In this study, wax worm larvae (Galleria mellonella) were used to examine their ability to degrade and assimilate polyethylene (PE) as an energy source. This idea came from the similarity of wax, that is used as the sole diet for larvae, with PE in composition. Morphology changes, weight loss, FTIR analysis and GC-Mass test were studied to prove the degradation of PE by G. mellonella. The maximum depth of holes on the plastic surface and 16% PE weight loss was due to extensive cutting. The creation of a novel O-H stretching alcohols/phenols group absorbance peak at 3293cm-1 observed in wax worm larvae PE frass samples may be due to the oxidation in their gut. Accordingly, the biodegradation of PE by wax worm larvae is ensured.
This study was achieved to investigate the accumulation of some heavy metals included: Cadmium, Lead and Nickel in the tissues (gill, intestine, liver, muscles and skin) of Silurus triostegus Heckel, 1843 (Siluriformes, Siluridae) and its larval stage of the nematode Contracaecum sp. (Rhabditida, Anisakidae). As well as to assess the infection patterns of Contracaecum among S. triostegus specimens which were purchased fresh from the local market in Baghdad. One hundred and nine nematodes specimens in larval stage were recovered from the fish host; the overall prevalence of Contracaecum sp. was 38.6%. The sex of the host was not significantly (P ˃ 0.05) associated with the infection of this nematode. Results showed that the ov
... Show MoreThis study was achieved to investigate the accumulation of some heavy metals included: Cadmium, Lead and Nickel in the tissues (gill, intestine, liver, muscles and skin) of Silurus triostegus Heckel, 1843 (Siluriformes, Siluridae) and its larval stage of the nematode Contracaecum sp. (Rhabditida, Anisakidae). As well as to assess the infection patterns of Contracaecum among S. triostegus specimens which were purchased fresh from the local market in Baghdad. One hundred and nine nematodes specimens in larval stage were recovered from the fish host; the overall prevalence of Contracaecum sp. was 38.6%. The sex of the host was not significantly (P ˃ 0.05) associated with the infection of this nematode.
Results showed that the overall me
This study evaluated the functional response of the larva of the predator Chrysoperla carnea by offering varying densities of cabbage aphid, Brevicoryne brassicae (L.) . Results showed conformity with type–II functional response, where the number of prey killed approaches asymptote hyperbolically as prey density increases (declining proportion of prey killed or the inverse density dependent) till it reached the stability stage determined by handling time and predator satiation. Also, the values of attack rate and handling time changed with age progress for both predator and prey. It has been observed an increase in the attack rate and reduction in handling time with the progress of the predator age when feeding on a particular nymphal in
... Show MoreThe main aim of this study is to investigate the ability of four local entomopathogenic isolates Beauveria bassiana (Bals.) and Metarhizium anisopliae (Met.) to control the mosquito larvae in the lab. The results revealed that the isolate (MARD48) B .bassiana reduced the survival rate of the mosquito larvae to (80%) followed by the isolate M. anisopliae (MARD10) to (90%) in the first two days of treatment, and 60 and 66% respectively in the third day. The results also showed that the isolate B. bassiana (MARD48) killed 50% of the population (LC50) with the concentration 1×104 conidia/ml compared to 1×107 conidia/ml for the isolates B. bassiana (MARD14) and M. anisopliae (MARD10), and 1×108 conidia/ml for the isolate B .bassiana (MARD76).
... Show MoreThis study was aimed to evaluate the effect of conventional ingredients replacement with alternative ingredients on growth performance, carcass quality, nutrient digestibility and intestinal microbial of broilers. One hundred twenty Cobb500 broiler chicks were randomly assigned to four diets. Corn, soybean meal and fish meal were replaced with rice waste, meat and bone waste and black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) at 0, 10, 30 and 50% to form four treatments. Body weight gain, feed conversion ratio and digestibility of crude protein and fat were improved in broilers fed the replacement diets. Feed intake was not affected by the treatments suggesting that the replacement diets were well accepted by the chicken. Escherichia coli was decre
... Show MoreKeratinases are enzymes belonging to the serine hydrolases group which are capable of degradation of keratin, an insoluble and fibrous structural protein widely cross-linked with hydrogen, disulfide, and hydrophobic bonds. Attempts to find new sources of enzymes and amino acids for fundamental knowledge of enzyme evolution, structure‐function relationships, catalysis mechanisms of enzymes, and even for the identification of novel protein folds. In this study, seventy-nine samples were collected from different places in the University of Baghdad, and the best isolate for amino acid production by feathers degradation was by using Streptomyces venezuelae AZ15. The best fermentation system and the optimum culture condit
... Show MoreIn this research, annealed nanostructured ZnO catalyst water putrefaction system was built using sun light and different wavelength lasers as stimulating light sources to enhance photocatalytic degradation activity of methylene blue (MB) dye as a model based on interfacial charges transfer. The structural, crystallite size, morphological, particle size, optical properties and degradation ability of annealed nanostructured ZnO were characterized by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and UV-VIS Spectrometer, respectively. XRD results demonstrated a pure crystalline hexagonal wurtzite with crystalline size equal to 23 nm. From AFM results, the average particle size was 79.25nm. All MB samples and MB with annealed nanostr
... Show MoreIn this paper, the researcher suggested using the Genetic algorithm method to estimate the parameters of the Wiener degradation process, where it is based on the Wiener process in order to estimate the reliability of high-efficiency products, due to the difficulty of estimating the reliability of them using traditional techniques that depend only on the failure times of products. Monte Carlo simulation has been applied for the purpose of proving the efficiency of the proposed method in estimating parameters; it was compared with the method of the maximum likelihood estimation. The results were that the Genetic algorithm method is the best based on the AMSE comparison criterion, then the reliab
... Show MoreSea level rise (SLR) due to climate change is affecting the coastline, causing shoreline changes, the degradation of mangrove forests, and the destruction of coastal resources. This is the cause of a huge amount of mangrove degradation in many parts of the Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna delta. A total of 90% of people have been forced to migrate from the island due to extreme weather conditions. In this study, remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS) techniques were used for LULC change and shoreline shift analyses of Ghoramara Island. LULC classification was carried out using thirty years of Landsat datasets with intervals of ten years (1990 and 2000) and intervals of five years (2005, 2010, 2015, and 2020). The classific
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