African Journal of
Biotechnology

  • Abbreviation: Afr. J. Biotechnol.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1684-5315
  • DOI: 10.5897/AJB
  • Start Year: 2002
  • Published Articles: 12496

Table of Content: 10 August 2011; 10(43)

August 2013

Review on herbal remedies used by the 1860 South African Indian settlers

With the current advancement in indigenous knowledge systems in South Africa, traditional remedies are becoming more recognised. The use of these miracle plants has drawn attention to their origins. The 1820 settlers have together with their belongings brought across a wealth of plants which were used at the time when access to medical practitioners were limited or absent. The use of these plants needs to be noted. In...

Author(s): Kuben K. Naidoo and Roger M. Coopoosamy

August 2013

Growth assessments of Nicotianatabaccumcv.Xanthi transformed with Arabidopsis thaliana P5CS under salt stress

Proline plays important role in osmo-adjusment and prevention of osmotic stress in plants. In order to analyze osmotic stress resistance, germination and growth pattern in vitro and in vivo, the Arabidopsis thalianaδ-1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthetase (P5CS) which is the regulatory enzyme of proline biosynthesis, was reverse transcribed, amplified into double stranded cDNA, cloned and...

Author(s): Rastgar Jazii F., Yamchi, A., Hajirezaei, M., Abbasi, A. R. and Karkhane, A. A.

August 2013

Isolation and identification of microsatellite repeat motifs from the Epinephelus fuscoguttatus genome

Epinephelus fuscoguttatus belongs to one of the largest serranidae fish family. Genetic information regarding existing fish populations in the wild is crucial for the conservation, particularly since the species is listed under the IUCD Red List due to intense fishing. Microsatellites of E. fuscoguttatus were isolated using streptavidin-biotin enrichment method. In total, 378 microsatellites were...

Author(s): Mohd Azinuddin Ahmad Mokhtar, Syarul Nataqain Baharum, Normah Mohd Noor, and Vijay Kumar

August 2013

Genetic variability of Indian yaks using random amplified polymorphic DNA markers

Indian yaks are categorized into common yaks, bisonian yaks and bareback yaks.Genetic similarities and divergence among them was analyzed by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) technique using ten decamer oligonuclotide primers. Only five primers (ILO 526, OPAV 15, ILO 1127, ILO 1065 and ILO 876) out of the ten primers tried produced consistant polymorphic fingerprints. Of the 76 fingerprints produced, 49 were...

Author(s): K. P. Ramesha, K. V. Prasanna Kumar, K. Chandrashekar, Sandeep Das, B.C. Saravanan, R. Pourouchottamane and M. Kataktalware

August 2013

Adventitious shoot regeneration from leaf explants of the valuable medicinal herb Plectranthus barbatus Andrews

The objective of this study was to develop an efficient protocol for adventitious shoot regeneration for Plectranthus barbatus Andrews using leaf explants. The explants were cultured on MS (Murashige and Skoog, 1962) medium containing various concentration of kinetin (KN), 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and thidiazuron (TDZ) (0.5 to 3.0 mg/l) or in combination with α-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) for shoot...

Author(s): P. Thangavel, S. John Britto and S. R. Senthilkumar,

August 2013

Polyploidy induction of Tunisian Trigonella foenum-greaum L. populations

Polyploidy plays an important role in plant evolution and constitutes an important mechanism of diversification and creation of genetic variability. Artificial polyploidy can be induced using the colchicine. The aim of this study was to determine theTrigonella foenum-greacum (2n= 16) population which resists better to colchicine treatment and which has the highest rate of polyploid formation among 38...

Author(s): Nidhal Marzougui, Anissa Boubaya, Ines Thabti, Walid Elfalleh, Ferdaous Guasmi and Ali Ferchichi

August 2013

Identification of leaf rust resistant gene Lr10 in Pakistani wheat germplasm

Leaf (brown) rust is the major disease of wheat in Pakistan and other countries. The disease is more effectively controlled when several rust resistance genes are pyramided into a single line. Molecular survey was conducted to screen 25 Pakistan wheat germplasm for the presence of leaf rust resistance gene Lr10 using specific STS primer. The survey revealed that out of the 25 germplasm/lines grown in Hazara...

Author(s): Wajid Hussain, Inamullah, Habib Ahmad, Muhammad Sajjad Iqbal, Fida Muhammad Abbassi, Rabnawaz, Wesal Ahmad, Liaqat  and Shah Hussain

August 2011

Environmentally safe in vitro regeneration protocol for Curcuma, Kaempferia and Zingiber

This study is a pioneer report on the development of an environmentally safe in vitroregeneration protocol for Curcuma, Kaempferia and Zingiber. The germplasm of the species was collected from Myanmar, a Southeast Asian country, rich in unexplored Zingiberaceae genetic resources. Rhizome buds were directly regenerated on the Murashige and Skoog medium containing a growth regulator,...

Author(s): Dawood Ahmad, Noladhi Wicaksana, Takayoshi Shimazaki, Akira Kikuchi, Shakeel Ahmad Jatoi and Kazuo N. Watanabe

August 2011

Effect of arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculation on nutrient uptake, growth and productivity of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) varieties

The objective of the present study is to find out the effect of Arbuscular mycorrhiza(AM) fungal inoculation on growth, productivity and nutrient uptake in two cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) varieties. The AM inoculated plants out performed than non-inoculated plants (control) in terms of growth, productivity parameters and nutrient uptake. AM fungal inoculation had a significant effect on productivity of cowpea...

Author(s): Tabassum Yaseen, Tanvir Burni and Farrukh Hussain

August 2011

In vitro regeneration of Pakistani peanut (Arachis hypogea L.) varieties using de-embryonated coteledonary explants

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) belongs to the family leguminosae and is one of the world’s largest oilseed crops. This study is the first report on peanut regeneration from Pakistan using four commercially released peanut varieties, that is, Golden, BARI-2000, BARD-479 and BARD-92. Longitudinally, halved cotyledons with removed embryos were employed as explants. Among various tested combinations of BAP and NAA,...

Author(s): Farhat Nazir, Mahmood-ul-Hassan, Zahid Akram, Muhammad Matloob Javed, Shoukat Ali, Ghulam Muhammad Ali and Yusuf Zafar

August 2011

Evaluation of in vitro antifungal activity of potassium bicarbonate on Rhizoctonia solani AG 4 HG-I, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and Trichoderma sp.

The effect of increased concentrations of potassium bicarbonate (KHCO3) as a possible alternative to synthetic fungicides for controlling Rhizoctonia solani AG 4 HG-I and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum was evaluated in vitro, in this study. In addition, the effect of potassium bicarbonate on Trichoderma sp., a natural antagonist on R. solani AG 4...

Author(s): Ismail Erper, Muharrem Turkkan, Gürsel H. Karaca and Gülay Kılıc

August 2011

Proliferation and rooting of wild cherry: The influence of cytokinin and auxin types and their concentration

Determination of the most optimal type and concentration of plant growth regulators as medium constituents is one of the most important aspects of successful micro propagation, among other in vitro factors. With the aim of optimization of in vitromultiplication of wild cherry, the effect of the following cytokinins was studied: 6-benzyladenine (BAP), 2-isopentenyl adenine (2iP) and kinetin (Kin)...

Author(s): Akila Mansseri-Lamrioui, Ali Louerguioui, Jaqueline Bonaly, Saliha Yakoub-Bougdal, Nacer Allili and Salima Gana-Kebbouche

August 2011

Indigenous plant based coagulants/disinfectants and sand filter media for surface water treatment in Bamenda, Cameroon

The antioxidant potency of acetone, chloroform and methanol extracts of Argemone mexicana was investigated by employing in vitro systems like nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) and 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assay whereas  antimutagenic activity was determined by Maron and Ames assay usingSalmonella typhimurium TA100 tester strain against sodium azide. In this...

Author(s): K. A. Yongabi, D. M. Lewis and P. L. Harris

August 2011

Oxidant and solvent stable alkaline protease from Aspergillus flavus and its characterization

The increase in agricultural practices has necessitated the judicious use ofagricultural wastes into value added products. In this study, an extracellular, organic solvent and oxidant stable, serine protease was produced by Aspergillus flavusMTCC 9952 under solid state fermentation. Maximum protease yield was obtained when the strain was grown under wheat bran and corn cob mixture (1:1) incubated for 48 h at pH 9.0...

Author(s): Santosh Kumar Yadav, Deepali Bisht, Shikha and Nandan Singh Darmwal

August 2011

Studies of food thickeners in Nigeria for contamination by aflatoxigenic forms of Aspergillus and their detection by PCR

This paper reports the contamination of ready-to-use food thickeners, collected from the South-East geo-political zone in Nigeria, by aflatoxigenic form ofAspergillus species. A total of 150 samples from different open markets were observed for fungal contamination by using serial dilution-spread plate method. Although, Aspergillus, Fusarium and Penicillium were the most frequently isolated...

Author(s): G. I. Okwu, P. N. Achar, M. J. Ikenebomeh and M. Y. Sreenivasa

August 2011

Effect of parity on the proximate composition and fatty acid profile of milk from Nguni cattle grazing on natural pastures

The objective of the study is to establish the effect of parity on milk composition and fatty acid profiles of Nguni cattle milk. Forty-four Nguni cows with parities ranging from 1 to 13 were included in this study. The cows were grouped to three parity groups: parity group 1 (parity 1 to 5), parity group 2 (parity 6 to 9) and parity group 3 (parity 10 to 13). Samples of the milk were collected in a single day and the...

Author(s): Zikhona T. Rani, Michael Chimonyo, Arno Hugo, Upenyu Marume and Voster Muchenje

August 2011

Free radical-scavenging and antimutagenic potential of acetone, chloroform and methanol extracts of fruits of Argemone mexicana

The antioxidant potency of acetone, chloroform and methanol extracts of Argemone mexicana was investigated by employing in vitro systems like nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) and 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assay whereas  antimutagenic activity was determined by Maron and Ames assay usingSalmonella typhimurium TA100 tester strain against sodium azide. In this...

Author(s): Joginder Singh Duhan, Manju Bhardwaj and Surekha

August 2011

Volatile components of fruits of Ligustrum lucidum Ait. stimulate proliferation and differentiation of rat calvarial osteoblasts

The fruits of Ligustrum lucidum Ait., (FLL), which contain rich volatile components,are commonly used as tonic for kidney and liver in the traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions. This study aimed to investigate the effects of volatile components ofFLL on the proliferation and differentiation of rat calvarial osteoblasts by the MTT method and measuring the...

Author(s): Yan-Bin Wu, Xiong-Hao Lin, Jian-Guo Wu, Jun Yi, Yan-Zhi Zheng and Jin-Zhong Wu

August 2011

cDNA cloning and primary structure analysis of invariant chain in Chinese Pengze crucian carp

Invariant chain (Ii) plays an important role in MHC class II molecules assembly and exogenous peptide presentation in vertebrates. Although mammalian Ii has been extensively studied, less attention is paid to its fish counterpart. In this study, in order to understand the structure and biological function of...

Author(s): Xuelan Liu, Weiyi Yu, Jinnian Li, Fangfang Chen, Shengjie Liu, Chao Wu and Jiaping Xu

August 2011

Anti-abortive effect of quercetin and bornyl acetate on macrophages and IL-10 in uterus of mice

The objective of this work was to investigate the significance of macrophages and IL-10 in uterus in early embryo loss (or resorption), and to elucidate the anti-abortive effect and the immunological modulation of maternal-fetal interface with quercetin and bornyl Acetate. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (0.10 μg/mouse) was injected via the tail vein in order to induce abortion in 7-day-gestation mice which received...

Author(s): Yan-tao Zhao, Xiao-dan Wang, Wan-yu Shi and Xiu-hui Zhong