September 2015

Anatomical and histochemical analysis of vegetative organs of Vernonia ferruginea Less. (Asteraceae)

Vernonia ferruginea Less. is a perennial shrub species, present in several regions of Brazil, especially in the savanna. It is popularly used as a phytotherapic. This fact justifies the need to anatomically characterize the plant for its accurate identification and to conduct histochemical studies with the aim of identifying the chemical nature of its cellular constituents. The species-specific data will contribute...

Author(s): Oliveira, R. C. de, Vasconcelos Filho, S. C., Bastos, A. V. S., Vasconcelos, J. M. and Rodrigues, A. A.

September 2015

Chemical composition and mutagenic assessment of petrochemical effluents on onion (Allium cepa) root tip mitosis

The continous production and release of chemicals into the environment have led to the need to assess their chemical composition and genotoxic effects on cell reproduction. Two petrochemicals, air liquid and polyester resin effluents were assessed. The common onion of the purple variety was used as the test organism. The results of the chemical analysis of the wastewaters showed high concentration of some potentially...

Author(s): Abu, Ngozi E., Asomba, C. O. and Ubani, C.

September 2015

Management of Fusarium Wilt using mycolytic enzymes produced by Trichoderma harzianum (Th. Azad)

The main aim of this study was to isolate the best chitinase and glucanase enzyme producing Trichoderma strain to manage the Fusarium wilt disease of Cicer aritenum under in vitro conditions. We also studied the effect of Trichoderma strains on the growth and development of C. aritenum plants. Seven strains of Trichoderma were screened against the Fusarium pathogen to isolate the best biocontrol agent causing maximum...

Author(s): Mohammad Shahid, Mukesh Srivastava, Sonika Pandey, Vipul Kumar, Anuradha Singh, Shubha Trivedi, Y. K. Srivastava and Shiv Ram

September 2015

β-Lactam and chloramphenicol-resistant enterobacteria in hospital surfaces

The following study aimed to research the Enterobacteriaceae present on the material surfaces of a hospital environment in a Community Health Unit in Ceara-Brazil. Data was collected in 10 different rooms and facilities by rubbing sterile swabs in an enclosed area of 10 cm² for a minute. Bacterial growth was observed in all surveyed areas. However, Enterobacteriaceae were only found in surfaces from the kitchen and...

Author(s): Jean Linhares de Lima, Sara Edwirgens Costa Benicio Vasconcelos, Theodora Thays Arruda Cavalcante, and Renata Albuquerque Costa,

September 2015

A direct and sensitive method for screening fructooligosaccharides-digesting microorganisms useful in food and health science

Short-chain fructooligosaccharides (FOS) stimulate selectively the growth and activity of microorganisms in the colon providing positive health effects and well-being in humans and animals. The lack of accurate isolation methods, however, hampers the possibility of getting new potential fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS)-fermenting yeast or bacterial strains. A valuable screening procedure to visually detect bacterial and...

Author(s): Trujillo L. E., Granda S., Ordoñez M. I., Ramos T. I. and Avalos R.