System of biological protection of corn against pests for organic farming

This study discusses promising methods of biological control of the main corn pests, based on the integrated use of pheromones, entomopathogenic preparations and the release of parasitic hymenoptera Trichogramma evanescens West. and Habrobracon hebetor Say. Seasonal dynamics of flying and the number of cotton moth Helicoverpa armigera Hbn. and Kuban click beetle Agriotes tauricus Heyd. were determined by capturing males with pheromone traps. Species composition of corn pests, the dynamics of flying and the number of dominant pests of the cotton moth H. armigera and corn moth Os. nubilalis are determined, the optimal dates for protective measures (release of entomophages - Trichogramma and Habrobracon, treatment with biological products) are set. As a result of the field assessment of the biological control system of the main corn pests, we determined the satisfactory efficacy of the mutually suppressing techniques based on using Trichogramma and Habrobracon entomophages and biological preparations based on entomopathogenic bacteria and viruses. The corn bioprotection efficacy against the stem corn moth was 84 % in the early hybrid and 94 % in the late one, against the cotton moth – 82,2 - 77,8 %, respectively.

Reverse Engineering of Thermoregulatory Cold-Induced Vasoconstriction/Vasodilation during Localized Cooling

Biological systems, in general, represent a special type of control system. The physiological processes of homeostasis, which serve to maintain the organism’s internal equilibrium against external influences, are clear forms of biological control system. An example of the homeostasis is the control of the organism thermal state or the thermoregulation. The thermoregulatory control of human skin blood flow, via vasoconstriction and vasodilation, is vital to maintaining normal body temperatures during challenges to thermal homeostasis such as localised cooling. The main objective of this paper is to reverse engineer the localised thermoregulatory cold-induced vasoconstriction/vasodilation (CIVC/CIVD) reactions using a data-based mechanistic approach. Two types of localised cooling were applied to the fingers of 33 healthy participants, namely, continuous and intermittent cooling. Modelling of the thermoregulatory cold-induced vasoconstriction/vasodilation reactions suggested two underlying processes, with one process being 10 times faster. A new term is suggested in this paper, namely, the latent heat of CIVD, which represents the amount of dissipated heat required to trigger the CIVD. Moreover, a new model for the thermoregulatory localised CIVC/CIVD reactions is proposed. The suggested new model states that, with an initial vasodilation state, the initial localised CIVC is triggered based on a certain threshold in the rate of heat dissipation from the skin to the surrounding environment.

Synthetic Biology for Teaching Control Engineering: A Case Study in a Student-Directed, Collaborative Environment

–As the bio-based economy expands, Chemical Engineering graduates will find themselves in new contexts for which they must be prepared. The broad shift toward including biology in departmental research and teaching activities reflects this, but relatively little formal thought has been given to the pedagogy of biology within Chemical Engineering curricula. The case study presented here is centered on the use of a biological control system in a lab setting as the means by which advanced control concepts can be taught to upper-year and graduate students within a constructivist framework. This approach was successfully applied to achieve all of the learning outcomes for the lab, but student feedback indicated that structured collaboration and metacognitive activities should have been given higher priority to improve student experiences. A re-iteration of this framework for upper-year lab curriculum design based on student feedback is presented.

ISOLATION AND IDENTIFICATION OF Pseudomonas spp. TO CONTROL Plasmodiophora brassciae, THE PATHOGEN OF CLUBROOT DISEASE ON CABBAGE

Clubroot is very detrimental disease to cabbage production so as farmers work on various efforts to control it. The use of fungicides not only ineffective but also pollute the environment, therefore biological control system need to be pursued. The use of antagonistic agents such as Pseudomonas has been widely studied and known effective in suppressing various pathogens. Therefore it is worth trying its effectiveness against Plasmodiophora brassicae, a pathogen of cabbage. The purpose of this study was to obtain indigenous Pseudomonas which effectively suppress the pathogens and may also increase plant growth. Microbes were isolated from the cabbage area using the Kings'B medium with multilevel dilution. All isolates were tested for their effectiveness in pots in a Completely Randomized Design with a concentration of 1.5x106 CFU (Colony Forming Unit) per pot. The variables observed were plant growth, number of club roots, and percentage of disease incidence. Fourteen isolates of Pseudomonas were isolated. Three Pseudomonas isolates were found most effective at suppressing clubroot disease and increasing plant growth. The best isolate obtained was Pseudomonas-6, followed Pseudomonas-9, and Pseudomonas-8.