Introduction: Heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, chromium etc are environmental contaminants. They are also known today as human and animal carcinogens. Objectives: The aim of the study was to evaluate the genotoxic and biochemical effect of feeding rat with fish obtained from heavy metal contaminated water bodies in Lagos, Nigeria. Methods: DNA damage was investigated using DNA lading assay, while heavy metals and antioxidants were analyzed from fishes obtained from contaminated water bodies. Results: There was fragmentation of blood chromosomal DNA in rats fed with heavy metal contaminated fish, while in the control and zinc supplemented group, there was no fragmentation. Heavy metals were detected in the tissues and serum of exposed rat, while the activity of the serum catalase and reduced glutathione significantly decreased. Conclusion: The consumption of heavy metal contaminated fish resulted in DNA fragmentation and its deposition in the rat tissue. Zinc supplementation prevented the degradation of DNA and potentiated antioxidant activities.

Background: The release of unprecedented tannery effluents into the environment as industrial wastes is one of the major causes of environmental pollution. Tannery waste containing heavy metals are usually disposed in landfills and streams in Challawa industrial estate Kano. The aim of this study was to characterize chromophile fungal isolated from landfill polluted by tannery effluent. Method: Tannery effluent discharge soil (polluted landfill) and undischarged soil (control) were collected from the surrounding areas of tannery industry. The physicochemical properties of the soil were examined in-situ. The fungal strains were tested for tolerance against chromium sulphate. The degree of tolerance was measured by their mycelia growth length of each respective culture colony and it was compared with control containing no chromium sulphate. Result: A total of eleven fungi species were found in the soil. The most common fungal strains viz., Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus sp, Rhizopus nigricans and Penicillium sp. Aspergillus niger was the most tolerant against chromium sulphate. It exhibit strong radial mycelia growth length from 0-4.0% followed by Rhizopus nigricans and the least was obtain by Penicillium sp. Effect of pH and temperature on tolerance of fungal isolates at 1% chromium concentration using different substrates tested were so effective at pH 4-5 and 32oC respectively. Conclusion: These fungi have shown a high level of tolerance to chromium sulphate tested which makes them so attracted and potential candidates for further investigations regarding their ability to remove metals from contaminated waste waters.

The use of antimicrobials is essential to treat infectious diseases worldwide. However, the abusive and/or inappropriate use of these molecules have contributed to the development of resistant bacterial strains, restricting the current treatment options. This resistance phenomenon boosts the need for searching new antibacterial molecules to treat human and animal populations. Currently places and countries with high biodiversity such as Brazilian Amazon forest and Brazil, which is member of a group with 17 mega diverse countries, are pointed as promising environments for identifying new antibiotics and still have to be explored. However this biotechnological potential is far from getting to the population as these countries neither open their biodiversity to others nor efficiently explore it. In this work we aim to briefly review some of the simplest in vitro and in silico laboratory methodologies to identify new antimicrobial prototypes to stimulate these countries to explore their own biodiversity as well as to other countries that are interested on researching natural products and new molecules. This work intend to contribute to unveil this unexplored biodiversity world as well as to improve the development of new therapeutic options to fight against bacterial infections worldwide.

The entire Nucleoprotein gene of 28 rabies virus isolates from Plateau state, Nigeria were subjected to genetic typing using RT-PCR and nucleotide sequencing respectively. A phylogenetic tree of the isolates was constructed to determine their ancestry and study their relationships with other strains of the rabies virus from previous studies in Nigeria, other regions of the world and the Flurry LEP vaccine strains widely used within the country for vaccine production. The RABVs found in this study differed from the LEP fixed strains indicating that the disease is caused by stray dog related RABVs. These viruses also clustered away from another Nigerian isolate reported in a previous study in which it belonged to Africa 1b lineage. All Nigerian isolates from this study belong to Africa 2 lineage as do other isolates from the West African region, suggesting a common ancestry for all these isolates which in turn implies they may have been part of the same long term evolving rabies enzootics.

Department of Microbiology, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria Nigeria. Background: In the present study, optimized cultural conditions for enhanced production of xylanase from local soil isolate of Trichoderma species, using water hyacinth as a substrate in submerged culture fermentation is presented. Method: The Megazyme assay method was used for endo 1, 4-ß-xylanase using Azo-xylan (Birchwood). Results: A continuous increase in xylanase production was observed with increasing level of substrate concentration in the medium and highest production was obtained with water hyacinth at 6% w/v level. Maximum xylanase production was achieved with a pH 5.0, incubation temperature of 30ºC and agitation rate of 150 rpm. The highest production was achieved on day five of fermentation at optimum parameters under study. Result: The study showed that production of xylanase can be cost effective using water hyacinth and can be implored on large scale for industrial applications.

The prospective use of Indian mustard and Bambara plants for phytoremediation of crude oil contaminated farmlands was investigated in a 60 - day greenhouse and laboratory experiments. Results obtained showed that hydrocarbon contaminants produced deleterious effects on both biomass and total organic carbon. For Indian mustard – vegetated regimes, most reliable growth index, produced biomass gave over 57% at 5% and 10% crude oil spiking in relation to control and showed up to 2.4 fold increases compared to Bambara plants. Irrespective of tested spiking level, over 89% PAHs phytodegradation efficiency was achieved with both plants. Metabolites (such as naphthalene and anthracene) detected in the present study may suggest that these compounds are less phytotoxic than their less distinct degradable counterparts. These results indicate that Indian mustard could successfully be used preferentially as potent phytoremediating agent at petroleum hydrocarbon contaminated farmlands.

Background: Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) is the most common infection of ascitic fluid that occurs in patients with cirrhotic ascites typically described in hospitalized patients. Objectives: To determine the prevalence, incidence and outcome of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in adult patients with liver cirrhosis and ascites admitted at Narayam Medical College and Hospital, Jamuhar, Sasaram, Bihar. Materials and methods: A study was conducted involving 60 patients with liver cirrhosis and ascites between October 2013 and April 2014. Ascitic fluid culture, the gold standard for SBP diagnosis was done, for culture positive results susceptibility testing of common antibiotics using a disc diffusion method was done. Ascitic fluid cell count and bedside dipstick test were also done. Positive ascitic fluid culture, ascitic PMNs =250cells/µL and positive dipstick test were diagnostic for SBP. Results: Out of 60 cases of Cirrhosis of liver, 43 (71.73%) patients were identified as cirrhotics of alcoholic etiology and 17 (28.26%) patients as cirrhotics of non- alcoholic etiology The incidence of SBP in Cirrhosis of Liver was 13 (20.65%) out of 60 patients in which 11(89.47 %) were male patients while 2 (10.25%) were female patients, showing that incidence of SBP is more in males compared to females. Out of total 13 cases of SBP, 10 (78.94%) cases were culture Positive Neutrocytic Ascites and 3 (21.05%) cases were culture Negative Neutrocytic Ascites, and out of 10 cases of culture positive neutrocytic ascites, 1 organism was isolated in 7 (73.33%) cases. Two organisms in 2 (20.00%) cases and 3 organisms in 1 (6.66%) cases indicating that incidence of monomicrobial neutrocytic ascites was highest ,seen in 7 (73.33%) cases compared to polymicrobial neutrocytic ascites ,which was least seen in 1 (6.66%) case. Out of 13 cases of SBP, death occurred in 5 (38%) cases and 8(62%) patients survive . Conclusion: Alcoholic cirrhosis is important contributing factor of SBP with liver cirrhosis than in non-alcoholic etiology. Therefore early recognition and prompt treatment of SBP can significantly reduce the mortality and morbidity of patients associated with decompensated cirrhosis of liver of alcoholic etiology and non alcoholic etiology.

Nine treatments of Jameed were made as follow: (A) Jameed made from sheep buttermilk (control), (B) made from goat skim milk, (C) made from goat skim milk+10% (of curd weight) whey protein (WP), (D) made from goat skim milk+15% (of curd weight) WP, (E) made from goat skim milk+20% (of curd weight) WP, (F) made from cow skim milk, (G) made from cow skim milk+10% (of curd weight) WP, (H) made from cow skim milk+15% (of curd weight) WP, and (I) made from cow skim milk+20% (of curd weight) WP Results showed the following; the addition of WP paste (10, 15 and 20%) to goat or cow skim milk didn’t exhibited clear changes in yield values and relatively more acidic, compared to that made without adding it, while, increased increase in WSN, WSN/TN, NPN and NPN/TN values, on the other hand, slightly increased in TS, total protein, ash and salt and decreased fat contents. Incorporation 10, 15 or 20% WP paste with Jameed increased its TVBC, LAB and proteolytic bacteria counts. The highest wettability levels recorded in Jameed samples contained 20% WP paste, while, Jameed contained 20% WP recorded the weakest textural properties values. In Jameed treatments manufactured from goat or cow skim milk with addition of 10, 15 and 20% WP, protein matrices had rigid plate’s structure, little aggregates and more spaces scattered in matrix. Economic study for utilization of WP in Jameed production showed that incorporation of 10 and 15% WP paste with goat or cow skim milk Jameed curd increased the net profit.

The effect of blending soy milk with buffalo or cow milk on various yoghurt properties was studied. Five treatments of yoghurt were prepared from soymilk, buffalo milk, cow milk, mixture of 75% buffalo’s milk + 25% soymilk and mixture of 75% cow’s milk + 25% soymilk. Soy milk yoghurt had the lowest acidity, redox potential, total solids, fat, total nitrogen, ash, total volatile fatty acids, saturated fatty acids and total amino acids contents while buffalo’s milk yoghurt had the highest. Mixing of soymilk with buffalo or cow milk lowered these values in the produced yoghurt. Conversely, soymilk yoghurt possessed the highest level of unsaturated fatty acids and linoleic acid and a-linolenic acid. The counts of S. thermophiles were almost similar in fresh yoghurt samples. Using soy milk only or mixed with buffalo or cow milk in yoghurt manufacture clearly decreased the count of L. bulgaricus. Blending buffalo or cow milk with soy milk increased the sensory evaluation scores of yoghurt.

This study comparatively assessed selected heavy metals in some vegetables (viz: Gongronema latifolium, Amaranthus hybridus, Piper guineense, Talinum triangulare, Telfairia occidentalis and Ocimum gratissimum) commonly used for culinary purpose in Yenagoa metropolis, Nigeria. The samples were purchased from Tombia and Opolo market in Yenagoa metropolis, Bayelsa state, Nigeria. The samples were dried, digested and analyzed using flame atomic absorption spectrometery. Result showed that the concentration of lead, cobalt and cadmium were below detection level. The comparative concentration of other heavy metals in the vegetables ranged from 1.85 - 3.55mg/kg (copper), 1.63 – 14.98 mg/kg (zinc), 5.83 – 186.59 mg/kg (manganese), 8.12 – 31.72 mg/kg (chromium), 5.01 – 16.03 mg/kg (nickel) and 307.60 – 1051.31 mg/kg (iron). Analysis of variance showed that there was significance variation (P<0.05) among the various vegetables. The concentrations of the heavy metals in the vegetables were the below Food and Agricultural Organization/World Health Organization maximum limit apart for iron and chromium. As such, the vegetables from the study area should be consumed with considerable level of safety due to high iron and chromium.

Blount’s disease known as bow leg affects the tibia bone and leads to retarded growth most times. There is paucity of information on haematological parameters of the patients. The study was done to evaluate the haematological parameters of Blount’s disease patients in a tertiary hospital in Enugu, Nigeria. Fifty (50) subjects with mean age of 17.5±2.4 years were recruited for the study, 20 subjects were Blount’s disease patients and 30 subjects were apparently healthy persons age matched as the control. A 2ml of venous blood samples were drawn into EDTA anticoagulated containers for full blood count test. The results were presented as mean ± standard deviation. The results were analysed with student t-test and level of significance set at P<0.05. The results showed significant decrease (P<0.05) in all the parameters and significant decrease (P<0.05) in lymphocytes of Blount’s disease subjects compared to the control. It shows that the bone deformity affects bone marrow development and leads to depressant effects on the haematological parameters studied. They will be more predisposed to infections because of decreased white cells and anaemia. Mothers and children are advised to eat natural foods containing enough vitamins and minerals for proper bone development and exercise from early stage of their life.

Introduction: Heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, chromium etc are environmental contaminants. They are also known today as human and animal carcinogens. Objectives: The aim of the study was to evaluate the genotoxic and biochemical effect of feeding rat with fish obtained from heavy metal contaminated water bodies in Lagos, Nigeria. Methods: DNA damage was investigated using DNA lading assay, while heavy metals and antioxidants were analyzed from fishes obtained from contaminated water bodies. Results: There was fragmentation of blood chromosomal DNA in rats fed with heavy metal contaminated fish, while in the control and zinc supplemented group, there was no fragmentation. Heavy metals were detected in the tissues and serum of exposed rat, while the activity of the serum catalase and reduced glutathione significantly decreased. Conclusion: The consumption of heavy metal contaminated fish resulted in DNA fragmentation and its deposition in the rat tissue. Zinc supplementation prevented the degradation of DNA and potentiated antioxidant activities.

The incidences of fungal infections are increasing due to the growing phenomena of antifungal resistance and a limited number of antifungal drugs. As some fungi adversely affect on human health such as Candida albicans, or on its economic plants such as Aspergillus niger. In the current study, minced cloves of garlic from the Sudanese variety was tested against two referenced fungi, namely Aspergillus niger ATCC®6275TM and Candida albicans ATCC®10231TM. The results showed that garlic has a noticeable and high antifungal activity against both fungal strains, the inhibition zones of garlic were 41.0±4.0 mm and 28.0±1.0 mm, respectively, compared with clotrimazole which was 22.5±1.5 mm and 27.5±0.5 mm, respectively. This antifungal activity was statistically significant. Though, the fresh minced cloves of garlic was a competitor to that antifungal drug. With the available data, it can be concluded that garlic bulb is a potent antifungal agent.

In this study, acetone, alchol and hexane extracts Aloysia triphylla, Mentha aquatica, Foeniculum vulgare, Calendula officinalis, Salvia officinalis and Rumex acetosa used for medicinal purpose in Turkey were tested for antimicrobial activity by the diffusion method. These extracts were tested on Staphylococcus aureus NRRL-B 767, Micrococcus luteus, Bacillus subtilis NRS-744, B.cereus ATCC 11778, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Listeria monocytoponus ATCC 7644, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Yersinia enterocolitica, Proteus vulgaris, Enterococcus fecolis ATCC 29212, Xanthomonas phaseoli, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Fusarium oxysporum, F. culmorum, F.aveneceum, F.moniliforme, Gaeumannomycetes graminis var. tritici, Alternaria citri and Trichoderma harzianum. As conclusion, extracts of Aloysia triphylla, Mentha aquatica, Foeniculum vulgare, Calendula officinalis, Salvia officinalis and Rumex acetosa inhibited the growth of microorganisms used in these tests at different ratios. We have found that acetone extracts of tested plants relealed antimicrobial activity against bacteria but it had no antifungal activity against fungi used in this study.

Rastrococcus invadens Williams [1] (Homoptera, Pseudococcidae) is an insect pest mango and many other fruit trees including citrus. Originated in Southeast Asia, this cochineal was identified at first in Senegal precisely Dakar in 1995. Since then it has spread throughout the country and particularly in one most productive area of fruit (Casamance). To evaluate damage of Rastrococcus invadens on mango tree, a study was carried out on farm in Diatock located in natural Casamance. This study took place between may and september 2016. In arm, we chose after study the four varieties mango most attacked namely "Kent", "Keitt", "Sewe" and "Bouko diekhal". For each variety, we harvested 10 non-infested and 10 infested fruits. These fruits are then weighed to determine weight average of infested fruits and non-infested fruits in order to evaluate the losses and yields obtained. The results showed that a loss of 37% for mangoes weight of sewe variety, 36% of keitt variety, 24% of kent variety and 16% of bouko diekhal variety. However, this damage is more pronounced on some varieties (sewe and keitt) than others. Attacks are more common in June, July and August. Local variety (sewe) and improved variety (keitt) are more sensitive than others.