Field efficacy of some biorationals against the two spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae)

Field trials were conducted to evaluate the acaricidal potential of entomopathogenic fungus, Beauveria bassiana and aqueous extracts of Withania somnifera and Glyccirrhyza glabra against the mobile stages of Tetranychus urticae Koch on cucumber. The treatments responded in a concentration dependent manner. Highest reduction in T. urticae population was achieved with Omite (0.05%) followed by Nimbecidine (5ml/l), B. bassiana (1010 spores ml-1), W. somnifera (7.5%), B. bassiana (108 spores ml-1), G. Glabra (7.5%), G. Glabra (5%), G. Glabra (2.5%), W. somnifera (5%) and W. somnifera (2.5%). Higher yield was recorded in all the treatments as compared to control. In terms of percent increase in yield, Omite caused highest increase (23.65% over control) followed by Nimbecidine, B. bassiana (1010 spores/ ml), W. somnifera (7.5%), B. bassiana (108 spores/ ml), G. Glabra (7.5%), W. somnifera (5%), G. Glabra (5%), G. Glabra (2.5%), and W. somnifera (2.5%) showing 13.97, 11.82, 10.75, 8.67, 8.67, 8.6, 6.76, 6.48 and 6.45 percent increase over control, respectively. These data suggest that the tested biorationals at higher concentrations have the potential to be employed in pest management programs designed for T. urticae control

Field efficacy of some biorationals against the two spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae)

Field trials were conducted to evaluate the acaricidal potential of entomopathogenic fungus, Beauveria bassiana and aqueous extracts of Withania somnifera and Glyccirrhyza glabra against the mobile stages of Tetranychus urticae Koch on cucumber. The treatments responded in a concentration dependent manner. Highest reduction in T. urticae population was achieved with Omite (0.05%) followed by Nimbecidine (5ml/l), B. bassiana (1010 spores ml-1), W. somnifera (7.5%), B. bassiana (108 spores ml-1), G. Glabra (7.5%), G. Glabra (5%), G. Glabra (2.5%), W. somnifera (5%) and W. somnifera (2.5%). Higher yield was recorded in all the treatments as compared to control. In terms of percent increase in yield, Omite caused highest increase (23.65% over control) followed by Nimbecidine, B. bassiana (1010 spores/ ml), W. somnifera (7.5%), B. bassiana (108 spores/ ml), G. Glabra (7.5%), W. somnifera (5%), G. Glabra (5%), G. Glabra (2.5%), and W. somnifera (2.5%) showing 13.97, 11.82, 10.75, 8.67, 8.67, 8.6, 6.76, 6.48 and 6.45 percent increase over control, respectively. These data suggest that the tested biorationals at higher concentrations have the potential to be employed in pest management programs designed for T. urticae control

Damage potential of Tetranychus urticae Koch to cucumber fruit and foliage: Effect of initial infestation density

Field trials were conducted to assess the damage potential of two-spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae Koch) on cucumber (Cucumis sativus Linnaeus). Young cucumber plants were artificially infested with different densities of T. urticae (5, 10, 15 and 20 mites/ grown up leaf) while uninfested plants acted as control. Post infestation, the plants differed in their support to mite density in accordance with initial infestation density and observation period. Grown up leaves were found to be the most susceptible to mite infestation (5.86 mites/ sq. cm leaf). The number of feeding (chlorotic) patches on cucumber leaves significantly increased from 1.38/sq cm at a pre-count of 5 mites per grown up leaf to 1.71/sq cm leaf at a pre-count of 20 mites as compared to no patch recorded in control. Highly significant negative correlation was recorded between mite population and photosynthetic pigments. Total chlorophyll, chlorophyll-a, chlorophyll-b and carotenoids decreased to a maximum of 40, 43.63, 45.45 and 47.27 percent at the highest infestation density as compared to control. Results revealed differences among various treatments in terms of yield attributes of cucumber. The per cent reductions from 6.15 to 12.42 in number of fruits, 0.59 to 1.56 in fruit length and 0.93 to 3.28 in fruit width at different inoculums of T. urticae were recorded over uninfested plants. The cumulative effect led to the ultimate reduction in average fruit weight in the range of 10.16 to 17.19 per cent in the infested plants

Effect of zinc concentration on the growth performance of White leg shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei Boone

Awareness about healthy organic food is increasing, leading to research on contaminants/pollutants and their effect on aquatic fauna and mankind. The effect of zinc sulphate on the growth performance of White leg shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone) was evaluated under six doses viz; 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8 mg/l in in vitro study conducted from June to October 2021.  The results revealed that higher doses of zinc sulphate showed toxicity against L. vannamei. The weight (3.12gm), length (8.95cm), weight gain per shrimp (4.11g), average daily weight gain (0.032), and specific growth rate (1.1g) were significantly (5%) lower at the higher dose (8mg/l) of zinc sulphate than control 11.73g, 16.22cm, 19.75g, 0.156g, and 2.20g respectively. With an increase in zinc sulphate dose from 0 mg/l in control to 8 mg/l, survival of shrimp decreased from 100 % to 7%. The Lethal concentration (LC50) for zinc sulphate treatments was recorded at 0.71 ppm for shrimp. The water quality parameter pH (7.17-8.09), dissolved oxygen (6.13-7.58mg/l), hardness (4000-4772mg/l), and total alkalinity (162-231mg/l) were in an optimum range. The variation in Nitrite- Nitrogen, Nitrate- Nitrogen and Ammonical-Nitrogen (0-0.018, 0-0.4, 0-0.018mg/l) were within a permissible range. Thus, the present study revealed that zinc had a negative potential effect on L. vannamei at higher concentrations and may lead to serious economic loss to farmers if ignored

Effect of Varroa destructor Anderson and Trueman infestation on Apis mellifera L. adults

Maximum incidence of Varrosis on adults of Apis mellifera L. (8%) was recorded in second fortnight of May 2008 corresponds to the peak in V. destructor population. Percent deformity was calculated by observing 100 adult bees. Deformity in adult bees was low which ranged between 0.0 to 3.0 per cent with an average of 0.52 per cent. Significant positive correlation (r = 0.77) was calculated between per cent mite infestation and per cent bee deformity which revealed that with increase in mite infestation, there was a corresponding increase in deformity of bees

Biochemical responses of cucumber to Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) mediated biotic stress

The effect of two spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae Koch) feeding on leaf level physiological characteristics of cucumber (Cucumis sativus Linnaeus) was investigated. Young cucumber plants were artificially infested with different densities of T. urticae (5, 10, 15 and 20 mites/ grown up leaf) while uninfested plants acted as control. Post infestation, the plants differed in their support to mite density in accordance with initial infestation density and observation period. Highly significant negative correlation of -0.92, -0.93, -0.95 and -0.92 for total chlorophyll, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and carotenoids, respectively, at the highest infestation level) was recorded between mite density and photosynthetic pigments in infested leaves as compared to uninfested ones. There was a significant decrease (P= 0.05) in the level of (a progressive decline from 2.82, 0.36 and 2.17% dry weight in control to the maximum of 2.09, 0.26 and 1.87% dry weight for N, P and K, respectively, at highest infestation level) in the infested leaves in response to mite infestation. Interaction between initial infestation level and observation period also suggested a significant impact of T. urticae infestation on the leaf phytochemicals of cucumber (P= 0.05)

Ecological impact of heavy metals on aquatic environment with reference to fish and human health

Heavy metals have a high density that is harmful even in low quantity. These metals enter aquatic habitats through various sources, home effluents, including industrial waste, atmospheric sources, and other metal-based businesses, as well as E-Waste. Heavy metal pollution is responsible for degenerating aquatic species, creating physical abnormalities in creatures and contaminating the aquatic environment. These poisonous heavy metals cause a variety of fish ailments like decrease in hatching rate, teratogenesis and bioaccumulation in the tissues etc. The contamination of heavy metals in aquatic bodies and ecosystems has a significant influence on the food chain. Because fish people consume fish, it has an indirect impact on their health. These heavy metals also have a higher impact on the environment because they remain for longer periods and have bio-accumulative capabilities, leading water health to deteriorate. This study offers insight into the disruption of fish and human physiology, their reproductive ability by heavy metals. This review provides baseline data on the heavy metals and aquatic environment, especially fish and human health. The data will increase sensitivity to preventing and managing aquatic environmental pollution, particularly heavy metal contamination

Potentiality of natural live food organisms in shrimp culture: A review

The aquaculture industry is growing quickly due to increased fish consumption and a decline in wild fish catch. About half of the world's seafood demand for human consumption is now met by farmed seafood. The aquafeed market is expanding along with the aquaculture sector. Some of the elements in shrimp feed are derived from terrestrial plants and low-value forage fishes (fish meal). It is impossible to produce more fish meals since doing so would harm the ocean's environment and sustainability. The reduction in shrimp feed cost can also be done by introducing low-cost, environment-friendly ingredients in shrimp feed formulation. Therefore, new and ecologically friendly shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) feed component sources must be created. Live food organisms are a preferable option for this since they provide a variety of essential amino acids and beneficial triglycerides like fat, vitamins, and colors in their cell metabolites. Microalgae biomasses also represent feasible ingredients for shrimp feed sources. Their distinctive variety of bioactive chemicals can enhance color and pellet quality, act as a bulk element in shrimp feed, and boost the viability of farmed species. Live food organisms have a great economic potential since they have the highest  biomass productivity of all photosynthetic organisms. In addition to giving farmers and exporters a better choice for feeding their fish, the availability of on-grown live food would also open up the prospect of improving the performance and quality of the fish and shrimp through bioencapsulation. This review study examines the possibility of generating natural food biomass as a component in shrimp feed.

A Cross-Sectional Study of prevalence of Prostate lesions and inter-Observer Variability in Histopathological Reporting

Introduction: To report the prevalence of various prostate lesions in the general population through cadaver prostates and to determine the interobserver variability for reporting high-grade lesions of the prostate. Materials and Methods: The cross-sectional study was carried out on 110 autopsy specimens of healthy prostate with deceased age over 40 years. The specimens were grossed, sectioned, stained and reported independently by the primary investigator resident and the senior professor. The lesions were categorized into prostatitis, benign prostate hypertrophy (BPH), prostate intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN) further graded as low grade (LGPIN) and high grade (HGPIN) and prostate cancer (PCa). Inter-rater kappa agreement was used to find the strength of agreement between the pathologists. Results: Among 110 prostate specimens, only 8(7.27%) cases had normal prostate with 72 (65.4%) having BPH and 12(10.9%) cases having prostatitis. There were 17 cases of PIN with 11 cases of HGPIN and 6 cases of LGPIN. Malignancy was seen in only a single case (95% Confidence Interval: 0% - 2.71%). The primary resident missed 4 cases of HGPIN and 2 cases of LGPIN. Interobserver agreement between the resident and senior pathologist was fair (Kappa 0.282, p value=0.335). Conclusion: In conclusion, prostate lesions remain latent and show high prevalence in general population without causing any symptoms. The study depicts a high interobserver variability of reporting the high-grade lesions of prostate since they cause a diagnostic dilemma with PCa. The consultation with uropathologists and use of molecular markers must be included in the diagnostic panel while reaching a final diagnosis. &nbsp