Comparative Effectiveness of Potential Elicitors of Soybean Plant Resistance Against Spodoptera Littoralis and Their Effects on Secondary Metabolites and Antioxidant Defense System

Gesunde Pflanzen - Cotton leaf worm (Spodoptera littoralis) is considered one of the most destructive agricultural pests in Egypt. It is overcome by the producer by using chemical pesticides, but...     

Microbiological study and insecticidal potential of purified extract from Streptomyces sp. on the larvae of Galleria mellonella

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - In the present study, one Streptomyces species was isolated from a soil sample that was collected in Khafr El Shikh Governorate. Actinomycetes are...     

Comparison of California Mastitis Test (CMT), Somatic Cell Counts (SCC) and bacteriological examinations for detection of camel (Camelus dromedarius) mastitis in Ethiopia

A total of 956 quarter milk samples from 253 traditionally managed lactating camels were collected aseptically from Negele (Borena Region), Dire Dawa, and Gewane (Afar Region), Ethiopia, according to multi-stage sampling. The quarter milk samples were subjected to California Mastitis Test (CMT), Somatic Cell Counts (SCC) and bacteriological examinations. Five hundred and seventy one (59.7%) quarter milk samples had microorganisms. Of these, 428 (75.0%) had isolates that were identified as major pathogens (MAP) and 143 (25.0%) as minor pathogens (MIP). A positive correlation was found between CMT scores and bacteriological classes (MAP, MIP) (p-value = 0.00). Strong correlation (p-value = 0.00) between CMT scores and SCC was recorded. The differences among the median log SCC of bacteriological classes (MAP, MIP) were not significant (p-value = 0.24). Similarly, the application of the cut-off level of 2.5 x 10(5) ml(-1) indicated less agreement (p-value = 0.32) for bacteriological classes MAP and MIP.     

Flock dynamics of desert Barki sheep in relation to age structure

Reproduction data of 8689 ewe records spread over 40 years (from 1960 to 2000) representing 2952 breeding Barki ewes were used in this study. The flock belonged to the Desert Research Center in Egypt. Flock dynamics of nine age groups (2–10 yrs) were assessed. Two parameters were used to evaluate flock dynamics, net reproduction rate (R_o) (number of ewe- lambs reaching joining age and produced by each ewe during its lifetime in the flock) and intrinsic rate of increase (r_m) (flock growth when no resource is limiting). Age of ewe had a highly significant (P < 0.01) effect on number of ewes lambing per ewe joined (E_PJ), number of lambs born per ewe joined (L_BJ), number of lambs weaned per ewe joined (L_WJ) and number of ewe lambs reaching joining age per ewe joined (L_EJ.J). All estimates tended to increase with dams age up to four years and decreased thereafter. The results of R_o and r_m showed that the studied flock must consist of 5 age groups to maintain its size and replace itself. It may be recommended to cull the breeding ewe at the age of 6 years to accelerate genetic improvement.     

Role of protease inhibitors and acylation stimulating protein in the adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 cells

Treatment of AIDS (HIV) and hepatitis C virus needs protease inhibitors (PI) to prevent viral replication. Uses of PI in therapy are usually associated with a decrease in body weight and dyslipidemia. Acylation stimulating protein (ASP) is a protein synthesized in adipocytes to increase triglycerides biosynthesis, for that the relation of PI and ASP to adipogenesis is tested in this work. ASP expression was increased during 3T3-L1 differentiation and reached a peak at day 8 with cell maturation. Addition of PI during adipocytes differentiation dose dependently and significantly (p < 0.5) inhibited the degree of triglycerides (TG) accumulation. Moreover, presence of ASP (450 ng/mL) in media significantly (p < 0.5) stimulated the degree of TG accumulation and there was additive stimulation for ASP when added with insulin (10 µg/mL). Finally, when ASP in different doses (Low, 16.7; Medium, 45 and High, 450 ng/mL) incubated with a dose of ×150 PI, ASP partially inhibited the PI-inhibited adipogenesis and TG accumulation. The results in this study show that PI inhibit lipids accumulation and confirm role of ASP in TG biosynthesis and adipogenesis.     

Ameliorative Effects of Brassinosteroids on Growth and Productivity of Snap Beans Grown Under High Temperature

The effect of brassinosteroids (BRs) was tested, in order to assess the possibility of alleviation of the adverse effects of high temperature stress on snap bean plants during delayed summer cultivation. Therefore, two field experiments were carried out in successive seasons, 2010 and 2011, with two bean cultivars ‘Paulesta’ and ‘Oxzira’, spraying with BRs of the following concentrations 0 (control), 25, 50 and 100 ppm. Plant growth, yield and pods quality of beans were studied. Spraying bean plants with BRs at a concentration of 25 and 50 ppm increased vegetative growth, total yield and quality of pods with no significant difference between both treatments. Using BRs at 25 ppm increased the total free amino acids (FAA) in leaves and total phenolic acids in the pod in comparison to control-treatment. ‘Oxzira’ cultivar resulted in the highest number of leaves, number of branches, dry weight of whole plant, total yield, total FAA in leaves and total phenolic acids in pod. Whereas, ‘Paulesta’ cultivar had the highest of plant length and total FAA in pods.     

Effect of carbonate in clay fraction on fixation of zinc

The results indicate that CaCO3 in the clay fraction of Egytian soils has a greater affinity for Zn than silicate clay. Moreover, in the presence of carbonate, Zn was retained more tightly to form complexes hard to be extracted and, thus, relatively unavailable for plant uptake. Therefore, CaCO, plays an important role in zinc deficiency which is commonly found in calcareous soils.     

Effect of Biuret Content in Urea on the Growth and Nitrogen uptake of some Grain Crops in Egyptian Soils

Seven pot experiments were conducted to study the direct and the accumulative effect of urea containing (0.4, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 3.0 and 4.0 %) biuret on the growth of rice, wheat, and maize plants and their N content and N uptake in two fine textured alluvial soils and one sandy clay loam (highly calcareous) soil. It was found that both rice and wheat grain yields were not significantly reduced in all soils where urea containing high percentage of biuret was used namely 3 % and 4 %. Ammonium sulphate fertilizer was superior to urea in plant production only in the sandy clay loam. Moreover, the N recovery was higher in the alluvial soils in comparison to the sandy clay loam. The accumulative addition of biuret to the soils did not further reduce either the growth rate or the N uptake of the plants.     

Women's iodine status and its determinants in an iodine-deficient area in the Kayes region, Mali

OBJECTIVE: To assess iodine status and its determinants in women of childbearing age in a rural area in the Kayes region, Mali, West Africa. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study where women's iodine status was indicated by urinary iodine concentration (UIC) and level of goitre based on palpation. Salt iodine was assessed semi-quantitatively at household level. Individual characteristics were collected using questionnaires. SETTING: Fifteen villages in a rural area in the Kayes region of Mali. SUBJECTS: Women aged 15-45 years (n=423). RESULTS: Median UIC was 2.7 microg dl(-1), and only 6% of the women had adequate iodine status of UIC >10 microg dl(-1). Most women (60%) had visible goitre, and only 9% were classified as without goitre. Only 39% of the households were using salt with any iodine, and level of knowledge about salt iodisation was low. Main determinants of UIC were breast-feeding and level of salt iodisation; currently breast-feeding women had lower UIC, and UIC increased with increasing level of iodine in household salt. Prevalence of goitre was lower in older women with higher body mass index. CONCLUSION: The study indicates severe iodine deficiency in the study area. Urgent action is needed to improve the situation through enforcing salt iodisation legislation and increasing the level of knowledge about the importance of iodised salt in the population.