Removal of Pb and Zn from Soil using cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) and maize (Zea mays) Plants

This study investigated the potential of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) and maize (Zea mays) plants to remove Pb and Zn from soil. The crops were exposed to three concentrations (100, 150 and 200 mgkg-1) of each metal salts during the study. When the plants were treated with lead nitrate at a concentration of 150 mgkg-1, the amount and percentage of Pb removed and accumulated within plants’ tissues were 65.68 m mgkg-1g/kg (44.79%) and 78.93 mgkg-1 (53.0%) for cowpea and maize with bioconcentration factors 0.80 and 0.78 respectively. However, when the plants were assisted they had greater bioconcentration factors. Farmyard manure enhanced metal uptake by cowpea and maize significantly than EDTA. Maize extracted more Pb into its roots and translocated to shoots when assisted with EDTA than cowpea. Maize was able to translocate more Pb while cowpea translocated more Zn through the vascular system, thereby acting as phytoextractors for the different metals respectively

Evaluation of immunity against poliovirus serotypes among children in riverine areas of Delta State, Nigeria

Nigeria remains one of the major reservoirs for wild poliovirus transmission despite the reported success in National Immunization Days and acute flaccid paralysis surveillance. Two hundred children aged ≤ 10 years, were enrolled following parental consent from hard-to-reach riverine areas of Delta state of Nigeria to assess the level of protective immunity to poliovirus. Neutralizing antibodies to the three poliovirus serotypes in the serum samples of the children were determined by the beta method of neutralization.Eight (4%) of the children had no detectable antibody, 178 (89%), 180 (90%) and 181 (90.5%) were positive for antibodies to poliovirus types 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Overall, 162 (81%) of the children had antibodies to the three poliovirus serotypes at a titre of at least 1:8. The study shows the need for proper monitoring of vaccination coverage in such hard-to-reach riverine areas to achieve the objective of the global eradication of poliovirus.Keywords: Neutralizing, antibody, poliovirus, serotypes, riverine, Nigeri

Serum testosterone levels of HbSS (sickle cell disease) male subjects in Lagos, Nigeria

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Infertility is a major problem in sickle cell disease patients, especially in males. In addition to low serum testosterone, other abnormalities involving the accessory sex organs, such as the seminal vesicles and the prostate gland, as well as marked decrease in ejaculate volume may be observed in male HbSS patients. Hence, the need to study the role of sex hormones as a cause of infertility in male HbSS patients.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>An unmatched case-control study was performed using seventy-five consenting subjects from Lagos University Teaching Hospital. These included 47 patients with haemoglobin phenotype SS from the Sickle cell clinic and 28 volunteered medical students and members of staff with haemoglobin phenotype AA. Demographic data were obtained using a self-administered questionnaire. A total of 5 mls of blood was collected from each subject between 9.00 am & 11.am, and assayed for serum testosterone concentration.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The concentrations of serum testosterone in HbSS patients ranged from 0.2 to 4.3 ng/ml with a mean of 1.28 ± 0.72 ng/ml whilst the values in HbAA controls ranged from 1.2 to 6.9 ng/ml with a mean of 2.63 ± 1.04 ng/ml. Seven (25.0%) of the 28 controls had serum testosterone concentration lower than the quoted reference (normal) range whereas 44 (93.6%) of the 47 HbSS subjects had serum testosterone concentration lower than the reference range.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Overall, subjects with HbSS have significantly lower mean serum testosterone than HbAA controls.</p

The Relationship between Milk Constituents of Lactating Ewes and Linear Body Measurements of their Lambs

The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between milk constituents of ewes and linear body measurements of their lambs maintained under a semi-intensive management system. Twenty-eight ewes comprising 10 Yankasa (YA), 8 West African Dwarf (WAD) and 10 crossbred (YAxWAD) sheep with body weight range of 15-26 kg average age of 2½ years and lambs between 1 and 8 weeks were used for the study at the Teaching and Research Farm of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, igeria. Milk measurement commenced from a week post-partum to allow lambs have access to their dams’ colostrum. The lambs were separated between 7 pm and 7 am from ewes which were then milked dry. The milk constituents determined were protein (PA), fat (FT), ash (AS) and lactose (LA). The linear body measurements of the lambs such as height at withers (HT), body length (BL), heart girth (HG), shoulder width (SW), tail length (TL), neck length (L), neck circumference (C), face length (FA), hind leg length (HL), foreleg length (FL), ear length (EA), head width (HW) and rump height (RH). The data were subjected to One-way analysis of variance (AOVA), the means were separated using Duncan’s multiple range test and Pearson correlation and Multiple stepwise regression parameters were estimated using SPSS. Fat and ash were similar for all ewes, while the milk protein and lactose content were affected by genotype. The mean weight (kg) of lambs of West African Dwarf, Yankasa and the West African Dwarf x Yankasa lambs were 4.46 ± 0.21, 5.41± 0.21 and 5.02 ± 0.21, respectively. There was significant effect (P&lt;0.05) of genotype on height at withers, body length, foreleg length, hindleg length, facelength, earlength, tail length and rump height with the Yankasa lambs showing a consistently higher values in these body measurements than either the West African Dwarf and crossbred ewes. Dam’s protein content was significantly correlated with lamb’s heart girth (0.24; P&lt;0.01) and neck length (0.20; P&lt;0.05). Other parameters that were significantly correlated include dam’s fat content and lamb’s neck length (0.26; P&lt;0.01) and face length (0.18; P&lt;0.05). Dam’s milk ash was significantly but negatively correlated with lamb’s tail length (-0.22; P&lt;0.05). Lamb’s heart girth and neck length were superior to other linear body measurements in estimating protein and fat content of milk followed by foreleg length and heart girth, respectively while heart girth was superior in estimating lactose content. The best single measurement that can be used to predict ash content was tail length. Generally, accuracy of prediction of compositional traits was low (0.03-0.17), however, lamb’s heart girth could be used in the selection of lactating ewe with high quality milk.Keywords: Milk constituents, lactating ewes, body measurements, lam

Cytogenetic study and serum protein characterization of Clarias gariepinus (BURCHELL, 1822) and Heterobranchus bidorsalis (Geoffroy Saint-Hillaire, 1809) in South western Nigeria

Specimens of Clarias gariepinus and Heterobranchus bidorsalis were cytologically analysed while their serum protein was employed to characterize the two species. The diploid chromosome numbers for C. gariepinus and H. bidorsalis were 2n=56 and 2n=52 respectively. The nombre fondamental (NF) of C. gariepinus, and H. bidorsalis, were 51 and 49 respectively. The electrophoretic banding pattern of the two species produced five common bands while the relative mobility of the bands studied showed that there are few slow moving bands, more fast moving bands but no intermediate bands. The occurrence of chromosome number around the modal value which occurs generally among the clariid fish may suggest an ongoing speciation while the presence of five common bands may also be used as a diagnostic marker for biochemical differentiation of the two fish species.Keywords: Clarias gariepinus, Heterobranchus bidorsalis, diploid chromosome number, cytogenetics, genetic variation, electrophoresis

Models for Weight-Linear Body Measurement Relationships in West African Dwarf, Yankasa and Their Crossbred Lambs

Weight and linear body measurements of forty-seven lambs comprising 10 West African Dwarf, 17 Yankasa and 20 crossbred (West African Dwarf x Yankasa) from birth to 12 weeks of age were studied using simple linear, quadratic and exponential functions. The linear body measurementsinclude height at withers, body length, heart girth, shoulder width and tail length. The coefficient of determination (R2) ranged from 0.13 to 0.87, being highest for heart girth in Yankasa lambs and lowest for shoulder width in West African Dwarf lambs. Generally, a comparison on the basis of R2 values showed that the lambs weight-linear measurements of the three genotypes were best fitted by quadratic function, followed by linear and exponential respectively. However, exponential function was the best fit for tail length (0.75) in crossbred lambs. Among the body measurements, accuracy of prediction for weight was better with height at withers (R2 : 0.71 - 0.80) and heart girth (R2: 0.73 - 0.87) in quadratic function.Keywords: Model, West African Dwarf, Yankasa, Crossbred, Weight, Linear body measurements, lamb

Comparative assessment of the nutritional contents and sensory evaluation of cheese produced from cow and sheep milk using local coagulants

The objectives of this study was to comparatively assess the dry matter, nutritive value and sensory properties of cheese produced from cow and sheep milk using three different local coagulants of plant origin: Calotropis procera leaf extract, Carica papaya leaf extract and lemon fruit juice. The following proximate and mineral compositions were assayed: dry matter, crude protein, ether extract, ash, carbohydrates, magnesium, copper, potassium, iron, zinc, calcium. Relative to that made with Calotropis procera and Carica papaya, cheese made with lemon juice was harder, less cohesive and gave a higher significant value (P &lt; 0.05) of dry matter (48.04% - cow milk : 53.22% sheep milk) in both types of milk. The lowest dry matter content was observed in Calotropis procera processed cheese made from cow milk (40.02%). The crude protein (4.22%), ether axtract (60.54%) and ash (6.00%) of Calotropis procera processed cheese made from sheep milk was significantly higher (P &lt; 0.05) than cheese made from cow and sheep milk using Carica papaya and lemon juice. The lemon juice processed cheese made from sheep milk gave a significantly higher value (P &lt; 0.05) of zinc (0.273%) and calcium (1.299%) than the cheese produced by the other two coagulants. Lemon juice processed cheese made from cow milk had the lowest content of crude protein (2.23%) and ether extracts (49.23%). With respect to carbohydrates, cheese made from cow milk using lemon juice had the highest (P &lt; 0.05%) value (41.21%) while it was lowest in Calotropis procera and carica papaya processed cheese made from sheep milk (28.34% and 28.40% respectively). However, ether extract was highest in cheese made from sheep milk using Calotropis procera extract (60.54%) and lowest in cheese made from sheep milk using lemon juice (49.69%). In terms of organoleptic evaluation, cheese processed from cow milk using Calotropis procera scored the highest insignificant (P &gt; 0.05) overall acceptability (5.77). This study suggests that sheep milk and Carica papaya leaf extract have the potential to compete favourably well with the commonly used cow milk and Calotropis procera leaf extract.Keywords: Calotropis procera, Carica papaya, lemon juice, proximate composition, coagulan

Economic analysis of the role of microfinance banks in funding agriculture in rural areas of Kwara state, Nigeria

The quest to meet the credit need of the Nigerian farmers necessitated the focus of this study. Specifically, the study examined the contribution of microfinance banks (MFBs) towards agricultural development, analyzed and compared the loans given out by these banks to agricultural sector with those given to other investment activities in the study area, examined the repayment level of the various sectors and identified the constraints hindering efficient contribution of the banks to agricultural development in the study area. Data obtained from ten MFBs in Kwara State were used for the study. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analysis. The study revealed that most of the banks’ loan were granted to trade and commerce sector while the agricultural sector obtained just about one-fifth of loan disbursement annually. As regard loan recovery however, the agricultural sector compared more favourably than other sectors to which more loan was disbursed. The problems facing the MFBs in making morecontribution to agricultural development in the study area include less saving habit of farmer clients, limited loan products, shortage of logistics in rural areas, less willingness of the commercial banks to lend MFBs, shortage of experienced human resources, inadequate capital to operate and lack of effective management information system. The study calls for more contribution to the agricultural sector by the banks and proffers solutions to the constraints limiting their role in agricultural development.Keywords: Credit, role, microfinance banks, agricultural development, problems

Perception of Sheep and Goat Milk Consumption among Rural Dwellers in South-Western Nigeria

A total of 120 respondents were purposively selected to study the perception of sheep and goat milk consumption among rural dwellers in South-Western Nigeria. The study showed that most of the respondents (72.5%) are not aware of the consumption of such milk and as such only few (10, 8%) claimed that they have consumed it. Friends, relatives (14.2%) and health personnel (6.7%) were the sources of information on goat and sheep milk consumption to the respondents. Preference of other sources of milk, lack of awareness, traditional belief, odour of the milk and small quantity of the milk were the factors that discourage people from consuming the milk. Many of the respondents (57.7%) have positive perception of the milk. Among the socio-economic characteristics, age (r = 0.58417, 0.0001), educational qualification (X2 = 25.584, p &lt; 0.05), marital status (X2 = 131.87, p &lt; 05) and family size (r = 0.98751, p &lt; 0.05) have significant relationships with the perception of the respondents about the milk. Keywords: Goat and Sheep milk, consumption, perception, rural dwellers and animal protei

Energetic parameters in pregnant and lactating rat (Lasiopodomys brandtii) fed high- or low-fibre diets

The effect of diet quality (high-fibre (HF) or low-fibre (LF)) on energetic parameters in pregnant and lactating rats (Lasiopodomys brandtii) was examined. There was no significant difference (p&gt;0.05) in body mass of voles prior to dietary acclimation and during pregnancy. Energetic parameters (dry matter, gross energy, digestible energy intake and digestibility) as well as body mass of pups was not significantly (p&gt;0.05) affected by diet quality. Low fibre diet caused a decreased (p&lt;0.05) in feed and gross energy intake and increased (p&lt;0.001) digestible energy intake at mid lactation while digestibility was significantly increased at early lactation. Liver and kidney were significantly (p&lt;0.05) lighter in voles on low fibre diet. No significant difference was observed between diets for metabolic rate. These results revealed that rats can compensate for poor quality (HF) diet physiologically by increasing food intake and decreasing digestible energy intake and digestibility to keep reproductive performance unaffected. The most energetically demanding period of breeding cycle of rat was mid lactation.Key words: Energetic parameters, High- and low-fiber diet, Lactating, Pregnant, Ra