African Journal of
Biotechnology

  • Abbreviation: Afr. J. Biotechnol.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1684-5315
  • DOI: 10.5897/AJB
  • Start Year: 2002
  • Published Articles: 12479

Table of Content: 9 April, 2014; 13(15)

April 2014

Status and prospects for improving yam seed systems using temporary immersion bioreactors

Yam production is constrained by scarcity of clean seed, pests, diseases and low soil fertility in the informal seed system, which is still operational, causing up to 90% yield losses. Although meristem culture can be effective for producing healthy seed yam, its use is limited by slow rate of regeneration and propagation in conventional tissue cultures. In most crops tested, temporary immersion bioreactor systems...

Author(s): M. O. Balogun, N. Maroya and R. Asiedu

April 2014

Coupled biochemical genetic and karyomorphological analyses for taxonomic classification - A case study of Schizothorax species complex (Teleostei: Cyprinidae)

Biochemical genetic and karyomorphological studies were evaluated for taxonomic importance. Five Schizothorax species namely: Schizothorax niger, Schizothorax curvifrons, Schizothorax esocinus, Schizothorax labiatus and Schizothorax plagiostomus were studied in this experiment as a model for serum proteins and chromosomal analysis. Serum protein band patterns of Schizothorax species complex were studied by sodium...

Author(s): F. A. Ganai, S. Wani, S. Ahmad, A. R. Yousuf and N. K. Tripathi

April 2014

Utilization of chitinolytic bacterial isolates to control anthracnose of cocoa leaf caused by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides

Colletotrichum spp. are causal agents of anthracnose in many plant species. Biological control of Colletotrichum spp. utilizing bacterial isolates and fungi has been reported. However, chitinolytic bacterial isolate utilization to control anthracnose of cocoa leaf has not seemingly been studied yet. In this study, we used chitinolytic bacterial isolates to reduce anthracnose severity and incidence caused...

Author(s): Dwi Suryanto, Sri Wahyuni, Edy Batara Mulya Siregar and Erman Munir

April 2014

Addition of grape extracts can enhance quality of natural seasonings by changing their physicochemical properties

  The present study was aimed to evaluate the application of different concentrations of grape extract on the physicochemical properties of natural seasonings. The results show that increase in concentration of grape extract (0 to 20%) significantly reduced the lightness (34.75 to 28.3) and yellowness (15.33 to 10.64), however increased the redness (0.98 to 1.5) values of natural seasonings. The mineral...

Author(s): Il-Doo Kim, Sanjeev Kumar Dhungana, Piao Mei Zi, Jung-Won Lee, Hye-Kyung Moon Hwa-Seok Hwang and Dong-Hyun Shin

April 2014

Effect of various growth regulators on growth of yam (Dioscorea trifida L.) in vitro shoot tips

In this work, we observed the effect of hormonal content of four culture media on the growth of Dioscorea trifida shoot tips. Medium S included 0.6 µM 6-benzylaminopurine, 1.07 µM naphthalene acetic acid, and 0.23 µM gibberellic acid (GA3), medium EBR 0.1 µM 24-Epibrassinolide and 0.23 µM GA3, medium T 25 μM meta-topolin and 0.23 µM GA3 and medium ZR 25 μM zeatin riboside and...

Author(s): Isabelle Engelmann-Sylvestre and Florent Engelmann

April 2014

Shooting responses of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) varieties in liquid and solid media

Potato seeds degenerate over time due to systemic diseases (viruses and bacteria wilt), whose detections are mostly evident during later stages of epidemiology. Potato varieties released by Institute of Agricultural Research for Development (IRAD) Bambui recorded a drop in yields of approximately 50% within 20 years indicating that the varieties had started degenerating and thus required cleaning. A study was conducted...

Author(s): M. A. Tita, Fotso, D. K. Njualem, C. A. Nwaka and D. H. Mbouobda

April 2014

Assessment of Phaseolus vulgaris L and Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp leaves for antifungal metabolites against two bean fungal pathogens Colletotricum lindemuthianum and Phaeoisariopsis griseola

The antifungal potential of hydro-ethanolic leaf extracts of bean varieties was analyzed by bioautography, assessing the contribution of defense molecules of proteic nature against two bean fungal pathogens Colletotricum lindemuthianum and Phaeoisariopsis griseola, also, the Rf values and relative activities of separated compounds were determined; these compounds were in a range of...

Author(s): Diana Alexandra Noreña-Ramírez, Oscar Julián Velásquez-Ballesteros, Elizabeth Murillo-Perea, Jonh Jairo Méndez-Arteaga, José Fernando Solanilla-Duque and Walter Murillo-Arango

April 2014

Increasing the extraction efficiency of algal lipid for biodiesel production: Novel application of algal viruses

Various studies have been conducted recently using microalgal system for the production of algal lipid for biodiesel production. This study aimed at increasing the extraction efficiency of algal lipid from Chlorella sp. by the application of Chlorella viruses. The calorific value of lipid from Chlorella sp. has been reported to be higher than that of fresh water microalgae, making it a potential candidate to be used as...

Author(s): Swapnil G. Sanmukh, Krishna Khairnar, Rajshree H. Chandekar and Waman N. Paunikar

April 2014

Protective effect of Allium sativa extract against carbon tetrachloride- induced hepatic oxidative stress and hyperlipidemia in rats

Pathogenesis of several chronic liver diseases has been attributed to overwhelmed antioxidant protective system against reactive oxygen species (ROS). The present study ascertained the capacity of short-term administration of ethanolic extract of Allium sativa to neutralize ROS and ameliorate hyperlipidemia. Hyperlipidemia was induced in rats by single intra-peritoneal injection of CCl4 (dosage = 2.0 mL/kg), followed by...

Author(s): Chikezie Paul Chidoka and Uwakwe Augustine Amadikwa

April 2014

Antiproliferative activity of cytotoxic tuber lectins from Solanum tuberosum against experimentally induced Ehrlich ascites carcinoma in mice

Cytotoxicity of tuber lectins from two potato cultivars was assessed and their anti-tumor potential against experimentally induced Ehrlich ascites carcinoma in Swiss albino mice was evaluated. Twenty (20) kDa chitin-binding lectins from Solanum tuberosum tubers, STL-S and STL-D were purified through ion-exchange and affinity chromatographic methods, hemagglutinating activity and blood group specificity of the lectins...

Author(s): Imtiaj Hasan, Farhadul Islam, Yasuhiro Ozeki and Syed Rashel Kabir