Chemical composition,toxic and development- and reproduction-inhibiting effects of some essential oils against Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acarina: Tetranychidae) as fumigants

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - The two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae), is one of the most serious pests of many crops both indoors and outdoors in...     

Antioxidant Activities of Citrus Albedo and Flavedo Fragments Against Fish Lipid Oxidation

ABSTRACT

This research aimed to inhibit the oxidation of fish lipid by adding the ethanol extracts of albedo and flavedo fragments of grapefruit, sour orange, and bergamot. The samples were stored at 25°C, and analyses were performed on weekly intervals. The albedo fragments of sour orange extract had the highest antioxidant activity (0.342 ± 0.002 µM Trolox) and total phenolic content (5.29 ± 0.00 g GAE/100 g dry matter). Lipid oxidation increased rapidly in control samples compared to the extract treatments. The lowest scores for thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), para-anisidine value, peroxide value, and UV absorbance values were determined in sour orange albedo extracts as 5.21 mg MDA/kg, 17.81 and 4.78 meq O₂/kg, 2.24, and 0.403, respectively, at the end of the storage. More successful results were obtained with the peels of grapefruit and bergamot in supressing the lipid oxidation. Bergamot extract was the most preferred citrus in terms of sensory analyses.     

A Practical LC-MS/MS Method for the Detection of NDMA at Nanogram per Liter Concentrations in Multiple Water Matrices

N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is one of the most important disinfection by-products (DBPs) due to its carcinogenicity even at low concentrations which correspond to the levels occurring in drinking water and wastewater effluents. Therefore, NDMA is a candidate DBP that is expected to be regulated in the near future. However, the measurement of NDMA in the low nanogram per liter range is challenging because of the limitations of analytical techniques including both the sample preparation and the LC-MS/MS. Moreover, the accuracy of most of the current methods is only tested for drinking water and no information is present for other matrices. In this study, a combination of solid-phase extraction (SPE) and LC-MS/MS method that does not require high-resolution MS or advanced techniques for sample pretreatment is developed. Moreover, important factors that affect the optimization of the SPE method are provided to enable readers to optimize their own SPE procedures if necessary. The proposed method was validated for surface water, groundwater, and wastewater samples and the method quantification limit was 2?ng/L. In addition, the proposed method was used to determine the concentration of NDMA precursors measured as NDMA formation potential (NDMAFP) throughout a drinking water treatment plant at two different sampling periods. NDMAFP decreased by approximately 40?% in both samples. The concentrations ranged between 4 and 11.5?ng/L and the presence of these low concentrations underlines the need for an easy to use, yet sensitive method for the determination of NDMA in environmental matrices.     

Identification and pathogenicity of Alternaria alternata causing leaf spot disease on sweet cherry in Province of Turkey

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - Sweet cherry leaf spot, caused by Alternaria spp., causes significant yield losses to sweet cherry production globally. This study was aimed at...     

A survey of animal bites on humans in Bursa,Turkey

Animal bites are a major public health problem. The aim of this study was to conduct a survey of animal bites in Bursa, Turkey. Patients who sought medical care for animal bites over an 18-month period were included in our study (n = 1,715). Data were obtained from the registry of the Bursa State Hospital; 71.84% of the patients were men and 28.16% were women. Bites were most frequent among patients who were >18 years of age (comprising 60.83% of all bites). The anatomical site of the bite was recorded in all 1,715 cases, and 1,778 bite locations on the body were reported. The upper extremities were the most frequent sites of animal bites (53.83%), followed by the lower extremities (38.03%). Bites were most frequently inflicted by dogs (68.04%), followed by cats (28.45%), mice (2.56%), and other animals (hamsters, donkeys, horses, foxes, and rabbits together comprised 0.95% of the bites). As a result, bite incidents were mostly associated with males aged >18 years and occurred in the upper extremities. This study showed that dog bites constitute a major animal bite problem in Bursa, Turkey.     

Fatty Acid Profiles of Different Shrimp Species: Effects of Depth of Catching

The aim of this study was to investigate fatty acid profiles of different shrimp species caught from deep water and shallow water. The shrimp species investigated in the study were Aristeus antennatus, Aristeomorpha foliacea, Plesionica martia, Parapenaeus longirostris, and Plesionica edwardsi from deep water; and Metapenaeus monoceros, Penaeus semisulcatus, Penaeus kerathurus, and Penaeus japonicus from shallow water.

Fatty acid composition of shrimps varied. The main fatty acids were C18:1n9, C16:0, C25:6n3, C22:5n3, and C18:0. Saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) contents of P. longirostris, P. edwardsi, and M. monoceros were markedly different, respectively. The ratio of n6/n3 of the edible tissue of M. monoceros was found to be 0.795, whereas this value was 0.152 in A. foliacea. Among the species studied, the highest docosahexaenoic acid + eicosapentaenoic acid value was found for P. kerathurus. The levels of PUFAs of shallow water shrimps (ranging from 33.44 to 42.77%) were found to be higher than those of deep water shrimps (ranging from 29.68 to 33.95%). Marine animals in the upper water layers gain nutrition through phytoplankton which provides n-3 PUFA depending on solar energy. Shallow water shrimp species provide a satisfying amount of PUFA.     

Acute toxicity of ammonia in Meagre (Argyrosomus regius Asso, 1801) at different temperatures

Argyrosomus regius (3.0 ± 0.9 g) were exposed to different concentrations of ammonia in a series of acute toxicity tests by the static renewal method at three temperature levels (18, 22 and 26°C) at a pH of 8.2. Low temperature clearly increased the tolerance of the fish to total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) and unionized ammonia (NH₃) (P < 0.05). While the 96‐h LC₅₀ values of TAN were 19.79, 10.39 and 5.06 mg L^?1, the 96‐h LC₅₀ of NH₃ were 1.00, 0.70 and 0.44 mg L^?1 at 18, 22 and 26°C respectively. The safe levels of NH₃ for A. regius was estimated to be 0.10, 0.07 and 0.04 mg L^?1 at 18, 22 and 26°C respectively (P < 0.05). This study clearly indicates that A. regius is more sensitive to ammonia than other marine fish species cultured on the Mediterranean and Eastern Atlantic coasts.     

Effect of synthetic nano-hydroxyapatite as an alternative phosphorus source on growth and phosphorus nutrition of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) plant

Phosphorus (P) is one of the least available mineral nutrients to the plants in calcareous and alkaline soils. In this study, we investigated the synthesis, characterization and use of synthetic nano-hydroxyapatite (NHA), P uptake by plants as well as its residual effects. Soluble P source (H₃PO₄) was also included as treatment for comparison. NHA prepared by wet chemical techniques, characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and elemental dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis. NHA and H₃PO₄ were applied at a rate of 200 mg kg^?1 to find out their effects on phosphorus nutrition and growth of lettuce on the low and high calcareous soil. In addition to this, residual effects of NHA and H₃PO₄ were also determined for lettuce plants grown after first lettuce plants in the both soil. Dry weights of the first and second lettuce plants grown in low and high calcareous soil were significantly increased by applied phosphorus regardless of the source. NHA seems to be more effective than that of ordinary phosphorus source (H₃PO₄-P) on growth and P concentration of the lettuce plants. The promising results of this study needs to be supported with long term field studies regarding the uptake, translocation and interactions of nano-P with the other elements.     

Effects of Freezing and Frozen Storage on Protein Functionality and Texture of Some Cephalopod Muscles

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of freezing and frozen storage on protein functionality and texture of squid (Loligo vulgaris), octopus (Octopus vulgaris), and cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) muscles. Squid, octopus, and cuttlefish samples were cut into pieces of 4 × 4 cm. These pieces were packed in polyethylene bags. The bags were frozen in a blast freezer at ?45°C until the thermal center reached ?18°C. Frozen samples were stored in a deep freezer at ?18°C for 30 days. After freezing and during frozen storage, total soluble protein and water holding capacity decreased and total free amino acid and cooking loss increased in all cephalopod muscles. According to instrumental texture analysis results, freezing and frozen storage affected textural characteristics of squid and cuttlefish but not of octopus. Sensory hardness and chewiness values of all cephalopods increased after freezing, but elasticity values did not change. There were no significant differences between storage days in hardness values of squid and octopus. However, significant differences in hardness values of cuttlefish were observed between the 1st day of storage and the last day.