The beet armyworm (BAW), Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a highly destructive pest of vegetables and field crops. Management of beet armyworm primarily relies on synthetic pesticides, which is threatening the beneficial community and environment. Most importantly, the BAW developed resistance to synthetic pesticides with making it difficult to manage. Therefore, alternative and environment-friendly pest management tactics are urgently required. The use of pesticidal plant extracts provides an effective way for a sustainable pest management program. To evaluate the use of pesticidal plant extracts against BAW, we selected six plant species (Lantana camara, Aloe vera, Azadirachta indica, Cymbopogon citratus, Nicotiana tabacum , and Ocimum basilicum) for initial screening experiment. Four out of six plant species such as A. indica, N. tabacum, C. citratus and O. basilicum showed promising mortality of more than 50%. Therefore, we selected these four plant extracts for the subsequent experiments. Through contact bioassay, A. indica showed high mortality 66.63%, followed by the N. tabacum 53.33%, at 10% w/v concentration. Similarly, N. tabacum showed the highest mortality rate, 66% at 10% w/v concentration, followed by the A. indica 46% through feeding bioassay. Furthermore, the feeding deterrence assay showed that C. citratus had a high antifeedant index (−50) followed by A. indica (−39), and N. tabacum (−28). In living plant assay, the N. tabacum extract showed a low mean damage score 3.6 on living cotton plant followed by C. citratus 4.5 and A. indica 5.5. Hence, extracts of three plant species provided promising results against the BAW, which can minimize the use of synthetic chemicals, particularly for small landholding farmers. Further studies are also required to evaluate the effects of these plant extract against BAW on cotton plants under field conditions to optimize the further use.
Efficiency of Pisum sativum plants in using tricalcium super phosphate (TSP) in presence and absence of mycorrhizal fungi was evaluated in the field experiment in College of Science / Al-Mustansiriyah University. The experiment comprised of (6) treatments prepared from the interaction of two levels of inoculation [non-inoculation with fungus F0 and inoculation with Glomus mosseae fungus (F1)]. And three levels of phosphorus: 0,20,40 Kg P/ha. The experimental size was (1x2)m. Irrigation and hand-weeding were done when needed. The following plant measurements were recorded: (Shoots dry weight, concentration of N and P% in addition to percentage of root infection with mycorrhizal fungi at flowering 50% of plants. The re
... Show MorePsoriasis is a chronic, inflammatory condition that primarily affects the skin, hair, and joints and is associated with significant humanistic and economic consequences. This work induced psoriasis in mice using an imiquimod 5% cream, an immune response modifier that can cause psoriasis-like skin inflammation when given orally. Paquinimod is prepared as an ointment and has been topically given to mice before imiquimod application. In this study, albino mice were allocated into five groups and treated as follows: the control group received only a daily application of cream based on shaved back (62.5mg/2cm) with a daily topical dose of ointment for 14 consecutive days with the oral vehicle. The Imiquimod group received a daily topical
... Show MoreNon-thermal or cold plasma create many reactive species and charged particles when brought into contact with plant extracts. The major constituents involve reactive oxygen species, reactive nitrogen species and plasma ultra-violets. These species can be used to synthesize biologically important nanoparticles. The current study addressed the effect of the green method-based preparation approach on the volumetric analysis of Zn nanoparticles. Under different operating conditions, the traditional thermal method and the microwave method as well as the plasma generation in dielectric barrier discharge reactor were adopted as a preparation approach in this study. The results generally show that the type of method used plays an important rol
... Show MoreNon-thermal or cold plasma create many reactive species and charged particles when brought into contact with plant extracts. The major constituents involve reactive oxygen species, reactive nitrogen species and plasma ultra-violets. These species can be used to synthesize biologically important nanoparticles. The current study addressed the effect of the green method-based preparation approach on the volumetric analysis of Zn nanoparticles. Under different operating conditions, the traditional thermal method and the microwave method as well as the plasma generation in dielectric barrier discharge reactor were adopted as a preparation approach in this study. The results generally show that the type of method used plays an important role in d
... Show MoreCranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) is a North American natural fruit. consumed as food and used for health promotion and prevention of various diseases. Aim. The present study was designed to evaluate the protective effect of cranberry fruit extract on nephrotoxicity induced by cisplatin in mice by measuring selected oxidative stress markers. Methods. Twenty-eight male albino mice were used in this study. The animals were divided into 4 groups as follows: Group I [Negative Control]/orally-administered normal saline for 7 successive days; Group II [Orally-administered cranberry fruit extract alone (200 mg/kg) for 7 successive days; Group III/Mice IP injection with cisplatin (12mg/kg) on day 7 and; Group IV [Orally-administered cr
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The complete genome sequence of bacteriophage VPUSM 8 against O1 El Tor Inaba
Doxorubicin (DOX) is an efficient antineoplastic agent with a broad antitumor spectrum; however, doxorubicin-associated cardiotoxic adverse effect through oxidative damage and apoptosis limits its clinical application. Cafestol (Caf) is a naturally occurring diterpene in unfiltered coffee with unique antioxidant, antimutagenic, and anti-inflammatory activities by activating the Nrf2 pathway. The present study aimed to investigate the potential chemoprotective effect of cafestol on DOX-induced cardiotoxicity in rats. Wistar albino rats of both sexes were administered cafestol (5 mg/kg/day) for 14 consecutive days by oral gavage alone or with doxorubicin which was injected as a single dose (15 mg/kg intraperitoneally at day 14) to i
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Psoriasis is a chronic, inflammatory condition that primarily affects the skin, hair, and joints and is associated with significant humanistic and economic consequences. Psoriasis was induced in mice in this work using an imiquimod 5% cream, an immune response modifier that can cause psoriasis-like skin inflammation when given orally. Paquinimod is prepared as a suspension and has been orally given to mice before imiquimod application. The current study found that paquinimod suspension reduced psoriasis area and severity index, spleen index, skin thickness ,TNF-α,IL-23,IL17 level and gene expression of TN
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