Road-side roasted plantain and maize in Zaria and environs: nutritional composition and heavy metal evaluation

This study aimed to assess the nutritional quality and heavy metal contamination of roasted and raw corn and plantain marketed in Zaria and its vicinity. Raw and roasted plantain and maize were obtained from three distinct areas of Zaria. The samples were air-dried and ground into powdered flour for analysis. Moisture content was lowest in roasted plantain (4.67±0.54%) and highest in raw maize (9.58±0.60%). Crude protein and crude fibre were most elevated in roasted maize samples (10.56±0.26, 3.22±0.13%, respectively) and lowest in raw plantain samples (8.62±0.37, 1.70±0.20%, respectively). Ash content was highest in raw plantain (3.28±0.16%) and lowest in roasted maize samples (2.00±0.26%). Nitrogen-free extract (NFE) was significantly higher (P <0.05) in both raw (78.42±0.64%) and roasted plantain (78.63±1.14%). The mineral composition of roasted road-side plantain (Ca, 0.22±0.04; Ph, 0.11±0.03) and maize (Ca, 0.23±0.02; Ph, 0.22±0.00) reveal that calcium and phosphorus were found within the moderate limit adequate for human consumption. Based on the current study, raw and roasted plantain and maize across all the study locations were highly contaminated with Pb, Cr, and Cd, which may pose a public health concern

The growth response of fingerlings of O. niloticus in sublethal test to paraquat

The initial mean wet weight of the test fish were 7.64:~c 1.3 for the control and 6.33~c 0.9, 6.88~c 0.9 and 6.2~c 0.7 for the fish exposed to 1.02, 1.40 and 2.0mg/l of paraquat in water respectively. Growth was estimated from the sum of the individual wet weights of the fish at 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks of exposure to the toxicant and expressed as percent Cumulative wet weight gain. The results showed that the cumulative percent wet weight gain in the control group increased from 10.34% at 1 week to 36.13% at 8 weeks. The growth of fish that were exposed to 1.02, 1.04 and 2.00mg/l increased from 3%, 0.44% and 1.55% at 1 week to 30.81 %, 9.59% and 19.81 % at week 8 respectively. A statistically significant difference in growth rate of the treated and control was observed (p<0.05)

Determination of Heavy Metals in Hoplobatrachus occipitalis (Crowned Bullfrogs) and Water from Some Reservoirs in Kadawa Irrigation Project Kano, Nigeria

This study was carried out to evaluate the concentrations of heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Mn, Pb, and Zn) in water and crowned bullfrog (Hoplobatrachus occipitalis) organs/parts (muscle, liver, leg, lung and trunk) from Kadawa irrigation project, Kano State, Nigeria. Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy was carried out using Atomic Absorption Spectrometer (AAS) Buck Scientific VGP-210 model (2008). The mean concentration of heavy metals in water samples were 0.11 mg/L, 0.18 mg/L, 0.26 mg/L, and 3.65 mg/L for Cu, Mn, Pb and Zn respectively. The sequence of metal accumulation in all the organs was Zn &gt; Pb &gt; Mn &gt; Cu. The highest concentration of Zn (77.38 mg/kg), Pb (1.81 mg/kg) and Mn (0.68 mg/kg) were found in the lung while Cu (0.07 mg/kg) was deposited more in the liver. Cadmium was notdetected in all the samples analysed. Zinc and lead were the most accumulated metals in all the organs/parts with the range of 77.38 mg/kg - 18.10 mg/kg and 1.81 mg/kg - 0.13 mg/kg respectively. The highest accumulation of metals was found in the lung and liver. The organ/parts accumulation pattern was: lung &gt; liver &gt; trunk &gt; muscle &gt; leg for Zn, Pb and Mn, while liver &gt; lung &gt; trunk &gt; muscle &gt; leg was for Cu. Lung and liver have the highest bioaccumulation of heavy metals while the leg and muscle bioaccumulated the least heavy metals. Hence the water, liver and lung of H. occipitallis are unsafe for consumption, and therefore posed a threat to public health. Farmers should be trained on proper usage of agrochemical.Keywords: Heavy Metals, Crowned Bullfrog, Hoplobatrachus occipitalis, Kadawa, Bioaccumulatio