Search Results (3,482)

Mosquito control is a critical operational requirement for tropical resort islands, where guest comfort, staff wellbeing, and public health depend on effective management of biting insects. In many island tourism destinations, including the Maldives, mosquito control programs rely heavily on routine insecticide space spraying (fogging or misting). While such interventions can temporarily reduce adult mosquito abundance, their effects are often short-lived. High-frequency applications are therefore common practice but may create risks for human health, biodiversity, and fragile island ecosystems. Here, we examine how mosquito control in the Maldivian tourism and hospitality sector could transition from pesticide-dependent approaches toward ecological mosquito management practices. Drawing on operational experience from fourteen Maldivian resort islands and current knowledge of mosquito ecology, we compare conventional insecticide-based control with alternative approaches including surveillance-based management, larval habitat reduction or modification, biological control, mass trapping of mosquitoes, or combinations thereof. The geographically bounded nature of resort islands, combined with centralized management and strong sustainability commitments within the tourism sector, creates unusually favorable conditions for implementing integrated mosquito management strategies. We propose a practical transition framework that prioritizes monitoring, habitat management, and sustained population suppression while reducing or eliminating routine insecticide applications. Importantly, our operational experience demonstrates that implementation can be simple and practical, requiring only modest adjustments to existing resort operations. Such approaches can improve guest and staff safety, protect island biodiversity, reduce dependence on chemical pesticides, minimize the noise, olfactory and visual disturbances associated with routine fogging and mist-blower operations, and strengthen the environmental sustainability credentials of tropical tourism destinations. Full article

Interactions between cyanobacteria and eukaryotic algae are traditionally viewed as favoring cyanobacteria, which are often the dominant competitors in freshwater ecosystems. However, increasing evidence suggests that eukaryotic algae also possess effective chemical defenses capable of suppressing cyanobacterial proliferation. In this study, the anti-cyanobacterial potential of a methanolic biomass extract of the green microalga Chlorella vulgaris against the bloom-forming cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa was investigated. Optical density measurements revealed the inhibition of cyanobacterial growth, with extract concentrations of 0.4–1.6 mg mL⁻¹ significantly reducing biomass accumulation. The lowest concentration (0.2 mg mL⁻¹) stimulated the accumulation of phycobiliproteins, whereas concentrations of 0.8–1.6 mg mL⁻¹ significantly decreased phycobiliprotein content, indicating progressive physiological impairment. The results suggest that the highest extract concentration applied may also cause alteration in phosphate acquisition. Lipid profiling of the Chlorella biomass showed that 97% of the extractable lipids consisted of methanol-soluble fatty acids, with C18 fatty acids predominating among the 20 identified compounds. These metabolites are reported to possess allelopathic activity and therefore represent plausible contributors to the observed inhibition. These findings support that anti-cyanobacterial activity may represent a widespread ecological trait of Chlorella and potentially other green microalgae, providing a promising foundation for environmentally friendly cyanobacterial bloom management. Full article

Plant secondary metabolites play important roles in plant defense, environmental adaptation, and ecosystem functioning, yet large-scale monitoring of foliar phenolics remains limited because of the high cost and restricted spatial coverage of airborne imaging spectroscopy and the limited spectral resolution of multispectral satellites. This study explored a cross-scale remote sensing framework to map foliar phenolics through the synergy of airborne imaging spectroscopy and Sentinel-2 multispectral imagery. Foliar samples were collected from 634 plots across seven National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) ecological domains in the United States, representing six plant functional types. Community-weighted mean foliar phenolic concentrations were linked with NEON Airborne Observation Platform (AOP) imaging spectroscopy to develop phenolic retrieval models using partial least squares regression (PLSR) and Gaussian process regression (GPR). The optimized airborne-derived phenolics were subsequently aggregated across multiple spatial windows and used as reference data to train Sentinel-2 models using PLSR, random forest regression (RFR), and GPR. Both airborne hyperspectral models achieved strong predictive performance, with comparable accuracy between PLSR (R² = 0.770, RMSE = 16.11 mg·g⁻¹) and GPR (R² = 0.771, RMSE = 16.16 mg·g⁻¹). However, PLSR showed substantially lower predictive uncertainty (4.62 mg·g⁻¹) than GPR (12.58 mg·g⁻¹), indicating more stable predictions across NEON samples. Spectral importance analysis identified consistent phenolic-sensitive wavelength regions in the visible and shortwave infrared domains, particularly near previously reported absorption features. For Sentinel-2 upscaling, prediction accuracy increased consistently with larger spatial aggregation windows, indicating improved agreement between Sentinel-2 observations and airborne-derived phenolics through reduced spatial scale mismatch and geolocation misalignment. Among the evaluated approaches, RFR achieved the best performance, improving from R² = 0.479 at the 10-pixel window to R² = 0.776 (NRMSE = 7.0%) at the 100-pixel window. Feature importance analysis showed increasing contributions of red-edge and shortwave infrared information at larger aggregation scales. Spatial comparisons demonstrated that Sentinel-2 successfully reproduced major phenolic distribution patterns observed by airborne imaging spectroscopy. These results demonstrate that airborne imaging spectroscopy can effectively bridge field observations and satellite multispectral imagery for foliar phenolics estimation and highlight the potential of Sentinel-2 as a scalable approach for monitoring vegetation chemical traits across heterogeneous ecosystems. Full article

The Hetao Irrigation District in arid northwestern China presents a significant challenge in balancing agricultural intensification and water conservation, particularly in its terminal lake, Wuliangsu Lake. This study examined how changes in Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) and cropping structures influenced the lake’s water quality. By using remote sensing data for LULC classification and agricultural statistics for crop composition, we analyzed the spatio-temporal variation in LULC and cropping structure in the irrigation district and quantified the associated agricultural non-point source pollution loads (total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and chemical oxygen demand) entering the lake. A calibrated Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code model was applied to evaluate water quality responses to cropping structure optimization. Our findings revealed significant shifts in LULC and cropping structure during the study period, driven by agricultural intensification, ecological restoration policies, urbanization, market forces, and national food security strategies. Concurrently, agricultural non-point source pollution loads into the lake showed a steady declining trend from 2018 to 2023, with total nitrogen (TN) decreasing by 15%, total phosphorus (TP) by 16.9%, and chemical oxygen demand (COD) by 19.4%. Model simulations demonstrated that optimizing the cropping structure, specifically by reducing the area of high-fertilizer crops (sunflower) and expanding low-fertilizer crops (spring wheat) and forage crops for ecological purposes, could further improve lake water quality. Under the intensive adjustment scenario, the inflow loads of TN, TP, and COD decreased by 10%, 11.7%, and 10.9%, respectively, while the corresponding in-lake concentrations decreased by 22.1%, 19.8%, and 18.7%, respectively. TP exhibited the highest sensitivity to such adjustments. By linking cropping structure adjustments with hydrodynamic-water quality modeling, this study provides a quantitative framework for assessing water quality responses in arid irrigated systems, offering a scientific basis for balancing agricultural production and water ecosystem protection in the Hetao district and similar regions. Full article

Artificial light at night (ALAN) and the broader use of artificial light in agriculture are increasingly recognized to affect the physiology and behavior of nocturnal insects, yet their influence on pheromone-mediated reproductive communication in economically important insect pest species remains poorly understood. Here, we investigated the effects of artificial illumination on calling behavior, sex pheromone production, blend composition, and mating success in the fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda, under both laboratory and semi-field conditions. Virgin females were exposed during the scotophase to one of four wavelength-specific treatments, including dark control, red (620 nm), green (520 nm), or blue (460 nm) LED light. Female calling behavior occurred during the early-to-mid scotophase under dark and red light conditions, while it was significantly delayed and suppressed under blue and green light. Specifically, blue light suppressed production of the key pheromone component (Z)-9-tetradecenyl acetate (Z9-14:Ac) and enhanced (Z)-11-hexadecenyl acetate (Z11-16:Ac), altering the species-specific pheromone blend composition. Mating success was significantly reduced under blue light in both laboratory and semi-field experiments. Under controlled laboratory conditions, green light also affected mating success, but this effect was not significant in the semi-field experiment. Blue light imposed the strongest inhibitory effect, reducing mating success by 39% relative to the dark condition. Red light produced minimal effects in all measured parameters, consistent with reduced sensitivity to longer wavelengths in nocturnal moths. These results demonstrate that wavelength-specific artificial light can disrupt several components of the reproductive communication system in S. frugiperda and suggest that manipulation of artificial light may offer a non-chemical approach for disrupting mating behavior in economically important insect pest species within integrated pest management programs. Full article

Food security faces significant challenges due to the growing threat of insect pests and global climate change, making it essential to adopt sustainable agricultural strategies. Plants possess intrinsic defense systems that are activated in response to herbivore attack, including the emission of specialized volatile organic compounds (VOC) known as herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs). These volatiles aid the foraging of natural enemies (predators and parasitoids), thereby contributing to biological control of pest populations. Harnessing these chemical defense mechanisms offers a promising avenue for pest management, although natural enemy attraction does not necessarily result in pest suppression or increased crop yield. This review synthesizes plant and insect-derived chemical signaling mechanisms with direct relevance to biological control in crop agroecosystems, including field crops, orchards, vegetable systems, and protected cultivation. We emphasize recent applied research while retaining selected foundational studies that established the principal concepts and mechanisms underlying chemically mediated pest management. Considering the importance of chemical signaling in sustainable agriculture, we propose four key research directions: (1) optimizing plant defense induction mechanisms; (2) integrating HIPVs with natural enemy pheromone-based attractants; (3) combining habitat management with the provision of plant-derived food resources; and (4) harnessing plant defenses through breeding and infochemical-based genetically modified crops. Additionally, we examine the potential impacts of environmental stressors on plant–herbivore chemical communication, underscoring their importance for resilient and environmentally sustainable agricultural systems. Full article

Agroecological approaches are increasingly recognized as sustainable alternatives to conventional weed management practices. This review examines the role of soybean, potato, and winter wheat as key crops within agroecological systems for effective weed suppression. Four management strategies—crop rotation, post-harvest mulching, optimized planting density (for soybean and potato), and varietal mixtures (for winter wheat)—are evaluated for their influence on weed dynamics and overall system performance. The synthesis of current studies indicates that these practices can significantly reduce weed pressure while enhancing soil health, biodiversity, and the provision of key ecosystem services, including provisioning, regulating, and supporting functions. In addition, these approaches contribute to improved crop productivity and reduced reliance on chemical inputs. Agroecological strategies also support pest regulation, water-use efficiency, and climate resilience, promoting more sustainable and resource-efficient agricultural systems. Despite these benefits, challenges related to farmer adoption, labor requirements, and limited policy support remain. Overall, this review highlights the potential of integrated agroecological practices to achieve sustainable agricultural intensification while balancing ecological sustainability with economic viability. Further research and supportive policy frameworks are needed to facilitate the wider implementation of these approaches across diverse agroecosystems. Full article

Durum wheat is highly susceptible to Fusarium head blight (FHB), a severe fungal disease caused primarily by Fusarium graminearum. FHB affects durum wheat production by causing significant yield losses and grain contamination with mycotoxins such as deoxynivalenol (DON) and zearalenone (ZEA). Given the limitations of chemical fungicides, finding sustainable biological control agents is essential. This study evaluated the antagonistic and biocontrol capabilities of Trichoderma harzianum ITEM 3636 against F. graminearum through in vitro and greenhouse experiments. In vitro dual and sandwich culture assays demonstrated that T. harzianum significantly inhibits pathogen mycelial growth through direct interaction and the emission of volatile compounds. In a competition test on rice kernels, co-inoculation with ITEM 3636 significantly reduced pathogen biomass, leading to maximum reductions of 96.5% for DON and 98% for ZEA. Furthermore, greenhouse trials on a commercial durum wheat cultivar revealed that T. harzianum ITEM 3636 significantly decreased FHB severity by 40% and reduced DON contamination by up to 32% only when a combined seed-coating and spike-spraying application was performed. Additionally, ITEM 3636 exhibited biostimulant-like effects on yield parameters, causing an increase in kernel weight of 33% in the greenhouse assay. These findings highlight T. harzianum ITEM 3636 as a promising and ecological alternative to synthetic fungicides for managing FHB, safeguarding crop production, and ensuring food safety. Full article

Coastal sediments can store contaminants for decades and become exposure sources when disturbance alters partitioning, transport, or biological contact. We propose the Coastal Sediment Toxicological Activation Protocol (CSTAP), a theoretical and empirically testable protocol for organizing event-conditioned toxicological activation potential in coastal sediments. The associated Coastal Sediment Toxicological Activation Index (CSTAI) is an exploratory, semi-quantitative score intended for hypothesis generation and future calibration, not a validated toxicity endpoint or regulatory threshold. The CSTAP separates chemical burden, effective bioavailability, mixture pressure, event activation, receptor vulnerability, evidence adequacy, uncertainty priority, and procedural integrity. The primary score alone assigns the exploratory class, whereas evidence adequacy, uncertainty priority, and forensic readiness qualify interpretation without changing the class. The protocol includes benchmark selection, information-source safeguards against double counting, route-resolved receptor weighting, event and mass-conservation checks, data-tier declarations, and validation logic. Limiting-case tests, a reproducible worked example, and illustrative Mediterranean case encodings show internal coherence and reporting structure. The CSTAP is intended to guide monitoring design, scenario comparison, and calibration with paired chemistry, exposure, bioassay, and ecological-effect datasets. Full article

The cold conditions of these habitats, as well as the morphometric features and origins of long-term ice-covered freshwater lakes, influence the structure and diversity of bacterial communities, which remain poorly understood. This study focused on long-term ice-covered lakes of contrasting origins (tectonic–glacial, glacial, and thermokarst), located in the highland subarctic region of Eastern Yakutia—an area that includes the Northern Hemisphere’s Pole of Cold, characterized by extremely low temperatures The differences in bacterial community diversity between deep lakes of tectonic–glacial origin and shallow lakes of glacial and thermokarst origin are shown by metabarcoding of the 16S rRNA gene. According to ANOVA, the water quality parameters were homogeneous between samples from the deep and shallow, and their effect on the bacterial community structure was insignificant. The deep lake communities were dominated by groups indicative of oligotrophic, stratified, and cold environments: Cyanobium_PCC−6307 (low-light picocyanobacteria), Methylacidiphilaceae (methanotrophs in oxygenated conditions), and the heterotrophic psychrotolerant genera Acinetobacter and Paenisporosarcina. Shallow lakes, by contrast, were enriched in taxa associated with high-light, well-mixed, and sediment-influenced conditions: SAR11 (Clade_III) (photoheterotrophic oligotrophs), Methylobacter (methanotrophs at neutral-pH), and taxa dominant in sediments (Gemmataceae и Terrimicrobium). The broadly distributed genera Candidatus_Planktophila, Ilumatobacter, and Polynucleobacter represent cosmopolitan freshwater generalists with diverse metabolic capabilities, explaining their consistent presence across both lake types. The novelty of this study lies in identifying a link between the structure of bacterial communities and the morphometric characteristics of lakes under conditions of homogeneous environmental parameters. Despite similar chemical compositions, opposite patterns were observed in deep and shallow lakes: in deep lakes, autochthonous taxa associated with stratification (low-light-tolerant cyanobacteria, aerobic methanotrophs) predominated, whereas sediment-associated and photoheterotrophic taxa dominated in shallow lakes, indicating a stronger connection between the benthos and the pelagic zone and a dependence on allochthonous carbon. Our results demonstrate that morphometry appears to be an important factor of the stability of microbial composition and carbon flux in permafrost regions. We revealed the heterogeneity of bacterial communities in subarctic lakes and identified dominant groups and key taxa, contributing to a better understanding of the ecological structure and functioning of lake ecosystems in cold regions and providing a basis for their monitoring. Full article

In this study, we evaluated the influence of physicochemical aging on the biological processing and depolymerization performance of polyethylene (PE) and polylactic acid (PLA) by Tenebrio molitor larvae, with the goal of improving insect-based plastic treatment strategies. PE and PLA subjected to a sequential freezing–ultraviolet aging protocol showed modest increases in total larval consumption (approximately 11% for PE and 10% for PLA) compared with pristine materials. Aging also accelerated the processes related to chemical depolymerization, as evidenced by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy showing the formation of oxidized functional groups and surface structural deterioration, respectively. Gel permeation chromatography indicated significant reductions in molecular weight. In addition, thermogravimetric analysis was used to evaluate the changes in thermal stability associated with polymer degradation. Gut microbiome analysis revealed that plastic diets and aging collectively shaped microbial structure and compositional shifts, with deterministic ecological processes dominating community assembly. PE diets enriched Proteobacteria, while PLA diets enriched Firmicutes and Desulfobacterota. Notably, aging strengthened microbial cooperation and enriched key genera, such as Spiroplasma sp. and Lactobacillus sp., which are potentially associated with plastic-associated metabolic adaptation. Overall, aging modestly facilitated larval processing and partial depolymerization of both fossil-based and bio-based plastics, as reflected by increased plastic consumption, polymer chain scission, and surface oxidation. It also enhanced the functional robustness of the larval gut microbiome. These findings provide mechanistic insights into insect-mediated plastic processing systems, offering mechanistic guidance for future, combined plastic treatment strategies rather than an immediately scalable stand-alone solution. Full article

The sustainable production of Dioscorea polystachya (Chinese yam) is severely compromised by a vicious cycle of excessive chemical dependency and complex biotic stresses including anthracnose, nematodes, thrips and other associated pests and diseases. Moreover, the efficacy of single biocontrol agents in field applications often proves unstable, and balancing the growth–defense trade-off remains challenging. To break these impasses, we established a novel “ZR Integrated Green Control System” (ZR-IGCS) by coupling an active plant immune inducer ZNC with a functional microbial agent Recharge. This system establishes a dual defense barrier, orchestrating internal immune activation with external micro-ecological regulation to engineer ecological synergy. Field trials demonstrated that the ZR-IGCS significantly accelerated seed tuber germination and seedling biomass accumulation. It established a spatiotemporal complementary defense network, exhibiting excellent integrated pest and disease control efficacy. The system maintained over 60% efficacy against foliar diseases such as anthracnose and brown spot, while enhancing the control of soil-borne diseases like wilt and root-lesion nematodes by more than 60% and 30%, respectively. It also achieved ~48% specific control of thrips. Crucially, ZR-IGCS alleviated the growth–defense conflict, significantly delaying plant senescence and synchronously optimizing yield structure for aerial beans and underground tubers. This synergy increased the proportion of high-quality yam beans, yielded a 51.66% surge in high-quality tubers, and improved total economic benefits by ~30%. The combined system successfully bridges the gap between laboratory potential and field stability for yam production, offering a robust and sustainable strategy to mitigate continuous cropping obstacles and reduce chemical inputs. Full article

The rapid emergence and dissemination of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) among bacterial pathogens, particularly the ESKAPE group (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacter spp.), represents one of the most pressing global public health challenges, contributing to increased morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. The limited development of new antibiotic classes over the past two decades has intensified the search for structurally novel antimicrobial agents and adjuvants capable of overcoming multidrug resistance. Natural products continue to serve as an invaluable source of anti-infective drug leads owing to their remarkable structural diversity and broad spectrum of biological activities. Mangrove ecosystems, located at the interface of terrestrial and marine environments, harbor highly diverse microbial communities, including fungi that have evolved under extreme environmental conditions and produce a wide range of unique secondary metabolites. Beyond their ecological significance, mangrove-associated fungi have emerged as prolific producers of bioactive compounds with promising antibacterial activity against multidrug-resistant pathogens. This review comprehensively summarizes recent advances (2018–2026) in the discovery of antibacterial metabolites from mangrove-associated fungi active against ESKAPE pathogens, which discusses their structural diversity, reported antimicrobial activities, and emerging strategies for accelerating natural product discovery, including genome mining, metabolomics, OSMAC, adaptive laboratory evolution, and artificial intelligence-assisted approaches. A total of 139 chemically distinct metabolites (Compounds 1–139) isolated from mangrove-associated fungi are critically reviewed, highlighting their potential as promising leads for the development of next-generation antimicrobial agents against ESKAPE pathogens. Full article

Biofertilizers are often presented as a more ecological alternative that allows for the utilization of agricultural residues and reduces dependence on chemical fertilizers. This study uses the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology to analyze the environmental implications of producing forage oats on a small scale, considering three fertilization strategies: (1) application of a biofertilizer, (2) application of an inorganic fertilizer, and (3) no fertilization. Two functional units (FUs) were evaluated within a cradle-to-farm-gate system boundary: one ton of oats and one harvested hectare. The results show that while forage oat production using inorganic fertilizers yields a high output (6.20 t/ha of oat dry matter), it also results in the most significant environmental impacts across both FUs (e.g., 262 kg Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂ eq)/ton and 1620 kg CO₂ eq/ha). In contrast, using biofertilizers increases the yield to 7.05 t/ha of oat dry matter while decreasing environmental impacts (e.g., 80.1 kg CO₂ eq/ton and 564 kg CO₂ eq/ha). Finally, when no fertilization is used, the yield decreases significantly (4.92 t/ha of oat dry matter), while the environmental performance varies depending on the FU considered (e.g., 98.1 kg CO₂ eq/ton and 482 kg CO₂ eq/ha). This study shows that, compared to inorganic fertilization or no fertilization at all, biofertilizers optimize both production and environmental performance. Therefore, biofertilization is a key strategy for managing residues and reducing environmental impacts in this case study. Full article

Fruit mites, particularly Panonychus ulmi, Tetranychus urticae, and eriophyid mites, are among the most economically important arthropod pests in apple orchards, causing significant reductions in photosynthetic efficiency, fruit quality, and yield. Their management has traditionally relied on chemical acaricides; however, the widespread development of resistance, adverse effects on beneficial arthropods, and increasing environmental concerns have highlighted the limitations of pesticide-dependent control strategies. This review critically evaluates current advances in the management of major fruit mite species affecting apple orchards, with particular emphasis on Panonychus ulmi, Tetranychus urticae, and eriophyid mites. The biology, ecology, and economic significance of these pests are examined together with contemporary chemical control strategies, mechanisms of acaricide resistance, and sustainable resistance management. Particular attention is given to predatory mites, conservation biological control, habitat management, and ecological engineering as essential components of Integrated Pest Management (IPM). The review also examines the integration of biological, chemical, and cultural control measures within IPM programs and provides a regional perspective on fruit mite management in Southeastern Kazakhstan, highlighting local challenges, knowledge gaps, and opportunities for implementing ecologically based IPM systems. Emerging approaches, including precision agriculture, digital monitoring, molecular diagnostics, and climate-adaptive pest management, are also assessed. The available evidence indicates that sustainable fruit mite management requires a transition from pesticide-centered control toward integrated, ecologically resilient orchard protection systems in which biological control and IPM serve as the foundation, while chemical control functions as a targeted supporting tool. To our knowledge, no previous review has comprehensively integrated biological control, acaricide resistance management, ecologically based IPM, and region-specific challenges for fruit mite management in Southeastern Kazakhstan into a unified framework while also identifying key research priorities for Central Asia, including resistance surveillance, biodiversity conservation, climate adaptation, and digital decision-support technologies. Full article