November 2007
Antibacterial potentials of aqueous extract of Enantia chlorantha stem bark
The antibacterial potentials of aqueous extract of Enantia chlorantha stem bark at varying concentrations of 50, 100 and 150 mg/ml was investigated by measuring the zones of inhibition produced after incubation on nutrient agar. Staphylococcus aureusand Bacillus substilis, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhymurium and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were used as test organisms. The...
November 2007
Isolation of Acremonium species producing cephalosporine C (CPC) from forest soil in Gilan province, Iran
Cephalosporin C (CPC) is a major precursor of cephalosporin antibiotics which is produced by a group of deuteromycets. After biosynthesis in optimized fermentation media, CPC is recovered and converted to a variety of potent cephalosporin antibiotic drugs. This study was performed to determine the mycoflora producing CPC in various parts of Iran soil. Soil samples were collected and cultured on selective media...
November 2007
Evaluation of in vitro antiviral activity of a brown alga (Cystoseira myrica) from the Persian Gulf against herpes simplex virus type 1
The hot water extract of a brown marine alga, Cystoseira myrica, from the Persian Gulf was evaluated as an antiviral compound against KOS strain of HSV-1 in cell culture. The extract exhibited antiviral activity against herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) not only during absorption of virus to the cells, but also on post attachment stages of virus replication. The water extract of C....
November 2007
Effects of Cucumis metuliferus (Cucurbitaceae) fruits on enzymes and haematological parameters in albino rats
The effects of the powdered fruits of Cucumis metuliferus on enzymes and haematological indices were evaluated in adult albino rats. The study revealed a significant (P<0.05) dose-dependent decrease in white blood cells (WBC) count. 500 mg/kg body weight of the powdered fruit produced a significant (P<0.05) decrease in red blood cells (RBC), and an increase in platelet and haemoglobin (Hb), while there...
November 2007
Modeling of drug release from multi-unit dosage tablets of theophylline
A model of multi-unit dose tablets of theophylline (dose, 600 mg) has been designed to give a prompt release dose (200 mg) in the first 1 h and the remaining sustained release dose (400 mg) to be released over 11 h at a first order release rate constant of 0.24 h-1. The prompt release component (A) consisted of conventional granules of the drug while the sustained release component (B) was made up of matrix granules of...
November 2007
Antibacterial potential of extracts of leaves of Parrotia persica
Ethanol, methanol, chloroform, petroleum ether and aqueous extracts of leaves ofParrotia persica were evaluated for antibacterial activity. The zone of inhibition varied from 13 to 22 mm. The highest inhibit-tion was obtained with methanol and ethanol. Chloroform and petroleum ether extracts did not show any activity. The minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) value of the methanol extract for the test bacteria...
November 2007
Antimicrobial activity of a decoction used by Southwestern Nigeria traditional healers on selected dermatophytes
The antifungal activity of a herbal decoction used by south western Nigeria traditional healers in the treatment of superficial mycoses and related infectious diseases was tested against clinical isolates of Candida albicans, Trichophyton rubrum andMicrosporium sp. All the test organisms were susceptible to the herbal decoction.Candida albicans were highly susceptible,...
November 2007
Development of amino resins for emulsion paint formulation: effect of aldelhydic group and degree of substitution
In our continuous effort to develop a paint binder from amino resins, amino resins from different aldehydic groups were synthesized to produce urea, formaldehyde (UF), urea acetaldehyde (UA), urea proparaldehyde (UP) and urea butaldehyde (UB) at different degree of substitution (Mono – tetra). Some physical properties of these resins were evaluated. The viscosity, gel time, density and refractive index of the...
November 2007
Determination of levels of fluoride and trace metal ions in drinking waters and remedial measures to purify water
Fluoride is recognized to be most effective caries-preventive agent. The main source of fluoride for people is generally food and drinking water. For this reason, fluoride and other metal ion concentrations in the drinking water samples were estimated. For the determination of fluoride, Na, Li and K an ion – meter and flame photometer were used. While the concentrations of other metal ions (Mn, Cd, Co, Ni, Pb, Fe,...
November 2007
Optimization studies of biomass production and protein biosynthesis in a Spirulina sp. isolated from an oil-polluted flame pit in the Niger Delta
Using a modification of the Bangladesh 3 medium, dose response analysis was carried out to evaluate the effect of certain parameters on biomass production and protein biosynthesis in a Spirulina sp. isolated from an oil-polluted flame pit. A set of conditions described as optimized was compared with another set of conditions described as normal. The optimized parameters include pH 9.0, temperature 30oC, 0.30...
November 2007
Effect of pretreatment on Cd2+ biosorption by mycelial biomass of Pleurotus florida
The effect of pretreatment on the Cd2+ biosorption capacity of mycelial biomass ofPleurotus florida was investigated. For this purpose, the biomass was subjected to physical treatments such as heat, autoclaving and freeze drying and chemical treatments using acids, alkali and organic solvents. All the pretreatment methods improved the biosorption of Cd2+ in comparison with live biomass of P. florida....
November 2007
Enhancement of alkaline protease production by Bacillus clausii using Taguchi experimental design
The effect of culture conditions on protease production and bacterial growth of Bacillusclausii was investigated using Taguchi design of experiment. Five factors viz., carbon source, organic and inorganic nitrogen sources, agitation and metal ion, each at four levels were selected and an orthogonal array layout of L16 (45) were performed. The proposed medium for alkaline protease production consisted of (g/l):...
November 2007
Perturbation of spectra properties of 3,4-diphenyl thiophene by polar and non polar solvents
The UV/visible spectra of 3,4-diphenyl thiophene were obtained in various solvents (both polar and non polar). The wave number of transition energies, corresponding molar absorptivities and oscillation frequency were determined. Three bands were obtained in solvents such as cyclohexane, propan-2-ol, methanol and ether. Two bands are obtained in n-hexane and 1,2- dichloroethane, while 1,4-dioxane give a single band....
November 2007
Genetic diversity of the blast fungus, Magnaporthe grisea (Hebert) Barr, in Burkina Faso
Trapping nurseries trialed at two screening sites in Burkina Faso appeared to be an effective tool to characterize the virulence spectrum of blast populations using limited equipment and reduced labor. It made it possible to identify the best site to be used for screening for durable resistance. The effectiveness of some resistance genes indicated that they could be pyramided to provide durable resistance to blast...
November 2007
Optimization of Agrobacterium-mediated transformation parameters for sweet potato embryogenic callus using β-glucuronidase (GUS) as a reporter
Agrobacterium-mediated transformation factors for sweet potato embryogenic calli were optimized using β-glucuronidase (GUS) as a reporter. The binary vector pTCK303 harboring the modified GUS gene driven by the CaMV 35S promoter was used. Transformation parameters were optimized including bacterial concen-tration, pre-culture period, co-cultivation period, immersion time, acetosyringone (AS) concentration and...
November 2007
Meiotic chromosome behaviour and sexual sterility in two Nigerian species of Aloe Linn
The behaviour of meiotic chromosomes and the subsequent behaviour of the meiotic products were investigated in two Nigerian species of Aloe, namely Aloe keayi andAloe macrocarpa var major with a view to uncovering the cause of their inability to reproduce sexually. The two plant materials used in this study were already under cultivation in the Aloe Research Garden situated in the Crop Type...
November 2007
Optimization of growth and extracellular glucoamylase production by Candida famata isolate
Candida famata was isolated from traditional Moroccan sourdough. It exhibited high glucoamylase and biomass production. Starch induces high glucoamylase production C. famata with maximum glucoamylase activity at 5 g/L. Glucose stimulates good production in biomass but strongly inhibits glucoamylase production. Among the sources of nitrogen tested, yeast extract and the (NH4)2HPO4 gave maximum...
November 2007
Influence of aeration and lighting on biomass production and protein biosynthesis in a Spirulina sp. isolated from an oil-polluted brackish water marsh in the Niger Delta, Nigeria
The influence aeration and light intensity could have on biomass production and protein biosynthesis in a Spirulina sp. isolated from an oil-polluted brackish water marsh is examined. Biomass, proximal composition and amino acid composition obtained from aerated cultures of the organism were compared with non-aerated cultures after a 35 days incubation period. Cultures of the organism were also grown in...
November 2007
Bacteriological examination of drinking water in Burdwan, India with reference to coliforms
Most probable number (MPN) test was done to detect the coliform in water samples collected from mobile vendors, sweet shops and tap water supplied from Burdwan municipality. The study revealed that the number of coliforms was very high (≥1600) in water samples collected from mobile vendors. The bacteria were identified asEscherichia coli. Bacteriological examination of water samples collected from different sources...
November 2007
Characterization of the exopolysaccharide produced by a whey utilizing strain of Klebsiella oxytoca
Physical, chemical and rheological properties of a polysaccharide produced by an isolate of Klebsiella oxytoca were characterized. Freeze dried samples of the polysaccharide were neutral and were completely soluble in water. Samples did not form gels even in the presence of salt treatments. The major monosaccharide constituents of the polysaccharide were rhamnose (37%, w/w) and glucose (34%, w/w). Residues of...
November 2007
Effects of mixed substrates on growth and vitamin production by Euglena gracilis
The effects of mixed carbon sources on growth and production of vitamins E and A byEuglena gracilis cells were investigated in batch culture. The cells were grown mixotrophically in glucose (G), ethanol (E) and a mixture of glucose and ethanol (EG). Cell growth was measured by counting the cell number with microscope, while vitamin concentrations were measured spectrophotometrically. Growth of the cells...
November 2007
Bacteriocin and cellulose production by lactic acid bacteria isolated from West African soft cheese
Sixteen colonies of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were selected and screened for their ability to produce bacteriocin by agar well diffusion method using the supernatant of centrifuged test cultures. Four isolates inhibited the growth of Listeria monocytogenesand Escherichia coli. Lactobacillus plantarum (6) and Lactobacillus brevis (5) were the most dominant species. The remaining...
November 2007
Heavy metals concentrations in the offal, gill, muscle and liver of a freshwater mudfish (Parachanna obscura) from Ogba River, Benin city, Nigeria
This study assessed and monitored the concentrations of Cu, Mn, Zn, Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb in the gills, offal, muscle and liver of a commercially important mudfish (Parachanna obscura) from Ogba River, Benin City, Nigeria between January and December, 2005. The same metals were also determined in the water of the river. The results revealed that the concentrations of all the metals in the tissues (offal, gills, muscle and...
November 2007
Protein modeling of apical membrane antigen-1(AMA-1) of Plasmodium cynomolgi
Apical membrane Antigen-1(AMA-1), an asexual blood stage antigen of Plasmodium cynomolgi, is an important candidate for testing as a component of malarial vaccine. The degree of conservation of AMA-1 sequences implies a conserved function for this molecule across different species of Plasmodium. Since the AMA-1 of plasmodium cyanomolgi is yet to be structured, the authors have generated a homology model of...
November 2007
Microbiological safety of gari, lafun and ogiri in Akure metropolis, Nigeria
The microbiological safety of three locally fermented foods (gari, lafun and ogiri) was investigated in this work. Ten different samples each of the fermented foods were collected at the central market (Oja Oba). The mean total bacterial count in the samples of gari, lafun and ogiri were 14.3 x 104, 13.2 x 105 and10.2 x106 cfu/g, respectively. Also the mean total viable count of mould was 1.6 x 104, 3.7 x...
November 2007
Hemoglobin polymorphism in Nigerian indigenous small ruminant populations - preliminary investigation
Hemoglobin polymorphism was studied in the Nigerian indigenous small ruminants. The populations studied comprised of 50 West African Dwarf (WAD) sheep and 150 red sokoto (RS) goats. Blood samples collected from the animals by jugular venipuncture were subjected to starch gel electrophoresis to reveal the activities of hemoglobin (HB). The acetate strip exposed only two co-dominant alleles (A and B) that gave rise to...
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