Biological control by Trichoderma harzianum of damping-off of lettuce caused by Rhizoctonia solani1

Ten isolates of Trichoderma harzianum were tested for their ability to control lettuce seedling damping-off caused by introduced Rhizoctonia solani. T. harzianum isolates TRC 9 and 28 both reduced damping-off. Dual culture experiments were used to select isolates for the study of antibiotic production and mycoparasitism. T. harzianum isolate TRC 12 produced volatile and non-volatile antibiotics, whilst TRC 33 produced only non-volatile antibiotics. T. harzianum isolates 018-2/Y and TRC 9,15 and 28 mycoparasitized R. solani by coiling around and lysing the host hyphae. It appeared that mycoparasitism was more important than antibiosis in the biological control of damping-off.     

Chemotherapy of experimental toxoplasmosis with special reference to robenidine

Robenidine as an anticoccidial agent alone (in doses of 50 and 100 mg/kg) or in association with two other antiprotozoal compounds--pyrimethamine and sulfadoxine (in doses of 2.5 and 250 mg/kg, respectively) were tested in the treatment of chronically infected mice with an avirulent cyst-forming HF strain of Toxoplasma gondii. The efficacy of the used drugs was evaluated by the cysts number in the brains of treated mice versus control group, antibody level and viability of survived cysts by the consecutive infection of mice. According to these criteria none of the tested drugs alone or combined exhibited to be able to produce an effective cure of cyst-stage of toxoplasmosis in experimental mice.     

Importance of the proportion of grassy weeds within legume crops in the perpetuation of Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici

Various grass species susceptible to infection by Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici were mixed-sown into a legume crop in order to assess their influence on density of inoculum and take-all disease in a subsequent crop of wheat.
In a pot experiment take-all inoculum increased ( P < 0.001) in all treatments containing a proportion (from 20 to 100%, in increments of 20%) of grass in subterranean clover. In a plot trial, most severe take-all occurred in the 20% legume/80% grass stands and least in the 100% legume and 80% legume/20% grass stands. Total grain weight was highest ( P <0.1) after the 100% legume stands. There was no difference in severity of take-all after pure stands of medic, subterranean clover and lupin, but there was more severe take-all after the grass-infested medic stands than after those of subterranean clover ( P < 0.1) or lupin ( P < 0.05). No significant differences ( P > 0.1) in yield occurred in wheat following any of the legumes or mixed stands.     

Persistence and binding of DDT and gamma-HCH in a sandy loam soil under field conditions in Delhi,India

Persistence and binding capacity of [¹⁴C]p, p′-DDT and [¹⁴C]y-HCH were studied for one year in a sandy loam soil of Delhi, India, after surface treatment during monsoon, winter and summer seasons under field conditions. Both DDT and HCH dissipated more rapidly under the Indian subtropical climate than reported for temperate regions. In all three seasons, both insecticides dissipated most rapidly during the initial 60 days. However, in the final six months there was very little change in the residue levels. After one year, the final soil burden of DDT varied from 33 to 36% and of HCH from 14 to 15% of the initial concentrations in the different experiments. HCH bound more with the soil as, out of the total residues present after one year, more than 75% of HCH was in bound form compared with only 24% of DDT. The observed time for 50% initial dissipation of DDT ranged from 60 to 120 days, while in the case of HCH it varied from 30 to 45 days. However, the rate of loss of residues which persisted for more than 6 months was equivalent to a half-life of between 500 and 10000 days for DDT, and between 700 and 2000 days for HCH, thus illustrating the very long persistence of aged residues. Since degradation of both insecticides was apparently minimal, the data indicate that dissipation of DDT and HCH was largely due to volatilisation.     

Persistence of hexachlorocyclohexane isomers and carbofuran applied to surface and sub-surface layers of a flooded soil

The persistence of carbofuran (2, 3-dihydro-2, 2-dimethylbenzofuran-7-yl methylcarbamate) and the β- and γ-isomers of HCH (hexachlorocyclohexane) applied to surface (oxidised) and sub-surface (reduced) layers of a flooded soil was studied using radiolabelled insecticides. In one experiment, these compounds were placed in the surface (2–5 mm) and sub-surface (10–15 cm) layers of 10-day flooded soil columns. HCH isomers were unstable under flooded soil conditions irrespective of their placement, but disappeared slightly faster when applied to the sub-surface layer, possibly due to the more reduced conditions prevailing. In contrast, sub-surface-applied carbofuran was more stable than surface-applied carbofuran. The decreased stability of surface-applied carbofuran may be due to a relatively higher pH in the surface layer and in the flood water which was in immediate contact with the surface layer. In another experiment, surface and sub-surface soil samples were collected from a rice field which had been flooded for 30 days. These soils were then again flooded under laboratory conditions prior to addition of carbofuran and β-HCH. Upon submergence, both surface and sub-surface soil samples attained almost equally reduced conditions. In flooded surface soil samples, more rapid degradation not only of carbofuran but also of β-HCH occurred, compared with similarly incubated sub-surface soil samples.     

Association of double-stranded RNA with whitefly-mediated silvering in squash

A disorder of unknown aetiology appearing as silvering on squash (Cucurbita pepo) leaves has become prevalent in south Florida. Typical symptoms, observed after 2 weeks of exposure to adults of Bemisia tabaci , the sweet potato whitefly (SPWF) include vein clearing followed by silvering of whole leaves. Fruits from affected plants are blanched or streaked longitudinally. The silverleaf syndrome was not mechanically transmissible when crude extracts of symptomatic leaves were used as inoculum. Two sizes of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) of c. 4.6 and 4.2 kilobase pairs (kbp) were consistently observed in leaf extracts of caged, whitefly-infested, symptomatic plants. In contrast, caged plants not exposed to whiteflies showed no symptoms and contained no detectable dsRN A. In addition, squash plants exposed to SPWF colonies from California neither developed silverleaf symptoms nor contained any dsRNA. Double-stranded RNA could also be readily detected in whitefly-infested yellow summer squash and zucchini from the field. However, asymptomatic eggplant and watermelon infested with SPWF from nearby fields did not contain detectable dsRNA. Dot-spot hybridization assays using an RNA-specific probe detected homologous sequences in both adults and nymphs of SPWF that induced silverleaf symptoms but not in adults and nymphs of SPWF that could not induce silverleaf symptoms. These results, along with the non-endogenous nature of the detected dsRNA suggest that the dsRNA is or is associated with the causal agent of whitefly-mediated leaf silvering in squash.     

Susceptibility of Mastomys natalensis to Brugia malayi following pretreatment with antifilarials

Mastomys natalensis pretreated with diethylcarbamazine (DEC), levamisole or centperazine were exposed to the standard inoculum of infective larvae of Brugia malayi. Percentage 'take' of infection, duration of prepatent period, course of microfilaraemia and number of adult worms recovered were compared with those of untreated infected Mastomys (control). DEC and centperazine did not alter the 'take' (DEC/centperazine: 100%; control: 88.24%) and the average prepatent period (DEC: 105.44 days; centperazine: 105.18 days, control: 109.20 days). In levamisole pretreated animals on the other hand, the 'take' was much lower (68.18%) with extended prepatent period (125.87 days). However, unlike centperazine and control, the course of microfilaraemia was identical in DEC and levamisole pretreated animals. The average adult worm recovery was significantly high in centperazine pretreated animals being 14.09 as against 8.12, 7.46 and 8.42 in DEC, levamisole pretreated and control animals, respectively.     

Detection of tomato spotted wilt virus and transmission by Frankliniella occidentalis in France

Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) was isolated from pepper, tomato, eggplant, broad bean, lettuce, basil, chrysanthemum, aster, New Guinea impatiens, anemone and gloxinia plants. Virus identification was based on host range, vector transmission, serology and electron microscopy. TSWV was readily detected by ELISA in naturally or artificially infected cultivated or weed plants. The virus was also detected in individual F. occidentalis thrips. The spread of TSWV in vegetable and ornamental plants in greenhouses and/or in the open is related to the close relationship of the virus with the vector.     

Phenotypic instability of flusilazole sensitivity in Venturia inaequalis

Sensitivities of 16 monoconidial isolates of Venturia inaequalis to the sterol demethylation inhibitor flusilazole were found to be stable, when cultures which had been successively transferred to inhibitor-free nutrient agar and maintained at 20 C were retested 6 months after isolation. In contrast, with storage of these isolates at 2 C for 7 additional months, phenotypic sensitivities were subject to change. A high degree of phenotypic instability was also observed for 77 representative strains which had been subcultured for 10 months. In both cases, the majority of strains became more sensitive to flusilazole. The frequency and magnitude of these changes were most pronounced for strains with moderate levels of resistance. More than 70% of the strains investigated were collected from wild-type populations, suggesting that the reversion of resistant strains was not related to a process of unstable adaptation but to a high degree of plasticity in the genetic control of sensitivities to sterol demethylation inhibitors.     

Quick decline of macadamia trees: association with Xylaria arbuscula

Some macadamia trees in a commercial orchard on the island of Hawaii showing symptoms of quick decline had club-shaped fruiting bodies of Xylaria arbuscula on the trunk. X arbuscula was consistently isolated from diseased wood and was shown to kill branches of healthy macadamia trees on inoculation. Trunk infection by this pathogen leading to girdling resulted in a more rapid decline than would be expected with root infection by soil-borne pathogens.