Maize plays an important role in agricultural production systems in all agro-ecological zones of Benin. Despite its importance, its production faces many constraints including soil fertility. One of the ecological technologies aimed at improving agricultural production is the use of soil microorganisms including arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of Rhizophagus intraradices, an indigenous strain, on maize productivity in farmers' areas in the Research and Development (RD) sites of the North (Ouénou), Center (Miniffi), and South (Zouzouvou). Three maize producers were selected at each RD site, for nine maize producers. The experimental design was a randomized complete block of three treatments with three replications. The different treatments were (i) Control–farmer's practice, (ii) R. intraradices + 50% of the recommended dose of NPK and urea, and (iii) 100% of the recommended dose of NPK and urea. Soil samples from the different RD sites were taken at a depth of 0–20 cm before sowing for chemical analysis. The different growth parameters (height, crown diameter, and leaf area), grain yield, and endomycorrhizal infection of maize plants were evaluated. The results showed that the soils were moderately acidic (5.5 ≤ pH waters ≤ 6.8) and low in organic matter (0.95 ≤ 33 OM ≤ 1.17) regardless of the study area. The greater maize grain yield was recorded with application of 100% of the recommended dose of NPK and urea, and R. intraradices + 50% of the recommended dose of NPK and urea. In the RD sites at the South, Center, and North recorded with R. intraradices + 50% of recommended dose of NPK and urea, the grain yields of 1.9, 3.4, and 1.74 t/ha with an increase of 28, 38.21, and 13.21%, respectively, compared with farmer's practice. Mycorrhization frequencies in plants treated with Ri¹ N15P15K15 vary between 37.44 and 51.67% in the three zones. The results of the current study have proven the potential use of R. intraradices in sustainable intensification of maize production in Benin.
Biotechnology proposes various ecological approaches to control climatic constraints, soil fertility and plant nutrition using biological products, such as biostimulants to achieve a healthy and environment-friendly agriculture. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of biostimulant-coated maize seed and biostimulant application on the growth, yield and nutritional status of maize in Benin. The trials were set up with 100 producers spread over the whole of Benin. The experimental design was a block of three treatments with 11 replicates per Research-Development (R-D) sites. The maize varieties 2000 SYNEE-W BENIN and TZL COMP 4-W BENIN were used. The best growth (height, stem diameter and leaf area) and yield performances (thousand grains weight and grains yield) were obtained by treatments T2 (Application of biostimulant + ½ NPK-Urea) and T3 (Seed coating with biostimulant + ½ NPK-Urea) compared to the farmers’ practice (T1). A significant difference was observed between the different treatments for height, leaf area, 1000 grains weight and maize-grain yield. From one Research-Development site to another, a significant difference was also observed for all parameters. The treatment- Research-Development site interaction was also significant in most areas. The applied or coated biostimulant improved the uptake of nitrogen, phosphorus and especially potassium with higher significant difference compared to the recommended dose of mineral fertilizer. The two techniques of using the biostimulant combined with the half-dose of mineral fertilizer gave the better growth, yield and nutritional status compared to the farmers’ practice in all areas study. This biostimulant can be used to ensure food security and sustainable agriculture in Benin.
The gut microbiota of mosquitoes is composed of a range of microorganisms. Among its microorganisms, some affect the vectorial capacity of mosquitoes. The aim of this study was to characterize some bacteria of the intestinal microbiota in Anopheles gambiae (An. gambiae) females, a major vector of malaria transmission in Benin. The symbiote bacteria of the microbiota of female laboratory An. gambiae and female wild An. gambiae were identified by the culture method. The count was done on media plate count agar (PCA), and subsequently, the bacterial load was calculated. Comparison of batches bacterial load was carried out with the variance analysis test (ANOVA). Finally, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed to investigate the presence of a few bacterial genera influencing the vector capacity of An. gambiae. The study found that the microbiota of female An. gambiae is home to the bacteria belonging to the Staphylococcus, Enterobacteriaceae, and other unidentified bacterial gene regardless of its nature and condition. Similarly, there was no statistically significant difference between the bacterial load of the laboratory and wild mosquitoes depending on the parous and gorged states; on the other hand, there was a significant difference between the bacterial loads of the laboratory and wild mosquitoes according to the nulliparous and nongorged states. The search for a few bacterial genera influencing the vector capacity of female An. gambiae has been negative for Spiroplasma bacteria regardless of its nature and condition. PCR revealed the presence of Wolbachia bacteria for only gorged Kisumu sensitive An. gambiae. Wolbachia’s presence at An. gambiae suggests that this type of bacteria could be used to develop new effective and sustainable approaches in the vector control.
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