Towards better insect management strategy: restriction of insecticidal gene expression to biting sites in transgenic cotton

Most of the commercialized Bt crops express cry genes under 35S promoter that induces strong gene expression in all plant parts. However, targeted foreign gene expression in plants is esteemed more important as public may be likely to accept ‘less intrusive’ expression of transgene. We developed plant expression constructs harboring cry1Ac gene under control of wound-inducible promoter (AoPR1) to confine Bt gene expression in insect wounding parts of the plants in comparison with cry1Ac gene under the control of 35S promoter. The constructs were used to transform four Turkish cotton cultivars (GSN-12, STN-468, Ozbek-100 and Ayhan-107) through Agrobacterium tumefaciens strains GV2260 containing binary vectors p35SAcBAR.101 and AoPR1AcBAR.101 harboring cry1Ac gene under control of 35S and AoPR1, respectively. Phosphinothricin (PPT) was used at concentration of 5 mg L^?1 for selection of primary transformants. The primary transformants were analyzed for transgene presence and expression standard molecular techniques. The transformants exhibited appreciable mortality rates against larvae of Spodoptera exigua and S. littoralis. It was found that mechanical wounding of T ₁ transgenic plants was effective in inducing expression of cry1Ac protein as accumulated levels of cry1Ac protein increased during post-wounding period. We conclude that use of wound-inducible promoter to drive insecticidal gene(s) can be regarded as a valuable insect-resistant management strategy since the promoter activity is limited to insect biting sites of plant. There is no Bt toxin accumulation in unwounded plant organs, seed and crop residues, cotton products and by-products, thus minimizing food and environmental concerns.     

Seroprevalence of Brucellosis,Leptospirosis, and Q Fever among Butchers and Slaughterhouse Workers in South-Eastern Iran

Zoonotic diseases can be occupational hazards to people who work in close contact with animals or their carcasses. In this cross-sectional study, 190 sera were collected from butchers and slaughterhouse workers in different regions of the Sistan va Baluchestan province, in Iran in 2011. A questionnaire was filled for each participant to document personal and behavioural information. The sera were tested for detection of specific IgG antibodies against brucellosis, leptospirosis, and Q fever (phase I and II) using commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). The seroprevalence of brucellosis was 7.9%, leptospirosis 23.4%, and phase I and II of Q fever were 18.1% and 14.4%, respectively. The seroprevalence of Q fever and leptospirosis, but not brucellosis, varied among regions within the province (p = 0.01). Additionally, a significant relationship was found between seropositivity of Q fever and camel slaughtering (p = 0.04). Reduced seropositivity rate of brucellosis was associated with use of personal protective equipment (PPE) (p = 0.004). This study shows that brucellosis, leptospirosis and Q fever occur among butchers and slaughterhouse workers in this area.     

Electronic Beam Switching of Circularly Polarized Plasma Magneto-Electric Dipole Array with Multiple Beams

In this paper, different array arrangements based on magneto-electric (ME) dipole antenna with wideband circular polarization (CP) characteristics are designed and investigated. Planar, triangular prism, square prism, and hexagonal prism array arrangements are considered. Each prism face has a sub-array comprises 2 × 2 ME-dipole elements. Each sub-array has wide impedance matching of 73.7%, a maximum gain of 16.6 dBi, and CP bandwidth of 78.2%. It employs the plasma frequency of the ME-dipole antenna to control its radiation characteristics. Frequency-independent lumped element equivalent circuit is constructed for a single antenna element. It is used to represent the antenna input impedance at different plasma electron densities with fixed physical structure. The proposed equivalent circuit comprises a single series section used for matching enhancement with feeder circuit, and three parallel tuned circuits corresponding to the three resonance frequencies in the input impedance. The best values of the equivalent circuit elements are computed using the particle swarm optimization (PSO) technique. Different array arrangements, planar, triangular, square, and hexagonal prism are designed to create single or multiple beams in different directions. An electronic beam switching is achieved by tuning in the plasma inside the ME-dipole in the desired direction. The radiation characteristics are analyzed and investigated using the finite integration technique (FIT).

     

Efficacy and persistence of rosemary oil as an acaricide against twospotted spider mite (Acari: Tetranychidae) on greenhouse tomato

Efficacy of rosemary, Rosmarinus officinalis L., essential oil was assessed against twospotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae), as well as effects on the tomato, Lycopersicum esculatum Mill., host plant and biocontrol agents. Laboratory bioassay results indicated that pure rosemary oil and EcoTrol (a rosemary oil-based pesticide) caused complete mortality of spider mites at concentrations that are not phytotoxic to the host plant. The predatory mite Phytoseiulus persimilis Athias-Henriot is less susceptible to rosemary oil and EcoTrol than twospotted spider mite both in the laboratory and the greenhouse. Rosemary oil repels spider mites and can affect oviposition behavior. Moreover, rosemary oil and rosemary oil-based pesticides are nonpersistent in the environment, and their lethal and sublethal effects fade within 1 or 2 d. EcoTrol is safe to tomato foliage, flowers, and fruit even at double the recommended label rate. A greenhouse trial indicated that a single application of EcoTrol at its recommended label rate could reduce a twospotted spider mite population by 52%. At that rate, EcoTrol did not cause any mortality in P. persimilis nor did it affect their eggs. In general, EcoTrol was found to be a suitable option for small-scale integrated pest management programs for controlling twospotted spider mites on greenhouse tomato plants.     

Mutational analysis of the mitochondrial 12S rRNA and tRNASer(UCN) genes in Tunisian patients with nonsyndromic hearing loss

We explored the mitochondrial 12S rRNA and the tRNASer(UCN) genes in 100 Tunisian families affected with NSHL and in 100 control individuals. We identified the mitochondrial A1555G mutation in one out of these 100 families and not in the 100 control individuals. Members of this family harbouring the A1555G mutation showed phenotypic heterogeneity which could be explained by an eventual nuclear-mitochondrial interaction. So, we have screened three nuclear genes: GJB2, GJB3, and GJB6 but we have not found correlation between the phenotypic heterogeneity and variants detected in these genes. We explored also the entire mitochondrial 12S rRNA and the tRNASer(UCN) genes. We detected five novel polymorphisms: T742C, T794A, A813G, C868T, and C954T, and 12 known polymorphisms in the mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene. None of the 100 families or the 100 controls were found to carry mutations in the tRNASer(UCN) gene. We report here the first mutational screening of the mitochondrial 12S rRNA and the tRNASer(UCN) genes in the Tunisian population which describes the second family harbouring the A1555G mutation in Africa and reveals novel polymorphisms in the mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene.     

Sublethal effects of fenpyroximate on life table parameters of the predatory mite <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phytoseius plumifer</Emphasis>

Knowledge of the lethal and sublethal effects of pesticides on biological control agents is necessary for successful implementation of integrated pest management programs. The sublethal effect of acaricide fenpyroximate (Ortus^®) on performance of females and their offspring of Phytoseius plumifer (Canestrini &; Fanzago), an efficient predator of Tetranychus urticae Koch, was determined under laboratory conditions. The adult predators were exposed to the residues of the acaricide on fig leaves and the LC₅₀ value was determined based on a concentration–response analysis. The results showed that sublethal concentrations of fenpyroximate significantly affected the fecundity and longevity of the treated females of P. plumifer. Reproductive and life table parameters of the subsequent generation were also affected by sublethal concentrations. It could be concluded that sublethal concentrations can significantly reduce the population growth of P. plumifer and this should be considered in integrated pest management programs.     

Interaction of silver nanoparticles with Tacaribe virus

Background  

Silver nanoparticles possess many unique properties that make them attractive for use in biological applications. Recently they received attention when it was shown that 10 nm silver nanoparticles were bactericidal, which is promising in light of the growing number of antibiotic resistant bacteria. An area that has been largely unexplored is the interaction of nanomaterials with viruses and the possible use of silver nanoparticles as an antiviral agent.     

Effects of azadirachtin/Neemazal on different stages and adult life table parameters of Trichogramma cacoeciae (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae)

The effects of azadirachtin/Neemazal on adults, emergence, and life table parameters of Trichogramma cacoeciae Marchal were studied. The adults were exposed to fresh residues of the insecticide applied on glass plates. Based on the dose-response study, the LC50 value was 1330 ppm or 13.3 microg (AI)/ml. The effect of Neemazal on three developmental stages of the parasitoid was tested by dipping parasitized Sitotroga cerealella (Olivier) and Cydia pomonella (L.) eggs at the field-recommended concentration 3, 6, and 9 d after parasitization corresponding to larval, prepupal, and pupal stages. The emergence of adult parasitoids was adversely affected in both hosts, but the adverse effect was more in S. cerealella eggs compared with C. pomonella. The adult emergence was reduced by 73.3 and 33.76% in Sitotroga and Cydia eggs compared with controls, respectively. Longevity and progeny production of the emergent adults did not differ significantly from control. Neemazal affected stable population parameters (r(m), T, and DT) significantly. The intrinsic rate of increase for the control and Neemazal-exposed populations was 0.340 and 0.335 female offspring per female per day, respectively. Because some of postemergence life table parameters of adults were significantly reduced by the insecticide treatment, emergence rate of the parasitoid from treated eggs is not an adequate measure of ecological selectivity, and field studies are needed to determine the actual impact of neem on T. cacoeciae.