African Journal of
Biotechnology

  • Abbreviation: Afr. J. Biotechnol.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1684-5315
  • DOI: 10.5897/AJB
  • Start Year: 2002
  • Published Articles: 12497

Table of Content: 15 November 2012; 11(92)

November 2012

Tapping uncultured microorganisms through metagenomics for drug discovery

  Natural products have been an important historical source of therapeutic agents. Microorganisms are major source of bioactive natural products, and several microbial products including antibiotics, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumour, immunosuppressants and others are currently used as therapeutic agents for human and domestic animals. Most of these products were obtained from cultured environmental...

Author(s): Abdelnasser Salah Shebl Ibrahim, Ali Abdullah Al-Salamah, Ashraf A. Hatamleh, Mohammed S. El-Shiekh, and Shebl Salah S. Ibrahim

November 2012

Genetic diversity analysis of the medicinal herb Plantago ovata (Forsk.)

  Plantago ovata (Forsk.) (2n = 8) used as laxative, emollient and demulcent, has great commercial and medicinal importance. With India being the largest producer in the world there is still a lack of defined varieties of the species and no coordinated breeding efforts are being made. In the present study, we report the phylogenetic analysis of the crop for its utilization in future breeding programs for...

Author(s): Ashok K. Rohilla, Mukesh Kumar, A. Sindhu and K. S. Boora

November 2012

Variation and long term regenerative capacity of two important tropical forage legumes: Cavalcade (Centrosema pascuorum cv. Cavalcade) and Stylo 184 (Stylosanthes guianensis CIAT184) in vitro

  Shoots of Cavalcade (Centrosema pascuorum cv. Cavalcade) and Stylo 184 (Stylosanthes guianensis CIAT 184) from in vitro germinated seeds were cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 0 to 7 mg L-1 N 6-benzyladenine (BA) in combination with 0 to 0.5 mg L-1 napthalene acetic acid (NAA) for shoot induction and MS supplemented with 0 to 0.5 mg...

Author(s): Varaporn Veraplakorn, Malee Na Nakorn, Lily Kaveeta, Srisom Suwanwongand Ian James Bennett

November 2012

Effects of adenine sulphate, glutamine and casein hydrolysate on in vitro shoot multiplication and rooting of Kinnow mandarin (Citrus reticulata Blanco)

  In vitro shoot regeneration was carried out for Kinnow mandarin (Citrus reticulataBlanco) through shoot tip explants obtained from in vitro germinated seedling. The medium supplemented with 2.5 mg/L benzylaminopurine (BAP) supported maximum shoot proliferation (2.45 shoots/explant). This rate was further enhanced (7.23 shoots/explant) by adding 25 mg/L glutamine, 50 mg/L adenine sulphate and...

Author(s):     Priyanka Siwach, Swati Chanana, Anita Rani Gill, Poonam Dhanda, Jyoti Rani,      Kavita Sharma, Hitesh Rani and Deepika Kumari    

November 2012

Phytotoxicity of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) and its allelopathic potentiality on growth and yield attributes of Parthenium hysterophorus

  Recent developments in the weed science and allied aspects have involved several interdisciplinary approaches. In this context, indiscriminate use of herbicides for weed control has become a questionable subject, that besides controlling the weeds, the chemical herbicides are harmful in many ways to the soil, crops, other plants and the environment as a whole. To this end, pot and field experiments were...

Author(s): Lakhpat S. Rawat, Rakesh Kumar Maikhuri and Vikram S. Negi

November 2012

Optimization of operating conditions for the application of Moringa oleifera (Zogale) seeds extract in water disinfection using response surface methodology

  Good quality dry seeds of Moringa oleifera were selected and the seed coat and wings were removed manually. The kernel was ground to fine powder using the coffee mill attachment of the Moulinex domestic food blender. The ground powder was then sieved through 210 µm sieve. The seed powder was de-fatted using hexane in electro-thermal Soxhlet extractor. Moringa seeds extract was...

Author(s): Bichi, M. H., Agunwamba, J. C. and Muyibi, S. A.

November 2012

Brown macroalgae as bio-indicators for heavy metals pollution of Al-Jubail coastal area of Saudi Arabia

  Wastes from both industrial and domestic sources, as well as habitat destruction have a substantial impact on the coastal environments. It causes serious problems in many countries and for several seas and oceans which leads to the extinction of several plant and animal species. Many water resources are no longer suitable for drinking or for agriculture as a result of pollution. The main aim of this study was...

Author(s):   Areej H. Alkhalifa, Ali A. Al-Homaidan, Afaf I. Shehata, Hussein H. Al-Khamis, Abdullah A. Al-Ghanayem and Abdelnasser S. S. Ibrahim

November 2012

Mobile phone as potential reservoirs of bacterial pathogens

  Mobile phones are increasingly used by professionals, university staffs and health care personnel for communication. These can harbor various potential pathogens. This study evaluates and identifies the bacterial contamination rate of mobile phones in the university setting that are in frequent contact with faculty members, personnel, students and/or physicians and nurses in the university clinic. A total of...

Author(s): Shahaby, A.F., Awad, N.S., El-Tarras, A.E., and A.S. Bahobial

November 2012

Biotransformation of major ginsenosides into compound K by a new Penicillium dipodomyicola strain isolated from the soil of wild ginseng

  A new strain, GH9, having ß-glucosidase activity was isolated from the soil of wild ginseng using Esculin-R2A agar. It shows the strongest activities to convert ginsenoside Rb1 to minor ginsenosides compound K. The transformation products were identified by thin layer chromatography (TLC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and strain GH9 was found to transform major...

Author(s): Lunpeng Wu, Zhenhao Yin, Yu Fu and Chengri Yin

November 2012

Optical absorption coefficient of different tortillas by photoacoustic spectroscopy

  The color of the tortilla is one of the properties that determine the purchasing decision and acceptance for the consumer. This sensory attribute is altered, when making tortillas with elements to improve digestion and nutrition. Therefore, the objective of this investigation was to determine some information about the color in different types of tortilla found in the commercial market in...

Author(s): Hernández Aguilar Claudia, Domínguez-Pacheco Flavio Arturo, Cruz-Orea Alfredo, Herrera Corredor Andrés, Gutierrez Cruz Doricela, Zepeda Bautista Rosalba and Ramírez Ma. Elena

November 2012

Comparison of total phenolic content and composition of individual phenolic acids in testae and testa-removed kernels of 15 Valencia-type peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) genotypes

  A successful peanut breeding to obtain genotypes with greater phenolic content requires information on type and content of phenolic compounds in parental peanut genotypes. The aim of this study was to investigate the total phenolic contents and phenolic acid profiles of 15 Valencia-type peanut genotypes both in peanut testae and testa-removed kernels (cotyledons and embryonic axes). Total phenolic content and...

Author(s): Somprasong Khaopha, Thanaset Senawong, Sanun Jogloy and Aran Patanothai

November 2012

Bioaccumulation of eight heavy metals in cave animals from Dashui and Malang caves, Guizhou Province, China

  Eight heavy metals content in the dominant animal groups, soil and water in Malang and Dashui caves were examined. The results showed that zinc contents in Porcellio scaber from Dashui and Malang caves were 448.80 and 598.00 mg/kg, respectively, which is the highest among all these 8 metals, while Pb was not detected inDiestrammena marmorata and Rhinolophidae pearsoni, suggesting that...

Author(s): XU Chengxiang, LI Daohong and LI Zizhong