Identifying and using native insect resistance genes is the core of integrated pest management. In this study, 10 experimental corn, Zea mays L., hybrids and 10 inbred lines were screened for resistance to major ear-feeding insects in the southeastern Coastal Plain region of the United States during 2004 and 2005. Ear-feeding insect damage was assessed at harvest by visual damage rating for the...

Genetically modified (GM) maize expressing the insecticidal protein Cry1Ab from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt maize) is the only GM crop planted commercially in the European Union (EU). Cultivation in accordance with Directive 2001/18/EC demands post-market environmental monitoring (PMEM) to ensure the detection and prevention of adverse effects on the environment possibly deriving from commercial...

Inoculation of corn (Zea mays) seeds with Azospirillum brasilense strain Cd or Sp 7 significantly enhanced (30 to 50% over controls) the uptake of NO(3), K, and H(2)PO(4) into 3- to 4-day- and 2-week-old root segments. No gross changes in root morphology were observed; altered cell arrangement in the outer four or five layers of the cortex was seen in photomicrographs of cross sections of inocu...

Several phenols and related compounds have been shown to have detrimental effects on insects while others have antibiotic activity against fungi which attack higher plants. Insects have also been implicated as contributors to preharvest contamination of corn [maize], Zea mays L, by aflatoxin. The objectives, therefore, were to determine (a) if commercial corn hybrids vary in their silk maysin c...

Abstract Seasonal drought is the most important factor to limit the production of maize in the world. Using a split plot design, a two year field experiment was conducted to determine the effect of limited irrigation regime on yield, yield components and water use efficiency of sweet corn (Zea mays var. saccharata). Responses of three sweet corn varieties KSC403, Merit and Obsession to three di...

The establishment and survival of western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte, was evaluated on transgenic Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner maize, Zea mays L., expressing the mCry3A protein (MIR604) and non-Bt maize with the same genetic background (isoline maize) at different stages of development in 2007 and 2008. Overall, western corn rootworm larval recovery, root damage, a...

Stoichiometric and kinetic values of phenolics against DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) were determined for Andean purple corn (Zea mays L.) and red sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas). Both crops had higher antioxidant capacity and antiradical kinetics than blueberries and higher or similar anthocyanin and phenolic contents. The second-order rate constant (k(2)) was 1.56, 1.12, 0.57, and 0.26 (m...