Propolis is a resinous substance produced by bees that is rich with phenolic and flavonoid compounds. Extract of propolis has a high antioxidant and antimicrobial properties due to the presence of these compounds. Therefore, the main objectives of this study were to examine the antibacterial and the antioxidant activities of standardized, commercial water extract of propolis in vivo assays, and to assess its impact on preservation of raw beef meatballs aerobically packaged and stored at 4ºC for 7 days. The results showed that the propolis extract demonstrated the highest antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus epidermidis in vivo test. Furthermore, meatballs prepared with the propolis extract had an extended shelf life about a week in comparison to the regular meatballs. Besides, the propolis extract was a very effective natural antioxidant agent for controlling the oxidative changes in meatballs. The propolis treatment provided 64.6% reduction in the malondialdehyde formation at the final day of storage. Color lightness and yellowness values of meatballs were not affected by the propolis treatment, only difference was observed in redness values. The pH of the meatballs prepared with the propolis extract almost stayed constant during storage, while the pH of the control meatball samples increased. In summary, propolis extract exhibited a strong antimicrobial and antioxidant activity in vivo assays and in a meat product. Accordingly, it should be used in meat product formulations to enhance preservation of meat products.

This study aims to reveal the quality properties of yogurt enriched with walnut during cold storage (4°C) for 28 days. Five sets of yogurt types were produced by using walnut at varying rates (A: 0% (control), B: 1%, C: 2.5%, D: 3.5%, E: 5%). Physicochemical, sensory, phenolic contents and antioxidant properties of yogurt samples was investigated during the 1st, 7th, 14th, and 28th days of storage. The study was conducted to optimize the walnut addition level to obtain better quality yogurt as a functional food. It was determined that the walnut enrichment affects the gross chemical component of yogurt samples. Yogurt sample with %5 walnuts (E) had the highest total phenolic and antioxidant activity content (respectively 1027.50 mg GAE/kg, 19.95 mM TE) among the samples. The yogurt sample with the highest sensory attribute score was the one containing 1% walnuts. Therefore, it was concluded that yogurt added with walnut could serve as functional yogurt beneficial for human health.

Moringa oleifera Lam. is one of the most used plants in traditional medicine because of its high antioxidant properties. The antioxidant value, nonetheless, depends on locality where the plant is grown as well as specific parts on the plant. In this study, a phytochemical and antioxidant activity comparison of M. oleifera leaves, seeds and barks were carried out. Fresh leaves, seeds and barks were collected from 2 to 3 years old M. oleifera trees of Bukavu city of South Kivu province in DRC and Masii village of Machackos County in Kenya. A total of 300g of each dried sample powder was mixed with 700 mL of distilled water. Qualitative and quantitative assessment of alkaloids, saponins, phenols, flavonoids, glycosides, terpenoids and tannins were performed following standard methods while the antioxidant activity was assessed using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. Results indicate that only alkaloids were absent in leaves from Kenya and DRC while phenols, flavonoids and tannins were absent in barks. Glycoside in seeds from DRC had the highest concentration (6.17%) followed by alkaloids in seeds from Kenya (5.56%). There was low concentration of terpenoids and flavonoids in all samples compared to other compounds. The highest extract yield was found in leaves from DR Congo (22.5%) and seeds from Kenya (20%). At the highest concentration (10 µg/mL), leaves from Kenya (88.29±1.12 µg/mL) and DRC (80.17±3.59 µg/mL) had the highest percentage inhibition of reactive oxygen-free radicals but lower than the reference standard (92.63±2.76 µg/mL). Leaves from Kenya (23.59 μg/mL) and DRC (28.67 μg/mL) had the highest IC50 compared to mean values of seeds and barks from the two countries. M. oleifera leaves, especially from Kenya, are recommended as a satisfactory antioxidant but can be substituted with seeds and/or barks in order to alleviate the use of leaves which are overused these days.

In this study, the antioxidant and antimicrobial potentials of the ethanol extract of the aerial parts of Lepidium spinosum Ard., which is distributed in many regions of the world, were determined. The aerial parts of the plant were dried, powdered and extracted with ethanol. Total antioxidant status (TAS), total oxidant status (TOS) and oxidative stress index (OSI) of the plant extract were determined using Rel Assay Diagnostics kits. Antimicrobial activities of the plant extract were determined against standard bacterial and fungal strains by agar dilution method. As a result of the studies, the TAS value of the plant extract was determined as 4.550±0.132, the TOS value as 12.610±0.221, and the OSI value as 0.277±0.007. In addition, it has been found to be effective at 25-200 µg/mL against standard bacterial strains and 100-200 µg/mL concentrations against fungal strains. As a result, it was determined that L. spinosum used in our study could be a natural antioxidant and antimicrobial source. In this context, it is thought that natural material may be used in pharmacological designs.

After the COVID-19 was declared as a pandemic, nothing has ever been the same for humankind. The lockdown, travel restrictions, closure of borders, and restriction of the movement of people and materials through quarantine measures applied all over the world to combat the COVID-19 pandemic affected agriculture alongside many sectors. The pandemic has made countries reconsider the issue of self-sufficiency in agriculture and it has been understood once again that agriculture is an indispensable element of human life. Agriculture is generally an input-intensive industry. Plant protection products, fertilizers, seeds, fuel, and labor are among the most important of these inputs. Failure to occur in one or more of these means a decrease in the quality and quantity of the product. Countries that do not want to face such a problem have taken some measures during the COVID-19 pandemic, some have been successful, and some have been insufficient. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to labor shortages in plant production, difficulties in accessing plant protection products, and disruptions in plant protection practices due to lack of labor force, financial problems and equipment shortages. The pandemic has also affected education and research activities. With this review, we tried to discuss the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on plant production and plant protection in Turkey and in the world.

Bu çalışma; Erzincan Altınada Sulama Birliği şebekesinin 2014-2018 yıllarındaki performansının izlenip değerlendirilmesi amacıyla yürütülmüştür. Çalışmada daha önceki çalışmalarda kullanılan ve önerilen performans ölçüm parametreleri kullanılmıştır. Bu parametreler; şebekedeki sulama alanı oranları ile bu alanlar için gerekli net ve toplam su sağlanma oranları, üretim değeri oranı ile bunun mali getirisi, şebekenin mali yeterlilik ve mali etkinlik oranları, su ücretlerinin tahsilat oranı, sürdürülebilir sulama alanı oranı ile karlılık oranlarıdır. Sulu tarıma açılmış toplam alan 3600 hektar iken araştırma yıllarında 2254,93 ha ile 2751,56 ha arasında değişen alanlarda bitkisel üretim yapıldığı belirlenmiştir. Araştırma yıllarında sürdürülebilir sulama alanı oranları %130,83ile %159,65 arasında iken sulama alanı oranları değerleri %62,64 ile %76,43 arasında kalmıştır. Şebekede aylık net su temin oranlarının 0,78 ile 3,44 arasında iken toplam su temin oranlarının 1,53 ile 6,70 arasında değiştiği, yani çiftçinin aşırı su kullanma eğiliminin olduğu belirlenmiştir. Altınada sulama birliği sahasında üretim değeri oranı %33,05 ile %44,79; karlılık oranı ise 0,95 ile 2,59 arasındadır. Mali etkinlik oranı %22,70 ile %53,30 mali yeterlilik oranı %45,24 ile %101,64, yıllık tahsilât oranı %13,0 ile %96,0, toplam tahsilat oranı da %89 ile %169 arasında gerçekleşmiştir. Ekonomik parametreler bakımından planlama beklentilerine yaklaşılamadığı belirlenmiştir. Şebekede gerçekleşen üretimin planlama öngörülerine yaklaşabilmesi için sulama alanı oranının artırılması, mali getirileri yüksek olan üretim deseninin seçilmesi ve mali kaynakların daha etkin kullanılması gerektiği sonucuna ulaşılmıştır.

This study was carried out to determine the effects of different doses (10, 20 and 30%) of sumac shrub leaf substitution instead of corn silage in sheep rations on in vitro gas and methane production, metabolic energy (ME), net energy lactation (NEL) and organic matter digestion degree. Sheep ration consisting of corn silage (20%), alfalfa straw (22.5%), dry meadow grass (20%), and commercial feed (37.5%) constituted the control group. The experimental groups were formed by substituting 10 (S1), 20 (S2) and 30 (S3) percent sumac shrub leaves for corn silage in the control (C) group formed the experimental groups. The effect of sumac shrub leaf substitution on in vitro gas and methane production, metabolic energy, net energy lactation, and organic matter digestion degree was found to be significant. The 24-hour in vitro gas production values of rations ranged between 43.11- 46.77 ml/200 mg DM, methane production values 6.8-7.48 ml, metabolic energy values 8.91-9.41 MJ/kg DM, net energy lactation, 5.59-5.95 MJ/kg DM and organic matter digestion degree values found between 64.25 and 67.61%. As a result, it was determined that increasing doses of sumac shrub leaf substitute reduced gas and methane production. In addition, it was concluded that the data obtained should be supported by determining the microorganism counts, feed consumption amounts, and feed efficiency coefficients with in vivo studies.

Agriculture has been important all over the world since the first days of humanity. The development of agriculture is proportional to the development of humanity. Today, people have reached the point they have reached in technology with agriculture. Today, the use of technology with different topics is effective in ensuring the development of agriculture. The concept of smart agriculture was born from here. The hardware and software used today provide convenience to manufacturers, production increases and businesses gain more profit. For this purpose, cloud systems, internet of things, artificial intelligence applications and many other technologies are used. In this study, it is focused on designing applications that can be used in smart agriculture in the light of current technologies, especially cloud systems and internet of things for producers. In addition, studies on smart agriculture in the literature were analysed by using the document analysis method. It has been determined that the studies on smart agriculture in the literature are similar. According to the research findings, applications related to smart agriculture aim to enable producers to obtain products with less cost. It can be suggested that manufacturers and experts working in the field of informatics work together to achieve this.

Ehrlichia canis is the primary etiologic agent of canine monocytic ehrlichiosis, a tick-transmitted disease of dogs. The aim of this study is to molecularly investigate the presence of E. canis and to reveal its prevalence in dogs in Siirt province. The animal material of the study is consisted of a total of 82 dogs. A region of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene of E. canis was targeted for PCR amplification. As a result of the conducted Nested-PCR, positivity was detected at the rate of 10.53% (4/38) in male dogs and 13.64% (6/44) in females, and Ehrlichia canis specific bands of size 389 bp were obtained in 10 (12.20%) dogs in total. The phylogenetic tree was constructed with the Maximum Likelihood (MCL) method, The nucleotide sequence was registered in the NCBI GenBank database with access numbers OK331365.1-OK331366. Early detection of the disease by means of hematological, serological, or molecular tests is very important in terms of prognosis. More studies should be performed to determine vector-disease relationships in this region about ticks that vector the disease.

Adoption of improved technologies and agricultural practices are prerequisites for increased farm productivity. Assessing the appropriateness of potential new technologies or practices increases the likelihood of adoption or modification to suit farmers’ needs; however, low farm output still persists among smallholders, attributable to several factors including poor and low adoption of modern production practices. This study therefore analyzed the index of adoption of recommended onion production practices (ROPPs) and correlation of multivariate factors among smallholder farmers in Dambatta, Kano State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling procedure was used in selecting 100 respondents for this study. Primary data collected via well-structured questionnaires were analyzed using Descriptive statistics, Adoption index and Multivariate Correlation techniques.The results revealed that the prevalent ROPPs adopted by the farmers include improved onion varieties (78%), plant spacing (69%), planting method (55%), weed management (50%) and fertilizer application (44%). Moreover, most (72%) of the farmers have low adoption index (≤0.33). Further, significant correlations between multivariate factors (farm output, adoption cost and adoption index) exists and the estimated correlation coefficients for rxz, ryz and rxy were -0.53, 0.71 and -0.82 respectively. Subsidizing cost of adoption of ROPPs, improving access to modern production practices/technologies, agricultural credit/farm capital, extension services, adequate labour supply and tenure policy modification are recommended to ameliorate adoption constraints.