Aims: Rice blast, caused by Magnaporthe oryzae, is one of the most devastating diseases of rice (Oryza sativa L.). The aim of this study was to investigate the biocontrol potential of rice rhizosphere actinomycetes against M.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRatios between viruses, heterotrophic prokaryotes and chlorophyll are key indicators of microbial food structure and both virus-prokaryote and prokaryote-chlorophyll ratios have been proposed to decrease with system productivity. However, the mechanisms underlying these responses are still insufficiently resolved and their consistency across aquatic ecosystem types requires critical evaluation. We assessed microbial community ratios in highly productive African soda-lakes and used our data from naturally hypereutrophic systems which are largely underrepresented in literature, to complement earlier across-system meta-analyses.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMicrobial consortia under anaerobic conditions are involved in oxidizing organic matter in the sludge to produce methane gas. However, in developing countries like Kenya, these microbes have not been fully identified to target them for the efficient harnessing of biofuel. This study collected wet sludge from two anaerobic digestion lagoons 1 and 2 that were operational during sampling at Kangemi Sewage Treatment Plant, in Nyeri County, Kenya.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is responsible for the deadly respiratory disease called coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19), an ongoing global public health emergency that has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization. We review literature on the transmission and control of SARS-CoV-2 and discuss the challenges of focusing on water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) as critical control measures in low-income countries. A significantly higher prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 related deaths has been reported for the United States of America and other high-income countries in Europe and Asia, regardless of advanced medical facilities in those countries.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnergy Ecol Environ
August 2016
Agro-pastoral operations have the potential to threaten public health with loading of diverse pathogens into surface waters through overland flow; increasing awareness of the limitations of fecal indicators has led to development of a number of advancements in detection, source tracking and predictive modeling of public health risk. These tools and techniques are beginning to be integrated into management strategies. The objective of this review was to determine the status of current knowledge and challenges of the fate and transport of in overland flow and their interaction within vegetative filter strip (VFS) as one of these implemented best management practices and to critically evaluate its use in that setting as an indicator organism.
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