Conservation and Utilization of Plant Genetic Resources in Oman
Project Code:
(SR/AGR/CROP/07/01)
Funds:
Funding Source:
Start Date:
Duration:
Team Members:
144,000 OMR
His Majesty’s Trust Fund
02 May 2007
4 years
Researchers
Research Assistants
Students
Dr. Nadiya Abubakar Al-Saady (PI)
Mrs Lakshmy Rajesh
Mr. Issa Talib Al-Maamari
Prof. Humphrey Esechie (PI)
Dr. Neeru Bhatt
Ms. Aisha Ali Al-Farsi
Dr. Akhtar Jamal Khan (Co-PI)
Mr. Mahmood Ali Al-Qarni
Ms. Safaa Mohammed Al Hinaai
Prof. Riad Bayoumi
Ms. Ameera Salam Al-Saqri
Dr. Amanat Ali
Ms. Ibtisam Khamis Al-Jashemi
Dr. Ali Hussein Al-Lawati
Ms. Karima Nauman Al Amri
Dr. Saleem Nadaf
Eng. Saleh Ali Al-Hinai
Eng, Safaa Mohammed Al-Farsi
Prof. Kadambot Siddique
Dr. Fucheng Shan
Mr. Ali Masoud Al Subhi
Mr. Khamis Ahmed Al-Habsi
Mr. Yousif Mohamed Al Maqbali
Executive Summary
Objectives:
Main Objective:
To collect, conserve, characterize and utilize local Omani food and forages legumes for use in national
crop improvement programs.
Specific Objectives:
1. To assemble information (desktop analysis) on the current status of crop and forage legume
germplasm collections in Oman.
2. To collect local landraces of legumes crops and forages from key locations in Oman.
3. To conserve, and document the collection of legumes collected in Oman in the Ministry of
Agriculture and at Sultan Qaboos University.
4. To assess and define the collection of legumes collected in Oman using molecular approaches.
5. Characterize the collection for agronomic adaptations (salinity, drought/heat stress and diseases
and pests) and economic traits in controlled environments and at key locations.
6. Screening of nitrogen fixing bacterium, Rhizobium sp for high nitrogen fixation from collected
leguminous plants.
7. Screening of legume germplasm for its nutritional quality and anti-nutritional factors.
8. Human resource development and capacity building.
Methods:
Seven collection missions to the Interior governorate (Nizwa, Manah, Adam, Bahal, Al Hama, Rustaq,
Ibri, Dank and Yanqul); the Rustaq area (Rustaq, Wadi bani Aouf, Wadi bani khrous, Wadi Bani
Ghafer, Hajer Bani Omer, Wadi Bani Heny and Wadi Mistal); Bidbid, Izki and Samail area; North
Sharqia governorate (AL-Qabel, Wadi Bani Khalid, Ibra, AL-Mudhaibi and Wadi Atayeen); North AlBatinah governorate (Liwa, Sohar, Saham, AL-Khabourah and Suwaiq); Al-Buraimi governorate (AlBuraimi, Mahadhah and Al-Suninah) and the Dhofar governorate (Salalah, Rakhyoot, Thalkoot, Taqah
and Murbat). Of the collected accessions, the following five species: alfalfa, fenugreek, chickpea,
cowpea, field peawere further characterized using morphological, biochemical and Amplified Fragment
Length Polymorphism (AFLP) molecular techniques.
Results:
A total of 307 accessions of legumes 45 accessions of faba bean, 28 field pea, 62 alfalfa, 55
fenugreek, 24 mung bean, 13 chickpea, 63 cowpea, 11 lentil, 2 pigeon pea and 2 wild species were
collected, cleaned, processed and characterized for seed morphology and are currently in long-term
storage at the national gene bank of Ministry of Agriculture & Fisheries (MAF), Oman. Of the legume
accessions collected from the Interior and Al-Dhahira governorate, the most were fenugreek (22%)
followed by faba bean and alfalfa (15% each), field pea (14%), cowpea (12%), chickpea (10%), lentil
(8%) and mung bean (4%). The most accessions collected in the Al-Rushtaq area were faba bean
(30%); with alfalfa in the Bidbid Samail (31%), Al-Buraimi (56%), Al-Sharqiya (40%) and north AlBatinah (35%) areas; and cowpea from the Dhofar area (78%). With respect to the seven food legume
crops, a range of germplasm were collected, of which South Batinah represented 37.43% of
collections, followed by Interior (17.65%), Dhahirah and Buraimi (14.97%), Sharqiya (13.90%), Dhofar
(South) (12.30%) and North Batinah (3.75%). The low numbers from North Batinah was due to noncoverage of its mountainous regions during the collection mission. Most of the samples were collected
from isolated mountain and wadi areas with a few samples collected from the city.
Based on these morphological and molecualr analyses, there was significant variation in the level of
diversity between and within accessions. Also the distribution of accessions did not show a distinct
pattern with regard to geographic origins. Studies on salinity tolerance of alfalfa indicated that some of
the accessions could be more favorable for cultivation in Oman.
Conclusions:
One PhD, two MSc and several BSc students were supported through this grant. The approved
budget was used over three years for supporting field trips in different parts of Oman to collect legume
accessions by SQU and MAF staff and students; inviting consultants from Australia for training in
collection of legumes and molecular characterization of collected samples; training students for their
special research topic and MSc and PhD thesis work; purchase of chemicals and equipment; and
International Conference attendance by technical staff actively involved in this project. Many benefits
were seen from the project including the first collection of accessions conserved in the Sultanate,
better understanding of the diversity of some accessions which is crucial information for future work on
improvement of these genetic resources. In addition, the project focused and emphasized the need to
build on capacity building of students and staff. Further to this, the collected accessions of alfalfa from
this project are now used as a seed source for another project on the characterization of local
landraces of alfalfa by MAF through the Agricultural and Fisheries Development Fund.
Development of Management Strategies for Pesticide Resistance and
Pesticide Residue Problems in Omani Agriculture
Project Code:
Funds:
Funding Source:
Start Date:
Duration:
(SR/AGR/CROP/07/02)
81,950 OMR
His Majesty’s Trust Fund
nd
2 May 2007
4 years
Team Members:
Researchers
Technicians (SQU)
Research Assistants
Dr. Farid A Talukder (PI)
Mr. Ali Ahmed Al-Raeesi
Ms Aisha Gharib Al Ghaithi
Dr Michael Deadman (Co-PI)
Mr. Yusuf Mohammed Al-Maqbali
Ms Chandni Chandran
Dr. Ahmed Yahya Al-Maskri
Mr. Mohd Elhassan Mansour
Ms Inam Ahmed
Dr. Nadiya Abubakar Al-Saadi
Ms Suad Mohamed Al Bimani
Dr. Mushtaque Ahmed
Ms Shamsa Hamdan Al Tamimi
Dr. Salem Ali Al-Jabri
Ms Miaad Ali Al Weheibi
Dr. Amanat Ali
Mr Ibrahim Ahmed Mahad Qutan
Dr. Ali Khalfan Al-Wahaibi
Mr Abdulraheem Mohd Al-Balushi
Dr. Abdullah Mohammed Saadi
Ms Neema Saleem Muttenkadan
Mr. Yousuf Al-Raeesi
Ms Eiman Abdullah Al-Kalbani
Dr. Hamoud Al-Hasani
Ms Eiman Saud Al Risi
Mr. Salim Ali Al-Khatri
Ms Muna Mohammed Al Bimani
Mr. Leila Al-Subhi
Ms Basma Nasser Al Shidhani
Prof. Myron Phillip Zalucki
Dr. Kirsten Scott
Dr. Walid Kaakeh
Dr. Jaber Al-Dahmani
Executive Summary
Objectives:
The proposed research was designed with following major objectives: (1) To develop an in-vitro
assay technique for rapid determination of pesticide resistance levels in major agricultural insectpests; (2) To develop a rapid pesticides residue bioassay (RPRB) technique for detection of
pesticide residues in crops; (3) To develop a screening model for evaluating soil and groundwater
contamination of pesticides use; and (4) To develop molecular markers for pesticide resistances
in major insect-pests. The minor objectives of the proposed research were: (5) To carry out
pesticide use surveys in three major crop growing regions, namely, Batinah, Dakhliya and
Sharqiyah / Dhofar of Oman; (6) To determine pesticidal effects on natural enemies; and (7) To
increase awareness of pesticide resistance through farmer-participatory workshops.
Methods:
Different types of artificial insect diets were tested for continuous rearing of fruit fly under
laboratory conditions. The in-vitro insecticide resistance bioassays were carried out to determine
insecticide resistance levels in susceptible and resistant insect populations. Genomic DNAs were
extracted and used for RAPD-PCR reactions to detect the genetic differences between
insecticide resistant and susceptible fruit fly populations. The in-vitro fungicide resistance tests
were carried out on over fifty isolates of Pythium aphanidermatum. A modified method of Chiu et
al. (1991) was used to develop our own Rapid Pesticides Residue Bioassay (RPRB) technique
for rapid determination of pesticide residues in different crop, vegetable and fruit samples. Based
on PESTAN model, a screening model for evaluating soil and groundwater contamination by
pesticides was developed for the Omani soil and groundwater. Different crop-field weeds species
were tested against glyphosate herbicide under laboratory conditions. Around 60 crop-growing
farms from different Omani regions (20 farms per region) were used for pesticides surveys. Few
commonly used insecticides in Omani farms were tested to determine their pesticidal effects on
beneficial insects / natural enemies including honeybee populations, through direct application,
residual effects and contaminated food sources experiments.
Results:
The artificial diet composed of ‘wheat - brewer yeast - sugar – soybean’ mixture was found
suitable for fruit fly insect rearing. The in-vitro insecticide resistance bioassays showed different
degrees of resistance levels in fruit fly populations. However, no significant genetic differences
were observed between resistant and susceptible insect populations. The in-vitro fungicide
resistance tests showed high level of variation in sensitivity to metalaxyl among Pythium isolates.
The new RPRB technique was found as sensitive enough to detect 100 ppm Malathion
concentration in the vegetable and fruits samples. A Spectrophotometric technique was
developed to detect up to 100 ppm fungicide concentration in radish and tomato samples. The
screening model results suggested that pesticides reach groundwater faster in more recharge
and application rates. In coarse textured soil, the pesticides penetrate faster through the soil
profile. A weed species was found as moderately resistant against glyphosate under laboratory
conditions. The survey results showed that Omani farmers used over 40 different insecticides, 25
fungicides and 4 herbicides for crop protection. The results from the pesticidal effects on
beneficial insects / natural enemies showed that all tested insecticides caused significant
honeybee mortalities within 48 hours of applications. A Ph.D research on herbicide resistance is
ongoing under this research project.
Conclusions:
According to the designed protocols, the research project was carried out successfully. We were
able to develop (1) in-vitro technique for pesticide resistance in insect-pests, (2) rapid pesticides
residue bioassay technique, (3) a screening model for evaluating Omani soil and groundwater
contamination by pesticides. We found that Omani farmers are using over 40 different
insecticides, 25 fungicides and 4 herbicides for crop protection. A PhD student currently working
on the determination of herbicide resistance levels, which will be completed by 2013.
Mesozoic sedimentary succession of Jeza-Qamar (Dhofar) Basin:
implications for exploration potential of an overlooked hydrocarbon system
Project Code:
Funds:
Funding Source:
Start Date:
Duration:
Team Members:
(SR/SCI/ETHS/07/01)
45,655 OMR
His Majesty’s Trust Fund
02 May 2007
4 years
Researchers
Research Assistants
Graduate Students
Dr. Osman Salad Hersi (P.I.)
Mr. Hilal Said Al-Zidi
Mr. Mohammed Sulayim Al-Shukaili
Dr. Abdulrahman Ali Al-Harthy
Mr. Badar Mohammed Al-Waili
Mr. Said Salim Al-Kalbani
Dr. Iftikhar Ahmed Abbasi
Mr. Amri Suhail Al-Amri
Mr. Said Sulaiman Al-Balushi
Dr. Abdulrazak Al-Sayigh
Mr. Suhail Salim Hardan
Mr. Issam Ali Al-Yafai
Dr. Ali Ibrahim Al-Lazki
Mr. Nasir Sultan Al-Habsi
Ms. Hana Juma Al-Abri
Prof. Antonietta Cherchi
Mr. Abdulrahman Masood Al-Noumani
Ms Hana Hassan Al-Farsi
Prof. Rolf Schroeder
Mr. Sameer Mubarak Al-Mandhary
Mr. Majid Said Al-Abdali
Dr. John Jagt
Mr. Mahmood Khalfan Al-Kharousi
Prof. Quoxiang Chi
Mr. Mohammed Hamad Al-Amiri
Executive Summary
Objectives:
The proposed research was designed with following major objectives: (1) To develop an in-vitro
assay technique for rapid determination of pesticide resistance levels in major agricultural insectpests; (2) To develop a rapid pesticides residue bioassay (RPRB) technique for detection of
pesticide residues in crops; (3) To develop a screening model for evaluating soil and groundwater
contamination of pesticides use; and (4) To develop molecular markers for pesticide resistances
in major insect-pests. The minor objectives of the proposed research were: (i) To carry out
pesticide use surveys in three major crop growing regions, namely, Batinah, Dakhliya and
Sharqiyah / Dhofar of Oman; (ii) To determine pesticidal effects on natural enemies; and (iii) To
increase awareness of pesticide resistance through farmer-participatory workshops.
Methods:
Different types of artificial insect diets were tested for continuous rearing of fruit fly under
laboratory conditions. The in-vitro insecticide resistance bioassays were carried out to determine
insecticide resistance levels in susceptible and resistant insect populations. Genomic DNAs were
extracted and used for RAPD-PCR reactions to detect the genetic differences between
insecticide resistant and susceptible fruit fly populations. The in-vitro fungicide resistance tests
were carried out on over fifty isolates of Pythium aphanidermatum. A modified method of Chiu et
al. (1991) was used to develop our own Rapid Pesticides Residue Bioassay (RPRB) technique
for rapid determination of pesticide residues in different crop, vegetable and fruit samples. Based
on PESTAN model, a screening model for evaluating soil and groundwater contamination by
pesticides was developed for the Omani soil and groundwater. Different crop-field weeds species
were tested against glyphosate herbicide under laboratory conditions. Around 60 crop-growing
farms from different Omani regions (20 farms per region) were used for pesticides surveys. Few
commonly used insecticides in Omani farms were tested to determine their pesticidal effects on
beneficial insects / natural enemies including honeybee populations, through direct application,
residual effects and contaminated food sources experiments.
Results:
The artificial diet composed of ‘wheat - brewer yeast - sugar – soybean’ mixture was found
suitable for fruit fly insect rearing. The in-vitro insecticide resistance bioassays showed different
degrees of resistance levels in fruit fly populations. However, no significant genetic differences
were observed between resistant and susceptible insect populations. The in-vitro fungicide
resistance tests showed high level of variation in sensitivity to metalaxyl among Pythium isolates.
The new RPRB technique was found as sensitive enough to detect 100 ppm Malathion
concentration in the vegetable and fruits samples. A Spectrophotometric technique was
developed to detect up to 100 ppm fungicide concentration in radish and tomato samples. The
screening model results suggested that pesticides reach groundwater faster in more recharge
and application rates. In coarse textured soil, the pesticides penetrate faster through the soil
profile. A weed species was found as moderately resistant against glyphosate under laboratory
conditions. The survey results showed that Omani farmers used over 40 different insecticides, 25
fungicides and 4 herbicides for crop protection. The results from the pesticidal effects on
beneficial insects / natural enemies showed that all tested insecticides caused significant
honeybee mortalities within 48 hours of applications. A Ph.D research on herbicide resistance is
ongoing under this research project.
Conclusions:
According to the designed protocols, the research project was carried out successfully. We were
able to develop (1) in-vitro technique for pesticide resistance in insect-pests, (2) rapid pesticides
residue bioassay technique, (3) a screening model for evaluating Omani soil and groundwater
contamination by pesticides. We found that Omani farmers are using over 40 different
insecticides, 25 fungicides and 4 herbicides for crop protection. A PhD student currently working
on the determination of herbicide resistance levels, which will be completed by 2013.
Urban Climate and Air Pollution in Muscat City : Multi-Scale Approach
Project Code:
Funds:
Funding Source:
Start Date:
Duration:
(SR/ART/GEOG/07/01)
59,000 OMR
His Majesty’s Trust Fund
02 May 2007
3.5 years
Team Members:
Researchers
Research Assistants
Graduate Students
Dr. Yassine Charabi (P.I.)
Mr. Nasser Mohammed Al-Nomani
Mr. Khalid Amur Al-Shamli
Dr. Sabah Al-Sulaiman (Co-P.I.)
Mr. Mohamed Salem Al-Barwani
Mr. Khalid Hilal Al-Toobi
Dr. Ali Saeed Al-Bulooshi
Mr. Sultan Salim Al-Yahyai
Mr. Salim Abdullah Al-Yahmadi
Dr. Abdulhamid Bakhit
Ms. Halima Rashid Al-Zarai
Mr. Musallem Salim Al-Rahbi
Mr. Hamad Khamis Al-Aghabri
Ms. Suad Bashir Al-Munji
Executive Summary
Objectives
This project seeks to observe, measure, model and analyze how the rapid growth of Muscat city
since 1970’s has impacted the region climate and air quality.
The aims of this research project are:



To explore the combined effects of topography, mesoscale circulation, urban form and
landscape variability on air temperature at 2 m above the ground.
To provide a quantitative assessment of the air pollution dispersion regimes in Muscat,
Sohar, Sur and Salalah based on the concepts of stagnation, recirculation and ventilation.
To simulate the impact of the land-sea breeze circulation in Muscat and its impact on the
depth of the Planetary Boundary Layer and air pollution concentrations.
Methods
The spatio-temporal variability of the canopy-level urban heat island (UHI) of Muscat is examined on
the basis of meteorological observations and mobile measurements during a span of one year. The
conditions of stagnation, recirculation and ventilation factors in the main industrialized and urban
areas in Oman, developed a long the coastal area were investigated. Four sites; Sohar, Muscat, Sur
and Salalah were selected. For the calculation of the integral quantities of the ability of the
atmosphere dilution, hourly data of the wind velocity measured at a height of 10 m during five years
(2000-2005) were used in the analysis. COSMO numerical weather prediction model is used to
simulate land-sea breeze circulation in the north coast of Oman and to analyze the variability of the
Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) depth. Typical summer day 1st August 2009 and winter day 1st
January 2009 were simulated and verified by surface observations. The COSMO model was
initialized using the German global model which runs as 40km resolution and 40 vertical layers.
Results
The results indicate that the peak UHI magnitude occurs from 6 to 7 hours after sunset and it is well
developed in the summer season. The warm core of the UHI is located in the Highland zone of
Muscat, along a narrow valley characterized by low ventilation, high business activities, multi-storied
buildings and heavy road traffic. Topographically, this valley is surrounded by mountains formed of
dark-colored rocks such Ophiolites that can absorb short wave radiation and contribute, herewith, to
the emergence of this warm urban core. In addition, this mountainous terrain tends to isolate this
location from the cooling effect of the land-sea breeze circulation during the day time. In this warm
valley the hottest temperature are encountered in the compact districts of old Muscat. In comparison,
the urban thermal pattern in Lowland zone of Muscat is fragmented and the urban-rural thermal
difference is reduced because of the lower urban density of the residential quarters. In addition, the
flat alluvial terrain on which these residential quarters are located are consistently exposed to the
land breeze circulation. Also, the study illuminates and emphasizes the importance giving due
consideration to the nature of the rural baseline when assessing the urban effect on an area’s
climate. For Muscat City, irrespective of the rural baseline used, a significant difference in the value
of the urban heat island is registered.
The results show that in the northern coast of Oman, along the bay of Sea of Oman, where 56% of
the total population is concentrated and the main heavy industries of the country are amassed, the
atmosphere is prone to stagnations in 74.4% of the time, while in the southern and east part of
Oman, they occur only 23 % and 51%, respectively. The bay of sea of Oman is high affected by
land-sea breeze circulation that plays a substantial role in the simultaneous occurrence of
recirculation equally to stagnation. This meso-scale effect is altered gradually during the passage of
the synoptic scale flow of the southeasterly summer monsoon that enhances the occurrence of the
ventilation in Salalah (24.6% of time) and Sur (15.5%). In the, northern coast of Oman, where the
Hajir mountains suppressed the effect of the summer monsoon, a very weak tendency towards
ventilations is observed (less than 6%). The southern summer monsoon over Oman is a source of
life in this arid area and as well a source of clean air.
The simulations show differences in the onset, strength and inland penetration of the sea breeze.
The high sea-land thermal contrast in the summer season induces earlier onset and progression of
the sea breeze with larger horizontal and vertical extents. The summer and winter inland penetration
is simulated around 150km and 65km respectively. The PBL depth was defined from the verticals
profiles of the turbulence Kinetic energy (TKE). The simulated PBL height varied at 1600m in
summer and 700m in the winter case. The Vertical Mixing Coefficient during the summer simulated
case is approximately 4 times larger than the respective one during the winter case. Consequently,
during the advection of winter sea breeze a shallow dome less than 100m is shaped and forms an
obstacle to the air-pollutant dispersion
Conclusions
The different investigations in Muscat point out that the urban environment is prone to the
degradation of air quality. Based on that, we recommend the creation of Ambient Air Monitoring
Network to assess air quality in Muscat. The creation of Ambient Air Monitoring Network in Muscat
will enable to set priorities for reducing air pollution and to draw up an air quality management plan
(AQMP).