July 2007
Efficiency of liquid culture systems over conventional micropropagation: A progress towards commercialization
The most common methods of micropropagation involve the proliferation of shoots via a semi solid system. While such semi solid systems have been moderately to highly successful in terms of multiplication yields, it has become increasingly important to improve productivity and reduce the time taken to multiply commercially important material. Micropropagation by conventional techniques is typically a labor intensive time...
July 2007
Effects of limited irrigation on yield and water use efficiency of two sequence-replaced winter wheat in Loess Plateau, China
The effects of irrigation on grain yield and water use efficiency was studied on two sequence replaced dryland winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars, Changwu 135 (CW, a new cultivar) and Pingliang 40 (PL, an old cultivar). Field experiments were carried out on Changwu country on Loess Plateau, China. Whereas the control plots were not irrigated at all, the treatment plots were irrigated three times,...
July 2007
Genotype dependent callus induction and shoot regeneration in sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.)
This study aims to observe the effect of genotype, hormone and culture conditions on sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) callus induction and indirect plant regeneration. Calli were obtained from hypocotyl and cotyledon explants of five different sunflower genotypes; Trakya 80, Trakya 129, Trakya 259, Trakya 2098 and Viniimk 8931, which are commercially important for Turkey. Seeds germinated on Murashige...
July 2007
Nitrogen effects on maize yield following groundnut in rotation on smallholder farms in sub-humid Zimbabwe
Rotating maize (Zea mays L.) with groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) has been proposed as a way to maintain soil fertility and prevent maize productivity declines in the smallholder cropping systems of sub-humid Zimbabwe. Field experiments with fertilizer-N on maize in rotation with groundnut were conducted at three locations with sandy typic Kandiustalf soils. The specific objectives were to (i)...
July 2007
Antimicrobial activity of Cassia alata
The antibacterial and antifungal activity of the aqueous and methanol extracts of Cassia alata leaves has been evaluated. The extracts exhibited more antifungal than antibacterial properties. Key words: Cassia alata, antifungal activity, antibacterial activity.
July 2007
Anthelmintic activity of the crude aqueous leaf extracts of Anogeissus leiocarpus in sheep
The safety and anthelmintic activity of the crude aqueous leaf extract of Anogeissus leiocarpus was investigated in sheep naturally infected with gastrointestinal nematodiasis using the feacal egg count reduction test and the controlled test. The results indicate that the extract had no significant (P > 0.05) effect on the vital parameters such as temperature, respiratory and pulse rates nor did...
July 2007
A chemotaxonomic approach to the alkane content of three species of Anthocleista Afzel. (Loganiaceae)
The chemotaxonomic significance of leaf wax n-alkanes was studied in three species ofAnthocleista Afzel. Identification of alkane components were determined by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography – mass spectrometry (GC-MS) data. In all, fourteen alkanes were identified, ranging from tetracosane (C24H50) to heptriacontane (C37H76). Tetracosane, pentacosane and heptriacontane were the...
July 2007
Phytochemical screening and antibacterial evaluation of stem bark of Mallotus philippinensis var. Tomentosus
Mallotus philippinensis var. Tomentosus is a medicinal plant, which was tested againstEscherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi and Bacillus subtilis. Phytochemi-cal screening of the stem bark of M. philippinensis indicates the presence of secondary metabolites. From the results obtained, eluted fractions of chloroform and...
July 2007
Molecular characterisation of a mycorrhizal inoculant that enhances Trifolium alexandrium resistance under water stress conditions
The occurrence of drought is an economically important problem in Morocco. The use of mycorrhizal technology offers a possibility to overcome this problem. A mycorrhizal fungal inoculum “Aoufous Complex” isolated in Morocco was shown to enhanceTrifolium alexandrium resistance in water deficit situation. The efficiency of this inoculum was confirmed in this study. In order to identify this...
July 2007
Removal of crude petroleum hydrocarbons by heterotrophic bacteria in soils amended with nitrogenous fertilizer plant effluents
Nitrogenous fertilizer (NPK) plant effluents from NAFCON were used in amending plots of land experimentally polluted with crude oil. Counts of heterotrophic bacteria (THBC) and fungi (TF), and of petroleum utilizing bacteria (PUB) and fungi (PUF) were monitored during an 8 weeks period. Counts obtained showed that NPK served as a good supplement for the growth of the petroleum degrading/utilizing bacteria in...
July 2007
Bioprospecting and characterization of poly-b-hydroxyalkanoate (PHAs) producing bacteria isolated from Colombian sugarcane producing areas
Bioprospecting for poly-b-hydroxyalkanoate (PHA)-accumulating micro-organisms was carried out in sugarcane growing areas of Colombia. They were isolated in unbalanced culture medium (high carbon/nitrogen ratio) with sucrose, fructose and glucose used as carbon source. PHAs producing bacteria were identified by staining with Sudan black and solubilising cellular components in sodium hypochlorite. A arbitrary...
July 2007
Antibacterial activities and toxicological potentials of crude ethanolic extracts of Euphorbia hirta
Leaves of Euphorbia hirta used in traditional medicine for the treatments of boils, wounds and control of diarrhoea and dysentery were extracted by maceration in ethanol. The agar diffusion method was used to determine the antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi and Bacillus subtilis at different...
July 2007
Antibacterial properties of Uvaria chamae, Congronema latifolium, Garcinia kola, Vemonia amygdalina and Aframomium melegueta
The antimicrobial efficacy of cold and hot water and ethanol extracts of Garcinia kola, Congronema latifolium, Aframomium melegueta, Vemonia amygdalina andUvaria chamae on Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhi, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Vibrio spp. were determined using well in agar diffusion technique. Cold and hot water extracts...
July 2007
Acute and chronic effects of organophosphate pesticides (Basudin) to amphibian tadpoles (Ptychadena bibroni)
Toxicity of basudin (an organophosphate pesticide) on the larval stages of the dominant amphibian; Ptychadena bibroni of the Niger Delta ecological zone of Nigeria was assessed using acute and chronic toxicity in the laboratory. Mortality and body glycogen levels were used as ecological endpoints. The American society of testing and material (ASTM) recommended semi-static renewal bioassay was...
July 2007
Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) requirements of Heterobranchus longifilis fingerlings
A feeding experiment was conducted to quantify the minimum dietary vitamin C requirement of Heterobranchus longifilis fingerlings. Fish were fed a basal diet with 42.5% crude protein for a conditioning period of 2 weeks. Following conditioning, fingerlings with initial mean weight, 2.3 ± 0.3 g were stocked as groups of 20 fingerlings into 30 litre tanks in a mini-flow through experimental...
July 2007
Colonization of exopolysaccharide-producing Paenibacillus polymyxa on peanut roots for enhancing resistance against crown rot disease
The effect of Paenibacillus polymyxa (syn. Bacillus polymyxa) which produces an exopolysaccharide (EPS) on control of crown rot disease caused by Apergillus nigerof peanut was investigated. In an in vitro assay, two strains of P. polymyxa (B5 and B6) were tested against A. niger. Both strains showed inhibitory effect against A. niger.Growth, protein and...
July 2007
Red blood cell morphology and plasma proteins electrophoresis of the European pond terrapin Emys orbicularis
The European pond terrapin (Emys orbicularis) is a turtle found in southern and central Europe, West Asia and North Africa. In this study, we used juvenile E. orbicularis(females of 4 - 5 years old) which was captured from the different area of the Mazandaran province in April 2006. Blood was collected from the dorsal sinus into EDTA-coated vacutainer tubes. Plasma proteins...
July 2007
A comparative analysis of existing oligonucleotides selection algorithms for microarray technology
In system biology, DNA microarray technology is an indispensable tool for the biological analysis involved at the level of the whole genome. Among the sophisticated analytical problems in microarray technology at the front and back ends, respectively, are the selection of optimal DNA oligonucleotides (henceforth oligos) and computational analysis of the genes expression data. A computational comparative...
July 2007
Ecology and diversity of Bacillus thuringiensis in soil environment
Bacillus thuringiensis populations ranged between 4.23 x 105, 6.52 x 105 cfu/g soil and consist of 11 types of isolates with 3 polymorphic, 7 spherical and 1 bipyramidal type of crystals. Polymorphic crystal containing isolates were further characterized. B. thuringiensis isolates were circular, white, flat and undulate or entire. These were gram-positive. These tolerated 5% NaCl and...
July 2007
Bio-activity of oils of Trigonella foenum-graecum and Pongamia pinnata
Different concentration of oils obtained from two plants species belonging to family Fabaceae i.e. Trigonella foenum-graecum and Pongamia pinnata were evaluated for their antifungal and antibacterial activity against Aspergillus niger, A. fumigatus, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa by MIC determination and dry-weight method. Both the oils showed high degree of antimycotic and antibacterial...
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