Mohamed Hafidi

Cadi Ayyad University | UCAM · Laboratory of Microbial Biotechnologies Agrosciences and Environment (BioMAgE) Labelled Research Unit -CNRST N°4 - Biology Department

The behavior and removal of roxithromycin (ROX), oxytetracycline (OTC), chlortetracycline (CTC), and enrofloxacin (ENR) were investigated during the steady state of sludge anaerobic digestion (AD) in semi-continuous mode (37 °C). Sludge was spiked at realistic concentrations (50 μg/L of each antibiotic) and then used to feed the bioreactor for 80 d...

Three different enzymes alkaline phosphatase, Urease and Dehydrogenase were measured during this study to monitor the organic matter dynamics during semi-industrial composting of mixture A with 1/3 sludge+2/3 palm waste and mixture B with ½ sludge+1/2 palm waste. The phosphatase activity was higher for Mix-A (398.7 µg PNP g⁻¹ h⁻¹) than Mix-B (265.3...

ABSTRACT Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease that is transmitted by a variety of routes, including the ingestion of raw or undercooked meat. It infects roughly one-third of the world’s population and is caused by Toxoplasma gondii, an obligate intracellular parasite. The goal of this research is to detect the existence and genotypes of T. gondii i...

In Morocco, olive mill wastewater (OMWW) has become a serious environmental problem. This research pioneers the conversion of olive mill solid waste (OMSW) into high-quality biochar using Response Surface Methodology with three parameters, residence time, temperature, and heating rate. It combines multicriteria optimization with the desirability fu...

Supplementing soybean plants with phosphorus (P) and inoculation with effective rhizobia (Rh) strains enhance grain yield and profits and promotes sustainable agricultural practices in Nigeria. Limited field data exists on the effects of P forms (e.g., less soluble rock-P) on yield improvement with Rh or alone. We conducted a study where we grew so...

Hexavalent chromium removal from the environment remains a crucial worldwide challenge. To address this issue, microbiological approaches are amongst the straightforward strategies that rely mainly on the bacteria's and fungi's survival mechanisms upon exposure to toxic metals, such as reduction, efflux system, uptake, and biosorption. In this work...

In semi-arid context, the development of anthroposol from phosphate industry by-products and sewage sludge could be a new approach for sustainable phosphate mining soils. The objective of this 2 years field study carried out at Benguerir phosphate mine, was to evaluate nutrients and heavy metals dynamics in the soil-plant system of three species pl...

The development of anthroposols has been proposed as a new environmentally friendly approach to ensuring the successful revegetation of phosphate mining sites. The phosphate industry's by-products, including phospho- gypsum (PG), phosphate sludge (PS), and sewage sludge (SS), can be valuable resources in restoring the ecological balance of mined so...

In the original publication, there was a mistake in Figure 1b as published [...]

Background and aim Seed inoculation with effective rhizobia (Rh) strains and phosphorus (P) application are sustainable agricultural practices that enhance soybean grain yield. However, adoption of these practices in northern Ghana is hindered by unpredictable yield responses and poor understanding of the factors that cause yield variation. We comp...

Olive mill wastewater sludge (OMWS) represents a residual pollutant generated by the olive oil industry, often stored in exposed evaporation ponds, leading to contamination of nearby land and water resources. Despite its promising composition, the valorization of OMWS remains underexplored compared to olive mill wastewater (OMW). This study aims to...

Background: Toxoplasmosis is one of the world's most ubiquitous parasitic infections. According to numerous published studies and data, this disease affects approximately one-third of the world's population. In addition, it is caused by the obligatory intracellular parasite, Toxoplasma gondii. Aim: To assess the level of toxoplasmosis awareness and...

Background and Aims Leishmaniasis is a neglected tropical infection caused by Leishmania parasite that affect human and animal. In Morocco, the cutaneous leishmaniasis has spread substantially to the new areas. The surveillance limited to active foci may underestimate the occurrence of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL). This study aims to investigate th...

Background Arbuscular mycorrhizal and Trichoderma fungi alter the synthesis of secondary metabolites of plants and confer tolerance from pathogens attacks. However, there is less supportive evidence from on-field studies confirming the above-mentioned hypothesis, particularly for the humid forest zone of Cameroon where pathogens are important sourc...

Due to population growth, the generation of solid waste in Morocco constantly increases, considerably impacting water, soil, and air. To minimize this impact, proper waste management is necessary. This research examines waste generation development in Rabat, Sale, and Temara cities in 2015, 2018, and 2019. This allows us to propose solutions to env...

Native soils are characterized by an indigenous symbiotic microflora, with several beneficial effects. This work aims to explore the potential beneficial effect of the microflora of Chamaerops humilis L. soil used as a live organic substrate on the growth and flowering of saffron (Crocus sativus L.), with a special focus on the potential role of ar...

To date, the effect of Olive-Mill-Wastewater-Compost (OMWW-Compost) application combined with rhizospheric soil micro-organisms on tomato fruits biochemistry and quality under drought conditions has not been evaluated. The objective of this study is to highlight the effect of arbuscular-mycorrhizal-fungi (pure strain (M) and consortium (M’)), and/o...

Olive mill wastewater sludge (OMWS) is a by-product of the olive extraction process that is attracting substantial attention due to its extremely hazardous effects on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. OMWS is a product of the common disposal method of olive oil mill wastewater (OMWW) that accumulates in evaporation ponds. It is estimated that app...

Background and aim : Soybean seeds inoculation with effective rhizobia (Rh) strains and phosphorus (P) application are agricultural best practices that enhance grain yield. However, in Northern Ghana, where these practices are progressively under adoption, unpredictable yield, and poor understanding of factors of yield variation often limit its pot...

Ben Lekbir et al.: Characterization of honeys produced in the center-west of Morocco (Ait Baâmrane of Sidi Ifini) using melissopalynology-2133-APPLIED ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 21(3):2133-2155. Abstract. Honey is one of the most important products given by nature produced by bees from nectar and honeydew of various plants used by humans du...

The world’s population growth has resulted in an increase in wastewater, waste, and leachate production, which can harm the environment and incur significant costs for society. Therefore, this study aims to estimate the cost of environmental degradation related to wastewater discharges, household waste, and leachate using the methods proposed by th...

Low availability of phosphorus (P) in both acidic and alkaline soils is a major problem for sustainable improvement in wheat crops yield. Optimization of crops productivity can be achieved by increasing the bioavailability of P by phosphate solubilizing Actinomycetota (PSA). However, their effectiveness may vary with changing agro-climatic conditio...

The agronomic efficiency of activated rock phosphate (RP) fertilizers to promote maize growth in the presence or absence of mycorrhizal inoculation was evaluated. Maize plants were treated with two reactive RP grades of medium (RPM) and low (RPL) solubility and their activated forms which were activated with a fraction of diammonium phosphate (DAP)...

This study aimed to assess the agronomic value of solar-dried sludge (SDS) and the transfer of Cr, Ni, Pb, and Cu to wheat (Triticum aestivum) and faba bean (Vicia faba). A greenhouse experiment was performed involving two rates of SDS (15 t/ha and 30 t/ha) from an activated sludge-based wastewater treatment plant. In addition to the single use of...

This study aims to select fungi isolates to reduce olive mill wastewater (OMWW) chemical oxygen demand (COD) and phenolic compounds (PC), as well as their genotoxicity effect. Treatment with mold, isolated by an innovative technique using phenolic compound-selective media, showed a reduction rate of about 4% for COD and 2% for PC during one month o...

Citation: Boutafda, A.; Hafidi, M.; Ouhdouch, Y.; Pinelli, E.; Jemo, M.; El Fels, L. Fungal Strain as Biological Tool to Remove Genotoxicity Effect of Phenolic Compounds from Olive Mill Wastewater. Sustainability 2023, 15, 6510. https://doi.org/10.3390/ su15086510 Academic Editors: Tom Dugmore, Abstract: This study aims to select fungi isolates to...

Rapid and accurate soybean yield prediction at an on-farm scale is important for ensuring sustainable yield increases and contributing to food security maintenance in Nigeria. We used multiple approaches to assess the benefits of rhizobium (Rh) inoculation and phosphorus (P) fertilization on soybean yield increase and profitability from large-scale...

Chromium is a chemical element that enables many industries to function. However, its hexavalent form can cause serious problems. The current methods used to remove Cr are expensive and cause environmental damages, hence the need to set up the most environment friendly methods like the biological methods. The main objectives of this study were isol...

Leishmaniasis is a vector-borne disease that is widely distributed among humans and animals, transmitted by a bite of an infected female phlebotomine sand fly (Diptera: Psychodidae). Vectors have become increasingly resistant to synthetic insecticides. Furthermore, chemical control strategies have a negative impact on human health and the ecosystem...

Drought seriously affects the agro-physiological and biochemical functioning of plants by influencing the interactions between plants and symbiotic microorganisms. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to implement a management approach to improve tomato growth, and drought tolerance using arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) (pure strain...

Yous et al.: Effects of the continentality and the age of prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill.) plantations on soil properties along a coastal and continental transect in a Pre-Saharan Region of South-Central Morocco (Ait Baamrane)-869-APPLIED ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 21(2):869-887. Abstract. Prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica (L...

Actinomycetota in the phylum of bacteria has been explored extensively as a source of antibiotics and secondary metabolites. In addition to acting as plant growth-promoting agents, they also possess the potential to control various plant pathogens; however, there are limited studies that report the facultative predatory ability of Actinomycetota sp...

In the context of intensive and sustainable agriculture, limiting soil degradation and the loss of organic matter has become an obligation to maintain food security. The use of organo-mineral fertilizer (OMF) products is an innovative technology that may solve the different challenges raised. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of various organ...

Reclamation of mining sites and valorization of phosphate byproduct are at the heart of OCP strategies. Thus, the recent studies of pots trial showed that mixture of 65% phosphogypsum (PG), 30% phosphate sludge (PS) and 5% sewage sludge (SS) was the best substrate when compared to other mixtures. Our objective was to evaluate soil physicochemical p...

The main objective of this work was to study the solid and liquid waste discharges of the slaughterhouse of Tillaberi, and their impacts on the Niger River. Initially, the solid waste of the slaughterhouse was identified and quantified, then the liquid discharges of the slaughterhouse and of the river water were characterized physicochemically and...

Leishmaniasis is endemic in Morocco where both cutaneous and visceral forms coexist. To date, anthroponotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) determinants remain poorly investigated in Morocco. However, the disease risk factors identification is vital to determine the specific preventive process. In this aim, a case-control study was conducted in the m...

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of mixtures of the phosphate industry’s by-products and sewage sludge on some heavy metals (Pb, Zn and Cd) in the soil–plant system and the microbial load (bacteria, fungi and actinobacteria) in the soil. The experimental layout was a completely randomized design with ten treatments and four re...

Leishmaniasis is a major health problem caused by a protozoan of the genus Leishmania, most commonly transmitted by infected female sand flies. Intersectoral collaboration is essential for the implementation of integrated vector management control with community participation. The present study aims to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practices...

A discrete number of studies have been conducted on the effects of rhizobia (Rhz) inoculants, phosphorus (P) management, and combined application of Rhz and P fertilizer on the enhancement of grain legume yield across soils of Ghana and elsewhere. However, the extent to which the various inoculated Rhz strains, P application, and combined applicati...

Morocco has a very long mining tradition, and is threatened by ground salinization. The objective of this study was to evaluate the salinity level in the mixture of phosphate mining byproducts and sludge prior to its use to reclaim a mine site or for soil remediation. The experiment was conducted with Italian ryegrass in 4 months under greenhouse....

Olive mill waste sludge (OMWS) is a solid by-product resulting from olive oil extraction, OMWS is usually left decanting in landfills causing environmental pollution and a significant loss of recyclable organic resources. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility of producing an organic amendment through treating OMWS with solar drying (SDy), whi...

One of agriculture’s most important goals is fnding the proper equilibrium between sus-tainability and intensifcation of production. The exponential growth of the world population, climate variability, and soil degradation are essential factors that require the development of novel agricultural practices to achieve food security. In this context, o...

This study was conducted to characterize Marrakech City (Morocco) tanneries effluents. The analysis of 5 different tanneries recipes revealed identical temperatures (25°C), acidic pH ranging from 2.69 to 3.65, electrical conductivity ranging from 40.33 ± 1.21 to 90.43 ± 2.40 mS/cm, high chemical oxygen demand (COD: 939.33 ± 26.46 – 7,739.55 ± 297.6...

This study investigated the fate of antibiotics during composting and its relationship with organic matter fractionation. Sludge was spiked with roxithromycin (ROX), chlortetracycline (CTC), oxytetracycline (OTC), and ciprofloxacin (CIP), at 3 different levels. Accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) and liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass sp...

Microplastics (MP) are ubiquitous contaminants and their presence in sewage sludge has recently received attention as they may enter agro-ecosystems if sludge is used as organic soil amendment. Indeed, plastic particles (<5 mm) can be transported from wastewater and sewage sludge to the soil environment either directly within the plastic matrix or...

Several important improvements in the food security situation in the world were realized during the last decade. However, according to the report on ‘The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World’, jointly published by Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), PAM (United Nations World Food Programme), IFAD (International Fund for Agricultur...

The growing interest in low-input agriculture in recent years has focused the use of microbial biofertilizers to improve plant growth and yield through a better mobilization of indigenous source of key nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium etc. In this context, soil microorganisms especially Actinobacteria might play an important role....

Drought circumstances, characterized by limited water, severely impede plants growth performance, resulting in a cyclical drop in agricultural productivity. Soil microorganisms, such as arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), in addition to compost, can help plants’ productivity, amongst extreme weather e...

Sewage sludge (SS) is a biosolid that includes nutrients, organic matter, and a mixture of micropollutants and pathogens. Regarding its final disposal, several criteria should be met to avoid the dissemination of the included micropollutants in the environment. Hence, an adequate treatment prior to SS disposal is highly required. Solar drying is be...

The aim of the current study was to determine the prevalence and genotypes of T. gondii oocysts in soil and water samples from Gaza, Palestine. For this purpose290 environmental samples, including 200 from soil and 90 from water, were collected. Soil samples were collected from Wadi-Gaza, vicinity of trash dumpsters, residential home yards, open-ai...

Wastewater from olive oil mills (OMW) represents a major environmental problem that requires effective treatment to decrease pollution. In the present work, the treatment of olive oil mill wastewater by coagulation was studied using Moringa Oliefera as a natural coagulant. The processing is optimized using both Design of Experiments (DOE) methodolo...

Olive oil extraction processes generate two types of residues: pomace and olive oil mill wastewater (OMW). Hence, OMW’s direct discharge affects the environment by altering soil quality, pollution of natural water, inhibition of grain germination, and olfactory nuisances. This work aims to contribute to solving the problem generated by olive oil di...

Leishmaniasis is a vector-borne disease that is widely distributed among humans and animals. Furthermore, it can be transmitted by a bite from an infected female phlebotomine sand fly (Diptera: Psychodidae). Chemical control strategies are still regarded as an efficient means of reducing vector-borne disease population density. However vector-borne...

Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms, commonly known as water hyacinth, is one of the world’s most invasive aquatic plants of the Pontederiaceae family occurring in tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Although, E. crassipes causes significant ecological and socioeconomic issues such as a high loss in water resources, it has multipurpose ap...

Background: Leishmaniases are a vector-borne disease, re-emerging in several regions of the world posing a burden on public health. As other vector-borne diseases, climate change is a crucial factor affecting the evolution of leishmaniasis. In Morocco, anthroponotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) is widespread geographically as many foci across the...

It is commonly established that warm blooded animals are extremely vulnerable to the infectious coccidian parasite, Toxoplasma gondii. T. gondii can be transmitted to poultry and livestock through the ingestion of oocyst (fecal-oral), and placenta (congenital toxoplasmosis) in livestock. Cattle, sheep, and rabbits are some of the most consumed live...

Background Phlebotomine sand flies are known as vectors of various pathogens such as Leishmania sp parasite and Toscana virus (TOSV). Leishmaniasis is endemic in Morocco, and TOSV is increasingly reported. Our objective is to analyze the specific composition of the natural population of sand flies in endemic and non endemic area of leishmaniasis in...

Solar drying and liming are commonly used for sludge treatment, but little is known about their efficiency on antibiotics and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) removal. This study aimed to investigate the removal of antibiotics and PAHs during solar drying of Limed Sludge (LS) and Non-Limed Sludge (NLS). Thus, organic matter fractionation and...

Purpose Tailings are generally characterized by severe physicochemical conditions that limit the establishment of vegetation. The present study aimed to select suitable combinations of organo-mineral amendments to improve the physicochemical, biochemical, and biological properties of spolic technosols, highly contaminated with metals. Materials an...