The ability of earthworms to decompose lignocellulose involves the assistance of microorganisms in their digestive system. While many studies have revealed a diverse microbiota in the earthworm gut, including aerobic and anaerobic microorganisms, it remains unclear which of these species contribute to lignocellulose digestion. In this study, aerobic microorganisms with cellulolytic activity iso...

OBJECTIVE To examine whether earthworms of Eisenia fetida, Lumbricus rubellus and Eudrilus eugeniae extracts have elastase, tyrosinase and matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) inhibitory activity. METHODS The earthworms extract was screened for elastase, tyrosinase and MMP-1 inhibitory activity and compared with the positive controls. It was also evaluated for whitening and anti-wrinkle capacit...

Concerns about rising greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations have spurred the promotion of no-tillage practices as a means to stimulate carbon storage and reduce CO2 emissions in agro-ecosystems. Recent research has ignited debate about the effect of earthworms on the GHG balance of soil. It is unclear how earthworms interact with soil management practices, making long-term predictions on their ef...

Whether the radial thickness (RT) of the chloragogenous tissue and intestinal epithelium of earthworms (Lumbricus terrestris) reflects the bioavailability of metals in soils was investigated in two areas, one with active volcanism (Furnas) and another with no volcanic activity since 3 million years ago (Santa Maria), in the Azores. Metal contents in soil samples and earthworms from the two area...

The aim of this study was to estimate the bioavailability of essential (Zn, Cu) and non-essential metals (Cd, Pb) to the earthworm Lumbricus rubellus exposed to soils originating from a gradient of metal pollution in Southern Poland. Metal uptake and elimination kinetics were determined and related to soils properties. Experimental results were compared with tissue metal concentrations observed...

Synthetic pesticides are fairly well recognized as a cost-effective method of controlling pests, but these chemicals are toxic to other non-targeted and beneficial species. Pesticides are either directly applied to soil to control soil borne pests or deposited on soil as runoff from their foliar applications and these concentrations are highly enough to effect soil micro-organisms (Bezchlebova ...

Earthworm population dynamics were studied in different habitats of Gorakhpur district of eastern Uttar Pradesh in different habitats. There was significant difference between density and size of different species of earthworms. The earthworm species Lampito mauritii is the most common species of Gorakhpur district. The Metaphire posthuma, Eutyphoeus nicholsoni, Eutyphoeus incommodus, Eutyphoeu...

Earthworms and plants greatly affect belowground properties; however, their combined effects are more attractive based on the ecosystem scale in the field condition. To address this point, we manipulated earthworms (exotic endogeic species Pontoscolex corethrurus) and plants (living plants [native tree species Evodia lepta] and artificial plants) to investigate their combined effects on soil mi...

Most studies investigating the effects of earthworms on microorganisms have focused on the changes before and after vermicomposting rather than those that occur throughout the process. In the present study, we designed continuous feeding reactors in which new layers of pig slurry (1.5 and 3 kg) were added sequentially to form an age gradient inside the reactors in order to evaluate the impact o...