Overview of holistic application of biogas for small scale farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa

Peer reviewedPostprin

Indigenous plant based coagulants/disinfectants and sand filter media for surface water treatment in Bamenda, Cameroon

An Evaluation of plant- based coagulants and disinfectant-sand filter  medium for surface water treatment in Bamenda, Cameroon using  bacterial analyses and turbidity were carried out. 100L of very turbid surface water (Turbidity approx. 500NTU) was pretreated with 100 seeds of Moringa oleifera, and further filtered through a sand filter drum (120 L carrying capacity) made of fine, coarse sand, charcoal and gravel. The mean total heterotrophic bacterial counts, Escherichia coli, coliform, pseudomonas and yeast counts, as well as turbidity of untreated surface water significantly reduced by 85 to 95%. The results suggested that the mean values of the same parameters for sand filtered pond water alone was significantly lower than the corresponding mean values obtained for plant coagulant treated surface water. The findings from this study  demonstrates strongly that a biocoagulant sand filter media (plant based coagulant-sand filter drum) could be applied to treat contaminated surface water, rendering it free from solids and pathogens.Key words: Plant, coagulants, indigenous, surface, water, treatment, microbes, Cameroon

Developments and Perspectives in Bryophyte Biotechnology in Sub-Saharan Africa

The work described here covers an examination of new bioproducts based on sub-Saharan bryophytes. The work includes in vitro testing of extracts from moss and liverworts against plant pathogenic microbes causing food decay and field crop losses. Additionally, we have shown specific antimicrobial activities of Marchantia debilis and moss against Erwinia spp and Pseudomonas spp. The extracts were also tested against aflatoxin-producing fungi isolated from food crops such as maize and peanuts. The efficacy of the extracts on clinical dermatological fungal isolates like Dermatophilus congolensis has not been reported. This led to the production of an antifungal solution of bryophyte extracts, which was tested in vivo on animals with skin diseases caused by Dermatophilosis. Around 99.5% of the animals were treated. The antifungal solution for treatments has been labeled Bryosol, while the disinfectants solution is labeled Bryo-disinfectants and the crop-fungicide is labeled Bryo-fungicides. A mini field pilot trial with Bryo-fungicide showed that crops infected with pathogenic fungi were treated. The results provide the first attempt to demonstrate the use of bioproducts for organic treatment of agricultural crops and diseases in animals based on sub-Saharan bryophytes

Management of Diabetic Bacterial Foot Infections with Organic Extracts of Liverwort Marchantia debilis from Cameroon

Diabetic bacterial foot infections (DBFIs) are limb-threatening complications in patients with diabetes mellitus, accounting for 50% of diabetes related lower limb amputations in developing countries, representing approximately 20 percent of all diabetes-related hospital admissions with significant healthcare-related costs involved. The widespread problem of bacterial resistance to most commonly used antibiotics places a huge economic burden on the healthcare system, with both increased morbidity and mortality among diabetic patients with foot infections. In this study, the antibacterial activity of organic extracts of the fresh liverwort Marchantia debilis from the North West Region of Cameroon is reported. An exit pool system, where patients presenting with DBFIs consented to be involved in the use of phytomedicines, after long term treatment of ulcers with antibiotics and not yielding significant long term benefit, presented themselves at the Phytobiotechnology Research clinic (PRF). Continuous culture of swabs from foot and toe wounds from 30 infected patients on nutrient agar and MacConkey agars in triplicate as well as Gram stain microscopy, revealed the presence of Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis and Bacillus species. Light petroleum and methanol extracts of the whole bryophyte plants at 100% concentration were tested. In vitro inhibition of the tested bacterial isolates from the diabetic foot ulcers by M debilis was observed only with the light petroleum extract. No inhibition by the extracts was observed for the Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolate. The light petroleum extract of M debilis was formulated into a petroleum oil based cream named BryoCream (TM). This was administered to 20 of the patients with 90% cure rate in a three week time period. The main nonpolar components were determined by GCMS as lepidozene and beta-barbatene, and by NMR. as stigmasterol and beta-sitosterol. In conclusion, nonpolar extracts from bryophytes from Cameroon could, potentially, be used to treat diabetic bacterial foot infections

Managing cow dung with a low tech, cheap plastic digester

In this report, the management and disinfection of manure with a low-tech, cheap, plastic digester is described. The efficacy of disinfection was monitored by carrying out microscopy and culture analysis of the raw and treated manure slurries to establish the microbial presence in both

Effect of Selected Agrochemicals on Protozoans and Algae Isolated from Mosquito Larval Habitats in Bamenda

The present study establishes the in-vitro effect of some selected agrochemicals(Glycot, Lamida and Pencozeb) on protozoans and some algae isolated from mosquito larval habitats in Bamenda urban zone, Cameroon. A convenience sampling technique was used in which water samples were randomly collected from 125 mosquito larval habitats from Bamenda urban zone. Out of the 123 samples tested, 41(33.33%) samples were found to be positive. Dinoflagellates predorminated with a frequency of 20(16.26%). One genera of protozoa(chillodenella) pathogenic to mosquito larvae was seen. Hook worm, Faciola, Paramecium and Trichomonas were found to be of medical importance while Euglena, Diatoms and Dinoflagellates were found to be of agricultural importance. All the protozoans and algae tested were susceptible to Lamida and Penncozeb, but resistant to glycot at all concentrations tested. Conclusively, the susceptibility of Chillodenella spp to Lamida and Penncozeb suggest their interference with natural biological control for mosquito population and also distortion of the ecosystem. Keywords: Agrochemicals, protozoans and algae , mosquito larval habitat

Sensitive and specific detection of E. coli using biomimetic receptors in combination with a modified heat-transfer method

We report on a novel biomimetic sensor that allows sensitive and specific detection of Escherichia colt (E. coli) bacteria in a broad concentration range from 10(2) up to 10(6) CFU/mL in both buffer fluids and relevant food samples (i.e. apple juice). The receptors are surface-imprinted polyurethane layers deposited on stainless-steel chips. Regarding the transducer principle, the sensor measures the increase in thermal resistance between the chip and the liquid due to the presence of bacteria captured on the receptor surface. The low noise level that enables the low detection limit originates from a planar meander element that serves as both a heater and a temperature sensor. Furthermore, the experiments show that the presence of bacteria in a liquid enhances the thermal conductivity of the liquid itself. Reference tests with a set of other representative species of Enterobacteriaceae, closely related to E. coli, indicate a very low cross-sensitivity with a sensor response at or below the noise level

Baseline Study on the Occurrence of Cryptosporidium Spp from Streams Water, after Torrential Rains in Bamenda, Cameroon

Oocycts of Cryptosporidia are zoonotic infective stages of Cryptosporidia spp that can easily contaminate the environment if not properly disposed of. Torrential rains would usually wash them into the nearby streams and likely be consumed by humans when the water is used. Cryotosporidiosis in people with suppressed immune systems have no cure as the robust oocycst are not destroyed by chlorination. The aim of this study is to determine the presence of Cryptosporia oocycts in stream water after torrential rains 60 samples of stream water were collected immediately after rain storm in June and July 2014, from 5 streams flowing through Bamenda town. 2 samples of 1.5L were collected from each stream, on 6 different days. Cryptosporidia ssp were present in all the streams but there was no significant difference between their occurrence and the stream’s location, Chi square = 2.605, >0.05The streams flowing through Bamenda town are polluted Keywords: storm-water, zoonotic, Cryptosporidiosis, chlorination, oocyst

Poultry faeces management with a simple low cost plastic digester

Poultry faeces collected from the research farm of the school of Agriculture, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, Nigeria, was anaerobically digested for five weeks retention time using a plastic type digester constructed at the FMEnv/ZERI Research Centre and a follow up system set up in Cameroon at the compound of the National Polytechnic Bambui, Bamenda in the North West part of the country with 200 L poultry faeces collected from a private farmer in Bambui village who reported that composted poultry faeces used to fertilized his plantain field generated stem and root rot disease. Following anaerobic digestion of poultry faeces for 37 days in Nigeria, the raw slurries with a very high mean bacterial counts too numerous to count (estimated as above 10,000 cfu per ml) reduced drastically to only 180 cful ml while mean coliform and Escherichia coli counts too numerous to count reduced drastically to 130 and 87 cful ml, respectively. The difference in mean microbial counts from the raw to treated slurries was far more significant than the raw slurry kept on bench and analysed at the end of five weeks as control. Cyst of Eimeria spp and ova of Ascaridia detected in the raw slurries were absent in the anaerobically digested slurry. Seven species of soil pathogenic nematodes detected in a compost pit and from stem and root rot of plantain trees fertilized with the manure at a local farm in Cameroon were not detected after the poultry faeces was anaerobically digested in a pilot plastic digester in a five week retention time. Biogas produced at the end of the process was used as cooking fuel and burnt for 3 h daily for 5 days. The findings showed that the plastic type digester was efficient in disinfecting contaminated poultry faeces while providing biogas and sterile mineralized fertilizer.K. A. Yongabi, P. L. Harris and D. M. Lewi

Effect of Aqueous Leaf Extract of Jatropha tanjorensis on parasitaemia and haematological parameters in mice infected with Plasmodium ber ghei

Medicinal plants are proven sources of many useful drugs in our modern world. Jatropha tanjorensis, known as hospital too far, is consumed highly in Africa as herbal medicine. This research work was done to evaluate the effect of aqueous leaf extract of Jatropha tanjorensis on parasitaemia and haematological parameters in mice infected with Plasmodium ber ghei. The leaves of J. tanjorensis were extracted with distilled water and qualitative phytochemical analysis carried out. Acute toxicity studies were carried out using the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) guideline. The curative activity of the extract was examined using Rane’s test. A total of forty (40) mice were used for the study and they were infected with Plasmodium berghei. The infected mice were subdivided into five groups of six mice each and treated with different doses of standard drug (artemether/lumefantrine 25mg/kg) and extract (200, 400 and 800mg/kg body weight) for 4 days. After treatment, blood was collected and used for percentage parasitaemia, packed cell volume and hemoglobin concentration. The result of phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of alkaloids, tannins, saponins, flavonoids, terpe noids, cardiac glycosides and anthra quinones. The result of the acute toxicity showed the signs of neither neurological, behavioral nor mortality at concentrations of 2,000 and 5,000 mg/kg oral doses within the first 24 hours and during the 14 days study period. A dose- dependent increase was observed in Total haemoglobin (Hb) and Packed cell volume (PCV) levels which was collaborated with increase in weight as compared with negative control. The leaf extract of J. tanjorensis also revealed a significant (p<0.05) suppression activity and mean survival time at the doses of 400 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg when compared with the negative control. The extract of Jatropha tanjorensis showed reasonable levels of anti-anaemia and antimalarial activities with no signs of acute toxicity.  Therefore this study may support its use as an anti-prophylactic and blood tonic nutraceutical