Cadmium (Cd) accumulation is one of the serious global issues among the multitude of food security challenges. Their toxic effects are evident in different physiological and metabolic behaviors of ...plants. In this context, a potted study was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of salicylic acid (SA) spraying in alleviating Cd toxicity in chia (Salvia hispanica) seedlings. This pseudocereal as a superfood is characterized by high nutritional value and high therapeutic potential. We examined some growth traits, photosynthetic pigments, anthocyanin, antioxidant defense system, malondialdehyde (MDA), and certain osmoregulatory molecules. The results showed that the chia seedlings exposed to Cd showed a substantial decline in growth, especially in shoot and root length and number of leaves (25.5, 21.5, and 22.6%, respectively), whereas the aforesaid biochemical parameters were not significantly affected. However, SA treatment alleviated the Cd stress applied and markedly enhanced the stem and root growth, especially shoot length of about 32.3% compared to Cd treatment. Under combined treatment Cd+SA, we also recorded a significant increase in the accumulation of proline (85.3%) and anthocyanin (83.1%), and a significant enhancement in peroxidase activity (34.9%), compared to control. These responses exhibit the involvement of SA in mitigating Cd-induced oxidative damage and improving Cd tolerance in Chia. Principal component analysis and cluster analysis showed differences between individual and combined treatment. Based on these results, exogenous SA used in the right amounts could alleviate Cd-induced stress and boost chia seedlings’ growth.
The isolation and identification of beneficial bacteria from the active phase of composting is considered to be a key bio-quality parameter for the assessment of the process. The aim of this work was ...the selection and identification of beneficial bacteria from a co-composting experiment of vegetable waste (VW), olive oil mill waste (O2MW), and phosphate sludge (PS). Phosphate-solubilizing strains were isolated from the thermophilic phase using Pikovskaya (PVK) solid medium supplemented with tricalcium phosphate Ca3(PO4) (TCP) as the sole source of phosphorus (P). Therefore, the selected isolate Alcaligenes aquatilis GTE53 was tested to tolerate abiotic stresses (different levels of temperature, variable pH, high salinity and water stress). The isolate was also assessed for indole acetic acid (IAA) and siderophores synthesis, nitrogen fixation, phenol degradation and pathogens inactivation. The quality of the co-composting process was also investigated by monitoring the physico-chemical parameters. The obtained results showed that A. aquatilis GTE53 displayed a higher solubilization index of 2.4 and was efficiently dissolved, up to 162.8 and 247.4 mg·mL−1 of inorganic phosphate from PS and phosphate rock (PR), respectively. A. aquatilis GTE53 exhibited siderophores and IAA release, along with atmospheric nitrogen fixation. In addition to that, A. aquatilis GTE53 showed a high resistance to heat and tolerance to acidic and alkaline pH, high salinity and water stress. Moreover, A. aquatilis GTE53 could degrade 99.2% of phenol from a high-concentrated medium (1100 mg·L−1 of phenol) and can inactivate the most abundant pathogens in industrial wastes: Escherichia coli, Streptococcus sp., Salmonella sp., and Fusarium oxysporum albedinis. Analysis of temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratio, indicated successful co-composting. An efficient transformation of P to the available form and a great abatement of polyphenols, were also recorded during the process. The findings of this study will help to advance the understanding of A. aquatilis GTE53 functions and will facilitate its application to promote beneficial microbial organisms during composting, thus obtaining a high-quality product.
Drought and high temperature are the major abiotic stresses for wheat production. The present study investigated the effect of drought and chronic heat stress on physiological parameters of durum ...wheat lines derived from interspecific crosses and their association with yield. Seventy-seven durum wheat lines were evaluated during two seasons (2016–2017 and 2017–2018) for drought tolerance at Tessaout (Morocco) using irrigated and rainfed treatments and for heat tolerance at Wad Medani (Sudan). Five drought screening indices (alone or combined) and physiological parameters were used to assess drought and heat tolerance. Among the physiological parameters used, canopy temperature (CT) had moderate heritability and was significantly affected by both severe and moderate drought stresses. CT at early heading showed a stronger correlation with grain yield (GY) and total biomass (BY) under heat stress. The use of maximum quantum yield of PSII (Fv/Fm) for drought/heat screening was limited by the low genetic variation despite its significant correlation with yield under drought (r2 = 0.22) and heat (r2 = 0.4). The normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) at vegetative stage was highly correlated with GY and BY and it showed high genotypic variation that can allow for efficient selection. The grain filling rate (GFR) was found to be highly correlated with GY and BY under heat stress. The modified stress tolerance index (MsSTI) had the highest association with GY under drought (R2 = 0.82) while the mean productivity (MP) was adapted to both optimal conditions (R2 = 0.77) and drought stress (R2 = 0.73). The computation of a mean score index (MSI) improved the selection efficiency under drought (R2 = 0.92). The results showed good potential for lines derived from wide crosses to increase variability for heat and drought adaptive physiological traits.
A total of 14
strains were isolated from lentil accessions grown at the ICARDA experimental research station at Marchouch in Morocco and used for molecular characterization and symbiotic efficiency ...assessment. Individual phylogenetic analysis using the 16S rRNA gene, house-keeping genes
,
, and
, and symbiotic genes
and
along with Multilocus Sequence Analysis (MLSA) of the concatenated genes (
-
-
-
) was carried out for the identification and clustering of the isolates. The symbiotic efficiency of the strains was assessed on three Moroccan lentil cultivars (Bakria, Chakkouf, and Zaria) based on the number of nodules, plant height, plant dry weight, and total nitrogen content in leaves. The results showed that the individual phylogenetic analysis clustered all the strains into
and
with sequence similarity ranging from 94 to 100%, except one strain which clustered with
with sequence similarity of 100%. The MLSA of the concatenated genes and the related percentages of similarity clustered these strains into two groups of
species, with one strain as a new genospecies when applying the threshold of 96%. For symbiotic efficiency, the Bakria variety showed the best association with 10 strains compared to its non-inoculated control (
-value ≤ 0.05), followed by Chakkouf and Zaria. The present study concluded that the genetic diversity and the symbiotic efficiency of
strains appeared to be mainly under the control of the lentil genotypes.
Lead is a heavy metal of particular concern with respect to environmental quality and health. The lack of plant species that accumulate and tolerate Pb is a limiting factor to understand the ...molecular mechanisms involved in Pb tolerance. In this study we identified Hirschfeldia incana, a Brassicaceae collected from metalliferous mine spoils in Morocco, as a Pb accumulator plant. H. incana exhibited high Pb accumulation in mine soils and in hydroponic cultures. Major Pb accumulation occurred in the roots and a part of Pb translocated from the roots to the shoots, even to the siliques. These findings demonstrated that H. incana is a Pb accumulator species. The expression of several candidate genes after Pb-exposure was measured by quantitative PCR and two of them, HiHMA4 and HiMT2a, coding respectively for a P1B-type ATPase and a metallothionein, were particularly induced by Pb-exposure in both roots and leaves. The functional characterization of HiHMA4 and HiMT2a was achieved using Arabidopsis T-DNA insertional mutants. Pb content and primary root growth analysis confirmed the role of these two genes in Pb tolerance and accumulation. H. incana could be considered as a good experimental model to identify genes involved in lead tolerance and accumulation in plants.
Heat stress occurring during the reproductive stage of wheat has a detrimental effect on productivity. A durum wheat core set was exposed to simulated terminal heat stress by applying plastic tunnels ...at the time of flowering over two seasons. Mean grain yield was reduced by 54% compared to control conditions, and grain number was the most critical trait for tolerance to this stress. The combined use of tolerance indices and grain yield identified five top performing elite lines: Kunmiki, Berghouata1, Margherita2, IDON37-141, and Ourgh. The core set was also subjected to genome wide association study using 7652 polymorphic single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) markers. The most significant genomic regions were identified in association with spike fertility and tolerance indices on chromosomes 1A, 5B, and 6B. Haplotype analysis on a set of 208 elite lines confirmed that lines that carried the positive allele at all three quantitative trait loci (QTLs) had a yield advantage of 8% when field tested under daily temperatures above 31° C. Three of the QTLs were successfully validated into Kompetitive Allele Specific PCR (KASP) markers and explained >10% of the phenotypic variation for an independent elite germplasm set. These genomic regions can now be readily deployed via breeding to improve resilience to climate change and increase productivity in heat-stressed areas.
According to the Moroccan Court of Auditors, the meats are prepared in slaughterhouses that do not meet the basic conditions required by Moroccan standards. This survey is being conducted to assess ...the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of handlers regarding the salubrity and hygiene of meat and to evaluate the bacteriological load of work surfaces in a slaughterhouse located in the Marrakech region. A total of 100 people working at the slaughterhouse participated in the study. The average values concerning the attitude and practice of the carcass handlers were, respectively, very satisfactory (65.7%) and acceptable (53.44%), while the average value of knowledge was generally low (39%). Bacterial load was assessed by the serial dilution method using the standard procedure. Seventy samples were taken from the hands of manipulators, knives, clothes, hooks, door handles, floor, and walls over an area of between 20 and 100 cm2. The total number of aerobic mesophiles (TAVCs), Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Salmonella spp was determined for each sample. Escherichia coli was the predominant isolate (42%), while Salmonella spp and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were the least bacterial isolates with 16% and 14%, respectively. Walls and knives were the most contaminated by E. coli at 90%. This survey reveals the importance of developing formal training for all slaughterhouse handlers regarding meat hygiene and safety during carcass processing to develop their knowledge and practices. Bacteriological results indicate a need to improve the available slaughter facilities and develop an appropriate slaughter process strategy to minimize the risk of carcass contamination.
Since the confirmation of measles cases represents an important indicator regarding the performance of the measles-elimination program, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the ...routine procedures followed in Morocco for the laboratory confirmation of measles cases. Suspected cases reported between January 2010 and December 2012 were assessed for the timeliness of the sample collection, occurrence of measles clinical symptoms, and the results of the laboratory diagnoses. For 88% of the 2,708 suspected cases, a clinical specimen was collected within 7d of rash onset, of which 50% were IgM-positive and 2.6% were equivocal. The measles symptoms were reported in 91.4% of the cases; the occurrence of symptoms showed a positive association with the serological results (odds ratio OR = 2.9883, 95% confidence interval CI 2.2238-4.0157). Of the negative samples, 52% (n = 116) tested positive by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). These results are in favor of using molecular detection to complement serological diagnosis in the context of measles surveillance approach in Morocco. In addition, the introduction of additional laboratory methods for differential diagnosis is required for the final classification of suspected cases with maculopapular rash and fever in the context of the measles elimination program.
Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a severe malignant disease. Despite its low frequency, NPC is very common in North African population. Radiotherapy is the standard therapeutic treatment of NPC. ...However, radioresistance hampers the success of treatment. At the molecular scale, radioresistance is due to genetic variations involved in DNA repair pathways in NPC patients. Several studies reported that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in excision repair cross complementing group 1 (ERCC1) could be associated with radioresistance. In this optic, the present study aimed to evaluate the association between DNA repair gene polymorphisms ERCC1 C8092A and ERCC1 C118T and radiotherapy response of patients with NPC.
A total of 95 patients with confirmed NPC were recruited at the Mohammed VI Center for Cancer Treatment, Casablanca - Morocco between 2016 and 2018. Two single nucleotide polymorphisms in ERCC1 gene were genotyped. Multiple analysis software was used to assess the correlation between these SNPs and radio-therapeutic response.
Sequencing of ERCC1 C8092A polymorphism revealed that CC and CA genotypes were found in 51.6% and 45.3% of cases, respectively, whereas the homozygote AA genotype was reported in only 3.1% of cases. For ERCC1 C118T polymorphism, the heterozygote CT genotype was identified in 49.5% of cases. Homozygotes genotypes CC and TT were detected in 17.9% and 32.6% respectively of NPC cases. Of note, no significant association was found between the ERCC1 C8092A polymorphism and response to radiation therapy (p=0.81). Similarly, there was no significant association between the response to radiotherapy and allelic distribution (p=0.56). Likewise, no correlation was observed neither with genotypes (p=0.07) nor with alleles (p=0.09) of ERCC1 C118T polymorphism and response to radiation therapy.
Our results clearly showed that ERCC1 C8092A and ERCC1 C118T polymorphisms were not associated with response to radiotherapy in Moroccan NPC patients. Large studies are warranted to confirm the role of these SNPs in therapeutic response of NPC patients.
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