded a diverse array of chemical substances, such as coumestans, alkaloids, thiopenes, flavonoids, polyacetylenes, triterpenes, and their glycosides. The herb's anti-inflammatory,anti-mytotoxic, analgesic, anti-hepatotoxic, anti-oxidant,anti-bacterial, anti-hyperglycemic,anti-hemorrhagic, \u0026amp; immunomodulatory qualities have all been used (Leal et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2000\u003c/span\u003e; Kartik \u003cem\u003eet al\u003c/em\u003e., 2007)(Jayathirtha and Mishra, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e). It is regarded as a potent rejuvenator and is well-known for its anti-aging and UV protection properties (Chan et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). Recent studies showed an antivenom property of bioactive compounds of \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e (Diogo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e is one of the top ten traded medicinal plants in India. The estimated annual trade is 2000\u0026ndash;5000 tonnes (\u003cspan class=\"ExternalRef\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"RefSource\"\u003ehttps://nmpb.nic.in/\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan address=\"https://nmpb.nic.in/\" targettype=\"URL\" class=\"RefTarget\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e). The increased demand for this herb is leading to the destruction of the natural habitat since the plant material is gathered from natural \u0026amp; wild settings. The indiscriminate harvesting of plants as a source of drugs is endangering these plants, hence large-scale, systematic plant cultivation is needed. For cultivation, superior and elite varieties are essential and there are no commercialvarieties in \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e. At ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, about 142 wild collections from different parts of the country aremaintainedand evaluated for yield and bioactive compoundsto identify elite lines in \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e for commercial cultivation. The present study's main objective was to identify elite lines of \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e with high biomass and wedelolactone content from the selected accessions with higher content.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"2. Materials \u0026 methods","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec3\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.1. Study site details\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe experimental farm of the ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR) in Bengaluru, which is situated 890 meters above mean sea level at 13\u0026deg;7' North latitude and 77\u0026deg; 29' East longitude, is where the current study was carried out between 2020 and 2022. The mean minimum temperature fluctuated between 13.2\u0026ordm;C and 21.3\u0026ordm;C during the course of the experiment, whereas the mean maximum temperature varied between 26.2\u0026deg;C and 34.9\u0026deg;C. The total amount of rainfall during the study ranged from 302 to 311 mm. At the experimental site, the red sandy loam soil exhibits a stable level of fertility. The pre-experimental soil characteristics showed that the pH, EC, and SOC were, respectively, 7.26, 0.24 dS m\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e, and 0.65%.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec4\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.2. Experimental details\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAbout 142 wild collections from different parts of the country are maintained and evaluated for yield and wedelolactone content. Five lines showed a significant variance in wedelolactone throughout the entire plant, ranging from 0.09 to 0.53% on a dry weight basis. These lines were evaluated for two years for growth, yield and active principle content.The field trial was carried out with five selected lines from germplasm along with one local type as a check (IIHR EA 4). The studies were set up in a roughly 30-m\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e area using an RBD: Randomized Block Design having 4 replications. After two ploughings, raised beds measuring six meters in length and eighty meters in breadth were constructed. There was enough room between treatments and duplicates\u0026mdash;30 cm. For planting material production of different lines, well-matured selfed seeds from selected lines were collected previously. The seeds were sown in 50 cells portrays filled with coir pith (@ approximately 2 kg/tray). The trays were irrigated immediately with a rose can and regular irrigation was given. 25\u0026ndash;30 days old healthy and uniform seedlings were transplanted to the main field.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eOne-month old healthy seedlings, which were raised in the nursery, were planted on raised beds at a spacing of 20 cm x 20 cm in triangular pattern in gross plot area of 1.2 m\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e area for each treatment and the net plot area with 21 plants were considered for all estimations. All treatments were produced using the same standard procedures. During the land preparation process, 15 t ha\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e of farm yard manure was applied and thoroughly mixed with the soil. The complete P \u0026amp; K dose was utilized as a basis, as per the recommended amount of fertilizers (30: 40: 20 kg N, P\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO\u003csub\u003e5\u003c/sub\u003e, \u0026amp; K\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003eO ha\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e) administered. 30 days after transplanting, around 75% of the N was administered, and 50 days after transplanting, the remaining 25% of the N was applied. For N, P, and K, the fertilizers utilized were urea, single super phosphate\u0026amp; muriate of potash, in that order. Weeding was done on a regular basis and irrigation was provided daily through a drip system during the moisture stress period. The diseasedowny mildew caused by \u003cem\u003ePlasmoparas phagneticolae\u003c/em\u003e was first reported in India and spraying of Dimethomorph fungicide @ 1% (Acrobat) was taken up to manage the disease.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec5\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.3 Morphological traits\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eData pertaining to growth traits\u003cem\u003eviz\u003c/em\u003e., plant height, plant spread, internodal length, stem circumference, leaf length, leaf width, number of primary and secondary branches, flower head diameter, and pedicel length were recorded in five randomly tagged plants at harvest. Qualitative data was taken using the RHS (Royal Horticulture Society) color chart.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec6\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.4 Biomass and yield estimation\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePlant samples were harvested at 90 days after planting and the fresh weight was recorded immediately after harvest in five tagged plants. The entire plant was then shade-dried, sealed in brown paper bags, and oven dried at 50\u0026ordm;C until its weight remained constant (ref), yielding its dry weight. The fresh \u0026amp; dry herbage yield per hectare was estimated based on the herbage yield per plot. The samples were broken up and kept in butter-filled paper bags so that the biologically active substances could be examined later.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec7\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5. Reagents \u0026amp; chemicals used to estimate bioactive compounds\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe \u0026ldquo;chemicals and reagents used for the estimation of bioactive compounds through HPLC analysis are methanol (CH\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003eOH, Merck 99.9% purity), acetonitrile (C2H\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003eN, Merck 99.9% purity), orthophosphoric acid (H\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003ePO4, Sisco Research Laboratories, 99% purity), and\u0026rdquo; anhydrous potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KH\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003ePO\u003csub\u003e4\u003c/sub\u003e). The HPLC analysis uses wedelolactone (Natural remedies with 99.9% purity) as the reference standard.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec8\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.6. Estimation of bioactive compounds\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe concentration of active chemicals in \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e was estimated using standard procedures. About 250 g of the dried leaf sample from each line were crushed using a matrix mixer. After that, the powder was collected and stored in butter paper bags. 40 milliliters of HPLC-grade methanol were added to a 100-milliliter beaker that held five grams of powdered leaf sample. Following twenty minutes of constant stirring at 90\u0026ordm;C in a water bath, the mixture was collected in a volumetric flask to collect the supernatant. The supernatant was collected after the residue was extracted again for ten minutes with thirty milliliters of HPLC-grade methanol. After adding 20 milliliters of methanol of HPLC grade once more, the mixture was extracted for 10 minutes. Until a clear solution was reached, the same process was repeated. The material was extracted three times in total. After cooling the extract, a volumetric flask containing HPLC-grade methanol was filled to the final volume of 50 ml. For HPLC analysis, a Millipore filter was used to filter the extract with a 0.2 mm mesh size.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWedelolactone, an active molecule, was subjected to phytochemical examination using the HPLC approach (Shimadzu LC model Nexera X2 HPLC/UPLC fitted with LC-30 CE pump with SPD-M20A photodiode array detector PDA), in accordance with the earlier published protocol by Anil et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Version 5.54 SP 5 of the Lab Solutions Chromatography software was used to process data and control the instruments. Chromatographic separation was accomplished at 40\u0026ordm;C using a 5 \u0026micro;m particle size column on a 250 mm length by 4.6 mm ID CAPCELL PAK C18 (SHISEIDO) column. The mobile phase in terms of chromatographic conditions was composed of acetonitrile (Solvent B) \u0026amp; buffer (1 mM KH2PO4), which were pumped at a flow rate of 1.5 ml/min. Before being injected into the system, the mobile phases were filtered via a 0.45 \u0026micro;m nylon membrane filter and degassed using a sonicator. To achieve ideal separation and acceptable peak shape, gradient elution was used. Since there was little to no solvent influence on the target compounds' absorbance maxima, the detector wavelength was set at 351 nm because this is the wavelength at which the target compounds showed their maximum absorbance. A prepared sample of approximately 20 microliters (\u0026micro;L) was injected, and a 45-minute run time was used to record the chromatogram at 351 nm for each injection. The chromatogram and calibration curve with the peaks of the reference standards visible are shown in Fig.\u0026nbsp;1.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec9\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.7. Screening for Downy mildew disease\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eSelected lines along with check were evaluated against downy mildew caused by \u003cem\u003ePlasmoparas phagneticolae\u003c/em\u003e under field conditions for two consecutive years. One infected leaf was collected from each of the three plants for microscopic examination and pathogen identification. For the assessment of sporulation intensity on a leaf, a scale ranging from 0\u0026ndash;5 is used and modified from Lebeda (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1986a\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1987\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec10\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.8. Statistical analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStatistical software such as SPSS and Microsoft Excel was used to analyze the experimental data, and tables containing the standard error of the mean (S.Em.)\u0026mdash;a measure of the deviation from the mean value were produced. At the 0.05 probability level, crucial difference (CD) values were used to compare the significance of the method of treatment.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"3. Results \u0026 discussion","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec12\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.1. Growthperformance of different E. alba lines\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e displays the data on growth factors, such as plant height and plant spread, for various years. Both years saw roughly identical plant development in terms of height and dispersion along distinct lines.However, the plant height and spreadvaried significantly among different lines in both years. The plant vigor in terms of height (82.9 cm) and spread (63.85 cm in NS and 69.1 cm in EW) was significantly higher in accession IIHR EA Sel 43 in 1st yr. A comparable result was obtained in 2nd yr. IIHR EA Sel 43 registered maximum plant height and spread (74.38 cm, and 63.85 cm in NS and 65.6 cm in EW, respectively) followed by IIHR EA 58\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1. The plant height and spread were significantly lower in controlIIHR EA-4 (30.5 cm of height, 29.25 cm spread in NS, 30.4 cm in EW). The branching pattern in terms of internodal length, stem circumference, and number of primary and secondary branches at harvest in different years(Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e) indicatedsignificant variations among different accessions. The accession IIHR EA Sel 43 was significantly superior in terms of intermodal length, stem diameter, and number of secondary branches over other accessions in both years.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePlant growth in different lines of \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLine\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2020-21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2021-22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePlant height (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePlant spread (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePlant height (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePlant spread (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEW\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEW\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA 58\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e57.6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e51.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e47.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e55.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e50.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e53.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA 59\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e54.6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e65.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e58.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e48.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e53.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e56.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-4 (C)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e29.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e45.7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e27.6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e32.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e29.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e41.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e28.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e38.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA Sel 43\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e82.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e63.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e69.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e74.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e63.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e65.6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS.Em\u0026plusmn;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.43\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.42\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.92\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.17\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.14\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.93\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eC.D. (\u003cem\u003eP\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/em\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.40\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.44\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.82\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.61\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.59\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.87\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBranching parameters in different lines of \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"9\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLine\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2020-21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c9\" namest=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2021-22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eInternodal length (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStem diameter (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo. of primary branches/ plant\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo. of secondary branches/ plant\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eInternodal length (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStem diameter (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo. of primary branches/ plant\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo. of secondary branches/ plant\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA 58\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.69\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.31\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.65\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15.45\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.59\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.38\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.72\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15.23\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA 59\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.75\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.58\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e16.85\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.36\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.29\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.70\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e14.70\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-4 (C)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.95\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.71\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.49\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.64\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.84\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.58\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e16.10\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.53\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.33\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.44\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e16.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.66\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.33\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.45\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e16.30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA Sel 43\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.94\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.66\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.47\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e17.7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.33\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.79\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.52\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e17.70\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS.Em\u0026plusmn;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.07\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.47\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.07\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.09\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.07\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.63\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eC.D. (\u003cem\u003eP\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/em\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.31\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.14\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.45\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.28\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.23\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.95\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe data on leaf and flower parameters viz., leaf length, leaf width, flower head diameter, and peduncle length(Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003ea) indicated significant variability among accessions in both years without any definite trend among identified lines. The accession IIHR EA Sel 43 was superior in leaf length and peduncle length. The accession IIHR EA-4 (control) registered minimum values for leaf and flower parameters.The erect plant habit in IIHR EA Sel 43 (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003eb) has an added advantage for easy harvesting and profuse flowering contributed to higher seed yield.In flowering plants, intraspecific differences in morphological features are not uncommon. \u003cem\u003eEclipta\u003c/em\u003e genotypes differed in morphology, as Gupta (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1977\u003c/span\u003e) has previously reported. Since variations within a species have the same number of chromosomes, the variability can be explained by genetic factors. According to Atlaye\u003cem\u003eet al\u003c/em\u003e. (2019), there could be a genetic makeup difference, external climate conditions, or a combination of the two reasons for the discrepancies between the accessions.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ea\u003c/b\u003e Leaf and flower quality parameters in different lines of \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"9\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLine\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2020-21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c9\" namest=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2021-22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLeaf length (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLeaf width (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFlower head\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ediameter\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePeduncle length (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLeaf length (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLeaf width (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFlower head\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ediameter\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePeduncle length (cm)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA 58\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.98\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.77\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.96\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.20\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.16\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.80\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.99\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.33\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA 59\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.42\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.86\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.69\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.26\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.97\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.88\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.61\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-4 (C)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.70\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.57\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.53\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.76\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.57\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.39\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.63\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.23\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.70\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.48\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.68\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.24\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA Sel 43\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.55\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.86\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.08\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.59\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.84\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS.Em\u0026plusmn;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.17\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.08\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.02\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eC.D. (\u003cem\u003eP\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/em\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.52\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.19\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.11\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.39\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.08\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.11\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab4\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eb\u003c/b\u003e Qualitative traitsin different lines of \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"11\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c10\" colnum=\"10\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c11\" colnum=\"11\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLines\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePlant habit\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLeaf colour\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTerminal shoot colour\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBasal stem colour\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLeaf pubescence\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLeaf thickness\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLeaf margin serration\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo. of flowers/\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eplant\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo. of seeds/\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ecapitulum\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFlowering habit\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR EA 58\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSemi-erect\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGreen\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(N 137 A)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePurple\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(N 77 A)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePurple\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHigh\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThick\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHighly\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eserrated\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHigh\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR EA 59\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;2\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eProstrate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGreen\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(138 A)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGrey brown\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(199 A)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGreenish white\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMedium\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThin\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerately serrated\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLess\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR EA 4\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eProstrate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGreen\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(137 C)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBrown\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(200 D)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGreenish white\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMedium\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThin\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerately serrated\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR EA 6\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSemi erect\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGreen\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(137 B)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGrey Brown (N199 B)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBrown\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMedium\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThin\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHighly\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eserrated\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eModerate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSparse\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR Sel 43\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eErect\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eYellow Green\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(146 A)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGrey Brown (N199 A)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGreen\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMedium-high\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThick\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHighly\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eserrated\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHigh\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHigh\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eProfuse\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec13\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.2.Fresh and dry biomass accumulation\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAccessions had a significant effect on fresh as well as dry biomass production per plant during 2020-21 and 2021-22 (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab5\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e). The accession IIHR EA Sel 43 accumulated higher fresh biomass as well as dry biomass per plant. This can be ascribed to this accession's improved growth performance in terms of height, spread, leaf length, and quantity of secondary branches.With respect to per-hectare yield levels (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab6\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e), a similar trend was observed as that of per-plant yield level. The accession IIHR EA Sel 43 produced 6.25 t ha\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003emore dry biomass in the first year than the control IIHR EA-4 (2.5 t ha\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e). Similar biomass production trends were seen in the second year in relation to the lines (6.39 t ha-1 in IIHR EA Sel 43 and 2.31 t ha\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e in IIHR EA-4).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab5\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBiomass yield as influenced by different lines in both years\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLine\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFresh biomass (g plant\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDry biomass (g plant\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2020-21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2021-22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePooled\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2020-21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2021-22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePooled\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA58-1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e198.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e208.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e203.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e32.50\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e34.00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e33.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA59-2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e161.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e156.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e158.6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e26.00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e27.50\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e26.75\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-4 (C)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e130.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e124.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e127.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e23.00\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e20.75\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e21.88\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e180.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e185.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e182.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e29.50\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e29.88\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA Sel 43\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e268.0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e275.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e271.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e56.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e57.50\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e56.88\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS.Em\u0026plusmn;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.82\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.57\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.35\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.98\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.52\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.92\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eC.D. (\u003cem\u003eP\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/em\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.79\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.92\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.26\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.84\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab6\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 5\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDry biomass yield (t ha\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e) as influenced by different lines\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"4\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLine\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2020-21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2021-22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePooled\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA58-1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.61\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.78\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.69\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA59-2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.89\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.98\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-4 (C )\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.56\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.31\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.44\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.28\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.36\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.32\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EASel 43\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.39\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.32\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS.Em\u0026plusmn;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.107\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.159\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.129\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eC.D. (\u003cem\u003eP\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/em\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.334\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.490\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.397\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe pooled data of 2-yr dry biomass yield showed that the yield increase in IIHR EA Sel 43 accession was 2.63\u0026ndash;3.88 t ha\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e over other accessions (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab6\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e). It implies that there was a considerable yield increase in IIHR EA Sel 43 accession by 1.7 to 2.6 timesover other accessions clearly indicating its superiority over other lines. This is mainly due to higher fresh and dry biomass yield per plant in accession IIHR EA Sel43 and particularly due to superior control in terms of plant height, branch count, spread, internodal length, and breadth and length of leaves. Interactions between a genotype and the environment have a significant impact on the biomass production in medicinal plants. These findings are consistent with the reports of Ravi (2019), Rohini and Smitha (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e) on \u003cem\u003eCentella asiatica\u003c/em\u003e; Venugopal et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e) in ashwagandha; Ibrahim et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) in \u003cem\u003eOcimum\u003c/em\u003espp\u0026amp;Aharizadet al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e) in patchouli.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec14\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3. Bioactive compound\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe quantitative estimation of wedelolactone concentration by HPLC revealed significant variation in germplasm lines (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab7\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e).Wedelolactone content was significantly higher in IIHR EA Sel 43 (0.5%) followed by IIHR EA 58\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1 (0.25%).This is the highest content reported so far. The lines IIHR EA58-1 (0.25%)and IIHR EA59-2 (0.22%) registered higher wedelolactone concentrationcompared to IIHA EA-4 (0.14%) and IIHA EA-6 (0.11%).Kaur (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e) investigated wedelolactone variation in \u003cem\u003eEclipta alba\u003c/em\u003e accessions and found that the mean value of the accumulated wedelolactone varied quantitatively between different accessions, ranging from as low as 0.111 mg g\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e- 1.43 mg g\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e in dry weight. EPBG2 has the highest wedelolactone concentration (0.0143%).Differences in the genetic composition of the components utilized, the cropping season, the time of harvest, and location can all contribute to variations in the content of different accessions (Sharma et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e). Pandey and Mandal (2010) reported variability in andrographolide content in dried leaves of kalmeghcollected from five locations. Variations in active principles content among the accessions were additionally revealed by Archana et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) \u0026amp; Pandey et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e) for andrographolide content in kalmegh; Suganthi et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e) for total alkaloid content in \u003cem\u003emakoi\u003c/em\u003e; Gupta et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e) and Othman et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e) for stevia.Genotype-to-genotype variation for root yield and alkaloid content was observed in Ashwagandha by Venugopal et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR34\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab7\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 6\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eConcentration and yield of wedelolactone as influenced by different lines\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLine\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWedelolactone content (%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c7\" namest=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWedelolactone yield (kg ha\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2020-21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2021-22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePooled\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2020-21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2021-22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePooled\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA58-1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.233\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.259\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.43\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.805\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.12\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA59-2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.211\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.226\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.26\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.883\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.57\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-4 (C )\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.122\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.156\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.14\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.586\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.36\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA-6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.090\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.133\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.11\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.94\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.476\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.71\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eIIHR EA Sel 43\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.530\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.501\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.52\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e33.14\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e31.980\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e32.56\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS.Em\u0026plusmn;\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.007\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.003\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.004\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.447\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.502\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.452\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eC.D. (\u003cem\u003eP\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/em\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.021\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.0124\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.392\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.564\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.401\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec15\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.4. Yield of bioactive compound\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe yields of bioactive compounds varied significantly. Different lines of \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e had a significant effect on wedelolactone yield (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab7\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e). The wedelolactone yield was significantly higher in IIHR EA Sel 43 during 2020-21 and 2021-22 (33.1 and 31.9 kg ha\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e, respectively) compared to control IIHA EA-4 (3.1 and 3.5 kg ha\u003csup\u003e-1\u003c/sup\u003e, respectively). As in IIHR EA Sel 43, this is caused by increased content and biomass accumulation.In therapeutic plants, quantitative variation in a variety of phytoconstituents has frequently been observed. This diversity might be continuous or discrete, coded by many or few genes in conjunction with inputs from the environment, and result from the synthesis and accumulation of different biochemicals (Mallet, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1996\u003c/span\u003e). Owing to the fact that these accessions were cultivated in identical climatic and edaphic circumstances, the observed diversity may have a genetic basis.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec16\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.5.Screening for downy mildew disease\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMicroscopic observation revealed downy growth on the abaxial surface of leaveswith numeroussporangia. Themyceliumwas hyaline, aseptate, and branched, 5\u0026ndash;15 \u0026micro;m in diameter. Sporangiophores were slender with monopodial branchingat right angles and with a slightly bulbous base. The sporangia were hyaline, smooth, globose to ellipsoidal with apical papilla and basal hilumon three sterigma, measuring 18\u0026ndash;30 \u0026times; 14\u0026ndash;20 \u0026micro;m (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e). Based on these characteristics, the pathogen was identified as \u003cem\u003ePlasmoparas phagneticolae\u003c/em\u003e (Davis et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR36\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). This is the firstreport of \u003cem\u003eP. sphagneticolae\u003c/em\u003ein India and the first record of this pathogencausing downy mildew on bhringraj (Sonavane et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eScreening of lines for downy mildew incidence showed only IIHR EA Sel 43 exhibited resistance and IIHR EA58-1 exhibited moderate resistance in both consecutive years. The percent disease incidence (PDI) and disease reaction of the lines are given in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab8\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e7\u003c/span\u003e. This confirms the resistance reaction shown by the line IIHR EA Sel 43.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab8\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 7\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEvaluation of bhringraj germplasm against downy mildew caused by \u003cem\u003ePlasmoparas phagneticolae\u003c/em\u003e under field conditions\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"4\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLines\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePDI 2021\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePDI 2022\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDisease\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ereaction\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR EA 58\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e34.15 (35.76)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e39.62 (39.01)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR EA 59\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;2\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e58.46 (49.90)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e53.00 (46.74)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR EA 4 ( C )\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e86.49 (68.47)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e79.33 (62.99)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR EA 6\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e83.14 (65.79)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e75.33 (60.25)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eHS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIIHR EA Sel 43\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e07.44 (15.84)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.00 (17.47)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"4\"\u003eFigures in parenthesis are Arcsine transformed values\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"4\"\u003e0\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;no visible Sporulation - Immune\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"4\"\u003e1\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;\u0026le;\u0026thinsp;10% of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; Resistant\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"4\"\u003e2\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;\u0026le;\u0026thinsp;25% of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; moderately Resistant\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"4\"\u003e3\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;25 - \u0026le; 50% of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; Moderately Susceptible\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"4\"\u003e4\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;50 - \u0026le; 75% of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; Susceptible\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"4\"\u003e5\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;5 % of leaf surface is covered with sporangiophores with spores; Highly Susceptible\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"4. Conclusion","content":"\u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eWedelolactone yield is a critical characteristic of \u003cem\u003eEclipta alba\u003c/em\u003e for farmers. It is necessary, therefore, to suggest to farmers that improved cultivars with increased wedelolactone yield and adaptable to different settings. The wedelolactone yield trait includes fresh and dried leaf weight as well as growth characteristics. In IIHR, Bengaluru, we assessed the biomass yield and active content in five distinct genotypes for our study. To get a variety of origins, these genotypes were collected from several sites. The superiority of IIHR EA Sel 43 in terms of yield, bioactive chemicals, and disease resistance in both years makes it evident from the current study that it is an exceptional accession. Hence this accession can be recommended forcultivation since there were no identified/released varieties in this crop.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e "},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eDeclarations of interest\u003c/b\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eNone\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ch2\u003eConflict of interests\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo conflicts of interest are disclosed by the writers.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eFunding\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe authors are very thankful to the financial assistanceprovided from National Medicinal Plants Board, Department ofAYUSH, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India(Project No: Z.18017/187/CSS/R\u0026amp;D/KR-01/2018\u0026ndash;19-NMPB-IVAentitled \u0026lsquo;Collection, characterization and genetic improvement of\u003cem\u003eEclipta alba\u0026rsquo;\u003c/em\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAuthor Contribution\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eK. Hima Bindu: Funding acquisition, Project administration, Conceptualization, design of the work , supervision, data analysis, Critical review and editingV. Keshav Rao : Methodology and analysis of bioactive compoundShivakumar: Experimentation, data acquisition , Project administrationAnil Kumar: Methodology, bioactive analysis and data acquisitionR. M. Shalini: investigation, Writing and editingPrithi Sonavane: Screening for disease reaction, data acquisition ,editing, K. S. Divya: Methodology, chemical analysis and data acquisitionS. Sujatha :Review \u0026amp; editing\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAcknowledgments\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe authors are very thankful to ICAR and the Director, ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bengaluru for the smooth conduct of research.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAharizad S, Rahimi MH, Moghadam M, Mohebalipour (2012) Study of genetic diversity in lemon balm (\u003cem\u003eMelissa officinalis\u003c/em\u003e L.) populations based on morphological traits and essential oils content. Annuals of Biological Research, 3(12): 5748\u0026ndash;5753.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAltaye T, Wosene G, Abush T(2019) Genetic Diversity Study on Upland Rice (\u003cem\u003eOryza Sativa\u003c/em\u003e L.) genotypes based on morphological traits in Southwestern Ethiopia. Asian J. 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VHJ Sempra, Research Institute of Vegetable Growing and Breeding, Olomouc, 105\u0026ndash;113.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLebeda A (1987) Screening of lettuce cultivars for field resistance to downy mildew. Tests Agrochem Cult No 8 (Ann Appl Biol 110, Suppl), 146\u0026ndash;147.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMallet T(1996) Geographical Information System for Water Management in a Cascade System: Kirindi Oya Sri Lanka. International Water Management Institute,2: 12.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMithun NM, Shashidhara S, Vivek RK(2011) \u003cem\u003eEclipta alba\u003c/em\u003e (L.) A review on its phytochemical and pharmacologicalprofile,\u003cem\u003ePharmacology online\u003c/em\u003e, 1: 345\u0026ndash;357.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOthman HS, Osman M, Zainuddin Z (2018) Genetic variabilities of \u003cem\u003eStevia rebaudiana\u003c/em\u003eBertoni cultivated in Malaysia as revealed by morphological, chemical and molecular characterisations. Agrivita Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 40(2): 267\u0026ndash;283.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePandey AK, Mandal AK(2010)Variation in morphological characteristics and andrographolide content in \u003cem\u003eAndrographis paniculata\u003c/em\u003e (Burm. f.) 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New Disease Reports,48(2): 12221. \u003cspan class=\"ExternalRef\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"RefSource\"\u003ehttps://doi.org/10.1002/ndr2.12221\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan address=\"10.1002/ndr2.12221\" targettype=\"DOI\" class=\"RefTarget\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSuganthi S, Rajamani K, Joel AJ, Suresh J, Renuka R (2018) Studies on genetic variability analysis in black nightshade (\u003cem\u003eSolanum nigrum\u003c/em\u003e L. complex). International Journal of Chemical Studies,6(3): 2551\u0026ndash;2555.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eVenugopal S, Padma M, Rajkumar M, Seenivasan N, Saidaiah P, Sathish G (2021) Genetic variability studies in ashwagandha (\u003cem\u003eWithaniasomnifera\u003c/em\u003eL.) for yield and quality traits. Journal of Pharmaceutical Innovation,10(8):188\u0026ndash;192.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eVenugopal S, Padma M, Rajkumar M, Seenivasan N, Saidaiah P, Sathish G (2022)Comparative investigation of the genetic components of \u003cem\u003eWithaniasomnifera\u003c/em\u003e L. yield and quality traits using multivariate and associations analysis in the Deccan plateau region. Industrial crops and products, 188.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWagner H (1986)Coumestans as the main active principles of the liver drugs \u003cem\u003eEclipta alba\u003c/em\u003e and WedeliaCalendulaceae. Planta Medica, 5: 370\u0026ndash;74.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWang CT, Lin LD, Yeh YW, Kirschner R (2021) First record of \u003cem\u003ePlasmoparas phagneticolae\u003c/em\u003e (Peronosporales, Oomycota) in Taiwan. FungalScience, 36: 23\u0026ndash;32.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"genetic-resources-and-crop-evolution","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"gres","sideBox":"Learn more about [Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution](https://www.springer.com/journal/10722)","snPcode":"10722","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/10722/3","title":"Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"Elite, Accession, Wedelolactone, HPLC, Biomass","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5043254/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5043254/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eKnown by several names, including Bhringaraj and False Daisy, \u003cem\u003eEclipta alba\u003c/em\u003e (L.) is a highly valued and well-known medicinal plant in India. It is thought to be the best liver disease medicine and is an annual herb that belongs to the \u003cem\u003eAsteraceae\u003c/em\u003e family. This herb has a long history of use in ethnomedicine. An estimated 2000\u0026ndash;5000 tons are traded annually. On the other hand, overexploitation of this species' wild populations is the result of strong domestic demand. In order to cultivate \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e and lessen the strain on the wild population, the current study aims to identify elite germplasm from several places in India through an analysis of growth, yield, and content variation of primary active constituents. HPLC (High-Performance Liquid Chromatography) was used to analyze the wedelolactone content of 142 wild accessions of \u003cem\u003eE. alba\u003c/em\u003e. Six lines of analysis showed a significant variance in wedelolactone throughout the entire plant, ranging from 0.09 to 0.53% on a dry weight basis. These lines were evaluated for two years for growth, yield, and active principle content. One elite accession (IIHR Sel EA 43) with 0.5% of the wedelolactone was identified with higher growth and yield attributes. This line is found to be suitable for large-scale commercial cultivation of \u003cem\u003eE. alba.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Evaluation of Eclipta alba L. selections for higher biomass and bioactive compound","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2024-12-23 11:57:28","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5043254/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2024-12-17T10:56:20+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2024-12-17T10:35:07+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"7560314893325483682655983843663407581","date":"2024-09-11T10:57:28+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2024-09-09T23:29:37+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2024-09-09T13:38:31+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2024-09-09T13:35:32+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution","date":"2024-09-06T09:38:51+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"genetic-resources-and-crop-evolution","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"gres","sideBox":"Learn more about [Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution](https://www.springer.com/journal/10722)","snPcode":"10722","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/10722/3","title":"Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"6fd450ae-31fc-4996-a0fa-49ef51b2bb3b","owner":[],"postedDate":"December 23rd, 2024","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"published-in-journal","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-01-20T16:04:11+00:00","versionOfRecord":{"articleIdentity":"rs-5043254","link":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-024-02325-4","journal":{"identity":"genetic-resources-and-crop-evolution","isVorOnly":false,"title":"Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution"},"publishedOn":"2025-01-13 15:57:54","publishedOnDateReadable":"January 13th, 2025"},"versionCreatedAt":"2024-12-23 11:57:28","video":"","vorDoi":"10.1007/s10722-024-02325-4","vorDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-024-02325-4","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-5043254","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-5043254","identity":"rs-5043254","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"qtupq5eGEP_6zYnWcrvyt","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}