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Maize, a globally significant cereal, is increasingly cultivated under challenging environmental conditions, necessitating innovations in sustainable agriculture. This study evaluates the synergistic effects of a novel technique combining a Bacillus velezensis A6 strain with a plant extract from the Lamiales order on maize growth and stress resilience. Employing a pilot field trial, this study was conducted on the "La Añoreta" experimental farm of the ECONATUR group, where various biostimulant treatments, including bacterial and plant extract applications, were tested against a control group. The treatments were applied during key vegetative growth stages (V10-Tenth-Leaf, VT-Tassel, R1-Silking) and monitored for effects on plant height, biomass, and fumonisin content. The results suggest that the combined treatment of Bacillus velezensis A6 and the plant extract increases maize height (32.87%) and yield (62.93%) and also reduces fumonisin concentrations, improving its resistance to stress, compared to the control and other treatments. This study highlights the potential of microbial and botanical biostimulants and its novel combination for improving crop productivity and sustainability, suggesting that such synergistic combinations could play a crucial role in enhancing agricultural resilience to environmental stresses.

Introduction: Hydatidosis is an uncommon zoonotic infection in the Philippines with only a few reported cases. It frequently presents as benign liver cysts with variable symptoms often related to mass effect., Case Presentation: We present a 49-year-old male with a significant travel history from East and Central Asia, surgically treated twice as a benign liver cyst and now presenting with recurrent multiple intraabdominal cysts. He subsequently underwent surgical excision of multiple hydatid cysts with prolonged albendazole treatment. The patient presently remains disease-free as of most recent follow-up., Discussion: The disease is caused by the tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus and transmission happens when humans acting as intermediate host ingest food contaminated with the parasite eggs, resulting to the liver being the most common location. Frequently, it manifests and is treated as incidental hepatic cysts for the disease is characterized to have a long asymptomatic period. Symptoms are variable and may range from having abdominal pain, increasing abdominal girth, vomiting, fever or myalgia. Ultrasound or CT scan reveals single or multiple cysts however, biopsy of the cyst wall with demonstration of the larval form (protoscoleces) is diagnostic., Conclusion: This case highlights the value of history-taking and having a high-index of suspicion particularly for rare cases., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)