The development of environmentally friendly control methods to mitigate the severe damages caused by Phytophthora cinnamomi in the Mediterranean climate-type ecosystems is essential. In this way, crop waste and by-products which represent between 13 and 65% of agriculture production, are a rich source of bioactive compounds with antifungal and biocide activity. The main objective of this work was to determine the biocide activity against P. cinnamomi of three organic extracts. These extracts enriched in bioactive compounds come from residues of asparagus (Asp) and olive crops (Oliv and OH, from fruits and leaves respectively). They were evaluated at two doses (0.15 and 0.10%) on the mycelial growth and sporangial production of P. cinnamomi by in vitro experiments. Mycelial growth and sporangial production were significant reduced from the three plant extracts at the two doses tested, reaching a total inhibition with Asp at both doses. In general, no phytotoxicity symptoms were observed on seed germination and plant development, except for a plant yield reduction in the substrate treated with Oliv and Asp at the highest dose. In experiments performed in artificially infested soil, Asp induced a reduction of chlamydospores viability greater than 75% compared to unamended soil. Additionally, in planta experiments showed a significant reduction in plant mortality in substrate amended with OH. These results suggest that soil application of Asp and OH can limit P. cinnamomi infectivity and survival, setting the first steps to develop a sustainable method to control the root disease based on agricultural waste circular economy.

Pesticides, employed in agriculture to boost harvests and control pests, harm the ecosystem. Surface runoff from their widespread use pollutes water and soil. Pesticides deplete beneficial insect populations, upset ecological equilibrium, and contaminate food chains, posing health concerns through bioaccumulation and biomagnification. Moreover, heavy metals from industry, mining, and inappropriate waste disposal are persistent, harmful environmental pollutants. Lead, mercury, cadmium, and arsenic in soils and sediments pollute water supplies and endanger aquatic life, wildlife, and humans. Heavy metal exposure can cause neurological issues, reproductive abnormalities, and cancer, making cleanup necessary. Also, industrial activities, wastewater discharge, and agricultural runoff produce phenolic compounds, another harmful environmental contaminant. Bisphenol A, phenol, and chlorophenols poison aquatic species, limit plant photosynthesis, and alter microbial populations. Additionally, phenolic chemicals can stay in the environment for lengthy durations, causing longterm ecological damage and health concerns from tainted drinking water and food. As a result, environmental monitoring is becoming increasingly important for sensitively detecting and quantifying pesticides, phenolic compounds, and heavy metals. Electrochemical sensors and modification materials are prepared for specific pollutant detection, providing selectivity and sensitivity, thus enabling the detection of the target molecule down to the nanomolar or even picomolar range. In this respect, ordered mesoporous carbon (OMC) materials attract attention in electrochemical sensing applications due to their numerous advantages. OMCs are promising for catalysis and sensing applications due to their well-ordered pore structure, high specific surface area, and tunable pore sizes in the mesopore range. The unique properties of these materials could open a new approach to studying the electrochemical determination of other environmental pollutants. This review covers the properties, advantages, synthesis procedures, and characterization processes of OMCs and focuses on the role of OMCs in the electrochemical detection of environmental pollutants. Moreover, this study examines OMC-based research carried out in recent years in depth.

Potato common scab is a soil-borne bacterial disease caused by Streptomyces scabies, which is ubiquitous and difficult to control. In this study, the issue of developing antimicrobial agents derived from plant extracts against S. scabies was addressed. Three bioactive phenolic compounds, named gallic acid, 1-O-galloyl-beta-D-glucose, and corilagin, were isolated and identified from Phyllanthus emblica pomace through bioassay-guided fractionation. The antibacterial effects of these compounds on S. scabies were evaluated with MIC values of 0.63, 0.31, and 1.25 mg/mL, respectively. Furthermore, Structure-activity relationship analyses of 17 gallic acid and its structural analogs revealed that the R6 position of the benzene ring was a key factor to their antibacterial activity against S. scabies, among which pyrogallol had the best antibacterial effect. Scanning electron microscopy showed that when S. scabies was exposed to this gallic acid and its structural analogs, the cell membranes of which was damaged. The results will help promote the development and structural modification of plant-derived bacteriostatic agents.