Antimicrobial and cytotoxic constituents from the seeds of Annona squamosa

Annotemoyin-1, Annotemoyin-2, squamocin and cholesteryl glucopyranoside were isolated from the seeds of Annona squamosa. These compounds and plant extracts showed remarkable antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities.     

People’s attitude and use of forestland: Co-evolution of forest administration in Bangladesh

This paper explores the influence over time of past policies on people’s attitudes towards the use of forestland in Bangladesh. The discourses of the attitudes of people were captured from the observed social tradition towards forest resources. Forests were reserved systematically and solely through the Forest Department. The conservation processes were not participatory, and rights and tenure were strictly controlled. People were socially excluded and alienated from the forest, and the socio-political factors stimulated negative attitudes among people. Forests were considered to be government property, and therefore managing forests was the responsibility of the government. People only used forest resources to meet their own requirements, either with formal permission or illegally. This situation continued even after the independence of Bangladesh in 1971. As a result, the forests of Bangladesh have been degraded heavily in recent decades.     

Study of male effect on feeding and estrus behavior of Afshari ewes

Tropical Animal Health and Production - This study was conducted to evaluate the male effect on the manifestation of estrus and feeding behavior of Afshari ewes during their breeding season. The...     

Insecticidal and anti-microbial activity of bio-oil derived from fast pyrolysis of lignin,cellulose, and hemicellulose

Journal of Pest Science - Conflicting views regarding synthetic pesticides include the successful use as pest management tools for agriculture and forestry on one hand and the threats to components...     

Integrated pest management of Tuta absoluta: practical implementations across different world regions

Journal of Pest Science - The South American tomato pinworm, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), has invaded most Afro-Eurasian countries and is threatening worldwide tomato...     

Effects of tree species diversity on leaf litter decomposition process in semi-arid Mediterranean oak forests

European Journal of Forest Research - Many studies have been conducted on the effects of changes in plant diversity and species composition on ecosystem functioning and plant productivity due to...     

Biofloc technology with addition molasses as carbon sources applied to Litopenaeus vannamei juvenile production under the effects of different C/N ratios

The current study was conducted to evaluate the effects of increasing carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratios on water quality, growth performance, and body composition of Litopenaeus vannamei juveniles. Shrimp with initial average weight of 2.50?±?0.3 g were cultivated for 35 days in 300-L tanks (160 L of water volume) with a density of 1 g per liter. The experiment was performed in five treatments with three replicates. One control group and four biofloc treatments with different C/N ratio were considered: C/N of 10 (CN10), 14 (CN14), 18 (CN18), and 22 (CN22). Shrimp were fed three times a day, and molasses just was added as a carbon sources to the biofloc treatments after each feeding. According to the results, the lowest amount of dissolved oxygen (5.33 mg L^?1) and pH (7.83) was observed in CN22 treatment, which showed a significant difference with other treatments (P?<?0.05). The highest level of total ammonia nitrogen (1.05 mg L^?1) and nitrite (mg L^?1) were recorded in control group, while the highest total density of heterotrophic bacteria was obtained in CN22 treatment. Growth performance parameters were at the highest level in the CN14 treatment, so the highest amount of final weight (6.88 g), biomass, and survival rate (94.79%) were observed in this treatment. The biochemical composition (protein, lipid, and ash) of the shrimp body and produced biofloc were affected by different C/N ratios, so these parameters were increased by rising of C/N ratio. In general, this study showed that the growth performance and body composition of Pacific white shrimp juveniles and water quality were suitable for rearing in biofloc system with C/N ratio of 14 than other treatments.

     

Understanding the economic and farming practices driving species selection in aquaculture within the Mymensingh division of Bangladesh

Aquaculture is a major supplier of animal protein for Bangladesh’s population, and the Mymensingh division is a major contributor to finfish aquaculture, producing 43% of the total pond pangasius and 9% of the total amount of tilapia (figures from 2018). We conducted a finfish farmer survey covering Netrokona, Jamalpur and Mymensingh districts to understand current finfish farming practices and identify factors that drive farmers in their species choice between pangasius or tilapia cultivation. We found that most finfish farmers in Mymensingh are experienced practitioners and practise polyculture with a range of stocking densities for each species. Using an economic model of polyculture practice, we have shown that over a production cycle, pangasius gain body mass at a rate nearly 4 times greater than that for tilapia, resulting in substantially larger revenues and providing a strong incentive for their culture. High levels of tilapia aquaculture likely persist due to their short production cycle and an associated decreased economic risk due to crop loss from disease, both factors providing a strong incentive for their culture. Our findings also indicate production yield differences through different species selection in polyculture systems. For example, co-culturing pangasius, tilapia and carp together was less productive than co-culture of pangasius with tilapia. Furthermore, higher yields of tilapia were obtained when co-cultured with carp compared with pangasius, the reasons for which are not known and warrant further investigation. Our study uses information provided by finfish farmers to produce a useful guide on fish species choices to maximise production yields, and therefore food production, from their ponds.

     

Molecular typing of Iranian field isolates Mycoplasma synoviae and their differentiation from the live commercial vaccine strain MS-H using vlhA gene

1. The single-copy domain of the N-terminal region of the vlhA gene of Mycoplasma synoviae was sequenced, analysed and verified and used to type Iranian field isolates of M. synoviae and the MS-H live vaccine strain. In addition, a restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) method was developed to differentiate between field isolates of Iranian and MS-H vaccine strains.

2. All sequences were analysed and aligned; the percentage similarity of the DNA was calculated and dendrograms were constructed. Based on single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) that existed in all field isolates in Iran, the PCR-RFLP method allowed the differentiation of all M. synoviae field isolates from the vaccine strain.

3. Using phylogenetic analysis, the isolates were assigned to 8 unique genotypes and, within each group, DNA had a high level of similarity.

4. DNA sequence analysis and PCR-RFLP of the amplicon based on percent similarity and evolutionary relationship appeared to be useful tools for strain differentiation whether M. synoviae clinical isolates from infected chickens were derived from the vaccine strain or wild-type strains.

5. This study confirms the potential value of strain typing for epidemiological purposes and suggests that phylogenetic studies are essential to understand the true relationships between strains.