the-use-piper-amalago-var-amalago-as-an-eco-friendly-insecticide

The Use of Piper amalago var. amalago as an Eco-Friendly Insecticide Synergist in the Management of Aedes Aegypti

Resistance to insecticides challenges the management of Ae. aegypti, the main vector of dengue, chikungunya, and Zika viruses in the Caribbean and Latin ...

University of The West Indies

Multiple sizes of Sea bream were collected from Kingston Harbour, Jamaica, to assess steady state bioaccumulation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in a tropical fish. Sea beam fork lengths ranged from 7.3 to 21.5 cm (n = 36 fish) and tissue lipids decreased with body length. Larger fish had lower δC isotopes compared to smaller fish, suggesting a change in diet. Linear regressions showed no differences in lipid equivalent sum PCB concentrations with size. However, differences in individual congener bioaccumulation trajectories occurred. Less hydrophobic PCBs decreased with increasing body length, intermediate PCBs showed no trend, whereas highly hydrophobic (above log K of 6.5) PCBs increased. The different congener patterns were interpreted to be a result of decreases in overall diet PCB concentrations with increased fish length coupled with differences in PCB toxicokinetics as a function of hydrophobicity yielding dilution, pseudo-steady state and non-steady state bioaccumulation patterns.

Bioaccumulation of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in Atlantic Sea Bream (Archosargus rhomboidalis) from Kingston Harbour, Jamaica.

Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in developing countries like the Caribbean, negatively affect multiple income-generating sectors, including the tourism industry upon which island states are highly dependent. Insect-transmitted NTDs include, but are not limited to, malaria, dengue and lymphatic filariasis. Control measures for these disease, are often ignored because of the associated cost. Many of the developing country members are thus retained in a financially crippling cycle, balancing the cost of prophylactic measures with that of controlling an outbreak.The purpose of the paper is to bring awareness to NTDs transmitted by insects of importance to humans, and to assess factors affecting such control, in the English-speaking Caribbean.

Challenges in the control of neglected insect vector diseases of human importance in the Anglo-Caribbean.

Jamaica produces coffee marketed as Blue Mountain and high mountain (grown outside the Blue Mountains). Since the discovery of the coffee berry borer (CBB; ) in Jamaica in 1978, chemical control has traditionally been the primary approach used to protect the crop from the pest. However, in the last 20 years, there has been an effort to shift towards more sustainable management strategies. The study was conducted to determine CBB activity (trap catch) and field infestation on coffee farms in the high mountains and Blue Mountains of Jamaica, over a crop cycle. A total of 27,929 and 12,921 CBBs were captured at high mountain and Blue Mountain farms, respectively. Peak CBB activity occurred in April in the high mountain region (365 CBBs/trap/month) and February in the Blue Mountain region (129 CBBs/trap/month). The highest levels of infestation were in November (33%) and October (34%) in the high mountain region and Blue Mountain region, respectively. There was no significant difference in the patterns of CBB activity and infestation between the study locations, and neither were related to the temperature or relative humidity. However, there was a significant relationship with rainfall. These data suggest that the population dynamics of the CBB may involve complex interactions among weather conditions, berry development, and agronomic practices.

Coffee Berry Borer,  (Ferrari) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae): Activity and Infestation in the High Mountain and Blue Mountain Regions of Jamaica.

The coffee berry borer (CBB) Hypothenemus hampei was first described in Africa in 1867 and has spread to all major coffee-producing regions worldwide, including Jamaica. Using long-read sequencing, we produced a new high-quality reference genome (172.7 Mb) for the Jamaican strain of the CBB, with 93% of the genome assembled into 14 scaffolds. Whole genome sequencing of pooled samples from different populations across Jamaica showed that the CBB harbors low levels of genetic diversity alongside an excess of low-frequency alleles, indicative of a recent genetic bottleneck. The analyses also showed a recent surge in the activity of transposable elements (TEs), particularly LINE/R1 and LTR/Gypsy elements, within CBB populations. Our findings offer first insights into the evolutionary genomics of CBB populations in Jamaica, highlighting the potential role of TEs in shaping the genome of this important pest species.

Article	Year
Bioaccumulation of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in Atlantic Sea Bream (Archosargus rhomboidalis) from Kingston Harbour, Jamaica. Bulletin of environmental contamination and toxicology\| PubMed ID: 28681163	2017
Challenges in the control of neglected insect vector diseases of human importance in the Anglo-Caribbean. One health (Amsterdam, Netherlands)\| PubMed ID: 34485673	2021
Coffee Berry Borer, (Ferrari) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae): Activity and Infestation in the High Mountain and Blue Mountain Regions of Jamaica. Insects\| PubMed ID: 37623404	2023
Genetic Variation in Jamaican Populations of the Coffee Berry Borer, Hypothenemus hampei. Genome biology and evolution\| PubMed ID: 39486017	2024

Dwight Robinson

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