The root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita is one of the most damaging plant-parasitic nematodes and is responsible for significant crop losses worldwide. Rising human health and environmental concerns have led to the withdrawal of commonly used chemical nematicides. There has been a tremendous demand for eco-friendly bio-nematicides with beneficial properties to the nematode hosting plants, which encourages the need for alternative nematode management practices. The current study was undertaken to determine the nematicidal potential of cotton seed cake (CSC) against second-stage juvenile (J2) hatching, J2 mortality, and J2 penetration of M. incognita in tomato plants in vitro. J2s and egg masses of M. incognita were exposed to four concentrations (250, 500, 750, and 1000 mg/L) of CSC extracts. The higher J2 mortality and inhibition of J2 hatching were found at 1000 mg/L, while the least effective result was observed at 250 mg/L of the CSC extract. The CSC extract applied with the concentrations mentioned above also showed inhibition of J2 penetration in tomato roots; 1000 mg/L showed the highest inhibition of penetration, while 250 mg/L displayed the least inhibition. Using gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy, we identified 11 compounds, out of which 9,12-Octadecadienoic acid, Hexadecanoic acid, and Tetradecanoic acid were found as major compounds. Subsequently, in silico molecular docking was conducted to confirm the nematicidal behavior of CSC based on binding interactions of the above three major compounds with the targeted protein acetylcholine esterase (AChE) of M. incognita. The values of binding free energy are −5.3, −4.5, and −4.9 kcal/mol, observed for 9,12-Octadecadienoic acid, n-Hexadecanoic acid, and Tetradecanoic acid, respectively, suggesting that 9,12-Octadecadienoic acid binds with the receptor AChE more efficiently than the other two ligands. This study indicates that CSC has nematicidal potential that can be used to control M. incognita for sustainable agriculture.

Plant-parasitic nematodes (PPNs) pose a threat to global food security in both the developed and developing worlds. PPNs cause crop losses worth a total of more than USD 150 billion worldwide. The sedentary root-knot nematodes (RKNs) also cause severe damage to various agricultural crops and establish compatible relationships with a broad range of host plants. This review aims to provide a broad overview of the strategies used to identify the morpho-physiological and molecular events that occur during RKN parasitism. It describes the most current developments in the transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic strategies of nematodes, which are important for understanding compatible interactions of plants and nematodes, and several strategies for enhancing plant resistance against RKNs. We will highlight recent rapid advances in molecular strategies, such as gene–silencing technologies, RNA interference (RNAi), and small interfering RNA (siRNA) effector proteins, that are leading to considerable progress in understanding the mechanism of plant–nematode interactions. We also take into account genetic engineering strategies, such as targeted genome editing techniques, the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR associated protein 9 (Cas9) (CRISPR/Cas-9) system, and quantitative trait loci (QTL), to enhance the resistance of plants against nematodes.

This investigation presents a novel finding showing the effect of culture filtrates (CFs) of macrofungi, Ganoderma lucidum, against Meloidogyne incognita evaluated in vitro and in planta. To determine the nematicidal activity, juveniles of M. incognita were exposed to Ganoderma CFs of three different ages (Two, four and eight weeks old) of pileus and stipe at different concentrations, i.e., 100%, 50%, 10% and 1% for different time intervals (12, 24, 48 and 72 h). Ganoderma species were examined morphologically based on external appearance and analytically using SEM. The ethanolic samples of basidiocarp were prepared and analyzed for in vitro nematicidal assay and different bioactive compounds. The in vitro experiment results revealed that among all three ages of pileus and stipe, two-week-old pileus and stipe exhibited great nematotoxic potency and caused 83.8% and 73.8% juveniles’ mortality at 100% concentration after 72 h of exposure time, respectively. Similarly, the two-week-old pileus and stipe showed the highest egg hatching inhibition of 89.2% and 81.0% at the 100% concentration after five days. The eight-week-old pileus and stipe were not more effective than the two- and four-week-old pileus and stipe. The metabolites were characterized using GC-MS, including sugar alcohol, steroids, silanes, glucosides, pyrones, ester, oleic acid, phthalic acid, linoleic acid, palmitates and ketones. The in planta study conducted in the greenhouse demonstrated that the root dip treatment for 30 min with Ganoderma CFs curtailed the infection level of M. incognita and promoted the eggplant plant growth. The maximum percent increase in plant length, plant fresh weight, plant dry weight, total chlorophyll, carotenoids and yield/plant was obtained at 100% conc. of fungus CFs, whereas a reduction was observed in nematode infestation parameters. It was concluded from the study that Ganoderma CFs can be explored as an effective and eco-friendly antinemic biocontrol agent in fields infected with root-knot nematodes.

Aims and Objectives. The aim of this study was to evaluate the versatility of pedicled tensor fascia lata flap for reconstruction of various anatomical regions. Materials and Methods. In this retrospective study a total of 34 patients with defects over various anatomical regions were included. The defects were located over the trochanter (n=12), groin (n=8), perineum (n=6), lower anterior abdomen (n=6), gluteal region (n=1), and ischial region (n=1). The etiology of defects included trauma (n=12), infection (n=8), pressure sores (n=8), and malignancy (n=6). Reconstruction was performed using pedicled tensor fascia lata flaps. Patients were evaluated in terms of viability of the flap and donor site morbidity. The technical details of the operative procedure have also been outlined. Results. All the flaps survived well except 5 patients in which minor complications were noted and 1 who experienced complete flap loss. Of those with minor complications, 1 patient developed distal marginal necrosis and 1 developed infection which subsided within three days by dressings and antibiotics and in 2 patients partial loss of the skin graft occurred at the donor site out of which 1 required regrafting and another one healed completely with dressing and antibiotics. All the patients were followed up for an average period of 6 months, ranging from 1 to 12 months. Donor site morbidity was minimal. Conclusion. It was concluded that the pedicled tensor fascia lata flap is a versatile, reliable, easy, and less time consuming procedure for the coverage of defects around trochanter, groin, lower anterior abdomen, perineum, and ischial region.