Neena Singla

• Ph.D.
• Principal Zoologist (Rodents) at Punjab Agricultural University

Morphological features alone are not sufficient to distinguish a species from its congeners. Molecular analysis can be very helpful in identifying and distinguishing morphologically indeterminate species. Current communication concerns with 28 S rRNA-based molecular and phylogenetic characterization of mites. In this study, the mites were isolated...

Effect of different concentrations of SO 2 (5, 10 and 15 ppm) on antioxidant enzymes and histo-pathological changes were investigated in male rats under natural and experimental conditions. Naturally exposed, house rat, Rattu srattus (Group I) were collected from urban residential areas at Ludhiana, India. Laboratory bred house rats were divided in...

Substances that make animals move away from the source are called repellents. It may be an object, a device or a chemical substance which by touch, sound, color, taste or odor will ward off the animal or prevent an animal from feeding or gnawing. In multi-choice T-maze experiments, the behavior of male and female house rat (Rattus rattus) was recor...

Background Field rodents cause significant damage to standing crops in agroecosystems at vulnerable stages. Of all the methods available, chemical rodent control is the most practical and economically feasible. Laboratory studies demonstrate the potential of synergistic bait formulations containing bromadiolone and cholecalciferol. This study is th...

The aim of the study was to examine the toxic effect of sulphur dioxide on the ovaries of female rats. The effect of different concentrations of SO2 (0, 5, 10 and 15 ppm) on antioxidant enzymes and histopathological changes were investigated in ovaries of female rats under natural and experimental conditions. Naturally exposed, house rats, Rattus r...

Effect of different concentrations of SO (5, 10 and 15ppm) on antioxidant enzymes and histopathological changes were 2 investigated in kidney and spleen of rats of both the sexes under natural and experimental conditions. Naturally exposed, house rat, Rattusrattuswere collected from urban residential areas at Ludhiana, India. Laboratory rats were e...

Purpose: The present study aimed to record the prevalence, risk factors, molecular identifcation, and phylogeny of Nippostrongylus brasiliensis found in the small intestine of the lesser bandicoot rat, Bandicota bengalensis, a wild rodent species. Methods: A total of 100 bandicoot rats live trapped at two commensal urban locations (50 each), i.e.,...

Field rodents are found naturally infected with trematode parasites of medical and veterinary importance. There is limited documented information on the trematode species found in rodents and their molecular identification in India. The present study conducted molecular and phylogenetic analysis of a trematode species recovered for the first time f...

Effect of Cotton seed oil on fertility of rodents

This fi rst comprehensive report from Punjab province of India relates to patho-physiological alterations alongwith morpho-molecular characterisation and risk assessment of natural infections of Hymenolepis diminuta and Hymenolepis nana in 291commensal rodents including house rat, Rattus rattus (n=201) and lesser bandicoot rat, Bandicota bangalensi...

In rodent control exercise, after successful control with rodenticides, the surviving population often rebuild up themselves rapidly due to reduced competition and high rate of reproduction. In this context, here, we investigated the potential of papaya (Carica papaya L.) seed powder as a natural reproduction inhibitor for male lesser bandicoot rat...

Background: Present study was aimed to record diversity, prevalence and risk assessment of nematode parasites in Indian gerbil, Tatera indica, a wild rodent species found in crop fields. Methods: Total 180 Indian gerbils (T. indica) were live trapped from crop fields of Ludhiana, Punjab between April, 2019 to March, 2020 and examined for the divers...

Partial nucleotide sequence of Trichuris muris found on commensal rodents in Punjab, India

Background: Rodents harbour a number of parasites of public health importance, thus, they threaten human health and livestock. Aims: The present study aimed to characterize two helminthic species found in commensal rodents and record histo-physiological alterations induced by them. Methods: A total of 300 synanthropic rodents of three species:...

Average duration of pro-estrous, estrous, met-estrous and di-estrous stages in one oestrous cycle of female Indian gerbil, Tatera indica was found 0.61, 0.38, 0.62 and 1.37 days, respectively with total average duration of one cycle to be 2.99 days. Pairing of cyclic female gerbils with mature males resulted in 88% breeding success within gestation...

Besides serving as important crop and household pests, rodents act as symptomless carriers of important zoonotic pathogens especially the parasitic infections. In the changing scenario, due to various drivers of interaction between wildlife, humans and domestic animals, rodents have proven to be of increasing importance in transmitting diseases to...

Five species of snails, Indoplanorbis exustus, Radix luteola, Melanoides tuberculata, Bithynia tentaculata var. kashmiriensis and Cryptozona bistrialis belonging to families, Planorbidae, Lymnaeidae, Thiaridae, Bithyniidae and Ariopahntidae were reported in rice crop fields of Punjab state. The taxonomic details of different species along with thei...

Microencapsulation of the desired oil reduces the evaporation rate due to limited permeability of thin wall material thereby increasing efficacy for a longer period. For evaluating antifeedant effect, microcapsules containing three different concentrations of the oil (3, 5 or 7%) and mixed in food at 5, 10 and 20% concentrations were exposed to hou...

The house rat (Rattus rattus) is the most destructive commensal rodent pest. The use of rodenticides is the most commonly used method for the control of rodents. However, the drawbacks of using rodenticides such as nontarget toxicity, environmental hazards, and development of resistance have increased the search for plant products acting as repelle...

Present study reports post-ingestional effects of red chilli in stomach of house rat, Rattus rattus. Three different groups of female rats (5 per group) were fed on bait containing 1 and 2% red chilli powder and plain bait, respectively. Histomorphological study revealed cellular degeneration of gastric region, sloughing and distortion of superfici...

The present study was conducted to record the diet composition of Barn Owl, Tyto alba through regurgitated pellet analysis as determinant for its potential as biocontrol agent of rodent pests in Punjab, India. Analysis of 390 regurgitated pellets of Bam Owl collected from six different locations revealed their average weight, length, breadth and th...

There are several reports on development of resistance to bromadiolone in different species of rodents around the globe, however, there is no such report involving systematic study from India. Hence, present study was carried out to investigate current status of bromadiolone resistance in house rat (Rattus rattus; n = 154) collected from different...

Current study was designed to evaluate the antifertility effects of nifedipine, a pharmaceutical medicament for high blood pressure. Mature and healthy male lesser Bandicoot rats, Bandicota bengalensis Gray and Hardwicke, were fed on bait (cracked wheat, powdered sugar, groundnut oil 98:2:2) containing 0.1 and 0.05% nifedipine for 12 days in no-cho...

Present study was carried out to determine critical timings and methods of rodent control in direct seeded (DSBR) and transplanted basmati rice (TBR) crops. Four blocks (each of 1.2 ha area) of each type of crop were selected in villages Kangraur and Kataria of district Hoshiarpur, Punjab, India. In block I, burrow baiting with 2% zinc phosphide ba...

Laying performance of Japanese quail fed graded levels of neem (Azadirachta indica) kernel meal incorporated diets. Effect of dietary supplement of sugar beet, neem leaf, linseed and coriander on growth performance and carcass trait of Vanaraja chicken. Veterinary World 7(9): 639-643. Abstract Capsaicin is the major active component of hot red chil...

The zinc phosphide bait consumption was more on paper bait stations as compared to tyre bait stations but the control success was found to be more with tyre bait stations (85.94-87.93%) as compared to paper bait stations (65.59-77.90%). The cut tillers (0.70±0.06%) and yield loss (98.27 ± 11.08 kg ha⁻¹) and total post-harvest burrow count (25.85 ±...

Plant based non-lethal repellents are most suitable for rodent control. Present studies were conducted to increase the efficacy of eucalyptus oil as repellent against black rat, Rattus rattus by its controlled release through encapsulated wax blocks. Mature and healthy R. rattus of both sexes were exposed to 5, 10 and 20 % eucalyptus oil encapsulat...

Screening of 83 mature wild rodents of Bandicota bengalensis (52 male and 31 females), live trapped from premises near railway station, fish market and agricultural fields in Ludhiana district of Punjab province, India was carried out to assess the natural occurrence of helminth parasites and their potential as reservoirs of zoonoses. On necropsy,...

Broamadiolone is an anticoagulant, recommended as 0.005% bait for controlling rodent pests. Present study was conducted to investigate the toxicity potential of sublethal doses of bromadiolone (0.001% bait) along with blood clotting response in house rat, Rattus rattus. Mature and healthy rats of both sexes were divided into three groups. Rats of g...

The field efficacy of 2% zinc phosphide and 0.005% bromadiolone baits at two different crop stages for reducing rodent damage and yield loss in groundnut crop was evaluated. Trials were conducted at farmer's fields at villages Powat and Sehjomajra of district Ludhiana and village Kalsian of district Sangrur in Punjab (India). Reduction in rodent ac...

Different groups (5 rats of each sex per group) of mature male and female Bandicota bengalensis were administered single oral doses of cholecalciferol (Vitamin D3) dissolved in groundnut oil (vehicle) @ 20, 30, 40, 50, 80 and 100 mg kg−1 body weight (bwt). Rats of untreated control groups were administered 1 mL of the vehicle only. During pre and p...

Blood clotting response (BCR) test is a faster method with fewer ethical constraints than feed-testing and is widely used to monitor resistance. The second-generation anticoagulant, bromadiolone is being used to control rodents all over India for the last several years. To investigate whether its use has resulted in development of resistance in hou...

The toxicity of standard doses of the rodenticides cholecalciferol and bromadiolone and different combinations of their use at reduced concentrations were compared against lesser bandicoot rats, Bandicota bengalensis. Mature and healthy B. bengalensis were live trapped, acclimatized, weighed and divided into groups. Cereal based baits of standard d...

This report describes observations on the development of cutaneous lesions in rabbits experimentally infected with Trypanosoma evansi. Skin scrapings revealed the presence of diff erent developmental stages of Notoedres cati var. cuniculi and the animals were successfully treated by combined anti-Trypanosoma (diminazene aceturate @ 3.5 mg.kg-1body...

The aim of present study was to investigate the efficacy of triptolide treatment in regulating post control rodent population rebuildup in poultry farms. A significantly lower rodent population rebuild up of 16.3% in poultry farm treated with 0.2% triptolide after first treatment with 0.005% bromadiolone was observed compared to 51.87% buildup in p...

Studies conducted in vegetable fields of three villages viz; Bhadalwad, Sanghera and Dasaunda Singh Wala, Punjab revealed thai slug density varied with weather conditions and soil components like organic matter, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, etc. In all the respective villages, slug density was found to be high during month of August and Septemb...

The aim of study was to investigate the toxic effect of triptolide fed in bait on reproduction of male house rat, Rattus rattus. Feeding of cereal based bait containing 0.2% triptolide to male R. rattus for 5 days in no-choice feeding test, leading to mean daily ingestion of 20.45 mg/kg bw of triptolide, was found effective in significantly ( P ≤...

Mature and healthy male lesser bandicoot rats, Bandicota bengalensis (n = 40) were fed on bait (mixture of cracked wheat and powdered sugar in 98:2) containing different concentrations of triptolide (0, 0.15, 0.20 and 0.25% w/w) for 15 days in two-choice trials. Results revealed no significant effect of triptolide treatment on weights of vital orga...

Repellents act by stimulating the primary or secondary defense mechanisms, causing the food to be rejected. Mature and healthy house rats, Rattus rattus, of both the sexes, were exposed to 5, 10, and 20% citronella oil applied as paint in laboratory pens in choice with no oil. Each concentration was applied through 3 different modes of application...

The present study was conducted to assess the impact of village level education and training on adoption of control strategies, their sustainability and reduction in crop losses in Kapurthala and Jalandhar districts of Punjab, India. Three villages selected in each district were categorized as (i) Maintenance area (ii) Neglected area, and (iii) Sur...

Objective: To compare the acceptance and efficacy of cereal bait containing different concentrations of poultry egg components in laboratory and poultry farms to control house rat, Rattus rattus (R. rattus). Methods: Acceptance of cereal bait containing different concentrations (2%, 5% and 10%) of poultry egg components such as egg shell powder...

Abstract Triptolide has been reported to cause antifertility in male rats and mice. However, studies on female rats have been limited. Present study was aimed to evaluate the effects of triptolide on reproduction of wild female rodent pest species, Bandicota bengalensis. Feeding of bait containing 0.1, 0.15 and 0.2% triptolide for a period of 15 da...

Present study reports the effect of triptolide in male Bandicota bengalensis. One group of rats was kept as vehicle control and the other three groups were fed on bait containing 0.15, 0.2 and 0.25% triptolide. Autopsy of rats immediately after 15 days of treatment period revealed no significant effect on weights of vital organs. A significant (P ≤...

Rodent repellents are chemicals which by taste or odour or possibly by both will prevent animal from feeding or gnawing. Such substances may be used in protecting an area from rodent infestation or in protecting packaged food, packing materials, electric cables, and other important vulnerable materials. Mature and healthy house rat, Rattus rattus o...