Bactrocera dorsalis is a notorious polyphagous pest in China, and its management strategies largely depend on methyl eugenol (ME), which has been widely used as an attractant to monitor and eradicate ...B. dorsalis populations for seven decades. However, the non-responsiveness levels in field B. dorsalis populations to ME is unknown. In this study, we monitored the response to ME in field populations from the four most heavily infested provinces in China, and the results showed that the populations had lower sensitivity to ME relative to GZS susceptible strain. The percent responsiveness of the lowest sensitivity population was 5.88-, 3.47-, and 1.47-fold lower relative to the susceptible strain at doses of 1, 10, and 100 µL of ME, respectively. Gene expression analysis and inhibitor assays further revealed that odorant binding protein (BdorOBP2, BdorOBP83b) and the P450 enzyme system may be associated with the lower response to ME. To our knowledge, this work is the first to report that the P450 enzyme system confers a lower responsiveness to lure insects. These findings provided valuable insights for exploiting ME non-responsiveness to protect sterile males from ME-based control strategies and the use of lures combined with insecticides.
Background Belamcanda chinensis (L.) DC. (BC) belongs to the family of Iridaceae and is widely cultivated and used in many Chinese patent medicine and Chinese medicinal formulae. However, due to the ...high similarities in appearance such as color and shape to Iris tectorum Maxim (ITM), another plant from the same family, BC is often confused or even misused with ITM. Methods Therefore, in order to distinguish the chemical constituents, qualities and biological activities of BC and ITM, multiple technologies including plant metabolomics, digital reference standard (DRS) analyzer and biological activities assay were employed to provide a sufficient basis for their practical applications. Results In plant metabolomics, the PCA and OPLS-DA score plot indicated the obvious differences in chemical profiling between BC and ITM and 6 compounds were successfully identified to contribute to the differences. In DRS study, the fingerprints of 10 and 8 compounds in BC and ITM were developed based on DRS analyzer, respectively, involving relative retention time (RRT) method and linear calibration using two reference substances (LCTRS) technique. The DRS analyzer also accurately identified 10 and 8 compounds from BC and ITM, respectively, by using only two reference standards. In biological activities assay, BC had a better anticancer effect than ITM due to the high abundance of irigenin, while ITM showed stronger hepatoprotective activity than BC because of the high abundance of tectoridin. Conclusions Therefore, due to the significant differences of B. chinensis and I. dichotoma in chemical composition and biological activities, the current studies strongly proved that these two medicinal plants could not be mixed in industrial production and clinical medication. Keywords: Belamcanda chinensis (L.) DC, Iris tectorum Maxim, Plant metabolomics, Digital reference standard, Biological activities
In recent years, Apolygus lucorum has caused increasing damage to cotton and fruit trees in China. The salivary enzymes secreted by A. lucorum when sucking on host plants induce a series of ...biochemical reactions in plants, and the pre-oral digestion benefits the bug feeding. In this study, the food intake of A. lucorum from 1st instar nymphs to adults was measured, and the corresponding salivary activity of pectinase, amylase, cellulase, protease, polyphenol oxidase and peroxidase was determined. Daily food intake varied with developmental stage, peaking in 3rd and 4th instar nymphs. Pectinase, amylase, cellulase and protease were detected in both nymphal and adult saliva of A. lucorum, while neither polyphenol oxidase nor peroxidase was detected. Protease activity varied with food intake peaking at the 3rd-4th instar, and then slightly decreasing at the 5th instar. Levels of pectinase, amylase and cellulase increased significantly with the daily feeding level until the 3rd instar, corresponding with increasing damage to host plants. The activity of both cellulase and protease had a significant linear relationship with the average daily food intake. The increasing activity of enzymes in saliva explain stage-specific impacts of A. lucorum on the host plants, and suggest that optimal management of A. lucorum would be confined to its control threshold prior to the peak of daily feeding in the 3rd instar.
(Hendel), as a quarantine pest in many countries and regions, has shown a trend of northward diffusion in the past century in China. In order to determine whether
will cause great harm to the ...dominant northern fruits, the age-stage two-sex life tables of peaches and apples were constructed, with oranges as the control. The results showed that the developmental rate, intrinsic rate of increase (
), and finite rate of increase (
) on oranges and peaches were significantly greater than on apples. Additionally, the prediction of population growth 90 days after oviposition revealed that the whole population on oranges and peaches increased by 13,667.3 and 12,112.1 times, respectively, indicating that
is very likely to endanger peach orchards. The population increased on apples by 4311 times, though this is lower than that on oranges and peaches. Overall, peaches with high fitness similar to oranges are very suitable as a host for
and are likely to become a new favorable host, while apples may also become a potentially new host, though with lower fitness. Therefore, the most pressing solutions to take are population monitoring, comprehensive prevention, and control in the case of any potential large-scale outbreak of
in northern China.
Aphelinus mali
(Haldeman) (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) is an effective natural enemy used in China to control the woolly apple aphid (
Eriosoma lanigerum
Hausmann) (WAA). Population of
A. mali
in China ...falls into two distinct genetic clades (Shandong clades and Liaoning clades). In the present results, the developmental threshold temperature of the Shandong clade (9.82 ± 1.44 °C) was lower than that of the Liaoning clade (10.72 ± 0.24 °C), while the effective accumulated temperature of the Shandong clade needed for development from oviposition to adult eclosion (126.45 ± 16.81 day-degree) was significantly higher than that of the Liaoning clade (107.99 ± 3.44 day-degree). The supercooling and freezing points of the Liaoning clade (− 27.66 °C, − 27.17 °C) were significantly lower than those of the Shandong clade (− 26.04 °C, − 25.54 °C).
Some other differences between the two clades as well were the content of fat, trehalose, and protein of overwintering larvae of the Liaoning clade (60.8%, 7.57 μg/one insect, 10.11 μg/one insect) as these were significantly higher than those of the Shandong clade (45.5%, 5.73 μg/one insect, 8.05 μg/one insect). The occurrence of the first adult emergence of the Shandong clade of
A. mali
was earlier in the year than that of the Liaoning clade, allowing this clade to better control WAA in early spring. Meanwhile, the developmental duration from oviposition to adult emergence of the Shandong clade was longer than that of the Liaoning clade, and the cold tolerance of one of these, the more northerly Liaoning clade, is greater than that of the other, the more southerly Shandong clade. All of these factors imply differences in the pest control ability of the two clades of
A. mali
in their respective regions.
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•Recycling of coal fly and bottom ash as phosphorous (P) adsorbents have environmental benefits.•A foaming agent (SDS) was applied to improve P adsorption characteristics.•Bottom ash ...pellets were more effective in P removal than fly ash pellets.•SDS was found to be an efficient agent to improve the P sorption capacity.•Pelleting process can significantly reduce the heavy metal release from ashes.
Recycling of coal combustion solids can have several environmental benefits. The objective of this study was to evaluate a sustainable approach to recycle coal fly ash and bottom ash as pelletized-adsorbents for dissolved phosphorus (P). Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate (SDS), a foaming agent, was added to enhance the phosphorus adsorption capacity of fly ash pellets (FAP) and bottom ash pellets (BAP) during the pellet fabrication. Ten types of fly ash pellets and bottom ash pellets with varying Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate proportions (FAP-0/BAP-0: 0% SDS; FAP-1/BAP-1: 2% SDS; FAP-2/BAP-2: 4% SDS; FAP-3/BAP-3: 6% SDS; FAP-4/BAP-4: 8% SDS by weight) were manufactured with a high temperature (700℃) modification process. The results indicated that the bottom ash pellet was more suitable adsorbent than fly ash pellet due to the better phosphorus adsorption capacity and lower heavy metal leaching. After the addition of Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate, the volumetric porosity of fly ash pellets and bottom ash pellets increased by 45.5%–163.6%, 52.9%–76.5%, respectively. However, higher Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate fraction did not result in better pellet phosphorus removal, since FAP-2 and BAP-3 resulted in the highest phosphorus removal among the pellets tested in this study. The results from X-ray diffraction demonstrated that Calcium and Silica were the major phases in the pellets. This study provides a feasible approach to reuse fly ash and bottom ash as effective pelletized-adsorbents for water quality improvement. These pellets can be applied in edge-of-field and in-stream treatment to control P loss from the agricultural area.
Although the world is gradually moving towards renewable energy resources, the coal industry will continue to be a major energy supply sector in the foreseeable future. However, by-products such as ...coal fly ash (CFA), coal bottom ash (CBA), and boiler slag are generated during coal combustion, and have become a significant environmental concern. There is an urgent need for transdisciplinary efforts in research, policy, and practice to reduce these by-products substantially. Many studies have focused on the environmental management and comprehensive utilization of CFA. As a comparison, less attention has been paid to CBA. Therefore, this critical review provides a holistic picture of CBA, from the generation, fundamental characteristics, environmental concerns to potential applications, and benefits analysis. Based on the fundamental characteristics, CBA can be considered as a sustainable and renewable resource with great potential to produce value-added materials. High-value applications and current research related to CBA, including construction and ceramic industry, wastewater remediation, soil amelioration, energy catalysis, valuable metals recovery, and material synthesis, are systemically presented and compared. It emphasizes the environmental and economic benefits of the sustainable applications of CBA as well. Particularly, it indicates that CBA is a promising candidate in normal, lightweight, self-compacting, and ultra-high-performance concrete, which shows a reduction in both energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions during concrete production. This work provides new insights into the greener and sustainable applications of CBA, and it will offer a practical guide for the sustainable development of the coal industry.
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•Coal bottom ash (CBA) shows great potential to produce value-added materials.•The basic properties and potential hazards of CBA were systemically reported.•Recent findings on the high-value application of CBA were presented in detail.•CBA recycling exhibits economic and environmental advantages.•Future CBA research directions and limitations were proposed.
•Cyanobacteria, diatoms and dinoflagellates blooms can synthesize cyanotoxins.•The successive presence of cyanotoxins may pose chronic toxicity.•Abiotic-biotic factors that affected seasonal shifts ...of algal species were documented.•Multiple ecological roles and physiological functions of cyanotoxins were evaluated.•Human and ecological health risks of harmful algal blooms were illustrated.
Human and ecological health depends on the vitality of freshwater systems, but these are increasingly threatened by cyanotoxins released from harmful algal blooms (HABs). Periodic cyanotoxin production, although undesirable, may be tolerable when there is enough time for cyanotoxins to degrade and dissipate in the environment, but the year-round presence of these toxins will be a chronic health for humans and ecosystems. The purpose of this critical review is to document the seasonal shifts of algal species and their ecophysiological acclimatation to dynamic environmental conditions. We discuss how these conditions will create successive occurrences of algal blooms and the release of cyanotoxins into freshwater. We first review the most common cyanotoxins, and evaluate the multiple ecological roles and physiological functions of these toxins for algae. Then, the annual recurring patterns HABs are considered in the context of global change, which demonstrates the capacity for algal blooms to shift from seasonal to year-round growth regimes that are driven by abiotic and biotic factors, leading to chronic loading of freshwaters with cyanotoxins. At last, we illustrate the impacts of HABs on the environment by compiling four health issues and four ecology issues emanating from their presence in the that covers atmosphere, aquatic ecosystems and terrestrial ecosystems. Our study highlights the annual patterns of algal blooms, and proposes that a “perfect storm” of events is lurking that will cause the ‘seasonal toxicity’ to become a full-blown, ‘chronic toxicity’ in the context of the deterioration of HABs, highlighting a non-negligible chronic health and ecological hazard.
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Abstract Objectives To investigate the 12-day dynamic characteristics of tumor response to intravenous administration of CA4P in rabbit VX2 tumor models. Methods Study protocol was approved by local ...ethical committee for animal care and use. Sixteen rabbits with 32 tumors on bilateral legs were randomly divided into treated and control groups. Conventional and DWI images were acquired before and 24 h, 4 days, 8 days and 12 days after treatment. The dynamic changes of tumor on images were correlated with histological results. ADCs were compared among and between groups at different time points. Results The tumors in treated group grew slower than those in control group. In treaded group, the mean ADC decreased slightly at 24 h point due to cell edema caused by ischemia. Then, it increased significantly at 4 days and 8 days because of progressive central necrosis. Finally, peripheral tumor proliferation caused a second decrease of ADC at 12 days. The significant difference of ΔADC% between the two groups at 24 h, 4 days and 8 days indicated that the change of ADC in treated group was really caused by CA4P. Conclusion The dynamic histological changes of tumor caused by CA4P as reflected exactly by diffusion-weighted MR imaging indicate a noninvasive measure for monitoring tumor vascular targeting treatment.
•The composite fouling in emitters is the biggest obstacle to restrict the application of drip irrigation system.•Reveal the dynamic variation, formation mechanism and influential path of emitter ...composite fouling to solve clogging problem.•Identify the influence of different frequencies on the composite fouling formation.
Drip irrigation applying surface water with high sand concentration leads to a higher risk of composite fouling, which is the most complex material type of clogging. Thus, understanding the dynamic variation and formation mechanism of composite fouling is the prerequisite for controlling clogging substance and establishing rational anti-clogging method to promote high-sand surface water for drip irrigation. In this paper, the components of the composite fouling were studied through the emitter composite fouling experiment under three drip irrigation frequencies. The results indicated that the particulate fouling composition (solid particle, SP), crystallization fouling composition (CaCO3 and MgCO3 precipitate, C-MP), and biofouling composition (extracellular polymeric substance, EPS, and microbial activity, MA) grew as the system operated. Significant positive linear correlations were obtained among different compositions (R2>0.82, p < 0.01), and the microorganism attached on the surface of SP and continuously secreted EPS mutually promoted the formation of biofouling and particulate fouling. The condensation of microcrystals formed by C-MP with SP promoted the formation of crystallization and particulate fouling, and phosphorus anions enhanced flocculation and agglomeration between particles. Thus, physical-chemical-biological reactions occurred to promote mutual growth, which ultimately led to composite fouling formation. Meanwhile, various components in the composite fouling increased gradually with higher operating frequency, which could aggravate the emitter clogging and decrease the relative discharge of the drip irrigation emitters (Dra) and the uniformity coefficient (CU).
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