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Pesticidele sunt produse de natură chimică sau biologică, utilizate în controlul populațiilor de organisme dăunătoare de orgine animală sau vegetală. Au cunoscut o largă utilizare în agricultură, unde au fost folosite din cele mai vechi timpuri. În silvicultura din România au fost promovate mai ales după naționalizarea pădurilor, atât silvicultorii cât și conducerea țării fiind preocupați de obținerea unor producții cât mai ridicate de masă lemnoasă. Cele mai utilizate au fost și rămân în continuare insecticidele. Acestea au fost folosite în mod deodebit în controlul populațiilor de insecte defoliatoare a pădurilor de stejar (Lymantria dispar, Tortrix viridana, specii de geometride). Se disting trei perioade importante în aplicarea insecticidelor, acestea fiind strâns legate de substanța activă ce a stat la baza obținerii, cât și de eficiența economică a utilizării lor. În prima perioadă (1954-1985) au fost utilizate produse organoclorurate, total neselective și persistente, pe bază de DDT și HCH, inițial în doze deosebit de mari (30-40 kg/ha), cu efecte nefavorabile majore asupra mediului, faunei și sănătății umane. S-a impus derularea unor lucrări de cercetare, care să conducă la eliminarea acestor neajunsuri, reușindu-se reducerea considerabilă a normelor de consum ale acestor categorii de insecticide  la doar un 1kg/ha. Utilizarea îndelungată a produselor organoclorurate a condus însă la apariția fenomenului de rezistență încă de la începutul anilor 1960, manifestat de către un număr important de specii. S-a procedat la utilizarea unor altfel de insecticide, de asemenea neselective, precum produsele organofosforice și piretroizii de sinteză (1986-1990). Nici aplicarea acestor categorii de insecticide nu a fost benefică din punct de vedere ecologic, majoritatea studiilor indicând concentrații ridicate ale acestor produse în sol și în lanțurile trofice din ecosistemele forestiere. O etapă nouă (după anul 1990), legat de folosirea insecticidelor în combaterea dăunătorilor forestieri, a constituit-o cea a utilizării pesticidelor selective, chimice și biologice, aplicate în doze extrem de reduse și cu impact minimal asupra entomofaunei utile, mediului și sănătății omului. În prezent ne aflăm într-o perioadă de tranziție, certificarea FSC a pădurilor fiind deosebit de limitativă în folosirea pesticidelor în controlul organismelor dăunătoare.

Viespea neagră a frasinului, Tomostethus nigritus (Fabricius, 1804), este cunoscută în România încă de la începutul secolului trecut, însă fără a fi documentate până în prezent atacuri puternice asupra frasinului. Începând cu anul 2022, primele gradații ale acestei specii au fost observate în estul țării, în județele Vaslui și Iași, în pădurile de foioase cu frasin. Lipsa informațiilor detaliate despre biologia, ecologia și metodele de control al acestei specii evidențiază necesitatea unor cercetări aprofundate. Studiul de față a avut ca obiectiv analiza caracteristicilor biologice și ecologice ale viespii negre a frasinului în arboretele infestate, precum și evaluarea impactului asupra pădurilor afectate. Cercetările au inclus: monitorizarea stadiilor de diapauză din sol; urmărirea zborului adulților cu ajutorul capcanelor adezive colorate; corelarea densității larvare cu nivelul defolierii și identificarea speciilor de parazitoizi care afectează stadiile aflate în sol. Observațiile s-au realizat în șase păduri de foioase cu frasin. Metodologia a inclus colectarea de insecte adulte pentru identificarea speciei, sondaje la sol pentru analiza stadiilor de diapauză, evaluarea defolierii pe ramuri de probă și amplasarea de inele de clei pentru determinarea densității larvare. Rezultatele indică faptul că populațiile de T. nigritus sunt în progradație, ceea ce reprezintă o amenințare majoră pentru sănătatea pădurilor afectate. Defolierile s-au intensificat în perioada de studiu, fiind mai severe la arborii mari, cu coroane bine dezvoltate, situați la lizieră. S-a observat o preferință a adulților pentru capcanele de culoare galbenă, sugerând posibilitatea extinderii utilizării acestora în programele de monitorizare. De asemenea, prezența speciilor parazitoide  ale stadiilor aflate în diapauză în sol indică  potențialul controlului natural în reglarea populațiilor dăunătorului. Având în vedere starea de declin în care se află frasinul la nivel național, lucrarea subliniază necesitatea continuării cercetărilor privind biologia, ecologia și metodele de control ale acestui dăunător, în scopul fundamentării deciziilor privind protecția pădurilor afectate.

An invasive sawfly Aproceros leucopoda Takeuchi, 1939, which originates from East Asia, has colonized elms (Ulmus spp.) in Austria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and the Ukraine, at least since 2003. In Europe, the larvae can completely defoliate native and non-native elm trees and may cause at least partial dieback. Field observations indicate that elms are infested independent of their age and site characteristics. The life cycle of A. leucopoda is described based on material reared in Hokkaido, Japan. Parthenogenetic reproduction, short life cycle of summer generations and the ability to produce four generations per year result in the production of numerous progeny. The evolution of a seasonal dimorphism in head morphology, a simple cocoon that is attached directly to the host plant and a short period spent in the cocoon stage during summer, are putative apomorphies shared by Aproceros Takeuchi, 1939 and Aprosthema Konow, 1899. These traits reduce developmental costs and contribute to the proliferation of A. leucopoda. No specialized parasitoid, that can effectively reduce outbreaks of this species, is known. It is likely that this pest will spread into central and south-western Europe. Further monitoring of A. leucopoda is required to assess future range extensions in Europe, its exacerbating effect on Dutch elm disease and to find a suitable biocontrol agent. Concise keys to imaginal and larval stages are presented that will facilitate the identification of A. leucopoda. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

We show that the population ecology of the 9‐ to 10‐year cyclic, broadleaf‐defoliating winter moth (Operophtera brumata) and other early‐season geometrids cannot be fully understood on a local scale unless population behaviour is known on a European scale. Qualitative and quantitative data on O. brumata outbreaks were obtained from published sources and previously unpublished material provided by authors of this article. Data cover six decades from the 1950s to the first decade of twenty‐first century and most European countries, giving new information fundamental for the understanding of the population ecology of O. brumata. Analyses on epicentral, regional and continental scales show that in each decade, a wave of O. brumata outbreaks travelled across Europe. On average, the waves moved unidirectionally ESE–WNW, that is, toward the Scandes and the Atlantic. When one wave reached the Atlantic coast after 9–10 years, the next one started in East Europe to travel the same c. 3000 km distance. The average wave speed and wavelength was 330 km year⁻¹ and 3135 km, respectively, the high speed being incongruous with sedentary geometrid populations. A mapping of the wave of the 1990s revealed that this wave travelled in a straight E–W direction. It therefore passed the Scandes diagonally first in the north on its way westward. Within the frame of the Scandes, this caused the illusion that the wave moved N–S. In analogy, outbreaks described previously as moving S–N or occurring contemporaneously along the Scandes were probably the result of continental‐scale waves meeting the Scandes obliquely from the south or in parallel. In the steppe zone of eastern‐most and south‐east Europe, outbreaks of the winter moth did not participate in the waves. Here, broadleaved stands are small and widely separated. This makes the zone hostile to short‐distance dispersal between O. brumata subpopulations and prevents synchronization within meta‐populations. We hypothesize that hostile boundary models, involving reciprocal host–herbivore–enemy reactions at the transition between the steppe and the broadleaved forest zones, offer the best explanation to the origin of outbreak waves. These results have theoretical and practical implications and indicate that multidisciplinary, continentally coordinated studies are essential for an understanding of the spatio‐temporal behaviour of cyclic animal populations.

This paper proposes a new perspective on the definition itself that describes the current libraries. We are used to the traditional libraries, with imposing shelves of books. The perception of the library services is changing; people want the integration of the services into the virtual world. The internet is the second world, the second life, we are all part of this new kind of world and the library services are taking part in this virtualization. This research analyses the gamification of the libraries, and how this process is present in these institutions. The aim is to approach the new medium from the perspective of young people, video gaming representing a way of meeting other players, creating communities in a virtual world. Some people tend to reject the term gamer, as people that reject this term believe that gamers are different, disconnected from the real world, there is this stigma of being a gamer. In this paper, we will show that gamers can be an important part of the contemporary culture, that they are important for the libraries. The info-documentary structures are part of this main process of technologization, the new technologies are finding their place in our cultural structures. The libraries are nowadays digital structures at the level of collections and services, adapting to the new habits of young information consumers. This research brings out a new perspective on the mission of the libraries, where we should have modern services, there should be full integration of the systems for the digital medium.

In this paper we present the parasitic Hymenoptera reared from Aproceros leucopoda Takeuchi, 1939 eggs and also we give notes regarding the different parasitoids of this invasive saw fly. Asecodes (Teleopterus) erxias (Walker, 1848) was reared for the first time from the eggs of Aproceros leucopoda. From unidentified eggs on Ulmus minor we also reared Anastatus bifasciatus (Geoffroy, 1785). From pupae of A. leucopodae emerged also few specimens of an ichneumonid wasp.

Abdominal fat necrosis is a dystrophic–necrotic process that is relatively common in dairy cows. It is determined by productive strain (excess fat in the diet), negative energy balance after calving, a lack of physical activity, vitamin E and selenium deficiency, etc. Lipomatous masses are predominantly located in the omentum and mesentery in cattle, potentially causing intestinal obstruction. We report on an outbreak of abdominal fat necrosis that affected 135 of 220 cows and heifers (61.36%); this involved massive fat accumulation in the uterine and salpingian ligaments and severe reproductive disorders (reducing fertility to 20% in cows and 10% in heifers) caused by a hyperenergetic diet (supplementation with saturated fats). A transrectal ultrasound examination of the genital apparatus—both in heifers and in cows in the puerperium—revealed a diffuse pathological hyperechogenicity of the cervical folds, suggesting lipid infiltration, proliferation of the endocervical folds and hyperechogenic lipogranulomas located paracervically or in the uterine ligaments. An ultrasound examination of the ovaries showed the presence of parasalpingial lipogranulomas on the mesovarium, with a uniformly pixelated greasy appearance, that altered the topography of the salpinx, leading to the impossibility of oocyte retrieval. At the histopathological examination, in addition to the necrosis of adipocytes and the subacute–chronic inflammation of the abdominal and retroperitoneal adipose tissue, lipid infiltration of the uterine walls was also observed in the uterine ligaments and lymph nodes. Additionally, lipid infiltration was observed in the wall of the uterine artery. All muscular-type branches of the ovarian artery exhibited subendothelial (subintimal) amyloid deposits, severely reducing their lumen and leading to ischaemia. Amyloidosis was secondary to the systemic inflammatory process triggered by lipid deposition and necrosis. Fertility returned to normal 45–60 days after the exclusion of fat supplements from the diet and their replacement with a vitamin–mineral supplement rich in antioxidants.

The complex motion from a point contact has as consequence the occurrence of a friction torsor within both spinning and rolling friction exist. Additionally, recent researches showed that the two friction moments, spinning and rolling torques, are not proportional to the normal force. Here, the power law dependency is accepted and therefore, besides the coefficients of spinning and rolling friction, the exponents from the relations friction torque-normal force should be first determined. The paper proposes as method for finding the four parameters the use of the inclined plane principle. The acceleration of a revolution body in descending motion on the inclined plane is found for four different values of the tilting angle and a system of four equations is obtained. The detailed procedure of finding the solutions of the system is presented in the present paper.

Growing resistance to antimicrobials, combined with pathogens that form biofilms, presents significant challenges in healthcare. Modifying current antimicrobial agents is an economical approach to developing novel molecules that could exhibit biological activity. Thus, five sulfanilamide Schiff bases were synthesized under microwave irradiation and characterized spectroscopically and in silico. They were evaluated for their antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains. Their cytotoxic potential against two cancer cell lines was also determined. Gram-positive bacteria were susceptible to the action of these compounds. Derivatives 1b and 1d inhibited S. aureus’s growth (MIC from 0.014 mg/mL) and biofilm (IC from 0.029 mg/mL), while compound 1e was active against E. faecalis’s planktonic and sessile forms. Two compounds significantly reduced cell viability at 5 μg/mL after 24 h of exposure (1d—HT-29 colorectal adenocarcinoma cells, 1c—LN229 glioblastoma cells). A docking study revealed the increased binding affinities of these derivatives compared to sulfanilamide. Hence, these Schiff bases exhibited higher activity compared to their parent drug, with halogen groups playing a crucial role in both their antimicrobial and cytotoxic effects.