Search results for: plant tissues

Authors: U. E. Mochalova, A. V. Demeneva, Shilkin A. G., J. Yu. Artiushina

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Objective. In medical ophthalmology OCT has been actively used in the last decade. It is a modern non-invasive method of high-precision hardware examination, which gives a detailed cross-sectional image of eye tissues structure with a high level of resolution, which provides in vivo morphological information at the microscopic level about corneal tissue, structures of the anterior segment, retina and optic nerve. The purpose of this study was to explore the possibility of using the OCT technology in complex ophthalmological examination in dogs and cats, to characterize the revealed pathological structural changes in corneal tissue in cats and dogs with some of the most common corneal diseases. Procedures. Optical coherence tomography of the cornea was performed in 112 animals: 68 dogs and 44 cats. In total, 224 eyes were examined. Pathologies of the organ of vision included: dystrophy and degeneration of the cornea, endothelial corneal dystrophy, dry eye syndrome, chronic superficial vascular keratitis, pigmented keratitis, corneal erosion, ulcerative stromal keratitis, corneal sequestration, chronic glaucoma and also postoperative period after performed keratoplasty. When performing OCT, we used certified medical devices: "Huvitz HOCT-1/1F», «Optovue iVue 80» and "SOCT Copernicus Revo (60)". Results. The results of a clinical study on the use of optical coherence tomography (OCT)of the cornea in cats and dogs, performed by the authors of the article in the complex diagnosis of keratopathies of variousorigins: endothelial corneal dystrophy, pigmented keratitis, chronic keratoconjunctivitis, chronic herpetic keratitis, ulcerative keratitis, traumatic corneal damage, sequestration of the cornea of cats, chronic keratitis, complicating the course of glaucoma. The characteristics of the OCT scans are givencorneas of cats and dogs that do not have corneal pathologies. OCT scans of various corneal pathologies in dogs and cats with a description of the revealed pathological changes are presented. Of great clinical interest are the data obtained during OCT of the cornea of animals undergoing keratoplasty operations using various forms of grafts. Conclusions. OCT makes it possible to assess the thickness and pathological structural changes of the corneal surface epithelium, corneal stroma and descemet membrane. We can measure them, determine the exact localization, and record pathological changes. Clinical observation of the dynamics of the pathological process in the cornea using OCT makes it possible to evaluate the effectiveness of drug treatment. In case of negative dynamics of corneal disease, it is necessary to determine the indications for surgical treatment (to assess the thickness of the cornea, the localization of its thinning zones, to characterize the depth and area of pathological changes). According to the OCT of the cornea, it is possible to choose the optimal surgical treatment for the patient, the technique and depth of optically constructive surgery (penetrating or anterior lamellar keratoplasty).; determine the depth and diameter of the planned microsurgical trepanation of corneal tissue, which will ensure good adaptation of the edges of the donor material.

Keywords: optical coherence tomography, corneal sequestration, optical coherence tomography of the cornea, corneal transplantation, cat, dog

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Authors: Zhang Lei, Zhao Qingrong, Wang Chen, Zhang Sufang, Zhang Hanguo

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Larch is the main afforestation and timber tree species in Northeast China, and drought is one of the main factors limiting the growth of Larch and other organisms in Northeast China. In order to further explore the mechanism of Larch drought resistance, PEG was used to simulate drought stress. The full-length sequencing of Larch embryogenic callus under PEG simulated drought stress was carried out by combining Illumina-Hiseq and SMRT-seq. A total of 20.3Gb clean reads and 786492 CCS reads were obtained from the second and third generation sequencing. The de-redundant transcript sequences were predicted by lncRNA, 2083 lncRNAs were obtained, and the target genes were predicted, and a total of 2712 target genes were obtained. The de-redundant transcripts were further screened, and 1654 differentially expressed genes (DEGs )were obtained. Among them, different DEGs respond to drought stress in different ways, such as oxidation-reduction process, starch and sucrose metabolism, plant hormone pathway, carbon metabolism, lignin catabolic/biosynthetic process and so on. This study provides basic full-length sequencing data for the study of Larch drought resistance, and excavates a large number of DEGs in response to drought stress, which helps us to further understand the function of Larch drought resistance genes and provides a reference for in-depth analysis of the molecular mechanism of Larch drought resistance.

Keywords: larch, drought stress, full-length transcriptome sequencing, differentially expressed genes

Procedia PDF Downloads 121

Authors: Abdel Rahman A. Alzandi

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The primary objectives of this investigation were to examine the interactive effects of three air quality treatments, ethylene-diurea (EDU) and two irrigation conditions on physiological characteristics of kidney beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) during its whole growth. These plants were grown in 12-open top chambers (OTC's). Ethylene-diurea (EDU) was used as a factor to evaluate O3 pollution impact on plant growth. The air quality treatments consisted of charcoal filtered (CF) air, nonfiltered (NF) air and ambient air (AA) were irrigated and non- irrigated. Leaf samples were collected from upper canopy positions six times (pre- EDU addition, week after four EDU's addition, at the time of harvesting). Maximal differences in leaf carbohydrate, N contents, pigments and total lipids were observed in response to moisture conditions in presence and absence of EDU applications. Significant reduction were noted for air quality treatments regarding carbohydrate and pigment fractions but not for all cases of leaf N and lipid contents under O3 effects only. Minimal differences were found for first EDU application while maximal ones were recorded at 200 mg l-1 of treatments. The EDU treatments stimulated carbohydrate and pigment contents at the upper canopy position with higher levels for both NF and AA compared to untreated conditions. The NF and AA treatments caused lower total carbohydrate and pigment contents in the canopy position before harvesting of EDU applications. The stimulation in leaf carbohydrates by the EDU treatment, compared to the non-treated EDU of AA and NF treatments, provides a rational explanation for the counteracting effects of EDU against moderate exposures to O3 regarding grain yields in C3 plants.

Keywords: leaf contents, moisture relations, EDU additions, global climate change, kidney bean

Procedia PDF Downloads 315

Authors: Akintade O. Adeboyejo, Edwin O. Clarke, Oluwatoyin Aderinola

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The present study is on the sub-lethal toxicity of industrial effluents (IE) from the environment of Ologe Lagoon, Lagos, Nigeria on the African catfish fingerlings Clarias gariepinus. The fish were cultured in varying concentrations of industrial effluents: 0% (control), 5%, 15%, 25%, and 35%. Trials were carried out in triplicates for twelve (12) weeks. The culture system was a static renewable bioassay and was carried out in the fisheries laboratory of the Lagos State University, Ojo-Lagos. Weekly physico-chemical parameters: Temperature (0C), pH, Conductivity (ppm) and Dissolved Oxygen (DO in mg/l) were measured in each treatment tank. Length (cm) and weight (g) data were obtained weekly and used to calculate various growth parameters: mean weight gain (MWG), percentage weight gain (PWG), daily weight gain (DWG), specific growth rate (SGR) and survival. Haematological (Packed Cell Volume (PCV), Red blood cells (RBC), White Blood Cell (WBC), Neutrophil and Lymphocytes etc) and histological alterations were measured after 12 weeks. The physico-chemical parameters showed that the pH ranged from 7.82±0.25–8.07±0.02. DO range from 1.92±0.66-4.43±1.24 mg/l. The conductivity values increased with increase in concentration of I.E. While the temperature remained stable with mean value range between 26.08±2.14–26.38±2.28. The DO showed significant differences at P<0.05. There was progressive increase in length and weight of fish during the culture period. The fish placed in the control had highest increase in both weight and length while fish in 35% had the least. MWG ranged from 16.59–35.96, DWG is from 0.3–0.48, SGR varied from 1.0–1.86 and survival was 100%. Haematological results showed that C. gariepinus had PCV ranging from 13.0±1.7-27.7±0.6, RBC ranged from 4.7±0.6–9.1±0.1, and Neutrophil ranged from 26.7±4.6–61.0±1.0 amongst others. The highest values of these parameters were obtained in the control and lowest at 35%. While the reverse effects were observed for WBC and lymphocytes. This study has shown that effluents may affect the health status of the test organism and impair vital processes if exposure continues for a long period of time. The histological examination revealed several lesions as expressed by the gills and livers. The histopathology of the gills in the control tanks had normal tissues with no visible lesion, but at higher concentrations, there were: lifting of epithelium, swollen lamellae and gill arch infiltration, necrosis and gill arch destruction. While in the liver: control (0%) show normal liver cells, at higher toxic level, there were: vacoulation, destruction of the hepatic parenchyma, tissue becoming eosinophilic (i.e. tending towards Carcinogenicity) and severe disruption of the hepatic cord architecture. The study has shown that industrial effluents from the study area may affect fish health status and impair vital processes if exposure continues for a long period of time even at lower concentrations (Sublethal).

Keywords: sublethal toxicity, industrial effluents, clarias gariepinus, ologe lagoon

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Authors: Yakui Bai, Chen Sun, Ke Wang

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An experimental investigation of environmental effect on fatigue behavior in SA508 Gr.3 Cl.2 Steam Generator Forging CAP1400 nuclear power plant has been carried out. In order to simulate actual loading condition, a range of strain amplitude was applied in different low cycle fatigue (LCF) tests. The current American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) design fatigue code does not take full account of the interactions of environmental, loading, and material's factors. A range of strain amplitude was applied in different low cycle fatigue (LCF) tests at a strain rate of 0.01%s⁻¹. A design fatigue model was constructed by taking environmentally assisted fatigue effects into account, and the corresponding design curves were given for the convenience of engineering applications. The corrosion fatigue experiment was performed in a strain control mode in 320℃ borated and lithiated water environment to evaluate the effects of a mixed environment on fatigue life. Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) in steam generator large forging in primary water of pressurized water reactor was also observed. In addition, it is found that the CF life of SA508 Gr.3 Cl.2 decreases with increasing temperature in the water environment. The relationship between the reciprocal of temperature and the logarithm of fatigue life was found to be linear. Through experiments and subsequent analysis, the mechanisms of reduced low cycle fatigue life have been investigated for steam generator forging.

Keywords: failure behavior, low alloy steel, steam generator forging, stress corrosion cracking

Procedia PDF Downloads 87

Authors: Magdalena Maria Rost-Roszkowska, Alina Chachulska-Żymełka, Monika Tarnawska, Maria Augustyniak, Alina Kafel, Agnieszka Babczyńska

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The digestive system of insects is composed of three distinct regions: fore-, mid- and hingut. The middle region (the midgut) is treated as one of the barriers which protects the organism against any stressors which originate from external environment, e.g. toxic metals. Such factors can activate the cell death in epithelial cells to preserve the entire tissue/organs against the degeneration. Different mechanisms involved in homeostasis maintenance have been described, but the studies of animals under field conditions do not give the opportunity to conclude about potential ability of subsequent generation to inherit the tolerance mechanisms. It is possible only by a multigenerational strain of an animal led under laboratory conditions, exposed to a selected toxic factor, present also in polluted ecosystems. The main purpose of the project was to check if changes, which appear in the midgut epithelium after Cd treatment, can be fixed during the following generations of insects with the special emphasis on apoptosis. As the animal for these studies we chose 5th larval stage of the beet armyworm Spodoptera exigua Hübner (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), which is one of pest of many vegetable crops. Animals were divided into some experimental groups: K, Cd, KCd, Cd1, Cd2, Cd3. A control group (K) fed a standard diet, and was conducted for XX generations, a cadmium group (Cd), fed on standard diet supplemented with cadmium (44 mg Cd per kg of dry weight of food) for XXX generations. A reference Cd group (KCd) has been initiated: control insects were fed with Cd supplemented diet (44 mg Cd per kg of dry weight of food). Experimental groups Cd1, Cd2, Cd3 developed from the control one: 5 mg Cd per kg of dry weight of food, 10 mg Cd per kg of dry weight of food, 20 mg Cd per kg of dry weight of food. We were interested in the activation of apoptosis during following generations in all experimental groups. Therefore, during the 1st year of the experiment, the measurements were done for 6 generations in all experimental group. The intensity and the course of apoptosis have been examined using transmission electron microscope (TEM), confocal microscope and flow cytometry. During apoptosis the cell started to shrink, extracellular spaces appeared between digestive and neighboring cells, the nucleus achieved a lobular shape. Eventually, the apoptotic cells was discharged into the midgut lumen. A quantitative analysis revealed that the number of apoptotic cells depends significantly on the generation, tissue and cadmium concentration in the insect rearing medium. In the following 6 generations, we observed that the percentage of apoptotic cells in the midguts from cadmium-exposed groups decreased gradually according to the following order of strains: Cd1, Cd2, Cd3 and KCd. At the same time, it was still higher than the percentage of apoptotic cells in the same tissues of the insects from the control and multigenerational cadmium strain. The results of our studies suggest that changes caused by cadmium treatment were preserved during 6-generational development of lepidopteran larvae. The study has been financed by the National Science Centre Poland, grant no 2016/21/B/NZ8/00831.

Keywords: cadmium, cell death, digestive system, ultrastructure

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Authors: Somit Dutta, Pallab Kar, Arnab Kumar Chakraborty, Arnab Sen, Tapas Kumar Chaudhuri

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In the present study three species of Clerodendrum; Clerodendrum indicum, Volkameria inermis and Clerodendrum colebrookianum were used to investigate the possible activity against oxidative stress. A detailed in-vivo and in-vitro antioxidant profiling, directly associated with inflammation-related carcinogenesis, has been executed with a motive to evaluate the free radical scavenging activity of Clerodendrum extract. Measurement of cell viability and ROS generation in HEK-293 (Human Embryonic Kidney Cell Line) cells was also estimated. The immune cell proliferative properties (MTT) and in-vitro assay for evaluation of their antioxidant activities including hydroxyl radical, nitric oxide, singlet oxygen, peroxinitrate and hydrogen peroxide, etc. were investigated. GC-MS and FTIR analyses have been performed to identify the active biological compounds. These active biological compounds were further studied to assess their potential medicinal properties, aided by molecular docking and interaction analysis between the active compounds and different proteins related to oxidative stress leading to progression of carcinogenesis. The research article clearly demonstrates the role of ROS in various phases of carcinogenesis. Therefore, the antioxidant and free radical scavenging capacity of all the Clerodendrum species might prove beneficial for the immune system. It might be concluded that this plant species offers great promise for cancer prevention and therapy due to the presence of several bioactive compounds and potent antioxidant capacity of C. colebrookianum.

Keywords: antioxidant, cancer, oxidative stress, reactive oxygen species (ROS)

Procedia PDF Downloads 249

Authors: Kenia Martínez, Geniel Talavera, Juan Alonso

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Moringa oleifera is a plant containing many nutrients that are mostly concentrated within the leaves. Commonly, the separation process of these nutrients involves solid-liquid extraction followed by evaporation and drying to obtain a concentrated extract, which is rich in proteins, vitamins, carbohydrates, and other essential nutrients that can be used in the food industry. In this work, three drying methods were used, which involved very different temperature and pressure conditions, to evaluate the effect of each method on the vitamin C content and the antioxidant efficiency of the extracts. Solid-liquid extractions of Moringa leaf (LE) were carried out by employing an ethanol solution (35% v/v) at 50 °C for 2 hours. The resulting extracts were then dried i) in a convective oven (CO) at 100 °C and at an atmospheric pressure of 750 mbar for 8 hours, ii) in a vacuum evaporator (VE) at 50 °C and at 300 mbar for 2 hours, and iii) in a freeze-drier (FD) at -40 °C and at 0.050 mbar for 36 hours. The antioxidant capacity (EC₅₀, mg solids/g DPPH) of the dry solids was calculated by the free radical inhibition method employing DPPH˙ at 517 nm, resulting in a value of 2902.5 ± 14.8 for LE, 3433.1 ± 85.2 for FD, 3980.1 ± 37.2 for VE, and 8123.5 ± 263.3 for CO. The calculated antioxidant efficiency (AE, g DPPH/(mg solids·min)) was 2.920 × 10^-5 for LE, 2.884 × 10^-5 for FD, 2.512 × 10^-5 for VE, and 1.009 × 10^-5 for CO. Further, the content of vitamin C (mg/L) determined by HPLC was 59.0 ± 0.3 for LE, 49.7 ± 0.6 for FD, 45.0 ± 0.4 for VE, and 23.6 ± 0.7 for CO. The results indicate that the convective drying preserves vitamin C and antioxidant efficiency to 40% and 34% of the initial value, respectively, while vacuum drying to 76% and 86%, and freeze-drying to 84% and 98%, respectively.

Keywords: antioxidant efficiency, convective drying, freeze-drying, Moringa oleifera, vacuum drying, vitamin C content

Procedia PDF Downloads 226

Authors: Sharareh Mohseni

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Purpose: The objective of this study was to find a suitable solvent to produce saffron edible extract with improved chemical properties. Design/methodology/approach: Dried and pulverized stigmas of C. sativus L. (10g) was extracted with 300 ml of solvents including: distillated water (DW), ethanol/DW, methanol/DW, propylene glycol/DW, heptan/DW, and hexan/DW, for 3 days at 25°C and then centrifuged at 3000 rpm. Then the extracts were evaporated using rotary evaporator at 40°C. The fiber and solvent-free extracts were then analyzed by UV spectrophotometer to detect saffron quality parameters including crocin, picrocrocin and safranal. Findings: Distilled water/ethanol mixture as the extraction solvent, caused larger amounts of the plant constituents to diffuse out to the extract compared to other treatments and also control. Polar solvents including distilled water, ethanol, and propylene glycol (except methanol) were more effective in extracting crocin, picrocrocin, and saffranal than non-polar solvents. Social implications: Due to an enhancement of color and flavor, saffron extract is economical compared to natural saffron. Saffron Extract saves on preparation time and reduces the amount of saffron required for imparting the same flavor, as compared to dry saffron. Liquid extract is easier to use and standardize in food preparations compared to dry stamens and can be dosed precisely compared to natural saffron. Originality/value: No research had been done on production of saffron edible extract using the solvent studied in this survey. The novelty of this research is high and the results can be used industrially.

Keywords: Crocus sativus L., saffron extract, solvent extraction, distilled water

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Authors: Mohammed Hussein Eltoum Salih

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This study was conducted in four villages, namely: Jadeed, Alandraba, Um Gaar, and EL Shetabe in the White Nile State Sudan, to determine the ecological factors; water vegetations, physical and chemical properties of the water in Snails habitat. Bulinus truncatus, which act as an intermediate host for S. haematobium, were collected from water bodies adjacent to study villages where the residents were suspected to swim, and humans get in contact with water for various purposes. Water samples from the stretches were collected and then measured for parameters that are indicative of the quality of water and sustaining the survival of snails and would confirm even further if the contact between humans and water had taken place. The parameters measured included water conductivity, pH, dissolved oxygen, calcium, and magnesium content. Also, a single water sample from each contact site was collected for microbiological tests. The result revealed that the B. truncatus showed that these animals were fewer and free of infection and their sites of the collection were dense with different plant species making them suitable to harbor snails. Moreover, the results of microbial tests showed that there was higher bacterial contamination. Also, physical and chemical analysis of water sample of contact sites revealed that there were significant differences (p < 0.05) in water pH, calcium, and magnesium content between sites of study villages, and these were discussed in relation to factors suitable for the intermediate hosts and thus for the transmission of the S. haematobium disease.

Keywords: health, parasitology, Schistosoma, snails

Procedia PDF Downloads 110

Authors: Malgorzata Walkowiak, Magdalena Witczak, Wojciech Cichy

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Biomass is an important renewable energy source in Poland. As a biofuel, it has many advantages like renewable in noticeable time and relatively high energy potential. But disadvantages of biomass like high moisture content and hygroscopic nature causes that gaining, transport, storage and preparation for combustion become troublesome and uneconomic. Thermal modification of biomass can improve hydrophobic properties, increase its calorific value and natural resistance. This form of thermal processing is known as torrefaction. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of the pre-heat treatment of wood and plant lignocellulosic raw materials on the properties of solid biofuels. The preliminary studies included pine, beech and willow wood and other lignocellulosic raw materials: mustard, hemp, grass stems, tobacco stalks, sunflower husks, Miscanthus straw, rape straw, cereal straw, Virginia Mallow straw, rapeseed meal. Torrefaction was carried out using variable temperatures and time of the process, depending on the material used. It was specified the weight loss and the ash content and calorific value was determined. It was found that the thermal treatment of the tested lignocellulosic raw materials is able to provide solid biofuel with improved properties. In the woody materials, the increase of the lower heating value was in the range of 0,3 MJ/kg (pine and beech) to 1,1 MJ/kg (willow), in non-woody materials – from 0,5 MJ/kg (tobacco stalks, Miscanthus) to 3,5 MJ/kg (rapeseed meal). The obtained results indicate for further research needs, particularly in terms of conditions of the torrefaction process.

Keywords: biomass, lignocellulosic materials, solid biofuels, torrefaction

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Authors: Wei Xu, Abdo S. Haidar, Jianxin Gao

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Prosthetic socket is a component that connects the residual limb of an amputee with an artificial prosthesis. It is widely recognized as the most critical component that determines the comfort of a patient when wearing the prosthesis in his/her daily activities. Through the socket, the body weight and its associated dynamic load are distributed and transmitted to the prosthesis during walking, running or climbing. In order to achieve a good-fit socket for an individual amputee, it is essential to obtain the biomechanical properties of the residual limb. In current clinical practices, this is achieved by a touch-and-feel approach which is highly subjective. Although there have been significant advancements in prosthetic technologies such as microprocessor controlled knee and ankle joints in the last decade, the progress in designing a comfortable socket has been rather limited. This means that the current process of socket design is still very time-consuming, and highly dependent on the expertise of the prosthetist. Supported by the state-of-the-art sensor technologies and numerical simulations, a new socket design system is being developed to help prosthetists achieve rapid design of comfortable sockets for above knee amputees. This paper reports the research work related to establishing biomechanical models for socket design. Through numerical simulation using finite element method, comprehensive relationships between pressure on residual limb and socket geometry were established. This allowed local topological adjustment for the socket so as to optimize the pressure distributions across the residual limb. When the full body weight of a patient is exerted on the residual limb, high pressures and shear forces between the residual limb and the socket occur. During numerical simulations, various hyperplastic models, namely Ogden, Yeoh and Mooney-Rivlin, were used, and their effectiveness in representing the biomechanical properties of soft tissues of the residual limb was evaluated. This also involved reverse engineering, which resulted in an optimal representative model under compression test. To validate the simulation results, a range of silicone models were fabricated. They were tested by an indentation device which yielded the force-displacement relationships. Comparisons of results obtained from FEA simulations and experimental tests showed that the Ogden model did not fit well the soft tissue material indentation data, while the Yeoh model gave the best representation of the soft tissue mechanical behavior under indentation. Compared with hyperplastic model, the result showed that elastic model also had significant errors. In addition, normal and shear stress distributions on the surface of the soft tissue model were obtained. The effect of friction in compression testing and the influence of soft tissue stiffness and testing boundary conditions were also analyzed. All these have contributed to the overall goal of designing a good-fit socket for individual above knee amputees.

Keywords: above knee amputee, finite element simulation, hyperplastic model, prosthetic socket

Procedia PDF Downloads 169

Authors: Palash Kumar Mollick, Leire Olazar, Laura Santamaria, Pablo Comendador, Gartzen Lopez, Martin Olazar

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Average calorific value of a mixure of waste plastic is approximately 38 MJ/kg. Present work aims to extract maximum possible energy from a mixure of waste plastic using a DC thermal plasma in a spouted bed reactor. Plasma pyrolysis and steam reforming process has shown a potential to generate hydrogen from plastic with much below of legal limit of producing dioxins and furans as the carcinogenic gases. A spouted bed pyrolysis rector can continuously process plastic beads to produce organic volatiles, which later react with steam in presence of catalyst to results in syngas. lasma being the fourth state of matter, can carry high impact electrons to favour the activation energy of any chemical reactions. Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) simulation using COMSOL Multiphysics software has been performed to evaluate performance of a plasma spouted bed reactor in producing contamination free hydrogen as a green energy from waste plastic beads. The simulation results will showcase a design of a plasma spouted bed reactor for converting plastic waste into green hydrogen in a single step process. The high temperature hydrodynamics of spouted bed with plastic beads and the corresponding temperature distribution inside the reaction chamber will be critically examined for it’s near future installation of demonstration plant.

Keywords: green hydrogen, plastic waste, synthetic gas, pyrolysis, steam reforming, spouted bed, reactor design, plasma, dc palsma, cfd simulation

Procedia PDF Downloads 55

Authors: Ocheme B. Ocheme, Omobolanle O. Oloyede, S. James, Eleojo V. Akpa

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The effect of fermentation time on some functional properties of Moringa (Moringa oleifera) seed flour was examined. Fermentation, an effective processing method used to improve nutritional quality of plant foods, tends to affect the characteristics of food components and their behaviour in food systems just like other processing methods. Hence the need for this study. Moringa seeds were fermented naturally by soaking in potable water and allowing it to stand for 12, 24, 48 and 72 hours. At the end of fermentation, the seeds were oven dried at 600C for 12 hours and then milled into flour. Flour obtained from unfermented seeds served as control: hence a total of five flour samples. The functional properties were analyzed using standard methods. Fermentation significantly (p<0.05) increased the water holding capacity of Moringa seed flour from 0.86g/g - 2.31g/g. The highest value was observed after 48 hours of fermentation The same trend was observed for oil absorption capacity with values between 0.87 and 1.91g/g. Flour from unfermented Moringa seeds had a bulk density of 0.60g/cm3 which was significantly (p<0.05) higher than the bulk densities of flours from seeds fermented for 12, 24 and 48. Fermentation significantly (p<0.05) decreased the dispersibility of Moringa seed flours from 36% to 21, 24, 29 and 20% after 12, 24, 48 and 72 hours of fermentation respectively. The flours’ emulsifying capacities increased significantly (p<0.05) with increasing fermentation time with values between 50 – 68%. The flour obtained from seeds fermented for 12 hours had a significantly (p<0.05) higher foaming capacity of 16% while the flour obtained from seeds fermented for 0, 24 and 72 hours had the least foaming capacities of 9%. Flours from seeds fermented for 12 and 48 hours had better functional properties than flours from seeds fermented for 24 and 72 hours.

Keywords: fermentation, flour, functional properties, Moringa

Procedia PDF Downloads 638

Authors: V. Manush Nandan, K. Lokdeep, R. Vimal, K. Hari Hara Subramanyan, C. Aswin, V. Logeswaran

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Natural fibers have attained the potential market in the composite industry because of the huge environmental impact caused by synthetic fibers. Among the natural fibers, jute fibers are the most abundant plant fibers which are manufactured mainly in countries like India. Even though there is a good motive to utilize the natural supplement, the strength of the natural fiber composites is still a topic of discussion. In recent days, many researchers are showing interest in the chemical modification of the natural fibers to increase various mechanical and thermal properties. In the present study, jute fibers have been modified chemically using glutaric anhydride at different concentrations of 5%, 10%, 20%, and 30%. The glutaric anhydride solution is prepared by dissolving the different quantity of glutaric anhydride in benzene and dimethyl-sulfoxide using sodium formate catalyst. The jute fiber mats have been treated by the method of retting at various time intervals of 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 hours. The modification structure of the treated fibers has been confirmed with infrared spectroscopy. The degree of modification increases with an increase in retention time, but higher retention time has damaged the fiber structure. The unmodified fibers and glutarylated fibers at different retention times are reinforced with epoxy matrix under room temperature. The tensile strength and flexural strength of the composites are analyzed in detail. Among these, the composite made with glutarylated fiber has shown good mechanical properties when compared to those made of unmodified fiber.

Keywords: flexural properties, glutarylation, glutaric anhydride, tensile properties

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Authors: Mosab Aljeri, Ali Abdulraheem

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The water quality of five water types at Al-Wuhaib farm, Al-Wafra area, was studies through onsite field measurements, including pH, temperature, electrical conductivity (EC), and dissolved oxygen (DO), for four different water types. Biweekly samples were collected and analyzed for two months to obtain data of chemicals, nutrients, organics, and heavy metals. The field and laboratory results were compared with irrigation standards of Kuwait Environmental Public Authority (KEPA). The pH values of the five samples sites were within the maximum and minimum limits of KEPA standards. Based on EC values, two groups of water types were observed. The first group represents freshwater quality originated from freshwater Ministry of Electricity & Water & Renewable Energy (MEWRE) line or from freshwater tanks or treated wastewater. The second group represents brackish water type originated from groundwater or treated water mixed with groundwater. The study indicated that all nitrogen forms (ammonia, Total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), Total nitrogen (TN)), total phosphate concentrations and all tested heavy metals for the five water types were below KEPA standards. These macro and micro nutrients are essential for plant growth and can be used as fertilizers. The study suggest that the groundwater should be treated and disinfected in the farming area. Also, these type of studies shall be carried out routinely to all farm areas to ensure safe water use and safe agricultural produce.

Keywords: salinity, heavy metals, ammonia, phosphate

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Authors: Yeun Sug Jeong, Yeongseon Jang, Rhim Ryoo, Donha Choi, Sung-Suk Lee, Kang-Hyeon Ka

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Broussonetia kazinoki (paper mulberry) is a plant native to Asia, and it grows at the foot of a mountain. Its bark is used as a raw material of Hanji, traditional Korean paper, and fruit is used as a medicinal material. However, inside the bark (woody part) is not used and discarded. We tried to use it for Lentinula edodes (oak mushroom) cultivation. It is commonly cultivated using oak trees and sawdust, but it could be grown with other trees. The woody part of paper mulberry was ground and mixed with oak sawdust by five different ratios. The 1.2 kg cylindrical bag media were prepared and water contents were adjusted to 65%. The media were autoclaved at 100℃ for 60 min and 121℃ for 90 min. Two strains of oak mushroom, NIFoS 2462 and NIFoS 2778 were inoculated and cultivated for 90 days in dark condition, and 40 days in light condition. Compared to the control, the mycelial growth period was long and the hardness of the media was low when paper mulberry sawdust was added. After incubation period, fruiting was stimulated at 18℃ and more than 85% humidity. After each flush, there was a resting period of 2 weeks. In the first flush, mushrooms were small, and a lot of small mushrooms were harvested. On the other hand, no mushrooms of 5 g or less were harvested in the secondary flush. The highest productivity was obtained in a 3:1 ratio of paper mulberry and oak sawdust. The size of NIFoS 2778 was uniform in each condition. On the other hand, NIFoS 2462 had smaller mushrooms in the media containing paper mulberry sawdust, but the appearance was not significantly different. This study showed that paper mulberry wood could be used to grow oak mushrooms and some oak sawdust could be substituted.

Keywords: Broussonetia kazinoki, cultivation, Lentinula edodes, oak mushroom

Procedia PDF Downloads 187

Authors: Rujira Jitrwung, Kuntima Krekkeitsakul, Weerawat Patthaveekongka, Chiraphat Kumpidet, Jarukit Tepkeaw, Krissana Jaikengdee, Anantachai Wannajampa

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Flue gas discharging from coal fired or gas combustion power plant contains around 12% Carbon dioxide (CO₂), 6% Oxygen (O₂), and 82% Nitrogen (N₂).CO₂ is a greenhouse gas which has been concerned to the global warming. Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) is a topic which is a tool to deal with this CO₂ realization. Flue gas is drawn down from the chimney and filtered, then it is compressed to build up the pressure until 8 bar. This compressed flue gas is sent to three stages Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA), which is filled with activated carbon. Experiments were showed the optimum adsorption pressure at 7bar, which CO₂ can be adsorbed step by step in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd stage, obtaining CO₂ concentration 29.8, 66.4, and 96.7 %, respectively. The mixed gas concentration from the last step is composed of 96.7% CO₂,2.7% N₂, and 0.6%O₂. This mixed CO₂product gas obtained from 3 stages PSA contained high concentration CO₂, which is ready to use for methanol synthesis. The mixed CO₂ was experimented in 5 Liter/Day of methanol synthesis reactor skid by 3 step processes as followed steam reforming, reverse water gas shift, and then hydrogenation. The result showed that proportional of mixed CO₂ and CH₄ 70/30, 50/50, 30/70 % (v/v), and 10/90 yielded methanol 2.4, 4.3, 5.6, and 6.0 Liter/day and save CO₂ 40, 30, 20, and 5 % respectively. The optimum condition resulted both methanol yield and CO₂ consumption using CO₂/CH₄ ratio 43/57 % (v/v), which yielded 4.8 Liter/day methanol and save CO₂ 27% comparing with traditional methanol production from methane steam reforming (5 Liter/day)and absent CO₂ consumption.

Keywords: carbon capture utilization and storage, pressure swing adsorption, reforming, reverse water gas shift, methanol

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Authors: H. B. Torane, M. C. Kasture, S. S. Prabhudesai, P. B. Sanap, V. N. Palsande, J. J. Palkar

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The present investigation entitled “Response of briquettes application with different coating materials on yield and quality of Cucumber [Cucumis sativus (L.)]” was conducted at Central Experiment Center, Wakawali during kharif season 2013. The field experiment was laid out in Factorial Randomized Block Design with three replicate. The four coating materials viz., Co – Non coating, C1 – Wax coating, C2 – Jaggary coating, and C3 – Tar coating was applied to Konkan Annapurna Briquette along with three sub treatments of application time i.e B1 – ½ at sowing, B2 - ½ at sowing and ½ at 30 days after sowing and B3 - 1/3 at sowing, 1/3 at 30 days after sowing and 1/3 at 60 days after sowing. It was observed that the application of tar coated Konkan Annapurna Briquettes (KAB) in three times @1/3 quantity of briquettes at sowing time, 1/3 quantity of briquettes at 30 days after sowing and 1/3 quantity of briquettes at 60 days after sowing was found promising to enhancing the cucumber fruit yield, higher vine length, number of fruits vine-1, girth of fruit, length of fruit. It was also observed that the quality of the cucumber fruit increased in terms of ascorbic acid. UB-Godavari forms of briquettes .i.e. are promising source of N, P2O5 and K2O fertilizers as compared to straight fertilizers for enhancing green cucumber fruit yield of Sheetal variety of cucumber in lateritic soil. Amongst the three types of coated briquettes, the tar coated briquettes application was found to be superior for increasing cucumber fruit yield applied in three times @1/3 quantity of briquettes at sowing time, 1/3 quantity of briquettes at 30 days after sowing and 1/3 quantity of briquettes at 60 days after sowing @ 5 briquettes per plant at an interval of 30 days after sowing.

Keywords: briquettes, coating, yield, tar, wax and quality

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Authors: Sachin Paul James, Selvasundaram Rajagopal, Muraleedharan Nair, Babu Azariah

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The shot hole borer (SHB), Euwallacea fornicatus (= Xyleborus fornicatus) (Scolytidae: Coleoptera) is one of the major pests of tea in southern India and Sri Lanka. The partially dried cut stem of a jungle plant, Montanoa bipinnatifida (C.Koch) (Compositae: Asteraceae) reported to attract shot hole borer beetles in the field. Collection, isolation, identification and quantification of the emitted volatiles from the partially dried cut stems of M. bipinnatifida using dynamic head space and GC-MS revealed the presence of seven compounds viz. α- pinene, β- phellandrene, β - pinene, D- limonene, trans-caryophyllene, iso- caryophyllene and germacrene– D. Behavioural bioassays using electroantennogram (EAG) and wind tunnel proved that, among these identified compounds only α - pinene, trans-caryophyllene, β – phellandrene and germacrene-D evoked significant behavioral response and maximum response was obtained to a specific blend of these four compounds @ 10:1:0.1:3. Field trapping experiments of this blend conducted in the SHB infested field using multiple funnel traps further proved the efficiency of the blend with a mean trap catch of 176.7 ± 13.1 beetles. Mass trapping studies in the field helped to develop a kairomone trap for the management of SHB in the tea fields of southern India.

Keywords: electroantennogram, kairomone trap, Montanoa bipinnatifida, tea shot hole borer

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Authors: Samir Falhi, Neji Gharsallah, Adel Kadri

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Ruta chalpensis L. is a medicinal plant in the family of Rutaceae, has been used as an important traditional in the Mediterranean basin in the treatment of many diseases. The current study was devoted to investigate and evaluate the chemical composition, total phenolic, flavonoid and tannin contents, and in vitro antioxidant activities of ethyl acetate, ethanol and hydroalcoholic extracts and essential oil from the aerial parts of Ruta chalpensis from Tunisian Sahara. Total phenolic, flavonoid and tannin contents of extracts ranged from 40.39 ± 1.87 to 75.13 ± 1.22 mg of GAE/g, from 22.62 ± 1.55 to 27.51 ± 1.04 mg of QE/g, and from 5.56 ± 1.32 to 10.89 ± 1.10 mg of CE/g respectively. Results showed that the highest antioxidant activities was determined for ethanol extract with IC50 value of 26.23 ± 0.91 µg/mL for 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl assay, and for hydroalcoholic extract with EC50 value of 412.95±6.57 µg/mL and 105.52±2.45 mg of α-tocopherol/g for ferric reducing antioxidant power and total antioxidant capacity assays, respectively. Furthermore, Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of essential oil led to identification of 20 compounds representing 98.96 % of the total composition. The major components of essential oil were 2-undecanone (39.13%), 2-nonanone (25.04), 1-nonene (13.81), and α-limonene (7.72). Spectral data of Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy analysis (FT-IR) of extracts revealed the presence of functional groups such as C= O, C─O, ─OH, and C─H, which confirmed its richness on polyphenols and biological active functional groups. These results showed that Ruta chalpensis could be a potential natural source of antioxidants that can be used in food and nutraceutical applications.

Keywords: antioxidant, FT-IR analysis, GC-MS analysis, phytochemicals contents, Ruta chalpensis

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Authors: G. Hosseini, A. Sadighzadeh, M. Rahimnejad, N. Hosseini, Z. Jamalzadeh

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Metal pollutants, especially heavy metals from anthropogenic sources such as metallurgical industries’ waste including mining, smelting, casting or production of nuclear fuel, including mining, concentrate production and uranium processing ends in the environment contamination (water and soil) and risk to human health around the facilities of this type of industrial activity. There are different methods that can be used to remove these contaminants from water and soil. These are very expensive and time-consuming. In this case, the people have been forced to leave the area and the decontamination is not done. For example, in the case of Chernobyl accident, an area of 30 km around the plant was emptied of human life. A very efficient and cost-effective method for decontamination of the soil and the water is phytoremediation. In this method, the plants preferentially native plants which are more adaptive to the regional climate are well used. In this study, three types of plants including Alfalfa, Sunflower and wheat were used to Barium decontamination. Alfalfa and Sunflower were not grown good enough in Saghand mine’s soil sample. This can be due to non-native origin of these plants. But, Wheat rise in Saghand Uranium Mine soil sample was satisfactory. In this study, we have investigated the effect of 4 types of acids inclusive nitric acid, oxalic acid, acetic acid and citric acid on the removal efficiency of Barium by Wheat. Our results indicate the increase of Barium absorption in the presence of citric acid in the soil. In this paper, we will present our research and laboratory results.

Keywords: phytoremediation, heavy metal, wheat, soil

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Authors: Muhammad nor Farhan Sa'At, Xin Y. Lim, Terence Y. C. Tan, Siti Hajar M. Rosli, Syazwani S. Ali, Ami F. Syed Mohamed

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INTRODUCTION: Hemp (Cannabis sativa subsp. sativa), commonly used for industrial purposes, differs from marijuana by containing lower levels of delta-9-tetrahydronannabidiol- the principal psychoactive constituent in cannabis. Due to its non-psychoactive nature, there has been growing interest in hemp’s therapeutic potential, which has been investigated through pre-clinical and clinical study modalities. OBJECTIVE: To provide an overview of the current landscape of hemp research, through recent scientific findings specific to the pharmacological effects of the medicinal hemp plant and its derived compounds. METHODS: This review was conducted through a systematic search strategy according to the preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis-ScR (PRISMA-ScR) checklist on electronic databases including MEDLINE, OVID (OVFT, APC Journal Club, EBM Reviews), Cochrane Library Central and Clinicaltrials.gov. RESULTS: From 65 primary articles reviewed, there were 47 pre-clinical studies related to medicinal hemp. Interestingly, the hemp derivatives showed several potential activities such as anti-oxidative, anti-hypertensive, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, anti-neuroinflammatory, anti-arthritic, anti-acne, and anti-microbial activities. Renal protective effects and estrogenic properties were also exhibited in vitro. CONCLUSION: Medicinal hemp possesses various pharmacological effects tested in vitro and in vivo. Information provided in this review could be used as tool to strengthen the study design of future clinical trial research.

Keywords: Preclinical, Herbal Medicine, Hemp, Cannabis

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Authors: Alireza Naseri, Susan L. Holdt, Charlotte Jacobsen

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In 2014, the global amount of carrageenan production was 60,000 ton with a value of US$ 626 million. From this number, it can be estimated that the total dried seaweed consumption for this production was at least 300,000 ton/year. The protein content of these types of seaweed is 5 – 25%. If just half of this total amount of protein could be extracted, 18,000 ton/year of a high-value protein product would be obtained. The overall aim of this study was to develop a technology that will ensure further utilization of the seaweed that is used only as raw materials for carrageenan production as single extraction at present. More specifically, proteins should be extracted from the seaweed either before or after extraction of carrageenan with focus on maintaining the quality of carrageenan as a main product. Different mechanical, chemical and enzymatic technologies were evaluated. The optimized process was implemented in lab scale and based on its results; the new experiments were done a pilot and larger scale. In order to calculate the efficiency of the new upstream multi-extraction process, protein content was tested before and after extraction. After this step, the extraction of carrageenan was done and carrageenan content and the effect of extraction on yield were evaluated. The functionality and quality of carrageenan were measured based on rheological parameters. The results showed that by using the new multi-extraction process (submitted patent); it is possible to extract almost 50% of total protein without any negative impact on the carrageenan quality. Moreover, compared to the routine carrageenan extraction process, the new multi-extraction process could increase the yield of carrageenan and the rheological properties such as gel strength in the final carrageenan had a promising improvement. The extracted protein has initially been screened as a plant protein source in typical food applications. Further work will be carried out in order to improve properties such as color, solubility, and taste.

Keywords: carrageenan, extraction, protein, seaweed

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Authors: Akida Mulyaningtyas, Wahyudi Budi Sediawan

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One decisive stage in bioethanol production from plant biomass is the hydrolysis of lignocellulosic materials into simple sugars such as glucose. The produced glucose is then fermented into ethanol. This stage is popularly done in biological method by using cellulase that is produced by certain fungi. As it is known, glucose is the main source of nutrition for most microorganisms. Therefore, cutting cellulose into glucose is actually an attempt of microorganism to provide nutrition for itself. So far, this phenomenon has received less attention while it is necessary to identify the quantity of sugar consumed by the microorganism. In this study, we examined the phenomenon of sugar consumption by microorganism on lignocellulosic hydrolysis. We used oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) as the source of lignocellulose and Aspergillus niger as cellulase-producing fungus. In Indonesia, OPEFB is plantation waste that is difficult to decompose in nature and causes environmental problems. First, OPEFB was pretreated with 1% of NaOH at 170 oC to destroy lignin that hindered A.niger from accessing cellulose. The hydrolysis was performed by growing A.niger on pretreated OPEFB in solid state to minimize the possibility of contamination. The produced glucose was measured every 24 hours for 9 days. We analyzed the kinetics of both reactions, i.e., hydrolysis and glucose consumption, simultaneously. The constants for both reactions were assumed to follow the Monod equation. The results showed that the reaction constant of glucose consumption (μC) was higher than of cellulose hydrolysis (μH), i.e., 11.8 g/L and 0.62 g/L for glucose consumption and hydrolysis respectively. However, in general, the reaction rate of hydrolysis is greater than of glucose consumption since the cellulose concentration as substrate in hydrolysis is much higher than glucose as substrate in the consumption reaction.

Keywords: Aspergillus niger, bioethanol, hydrolysis, kinetics

Procedia PDF Downloads 131

Authors: Shital Bangar, G. B. Khandagale

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The experimentation was carried out to study the influence of sulphur and boron on growth parameters and productivity of soybean in kharif season of 2009-2010 at Experimental Farm, Department of Agricultural Botany, Marathwada Agricultural University, Parbhani (M.S.). The object was to evaluate the impact of sulphur and boron on growth, development, grain yield and physiological aspects of soybean variety MAUS-81. Nine treatments consisted of three levels of sulphur i.e. 20, 30 and 40 Kg/ha as well as three levels boron i.e.10, 15 and 20 kg boron/ha and the combinations of these two mineral elements i.e. Sulphur @30 kg/ha + Borax @15 kg/ha and Sulphur @40 kg/ha + Borax @ 20 kg/ha with one control treatment in Randomized Block Design (RBD) with three replications. The effect of sulphur and boron on various growth parameters of soybean like relative growth rate (RGR) and net assimilation rate (NAR) were remained statistically on par with each other. However, the application of higher dose of Sulphur @40 kg/ha + Borax @ 20 kg/ha enhanced significantly all the growth parameters. Application of the nutrients increased the dry matter accumulation of the crop plant and hence, other growth indices like RGR and NAR also increased significantly. RGR and NAR values were recorded highest at the initial crop growth stages and decline thereafter. The application of sulphur @40 kg/ha + Borax @ 20 kg/ha recorded significantly higher content of chlorophyll ‘a’ than rest of the treatments and chlorophyll ‘b’ observed higher in boron @15 kg/ha as well as boron@20 kg/ha, whereas total chlorophyll content was maximum in sulphur @40 kg/ha. Oil content was not influenced significantly due to above fertilization. The highest seed yield and total biological yield were obtained with combination of Sulphur @40 kg/ha + Borax @ 20 kg/ha, single sulphur and boron application also showed a significant effect on seed and biological yield.

Keywords: boron, growth, productivity, quality, soybean and sulphur

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Authors: Marina Kapsali, John S. Anagnostopoulos

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Greek islands’ interconnection (IC) with larger power systems, such as the mainland grid, is a crucial issue that has attracted a lot of interest; however, the recent economic recession that the country undergoes together with the highly capital intensive nature of this kind of projects have stalled or sifted the development of many of those on a more long-term basis. On the other hand, most of Greek islands are still heavily dependent on the lengthy and costly supply chain of oil imports whilst the majority of them exhibit excellent potential for wind energy (WE) applications. In this respect, the main purpose of the present work is to investigate −through a parametric study which varies both in wind farm (WF) and submarine IC capacities− the impact of large-scale WE development on the IC of the third in size island of Greece (Lesbos) with the mainland system. The energy and economic performance of the system is simulated over a 25-year evaluation period assuming two possible scenarios, i.e. S(a): without the contribution of the local Thermal Power Plant (TPP) and S(b): the TPP is maintained to ensure electrification of the island. The economic feasibility of the two options is investigated in terms of determining their Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) including also a sensitivity analysis on the worst/reference/best Cases. According to the results, Lesbos island IC presents considerable economic interest for covering part of island’s future electrification needs with WE having a vital role in this challenging venture.

Keywords: electricity generation cost, levelized cost of energy, mainland grid, wind energy rejection

Procedia PDF Downloads 180

Authors: L. Bouqbis, H.W. Koyro, M. C. Harrouni, S. Daoud, L. F. Z. Ainlhout, C. I. Kammann

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The application of biochar to soils is becoming more and more common. Its application which is generally reported to improve the physical, chemical, and biological properties of soils, has an indirect effect on soil health and increased crop yields. However, many of the previous results are highly variable and dependent mainly on the initial soil properties, biochar characteristics, and production conditions. In this study, two biochars which are biochar II (BC II) derived from a blend of paper sludge and wheat husks and biochar 005 (BC 005) derived from sewage sludge with a KCl additive, are used, and the physical and chemical properties of BC II are characterized. To determine the potential impact of salt stress and toxic and volatile substances, the second part of this study focused on the effect biochars have on germination of salad (Lactuca sativa L.), barley (Hordeum vulgare), and cress (Lepidium sativum) respectively. Our results indicate that Biochar II showed some unique properties compared to the soil, such as high EC, high content of K, Na, Mg, and low content of heavy metals. Concerning salad and barley germination test, no negative effect of BC II and BC 005 was observed. However, a negative effect of BC 005 at 8% level was revealed. The test of the effect of volatile substances on germination of cress revealed a positive effect of BC II, while a negative effect was observed for BC 005. Moreover, the water holding capacities of biochar-sand mixtures increased with increasing biochar application. Collectively, BC II could be safely used for agriculture and could provide the potential for a better plant growth.

Keywords: biochar, phytotoxic tests, seedlings growth, water holding capacity

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Authors: Navodit Goel, Prabir K. Paul

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Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is attacked by Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato causing speck lesions on the leaves leading to severe economic casualty. In the present study, aqueous fruit extracts of Azadirachta indica (neem) were sprayed on a single node of tomato plants grown under controlled contamination-free conditions. The treatment of plants was performed with neem fruit extract either alone or along with the pathogen. The parameters of observation were activities of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and lysozyme, and isoform analysis of PPO; both at the treated leaves as well as untreated leaves away from the site of extract application. Polyphenol oxidase initiates phenylpropanoid pathway resulting in the synthesis of quinines from cytoplasmic phenols and production of reactive oxygen species toxic to broad spectrum microbes. Lysozyme is responsible for the breakdown of bacterial cell wall. The results indicate the upregulation of PPO and lysozyme activities in both the treated and untreated leaves along with de novo expression of newer PPO isoenzymes (which were absent in control samples). The appearance of additional PPO isoenzymes in bioelicitor-treated plants indicates that either the isoenzymes were expressed after bioelicitor application or the already expressed but inactive isoenzymes were activated by it. Lysozyme activity was significantly increased in the plants when treated with the bioelicitor or the pathogen alone. However, no new isoenzymes of lysozyme were expressed upon application of the extract. Induction of resistance by neem fruit extract could be a potent weapon in eco-friendly plant protection strategies.

Keywords: Azadirachta indica, lysozyme, polyphenol oxidase, Solanum lycopersicum

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Authors: M. Ntswane, N. Mbuma, M. Labuschagne, A. Mofokeng, M. Rantso

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Cowpea is an essential legume for the nutrition and health of millions of people in different regions. The production and productivity of the crop are very limited in South Africa due to a lack of adapted and stable genotypes. The improvement of nutritional quality is made possible by manipulating the genes of diverse cowpea genotypes available around the world. Assessing the adaptability and stability of the cowpea mutant genotypes for yield and nutritional quality requires examining them in different environments. The objective of the study was to determine the adaptability and stability of cowpea mutant genotypes under South African conditions and to identify the superior genotypes that combine grain yield components, antioxidants, and nutritional quality. Thirty-one cowpea genotypes were obtained from the Agricultural Research Council grain crops (ARC-GC) and were planted in Glen, Mafikeng, Polokwane, Potchefstroom, Taung, and Vaalharts during the 2021/22 summer cropping season. Significant genotype by location interactions indicated the possibility of genetic improvement of these traits. The genotype plus genotype by environment indicated broad adaptability and stability of mutant genotypes. The principal component analysis identified the association of the genotypes with the traits. Phenotypic correlation analysis showed that Zn and protein content were significant and positively correlated and suggested the possibility of indirect selection of these traits. Results from this study could be used to help plant breeders in making informed decisions and developing nutritionally improved cowpea genotypes with the aim of addressing the challenges of poor nutritional quality.

Keywords: cowpea seeds, adaptability, stability, mineral elements, protein content

Procedia PDF Downloads 72