Characterization of microemulsions formulated from naturally and chemically extracted oils from Cocos nucifera Linne

Background: Oil derived from Cocos nucifera Linne (CNL) has been used in formulating creams; however, its use in formulation of microemulsion is not well documented in literature.Objective: Oils obtained from CNL were characterized, used in the formulation of microemulsions and were evaluated for their antimicrobial properties in comparison with Castor oil BP (CO) and commercially available coconut oil (CACO).Methodology: Oil from CNL was extracted by maceration in hot – water and petroleum ether to yield naturally extracted oil (NEO) and chemically extracted oil (CEO) respectively. The NEO and CEO were used in formulating microemulsions containing pre-determined ratios (3:7, 1:1, 9:1) of oil to surfactant mix (Smix) [containing polyethylene glycol: Tween 80® at ratio 2:1] Characterization of NEO, CEO and microemulsions were carried out using elemental constituents, rheology, physico-and phyto-chemical analysis, thermal stability and antimicrobial profiles as parameters. Statistical analysis was done using ANOVA at p<0.05Results: The NEO and CEO contained antraquinones and terpenoids, but were devoid of lead, copper, zinc, alkaloids, saponins, cardiac glycosides and flavonoids. Viscosity profiles were in the order CO>CEO>CACO>NEO. The microemulsions were in the size range 54.24±0.26-89.08±0.07 μm. Microemulsions of oil:Smix (3:7) were the most stable. Inhibition ranking was Candida sp.D25 (CEO:Smix>CACO: Smix>NEO: Smix>NEO>CO>CEO), Candida sp.D33 (CEO = CO>CACO: Smix=NEO>CEO:Smix=NEO:Smix), Staphylococcus sp.DS2 (NEO>CO>CACO:Smix>NEO: Smix>CEO: Smix=CEO) and Pseudomonas sp.DP8 (NEO:Smix>CO>CACO:Smix>CEO:Smix=NEO > CEO).Conclusion: Oil derived from CNL has good potentials as an excipient in the formulation of microemulsions and the method of oil extraction had a significant effect on the antimicrobial activities and on the microemulsions formulated using the oils. Keywords: Coconut oil, extraction method, castor oil, microemulsions, antimicrobial properties

The Influence of Phosphate Modified and Pregelatinized Plantain (Musa Paradisiaca, Family: Musaceae) Starches as Disintegrants In Paracetamol Tablet Formulations

Background: Starch is the commonest disintegrant used in tablet formulation. The use of starch is however limited by its poor functional properties of flow, compressibility and compatibility. Hence, starches are chemically, physically or enzymatically modified to improve the aforementioned properties.Objective: This study was aimed at investigating the disintegrant property of simultaneously phosphorylated and pregelatinized plantain starch (PPPS) obtained from Musa paradisiaca (Family: Musaceae) in directly compressed paracetamol tablet formulations in comparison with formulations containing natural plantain starch (PS) and sodium starch glycollate BP (SSG).Method: The extracted plantain starch was purified to yield PS. A portion of PS was simultaneously modified by phosphorylation in 50% v/v monosodium phosphate medium and pregelatinized in the same medium to yield PPPS. The powdered PPPS was characterized using density measurements and Kawakita equations before incorporation as a disintegrant in directly compressed paracetamol tablet formulations at concentrations of 10, 15, 20 and 25 %w/w in comparison with PS and SSG. The tablets were evaluated for their mechanical and release properties. Statistical data was carried out using ANOVA at a significance level of p-values < 0.05.Result: The yield of PS was 57.6 % w/w. The bulk and tapped densities are of the order PPPS (0.61±0.05 and 0.71±0.13) > PS (0.47±0.05 and 0.53±0.11) > SSG (0.38±0.01 and 0.50±0.01), while the angle of repose are of the order PS (57.100±0.14) > PPPS (35.600±0.01) > SSG (33.700±0.13). The ranking for friability values was PS Tablets>SSG tablets >PPPS tablets. Tensile strength values were of the reverse order for the tablets. Tablets containing PS had the highest disintegration time values at all concentrations, while onset of paracetamol release was fastest from PPPS tablets.Conclusion: Modification of plantain starch by simultaneous phosphorylation and pregelatinization showed better disintegrant properties than unmodified plantain starch, but comparable with sodium starch glycollate BP.Keywords: Pregelatinized plantain starch, Phosphate modification, Disintegrant, Paracetamo

Awareness of cassava farmers on the use of agrochemicals and the adverse effects associated with them in Odigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State

This study was carried out to assess the awareness of Cassava farmers on the use of Agrochemicals and the adverse effects associated with them in  Odigbo local government area of Ondo State. Multistage sampling procedure was used to select 140 registered cassava farmers. Well structured  questionnaires were used to obtain information on farmers’ awareness on the use of agrochemicals as well as the adverse effects. Collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentages, mean and ranking. Findings from the study revealed that majority (62.1%) of the respondents had secondary occupation other than farming, also, about 64.4% belonged to farmers' association while 35.6% did not. Most (87.9%) of the respondents claimed to have the knowledge of the effectiveness of agrochemicals over other methods of controlling insect pests, 84.1% respondents agreed that . Insect pest and diseases cause serious problems in arable crop production. About 87.1%, 78.8% and 81.1% of the respondents are aware of air and water pollution, several health problems and skin irritation they suffer due to agrochemical use respectively.  Farmer to farmer information (83.3%) ranked first when assessing the respondent's source of information while information from nongovernmental organizations (NGO) (11.4%) ranked 13th. Most (90.2%) of the farmers apply agrochemicals according to the prescription, 69.7% avoids the use of banned agrochemicals. Also, 83.3% of the respondents avoid the storage of agrochemicals in family bedroom while 82.6% dispose the container properly after use. Keywords: Agrochemical, Awareness, Knowledge, Pest and Disease

Perception of cassava farmers on the use of agrochemicals in Odigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State, Nigeria

This study was carried out to determine the perceptions of Cassava farmers on the use of Agrochemicals in odigbo local government area of Ondo State. Multistage sampling technique was used to select 140 registered cassava farmers. Well structured questionnaires were used to obtain information on farmers’ perception to the use of agrochemicals. Collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency and percentages. The findings from the study showed that, majority (62.9%) of the respondents were male, married (78.0%) and had at least primary school education (78.7%). Also, majority (61.4%) of the respondents had high level of knowledge of agrochemicals usage and patronized most agrochemicals based on “trade name” and not the active ingredient contained in the product. However, agrochemicals were highly in use by the respondents in this study, some of the pesticides encountered includes: Karate, Sevin, Thiodan, Dursban48EC, Proteus 170 O-TEQ, Fusillade, Actara 25WG, Cypermetrin, Roundup, Touchdown, Atrazine, Gramozone, Urea, NPK etc. . The respondents’ strong agreement to the perceptional statements on the use of Agrochemicals include: improvement in crop appearance and marketability (52.3%), stress free (47.7%). 42.4% were of the opinion that agrochemical usage leads to several health problem.Keywords: Agrochemical, Perception, Hazards, Pesticide, Contraction and Agricultur

Effects of fertilized maize leaf concentrate diets on the growth, haematology and carcass characteristics of West African dwarf sheep

The effects of fertilized maize leaf concentrate (MLC) diets as feed supplements on the performance of the West African Dwarf (WAD) breed of sheep were evaluated. The 90-day experiment involving twenty-five (25) WAD sheep with average body weight of 11.14 ± 0.88kg in a completely randomized design were fed five diets containing concentrate from maize leaves fertilized with manure of poultry, swine, sheep for treatments 1 to 3 while NPK and the control made up treatments 4 and 5, respectively. Data were obtained on feed intake, weight gain, haematological and serum parameters as well as carcass characteristics and meat sensory evaluation. Results showed that manure fertilized MLC had a positive effect (p<0.05) on dry matter (DM) intake and weight gain of sheep. Among treatments, animals supplemented with sheep manure MLC showed better DM intake (466.79g/day), weight gain (46.44g/day) and feed conversion ratio (10.06). Results on the blood indices showed variation (p<0.05) in values observed in white blood cells (7.05-8.4 x109/L) and serum glucose (82.90-97.55mg/dl) while other parameters were similar among the treatment groups. Carcass traits of sheep varied (p < 0.05) across treatments with sheep fed manure MLC having better values. Dressing percentage varied (p < 0.05) from 50.58 to 58.86% in sheep fed sheep manure MLC and the control treatment, respectively. Following sensory assessment, panelists rated eating quality traits similar (p > 0.05) across treatments with variation (p < 0.05) observed in the ratings for flavour. It was concluded that sheep offered manure fertilized MLC improved performance with animals fed sheep manure MLC having better plane of nutrition, thereby supporting higher growth rates and carcass traits. Keywords: Carcass, dry season, haematology, maize leaves, manure, performance, sensory, shee

Assessment of aflatoxigenicAspergillusand other fungi in millet and sesame from Plateau State, Nigeria

Sixteen fonio millet and 17 sesame samples were analysed for incidence of moulds, especially aflatoxigenic Aspergillus species, in order to determine the safety of both crops to consumers, and to correlate aflatoxin levels in the crops with levels produced by toxigenic isolates on laboratory medium. Diverse moulds including Alternaria, Aspergillus, Cercospora, Fusarium, Mucor, Penicillium, Rhizopus and Trichoderma were isolated. Aspergillus was predominantly present in both crops (46–48%), and amongst the potentially aflatoxigenic Aspergillus species, A. flavus recorded the highest incidence (68% in fonio millet; 86% in sesame kernels). All A. parvisclerotigenus isolates produced B and G aflatoxins in culture while B aflatoxins were produced by only 39% and 20% of A. flavus strains isolated from the fonio millet and sesame kernels, respectively. Aflatoxin concentrations in fonio millet correlated inversely (r = −0.55; p = 0.02) with aflatoxin levels produced by toxigenic isolates on laboratory medium, but no correlation was observed in the case of the sesame samples. Both crops, especially sesame, may not be suitable substrates for aflatoxin biosynthesis. This is the first report on A. parvisclerotigenus in sesame

Neglecting antibiotic stewardship in prisons: a concern for antimicrobial resistance response

No abstract available

Effect of Soil Micronutrient Status on the Fermentation Characteristics and Organoleptic Quality of Nigerian Tea

The status of micronutrients (Cu2+, Zn2+, Fe2+ and Mn2+) in soils and foliage of three commercial tea clones 68, 143, and 35 collected from the Ardo-Gore tea estates of the Mambilla Plateau in Gongola State of Nigeria was evaluated. Leaf samples were also batch-processed and examined for fermentation characteristics including average fermentation time and organoleptic cup quality, and analytical quality indices, namely total phenol and tannin. Results showed that while Cu and Mn contents are adequate, Fe and Zn are marginal. A high negative correlation was obtained for soil Fe and leaf Cu (r = 0.98) and Zn (r = 1.00) probably due to substitution ability of these essential nutrients which could have limiting consequences on the fermentation process. Leaf Cu showed a significantly positive relationship with total phenol and tannin contents of the samples (r = 0.77 and 0.73, respectively) while the relationship between leaf Zn and total phenol (r = 0.64) was statistically insignificant. Sensory evaluation of the samples from the three clones showed that close 35 had the least fermenting ability and poorest cup quality. This trend was in agreement with the levels of leaf Cu, Zn, total phenol and tannin of the samples, indicating high variability in clonal requirements of micronutrients for physiological and processing functions

Effets de l'infection expérimentale par <em>Babesia bigemina</em> sur certains composants du sang de veaux blancs Fulani splénectomisés

Quatre veaux blancs Fulani ont été splénectomisés. Trois ont été expérimentalement infectés par Babesia bigemina à l'aide de larves infectieuses de Boophilus decoloratus. Le quatrième a servi de témoin. L'évolution des principaux paramètres de leur sang a été observée pendant 40 jours avec les résultats suivants: chez les veaux infectés, tant les valeurs de l'hématocrite que celles des érythrocytes ont progressivement diminué à partir du 5e jour après l'infection alors que ces valeurs sont restées constantes chez le veau témoin. Par contre, le taux de leucocytes a augmenté chez les quatre animaux mais de façon plus sensible chez les veaux splénectomisés, ce qui semblerait indiquer que cette augmentation est à mettre pour une faible partie seulement au compte du stress opératoir