The main purpose of this study is to provide essential information regarding the molecular basis of insecticide resistance and to report candidate genes which are responsible for resistance in insects/pests. There are two basic resistance mechanisms existing in pests, i.e., target site resistance and metabolic resistance. During resistance of target site, the specific binding site of an insecticide is modified (mutated) and/or lost, which makes the target site incompatible for activation. Mutation occurs in most common pest (Myzus persicae, Musca domestica and Drosophila melanogaster) target regions, i.e., subunits like nicotinic acetylene choline receptors (nAChRs), knock-down resistance (KDR) etc. Due to these mutations, insecticides are unable to bind into the target region, resulting in loss of binding affinity. Furthermore, in metabolic resistance over production of enzymes occurs which break down (detoxify) insecticides and resulting resistance of pests. The amplification of metabolic enzymes, i.e., Cytochromes p450 monooxygenase, hydrolyses, and Glutathione S-transferase play a central role in evolving metabolic resistance. Various successful approaches are used to combat pests resistance such as insecticides, bio-pesticides and biological control agents. However, some of these strategies have certain limitations such as contamination of the environment, while others possess a low capacity in management of pests. Recent studies have highlighted some novel mechanisms of insecticide resistance that are part of the ongoing efforts to define the molecular basis of insecticide resistance in insect species.

There is ever increasing problem of air pollution in cities due to urbanization, industrialization, population growth and increased number of vehicles. Plants can play a vital role in mitigation of air pollution in urban areas. The present study was conducted to estimate the Air Pollution Tolerance Index (APTI) and Anticipated Performance Index (API) for 21 different plant species used for green belt development along the roadsides in Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan. For APTI and API estimation, ascorbic acid, total chlorophyll content, relative water content and pH of leaf extract of selected plant species were measured using standard methods. The results showed that Syzygium cumini L. (jaman), Pterospermum acerifolium (kanak champa) and Alstonia scholaris (devil tree) were the excellent performers. According to API and APTI values, these species were found effective in reducing air pollution and could be effective for green belt development in urban areas. Albezia lebbeck, Melia azedarach, Eucliptus camaldulensis, Dalbergia sissoo, Tamarindus indica, Acacia nilotica L., Callistemon viminalis and Leucaena leucocephala are very poor performers regarding air and noise abatement. These plants are very poor performers and are very sensitive plants to air pollution. These plants can be used as bio-indicators of poor urban air quality.

DNA bar-coding is a taxonomic method that uses small genetic markers in organisms' mitochondrial DNA (mt DNA) for identification of particular species. It uses sequence diversity in a 658-base pair fragment near the 5' end of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (CO1) gene as a tool for species identification. DNA barcoding is more accurate and reliable method as compared with the morphological identification. It is equally useful in juveniles as well as adult stages of fishes. The present study was conducted to identify three farm fish species of Pakistan (Cyprinus carpio, Cirrhinus mrigala, and Ctenopharyngodon idella) genetically. All of them belonged to family cyprinidae. CO1 gene was amplified. PCR products were sequenced and analyzed by bioinformatic software. Conspecific, congenric, and confamilial k2P nucleotide divergence was estimated. From these findings, it was concluded that the gene sequence, CO1, may serve as milestone for the identification of related species at molecular level.

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