CURRENT STATUS, CHALLENGES, MANAGEMENT AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES OF THE RED PALM WEEVIL Rhynchophorus ferrugineus OLIVIER (COLEOPTERA, CURCULIONIDAE) ERADICATION - A REVIEW

The date palm is a cultural and economic heritage of many nations. The red palm weevil, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus Olivier (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) is among the world’s most serious insect pests of palms that have rapidly expanded its geographical distribution and host plant range during the last decades. Integrated pest management (IPM) is followed to suppress the pest using the most economical and least hazardous methods to humans and the environment. Since R. ferrugineus is a serious pest of date palm production worldwide, farmers, researchers, and scientists have developed many tactics to eradicate this pest. However, there was no published article covering and integrating the current status, biology, ecology, and future control tactics of R. ferrugineus and proposes an IPM program. Therefore, in this review, R. ferrugineus geographical distribution, host plant range, economic importance, infestation symptoms, morphology, biology, and its management tactics were thoroughly discussed. These tactics include early detection of R. ferrugineus infestation, trapping, chemical applications, use of bio-agents, bioinsecticides (plant extracts), resistance cultivars, cultural practices, sterile insect technique, gene silencing technology, quarantine, and geographical information system. In conclusion, all available control tactics suggest that R. ferrugineus could be successfully managed by developing IPM programs comprising several means of control. It is hoped that this review will highlight some aspects of date palm management and raise research gaps and directions deserving further investigations to develop a better understanding of R. ferrugineus management and therefore contributes to the sustainability of date palm cultivation worldwide

The Epidemiology of Respiratory Infections in Mobile Populations

Respiratory Tract Infections (RTIs) in mobile populations such as travellers are prevalent and can escalate into severe illnesses. Timely identification and treatment of these conditions are imperative to prevent disease progression. This thesis aims to to evaluate the epidemiology of RTIs in travellers and mobile populations using mobile applications

Air Quality Monitoring, Assessment and Management

Human beings need to breathe oxygen diluted in certain quantity of inert gas for living. In the atmosphere, there is a gas mixture of, mainly, oxygen and nitrogen, in appropriate proportions. However, the air also contains other gases, vapours and aerosols that humans incorporate when breathing and whose composition and concentration vary spatially. Some of these are physiologically inert. Air pollution has become a problem of major concern in the last few decades as it has caused negative effects on human health, nature and properties. This book presents the results of research studies carried out by international researchers in seventeen chapters which can be grouped into two main sections: a) air quality monitoring and b) air quality assessment and management, and serves as a source of material for all those involved in the field, whether as a student, scientific researcher, industrialist, consultant, or government agency with responsibility in this area

International Conference on Advances in Biosciences and Biotechnology – ICABB-2019

International Conference on Advances in Biosciences and Biotechnology – ICABB-201

2017 Fall - Seek - full issue (PDF)

Fall 2017 issue of See

Health and disease status in a threatened marsupial, the quokka (Setonix brachyurus)

Between 1901 and 1931, there were at least six anecdotal records of disease outbreaks in mainland quokkas (Setonix brachyurus) that were associated with mass mortalities. This time period pre-dates the arrival of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes). Despite these outbreaks, little or no research has been carried out to establish health and disease baseline data of the fragmented and scattered, extant populations. Epidemiological data was determined for a range of potential pathogens, and established physiological reference intervals of apparently healthy, wild quokkas on Rottnest Island and mainland locations. There were significant differences between Rottnest Island and mainland quokkas. Rottnest Island animals had haemograms with mark evidence of oxidative injury and bone marrow response consistent with a regenerative normocytic hypochromic anaemia. Except alkaline phosphatase (ALP), all blood chemistry analytes where higher in mainland animals, with particular emphasis on creatine kinase (CK), alanine amino transferase (ALT), aspartate amino transferase (AST) and vitamin E. Some other key findings include a widespread presence of a novel herpesvirus (MaHV-6), the recovery of Cryptococcus neoformans var. grubii from quokkas in highly altered ecosystems on Rottnest Island, and new Salmonella spp. serovars in Rottnest Island quokkas. Atypical lymphocytes resembling those in proliferative disorders of the lymphoid and haematopoietic tissues in other species were observed in blood smears of animals on Rottnest Island but not on the mainland. The presence of potentially-pathogenic organisms is likely to increase synergistic effects of ongoing and future threats (e.g. habitat clearing, climate change), and could increase quokka extinction risk. Disease surveillance would make a valuable contribution to Recovery Plans for the quokka, enabling preparedness for a rapid response if clinical disease is to happen, and to manage populations in a more integrated way

Towards evidence-based conservation of subterranean ecosystems

Subterranean ecosystems are among the most widespread environments on Earth, yet we still have poor knowledge of their biodiversity. To raise awareness of subterranean ecosystems, the essential services they provide, and their unique conservation challenges, 2021 and 2022 were designated International Years of Caves and Karst. As these ecosystems have traditionally been overlooked in global conservation agendas and multilateral agreements, a quantitative assessment of solution-based approaches to safeguard subterranean biota and associated habitats is timely. This assessment allows researchers and practitioners to understand the progress made and research needs in subterranean ecology and management. We conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed and grey literature focused on subterranean ecosystems globally (terrestrial, freshwater, and saltwater systems), to quantify the available evidence-base for the effectiveness of conservation interventions. We selected 708 publications from the years 1964 to 2021 that discussed, recommended, or implemented 1,954 conservation interventions in subterranean ecosystems. We noted a steep increase in the number of studies from the 2000s while, surprisingly, the proportion of studies quantifying the impact of conservation interventions has steadily and significantly decreased in recent years. The effectiveness of 31% of conservation interventions has been tested statistically. We further highlight that 64% of the reported research occurred in the Palearctic and Nearctic biogeographic regions. Assessments of the effectiveness of conservation interventions were heavily biased towards indirect measures (monitoring and risk assessment), a limited sample of organisms (mostly arthropods and bats), and more accessible systems (terrestrial caves). Our results indicate that most conservation science in the field of subterranean biology does not apply a rigorous quantitative approach, resulting in sparse evidence for the effectiveness of interventions. This raises the important question of how to make conservation efforts more feasible to implement, cost-effective, and long-lasting. Although there is no single remedy, we propose a suite of potential solutions to focus our efforts better towards increasing statistical testing and stress the importance of standardising study reporting to facilitate meta-analytical exercises. We also provide a database summarising the available literature, which will help to build quantitative knowledge about interventions likely to yield the greatest impacts depending upon the subterranean species and habitats of interest. We view this as a starting point to shift away from the widespread tendency of recommending conservation interventions based on anecdotal and expert-based information rather than scientific evidence, without quantitatively testing their effectiveness.Peer reviewe

Antileishmania Compounds From An Unidentified Endophytic Fungus And Biotransformation Of 5,7,2`,4`,5`-Pentahydroxyflavonol

Leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease remaining a major public health problem. It causes illness and death especially in developing countries. Comchemotherapeutic agents currently used are often inadequate, requiring long courses of parenteral administration, having toxic side effects or becoming less effective due to the emergence of resistant strains. Thus, there is an urgent need for new, effective, and inexpensive drugs. In the fight against leishmaniasis, natural products are important sources of novel therapeutic agents. The goal of our research is to study secondary metabolites from endophytic fungi as a source of effective antileishmanial agents. Many crude extracts from endophytic fungi have been screened for antiparasitic activity against Leishmania donovani and Plasmodium falciparum. The active samples were further evaluated regarding their toxicity versus mammalian cell lines. From the results, DC401 was identified as a promising source of new antiparasitic compounds. Biotransformation is defined as the use of biological systems to modify substances that are not used for growth. The process leads to a modified chemical structure and therefore a change in activity of the biotransformed compound, if the activity and structure are correlated. The bioassay-guided fractionation of Limonium myrianthum resulted in the isolation of 5,7,2\u27,4\u27,5\u27- pentahydroxyflavonol. This compound possessed significant antifungal activity against the fungal pathogens Candida glabrata and Candida krusei at IC50 4.44 and 9.56 ?g/mL, respectively. Biotransformation of 5,7,2\u27,4\u27,5\u27- pentahydroxyflavonol compound was done in an attempt to improve its biological activity