The Department of biology is holding a seminar for a master’s student on a comparative study of eucalyptus leaf extracts on the biology of the cockroach Icon and chemical pesticides.

Master’s Thesis Seminar Discussion

As part of the series of scientific activities organized by the Department of Life Sciences, a seminar was held for graduate student (Rasul Abdul Nabi Wali), supervised by (Prof. Dr. Ashwaq Kazim Obaid) entitled (A Comparative Study of Eucalyptus 15 Leaf Extracts on the Biology of the Cockroach Icon and Chemical Pesticides).
The aim of this seminar was to compare the effects of eucalyptus globulus leaf extracts (including cold aqueous extracts, boiled aqueous extracts, and phenolic alcohol extracts) with the commercial chemical pesticide Icon 15 WP, which contains the active ingredient lambda-cyhalothrin, on the biological performance of the American cockroach Periplaneta americana. The study also included collecting eucalyptus samples from Karbala Governorate. These samples were processed and the active compounds extracted using traditional methods (soaking, boiling, and alcoholic extraction using Soxhlet). Different concentrations (2.5, 5, 10, and 20 mg/ml) were tested against nymphal and adult stages of cockroaches, and mortality rates were recorded 24 hours after treatment.
The results showed that the cold aqueous extract was superior to the control in its effect on nymphs, with mortality rates for the first nymphal stage reaching 90% at a concentration of 20 mg/ml. The alcoholic (phenolic) extract also demonstrated the highest effectiveness, with mortality rates reaching 90% for all nymphal and adult stages at the same concentration.