Development of integrated pest management for sugarcane borer, Diatraea saccharalis in rice

Rice is grown over an area of approximately 500,000 acres in Louisiana. The lepidopteran stem borer complex attacking rice in the southern U.S includes stalk borer Chilo plejadellus Zincken, sugarcane borer (SCB) Diatraea saccharalis (F.) and Mexican rice borer, Eoreuma loftini Dyar. With the increasing impact of stem borers in Louisiana, an urgent need exists to develop strategies for management. Currently, no IPM program is in place for stem borers in Louisiana rice and research has been initiated to develop an IPM program for these pests. The first objective of this research was focused on host plant resistance. For this objective, oviposition preference and larval performance of sugarcane borer on commonly grown rice cultivars in Louisiana were investigated. Results from the oviposition preference study revealed significant differences among cultivars. Overall females of D. saccharalis preferred ovipositing on the upper sides of the leaves of rice plants. In the performance study, three different measures of performance were used. Results from these studies revealed significant differences among varieties for these measures of performance. Results also revealed a strong correlation between different measures of performance as well as between performance and preference. Results from the compensation study revealed differences in compensatory response of same eight cultivars. In the silicon soil amendment study, a significant increase in silicon content of rice plants supplemented with calcium silicate was observed compared to the control plants. Soil Si amendment led to lower relative growth rates and reduced boring success of sugarcane borer larvae on. Studies were conducted to evaluate the efficacy of Dermacor seed treatment against sugarcane borer. Dermacor seed treatment was the most effective among different insecticides used in a field study and significantly increased larval mortality in lab and greenhouse experiments. These studies will help facilitate scouting for sugarcane borer in the field and improvement in insecticide timing. Potential exists for current use of these (moderately resistant) cultivars in IPM programs and as sources of resistance in breeding programs for stem borer resistance. Soil Si amendment and Dermacor seed treatments has the potential to fit into the IPM program

Canadian Youth Criminality and Identity Formation: A South Asian (Sikh) Perspective

This thesis explores the experiences of second generation Sikh males in Canada, focusing on involvement in criminal activities during adolescence. Using a deeply qualitative autoethnographic approach (Anderson, 2006), I conducted unstructured active interviews (Holstein & Gubrium, 1995) with seven males ranging from 20 to 26 years of age. The interviews consist of a dialogue on how these youths\u27 emerging identities as Sikh and as Canadians contributed to their adolescent experiences with crime. Findings highlight the importance of engaging youth at the level of personal experience and at the level of institutional and community influences. Specifically, an interplay of parental, cultural, institutional, and societal processes impacted participants\u27 identities and subsequent actions, including desistance from crime as the youth emerged from adolescence. The major conclusion of the thesis is that while ethnic cultural influences and ethnic pride contributed to youths\u27 involvement in various criminal activities, ethnic and especially family influences and pride also contributed to transitions to desistance. This speaks to the need for an inclusive environment that encourages integration of immigrant populations in ways that allow them to actively participate as full citizens within their families, communities and as Canadians

ASCORBIC ACID AS A GROWTH ADJUVANT IN ENCAPSULATED PROTOCORM-LIKE-BODIES OF RHYNCHOSTYLIS RETUSA BL. (ORCHIDACEAE)

In the present study, effect of ascorbic acid, a known growth adjuvant on encapsulated protocorm-like-bodies (PLBs) of Rhynchostylis retusa Bl. was investigated. PLBs were encapsulated in calcium alginate (3.5% sodium alginate and 100mM calcium chloride) prepared in Mitra et al. (1976) basal medium and supplemented with different concentration of ascorbic acid (5, 10, 15, 20mM). The encapsulated PLBs were stored at 25°C. Their germination response and germination potential was evaluated after every 4 weeks on basal media. Control set of encapsulated PLBs, failed to germinate after 32 weeks. However, PLBs with 15mM ascorbic acid in the encapsulated matrix showed the best response; nearly 90% germinated even after 32 weeks of storage. The survival and germination frequency was directly proportional to the level of ascorbic acid in the alginate mix upto 15mM level but declined on further increase. Differentiation of PLBs into plantlet was better in synthetic seeds containing lower concentration of ascorbic acid (5mM) as compared to higher levels (15, 20mM) whereas multiplication of secondary PLBs was more pronounced at higher levels. Chlorophyll content was inversely proportional to the level of ascorbic acid in the nutrient mix; lush green PLBs were observed at low concentration of ascorbic acid (5mM). This study highlights the potential of ascorbic acid as an aid to growth and survival of encapsulated PLBs upon storage

ntegrated Pest Management of Longan (Sapindales: Sapindaceae) in Vietnam

This paper describes the current state of pests and diseases of longan (Dimocarpus longan Lour.) and their management in Vietnam. Longan is the third most cultivated fruit crop and second major fruit crop exported from Vietnam. Brief descriptions of arthropod pests Eriophyes dimocarpi Kuang (Acari: Eriophyidae), Conogethes punctiferalis Guenée (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), Conopomorpha sinensis Bradley (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae), Conopomorpha litchiella Bradley (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae), Tessaratoma papillosa Drury (Hemiptera: Tessaratomidae), Eudocima phalonia L. comb. (Lepidoptera: Erebidae), oriental fruit fly Bactrocera dorsalis Hendel (Diptera: Tephretidae), Planococcus lilacinus Cockerell (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), Drepanococcus chiton Green (Hemiptera: Coccidae), and Cornegenapsylla sinica Yang & Li (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) and fungal diseases Phytophthora palmivora Butler (Peronosporales: Peronosporaceae), Colletotrichum gloeosporioides (Penz.) Penz. & Sacc. (Incertaesedis: Glomerellaceae), and Ceratocystis fimbriata Ellis & Halsted (Microascales: Ceratocystidaceae) affecting longan are given. The longan witches’ broom syndrome is a major factor causing 50–86% annual crop loss in Vietnam and it has been considered the primary constraint in production. The causative agent of this syndrome has been identified as the eriophyid mite E. dimocarpi. Deployment of Integrated Pest Management strategies for longan production in Vietnam is outlined

Nanomaterials in Tissue Engineering for Sustainable Healthcare Solutions

Nanomaterials have become viable contenders in the field of tissue engineering, providing adaptable frameworks for long-lasting healthcare solutions. This work included the characterization of many types of nanoparticles, such as gold, silver, iron oxide, and quantum dots. The aim was to identify and understand their specific physicochemical features that are crucial for their use in tissue engineering. The gold nanoparticles had a diameter of 20 nm, a surface area of 30 m^2/g, and a positive zeta potential of +20 mV. In contrast, the silver nanoparticles had a smaller diameter of 15 nm, a surface area of 25 m^2/g, and a negative zeta potential of -15 mV. Iron oxide nanoparticles displayed a greater size of 30 nm, a higher surface area of 40 m^2/g, and a zeta potential of +10 mV. In contrast, quantum dots had the lowest size of 10 nm and a zeta potential of +30 mV. In addition, the characteristics of the scaffold, such as the size of its pores, its porosity, and its mechanical strength, were assessed. These features were shown to have a vital role in controlling how cells behave and in promoting tissue regeneration. The Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) scaffolds had a pore size of 100 µm, a porosity of 80%, and a mechanical strength of 20 MPa. In contrast, the collagen scaffolds had a smaller pore size of 50 µm, a greater porosity of 90%, and a lower mechanical strength of 15 MPa. The gelatin scaffolds had a pore size of 75 µm, a porosity of 85%, and a mechanical strength of 18 MPa. On the other hand, the chitosan scaffolds had a larger pore size of 120 µm, a porosity of 75%, and a higher mechanical strength of 25 MPa. Moreover, the assessment of cell survival and proliferation on scaffolds containing nanomaterials revealed their considerable influence on cellular behavior. Notably, gold nanoparticles exhibited the greatest cell viability rate of 95% and a substantial rise in cell proliferation. Finally, the drug release patterns from drug delivery systems based on nanomaterials demonstrated regulated and prolonged release kinetics, emphasizing its potential in improving therapeutic results. In summary, this work clarifies the many uses of nanomaterials in tissue engineering and emphasizes their importance in creating sustainable healthcare solutions

Burden of disease scenarios for 204 countries and territories, 2022–2050: a forecasting analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

Background: Future trends in disease burden and drivers of health are of great interest to policy makers and the public at large. This information can be used for policy and long-term health investment, planning, and prioritisation. We have expanded and improved upon previous forecasts produced as part of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) and provide a reference forecast (the most likely future), and alternative scenarios assessing disease burden trajectories if selected sets of risk factors were eliminated from current levels by 2050. Methods: Using forecasts of major drivers of health such as the Socio-demographic Index (SDI; a composite measure of lag-distributed income per capita, mean years of education, and total fertility under 25 years of age) and the full set of risk factor exposures captured by GBD, we provide cause-specific forecasts of mortality, years of life lost (YLLs), years lived with disability (YLDs), and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) by age and sex from 2022 to 2050 for 204 countries and territories, 21 GBD regions, seven super-regions, and the world. All analyses were done at the cause-specific level so that only risk factors deemed causal by the GBD comparative risk assessment influenced future trajectories of mortality for each disease. Cause-specific mortality was modelled using mixed-effects models with SDI and time as the main covariates, and the combined impact of causal risk factors as an offset in the model. At the all-cause mortality level, we captured unexplained variation by modelling residuals with an autoregressive integrated moving average model with drift attenuation. These all-cause forecasts constrained the cause-specific forecasts at successively deeper levels of the GBD cause hierarchy using cascading mortality models, thus ensuring a robust estimate of cause-specific mortality. For non-fatal measures (eg, low back pain), incidence and prevalence were forecasted from mixed-effects models with SDI as the main covariate, and YLDs were computed from the resulting prevalence forecasts and average disability weights from GBD. Alternative future scenarios were constructed by replacing appropriate reference trajectories for risk factors with hypothetical trajectories of gradual elimination of risk factor exposure from current levels to 2050. The scenarios were constructed from various sets of risk factors: environmental risks (Safer Environment scenario), risks associated with communicable, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional diseases (CMNNs; Improved Childhood Nutrition and Vaccination scenario), risks associated with major non-communicable diseases (NCDs; Improved Behavioural and Metabolic Risks scenario), and the combined effects of these three scenarios. Using the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways climate scenarios SSP2-4.5 as reference and SSP1-1.9 as an optimistic alternative in the Safer Environment scenario, we accounted for climate change impact on health by using the most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change temperature forecasts and published trajectories of ambient air pollution for the same two scenarios. Life expectancy and healthy life expectancy were computed using standard methods. The forecasting framework includes computing the age-sex-specific future population for each location and separately for each scenario. 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) for each individual future estimate were derived from the 2·5th and 97·5th percentiles of distributions generated from propagating 500 draws through the multistage computational pipeline. Findings: In the reference scenario forecast, global and super-regional life expectancy increased from 2022 to 2050, but improvement was at a slower pace than in the three decades preceding the COVID-19 pandemic (beginning in 2020). Gains in future life expectancy were forecasted to be greatest in super-regions with comparatively low life expectancies (such as sub-Saharan Africa) compared with super-regions with higher life expectancies (such as the high-income super-region), leading to a trend towards convergence in life expectancy across locations between now and 2050. At the super-region level, forecasted healthy life expectancy patterns were similar to those of life expectancies. Forecasts for the reference scenario found that health will improve in the coming decades, with all-cause age-standardised DALY rates decreasing in every GBD super-region. The total DALY burden measured in counts, however, will increase in every super-region, largely a function of population ageing and growth. We also forecasted that both DALY counts and age-standardised DALY rates will continue to shift from CMNNs to NCDs, with the most pronounced shifts occurring in sub-Saharan Africa (60·1% [95% UI 56·8–63·1] of DALYs were from CMNNs in 2022 compared with 35·8% [31·0–45·0] in 2050) and south Asia (31·7% [29·2–34·1] to 15·5% [13·7–17·5]). This shift is reflected in the leading global causes of DALYs, with the top four causes in 2050 being ischaemic heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, compared with 2022, with ischaemic heart disease, neonatal disorders, stroke, and lower respiratory infections at the top. The global proportion of DALYs due to YLDs likewise increased from 33·8% (27·4–40·3) to 41·1% (33·9–48·1) from 2022 to 2050, demonstrating an important shift in overall disease burden towards morbidity and away from premature death. The largest shift of this kind was forecasted for sub-Saharan Africa, from 20·1% (15·6–25·3) of DALYs due to YLDs in 2022 to 35·6% (26·5–43·0) in 2050. In the assessment of alternative future scenarios, the combined effects of the scenarios (Safer Environment, Improved Childhood Nutrition and Vaccination, and Improved Behavioural and Metabolic Risks scenarios) demonstrated an important decrease in the global burden of DALYs in 2050 of 15·4% (13·5–17·5) compared with the reference scenario, with decreases across super-regions ranging from 10·4% (9·7–11·3) in the high-income super-region to 23·9% (20·7–27·3) in north Africa and the Middle East. The Safer Environment scenario had its largest decrease in sub-Saharan Africa (5·2% [3·5–6·8]), the Improved Behavioural and Metabolic Risks scenario in north Africa and the Middle East (23·2% [20·2–26·5]), and the Improved Nutrition and Vaccination scenario in sub-Saharan Africa (2·0% [–0·6 to 3·6]). Interpretation: Globally, life expectancy and age-standardised disease burden were forecasted to improve between 2022 and 2050, with the majority of the burden continuing to shift from CMNNs to NCDs. That said, continued progress on reducing the CMNN disease burden will be dependent on maintaining investment in and policy emphasis on CMNN disease prevention and treatment. Mostly due to growth and ageing of populations, the number of deaths and DALYs due to all causes combined will generally increase. By constructing alternative future scenarios wherein certain risk exposures are eliminated by 2050, we have shown that opportunities exist to substantially improve health outcomes in the future through concerted efforts to prevent exposure to well established risk factors and to expand access to key health interventions

TILLING : EMS mutagenesis in Epichloë endophytes and mutation screening using High Resolution Melting analysis and Next Generation Sequencing : this thesis is presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science (MSc) in Microbiology at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

Epichloë are fungal endophytes (family Clavicipitaceae) of pasture grasses of the sub family poöideae. These endophytes live in symbiotic association with their hosts and confer resistance to insect and animal herbivory through the production of bioactive secondary metabolites (alkaloids) that are produced in planta. For a number of years endophyte research has been focused at manipulating fungal genes responsible for production of alkaloids which have toxic effects on livestock. However, the techniques used to date involve genetic modification to delete genes responsible for alkaloid production and strict regulations around genetically modified organisms in New Zealand prevent commercialisation of these organisms. Traditional mutagenesis was not practical. To find mutations in secondary metabolite pathways, the mutants had to be inoculated back into plants, which would have been a laborious and time-consuming process. The aim of my research was to develop Targeting Induced Local Lesions In Genomes (TILLING) methodology in Epichloë to disrupt fungal secondary metabolite genes using Ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) and screen for mutations using high throughput screening techniques such as High Resolution Melting (HRM) analysis and whole genome sequencing, MiSeq. In order to carry out the mutagenesis, uninucleate propagules would be preferred but as most of the filamentous fungi (including Epichloë) are multinucleate in nature, spores were thought to be an ideal alternative for mutagenesis. However, many of the commercially used Epichloë strains, such as AR1 and AR37, do not readily produce spores. Therefore an alternative mutagenesis system using fungal protoplasts was investigated and employed. EMS mutagenesis showed that the number of colonies derived from protoplasts after mutagenesis declined steadily at a reproducible rate as measured by time-course of 0, 15, 30, 45 and 60 minutes to give LD50 values. At 60 minutes there was decline in the number of colonies to the levels of 10% of the initial number. To determine the effectiveness of EMS as a mutagen positive selection, using 5-Fluoroorotic acid (5-FOA), was also performed on the mutagenized protoplasts to derive the mutation frequency of 6 mutations per 1000 mutants compared to 0.002 mutations per 1000 for non-mutagenized protoplasts. This suggests a 3000-fold EMS-induced increase in the frequency of mutations. Having established mutation frequency from the 5-FOA, positive selection and steady decline in number of colonies from EMS mutagenesis, an EMS mutant library was screened using next generation sequencing. . However, high throughput whole genome sequencing (MiSeq) led to the detection of only three verifiable point mutations (1 in 10Mb). Microscopic observations revealed that while individual protoplasts were largely (85%) uninucleate, protoplasts typically formed clumps containing 15-30 protoplasts. In theory, multiple nuclei would lead to an overestimation of the number of mutations since each nucleus would accumulate different SNPs. However, MiSeq sequencing did not detect this, probably due to being filtered out during bioinformatics processing. Thus if methods can be devised for plating single protoplasts, EMS mutagenesis should be applicable to this system. TILLING technology can be used to reduce the time for endophyte discovery and improvement. My research demonstrated that this procedure, although very promising in terms of benefit to fungal improvement, carries certain difficulties with it that we had to address such as mutagenesis using protoplasts and subsequent mutation discovery. I succeeded in establishing TILLING methodology for mutagenesis of E. festucae strain Fl1 as well as optimising protocols to screen mutants

PHYSICOCHEMICAL STUDY OF THERMOPLASTIC STARCH(TPS) USING IONIC LIQUID AS PLASTICIZER

This research investigates the physicochemical and hygroscopic properties of thermoplastic starch (TPS) an alternative biodegradable material. The material is formed from starch, Ionic liquid (IL) as plasticizer and rice straw fibre (RS) as fillers. TPS is synthesised through starch gelatinization process with the presence of plasticizer at elevated temperature. For this study, two types of ionic liquids as plasticizer are compared which are 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate [Emim]Ac and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride [Emim]Cl. The best plasticizer will be chosen through thermal analysis by using Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Thermal Gravimetric Analysis (TGA). From the result, it was found that [Emim]Ac was the better plasticizer. Following towards the second focus of this study which is to investigate the physicochemical properties and the moisture absorption rate of the synthesised TPS. The optimised TPS will be mixed with RS which aims to reduce moisture uptake. From the moisture absorption analysis, it was found that, 40% of RS loading showed the lowest moisture absorption rate for both 50% and 75% relative humidity (RH). Whereas, the FTIR results indicated that there is new bond formation in the synthesised TPS as well as TPS mixed with RS. SEM images clearly shows the interaction between the TPS samples. In addition, the TPS that is formed is more amorphous compared to other samples. The thermal analysis, showed that the TPS synthesised is thermally stable which includes TPS with 40% RS loading. The biodegradability test also proved that indeed [Emim]Ac can withstand microbial attack. The results obtained clearly showed there is a good potential to use [Emim] Ac and RS as plasticizer and fillers respectively to synthesise an alternative biodegradable material

PHYSICOCHEMICAL STUDY OF THERMOPLASTIC STARCH(TPS) USING IONIC LIQUID AS PLASTICIZER

This research investigates the physicochemical and hygroscopic properties of thermoplastic starch (TPS) an alternative biodegradable material. The material is formed from starch, Ionic liquid (IL) as plasticizer and rice straw fibre (RS) as fillers. TPS is synthesised through starch gelatinization process with the presence of plasticizer at elevated temperature. For this study, two types of ionic liquids as plasticizer are compared which are 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate [Emim]Ac and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride [Emim]Cl. The best plasticizer will be chosen through thermal analysis by using Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Thermal Gravimetric Analysis (TGA). From the result, it was found that [Emim]Ac was the better plasticizer. Following towards the second focus of this study which is to investigate the physicochemical properties and the moisture absorption rate of the synthesised TPS. The optimised TPS will be mixed with RS which aims to reduce moisture uptake. From the moisture absorption analysis, it was found that, 40% of RS loading showed the lowest moisture absorption rate for both 50% and 75% relative humidity (RH). Whereas, the FTIR results indicated that there is new bond formation in the synthesised TPS as well as TPS mixed with RS. SEM images clearly shows the interaction between the TPS samples. In addition, the TPS that is formed is more amorphous compared to other samples. The thermal analysis, showed that the TPS synthesised is thermally stable which includes TPS with 40% RS loading. The biodegradability test also proved that indeed [Emim]Ac can withstand microbial attack. The results obtained clearly showed there is a good potential to use [Emim] Ac and RS as plasticizer and fillers respectively to synthesise an alternative biodegradable material