Determination of flammability parameters for organic waste resulting from the processing of sunflower seeds

Agricultural waste is found in abundance in the environment, whether it is the plant itself represented by the stem, leaf or seeds that have been peeled or other waste. By drying and crushing the residues from the plants, organic powders will be formed with a variable granulation and humidity. Through the processing of oilseeds such as sunflower seeds, significant amounts of waste from seeds result. Seed shells resulting from technological processes crumble, forming fine powders, whose granulations are different. A certain percentage will be 63μm or smaller and if those fine powders are mixed with air can form clouds with explosive properties. The purpose of this paper was to determine the minimum ignition layer and cloud temperatures. Experimental determination of flammability parameters is particularly important in order to take the proper safety measures so that accidents can be avoided.

Morphology, microscopic anatomy and bacterial inhibition of extracts of Ludwigia adscendens (L.) H. Hara plants growing in Lang Sen Wetland Reserve, Long An province, Vietnam

The study aimed to supplement data on a plant that was considered a folk medicine of Vietnam. Morphological and microscopic anatomical characteristics of this species which were adapted to the frequently flooded habitat of the reserve was studied and analyzed. Alcoholic extracts of each stem, leaf and root part were recovered using a rotary evaporator. The inhibitory ability on bacterial strains including Bacillus cereus, B. subtilis and Escherichia coli was tested through agar plate diffusion method. The result showed that the stem and leaf extracts were effective against all three bacterial strains, while the root extracts had no effect against E. coli.

The Effect of Ozone-Electric Treatment on the Enrichment and Transfer of Heavy Metal Cu in Sludge

In order to explore a safe, effective way to use sludge as agricultural fertilizer it is necessary to effectively separate and remove the heavy metals embedded in sludge. In the study, the ozone-electric two-stage treatment was used to transform heavy metal copper in the sludge, and then the treated sludge was used for maize production and the transferring of Cu in cultivation medium and plants, and the enrichment effect of Cu in plant were investigated. According to composition of culture substance, five treatments were set in maize planting experiments: CK, Agricultural soil without addition; T1, Agricultural soil supplemented with raw sludge; T2, Agricultural soil treated with ozone sludge; T3, Agricultural soil with ozone treated and electric treated sludge; T4, Agricultural soil added with common organic fertilizer. The results showed that in different treatments, the Cu content of organs showed the order of root> stem> leaf> cob> grain. Comparing root Cu content, the lowest was in T1 treatment, which was 11.60 mg/kg, while the lowest of grain Cu content was found in CK treatment, which was 1.36 mg/kg. In the upper, middle and lower soil layers, the highest and lowest Cu content was in T4 and CK, respectively. In both middle and lower soil layers, the Cu content of T1, T2 and T3 sludge treatments had a trend of T1>T2>T3; the difference of the Cu enrichment ability between different organs is not significant in the same soil layer. From each treatment, the Cu enrichment ability of plant of CK was higher than that of other treatments. According to the ability of Cu transferring to the above-ground part of plant, treatments are ranked as CK>T3>T4>T1>T2. The transferring of Cu from soil to plant was mainly affected by fertilizer level and the transferring rate of Cu from soil to stem, leaf and root was relatively high, but it was hardly affected by sludge. In summary, after ozone-electro treatment, the application of sludge does not significantly affect the Cu content in maize, and the Cu content in each treatment does not exceed the limit value of agricultural production.

Does Latent Tuberculosis Lead to a Spurious Correlation between BCG and COVID-19 Mortality?

Background: Many factors have been suggested to confound coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) studies, and BCG studies have been criticized for not adjusting for many confounders. We conducted this study to analyze the presumed effectiveness of the Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) vaccine in decreasing the COVID-19 mortality rate, and to answer the question of whether this is confounded by latent tuberculosis (LTB) prevalence.Materials and methods: We chose sixty-nine malaria-free countries with different BCG vaccination policies. TB prevalence was considered as a proxy for LTB. The BCG, TB prevalence, and COVID-19 mortality data are publically available. Contingency coefficients (C.C.) and a ROC analysis were used to assess the relationship between TB prevalence and BCG status, and identify cutoff points in each BCG group category. A stem–leaf plot was also used to explore the data’s apparent behavior concerning COVID-19 in relation to the BCG groups.Results: TB prevalence was significantly associated with BCG status. The BCG vaccination status apparently had a relationship with BCG status.Conclusions: TB is suggested to have a confounding effect on BCG results, leading to a spurious correlation between BCG and COVID-19 mortality.

Diversity of endophytic fungal species from Styrax benzoin found in benzoin-producing locations in North Sumatra

Styrax benzoin is a native tree to Indonesia, particularly in North Sumatra. This plant species produces benzoin resin, which is beneficial for medicinal treatments, hence its commercial value. Endophytic fungi help produce bioactive metabolites and contribute to resin production. However, the diversity of endophytic fungal species from S. benzoin grown in North Sumatra remained largely unexplored. This study aims to determine the distribution and diversity of culturable endophytic fungi from two kemenyan-producing locations in North Sumatra, Simalungun and North Tapanuli, as well as their tree part origin. A total of 7 and 8 endophytic fungal species were obtained from barks, stems, and/or leaves of S. benzoin grown in Simalungun and North Tapanuli, respectively, and identified by internal transcribed spacer sequence analysis. Endophytic fungi from North Tapanuli showed higher diversity, with a Shannon-Wiener index of 2.31 than those from Simalungun (1.95). Morisita-Horn similarity indices for bark-stem, stem-leaf, and bark-leaf were 0.47, 0.08, and 0, respectively, hinting at organ-specificity colonization. This study offers insights into the diversity of endophytic fungi isolated from S. benzoin which may contribute to future improvement of benzoin resin production.

Extraseasonal Production in a Soilless System and Characterisation of Landraces of Carosello and Barattiere (Cucumis melo L.)

Barattiere and Carosello are typical melon (Cucumis melo L.) landraces of Puglia’s (Southern Italy) biodiversity. Their unripe fruits are locally consumed as an alternative to cucumbers (C. sativus L.) and are appreciated for their qualitative profile. Nevertheless, they are underutilized crops. For the high variability and confusing denominations, a morphological characterization is essential to discriminate and valorise landraces; additionally, it is fundamental to implement the agronomic technique to allow the cultivation outside the natural growth period (summer) by soilless cultivation. Two genotypes of Barattiere (‘Allungato’ and ‘Tondo’), two of Carosello (‘Scopatizzo’ and ‘Tomentoso’ (CAT)) and two of cucumber (‘Baby Star’ and ‘Modan’ hybrids) were vertically grown in the winter-spring period in a rockwool soilless system in a glasshouse with supplemental light. Landraces were characterized by morpho-physiological descriptors of melon; fruit biometrics and colour were analysed for all genotypes; productive parameters, leaf fluorescence, and chlorophyll content were measured. Genotypes varied in seeds, stem, leaf, fruit traits and they were andromonoecious; Carosello flowered earlier and produced more than Barattiere; CAT fruits were hairy and elongate, while other genotypes tended to rounder and glabrous fruits. Although landraces grew slower than cucumbers, both produced marketable fruits and the production of Carosello was comparable to cucumbers. In conclusion, Barattiere and Carosello have a productive potential and one vertically trained stem in a soilless system is appropriate for their extra-seasonal production.

Phyto-chemical Screening and Anti-Microbial Analysis of a Medicinal Plant: Telosma pallida L.

The work is undertaken to evaluate the preliminary phyto-chemicals, anti-microbial activity of root, stem, leaf, flower and fruit extracts. The highest anti-fungal activity was observed against M. phaseolina by aqueous extract of flower. The highest anti-bacterial activity was observed against S. typhi by methanol extract of leaf. This medicinal plant was the source of the secondary metabolites i.e., alkaloid, flavonoids, saponin etc. The outcomes of the present study specified the plant possess various potentially active secondary metabolites which help for the developing pharmaceuticals, especially antimicrobial drugs. It is the first-ever information about this plant and it will help with pharmacological studies of Telosma pallida L.

Development and production of maize as a function of biochar rates

Poultry litter biochar has shown to be promising in crop development and production. On this basis, this study was developed to investigate the influence of increasing rates of poultry litter biochar on the growth and production of maize hybrid BRS 2022. The experiment was laid out in a completely randomized design with six biochar rates (0, 2.0, 4.0, 6.1, 8.1 and 10.1 t ha-1) and four replicates. Plots consisted of pots with a volume of 20 dm3, with one plant each. The following variables were evaluated at 83 days after sowing: plant height; first-ear insertion height; stem diameter; number of leaves; leaf area; internode length and number; stem, leaf and total dry weights; ear weight; grain weight per plant; 1000-grain weight; and ear length and diameter. Biochar application influenced plant height; first-ear insertion height; stem diameter; leaf area; internode length; and stem, leaf and total dry weights, having a positive impact in increasing in ear weight, grain weight per plant, 1000-grain weight and ear length and diameter. For the conditions in which the experiment was conducted, the recommended biochar rate to obtain the best results is 6.4 t ha-1.