October 2006
Rapid genetic transformation of sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam) via organogenesis
An efficient and rapid Agrobacterium-mediated transformation method based on de novo (via callus) organogenesis has been developed from petioles with leaf for sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam). Stable transgenic sweetpotato plants cv. Jewel were obtained in six to ten weeks after infection with Agrobacteriumtumefaciens hyper-virulent strain EHA105 harboring a binary vector pCIP45 bearing...
October 2006
Repeats in the 3' region of the protein A gene is unique in a strain of Staphylococcus aureus recovered from wound infections in Lagos, Nigeria
Bacterial strain typing has quite a lot of important applications in microbiology. In medical practice, strain typing is useful for diagnosis and determining strategies for treatment of infections. More essentially, it is considered for rapid identification of disease outbreaks and new virulent strains. In this study, Protein A gene (spa) short sequence repeats region sequencing was used to measure relatedness among a...
October 2006
Two mini-preparation protocols to DNA extraction from plants with high polysaccharide and secondary metabolites
Methanol extracts of Tulbaghia violacea leaves and bulbs inhibited growth of MCF-7, WHCO3, HT29 and HeLa cancer cell lines. At 250 µg/ml, bulb extracts exhibited higher growth inhibition than leaf extracts in MCF-7 (49.6 ± 2.6%), HT29 (26.0 ± 4.5%) and HeLa cells (54.7±5.9%) relative to untreated controls. In WHCO3, the leaf extract was more active, inhibiting growth by 30.3 ±...
October 2006
Molecular variation in population structure of Xanthomonas axonopodis pv manihotis in the south eastern Nigeria
Xanthomonas axonopodis pv manihotis (Xam) is the causal agent of cassava bacterial blight (CBB) in all cassava growing areas of the world. To develop an efficient disease management strategy, the genetic diversity of the pathogens population ought to be known. Information is scarce on the genetic diversity ofXam population in Nigeria. Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) was used to...
October 2006
Fermentative production and kinetics of cellulase protein on Trichoderma reesei using sugarcane bagasse and rice straw
Cellulase a multienzyme made up of several proteins finds extensive applications in food, fermentation and textile industries. Trichoderma reesei is an efficient producer of cellulase protein. The comparative study was made on various carbon sources on the production of cellulase using strains of T. reesei QM 9414, 97.177 and Tm3. Pretreatment of sugarcane bagasse and rice straw offers very...
October 2006
Enhanced production of cellulases by various fungal cultures in solid state fermentation of cassava waste
Cellulases are a group of hydrolytic enzymes capable of degrading cellulose to the smaller glucose units. These enzymes are produced by fungi and bacteria. The solid waste of sago industry using cassava tubers was fermented by Aspergillus niger,Aspergillus terreus and Rhizopus stolonifer in solid state fermentation. The cassava waste contained dry wt of 13.4% cellulose and 2.9% protein by dry...
October 2006
Growth and yield performance of some improved soybean varieties as influenced by intercropping with maize and cassava in two contrasting locations in Southwest Nigeria
Four improved varieties of soybean (TGX 1448-2E, TGX 1445-2E, TGX 1485-1D and TGX 1019-2E) were evaluated for growth and yield performance under intercropping system with maize and cassava at Ibadan and Oniyo in 2001 and 2002. Plant height at harvest, number of pods per plant, weight of 100 seeds and seed yield were used to assess the performance of improved varieties of soybean while grain yield and fresh tuber yield...
October 2006
Volatile constituents from Samanae saman (Jacq.) Merr. Fabaceae
In this work, we report on the constituents identified from the fruits volatile oil ofSamanae saman (Jacq.) Merr., Fabaceae. The volatile oil was obtained by hydrodistillation in an all glass Clevenger-type apparatus. The oil content was 0.23% (w/w), on a dry weight basis. The oil was analyzed by GC-MS. Altogether, 32 compounds were identified accounting for 99.7% of the total oil content. Fatty...
October 2006
Synergistic effects of some plant growth regulators on in vitro shoot proliferation of korarima (Aframomum corrorima (Braun) Jansen)
The synergistic effects of some plant growth regulators was investigated upon shoot proliferation and growth of korarima (Aframomum corrorima (Braun) Jansen), an important culinary and medicinal plant species native to Ethiopia. Cultures were initiated from axillary bud explants of rhizome using Murashige and Skoog (1962) (MS) medium added with 5% coconut water (CW). The use of 0.5 mg/l thidiazuron (TDZ) in...
October 2006
Affinity purification of hen egg lysozyme using sephadex G75
We found lysozyme binds Sephadex G75, a dextran-based matrix routinely used for Gel-filtration chromatography, in a pH dependent manner. The binding is rapid and specific in a buffer containing 25 mM NaCl at pH 8.0, and requires only 0.1 ml of swollen Sephadex G75 suspension per mg of lysozyme. The bound lysozyme can be eluted with NaCl concentration over 0.15 M in the same buffer in a relatively pure form....
October 2006
Cyfluthrin-induced hepatotoxicity in rats
The hepatotoxic effect of continous administration of cyfluthrin was investigated in rats. Rats (Rattus norvegicus) were grouped into A (0 ppm) control, B (100 ppm) and C (200 ppm) with the indicated amount of cyfluthrin administered orally for 15 weeks.The hepatotoxicity level was assessed by monitoring the changes in the organ to body; weight ratio, micronutrient level (iron, zinc, copper and selenium), the...
October 2006
Aerobic cometabolic degradation of cis- and trans-dichloroethene by a consortium of bacteria isolated from contaminated sites in Africa
Biodegradation of dichloroethenes (DCEs) to innocuous products such as ethene and carbondioxide is often a limiting factor in the use of reductive dechlorination as an approach for the remediation of chloroethene-contaminated sites. In this study, the effect of some water-soluble, non-toxic and non-flammable substrates on the biodegradation of DCEs by a mixed culture of aerobic bacteria isolated from contaminated sites...
October 2006
Production of biological nanoparticles from bovine serum albumin for drug delivery
Bovine serum albumin (BSA) was used for generation of nanoparticles in a drug delivery system. The size of the fabricated nano-particles was measure by laser light scanning. Several process parameters were examined to achieve a suitable size of nanoparticle such as pH, temperature, BSA concentration, agitation speed, glutaraldehyde concentration, organic solvent adding rate and the ratio of BSA/organic solvent. The...
October 2006
Free-radical scavenging capacity and antimicrobial activity of wild edible mushroom from Turkey
Antioxidant capacity and antimicrobial activities of Ramaria flava (Tourn: Battarra) Quél. (RF) extracts obtained with ethanol were investigated in this study. Four complementary test systems; namely DPPH free radical scavenging, β-carotene/linoleic acid systems, total phenolic compounds and total flavonoid concentration have been used. Inhibition values of R....
October 2006
Evaluation of the anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities of Vitex doniana leaves
The anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities of extract of leaves of Vitex donianaSweet (Verbenaceae) were investigated as well as the mechanisms of action. The extract significantly (P<0.05) inhibited the formation of paw edema induced by agar in rats and increased reaction latency to thermal pain in mice in a dose-dependent manner. The extract caused a significant (P<0.05) dose-dependent ulceration of the...
October 2006
Tulbaghia violacea inhibits growth and induces apoptosis in cancer cells in vitro
Methanol extracts of Tulbaghia violacea leaves and bulbs inhibited growth of MCF-7, WHCO3, HT29 and HeLa cancer cell lines. At 250 µg/ml, bulb extracts exhibited higher growth inhibition than leaf extracts in MCF-7 (49.6 ± 2.6%), HT29 (26.0 ± 4.5%) and HeLa cells (54.7±5.9%) relative to untreated controls. In WHCO3, the leaf extract was more active, inhibiting growth by 30.3 ±...
October 2006
Sero-prevalence of hepatitis C virus among blood donors in Lagos, Nigeria
The prevalence of Hepatitis C virus (HCV), one of the causative agents of viral hepatitis was investigated. One hundred and sixty-seven (167) blood samples from donors which were sero-negative to hepatitis B virus markers were screened for presence of HCV IgM antibodies using a third generation ELISA kit. Out of the 167 sample tested 14 (8.4%) were positive for anti-HCV with the highest prevalence rate recorded in the...
October 2006
Antisickling agent in an extract of unripe pawpaw (Carica papaya): Is it real?
Investigations into antisickling and reversal of sickling activities of an aqueous extract of unripe pawpaw (Carica papaya) were carried out on blood from sickle cell patients (Haemoglobin SS, HbSS) using 2% sodium metabisulphite in a sickling test. The minimum concentration of the extract that achieved maximum antisickling in vitro and the fraction of the extract where the antisickling agent resides were...
October 2006
Influence of some starch binders on the brittle fracture tendency of paracetamol tablets
The study was carried out to compare the binder effects of cassava and cocoyam starch with that of maize starch BP. The parameters investigated were the brittle fracture index (BFI), the tablet packing fraction (Pf), and tensile strength (T). Mucilages of the starches of varying concentrations; 15, 20, and 25% (w/v) were formed; their viscosities were determined and used to form paracetamol granules by wet-massing. The...
October 2006
Accumulation of heavy metals from single and mixed metal solutions by the gastropod mollusc Tympanotonus fuscatus linnaeus from a Niger Delta estuary: Implications for biomonitoring
The usefulness of the intertidal gastropod Tympanotonus fuscatus L as a biomonitor of heavy metals in tropical estuaries was assessed. The periwinkles were collected from a site in the upper Bonny Estuary, Southern Nigeria and exposed in a series of experiments either singly or binary mixtures to copper, zinc and cadmium. The accumulation of Cd was monotonic with increase in exposure concentration with a...
October 2006
Microbial content of abattoir wastewater and its contaminated soil in Lagos, Nigeria
Microbial content of wastewater in two abattoirs and the impact on microbial population of receiving soil was studied in Agege and Ojo Local Government Areas in Lagos State, Nigeria. Wastewater samples were collected from each of the abattoirs over three months period and examined for microbial content. Soil samples contaminated with the wastewaters were also collected and analysed for microbial content as...
October 2006
Nitrogen availability for nitrogen fixing cyanobacteria upon growth on dinitrogen
The filamentous cyanobacterium Nostoc PCC 7120 is able to convert dinitrogen to ammonia in the absence of combined nitrogen. The expression of 20% of coding sequences from all major metabolic categories was examined in nitrogen fixing and non-nitrogen fixing growth conditions. The expression data were correlated with the nitrogen content of gene products. When growing on dinitrogen, Nostoc PCC 7120...
October 2006
Effects of salinity on germination, growth and yield of five groundnut genotypes
The effects of salinity on germination, growth and yield parameters as well as phenotypic variance and heritability of five groundnut genotypes (Ex-Dakar, RRB 12, RMP 12, RMP 91 and Esan Local) were investigated. Saline treatments were imposed by irrigating the seeds and plants with varying concentrations of brackish water having electrical conductivities of 0.015, 1.50, 2.60, 4.68, 8.90 and 17.0 mS/cm. The results...
October 2006
Textile effluent biodegradation potentials of textile effluent-adapted and non-adapted bacteria
Environmental pollution has been recognized as one of the major problems of the modern world. The increasing demand for water and the dwindling supply has made the treatment and reuse of industrial effluents an attractive option. Textile effluents are of concern because they colour the drains and ultimately the water bodies. They also diminish the water quality. The ability of microorganisms to degrade and metabolize a...
October 2006
Impact of traditional processing methods on some physico chemical and sensory qualities of fermented cassava flour "Kpor umilin"
The study was conducted to investigate the effect of traditional processing/preservation methods on the physico-chemical and sensory quality of fermented cassava flour (Kpor umilin) in some areas of Benue State, Nigeria. The physical, chemical and organoleptic qualities of the traditionally processed flours were determined by standard methods in samples collected from five locations in the state. This was then...
October 2006
Transformation of multiple soybean cultivars by infecting cotyledonary-node with Agrobacterium tumefaciens
Transformation of four soybean cultivars (Nannong88-1, Nannong18-6, Yu23 and Nannong 87C-38) by infecting cotyledonary-node with Agrobacterium tumefaciensstrain EHA105 harboring pBI121 containing GFP reporter gene was conducted. The results indicated that the addition of thiol compounds (L-cysteine, dithiothreitol and sodium thiosulfate) in co-cultivation period increased the transformation efficiency of all four...
October 2006
The potential of using botanical insecticides for the control of the banana weevil, Cosmopolites sordidus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)
Crude extracts of chinaberry tree (Melia azedarach L.), mexican marigold (Tagates spp.), water hyacinth (Eichornia crassipes, Martius) and Castor oil (Ricinus communis L.) were tested for their effect on weevil mortality, settling responses and oviposition in the laboratory. All extracts of the botanicals did not show significant effects on weevil mortality compared to controls. Weevil settling responses...
October 2006
Nutritive potentials and utilization of garden snail (Limicolaria aurora) meat meal in the diet of Clarias gariepinus fingerlings
The possibility of using garden snail (Limicolaria aurora) meat meal as a protein source in fish feeds was tested in Clarias gariepinus fingerlings. Five isonitrogenous (43% crude protein) diets in which garden snail meat meal was used to replace fish meal at 0%, (control diet), 25, 50, 75 and 100% inclusion levels were used for the study. The fish were fed ad-libitum for 8 weeks. Garden snail meat...
October 2006
Evaluation of concentrate, grass and legume combinations on performance and nutrient digestibility of grower rabbits under tropical conditions
Thirty-five (35) grower crossbred rabbits were randomly allocated to seven combinations of concentrate, grass and legume in proportions of 50 g:60 g:40 g in a completely randomized design. The treatments were: (1) rabbit meal, Rhodes grass and groundnut haulms (RRG), (2) rabbit meal, Rhodes grass and sweet potato vines (RRP), (3) rabbit meal, Rhodes grass and soybean forage (RRS), (4) Soybean cheese waste meal, Rhodes...
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