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The north western Atlas Mountains (Béchar region) act as refugia for relict populations of many species which highlights their interest as priority areas for conservation. Further work since the beginning of the last century has been difficult because of restricted access in a military area with long-standing border conflicts. This paper aims to analyse the temporal dynamics of the vegetation communities, to assess the floristic diversity of one of those isolated djebels, Djebel Antar, and to contribute to the knowledge of the conservation status of the species found. Surveys from 1925,1951 (published data) and 2017 (fieldwork) were interpreted and investigations were carried out on honey harvesting, production, and marketing in the Benzireg area to better understand and contribute to the development of beekeeping. A high proportion of endemic and very rare species was found. A tendency towards the homogenisation of the flora was detected with a decrease in plant diversity. Beekeeping is being tested as a means of enhancing biodiversity and contributing to the fight against vegetation degradation by reducing pastoral pressure. Djebel Antar retains its function as a refuge for biodiversity and may play an important role in conservation measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sheep are considered as an important reservoir of human Toxoplasma gondii infections, although more recent data on the prevalence of T. gondii in sheep in Algeria are lacking. This study aimed to investigate the seroprevalence of T. gondii in sheep to obtain a better insight into the importance of sheep as reservoirs of human infection. A commercial ELISA kit, which detects antibodies against T. gondii, was utilized to test 269 sera collected from yearling sheep in the municipal slaughterhouse of Sidi-Bel-Abbes city between October 2020 and February 2021. Simultaneously, we assessed the cut-off as recommended by the manufacturer (S/P>50%) and the bootstrap statistical model to estimate the optimal cut-off value (OD = 0.12). The overall seroprevalence was estimated at 34.2% (92/269) using the ELISA kit cut-off and 50.5% (136/269) using the bootstrapped cut-off, being significantly higher compared to sheep from other regions in Algeria. In conclusion, the seroprevalence of T. gondii in sheep was elevated, constituting, therefore, a major public health concern, as sheep meat could be a significant source of T. gondii infection for human consumers. Further studies are required to estimate the impact of abortion among livestock animals caused by T. gondii infection such as sheep, where it could lead to considerable economic losses.

The present study models potential regions for Argan tree plantations in Algeria using the MaxEnt approach, taking into account the sites of successful plantations at national level. There has been exhaustive sampling of 45 sites of plantations, with results collected over three years, 2021, 2022 and 2023. Current climate data were used from the Worldclim database (version 2.0). The results obtained indicate that the north-western regions of the country, the eastern and central coasts, are highly suitable (≥75%), but the desert and steppe regions are weakly suitable (<25%). Therefore, a suitable bioclimatic environment for planting argan trees (with at least 50% probability) depends on a minimum temperature of 2.5 to 6.5°C and annual precipitation of 160 to 1,400 mm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current decade, growing interest has been in using herbs and spices as antioxidants and antiinflammatory agents. This study aims to investigate the chemical composition and evaluation of the antioxidant effect of Cinnamomum cassia extract. First, the chemical composition of C. cassia methanolic extract was determined using the HPLC-MS method. Then, the antioxidant potential was evaluated using the DPPH scavenging and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) methods. For the anti-inflammatory potential, three methods were performed: Membrane stabilization assay and inhibition of protein denaturation. five compounds were identified in the methanolic extract: Quercetin-O-hexoside, Quercetin-O-pentoside, Kaempferol-O-coumaroyl, Diosmin and Cinnamic acid. The methanolic extract exhibited the highest scavenging activity recording activity of 93.08 ± 0.05% at 1000 μg/mL concentrations compared to the aqueous extract (77.03 ± 0.07%). The methanolic extract also presented the highest value of TAC (208.85 mg AAE/g) compared to the aqueous extract (199.56 ± 0.47 mg AAE/g). Methanolic extract presented the highest percentage for HRBC protection (87.27 ± 0.09%) at concentrations of 1000 μg/mL. For the protein denaturation method, the aqueous extract showed an inhibition percentage of 32.86 ± 4.66% against methanolic extract (24.56 ± 4.11%). Cinnamomum cassia manifested an important free radical scavenging activity and anti-inflammatory potential. Therefore, it can be considered an alternative treatment against oxidative stress and biomolecules damages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compares the various knowledge of the use of Ziziphus lotus L. in a semi-arid zone in the west of Algeria (Relizane province). The ethnobotanical survey used semi-structured interviews carried out on 300 people in four different localities. The final matrix was processed using the appropriate statistical methods for the different types of variables (quantitative and qualitative). The hierarchical ascendant classification reveals a high diversity of the use of Ziziphus by the local population (therapeutic and cosmetic). The Results indicate that the use of the plant is almost therapeutic (75%) whereas the most used parts are leaves (70,33 %) and fruits (19,66 %). The plant is much more used in cases of pain and fever with a percentage of 41,33 %. It is also used for gastrological and respiratory diseases. The analysis of variance revealed significant differences for all the analyzed parameters. This is explained by the fact that the plant is used in different ways for different diseases with different modes. It was concluded that the inventory interview was the most effective method to better inform the local population's know-how, as it allowed for the identification, It is recommended to intensify the ethnobotanical investigations to trace the phytotherapeutic path of the species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was conducted to evaluate the impact of weeding (chemical, mechanical and control) on the floristic composition of citrus orchards in the region of Tlemcen (Northwestern Algeria). A comparative approach between two methods of weeding (mechanical vs. chemical) compared to a control (without weeding) was carried out at 3 stations of 100 m2 inside the citrus orchard studied. The floristic surveys were performed in the stations at different times (before and after each weeding). In the floristic inventory, 168 surveys were carried out and a total of 88 species were identified belonging to 71 genera and 30 botanical families. This adventitious flora was dominated by the Mediterranean elements (64%), the therophytes (51%) and dicotyledons (64%). Statistical elaboration of floristic data by means of multifactorial ANOVA revealed the existence of a significant spatial-temporal difference in the mean species richness between the stations (control vs. chemical and mechanical). In addition, the species richness before weeding tended to be higher than that after it. Weeding methods practised by crop growers need to be reconsidered. The benefits that weeds can provide should be considered as well as the damage caused by the different weeding techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]