Invitro Antibacterial Screening of Extracts from Selected Ethiopian Medicinal Plants

Indigenous knowledge, literature reports and ethnobotanical records suggest that plants are the basis for medicines. They constitute natural source of antimicrobial drugs that will provide novel or lead compounds for the fight against disease. In this study, the antimicrobial activity of three selected Ethiopian medicinal plants was studied with the objective of  screening their antibacterial activity. The fruits of Measalanceolata, aerial part of Cissus quadrangularis and leaf of Dodonae angustifolia were collected, air dried under shed, powdered and soaked in 80% methanol and extracted. In vitro antibacterial activity of the extracts was tested at different concentrations by using agar disc diffusion method and  measuring the zone of inhibition. The plant extracts showed broad  spectrum activity against gram positive (S. aureus) as well as gram  negative (E. coli) bacteria, except Cissus quadrangularis which did not show any activity against E. coli. Furthermore, the plant extracts had also  concentration dependant zone of inhibition against the tested bacteria. In fact, the highest activity was obtained for Dodonae angustifolia at  1000mg/ml against S. aureus. The activities are attributed to the presence of some secondary metabolites present in the tested plants which have been associated with antibacterial activities. This finding suggests that these medicinal plants can be potential source to isolate antibacterial drugs.Keywords: Antibacterial activity, Disc diffusion, E. coli, Plant extract and S. aureus

Seasonal variation in the parasite burden and body condition of working donkeys in East Shewa and West Shewa regions of Ethiopia.

A survey of donkeys arriving at markets in three localities in East and West Shewa regions of central Ethiopia was carried out during 2002. Total faecal worm egg counts and body condition scores were measured for a total of 963 donkeys over a 12-month period. Total faecal worm egg counts did not differ significantly between localities but there was significant (

Fermi Surface Properties of Low Concentration Cex_{x}La1−x_{1-x}B6_{6}: dHvA

The de Haas-van Alphen effect is used to study angular dependent extremal areas of the Fermi Surfaces (FS) and effective masses of Ce$_{x}$La$_{1-x}$B$_{6}$ alloys for $x$ between 0 and 0.05. The FS of these alloys was previously observed to be spin polarized at low Ce concentration ($x$ = 0.05). This work gives the details of the initial development of the topology and spin polarization of the FS from that of unpolarized metallic LaB$_{6}$ to that of spin polarized heavy Fermion CeB$_{6}$ .Comment: 7 pages, 9 figures, submitted to PR

Genetic variability and population structure of Ethiopian Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) germplasm assessed through phenotypic traits and simple sequence repeats markers

Open Access Journal; Published online: 02 Jun 2021Ethiopia is one of the centers of genetic diversity of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.). The sesame genetic resources present in the country should be explored for local, regional, and international genetic improvement programs to design high-performing and market-preferred varieties. This study’s objective was to determine the extent of genetic variation among 100 diverse cultivated sesame germplasm collections of Ethiopia using phenotypic traits and simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers to select distinct and complementary genotypes for breeding. One hundred sesame entries were field evaluated at two locations in Ethiopia for agro-morphological traits and seed oil content using a 10 × 10 lattice design with two replications. Test genotypes were profiled using 27 polymorphic SSR markers at the Oil Crops Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Analysis of variance revealed significant (p ≤ 0.05) entry by environment interaction for plant height, internode length, number of secondary branches, and grain yield. Genotypes such as Hirhir Kebabo Hairless-9, Setit-3, Orofalc ACC-2, Hirhir Humera Sel-6, ABX = 2-01-2, and Setit-1 recorded grain yield of >0.73 ton ha−1 with excellent performance in yield component such as oil yield per hectare. Grain yield had positive and significant (p < 0.01) associations with oil yield (r = 0.99), useful for simultaneous selection for yield improvement in sesame. The SSR markers revealed gene diversity and polymorphic information content values of 0.30 and 0.25, respectively, showing that the tested sesame accessions were genetically diverse. Cluster analysis resolved the accessions into two groups, while population structure analysis revealed four major heterotic groups, thus enabling selection and subsequent crossing to develop breeding populations for cultivar development. Based on phenotypic and genomic divergence, the following superior and complementary genotypes: Hirhir Humera Sel-6, Setit-3, Hirhir Kebabo Hairless Sel-4, Hirhir Nigara 1st Sel-1, Humera-1 and Hirhir Kebabo Early Sel-1 (from cluster II-a), Hirhir kebabo hairless-9, NN-0029(2), NN0068-2 and Bawnji Fiyel Kolet, (from cluster II-b). The selected genotypes will serve as parents in the local breeding program in Ethiopia

Localized f electrons in CexLa1-xRhIn5: dHvA Measurements

Measurements of the de Haas-van Alphen effect in CexLa1-xRhIn5 reveal that the Ce 4f electrons remain localized for all x, with the mass enhancement and progressive loss of one spin from the de Haas-van Alphen signal resulting from spin fluctuation effects. This behavior may be typical of antiferromagnetic heavy fermion compounds, inspite of the fact that the 4f electron localization in CeRhIn5 is driven, in part, by a spin-density wave instability.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, submitted to PR

Effects of countdown displays in public transport route choice under severe overcrowding

The paper presents a route choice model for dynamic assignment in congested, i.e. overcrowded, transit networks where it is assumed that passengers are supported with real-time information on carrier arrivals at stops. If the stop layout is such that passenger congestion results in First-In-First-Out (FIFO) queues, a new formulation is devised for calculating waiting times, total travel times and route splits. Numerical results for a simple example network show the effect of information on route choice when heavy congestion is observed. While the provision of information does not lead to a remarkable decrease in total travel time, with the exception of some particular instances, it changes the travel behaviour of passengers that seem to be more averse to queuing at later stages of their journey and, thus, prefer to interchange at less congested stations

Application of biostimulant products and biological control agents in sustainable viticulture: A review

Current and continuing climate change in the Anthropocene epoch requires sustainable agricultural practices. Additionally, due to changing consumer preferences, organic approaches to cultivation are gaining popularity. The global market for organic grapes, grape products, and wine is growing. Biostimulant and biocontrol products are often applied in organic vineyards and can reduce the synthetic fertilizer, pesticide, and fungicide requirements of a vineyard. Plant growth promotion following application is also observed under a variety of challenging conditions associated with global warming. This paper reviews different groups of biostimulants and their effects on viticulture, including microorganisms, protein hydrolysates, humic acids, pyrogenic materials, and seaweed extracts. Of special interest are biostimulants with utility in protecting plants against the effects of climate change, including drought and heat stress. While many beneficial effects have been reported following the application of these materials, most studies lack a mechanistic explanation, and important parameters are often undefined (e.g., soil characteristics and nutrient availability). We recommend an increased study of the underlying mechanisms of these products to enable the selection of proper biostimulants, application methods, and dosage in viticulture. A detailed understanding of processes dictating beneficial effects in vineyards following application may allow for biostimulants with increased efficacy, uptake, and sustainability.KJ wishes to acknowledge financial support (3710473400); MS-M thanks to RTI2018-099417-B-I00 (Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities cofunded with EU FEDER funds); JB wish to acknowledge the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico/Brasil (CNPQ process number 309477/2021-2); RO-H is supported by the Ramón y Cajal program from the MICINN (RYC-2017 22032), PAIDI 2020 (Ref. 20_00323), AEI GGOO 2020 (GOPC-CA-20-0001), “José Castillejo” program from the “Ministerio de Universidades” (CAS21/00125) and PID2019-106004RA-I00/AEI/10.13039/501100011033. SM and GT thanks to Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (grant PID2020-114330GB-100). PAIDI2020 from Junta de Andalucía, grant P18-RT-1401 to SM, MD, and GT is also acknowledged. GT acknowledge the support of the publication fee by the CSIC Open Access Publication Support Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI)

Measurement of the muon anti-neutrino double-differential cross section for quasi-elastic scattering on hydrocarbon at~Eν∼3.5E_\nu \sim 3.5 GeV

We present double-differential measurements of anti-neutrino quasi-elastic scattering in the MINERvA detector. This study improves on a previous single differential measurement by using updated reconstruction algorithms and interaction models, and provides a complete description of observed muon kinematics in the form of a double-differential cross section with respect to muon transverse and longitudinal momentum. We include in our signal definition zero-meson final states arising from multi-nucleon interactions and from resonant pion production followed by pion absorption in the primary nucleus. We find that model agreement is considerably improved by a model tuned to MINERvA inclusive neutrino scattering data that incorporates nuclear effects such as weak nuclear screening and two-particle, two-hole enhancements.Comment: 47 pages, 31 figure

Electrostatic Origins of CO2-Increased Hydrophilicity in Carbonate Reservoirs

Injecting CO2 into oil reservoirs appears to be cost-effective and environmentally friendly due to decreasing the use of chemicals and cutting back on the greenhouse gas emission released. However, there is a pressing need for new algorithms to characterize oil/brine/rock system wettability, thus better predict and manage CO2 geological storage and enhanced oil recovery in oil reservoirs. We coupled surface complexation/CO2 and calcite dissolution model, and accurately predicted measured oil-on-calcite contact angles in NaCl and CaCl2 solutions with and without CO2. Contact angles decreased in carbonated water indicating increased hydrophilicity under carbonation. Lowered salinity increased hydrophilicity as did Ca2+. Hydrophilicity correlates with independently calculated oil-calcite electrostatic bridging. The link between the two may be used to better implement CO2 EOR in fields