Cold plasma: exploring a new option for management of postharvest fungal pathogens, mycotoxins and insect pests in Australian stored cereal grain

2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (8) ◽  
pp. 715
Author(s):  
M. Kaur ◽  
D. Hüberli ◽  
K. L. Bayliss
Keyword(s):  
Fungal Pathogens ◽  
Cold Plasma ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Insect Pests ◽  
Nutrient Content ◽  
Cereal Grain ◽  
Biological Contaminants ◽  
Shelf Life Studies ◽  
Physical Treatments ◽  
And Control

Various strategies are used to reduce postharvest cereal grain contaminants such as insect pests and fungal pathogens. Chemical and physical treatments are common management practices but may leave harmful chemical residues on grains or alter their nutrient content (particularly temperature treatments) and have other limitations. This review explores the recent literature regarding cold plasma, with emphasis on its efficacy for decontamination of postharvest cereal grain from biological contaminants. Cold plasma is an ionised gas containing reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, electrons and free radicals that are lethal to microorganisms and has the potential to decontaminate food surfaces and to increase shelf life. Studies conducted on rice, wheat, corn, barley and oats have demonstrated that cold plasma significantly reduced the amount of fungi, bacteria and their spores on grain surfaces. Cold plasma may also detoxify mycotoxins, and control insect pests. Evidence from various global studies demonstrates the potential use of cold plasma to manage postharvest fungi, mycotoxins and insect pests in Australian stored cereal grain.

A Guide to Planting Wildflower Enhancements in Florida

EDIS ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary C. Bammer ◽  
Josh Campbell ◽  
Chase B. Kimmel ◽  
James D.. Ellis ◽  
Jaret C. Daniels
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Insect Pests ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Agricultural Producers ◽  
Native Plant Species ◽  
Control Techniques ◽  
Wild Bee ◽  
Pollinator Species ◽  
Nesting Sites ◽  
The Right

The establishment of native wildflower plantings in Florida can benefit agricultural producers as well as native pollinators and other beneficial insects (predators and parasitoids). The plantings do this by:  providing forage and nesting sites for bees, butterflies, and other pollinators, increasing wild bee numbers possibly across the farm, and increasing natural enemies of insect pests (that also depend on forage and nesting sites). This document discusses choosing the right mix of native plant species to benefit many pollinator species, as well as proper site selection, planting practices, and weed control techniques. Wildflower plots should be practical to manage, maximize benefits to wildlife, and fit into the overall management practices of the property. 

scholarly journals The Combined Effect of Weaning Stress and Immune Activation during Pig Gestation on Serum Cytokine and Analyte Concentrations

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 2274
Author(s):  
Haley E. Rymut ◽  
Laurie A. Rund ◽  
Courtni R. Bolt ◽  
Maria B. Villamil ◽  
Bruce R. Southey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Immune Activation ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Interleukin 1 ◽  
Interleukin 2 ◽  
Blood Chemistry ◽  
Respiratory Syndrome Virus ◽  
Weaning Stress ◽  
And Control ◽  
Metabolic Hormone

Weaning stress can elicit changes in the metabolic, hormone and immune systems of pigs and interact with prolonged disruptions stemming from maternal immune activation (MIA) during gestation. The present study advances the characterization of the combined effects of weaning stress and MIA on blood chemistry, immune and hormone indicators that inform on the health of pigs. Three-week-old female and male offspring of control gilts or gilts infected with the porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus were allocated to weaned or nursed groups. The anion gap and bilirubin profiles suggest that MIA enhances tolerance to the effects of weaning stress. Interleukin 1 beta and interleukin 2 were highest among weaned MIA females, and cortisol was higher among weaned relative to nursed pigs across sexes. Canonical discriminant analysis demonstrated that weaned and nursed pigs have distinct chemistry profiles, whereas MIA and control pigs have distinct cytokine profiles. The results from this study can guide management practices that recognize the effects of the interaction between MIA and weaning stress on the performance and health of pigs.

scholarly journals Survey on maize post-harvest losses and its management practices in the western hills of Nepal

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ghanashyam Bhandari ◽  
Bhuddhi Bahadur Achhami ◽  
Tika Bahadur Karki ◽  
Balram Bhandari ◽  
Gopal Bhandari
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Insect Pests ◽  
Storage Conditions ◽  
Maize Weevil ◽  
Farming Communities ◽  
Storage Losses ◽  
Angoumois Grain Moth ◽  
Development Committee ◽  
Village Development Committee ◽  
Open Floor

A survey was conducted in order to assess the losses of maize under farmers’ storage conditions in the Western hills of Nepal in 2014. The survey area included Thanapati Village Development Committee (VDC) of Gulmi, Aalamdebi VDC of Syangja, Khasauli VDC of Palpa and Baglung municipality-12, Baglung district. Primary information was collected through semi-structured questionnaires among the heterogenous groups of the farming communities. Survey revealed that about 61% respondents reported the storage pest as the major pests and about 12% respondents reported that field pests as the major pests in the western hills. Maize weevil (Sitophylus zeamais Mostsch.) and Angoumois grain moth (Sitotroga cerealella Oliv.) were found to be major storage insect pests in surveyed areas. Majority of respondents (39%) presumed on 10-20% losses during storage. Among the other biotic factors, farmers ranked insect (42%), weeds (32%) and diseases (17%) respectively. Maize storage methods had distinct among the surveyed areas compared with Baglung district to other surveyed areas. In Baglung, about (73%) farmers had stored maize in the form of grain whereas in Palpa, Gulmi and Syangja, about (77%) farmers had practice of storing maize with husk for 5-7 months. Approximately, 40% respondents were using open floor in upper stair “Aanti”as a major maize storage place in Palpa, Gulmi and Syangja whereas almost (79%) of respondents were using sacks to store shelled grains in Baglung. Hence, there is ample opportunity to reduce the storage losses of maize depending upon the existing situation.Journal of Maize Research and Development (2015) 1(1):98-105DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.34288

Plant MicroRNAs Responsive to Fungal Infection

2014 ◽  
Vol 941-944 ◽  
pp. 1141-1145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Li Zhang ◽  
Lin Chen ◽  
Wen Na Li ◽  
Li Li Wang ◽  
Hong Yu Xie
Keyword(s):  
Fungal Pathogens ◽  
High Throughput Sequencing ◽  
Adaptive Immune System ◽  
Messenger Rnas ◽  
Disease Mechanism ◽  
Adaptive Immune ◽  
Alternative Approach ◽  
Crop Disease ◽  
Transcriptional Gene Regulation ◽  
And Control

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous small RNAs transcribed from non-coding DNA, which have the capacity to base pair with the target mRNAs (messenger RNAs) to repress their translation or resulted in cleavage. We have paid much attention on the DNA and its coded proteins, the discovery of miRNAs as gene negatively regulators has led to a fundamental change in understanding of post-transcriptional gene regulation in plants. Fungal pathogens infection is the main cause of most economic crops diseases. Unlike humans, plants don’t evolved to have a adaptive immune system, they protect themselves with a mechanism consists of activation and response. Recently, high throughput sequencing validated that miRNA play a crucial role in plant-fungus interaction. A better understanding of miRNA-mediated disease mechanism in fungi should clarify the strategy of crop disease control. MiRNA-based manipulations as gene suppressors, such as artificial miRNAs, may emerge as a new alternative approach for the improvement of crops and control of crop disease.

scholarly journals Identification of sensitive indicators to assess the interrelationship between soil quality, management practices and human health

SOIL ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 173-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Zornoza ◽  
J. A. Acosta ◽  
F. Bastida ◽  
S. G. Domínguez ◽  
D. M. Toledo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Aggregate Stability ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
Nutrient Content ◽  
Sustainable Land Use ◽  
Soil Quality Index

Abstract. Soil quality (SQ) assessment has long been a challenging issue, since soils present high variability in properties and functions. This paper aims to increase the understanding of SQ through the review of SQ assessments in different scenarios providing evidence about the interrelationship between SQ, land use and human health. There is a general consensus that there is a need to develop methods to assess and monitor SQ for assuring sustainable land use with no prejudicial effects on human health. This review points out the importance of adopting indicators of different nature (physical, chemical and biological) to achieve a holistic image of SQ. Most authors use single indicators to assess SQ and its relationship with land uses – soil organic carbon and pH being the most used indicators. The use of nitrogen and nutrient content has resulted sensitive for agricultural and forest systems, together with physical properties such as texture, bulk density, available water and aggregate stability. These physical indicators have also been widely used to assess SQ after land use changes. The use of biological indicators is less generalized, with microbial biomass and enzyme activities being the most selected indicators. Although most authors assess SQ using independent indicators, it is preferable to combine some of them into models to create a soil quality index (SQI), since it provides integrated information about soil processes and functioning. The majority of revised articles used the same methodology to establish an SQI, based on scoring and weighting of different soil indicators, selected by means of multivariate analyses. The use of multiple linear regressions has been successfully used for forest land use. Urban soil quality has been poorly assessed, with a lack of adoption of SQIs. In addition, SQ assessments where human health indicators or exposure pathways are incorporated are practically inexistent. Thus, further efforts should be carried out to establish new methodologies to assess soil quality not only in terms of sustainability, productivity and ecosystem quality but also human health. Additionally, new challenges arise with the use and integration of stable isotopic, genomic, proteomic and spectroscopic data into SQIs.

scholarly journals The Potential Use of Isothermal Amplification Assays for In-Field Diagnostics of Plant Pathogens

Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 2424
Author(s):  
Aleksandr V. Ivanov ◽  
Irina V. Safenkova ◽  
Anatoly V. Zherdev ◽  
Boris B. Dzantiev
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Diagnostics ◽  
Fungal Pathogens ◽  
Plant Pathogens ◽  
Isothermal Amplification ◽  
Detection Methods ◽  
Nucleic Acid Detection ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Fungal Phytopathogens ◽  
Highly Sensitive Detection ◽  
And Control

Rapid, sensitive, and timely diagnostics are essential for protecting plants from pathogens. Commonly, PCR techniques are used in laboratories for highly sensitive detection of DNA/RNA from viral, viroid, bacterial, and fungal pathogens of plants. However, using PCR-based methods for in-field diagnostics is a challenge and sometimes nearly impossible. With the advent of isothermal amplification methods, which provide amplification of nucleic acids at a certain temperature and do not require thermocyclic equipment, going beyond the laboratory has become a reality for molecular diagnostics. The amplification stage ceases to be limited by time and instruments. Challenges to solve involve finding suitable approaches for rapid and user-friendly plant preparation and detection of amplicons after amplification. Here, we summarize approaches for in-field diagnostics of phytopathogens based on different types of isothermal amplification and discuss their advantages and disadvantages. In this review, we consider a combination of isothermal amplification methods with extraction and detection methods compatible with in-field phytodiagnostics. Molecular diagnostics in out-of-lab conditions are of particular importance for protecting against viral, bacterial, and fungal phytopathogens in order to quickly prevent and control the spread of disease. We believe that the development of rapid, sensitive, and equipment-free nucleic acid detection methods is the future of phytodiagnostics, and its benefits are already visible.

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