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: 27 September 2012; 11(78)

September 2012

Synthetic seeds: A review in agriculture and forestry

Production of synthetic seeds has unraveled new vistas in in vitro plant propagation technology, because it offers many useful advantages on a commercial scale for the propagation of a variety of crop plants. These tools provide methods for production of synthetic seeds for conversion into plantlets under in vitro and in vivo conditions. This technology is useful for multiplying and...

Author(s): M. Chandrasekhara Reddy, K. Sri Rama Murthy and T. Pullaiah

September 2012

DNA species surveillance: Monitoring bushmeat poaching and trading in Kenya using partial cytochrome b gene

DNA species identification has applications in such areas as forensic science, systematics, conservation genetics and agriculture. One key anthropogenic activity threatening large wildlife fauna is illegal exploitation. In Kenya, species identification of raw and processed meat products remains a constraint to effective enforcement of illegal trade in game meat (bushmeat) and products. We tested the reliability of...

Author(s): Kimwele C. N., Karisa B. K., Stokes M., Junga J. O., Hanotte O., Skilton R. A. and McElroy D.

September 2012

Allelic and genotypic frequencies of ASIP and MC1R genes in four West African sheep populations

In West Africa, consumers pay a major attention on the coat colour of the sheep due to religious and cultural reasons. White coated individuals reach selling prices up to three-fold higher than black coated sheep. The aim of this study was to ascertain the genotypic and allelic frequencies of MC1R and ASIP genes in order to assesspossible implementation of breeding programmes focusing...

Author(s): A. Traoré, L.J. Royo, A. Kaboré, L. Pérez-Pardal, I. Álvarez, I. Fernández, L. Sawadogo,  H. H. Tamboura and F. Goyache

September 2012

Molecular investigation between four Himalayan pines of India through random amplified polymorphic DNA markers

Studies were undertaken to identify genetic relationship in four different species ofPinus L. through randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. A total of 500 DNA fragments ranging from 234 to 1353 bp were amplified using 5 selected primers. The number of amplification products produced by a primer ranged from as low as 4 to a maximum of 13, with an average of 8 bands per primer. The cluster analysis...

Author(s): Deepika Srivastava, Priyanka Giri, Swati Gupta and H. S. Ginwal

September 2012

The effects of the pine sac beetle (Thaumetopoea pityocampa Schiff.) on total phenolic compounds and photosynthetic pigment contents in pine species (Pinus nigra L. and Pinus brutia Ten.)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of the pine sac beetle (Thaumetopoea pityocampa Schiff.) on the pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and carotenoids) and total phenolic compounds in the Pinus nigra L. and Pinus brutia Ten. spread throughout the forest areas in the Boyabat District of the Sinop Province. It was found that chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and carotenoids...

Author(s): Aysel SIVACI, Emire ELMAS,  Nevin BOZKURT and Sevcan DUMAN

September 2012

Xanthomonads and other yellow-pigmented Xanthomonas-like bacteria associated with tomato seeds in Tanzania

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) seeds habour unique bacterial community that can be pathogenic or beneficial to their host. Xanthomonas causing bacterial leaf spot (BLSX) on tomato and other yellow-pigmented xanthomonads-like bacteria (XLB) that closely resemble BLSX were obtained from tomato seeds collected from Northern, Central and Southern highland regions of Tanzania. A total of 73 strains were...

Author(s): E. R. Mbega, E. G. Wulff, R. B. Mabagala, J. Adriko, O. S. Lund and C. N. Mortensen

September 2012

Response of Salix alba L. to heavy metals and diesel fuel contamination

Pot experiment was set in a greenhouse in order to determine the physiological response of Salix alba grown on soil co-contaminated with individual and combination of Cd, Ni, Pb-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and diesel fuel treatments. EDTA enhanced the uptake of Cd and Ni, whereas the antagonism between Cd, Ni and Pb led to reduced accumulation of Pb. Presence of 5 g/kg of diesel fuel in soil...

Author(s): Borišev Milan, Pajević Slobodanka, Nikolić Nataša, Krstić Borivoj, Župunski Milan, Kebert Marko, Pilipović Andrej and Orlović Saša

September 2012

Efficient utilization of xylanase and lipase producing thermophilic marine actinomycetes (Streptomyces albus and Streptomyces hygroscopicus) in the production of ecofriendly alternative energy from waste

The marine actinomycetes strain MAC 6 and MAC 14 were used in the production of xylanase and lipase enzyme using wheat bran as an inducer with oats, soy meal and ground nut oil cake. Two strains showed higher xylanase and lipase activity at pH 10.0 and 50°C among 30 actinomycetes screened from sediments of Tiruchendhur coastal areas of Tamil Nadu. The enzymes were produced by solid state fermentation by using 70% of...

Author(s): B. Sathya Priya, T. Stalin and K. Selvam

September 2012

Extraction, structural and physical characterization of type I collagen from the outer skin of Sepiella inermis (Orbigny, 1848)

The acid soluble collagen (ASC) and pepsin soluble collagen (PSC) were extracted from the outer skin of Sepiella inermis and further characterized partially.  The yield of ASC was low (0.58% on dry weight basis); whereas the yield of PSC was comparatively more (16.23% on dry weight basis).  The protein content in ASC and PSC was calculated as 20.24 and 69.56%, respectively (on dry weight...

Author(s): Vairamani Shanmugam, Pasiyappazham Ramasamy, Namasivayam Subhapradha, Sadhasivan Sudharsan, Palaniappan Seedevi, Meivelu Moovendhan, Jayalakshmi Krishnamoorthy, Annaian Shanmugam and Alagiri Srinivasan

September 2012

Microbiological, physicochemical properties and biogenic amine contents of the strained yoghurts from Turkish local markets

Thirty three strained yoghurt samples were collected from local open markets in different provinces of Turkey (Afyon [AF], Aydın [AY], Burdur [B], Isparta [I] and MuÄŸla [M]). Physicochemical and microbiological properties, as well as biogenic aminecontent, were examined in each of the samples. The dry matter (17.90 to 26.44%), fat (5.51 to 10.44%), ash (0.65 to 1.48%), lactic acid (1.69 to...

Author(s): Vesile Funda Sömer and Gülden BaÅŸyiÄŸit Kılıç

September 2012

Chemical composition and volatile compounds in the artisanal fermentation of mezcal in Oaxaca, Mexico

The differences among the several varieties of mezcal produced in Mexico, besides the Agave species, consist essentially in the individuality of the traditional methods used in the elaboration or fermentation process. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the artisanal fermentation processes and to make clear the factors and management practices that have an influence on the chemical composition. Two mezcal...

Author(s): Araceli Minerva Vera Guzmán, Mercedes Guadalupe López and José Luis Chávez-Servia

September 2012

Occurrence of mycotoxins and associated mycoflora in peanut cake product (kulikuli) marketed in Benin

The detection of spoilage fungi and mycotoxins contamination in peanut cake product, popularly called ‘‘kulikuli’’ was investigated in this study. Forty five major markets were sampled and peanut cake products were analyzed for aflatoxins and ochratoxin A contaminations, and associated mycoflora. Total coliform count ranged between 1.6 × 101 and 14.0 × 102 CFU g-1, while the...

Author(s): Euloge S. Adjou, Boniface Yehouenou, Codjo M. Sossou, Mohamed M. Soumanouand Comlan A. de Souza

September 2012

Purification and characterization of amine oxidase from Vigna mungo L. seedlings

Amine oxidases (AO) are a group of enzymes that catalyze oxidative deamination of various amines and thus are of potential use in analytical applications. Amine oxidase from five-day-old Vigna mungo L. seedlings (VAO) was purified using ammonium sulfate fractionation and Q-Sepharose chromatography to 544 purification folds with65% yield. VAO apparently is a homodimer with denatured molecular weight of 73 kDa....

Author(s): Sunisa Poonpipatgul,, Pramvadee Y. Wongsaengchantra, Suchat Udomsopagit and Jirundon Yuvaniyama,

September 2012

Mechanism of action of hydrogen peroxide in wheat thermotolerance - interaction between antioxidant isoenzymes, proline and cell membrane

Terminal heat stress causes an array of physiological, biochemical and morphological changes in plants, which affect plant growth and development. It has very severe effect on the pollen viability and seed setting in wheat. In the present investigation, an altered expression of H2O2 (0.9 µg/g in C-306 and 0.75 µg/g in HD2329) was observed with the highest accumulation at seed...

Author(s): Ranjeet Ranjan Kumar, Sushil Kumar Sharma, Kritika A. Gadpayle, Khushboo Singh, Sivaranjani R., Suneha Goswami and Raj D. Rai  

September 2012

Antioxidant activities and flavonoid contents of selected plants belonging to Family Loranthaceae

The methanolic extract of three parasitic plants belonging to family Loranthaceae (Plicosepalus acacia, Plicosepalus curviflorus and Phragmanthera austro arabica) were investigated for their antioxidant activity. The free radical and nitrogen oxide scavenging abilities were evaluated using diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and Griess reagent was used to determine the total antioxidant activity. The three...

Author(s): Faida H. Bamane, Jihan M. Badr and Omayma Abdel Razek M. Amin

September 2012

Estimation of macro and micro nutrients in some important medicinal plants of Soon Valley, District Khushab, Pakistan

Plants are potential source of therapeutic values in different traditional medicine systems of the world. Ethnomedicinal uses of 10 medicinal plants (MPs) of soon valley (Khushab) of Pakistan were documented and explored for trace (Zn, Cu, Cr, Ni, Co, Cd, Pb, Mn and Fe) and major (K, Na, Ca and Mg) elemental composition by atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). Results depicted that Zn was 15.36 ppm...

Author(s): Abdul Ghani, Zulfaqar Ali, Muhammad Ishtiaq, Mehwish Maqbool and Saira Parveen

September 2012

Methane yield and microscopic observation as monitoring biofilm behaviour parameters, during start up phase of anaerobic inverse fluidized bed reactor

Anaerobic biofilm behavior on polyethylene and Extendosphere™ supports was evaluated during start-up of an inverse fluidized bed reactor using methane yield and microscopic observation as parameter monitoring techniques. Two anaerobic inverse fluidized bed reactors were used, one filled with triturated polyethylene as solid carrier material (diameter = 380 mm, density = 926 kg/m3) and the other with...

Author(s): Eric Houbron, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, Alejandro Zepeda and Elena Rustrian

September 2012

Cloning and characterization of the immunodominant membrane protein of mulberry yellow dwarf phytoplasma

Mulberry yellow dwarf (MYD) disease is a quarantine disease in China and the causal agent is a phytoplasma. The antigenic membrane protein (Amp) of the ‘‘CandidatusPhytoplasma asteris’’ was hypothesized to play an important role in insect transmission specificity. Here, we firstly cloned and characterized Amp gene from the ‘‘Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris’’,...

Author(s): Quanyou Lu, and Zhisong Xia,

September 2012

Antifungal activity of naphthothiazoles derived from Lawsone (Lawsonia inermis)

A series of Naphtho [2,3-d] thiazole-4, 9-diones was prepared by the condensation of bromolawsone with thiosemicarbazones derived from the aldehydes and ketones in dry dimethyl formamide (DMF). The products are also obtained by the cyclization of the intermediate 2-chlorobenzaldehyde thiosemicarbazone of 1,4-napthoquinone in ethanol containing K2CO3 obtained from 2,3-dichloro naphthoquinone. These compounds showed...

Author(s): G. Brahmeshwari, M. Surekha and Kiran Saini

September 2012

Estimation of genetic parameters for preweaning and postweaning growth traits in the Gudali beef cattle using multiple trait derivative free restricted maximum likelihood

Records on pedigree information and growth traits of Gudali beef calves were obtained from the Institute of Agricultural Research for Development, Cameroon. Data were edited to have complete information on calf, sire and dam identity, sex, dates and season of birth, herd and weights at birth (BWT), 6 months (6 MWT), weaning (WWT), 12 months (12 MWT), yearling (YWT), 18 months (18 MWT), 24 months (24 MWT) and 36 months...

Author(s): Ndofor-Foleng, H. M., Ebangi, A. L., Agu, C. I. and Okenyi, N.