This study presents the calcareous nannofossils biostratigraphy of well 03, shallow offshore, Niger Delta, Nigeria using ditch cuttings samples analyzed for nannofossils to determine age, biozonation, and paleoecological interpretation. A quantity (5 g) each of the cuttings were subjected to standard smear slide preparation technique for nannofossils using Norland adhesive and the slides examined under light microscope at 1000 × magnification. Lithologically the studied sequences were composed of shale, siltstone / mudstone which are grey with intercalation of sandstones belonging to Agbada Formation. A fairly diverse 37 species of nannofossils assemblage was recovered. Two major nannofossil zones of Helicosphaera ampliaperta and Sphenolithus heteromorphus were delineated. Establishment of these zones aided the assignment of the early Miocene - late Miocene age range to the section. Paleoecology of the studied section reveals fluctuations between warm and cool climates evidenced from the variation in the assemblages of diagnostic species across the intervals, Sphenolithus heteromorphus predominates intervals 7900 – 12420 ft and the occurrence of Discoaster berggrenii between 9300 -9420 ft suggest intervals under warm climate conditions while Coccolithus pelagicus and coccolithus miopelagicus strives between 7000 -10780 ft, between 6670 -10980 ft, respectively indicating cooler environmental conditions.
Water imbalance limits growth and antioxidant production in plants. This study assessed varying concentrations (1, 2, 3 and 4 g/L) of glycine betanine (GB) on growth, nutritional contents, and antioxidant production in beniseed under drought conditions. Plant height (49.40 cm), number of leaves (27), leaf area (231.93 cm2 ), specific leaf area (57.98 m2kg-1 ), and leaf area index (0.62 m2m-2 ) were higher in beniseed treated with 4g/L GB compared with lower concentrations of the osmolyte. However, the well-watered treatment improved significantly the relative growth rate (0.06 mgg-1day-1 ) and net assimilation rate (0.02 gm-2day-1 ). Chlorophyll-a (3.38 mg/g), chlorophyll-b (3.81mg/g) and total chlorophyll (7.20 mg/g) showed a significant increase in the plant under 3g/LGB. Moisture (91.07%), fat (2.74%), ash (3.55%), crude fiber (3.51%), and crude protein (4.47%) were significantly higher (p<0.05) in the treatments grown under 4g/LGB. The observation was consistent in sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium as well as vitamin A, vitamin B5 and vitamin C. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) (1.58 u/gt), APX (1.18 u/g), CAT (1.58 mg-1 ), GR (1.59 u/g), GST (14.07 mg-1 ) and SP (19.06 u/ml) were higher in the roots of beniseed grown under drought. Conclusively, beniseed grown under,3 and 4g/L GB improved growth attributes and nutritional contents while high antioxidant production was observed in the roots of beniseed droughted compared with other parts.
Savannas are prominent members of tropical terrestrial ecosystems. Leaf and branch litter fractions were sampled from ten isolated, natural tree stands of Azadirachta indica (A. Juss), Daniella oliveri (Rolfe) Hutch & Dalziel, Parkia biglobosa (Jacq.) Benth.,Prosopis africana (Guill.&Perr.) and Vitellaria paradoxa (Gaertner) F.}, in the dry season. Litterfall samples were analysed for Calcium and Magnesium (Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry) (AAS), Potassium (Flame Photometry), Nitrate-nitrogen and Phosphate-phosphorus (Colorimetric titration). Results showed that branch litter fractions generally returned higher nutrient content than leaf litter. While, the eco-physiologically significant potassium, nitrate-nitrogen, and magnesium were top of the nutrient return spectrum across the litter fractions, with a prominent nutrient return magnitude in the form of K > NO3-N- > Mg > Ca > PO4 3 -P- . This indicates the biogeochemical significance of tree litter in tropical savanna ecosystems. Equally, the outcomes of this study indicate the ecological significance of tropical savanna tree cover in litterfall production, decomposition, as well as base content supply and cycling, for soil fertility.
Phosphorus (P) is an important precursor for nitrogen fixation as it initiates nodule formation and enhances rhizobium-legume symbiosis. This study was conducted to (i) evaluate the tolerance of cowpea landraces to low soil P and (ii) assess the correlation among agronomic traits under limited soil P conditions. A total of 420 cowpea genotypes were evaluated using a 20 × 21 alpha lattice design with two replications under high and low soil P conditions. Significant variations (p<0.05) were observed among the landraces under low P for all the measured traits indicating the presence of genetic variability and potential for crop improvement. Grain yield ranged from 58.7 kg/ha to 1488.0 kg/ha under low soil P. Low soil P significantly reduced grain and biomass yields of cowpea landraces compared to optimum conditions. Reduction in grain yield between the low and high P treatments ranged between 24% and 97%. ‘Red beans medium’ ‘Dan Misra_Zamfara’ and ‘Dan Zaria’ with the least yield reduction could serve as potential resources for the development of varieties tolerant to low soil P. Grain yield was significantly correlated with weight of 100 seeds (r= 0.25), the number of branches (r=0.14) and biomass (r=0.58), indicating that selection for these traits could be used as indirect selection metrics to increase grain yield under low soil P. The wide variability observed among the landraces for the measured traits suggests the availability of sufficient variability for genetic improvement for tolerance to low soil P.
Quality assurance and evaluation of medicines are paramount for monitoring the distribution of substandard and fake medicines in the drug supply chains and ensuring the desired therapeutic efficacy and safety to the patients. This study was undertaken to evaluate some quality parameters of seven brands of ciprofloxacin hydrochloride (HCl) 500 mg caplets marketed in Kaduna metropolis. Identity, weight variation, disintegration, friability, thickness, diameter, and antimicrobial study were the conducted tests to assess the quality attributes and antimicrobial activity of the brands. The tests were performed according to official specifications. Ciprofloxacin HCl caplet samples were randomly purchased from pharmacy outlets and patent medicine stores. All the brands of ciprofloxacin HCl caplets complied with the official specifications for weight variation, disintegration, friability, thickness, and diameter tests. All the brands had shown disintegration time within 1 to 11 min, and friability value below 0.7%. For the antimicrobial study, the inhibition zone diameter (mm) produced by 5μg/mL concentration of each sample showed that all the samples satisfied the standard specifications. All seven brands of ciprofloxacin HCl caplets being marketed in Kaduna metropolis have demonstrated satisfactory physical quality attributes and antimicrobial activity, hence, the brands can be used interchangeably. The statistical analysis indicated significant differences in the assessed parameters between the brands (p > 0.05).
