The development of new anti-ureolytic compounds is of great interest due to the newly discovered role of urease inhibitors in crop protection. Purine degradation and the generation of ammonium by urease are required for the full virulence of biotrophic and hemibiotrophic fungal plant pathogens. Accordingly, chemicals displaying urease inhibitor activity may be used as a novel class of fungicides. Several urease inhibitors belonging to different chemical classes are known, and some compounds have been developed as urea fertilizer additives. We tested whether the natural urease inhibitors p-benzoquinone (p-HQ) and hydroquinone (HQ), as well as the synthetic inhibitors isopropoxy carbonyl phosphoric acid amide (iCPAA), benzyloxy carbonyl phosphoric acid amide (bCPAA), and dipropyl-hexamino-1,3 diphosphazenium chloride (DDC), prevent or delay plant infection caused by pathogens differing in lifestyles and host plants. p-BQ, HQ, and DCC not only protected maize from infection by the hemibiotroph C. graminicola, but also inhibited the infection process of biotrophs such as the wheat powdery mildew fungus Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici and the broad bean rust fungus Uromyces viciae-fabae. Interestingly, the natural quinone-based compounds even reduced the symptom severity of the necrotrophic fungi, i.e., the grey mold pathogen B. cinerea and the Southern Leaf Spot fungus C. heterostrophus, to some extent. The urease inhibitors p-BQ, HQ, and DCC interfered with appressorial penetration and confirmed the appropriateness of urease inhibitors as novel fungicidal agents.
In Guo et al. (2022), the difference between pure nitrification inhibitors (NI), fertilizers treated with NI, and formulations containing NI was insufficiently considered. Presented results are misleading and inappropriate to evaluate the efficiency of an NI application by pure NI as well as NI-treated products such as ENTEC ® 26 and PIADIN ® , in particular with respect to practical field conditions.
Posting of workers is a common reality in all EU Member States and in all export-oriented industries. The problem relates to existing travel restrictions in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic and in the context of the carbon footprint of business travel. In this context, the development of new Industry 4.0 technologies plays a significant role. The aim of the article is to identify the impact of Industry 4.0 technology on the international posting of workers in light of the COVID-19 pandemic on example of the German chemical industry. The basis of the analysis are two factor conditions of the Diamond Model of M.E. Porter: innovation and human capital. A qualitative study was conducted with experts in Industry 4.0 that regularly post workers. The results indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the pace of technology adoption (especially Augmented Reality cluster). Industry 4.0 technologies enable companies to reduce the posting of workers. For this purpose, IT skills are now the most important, followed by communication, flexibility, and openness, as well as soft, team and didactic skills. JEL Codes: F23, J61, O33
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