Exploring the chemical characterization and insecticidal activities of Curcuma angustifolia roxb. leaf essential oils against three major stored product insects.

Botanical pesticides are safe and widely used in pest management. Curcuma angustifolia belongs to the family Zingiberaceae and is a rhizomatous medicinal herb. Following rhizome harvesting, leaves are discarded as waste. However, they can be effectively utilized by extracting essential oils, which are potential biopesticides. The aim of the study is to evaluate the efficacy of the leaf essential oil of Curcuma angustifolia as a potential biopesticide against three stored grain pests, Lasioderma serricorne, Tribolium castaneum, and Callasobruchus chinensis, by their contact, fumigant, and repellent activities. The leaves yield 0.39 ± 0.02 % of oil by hydrodistillation. GC-MS/MS characterization identified curzerenone (18.37 %), geranyl-p-cymene (17.32 %), α-elemenone (13.59 %), eucalyptol (7.58 %) as the main constituents. When exposed to different concentrations of C. angustifolia oil, the test insect displayed noticeably high repellency rates. It also showed better contact toxicity at 24 h, LC50 = 0.22 mg/cm2 for cigarette beetle, LC50 = 0.64 mg/cm2 for red flour beetle, LC50 = 0.07 mg/cm2 for pulse beetle) and fumigation toxicities (LC50 = 10.8 mg/L air at 24 h, for cigarette, LC50 = 29.5 mg/L air for red flour beetle, LC50 = 7.9 mg/L air for pulse beetle). Additionally, a phytotoxicity study was done on paddy seeds, and the results showed no effect on seed germination or seedling growth. It was evident from this study that C. angustifolia oil from waste leaves can be utilized as a botanical pesticide to manage the adults of these storage pests.

Great Occipital Nerve as Donor Nerve for Neurotization With Suprascapular Nerve in Total Braqchial Plexus Injuries: Nerve Transfer Technique.

Complete brachial plexus injuries continue to be a technical and strategic challenge in surgical reconstruction to restore function and sensitivity in a paralyzed and insensitive limb. The use of donor's nerves to perform neurotizations is limited, and, in reconstructions for preganglionic lesions, these techniques have gained prominence, even leaving comorbidities in the donor sites. The purpose of this paper is to present the great suboccipital nerve as a new donor nerve bases on our anatomic research with the transfer technique from the great occipital nerve to the suprascapular nerve.