Agriculture plays a pivotal role in the economy and development of Pakistan providing food to consumers, raw materials to industries, and a market for industrial goods. Unfortunately, agricultural production is stagnant due to several barriers including a fixed cropping pattern, reliance on a few major crops, a narrow genetic pool, poor seed quality, and a changing climate. In addition, the high cost of production, weak phytosanitary compliance mechanisms, and a lack of cold chain facilities makes Pakistan agriculturally uncompetitive in export markets. Despite all these issues, agriculture is the primary industry in Pakistan and small farmers continue to dominate the business. Small farmers grow crops for subsistence under a fixed cropping pattern and a holistic approach is required to develop agriculture to improve the livelihoods of the rural populace. This book presents an exhaustive look at agriculture in Pakistan. Chapters provide critical analyses of present trends, inadequacies in agriculture, strategic planning, improvement programs and policies while keeping in view the natural resources, plant- and animal-related agricultural production technologies, input supplies, population planning, migration and poverty, and balanced policies on finance, credit, marketing, and trade.

Applied Molecular Biotechnology: The Next Generation of Genetic Engineering explains state-of-the-art advances in the rapidly developing area of molecular biotechnology, the technology of the new millennium. Comprised of chapters authored by leading experts in their respective fields, this authoritative reference text: Highlights the latest omics-based tools and approaches used in modern biotechnology Explains how various molecular biology technologies can be used to develop transgenic plants and how those plants can meet growing food and plant-derived product demands Discusses chloroplast gene expression systems, mitochondrial omics, plant functional genomics, and whole-genome resequencing for crop improvement Explores plant-microbe and plant-insect interactions affecting plant protection and productivity Covers animal models, pharmacogenomics, human tissue banking, and the molecular diagnosis of diseases such as cervical cancer, obesity, and diabetes Examines the molecular aspects of viral diseases, production of industrial commodities using viral biotechnology, and biotechnological uses of magnetic nanoparticles Describes the use of biotechnology in the food, chemical, pharmaceutical, environmental conservation, and renewable energy sectors Applied Molecular Biotechnology: The Next Generation of Genetic Engineering serves as a springboard for new discoveries in molecular biology and its applications. Thus, this book is an invaluable resource for students and researchers of molecular biotechnology.

Agriculture plays a pivotal role in the economy and development of Pakistan providing food to consumers, raw materials to industries, and a market for industrial goods. Unfortunately, agricultural production is stagnant due to several barriers including a fixed cropping pattern, reliance on a few major crops, a narrow genetic pool, poor seed quality, and a changing climate. In addition, the high cost of production, weak phytosanitary compliance mechanisms, and a lack of cold chain facilities makes Pakistan agriculturally uncompetitive in export markets. Despite all these issues, agriculture is the primary industry in Pakistan and small farmers continue to dominate the business. Small farmers grow crops for subsistence under a fixed cropping pattern and a holistic approach is required to develop agriculture to improve the livelihoods of the rural populace. This book presents an exhaustive look at agriculture in Pakistan. Chapters provide critical analyses of present trends, inadequacies in agriculture, strategic planning, improvement programs and policies while keeping in view the natural resources, plant- and animal-related agricultural production technologies, input supplies, population planning, migration and poverty, and balanced policies on finance, credit, marketing, and trade.

PlantOmics: The Omics of Plant Science provides a comprehensive account of the latest trends and developments of omics technologies or approaches and their applications in plant science. Thirty chapters written by 90 experts from 15 countries are included in this state-of-the-art book. Each chapter describes one topic/omics such as: omics in model plants, spectroscopy for plants, next generation sequencing, functional genomics, cyto-metagenomics, epigenomics, miRNAomics, proteomics, metabolomics, glycomics, lipidomics, secretomics, phenomics, cytomics, physiomics, signalomics, thiolomics, organelle omics, micro morphomics, microbiomics, cryobionomics, nanotechnology, pharmacogenomics, and computational systems biology for plants. It provides up to date information, technologies, and their applications that can be adopted and applied easily for deeper understanding plant biology and therefore will be helpful in developing the strategy for generating cost-effective superior plants for various purposes. In the last chapter, the editors have proposed several new areas in plant omics that may be explored in order to develop an integrated meta-omics strategy to ensure the world and earth's health and related issues. This book will be a valuable resource to students and researchers in the field of cutting-edge plant omics.

Calf mortality rate in 2007 in Peshawar (Pakistan) was 17.98% (Khan et al., 2007). Major causes of mortality of neonatal calves were the conditions like diarrhea and pneumonia (Khan et al., 2009, Shimizu and Nagatoma 1978). The neonatal calf mortality in the first month of age is more than 80% of the total mortality in calves (Jenny et al., 1981). Mortality in calves was found due to the conditions e.g. Feeding practices, managemental practices, weather conditions, bacterial and viral infections especially those causing septicemia, diarrhea and enteritis (Blood et al., 1994).The etiology of neonatal calf diarrhea involves a variety of infectious, nutritional, immunological and environmental factors. Many of the infectious agents have been isolated and identified from the feces and tissues of diarrheic calves but the relative importance of each one has not been established. Recently, infections of individual calves and herds with multiple enteropathogens have been described (Acres et al 1977; Moren M.1974; Brown et al 1973).

Livestock has a great significance in the development of economic conditions of a country. In Pakistan the share of Livestock sector is approximately 53.2 percent in the agriculture value and 11.4 percent in national GDP during 2009-10. While other development sector experienced saturation and decline, there is trend in increase of livestock population in 2009-10. Total number of buffaloes and cattle is 30.8 and 34.3 millions respectively in Pakistan (Anonymous, 2009-10). The number of buffaloes and cattle is 14.4 and 17.8 millions respectively in Punjab province (Anonymous, 2006). Punjab is a home of highly specialized tropical/subtropical buffaloes and cattle breeds. Those animals suffer from a number of diseases. Ketosis is one of them, define as metabolic disorder and it is managmental influenced cows disease during the early lactation period.

Contribution of livestock is about % of agriculture value and 11.4 % to the national GDP ith a total number of animals of million.In Pakistan the trend of extensive farming is common and has open grazing in the feild. Most of the farmers have up to 6 number of animals while sixteen percent farmers have more than 6 nimals. Gastrointestinal parasites are very common in sheep because of their open grazing and watering habbits. Parasites cause the economic losses and considered one of the most common infections.

Mastitis is the inflammation of the parenchyma of mammary glands; it is characterized by a range of physical and chemical changes in the glandular tissues. It is an important disease of cattle and buffaloes. In Pakistan, during the year 2005-06, Cattle population was 25.5 millions, while buffalo's population was 28.4 million. Within the livestock sector, milk is the largest and the single most important commodity. Despite decades of neglect, Pakistan is the fifth largest milk producer in the world (Anonymous, 2006). Production of high-quality milk is a high-priority issue for dairy farmers and milk processors. The investigation of mastitis problems on dairy farms is an area of increasing demand and is an ideal way for veterinary practitioners to increase involvement in production medicine programs (Ruegg, 2003). The prevalence of mastitis was significantly higher in the early lactation stage than in the mid-lactation stage, in cows with lesions and/or tick infestation on skin of udder and/or teats than in cows without this factor, and in the wet season than in the dry season. Mastitis increased with parity number (Dego and Tareke, 2003).

Donkeys are extremely valuable animals in Pakistan because they are increasingly used in transportation of goods, cultivation of lands and are one of the cheapest sources of labour. Donkeys are extremely important as their use is much more in transportation and labour as compared to horses. Donkeys have a major socio-economic importance in many areas. Despite the advancement in mechanization, donkeys are still the "beasts of burden." Under smallholder farming system, donkeys are the most precious, suitable and economical animals, because they can be used in areas with coarse topography and underdeveloped roads. Strongylosis is one of the most important diseases of equines. Diarrhoea, anorexia, weight loss and marked anaemia are the clinical signs in infected animals resulting in huge mortality. The mixed strongyle infections are common in donkeys with clinical signs including anaemia, diarrhea and unthriftness.

Poultry industry is an important portion of the livestock sector contributing in the national economy and the current status of Pakistan poultry industry is about Rs. 100 billion. There are about 25,000 poultry farms in the country. Poultry sector generates employment & income for about twelve hundred thousand people. Its growth rate is 10- 12% annually. Pakistan is producing 10,000 million table eggs & 750 thousand metric tons chicken meat annually. The per capita consumption of meat is 7 kg & 60-65 eggs annually (Anonymous, 2008) but unfortunately so many threats & fatal diseases i.e. bacterial, viral, fungal & parasitic diseases are still disturbing the industry. Among parasitic diseases, coccidiosis is one of the most important hazard. It is the disease of poultry caused by an obligate microscopic protozoan parasite, which belongs to the genus Eimeria (phylum Apicomplexa). Seven Eimeria species have been recognized infecting chicken: E. acervulina, E. maxima, E. tenella, E. brunette, E. necatrix, E. mitis & E. praecox.

Cyanide is widely distributed in the ecosystem and has been linked with lethal effects in animals as well as humans. Cyanide toxicity may be the result of intake from food sources, environmental pollution, intentional ingestion, chemical warfare, occupational exposure, homicide, and sometimes through the use of drugs like nitroprusside and laetrile.Cyanide intake has been linked to central nervous system syndromes and thyroid in animals as well as humans. This book covers the following aspects. 1) cyanogenic potential of various sorghum species. 2) cyanide levels in blood samples of cattle, buffaloes, sheep and goats feeding on cyanogenic plants. 3)new simple, reliable and inexpensive assay to determine CN levels in blood samples. 4)efficacy of various antidotes against cyanide toxicity. 5) effects of cyanide toxicity on hematological and biochemical panel. 6) postmortem lesions and histopathological changes associated with cyanide toxicity in various organs. 6) alterations in tissue oxygenation and metabolic variables during acute cyanide toxicity."

Ovine theileriosis is an important tick-borne disease of sheep in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world, caused by Theileria hirci (T. lestoquardi). The disease is economically important in small ruminants, particularly in sheep, causing clinical illness and mortalities in Middle East, west Asia, Indian subcontinent, parts of Africa and Mediterranean Basin. The present study was done to determine the infection rate of theileriosis in Lohi sheep and to investigate an economical and effective remedy for this protozoal problem. Another object was to study the effect of this disease on various blood parameters. A total of 400 sheep were examined for the presence of Thieleria in blood smears. Clinical signs were recorded and lymph node biopsy smears were also examined. On the basis of Giemsa stained blood smears, 16.5% sheep were found positive of which 65.1% were clinically symptomatic and showed schizonts of thielerial parasite in their lymphocytes. For treatment buparvaquone was found to better (90% success rate) than oxytetracycline (30% success rate).

Applied Molecular Biotechnology: The Next Generation of Genetic Engineering explains state-of-the-art advances in the rapidly developing area of molecular biotechnology, the technology of the new millennium. Comprised of chapters authored by leading experts in their respective fields, this authoritative reference text: Highlights the latest omics-based tools and approaches used in modern biotechnology Explains how various molecular biology technologies can be used to develop transgenic plants and how those plants can meet growing food and plant-derived product demands Discusses chloroplast gene expression systems, mitochondrial omics, plant functional genomics, and whole-genome resequencing for crop improvement Explores plant-microbe and plant-insect interactions affecting plant protection and productivity Covers animal models, pharmacogenomics, human tissue banking, and the molecular diagnosis of diseases such as cervical cancer, obesity, and diabetes Examines the molecular aspects of viral diseases, production of industrial commodities using viral biotechnology, and biotechnological uses of magnetic nanoparticles Describes the use of biotechnology in the food, chemical, pharmaceutical, environmental conservation, and renewable energy sectors Applied Molecular Biotechnology: The Next Generation of Genetic Engineering serves as a springboard for new discoveries in molecular biology and its applications. Thus, this book is an invaluable resource for students and researchers of molecular biotechnology.