One of the basic equipment used in the experiments with microorganisms are laboratory bioreactors. These devices provide automatic maintenance of correct environmental conditions. Monitoring of bioprocess parameters in BIOSTAT^®B bioreactors can be done by printing them or by using specialized SCADA type software. In this work we proposed simultaneous monitoring of the progress of experiments conducted in three bioreactors via the communication interface and specially prepared software, installed on the master computer. In addition to data collecting, visualizing and saving them to a file during a multi-day experiments, software allows for remote access to applications through a web browser, making it easier to control the course of experimentation and collaboration between employees of different departments.

Fungal diseases of crops can cause significant losses in world food production. Currently, the most popular method of protection against them is the use of fungicides. These preparations are characterized by their high efficiency, however, the recent social concern for the safety and quality of food, results in a search for alternative methods of controlling phytopathogenic fungi. One of the alternatives is biological control. The current review provides an overview of the use of microbial control agents, such as: bacteria, yeasts or fungi, showing antagonism towards several phytopathogenic fungi, causing fruits and vegetables decay. Several mechanisms have been presented as responsible for their antagonistic activity, including: competition for nutrients and space, mycoparasitism, secretion of antifungal compounds, like antibiotics and killer toxins, induction of host resistance to phytopathogens, and most recently, the involvement of volatile compounds in biocontrol phenomenon. The paper also provides a brief overview of the required characteristics of an effective BCA product (biological control agent) and of the procedures for registering these products both in USA and EU. Moreover, other positive aspects of the use of BCAs have been discussed, like the higher nutritional value of crops or some antagonists’ ability to decompose mycotoxins.

Plants are ‘forced’ to grow in a specific site and are therefore invariably exposed to the influence of whimsical weather conditions, which interfere with their growth. The most common abiotic stresses include drought, soil salinity, presence of heavy metals, excessively high or low temperature. Improvement in the plants’ resistance to unfavourable environmental conditions may increase harvested yields by as much as 70 to 80%. In many laboratories around the world, basic studies are underway to elucidate the plants’ response mechanisms to stressors. Identification of the modifications induced in plant proteins by stresses can provide a wealth of useful information about the adaptability of plants to adverse conditions. The development of proteomic techniques creates new opportunities for protein identification and for gaining a better understanding of stress tolerance mechanisms. It is also important to elaborate uniform procedures for the plant material preparation and analyses as well as validation of results. Chances are high that the results of research on biomarkers will be used in agricultural practice. The objective of this study has been to present major achievements in the proteomic research on plants connected with the plant tolerance to abiotic stresses.