Enumeration, Identification And Occurrence Of Staphylococci In Cooked Foods And Hand Rinsed-Water From Eleven Local Government Areas Of Ibadan

This project aimed at isolating, identifying and determining the level of occurrence of staphylococci in cooked foods,. “Amala”, “fufu”, “rice”, “beans”, “ewedu”, stew and hand-rinse water were collected from restaurants in the eleven Local Government Areas (LGA) of Ibadan. Staphylococci were isolated, enumerated and characterized using standard pour plating, culturing and biochemical test methods. Nine different species of Staphylococcus were identified as S. aureus, S. hyicus, S. epidermidis, S. intermidius, S. saprophyticus, S. arrieta, S. carnosi, S. haemolyticus and S. schleifer. In all the samples, Staphylococcusaureus occurred in 32 times, while S. Schleifer,S. hyicus, S. epidermidis, S. intermidius, S. saprophyticus, S. arrieta, S. carnosi and S. haemolyticus occurred in 1, 11, 14, 9, 4, 4, 2 and 8 times respectively. Among the food samples, staphylococcal load was highest (9.8 x 102 cfu/ml) in “fufu” from Akinyele LGA. In contrast, “ewedu” from Akinyele LGA showed the lowest population (1.2 x 102 cfu/ml) of staphylococci. KEYWORDS: Ibadan Local Government Areas, Staphylococci, Population, Occurrence and Identification

Evaluation of Selected Cowpea Lines and Cultivars for Inherent Resistance against Cowpea Seed Beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus Fabricius (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Bruchinae)

Four cowpea lines (IT99K-494-6, IT97K-390-2, IT84S-2246-4 and IT06K-141) obtained from the Genetic Resources Centre, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan Nigeria, one cultivar (Ife Brown) obtained from Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IAR&T), Obafemi Awolowo University, Ibadan and two cultivars (Drum and Oloyin) obtained from Wazobia Market, Ogbomoso, Nigeria were screened for comparative susceptibility to the infestation of cowpea seed bruchid, Callosobruchus maculatus. The number of eggs laid on IT99K-494-6 (20.05) was significantly (p < 0.05) lower than the number laid on all the local cultivars (56.33-78.83). First filial progeny emergence (0.71) observed in IT99K-494-6 was significantly (p < 0.05) lower than 2.06 and 1.65 observed in Ife Brown and Drum cowpea cultivars, respectively. Percentage seed damage for 1T99k-49-6 (10.14) was significantly lower than the value obtained in 1T06K-141 (49.93) and Drum (47.74). Alkaloids content was significantly higher in IT06K–141 (31.67 mg/100 g) than in other lines and cultivars. Oloyin had the highest flavonoid (51.7 mg/100 g), tannins (43.3 mg/100 g) whereas 1T84S-2246-4 had the highest saponins (61.7 mg/100 g) Drum had the highest terpenoid (33.33 mg/100 g). Steroid was highest in Oloyin and 1T84S-2246-4 (11.67 mg/100 g). Reducing sugar was highest in Oloyin (5.33 mg/100 g) followed by 1T84S-2246–4 (4.3 mg/100 g) and IT06K–141 (4.0 mg/100 g). Significant and positive relationship exists between saponins content and the number of grains without exit holes (r = 0.46, p = 0.04), suggesting that high saponins was contributory to cowpea host plant resistance to the cowpea seed bruchid, C. maculatus. Keywords: cowpea cultivars, Drum, Oloyin, host plant resistanc

HOST PLANTS OF THE COTTON MEALYBUG, PHENACOCCUS SOLENOPSIS TINSLEY (HOMOPTERA: PSEUDOCOCCIDAE) IN THREE SELECTED TOWNS OF NIGERIA, AND ITS INFESTATION PATTERN

Reconnaissance surveys were carried out for field infestation of Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley from 2006 to 2010 in seventy five (75) vegetable gardens located in three (3) towns– Ogbomoso, Abeokuta and Ibadan in Nigeria. No cotton mealybug infestation was observed in Abeokuta and Ibadan, but twenty four (24) plants in 16 different families were observed as its hosts in Ogbomoso area. Of the 24 species, weeds constituted 45.8%, vegetables 29.1%, herbs 12.5%, cereals 4.2%, fruit trees 4.2% and pulse 4.2% each. Infestations started on the abasial leaf surface and advanced to the mid-ribs, petiole, young and succulent stems and buds. Corchorus olitorius and Amaranthus hybridus were the most susceptible of the trialled plant species with heavy root infestation in addition to that of the leaf. On heavily infested plants, certain ants were found together with P. solenopsis; on cowpea however, Aphis craccivora and the ants formed a complex with the mealybug on the flower buds. Of the three towns surveyed, P. solenopsis could be said to be restricted to backyard gardens around Ogbomoso at the moment. However, a nation-wide survey is very necessary now to determine the current status of the mealybug in Nigeria.Â

Nutritional Evaluation of Honey Bee Slum gum Meal as Replacement for Maize in the Feed of Growing Rabbits

As part of the efforts in developing alternative feed ingredients for feeding rabbits a feeding trial was conducted to investigate the nutritional potential of Honey Bee slum gum meal (HBSM) on the performance characteristics of growing rabbit. Thirty (30) growing rabbit of 7 weeks of age were weight-balanced and divided into three (3) dietary treatment groups of 10 rabbit each in a completely randomized designed experiment. Diet 1 had 0% inclusion of HBSM while 25 and 50% maize in diets 2 and 3 were replaced by HBSM respectively. Rabbits received feed and water ad libitum during the 12 weeks of the experiment. The final weights decrease linearly (P<0.05) as the level of inclusion increases (1663.20g 1630.00g and 1458.40g for rabbits on treatments 1, 2 and 3 respectively). Rabbit on diets 1 and 2 had higher (P<0.05) daily weight gains (13.59g and 13.15 respectively) compared with rabbits on diet 3 (11.1g). The digestibility of nutrients were not affected (P>0.05) by the dietary treatments. The values obtained for final weight, carcass weight, abdominal fat, kidney, liver and lungs were significantly (P<0.05) affected by dietary treatment. HBSM can be used as an alternative for substituting maize in growing rabbits diets up of 25% beyond which depression in performance is observed. Key words: Honey slum gum meal, Digestibility, Final weight, growing rabbits

Thermal Evaluation of Some Locally Sourced Activated Carbons from Agricultural Residues

Activated carbons are progressively used as an economical and stable mass separation agent for eliminating surfactants to raise the final product property in many industrial processes. Activated carbon has various applications in different fields, and it performs differently at different temperatures; hence this paper presents a thermal experimental characterization of some locally produced activated carbon from agricultural residues. The experiment was done on the locally produced activated carbon from coconut shell, coconut husk, palm kernel shell, maize husk and imported activated carbons. The adsorbate used is Methylene Blue (MB), the samples were agitated in a water bath shaker at different concentration of adsorbate (50, 100, 150 and 200 ppm) and different temperatures (30 oC, 40 oC, and 50 oC). Adsorption isotherm study is carried out on two well-known isotherms; Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models. The results revealed that the adsorption capacity of the five samples increased with temperature and initial dye concentration. The adsorption in the samples follows the Langmuir Isotherm model that implies homogenous adsorption and Maize husk has the highest monolayer adsorption capacity at 40 oC. Hence the carbons will perform satisfactorily under heat as the combination of adsorbent and adsorbate in adsorption refrigeration system. The locally produced activated carbons compared favourably with imported activated carbon, hence locally produced activated carbons can replace imported activated, to reduce dependency on foreign product and improve the economy of the country. Keywords: Evaluation, Activated carbon,Adsorption Isotherm, Agricultural Residue

Isothermal, kinetics and thermodynamics studies of the biosorption of Pb (II) ion from aqueous solution using the scale of croaker fish (Genyonemus lineatus)

Biosorbent prepared from the scale of croaker fish (Genyonemus lineatus) has been used for the removal of Pb(II) ion from aqueous solution in a batch system. The effects of some important parameters such as pH, initial metal concentration, temperature and biosorbent dosage on biosorption capacity were investigated. Equilibrium time for the biosorption process is 20 and 30 min at lower and higher concentrations, respectively. The process at 28 °C is in agreement with a pseudo-second-order kinetics model. The equilibrium data obeyed the Langmuir adsorption isotherm with a maximum monolayer adsorption capacity of 14.58 mg g−1. The study showed that the sorption process depends on biomass dosage, temperature, pH and initial metal ion concentration. The calculated thermodynamics parameters (ΔGo, ΔHo and ΔSo) indicated that the biosorption of the metal ion onto fish scale is feasible, spontaneous and exothermic in nature

Antioxidant and Hepatoprotective Potentials of Lemon Juice and Sorghum Ogi (lemon-ogi) Mixture against Paracetamol-Induced Liver Damage in Rats

This study is aimed to determine the hepatoprotective activity and antioxidant properties of aqeous extract of Sorghum porridge (Ogi), a Sorghum fermentation product, mixed with lemon to form Lemon-Ogi mixture at various concentrations after inducing liver injury in rats. Rats were divided into 9 groups (n=4) the positive control group, negative control group, normal control and the treated groups (which include extracts at varying concentrations between 0-50% v/v). Hepatotoxicity was induced in rats by oral administration of paracetamol (1 g/kg body weight) suspended in normal saline on the first day of the experiment. After 7 days of post-treatment with the test mixture (Lemon-Ogi), biochemical markers such as L-aspartate aminotransferase (AST), L-alanine aminotransferase (ALT), Gamma Glutamyl transferase (GGT) were estimated. This was followed by the measurement of liver cytosolic antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidase. The data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Duncan post hoc test. The test mixture at concentrations of 30-50%v/v significantly (P ≤ 0.05) reduced the elevated levels of AST, ALT, GGT when compared with the negative control animals. The Lemon-Ogi mixture also showed a significant (P ≤ 0.05) increase in the reduced levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, and peroxidase when compared with the negative control. The effects of the Lemon-Ogi mixture on these parameters were comparable with those of the standard drug, Vitamin E at 50% (v/v) concentration. The findings of this study indicate that Lemon-Ogi mixture showed a potential hepatoprotective activity and the protective action might have manifested by restoring the hepatic SOD, catalase, and peroxidase levels. The results of this study validate the traditional use of Sorghum porridge steep water as a strong antioxidant. Keywords: Paracetamol-Hepatotoxicity, Biochemical Marker Enzymes, Antioxidant Enzymes, Lemon, Og

Design of Fuzzy Logic Based Relay for Distance Protection

The safe generation and distribution of power is the most desirable factor targeted by utility companies.  Therefore, there is a serious concern for protection of the transmission line as well as the equipment involved.  Several works have been carried out on protection to protect mostly human lives while some aimed at the use of microcontrollers to optimize the performance of a relay.  Part of the conventional relay operation works was the work by IEEE Working Group I17 Incorrect Operation Reporting in which for 20 total events, for voltage above 400V, unnecessary trips during fault is 30%, unnecessary trip other than fault is 5%, and total misoperation is 35%.  These results could be improved upon.  As new technology surfaces more application areas also evolve such as the use of artificial intelligence tool like fuzzy logic to enhance the performance of a relay which is the key element in the switching operation of a power network.  This fuzzy logic based relay shows considerable improvement on false trip phenomenon usually associated with the operations of a relay in which a total of 25 events were used to form the rule base for voltage ranging from 480V to 15kV, unnecessary trip fault is 2%, and total misoperation is less than 10%. In this work, the protection scheme proposed is for transmission line's distance protections relay whose operation is adaptive and directly controlled using fuzzy logic controller which is fault tolerant, directional, and least affected by power swing

Control of wax moth, Galleria mellonella L. (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) in post harvest honey comb

An experiment was carried out in the laboratory to control the infestation of larger wax moth, Galleria mellonella, after honey extraction. Different quantities of salt in water and hermetic storage were used as methods of controlling the larvae. A treatment containing Aluminium phosphide tablet was incorporated as a chemical method of control and the treated honeycomb samples were stored for two month. Of all the treatments used, the hermetic storage and Aluminium phosphide had the best result in that the comb retained their freshness post two months storage. The number of emerged moth in opened untreated control (61.00) was higher than other treatments but significantly higher than the number of emerged moth observed in salt- treated comb in opened containers. Wax and slum gum weight were not significantly affected by the treatments. Hermetic storage is therefore recommended as a better method of controlling wax moth in honeycomb after the extraction of honey than Aluminium phosphide, due to the possibility of residue of Aluminium phosphide in the treated honeycomb. Key words: Honeycomb, Galleria mellonella, salt, hermetic storage, Aluminium phosphide, bee wax, wax moth contro