Annual Research & Review in Biology

There have been reports of several developmental anomalies of the pancreas in the past two decades, and among these, one of the rare entities is dorsal agenesis of the pancreas [1]. Our report is on an 18-year-old male patient who presented with total agenesis of the dorsal pancreas. A computed tomography (CT) scan of the abdomen revealed a normal pancreatic head, but there was no observation of the body and tail of the pancreas. A magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) confirmed the absence of the major pancreatic duct. This case was diagnosed as dorsal agenesis of the pancreas. As this is a very unusual case, this has been reported here as a case study due to its rare presentation.

In this study, the seasonal variation on selected major minerals (Ca, P, K, Mg) and proximate composition of Mesopotamian catfish (Silurus triostegus Heckel, 1843) were investigated. Fish samples used in this research were obtained seasonally from Atatürk Dam Lake within the boundries of Turkey (37ºC45N’ latitude/38ºC17E’ longitude) via fishing. The mean value of Ca, P, K and Mg were determined as 92.59±9.81µg/g, 1447.56±117.38µg/g, 2762.50±418.00µg/g and 227.26±39.79µg/g (wet weight) respectively. The highest mineral contents were identified in summer. The highest crude protein was observed in autumn (18.88%) and the lowest in winter (16.88%).The average lipid content was identified between 4.22-6.56% and the highest value was observed in winter. The results showed significant differences between the four seasons (P<0.05) in major minerals and proximate composition.

Aims: Effect of culture medium pH (3.5, 4.5, 6.5, 7.5 and 8.5) on the activity and number of laccase isoenzymes of Pleurotus ostreatus grown in solid-state fermentation using polyurethane foam as a support was evaluated.
Methodology: Pleurotus ostreatus was grown in solid-state fermentation using polyurethane foam as inert support at different initial pH of the culture medium. The enzymatic extracts were obtained by pressing the polyurethane foam every day of culture. The laccase activity was measured in each enzymatic extract using 2,6-dimethoxyphenol as substrate and the isoenzymes number were detected through zymograms.
Results: In general, the fungus showed high values of specific growth rate grow that all pH tested, and the higher were at pH 3.5 and 8.5 (0.78 and 0.82h^-1, respectively), whereas at pH6.5 was 0.034h^-1 and pHs of 4.5 and 7.5 was 0.047h^-1. Furthermore, the maximum biomass values were low, about 3.7g/L in all cases. The maximum values of laccase activity were observed in fermentations development at pH4.5 and 6.5 (approximately 40000 U/L). The largest number of isoenzymes was observed in fermentations carried out at pH 7.5 and 8.5.
Conclusion: In solid-state fermentation on polyurethane foam, the pH of the culture medium did not affect the growth of the fungus, however, there were differences in the production and activity of laccases.

Aims: Lipases (triacylglycerol acylhydrolase EC 3.1.1.3) are enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of triacylglycerol at the oil-water interface to release glycerol and free fatty acids. In this study culture conditions and nutrient source modification studies were carried out on lipase production by Aspergillius carbonarius.
Study Design: The work was based on a completely randomized design for the process parameters. All the experiments were conducted at least twice and the analyses were carried out in triplicates and average values were calculated for mean comparison.
Methodology: The fungus was initially screened for the production of lipase using Rhodamine B agar media. Lipase production studies were conducted in a basal medium. Thereafter, the influence of carbon, nitrogen, pH, temperature and metal ions were examined on both the growth of fungus and its lipase production by monitoring the rate of olive oil hydrolysis by titration.
Place and Duration of Study: The present study was conducted at the Food and Industrial Microbiology laboratory, Department of Microbiology, University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria between February 2012- October 2013.
Results: Lipase production was detected as an orange halo around the fungal colonies under UV light at 350nm.The evaluation of suitable carbon and nitrogen sources for lipase production revealed that glucose (2%) and peptone (2%) yielded high lipase production. Olive oil (1.5%) was the best triglyceride (inducer) while the most suitable trace element for maximum lipase production was zinc sulphate (0.05%) followed by magnesium sulphate and manganese sulphate. Under optimal culture conditions, maximum lipase production (1.3 U/ml) was obtained in 96 h at 30ºC and pH 6.0 using 2% glucose as carbon source and 2% peptone as nitrogen. The correlation analysis carried out on all the experiment proved the interdependent of the physicochemical parameters and lipase production in A. carbonarius.
Conclusion: The result obtained in this study indicated that A. carbonarius is a good producer of extracellular lipase; thus, making the fungus attractive for potential biotechnological applications.

Aims: The problem addressed in this paper, was to reduce the number of sieves in order to propose appropriate methodologies for the estimations of abundance, secondary production, community composition and structure of benthic fauna associated to a Zostera marina meadow. Therefore we are aiming to calculate in an efficient way, secondary production of benthic communities in coastal areas associated to a Zostera marina meadow and examine the retention efficiency of different mesh sizes.
Study Design: Bimonthly five randomly chosen cores of 15 cm of diameter and 18 cm length (area=176.7 cm²), were collected.
Place and Duration of Study: The samples were taken during one year period from June 2008 to June 2009 in a Zostera marina meadow at Punta Banda estuary, a shallow coastal lagoon located near Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico (31º43-46’ N and 116°37-40’W).

Methodology: Samples were immediately fixed with 7% buffered formalin, later, samples were washed through a nested series of sieves (5.6, 4.0, 2.8, 2.0, 1.4, 1.0, 0.70, 0.50 mm) stacked in descending order of size. In the laboratory fauna collected from each sieve was sorted and taxa classified using a stereoscopic microscope, organisms were counted (abundance, density) and preserved in 70% ethanol. Wet weight was measured using a Sartorius precision balance with a resolution of 0.001 g, for each group and each sieve. A general method to obtain Ash-free-dry weight (AFDW) of each core, which is the value of the dry weight minus the weight of the ash.
Results: A total of 14760 organisms were collected and classified in 11 phyla; we found densities ranging from 17457 to 33600 ind. m^–2. Benthic fauna was separated using eight different sieves (5.6 mm to 0.5 mm). The observed mean annual secondary production was 14.8 g (AFDW) m² y^-1. The projected mean using equivalences was 12.2 g (AFDW) m² y^-1. A student t-test showed no significant differences between this two means. We suggest using the weight equivalences proposed by Crisp to find reliable AFDW estimates.
Conclusion: Results indicate that using only two sieves of 1.0 and 0.5 mm, allows an appropriate estimation of abundance of individuals in small size classes. Crisp equivalences procedure to assess secondary production reduces the amount of time and effort needed to obtain AFDW assessments without causing bias in the interpretation of community composition and structure.

Aim: The current research was designed to evaluate the biological and antioxidant activities of Chrysanthemum coronarium.
Methodology: Two main experiments were designed to evaluate the biological activity of ethanolic extract Chrysanthemum coronarium first one concerned with hepatoprotective activity at concentrations of 200 and 400mg/kg, the second experiment was established to study the effect of the same doses on male fertility.
Results: Our results revealed that; total extract of C. coronarium and their four fractions (diethyl ether, chloroform, ethyl acetate and n-butanol) showed antioxidant activity, in which the highest activity achieved with ethyl acetate fraction. In biological evaluation C. coronarium at dose of 400mg/kg showed hepatoprotective activity, also it showed significant improvement of the relative weight of reproductive organs, sperm count, sperm motility, total sperm abnormality, testosterone and LH.
Conclusion: The results suggest that C. coronarium has a significant hepatoprotective activity and improve fertility at 400mg/kg.

In order to know the feasibility of using physical methods such as pre-sowing treatment and evaluated infield for maize production in agrosystems with moisture and inputs limitations, five varieties were used: “HS-2”, “CP-20”, “Promesa”, “HT-Precoz”, “CPV-20”, and “Criollo de Mineral de Pozos”, Gto. The seeds were treated with 560 mT variable electromagnetic field during 30 minutes before sowing. There were significant statistical differences among treatments for ear weight and for varieties in plant height and ear height and weight. The HS-2 hybrid had the lowest value for emergency velocity and emerged plants percentage, but yielded at 12% humidity 4,950 t ha^-1 with magnetism and 3,863 t ha^-1 without magnetism, it out yielded the rest of the varieties; meanwhile the Native variety had 1,864 t ha^-1 under rain-fed conditions; without treatment it yielded 1,494 t ha^-1 under rain-fed conditions. It was showed that treatment with the magnetic field tends to increase an 28.13% and 24.76% in improved and native varieties, respectively. HS-2, CPV-20 and Criollo M. de Pozos varieties had a low grain moisture content when they were harvested suggesting that magnetism could promote an early physiological maturity.

Aims: This work was for the first time; undertaken to study the effect of different explant types and plant growth regulators on the callus induction and plant regeneration in both Satureja species. This protocol can be successfully employed for the large-scale multiplication and conservation of threatened this medicinal plant.
Study Design: The development and maintenance of callus lines from the hypocotyl and leaves of Satureja hortensis and Satureja avromanica and the study of plant growth regulators on plant regeneration. Micropropagation of these aromatic plants can play a role in the protection of the natural eco¬system, guarantee a massive sustainable produc-tion and can provide standardized plant materials for diverse economical purposes.
Place and Duration of Study: Experiments were carried out at the Department of Biology at Razi University of Kermanshah (Iran) in January 2011.
Methodology: The sterilized seeds were cultured on Murashige and Skoog medium, and then the explants were cultured from seedling and transferred to a MS medium supplemented with different concentration of BAP, Kinetin, NAA and 2,4-D growth regulator hormones.
Results: The highest percentage of callus formation frequency (96.67) in S. hortensis was obtained from hypocotyl explants grown on MS media supplemented with 1 mg L^-12,4-D and 2 mg L^-1KIN whereas media supplemented with 0.5 mg L^-12,4-D, 0.5 mg L^-1BAP and 0.5 mg L^-1NAA was the best for callus formation of hypocotyls (66.67%) in S. avromanica. Calli derived from hypocotyl segments of S. hortensis showed significantly higher frequency of plantlet regeneration than the calli derived from leaf segments. However, hypocotyl segments of S. avromanica were more efficient in plantlet regeneration which produced 87.30% shoot regeneration at MS medium supplemented with 1 mg L^-1 BA and 1 mg L^-1 IBA.
Conclusion: This protocol can be successfully employed for the large-scale multiplication and conservation of germplasm these plants.

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the hypoglycaemic and hypolipidaemic effects of the aqueous leaf extract of Tithonia diversifolia in Wistar albino rats.
Methodology: Aqueous extracts of the leaves of Tithonia diversifolia was screened for hypoglycemic and hypolipidaemic activity at 400 mg/kg body weight in alloxan induced diabetic Wistar albino rats for 21 days.The extracts were administered orally for 21 days and blood glucose levels were checked at the end of 21 days.Also an hourly assessment of the percentage reduction in blood glucose level was done in diabetic rats giving a single oral dose of 400mg/kg aqueous extract of Tithonia diversifolia. High density lipoprotein (HDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL), total serum cholesterol and triglycerides levels were also estimated. A comparison was made between the action of Tithonia diversifolia leaf extract and glibenclamide a standard drug.
Results: The extract caused 82.3% reduction in blood sugar level of diabetic rats at the end of the 21 days treatment and also caused a36.0% reductions in blood sugar level 24 hours after administration of a single dose of the aqueous extract. The extract equally produces statistical significant reductions in the values of serum cholesterol and low density lipoprotein while it significantly increased the serum high density lipoprotein.

Conclusion: This study thus indicates that Tithonia diversifolia aqueous leaf extract produces significant glycemic and lipids control in diabetic rats, these findings may imply a therapeutic advantage in the use of the extract in the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Aims: Recent studies have demonstrated that all molecules of the respiratory chain are present in the photoreceptor outer segment (see Calzia et al., Biol Cell 2013). Furthermore, our group (Roehlecke et al., PLoS One 2013) could show that, after blue light stress of the retina, the outer segments are significant sources of reactive oxygen species (ROS) – even more so than the mitochondria in the inner segment. These two new findings have also important implications for degenerative diseases of the retina.
Methodology: In this respect we revisited the literature regarding the photoreceptor reactions after blue light and radical stress. Furthermore, we refer to the common features of mitochondria and outer segments.
Results: In the light of the recent findings many unique features of the photoreceptors get understandable: they are characterized by excessive oxygen consumption - even higher than that of other neuronal cells. Photoreceptors possess, in addition to their mitochondria – rich neuronal component an outer segment packed with stacks of membrane discs harbouring the photo pigments, respiratory enzymes and enzymes of the visual cycle.
Therapeutic use of red and near infrared light is often explained by ameliorating the mitochondrial function; therefore, we also discuss this topic with respect to photoreceptor outer segments.
Conclusion: Revisiting the functional anatomy with the above mentioned new findings is very important also for the interpretation of the neurodegenerative diseases like age related macular disease (AMD).