Bioaccumulation Pattern of Cadmium and Lead in the Head Capsule and Body Muscle of Clarias gariepinus [Burchell, 1822] Exposed to Paint Emulsion Effluent

The toxicity of Sub-lethal concentrations of effluents from a paint emulsion industry were investigated on African catfish Clarias gariepinus in order to determine the bioaccumulation pattern of two heavy metals i.e., Lead and Cadmium in the Head capsule and Body muscle using a renewable static bioassay. The trend of bioconcentration of metals in the head capsule and muscle of the test organisms differs significantly (phead capsule. In the muscle, the highest bioaccumulation of lead was 0.4680 mg/L while the least was 0.0660 mg/L. Cadmium bioaccumulation in the head had the highest value to be 2.0424 mg/L while the lowest value was 0.0101 mg/L. In the head capsule on the other hand, the highest accumulation of lead was found to be 0.3918 mg/L while its lowest value was 0.1677 mg/L. The highest value for cadmium in the head capsule was 2.0249 mg/L while its lowest was 0.0058 mg/L. It was revealed in the study that fish can bioaccumulate heavy metals from a polluted environment, which often result in reduction or impairment of natural population size and could be a veritable source of these metals to man. Therefore corrective measures should be taken to avoid pollution of this sort in the environment

BIOCHEMICAL PROFILE OF CLARIAS GARIEPINUS EXPOSED TO SUB-LETHAL CONCENTRATIONS OF CHEMICAL ADDITIVES EFFLUENT.

Chemicals such as industrial effluents induces some level of alterations in the naturally occuring chemical composition of aquatic phase which in turn alters the behavioural, biochemistry, and general physiology of aquatic fauna among which is catfish, Clarias gariepinus. Chemical additives effluent was analysed to determine its physicochemical parameters. Part of the result conforms to the Federal Environmental Protection Agencies standard specification for effluent discharge into the aquatic environment while other parameters like TDS, TSS, and Alkalinity deviated from the standard. The fish, Clarias gariepinus was exposed to 0.25mg/L, 0.30mg/L, 0.35mg/L and 0.40mg/L concentrations of the effluent for 96 hours and the LC50 value for the acute toxicity was found to be 0.335223mg/L. The impact of long term exposure to the effluent was also evaluated through changes of selected biochemical parameters using the 20%, 10%, 5% and 2.5% of the 96-h LC50 value for 42 days.the parameters measured are glucose, total protein, cholesterol, albumin and globulin. All the parameters recorded a significant difference in their values as against the control except cholesterol. The alteration in all parameters was significantly concentration and time dependent and this could be attributed to stress behavioural response as a result of the toxicity of the effluent

Differential bioaccumulation of heavy metals in selected biomarkers of Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) exposed to chemical additives effluent

The toxicity of Sublethal concentrations of chemical additives effluents were investigated on African catfish Clarias gariepinus using a renewable static bioassay. The trend of bioconcentration of metals in the gut, liver, gills and kidney of the test organisms differs significantly (p < 0.05) and it followed the order, liver> gill >gut > muscle. The result revealed that the liver had Ni concentration of 0.0046 mg/L and 16.1208 mg/L of magnesium as the highest. In the muscle, Ni was not bioaccumulated (0.0000 mg/L) while the highest magnesium concentration of 10.7345 mg/L was recorded. The gill had the least concentration of 0.0010 mg/L for Cu while the highest concentration recorded for Mg was 12.6797 mg/L. The gut had Mn concentration of 0.0401 mg/L and Mg concentration of 14.5001mg/L. It was revealed that fish can bioaccumulate heavy metals from a polluted environment, which may result in reduction or impairment of natural population size and could be a risk to consumers. Consumption of fish from polluted environment should be discouraged

Evaluation of Antimicrobial Activity of Anacardium occidentale (Linn.)

The extracts of the leaves and stem bark of anacardium occidentale were screened for phytochemically for the presence of secondary metabolites and for in vitro antibacterial activity. The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids and tannins. The methanol and aqueous leaf extracts and the methanol extract of the stem bark were tested against Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Salmonella typhi, Candida albicans and Escherichia coli using the agar dilution method. The leaf methanol extracts presented a higher activity than the aqueous extracts. The antibacterial activity was greatest against K. pneumoniae, Bacillus anthracis and Candida albicans. Also the leaf extracts showed greater activity than the stem bark extracts. Of the six organisms tested, the stem bark extracts had activity against three. The mean diameter of the zones of inhibition exhibited by the extracts was between 13mm and 22mm. Bacillus subtilis showed the highest zone of inhibition (22mm) to the leaf methanol extract. The extracts compared favourably with ampicillin used as a standard control

Evaluation of Antimicrobial Activity of Anacardium occidentale (Linn.)

The extracts of the leaves and stem bark of anacardium occidentale were screened for phytochemically for the presence of secondary metabolites and for in vitro antibacterial activity. The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids and tannins. The methanol and aqueous leaf extracts and the methanol extract of the stem bark were tested against Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Salmonella typhi, Candida albicans and Escherichia coli using the agar dilution method. The leaf methanol extracts presented a higher activity than the aqueous extracts. The antibacterial activity was greatest against K. pneumoniae, Bacillus anthracis and Candida albicans. Also the leaf extracts showed greater activity than the stem bark extracts. Of the six organisms tested, the stem bark extracts had activity against three. The mean diameter of the zones of inhibition exhibited by the extracts was between 13mm and 22mm. Bacillus subtilis showed the highest zone of inhibition (22mm) to the leaf methanol extract. The extracts compared favourably with ampicillin used as a standard control

Suitability Assessment of Soils around Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN), Ibadan for Maize Production: A Parametric Analyses

The sustainable use of soil resources requires extensive knowledge about its morphology and other properties. The study was carried out to evaluate the suitability of soils for maize production in Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria’s (FRIN), environment, Ibadan, using the parametric method. Four profile pits were dug, described and the soil samples collected and analyzed for particle size distribution, pH, organic matter, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, exchangeable acidity, exchangeable bases and extractable micro nutrients. The textures of the soils were loamy sand, sandy loam and sandy clay loam which varied in response to changes in slope and drainage position. The soil’s pH ranged from strong to slightly acidity (4.32 – 6.75). Organic matter (17.2 -61.2g kg-1), total exchangeable base and total nitrogen (0.7 – 3.1g kg-1) were high, while the extractable micro nutrients; Fe (37 – 67mg kg-1), Cu (7 – 13mg kg-1), Mn (5 – 142mg kg-1) and Zn (38 -134mg kg-1) were at toxic level. Suitability evaluation of the soil using parametric approach shows that the soils are presently not suitable (NS) for the cultivation of maize, while, the potential of suitability of the soil for maize cultivation was ranked marginally suitable (S3). The soils of the study area were classified as Egbeda association which is not currently suitable for maize production, because of its present status. However, the soils suitability potential can be improved through conservative agronomic practices and also to prevent rapid degradation

Review of Agricultural Waste Utilization as Improvement Additives for Residual Tropical Soils

The development of a nation partially depends on sustainable materials obtained from agricultural products. Increased agricultural products could increase the amount of waste generated yearly. This paper presents a review on the use of agricultural waste with pozzolanic properties (rice husk ash, Locust bean waste ash, Palm oil fuel&nbsp;ash, Banana leaf ash, Bagasse ash, Coconut shell ash, Bamboo leaf ash, Corn cob ash, Cassava peel ash and Palm kernel shell&nbsp;ash) in various geotechnical engineering applications. Interestingly, these wastes were subjected to various laboratory tests such as (particle size distribution, Compaction, Atterberg, unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and California bearing ratio (CBR)) to assess their effectiveness in soil improvement. In all these, the percentages of the materials required for soil improvement were discussed. The reports from various researchers have shown that agricultural waste having pozzolanic properties improves the engineering properties of soil. For instance, palm oil fuel ash (POFA) is mostly used as an admixture in concrete as reported elsewhere. Few studies have been carried out on the use of banana leaf ash and palm oil fuel ash as soil improvement materials. It is recommended that further researches should focus on the possibility of using other agricultural waste from Cocoyam, Yam peel, maize trunk, Cashew and Guava that have limited reporting researches for use as soil improvement materials

Neuronal Alterations and Antioxidant Status of Lipopolysaccharide Induced Neuronal damage in Mice: Eff icacy of Three Medicinal Plants

Background: Several factors including neuroinflammation and oxidative stress formation contribute to the progression and development of cognitive impairment. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) injection has been used as non - transgenic mouse models for Alzheimer’s diseases (AD). Plant medicine has been proposed to be the prospect in treatment/ management of neurodegenerative disease. Aim: The present study sought to evaluate the effect of three medicinal plants ( Bacopa floribunda (R.Br)Wettst , Scoparia dulcis L and Cordia millenii Bak . ) locally used for memory enhancement on neuronal histology and antioxidant status against L ipopolysaccharide induced neuronal damage in mice . Methods: Forty - nine (49) BALB/c male mice were randomly grouped into seven (7) groups of 7 mice each. All animals except in group I control (vehicle), were injected intraperitoneally (I.P.) with LPS (250 μg/kg) once, after oral pre - treatment with plant extracts an d control drugs for 7 days. Group II (untreated) received LPS only (250 μg/kg) , group III received LPS + Sulindac Sulfide (SS, 4 mg/kg), group IV received LPS + Donepezil (DPZ, 1 mg/kg) group V, VI, and VII received LPS + 200 mg/kg of plant extracts [ Sco paria dulcis (SD), Bacopa floribunda (BF), and Cordia millenii (CM)] respectively. After the experiment, histological analysis of the hippocampus from the whole brain was carried out while the other brain tissue s comprising frontal cortex and cerebellum we re used for determination of biomarkers of antioxidant status such as catalase (CAT); superoxide dismutase (SOD); malondialdehyde (MDA) and reduced glutathione (GSH). Results: Oral administration of LPS induced neuronal damage through cell death as eviden ced by the histological analysis and altered brain antioxidant status in mice. However, the plant extracts were able to prevent such neuronal alterations and restored the antioxidant status when compared to the LPS induced neuronal damage in mice. Conclusi on: LPS induced neuroinflammation was prevented by the extracts of; B. floribunda, S. dulcis and C. millenni. Neural damage was also prevented by the extracts. This activity could be attributed to their antioxidant potential as evidenced from their inhibit ory effect on MDA and increased CAT activity and GSH. Nevertheless, other possible mechanisms of action against neuronal damage need to be assessed to further justify their use traditionally in the treatment/management of neurodegenerative disease