RISK ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METALS IN CROPS AND SOIL FROM A DUMPSITE IN RUMUOLUMENI, PORT HARCOURT

The study investigated the concentration and risk of some heavy metals lead, cobalt, cadmium, nickel, chromium, arsenic, zinc and iron in waterleaf (Talinum triangulare), fluted pumpkin (Telfairia occidentalis), cassava tuber (Manihot esculenta crantz) and soil from the dumpsite in Rumuolumeni, Port Harcourt. The result indicated that heavy metal contamination was of the order iron>zinc>chromium>nickel>lead>cobalt>cadmium>arsenic. The highest values for soil were for iron (80.00±1.070 mg/Kg) and zinc (14.91±0.197 mg/Kg), while the least was arsenic (0.014±0.050 mg/Kg). Cassava tuber had highest levels in iron (61.80±2.038 mg/Kg) and zinc (11.03±0.107 mg/kg), with the lowest levels in arsenic (0.004±0.005 mg/Kg). In fluted pumpkin, iron (43.15±0.881 mg/Kg) and zinc (8.979±0.193 mg/Kg) were highest but cobalt and cadmium were not detected. Iron (37.72±1.962 mg/Kg) and zinc (6.797±0.208 mg/Kg) had the highest concentration in waterleaf but arsenic was not detected. Zinc, chromium, and nickel were higher than the WHO permissible limit. The transfer factor from soil to plants was as high as 75-90%, especially for cassava tuber. The enrichment factor revealed that the contamination is of anthropogenic sources except for arsenic, cobalt and lead in some samples. The non-carcinogenic risk showed that the highest risk was for chromium and iron, while cobalt and lead pose risk for cassava tubers. The risks due to soil ingestion were relatively high for carcinogenic metals like lead (1.2E-4), cadmium (1.2E-4), nickel (2.6E-2) and chromium (1.2E-2). These values are higher than the benchmark of 10-4- 10-6 set for management decisions by USEPA for carcinogenic substances in the environment. The other heavy metals with high carcinogenic risk are nickel and chromium in waterleaf, fluted pumpkin, and cassava with estimated values ranging from 3.7E-3 to 2.3E-2. From the findings, the risks associated with consuming food planted within the dumpsite environment are high and should be stopped.

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INVESTIGATING ACUTE PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF CHEMICALS IN FINE DUST TO DAPHNIA MAGNA

Fine dust pollution in the atmosphere has been an increasing problem for human health around the globe. Specifically, neighbouring countries of China, such as Korea, have experienced more serious consequences of fine dust pollution due to Chinese development. The chemical compounds existing in fine dust pose harmful effects on the health of all generations, presenting increased statistics of various pulmonary diseases. Chemical compounds found in fine dust can be categorized into three different classes: agricultural, heavy metal, and emission pollutants. Although how these chemical compounds impact human health have been studied before, no studies have been conducted on how these compounds can impact different organisms and ecological stability. In this study, two chemical compounds from each category were utilized: bifenthrin and gamma-cyhalothrin from agricultural pollutants, copper nitrate and iron nitrate from heavy metals and sulfuric acid and nitric acid from emission pollutants. The compounds were used to observe acute physiological effects of Daphnia magna, specifically the heartbeat rate and phototactic swimming rate. Each daphnia’s heartbeat rate and phototactic swimming rate were evaluated after 30 minutes of incubation. Although the results varied, there were significant statistical differences in both the heart rate and phototactic swimming rate when compared with that of original parameters. The data demonstrated us to conclude that all the three categories of chemical compounds induced moderate changes to their heartbeat and swimming capability with the order from the largest agricultural>heavy metal>acidic pollutants in terms of regression slopes of swimming duration and relative magnitude of heartbeat change. Therefore, the results concluded that the chemical compounds existing in fine dust can cause acute physiological effects on daphnia magna.

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USE OF TECHNICAL VIS-NIR FOR THE PHYSICAL-MECHANICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES ANALYSIS IN FRUITS AND VEGETABLES: REVISION AND ANALYSIS

One of the main challenges of the postharvest technology in the sector of the fruit and vegetables is the development of technical to be able to measure parameters of external and internal quality by means of the use of technical not destructive. This is important at the present time, due to the possibility and future necessity of research and development on behalf of the consumers, producers and sellers and as possible road of improving the quality in fruits and vegetables dedicated to different markets goals. In this work, a wide bibliographical revision is analyzed on the development of the optic technique VIS-NIR in the different agricultural products to international and national scale showing its incipient application in the Cuban case, and the importance of the evaluation of the physical-mechanical and optic properties of these products by means of this technology. This is the main scope of the paper.

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FEATURES OF In vitro SEED GERMINATION OF Eranthis longistipitata, AN ENDEMIC PLANT OF CENTRAL ASIA

Eranthis longistipitata Regel (Ranunculaceae) is an endemic plant of Central Asia and one of the most popular among decorative bulbs. There is a need for the development of fast and controlled propagation methods of this species. The purpose of this study is to identify the features of in vitro culture of E. longistipitata seeds and embryos. The effect of various pretreatment methods on germination of E. longistipitata seeds in in vitro culture was studied – cold stratification, treatment with gibberellic acid (GA3) and a combination of cold stratification and embryo culture treatment. It is shown that mature seeds of E. longistipitata exhibit an underdeveloped embryo, and for complete maturation of embryos in in vitro culture, it is necessary to incubate the seeds at +4°C in the dark for 2 months, and then at +7°C under a 16/8 photoperiod regime for 2 months. The optimal method of seed pretreatment is a combination of cold stratification and embryo culture, when the number of viable explants attained 23%. GA3 seed treatment did not foster embryo development and seed germination of E. longistipitata. The study has shown that a combination of cold stratification and embryo culture methods is necessary to overcome the dormancy of E. longistipitata seeds in vitro.

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BIOTIC AND ABIOTIC FACTORS IN Anopheles gambiae BREEDING HABITATS AS A POTENTIAL TOOL TO FIGHT MALARIA IN CENTRAL UGANDA

Background: There is a high risk of malaria infection in Uganda due to availability of conducive conditions in breeding habitats of An. gambiae s.l., the vectors for Plasmodium, the causative agent of malaria.

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine whether the abundance and distribution of macro-invertebrates and An. gambiae s.l. are influenced by water physico-chemical parameters.

Methods: In this study, habitats were classified as ponds, streams, temporary pools and roadside ditches. From these habitats, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, temperature and pH were measured in-situ in the morning and afternoon between October and December 2017. Macro-invertebrates and An. gambiae s.l. larvae were sampled, preserved, morphologically identified and counted.

Results: There was a strong association between An. gambiae s.l. with land use, habitat types and water physico-chemical parameters. Baetidae, Coenagrionidae, Aeshnidae, Nepidae, Lymnaeidae and Hirudidae were highly abundant in streams. Notonectidae, Haliplidae and Elmidae were dominant in ponds while Dytiscidae, Culicidae, Chironomidae, Sphaerolichidae and An. gambiae s.l. were abundant in temporary pools. Carabidae were abundant in roadside ditches.

Conclusion: Water physico-chemical parameters, land use and habitat types influenced the abundance and distribution of macro-invertebrates including An. gambiae s.l. We recommend that studies should be conducted to establish the mechanisms through which these factors influence abundance and distribution of An. gambiae s.l. and other macro-invertebrates.

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EFFECT OF SCAFFOLDING INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES AND GENDER ON PERFORMANCE OF PUPILS IN BASIC SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN RIVERS STATE, NIGERIA

This study examined the effect of scaffolding instructional strategies and gender on the performance of pupils in Basic Science and Technology in public primary schools in Rivers State. Two specific objectives and two null hypotheses guided the study. Non-randomized pretest, post-test and control group experimental design was adopted for the study. The population size consisted of 42,409 basic four pupils; out of which 147 were drawn as sample size using purposive sampling technique. The instrument for data collection was the Basic Science and Technology Performance Test. The data was analyzed using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). The findings of the study revealed that there is a significant difference in the Basic Science and Technology mean performance scores of pupils taught with scaffolding instructional strategies and those taught with conventional method. The Basic Science and Technology mean performance scores of boys and girls taught with scaffolding instructional strategies does not differ significantly with those taught with conventional method. Recommendations were made which include that scaffolding instructional strategy should be used in classroom teaching/learning interaction to enhance the teaching and learning of pupils as well as improve their performance in all subjects.

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CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK ON MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION OF FIRM INNOVATION PERFORMANCE BASED ON “EFFICIENCY-OUTPUT”

As a main index of firm technological innovation capacity, firm innovation performance captures extensive attentions among management and academia, although disagreement on its measurement or evaluation among different researchers still exist, which mainly caused by the lack or inexistence of universally used measurement scheme of firms innovation performance. Based on investigation to current researches related to firm innovation performance, we place, in this paper, more emphasis on the identification of influencing factors and upgrading path of firm innovation performance, measurement or evaluation of firm innovation performance, after carding and review, we construct a comprehensive framework to evaluate firm innovation performance according to the composition and representation forms, in hopes to show the direction for future researches.

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CRYSTAL GROWTH AND COMPARATIVE STUDIES OF NMR, SPECTRAL STUDIES ON NEW NLO CRYSTALS OF THIOSEMICARBAZONE OF 4-CHLOROBENZALDEHYDE AND M –NITROBENZALDEHYDE

The thiosemicarbazone of 4-Chlorobenzaldehyde and Thiosemicarbazone of M-Nitrobenzaldehyde is an interesting of organic compound in the crystalline nature. The quartz meth glass which is grown slow evaporation method from the solvent methanol. The harvested crystals were purified by repeated recrystallization. FT-IR spectroscopic study was held out on the growth, recognize the fundamental function group. Optical absorption studied illustrate the low absorption in the entire UV and visible spectral. The UV-Visible Spectra are confirming the optical transparency. This is more helpful to use these crystals in option applications. The harvested crystals Thiosemicarbazone of 4-Chlorobenzaldehyde and Thiosemicarbazone of M-Nitrobenzaldehyde were characterized by proton nuclear magnetic resonance and of 13C NMR spectra which show the molecular structure of the crystals. Its thermal stability for analysis in the crystal by TGA and DSC. The TGA and DSC confirm the decay of the sample at 210°C. It further confirms the grown crystal Thiosemicarbazone of 4-Chlorobenzaldehyde and Thiosemicarbazone M-Nitrobenzaldehyde is thermally stable up to 210°C. The frequencies was identified in the crystal by dielectric properties. The second harmonic generation efficiency of the powdered thiosemicarbazone of 4-Chlorobenzaldehyde and Thiosemicarbazone of M-Nitrobenzaldehyde and was tested using Nd: YAG laser and it is found to be 6.1 and 5.6 times higher than that of urea.

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PREPARATION OF ADSORBENT FROM PHOSPHATE ROCK WASTE TO BE USED FOR THE REMOVAL OF HEAVY METAL IONS FROM WASTEWATER

In this study a cost-effective adsorbent was prepared from phosphate rock waste. An abundant phosphate rock waste was generated, as by-product, from phosphate concentration processes. Phosphate rock waste was activated by chemical activators (including  different concentration of HNO3 and  NaOH or with both). The developed adsorbent was characterized using different techniques (XRD, XRF and SEM). Batch experiments were conducted to test the heavy metal ions (Cd+2, Cu+2, Ni+2, Pb+2 and Zn+2) removal efficiency by the developed adsorbent. The adsorption process was evaluated as a function of various operating parameters such as contact time, solution pH, temperature, initial metal ion concentration, and adsorbent dosage. The results concluded that activation phosphate rock waste was effective with 2M HNO3, and the developed adsorbent is suitable for effective removal of Cd+2, Cu+2, Ni+2, Pb+2 and Zn+2 from aqueous solution. Initial uptake of these metal ions increases with time and reaches equilibrium at 60 min, while the optimum adsorbent dosage and solution temperature were 0.5 g 100 mL-1 and 25°C, respectively. The adsorption process was pH-dependent with high adsorption capacity at pH 7. The experimental isotherms data were analyzed using the Langmuir, and Freundlich   models. The data obtained from adsorption isotherms of metal ions at different time fitted well to linear form of Langmuir model.

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SYNTHESIS AND CHARACTERIZATION OF (2-[2-CHLOROBENZYLIDENE]) HYDRAZINE CARBOTHIOAMIDE AND THEIR ANTI-MICROBIAL ACTIVITIES

The significance of thiosemicarbazone and their complexes, apart from their diverse chemical and structural characteristics, stems from not only their potential but also their proved application as biologically active particles. The full application and structural diversity of complexes of thiosemicarbazone prompted us to synthesize the tridentate NNO- donor thiosemicarbazones and their complexes. Due to good chelating ability, the present work is mainly concerned with the studies on complexes of 2-Chlorobenzaldehyde, Thiosemicarbazones. By emphasizing this point the objectives of the present work are as follows: synthesis of the 2-Chlorobenzaldehyde thiosemicarbazone (2-[(2-Chlorobenzylidene)]) Hydrazine carbothioamide. The composition of 2-Chlorobenzaldehyde was determined by the spectral analysis. For the characterization of this compound by 1HNMR and IR spectral studies. The complexes of 2-chloro benzaldehyde were characterized by 1HNMR, 13CNMR, IR and UV spectral studies. The 2-Chlorobenzaldehyde thiosemicarbazone, have been screened against Bacteria (a) gram positive Staphylococcus aureus (Saureus), (b) gram negative Ecoli and fungi Aspergillus Niger and Candida albicans by the agar disc diffusion method. Therefore antimicrobial activities are analyzed in this work specifically for 2-Chlorobenzaldehyde thiosemicarbazone crystal. This crystal was grown by solution growth technique and analyzed analytically.

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FINE ROOT DYNAMICS AND PRODUCTION IN Acacia auriculiformis PLANTATION

Fine roots absorb water and nutrients for the tree's life and play an important role in carbon and nutrient cycling. Therefore, understanding fine root dynamics and production will contribute to sustainable management and improve the productivity of forest plantation. This work aims at investigating vertical distribution and production of Acacia auriculiformis plantation in Northeast Vietnam. A 20 m × 15 m plot containing 30 trees was established at a 2-year old plantation of A. auriculiformis. Sequence soil core sampling was applied to collect data on the mass of live roots and that of dead roots. While litter bag technique was used to estimate the decomposition ratio of dead fine roots. The continuous inflow method was employed to estimate fine root decomposition, mortality, and production. The results indicated that more than 50% fine roots distribute at 0-10 cm soil depth, while less than 12% distribute at deeper than 40 cm soil depth. In addition, more fine roots distribute at 0-10 cm soil depth in summer than that in winter. While more fine roots distribute at 40-80 cm soil depth in winter than that in summer. Fine root decomposition, mortality, and production are seasonal-dependent. The highest mortality (1.9 g m-2 day-1) was found during Dec-Mar and the lowest (1.3 g m-2 day-1) was found during Mar-Jun. While the highest mortality (1.8 g m-2 day-1) was found during Jun-Sep and the lowest (1.3 g m-2 day-1) was found during Sep-Dec. The similar pattern with mortality was found in production with the highest of 2.2 g m-2 day-1 during Jun-Sep and the lowest (1.2 g m-2 day-1) during Sep-Dec. In the present study plantation, total decomposition was 530 g m-2 year-1, mortality was 547 g m-2 year-1, and production was 548 g m-2 year-1. High production during Jun-Sep/summer may indicate a higher nutrient requirement to support growths during the growing season. Therefore, this should be a time for fertilizing plantation.

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BIOASSAY OF ZnO-SnO2 NANO COMPOSITE ON BLACK GRAM (Vigna mungo)

Present experimentation was done to study the effect of ZnO-SnO2 composite on different morphological parameters of Black gram. In this work, we have synthesized ZnO-SnO2 nanocomposite by Chemical co-precipitation method and characterized it using X-ray diffraction spectrograph, UV-visible absorption spectroscopy, scanning electron microscope and Transmission electron microscope. The particle size of synthesized nanocomposite material lies between 25.75 nm to 39.16 nm. The synthesized nanocomposite exhibited needle shaped morphology and showed maximum absorbance at 355 nm of wavelength. For studying the effect of synthesized nanocomposite material on morphological parameters of Black gram, healthy and presoaked seeds of Black gram were treated with three different concentration of ZnO-SnO2 composite (i.e. 20, 40, and 60%). Control was also maintained for each set. Black gram belongs to family Fabaceae and is commonly used as a food for protein and other nutritive substances. Black gram is also used as green manure for agricultural practices. During the field observation a significant effects have been observed on various morphological parameters. A reduction in germination and survival percentages were also observed in treated sets.

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INNATE IMMUNITY AND MICROBIAL INVASION

Aim of Review: Studies have been published in the field of innate system and microbial invasion but much is not know on the mechanisms involved. This review is organized into areas of components and function of the immune system, microbial detection, cells of the innate immune system and homeostasis.

Findings: The innate immune system activates and instructs adaptive immune responses, regulates inflammation, and mediates immune homeostasis which is the balance between opposing pro inflammatory and anti-inflammatory processes. The cells of the innate immune system use pattern recognition receptors (PRRs), which recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) on microorganisms, and communicate through cytokines. Activation of the innate immune system begins with resident cells such as the macrophages, epithelial cells and mast cells in the tissues at the site of the infection. If the threat of infection accelerates, these cells recruit other cells such as the neutrophils, NK cells, dendritic cells, monocytes and platelets from the circulation into the inflamed tissues. Many of the same cells and mechanisms used to recognize and attack microbes and initiate inflammatory reactions are also used to clear away damaged and dying cells and down regulate inflammation to maintain homeostasis within the host.

Conclusion: The innate immune system refers to germline defense mechanisms that are directed against molecular components found only in microorganisms. These mechanisms are not learned, adapted, or permanently heightened as a result of exposure to microorganisms, although they are refined by evolution over generations.

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