Felix Nchu

• PhD
• Professor (Associate) at Cape Peninsula University of Technology

A greenhouse pot experiment was conducted at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology to determine the optimum nitrogen concentration for cultivating Phaseolus vulgaris cv. Star 2000 in hydroponics. Three levels of nitrogen (64 ppm, 128 ppm, and 256 ppm), in the form of ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3), were added to the nutrient solution to evaluate i...

Invasive plant taxa are generally regulated at the species level, without considering infra- or inter-specific variation. However, cultivars or hybrids can be of a lower level of risk, e.g., due to sterility. We evaluate six general approaches to regulating cultivars and hybrids -1) “Globally guilty by association”; 2) “Nationally guilty by associa...

Several mining-related pollutions, industrial waste, and soil deterioration define South Africa’s environmental landscape. These have led to the consumption of unhealthy food, contaminated agricultural products, and polluted water. The polluted environment has been linked to numerous diseases among the populace, thus making environmental remediatio...

Background: The wild population of Hypoxis hemerocallidea continues to decline rapidly because of overharvesting for medicinal use. This has necessitated the development of sustainable cultivation protocols for the species to promote its conservation. Aim: The impact of varying concentrations of compost tea extract on the growth, nutrient, antioxid...

The submontane forests in the Congo Basin have not been studied sufficiently in terms of floristic diversity, biomass, and geographic distribution. The region's lack of resources and rugged terrain are among the barriers to sampling biodiversity. This study focuses on two understudied submontane forest areas, Bakossi National Park (BNP) and Mt. Nlo...

Synthetic pesticides have been and are still the mainstay of pest management [...]

Background: Aquaponics and hydroponics are potential alternative techniques for sustainable cultivating of medicinal plants. Setting: The experiments were carried out on the Bellville campus of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa. Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate crop yield, secondary metabolite contents,...

Background: Aquaponics and hydroponics are potential alternative techniques for sustainable cultivating of medicinal plants. Setting: The experiments were carried out on the Bellville campus of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa. Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate crop yield, secondary metabolite contents,...

The chemical analysis of vineyards is an essential tool for the early detection of risks, such as excessive fertilization and heavy metal and pesticide contamination in farm management. Soil and plant samples were collected in summer and winter from six different vineyards with varying agricultural practices in the Cape Winelands of the Western Cap...

Heavy metal toxicity is a major threat to the health of both humans and ecosystems. Toxic levels of heavy metals in food crops, such as grapes, can have devastating effects on plant health and the market value of the produce. Two important factors that may influence the prevalence of heavy metals in grapevines are seasonal change and farming practi...

The wild population of Siphonochilus aethiopicus (Zingiberaceae) is being eroded due to several pharmacological benefits and the hidden economy credited to its ethnobotanical uses in Southern Africa. This has called for the adoption of sustainable ways of cultivating the species without compromising its bioactive constituents. In this study, compos...

The presentation was on controlling ticks resistant to acaricides in East and Southern Africa. It was delivered under the theme Current status and management of acaricide resistance in livestock ticks (Part 1) of the virtual FAO expert meeting. We thank AfricoTT (African Consortium for Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases, www.africott.org) members for s...

Studying the mechanisms through which endophytic fungi confer protection to host plants against parasites will contribute toward elucidating the endophytic fungi–plant–pathogen relationship. In this study, we evaluated the effects of endophytic Beauveria bassiana on the antioxidant activity, oxidative stress, and growth of tomatoes infected with th...

The overexploitation of wild plants for medicinal uses and conventional agricultural farming methods, which use high amounts of water, fertilizers, and pesticides, have had devastating environmental consequences. This study aimed to evaluate the prospects of using aquaponics and hydroponics as alternative approaches to soil cultivation by comparing...

The main aim of this research study was to assess the interactive effects of water deficiency and the inoculation of a growth medium with Beauveria bassiana on plant growth, nutrient uptake, secondary metabolite contents, and antioxidant capacity of Allium cepa. A. cepa seedlings were simultaneously exposed to one of three watering regime treatment...

Fungal invasions only recently started to receive more attention in invasion biology. This is largely attributed to little or non-existent information about these inconspicuous organisms. Most invasion hypotheses focus on factors that increase invasion success; few try to explain why invasions fail. Here we hypothesize that a host-pathogen relation...

The rapid growth in the production and application of plastic globally has resulted in plastic pollution with a negative impact on the environment, especially the marine ecosystem. One main disadvantage in the majority of polymers is disposal after a useful life span. Non-degradable polymers create severe difficulty in plastic waste management that...

Abstract— Background: Environmental stress factors such as high or low soil pH, water deficit, high temperature, and shade may induce accumulation of reactive oxygen species in plants, which may lead to oxidative stress when in excess. The effects of varying the environmental variables such as pH and light intensity on secondary metabolite contents...

Endophytic fungus play a crucial role in protecting food crops against phytophagous insects through endophytism. In this greenhouse study, two sets of potted lettuce plants were inoculated with one of four fungal conidial concentrations: 0, 1 × 10 6 , 1 × 10 7 , and 1 × 10 8 conidia mL -1 . The first set of plants was used to test the effect of B....

Background: Allium species are generally reputed for their anti-pest properties; however, few studies have focused on optimising the quality and yield of anti-pest bioactive materials from these medicinal plants. Setting: Laboratory and greenhouse experiments were carried out on the Bellville campus of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology,...

Background: The increasing prevalence of cancer is placing enormous pressure on health infrastructure globally. The ever rising cancer burden is not unique to South Africa but also to many low- and middle-income countries. Natural plant-based products have for long have been used traditionally for treating cancer. Approximately 7% – 48% of cancer d...

Background: Salvia dolomitica Codd. and Salvia namaensis Schinz. are indigenous to southern Africa and are used as medicinal plants in folk medicine. Aim: This study aimed to assess the effects of different levels of water deficit treatments on the growth, concentration of secondary metabolites, and anti-Fusarium oxysporum activity of S. dolomitic...

Tropical forests store 40-50% of terrestrial vegetation carbon. Spatial variations in aboveground live tree biomass carbon (AGC) stocks remain poorly understood, in particular in tropical montane forests. Because of climatic and soil changes with increasing elevation, AGC stocks are lower in tropical montane compared to lowland forests. Here we ass...

Tropical forests store 40–50 per cent of terrestrial vegetation carbon1. However, spatial variations in aboveground live tree biomass carbon (AGC) stocks remain poorly understood, in particular in tropical montane forests2. Owing to climatic and soil changes with increasing elevation3, AGC stocks are lower in tropical montane forests compared with...

Endophytic entomopathogens have growth promoting, nutrient fortifying, and anti-insect properties that could improve the yield and quality of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.). Lactuca sativa is a vegetable crop with high demand; however, it is susceptible to aphid infestations. This study’s objectives were to assess the pathogenicity of Beauveria bassia...

A consortium of microbial community was used for the treatment of acid mine drainage wastewater laden with sulphate and heavy metals. The wastewater was treated in an anaerobic continuously stirred tank bioreactor. The microbial community activity increased the pH from 5.6 to 6.5, and improved sulphate removal up to 85% from an initial sulphate con...

Citation: Ntsobi, N.; Fanadzo, M.; Le Roes-Hill, M.; Nchu, F. Effects of Clonostachys rosea f. catenula Inoculum on the Composting of Cabbage Wastes and the Endophytic Activities of the Composted Material on Tomatoes and Red Spider Mite Infestation. Microorganisms 2021, 9, 1184. https://doi.

Diabetes is one of the most dangerous metabolic disorders, with high rates of mortality worldwide. Since ancient times, medicinal plants have been used in traditional medicine to treat many diseases, including diabetes and its related complications. Plants are widely accepted, affordable, and perceived to have minimal adverse side effects. The Lami...

Tulbaghia violacea L. (Amaryllidaceae) is one of the most harvested bulbous plants of high medicinal value of South Africa in the wild. So far there is no recommended practice of commercial cultivation and knowledge about antimicrobial activity medicinal of this plant species. In this study, we assessed the interactive effects of light intensity an...

The mutualistic relationship between endophytic entomopathogenic fungal and their host is well-documented. In this study, effects of colonization of Allium porrum plants by inocula of the endophytic fungus Beauveria bassiana on plant growth and antifungal activities of extracts are reported. The results showed that B. bassiana did not colonize the...

The mutualistic relationship between endophytic entomopathogenic fungal and their host is well-documented. In this study, effects of colonization of Allium porrum plants by inocula of the endophytic fungus Beauveria bassiana on plant growth and antifungal activities of extracts are reported. The results showed that B. bassiana did not colonize the...

Fusarium oxysporum is a detrimental pathogen to tomatoes. It continues to present major challenges for production of tomato crops worldwide , causing extensive greenhouse and field losses. Heirloom cultivars have an expanding niche market globally. But, they are often quite susceptible to pathogens and pests. The use of resistant varieties is one o...

Microbial inocula are explored as agents for the optimization of composting process. This present research work primarily evaluates the efficacy of inoculating organic vegetable heaps with the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana (Hypocreales) on the biophysicochemical properties of the end-product of composting. Five heaps of fresh vegetable...

Fusarium oxysporum is a detrimental pathogen to tomatoes. It continues to present major challenges for production of tomato crops worldwide , causing extensive greenhouse and field losses. Heirloom cultivars have an expanding niche market globally. But, they are often quite susceptible to pathogens and pests. The use of resistant varieties is one o...

An experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of nitrogen (N) concentration on growth and yield of sweet chili (Capsicum annuum), cultivar California wonder, over four weeks with to determine the best N concentration for growing this chili cultivar hydroponically. We assessed plant growth and aphid (Myzus persicae [Homoptera]) infestation...

Microbial inocula are explored as agents for the optimization of composting process. This present research work primarily evaluates the efficacy of inoculating organic vegetable heaps with the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana (Hypocreales) on the biophysicochemical properties of the end-product of composting. Five heaps of fresh vegetable...

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most dangerous metabolic diseases with a high rate of mortality worldwide. It is well known that insulin resistance and deficiency in insulin production from pancreatic β-cells are the main characteristics of DM. Due to the detrimental side effects of the current treatment, there is a considerable need to develo...

This study investigated the use of brewing wastewater (BW) as the primary carbon source in the Postgate medium for the optimisation of sulphate reduction in acid mine drainage (AMD). The results showed that SRB consortium was able to utilise BW for sulphate reduction. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) – Box-Behnken design optimum conditions found...

A workshop on ticks and tick-borne diseases (T&TBDs) was held on June 25 and 26, 2019, at the Tropical Pesticides Research Institute, Division of Livestock and Human Diseases Vector Control, Arusha, Tanzania. The objectives of the workshop were to discuss the current situation and to formulate actionable strategies to improve surveillance and contr...

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most dangerous metabolic diseases with high rate of mortality worldwide. It is well known that insulin resistance and deficiency in insulin production from pancreatic β-cells are the main characteristic of DM. Due to the detrimental side effects of the current treatment, there is a considerable need to develop n...

Tropical forests ecosystems remain the most diverse on the planet, and store considerable amounts of biomass and carbon. Despite the importance of tropical forests, sizable knowledge gaps exist regarding species diversity, plant biomass and carbon. These knowledge gaps are particularly large in tropical systems, and even more so in the African trop...

Aim: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of Beauveria bassiana (Hypocreales) inoculum on plant growth, volatile constituents, and tick repellency of the extracts of Tulbaghia violacea (Amaryllidaceae). Materials and Methods: Eight-week-old potted seedlings of T. violacea were each inoculated with conidia of B. bassiana (str...

Aim: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of Beauveria bassiana (Hypocreales) inoculum on plant growth, volatile constituents, and tick repellency of the extracts of Tulbaghia violacea (Amaryllidaceae). Materials and Methods: Eight-week-old potted seedlings of T. violacea were each inoculated with conidia of B. bassiana (st...

Optimization of the quality and quantity of medicinal materials during cultivation could improve the value of medicinal plants. Light intensity and water availability affect physiological processes and growth of plants. Tulbaghia violacea L. (Alliaceae) bulbs and leaves are widely used traditionally in southern Africa for treatments of many ailment...

Research highlights: This study is one of few detailed analyses of plant diversity and vegetation patterns in African dry forests. We established permanent plots to characterize plant diversity, above-ground biomass, and vegetation patterns in a tropical dry forest in Kimbi-Fungom National Park, Cameroon. Our results contribute to long-term monito...

Global demand for environmentally friendly grapevine cultivation and pest control has necessitated an improved understanding of the relationship between soil properties and beneficial, naturally occurring antagonists such as entomopathogenic fungi (EPF). Sixty six soil samples were collected from 22 vineyards in the Western Cape, South Africa. The...

Ethnoveterinary practices, including the use of ethnoveterinary plants, are used widely in Africa for treatment of livestock ailments, including ticks and tick-borne diseases. Ethnoveterinary practices are cheap and rely on the use of easily and locally available resources. The objective of this chapter is to collate information on the anti-tick et...

The endophytic plant-fungi symbiotic relationship can be explored to improve cultivation of targeted medicinal plant species. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of the cultivation of chive (Allium schoeno-prasum) in plant growth medium inoculated with the entomopathogenic fungus, Beauveria bassiana (Hypocreales). Twelve replicate...

Endophytic entomopathogenic fungi are being explored for the management of phytophagous insect pests. The effects of Beauveria bassiana (Hypocreales) inoculation of grape plants on the infestation level of P. ficus, tissue nutrient contents, and growth and volatile constituents of potted grape plants were assessed. Grapevine plants were individuall...

Background: The Rumpi Hills Forest Reserve (RHFR) is a montane forest area in south-western Cameroon. Although RHFR is presumed to be rich in biodiversity and vegetation types, little information exists regarding its floristic composition and vegetation patterns. Objectives: Our goal was to characterise vegetation patterns in the reserve and to un...

This study reports a cyanide resistant and/or tolerant fungus, isolated from the rhizosphere of Zea mays contaminated with cyanide-based pesticides. The isolate was characterised using molecular biology. The effect of free cyanide and heavy metals on the growth of isolate in a synthetic gold mine wastewater was examined. The molecular analyses iden...

With the emergence of a new field, biodiversity informatics, an important task has been to evaluate completeness of biodiversity information that is existing and available for various countries and regions. This paper offers a first and very basic assessment of sampling gaps and inventory completeness across the Cameroon Mountains. Because digital...

This article presents data on biochemical properties of a free cyanide resistant and total nitrogen assimilating fungal isolate from the rhizosphere of Zea mays (maize) growing in soil contaminated with a cyanide-based pesticide. DNA extracted from this isolate were PCR amplified using universal primers; TEF1-α and ITS. The raw sequence files are a...

Salvia chamelaeagnea (Lamiaceae) is a slow growing water‐wise evergreen shrub originating from the western province of South Africa. It is an attractive landscape, and S. chamelaeagnea is a medicinal plant. It is important to develop enhanced cultivation protocols that could result in high yield and high‐quality medicinal materials. Chlorophyll is...

Background Production of medicinal plants in controlled environments, particularly hydroponic technology, provides opportunities for high quality biomass accumulation and optimizes production of secondary metabolites. Applying special watering regimes in combination with efficient soil draining is an encouraging new tool for the production of pharm...

The genus Banksia L.f. (Proteaceae) is native to Australia and was introduced to South Africa in the late 1970s. Currently there are fourteen Banksia species grown in the Cape Floristic Region (CFR) for floriculture and horticulture. Of these fourteen species, namely B. ericifolia L.f. and B. integrifolia L.f. are invasive and another two species h...

Dichloromethane (DCM) extract of garlic (Allium sativum Linn.) bulbs was assessed for its repellent effect against the hard tick, Hyalomma rufipes (Acari: Ixodidae) using two tick behavioural bioassays; Type A and Type B repellency bioassays, under laboratory conditions. These bioassays exploit the questing behaviour of H. rufipes, a tick that in n...

Waste management in winery and distillery industries faces numerous disposal challenges as large volumes of both liquid and solid waste by-products are generated yearly during cellar practices. Composting has been suggested as a feasible option to beneficiate solid organic waste. This incentivized the quest for efficient composting protocols to be...

Leaf extracts of Capurnia aurea (Fabaceae) have been reported to attract ticks and can be considered for use in combination with entomopathogenic fungus in an autodissemination approach, whereby ticks that are attracted to baited traps are infected with the inoculum. Bioassays were undertaken to assess the compatibility of aqueous, methanol and ace...

Background: Traditional medicine plays a major role in the primary health care of many people living in rural areas. South Africa is a home to over 30,000 species of higher plants and 3,000 of these species have been found to be used in traditional medicine across the country. South African medicinal plants are decreasing at an alarming rate as a r...

Background: Traditional medicine plays a major role in the primary health care of many people living in rural areas. South Africa is a home to over 30,000 species of higher plants and 3,000 of these species have been found to be used in traditional medicine across the country. South African medicinal plants are decreasing at an alarming rate as a r...

The kinetics of free cyanide biodegradation were investigated under simulated winter (5 °C) and optimum conditions (22 °C and pH of 11) using a Fusarium oxysporum isolate grown on Beta vulgaris waste as a sole carbon source in the presence of heavy metals, i.e. As, Fe, Cu, Pb, and Zn. The highest free cyanide degradation efficiency was 77% and 51%...

Background: Traditional medicine plays a major role in the primary health care of many people living in rural areas. South Africa is a home to over 30,000 species of higher plants and 3,000 of these species have been found to be used in traditional medicine across the country. South African medicinal plants are decreasing at an alarming rate as a r...

Virulent entomopathogenic fungal strains against Cydia pomonella (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) were isolated and identified in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Thirty-nine (39) isolates belonging to 6 species were obtained using the insect bait method. Generally, Metarhizium robertsii (Ascomycota: Hypocreales) was the most frequently encount...

The efficacy of spot-spray application of conidia of Metarhizium anisopliae (Metsch.) Sorok. conidia formulated in an emulsifiable extract of Calpurnia aurea (Ait.) Benth in attracting and infecting Rhipicephalus appendiculatus Neumann, 1901 ticks was evaluated in semi-field experiments. Formulation was applied on a 900-cm² spot and ticks released...

Acanthoscelides obtectus (Say) is a major pest of stored dry beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and other legumes world wide. The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of castor (Ricinus communis L.) and cottonseed (Gossypium hirsutum) oils against A. obtectus on stored dry beans under laboratory conditions. Castor and cottonseed oils at 0,...

Rift Valley fever (RVF) is a viral zoonosis that primarily affects livestock. However, the virus can also infect humans and may even cause human fatalities. Although the vast majority of human infections result from direct or indirect contact with the blood or organs of infected animals, human infections have also resulted from the bites of infecte...

In this study we examined the anti-tick properties of the essential oil of Tagetes minuta L. (Asteraceae: Asterales) against Hyalomma rufipes ticks. We obtained the essential oil of T. minuta by hydro-distillation of a combination of fresh flowers, leaves and soft stems, and analysed these by using gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-lin...

A suitable in vitro tick climbing repellency bioassay was developed to evaluate the repellent effects of the essential oil (n-hexane extracts of distillate) of Lippia javanica (Burm. F.) Spreng (Verbernaceae) on adults of Hyalomma marginatum rufipes Koch, 1844. The GC-MS analysis of the distillate of the essential oil of Lippia javanica revealed th...

The anthelmintic activity of Markhamia obtusifolia Sprague (Bignoniaceae) leaf extracts was evaluated against the ruminant gastrointestinal nematode parasite Trichostrongylus colubriformis (Nematoda: Strongylida) using the in vitro egg hatch test. Also, the cytotoxic activity of aqueous extracts of M. obtusifolia was evaluated in cell line cytotoxi...

Experiments were carried out to investigate the response of two tick species Rhipicephalus pulchellus Gerstaker, 1873 and Rhipicephalus appendiculatus Neumann, 1901 to three different extracts (acetone, aqueous and oil) of the dried leaves of Calpurnia aurea (Aiton) Benth in both an inverted glass tube and a dual choice T-olfactometer. The oil extr...

The process of strain selection is an important step in the development of insect pathogens for biological control. Bioassays were conducted in the laboratory to evaluate the efficacy of different methods of inoculation using Rhipicephalus pulchellus Gerstäcker (Acari: Ixodidae) as a model. Initially, an oil-based formulation of Metarhizium anisopl...

Experiments were carried out to evaluate the efficacy of Metarhizium anisopliae (Metsch.) Sorok. (Ascomycota: Hypocreales)-treated semiochemical-baited traps for control of Amblyomma variegatum Fabriscius (Acari: Ixodidae) under field conditions. Unfed A. variegatum adults (118) were seeded in each 100-m plot and allowed to acclimatise for 3 days....

An increase in clinical cases of Candidiosis globally as well as fungal resistance to drugs prompted the search for novel anti-Candida albicans agents from plant sources. Leaf extracts of Markhamia obtusifolia were screened for activity against C. albicans in vitro. An acetone extract obtained following serial exhaustive extraction contained mainly...

Experiments were conducted to explore the use of a semiochemical bait to enhance exposure of Amblyomma variegatum Fabricius (Acari: Ixodidae) to different formulations of the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae (Metsch.) Sorok. (Ascomycota: Hypocreales). Initially, the relative efficacies of attraction-aggregation-attachment pheromone (A...