The effect of leaf bud trimming and fruit position arrangement on the quality of golden melon (Cucumis melo L.)

Melon are one of the most popular fruit commodities, but, despite the demand, its production in Indonesia has declined. One measure that can be used to optimize the quality of melon fruit is to trim off the leaf buds and arrange the position of fruiting on the stem, and this study, using the golden melon cultivar ‘Apollo,’ aimed to identify the effects of leaf bud trimming and fruit position arrangement in improving the quantity and quality of the fruit harvest. The experiment was conducted from March to May 2018 in the greenhouse of Food Crop and Horticulture Agribusiness Development (UPT Pengembangan Agribisnis Tanaman Pangan dan Hortikultura), in Lebo, Sidoarjo, Indonesia. It was based on a split-plot design, with leaf bud trimming as the main factor, consisting of two groups (trimming or not trimming), and fruit positions as the secondary factor, consisting of four stages, all repeated at four different time intervals. A correlation was found between leaf bud trimming and fruit position arrangement toward the number of leaves. However, the treatments did not affect the growth and yield of the plants, but did have a significant effect on fruit weight, sweetness, and volume. It was concluded that trimming off the leaf buds and arranging the fruiting position on golden melon plants can increase the quality of fruits, with the treatment involving trimming combined with arranging fruiting on the twelfth–thirteenth segment showing the best results

Molecular epidemiology of dermatophytes in Tehran, Iran, a clinical and microbial survey

In the framework of a survey on dermatophytoses, 14,619 clinical specimens taken from outpatients with symptoms suggestive of tinea and referred to a Medical Mycology laboratory in Tehran, Iran, were analyzed by direct microscopy and culture. In total, 777 dermatophyte strains recovered in culture were randomly identified by a formerly established RFLP analysis method based on the rDNA ITS regions. For confirmation of species identification, 160 isolates representing the likely entire species spectrum were subjected to ITS-sequencing. Infection was confirmed in 5,175 collected samples (35.4%) by direct microscopy and/or culture. Tinea pedis was the most prevalent type of infection (43.4%), followed by tinea unguium (21.3%), tinea cruris (20.7%), tinea corporis (9.4%), tinea manuum (4.2%), tinea capitis (0.8%) and tinea faciei (0.2%). Trichophyton interdigitale was the most common isolate (40.5%) followed by T. rubrum (34.75%), Epidermophyton floccosum (15.6%), Microsporum canis (3.9%), T. tonsurans (3.5 %) and M. gypseum (0.5%). Other species included M. ferrugineum, T. erinacei, T. violaceum, T. schoenleinii, and a very rare species T. eriotrephon (each one 0.25%). The two strains of T. eriotrephon isolated from tinea manuum and tinea faciei are the second and third reported cases worldwide. Application of DNA-based methods is an important aid in monitoring trends in dermatophytosis in the community