Biosciences

Jatropha curcas seed meal (JCSM) is known as a good substrate for enzyme production via solid state fermentation. The aim of this research was to study the mycology of spontaneously fermented JCSM. JCSM was spontaneously fermented for six days. Mycelia of fungus were cultured and incubated at 25°C on potato dextrose agar, sabouraud for six days. Microslide culture was carried out to obtain greater detail of the resulting morphological features. Five fungal species (Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Rhizopus stolonifer, Penicillium chrysogenum and Fusarium species) were isolated. This is the first report of fungal species associated with spontaneous fermentation of defatted Jatropha curcas seed meal.

Twenty sample of bottled raw honey were analyzed for the presence of thermostable amylase producing bacteria by streaking 0.1ml aliquots of suitable dilutions on Nutrient Agar in duplicates. The plates were incubated at 370C for 24hours. The isolates were sub-cultured and stored in slants for further use. Amylase production was detected by streaking on Starch agar plates and incubating at 55oC for 48hours after which the plates were flooded with iodine solution. The amylolytic activity was confirmed by clear zone around the bacterial colonies. Amylase production was carried out in a basal medium containing soluble starch. Bacillus licheniformis was capable of maximum amylase production at 40oC at pH 7.0 (254µ/ml). Amylase production was highest in fructose (190µ/ml) while peptone was found to be the most suitable nitrogen source for the enzyme activity (17µ/ml). Thermostable ?-amylase produced by Bacillus lichenformis had characteristics which makes it suitable for industrial applications and starch processing.

This study highlights the impact of recycled sugar factory effluent on the digestive enzymes of fish. The need for this task arises from the trend of releasing the untreated effluent into the aquatic body. The bioassays conducted separately with the raw and recycled sugarfactory effluent against the fish,Catla catla. This study exposed that quantum of decrease in the digestive enzyme level in the fish exposed to the highest concentration of raw sugar factory effluent is more when compared to that of fish treated in the recycled sugar factory effluent. The reuse of recycled sugar factory effluent is highly recommended for aquaculture through this study.

Green mussel (Perna viridis) was brought from Fort- Cochin Fish market to the laboratory was shucked and collected the meat. Mussel meat packed in the Tin Free Steel can (130gm in a can) and were thermally processed in an over pressure retort. Heat penetration characteristics, process time, nutritional and sensory quality parameters etc were analyzed. F0 value of the product was 8.79 when thermal processed at 121oc for 48.94 minutes. The processed product was commercially sterile. The present study was to find out the changes in the biochemical constituents of green mussel (Perna viridis) when thermally processed in brine in an over pressure retort. Texture attributes such as hardness, chewiness, springiness, and cohesiveness did not show any marked variation in the processed meat. Proximate composition canned mussel meat showed a slight decrease when compared with fresh meat sample.

The land use activities along River Nzoia Drainage Basin include intensive agricultural practices such as cultivation along the river banks, over grazing, deforestation and draining of wetlands for crop production. These activities have an impact on plant species richness. We quantified the effects of land use practices on plant species richness in Nzoia River Drainage Basin in Bungoma East District. Land use practices along the drainage basin were identified by actual surveying. Plant species were identified through quadrat method. Simpson's diversity index was then used to determine the plant species richness and species richness in each sample plot. Data was subjected to Analysis of Variance to test for the difference between treatment means at 5% level of significance and correlations analysis performed for significant land use practices and plant species richness. Land use practices identified included cultivation and grazing. Undisturbed sites were treated as control sites in the study. A total of 119 plant species from 27 families were recorded. Herbaceous plant species belonging to the following families; Asteraceae, Poaceae, Convolvulaceae, Solanaceae, Amaranthaceae, Commelinaceae and Moraceae comprised more than 65% of the total flora. Cultivation had a significant influence on species richness with a mean value of - 0.07929. Cultivation had negative correlation on plant species richness.

Onions are highly nutritious vegetables widely cultivated by small scale farmers worldwide and form the basis of everyday meals. The study consisted of two sets, each with 10 replicates. One set was irrigated with wastewater and the other with tap water for 8 weeks. Onion samples were randomly selected from each pot and analysed for heavy metal (Cu, Mn, Pb, Cr, Cd and Ni) concentrations using Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. Results obtained showed that heavy metal concentrations in bulbs and leaves of onions irrigated with wastewater exceeded the safe limits (p< 0.05) whilst heavy metal concentrations in bulbs and leaves of onions irrigated with tap water were lower and within the safe limits (p> 0.05). The study also showed that type of irrigation water (wastewater or tap water) had an effect on heavy metal concentration in bulbs and leaves (p= 0.001) whilst plant tissue type (bulb or leaf) had no significant effect on the concentration of heavy metals in onions. This study highlights the potential risks involved in the cultivation and consumption of vegetables using wastewater for irrigation, a practice which may place at risk the health of the urban population who consume these vegetables.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis, an anaerobic, acid-fast, non-motile, non-encapsulated and non-spore forming bacillus is an obligate intracellular pathogen and the etiological agent of tuberculosis (TB). Infections with M. tuberculosis results in significant morbidity and mortality globally, with an estimated 14 million individuals infected in 2007 and increasing annually. The emergence of drug resistant strains such as the multidrug-resistant (MDR), extensively drug-resistant (XDR) and totally drug-resistant (TDR) strains of M. tuberculosis poses a significant threat to the control of TB. These variations in sensitivity and resistance to different antitubercular agents by strains of M. tuberculosis are attributed to their genetic diversity and distribution in different regions of the world. This however, determines their virulence, immunogenicity, and drugs resistance and/or sensitivity pattern. The use of Molecular techniques to differentiate between strains of M. tuberculosis, the causative agent of TB is key to the understanding and characterization of resistance strains and virulence. This review will highlight and discuss M. tuberculosis, its challenges to global health sector, the emergence and spread of drug resistance, and the molecular mechanisms of the drug action and drug resistance.

Now a day’s various types of organophosphate compound are being utilised by farmers in massive amount to increase the productivity of crops by destroying the insecticides. Profenofos is one of the organophosphate which is widely used by the farmers. It is largely known to cause toxicity in various organs, such as the liver and brain. So, to evaluate the effect of Profenofos, experiment was designed on Swiss albino model. So, the present study aims to observe the effect of Cuminum cyminum (Cumin) and Coriandrum sativum (Coriander) on kidney exposed with Profenofos on female swiss albino mice. The parameters utilized for the study were through biochemical analysis. The impact of herbal plants Cumin and Coriander were observed on the Profenofos induced nephrotoxicity. The study shows Cumin was more effective in normalizing the Uric acid level rather than Coriander, while the coriander is more effective in normalizing the creatinine level than Cumin. Thus, the study shows better cytoprotection to kidney in Profenofos induced nephrotoxicity in Swiss albino mice.

Nosocomial infections in the hospitals disseminated from the cotton fabrics of health care professionals and patients leads to severe complications like respiratory, gastrointestinal and urinary tract infections. Since the hospital based textile materials like cotton and polyester has good surface properties, it can harbour large number of microorganisms. Hence in this study, two different antibacterial drugs showing synergistic properties were attached to different fabricsusing beta-cyclodextrin as a cross-linker with the aim that, treated fabric could act as barriers against transmission of challenge organisms. Inorder to decrease the drug resistant property of the nosocomial pathogens, a fluoroquinolone and a nitroimidazole compounds were mixed at suitable composition based on their synergistic behaviour. Both the compounds were modified to act as reactive dyes and were covalently bonded to the surface of cotton and polyester in order to impart antibacterial properties. The assay used for measuring antibacterial properties was based on the AATCC Test Method-100. The treated fabric was also subjected to multiple washings to determine its durability based on the AATCC Test Method-124. To determine the mode of action of these drugs, DNA of the pathogens were extracted and analysed by agarose gel electrophoresis for drug treated and untreated fabrics. The difference in the number of viable bacteria after ‘0’ contact time and 18 hours contact time with treated fabrics were statistically calculated with P<0.05 considered significant.

Three different south Indian fruits’ seeds have been selected and subjected to test their synergistic antibacterial activity against certain human pathogenic bacteria of clinical source which includes both gram positive and gram negative bacteria. Both sensitive and MDR bacterial strains have been included in this study. Ethanol and water were used as solvents to extract the seeds. The crude extracts were prepared by the ordinary method . Among that, the ethanolic seed extracts had shown its maximum synergistic antibacterial activity towards the tested bacterial strains and recorded as the most effective extractant. Terminalia chebula, Vitis vinifera and Punica granatum seed extracts were tested singly for their antibacterial activity and also tested for its synergistic antibacterial activity with their paired extract combinations. Among the tested combinations, Terminalia chebula seed extract found to shown its maximum synergistic antibacterial activity with Vitis vinifera seed extract.The least leval antibacterial and synergistic antibacterial activity was recorded with the single as well as paired extract with Punica granatum seed extract combinations . From this we conclude that the bioactive compounds present in the seed extracts of Terminalia chebula, effectively acted against the human pathogenic sensitive and MDR bacterial strains, than Vitis vinifera and Punica granatum seed extracts. Further this can be prescribed along with other medicinal choice for treating the bacterial infections, including the drug resistant infections.