Pectinolytic and Cellulolytic Enzymes Enhance Fusarium compactum Virulence on Tubercles Infection of Egyptian Broomrape

The use of enzyme could facilitate pathogen penetration into plant host. Here the combination of cellulase and pectinase was ascertained on the pathogenicity of F. compactum (1.4 × 106  propagules ml−1) on broomrape tubercles. F. compactum alone infected all the inoculated tubercles but did not kill any significant number. Infested tomato roots that were inoculated with mycelia plus pectinase (20 U ml−1) had over 50% tubercles dead one week after treatment. Those inoculated with mycelia plus cellulase (20 U ml−1) had above 60% mortality. Mixtures of mycelial plus the two enzymes (10 U ml−1 of each enzyme) showed synergy. The activity catalyzed by an enzyme is a measure of the amount of enzyme present. It was shown that, in a 1 mg (10 U mg−1) cellulase used, 0.055 mg pectinase (1.1 U mg−1) is present. This explains why mycelial plus cellulase mix contends with mycelial plus the two enzymes

Molecular techniques: An overview of methods for the detection of bacteria

Several DNA molecular markers are now available for use in surveillance and investigation of food-borne outbreaks that were previously difficult to detect. The results from several sources of literature indicate substantially different degrees of sensitivities between conventional detection methods and molecular-based methods. The new technology is noted for increased sensitivity over the traditional culture methods which they complement. Key words: molecular techniques, fingerprinting, microorganism. African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 2 (12), pp. 710-713, December 200

Profiling of Bacillus cereus enterotoxigenic genes from retailed foods and detection of the nhe and hbl toxins with immunological assay

Bacillus cereus produces pore-forming toxins responsible for diarrhoea; therefore, rapidly detecting these toxins in food retailed for consumption is needed. The genomic DNA of 100 B. cereus isolates recovered from some retailed foods was extracted and used as a template for enterotoxin detection. The detection of genes of non-haemolyticnonhemolytic enterotoxin (nheA, nheB, nheC), hemolysin BL (hblA, hblC, hblD), entFM, cytK and bceT by the isolates was carried out with PCR  using primers specific for the targeted genes, while the production of Nhe and Hbl enterotoxins in fifty of the randomly chosen isolates was detected with a Duopath Cereus Enterotoxin kit. Ninety-five percent of the isolates carried one or more components of the NHE complex, while 56% had one or more components of HBL. Sixteen out of the 100 isolates carried all the genes for NHE and HBL complex genes. The entFM, cytK and bceT genes were detected in 85%, 74% and 60% of B. cereus isolates, respectively. Starchy foods had the highest incidence of the HBL complex, while nheA and nheC occurred mostly in protein foods with 90% and 87% incidence, respectively. The immunological kit was able to detect the production of  nonhemolytic enterotoxin (Nhe) in all the B. cereus isolates, while 28 B. cereus isolates produced hemolysin (hbl). Nineteen isolates that carried one or more genes encoding  hbl did not produce the toxin. This study clearly showed that retailed foods sold in Ogun State, Nigeria, harbor B. cereus  enterotoxigenic genes responsible for diarrhoea. These toxins can be rapidly detected in foods using both molecular and immunological methods

Characterization of potential ethylene-producing rhizosphere bacteria of Striga-infested maize and sorghum

Three rhizosphere bacteria, Pseudomonas sp., Enterobacter sakazakii and Klebsiella oxytoca, were analyzed for genetic variation. DNA fingerprint patterns of the three bacteria were markedly different when amplified with different primers. In total, 68 bands were produced by the three primers, 62 of which where variable. The number of polymorphic RAPD loci per isolate ranged from one to 13. Cluster analysis indicated that E. sakazakii and K. oxytoca are the most closely related of the three. (African Journal of Biotechnology: 2002 1(2): 67-69

Effects of a 12-Week Structured Fitness Exercise on the Red Blood Cells of College Students in Ikere-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria.

This study investigated and determined the effects of a 12-week structured fitness training programme on the Red Blood cells of College Students. The structured exercise/ training programme consisted of graded physical activities lasting for about fifty (50) minutes and administered three times a week,  The pre-test, post-test control group - design was used for the study. Sixty (60) College Students were used comprising thirty (30) subjects each for both the experimental and the control groups. Statistical procedure employed included the descriptive statistics of mean, range and standard deviation, inferential statistics of Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to determine significance of adaptation. A post-hoc analysis of Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA) was also applied to find out the magnitude of the adaptation.  Graphical illustration was also used to pictorially display the pattern of changes in the variable.  The result of the findings showed a rejection of the hypothesis which stated that there will be no significant effect of a 12-week fitness training programme on the Red blood cells of College Students in Ekiti State. Based on the findings of this study, it was therefore concluded that a structured exercise training programme of 12 weeks duration is capable of reducing the red blood cells of college students in Ikere Ekiti. It was recommended that such fitness training programme be encouraged among the youths. Keywords: Resistance exercise, hematological variables, college students

Effects of a 12-Week Structured Fitness Exercise on the Red Blood Cells of College Students in Ikere-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria.

This study investigated and determined the effects of a 12-week structured fitness training programme on the Red Blood cells of College Students. The structured exercise/ training programme consisted of graded physical activities lasting for about fifty (50) minutes and administered three times a week,  The pre-test, post-test control group - design was used for the study. Sixty (60) College Students were used comprising thirty (30) subjects each for both the experimental and the control groups. Statistical procedure employed included the descriptive statistics of mean, range and standard deviation, inferential statistics of Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to determine significance of adaptation. A post-hoc analysis of Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA) was also applied to find out the magnitude of the adaptation.  Graphical illustration was also used to pictorially display the pattern of changes in the variable.  The result of the findings showed a rejection of the hypothesis which stated that there will be no significant effect of a 12-week fitness training programme on the Red blood cells of College Students in Ekiti State. Based on the findings of this study, it was therefore concluded that a structured exercise training programme of 12 weeks duration is capable of reducing the red blood cells of college students in Ikere Ekiti. It was recommended that such fitness training programme be encouraged among the youths. Keywords: Resistance exercise, hematological variables, college students

Plant health status affects the functional diversity of the rhizosphere microbiome associated with solanum lycopersicum

The microorganisms inhabiting soil perform unique functions in the growth and development of plants. However, little is known about how plant health status affects their potential functions. We examined the functional diversity of the microbiome inhabiting the rhizosphere of powdery mildew diseased and healthy tomato plants alongside the bulk soils in South Africa's Northwest Province employing a shotgun metagenomics approach. We envisaged that the functional categories would be abundant in the healthy rhizosphere (HR) of the tomato plant. We collected soil from the rhizosphere of healthy, powdery mildew diseased tomato plants (DR), and bulk soil (BR). After that, their DNA was extracted. The extracted DNA was subjected to shotgun metagenomic sequencing. Our result using the SEED subsystem revealed that a total of fifteen (15) functional categories dominated the healthy rhizosphere, seven (7) functional categories dominated the diseased rhizosphere. At the same time, six (6) functions dominated the bulk soil. Alpha (α) diversity assessment did not reveal a significant difference (p > 0.05) in all the soil samples, but a considerable difference was observed for beta (β) diversity (P = 0.01). The functional categories obtained in this research were highly abundant in HR. Therefore, this study shows that the functions groups of the rhizosphere microbiomes were more abundant in HR samples as compared to others. The high prevalence of functions groups associated with rhizobiomes in the tomato rhizosphere indicates the need for more research to establish the functional genes associated with these rhizosphere microbiomes

Sulfate-Reducing Bacteria as an Effective Tool for Sustainable Acid Mine Bioremediation

Mining industries produce vast waste streams that pose severe environmental pollution challenge. Conventional techniques of treatment are usually inefficient and unsustainable. Biological technique employing the use of microorganisms is a competitive alternative to treat mine wastes and recover toxic heavy metals. Microorganisms are used to detoxify, extract or sequester pollutants from mine waste. Sulfate-reducing microorganisms play a vital role in the control and treatment of mine waste, generating alkalinity and neutralizing the acidic waste. The design of engineered sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) consortia will be an effective tool in optimizing degradation of acid mine tailings waste in industrial processes. The understanding of the complex functions of SRB consortia vis-à-vis the metabolic and physiological properties in industrial applications and their roles in interspecies interactions are discussed

Maize rhizosphere modulates the microbiome diversity and community structure to enhance plant health

Metagenomic has been explored in investigating microbiome diversity. However, there is limited available information on its application towards securing plant health. Hence, this study adopts the metagenomic approach to unravel the microbiome diversity associated with healthy (LI and MA) and Northern corn leaf blight (NCLB) infected (LID and MAD) maize rhizosphere in the maize growing field at Lichtenburg and Mafikeng, North-West province of South Africa. The extraction of whole DNA from the respective healthy and diseased rhizosphere soils was conducted and sequenced using shotgun metagenomics. A total of 12 bacteria, 4 archaea and 2 fungal phyla were found as predominant across the fields with the use of the SEED subsystem database. The most predominant bacteria phyla included Proteobacteria, Dienococcus-Thermus, Gemmatimonadetes, Chlorobi, Cyanobacteria, Planctomycetes, Verrucomicrobia, Acidobacteria, Firmicutes, Chloroflexi and Bacteroidetes. Archaea consisted of Euryarchaeota, Thaumarchaeota, Crenarchaeota and Korachaeota, while Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were the dominant fungal phyla. Microbial abundance and diversity were higher in the rhizosphere of healthy maize (LI and MA) rhizosphere as compared to the NCLB diseased (LID and MAD), in the order LI > MA > LID > MAD. At phylum and genus level, alpha diversity index showed no significant (p > 0.05) difference in the abundance of the microbial community of healthy and NCLB infected maize rhizosphere, while beta analysis produced a significant (p = 0.01) difference in the microbial diversity in the soil. Taken together, the study revealed that the abundance of microbial diversity in the maize rhizosphere influences the efficacy of the rhizosphere microbiome to modulate microbial functions towards managing and sustaining plant health

Amplification of 1-amino-cyclopropane-1-carboxylic (ACC) deaminase from plant growth promoting rhizobacteria in Striga-infested soil

Experiments were conducted in pots to determine the growth effect of different rhizobacteria on maize under Striga hermonthica infestation. Three bacteria were selected based on their plant growth promoting effects. Whole bacterial cells of the rhizobacteria were used to amplify 1-amino-cyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase gene by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Each bacterial inoculation increased agronomic characteristics of maize although not always to a statistically significant extent. The extent of growth enhancement differs between the isolates. Enterobacter sakazakii 8MR5 had the ability to stimulate plant growth, however in the PCR study, ACC deaminase was not amplified from this isolate, indicating that not all plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria contain the enzyme ACC deaminase. In contrast, an ACC deaminase specific product was amplified from Pseudomonas sp. 4MKS8 and Klebsiella oxytoca 10MKR7.  This is the first report of ACC deaminase in K. oxytoca. Key words: 1-amino-cyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid, ACC deaminase, PCR, rhizobacteria, Striga hermonthica. (African Journal of Biotechnology: 2003 2(6): 157-160