Antifungal activity of extracts of Ocimum gratissimum and Aframomum danielli against moulds isolated from stored rice

The fungitoxic effect of extracts of Ocimum gratissimum and Aframomum danielli on some moulds isolated from rice grains were determined in vitro. Aqueous extracts of Aframomum danielli inhibited the radial growth of the moulds at different levels between 46.4 - 56.7%. Aspergillus niger (56.7%) was the most sensitive to Aframomum danielli while Cladosporium sphaerospermum (46.4%) was the least sensitive. Ocimum gratissimum extract inhibited the radial growth of the moulds between 46.4 – 59.7% with Penicillium citrinum showing the highest sensitivity and C. sphaerospermum being the least sensitive. There was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the effect of Ocimum gratissimum and Aframomum danielli on all the moulds. Ocimum gratissimum showed the greater antifungal activity against the storage fungi (mean = 53.4%) compared to Aframomum danielli (mean = 51.9%). However, there was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the effect  of Ocimum gratissimum and Aframomum danielli on the storage fungi. Both plant products showed varying levels of fungitoxic activities and could be potentially used in the storage of Ofada and Abakaliki rice against moulds. Keywords: Plant extracts, Antifungal activity, Storage fungi, Moulds, Ric

Effect of drying method on the quality and storability of ‘egusi\' melon seeds (Colocynthis citrullus L.)

The effect of sun-, oven-, smoke- and solar drying on the physicochemical properties and storability of melon seeds (Colocynthis citrullus L.) was investigated. Oven drying most significantly reduced the moisture content, followed by smoke drying and solar drying in decreasing order. The proximate composition of seeds was not significantly affected by the drying methods, but panelists most preferred the oven-dried seeds in the sensory analysis. Oven- and smoke dried seeds had the lowest incidence of diseased seeds, moisture content and level of Aspergillus spp. infestation and also recorded the highest seed germination and oil content in stores. The peroxide values and percentage free fatty acids were lowest in oven dried seeds, followed by the smoke dried seeds and the lowest in sun dried seeds. Thus, oven- and smoke drying could be used to dry melon seeds, particularly during the first season harvest when sun drying often proves difficult.Key words: Drying method, melon seeds, quality, storability. African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 4 (8), pp. 799-80

MICROORGANISMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE PALMS OF FAST-FOOD HANDLERS IN ABEOKUTA, NIGERIA

The palms of 87 food vendors in Abeokuta metropolis were sampled for the presence and types of         microorganisms. The food handlers were grouped into six categories based on the type of vending         sites: hawkers (15), roadside (13), open air (15), closed / roofed (21), restaurants (12) and hotels ven-         dors (11). Only 43.7% of the 87 vendors sampled had undergone the annual medical check up while         56.3% had never done the check up. None of the hawkers sampled had ever done the medical check         up while all the hotel food handlers had the health certificate indicating that they have done the routine         medical   check   up.   Bacteria   isolated   from   the   hands   of   the   food   handlers   included  Staphylococcus         aureus, S. epidermidis, Alcaligenes spp. Bacillus subtilis, Listeria spp. Enterobacter sp, Escherichia         coli, Klebsiella aerogenes, Proteus vulgaris and  Vibrio cholerae. The fungi were Rhizopus sp. Asper-         gillus   niger  and  Sachharomyces   cerevisiae.  This   work   suggests   that   food   handlers   were   possible         sources of microorganisms implicated in food poisoning and food spoilage. Proper policing of vendors        to ensure that they undergo the annual physical and medical examinations and proper education of        food handlers on personal hygiene is recommended.&nbsp

Appraising the Effects of Computer Aided Design (CAD) on the Creative Behaviour of Design Students in Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria: A Case Study of the Federal University of Technology Akure

As a result of the advancement of digital technologies intellectual discourse on the role of innovations in design and what value Computer Aided Design CAD brings into the equation has been on the increase This research sought to appraise the effects of CAD on the creative behaviour of students offering design related courses in tertiary institutions with a focus on the Federal University of Technology Akure FUTA Nigeria From the literatures reviewed Creative Behaviours Model CBM proposed by Musta amal Norman Hodgson was adopted and served as a framework for capturing the creative behaviour of the target population This model characterised creativity into seven sub categories namely novelty appropriateness motivation fluency flexibility sensitivity and insightfulness A survey method was employed for this study and data were collected using well-structured online questionnaires to elicit responses from both students and CAD instructors in concerned departments in FUTA The outcome of the study reveals the areas of application of CAD software and the level of engagement of students in CAD related courses It also shows the assessment of students performance in CAD related courses from the perspective of the students and their instructors The study concludes that CAD can enhance student s creative behaviour and more integration of CAD related courses into the curricula of tertiary institutions in Nigeria will lead to higher competency and global competitiveness rating of future professional designers and engineer

Hesperidin prevents lipopolysaccharide-induced endotoxicity in rats

Context: Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is a major trigger of septic shock resulting in multiple organ damage through excessive stimulation of the host’s immune cells resulting in the release of cytokines. Previous studies have shown that hesperidin has several beneficial properties against inflammation and oxidative stress. Objective: The influence of hesperidin on endotoxemia, endothelial dysfunction, inflammation, and oxidative stress was investigated using a murine model of sepsis. Materials and methods: Rats were pretreated for 15 d with three doses (50 mg/kg, 100 mg/kg, and 200 mg/kg) of hesperidin prior to LPS administration. Afterwards, the levels of biomarkers of endotoxemia, endothelial dysfunction, and oxidative stress were assessed. Reverse transcriptase PCR technique was used to assess the expression of hepatic proinflammatory cytokines. Results: Hesperidin pretreatment significantly (p < 0.05) reduced circulating endotoxin, as well as the levels of bactericidal permeability increasing protein and procalcitonin, and the associated endothelial dysfunction by reducing the levels of plasma soluble intercellular adhesion molecules 1 and inducible nitric oxide (iNO) synthase. There was also down-regulation of the expression of gene for interleukin 1α, interleukin 1β, interleukin 1 receptor, interleukin 6, and tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα) in the liver of rats treated with LPS as a result of hesperidin pretreatment. Hesperidin also showed anti-oxidative properties through the significant (p < 0.05) reduction of NO, hydroperoxides, and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and increase of glutathione, glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione-S-transferase in the organs. Conclusion: Different doses of hesperidin can prevent endotoxemia-induced oxidative stress as well as inflammatory and endothelial perturbation in rats when administered for as few as 15 d before exposure to endotoxin

SOIL PHYSICO-CHEMICAL PROPERTIES AND MICROFLORA AS INFLUENCED BY PARAQUAT APPLICATIONS

A field experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of paraquat (1, 1’-di methyl-4,4’-biyridinium dichloride) at the recommended and twice the recommended field application rates on soil physicochemical properties and microorganisms. The effects of the herbicide on soil pH, organic carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus content and cation exchange capacity were analyzed along with microbial populations and the growth and distribution of representative soil microorganisms were obtained using standard procedures. There was no significant effect of paraquat on soil physicochemical properties at P&gt;0.05. Paraquat applications at both concentrations caused reduction in the bacterial and fungal populations with twice the recommended rate having more adverse effect when compared with the control while the fungal populations were more adversely affected than the bacteria populations by herbicide treatment. Reduced number of predominant bacteria and fungi genera as well as the elimination of some secondary genera as observed in paraquat treated soils could be detrimental to the sustainability of soil fertility. These results are discussed in line with the soil management practices for sustainable crop productio

Antidiabetic and Safety Properties of Ethanolic Leaf Extract of Corchorus olitorius in Alloxan-Induced Diabetic Rats

Diabetes is a major metabolic disease of global concern. Ethanolic extract of Corchorus olitorius leaf was investigated for antidiabetic activity in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. A total of thirty-six albino rats (Rattus norvegicus) with body weight 150.50 ± 10.50 g were randomly selected into six groups (A–F). Group A animals were non-diabetic and received 0.5 mL distilled water, groups B, C, D, E and F were made diabetic by administration of alloxan monohydrate (150 mg/kg, body weight i.p). Group B was diabetic untreated, group C was diabetic and treated with glibenclamide, while groups D, E and F received the ethanolic extract of C. olitorius leaf at a dose of 200 mg/kg, 400 mg/kg and 800 mg/kg body weight respectively. Phytochemical screening showed the presence of flavonoids, tannins, saponins, phlobatannin anthraquinones, phenol and cardiac glycoside and saponin. The blood glucose of the alloxanized rats after 72 hours which ranged from 17.30–25.33 mmol/L were significantly (p < 0.05) and progressively reduced in treated groups which compared favorably with the standard drug group. The significantly (p < 0.05) elevated levels of serum and liver bilirubin (direct and total), transaminases (AST and ALT), alkaline phosphatase, urea, creatinine, total cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL-C, as well as reduced levels of total protein, globulin, albumin and HDL-C in the diabetic untreated rats were normalized upon treatment with ethanolic extract of C. olitorius leaf. These results suggest that the ethanolic extract of C. olitorius leaf possesses antihyperglycemic property with no major side effect hence it could be considered safe for the management of diabetes

Comparative Analysis of Tick-Borne Relapsing Fever Spirochaetes from Ethiopia and Nigeria

Despite increasing reports of tick-borne diseases in Africa, remarkably, reports of tick-borne relapsing fever (TBRF) in Nigeria are lacking. Ornithodoros savignyi from Nigeria have been reported with the relapsing fever Candidatus Borrelia kalaharica. Conversely, in Ethiopia, the agent of relapsing fever is the louse-borne relapsing fever (LBRF) spirochaete Borrelia recurrentis with no TBRF reported to occur. A total of 389 Ornithodoros ticks, Ethiopia (N = 312) and Nigeria (N = 77), were sampled, together with 350 cattle, and 200 goat sera were collected from Nigeria. Samples were screened for Borrelia spp. by RT-PCR. Reactive samples were confirmed, then sequenced using flagellin B, 16S rRNA, and 16S–23S intergenic spacer region. The prevalence of Borrelia spp. in livestock was 3.8% (21/550) and 14% (3/21) after final molecular confirmation. Of 312 ticks from Ethiopia, 3.5% (11/312) were positive for Borrelia, with 36% (4/11) by conventional PCR. Sequencing revealed that the borreliae in soft ticks was C. B. kalaharica, whilst that found in animals was Borrelia theileri. Soft ticks were confirmed by sequencing 7% (22/312) and 12% (9/77) of the Ethiopian and Nigerian ticks, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that these were Ornithodoros savignyi. This is the first evidence of C. B. kalaharica in Ethiopia and demonstrates the co-existence of TBRF in a country endemic to LBRF. Important, this might cause a diagnostic challenge given that LBRF is predominantly diagnosed by microscopy, which cannot differentiate these two spirochaetes. Furthermore, we report B. theileri in ruminants in Nigeria, which may also be of veterinary and economic importance

Genetic gains in yield and yield related traits under drought stress and favorable environments in a maize population improved using marker assisted recurrent selection

The objective of marker assisted recurrent selection (MARS) is to increase the frequency of favorable marker alleles in a population before inbred line extraction. This approach was used to improve drought tolerance and grain yield (GY) in a biparental cross of two elite drought tolerant lines. The testcrosses of randomly selected 50 S1 lines from each of the three selection cycles (C0, C1, C2) of the MARS population, parental testcrosses and the cross between the two parents (F1) were evaluated under drought stress (DS) and well watered (WW) well as under rainfed conditions to determine genetic gains in GY and other agronomic traits. Also, the S1 lines derived from each selection types were genotyped with single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers. Testcrosses derived from C2 produced significantly higher grain field under DS than those derived from C0 with a relative genetic gain of 7% per cycle. Also, the testcrosses of S1 lines from C2 showed an average genetic gain of 1% per cycle under WW condition and 3% per cycle under rainfed condition. Molecular analysis revealed that the frequency of favorable marker alleles increased from 0.510 at C0 to 0.515 at C2, while the effective number of alleles (Ne) per locus decreased from C0 (1.93) to C2 (1.87). Our results underscore the effectiveness of MARS for improvement of GY under DS condition