International Journal of Advances in Life Science and Technology

Phytochemical and Nutritional Composition of Three Varieties of Cowpea (Vigna Unguiculata) Pre-Treated with Salicylic Acid Under Arsenic Stress

Bukola Victoria Ailenokhuoria, Charles O Olaiya — Wed, 20 Apr 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Abiotic stress is one of the major factors limiting production and utilization of cowpea in developing nation of the world. Salicylic acid serve to promote and regulate plant growth. The work was design to examine the impacts of Salicylic acid on phytochemicals and nutritional composition of cowpea under arsenic stress. Three varieties of clean seeds of cowpea each were soaked in 0,75 and 150mg/L of salicylic acid for five hours. They were air-dried and sown in pots of soil containing 0, 250 and 500mg/L of sodium arsenate in a completely randomized design and were replicated thrice. The seeds were harvested at maturity and analyzed for phytochemical composition (total phenolic and flavonoid), Proximate composition (Crude protein, fat, ash, moisture, crude fibre and carbohydrate) and elemental composition (As, Ca, K, P, Mo, Mg and Zn). Data were analysed using ANOVA at α0.05. By comparing treatments with the control, crude protein, fat, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium and molybdenum were by increased by 2 folds among the three cultivars, total phenolic, flavonoid were increased by 4 and 2 folds in ART98-12, 5 and 3 folds in Ife brown and ITOK-568-18 in 250mg/L sodium arsenate-treated soil with SA (150mg/L). The result shows that 150mg/L of salicylic acid could be appropriate concentration to alleviate arsenic stress in cowpea .

Evaluation of Abattoir Practices in Ijebu Ode, Nigeria

Edet OTTO — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 00:00:00 -0500

If used properly, abattoirs can help with disease management, ante- or postmortem investigation of animals and the meat, and can protect the population from most zoonotic illnesses that can develop after eating unsanitary, unsafe, or unwholesome meat or meat products. This underscores the need to examine and explore present abattoir practises in order to better understand the current situation of meat production in Ijebu Ode, Nigeria. Data was retrieved from three (3) government-approved abattoirs using self-administered structured questionnaires, personal interviews, and observations, and the data were computed descriptively using a statistical software for social scientists. Findings from the empirical observation and evidence indicated significant deficiencies in the essential hygiene facilities and services, with the lack of a veterinary laboratory for microbiological confirmation of suspected meat, and all the butchers reported no utilisation of protective gear during slaughtering activities. 66.7% of the abattoirs disposed of their solid waste by open dumping in the nearby bushes, while the wastewater was discharged into public drains. The study revealed that the abattoir practises in Ijebu Ode are unsatisfactory, with unsanitary practises and shortfalls in fundamental hygiene facilities and services, which are critical for producing healthy meat for public consumption. As a result, standardisation of facilities, including the closure of substandard ones, and educational training of abattoir workers were proposed as ways to improve hygiene facilities and practises.

Antibacterial Activities of Pentaclethra Macrophylla and Syzygium Samarangense against Opportunistic Bacteria Pathogens

Thu, 23 Jun 2022 00:00:00 -0500

In this study, Pentaclethra macrophylla and Syzygium samarangense leaves was tested for their antibacterial activities against selected opportunistic bacterial strains. The crude extracts of the plants were extracted using methanol and fractionated into hexane, ethyl acetate and aqueous fractions. The antibacterial activity of the leaves against B. subtilis (ATCC® 6633™), S. aureus (ATCC® 25923™), E. coli (ATCC® 25922™), P. aeruginosa (ATCC® 9027™) was performed using the agar well diffusion technique at 20mg/ml extracts fractions. All plants extracts extract exhibited some antibacterial activity against at least one bacterial strain. P. macrophylla exhibited the highest inhibition against E. coli (25mm) compared to B. subtilis, S. aureus and P. aeruginosa. Similar observation was noted for S. samarangense where the highest inhibition was against E. coli (22mm). In conclusion, P. macrophylla and S. samaragense exhibited antibacterial activities against the selected bacteria. The ethyl acetate and aqueous extracts of both plants had the highest antibacterial activities. This indicates that P. macrophylla and S. samrangense leaves could be a source of antibacterial agent in overcoming antibacterial drug resistance.

Housing Quality and Perceived Health Effects in Ijebu Ode, Nigeria

Edet OTTO, Kayode OGUNYEMI, Oluwasina LUYI — Fri, 24 Jun 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Despite the mounting compendium of scientific evidence that has clearly documented the link between poor housing quality and health both locally and globally, poor housing quality has continued to be a significant concern in public health, especially in rural and sub-rural areas of emerging nations like Nigeria, where there is slight or no knowledge about the public health consequences of poor housing quality. As a result, the object of this work is to observe the housing quality and the perceived health impacts in Ijebu Ode, Nigeria. The work adopted a descriptive but cross-sectional approach, and data was obtained from four hundred (400) systemically sampled households through structured questionnaires, and analysed descriptively using a statistical tool for social scientists. According to the findings, a significant number of the residents 51.5% had no water in their houses, 44% had two windows in the room; out of which only 32% had windows on the two walls of the room, and 33% of the homes were overcrowded with over two people in a room. The findings further revealed that the vast majority of residents reported having cases of malaria with 67.5%, and cases of typhoid and cough with 15.5% and 4.5%, respectively. Consequently, the study has hitherto concluded that housing quality in Ijebu Ode is poor, which is a major predictor of the perceived health effects experienced by the residents.