ABSTRACT
Aim: The Total Hydrocarbon Content (THC) levels in the leaves of three edible plants (Allium cepa, Telfairia occidentalis and Zea mays) grown on soil polluted with 100 ml of crude oil were examined. Study Design: This experiment was conducted in two groups where the soil samples were polluted before planting (PB) and polluted 2 weeks after planting (PA). Place and Duration of Study: The research was carried out at the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO), Imo State, Nigeria, within a period of 4 weeks based on each group’s pollution time. Methodology: The tests for total hydrocarbon content (THC) were analyzed at different wavelengths for polluted soil and leaf samples using UV-Vis spectrophotometric method. Soil THC tests were determined on days 0, 14 and 28 respectively while THC tests on leaves of study plants were assessed on day 14 and 28. Results: The total hydrocarbon content values of the unpolluted soil (UPS) and the non-planted polluted soil (PS) subjected to this analysis on day zero were (UPS = 96.38 mg/kg; PS = 1082.80 mg/kg). However, results obtained on day 14 and 28 showed significant difference (P < 0.05) between the unpolluted soil sample (UPS) and all the planted polluted soil for Telfairia occidentalis (TOPB, TOPA), Allium cepa (ACPB, ACPA), Zea mays (ZMPB, ZMPA) as well as, the non-planted polluted soil (PS). For the leaf samples, TOPB had the highest THC value of 14.47mg/kg and 36.73 mg/kg for day 14 and 28 respectively while ZMPB had the lowest value of 5.38mg/kg at day 14 and ZMPA, the least THC value of 7.76mg/kg at day 28. Conclusion: Based on the varying THC levels observed in the leaves of crops used for this study; it was connoted that, bioaccumulation of hydrocarbons depends on the plants phytoremediation capability and the mode of pollution as observed in TOPB.
ABSTRACT
Chloroplast biotechnology has emerged as a promissory platform for the development of modified plants to express products aimed mainly at the pharmaceutical, agricultural, and energy industries. This technology's high value is due to its high capacity for the mass production of proteins. Moreover, the interest in chloroplasts has increased because of the possibility of expressing multiple genes in a single transformation event without the risk of epigenetic effects. Although this technology solves several problems caused by nuclear genetic engineering, such as turning plants into safe bio-factories, some issues must still be addressed in relation to the optimization of regulatory regions for efficient gene expression, cereal transformation, gene expression in non-green tissues, and low transformation efficiency. In this article, we provide information on the transformation of plastids and discuss the most recent achievements in chloroplast bioengineering and its impact on the biopharmaceutical and agricultural industries; we also discuss new tools that can be used to solve current challenges for their successful establishment in recalcitrant crops such as monocots.
Subject(s)
Transformation, Genetic , Biological Products , Chloroplasts , Crops, Agricultural , Biotechnology , Recombinant Proteins/biosynthesis , Plants, Genetically ModifiedABSTRACT
RESUMEN Dyophthorinae es una subfamilia con varias especies asociadas principalmente al consumo de monocotiledóneas, siendo consideradas en Colombia plaga en cultivos de palmas, musáceas y granos como maíz, trigo, sorgo y arroz. En este documento se presenta un listado de las especies de Dryophthorinae para los departamentos de la costa Caribe colombiana, construido a partir de las visitas a colecciones entomológicas y de la revisión de literatura. Para la región se registraron 11 especies: Cosmopolites sordidus, Dynamis borassi, Mesocordylus striatus, Metamasius hemipterus, M. hebetatus, Polytus mellerborgii, Rhynchophorus palmarum, Rhodobaenus sp., Rhinostomus barbirostris, Sitophilus zeamais y S. oryzae, algunas de las cuales se documentan por primera vez para esta zona. Se discute la importancia de realizar muestreos sistemáticos de este grupo y estudios tendientes a mejorar el conocimiento sobre su distribución y biología, así como su impacto en producciones agrícolas y su potencial como plagas en el país.
ABSTRACT Dryophthorinae is a relatively small weevil subfamily associated mainly with monocots. There are species in Colombia considered pests in the palm and Musaceae crops. In this document, a list of the species of Dryophthoridae for the departments of the Colombian Caribbean coast is presented, based on data from entomological collections and literature review. For the region, 11 species were recorded: Cosmopolites sordidus, Dynamis borassi, Mesocordylus striatus, Metamasius hemipterus, M. hebetatus, Polytus mellerborgii, Rhynchophorus palmarum, Rhodobaenus sp., Rhinostomus barbirostris, Sitophilus zeamais and S. oryzae, some of which are registered for the first time for the area. The importance of systematically sampling this group, and studies leading to improve knowledge about their distribution and biology, as well as its impact on agricultural production and their potential as pests in the country, are discussed.