Genetically modified Bt crops are increasingly used worldwide but side effects and especially sublethal effects on beneficial insects remain poorly studied. Honey bees are beneficial insects for natural and cultivated ecosystems through pollination. The goal of the present study was to assess potential effects of two concentrations of Cry1Ab protein (3 and 5000 ppb) on young adult honey bees. F...

The low temperature exotherms (LTE) of 1-year-old twigs of Haralson apple (Malus pumila Mill.), shagbark hickory (Carya ovata [Mill.] K. Koch), green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marsh), honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos L.), American chestnut (Castanea dentata [Marsh] Borkh.), and red oak (Quercus rubra L.) were determined by differential thermal analysis (DTA). In one type of experiment free...

OBJECTIVE Honey is an effective antiseptic wound dressing, mainly the result of the antibacterial activity of hydrogen peroxide that is produced in honey by the enzyme glucose oxidase. Because the rate of production of hydrogen peroxide is known to vary disproportionately when honey is diluted, and dilution of honey dressings will vary according to the amount of wound exudate, it is important t...

This study measured dose-response of a range of commercially available liquid barium materials designed for use in videofluoroscopic oropharyngeal swallowing assessments, particularly as they relate to the necessity of adding a thickening agent for swallow safety. A group of 25 adult males representing various medical diagnoses consented to participate, with 16 qualifying to complete a videoflu...

This is the first field study in which we have tested efficacy of four different entomopathogenic fungal (EPF) formulations together single study—i.e., Green Muscle, Guard, Metarhizium anisopliae, and an isolate Beauveria bassiana (isolate WG-11)—against nymphs adults desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria Forskål (Orthoptera: Acrididae). We conducted several studies: (a) lethal bioassay against ...

Collective motion has traditionally been studied in the lab in homogeneous, obstacle-free environments, with little work having been conducted with changing landscapes or topography. Here, the impact of spatial heterogeneity on the collective motion exhibited by marching desert locust nymphs was studied under controlled lab conditions. Our experimental circular arenas, incorporating a funnel-li...

Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) and Chinese pine (Pinus tabulaeformis Carr.) are two woody plants that are widely planted on the Loess Plateau for controlling soil erosion and land desertification. In this study, we conducted an excavation experiment in 2008 to investigate the overall vertical root distribution characteristics of black locust and Chinese pine. We also performed triaxial ...

The LUBILOSA (Lutte Biologique contre les Locusts et les Sauteriaux) Programme has been working on the development of a myco-insecticide for the control of locusts and grasshoppers for the past 9 years. The resulting myco-insecticide product (trade name Green Muscle) is based on an oil formulation of aerial conidia of the fungal entomopathogen, Metarhizium anisopliae var. acridum. Field testing...