Antimicrobial and antihelminthic properties of shea butter (Vitellaria paradoxa)

The phytochemical, antimicrobial and antihelminthic screening of the crude extract of three types of Vitellaria paradoxa (shea butter) was investigated in this study. The crude extracts were dissolved in di-methylsulfoxide. The phytochemical constituents of the crude extracts were accessed and compared. Clinical isolates under aseptic conditions were collected from the Medical Microbiology Laboratory, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital and further morphological and biochemical tests were carried out to identify this clinical isolates as; Staphylococcus sp., Escherichia sp., Pseudomonas sp., Klebsiella sp., Streptococcus sp and Candida sp. Inoculums were prepared and adjusted to 0.5ml Mc Farland standard of each test bacterium. It was spread onto sterile Muller Hinton Agar plates so as to achieve even growth. The plates were allowed to dry and a sterile cork borer (6.0mm diameter) was used to bore wells in the agar plates. Ofloxacine and Fluconazole was used as bacteria and fungi control respectively. The crude yellow extracts exhibited inhibitory activities that were found to be higher than crude white and ivory colored extract on all the test organisms. Despite the crude yellow extract exhibited higher inhibitory activities than the other extracts; the antibacterial activity was low in 10-1 to 10-4 dilutions for some bacteria. The crude extracts revealed the presence of Alkaloids, flavonoids, Cardiac glycosides, saponnin, and carbohydrates. Anthraquinnone and phlobatannin were absent in the extracts. This study also revealed that shea butter has no anti-helminth effect after 24hours exposure of the eggs of Ascaris lumbricoides and Trichuris trichuria in the shea oil sample rather; the DMSO used as control killed the eggs. This calls for further investigation

Formulation and Evaluation of Polyherbal Antioxidant Face Cream Containing Ethanol Extracts of Psidium Guajava and Ocimum Gratissimum

Background: Aging is a natural progressive process that leads to aesthetic and functional changes in the skin. The aim of this research work is to formulate and evaluate a polyherbal antioxidant face cream using the ethanol extracts of psidium guajava and ocimum gratissimum.Method: The ethanol extract of the herbs was incorporated at varying concentrations into six different emulsion bases. Antioxidant activity of the formulations was assessed using 2, 2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl method. The formulations were evaluated for pH, viscosity, spreadability and microbial content. Accelerated stability tests were performed on all the formulations to assess stability at varying storage conditions.Results: All the formulations showed good spread ability, good consistency, homogeneity, appearance, pH without phase separation occurring. Rheological tests showed that the all formulations exhibited non-Newtonian pseudo plastic flow. All six formulations also showed concentration dependent antioxidant activity. Ascorbic acid a potent antioxidant served as the standard for these tests. Formulation AFCR6 showed the highest antioxidant activity with IC50 value of 80.1 μg/mL.Conclusion: The polyherbal antioxidant cream containing extracts of Psidium guajava and Ocimum gratissimum have been shown to have excellent antioxidants properties. It can serve to protect the skin from reactive oxygen species created by UV radiation and environmental toxin, thus protecting the skin from photo aging.Keywords: Anti-oxidant, Face cream, Psidium guajava, Ocimum gratissimu

Examining the Link Between Religion and Corporate Governance: Insights From Nigeria

This article examines whether the degree of religiosity in an institutional environment can stimulate the emergence of a robust corporate governance system. This study utilizes the Nigerian business environment as its context and embraces a qualitative interpretivist research approach. This approach permitted the engagement of a qualitative content analysis (QCA) methodology to generate insights from interviewees. Findings from the study indicate that despite the high religiosity among Nigerians, religion has not stimulated the desired corporate governance system in Nigeria. The primary explanation for this outcome is the presence of rational ordering over religious preferences thus highlighting the fact that religion, as presently understood and practiced by stakeholders, is inconsistent with the principles underpinning good corporate governance

MANAGEMENT OF A CHRONIC NECROTIZING WOUND IN A DOG USING NATURAL HONEY THERAPY

Infected skin wounds are common in pet animals. Following an infected severe bite wound in a dog with marked necrotic aftermath, natural honey was successfully used alongside systemic antibiotic therapy to hasten healing. The condition improved with speed and regeneration of skin tissue, avoiding sloughing. The wound took 168 days to heal and to form a scar. Natural honey can be considered as a wound management tool, as it is both highly effective, can render a low cost therapy and less managemental expenditure compared to other specialized therapies and techniques