MYCOLOGICAL EVALUATION OF DIFFERENTLY PRESERVED TILAPIA FISH IN ABEOKUTA NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT, NIGERIA

Fungi load and diversity of differently preserved tilapia fish obtained from Olomoore market, Abeokuta North local Government, Nigeria were evaluated. Fish samples were purchased, differently processed (smoking, salting, freezing) and analyzed for the presence of fungi. Microbial loads on the gills and the skin of fish samples were examined and characterised using standard microbiological procedures. The progression of growth was also monitored within 10-day storage period. The fungi isolated from the differently processed tilapia were Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus spp, Branchysporum nigrum, Candida albican, Candida spp., Fusarium solani, Fusarium spp., Paecilomyces spp., Rhizopus stolonifer and Aspergillus 8flavus. No significant variation (p>0.05) was recorded in the fungal count of the skin during the first day of processing. However, significant variation (p<0.05) existed in the fungal count of the gill of the fish during the first day of processing. On the tenth day frozen fish skin had the highest fungal count while smoked fish skin possessed the lowest fungal count. There were significant difference (p<0.05) in the fungal count of the skin and the gill of differently processed fish samples during the storage. Similarly, significant variation (p<0.05) existed in the fungi count of the gill during the tenth day of processing

History of Corruption and National Development: The Case of Nigeria

Nigeria, with a population of over 140 million people, is the most populous country: in Africa: one in five Sub-Saharan Africans is a Nigerian. The country is also rich in both human and natural resources. Billions of dollars were generated yearly from the sale of crude oil and vet nothing to show for this huge revenue in terms of infrastructural development and the living standards of Nigerians. This state of affairs has been attributed to the prevalence of corruption. This paper examines phenomenon called corruption. It discusses the causes and impacts. The paper attributed the causes of corruption in Nigeria to socio-cultural and the political and economic situation of the country. The paper contends that corruption has been responsible for the instability of successive Nigerian administration since independence to date. Besides, it creates negative image and loss of much needed revenue for developmental purposes: it devalues the quality of human life: robs educational and health sectors of revenues; it slows down administrative processes thereby making the execution of government policies to be ineffective. The paper recommends among others, enlightenment of the citizen on the danger of excessive materialism and the culture of “get rich quick”. Besides, the property of any corrupt official should be confiscated and should also be imprisoned for life to serve as a deterrent to others. Keywords: Corruption, Development, Kleptocracy, Prebendalisr

Anti-fluoroquinolone resistance activity of E558: A natural product

Fluoroquinolone resistance (FQR) has paralleled the abuse of this class of antibiotics in Nigeria ever since the patent rights expired in 2003. However, nature has a potent way of uncoupling unfavourable synergies targeted against the serenity of the biosphere. In this preliminary study, we examined the antibacterial activity of E558, a medicinal plant product against multidrugresistant gram-negative isolates from immunocompromised patients with acute respiratory infections. The agar-well diffusion method was employed to screen for antibacterial activity against strains of Klebsiella pneuminiae, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The organisms were initially subcultured on McConkey agar followed by streaking standard innoculum of the bacterial strains on Mueller-Hinton agar plates. A known concentration of crude extract was loaded into the well bored on the plates and then incubated at 37 °C for 24 hours. Antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) was carried out to monitor resistance of isolates. Protein profiling with sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) as well as restriction endonuclease mapping with agarose gel electrophoresis was employed to study alterations in the genomic DNA of selected organisms. A reverse mutation was observed in the morphology of organisms exposed to E558 compared to the organism without exposure. AST result further revealed that strains in the reverted zone, which were originally resistant to fluoroquinolones and other antibiotics had become susceptible with very wide zone of inhibition (≥ 40 mm; CLSI-sensitive). Restriction mapping and SDS-PAGE respectively revealed there are major differences in the genomic composition and protein profile of the reverted strains when compared to the original organisms. It can therefore be deduced that E558 possibly contains bioactive compound(s) with potent antitumour and anti-fluoroquinolone resistance activity

Effects of Quercetin on L-Arginine-Induced Acute Pancreatitis in Rats

This study evaluated the effect of quercetin on oxidative stress in a rat model of L-arginine-induced acute pancreatitis. Thirty male rats were randomly divided into five experimental groups thus: control, L-arginine group (2g/Kg body weight, i.p), and other groups were treated with 12.5mg/Kg body weight, 25mg/Kg body weight and 50mg/Kg body weight an hour after L-argnine administration. Twenty four hours thereafter, the rats were sacrificed and blood collected by cardiac puncture and organs were excised for the assay of plasma lipase and α-amylase activities as well as the activities of some antioxidant enzymes and levels of reduced glutathione, lipid peroxidation and chloramine. Acute pancreatitis was assessed by a significantly (p<0.05) increase in the activities of plasma lipase and α-amylase 24hours after L-arginine administration. All the quercetin dosages significantly (p<0.05) reversed the activities of these enzymes. L-arginine administration resulted in significant (p<0.05) reduction in the activity of glutathione-s-transferase in the lungs, pancreas and spleen as well as in the level of erythrocyte reduced glutathione. Only rats treated with 50mg/kg quercetin had a significant (p<0.05) reversal. However, all the quercetin treated groups had significant (p<0.05) increase in the level of erythrocyte reduced glutathione. Superoxide dismutase and peroxidase activities significantly (p<0.05) reduced while myeloperoxidase activity significantly (p<0.05) increased in the organs of rats as a result of L-arginine administration. These alterations were prevented by quercetin. These results show that quercetin protects the rat tissues from oxidative damage in L-arginine-induced pancreatitis.

Effects of Ginger Juice Aflatoxin-Induced Oxidative Stress in Rats

This study was carried out to investigate the antioxidant properties of the fresh juice of ginger against aflatoxin-exposure in rats. The preventive potential and antioxidant capacity of the juice was evaluated by assaying the activities of antioxidant enzymes and lipid peroxidation content in some organs and erythrocytes of rats. Twenty rats were randomly divided into four experimental groups thus: group 1 served as control, group 2 received ginger juice (2mL/Kg of 10% juice)alone, group 3 received aflatoxins (3.65mg/kg body weight) alone while group 4 was pre-treated with ginger juice for 7days prior to aflatoxin administration. In the erythrocytes, aflatoxin treatment resulted in significant (p<0.05) increase in erythrocyte osmotic fragility and lipid peroxidation with a concomitant significant (p<0.05) decrease in the level of reduced glutathione. Pre-treatment of rats with ginger juice significantly (p<0.05) prevent these changes by maintaining the activity of superoxide dismutase and preventing the increase in lipid peroxidation in the organs. Ginger juice pre-treatment also significantly (p<0.05) increased the activities of hepatic glutathione-S-transferase, peroxidase and superoxide dismutase. It is concluded that ginger juice has preventive effect in rats with aflatoxicosis by promoting the antioxidant defense systems

Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry Identification of Antiangiogenic Phytochemicals in Aframomum danielli K. Schum: An In silico Study

Aframomum danielli is one of the African spices used in folklore medicine for the management of several diseases. This study identified the phytochemical components present in the n-hexane seed extract of the A. danielli by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis and also evaluated the antiangiogenic potential of the identified phytochemicals by performing molecular docking against human Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) and matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) using Molegro Virtual Docker. The GC-MS analysis identified the presence of phytochemical components β-Caryophyllene (RT: 18.479), α-Caryophyllene (RT: 19.189), (4-Hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)ethyl methyl ketone (RT: 22.976), N-Acetyl-m-aminobenzoic acid (RT: 31.651) and 3-Pyridineacetic acid (RT: 32.446). (4-Hydroxy- 3-methoxyphenyl)ethyl methyl ketone were the strongest binding ligand (-65.744 kcal/mol for VEGF) and (- 99.7836kcal/mol for MMP) while β-Caryophyllene was the weakest binding ligand. These compounds showed relative strong docking to VEGF with docking energies comparable to an anticancer drug, bevacizumab (-77.883kcal/mol for VEGF) and (-109.021kcal/mol for MMP). This in silico molecular docking study has shown that these phytochemical components could be responsible for antiangiogenic properties of A. danielli

In silico Assessment of Antihypertensive Potential of Sweet Proteins (LB542)

The consumption of low-calorie artificial sweeteners by patients affected by diseases linked to sugar consumption may be associated with diverse side effects. Hence, sweet proteins derived majorly from under-utilized plants have been proposed as good replacements. The ability of sweet proteins to release Angiostensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE)-inhibitory peptides was investigated. ACE mediates arterial vasoconstriction and elevation of its activity is an important pathogenic mechanism of hypertension. The protein sequences of six sweet proteins, Thaumatin from Thaumatococcus danielli (NCBI accession number, gi|209473), Brazzein from Pentadiplandra brazzeana (NCBI accession number, gi|218218145), Monellin from Dioscoreophyllum cumminsii (NCBI accession number, gi|381144434), Madinlin from Capparis masaikai (NCBI accession number, gi|1817546), Curculin from Curculigo latifolia (NCBI accession number, gi|11225520) and Miraculin from Richadella dulcifica (NCBI accession number, gi|253735645) were selected for sequence alignment using Basic Local Alignment Search Tool (BLAST) analysis and biological activity search using BIOPEP. Although BLAST analysis gave no homologous similarity among the proteins, BIOPEP analysis showed that they demonstrated either di- or tri-peptide with a total of 51, 14, 40, 28, 30 and 59 potential ACE inhibitory peptides from Thaumatin, Brazzein, Monellin, Madinlin, Curculin and Miraculin respectively. The combined digestion with pepsin, trypsin and chymotrypsin A, a simulation of human gastrointestinal digestion released 8, 2, 9, 2, 5 and 11 ACE inhibitory peptides from Thaumatin, Brazzein, Monellin, Madinlin, Curculin and Miraculin respectively. These results add value to these proteins by demonstrating their innate nutraceutical potential in their ability to reduce hypertension. Table of Content

Changes in Testes Lipid Profile in Rats Fed on Thermally-Oxidized Soya bean Oil-Based Diets

The effect of thermally–oxidized soyabean oil–based diets on the lipid profile of the testes of rats was studied. For 35 days, two groups of male weanling rats were fed a basal diet containing unoxidised and oxidized soyabean oil. Rats fed the thermally oxidized soyabean oil diets displayed typical signs of essential fatty acids (EFA) deficiency and had their testes weights reduced to about 81% of fats fed unoxidised soyabean oil diets. There was a significant decrease (

A basic investigation for inherited metabolic diseases: indication for genomic approach

The inherited metabolic diseases (IMDs) or Inborn errors of metabolism (IEM) are mostly determined by single abnormal autosomal recessive genes; which though rare as a group account for a sizeable proportion of disorders in very large populations. There is neither a screening policy as in many advanced countries nor have the diseases been investigated in the concomitant institution for the handicapped in Nigeria. Sixty-one (61) subjects (40M, 20F); Mean age 18.38 + 1.3 (SD) years who were residents of the Oluyole Cheshire School and the School for the Handicapped both in the Eleyele area of Ibadan, were selected for the study. Thirty-five (35) apparently healthy (no manifest genetic disorder) individuals, mean age 19.00 + 1.30 (SD) years were selected as controls. The mean weight of the handicapped was 40.9 + 1.1kg while the controls was 47.63 + 1.17 (SD) kg. Mid morning urine samples were collected from all subjects and controls. Aversion for venepuncture by both subjects and their care providers prevented some blood assays. All subjects were subjected to Benedicts reaction, the Ferric Chloride (FeC13) test, clinstix, and the ninhydrin reactions. Thirty-two (32) out of a population of 45 (71.1%) at the Oluyole Chesire Home and 29 out of a population 42 (69.1%) at the School for the handicapped participated in the study. The handicapped subjects had significantly lower weight than controls (

Foreign Direct Investment and International Skill Inequality

This paper focuses on the effects of foreign direct investment (FDI) on skill inequality amongst countries. New growth models and international business studies predict that when countries liberalize their trade and investment regime in an environment of imperfect technology transfers, they will specialize in activities depending on the initial conditions such as skill endowments. Countries with few skills tend to specialize in low-skill intensive production, while countries with a high innovation rate and skill endowment tend to specialize in the production of high-skill intensive goods. The econometric evidence, based on an unbalanced panel for 111 countries over seven 5-year time periods from 1970 to 2000, confirms that FDI enhances skill development (particularly secondary and tertiary enrolment) in countries that are relatively well endowed with skills to start with. There are important policy conclusions for national governments when FDI tends to raise international skill inequalities. In particular, developing countries with low-skill endowments that attract investors would do well to co-ordinate actively their human resources policies with investor needs in order to bring the country to a higher skill path.