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: 21 September 2011; 10(55)

September 2011

Analogies between geminivirus and oncovirus: Cell cycle regulation

  Geminiviruses are a large family of plant viruses whose genome is composed of one or two circular and single strand of DNA. They replicate in the cell nucleus being Rep protein, the only viral protein necessary for their replication process. Geminiviruses as same as animal DNA oncoviruses, like SV40, adenovirus and papillomavirus, use the host replication machinery to replicate their DNA. Consequently, they...

Author(s): A. M. Chapa-Oliver, R. G. Guevara-González, M. M. González-Chavira, R. V.  Ocampo-Velázquez, A. A Feregrino-Pérez, L. Mejía-Teniente, G. Herrera-Ruíz and I. Torres-Pacheco

September 2011

Marker-assisted-selection (MAS): A fast track to increase genetic gain in horticultural crop breeding

  Mapping and tagging of agriculturally important genes have been greatly facilitated by an array of molecular markers in crop plants. Marker-assisted selection (MAS) is gaining considerable importance as it would improve the efficiency of plant breeding through precise transfer of genomic regions of interest (foreground selection) and accelerate the recovery of the recurrent parent genome (background...

Author(s): D. O. Ibitoye and P. E. Akin-Idowu

September 2011

Potentials of molecular based breeding to enhance drought tolerance in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

  The ability of plant to sustain itself in limited water conditions is crucial in the world of agriculture. To breed for drought tolerance in wheat, it is essential to clearly understand drought tolerant mechanisms. Conventional breeding is time consuming and labor intensive being inefficient with low heritability traits like drought tolerance. Recent progress made in the field of genomics enabling us to...

Author(s): Mueen Alam Khan, Muhammad Iqbal, Moazzam Jameel, Wajad Nazeer, Sara Shakir, Muhammad Tabish Aslam and Bushra Iqbal

September 2011

Bioinformatic identification of microRNAs and their targets in Aquilegia formosa x Aquilegia pubescens

  As a model system, Aquilegia is of evolutionary and ecological significance. Availability of new genomic resources is facilitating the related researches at molecular level. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of endogenous, non-coding and short RNAs directly involved in regulating gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. High conservation of miRNAs in plants provides the foundation for...

Author(s): Yongzhong Lu and Zhijian Zhang

September 2011

Analysis of two Pit-1 gene polymorphisms: Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) distribution patterns in Podolica cattle breed

  Pit-1 is a pituitary-specific transcription factor responsible for pituitary development and hormone expression in mammals. Pit-1 is a member of the POU domain containing proteins, a group of transcriptional regulators with a critical role in cell differentiation and proliferation. It was shown that this group of proteins control the transcription of the growth hormone (GH), the prolactin (PRL), the...

Author(s): Maria Selvaggi and Cataldo Dario

September 2011

Isolating silkworm genomic DNA without liquid nitrogen suitable for marker studies

  Genomic DNA was isolated from posterior silk gland of silkworms, Antheraea assama. Absolute alcohol was used as tissue fixing solution instead of grinding in liquid nitrogen, which yielded high molecular weight DNA (>40 kb). Samples yielded similar amount of DNA when fixed in absolute alcohol (400 mg/g of silk gland tissue) and ground in liquid nitrogen (456 mg/g of silk gland tissue)....

Author(s): H. R. Singh, B. G. Unni, K. Neog and S. B. Wann

September 2011

Genetic relationships among Rosa species based on random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers

  To investigate the genetic diversity of Rosa accessions, random amplified polymorphism DNA (RAPD) approach was employed. Nine of ten primers amplified 138 scorable RAPD loci with 111 polymorphic bands (80%). Percentages of polymorphic bands ranged from 75 to 100%. Sizes of amplified DNA fragments ranged from 250 to 6000 bp and were used for statistical analyses. Cluster analysis based...

Author(s): Leila Mirzaei and Fatemeh Rahmani

September 2011

Tolerance of banana for fusarium wilt is associated with early H2O2 accumulation in the roots

  Banana plants derived from a tissue culture process possess a high rate of random variations that were widely used as popular cultivars due to the new desired traits. In this study, two near-isogenic lines, one susceptible (parental Williams-8818) and the other resistant (somaclonal variation progeny Williams-8818-1 from Williams-8818) to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. Cubense (Foc4),...

Author(s):   Wei-Ming Li, Chun-Mei Qian, Yi-Wei Mo, Yu-Lin Hu and Jiang-Hui Xie

September 2011

Partial characterization of three β-defensin gene transcripts in river buffalo and cattle

  In this study, the tracheal tissues from Egyptian river buffalo and cattle were screened for the presence of three bovine β-defensin gene transcripts. Three primer pairs were designed on the basis of published Bos taurus sequences for partial amplification of β-defensin 4, β-defensin 10 and β-defensin 11 complementary DNA (cDNA). The amplified...

Author(s): Ahlam A. Abou Mossallam, Soheir M. El Nahas, Nevien M. Sabry, Eman R. Mahfouz and Amal A. Hassan

September 2011

Genetic diversity on the tropical rare wood species of Dalbergia in Vietnam revealed by inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers

  Genetic diversities of three rare hardwood species of Dalbergia (D. assamica, D. nigrescens and D. tonkinensis) were evaluated for conservation based on inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers. A total of 47 ISSR primers were used for the analysis, but only 31 ISSR primers were successfully amplified for 25 samples from...

Author(s): Dinh Thi Phong, Vu Thi Thu Hien, Tran Thi Viet Thanh, Nguyen Tuong Vanand Nguyen Quoc Binh

September 2011

Several haplotypes of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) seed-beetle, Caryedon serratus Ol. (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae, Bruchinae), in West Africa: Genetic identification using 28S sequences

  Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea Linn.) is included among the crops which contribute efficiently to cover West African populations’ nutritional needs. The groundnut seed infestation by Caryedon serratus (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Bruchinae), whose larva develop within the seed by consuming the reserves contained in the cotyledon, brings about great losses from 70 to 83% between 4 and 6...

Author(s): Assane Ndong, Toffène Diome, Cheikh Thiaw, Awa Ndiaye, Khadim Kébé, Ali Douma, Guillaume Ketoh, Antoine Sanon and Mbacké Sembène

September 2011

Seedling characters at different temperatures in pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.)

  The effect of six temperatures ranging from 20 to 45°C on the germination and seedling length of six grain pearl millet genotypes (KS, AM, HG, EC, ZZ and D) was determined. There was significant variation in germination and seedling length across temperatures and among genotypes. As a result, significant temperature × genotype interactions occurred. Emergence problems, due to...

Author(s): Leila Radhouane

September 2011

Variation in the repellency effects of the leaves of Mentha piperita against adults of Amblyomma hebraeum

  The repellency effects of Mentha piperita leaves, collected from two different locations in South Africa, (Ga-Rankuwa and Malelane) on adults of Amblyomma hebreaum were studied. Leaves extraction was carried out using two different solvents (dichloromethane (DCM) and ethylacetate) to make concentrations of 0.24 g/10 ml, 0.24 g/15 ml and 0.24 g/20 ml (w/v). The extracts were tested for...

Author(s): N. M. Mkolo, K. B. Sako, J. O. Olowoyo, S. Ndlovu and S. R. Magano

September 2011

Biochemical responses of Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) cultivars subjected to NaCl salinity stress

  This investigation was conducted to determine NaCl salinity effects on antioxidant enzymes activities, reducing sugar contents and lipid peroxidation in two alfalfa cultivars. Plants grown in solution cultures were subjected to 0, 100, 150 and 200 mM solutions of sodium chloride. Yazdi and Diabolourde alfalfa were used as tolerant and sensitive cultivars, respectively, in a germination experiment under...

Author(s): Babakhani, B., Khavari-Nejad, R.A., Hassan sajedi, R., Fahimi, H. and Saadatmand S.

September 2011

Enhancement of defense responses by oligandrin against Botrytis cinerea in tomatoes

  Oligandrin is an elicitin-like protein with a molecular mass of ï½ž10 kDa secreted byPythium oligandrum. Here, the effect of oligandrin on defense response againstBotrytis cinerea in tomato leaves is reported. Tomato seedlings were pretreated with 5 ml oligandrin (10 μg/ml) by root submerging and then inoculated with B. cinerea. Disease severity was subsequently evaluated and compared...

Author(s): Bing-gan Lou, Ai-ying Wang, Chai Lin, Tong Xu, Xiao-dong Zheng

September 2011

Assessment of N2 fixation in 32 cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp) genotypes grown in the field at Taung in South Africa, using 15N natural abundance

  The aim of this study was to evaluate plant growth, grain yield and symbiotic N contribution by 32 cowpea genotypes, at Taung in South Africa. The data from a 2-year field study conducted in 2005 and 2006 showed that genotypes Fahari, Pan 311 and Glenda exhibited the highest dry matter yield and N contribution as they produced 2.9-, 2.7- and 3.5-fold more dry matter than cv. ITH98-46 and yielded 2.7-,...

Author(s): Alphonsus K. Belane, Joseph Asiwe and Felix D. Dakora

September 2011

Effect of irrigation frequency and application levels of sulphur fertilizer on water use efficiency and yield of Indian mustard (Brassica juncea)

  A field experiment was conducted at Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi during the crop season of 2007 to 2008 and 2008 to 2009 to study the effect of irrigation and sulphur on yield and water use efficiency of Indian mustard (Brassica juncea var. PusaJagannath). The experiment was carried out in split plot design with three replications. The treatments consisted of three levels of...

Author(s): Issa Piri, Mohsen Moussavi Nik, Abolfazl Tavassoli, Fatemeh Rastegaripour and Mahdi Babaeian

September 2011

Physiological and biochemical responses of halophyte Kalidium foliatum to salt stress

  In this study, the physiological and biochemical responses of a halophyte Kalidium foliatum to salinity were studied. In order to reflect salt-tolerance in K. foliatum and to analyze the physiological and biochemical mechanism for its salt tolerance, salinity threshold and biochemical parameters were studied. A halophyte, Suaeda...

Author(s): Jin Jia, Xiangjun Cui, Jinhua Wu, Jianying Wang and Guoze Wang

September 2011

Characterization of upstream sequences from the 8S globulin gene of Vigna radiata

  Seeds rich in protein in nature, are ideal bioreactors for economic production and storage of value-added recombinant proteins and enzymes for industries. The upstream region of the seed storage protein gene is able to provide an attractive promoter for seed-specific expression of heterologous genes. Our previous research showed that 8S globulin occupied the majority of total soluble protein stored in seeds...

Author(s): Yue-Ning Yang, Ying-Fang Niu, Chao Xu, Yin Wang, Jie-Sheng Liu, Wei-Dong Yang and Hong-Ye Li

September 2011

Additive effects of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and hypertension on inflammatory reaction

  Both obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) and hypertension are risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. New study showed that arteriosclerosis in OSAS patients with hypertension (HT) is much severe than those patients with only HT or only OSAS. We assume that inflammatory reaction is involved in the pathogenesis in aggravation of arteriosclerosis of OSAS patients with HT. Based on apnea hypopnea index...

Author(s): Zhi Liu, Yueqiao Xu, Qi Hua,Yanling Wang, Rongkun Liu and Zheng Yang

September 2011

Effect of organic and inorganic fertilizers on yield and mineral content of onion (Allium cepa L.)

  This experiment was conducted to find the influence of both organic and mineral fertilizer on the quality and yield of onion (Allium cepa L.) and also on the macro and micro element contents of onion bulb. Cattle manure was applied at 0, 20, 40 and 60 t/ha. Nitrogen:phosphorus:potassium was applied at the recommended dose of 120:100:150 with half of the recommended rate of NPK. Yield, yield components...

Author(s): Funda Yoldas, Safak Ceylan, Nilgun Mordogan and Bihter Colak Esetlili

September 2011

In vitro regeneration of Acacia nilotica from nodes on MS medium

  In the regeneration of Acacia nilotica, the effect of cytokinin (BA) and auxin (IBA) in factorial experimentation on the MS medium was determined with different dosages each. Starting from the epicotyls of germinated seeds, a combination of benzylaminopurin, naphtaleneacetic acid and gibberelic acid (BA*NAA*GA3) served as a good initiator of adventitious buds. However, the best production of nodes...

Author(s): Samake Gabriel, Traore Bakary M., Senou Hamidou, Wang Hua-Fang

September 2011

Effect of plant seeds protein extract on the Sunn pest, Eurygaste integriceps Puton, growth and development and its gut serine protease activity

  The sunn pest Eurygaster integriceps Puton (Hemiptera: Scutelleridae) is a major pest of wheat and barley in wide areas of the world that cause 100% crop loss when no control measures are taken. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the seed proteinous extract of different plant species including ChickpeaCicer arietinum (Fabaceae), bean Phaseolus...

Author(s): F. Saadati, Ali R. Bandani and A. Moslemi

September 2011

Antibacterial activity of the five South African Erythroxylaceae species

  Until recently, no medicinal uses were recorded for the South AfricanErythroxylaceae species, although, this family is used world wide in traditional medicine. This study reveals for the first time that Erythroxylum delagoense andErythroxylum pictum roots were used to treat dysentery and diarrhoea and thatErythroxylum emarginatum leaves decoction was used...

Author(s): De Wet, H.

September 2011

Survey of chemical manure on morphological traits in Iranian Aloe vera

  This experiment was conducted at the Institute of National Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in Iran to evaluate the effect of different amount of fertilizers on the leaf and plant characteristics, as well as the yield characteristics of Aloe vera. There were 6 different treatments viz., T1 = 100% soil (control), T2 = 100 PK (50% P + 50% K), T3 = 50% K + 50% soil, T4 = 50% N + 50%...

Author(s): Fatemeh Nejatzadeh Barandozi, Sattar Tahmasebi Enferadi, Mohammad Reza Naghavi, Younes Mostofi and Amir Mousavi

September 2011

Growth and development of symbiotic Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, Glomus mossea (Nicol. and Gerd.), in alachlor and glyphosate treated soils

  Herbicides are applied to control weeds in agricultural practices and could also be detrimental to the development of some microorganisms living in the soil ecosystem. This study was conducted to determine the growth and development of mycorrhizal fungi, Glomus mossea (Nicol. and Gerd.), in soils treated with herbicides. Herbicide treatments were alachlor at 1.8, 3.6, 5.4 and 36 μg active...

Author(s): Askif Pasaribu, Rosli B. Mohamad, Yahya Awang, Radziah Othman and Adam Puteh

September 2011

Water and nitrogen distribution in uncropped ridge-tilled soil under different ridge width

  Nitrate leaching to ground and surface water is an increasing concern in agriculture. A ridge-tillage configuration, with placement of nitrate nitrogen (NO3--N) or its source in the elevated portion of the ridge, can potentially isolate fertilizer from downward water flow and minimize nitrate leaching. In the experiment, the simultaneous distribution of water, nitrate, and ammonium under three ridge widths...

Author(s): Xiaoli Chen,, Xining Zhao , Pute Wu ,, Zikui Wang, Fengyun Zhang, and Yongyong Zhang

September 2011

Identifying appropriate information and communication technology (ICT) in improving marketing of agricultural products in Garmsar City, Iran

  One of the most important factors for agricultural development is marketing of agricultural products. Information, as the most important facilitator and main core of the marketing system, has an effective role in increasing the marketing system efficiency. Today, farmers need access to updated and exact information in order to improve the quality and quantity of the agricultural products...

Author(s): Farhad Lashgarara, Roya Mohammadi, Maryam Omidi Najafabadi

September 2011

Genetic diversity through stability analysis for various fatty acids profile in indigenous Brassica species

  A total of 120 locally collected accessions of Brassica napus, Brassica juncea and Brassica rapa were evaluated for two years and three different locations of the country to check the level of stability among these accessions for various fatty acids composition. Combined stability analysis of variance for two years and three locations showed significant genetic variation within brassica accessions...

Author(s): Naushad Ali Turi, Farhatullah and Malik Ashiq Rabbani

September 2011

Removal of heavy metals from metal-containing effluent by yeast biomass

  The aim of this study was to investigate the biosorption of heavy metals, chrome (Cr) and tin (Sn) from metal-containing effluent by waste brewer’s yeast. Biosorption of Cr and Sn was studied under batch conditions at a pH value of 6.5. The biomass, non-viable cells of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, is able to adsorb tin from a tin effluent, containing trace amounts of other metals. The uptake...

Author(s): C. S. van Wyk

September 2011

Heavy metals concentration in different organs of tilapia fish (Oreochromis niloticus) from selected areas of Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia

  The present study was aimed at investigating the six heavy metals: Pb, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni and Zn measured in the liver, gills and muscles of tilapia fish (Oreochromis niloticus) which was collected from five locations around Bangi area, Selangor, Malaysia. The sites included Culture Pond A, Culture Pond B, Langat River, Cempaka Lake and Engineering Lake. The results show that in...

Author(s): Abdulali Taweel, M. Shuhaimi-Othman and A. K. Ahmad

September 2011

Characterization of 1,2-dichloroethane (DCA) degrading bacteria isolated from South African waste water

  1,2-Dichloroethane (DCA), a potential carcinogen that is toxic to both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, is one of the most widely produced chemicals in the modern world. It is used as a metal degreaser, solvent, chemical intermediate and fuel additive. Contamination of the environment with DCA results from accidental spills and poor handling. To date, several bacterial isolates, capable of utilizing this...

Author(s): Algasan Govender and Balakrishna Pillay

September 2011

Biochemical activities of 1,2-dichloroethane (DCA) degrading bacteria

  One of the most widely produced industrial solvents is 1,2-dichloroethane (DCA), a known carcinogen, toxic to both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Annual production in the United States, Japan and Europe alone are in excess of thirteen thousand metric tons. Entry into the environment is mainly due to poor handling, accidental spillages and illegal dumping. Five indigenous DCA degrading bacterial isolates...

Author(s): A. Govender and B. Pillay

September 2011

Interaction between genotype and climates for Holstein milk production traits in Iran

  This study was designed to investigate the interaction between genotype and climate for milk and fat production traits of Iranian Holstein dairy herds. Milk and fat production data were grouped in 5 climates, on the basis of Extended De Martonne method. (Co)Variance components and genetic parameters of first lactation records from 514 herds were estimated by DFREML procedure. Estimation of genetic parameters...

Author(s): Savar Sofla, S., Taheri Dezfuli, B. and  Mirzaei, F.

September 2011

Arabidopsis thaliana VDAC2 involvement in salt stress response pathway

  Soil salinity seriously affects plants distribution and yield, while salt stress induces SOS genes, and voltage-dependent anion channels (VDAC) and a mitochondrial porin, are induced too. In this paper, phenotypes of AtVDAC2 transgenic lines and wild type (RLD) were analyzed. It was found that AtVDAC2 over-expressing transgenic plants were more sensitive to NaCl, and produced more...

Author(s):   Wen Guo-qin, Cai Liang, LIU Zhen, Li De-kuan, Luo Qin, Li Xu-feng, Wan Jian-mei, Yang Yi

September 2011

Efficacy of micro algae and cyanobacteria as a live feed for juveniles of shrimp Penaeus monodon

  Growth performance and survival of giant tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon fed with five different micro algal diets as a live feed, was evaluated under laboratory condition. The experimental design consisted of feeding the juvenile with micro algal diets and cyanobacterial diets at the same concentrations. Fresh biomass...

Author(s): Natesan Sivakumar, Muthuraman Sundararaman and Gopal Selvakumar

September 2011

Photosynthetic efficiency and lipid accumulation are affected by the concentration of carbon in microalgae Micractinium pusillum Y-002

  A micro-algae strain was isolated from fresh tropical water in Hainan, China. By phylogenetic analysis with 18S rDNA, we identified it as Micractinium pusillumstrain Y-002. To study the relationships between nutrient and lipid accumulation of this strain, we cultured the organism either in complete TAP, SE, BG11 or HSM medium, or media deficient of nitrogen and iron, respectively. HSM media...

Author(s): Xiaodong Deng, Bo Gu, Xinwen Hu, Jianchun Guo and Xiaowen Fei,

September 2011

An efficient secretion of the protein fused to the AgfA signal sequence in Salmonella

  Signal sequence (SS) of surface or secreting proteins plays an important function for protein secretion in bacterial system. The SS of various proteins may mediate different level of protein excretion yield of the proteins. In order to examine the effect of SS types in protein secretion, signal sequences of Bla (b–lactamase), AgfA (thin aggregative fimbriae A), StfA...

Author(s):   Department of Microbiology, College of Natural Sciences, Pusan National University, Busan -, South Korea. Division of Applied Life Sciences (BK-EBNCRC), Graduate School of Gyeongsang National University, Jinju -, Korea. Department of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Gyeongnam National University of Science and Technology,  Chilam-dong, Jinju -, Korea. Department of Animal Resources Technology, Gyeongnam National University of Science and Technology,  Chilam-dong, Jinju, Gyeongnam, -, South Korea. College of Veterinary Medicine, Chonbuk National University, Chon-ju -, South Korea. Swine Science and Technology Center, Gyeongnam National University of Science and Technology, Chilam-dong, Jinju, Gyeongnam, -, South Korea.

September 2011

The characteristics of biomass production, lipid accumulation and chlorophyll biosynthesis of Chlorella vulgaris under mixotrophic cultivation

  The main objective of this study was to investigate the behaviors of Chlorella vulgaris for biomass production, lipid accumulation and chlorophyll biosynthesis under mixotrophic cultivation. The obtained results show that mixotrophism might be a competitive pattern for the culture of C. vulgaris on a large scale based on the achieved maximum biomass and volumetric productivities of...

Author(s): Weibao Kong,, Hao Song, Yuntao Cao, Hong Yang, Shaofeng Hua and Chungu Xia,

September 2011

Acidic xylanase II from Aspergillus usamii: Efficient expression in Pichia pastoris and mutational analysis

  The xyn II cDNA encoding the Xylanase II (Xyn II) of Aspergillus usamii E001 was cloned into the pPIC9K vector and expressed in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris under the control of the alcohol oxidase I gene promoter and secreted via the α-mating factor leader of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In shake-flask culture induced with methanol, the supernatant from a 96...

Author(s): Chenyan Zhou, Yongtao Wang, Zhenhua Liu, Guanhua Fu, Duan Li, Weiyun Guo, Huigen Feng and Wu Wang

September 2011

Changes in aromatic compounds of cabernet sauvignon wines during ageing in stainless steel tanks

  The influence of age on the volatile composition of cabernet sauvignon red wines, aged in stainless steel tanks during different years was studied. For this purpose, the evolution of volatile compounds: alcohols, esters, fatty acids, aldehydes and ketones, of the four wines were determined using headspace solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) and gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS)....

Author(s): Jiangfei Meng, Yulin Fang, Jinshan Gao, Ang Zhang, Jinchuan Liu, Zhijun Guo, Zhenwen Zhang, and Hua Li,

September 2011

Optimized enzymatic hydrolysis and pulsed electric field treatment for production of antioxidant peptides from egg white protein

  Egg white protein powder was hydrolyzed by alcalase to produce antioxidant peptides, which were prepared under optimal enzymatic parameters that were obtained from the preliminary one-factor-at-a-time test and response surface methodology (RSM). Thereafter, the hydrolysates were sequentially fractionated by ultra filtration membranes in cut-off molecular weight (MW) of 30, 10 and 1 kDa and tested in terms of...

Author(s): SongYi Lin, Yang Guo , JingBo Liu, Qi You, YongGuang Yin and Sheng Cheng,

September 2011

Antioxidant activities of seed extracts from Dalbergia odorifera T. Chen

  The heartwood or root of Dalbergia odorifera T. Chen is an important traditional Chinese medicine. Antioxidant activities of seed extracts from D. odorifera T. Chenwere first investigated in this study. Ethanolic extracts were suspended in distilled water and partitioned successively with petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, n-butanol (n-BuOH) and water,...

Author(s): Zheng Lianhe†,  Wang Li ,†, Huang Xing  and Chen  Zhengxing,   †These authors contributed equally to this work.

September 2011

Changes of biochemical and sensory characteristics in the musculus longissimus dorsi of the fallow deer in the early phase post-mortem and during maturation

  Our researches encompassed determination of biochemical, technological and sensory characteristics in the muscle of the fallow deer (Cervus [Dama] dama L.) in the early phase post-mortem and during maturation. In the early phase post-mortem, pH, glycogen, total amount of pigments (TP), plasticity and water-binding capability (WBC) were determined. During maturation, the following changes were followed:...

Author(s): Dragan Tešanović, Bojana Kalenjuk, Dušanka Tešanović, ÄorÄ‘e Psodorov, Zoran Ristić and Vladimir Marković

September 2011

A comparative evaluation of rehydration and cup-loading sample application for modified two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of human serum proteins using immobilized pH gradient

  Proteomics is a powerful technique to study proteomes extracted from biological sources. Proteome analysis classically is based on two-dimensional electrophoresis (2D-E) for protein separation and mass spectrometry (MS) for the protein identification. The serum protein analysis is a useful diagnosis that can be used as an indicator of the physiological or clinical status of a patient. One of the central and...

Author(s): Ali Mostafaie, Kheirollah Yari and Sara Kiani

September 2011

Evaluation of larvicidal activity of the essential oils of plants species from Brazil against Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae)

  Essential oils obtained from the leaves of Myrcia ovata Cambess., Psidium guajava L., Spondias purpurea L. and Plectranthus amboinicus (Lour.) Spreng. were gotten by hydrodistillation, analyzed by GC-MS and GC, and tested against third-instar Aedes aegypti larvae. The essential oils exhibited significant larvicidal activity with LC50 values ranging from 24.7...

Author(s): Michele A. A. Lima, Francisco Fábio M. de Oliveira, Geovany A. Gomes, Patrícia L. Lavor, Gilvandete M. P. Santiago, Aparecida T. Nagao-Dias, Ângela M. C. Arriaga, Telma L. G. Lemos and Mário Geraldo de Carvalho

September 2011

Comparison between in vitro and in vivo antibacterial activity of Curcuma zedoaria from Malaysia

  The antimicrobial activity of the extracts of Curcuma zedoaria from Malaysia was compared using in vitro and in vivo systems. The comparison was performed against four bacterial strains including two gram negative strains (Escherichia coliand Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and two gram positive strains (Bacillus cereus andStaphylococcus aureus) using the agar well diffusion...

Author(s): B. Banisalam, W. Sani, K. Philip, H. Imdadul and A. Khorasani

September 2011

Histopathological changes and metabolic gene polymorphism in experimental rats exposed to aramite

  A total of 40 experimental rats (Rattus norvegicus) were divided into three groups: 10 rats for G1 (normal rats), 15 rats for G2 [rats that were exposed to aramite with daily intake of food for 90 days (5 g aramite/1 kg of pellet diet)] and 15 rats for G3 [rats that were exposed to aramite with daily intake of water for 90 days (5 g aramite dissolved in 1 L tap water)]. The result showed that the rats...

Author(s): Majeed Hussein Al-Sarry and Khitam Jassim Al-Karishy

September 2011

Water and nitrogen distribution in uncropped ridge-tilled soil under different ridge width

  Nitrate leaching to ground and surface water is an increasing concern in agriculture. A ridge-tillage configuration, with placement of nitrate nitrogen (NO3--N) or its source in the elevated portion of the ridge, can potentially isolate fertilizer from downward water flow and minimize nitrate leaching. In the experiment, the simultaneous distribution of water, nitrate, and ammonium under three ridge widths...

Author(s): Xiaoli Chen,, Xining Zhao , Pute Wu ,, Zikui Wang, Fengyun Zhang, and Yongyong Zhang

September 2011

Purification and partial characterization of a thermostable alkaline protease from Bacillus licheniformis LHSB-05 isolated from hot spring

  An alkaline protease produced from Bacillus licheniformis LHSB-05 isolated from Nigerian hot spring was purified in a 2-step procedure by ammonium sulphate precipitation and Sephacryl S-300 gel filtration chromatography. The enzyme was purified 13.4-fold with a yield of 6.6%. The molecular weight of the protease was 16 kDa on SDS-PAGE. The purified protease had optimum temperature of 50°C. The...

Author(s): Folasade M. Olajuyigbe and Ayodele O. Kolawole

September 2011

Kinetin protects against lipid peroxidation and improves antioxidant status in cultured astrocytes and mouse brain exposed to D-galactose

  The aim of this study was to evaluate the neuroprotective effects of kinetin (Kn) on oxidative damage induced by D-galactose (D-gal). In vitro, cultured astrocytes were distributed equally in different culture flasks to serve as control, model, and test groups. They were incubated respectively with 0 μM (model group), 50, 100 or 200 μM Kn along with 15 mM D-gal for 24 and 72 h, but cells in the...

Author(s): Yumei Liu, Ziqiang Zhang and Xuefeng Yang

September 2011

Optimization of forsythoside extraction from Forsythia suspensa by Box-Behnken design

  The optimum conditions for the extraction of forsythoside from Forsythia suspensawere determined using response surface methodology. A Box-Behnken design was performed to evaluate the effects of ratio of water to raw material, extraction temperature and time on yield of forsythoside. Statistical analysis of results showed that, the linear and quadric terms of these three variables had significant...

Author(s):   The optimum conditions for the extraction of forsythoside from Forsythia suspensawere determined using response surface methodology. A Box-Behnken design was performed to evaluate the effects of ratio of water to raw material, extraction temperature and time on yield of forsythoside. Statistical analysis of results showed that, the linear and quadric terms of these three variables had significant effects, and evident interaction existing between extraction temperature and ratio of water to raw material was found to contribute to the response at a significant level. Furthermore, Box-Behnken design used for the analysis of treatment combinations gave a second-order polynomial regression model, which was in good agreement with experimental results, with R=. (P<.). The optimal conditions for the yield of forsythoside obtained using response surface methodology and canonical analysis were ratio of water to raw material of ., extraction temperature of .°C and extraction time of . h. Under the optimum conditions, the experimental value of .±.% was well in close agreement with value predicted by the model, thus indicating suitability of the model employed and the success of response surface methodology in optimizing the extraction conditions.   Key word: Forsythia suspense, Forsythoside, optimum conditions, response surface methodology, Box-Behnken design.  

September 2011

Additive effects of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and hypertension on inflammatory reaction

  Both obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) and hypertension are risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. New study showed that arteriosclerosis in OSAS patients with hypertension (HT) is much severe than those patients with only HT or only OSAS. We assume that inflammatory reaction is involved in the pathogenesis in aggravation of arteriosclerosis of OSAS patients with HT. Based on apnea hypopnea index...

Author(s): Zhi Liu, Yueqiao Xu, Qi Hua,Yanling Wang, Rongkun Liu and Zheng Yang

September 2011

Acaricidal effects of different plant parts extracts on two-spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae Koch)

  Extracts of different parts of 12 plant species were evaluated for their potential for acaricidal activity that could lead to the development of new and safe bio-acaricides. The crude methanol extracts of these plants were tested for their acaricidal activity against the two-spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae Koch in a bioassay under controlled conditions. All the extracts exhibited...

Author(s): Dürdane Yanar, Izzet KadıoÄŸlu and Ayhan Gökçe

September 2011

Prokaryotic expression and immunodot-blot detection of Taura syndrome virus capsid proteins VP2 and VP3

  Capsid protein genes vp2 and vp3 of Taura syndrome virus (TSV) were cloned into pet-16b-1 and pGEX-4t-3 expression vector respectively, and transformed intoEscherichia coli BL21 or DH5α for protein expression and purification. After induction with IPTG, recombinant VP2 (rVP2) and recombinant VP3 (rVP3) were produced in E. coli, purified by SDS-PAGE and used to immunize Balb/c mice...

Author(s): Qian Yang, Yousheng Jiang, Hongxu Xu, Yan Chen, Lin Wang and Liqun Lu,

September 2011

Analysis of sarcoplamic proteins in natural populations of mountain trout (Salmo trutta macrostigma Dumeril, 1858) with SDS-PAGE

  Molecular weights and band counts of sarcoplasmic proteins in four populations of Salmo trutta macrostigma living in Mediterranean region of Turkey were analyzed with sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) method and densitometric analysis. 13, 17, 14 and 15 sarcoplasmic protein bands were obtained, respectively from EÅŸen Stream (I), Aksu Stream (II), Alara Stream (III) and...

Author(s): Orhan Demir, Ali Günlü, Fahrettin Kucuk, Ä°skender Gulle and Erkan Gumus

September 2011

Effect of sieve size on chemical composition and functional properties of canola meal (Brasscia napus) protein fractions as fishmeal replacement

  Canola meal (CM) use in animal nutrition is limited due to the inclusion of various antinutritional factors (ANF). This study aimed to evaluate the effect of sieving on nutrient and ANF contents of CM. Five sieves with mesh size (diameter) of 16, 18, 20, 30 and 40 were used in this regard. With an increase in the mesh size, the recovery percentage significantly decreased (73.7 vs. 18.3), while crude protein...

Author(s): Omid Safari, Mehrdad Farhangi, Chris G. Carter, Bagher Yakhchali and Parvin Shawrang

September 2011

Relative in vitro effectiveness of several gonadal steroids on oocyte maturation in freshwater teleost Barilius vagra

  The potency of various estrogens, androgens and progestogens at different concentrations and incubation periods on inducing final oocyte maturation in vitrowas investigated. At the highest concentration (1000 ng/ml), all of the C21 steroids tested, progesterone (P4), 17α-hydroxyprogesteron (17-OHP), 17α,20ß-dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one (17, 20ßP), as well as C19 steroids,...

Author(s): Amina Zuberi, Muhammad Naeem and Samina Jalali

September 2011

Estimating the population size of Astacus leptodactylus (Decapoda: Astacidae) by mark-recapture technique in EÄŸirdir lake, Turkey

  The mark-recapture technique for closed populations was employed to estimate the population size and density of Astacus leptodactylus during August and September, 2005 by using minnow traps of 34 mm mesh size in EÄŸirdir Lake. A total of 600 minnow traps were set randomly along the shoreline at approximately 3, 5 and 7 m depth. The nets were set in the late afternoon to each study depths, and were...

Author(s): Yildiz Bolat, Yavuz Mazlum, Aydin Demirci and Habil UÄŸur Koca

September 2011

Enhanced citric acid production by Aspergillus niger EB-3 mutant using an inert solid support in molasses medium

  Aspergillus niger EB-3 was used to enhance citric acid production through optimization of nutritional parameters using banana stalk as carrier/inert support in solid state fermentation (SSF) of sugarcane molasses. The effects of moisture level, nitrogen sources, incubation time, metabolic inhibitors and metal complexing chemicals were studied on citric acid production in SSF. A. niger EB-3...

Author(s): Sadia Javed, Muhammad Asgher, Munir A. Sheikh, Haq Nawaz and Amer Jamil

September 2011

Artificial neural network analysis of ultrasound image for the estimation of intramuscular fat content in lamb muscle

  The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of ultrasound image analysis of sections of the longissimus dorsi muscle in lambs using artificial neural networks to estimate intramuscular fat content. Ultrasound images of the musculus longissimus dorsi cross-sections on the right flank behind the last rib were collected from 169 live lambs of both sexes prior to slaughter at the age of...

Author(s): Piotr Åšlósarz, Marek Stanisz, Piotr Boniecki, Andrzej Przybylak, Dariusz Lisiak and Agnieszka Ludwiczak

September 2011

Cell cycle regulation of human foreskin fibroblasts

  Therapeutic cloning has broad application prospects in the medical field. However, interspecies cloning efficiency is very low. It is generally believed that G0/G1 stages of cell cycle are more beneficial to cell reprogramming of cloning. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of serum starvation, contact inhibition and 2-methoxyestradiol (2-ME) treatment on cell-cycle synchronization in...

Author(s): Wang Ling-yun, Li Lu, Cheng Gong and Zhou Huan-min