The quaternization reactions of nicotinamide, with different electrophiles: methyl iodide and substituted 2-bromoacetophenones (4-Cl, 4-Br, 4-H, 4-CH3, 4-F, 4-OCH3, 4-Ph, 2-OCH3, 4-NO2) are reported. The preparations were carried out by conventional synthesis and under microwave irradiation in absolute ethanol and acetone. The synthesis performed by microwave dielectric heating significantly improved yield, up to 8 times, and shortened down the reaction time from ca. one day in conventional, to 10–20 min. The structures of the synthesized compounds were confirmed by IR, 1H- and 13C-NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry and elemental analysis. The compounds have been screened for antifungal activities against Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium culmorum, Macrophomina phaseolina and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum at concentrations of 10 µg/mL and 100 µg/mL. Six compounds showed the strong inhibition of mycelium growth at a concentration of 10 µg/mL. All tested compounds revealed the great inhibitory activities against S. sclerotiorum at a concentration of 100 µg/mL.

Ten novel isonicotinamide derivatives were prepared by quaternization reactions of isonicotinamide with methyl iodide and nine differently substituted 2-bromoacetophenones under rapid microwave irradiation of 10 minutes. The microwave preparations were significantly faster and with yields higher up to 8 times, than the preparations by conventional method. The structures of synthesized molecules were determined by one-and two-dimensional NMR and IR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry and elemental analysis. Antifungal activity of all compounds was tested in two different concentrations (10 and 100 µg mL -1 ) against Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium culmorum, Macrophomina phaseolina and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum in vitro. From the antifungal assay it can be seen that the most prepared compounds have moderate to weak activity against M. phaseolina and F. culmorum. A very high inhibitory rate was observed against S. sclerotiorum, 62-87.5 % in concentration of 10 µg mL -1 and 83.7-93.2 % in concentration of 100 µg mL -1 .

The aim of this study was to determine the influence of liquid chicken manure preparation on nematode biodiversity as an indicator of soil health and agrochemical soil properties. The field experiment was conducted during two years into two treatments and three samplings per year. One plot was treated with liquid chicken manure preparation (LCMP) while the other plot, without manure application, was control (C). In the first year of this study, the treatments were conducted in the wheat plantation, while in the following year the culture was rapeseed. Results indicate that genus biodiversity was significantly higher in treatments with LCMP (18% in wheat, 28% in rapeseed). Indices of disturbance (MI, MI [2-5], PPI/MI) show statistically significant differences during the two years indicating ecosystem stability, reduction of plant parasitic nematodes and the multitude of beneficial nematodes in treatment with LCMP compared to C. The analysed agrochemical properties showed the increasement of organic matter content (60%) and P and K content in treatment with LCMP compared to C. It can be concluded that the use of LCMP significantly increases the nematode diversity and the stability of the soil ecosystem as well as a nutrient content in the soil which results in a reduced economic investment, primarily in the use of mineral fertilizers.

The aim of this study was to investigate the nematocidal effect of the preparations based on fluopyram (pesticide) and liquid chicken manure (natural amendment) on the population density of the root-knot nematodes, Meloidogyne spp. in carrot crops. The field experiment was set up in four treatments: control (C), fluopyram (FLU), fluopyram and liquid chicken manure (FLU+LCM) and liquid chicken manure (LCM) by a random block design in four replicates. Population density of Meloidogyne spp. juveniles varied between the treatments, and the number of Meloidogyne spp. was significantly decreased in all treatments with fluopyram (FLU and FLU+LCM). All amended treatments (FLU, FLU+LCM, LCM) decreased galling of the roots and had a positive effect on carrot yield. The population of Meloidogyne spp. juveniles increased with the plant growth, regardless of the treatments applied. Fluopyram negatively affected the biodiversity indicating greater disturbance for the nematode community structure in the soil. It can be concluded that fluopyram and liquid chicken manure have nematicidal potential, while liquid chicken manure maintained or enhanced nematode biodiversity.

Eleven pyridine derivatives were prepared by quaternization reactions by different synthetic routes: conventional, microwave, and ultrasound. Since acetone and other solvents used in conventional quaternization reactions are harmful, attempts were made to replace the organic solvents with more environmentally friendly alternative -deep eutectic solvents. The reactions were carried out using pyridine-3aldoxime, pyridine-4-aldoxime, isonicotinamide and nicotinamide as nucleophiles and three different dihaloalkanes as electrophiles: diiodopropane, dibromopropane and diiodohexane. The results showed that the microwave method using acetone as solvent was significantly faster and gave higher yields than the conventional method. In contrast, synthesis in the eutectic solvents choline chloride : urea gave significantly lower yields. The structures of the synthesized compounds were confirmed by 1 H and 13 C NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry and elemental analysis. The antifungal activity of all compounds was tested at two different concentrations (10 and 100 µg mL -1 ) against Botrytis cinerea, Fusarium culmorum, Macrophomina phaseolina and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum in vitro. All tested compounds showed excellent inhibitory activity against the studied phytopathogenic fungal species at a concentration of 100 µg mL -1 .