January 2009

Influence of arbuscular mycorrhizal hyphal length on simulation of P influx with the mechanistic model

The objective of the present investigation was to quantify the total hyphal length of maize and groundnut and its influence on simulation of P influx. The field experiments were carried out with three P levels i.e., P - 0 (no P), P - 50 (50 mg P kg-1 soil) and P - 400 (400 mg P kg-1 soil). Test crops were maize and groundnut. Four harvests were made to cover whole growing season and at each harvest...

Author(s): Amitava Rakshit and  Pratapbhanu S. Bhadoria

January 2009

Antibacterial activity of Curculigo orchioides rhizome extract on pathogenic bacteria

Curculigo orchioides rhizome extracts were evaluated for antibacterial activity against pathogenic strains of Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus andStaphylococcus epidermidis) and Gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Salmonella typhimurium) bacteria. Because the steam distilled preparation was found to be the most active amongst the different extracts, its antibacterial...

Author(s): K. S. Nagesh and C. Shanthamma

January 2009

Studies on exopolysaccharide and indole acetic acid production by Rhizobium strains from Indigofera

Rhizobium strains were isolated from root nodules of five species of Indigoferaviz., Indigofera trita, Indigofera linnaei, Indigofera astragalina, Indigofera parviflora and Indigofera viscosa on Yeast Extract Mannitol Agar (YEMA) medium. The strains were examined for production of acid, exopolysaccharide (EPS) and indole acetic acid (IAA) by utilizing 10 different carbon sources....

Author(s): B. Saritha Kumari, M. Raghu Ram and K. V. Mallaiah

January 2009

Sachet water phenomenon in Nigeria: Assessment of the potential health impacts

Many years of neglect by government and inadequate investment in public infrastructure has left the public drinking water supply in Nigeria in an unreliable state. The society has therefore taken to several adaptive measures of alleviating this stress. One of these is dependence on sachet water, popularly referred to as ‘pure water’. Although easy to serve and the price is affordable, complaints abound on...

Author(s): Dada, A.C

January 2009

Molecular investigation of Streptococcus agalactiae isolates from environmental samples and fish specimens during a massive fish kill in Kuwait Bay

This study was undertaken to identify and characterize bacterial isolates obtained simultaneously from dead fish samples during a massive fish kill in Kuwait Bay and sewage water samples running into Kuwait Bay, using conventional and molecular techniques. Of the 71 bacterial isolates studied, 66 isolates were recovered from seven different fish species and five isolates were isolated from sewage samples. The...

Author(s): Qasem A. Jafar, Al-Zinki Sameer , Al-Mouqati Salwa, Al-Amad Samee, Al-Marzouk Ahmed and Al-Sharifi Faisal

January 2009

Evidence for probiotic potential of a capsular-producing Streptococcus thermophilus CHCC 3534 strain

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the probiotic potential of a capsulated Streptococcus thermophilus CHCC 3534 strain. The strain proved to tolerate 0.4% oxgall and was sufficiently resistant to pH as low as 2.5 for 3 h of exposure. The strain demonstrated high adherence to human intestinal mucus, and showed a unique resistance to different antibiotics. Crude extracts of S....

Author(s): Rowaida K. Khali