The instructor at the College of Pharmacy at University of Basrah, Dr. Labid Abdullah Najm, participated in authoring three chapters of a practical encyclopedia in plant diseases, which contains most of the techniques of work in plant diseases. The encyclopedia was designed to serve the segment of researchers and graduate students and is considered as a reference in the practical methods of scientific research, in which most of the research methods needed by the researcher were collected in one book
The three chapters of Dr. Lapid included the molecular diagnosis of plant pathogens, which is an unprecedented molecular diagnostic key that leads the researcher step by step to diagnose the pathogen, whether it is a fungus, bacteria, nematodes, or any kind of pathogens
As for the second chapter, it talks about the biochemical and anatomical response factors of plants to plant pathogens and explains the methods of studying the biochemical relationship between the plant and the parasite
In the third chapter, he dealt with the applications of information technologies in plant diseases, and this chapter is considered as an unprecedented introduction in the Arab library to the most important modern technologies applied in the field of plant diseases such as radio identification and mechanisms for tracking plants and their status around the world through the topic of the Internet of things or smart management of plant diseases through smart networks, which include informing the plant of its condition through smart sensors and operating self-control mechanisms and for the site of infection only, away from wasting pesticides and polluting the environment
The chapter also touched on explaining remote sensing systems via satellite, conducting surveys for infection and vast areas via satellite, and how to manage the resistance process through complex systems that ensure early detection and effective resistance within carefully studied timings
