Common varieties of genetically modified (GM) cotton increasingly display insect-resistant properties via expression of bacterial-derived toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). This necessitates a deeper understanding of the possible effects of these crops on non-target insects. The mirid bug Apolygus lucorum is a major pest in cotton production in China, however, the effect of GM cotton on this non-target species is currently virtually unknown. This insect is exposed to these transgenic plants by consuming genetically modified (GM) leaves. In this study, laboratory experiments were conducted to assess the toxicity of CCRI41 and CCRI45, (genetically modified cotton varieties which express the toxins Cry1Ac and CpTI (Cowpea Trypsin Inhibitor)) on nymphs and adults of A. lucorum. There was no detectable increase in mortality after A. lucorum fed on GM cotton leaves for 20 days. While we detected trace amounts of Cry1Ac proteins in both A. lucorum nymphs and adults (<10 ng/g fresh weight), the expression of genes related to detoxification did not detectably differ from those feeding on non-GM cotton. Our binding assays did not show Cry1Ac binding to receptors on the midgut brush border membrane from either A. lucorum nymphs or adults. Our findings collectively indicate that feeding on leaves of the GM cotton varieties CCRI41 and CCRI45 have few toxic effects on A. lucorum.

Petroleum hydrocarbon (PH) contamination of soils remains a major threat to environmental health and food security. A two-years phytoremediation study was conducted on a crude oil polluted soil to assess changes in soil total petroleum hydrocarbon concentration (TPHₛₒᵢₗ) following use of pawpaw seed powder (PSP), moringa seed powder (MSP) and their combination (PSP + MSP) as organic stimulants in cowpea cultivation. The stimulants were tested at different application rates (100, 150, 200 and 250 g m⁻²), with the control (No stimulant) for their effectiveness in reducing TPHₛₒᵢₗ and accelerating the removal rate (R) of PH from soil. The TPHₛₒᵢₗ did not differ significantly (p < 0.05) among the treatments in year 1, but was highest in the control (11,600 mg kg⁻¹) and least in 200 g m⁻² PSP (7400.0 mg kg⁻¹). In year 2, mean TPHₛₒᵢₗ varied significantly (p < 0.05) and remained highest in control (7100 mg kg⁻¹) but lowest in 150 g m⁻² PSP (2700 mg kg⁻¹). Application of 150 g m⁻² PSP gave the highest R (78.2%), followed by 150 g m⁻² PSP+MSP (77.4%), and least by the control (42.7%) over two years of study. The average fresh pod yield of cowpea over two years was highest in 250 g m⁻² PSP (2416.67 kg ha⁻¹), followed by 150 g m⁻² PSP (2173.34 kg ha⁻¹) and least in control (1302.22 kg ha⁻¹). There was significant negative association between TPHₛₒᵢₗ and fresh pod yield (r = −0.403; p < 0.01). However, application of 150 g m⁻² PSP appeared most effective for enhanced phytoremediation of crude oil polluted soil and improvement of cowpea yield.

The growth, development and functioning of legumes are often significantly affected by exposure to tropospheric ozone (O3) pollution. However, surprisingly little is known about how leguminous Nitrogen (N) fixation responds to ozone, with a scarcity of studies addressing this question in detail. In the last decade, ozone impacts on N-fixation in soybean, cowpea, mung bean, peanut and clover have been shown for concentrations which are now commonly recorded in ambient air or are likely to occur in the near future. We provide a synthesis of the existing literature addressing this issue, and also explore the effects that may occur on an agroecosystem scale by predicting reductions in Trifolium (clovers) root nodule biomass in United Kingdom (UK) pasture based on ozone concentration data for a “high” (2006) and “average” ozone year (2008). Median 8% and 5% reductions in clover root nodule biomass in pasture across the UK were predicted for 2006 and 2008 respectively. Seasonal exposure to elevated ozone, or short-term acute concentrations >100 ppb, are sufficient to reduce N-fixation and/or impact nodulation, in a range of globally-important legumes. However, an increasing global burden of CO2, the use of artificial fertiliser, and reactive N-pollution may partially mitigate impacts of ozone on N-fixation.

The essential oil (EO) was hydrodistilled from of Deverra tortuosa aerial parts. Fifty-six components amounting 99.3% were identified in EO through using gas chromatography–flame ionization detection (GC–FID) and (GC–MS). Phenylpropanoids, dillapiole (41.6%), elemicin (7.3%) and myristicin (5.1%), and the monoterpene, sabinene (4.2%) were identified as the major terpenes. An oil-in-water nanoemulsion (particle size 70.3 nm) was developed from EO adopting a low-energy method. The EO products showed insecticidal and biochemical effects against the cowpea weevil Callosobruchus maculatus. Based on a 48-h exposure period, the oil nanoemulsion exhibited a superior contact bioactivity (LC₅₀ = 10.3 µg/cm²), followed by EO (LC₅₀ = 23.1 µg/cm²), dillapiole (LC₅₀ = 27.8 µg/cm²), and myristicin (LC₅₀ = 37.1 µg/cm²). Upon fumigation, nanoemulsion and EO were superior as fumigants (LC₅₀ after 48 h were 6.9 and 14.3 µl/l, respectively). Test materials showed a residual bioactivity against C. maculatus, where EO, dillapiole, and myristicin showed the strongest grain protecting activity. EO products significantly inhibited acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity of C. maculatus adults. Test products were safe toward the non-target earthworms and did not alter the viability of cowpea seeds. There are evidences for the potential of using EO of D. tortuosa and its nanoemulsion and phenylpropanoids as natural grain protectants against C. maculatus.

Human activities constitute the source of disturbance in ecosystems. The Oueme basin, exposed to intensive agriculture practices, mainly cotton and cowpea, is considered a vulnerable area. The current study assessed the impact of agriculture on this basin. To do this, using thirteen indicators, grouped into four factors, we evaluated the basin vulnerability by establishing a social vulnerability index (SVI) between 2000 and 2016. Later, based on study outcomes, we were able to identify the crop that threatened this basin. The reliability of vulnerability assessment requires the multicriteria method to accurately determine the relative degree of influence of study indicators, reflected in their weighting coefficient. Therefore, the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method was applied to indicators. Results revealed an increase in the rate of SVI. According to the spatial distribution, the closer to the north, the greater the SVI. Regardless of the study year, the northern Oueme basin was consistently identified as vulnerable, while the central basin was stable. Vulnerable and stable areas accounted for 12.01% and 34.97%, while they accounted for 14.22% and 13.72% for 2016. A significant decrease in the stable area and an increase in the vulnerable area were detected. Based on this study classification, the slightly vulnerable area (34.97%, also named stable) was identified as the largest for 2000 against the mildly vulnerable area (28.19%) for 2016. Climate has experienced significant changes, and the cotton crop was identified as a threat to the Oueme basin.

The extent of endosulfan sulfate removal from soils by different planting pattern with sweet corn (Zea mays), cowpea (Vigna sinensis), and cucumber (Cucumis sativus) either cultivated alone or together was investigated in pot experiments. Endosulfan sulfate was removed to the greatest extent in the treatment in which sweet corn was grown alone; only 11.3 and 27.2 % of the initial endosulfan sulfate remained in rhizospheric and bulk soil, respectively, of sweet corn grown alone at day 60. Endosulfan sulfate was also removed from soil to a great extent in treatments where cucumber or cowpea was grown alone; only 30.3 and 38.8 % of endosulfan sulfate remained in their respective rhizospheric soil after 45 days. However, cucumber did not tolerate the toxicity of endosulfan sulfate well and died around 50–55 days when it was cultivated either alone or together with another plant. Cultivation of sweet corn and cowpea together was less effective in removing endosulfan sulfate from soil; about 41.7 and 52.3 % of endosulfan sulfate remained in their respective rhizospheric soils after 60 days. The results showed that single cultivation of the plants was the most efficient way to remediate endosulfan sulfate-contaminated soil in this study. Endosulfan sulfate was detected in both the root and shoot of plants but given the low levels found, bioaccumulation was judged to be a relatively minor factor in endosulfan sulfate removal from soil.

The use of industrial effluents for agricultural practices due to waste management properties, water scarcity, or cultural belief affects both the physiology and morphology of cultivated crops. This study reports the investigation of the agro-potentiality of the effluents from a beverage bottling company on cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) under a controlled environment. This greenhouse experiment was carried out within Obafemi Awolowo University. The effluents were applied at 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50% concentrations using untreated (A) and treated (B) effluents separately in two groups. Physicochemical properties of the effluents were determined using standard methods. Exchangeable cations present in the effluents were investigated via the ammonium acetate exchange way. Morphological and yield parameters were measured in ten replicates. Transverse sections of the leaf, petiole, and stem were also investigated under a light microscopy. General linear model was used for statistical analysis with means compared using Tukey’s HSD test at p < 0.05. The effluents had pH, electrical conductivity, and total dissolved solids in the range of 7.4–7.5, 599.0–693.0 μS/cm, and 395.0–455.0 mg/l, respectively. The exchangeable calcium and potassium concentrations in the effluents range 1067.00–1937.50 and 190.0–343.50 mg/l. Application of effluent A had no significant effect on number of pods per group, seeds per pod, leaf length, leaf width, and leaf area of cowpea (p > 0.05). There was a significant effect of effluent A on the number of leaves and shoot height (p < 0.05). The application of effluent B had a significant effect on the mean number of leaves and seeds per pod at higher (40–50%) concentrations (p < 0.05). Amendment with effluent B showed no significant effect on the mean shoot height, leaf length, width and area, pods per group, pod length, and girth size (p > 0.05). The frequency of guard cells was observed to decrease with increasing effluents (A and B) concentration on the abaxial epidermis. Likewise, a “black deposit” was observed in the vessels in the stem taken from group amended with effluent A at high concentrations (30–50%). No anatomical differences were observed in the petiole and leaf transverse sections of the control and amended subgroups. The untreated and treated effluents showed agro-potentiality. However, crops grown need to be monitored for the health impacts on man and animal, as risk of crop cellular disruption exist.

Essential oils (EO) obtained from Xylopia parviflora root bark and Hoslundia opposita leaf via hydro distillation were analysed by GC-MS and evaluated for their insectifugal (repellent) and insecticidal activities against cowpea seed bruchid (Callosbruchus maculatus Fabricius), a cosmopolitan pest of cowpea seeds. X. parviflora was predominated by sesquiterpenes (59.57%), with the main compounds being β-himachalene (22.68%), 1,7,7,Trimethylbicyclo[2.2.1]hept-5-en-2-ol (19.68%), β-elemene (14.41%), 5(1H)-Azulenone, 2,4,6,7,8,8a–hexahydro-3,8-dimethyl-4-(1-methylethylidene)-(85-cis)- (12.38%) and (−)-α-parasinsen (8.34%). The predominant compounds in H. opposita EO were 1,8-cineole (61.15%), followed by α-terpineol (16.81%) and β-phellandrene (13.25%). Percentage repellence at application rates of 0.66–1.32 μl/cm² (46.93–73.07%) was significantly (p < 0.05) higher than that of control (17.73%). RD₅₀ (repellence dose for 50% of treated adults) for H. opposita (0.43 μl/cm²) was not significantly different from the value for X. parviflora (0.60 μl/cm²). Although higher percentage of male mortality than female mortality was observed due to topical application of the EOs, the disparity was not significant. The results of correlation of the chemical groups of the EOs with the insectifugal activity indicate that the observed bioactivity was due to the synergistic effects of the chemical groups. The two EOs are therefore recommended for incorporation into bruchid protection schemes in the tropics.

The enantioselective degradation of isofenphos-methyl in cowpea, cucumber, and pepper under field conditions was investigated to elucidate the enantioselective environmental behaviors of this pesticide. The concentrations of the enantiomers were determined by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The degradation rates of isofenphos-methyl enantiomers were the fastest in cowpea, followed by cucumber and pepper, with half-lives ranging from 1.48 to 8.06 days. The enantioselective degradation of isofenphos-methyl was characterized by calculating and comparing the values of enantiomer fraction (EF) and enantiomeric selectivity (ES). The degradation rates and enantioselectivities of isofenphos-methyl were different for the three vegetables. (R)-(−)-isofenphos-methyl was degraded faster than (S)-(+)-isofenphos-methyl in cowpea and cucumber, whereas (S)-(+)-isofenphos-methyl underwent preferential degradation in pepper. These results could serve as a reference for the study of enantioselective behavior of isofenphos-methyl in plants and further food safety evaluation, where the enantiomeric differences should be considered in the risk assessment.

The dissipation and residue levels of thiamethoxam and its metabolite clothianidin in cowpea were investigated under field conditions. Samples of cowpea were analyzed using a QuEChERS technique with ultra-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. The recoveries were 86.5–118.9% for thiamethoxam and 75.6–104.1% for clothianidin, with the coefficient of variation of < 13%. The water dispersible granule formulation of thiamethoxam was applied on cowpea at 30 and 45 g active ingredient ha⁻¹ in accordance with good agricultural practice. The half-life of thiamethoxam in cowpea was 0.8–1.6 days. The cowpea samples were gathered at 3, 7, and 10 days after the last application, and the residues of thiamethoxam in cowpea were < 0.005–0.054 mg kg⁻¹, while those of clothianidin were < 0.005–0.008 mg kg⁻¹. The final residues of thiamethoxam and clothianidin were below the European Union (EU) maximum residue level (0.3 mg kg⁻¹ for thiamethoxam; 0.2 mg kg⁻¹ for clothianidin) in cowpea after a preharvest interval (PHI) of 7 days. This study provided basic data on the use and safety of thiamethoxam and clothianidin in cowpea to help the Chinese government formulate a maximum residue level for thiamethoxam in cowpea.