Increase in human population has led to industrialization and deterioration of the environment, including the soil. Also, there is also a constant rise in demand for food, mostly gotten from plants. To attain this, the soil needs to be healthy to support the growth of plants. A healthy soil is thus one that is rich in and contains the correct proportion of nutrients, diversity of living organisms and supports plant growth. Living organisms such as earthworms help in stabilizing soil structure, good drainage and ensuring nutrients availability. Soil microorganisms such as Azotobacter spp. and Bacillus spp. also play a huge role in breaking down and ensuring that nutrients such as nitrate, iron and phosphorus are available in forms that can be assimilated by plants. Others such as Pseudomonas spp. breakdown pollutants to useful forms, thereby making the soil conducive for living organisms. This chapter thus looks at the factors that promote soil formation, health and biodiversity while also proffering methods to improve soil health such as the introduction of soil-health promoting living organisms.

This study investigated the determinant factors contributing to adherence to an antiretroviral regimen of people living with HIV/AIDS attending Babcock University Teaching Hospital. The research design used was a cross sectional descriptive study. The population consist of the entire people living with HIV/AIDS in Babcock University Teaching Hospital. The study size used comprised of 124 HIV patients. And purposive sampling techniques were used to select the sample population. Data was collected through the use of structured self-administered questionnaires with open-ended questions and was analyzed using SPSS version 21. The findings of this study showed that half of the respondents perceive that regular adherence to ART regimen would disallow the spread of HIV to their contacts, quite a number of the respondents do not perceive that adherence to ART regimen would remove HIV/AIDS stigma in their life because regular intake of the drug would disallow the community from knowing they are retroviral positive. Based on the findings of the study it is recommended that more information, education, and communication campaigns targeted at the general public are required to eliminate or reduce stigma to the barest minimum.

A considerable quantity of agricultural produce in Nigeria gets spoilt due to lack of storage facilities and poor storage conditions. An example of such agricultural produce is date palm which is readily available in the northern parts of Nigeria. This study aimed at evaluating the potential of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Y10 isolated from decomposed sugarcane bagasse to produce wine using date palm fruits. The yeast was isolated using yeast extract peptone dextrose agar and was identified by molecular methods. Fermentation of date palm fruit juice was carried out anaerobically for 20 days during which physicochemical parameters and proximate composition were determined using standard methods. The yeast was identified as Saccharomyces cerevisiae Y10 with accession number MG321589. Analysis of physicochemical properties showed that pH dropped from 5.4 to 3.6, titratable acidity increased from 0.25 to 0.71% and specific gravity decreased from 1.1 to 1.01. Proximate composition of produced wine gave low total reducing sugar and low protein of 0.11 and 0.44% respectively and the final alcohol content was 10.4% at the 20th day of fermentation. This study has shown that Saccharomyces cerevisiae Y10 which was isolated from decaying sugarcane bagasse sample has the potential to be used as starter culture for fermentation of date palm for wine production.

Aflatoxin levels in nuts and fruits pose a great threat to food storage and availability. This study aimed at determining the mycoflora and aflatoxin level in stored walnut under various conditions. Freshly harvested walnuts were stored for 90 days in three different media: jute bags, Plastic containers and sterile polythene bags under room (37ᵒC) and refrigeration (4ᵒC) temperature. After 90 days of storage, the stored walnuts were examined for fungal growth at one month interval after which colonial and morphological characterization were carried out to identify the fungi present. Proximate analysis and aflatoxin content of the walnut samples were determined by standard methods. Fungi isolated from the walnuts include; Aspergillus niger, Saccharomyces cerevisae, Penicillum notatum, Aspergillus sydowi, Fusarium oxysporium, and Rhizopus stolonifer. Walnuts stored in plastic container at room temperature had the lowest aflatoxin level of 0.002 ng/kg while that stored in polythene bags had the highest (0.054 ng/kg). Proximate analysis also revealed that walnuts stored in polythene bag reduced significantly (p<0.05) in protein, ash content, fat, fibre, moisture and carbohydrates while samples stored in jute bag and plastic container remained unchanged. This study shows that storage methods contributed to the overall quality, shelf life and aflatoxin content of walnut and hence care should be taken during post harvesting process.

Lactococcus lactis is a major member of the lactic acid bacteria and it is known to produce bacteriocins and proteinases. A total of 32 L. lactis strains were isolated from naturally fermented raw cattle milk and skimmed milk. Only 4 isolates had correlative proteinase and bacteriocin production abilities with evident zones of inhibition and zones of proteolysis (above 5 mm diameter). L. lactis RCM9 had 3 small sized plasmids (1 kbp, 3.5 kp, and 4.5 kbp). L. lactis RCM 21 also possessed 3 plasmids (6 kbp, 9 kbp, and > 10 kbp), while L. lactis SKM 14 possessed 1 plasmid > 10 kbp and L. lactis RCM 15 possessed no plasmid. A combination of plasmid curing treatments of novobiocin (10 μg/ml), ethidium bromide (40 μg/ml), and incubation at 40 o C resulted in an entire loss of plasmids. Phenotypic assertions on the plasmid related bacteriocinogenicity and proteinase activity of both plasmid cured and uncured isolatesrevealed thatbacteriocin and proteinase production in L. lactis RCM 9 and L. lactis RCM 15 were not plasmid mediated but chromosomal associated. However, plasmids were responsible for similar traits in L. lactis SKM14 and L. lactis RCM 21. This showed the inconsistency in plasmid presence and activity within the strains.

Production of endoglucanase, a good index for cellulase, by Penicillium atrovenetum using plantain peels as substrate was investigated. Cultural parameters varied include incubation time (1-15 days), pH (3-6), temperature (30-50oC) and nitrogen source. Enzyme production was analyzed by the dinitrosalicyclic acid (DNS) method. Highest production of endoglucanase was observed on the 7th day at pH 5 and at incubation temperature of 40oC. Ammonium oxalate, followed closely by ammonium persulfate, was observed as the best nitrogen source. The crude enzyme has optimum activities at 50oC and pH 5 while stable within 30oC to 50oC and pH 5 to 7. Addition of 5 mM CaCl2 enhanced the activities of the enzyme by 15.54%.

This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of different levels of aflatoxin- contaminated feed (0% toxigenic maize, 25% toxigenic maize +75% good maize, 50% toxigenic maize+50%good maize, 75% toxigenic maize +25% good maize and 100% toxigenic maize) on growth, survival, haematology and histology of Clarias gariepinus juveniles. Ten Clarias gariepinus juveniles with average weight of 42.81±0.01g were subjected to five treatments, with two replicates for each. The fish were fed twice daily at 5% body weight of 40% crude protein for six weeks. Growth performance indices such as Mean Weight Gain (MWG), Specific Growth Rate (SGR), Survival Rate (SR) and Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) were determined. Haematological parameters such as Packed Cell Volume (PCV), Red Blood Cell (RBC), Haemoglobin (Hb) content and lymphocytes were evaluated. Data resulting from the experiment were subjected to descriptive statistics and ANOVA at P = 0.05. Results showed that highest mean weight gain (107.00± 10g), specific growth rate (0.03±00g), survival rate (60.00%) and feed conversion ratio (0.68±0.05) were observed with control diet. MWG, SGR, SR and FCR were significantly (p 0.05) were recorded between control and treatment 1 (25% toxigenic maize + 75% good maize). Histology analyses of the liver and intestine of aflatoxin – contaminated feeds revealed severe degeneration and diffuse necrosis and mucosal erosion respectively. This study concludes that presence of aflatoxin contaminated feed affect the survival and growth performance of Clarias gariepinus juveniles Keywords : Growth, Aflatoxin- contaminated feeds, Clarias gariepinus , Haematology Survival

Disinfectant are chemical agent used on inanimate object but can also be employed as antiseptic at a very low concentration. It is therefore imperative to determine the efficiency of some commonly used disinfectants on the frequently encountered bacterial wound pathogens. The antibacterial effects of these chemical agents were carried out using standard microbiological techniques. Results showed that the investigated disinfectants at 50% and 100% concentration cause 100% bacterial cell reduction. The Minimum inhibitory concentration of the investigated disinfectant ranged from 0.78 - 6.25% while the MBC ranged from 3.13 - 12.5%. The MBC to MIC ratio also ranged from 1 - 4, asserting the bactericidal power of the tested disinfectants. It can therefore be concluded that professionals involved in the care of wounds should consider the use of these agents for washing the surfaces of infected wounds in order to minimize the possible spread of multi-drug resistant bacterial pathogens from wound to other sources. [Benjamin Thoha Thomas, Adebare Johnson Adeleke, Remi Ramota, Raheem-Ademola, Rachael Kolawole, Oluwaseunfunmi Sikirat Musa. Efficiency of some Disinfectants on Bacterial Wound Pathogens. Life Sci J 2012; 9(2): 752-755] (ISSN: 1097-8135). http://www.lifesciencesite.com. 111