The invasive ambrosia beetle, , was first reported in South Africa in 2018. The beetle has now spread to eight provinces of the country and has had a devastating impact on both native and non-native tree species. This is especially true for trees located in urban and peri-urban environments. Recent predictions are that the South African invasion will cost an estimated ZAR 275 billion (approx. USD 16 billion) if it continues to spread uncontrollably, justifying an urgent need for its effective management in the country. One option is biological control, which is preferred over the use of chemicals due to its lower environmental impact. We tested two broad-spectrum fungal entomopathogenic agents, Eco-Bb and Bio-Insek, which are commercially available in South Africa, for efficacy against . Initial laboratory assays yielded promising results. However, beetle infestation trials using treated pieces of woody castor bean stems showed little effect on beetle survival and reproduction.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10144498 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/insects14040361 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Natural exposure to Chikungunya virus in golden-headed lion tamarin (Leontopithecus chrysomelas, Kuhl, 1820) from non-protected areas in southern Bahia, Brazil: Implications and significance.
PLoS Negl Trop Dis
January 2025
Department of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz, Ilhéus, Bahia, Brazil.
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is primarily associated with non-human-primates (NHPs) in Africa, which also infect humans. Since its introduction to Brazil in 2014, CHIKV has predominantly thrived in urban cycles, involving Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Limited knowledge exists regarding CHIKV occurrence and implications in rural and sylvatic cycles where neotropical NHPs are potential hosts, from which we highlight Leontopithecus chrysomelas (Kuhl, 1820), the golden-headed lion tamarin (GHLT), an endangered species endemic to the Atlantic Forest (AF) in Southern Bahia State, Brazil.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImpact of COVID-19 vaccination on hospitalization, hospital utilization and expenditure for COVID-19: A retrospective cohort analysis of a South African private health insured population.
PLoS One
January 2025
Department of Statistical Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.
This study quantifies the impact of COVID-19 vaccination on hospitalization for COVID-19 infection in a South African private health insurance population. This retrospective cohort study is based on the analysis of demographic and claims records for 550,332 individuals belonging to two health insurance funds between 1 March 2020 and 31 December 2022. A Cox Proportional Hazards model was used to estimate the impact of vaccination (non-vaccinated, partly vaccinated, fully vaccinated) on COVID-19 hospitalization risk; and zero-inflated negative binomial models were used to estimate the impact of vaccination on hospital utilization and hospital expenditure for COVID-19 infection, with adjustments for age, sex, comorbidities and province of residence.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFactors contributing to visual intrapartum cardiotocograph interpretation variation among healthcare professionals: An integrative review.
PLoS One
January 2025
Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Nursing Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.
The reliability of cardiotocographs as diagnostic tools for fetal well-being is hampered by interpretational variations among healthcare professionals, contributing to high rates of cesarean sections and instrumental deliveries. While adjunct technologies may be used to confirm cases of fetal distress, those in resource constrained areas continue to rely on visual cardiotocograph interpretation to come up with the diagnosis of fetal hypoxia. This study investigated the factors contributing to variations in the visual interpretation of intrapartum cardiotocograph among healthcare professionals in the absence of adjunctive technologies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRadar versus optical: The impact of cloud cover when mapping seasonal surface water for health applications in monsoon-affected India.
PLoS One
January 2025
UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Crowmarsh Gifford, Wallingford, United Kingdom.
Surface water plays a vital role in the spread of infectious diseases. Information on the spatial and temporal dynamics of surface water availability is thus critical to understanding, monitoring and forecasting disease outbreaks. Before the launch of Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) missions, surface water availability has been captured at various spatial scales through approaches based on optical remote sensing data.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenetic diversity and population structure analyses of tropical maize inbred lines using Single Nucleotide Polymorphism markers.
PLoS One
January 2025
Seed Co, Rattray Arnold Research Station, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Analyses of the genetic distance and composition of inbred lines are a prerequisite for parental selection and to exploit heterosis in plant breeding programs. The study aimed to assess genetic diversity and population structure of a maize germplasm panel comprising 182 founder lines and 866 derived inbred lines using Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) markers to identify genetically unique lines for hybrid breeding. The founder lines were genotyped with 1201 SNPs, and the derived lines with 1484 SNPs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!