An Inference System for Classifying Oil Palm Fungal Diseases

The oil palm plant is one of the major important cash crops of the Nigerian economy and a significant contributor to the world market for vegetable oils. Unfortunately, infection with fungi has caused a decline in the productivity of oil palms and subsequently the palm oil industry. Hence the need to detect oil palm plant disease earlier before it affects it informed this research to develop a fuzzy inference model to predict the influence of fungal disease on the oil plant plant. Following extensive review of related works, the factors associated with the severity of fungal diseases in the oil palm plant were identified following validation by Botanist. Fuzzy triangular membership functions were used to formulate the input factors identified alongside the target variables for identifying the severity of fungal diseases affecting the oil palm plant. The rule base was formulated using IF-THEN statements to combine the values of the input factors with the respective values of the target severity of oil palm plant disease. The classification model for oil palm plant disease severity was simulated using the Fuzzy Logic Toolbox available in the MATLAB R2015b Software. The results showed that the developed inference system for oil palm plant was capable of classifying and predicting the degree of the fungal disease infection into four groups; no severity, low severity, moderate severity and high severity.

Anthecological features of Lonicera japonica Thunb. in the environments of Southern Uzbekistan

Background. Identification of spectacular ornamental perennial lianas for urban landscaping in southern cities is important for modern urban greening programs. The aim of this work was to study flowering peculiarities of Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica Thunb.).Materials and methods. The target material was honeysuckle plants growing in the environments of Southern Uzbekistan. Observations were conducted in 2019–2020 using conventional approaches.Results and conclusion. The inflorescence of L. japonica is an open dibotryoid, with flowers arranged along the lateral axes of the first order. Flowers are bisexual, zygomorphic. Blossoming of flowers in inflorescences occurs acropetally. The flowering period is almost 150–170 days (starts in April and lasts until the end of August). Dichogamy in the form of proterandry is observed in honeysuckle flowers. The male flowering phase comes the first. It starts 1.5–2.0 hours after the opening of the corolla and ends with the drying of the stamens. The corolla turns yellow 36 hours after the blooming of the flower and the stamens begin to dry out. This is the female phase. Over the next 84 hours, the pistil begins to dry out slowly, but the corolla of the flower lasts up to 96 hours. The duration of the female flowering phase is 60 hours. L. japonica is of considerable interest for vertical landscaping of urban communities. Plants remain ornamental for a long time. Studying this species as an essential oil plant is promising, since it contains a significant amount of germacrene D.

Incipient diploidization of the medicinal plant Perilla within 10,000 years

Perilla is a young allotetraploid Lamiaceae species widely used in East Asia as herb and oil plant. Here, we report the high-quality, chromosome-scale genomes of the tetraploid (Perilla frutescens) and the AA diploid progenitor (Perilla citriodora). Comparative analyses suggest post Neolithic allotetraploidization within 10,000 years, and nucleotide mutation in tetraploid is 10% more than in diploid, both of which are dominated by G:C → A:T transitions. Incipient diploidization is characterized by balanced swaps of homeologous segments, and subsequent homeologous exchanges are enriched towards telomeres, with excess of replacements of AA genes by fractionated BB homeologs. Population analyses suggest that the crispa lines are close to the nascent tetraploid, and involvement of acyl-CoA: lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase gene for high α-linolenic acid content of seed oil is revealed by GWAS. These resources and findings provide insights into incipient diploidization and basis for breeding improvement of this medicinal plant.

The Chemical Composition of Oils and Cakes of Ochna serrulata (Ochnaceae) and Other Underutilized Traditional Oil Trees from Western Zambia

Currently, the negative effects of unified and intensive agriculture are of growing concern. To mitigate them, the possibilities of using local but nowadays underused crop for food production should be more thoroughly investigated and promoted. The soybean is the major crop cultivated for vegetable oil production in Zambia, while the oil production from local oil-bearing plants is neglected. The chemical composition of oils and cakes of a three traditional oil plant used by descendants of the Lozi people for cooking were investigated. Parinari curatellifolia and Schinziophyton rautanenii oils were chiefly composed of α-eleostearic (28.58–55.96%), linoleic (9.78–40.18%), and oleic acid (15.26–24.07%), whereas Ochna serrulata contained mainly palmitic (35.62–37.31%), oleic (37.31–46.80%), and linoleic acid (10.61–18.66%); the oil yield was high (39–71%). S. rautanenii and O. serrulata oils were rich in γ-tocopherol (3236.18 μg/g, 361.11 μg/g, respectively). The O. serrulata oil also had a very distinctive aroma predominantly composed of p-cymene (52.26%), m-xylene (9.63%), γ-terpinene (9.07%), o-xylene (7.97), and limonene (7.23%). The cakes remaining after oil extraction are a good source of essential minerals, being rich in N, P, S, K, Ca, and Mg. These plants have the potential to be introduced for use in the food, technical, or pharmaceutical industries.

Influence of Hydrocarbon-Oxidizing Bacteria on the Growth, Biochemical Characteristics, and Hormonal Status of Barley Plants and the Content of Petroleum Hydrocarbons in the Soil

Much attention is paid to the relationship between bacteria and plants in the process of the bioremediation of oil-contaminated soils, but the effect of petroleum degrading bacteria that synthesize phytohormones on the content and distribution of these compounds in plants is poorly studied. The goal of the present field experiment was to study the effects of hydrocarbon-oxidizing bacteria that produce auxins on the growth, biochemical characteristics, and hormonal status of barley plants in the presence of oil, as well as assessing the effect of bacteria and plants separately and in association with the content of oil hydrocarbons in the soil. The treatment of plants with strains of Enterobacter sp. UOM 3 and Pseudomonas hunanensis IB C7 led to an increase in the length and mass of roots and shoots and the leaf surface index, and an improvement in some parameters of the elements of the crop structure, which were suppressed by the pollutant. The most noticeable effect of bacteria on the plant hormonal system was a decrease in the accumulation of abscisic acid. The data obtained indicate that the introduction of microorganisms weakened the negative effects on plants under abiotic stress caused by the presence of oil. Plant-bacteria associations were more effective in reducing the content of hydrocarbons in the soil and increasing its microbiological activity than when either organism was used individually.

The Assessment of Quality of Products Called Sandalwood Oil Based on the Information Provided by Manufacturer of the Oil on Polish, German, and English Websites

Background. Sandalwood oil is one of the most valuable raw materials worldwide. As a highly valued product, it has its own regulations based on the ISO 3518 standard, which clearly informs producers, distributors, and consumers of the requirements to be met. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of products called sandalwood oil based on the information provided by the manufacturer of the oils on Polish, German, and English websites. Methods. A Google search was utilized to collect data on sandalwood oil offered by producers and distributors in Polish and foreign markets. Information from 50 websites in each of the aforementioned languages, including the description of sandalwood oil properties on websites, method for using it, safety limitations, and presence of a product description consistent with the INCI recommendations, was gathered using Microsoft Excel software and was analyzed. The information that enabled us to estimate the quality of the oils was the botanical name of the oil-bearing plant and the price. Good-quality oils were considered to be oils with the botanical name Santalum album in the description and with a price not considerably less than the price of white sandalwood oils sold by reliable distributors who control the quality of the oils by chromatography. Ultimately, the lower price limit for one milliliter of the oil was established as PLN 21. Results and Conclusions. Good-quality sandalwood oils derived from the Santalum album plant at a price equal to or greater than the chromatographically tested items amounted to a negligible percentage of products sold online. Without knowing the botanical name of the essential oil plant and the price range of unadulterated sandalwood oil, the likelihood of buying a reliable product is low on all of the analyzed websites, with the lowest probability being observed on the Polish websites.

An Overview on Total Valorization of Litsea cubeba as a New Woody Oil Plant Resource toward a Zero-Waste Biorefinery

With the increasing global demand for edible oils and the restriction of arable land minimum in China, woody oil plants have gradually become the optimal solution to cover the shortage of current edible oil supply and to further improve the self-sufficiency rate. However, due to the lack of knowledge and technique, problems like “how to make full use of these plant resources?” and “how to guide consumers with reasonable data?” limit the development of woody oilseed industry towards a sustainable circular economy. In this review, several emerging unique woody oil plants in China were introduced, among which Litsea cubeba as a new woody oil plant was highlighted as a reference case based on its current research progress. Unlike other woody oil plants, essential oil rather than oil from Litsea cubeba has always been the main product through the years due to its interesting biological activities. Most importantly, its major component, citral, could be the base for other synthesized perfume compounds with added value. Moreover, the sustainable biorefinery of large amounts of waste residual after Litsea cubeba essential oil processing is now technically feasible, which could inspire a total valorization pathway for other woody oil plants to make more competitive plant-based products with both economic, social, and ecological benefits.