Brown root rot disease is a major constraint on cashew plantation in Pekat District, West Nusa Tenggara. Its causal agent has not been characterized. This paper describes efforts to study the pathogen, distribution and loss. Field study was conducted in Pekat District in 2003. Laboratory  experiments to isolate and test the causal agent were conducted in the Indonesian Spices and Medicinal Crops Research Institute, Bogor.  Research results showed that the disease was found widespread in several villages in Pekat District, such as Pekat, Beringin Jaya, Sorinomo, and Nangamiro. Total number of died cashew trees was 1,075 equals to 5,106 kg kernel yield lost, worth Rp20.5 million. Infected trees showed leaf yellowing and defoliation leading to die. The lateral and taproots near collar were encrusted with gravel, earth, and brown mycelia sleeves. The fungus produced arthrospores and brown pigmentation on agar medium containing 0.05% gallic acid. An isolate of the fungus induced typical disease symptoms following inoculation on 5 month-old cashew seedlings. These results indicated that the causal agent of mass decline of cashew in Pekat District is Phellinus noxius. In field, the fungus also infects a barrier tree (Lannea coromandelica [Houtt.] Merr.) (Anacardiaceae), locally known as kedondong pagar or kayu bantenan.

Propionibacterium acnes plays an important role in inducing skin inflammatory mediators and comedogenic acne. This study aimed to evaluate the antimicrobial effect of Strychnos ligustrina Blume leaf extract against P. acnes. This study was an in-vitro experiment with a completely randomized design (CRD) testing five concentrations of ethanolic extract of S. ligustrina leaves. The control treatment was the antibiotic Kindamicin. The anti-bacterial evaluation of the extract was carried out on Mueller-Hinton agar media by using the diffusion method. The inhibition zone was assessed according to NCCLS (National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards). Analysis and interpretation of the results used 95% ANOVA (α: 0.05). The results of the study showed that S. ligustrina leaf extract inhibited the bacterial growth of P. acnes. The minimum concentration of the extract that inhibited the growth of P. acne was 25% with a diameter inhibition zone of 4.13 ± 0.13 mm, while the highest concentration of the undiluted extract was 7.88 ± 0.67 mm. Compared to the standard antibiotic Kindamycin (positive control), the ethanolic leaf extract of S. ligustrina was less effective having an inhibition zone of 24.81 ± 0.54 mm. The study suggests that S. ligustrina leaf extract has antimicrobial effects on P. acnes and may be further studied as an herbal remedy for acne.