Journal Of Agrobiotechnology (Journal of UniSZA - Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin)
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A Bibliometric Analysis of Agarwood Research, 1959-2021
Get PDFAgarwood, is a fragrant resinous wood unique due to its peculiarity of being formed and harvested only from diseased trees of certain genus of Thymelaeaceae. It has survived years of history and established itself in the modern agarwood value chain. It is only logical that the progress has been fueled by scientific research carried out over the years. This current review is the first bibliometric study to uncover the agarwood research trend across the many themes. Bibliometric data were extracted from Scopus database in March 2021 using the search term ‘agarwood’ within the year 1959 to 2021. A total of 513 records were analysed using VosViewer and Publish or Perish software. Collectively, the articles were cited 6216 times with citations per year of 100.26 and h-index of 42. The top-contributing countries were China, Malaysia, Japan and Indonesia. Most of the publications were in the area of agricultural and biological sciences; biochemistry, genetics and molecular biology; chemistry; and pharmacology/pharmaceutics. The early years of agarwood research was focused on chemical compounds followed by studies on biological effects before the themes became varied in the last ten years. Critical knowledge gaps identified include safety of agarwood and its related materials, translational link between proof of concept and clinical applications as well as role of agarwood in socioeconomic development of a nation. Altogether, this work could be used as a landscape to chart the future research that leverage agarwood-producing trees as economic plant species towards progressive yet sustainable socioeconomic development and benefit to mankind
Assessment of Insect Abundance and Diversity in Paddy Fields Cultivated with Beneficial Plants, Turnera trioniflora
Get PDFBeneficial plants such as Turnera can be a good shelter and provide a food source for insects. The presence of insects, especially natural enemies in paddy fields is very important because the insects help in natural pest population control. However, detailed studies on the composition of insects in paddy fields cultivated with Turnera plants are still lacking. Therefore, a study was conducted in Besut, Terengganu to determine the population abundance and diversity of insects in paddy fields cultivated with the beneficial plant, Turnera trioniflora. Two paddy fields were selected as sampling plots which cultivated with T. trioniflora plants (Plot A) and without T. trioniflora plants (Plot B). For each plot, three Malaise traps, five yellow pan traps, and five pitfall traps were used to collect insect samples on a weekly basis during the paddy planting season (February-May 2021). Samples collected were brought to the laboratory for identifying processes up to order level. Results showed that a total of 3818 individuals of insects consisting of 10 orders (i.e. Diptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Orthoptera, Thysanoptera, Odonata, Mantodea, and Blattodea) were successfully collected from both plots with a significance different (p < 0.05). Among them, the Diptera dominated the number of individuals collected at 52.12% (n=1990) and followed by Hymenoptera at 16.87% (n= 644) and Lepidoptera at 12.40% (n=474). Whilst the Blattodea order was the least abundant with 0.07% (n=3). Plot A and Plot B recorded a total of 1995 and 1823 individuals, respectively and no significant difference (p > 0.05) of insect abundance was recorded between both plots. However, the diversity of insects in Plot A was slightly higher (H’=1.57) than in Plot B (H’=1.23). In conclusion, the insect’s abundance and diversity in a paddy plot cultivated with T. trioniflora plants was relatively higher than in a paddy plot cultivated without T. trioniflora plants. This study has provided a set of basic data on the abundance and diversity of insects in paddy fields which is very helpful for further studies on the relationship between T. trioniflora beneficial plants and insects
A Scoping Review of Melon Manis Terengganu Research Perspective in Malaysia
Get PDFMelon Manis Terengganu (MMT) is an iconic and official fruit of Terengganu state, Malaysia. MMT is the new melon variety introduced to the farmers in Terengganu as one of the ways to improve their socioeconomic level. The present scoping review attempts to recognise and synthesise the published materials on MMT research and explore the research perspective of MMT. The Web of Science, Scopus, Dimensions, and Google Scholar online databases have been included in this study to screen the published peer-reviewed documents on MMT research. A total of 15 full articles (with 565 cited references) have been accessed in this study. Publication on MMT began in 2018 where most of the scholars affiliated with Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin and Universiti Malaysia Terengganu. The scientific research on MMT is limited, and the research topics are considered emerging knowledge. Biochemistry is the leading research discipline of MMT besides food processing, postharvest, entomology, crop performance and entrepreneurship. This synthesis review contributes to the body of knowledge, especially to the new academicians and scholars, in better understanding the current research progress and possible future research direction of MMT study in Malaysia.
 
Efficacy of Neem Oil (Azadirachta indica) and Clove Oil (Syzygium aromaticum) against Ear Mites in Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus)
Get PDFEar mites are a common ectoparasite that causes a skin disease known as mange in rabbits. Its infestation will contribute to poor growth, decrease production performances and in severe cases, cause mortality. To date, chemical pesticides are still widely used to control rabbit mites, where long-term use will contribute to the evolution of mite resistance. Essential oils have become an alternative method due to their efficacy and safety. This study was aimed to determine the efficacy of clove oil and neem oil against rabbit ear mites. The rabbits were divided into four treatment groups: T1, T2 and T3 and T4, each having three rabbits. These groups were topically treated with ivermectin (control group), clove oil, neem oil, 50:50 of clove and neem oil respectively on days 0, 7, 14, 21 and 28. The number of mites was counted and recorded as post-treatment evaluations by microscopic examination of skin scrapings from each group. The number of mites were progressively decreased in T2, but fluctuated in T1, T3 and T4. The number of live mites for each treatment was not statistically different (p>0.05) between treatments for days 0, 7 and 21, but the number of mites was statistically different (p<0.05) between all treatments for days 14 and 28. T4 that was treated with both clove and neem oil showed the highest efficacy with 94% for day 14 post-treatment, while treatment with neem oil (T3) showed the highest efficacy (89.7%) for day 28 after treatment. The results revealed that the mixture of both oils was the most effective against rabbit ear mites, however comparing the two oils, neem was more effective than clove oil in controlling the mites
Needs for Terengganu Sweet Melon Growers for Quality Production using Fertigation System
Get PDFThe Terengganu government needs 100 more fertigation growers of Terengganu Sweet Melon (MMT), to meet the European market demand. Undocumented local growers' needs for MMT fertigation farming hinder the local government’s efforts to retain and attract new local growers. Hence, this study’s objective was to explore the needs of MMT growers using the fertigation system for quality production in Terengganu. This qualitative study used semi-structured interviews complemented with Participatory Research Appraisal (PRA) tools for data collection. Through purposive sampling, 13 MMT growers volunteered as the study informants. The thematic analysis of the semi-structured interviews extracted six themes on growers’ needs. Almost all growers acknowledged MMT has promising prospects for its high market price and cost-effective fertigation system for quality production. However, they expressed six needs to help retain and support MMT fertigation technology adoption for quality production. All growers received a lack of technical consultancy; thus, their top urgent need was the advisory services on the technical knowledge and skills on MMT, fertigation system, and pests and diseases controls. Lack of financial support was also their urgent need for financial assistance to initiate, operate and maintain the high-cost infrastructure of the fertigation farming system. Different roles of agricultural-related and financial institutions were crucial to support their need for professional development, resources, and fertigation farm upscaling. In conclusion, MMT fertigation growers identified six needs that must be addressed for quality production. Their major needs were the technical advisory services on MMT and fertigation system, and financial assistance. Thus, the Terengganu government may incorporate the study findings to formulate an attractive policy for relevant government and NGOs’ roles to provide the relevant extension and advisory services, professional development packages, and friendly resources aid for the advancement of existing growers and to solicit new growers' participation
Effects of Organic, Inorganic and Compound Fertilizer on Growth and Quality of Water Spinach (Ipomoea aquatica) under Polyculture Condition
Get PDFFertilizer management and soil nutrient profile affect plant growth. However, each plant species is unique and may require different nutrients for best growth. This study aimed to investigate the effect of organic fertilizer, inorganic fertilizer and compound fertilizer applications on the plant growth of water spinach (Ipomoea aquatic) under polyculture system. In the present study, water spinach (Ipomoea aquatica) were grown under a polyculture planting condition with okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) and yardlong bean (Vigna unguiculata subsp. sesquipedalis), and treated with five different types of fertilizer regime (T1: without fertilizer, T2: organic fertilizer, T3: inorganic fertilizer, T4: compound fertilizer and T5: organic + inorganic fertilizer). For each treatment group, a total amount of 9 g m-2 of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium each were applied throughout the experiment. The present results showed that under polyculture condition, no significant difference was observed in the total weight, root weight, root length and leaf number of water spinach under different treatments (p>0.05). However, significant difference (p<0.05) was found for plant height of water spinach among the five treatment groups. Furthermore, the weight of roots and shoots of water spinach was found to have positive correlation (T1: R2=0.672; T2: R2=0.799; T3: R2=0.442; T4: R2=0.779; T5: R2=0.804). In addition to crop growth, the fertilizer application also influenced the soil pH, EC, organic matter and moisture content after one cropping season. In this study, the growth of water spinach following application of organic fertilizer was found comparable to the inorganic fertilizer treatment. Incorporation of organic and inorganic fertilizer (T5) served the best condition for the growth of water spinach under the polyculture system
Total Phenolic Content and Antioxidant Activity of Passiflora edulis Extract
Get PDFPassion fruit is a type of wild exotic plant in Malaysia. Common passion fruits planted in Malaysia are Passiflora edulis Sims (purple) and Passiflora edulis var flavicarpa (yellow). These fruits contain a high amount of antioxidants, polyphenols and vitamin C and are widely used as fruit juice, jam, and syrup product. However, there is a lack of information about the nutritional composition of the juice and seed of P. edulis (purple) cultivated in Malaysia. This study aims to determine the total phenolic contents, antioxidant activity and Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) content of P. edulis (purple) using two different solvent extraction, 70% of ethanol and 70% of methanol. The total phenolic content (TPC) was carried out by using Folin-Ciocalteu (FC) method, while the antioxidant activity was analysed using 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay to determine the IC50 value of extracted samples. Ascorbic acid content from fresh juice and seeds samples was analysed by using Indophenol (DCPIP) method. The result showed that the extraction using ethanol produced the highest TPC with 9.249±0.04 mg GAE/g in seeds and 0.0139±0.02 mg GAE/g in juice, respectively. The lowest IC50 value was obtained by sample extracted with ethanol, which was 83.85±4.66 mg/L in seed and 305.47±5.28 mg/L in juice. The seed sample (53.68±4.95 mg/100mg) exhibited a high ascorbic acid content compared to the juice sample (46.66±3.28 mg/100mg). In conclusion, seeds of P. edulis possessed the strongest antioxidant activity and vitamin C content. This study could contribute to information regarding the phytochemical constituents and suitable solvent for extraction of phenolic compounds that can act as antioxidants and thus promote health effects on the human body
A A Trend of Zinc Uptake into Tachypleus Gigas Tissues After a Month of Exposure
No full textTachypleus gigas is one of the species of horseshoe crabs found in Peninsular Malaysia. Metals in the surrounding water can accumulate into horseshoe crab tissues. This study was conducted to determine zinc (Zn) uptake into horseshoe crab tissues after continuous exposure to the metals. T. gigas that were sampled from Gelang Patah, Johor and Cherating, Pahang were reared in the control tank and Zn treatment tank (20 mg/L) with aeration supply for a month. Twelve horseshoe crabs from Zn treatment tank and 6 horseshoe crabs from control tank were dissected for tissues namely operculum, gills, chelicerae, leg, digestive tract, hepatopancreas and carapace in different intervals (Day 0, Day 10, Day 20 and Day 30). These tissues were freeze dried and digested with 65% nitric acid on a hotplate at 200oC. Zn were measured using Inductively Coupled Plasma - Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES). Different concentrations of Zn were measured in different tissues. The tissues of T. gigas showed increased concentrations of Zn by following exposure in 30 days. The increasing pattern of Zn uptake into the tissues from day 0- 30 are clear. The gills showed highest concentrations of metals accumulation with the value of 6398.60 ± 909.51 µg/g (dw). Thus, uptake of Zn into T. gigas was confirmed, therefore it has the potential to become the suitable bio-indicator (especially their gills) to detect the metal pollution in the surrounding water
Evaluation of the DPPH Radical Scavenging Activity, Total Phenolic Content and Total Flavonoid Content of Different Solvent Extracts of Catunaregam tomentosa (Blume ex DC) Tirveng Leaves
Get PDFCatunaregam tomentosa (Blume ex DC) Tirveng is commonly known as Khet in Thailand and Bisa Ular or Badang in Malaysia. The tree is widely distributed in the north-east region of Thailand while in Malaysia the tree usually grows in the open waterfront area at Terengganu. This plant belongs to the Rubiaceae family, and the genus catunaregam has interesting pharmacological activities such as anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, antidysenteric, antifertility and immunomodulatory. In this study, the leaves were extracted using dichloromethane, ethyl acetate and ethanol. Total phenolic was determined by Folin-Ciocalteau method while total flavonoid was determined by the aluminium chloride calorimetric method. Meanwhile, its antioxidant activity was evaluated by the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. The ethanolic extract was found to have the highest percentages of phenolic and flavonoid content. Interestingly, ethanolic extract also demonstrated strong DPPH scavenging activity with IC50 at 20.07 ± 0.51µg/mL
Customers’ Awareness and Attitude in Purchasing Herbal Products in Kuala Terengganu
Get PDFThe growth of the herbal industry in Malaysia has sparked the economy and it is identified as one of the new incomes to the country. This industry is expected to bring more job opportunities to the citizen in Malaysia. Demand for herbal products also has been increasing for the past few years. This study aims to contribute the general understanding of customer awareness and attitude in purchasing herbal products and show the relationship between demographic profile and customer awareness and attitude in purchasing herbal products. This study was conducted in Kuala Terengganu and the online Google form was used as study instrument for data collection. There were around 150 respondents that answered the questionnaire. The questionnaire was divided into 2 sections. The first section which is section A, discusses the socio-demographic profile of the respondents. The second part which is section B were in Likert-scale design to obtain the customers’ awareness and attitude in purchasing herbal products. Data that were collected in this study were analysed using a statistical tool which is Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS). The Descriptive analysis was used to provide simple summaries of the respondents while the Cross-tab with Chi-Square analysis was chosen to be used to test the statistical independence of the variables. From this study, the variable Age is the only demographic factor that shows a significant relationship towards the customers’ awareness and attitude in purchasing herbal products. Other demographic factors such as Gender, Education, Occupation, and Income shows independent and no relationship towards the customers’ awareness and attitude in purchasing herbal products. This study could be beneficial to researchers and marketers in understanding customer buying behaviour