Use of homeopathic preparations in phytopathological models and in field trials: a critical review

Betti, Lucietta; Trebbi, Grazia; Majewsky, Vera; Scherr, Claudia; Shah-Rossi, Devika; Jäger, Tim; Baumgartner, Stephan

doi:10.1016/j.homp.2009.09.008

Cited by 55 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 21 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…In many instances, it could be obtained at the farm itself (Martinez, 2002). All these attributes make these alternative products perfectly adapted to the holistic approach of biodynamic agriculture and organic food (Betti et al, 2009). Additionally, while conventional coffee producers have a wide range of chemicals to control pests and diseases in crops, the options available to organic farmers who apply organic production systems are reduced and little studied.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Antifungal activity using medicinal plant extracts against pathogens of coffee tree

Silva

Souza

Monteiro

et al. 2014

Rev. bras. plantas med.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Generally, the medicinal plants have antifungal substances that can be used for the plant protection against phytopathogens. The objective of this study was to know the efficiency of aqueous extracts from medicinal plants against the major etiological agents of coffee tree. The aqueous extracts used were extracted from bulbs of Allium sativum, leaves of Vernonia polysphaera, Cymbopogon citratus, Cymbopogon nardus, Cordia verbenacea, Eucalyptus citriodora, Ricinus communis, Azadirachta indica, Piper hispidinervum and flower buds of Syzygium aromaticum. The etiological agents considered for this study were Cercospora coffeicola, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Fusarium oxysporum, Phoma tarda, Rhizoctonia solani and Hemileia vastatrix. The screening for harmful extracts was done based on mycelial growth and conidial germination inhibition. All experiments performed were in vitro conditions. The inhibition of mycelial growth was performed mixing the extracts with the PDA. This mixture was poured in Petri dishes. On the center of the dishes was added one PDA disc with mycelium. It was incubated in a chamber set to 25ºC. The evaluation was done daily by measuring the mycelial growth. The germination assessment was also performed with Petri dishes containing agar-water medium at 2%. These were incubated at 25ºC for 24 hours. After this period the interruption of germination was performed using lactoglycerol. The experiments were conducted in a completely randomized design. The most effective plant extracts against the micelial growth and conidial germination were V. polysphaera, S. aromaticum and A. sativum. Keywords: Phoma tarda, Cercospora coffeicola, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Hemileia vastatrix, Phytopathology.RESUMO: Atividade antifúngica utilizando extratos de plantas medicinais contra fitopatógenos do cafeeiro. Geralmente, as plantas medicinais têm substâncias antifúngicas que podem ser utilizadas para a proteção das plantas contra fitopatógenos. O objetivo deste estudo foi conhecer a eficiência de extratos aquosos de plantas medicinais contra os principais agentes etiológicos do cafeeiro. Os extratos aquosos utilizados foram extraídos de bulbos de Allium sativum, folhas de Vernonia polysphaera, Cymbopogon citratus, Cymbopogon nardus, Cordia verbenacea, Eucalyptus citriodora, Ricinus communis, Azadirachta indica, Piper hispidinervum e botões florais de Syzygium aromaticum. Os agentes etiológicos considerados neste estudo foram Cercospora coffeicola, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Fusarium oxysporum, Phoma tarda, Rhizoctonia solani e Hemileia vastatrix. A triagem dos extratos foi realizada com base no crescimento micelial e na inibição da germinação de conídios. Todos os experimentos foram realizados em condições in vitro. A inibição do crescimento micelial foi realizada misturandose os extratos com PDA. Esta mistura foi vertida em placas de Petri. No centro das placas foi adicionado um disco de PDA com micélio. Incubou-se em câmara programada para 25°C. A avaliação foi feita diariamente através d...

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Antifungal activity using medicinal plant extracts against pathogens of coffee tree

Silva

Souza

Monteiro

et al. 2014

Rev. bras. plantas med.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, it is important to emphasize that, to the best of our knowledge, the literature contains no other scientific data on studies of this nature, a scenario that does not permit us to accept or reject definitively the hypothesis that homeopathy is a viable alternative for controlling these insects. In a review study on the use of homeopathic preparations in agriculture, to control pests and pathogens, Betti et al (2009) concluded that most of the works published and consulted do not provide sufficient information to enable a clear interpretation, in particular, due to the statistical analysis being inadequate or entirely absent, the number of repetitions being unspecified and, frequently, the experimental methodology being poor. Even so, the authors concluded that the studies evaluated can serve as a starting point for future experiments that are more comprehensive and controlled.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For this reason, recent years have seen growing interest in agricultural methods that are both economically and environmentally sound (Betti et al, 2009). Among these, the agrohomeopathy has raised the interest of researchers.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, the new approach of applying homeopathic principles can also add to the improvement of nutritional properties (for example the levels of components that induce physiological benefits to human health) (Fonseca et al, 2006) and physiological and qualitative characteristics of plants, in addition to their resistance to stress factors of both biotic (insects and pathogens) and abiotic in nature (physical and chemical damage) (Betti et al, 2009).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Alternative Control of the Leaf-Cutting Ant Atta bisphaerica Forel (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Via Homeopathic Baits

Ramos¹,

Cunha²,

Kuhn³

et al. 2013

Sociobiology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Leaf-cutting ants are pests that afflict diverse crops, and are most efficiently controlled by chemical methods that are widely utilized. Other methods have been investigated aiming to efficiently control these insects while reducing the environmental impact of applying such chemical products. Therefore, an assay was conducted to evaluate the efficiency of baits, formulated homeopathically, in nests of the leaf-cutting ant Atta bisphaerica, in the field. Thirty (30) colonies were chosen and divided into 10 repetitions for each of the following treatments: control (without baits), standard (8 g/m2 of loose soil of baits based on sulfluramid 0.3%) and homeopathic (60 g/m2 of loose soil of homeopathic baits parceled into 20g/m2 doses applied on 3 consecutive days). At 24 hours after bait application on active foraging trails of colonies, evaluation of parameters was initiated: loading and return of the baits, foraging and mortality. The completed assay demonstrated that the transport of baits was greater in the standard (80%) than the homeopathic treatment (50%), and, to the contrary, the return of baits was significantly higher in the homeopathic treatment (15%) versus the conventional, where return/rejection did not occur. Colony mortality was 20% under the homeopathic treatment, differing statistically from the 80% value produced by the standard treatment. Thus, the homeopathic treatment is not demonstrated to be efficient at controlling leaf-cutting ants, suggesting new studies with different methodologies.

show abstract

“…No significant differences were found for in vitro tests of motility and mortality of J2 and eggs hatch. Ray and Pradhan cited by Betti et al (2009), when conducting in vitro experiments, tested unspecified dynamizations of 15 homeopathic treatments, including T. occidentalis, against root-knot nematode. This study showed potential mortality of 26% for J2, which can be considered a low direct toxicity.…”

Section: Thuya Occidentalismentioning

confidence: 99%

Control of Meloidogyne incognita in tomato plants with highly diluted solutions of Thuya occidentalis and their effects on plant growth and defense metabolism

Mioranza

Stangarlin

Müller

et al. 2017

SCA

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This work aimed to control the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita in tomato Solanum lycopersicum L plants with high-diluted solutions of Thuya occidentalis, and to study its effects on growth and plant defense responses. The in vivo experiment was carried out over two years (2013 and 2014) at a climatized greenhouse, whilst the in vitro experiment was carried out in the laboratory. Eight treatments were used [6, 12, 24, 50, 100, 200 and 400CH (Hahnemannian centesimal) of T. occidentalis, with water as control treatment]. For the in vivo assay, in 2013 plants were inoculated with about 4850 eggs and second-stage juveniles (J2), while in 2014 they were inoculated with 5050 eggs and J2. The treatments were applied once a week, as 0.1% aqueous solutions onto the plant shoots, for 50 and 40 days respectively. For the in vitro experiment, the nematodes were directly exposed to the same 0.1% treatments. The treatments did not show nematostatic or nematicide effects in the in vitro assay, and had no influence on the hatching of the eggs. For the in vivo assay in 2013, T. occidentalis 100CH decreased the number of J2 present in the roots, whilst the dynamization of 200CH stimulated root development and increased the weight of the fruits of the first cluster. In 2014, 100CH decreased numbers of J2 in the soil. Some dynamization increased the plant's defense enzyme activity, such as peroxidase (24, 50, 200 and 400CH), polyphenoloxidase (200CH), and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (24 and 50CH). In this study, T. occidentalis 100CH showed potential for the control of M. incognita, whilst 24 and 200CH influenced the growth of plants.

show abstract

Use of homeopathic preparations in phytopathological models and in field trials: a critical review

Cited by 55 publications

References 21 publications

Antifungal activity using medicinal plant extracts against pathogens of coffee tree

Antifungal activity using medicinal plant extracts against pathogens of coffee tree

Alternative Control of the Leaf-Cutting Ant Atta bisphaerica Forel (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Via Homeopathic Baits

Control of Meloidogyne incognita in tomato plants with highly diluted solutions of Thuya occidentalis and their effects on plant growth and defense metabolism

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About