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In the study, lethal and sub-lethal doses of Neem Azal (azadirachtin 10 g/l), Nimiks (azadirachtin 40 g/l), Nimbecidine (azadirachtin 0.3 g/l), Oread (spinosad 480 g/l), and Nostalgist BL (1.5% Beauveria bassiana strain Bb-1-) were tested on different developmental stages of the egg parasitoid, Trichogramma dendrolimi  under laboratory conditions. The lowest melanized egg were found on the larval stage of parasitoid in the 200 ml dose of Nimiks (79.17%), on 5 ml dose of Oread (75.25 %) and on 250 ml dose of Nimbecidine (79.37 %). An approximately 10-fold decrease in emergence rates was determined in the larval, prepupal and pupal stages of the parasitoid at doses of 5 ml and 6.25 ml of Oread.  The other doses of the same insecticides resulted in 100% of mortality. The longest development time of T. dendrolimi was found on Oread with 6.25 ml (11.00 days), on Nimiks with 200 ml (11.04 days), and on Oread with 5 ml (10.90 days). No significant difference was observed in the sex ratio. The longevity of T. denrolimi was shorter than that of the control for all insecticides and doses applied to the larval, prepupal and pupal stages of the parasitoid. Parasitism rates of F₁ and F₂ varied greatly depending on the insecticides, doses and biological stage of the parasitoid. The new crop protection strategies aim to reduce the use of chemical insecticides while supporting the combined use of biorational insecticides and natural enemies. The study offers helpful data for IPM that is focused on the ecology.  
 

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The essential oils of plants are composed of several volatile compounds, which may have different concentrations and may be determinant for their toxicity. Thus, in this work, sublethal and lethal effects of the compounds, geraniol and citronellal on the biochemical and reproductive parameters of Spodoptera frugiperda were investigated. For the geraniol compound the LD₃₀ of 9.42 mg/g and LD₅₀ of 13.65 mg/g was used, while for the citronellal LD₃₀ of 0.06 mg/g and LD₅₀ of 0.08 mg/g. Pure acetone was used in the control. Third instar caterpillars were treated topically in the prothoracic region by applying 1 μl of the respective compounds with a Hamilton^TM 50 μl syringe. After 48 h the caterpillars were macerated in sodium phosphate buffer at a ratio of 4 caterpillars / 5 ml of the buffer, the levels of total protein, total sugar, lipid and glycogen were measured. The daily posture was evaluated in order to determine the periods of pre-oviposition, oviposition, post-oviposition and egg quantity. The results showed a reduction in the concentration of proteins and sugars for both compounds and concentrations studied. There was no change in lipid concentration. Citronellal increased the concentration of glycogen for both concentrations. The oviposition period and the number of eggs were reduced. However, there was no difference for the pre-oviposition and post-oviposition periods. Thus, it is inferred that geraniol and citronellal compounds cause alterations in the biochemical parameters that reflect in the reproduction of S. frugiperda.

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Aims: microalgae use has been recently attracted for the production of biologically active drugs and pharmaceuticals.Carbon source is an essential factor for the Spirulina maxima growth. Since finding the appropriate carbon source and its concentration to achieve high levels of biomass in the shortest cultivation period is very valuable. Therefore, the effect of different carbon sources (sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, glucose and molasses) with different concentrations (16, 24 and 32 gL^-1) on growth and biomass production were evaluated. Methods: Microalgae was grown in 11 treatments with 3 replications at labarotary temperature (28±3 °C) and 1350±100 Lux light intensity (24 hours exposure-time). Maximum specific growth rate and doubling time were calculated according to nonlinear modeling by Wolfram Mathematica software at 99% confidence interval. Findings: The highest biomass concentration (gL^-1) at the highest carbon source concentration in the first 5 days belonged to molasses (3.083), glucose (2.094), sodium carbonate (0.869) and sodium bicarbonate (0.835). Biomass production of treatments except glucose in medium was increased by increasing concentration from 16 to 32 gL^-1. Although molasses has reached on highest biomass production during the first 5 days of cultivation, but the greatest effect on increasing specific growth rate belongs to the glucose sample. Conclusions: As a result, the carbon source and its concentration had a significant effect on the growth and biomass production. Glucose has been selected as an effective carbon source for growth with a concentration of 24gL^-1. Moreover, the highest concentration of treatments had shown the least effect on specific growth rate.

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The superfamily Evanioidea (Hymenoptera, Apocrita) of Türkiye is reviewed based on the data taken from literature as well as newly collected material. In the current study, two species from Aulacidae, 10 species from Gasteruptiidae and two species from Evaniidae are identified, being new records for the mentioned provinces. Morever, Brachygaster minutus (Olivier, 1791) is recorded for the first time from Türkiye. Gasteruption insidiosum Semenov, 1892, G. merceti Kieffer, 1904, G. tournieri Schletterer, 1885, Pristaulacus gloriator (Fabricius, 1804), and Prosevania fuscipes (Illiger, 1807) are also new records for the Black Sea region. An updated checklist of the Evanioidea from Türkiye is provided for the first time. The family Aulacidae is represented by five species belonging to the genus Pristaulacus Kieffer, 1900, Evaniidae by five species belonging to three genera, Brachygaster Leach, 1815 (one species), Evania Fabricius, 1775 (three species), Prosevania Kieffer, 1911 (one species), and Gasteruptiidae by 36 species belonging to the genus Gasteruption Latreille, 1797.

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The flat wasps genus, Pristepyris Kieffer is reported for the first time from Türkiye based on the identification of Pristepyris masii (Soika, 1933). Now, with this new record, the species number of Bethylidae from Türkiye has increased to ten. Additionally, new data are presented for Epyris niger Westwood, 1832, Sclerodermus ephippius (Saunders, 1881) and Pristocera depressa (Fabricius, 1804), which were previously recorded from Turkey. All taxa are morphologically illustrated and their geographical distribution in Türkiye and in the World is also provided.

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Aims: Indonesia is ranked as the 2^nd highest country with tuberculosis burden worldwide. Diabetes mellitus (DM) is among the top five causes of death in Indonesia. Patients with DM are facing an elevated risk of tuberculosis. Private primary care centers contribute only up to 0.6% of the reported tuberculosis cases. To enhance tuberculosis notification rates, we developed an electronic tuberculosis screening tool for DM patients within private primary care centers.
Instrument & Methods: The initial phase of this descriptive study employed a quantitative approach, utilizing secondary data analysis from the RISKESDAS database to discern tuberculosis prevalence in DM patients. The second phase adopted a qualitative approach, incorporating interviews with private primary care centers regarding the current tuberculosis reporting process. The third stage involved system development of the e-screening tool. The fourth stage was a pilot project to evaluate the effectiveness of the e-screening tool prototype in increasing tuberculosis notification rates among DM patients. Two private primary care centers served as a setting to conduct the pilot project.
Findings: There were 33 patients with a high risk for tuberculosis. These patients were referred to the nearest Puskesmas for further tests. Ultimately, two patients were diagnosed with tuberculosis in four weeks of e-screening trial tests.
Conclusion: This research led to the development of a TB e-screening tool for DM patients, intended to improve tuberculosis notification rates in private primary care centers.

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Learners’ attitudes towards learning have been found to influence second language (L2) development. It has been suggested that affective factors such as first language (L1) reading attitude can be transferred to the L2 along with L1 skills. In English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts, research has shown that the role that reading attitude plays in reading comprehension is as important as the nature of the reading strategies used. Therefore, it becomes necessary to understand the relationship between L1 and L2 reading attitudes in EFL contexts and evaluate how demographic and cognitive variables can mediate that relationship. To this end, the present quantitative study sought to contribute to this area by investigating the relationship between L1 and L2 reading attitudes in 65 EFL elementary school learners and by assessing the impact of gender, age, and L2 proficiency on these attitudes. Main results revealed that age and L2 proficiency did not correlate with either L1 or L2 reading attitude components, L1 and L2 reading attitudes correlated weakly, and older female learners displayed stronger attitudes toward L1 reading recreational aspects. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of affective components in understanding L1 and L2 reading attitudes.

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 Dried figs collected from various exporting companies (2,461 samples) and local stores (219 samples) were analyzed using reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) to determine and compare the incidence of aflatoxins, the effectiveness of the regulation limits and monitoring system to select non-compliant samples and the mean daily aflatoxin exposures. The incidence rates of aflatoxin contamination were higher in the domestic samples (47.5%) than in the samples intended for export (23.6%). According to the European regulation limits (2 ng g^-1 for aflatoxin B1 and 4 ng g^-1 for total aflatoxin; sum of B1+B2+G1+G2), non-compliant samples were 6 and 24.2% of the dried figs for export and domestic market, respectively. The respective rates of 2.2 and 16.4% were obtained with the national limit. The dietary intakes of aflatoxins through the consumption of dried figs were calculated as 1.27 and 0.2 ng kg^-1 body weight×day for domestic market and export, respectively. Dried figs contaminated with high levels of aflatoxins can lead to acute and chronic human toxicities. Reducing contamination and exposure to an acceptable level by the implementation of strict periodic monitoring and application of effective new prevention measures might also help to decrease the significant health and economic risks in exported and domestic commodities.

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Olive mill by-products could be composted and applied to olive orchard soils. These practices solve the problem of these wastes disposal and reduce the need for chemical fertilizers. Therefore, the aims of this research were: (i) proposing ‘on-farm’ composting process of different olive mill waste mixtures; (ii) investigating the chemical, physical, and microbiological characteristics of produced composts; (iii) evaluating the agronomical performance of the composts. Two on-farm composting trials were carried out in Southern Italy by using “two-phase” and “three-phase” olive mill wastes. The obtained composts were analyzed for their main characteristics and were spread in two different olive orchards (Nocellara and Leccino). At the end of field trial, soil properties, olive tree yield, and oil production were determined. The results highlighted that both composts reached a chemical composition in line with the thresholds established by the Italian fertilizers legislation for “green wastes compost”. When the two compost piles became stable and mature, their microbial properties reached similar values. Also, the results suggested the efficiency of the composting process and good hygienic conditions of the matrices. Soil application of composted olive mill by-products increased olive yields on average by 9% compared to the untreated soils. Both olive orchards showed good results in productive parameters. In particular, oil ha^-1 increased by 166.4 and 179.9 kg in treated olive orchards, compared with untreated soils. However, more experimental data might be needed to confirm the effects of compost application in the long time and on different olive orchard soils.

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To clarify the underlying physiological mechanism of gibberellic acid (GA) in cold tolerance, the effects of exogenous GA₃ on malondialdehyde (MDA), osmoregulation substances and endogenous hormones levels in the tiller nodes of two wheat cultivars, namely, Dongnongdongmai 1 (a cold insensitive cultivar) and Jimai 22 (a cold sensitive cultivar), were investigated at three periods of cold winter (0, -10, -25°C). The results showed that low concentrations of GA₃ (0.1 and 1 µM) decreased the endogenous GA concentration in both cultivars, but only increased the abscisic acid (ABA)/GA ratio in Dongnongdongmai 1. High concentrations of GA₃ (10 and 100 µM) increased the MDA level, retarded the accumulation of soluble protein and sugar in both cultivars, but decreased the content of ABA and the ratio of ABA/GA only in Dongnongdongmai 1 and had no influence on those in Jimai 22. The re-greening rate of Dongnongdongmai 1 decreased as the concentration of exogenous GA₃ increased. Correlation analyses showed that MDA was negatively correlated with re-greening rate, while soluble protein, sugar ABA content, and ABA/GA ratio were positively correlated with re-greening rate. In conclusion, low exogenous GA₃ level could decrease endogenous GA content and elevate ABA/GA ratio and soluble protein content, which help to improve cold tolerance. However, high exogenous GA₃ level decreased the ABA content and ABA/GA ratio, resulting in lower soluble sugar and protein content and aggravated oxidative damage, and finally weakened cold tolerance. The endogenous GA metabolism and ABA/GA balance play central roles in exogenous GA₃ mediated cold tolerance.

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Nowadays, heavy metals are one of the greatest environmental problems. This problem intensifies by development of great industries and increasing of pollutant and contaminant resources daily. Increasing of population and reduction of water resources detect importance of waste treatment and reuse of water resources. Studies on treatment of effluents containing heavy metals have showed that adsorption to be a highly effective technique for removing heavy metals from aqueous solutions. The aim of this research was to use of absorbent materials (kaolin clay) to remove chromium (VI) from the wastewater in discontinuous system According to the results, optimum conditions of chromium removal were, pH=5, primary concentration of pollutant: 1000(mg/l), fine grained weight of consumed kaolin in constructing concrete: 30%, equilibrium time: 360 minutes, absorbing capacity: 3.06 mg/g absorbent. Covering the concrete surface with kaolin absorbent can be an innovative and useful solution for increasing the rate of elimination of pollutant and contaminants, cost reduction and accelerating the absorption process. Absorbing capacity of chromium is 29.5 mg/g absorbent in this condition respectively. Real waste sample are used for confirming the application of concrete in ordinary conditions of wastewater basin in accordance of optimum conditions of kinetics wastewater. Elimination rates of heavy metal of chromium were 90.3% in optimum condition with real samples that has been got from industrial factory. Therefore, it could be concluded that modified concert presents a good potential for treatment of Cr in wastewater. However, further research should be applied for continuous removal of heavy metal in large-scale. According to the result , mixing Kaolin in the concrete could be used to increase the Durability and adsorption efficiency of Chromium .
 

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Eugenia caryophyllata (Clove) has long been used as a medicinal plant to treat infections and prevent food spoilage. In this study, with three methods of hydro distillation, steam distillation and hydro-steam distillation, clove buds were extracted and the yields of these methods were 10.9, 9.9 and 8.3%, respectively, which had the highest efficiency for water extraction method. Essential oils obtained by different methods were analyzed by GC/MS and 17 essential oil components were identified. Among these components, acetic acid, eugenol, eugenol acetate, m-eugenol, caryophyllene, hexadecanoic acid were the predominant components, the amount of which in all three types of essential oils were significantly different from each other. Also, the antibacterial effect of essential oils along with 12 common antibiotics on three types of Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus epidermidis) and Gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) were studied and compared. The results showed that the essential oil extracted with hydro-steam, compared to other extraction methods, has a significant antibacterial effect so that its effect on Staphylococcus aureus from Erythromycin, penicillin, glucosacin, vancomycin, tetracycline, ciprofloxacin, ceftriaxone, ceftriaxone Amikacin and gentamicin were stronger, and the effect was similar to that of ampicillin, tobramycin. In conclusion, obtained results showed that clove essential oil can be used as antimicrobial compenent for different appliactions as well as for food and drag applications.

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World apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.)  production is increasing steadily due to breeding of new high yielding cultivars in different countries. More recently, breeding programs have been modified according to consumers’ demands and also improvement in resistance to diseases (Sharka, Monilinia etc.), frost damages, and determination of self-(in) compatibility. In this study, fourteen apricot breeding progenies and six of their parents were evaluated by using both morphological and molecular markers. As morphological markers, fruit weight, width, length, height, total soluble solids, acidity, and fruit firmness were used. In molecular analysis, to determine genetic relationships, Sequence-Related Amplified Polymorphism (SRAP), Inter-Simple Sequence Repeat (ISSR) and Damage-Associated Molecular Patterns (DAMP) markers were used. In addition, SRc-F/R markerswere used to determine S allele profile. The results showed that, although there were no earlier genotypes than Ninfa and Priana, Ay×P3 cross was a promising genotype with regard to earliness and fruit characteristics. A total of 224 scorable bands obtained with 8 SRAP primer combinations (25 bands), 8 DAMP primers (81 band) and 16 ISSR primers (118 bands) showing high diversity among crosses and cultivars. A total of 4 S-RNase alleles (S_C, S₂, S₃, S₆) were identified in this study and the most widely identified alleles were S_C and S₃ alleles.

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The aim of the present study was to evaluate the geographical distribution, infestation degree, and diversity of Potato Cysts Nematode (PCN) in Algeria, including the southern regions. Accurate identification of PCN is essential to determine the appropriate control methods to be used in an Integrated Pest Management program. PCNs were found in forty percent (12 out of thirty) of localities sampled. The average population density of PCN was much higher in the southern regions, compared to the northern regions (9.8 cysts per 100 cm³ vs.4.6 cysts per 100 cm³). The southern potato production areas were more infested with PCN than those of the north (7 from 25 fields in North vs. 5 from 5 fields in the South). Globodera pallida occurred predominantly in the northern region of Algeria, whereas G. rostochiensis occurred predominantly in the southern regions. No mixtures of these species were found in any of the positive studied localities. These species were confirmed by the molecular analysis based on PCR with species-specific primers, ITS-rDNA, and cytochrome b of mtDNA. The low molecular diversity and their phylogenetic association with the European populations of PCN suggest that Algerian populations were probably introduced from Europe, probably by infested seed-potato.
 

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In the last decades, resistance to salt stress has been studied intensively in plants. Many ornamental plants have widespread presence in green areas of coastal regions. In such regions, plants are subject to seawater aerosol and surfactants, both of which are frequent in the coastal areas of Mediterranean environment. The objective of this study was to investigate the antioxidant enzyme activities of two ornamental plants, namely, Callistemon and Viburnum, under the effects of these stressful conditions. To analyze the performance of these plants stressed by 8 weeks treatments with seawater aerosol and surfactants, we measured the antioxidative defense mechanism, considered as enzymatic response, Proline (Pro) levels, Chlorophyll (Chl) and MalonDiAldehyde (MDA) contents. To better understand the response mechanisms, two different growing periods were studied: from January to March and from May to July. The higher temperatures of the second period negatively affected the response of the plants. Salt stress considerably reduced the chlorophyll content in both species, especially in the second period. In particular, the sea aerosol treatments caused 29% and about 45% reduction in Callistemon and Viburnum plants, respectively. The amount of Pro in Viburnum was very small (154.35 nmol g^-1) compared to Callistemon (1466.94 nmol g^-1). An opposite trend was noticed for MDA. ROS-scavenging enzymes, such as SuperOxide Dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and Glutathione Peroxidase (GPX) in plants exposed to treatment with sea aerosol plus anionic surfactant were significantly higher. Between the two species, Viburnum showed more efficient action mechanisms to overcome aerosol stress.
 

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Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is a traditional crop species in Turkey that is cultivated in almost every province providing prominent economic income. Turkey has an important resource for both Cicer spp diversity and their phytopathogens like ascohyta blight caused by Didymella rabiei (Kovachevski) von Arx wherein resistance/tolerance is broken every 4-5 years in cultivated chickpea cultivars. In order to breed resistant/tolerant varieties in chickpea against D. rabiei, detailed and up to date analyses on population characterization is needed. This study was undertaken to define current aggressiveness patterns, pathotype and mating type distribution of D. rabiei population in chickpea growing areas of Turkey. The D. rabiei isolates were assigned to 5 virulence groups in which existence of pathotype IV, a new and aggressive group, was defined for the first time from farmers’ fields and research institutes exhibiting continuous arm race between plant and pathogen. The isolates in each pathotype group depicted statistically important difference (P≤ 0.05) in virulence levels on chickpea genotypes. The mating type distribution of 971 D. rabiei isolates was 1:1 for Mat 1.1 and Mat 1.2 isolates (X²= 0.87, P= 0.35) exhibiting random sexual reproduction. Overall, the data obtained revealed the unstable aggressiveness nature of D. rabiei population in Turkey, which, in turn, explains frequent resistance overcome in registered chickpea genotypes leading to epidemics.

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The study spatially explored the farm-level opportunity cost of protecting environment and examined the sufficiency level of government support for covering farm level of opportunity cost in TR83 region of Turkey. By using questionnaires, research data were collected from randomly selected 334 farms that participated in Environmentally Friendly Agricultural Land Protection Program (EFALP) and purposively selected 27 conventional farms. Farm-level opportunity cost of protecting environment was calculated via subtracting gross revenue calculated under condition of protecting environment from the gross revenue calculated under conventional ones. Gross revenue under conventional condition and under condition of protecting environment was elicited by using the MOTAD linear approximation of the quadratic programming. Sufficiency of government support for protecting environment was revealed through taking the difference between farm-level opportunity cost for protecting environment and total government support payment for environmental consideration to farm included in EFALP. Research results showed that government support paid to sample farms did not cover opportunity cost of farm for protecting environment in TR83 region. Considering spatially differentiation of farm-level opportunity cost for protecting environment when policy makers determine the quantity of government support may positively enhance the dissemination of EFALP programs and reduce the adverse effects of agricultural practices.

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The effect of various amounts of nitrogen (N) fertilizer (0, 50, 100, 150 and 200 kg ha^-1) on the growth and quality characteristics of Mentha x piperita and Mentha spicata species was studied under Turkey’s Uşak ecological conditions in 2017-2019. In the study, harvests in the vegetation period of 2018 and 2019 were combined and the average plant height and essential oil content, total fresh and dry herbage, dry leaf and essential oil yields, and the composition of the essential oil was examined. The plant height, total yields and essential oil content of both mint species increased significantly with N fertilizer applications. The highest total yields and essential oil contents in both mint species were obtained from 200 kg N ha^-1. The main components of the essential oil were identified as menthol and menthon in Mentha x piperita and carvone and limonene in Mentha spicata. The highest menthol content (44.66%) was obtained from 100 kg N ha^-1, while the highest carvone content (59.90%) was obtained from 200 kg N ha^-1. The total yields of Mentha x piperita increased significantly with increase in N fertilization up to 200 kg ha^-1, while the total yields of Mentha spicata increased with increase in N fertilization up to 150 kg ha^-1.

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Fusarium Oxysporum f. sp. Ciceris (FOC) is the causal agent of Fusarium wilt, a destructive and widespread disease of chickpea. Rapid and accurate identification and detection of plant pathogens are essential for timely Disease Management (DM) strategies with appropriate measures. This study aimed to quantitatively determine FOC by using Quantitative Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) technique with specific primer pairs [Histone (H3) and Ribosomal (J5)] in seed, root, and root collar, and to discriminate it from other pathogenic fungi [Fusarium Oxysporum formae speciales (FO f. sp.) and Ascocyhta rabiei]. Total RNAs were isolated, converted to cDNAs (limit of 5 ng/rxn.-0.05 pg/rxn.) and used as template for qPCR studies. The FOC was detected in plant samples starting from the first day after inoculation. The FOC was detected in root, root collar and seed samples and was differentiated by qPCR assay from other pathogenic fungi. Melting curves, in which no primer dimers and non-specific complementation were observed, presented a single peak. Quantification was successfully performed using specific H3 and J5 primer pairs (P< 0.05), and the FOC was distinguished from other pathogenic fungi with J5 primer (P< 0.05). The results of these studies may support the development of new biochemical and molecular methods that allow direct, faster and more accurate determination of pathogens. Thus, it will also enable us to reduce the losses caused by diseases and the costs of DM.